Iran Rejects Reports on Military Presence in Syria

Tehran once again dismissed as baseless the western media and officials’ claims about the presence of Iranian military troops in Syria, underlining that the Syrian nation is powerful enough to defend itself against the terrorists.

“Raising issues like the presence of Syria’s friends, including Iran, in the country is baseless. The Syrian nation and government enjoys the power to resist,” Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham said in a press conference in Tehran on Wednesday.

Noting that Iran is just extending humanitarian aid to Syria, she said that the westerners and their regional allies want to project the blame on others and block the path of political settlement of the Syrian issue.

Afkham underscored the necessity for the Syrian people to decide their own fate, and said, “The activities of terrorist groups is harmful to this trend.”

Her remarks came after some western and Arab media outlets and officials claimed that Iran has military presence in Syria.

Iran has on many occasions said that the country’s military attaches have helped the Syrian government in its fight against terrorism by providing them counseling.

In relevant remarks in November 2013, Head of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Public Relations Department General Ramezan Sharif denied media reports claiming that Iranian forces were fighting for the Damascus government.

“We categorically deny the presence of any Iranian battalion in Syria,” Sharif said.

“As frequently declared, Iran has no organizational battalion in Syria and is only present in the country at the level of military attachés to transfer its defense experiences to the defenders of Syria,” he added.