/ world today news/ The historic city of Palmyra was liberated to a significant extent thanks to the help of the Russian troops, who carried out dozens of airstrikes, writes the American edition “New York Times” (New York Times) in an article quoted by lifenews.ru on Monday (28 March). The battle for Palmyra showed the central role of Russian President Vladimir Putin in strengthening the positions of his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad, the newspaper noted.
The British “Independent” (The Independent) draws attention to the silence of Western leaders after the news of the success of the Syrian military. The publication reproaches US President Barack Obama and Britain’s David Cameron for remaining indifferent to one of the most significant victories over the Islamic State (IS) in Syria.
“This is the biggest military defeat against IS in Syria in the last two years. Palmyra – the ancient Roman city – was liberated. And we are silent. Yes, friends, the bad guys won, right? Otherwise, we’d all be celebrating, wouldn’t we?” the article reads.
The liberation of Palmyra from Assad’s army after several weeks of heavy fighting was prepared by the airstrikes of Russian planes,” writes “The Guardian”. According to the publication, the liberation of the city will significantly increase the morale of both the Syrian and Russian military.”
“The capture of Palmyra means that Assad’s army can use the city as a platform for an advance on IS territories – the province of Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa. The defeat of the terrorists dealt a painful blow to the group as a whole and forced it to activate the terrorists abroad so that morale could somehow be maintained,” the newspaper opined.
The Wall Street Journal notes that Assad’s army is unlikely to attempt to attack IS strongholds in the near future. However, the publication did not rule out the government trying to restore traffic on the route to the provincial capital of Deir ez-Zor.
The German tabloid “Bild” (BILD) sees in the victory over the terrorists in Palmyra “the beginning of the end of the terrorist group in Syria.”
“Capturing Palmyra will help government forces take control of the entire Syrian desert up to the Iraqi border.” But the stronghold of the terrorists – their ‘capital’ Raqqa – remains in their hands.”
The terrorists’ setbacks in Syria and Iraq, however, may increase the risk of terrorist attacks in Europe, the newspaper noted, citing American professor and terrorism expert Azim Ibarhim, who sees a link between IS losses in Syria and Iraq and terrorist attacks in Europe.
The French publication “Le Figaro” reports the words of the journalist Nicole Henin, who was held hostage by the terrorists. He also believes that the Russian Air Force played a key role in the victory.
“The Russian military played a key role. The Syrian army today is essentially a coalition uniting insurgents. Only the actions of the Russian army managed to make the Syrians mobilize,” he believes.
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