Syrian President Bashar al-Assad called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan a 'thief' during a State TV interview on Thursday.

"I said that he was a thief, he has stolen everything that belongs to Syria from day one, he's a thief. I'm not insulting him, I'm describing him, it's an adjective," stated Assad, saying that Erdogan 'steals factories, field and lands' and 'lies to everyone.'

Assad went on to say that Turkey is an 'enemy' that is 'occupying Afrin' and 'supporting terrorism.'

Joint Russian-Turkish patrols, as laid out in an agreement between the Turkish and Russian governments in Sochi, began in north-eastern Syria on Friday. On Wednesday, Erdogan warned that Turkey would resume its military operation if Kurdish forces do not fully withdraw from the so-called 30-kilometre (20 miles) 'safe zone.'

Mandatory credit: SANA/Syrian State TV