Syrian President Bashar al-Assad may be preparing a chemical weapons attack that would result in the “mass murder” of civilians, the White House said Monday, warning the regime would pay a “heavy price” if it goes ahead. The White House said the preparations were similar to those undertaken by the Assad regime ahead of an … Read more
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad led Eid al-Fitr prayers in the central city of Hama on Sunday, appearing in public outside the capital for the first time in a year. Assad’s office published images of him praying inside the brightly-lit Al-Nuri mosque at dawn on Sunday before greeting worshippers outside. He was flanked by Islamic Endowments … Read more
Recalibrating France’s long-held policy of insisting that Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad must step down, President Emmanuel Macron has opted for realpolitik by making the fight against terror the top priority. In an interview with eight European newspapers Thursday, he unveiled a revamped policy to address a conflict that has claimed more than 320,000 lives and … Read more
France no longer sees the departure of President Bashar al-Assad as a priority in the Syrian conflict, President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday, making the policy official for the first time. The new French leader said instead that fighting jihadists such as the Islamic State group had to be the international community’s number one goal in … Read more
Russia has said it is suspending a special hotline to communicate with the US-led coalition about operations in Syria, raising the risk of a military mishap. Here is a quick look at the so-called “deconfliction line” and why it has become so important in Syria. – What is it? – The line was established in … Read more
The United States is seeking to re-establish a military hotline with Russia that has been vital in protecting both sides’ forces operating in Syria, the top US general said Monday. “We will work diplomatically and militarily in the coming hours to re-establish deconfliction,” said General Joe Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, referring … Read more
United Nations war crimes investigators expressed alarm Wednesday at the “staggering” number of civilian deaths as US-backed forces battle to oust the Islamic State group from its Syrian stronghold Raqa. “In areas controlled by extremist factions, we are gravely concerned with the mounting number of civilians who perish during air strikes,” said Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, … Read more
United Nations war crimes investigators expressed alarm Wednesday at the “staggering” number of civilian deaths as US-backed forces battle to oust the Islamic State group from its Syrian stronghold Raqa. “In areas controlled by extremist factions, we are gravely concerned with the mounting number of civilians who perish during air strikes,” said Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, … Read more
US President Donald Trump on Monday promised to reveal details of his long-awaited plan for fighting the Islamic State group, saying a press conference will come within weeks. “We have had tremendous success against ISIS,” Trump said at a cabinet meeting at the White House. “We are going to be having a news conference in … Read more
Syrian pro-government forces now hold more than a fifth of the country’s strategic desert, the army said Saturday, after reaching the eastern border with Iraq for the first time since 2015. The desert, known as the “Badiya”, extends over some 90,000 square kilometres (35,000 square miles) from central Syria to the borders with Iraq and … Read more
Moscow on Wednesday condemned a US-led coalition strike on pro-regime fighters in Syria as an “act of aggression” that targeted the most effective forces battling “terrorists” in the war-torn country. “It was an act of aggression which breaches the territorial sovereignty of Syria and intentionally or not targeted those forces that are the most effective … Read more
Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad has said the worst of his country’s six-year war “is behind us” after a string of advances by his forces backed by key ally Russia. In recent months, Assad’s troops and allied fighters have retaken territory across the country, including recapturing all of Aleppo city in December after years of fighting. … Read more
US-led coalition forces in Syria are reinforcing their garrison near the crucial Al-Tanf border crossing amid a buildup of pro-government troops nearby, a US military official said Thursday. “We have increased our presence and our footprint and prepared for any threat that is presented by the pro-regime forces,” Colonel Ryan Dillon, spokesman for the coalition … Read more
A Russian warship and submarine have fired cruise missiles at Islamic State group targets around Palmyra in Syria from the Mediterranean, Moscow said Wednesday, the first such strikes announced in months. The frigate Admiral Essen and submarine Krasnodar carried out four strikes against military hardware and fighters from the jihadist group who had left its … Read more
Iran-backed, pro-Syrian regime forces are again massing close to where US-led warplanes bombed them this month, the Pentagon said Tuesday, raising the likelihood of additional strikes. Coalition planes on May 18 pounded the front of a convoy that had apparently been headed toward the At-Tanf garrison, where coalition commandos have been training and advising local … Read more
Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad lauded his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani Saturday on his election victory and vowed to continue cooperating with Tehran, a key Damascus supporter. Assad congratulated Rouhani on winning a second term and for earning “the trust the Iranian people gave him to continue bolstering Iran’s position and role,” according to a statement … Read more
A pro-regime convoy that was struck by US-led warplanes inside Syria this week likely was directed by Iran, Pentagon chief Jim Mattis said Friday. The strike on the convoy heading toward a coalition garrison near the Jordanian border was “necessitated by offensive movement with offensive capability of what we believe were Iranian-directed forces,” Mattis said, … Read more
Russia on Friday condemned strikes by the US-led coalition against Syrian forces as “unacceptable”, state media reported, after the bombing of pro-government troops. “Any military actions that lead to a deterioration in the situation in Syria obviously impact the political process,” deputy foreign minister Gennady Gatilov was quoted as saying by state-run RIA Novosti in … Read more
In the first concrete results from talks this week on ending Syria’s conflict, the United Nations said Thursday the warring sides had agreed to set up expert committees to discuss “constitutional issues.” Representatives of Syria’s government and opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) are in Switzerland for the sixth round of UN-backed peace negotiations, but there … Read more
The Islamic State group killed more than 50 people in an attack on two government-held villages in central Syria’s Hama province on Thursday, a monitor said. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attack on the villages of Aqareb and Al-Mabujeh killed at least 15 civilians and 27 pro-government fighters. It said another … Read more