Militants of the terrorist group Islamic State may reach the North Caucasus. Russian State Duma deputy, member of the interfactional group for the protection of Christian values, Alexander Yushchenko, stated this in an interview with the correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza. Today he returned from Syria, where he was on a humanitarian mission as part of the Russian parliamentary delegation.
"Syria is, perhaps, the last secular state in the Middle East. Muslims and Christians live there in peace and friendship, the country has both shrines of Muslims, such as the Umayyad Mosque, and Christian shrines. You have to understand that Russia is also a multinational and multi-confessional state. Today recruiters of Islamic State preach Islamophobia throughout the world, it is not true Islam. This is what the spiritual leader of the Muslims, Ahmad Batruddin, Mufti of Syria, told us. At this point, the ranks of Islamic State have thousands of militants from the CIS countries, including Russia. If we won't help the Syrians in the fight against the militants, Islamic State will incinerate the whole of Syria and will reach Damascus, and eventually get to the North Caucasus, Europe and Iran. This is extremely dangerous," the deputy noted.
At the same time, Yushchenko drew attention to the fact that today a war on the depletion of natural and human resources is being waged against Syria. "Over the past five years, militants from 80 countries have been fighting on the side of the terrorist organizations in Syria. Of course, currently there is a very difficult economic situation. Recently, Russia has provided assistance amounting to 100 thousand tons of grain, but many fertile territories are under the control of militants of IS, so the Syrian government makes a request for repeated assistance. It is not clear whether it will be humanitarian assistance or a loan, but help is needed," he noted.
"Today, the Syrian government subsidizes the cost of bread for its population. If 10 loaves cost about 200 liras, they sell it for 50 liras. That is, a quarter of the price. Now we have sent 3 thousand tons of humanitarian aid: it is food, and milk powder, and medications that are distributed through the spiritual leaders of the Patriarchate of Antioch Christian Church, through the spiritual leader of Muslims, Ahmad Batruddin Hassoun. In addition, assistance was specifically sent to orphanages, to boarding schools for military families. This work must be continued, the people of Syria are waiting for this, especially from Russia," Alexander Yushchenko concluded.
