Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct. 4 / Trend R. Hafizoglu /
Syria does not have precise data on the number of mercenaries in the country, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Friday in an interview with the Turkish Halk TV Channel.
According to the president, foreign mercenaries penetrate into Syria through neighbouring countries.
He also added that the approximate number of mercenaries in Syria is over 10,000.
According to al-Assad, extremist and radical groups in Syria have nothing to do with Islam.
The Syrian president said the Syrian people do not succumb to terrorist provocations.
As for the Syrian refugees on the territory of Turkey, al-Assad said that the government has repeatedly tried to get them back into the country.
Clashes between government forces and the armed opposition have been continuing in Syria for over two years. According to UN statistics, the total number of victims of the conflict in Syria exceeds 110,000 people and nearly three million are in need of humanitarian aid.