In a report published by Reuters French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian warns of a humanitarian disaster in the rebel-controlled Syrian city of Idlib, which could be a next target of the Syrian army.
Le Drian said Idlib now has some 2 million inhabitants, including hundreds of thousands of Syrians evacuated from rebel-held cities taken back by the Syrian regime.
“There is a risk of a new humanitarian disaster. Idlib’s fate must be settled by a political process, which includes disarming the militias,” Le Drian said in an interview with French weekly Le Journal du Dimanche.
Some insurgent officials have said they feared an onslaught against Idlib, which a senior Iranian official has indicated could be the next target, Reuters said.
Le Drian added that France would also keep a close eye on the situation in northeastern Syria, which was freed from Islamic State with French help,
“Let’s not forget that our principal enemy remains Islamic State, as well as other terrorist groups which are currently regrouping in the east of the country,” Le Drian said.
Le Drian also said Russia was denying reality in Syria and that its protection of Bashar al-Assad could not be justified, according to Reuters.