SYRIA IS CLOSE TO BEING WON BACK: RUSSIA AND HEZBOLLAH

BEIRUT/MOSCOW: The Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah has declared victory in the Syrian war while Russia said government forces had driven militants from much of the country where President Bashar al-assad’s rule seemed in danger two years ago.

The comments from two Syrian government allies mark the most confident assessments yet of Assad’s position in the war, though significant parts of the country remain outside the government’s control.

Russia’s assertion that the army had won back 85% of Syria was dismissed by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. It said the government held 48% of Syria.

On Tuesday, Russia’s defence minister met with Assad in Damascus to discuss joint military efforts and the fight against Islamic State.

The government’s most recent advances have recovered swathes of territory in eastern Syria from Islamic State, which is being targeted in the same region by Us-backed Kurdish and Arab militias.

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, whose group has sent thousands of fighters to Syria, dismissed the fighting left to be done in Syria as “scattered battles”.

Referring to Assad’s opponents, Nasrallah said “the path of the other project has failed and wants to negotiate for some gains”. The comments, made at a religious gathering, were confirmed to Reuters by a source familiar with the speech.