Rebuilding Syria, fighting terror Assad govt. priority: Muallem

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem says fighting terrorism and reconstruction of the country are the main priorities of the government in Damascus.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem says fighting terrorism and reconstruction of the country are the main priorities of the government in Damascus.
“Among other priorities of the Syrian government are to provide housing to those displaced, realize national reconciliation and repatriate Syrian refugees,” Muallem said in a meeting in Damascus with Iranian parliamentary delegation invited to observe the presidential election on Thursday.
The Syrian foreign minister also stated that despite all threats Syrians participated in the June 3 presidential election, and showed that there is no solution for the crisis in Syria other than a political one.
Chairman of Iran’s Majlis Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy Alaeddin Boroujerdi, who headed the Iranian delegation, stated that the Islamic Republic will contribute to the reconstruction of Syria.
On Wednesday, Syria’s Parliament Speaker Jihad Lahan said Bashar al-Assad garnered more than 88 percent of the votes in election.
On Thursday, the Syrian army regained the control of a key town near the capital Damascus.
The official SANA news agency quoted military officials as saying that the army recaptured the town of al-Thawra in al-Kiswah district, which is located in Damascus countryside.
The army also reportedly destroyed a large cache of weapons.
The development came after Syria’s presidential election, which ended in Basher al-Assad’s landslide victory.
Analysts believe that the election will boost the army’s morale in its fight against the militants.
Over the past months, the Syrian army has achieved major victories in its battle against Takfiri groups across the Arab country, particularly in the western region of Qalamoun near the Lebanese border.
In relevant remarks, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Thursday that the clout of supporters of terrorists operating inside Syria is in decline and that in the wake of the June 3 presidential election, Western sponsors of terrorists will lose their power.
The Syrian army also gained more ground in the Damascus countryside on Wednesday near the key town of al-Mleha.
Army units retook the town’s northern and eastern parts following a daylong clash with militants.
Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since March 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies — especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey — are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.