Tehran Ensures Iran's Military Adviser Remains In Syria And Helps Fight Terrorism

JAKARTA - Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday Iranian military advisers would remain in Syria and continue to assist Damascus in fighting terrorism.

"We have been stationed there at the invitation of the Syrian government since the Syrian people first faced terrorist threats. We recently bid farewell to a honorable military commander, (Kioumars Pourhashemi, senior Iranian military adviser to Syria) who was killed (on November 28) in a terrorist attack in Aleppo," said Esmaeil Baghaei, as reported by TASS December 2.

"The presence of Iranian advisers is nothing new, and, taking into account the wishes of the Syrian government, it will continue," he continued at a press conference broadcast on the SNN TV channel.

He further said that Tehran was concerned about developments in Syria and was involved in a dialogue with participants of the Syrian peace process Astana, Russia, and Turkey, which is the guarantor of the settlement process.

"The Astana format is one of the most effective mechanisms to resolve the Syrian crisis. We remain committed to this format," the diplomat stressed.

Tehran itself has been an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad during the civil war that erupted in 2011, sending thousands of fighters to Syria, quoted by Al Arabiya News.

Baghaei did not specify whether Iran would increase its troops in Syria after the opposition flash strikes.

The city of Aleppo has fallen to the opposition over the past week, according to the war monitoring agency Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

On November 28, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reported the death of Brigadier General Kioumars Pourhashemi in a terrorist attack in northern Syria. The day before, the extremist group Jabhat al-Nusra (forbidden in Russia) carried out a massive attack in northern Syria.

The Syrian Armed Forces Command said in a statement that terrorists were trying to attack villages and cities under the protection of the Syrian army and military facilities, by continuing to target the position of government forces. The Syrian army launched operations to fend off the attack.

On November 30, the Syrian armed forces command stated that soldiers were carrying out attacks on terrorist positions that managed to infiltrate many neighborhoods in the city of Aleppo.

According to a statement by the Syrian Ministry of Defense, the army was forced to rearrange its troops to protect the lives of civilians and troops and prepare for a counterattack.