On Blatant Attempts by Assad Regime & Russia to Undermine Idlib Agreement & Justify Violations & Attacks

Press release

Syrian Coalition

Department of Media and Communications

November 26, 2018

Russia continues to adopt the lies and allegations of the Assad regime and promote them in various media outlets in an attempt to spread chaos and conceal the facts and to undermine the political process.

There have been recently an increased buildup of Iranian militias in areas around Aleppo and Idlib in an attempt to fabricate pretexts and justifications for their continuing violations of the Idlib agreement. Russia, meanwhile, has sought to provide a cover for these moves, ignoring the Assad regime’s responsibility for the use of chemical weapons more than 140 times since the start of the conflict.

The Assad regime and Russia’s latest allegations about a chemical attack ahead of the upcoming Astana meeting is blindingly clear. The Assad regime, Russia and Iran are seeking to disrupt the meeting thus emptying it of any meaning as well as dodge their obligations ahead of the resumption of the Geneva negotiations and political process.

The Assad regime, with the help of its Russian and Iranian allies, besieged the Syrian people as well as killed and detained hundreds of thousands and displaced millions more with the use of every means at its disposal, beginning with barrel bombs all the way up to chemical weapons. The Assad regime and Iranian terrorist militias will not hesitate to target any location and commit massacres anywhere to serve their interests. They have pursued these polices over the past several years and are pursuing them now in Aleppo to displace and terrorize its population.

The world has a duty to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people and stand up to the crimes taking place against them. We will closely follow these violations and crimes and deal with them with the utmost care and credibility. We therefore reiterate the need to reactivate the Joint Investigative Mechanism; refer all the crimes committed in Syria to the International Criminal Court; and bring those with blood on their hands to justice.