Beirut,
Aug 3 (Reuters) - Lebanon's Hezbollah said the partition of Iraq and
Syria was a possible outcome of sectarian fighting across the region and
there was no prospect of any end to the war in Syria until after
November's U.S. presidential election.
Sheikh
Naim Qassem, deputy leader of the Iran-backed group, whose forces are
fighting alongside President Bashar al-Assad against rebels supported by
Western and regional powers, said Hezbollah, Iran and Russia would
stand by Assad until the end.
In
an interview with Reuters, he said recapturing Aleppo, Syria's second
major city where a decisive battle is unfolding, remained an objective
but was not an immediate goal.
The
U.S. and its allies say that by waging war against his own people,
Assad can have no future in Syria, while Russia and Iran, wholly opposed
to regime change, maintain he is the legitimate president, albeit of a
state shrunk by rebel gains.
Both
coalitions fear his sudden departure could destroy what is left of
Syria after more than five years of civil war, bequeathing a shell state
to the jihadis of Islamic State and Al Qaeda.
Qassem said both Syria and neighbouring Iraq, where Islamic State has also seized territory, could split.
"On
the battlefield and in view of regional and international interventions
I don't rule out that one of the ideas proposed is finding a state of
partition in those two countries but will it succeed or not?
"So
far the forces that want the unity of Iraq and Syria are able to
prevent the idea of partition but we should remain worried about ... the
possibility that some countries might push these two countries or one
of them into partition."
Assad was the best protection against this, Qassem said.
"With
President Assad the solution can be logical and rational in finding
political parameters that can give the opposition its share and the
regime its share and there could be coordination which allows for
putting things back in order and reviving authority in Syria", the
white-turbaned sheikh said.
DIE-HARD COMMITMENT
The
intervention of Russia's air force since last September, after Iran,
Hezbollah, and Iraqi Shi'ite militiamen had fought relentlessly to keep
Assad in place, has confounded the designs of Washington and regional
Sunni powers such as Saudi Arabia and Turkey, Qassem said, opening the
way to a political solution.
"Iranian
and Russian relations with Syria helped achieve steadfastness on the
ground because both support Assad staying in power and back a political
solution," the Hezbollah number two told Reuters.
The
Syria war grew out of Arab spring-inspired protests in 2011 calling for
democratic change. Before Iran, Hezbollah and Russia came to Assad's
aid, his grip on power appeared to be failing. Their support was seen by
diplomats and Middle East experts as key to Assad's survival.
Syria's
civil war, now in its sixth year, has killed more than 250,000 people,
displaced more than 6.6 million inside the country and forced another
4.8 million to flee, creating a huge influx into neighbouring countries
and Europe.
Qassem
said the months-long push on rebel-held Aleppo by Assad's government
forces was aimed less at recovering Syria's major city than at
separating the rebels from Idlib, their stronghold in the north-west,
and choking their supply lines from Turkey.
Aleppo, with a population of more than 2 million people now, has been divided for years into rebel and government areas.
"The
main objective of the Syrian state and allies was to cut the road
between the city of Aleppo and Idlib. As for liberating Aleppo that's a
different goal that may not be undertaken quickly..."
"Regaining
Aleppo will remain one of the goals of the Syrian state and its allies
but we're not tied to a timeframe", said the Hezbollah leader.
FIGHTING GLOBAL THREAT
The
Lebanese group, a Shi'ite Islamist party with a powerful armed wing,
describes its role as part of a struggle against the growing regional
threat presented by Sunni Muslim jihadists, who it labels takfiris for
their radical ideology, violent and uncompromising stance.
The
conflict in Syria has further fuelled an old regional rivalry between
the Shi'ite Islamist government of Iran and the conservative Sunni
Muslim kingdom of Saudi Arabia, one of the main sponsors of the
insurgency against Assad.
Qassem
said the United States, one of the power brokers in finding a solution
to the crisis, was distracted by its November presidential elections and
not ready to commit to any action until a new president takes over next
year.
"The
US administration is convinced that the period ahead of the
presidential elections is a wasted time, that it can await until the new
president assumes power. Then, the prospects of a solution or of a
prolongation of the crisis will be clear."
He
said the sacrifices of Hezbollah, which has lost hundreds of fighters
in Syria, were worthy, otherwise the ultra-hardline jihadists of Islamic
State would have taken control in Syria and expanded into Lebanon.
"We
have prevented the expansion of the crisis into Lebanon and this is a
major achievement, we prevented the takfiris from disrupting the
resistance and laid the basis for the steadfastness of Syria. These
great achievements deserve every sacrifice," he said.
He
said Islamic State, which is being targeted by coalition air strikes,
will increase its attacks in Europe and beyond, adding that the group
has an expansionist strategy and will use any means to achieve its
goals.
"European
pains are big and will increase more and more," Qassem said, adding
that Islamic State "will not leave an opportunity in all the countries
of the world without exception to attack when it can and when is able
to."
(Editing by Philippa Fletcher)
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