angelburst29
The Living Force
The diplomatic quarter of Al-Rawda in Damascus came under artillery shelling on the part of militants, a Sputnik correspondent reported from the scene Thursday.
Militants Shell Damascus Diplomatic Quarter
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201703231051888899-militants-damscus-shelling/
The attack of militants on the area, where a significant number of foreign diplomatic missions are located, occurred for the first time in a long period.
According to preliminary data, no one was killed. The police and medics are specifying information on whether anyone was injured.
The clashes between militants and government forces in eastern Damascus have recently intensified, with the army launching a special military operation last week.
On Monday, the Syrian troops managed to rebuff a series of militants' powerful attacks on an industrial zone in the Jobar municipality.
Syrian Army Regains Control of Maghazel Industrial Area in Eastern Damascus
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201703231051882620-syria-damascus-terrorism-army/
The Maghazel industrial area is located north of the Jobar eastern suburb of Damascus, which was seized by terrorist groups in 2012 and is one of the main strongholds of terrorists in Damascus province.
After four days of intense fighting, the Syrian army, with support from the artillery and Air Force, managed to surround a large group of Jabhat Fatah al Sham terrorists, outlawed in Russia.
After several attempts to break the siege, the Jabhat Fatah al Sham terrorists, having lost dozens people and most of their weapons, were defeated.
The terrorists also shelled the Abbassiyyin Square in eastern Damascus, a strategic area successfully defended by government troops.
According to the SANA news agency, more than 150 terrorists were killed and hundreds more injured during the Syrian army’s four-day operation in eastern Damascus.
Russian Citizens Detained, Weapons Seized in Arms Smuggling Case From US - FSB
https://sputniknews.com/russia/201703231051871401-weapon-russia-arms-seizure/
Russian citizens have been detained across four cities and 19 weapons were seized in an illicit arms trafficking case from the United States, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said Thursday.
The activity of an interregional criminal group involved in the illegal trafficking of firearms, its main parts and ammunition, as well as the organization of a channel for their smuggling to Russia from the United States through international mail, has been stopped," the FSB said.
Among the weapons seized by the FSB were: two machine guns; two US-made assault rifles; eight foreign and domestic pistols and revolvers; seven foreign and domestic carbines and rifles; cartridges, main parts and components for various small arms.
Why Israel is 'Deeply Interested' in Continuation of Syrian War
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201703231051872236-israel-insterested-syrian-war/
"Israel is deeply interested in the ongoing standoff between the Sunnis and the Shia. Tel Aviv wants them to continue killing each other. Nothing presents a threat to Israel as long as this war is ongoing. The Israeli Air Force launches airstrikes against Shia militias in Syria, tipping the balance. This evens out the chances and the war drags on," he told RT.
Balmasov, an expert at the Middle East Institute at the Russian International Affairs Council, also suggested that Israel could use a border incident to move its forces into southern Syria.
"One could not rule out that Israel does not deploy its troops to the southern buffer zone which borders the Golan Heights to create a territorial entity on the basis of Druze settlements using some kind of an incident as a pretext," he said.
Israel has largely refrained from taking an active part in the devastating Syrian conflict, but has occasionally sent its warplanes to launch airstrikes on Hezbollah in a bid to eliminate its leaders and destroy its weapons. Several such missions are reported to have taken place in recent days in what marks the most serious incident between Tel Aviv and Damascus since the 2011 foreign-sponsored insurgency in Syria morphed into a large-scale war.
It started on Friday, with the Israeli Air Force launching airstrikes on several Hezbollah targets near the Syrian city of Palmyra, close to an area where Russian experts have been engaged in demining efforts following the successful campaign to push Daesh out of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. The operation prompted the Syrian Arab Army to launch three anti-aircraft missiles at the departing Israeli planes, with Israel's Arrow missile defense system intercepting one of the projectiles.
The incident sparked a war of words among high-ranking officials on both sides. On Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman pledged that Tel Aviv would destroy all Syrian air defense systems "without thinking twice" should a similar situation occur in the future. Earlier this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Tel Aviv would continue to carry out airstrikes on convoys suspected of transferring advanced weapons to Hezbollah.
President Bashar al-Assad reiterated that it was Damascus' right and duty to defend Syrian borders.
"Why has Israel squared off against the Syrian Arab Army? Israel views the SAA's links to Hezbollah as unacceptable. Tel Aviv is concerned that the group could become stronger," Irina Zvyagelskaya, a senior research fellow at the Center for Arab and Islamic Research at the Russian Academy of Sciences' Institute of Oriental Studies, told RT.
Israel considers Hezbollah to be a terrorist organization and views the Lebanon-based Shia movement, one of Assad's key allies in Damascus's war against Daesh, to be one of the top security threats.
Militants Shell Damascus Diplomatic Quarter
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201703231051888899-militants-damscus-shelling/
The attack of militants on the area, where a significant number of foreign diplomatic missions are located, occurred for the first time in a long period.
According to preliminary data, no one was killed. The police and medics are specifying information on whether anyone was injured.
The clashes between militants and government forces in eastern Damascus have recently intensified, with the army launching a special military operation last week.
On Monday, the Syrian troops managed to rebuff a series of militants' powerful attacks on an industrial zone in the Jobar municipality.
Syrian Army Regains Control of Maghazel Industrial Area in Eastern Damascus
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201703231051882620-syria-damascus-terrorism-army/
The Maghazel industrial area is located north of the Jobar eastern suburb of Damascus, which was seized by terrorist groups in 2012 and is one of the main strongholds of terrorists in Damascus province.
After four days of intense fighting, the Syrian army, with support from the artillery and Air Force, managed to surround a large group of Jabhat Fatah al Sham terrorists, outlawed in Russia.
After several attempts to break the siege, the Jabhat Fatah al Sham terrorists, having lost dozens people and most of their weapons, were defeated.
The terrorists also shelled the Abbassiyyin Square in eastern Damascus, a strategic area successfully defended by government troops.
According to the SANA news agency, more than 150 terrorists were killed and hundreds more injured during the Syrian army’s four-day operation in eastern Damascus.
Russian Citizens Detained, Weapons Seized in Arms Smuggling Case From US - FSB
https://sputniknews.com/russia/201703231051871401-weapon-russia-arms-seizure/
Russian citizens have been detained across four cities and 19 weapons were seized in an illicit arms trafficking case from the United States, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said Thursday.
The activity of an interregional criminal group involved in the illegal trafficking of firearms, its main parts and ammunition, as well as the organization of a channel for their smuggling to Russia from the United States through international mail, has been stopped," the FSB said.
Among the weapons seized by the FSB were: two machine guns; two US-made assault rifles; eight foreign and domestic pistols and revolvers; seven foreign and domestic carbines and rifles; cartridges, main parts and components for various small arms.
Why Israel is 'Deeply Interested' in Continuation of Syrian War
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201703231051872236-israel-insterested-syrian-war/
"Israel is deeply interested in the ongoing standoff between the Sunnis and the Shia. Tel Aviv wants them to continue killing each other. Nothing presents a threat to Israel as long as this war is ongoing. The Israeli Air Force launches airstrikes against Shia militias in Syria, tipping the balance. This evens out the chances and the war drags on," he told RT.
Balmasov, an expert at the Middle East Institute at the Russian International Affairs Council, also suggested that Israel could use a border incident to move its forces into southern Syria.
"One could not rule out that Israel does not deploy its troops to the southern buffer zone which borders the Golan Heights to create a territorial entity on the basis of Druze settlements using some kind of an incident as a pretext," he said.
Israel has largely refrained from taking an active part in the devastating Syrian conflict, but has occasionally sent its warplanes to launch airstrikes on Hezbollah in a bid to eliminate its leaders and destroy its weapons. Several such missions are reported to have taken place in recent days in what marks the most serious incident between Tel Aviv and Damascus since the 2011 foreign-sponsored insurgency in Syria morphed into a large-scale war.
It started on Friday, with the Israeli Air Force launching airstrikes on several Hezbollah targets near the Syrian city of Palmyra, close to an area where Russian experts have been engaged in demining efforts following the successful campaign to push Daesh out of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. The operation prompted the Syrian Arab Army to launch three anti-aircraft missiles at the departing Israeli planes, with Israel's Arrow missile defense system intercepting one of the projectiles.
The incident sparked a war of words among high-ranking officials on both sides. On Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman pledged that Tel Aviv would destroy all Syrian air defense systems "without thinking twice" should a similar situation occur in the future. Earlier this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Tel Aviv would continue to carry out airstrikes on convoys suspected of transferring advanced weapons to Hezbollah.
President Bashar al-Assad reiterated that it was Damascus' right and duty to defend Syrian borders.
"Why has Israel squared off against the Syrian Arab Army? Israel views the SAA's links to Hezbollah as unacceptable. Tel Aviv is concerned that the group could become stronger," Irina Zvyagelskaya, a senior research fellow at the Center for Arab and Islamic Research at the Russian Academy of Sciences' Institute of Oriental Studies, told RT.
Israel considers Hezbollah to be a terrorist organization and views the Lebanon-based Shia movement, one of Assad's key allies in Damascus's war against Daesh, to be one of the top security threats.
