Events in Aleppo resemble ISIS’s 2014 actions in Iraq – Iraqi official
DAMASCUS, Syria (North Press) – The spokesperson for the Iraqi Armed Forces, Yahya Rasool, has compared the developments in Aleppo Governorate, northwestern Syria, to the events that unfolded in Iraq in 2014.
Rasool underscored that the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) would only cross into Syrian territory if Iraq’s own security or borders were directly threatened, as reported by the 964 news agency.
He highlighted that the situation in Aleppo mirrors Iraq’s experience in 2014, where forces entered under the guise of liberators. “They were welcomed by the oppressed people, who believed they were being freed. However, they then committed atrocities, killing people and leaving Sunni communities to suffer from starvation, destruction, and the exploitation of women and captives,” Rasool said.
The spokesperson detailed Iraq’s fortified measures along its border with Syria, including trenches, barbed wire, berms, walls, equipped border forces, surveillance drones, and thermal cameras.
Rasool confirmed that Iraqi intelligence has infiltrated “terrorist” organizations operating in Syria and emphasized that Iraqi forces would strike decisively if any such group attempted to approach the border.
He also suggested that Abu Muhammad al-Julani, leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (formerly al-Nusra Front), may be of Saudi nationality. However, he clarified that the PMF has not entered Syrian territory.
Rasool added that while resistance factions may act independently based on their doctrine, their actions do not fall under direct government oversight.
Last Wednesday, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) gained control of Aleppo city and its countryside, advancing further into rural Hama, Aleppo, and Idlib. These developments occurred amidst a notable retreat of Syrian government forces.