Embattled President stands defiant as world leaders unite to condemn use of chemical warfare in wake of devastating poison gas attack
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said there is no “option except victory” in the country's civil war in a new interview published today, saying the government could not reach “results” with opposition groups that attended recent peace talks.
The interview with Croatian newspaper Vecernji List appeared to have been conducted before US President Donald Trump accused Assad of crossing “many, many lines” with a poison gas attack on Tuesday.
Assad was not asked about the chemical attack in the northwestern Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun, a text of the interview published by the Syrian state news agency SANA showed. The government has strongly denied any role.
More than six years into the Syrian conflict, Assad appears militarily unassailable in the areas of western Syria where he has shored up his rule with decisive help from the Russian military and Iranian-backed militias from across the region.