UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, warning that tens of thousands of people are at risk in Syria, has called for an escalation.
Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem has pledged that the Lebanese group will stand by the Syrian government amid the advance of “terrorist groups” trying to sow chaos in the country.
“Whatever they have done in recent days, they will not be able to achieve their goals, and we as Hezbollah are on the side of Syria in thwarting the goals of this offensive as much as we can,” Qassem said on Thursday. The “aggression” was sponsored by the United States and Israel.
His comments came hours after Syrian opposition forces captured the strategic city of Homs in central Syria, their latest victory in a lightning offensive that began eight days ago.
Qassem did not provide details on how Hezbollah supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but said the Iran-aligned group will do what it can.
Hezbollah is currently observing a fragile, US-brokered ceasefire agreement with Israel after a year of war that has brought much destruction, particularly to southern Lebanon. Many of the group’s leadership have been killed in Israeli attacks, and tens of thousands of Lebanese civilians have been driven from their homes.
‘The area is already on fire’
Civilians have also borne the brunt of Syria’s 13-year-long war, which has been largely frozen since 2020 until opposition forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a former al-Qaeda affiliate, launched a fresh offensive from their strongholds in northwest Syria last week.
Rebels on the weekend Captured AleppoThe country’s second largest city, before pushing south and entering Hama on Thursday.
More than 280,000 people have been displaced by the latest fighting, the United Nations’ World Food Program said in a post on X.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an end to the fighting and said the escalating conflict in Syria was the result of a “prolonged collective failure” of diplomacy.
Guterres called for immediate humanitarian access to all civilians in need in Syria and a return to a UN-facilitated political process to end the bloodshed.
“Tens of civilians are at risk in the area that is already on fire,” Guterres told reporters.
“We are witnessing the bitter fruits of the long collective failure of past de-escalation systems to produce a genuine nationwide ceasefire or a serious political process to implement Security Council resolutions,” he said.
He urged “all those with influence to do their part for the long-term people” of Syria and said all parties have an obligation to protect civilians.
While al-Assad relied heavily on Russian and Iranian support during the most intense years of the Syrian war, some opposition groups established ties with Turkey.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday called on al-Assad to urgently find a “political solution” to the war.
“The Syrian regime must urgently commit to its people in favor of a global political solution,” Erdogan said in a call with Guterres, according to a presidential announcement.
Erdogan, who has been home to nearly three million Syrian refugees since the war began in 2011, has held several discussions with other leaders about the crisis in recent days.
“Turkey has and will continue to work hard to reduce tensions, protect civilians and open the political process,” Erdogan was quoted as saying in a statement.
Erdogan said the conflict had reached a “new stage,” adding that “Turkey’s greatest hope is that Syria does not get stuck in a major instability and does not see even more civilian casualties.”
Erdogan was an outspoken critic of al-Assad for much of the war but has recently taken a more conciliatory line.
