Oct 5, 2015

Free Syrian Army command asks Russia for help against ISIL — Sputnik

The representative of the Euphrates Volcano command of the FSA and the Kurdish YPG told Sputnik that the command supports Russia’s operation against ISIL and requests military help.

The Eurphrates Volcano (Burqan al-Furat) command of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) supports Russia’s military operation in Syria and for help in battling ISIL, the command’s official spokesman Servan Devrish told Sputnik.

Euphrates Volcano is the joint command of the FSA and the Kurdish YPG (People’s Protection Units) operating in northern Syria, primarily against the Islamic State. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov previously said that Russia is willing to make contacts with the Syrian armed opposition Free Syrian Army, but requested further information on it from the United States, referring to the FSA’s “phantom nature.”

“The Islamic State is a large-scale organization which presents an enormous threat for all, because of this only a comprehensive and well-prepared operation can be effective. We support Russia’s anti-terrorist operation against ISIL and consider it an extremely important step for eliminating this threat,” Euphrates Volcano spokesman Servan Devrish told Sputnik.

Devrish added that it is impossible to destroy ISIL with airstrikes alone, and that Euphrates Volcano as well as Kurdish Peshmerga units have been most effective at fighting ISIL with aid from airstrikes delivered by the anti-ISIL coalition.

“We ask Russia to help us with weaponry in the fight against ISIL. By uniting our forces in the framework of an aerial and ground operation, we can carry out shattering strikes against ISIL,” Devrish told Sputnik.

The Eurphates Volcano command previously fought ISIL in several large-scale battles, including the siege of Kobani, where it successfully retook the city from ISIL.