Assad's downfall planned by US and Israel, claims Iran's supreme leader

Iran's supreme leader has claimed the US and Israel acted as the command centre that engineered the downfall of Syria's former president, Bashar al-Assad, and the ousting of Iran from the country.

- Patrick Wintour

He also claimed Iranian intelligence had sent warnings to the Assad government about a possible attack for three months and predicted Syrian youth would eventually recapture the country, remarks that are unlikely to make it easier for Iran to build strong relations with the new leaders in Damascus.

Making his first comments since the collapse of a key pillar of Iran's "axis of resistance", Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told a gathering in Tehran: "There should be no doubt that what happened in Syria is the product of a joint American and Zionist plan. Yes, a neighbouring government in Syria plays an obvious role in this regard, and is still playing it - everyone sees this - but the main conspirator, mastermind and command centre are in America and the Zionist regime. We have evidence. This evidence leaves no room for doubt."

His reference to a neighbouring government seems to be about Turkey, which played a key role in supporting the opposition forces that fanned out from Idlib in a well-planned military operation that was far more successful than they had ever envisaged.