US warns Syria over ‘potential’ plan for chemical attack
Source: BBC News The US says it has identified “potential preparations” for another chemical attack in Syria, and issued a stark warning to the Syrian government. The White House said […]
Syria conflict: US jet ‘downs Iranian-made drone’
Source: BBC News A US jet has shot down an Iranian-made drone operated by forces backing the Syrian government in the south of the country, American officials say. The drone […]
Taking Back Raqqa: Kurds Seek to Expand Reach in Northern Syria
The offensive to take Raqqa back from Islamic State has begun. Kurdish fighters are leading the charge in the hopes of eliminating the Islamist scourge — but they are also hoping to expand their power in northern Syria. By Christoph Reuter Photos ALICE MARTINS / DER SPIEGEL June 14, 2017 […]
Israel ‘giving secret aid to Syrian rebels’, report says
Source: Independent Direct funding, food, fuel and medical supplies allegedly provided by Israeli state to keep Isis and Iranian-allied forces in neighbouring civil war at bay Bethan McKernan Beirut @mck_beth […]
Israel Reportedly Providing Direct Aid, Funding to Syrian Rebels
It’s been known that Israeli hospitals have treated wounded Syrian fighters, but Wall Street Journal report uncovers direct support in cash, without which fighters say they ‘wouldn’t have survived’ Haaretz Jun 19, 2017 Israel has been secretly providing aid to Syrian rebels in the Golan Heights for years with the […]
Baghdadi ‘The Ghost’: world extremism’s low-profile boss
By AFP – Jun 19,2017 – JORDAN TIMES This image grab taken from a propaganda video released on July 5, 2014 by Al Furqan Media allegedly shows the leader […]
Syrians refugees head home on foot from Turkey for Eid holiday
Reuters International JUN 16, 2017 A Syrian boy runs with the others, who say they are returning to Syria ahead of the Eid al-Fitr, near the Turkish Cilvegozu border gate, located opposite of Syrian crossing point Bab al-Hawa in Reyhanli, in the southern Hatay province, Turkey, June 15, 2017. […]
Fresh Syria talks in Geneva slated for July 10th
AFP news@thelocal.ch 17 June 2017 The talks are aimed at ending a war that has killed more than 320,000 people since 2011. Photo: Delil Suleiman/AFP A fresh round of UN-sponsored Syria peace talks will begin on July 10th in Geneva, the UN envoy said Saturday, amid slim hopes for progress […]
Russia’s military says it may have killed IS leader; West, Iraq skeptical
Source: Reuters By Dmitry Solovyov and Ahmed Rasheed | MOSCOW/BAGHDAD Moscow said on Friday its forces may have killed Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in an air strike in […]
Russia’s military says it may have killed Islamic State leader; West, Iraq sceptical
Reuters International JUN 16, 2017 A man purported to be the reclusive leader of the militant Islamic State Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has made what would be his first public appearance at a mosque in the centre of Iraq’s second city, Mosul, according to a video recording posted on the Internet […]
Raqqa battle: ‘Staggering’ civilian toll from US-led air strikes
From the sectionMiddle East Image captionTens of thousands of civilians have been displaced by the fighting for Raqqa UN war crimes investigators say US-led coalition air strikes on Islamic State militants in the Syrian city of Raqqa are causing “staggering loss of life”. Coalition warplanes are supporting an offensive on […]
Daesh vanishing into thin air in Syria
İLNUR ÇEVIK @ilnurcevik Published June 13, 2017 No one really knew how the Daesh killers came about. They just appeared on the scene, wreaked havoc, beheaded people, displayed every form of cruelty and now they are vanishing into thin air in war-torn Syria. In Iraq they are about to give up Mosul […]
From “caliph” to fugitive: IS leader Baghdadi’s new life on the run
Reuters International JUN 12, 2017 – FILE PHOTO: A man purported to be the reclusive leader of the militant Islamic State Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi making what would have been his first public appearance, at a mosque in the centre of Iraq’s second city, Mosul, according to a video recording posted […]
View from Turkey: What’s going on in Raqqa?
HAKKI ÖCAL@hakkioca The current developments in Raqqa have proven Turkey’s thesis right: The U.S.’s decision to cooperate with the PYD terrorists was a fatal mistake Articles According to U.S. […]
US underreports civilian deaths in Syria, Iraq, according to rights groups
YUSUF SELMAN İNANÇ@yusufsinanc ISTANBUL Iraqi civilians walk through the rubble of western Mosul, May 15. In a recent press release, CENTCOM said 484 civilians have died in anti-Daesh coalition airstrikes […]
No Syrian ‘Marshall Plan’ but rather protracted war — Red Cross
By Reuters – Jun 03,2017 – JORDAN TIMES A street vendor waits for customers during the holy month of Ramadan in the rebel-held Tafas town, in Deraa Governorate, Syria, on Wednesday (Reuters photo) GENEVA — Syria is unlikely to see a major “Marshall Plan” for reconstruction as peace […]
The truth about US involvement in Syria is far more complicated than Donald Trump wants you to think
In April, I entered Deir Hafer. Isis had just fled for their lives, leaving their infamous black flags, crucifixion posts, arms factories and black-painted Islamic courtrooms still intact. And yet Washington still maintains that the Syrians don’t fight Isis Robert Fisk Beirut @indyvoices A member of the Syrian pro-government forces carries an Isis […]
Nearly half a million Syrian children receive education in Turkey
DAILY SABAH ISTANBUL AA Photo A total of 169,010 Syrian children attend Turkish public schools under the Temporary Protection Regulation, while 294,112 Syrian students go to special temporary schooling centers, Turkey’s Minister of National Education Ismet Yılmaz said Wednesday. “While a curriculum was being prepared for these students to study […]
Battling Islamic State: A Visit to the Mosul Front
The fight against Islamic State in western Mosul is chaotic and brutal, with up to 200,000 civilians still trapped in the IS-held Old Town. DER SPIEGEL visited the front in Iraq to see how the battle is progressing. By Christoph Reuter Jacob Russel A girl walks through the destroyed streets […]
UN-mediated Syria peace talks conclude in failure
ANADOLU AGENCY GENEVA UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura (AFP Photo) The sixth round of Syria talks in Geneva Friday ended in failure as there was no progress on any issue for a political solution to the Syrian crisis. The latest round of talks was expected to focus […]