Syria may turn to its allies for help in carrying out ground operations against the Islamic State group if the need arises, Syrian Information Minister Omran Zoubi told Sputnik on Wednesday.
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French military strikes in Syria will continue because Islamic State wants “to come to France and Europe to carry out attacks”, he said.
Le Drian also said “80 to 90 per cent” of Russian strikes in Syria were aimed at propping up President Bashar al-Assad, Moscow’s long-term ally. He and others in the campaign speak directly to the camera and are only identified by their first names.
Iran denies having any military forces in Syria.
Russia’s defence ministry has been under sustained criticism from the West for its role in the Syrian conflict and denied a claim by a U.S. official that four Syria-bound Russian cruise missiles fired from the Caspian Sea crashed in Iran.
Iranian state television is reporting that a senior commander in Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard has been killed in Syria.
The Anadolu Agency said Friday that Leyla, 27, died in the attack in the town of Hreitan, in northern Aleppo province, late Thursday. In a report this week, Britain’s Quilliam Foundation found that Islamic State had released more than 1,100 pieces of propaganda in a one-month period this summer.
It was the second time French forces have struck IS targets in Syria.
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The United States has also expanded an online campaign to counter jihadi messages, sharing stories of defectors, highlighting Muslim victims of terrorism, and showcasing the living conditions and battlefield realities in areas held by the extremist group.
