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'Final Collapse' of Secular Syria Could Foster the Rise of a Terrorist State

© Sputnik / Michael Alaeddin / Go to the mediabankThe Syrian army soldiers in Aleppo
The Syrian army soldiers in Aleppo - Sputnik International
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The overthrow of Syrian President Bashar Assad will lead to Islamic terrorists seizing power in Syria and a "final collapse" of the country, which is out of line with the West's interests, Gunter Mayer, head of the Center for Arab Studies at the University of Mainz, told the German news network NDR.

A Syrian Army soldier examines a position from an apartment window in southern Aleppo - Sputnik International
Aleppo: The Battle Which Seals the Fate and Fortunes of Syria
In an interview with the German news network NDR, Gunter Mayer, head of the Center for Arab Studies at the University of Mainz, warned that the ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad would result in grave consequences: Islamic terrorists would come to power in Syria.

The interview came amid the deterioration of the situation in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, where intense fighting between government forces and terrorists shows no sign of abating.

NDR recalled in this context that doctors urged US President Barack Obama to "influence on the warring parties and encourage them to protect the civilian population." Russia in turn has already announced a daily three-hour ceasefire, NDR said.

The West is, meanwhile, calling for toppling President Bashar Assad, which Mayer said would inevitably lead to the seizure of power in Syria by rebels, including members of Islamist terrorist groups.

"Under their rule, Syria will finally collapse, something that does not meet the interests of the West," Mayer pointed out.

According to him, the current situation in Aleppo looks like what he described as a "proxy war."

The rebels control the part of the city which is surrounded by Assad troops, supported by the Russian air force.

According to Mayer, as a result of a temporary truce reached by the United Nations, "thousands of jihadists were able to penetrate the city."

Armed with advanced weapons, they are funded by the Gulf states and are able to fight "the Assad regime" by all means. This is why the conflict in Aleppo is unlikely to end in the immediate future, Mayer concluded.

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad meets with Chairman of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, Alaeddin Boroujerdi (C-L),in this handout picture provided by SANA on August 4, 2016 - Sputnik International
The West Has Obviously 'Decided Against' Toppling President Assad
Earlier this week, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) called for humanitarian access to the hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped in Aleppo.

UNHCR said in a statement on Tuesday that up to 275,000 civilians in eastern Aleppo have been cut off from humanitarian aid since July, with shortages of basic commodities, including food, leading to rationing and soaring prices.

Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with government forces loyal to President Assad fighting numerous opposition factions and extremist groups. On February 27, a US-Russia brokered ceasefire came into force in Syria. Terrorist groups, which maintain a heavy presence in Aleppo, are not part of the deal.

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