Damascus Reiterates Syrian Army Recaptures Own Territories, Not on Offensive

Syrian government delegation head at the Astana talks Bashar Jaafari said Tuesday that the government forces are recapturing own territories, are not at war with any foreign state and noted that it means that the army liberates areas from terrorists' control.

ASTANA (Sputnik) — Syrian army will continue military operations as long as terrorists are disrupting water supplies to the residents of Damascus, Jaafari said Tuesday.

"As long as there are terrorists depriving seven million people in the capital of Damascus from drinking water, the army will continue the operations," Jaafari told reporters.

The Kurds have played an important role in the Syrian history for thousands of years, including their latest role in fighting Daesh.

"The Syrian Kurds did play an important role in our history, not only in fighting Daesh. We have been living together for thousands of years. So we are not here to test each other whether we are loyal to this country or not," Jaafari said.

He stressed that the Arabs, the Kurds and other Syrians of different ethnic backgrounds are first of all citizens of the country and the government does not want to differentiate or discriminate.

While many Kurds are loyal to Syria, many Arabs have betrayed the country and are working for foreign-back groups, he added.