Popular Forces Prevented Syria’s Disintegration, IRGC Commander Says

"If it had not been for mobilized popular forces’ in Syria, it would have surely been partitioned”, General Jafari told reporters in Tehran on Thursday.

He added that the eradication of the self-proclaimed caliphate of Daesh (ISIL) in Syria and Iraq was also materialized thanks to the presence of popular forces across the region.

"Daesh wanted to form a government in Syria and Iraq to fight the Islamic Revolution and axis of resistance in the name of Islam,” the Iranian commander said, adding, however, that this plot was thwarted with the help of the popular forces.

General Jafari further warned that Daesh is still a threat to the region, calling on Muslim countries to remain vigilant.

On November 19, the Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group was flushed out of its last stronghold in Syria’s Al-Bukamal. The city’s liberation marked an end to the group’s self-proclaimed caliphate it had declared in 2014.

In a message to Ayatollah Khamenei on Tuesday, Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Quds Force Major General Soleimani declared that the notorious group’s rule has come to an end with the accomplishment of a mission to liberate Syria’s eastern city of Al-Bukamal, near the Iraqi border.

Speaking on behalf of all commanders and forces fighting against terrorism, thousands of Iranian, Iraqi, Syrian, Lebanese, Afghan, and Pakistani martyrs and those handicapped in defending the life and dignity of Muslims and their sanctities, the top general congratulated Ayatollah Khamenei, the Iranian nation, the people of Iraq and Syria, and all Muslims on the fall of Daesh.

Daesh militants made swift advances in northern and western Iraq over the summer of 2014, after capturing large areas of Syria.

But the timely support by Iran helped Syria and Iraq fight off Daesh. In addition, formation of military units by volunteers in Iraq, known as Hashd al-Shaabi or Popular Mobilization Units, blunted the edge of Daesh offensive and later made the terror group withdraw from the territories it had occupied.