A senior Syrian rebel commander has blamed a lack of support from Britain as being responsible for the impending 15 million refugees about to flee Syria and into Europe.
The commander says that the lack of support shown by the West has allowed Assad’s regime to tighten its grip on Aleppo, which is going to make the refugee crisis worse.
Express.co.uk reports:
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Major Yasser Abdulrahim told the BBC the West has “abandoned” the rebels, saying: “The West is so scared of the [Islamic State] ghost they have chosen Bashar al-Assad.
He added: “The rebellion won’t be over [if the regime takes Aleppo]. But some 15 million Syrians will flee to Europe and different countries all over the world.
“Resistance to the regime will continue as long as the olive trees are here.”
Earlier this week United Nation bureaucrats demanded Turkey opens its doors to the tens of thousands of Syrians who have massed at the border.
Government officials insisted Turkey, already home to 2.5 million Syrian refugees, has an open-door policy towards Syrians escaping conflict.
But they have come under criticism for closing the key Bab al-Salameh border crossing over the past few days.
William Spindler of the UN’s refugee agency urged Turkey to open the border to all “seeking international protection” on Tuesday.
He also urged other nations to shoulder more of the refugee burden and to work to end the conflict.
He said: “The answer to this crisis is for the peace process to continue in Syria and for the conflict to be solved.”
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu estimated that up to a million more people could flee if the onslaught continues.
And the country’s Prime Minister urged the world to speak out against Russia for “mercilessly bombing civilian targets” in Syria.
Ahmet Davutoglu added: “Those… who turned Syria into a bloodbath will certainly pay for it one day.”
But Russia – which intervened in Syria at Assad’s request – has insisted its warplanes target warped ISIS militants rather than civilian areas.
Sean Adl-Tabatabai
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