If US-backed rebels in Syria are successful in overthrowing the government the country could wind up in worse hands than those of President Bashar Assad, reported the Russian news agency Novosti, quoting Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump as having said in the third and final debate with Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in Las Vegas, Nevada.

"We are backing rebels — we don’t know who the rebels are," Trump explained on Wednesday night. "If they ever did overthrow Assad… you may very well end up with worse than Assad." Assad has proven tougher than the United States ever thought while Russian President Vladimir Putin has outsmarted Clinton and the Obama administration every step of the way. 

Clinton, for her part, claimed a no-fly zone should be implemented over Aleppo if its purpose is clearly communicated to Russia. Aleppo has been engulfed in a heavy fighting since the forces of the legitimate Syrian government of President Bashar Assad began a major offensive on the rebel-held eastern districts of the city following the collapse of the ceasefire brokered by Russia and the United States in early September.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump suggested Wednesday that Iraqi forces have launched a major, months-long offensive on a Daesh stronghold to help his rival win the US presidency, CNN reported.

Trump insinuated that Iraq launched the mission to help Clinton win the White House.

"The only reason they did it is because she's running for the office of president and they want to look tough," Trump said. "They want to look good."
"She wanted to look good for the election," he continued, "so they're going in."

"I'm just amazed that he seems to think that the Iraqi government and our allies and everybody else launched the attack on Mosul to help me in this election, but that's how Donald thinks," Clinton said. "You know, he always is looking for some conspiracy."

The exchange was part of a contentious back-and-forth between the candidates over the war in Iraq and the war in Syria.

Source: MENA