Date: May 30, 2018 Source: The Daily Star Syria army ready for battle in south: Pro-Assad commander BEIRUT/MOSCOW: The Syrian army has completed preparations for an imminent offensive against rebel-held areas in southwestern Syria, a non-Syrian commander in a military alliance that backs Damascus said Tuesday, raising the prospect of a major new escalation. However, a rebel commander in the Deraa region of the southwest told Reuters there was no sign of mobilization for such an assault and accused Damascus of waging psychological warfare. Nevertheless, rebels had prepared defenses, he said. The rebel-held southwest has come into focus after the Syrian regime, backed militarily by Iran and Russia, crushed the last besieged rebel enclaves near Damascus and north of Homs city. Damascus has vowed to reclaim the whole country. Government and allied forces control about 30 percent of Deraa, the rest of which is held by various factions. The southwest is of concern to the United States, which last year brokered a “de-escalation” deal with Jordan and President Bashar Assad’s Russian allies, which has largely contained the war near the frontier with Israel. The U.S. warned Saturday it would take “firm and appropriate measures” in response to any violations of the cease-fire in that area. While Assad is militarily unassailable in the Syrian conflict, swaths of territory at the frontiers with Iraq, Turkey and Jordan and Israel still remain outside his control. The role of outside powers in these areas complicates further gains by Damascus. The pro-Assad commander, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Syrian army’s preparations for the assault were complete. “The Syrian army will wage all the battles and has now become strong and capable,” the commander said. Israel wants Iran-backed forces removed from areas near its frontier – and from Syria in general. Russia said Monday only Syrian army troops should be at the southern border with Jordan and Israel. Its Foreign Ministry Tuesday said Russia, the U.S. and Jordan had agreed to meet about the “de-escalation” zone, RIA news agency reported. Rebel commander Col. Nassim Abu Arra of the Youth of Sunna Forces said in the last week several military convoys had left government-held parts of Deraa city, heading north. They had not been replaced, he added. In other developments, the U.S. led a protest Tuesday against Syria taking over the Conference on Disarmament, calling it “a travesty” at a time when Damascus is widely accused of using chemical weapons. Syria took up the rotating presidency of the conference Monday. It will chair the body for a four-week period. The U.S. ambassador to the conference, Robert Wood, briefly walked out of the room in protest when the Syrian representative took the floor.