President confirms his government is being kept informed by third parties of campaign against Islamic State

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

The Syrian government is being continually informed via Iraq and other countries about US-led air strikes against Islamic militants in Syria, , Bashar al-Assad has said.

In a defiant interview with the BBC, the Syrian president said his government would not enter an alliance with the US against Islamic State (Isis). But he confirmed his government was being tipped off about the five-month, US-led campaign of aerial bombardment against Isis positions, despite Washington’s support for the armed opposition against his regime.

Asked whether “someone is talking to someone” about the air strikes, Assad replied: “That’s correct. But again there’s no direct co-operation.”

He confirmed that messages about the attacks were conveyed to Syria through Iraq and other countries. Pressed on how the messages were received, Assad said: “Through a third party – more than one party – Iraq and other countries. Sometimes they convey message, general message, but there’s nothing tactical.”



But Assad ruled out joining the coalition against Isis even though his air force also continues to strike Isis positions, saying: “We cannot be in an alliance with countries which support terrorism” – a reference to US support for other rebel groups in Syria.

Assad said US officials “easily trample over international law, which is about our sovereignty now, so they don’t talk to us, we don’t talk to them”.

More than 210,000 people have been killed in Syria since the conflict began with anti-government protests in March 2011.

In the interview, Assad also denied using barrel bombs against opposition forces and civilians despite widely documented evidence of the use of such devices being dropped from helicopters.



Assad said: “They’re called bombs. We have bombs, missiles and bullets ... There is no barrel bombs, we don’t have barrels.”

He added: “There are no indiscriminate weapons. When you shoot, you aim, and when you shoot, when you aim, you aim at terrorists in order to protect civilians … You cannot have war without casualties.”

Syria’s main western-backed opposition group, the national coalition, described him as “a pathological liar and delusional.”

Philip Hammond, Britain’s foreign secretary, said: “Assad is deluded or lying when he says his military are not murdering hundreds of innocent civilians with the use of barrel bombs. His regime has waged a brutal campaign against the Syrian people, using crude and indiscriminate weapons and prevented access to life-saving humanitarian assistance.

“Assad’s forces have systematically murdered, tortured, raped and imprisoned Syrians. There can be no doubt that he is the problem, not part of the solution. The UK’s position has not changed, we have no dialogue with Assad; there must be a political transition to a future in which Assad has no part.”

Human Rights Watch, which has compiled a dossier of evidence of the extensive use of barrel bombs, accused Assad of lying in the interview.

Andrew Stroehlein (@astroehlein) Syria's Assad denies using barrel bombs (11:20) http://t.co/iEUvrFAGCO He's lying: http://t.co/Vv9TjwOV5a pic.twitter.com/ISG6lV8KbJ

Its deputy director for the Middle East, Nadim Houry, pointed out that even the UN security council, including Russia and China, which have been supportive of the Assad government, have accepted that barrel bombs are being used by the Syrian air force.

Nadim Houry (@nadimhoury) Someone should tell Assad that even Security Council referred to his barrel bombs 9 times in resoution 2139 #Syria http://t.co/5LJB0IQfmF

Assad dismissed US plans to support and train moderate opposition forces in Syria as a “pipe dream”, insisting that the opponents of his regime were all extremists like Isis, al-Qaida and its affiliates. “They are the same grassroots,” he said.

He claimed the opposition to his government has been violent from the outset. “From the very beginning the demonstrations weren’t peaceful,” he said. And he denied his government had made mistakes in his violent crackdown against the opposition.

“We took the decision to fight terrorism from the very beginning,” Assad said.

