US, Turkey know Daesh leader's whereabouts: Syria

Syria's UN ambassador has complained about the Western countries' collusion with Daesh, saying the US and Turkey know the whereabouts of the Takfiri terrorist group's ringleader, Ibrahim al-Samarrai, aka Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

In an interview with Lebanon-based al-Mayadeen television channel on Friday, Bashar al-Ja'afari said that terrorism is used as a tool by its sponsors and financiers.

He also accused the US-led coalition, which is bombarding what it calls Daesh positions, of transferring Daesh elements.

"Algerian authorities arrested hundreds of terrorists on its borders with Nigeria, and after interrogating the terrorists it was revealed that they had come from Aleppo’s countryside, wondering who transported these terrorists from Syria to the Algerian-Nigerian borders," Ja'afari said. "Americans and Turks know where Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is."

The Syrian envoy further denounced a recent deal clinched between the US and Daesh, under which Washington received “tens of tons of gold" in exchange for allowing terrorists out of Syria's Dayr al-Zawr Province.

Daesh started its campaign of terror in Iraq and Syria in 2014, occupying territory in the two Arab countries and establishing a self-proclaimed “caliphate.” The Iraqi and Syrian armies — both receiving advisory military help from Iran — galvanized to retake Daesh-held territory.

The Takfiri outfit was gradually stripped of all the land it had occupied, but Daesh remnants are now believed to be hiding in the Iraqi-Syrian border region.

Ja'afari said that the Western states are working "to prolong the crisis in Syria" and that the administration of US President Donald Trump is seeking to keep up "investing in terrorism" in Syria and Iraq in order to pursue its agenda in the region.

He also hailed relations between Syria, Iran and Russia as "excellent," noting that talks about a rift between the trio is just "media propaganda."

"What is the interest of the Arabs in creating hostility with an important country like Iran? What is the interest of the Persian Gulf states in a war that Arabs and Iranians are fueling and Israel is watching?" he asked.

Ja'afari stressed that relations with Iran and Russia serve Syria's interests and that Damascus would not "compromise" with anyone regarding its ties with Tehran.

Separately on Friday, Syria strongly denounced a decision by the UK government to put the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement on its list of terrorist organizations.

A source at the Syrian Foreign Ministry said that the move confirms Britain’s "deep-seated historical hostility against the Arab nation, as Britain is the godfather of fragmenting the Arab nation."

The UK, he added, has "a dark history of enslaving people and usurping their rights," harbors extremists and has been a main partner in all forms of aggression against the Arab nation.

Earlier this week, Britain said it planned to ban all wings of Hezbollah, having previously proscribed the group's external security unit and its military wing. 

Hezbollah condemned the ban as an “insult” to the Lebanese people.

MG