Part of intl. community reluctant to fight terror: Syria

Syria’s ambassador to the United Nations (UN) has blamed the plight of his countrymen, suffering under almost seven years of a militancy, on an influential part of the international community that is reluctant to truly battle terrorism.

“What is needed is true political will to combat terrorism and punish their supporters and financiers,” Bashar Ja’afari told a UN meeting on Monday.

Some governments are backing terrorist groups in a bid “to overthrow legitimate governments, destroy states and their capabilities, kill their citizens and displace them as refugees,” he added.

The Syrian envoy also said that foreign terrorists were infiltrating into Syria “through a firm and successive process” organized by many governments and intelligence apparatuses.

Both Syria’s and Iraq’s neighboring states host training camps, weapon depots, and operation rooms for the so-called moderate armed opposition, Ja’afari said. The training camps, he said, are supervised by intelligence and military officers from the countries that are involved in bringing terrorists and their arms to Syria.

The Syrian diplomat further stressed that Damascus supported UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ efforts to activate the role of the world body to fight terrorism.

Back in June, the UN General Assembly approved the establishment of a new UN office to help member states implement a global counter-terrorism strategy.

Syria has been fighting different foreign-sponsored terrorist groups since March 2011. The US and its regional allies have been supporting anti-Damascus militants.