U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks from the Rose Backyard of the White Home in Washington, U.S., November 26, 2024.
Nathan Howard | Reuters
President Joe Biden cheered the toppling of Syria’s dictatorship in remarks on Sunday, however he warned concerning the uncertainty in the course of the nation’s political transition.
“It is a second of historic alternative for the long-suffering individuals of Syria to construct a greater future for his or her proud nation,” he stated from the White Home’s Roosevelt Room. “It is also a second of danger and uncertainty. As we flip to the query of what comes subsequent, america will work with our companions and the stakeholders in Syria to assist them seize a possibility to handle the danger.”
The U.S. will help Syria’s neighbors, together with Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and Israel, in the course of the transition interval and ship senior officers to the area, Biden stated. He additionally pledged to proceed the mission towards ISIS and to make sure the safety of detention services in Syria that maintain ISIS fighters.
“We’re clear-eyed about the truth that ISIS will attempt to benefit from the brand new vacuum to reestablish its functionality and create a protected haven. We is not going to let that occur,” Biden stated.
He added that U.S. forces performed a dozen precision air strikes in Syria on Sunday, focusing on ISIS camps and operatives.
However he famous that it is not simply ISIS that poses a risk. Biden stated the U.S. will keep vigilant, including that a number of the insurgent teams that took down Assad’s regime have their very own data of terrorism and human rights abuses.
“They’re saying the appropriate issues now, however as they tackle higher duty, we are going to assess not simply their phrases however their actions,” he stated.
The U.S. will even assist “all Syrian teams” set up an impartial, sovereign authorities. That pledge will embrace humanitarian support to assist Syria after 13 years of civil battle.
Biden additionally stated that his administration is dedicated to returning Austin Tice to his household. Tice, an American journalist, was kidnapped in Damascus in 2012 and detained by the Syrian authorities. Biden stated the U.S. thinks Tice is alive.
Syrian insurgent forces seized the capital of Damascus on Sunday. Russia’s International Ministry stated President Bashar al-Assad has resigned and left the nation, ending his household’s decades-long dictatorship in Syria.
“We’re undecided the place he’s, however there’s phrase that he is in Moscow,” Biden stated, including later that Assad ought to be held accountable.
Assad assumed management within the nation in 2000, following his father’s demise. Assad’s allies included Russia, Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Biden stated all three allies are “far weaker” now than they had been when he took workplace.
