FILE PHOTO: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad meets with Syrian army soldiers in eastern Ghouta, Syria, March 18, 2018. SANA/Handout via REUTERS

BEIRUT (Reuters) - President Bashar al-Assad told his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani that a U.S.-led attack on Saturday would increase Syria’s resolve to “fight and crush terrorism in every inch” of the country, the Syrian presidency said.

Rouhani told Assad that Iran would continue to stand by Syria, “expressing his confidence that this aggression would not weaken the determination of the Syrian people in its war against terrorism”.