Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif Not Ruling Out Military Action Against Militants In Syria's Idlib

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif did not rule out that an offensive against terrorists in Syria's Idlib province could be launched because all other options to secure the area have proved fruitless and armed groups only strengthened their positions in the region

GENEVA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd February, 2019) Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif did not rule out that an offensive against terrorists in Syria's Idlib province could be launched because all other options to secure the area have proved fruitless and armed groups only strengthened their positions in the region.

"We are moving in this direction. We have never wanted a military operation [in Idlib] and we have been working to avoid it because we know that any kind of military action in Idlib would turn into a catastrophe. However, other approaches have failed, while the Nusra Front [terrorist organization, banned in Russia] has come to control even more [of the province's] territory," Zarif said in the interview with the Swiss Basler Zeitung newspaper, published on Friday.

The Idlib province was captured by the Nusra Front jihadists in 2015. Two years later, when Iran, Russia and Turkey reached an agreement on the establishment of Syrian de-escalation zones, militants from various armed anti-government groups that refused to surrender to the Syrian government forces were transported to Idlib from across the country.

The Idlib de-escalation zone now remains the last major stronghold of terrorists and armed rebels in Syria. In September 2018, ceasefire guarantors Russia and Turkey agreed to set up in Idlib a 9-12 mile deep demilitarized zone, which would be cleared of heavy weapons and militants.

However, despite progress in the withdrawal of weapons and fighters from the area, remaining militants regularly commit ceasefire violations by shelling nearby provinces. Moreover, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in January that the Nusra Front had taken over around 70 percent of the demilitarized zone.

On Friday, Bouthaina Shaaban, a political and media adviser to Syrian President Bashar Assad, said that Damascus had decided to regain control over the Idlib province and was already discussing the time frame and ways to implement that decision.