DAMASCUS (Dispatches) – Russia’s
Defense Ministry says internally displaced persons, who have managed to return to the Syrian government-controlled areas, are reporting that the humanitarian situation in the strategic al-Tanf region, which is occupied by U.S. military forces and lies near the borders with Iraq and Jordan, is critical.
Deputy Chief of the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria Major General Oleg Yegorov said that the center had received information that situation in Rukban refugee camp in southern Syria is disastrous.
The Russian official noted that the camp residents are experiencing shortages of food, essential items, medicines and fuel.
“At the same time, the so-called Maghawir al-Thawra terrorists are trying to propagate the absurd notion that Russia and the Damascus government are responsible for the worsening humanitarian situation at Rukban camp. This is while the militants do not allow the entry of humanitarian convoys into the site,” Yegorov added.
He stressed that the reconciliation center, in cooperation with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, has been seeking over the past six months to open up a safe corridor for a humanitarian convoy destined to Rukban camp.
“The United States Central Command (CENTCOM), however, has torpedoed all those initiatives,” Yegorov pointed out.
Back in July, anti-Damascus Takfiri militants conducted joint military exercises with American forces in the al-Tanf region for several days, and the drills purportedly included sniper training exercises, direct ground combat, strike operations with various types of missiles and rockets, in addition to training courses on raising awareness and drawing up military plans.
Separately, U.S. occupation troops have kidnapped four people in Syria’s northeastern province of Hasakah, and took them to an unknown destination.
Syria’s official news agency SANA, citing local sources, reported that they were rounded up during an airdrop operation conducted by the American troops in the town of al-Shaddadi on Tuesday.