Following the liberation of Daraa in the south, Idlib remains the “world’s largest open prison” for some three million people and the last terrorist stronghold in Syria.
“Anything that is actively promoted by the US will not affect the determination of the Syrian people and Syrian army’s plans to clear Idlib and finally put an end to terrorism in Syria,” Syrian Foreign minister Walid Muallem said in an interview.
According to him, the US accusations about alleged plans regarding chemical attacks have become questionable in the eyes of public opinion and are just an excuse for a possible attack on Syria.
“We, the people and leadership of Syria, would like to end the conflict today, but the intervention of Western countries headed by the US makes it difficult,” Muallem said.
In August, Russian officials warned of a conspiracy by terrorists to launch an alleged chemical attack in order to provoke Western retaliation against the Syrian government.
US National Security Adviser John Bolton earlier stated that Washington and its partners would respond in a “swift and appropriate manner” to any verified chemical weapons use in Idlib or elsewhere in Syria.
In April, Western media outlets reported that a chemical attack had been carried out in the Syrian city of Douma.
Western countries immediately accused the Syrian government of being behind the attack. Damascus denied the accusations and said that the Jaish al-Islam* terror group had staged the attack to encourage foreign intervention in Syria.
Following the accusations, the US, the UK and France launched over 100 missiles on multiple targets in the country in response to the alleged use of chemical weapons.