https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/syria-civil-war-12-08-2024/index.html

Assad flees to Moscow as Syrian rebels capture Damascus

Iranian envoy warns developments in Middle East will be beyond "American control"

The fallout from the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime will be beyond American control and could lead to a conflict involving regional countries and Turkey, the Iranian ambassador to Syria warned on Sunday.

“I believe the developments in the region will be beyond American control and could seriously disrupt their strategic objectives,” Hossein Akbari said in comments reported by Iranian state news agency IRNA Sunday.

Akbari said the fall of the Assad government – which Iran had supported – had “created a complex alignment between northern and southern forces (in Syria), which could lead to conflict among certain Islamic and Arab countries with Turkey.”

Some context: The rebel coalition led by the former Al Qaeda affiliate Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) that has taken control of Damascus is only one of numerous armed groups operating in Syria. Other groups controlling territory in the country include the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, elements of which Turkey views as a terrorist organization.

“Given the current circumstances, the diversity of perspectives, and the numerous interventions by various countries, there is a risk of losing security within this (Syrian) society,” Akbari said.