Stop spreading chaos, Syria’s new rulers warn Tehran

Dec 25, 2024, 11:10 GMTUpdated Dec 26, 2024, 14:54 GMT

Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa attends a meeting with former rebel faction chiefs, as he reached an agreement with them to dissolve all groups and consolidate them under the Defence Ministry, according to a statement from the new administration, in Damascus, Syria, in this handout image released on December 24, 2024.

Syria’s new foreign minister warned Iran not to destabilize the country's fragile calm after a call by Iran’s Supreme Leader for Syrian youth to rise up against the new Sunni Islamist rulers.

"Iran must respect the will of the Syrian people and the country's sovereignty and security. We warn them from spreading chaos in Syria and we hold them accountable for the repercussions of the latest remarks," Asaad Shaibani said on X.

His remarks, made on Monday, are the most direct and public warning by Syria’s new rulers to Tehran since the fall of Tehran's ally, President Bashar al-Assad.

The reaction follows calls from Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei On December 22, who said: “We predict that a strong and honorable movement will emerge in Syria, as the Syrian youth now have nothing to lose.

"Their schools, universities, homes, and streets are unsafe, so they must stand resolutely against those who design and execute insecurity and overcome them with determination.”

Ahmad al-Sharaa, the former rebel leader who now holds power in Syria, had previously criticized the Islamic Republic for its meddling in Syria by participating in the civil war since 2011, supporting the decades-long Assad dynasty.

He blamed Iran’s military presence and its allied militias which supported Assad for the death and displacement of millions of Syrians.

However, this is the first time Syria’s new officials have openly responded to remarks by Khamenei and other Iranian officials who oppose the group who deposed al-Assad in record time, and are now receiving international support.

Iran sided with Assad in the early days of a popular movement in Syria demanding a change of government. Soon Tehran began deploying troops and fighters to defend the government against protesters and rebels. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians died in the ensuing 13-year civil war.

This was not the first time Khamenei suggested Syria's new rulers would be toppled.

“Everyone should know that things will not remain as they are … Certainly, the courageous Syrian youth will rise up, resist, and, even at the cost of casualties, overcome this situation, he said in a speech this month.

Syria would be won back "just as the brave Iraqi youth, after the US occupation, with the help, organization, and leadership of our dear martyr Qasem Soleimani, managed to drive the enemy out of their homes and streets," Khamenei said.

"This may take a long time in Syria, but the outcome is inevitable and certain.”

Last week, Syria’s new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa said Syria's opposition had “set the Iranian project in the region back by 40 years,” signaling a major shift in Syria’s stance toward Iran.

“By removing Iranian militias and closing Syria to Iranian influence, we’ve served the region’s interests—achieving what diplomacy and external pressure could not, with minimal losses," he said.

Iran’s exit from Syria marks a serious setback for Tehran’s ‘Shiite Crescent’, built over the past two decades to extend its control west to the Mediterranean coast, by creating proxy groups in Iraq, supporting Assad in Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon.