Syria building up army beyond pre-war size: Israel’s Lieberman

Israel’s minister for military affairs admits that Syrian ground forces are recovering from the losses they suffered during over seven years of battles against foreign-backed terror groups, saying the Arab state is now building up a formidable army beyond its pre-crisis size.

The Syrian government is not only retaking territory from terrorist groups but also rebuilding its military power, Avigdor Lieberman told reporters during a tour on Tuesday of the Israeli-occupied side of Syria’s Golan Heights, where he observed a military exercise.

“Across the way we see the Syrian military, which is not satisfied with just taking over all of Syrian territory but is expressly building a broad-based, new ground army that will return to its previous proportions and beyond,” he said.

“Therefore, we follow all developments and we are ready for any scenario,” he added.

Earlier this month, Lieberman stressed that the government of President Bashar al-Assad is regaining control of the Syrian territory and that stability is returning to the occupied Golan Heights.

Press TV