The Syrian intelligence possesses an audio recording of conversation between Daesh terrorists and US military prior to the Washington-led coalition's airstrikes on the government troops near Deir ez-Zor on September 17, the speaker of the People's Council of Syria said Monday.
Damascus Has Audio of Daesh Talks With US Military Before Strike on Syrian Army
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160926/1045706456/us-airstrike-daesh-army.html
"The Syrian Army intercepted a conversation between the Americans and Daesh before the air raid on Deir ez-Zor", Hadiya Khalaf Abbas said as quoted by the Al Mayadeen broadcaster.
The attack on government positions put to test a US-Russia brokered nationwide ceasefire that came into being in Syria earlier that week. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last Friday it was necessary to separate Daesh terrorists from "moderate" opposition forces in order to salvage the truce.
Britain, Australia and Denmark confirmed their air forces' participation in the deadly airstrikes.
The politician noted that the details would be made public later.
Sputnik obtained a video showing civilians beginning to return home to the areas of Aleppo liberated by the Syrian Army after successful military operations.
EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Life Returns to Areas of Aleppo Liberated by Syrian Army
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160926/1045720470/life-returns-aleppo.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjwNzr_YuAM
The resumption of traffic on the highway in vicinity of Ramouseh has accelerated the return of residents.
Aleppo has finally opened its stores, shopping centers and public institutions to meet the needs of the residents.
Sputnik spoke to one of the residents who returned home to the liberated area of the city.
Abu Mohammed, who is a clothes vendor, was forced to leave his native home when the militants seized the area. He recalls that there were mass acts of looting taking place at the hands of the militants. “All factories and shops were looted by the militants of al-Nusra Front, who sold everything to Turkish merchants for a small price. Now it will be difficult to recover all of that in a short time period,” Abu Mohammed said. Earlier, the militants seized all the shops and factories in Ramouseh area to use them for their own purpose.
Another resident named Fadi, the owner of clothes warehouse commented on the importance of residents returning to Aleppo from the industrial point of view.
He said that the reopening of industry in Aleppo will have a positive effect on the domestic market as a whole and will contribute to lower prices, as Aleppo market accounts for a large share of the entire local market. Former workers who have many years of experience in the production of goods across different sectors [from textiles to heavy industry] have also returned to Aleppo. According to the residents, this will help domestic production of quality goods come to the local market.
The United States has provided Jabhat Fatah al Sham group, formerly known as the Nusra Front, with TOW anti-tank missiles, which are useful in fight against Syrian army, Abu Al Ezz, the extremist group's commander, said.
Jabhat Fatah al Sham Field Commander Says US Provides Group With TOW Missiles
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160926/1045724904/jabhat-fatah-al-sham-us-tow.html
According to him, Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Israel and the United States have provided the Jabhat Fatah al Sham group with military advisers and experts in usage of satellites and rockets, reconnaissance and thermographic cameras.
"The United States supports the [Syrian] opposition, but not directly. They [Americans] support the countries, which support us. However, we are still not satisfied with this support. They should support us with sophisticated weapons. We are winning battles thanks to TOW missiles… We receive tanks from Libya via Turkey. The [Assad's] regime surpasses us only with the combat aircraft, missiles and missile launchers… We have taken control over some areas thanks to US TOW missiles… which were delivered to us directly," Al Ezz told the Kolner Stadt-Anzeiger newspaper in an interview published on Monday.
Earlier on Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Moscow could hardly trust the US-led coalition's actions against terrorist groups in Syria as it exclusively targets the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group and bypasses the group formerly known as the Nusra Front.
The US government vehemently rejects allegations that it has provided anti-tank missiles or any military aid to the al-Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front terrorist organization, Department of State spokesperson Mark Toner said in a briefing on Monday.
US Denies Providing Anti-Tank Missiles to Nusra Front
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160926/1045725253/us-denies-providing-tow-nusra-front.html
Nusra Front commander Al Ezz told a German newspaper in an interview published on Monday that the United States had provided his group with TOW anti-tank missiles.
"We [the United States] would never provide Nusra with any kind of assistance whatsoever," Toner told reporters when asked about Ezz’s comments.
Toner added the United States "vehemently" rejects any notions that it would arm a group that it views as a foreign terrorist organization and an affiliate of Al Qaeda. He also accused Syria’s military offensive in Aleppo of forcing opposition fighters partnering with the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front.
"When you have the reality of Aleppo with renewed airstrikes, with renewed fighting, with renewed government regime offensive on the ground… that only drives the moderate opposition into the arms of Nusra," Toner said, stressing that the US remains in contact with the Syrian opposition to ensure they abide to the ceasefire agreement terms that stipulate separation from designated terrorist groups like the Nusra Front.
Earlier on Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Moscow could hardly trust the US-led coalition's actions against terrorist groups in Syria as it exclusively targets Daesh terror group and bypasses the group formerly known as the Nusra Front.
Addressing the UN General Assembly on September 22, Syria's Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said that a recent air strike delivered by the US-led coalition on the Syrian forces in Deir ez-Zor proved Washington was complicit with terrorist groups in the war-torn country.
In a pitched battle, the Syrian army, assisted by al-Quds militia brigades recaptured a Palestinian refugee camp on Saturday in the north-eastern suburbs of Aleppo. However, by Sunday morning the territory had fallen back under control of the rebels.
NATO Ammunition and 'Guns of Hell': Rare Glimpse of Handarat Camp in Aleppo
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160926/1045710077/handarat-camp-aleppo.html
RIA Novosti correspondent Mikhail Alaeddin visited the Handarat camp almost immediately after its liberation and interviewed several of the fighters who had helped capture it.
The refugee camp is an important strategic position on the south-west side of Aleppo. It has been a target for both the Syrian Army and rebel forces. On Sunday, the Syrian Army deployed with the intention to retake the city with the help with Palestinian al-Quds fighters. The camp has been under the control of armed groups supported by the United States and Turkey, as well as the terrorists of al-Nusra Front, for more than two years.
The camp gained its notoriety in late July when three Nureddin al-Zenki militants executed an 11-year-old boy. He was accused of reporting terrorist locations in Handarat to government troops. The boy, Abdullah Issa, was the son of an al-Quds militia fighters. US officials said that the execution was an isolated event and that it should not be used to characterize this group as terrorists.
When Alaeddin entered the camp there were some militiamen with their flags and armbands. Surprisingly, inside the camp not a single Syrian soldier was to be seen. The men who had recaptured the city were part of the Liwa al-Quds brigade who had lived their entire life in the Handarat refugee camp.
“Our brigade stormed the city, we know every corner here. Our militia was supported by artillery and Special Forces. However, everything was destroyed, there was nothing left of my house, just boulders. We were fighting for our second home, the first was left back in Palestine, such is our fate,” militiaman Maher, with a plastered hand, told RIA.
Some of the more interesting things which were found were guns the locals called “guns of hell,” 3-5 meter artillery tubes each weighing over 40 kilograms and all labeled in Turkish.
“You have correctly noticed these cylinders are of Turkish production. We do not make these here and yes, these are the exact ones that fall on the residential neighborhoods in Aleppo,” Hamada told the RIA correspondent.
Additionally,
other weapons were found, such as 81-mm mortar shells used by NATO, and judging by the markings, made in the US.
The US government, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and a number of other Western countries continue to call the armed groups of Ahrar ash-Sham, Nureddin al-Zenki, Jaish al-Fatah as moderate opposition, despite the fact, that they and dozens of other smaller groups are now fighting under the command of al-Nusra Front.
However, the Syrian Army’s success did not last long. In the morning, the commander of the Liwa al-Quds brigade reported that the Palestinian militia fighters had to leave most of the camp after radical forces launched a counterattack. The rebels had subsequently regained control.
“At night, terrorists attacked simultaneously from three sides after preliminary heavy mortar fire. We had to retreat from most areas of the camp,” the representative told RIA Novosti.
According to the Turkish foreign minister, the country's forces will move further in the Syrian territory to create a "de facto safe zone."
Turkish Army to Go Further in Syria Establishing 'De Facto Safe Zone' - FM
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160925/1045685421/fm-turkey-army-syria.html
Turkish army will move further south in the Syrian territory to create a "de facto safe zone" of 5,000 square kilometers in the Manbij region, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said.
"First we should go down at least 45 kilometers [30 miles] to close the Manbij pocket. And this area can be a de facto safe zone. It is around 5,000 square kilometers," Cavusoglu told France 24 broadcaster in an interview.
Turkey is trying to prevent the United States from cooperating with and supporting Kurdish militias in Syria, investigative journalist Rick Sterling told Radio Sputnik. The Kurds have been one of Washington's key allies on the ground, but Ankara has grown increasingly discontent with the People's Protection Units' (YPG) battlefield gains.
Turkey Trying to 'Break up Alliance Between US and Syrian Kurds'
https://sputniknews.com/politics/20160926/1045699249/turkey-us-syria-kurds.html
Turkey is "trying basically to separate the US from the Kurds," he said. This is why President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was "hinting at the Turkish participation with the US in an attack in Raqqa," he added.
Washington was initially hoping that the YPG and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces would form the bulk of the ground troops, who will be tasked with clearing Raqqa, Daesh's de facto capital. However, Turkish officials have recently said that they are against the Kurds taking part in the offensive.
"Supposedly the goal [of the operation in Raqqa] will be to remove [Daesh], but of course part of the goal will be to prevent the Syrian government from defeating [Daesh] and taking control of Raqqa. So there is a lot of maneuvering going on right now, with Turkish forces and US special forces actually being on Syrian territory," Sterling noted.
Turkey and Russia are currently in talks over a protocol to coordinate combat flights in the Syrian airspace to prevent incidents, a Turkish military source told Hurriyet Daily News.
Russia, Turkey Reach a 'Gentleman’s Agreement' on Syrian Airspace
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160925/1045680368/russia-turkey-syria-airspace.html
While working on a draft protocol, both sides reached a "gentleman’s agreement," the source said. According to the agreement, one side must not enter the area where the other side is conducting combat operations.
The decision to coordinate combat flights over Syria was made on September 15 at a meeting in Ankara between Russian Military Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov and his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar.
This was the first visit by a Russian high-profile military commander to Turkey after a Turkish jet shot down a Russian bomber over Syria in November 2015. After the incident, contacts between the Russian and Turkish militaries were suspended.
During the meeting, Moscow and Ankara agreed to establish a direct hot line as well as communication channels between the Russian and Turkish air forces to prevent incidents.
According to the source, the Turkish military has provided Russia with the coordinates of the areas where it is operating. In return, Russian warplanes will not enter those areas.
The source also noted that Russia is acting very carefully to avoid violations of Turkish airspace and regularly provides information about its flights in nearby areas.
The need to reach a protocol coordinating combat flights became urgent after the Turkish military launched the Euphrates Shield military operation in Syria on August 24. Then, Russian newspaper Izvestia reported that the Russian Defense Ministry had requested information on Turkey’s military campaign in Syria in order to prevent aerial incidents.
But that may not mean anything as updating is frequently forgotten.
