France responds to Bashar al-Assad’s accusation they support terrorism in Syria

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Monday accused France of supporting terrorism in his country, while Paris said Assad was not in a position to give lessons after slaughtering his people.

“It is known that France has been the spearhead of terrorism in Syria since the early days,” the Syrian President was quoted by local media. “Their hands have been engulfed in Syrian blood, and we do not see that they have radically changed their position so far.”

“Those who support terrorism do not have the right to talk about peace,” he added.

Meanwhile, during a visit to Washington to meet senior US officials, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said his country would ignore comments made by Assad.

“France will not receive lessons from a man who drove thousands of hardline Islamists out of jail to fuel a civil war and relied on Russia and Iran to stay in power,” he stated.

“When you spend your days slaughtering your people, you will be more isolated,” Le Drian added.

The French government has accused their Syrian counterparts of doing nothing to reach a peace deal after the seven-year-old civil war, adding Assad was still committing mass crimes in the western region of Ghutah, where government forces have surrounded 400,000 people.

France is one of the countries that has supported the Syrian opposition but has taken a more practical approach to the Syrian conflict since the arrival of President Emmanuel Macron.

On Monday, the French President said his country would seek peace talks involving all parties to the Syrian conflict, including Assad, and pledged to launch initiatives early next year.

“We have to talk to everybody. We have to talk to [Assad] and his representatives,” Macron said. “Afterward, he must answer for his crimes before his people, before international justice.”