BEIRUT, LEBANON (1:45 A.M.) – The U.S. may use jihadists to capture the ancient city of Palmyra from the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) in a bid to expand their presence in Syria, Major General (ret.) Mohammad ‘Abbas told Sputnik Arabic on Saturday.

“The US is working to continue the war in Syria. It’s quite possible that Palmyra can again become the target for an attack. Because the seizure of Palmyra would shake the stability and security that the Syrian government has provided there over the last two years,” Abbas said.

‘Abbas would continue by saying that that these armed groups are covertly working with the American military company Blackwater.

“The Americans continue to support various armed groups implementing their plans in the region. All of them are connected in one way or another to the American military company Blackwater, and represent the ‘alternative Syrian Army’,” Abbas added.

The U.S. currently controls a large stretch of land in the southeastern countryside of the Homs Governorate; this large American presence has agitated the Syrian government, who claims this is a violation of international law.