Assad vows to recapture ‘every inch of Syria’

of their gains.

The US presence helped militants seize swathes of north and east Syria, and has also been widely seen as a deterrent against Turkey which has vowed to crush the YPG.

Assad suggested the US had sold out its Kurdish partners, and said that the Syrian Army will return to the area after the American troop pullout.

“To those groups who are betting on the Americans, we say the Americans will not protect you... the Americans will put you in their pockets to be used as bargaining tools,” he said.

“Every inch of Syria will be liberated, and any intruder is an enemy,” Assad added.

“Nobody will protect you except your state,” Assad said in a live televised speech on Sunday. “If you do not prepare yourselves to defend your country, you will be nothing but slaves to (Turkey)”.

Speaking confidently about the Syrian Army’s military advances on the ground, Assad called on refugees around the world to return to Syria.

The Syrian war, now almost eight years old, has left around 450,000 people dead and displaced half the country’s population, including around six million outside the country.

Western countries and human rights organizations have said the security situation is not yet stable enough for their return, and the UN has said it cannot guarantee safety for those who do.

Without naming them specifically, Assad accused foreign countries of blocking the return of refugees.

“Syria is in need of all its sons and we call on refugees to return to take part in the process of reconstruction,” Assad said.

AP and Reuters contributed to this story.