Hassan Nasrallah: The U.S. Sent a Message to Rouhani for Simultaneous Withdrawal from Syria

The Secretary-General of Hezbollah Lebanon stated that the Americans, through the President of Russia, sent a message to Hassan Rouhani that if Iran withdraws its forces from Syria, the United States would also be ready to withdraw its last soldier from the country. Hassan Nasrallah explained in an interview with Al-Mayadeen on Saturday evening, February 25, that James Mattis, the former U.S. Secretary of Defense, and others went to Russia during Mattis's tenure and said that on the condition of the withdrawal of Iranian and Hezbollah forces from Syria, the U.S. was also prepared to withdraw its last soldier from Syria. The Secretary-General of Hezbollah Lebanon said that Iran's response to this request was negative, and Russia did not insist on this matter, although officials in that country promote it in the media. Nasrallah also stated that he opposed this proposal, saying that the U.S. wants to exit Syria but simultaneously wants to announce that it has achieved an important accomplishment. Nasrallah did not mention the date of these exchanges. Donald Trump, the President of the United States, announced in late December that he had made a definitive decision regarding the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria. The announcement of the withdrawal from Syria faced widespread reactions in the U.S., even leading to the resignation of James Mattis, the Secretary of Defense, in protest. Before Trump's announcement, Russian officials had repeatedly spoken about the withdrawal of Iranian forces from Syria, but Iranian officials rejected these statements. Meanwhile, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, stated in July of this year that in his meeting with the Russian President, his clear message was that his country opposes any Iranian presence in Syria. Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, the head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament, who recently met with Bashar al-Assad and Imad Khamis, the President and Prime Minister of Syria in Damascus, acknowledged this coordination between Israel and Russia in an interview with IRNA on Thursday, February 25. In recent months, Israel has targeted Iranian positions in Syria several times. Meanwhile, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah Lebanon warned that the continuation of these attacks could lead to a major war in the region. He expressed concern that the Israeli Prime Minister might make a miscalculation due to the impact on the upcoming parliamentary elections in his country and urged him not to lead the region toward a major conflict. Hassan Nasrallah explained: 'At any moment, a different decision may be made in Syria by the Syrian leaders and the resistance axis to confront Israeli aggressions... In summary, the message that Netanyahu should receive is to consider these variables and not make a miscalculation in his assessment and not lead the region to war.' In response to a reporter's question about whether Tel Aviv could be targeted, he said: 'Anything is possible.' The Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida recently reported that Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, stated that Netanyahu is escalating the attack policy to win the spring elections, but a military action against Israel would lead to his downfall in the elections. According to this report, in recent days, during a meeting of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, it was decided that Iran would ask Syria to respond to any Israeli attack against this country and that Tehran would tell Russia that if Israeli attacks on Iranian forces in Syria continue, Iran would no longer set a red line for itself and would respond in any way it deems necessary. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or the Supreme National Security Council of Iran has not responded to this report. However, Bashar Jaafari, Syria's permanent representative to the United Nations, warned Israel during a Security Council meeting on Tuesday night that if it repeats its attack on Damascus airport, Syria may target Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv.