阿薩德稱英國在敍利亞的空襲是非法的

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has criticized Britain's entrance into the U.S.-led coalition attacking Islamic State militants in Syria, saying the airstrikes are illegal and will fail.

In an interview published in Britain's Sunday Times, Assad said Islamic State cannot be defeated by airstrikes alone, and that the only strikes that have been effective are those Russia has done since launching its Syrian campaign in September.

He has long criticized Western governments and others in his region who support moderate rebel fighters, and complained that the coalition airstrikes are a violation of his country's sovereignty. The U.S. and others in the West say Russia's airstrikes have largely focused on rebels and not Islamic State fighters.

Assad said in the interview there has been no moderate opposition during his country's conflict that began in March 2011, but rather only "extremists." The Syrian government has routinely referred to rebels as "terrorists" since the crisis expanded from peaceful protests to multi-party civil war.

Assad said if Western and regional support for terrorists ends, then it will take "a matter of months" to end the conflict.

Britain expanded its involvement in the U.S.-led coalition last week from conducting airstrikes solely against Islamic State targets in Iraq to bombing the militants in Syria as well after Prime Minister David Cameron lobbied his parliament for approval.敍利亞總統阿薩德抨擊英國參加美國領導的聯軍空中打敍利亞伊斯蘭國激進分子的行動。他説，空襲是違法行為，註定要失敗。

阿薩德接受英國星期天泰晤士報採訪時説，僅靠空襲不能打敗伊斯蘭國組織，迄今唯一有效果的行動是俄羅斯9月開始實施的空中打擊。

阿薩德長期以來一直批評西方國家政府和一些支持敍利亞反政府温和派武裝的中東國家。他抱怨説，美國領導的空襲侵犯了敍利亞主權。美國和其它希望國家説，俄羅斯的空襲基本針對敍利亞反政府力量，而不是伊斯蘭國組織的武裝。

阿薩德説，在2011年開始的敍利亞內戰中，沒有什麼温和派反政府力量，只有極端分子。敍利亞的和平抗議演變為多方參與的內戰以來，敍利亞政府稱所有反政府武裝為恐怖分子。

阿薩德還説，只要西方國家和中東一些國家停止支持恐怖分子，幾個月的時間就可以結束敍利亞武裝衝突。

英國上星期擴大了參加美國領導的聯軍的空襲行動，從僅僅空襲伊拉克的伊斯蘭國組織的目標，擴大到也轟炸敍利亞境內的伊斯蘭國激進分子。英國首相卡梅倫説服了議會支持擴大行動範圍。