Behrouz Esbati, an Iranian general, partly blamed Russia for the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria.
In a speech in Tehran, Al-Asbati accused Russia of bombing an empty desert instead of striking Syrian rebels.
Although his explicit statements are difficult to verify, they are notable because Russia is one of Iran’s strongest allies.
A top Iranian general has accused Russia of lying to Tehran by saying its planes were attacking Syrian rebels while bombing the open desert.
In a rare break from IranDiplomatic Line on Syria, Brig. General Behrouz Isbati partly blamed Moscow for the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government during a speech at a mosque in Tehran.
that Audio recording Abdullah Abdi, a Geneva-based journalist who reports on Iran, published the text of the letter on Tuesday.
“We were beaten, we were beaten badly, we were hit very hard and it was very difficult,” Ispati said. The fall of the lionper translation by New York Times.
In the recording, Isbati, a senior commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, said that Russia informed Tehran that it was bombing the headquarters of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. Hayat Tahrir al-Shamthe rebel group leading the overthrow of Assad.
But Moscow’s forces were instead “targeting the deserts,” according to Ispaty.
Ispati also accused Russia of turning off the radars when Israel launched strikes on Syria In 2024, allowing Tel Aviv forces to attack more effectively.
The general also largely blamed internal corruption for Assad’s downfall, saying bribery was rampant among senior officials and generals in Syria.
He added that relations between Damascus and Tehran became tense over the past year because Assad rejected an Iranian request to facilitate attacks on Israel through Syria.
Business Insider was unable to independently verify Esbate’s claims. But it represents an exceptionally frank assessment among senior Iranian officials of its position in Syria, where a new political leadership is still gathering in Assad’s absence.
As for Iran, it has officially taken a more moderate tone With the fall of the Assad government, it said at the time that the fate of Syria would be in the hands of its people and that it would “spare no effort to help establish security and stability in Syria.”
Assad, a longtime ally of both Iran and Russia, fled Damascus in early December as Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham forces stormed toward the capital from the northwest. International observers believe that the rebel advance has largely occurred MoscowIt is a major source of military power for Assad, but it has found its resources weakened by the war in Ukraine.
The Russian Defense Ministry did not respond to Business Insider’s request for comment outside normal business hours.
Al-Asbati’s comments came as a former senior aide to Assad told Saudi government-owned outlets Al Arabiya On Monday, Russian leader Vladimir Putin had stopped military aid to Syria.
Kamel Sakr said that Assad asked Putin to personally approve the airlift of military aid to Syria — and that the Russian leader agreed.
The aid was scheduled to be transported via Iranian aircraft, but Saqr said that Tehran informed Assad that it had not received any requests from Moscow.
Saqr said that Assad then asked Moscow about this, but “no response came.”
The fall of Assad, which neither Moscow nor Tehran intervened to prevent, has had profound repercussions for Russian forces in the region. Moscow had previously relied on Air base and naval base, Which it retained under an agreement with Assad for its operations in Africa and the Mediterranean.
It is unclear whether Russia will eventually be able to continue maintaining these two facilities, but reports show that it is preparing to move a large portion of its nuclear facilities. Equipment outside Syria. On January 3, Ukraine said Moscow was It plans to move its assets to Libya.
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