DAMASCUS (Dispatches) – Leaders of various Syrian tribes have held a gathering in the capital Damascus, pledging to work with the army to expel foreign troops and return occupied territories to the state control.
Tribal leaders and elders categorically rejected Friday attempts by foreign troops and their Takfiri mercenaries to partition Syria, stressing that they will join forces with Syrian army troops to confront separatist plots.
They called on foreign occupation forces and their mercenaries to leave Syria, saying the Syrian nation suffers from harsh economic and social difficulties as a result of their presence and arbitrary measures.
The tribal leaders also called on the international community to ensure the withdrawal of foreign troops that are in Syria without permission or a UN mandate, and to work towards removal of unilateral sanctions imposed on Syria.
They also reaffirmed their loyalty to their homeland and President Bashar al-Assad.
The U.S. military has stationed forces and equipment in eastern and northeastern Syria, with the Pentagon claiming that the deployment is aimed at preventing the oilfields in the area from falling into the hands of Daesh terrorists.
Damascus, however, says the unlawful deployment is meant to plunder the country’s resources.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump admitted on several occasions that American forces were in Syria for its oil.
After failing to oust the Syrian government through proxies and direct involvement in the conflict, the U.S. government has now stepped up its economic war on the Arab country.
Syrian Minister of Energy Ghassan Zamil said Saturday an act of sabotage against a natural gas pipeline feeding the combined cycle Deir Ali power plant had resulted in a power outage across Damascus.
“The electricity in Damascus has been cut off over an act of sabotage that hit the gas pipeline near the Deir Ali town, resulting in the suspension of operation of the local power station,” Zamil told Syria’s official news agency SANA late on Friday.
The minister later added that electricity was being gradually restored in Damascus.