07.08.2018, Quebec.
The Foreign Minister of Canada Chrystia Freeland told journalists that Moscow was waging anti-propaganda against The White Helmets activity in Syria, InoTV reported on August 6 citing La Presse Canadienne.
Minister Freeland believes that The White Helmets belong to “a courageous group of people.” Canada together with other Western countries is carrying out an operation to evacuate members of The White Helmets from Syria and provide them asylum. In Canada, over 50 The White Helmets officials and their family members have been granted asylum.
According to La Presse Canadienne, The White Helmets provided first aid to victims in Syria, and they also took part in humanitarian missions on a voluntary basis. However, some experts expressed concerns that members of this organization could be in danger if President Bashar al-Assad’s positions strengthened.
In response to the statements made by the Canadian diplomats, the spokeswoman of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said that Moscow was not surprised with Canada’s helping the evacuation of the White Helmets members.
According to Maria Zakharova, The White Helmets had close connections with extremists.
“It is not surprising that they will now be hidden in Canada. Meanwhile, these pseudo-humanitarians tried to keep the state of war in Syria for as long as they could, and to fuel further conflicts,” the Russian Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman said.
Damascus also believes that the operation aimed at rescuing The White Helmets members is a criminal process, which helps terrorists hide abroad, and it accuses The White Helmets of organizing and carrying out chemical attacks on the Syrian land.
In response, Freeland said that the Russian and Syrian authorities are trying to discredit those giving evidence against them. She believes that The White Helmets carried out a very important work; however, this is one of the reasons why the al-Assad regime and Russia wage so negative of propaganda against them.
The White Helmets, or the Syria Civil Defense, is a non-governmental volunteer organization operating in Syria on the territories controlled by the opposition groups. The organization’s claimed goals are providing medical aid to the population and rescuing civilians who suffer from hostilities.
The organization received financial support from the governments of the USA, the UK, Germany, Japan, Qatar, the Netherlands, Denmark, as well as private donators. The White Helmets are suspected to have set up fake videos and to have connections with terrorist groups.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
