The Islamic Republic of Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi on Tuesday, December 3 raised serious concerns regarding the resumption of hostilities in Syria labelling the situation as “Takfiri terrorism” in the war-torn country and attributing the escalation to the roles played by the United States and its historical ally Israel.
According to the reports of the Iranian news Agency Press TV, Araghchi stated, “We differentiate not between the occupiers of the Zionist regime and the Takfiri terrorists,” highlighting the Iranian government’s point that certain foreign actors fund militants for the sake of destabilizing the Middle East.
It is pertinent to mention here that, Takfiri is an Arabic term that refers to the act of accusing a fellow Muslim of being an apostate.
Araghchi made this statement during diplomatic engagements including discussions with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
In the message posted on his X account, Araghchi pointed out that the current escalation poses a great risk of expanding to other neighbouring regions, with no party benefiting from a renewed war in Syria.
He reaffirmed Iran’s enduring support to Syria’s government and its military in the war against terrorism. Araghchi stressed that the ongoing hostilities could potentially lead to a broader expansion of terrorism across the Middle East, calling for urgent international action to address these threats.
The backdrop to these remarks is a massive military operation by the Islamist militants, including Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) who have captured several districts villages and large areas in Aleppo city. The situation has prompted retaliation from the Syrian forces, backed by the Russian air attacks as they attempt to regain their territories.
Araghchi also added that watchfulness must be kept by other neighbours and described that recent attacks by the rebel forces infringe the agreements on de-escalation in the frame of the Astana Process with Iran, Turkey, and the Russian Federation.
