Russia calls for immediate UNSC meeting after accusing US of defending ISIS
The UN Security Council.
(IraqiNews.com) Baghdad – Moscow has accused the United States of defending ISIS and called for an immediate UN Security Council meeting after a US-led coalition air force hit Syrian forces near Deir ez-Zour and killed 62 soldiers, as well as wounding 100 more.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has demanded detailed explanation from Washington over the incident.
Spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, in a media interaction said, “After today’s airstrikes on the Syrian army, we come to a really terrifying conclusion for the entire world, i.e., The White House is defending ISIS.”
“We demand a full and detailed explanation from Washington. That explanation must be given at the UN Security Council,” Zakharova added.
The ministry also revealed that the Russian side was never notified of US air strikes at Deir ez-Zor, and stressed that US air strikes against Syrian forces jeopardized the Syrian ceasefire deal reached between Moscow and Washington earlier this month.
Meanwhile, Syrian Minister of Defense Fahd Jassem al-Freij said, “The US-led coalition airstrikes have cleared the way for ISIS fighters to take over Deir ez-Zor city.”
“It is only because of Russian Air Force support the offensive of the terrorist group was stopped. We request that the air support for the Syrian armed forces to be continued by the Russian Air Force in order to destroy the terrorists,” Freij added.
The Pentagon did not admit that coalition airstrikes had hit Syrian forces, but said that pilots had believed they were striking an ISIS position, and may have struck Syrian government forces instead. The US government also pointed out that airstrike was halted immediately when officials were informed by Russians that it was possible the personnel and vehicles targeted were part of the Syrian military.
United States Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power denounced the Russian call for the UN meeting as a stunt, and said, “Even by Russia’s standards, tonight’s stunt – a stunt replete with morality and grandstanding – is uniquely cynical and hypocritical,” adding that, “If US-led coalition air strikes did hit Syrian forces on Saturday, it was unintentional and Washington regrets any loss of life.”
“Since 2011, the Assad regime has been intentionally striking civilian targets with horrifying, predictable regularity. They have besieged civilian areas, prevented life-saving aid from reaching people who are starving to death, and dying of illnesses that could be treated with basic medicine,” Power added.
It may be mentioned here that Putin has been supporting Assad government since the beginning of the war with money, aid and, and airstrikes, that were responsible for tens of thousands of civilians killed, many with chemical weapons, according to rights groups.