The international coalition against Islamic State on Wednesday accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of allowing the jihadists to move through territory he controls “with impunity.”
“They seem to be moving with impunity through regime-held territory, showing that the regime is clearly either unwilling or unable to defeat Daesh within their borders,” British Army Major General Felix Gedney, Deputy Commander, Strategy and Support for Operation Inherent Resolve, told journalists, using an Arabic acronym for ISIS.
Gedney indicated that the coalition does not plan to pursue ISIS fighters into regime-held areas, instead calling on Assad to do so.
“We will remain committed to defeating [ISIS] in the areas that are currently controlled by our partner forces in Syria, and we would call on the Syrian regime to clear [ISIS] from those areas that are currently under their control,” said Gedney.
ISIS overran large areas in Iraq and Syria, but concerted efforts by local ground forces backed by international strikes have seen the jihadists lose all the cities they once controlled in both countries.
With reporting from AFP