Iranian Foreign Ministry: Assad did not expect this from his army

Iran had data on the possible offensive of anti-government forces, which it handed over to the Syrian government, because the retreat of the Syrian army and the speed of the advance of the rebels came as a surprise, said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. This is reported by the Tasnim news agency.

"What was surprising was the inability of the Syrian army to cope with the situation, and secondly, the speed of events, which was unexpected… Bashar al-Assad himself was surprised by how his own army acted, and it was clear that there was no correct analysis in Syria itself. I think the Syrian army was in the thrall of psychological warfare," he said.

As for concerns about Syria, the Iranian Foreign Minister warned of a possible civil war, the collapse of the country or its "complete collapse and transformation into a safe haven for terrorists." In addition, there is a possibility of the conflict expanding to the entire region, Arakchi noted.

Iran's interaction with the future Syrian authorities will depend on their actions, he said.

"Our interaction with them will depend on their behavior. How they will treat Shiites and so on. We determine our policy based on their behavior," the minister said.

Iran has been one of Assad's main allies and has provided him with military support since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011. At the end of the active phase of hostilities, military advisers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) remained in the country. In addition, Iran could support Hezbollah in Lebanon through the territory of Syria, including by supplying weapons.

Reuters, citing two sources in the Lebanese security forces, reported after the fall of the Assad regime that Hezbollah had withdrawn all its forces from Syria.

On November 27, Syrian militants launched an offensive. On November 29, they declared control over the city of Aleppo. The Syrian army acknowledged its retreat the next day.

On the night of December 8, anti—government forces occupied the capital of Syria - Damascus. Against this background, President Bashar al-Assad resigned and left the country, having received asylum in Russia. The country's Prime Minister, Mohammed Ghazi al-Jalali, announced his readiness to peacefully transfer power.

In Damascus, rebels and their supporters entered a number of government buildings and the Iranian embassy, and defeated them. The New York Times wrote that before the militants took Damascus, Iran began to evacuate from Syria has its own military and diplomats.

Araqchi, after Assad resigned, said that the future of Syria is "solely the responsibility of the Syrian people, without destructive interference or foreign coercion." The Iranian Foreign Ministry called for an end to the fighting and a dialogue to begin "with the participation of all sectors of Syrian society" in order to form an "inclusive government representing the entire Syrian people," RBC reminds.