Russia Begins Operations in Syria: End Game for the US Empire?

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The Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu called on Russia and Iran to halt the Syrian Arab Army’s (SAA) large-scale advance in the Idlib Governorate, adding that it is a violation of the de-escalation agreement.

Turkish regime demands Syrian Army halt their advance in Idlib 10/01/2018
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/turkish-regime-demands-syrian-army-halt-advance-idlib/

“Russia and Iran must stop the Syrian regime. They should realize their duties as guarantor countries,” Çavuşoğlu told state-run Anadolu Agency on January 10th, as quoted by Hurriyet Daily.

Çavuşoğlu added that the Syrian government is attempting to weaken the opposition forces by launching such a large assault inside the Idlib Governorate.

Syria and Turkey currently have no diplomatic relations, despite attempts by Russia and Iran to ease tensions between the neighboring countries.

Late last month, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad a ‘terrorist,’ adding that it is impossible for Ankara to deal with his government.

The Turkish regime summoned the Russian and Iranian ambassadors this evening to complan about the Syrian Arab Army’s (SAA) recent advances in the Idlib Governorate.

Syrian Army ignores Turkey’s disapproval to capture another town in Idlib – map
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-army-ignores-turkeys-disapproval-capture-another-town-idlib-map/

According to the Turkish regime, the Syrian Army’s advances are a violation of the de-escalation agreement, despite the fact that they are against the jihadist rebels of Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham.

In response to the Turkey’s disapproval, the Syrian Army’s Tiger Forces continued their push towards the strategic Abu Dhuhour Military Airport tonight, capturing a new town from the jihadist rebels.

The Syrian Army was able to impose full control over Al-Jabiriyah this evening after the jihadist rebels abandoned the town in order to build their defenses around the airport.

Elite forces of the Syrian Arab Army continue to advance in the southeastern countryside of Idlib province, launching a night assault in recent hours and capturing another town despite having to endure heavy shelling by militant howitzer and rocket units.

Elite Syrian forces launch night assault in southeast Idlib despite heavy shelling by jihadist artillery
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/elite-syrian-forces-launch-night-assault-southeast-idlib-despite-heavy-shelling-jihadist-artillery/

On the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, assault units of the Syrian Arab Army’s elite Tiger Forces Division seized the town of Al-Jabriyah, located about six kilometers south of the Abu Duhur airbase in southeast Idlib.


The advance has brought the towns of Miraya and Heysa within striking distance of Syrian troops and the latest reports provided to Al-Masdar News state that army mortar units are now shelling militant positions in and around both settlements.

However, from far behind the front-line, jihadist-led militias have brought the heaviest guns in their arsenal to bear and since late Tuesday, Syrian forces have come under heavy rocket and howitzer shelling by militant groups who aim to slow down the army’s advance on Abu Duhur.

Moscow noted “strange coincidences” surrounding a terrorist attack on a Russian airbase and port facility in Syria, in which guided combat drones were deployed by militants, adding that a US spy plane was spotted in the area.

US Spy Plane Circled between Russian Airbase, Port Facility during Syria Drone Attack
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961020000420

The Russian Defense Ministry consciously didn’t point any fingers when talking about the January 6 attack on Russia’s airbase and port facility in Syria, the ministry's statement said, but added that technology used in the attack was telling, RT reported.

Advanced training in engineering in “one of the developed countries” would be necessary to program the principal controllers and bomb-release systems of an aircraft-type combat drone, the statement stressed. “Not everyone is also able to get exact (attack) coordinates from the space surveillance data,” it added.

The ministry noted that a US Navy Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft was flying over the region between the Russian bases in Lattakia and Tartus for some four hours around the time of the drone attack.

An earlier Pentagon statement allowed the Russian military to “take a new look at some strange coincidences” surrounding the incident, it said.

The Saturday attack targeted both Humeimim Airbase and the maritime logistics facility in Tartus post city, and involved as many as 13 combat drones. The assault was successfully repelled by the Russian anti-aircraft defense systems and electronic warfare specialists.

It was the first time terrorists had used such sophisticated technology in the conflict, the ministry said, adding that the technical assessment showed that the drone could have been obtained “only from a country possessing state-of-the-art technologies.”

 

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VIDEO: Syrian Army fires hundreds of Golan missiles at militants in east Damascus during non-stop attack
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/video-syrian-army-fires-hundreds-golan-missiles-militants-east-damascus-non-stop-attack/

Amid heavy clashes between Syrian troops and jihadist militants throughout the district of Harasta in eastern Damascus, army rocket artillery units have been laying down an unrelenting barrage of heavy missile fire onto rebel defenses.

One of the Syrian Army’s key heavy fire support assets in this regard is the indigenous-designed Golan multiple rocket thrower system.

Recently, Syrian media released a two-minute video compilation of army rocket artillery units of the Golan-200, Golan-300 and Golan-400 varieties firing a non-stop barrage – literally hundreds of unguided missiles – against militant defenses in eastern Damascus to clear the way for ground forces to advance.

All of the rocket systems shown firing off their salvos belong to the elite 4th Mechanized Division of the Syrian Arab Army.

In October, both pro-government and pro-rebel audiences were shocked to witness a large ISIS force suddenly bursting onto semi-desert plains of northeast Hama province which undertook an offensive rampage that saw it seize multiple villages and towns in region from rival jihadist groups.

Exclusive: Number of ISIS fighters in northeast Hama revealed, far greater than initially estimated
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/exclusive-number-isis-fighters-northeast-hama-revealed-far-greater-initially-estimated/

Despite the best efforts of militant factions to try eliminate the threat, they ultimately failed and since then the ISIS bastion has gradually expanded throughout northeast Hama, reportedly even reaching into southwest Aleppo province according to some opposition sources.

The estimates (all of which were baseless) put forth by pro-army and rebel sources are that this new Islamic State force consists of about 300 fighters. In reality, the number is around three times greater.

However large the ISIS group was when it first entered into northeast Hama, at the present time it possess – as revealed by a trusted source of the author of this article – about 800-900 fighters.

Defections from other militant groups, pro-ISIS spies hidden among refugees which fled towards Idlib from east Hama and the recruitment of captured rebel prisoners were said by the source to have considerably increased the size of the original force.

The type and amount of heavy military equipment possessed by ISIS militants in northeast Hama remains unclear.

Moscow urged Ankara to ensure a ceasefire in Idlib following drone attacks on Russian bases with the Ministry of Defence releasing another image of captured UAVs carrying several improvised explosive devices in Latakia, Wednesday.

Drone attacks on Khmeimim and Tartus launched from Idlib (video)
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/drone-attacks-khmeimim-tartus-launched-idlib-video/

Recent reports from the MoD suggest that the drone launch was conducted from the position in the Idlib de-escalation zone, which was established by Russia, Iran and Turkey but is controlled by Ankara.

Following these reports, Russian officials sent letters to the leaders of the Turkish General Staff and Intelligence Agency urging a ceasefire in Idlib de-escalation zone.

Russia says its military repelled an attack from 13 ‘militant’ drones on its Khmeimim Air Base and Tartus naval facility in Syria on January 6.

Khmeimim was also hit by mortar shelling on December 31 which claimed the lives of two Russian military personnel.

Russia’s Defense Ministry in separate letters to Turkey’s chief of the General Staff and intelligence chief urged Turkey to meet its obligations in de-escalation zones including Idlib.

Russia Urges Turkey to Meet Its Obligations in De-Escalation Zones
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2018/01/10/1624134/russia-urges-turkey-to-meet-its-obligations-in-de-escalation-zones

Combat UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) attacking Russian military facilities in Syrian Hmeymim and Tartus overnight into January 6 were launched from the de-escalation zone in Idlib, Russia’s Defense Ministry said.

"The drones were launched from Muazzara settlement located in the southwestern part of Idlib de-escalation zone controlled by the armed forces of the so-called moderate opposition," the ministry said in a commentary published in the Red Star newspaper on Wednesday.

In this respect, the Russian Defense Ministry has submitted letters to Turkey’s Chief of the General Staff Hulusi Akar and Hakan Fidan, the country’s intelligence chief.

"The documents stress that it is necessary for Ankara to meet assumed obligations to ensure ceasefire through armed forces’ control and intensify efforts to use check points in the de-escalation zone in Idlib for preventing such UAV attacks on any targets," the commentary said.

Earlier reports said that Russian military forces repelled a militant attack on Hmeymim and Tartus bases in Syria with the use of 13 combat UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) overnight into January 6. Seven UAVs were eliminated by assigned artillery systems Pantsir-S1 of Russian air defense units and six UAVs were intercepted, the ministry said. The decisions made by militants related to the attack could have been received from a country with high technological potential, the ministry said.

Syria has denounced the French Foreign Ministry’s adoption of Nusra Front allegations on targeting hospitals and civilians in Idlib Province by the Syrian Arab Army, and categorically refuted these allegations.

Syria Denounces France Adoption of Nusra Allegations, Refutes Targeting Hospitals, Civilians in Idlib
http://english.almanar.com.lb/423520

“The Syrian Arab Republic is surprised at insistence of the French Foreign Ministry to continue the campaign of misleading the French public opinion about what is happening in Syria, exploiting the humanitarian sides to divert attention from the failure of the policies it has adopted towards Syria,”

an official source at Foreign and Expatriates Ministry said Thursday, denouncing the Ministry’s adoption of allegations of Nusra Front terrorist organization.

The source said that the French Foreign Ministry has shown a great ignorance of what is happening in the countryside of Idlib, and therefore it should know that Nusra Front is listed by the United Nations as a terrorist organization.

What the Syrian Arab Army is doing in that area is to liberate it from the terror of al-Nusra and other affiliated-terrorist organizations, the source added.

Nusra, according to the source, is not a part of the Astana understandings, consequently those who ensure the cover to this terrorist organization intend to provide support to it.

The source said that France, whose citizens in Paris and other French cities suffered from trans-border Takfiri terrorism that threatens the international peace and stability as a whole, should take clear stances towards terrorism and adopt a new approach that matches with the De Gaulle’s independent approach of the French policy.

The source said that France, whose citizens in Paris and other French cities suffered from trans-border Takfiri terrorism that threatens the international peace and stability as a whole, should take clear stances towards terrorism and adopt a new approach that matches with the De Gaulle’s independent approach of the French policy.

The source concluded by calling upon the French Diplomacy not to echo the schemes of others and not to be subjected to financial interests with the oil-sheikhdoms.

 

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Russian artillery has destroyed a depot storing militants' drones located in the Idlib province.

Russian MoD: Militant Group That Attacked Base in Syria Liquidated (VIDEOS)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801121060708674-russia-base-attackers-destroyed-drones/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91SZdKzPKUU (0:10 min.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4jinjEcQx0 (0:05 min.)

The Russian Defense Ministry has announced that the group of militants that conducted a massive mortar attack targeting the Russian Hmeymim base in Syria on December 31 were eliminated in the course of a special operation.

During the final stage of the operation, a group of Russian Special Operations Forces established the location of the subversive group of militants near the western border of the Idlib province. Upon the terrorists' arrival at the facility where they were preparing to board to a minibus, the entire sabotage group was destroyed by a Krasnopol high-precision artillery shell," the Russian military said in a statement.

According to the Defense Ministry, the operation involved all the forces and means of a multi-level system of Russian military intelligence in Syria.

Separately, Russian military intelligence units have discovered and destroyed a depot in the Idlib province controlled by so-called "moderate opposition" used to store strike drones used to attack two Russian bases in Syria on January 6, the ministry added.

"Russian military intelligence has uncovered the site where terrorists assembled and stored unmanned aircraft-type drones in the Idlib province. The depot was destroyed by high-precision artillery ammunition 'Krasnopol'."

The Russian base in Syria was targeted by two attacks in less than a week, as the Hmeymim base came under mortar shelling on December 31 killing two servicemen, and was later attacked by drones on January 6.

Earlier this week, the ministry said that the Russian military in Syria had disrupted a massive attack with the use of battle drones on its facilities in the country on January 6, intercepting six and shooting down seven more UAVs launched by militants. According to the Russian Defense Ministry's analysis of the drones, captured after attacks on the country's military bases in Syria, experts who created them acquired training abroad in drone-producing countries.

Commenting on the attack, President Vladimir Putin said that Russia knows who are the perpetrators of the "planned" attack he described as a provocation.

Russian 2K25 Krasnopol 152mm laser guided artillery shells against Islamic state terrorists in Syria
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_pEgfOu6JU (5:52 min.)

The US and Turkey have deployed their troops in Syria without any mandate and have still refused to withdraw them, despite Damascus' warnings.

Syrian Deputy FM Urges US, Turkey to Withdraw Troops From Syria
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801121060707224-syria-occupation-presence/

Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al-Mekdad has urged Ankara and Washington to withdraw their troops from Syria, dubbing the presence "invasive."

The presence of foreign forces on Syrian soil without permission from Damascus is "unacceptable" and will be regarded as an "occupation," the top official said Friday as quoted by PressTV media outlet.

At the same time, al-Mekdad criticized UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura for "doing nothing" to solve the Syrian crisis.

The statement comes several days after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey would continue its Euphrates Shield military operation in Syria's Afrin and Manbij regions.

Turkey launched its Euphrates Shield Operation in Syria back in 2016, aiming at the elimination of Daesh terrorists in the northern part of the country. In March 2017, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim announced the successful completion of the operation, but left its forces in the region to continue military operations against Syria's armed Kurdish groups.

At the same time, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement earlier this week that "United States' claims that their troops are allegedly in Syria to fight terrorists are unconvincing and do not stand up to criticism."

The ministry also noted that the Rukban refugee camp on the Syrian-Jordanian border was de-facto controlled by the US armed forces and the entrance to which was effectively banned for the Syrian government forces or representatives of Damascus.

The US began its anti-Daesh operation in Syria in 2014, without obtaining a mandate from either Damascus or the UN.

All limitations on the access of humanitarian convoys to the Rukban refugee camp in the Al-Tanf area in Southern Syria – which is de-facto occupied by US forces – must be lifted, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

Moscow: US De-facto Occupies Part of Syria, Hinders Humanitarian Aid
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961022000263

Moscow has firmly emphasized the need to respect the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Syria in the implementation of humanitarian deliveries and the observance of international humanitarian law, RT reported.

Rukban camp is located in the 55-kilometer area around Al-Tanf that is “de-facto occupied by the US armed forces,” with access to the district denied to the country’s lawful authorities, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“The training of militants from illegal groups continues at the US strongholds in the area,” it added.

The Russian Defense Ministry earlier accused the US of using Al-Tanf to train militants, including those from the ISIL terrorist group, saying that a number of attacks on government troops originated from the area. The Americans also attacked Syrian forces and their allies outside the occupied area, claiming they posed a threat to the US contingent.

Meanwhile an estimated 60,000 Syrian refugees currently remain in poor condition at the Rukban camp, lacking food and medical supplies. While Moscow welcomed a one-off humanitarian aid delivery to the camp, which came through Jordan on Monday, the ministry noted that the volume and contents of the cargo delivered remains unknown. Meanwhile the ‘border’ unilaterally declared by the US remains “hermetically closed for UN humanitarian convoys that try to get into Rukban from the Syrian territory,” the statement read.

“We demand the lifting of all restrictions on the access of convoys with food and medicines, increasing the transparency of humanitarian actions,” the ministry said. It also pointed out the US military “bears full responsibility” for the situation in the Al-Tanf area under its control.

More than 50 civilians were killed and wounded during the US-led coalition's airstrikes against a town in Eastern Deir Ezzur, local sources said on Thursday.

Over 50 Civilians Killed, Wounded in US-Led Coalition Airstrikes in Deir Ezzur
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961021000469

The sources confirmed that over 20 civilians were killed and 30 others were wounded after the coalition's fighter jets pounded the town of Qaranij in Eastern Deir Ezzur. A number of injured people are in critical conditions, they added.

Also, earlier this month, over 10 civilians from a family were killed and several more were wounded in the US-led coalition air raid in a residential region in Eastern Deir Ezzur, dissident-affiliated websites reported.

The websites reported that the US warplanes targeted the small town of al-Souseh on the Western bank of the Euphrates River in Eastern Deir Ezzur, killing 12 civilians and wounding several more.

The sources said that the entire victims, including five children and several women, were from a single family.

The websites added that the death toll will possibly rise due to the critical conditions of some of the injured.

 

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A delegation from the US Department of State has reportedly visited region held by the PKK/PYD militant group in Northern Syria, a Turkish media outlet reported.

US Delegation Visits PKK/PYD-Held Regions in Northern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961024000928

The delegation, headed by diplomat Max Martin, met with PKK/PYD commander Aldar Xelil and senior members Fevze Yusuf and Bedran Ciya Kurd during the visit on Friday, local sources told Anadolu Agency.

The US officials were briefed about the terrorist group's demands for the set-up of a federal system in Syria, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions over talking to the media.

The delegation also visited the Northern town of Ein al-Arab (Kobani) and held talks with Sahin Cilo, the commander of the US-backed SDF that is largely controlled and manned by the PKK/PYD. They later met with members of the Raqqa provincial council, which was founded by the PKK/PYD to give the impression that the city was being run by a civil administration.

There was no comment from the US State Department on the report.

Cilo is one of the main PKK/PYD commanders and has been supervising the group's military operations in Northern Syria in coordination with US officials.

Talal Silo, a defected SDF spokesman who has fled to Turkey, earlier told Anadolu Agency that Cilo and the US administration were in "full coordination".

The PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by the US and EU as well as Turkey -- resumed its armed campaign in July 2015.

Turkey's protest at the Syrian army operations in Idlib indicates its support for the terrorist groups fighting against the army, specially al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board), a military expert said on Sunday.

Expert: Turkey Supports Terrorist Groups in Battle against Syrian Army in Idlib
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961024001431

General Yahya Suleiman, an expert in the strategic military fields, referred to the al-Nusra Front's recent offensive against the Syrian army positions in Southeastern Idlib, disclosing that all the weapons used by the terrorists during the attack were Turkey-made which clearly proves Ankara's ties with the militant groups in Idlib.

He referred to the fact that Ankara changes its positions once in a while in line with its interests, and said that Turkey is supporting the terrorist groups again to force the other side to make concessions during the future peace talks on Syria.

Turkey has voiced its discontent about the Syrian government forces' violations of de-escalation zones, according to the sources.

Idlib is located within one of the so-called de-escalation zones set up in Syria last September in an effort to scale back the conflict. While Turkey has protested at the Syrian army's attacks against the militants in Idlib, Damascus says that its offensives are aimed at al-Nusra which is considered as a terrorist group.

Minutes ago, the commander of the Syrian Arab Army’s Shaheen Group of the Tiger Forces, Colonel Sleiman Shaheen, reported that the jihadist rebels in southern Idlib used chlorine gas against his troops at the town of Tal Maraq.

Breaking: Rebel forces use chemical weapons against Syrian Army troops in southern Idlib
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/breaking-rebel-forces-use-chemical-weapons-syrian-army-troops-southern-idlib/

Minutes ago, the commander of the Syrian Arab Army’s Shaheen Group of the Tiger Forces, Colonel Sleiman Shaheen, reported that the jihadist rebels in southern Idlib used chlorine gas against his troops at the town of Tal Maraq.

According to Colonel Shaheen, the jihadist rebels used the chlorine gas while trying to cutoff the Syrian Arab Army’s main supply line to the key town of Abu Dali this evening.

No further details have been released. If true, this will be the first time during this battle for southern Idlib that chemical weapons have been deployed by either side.

The Turkish Army forwarded a large volume of military hardware to the border with Syrian amid intensifying attacks on the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) by the Ankara forces and their militant allies in the town of Afrin in Aleppo province, field sources reported on Sunday.

Turkish Army Dispatches More Military Equipment to Border with Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961024000601

The sources said that the Turkish army has sent a military column, including fiver tanks, to the town of Reihanli in Hatay province at the border with Syria under strict security measures. In the meantime, Kurdish sources pointed to the heavy fighting between the Kurdish fighters and the Turkish army and said that the Turkish units targeted Qara Baba and Jisr Hashrakiyeh regions and the village of Ferferkeh in Rajo region in Afrin.

The Arabic-language website of Russia's state news agency, Sputnik, quoted a security source as saying last week that the Turkish Army set up a field hospital in Qomlo region in Hatay province at the border with Syria.

Sputnik further said that the army was preparing for an imminent operation in a region between Idlib province and the town of Afrin, adding that security officials in Qomlo region adopted severe security measures, deploying a large number of policemen in the region. A military source, meantime, said that more than 15,000 Turkish soldiers deployed in Kilis at border with Afrin, adding that the army dispatched a large volume of military hardware, including heavy cannon and personnel carriers to border checkpoints in Kilis region.

A field commander reported on Saturday that the Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) has been utilizing Turkish military equipment and vehicles in the recent attacks on the Syrian Army troops in Southeastern Idlib.

Al-Nusra Utilizing Turkish Military Vehicles in Battle against Syrian Army in Idlib
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961023001074

The military commander said that the Syrian army men seized a number of Turkish military vehicles after repelling heavy offensives of the Al-Nusra and the Islamic al-Turkistani Party in Atsahn and al-Khowein in Southeastern Idlib.

He went on to say that the al-Turkistani terrorists, backed up by the Turkish government, dispatched most of its fighters, including senior commanders, from Northern Lattakia and Jisr al-Shughour region to Khan Sheikhoun in Idlib in the form of long convoy of Turkish military and armored vehicles and tanks under Ankara's direct order.

The sources further said that over 70 terrorists, including notorious field commander Ibrahim Kahloul Alyan, were killed in the field attacks on the army positions, adding that a number of militants were captured by the army too.

A Kurdish media outlet reported last month that the Turkish Army was supplying the Islamic al-Turkistani Party affiliated to the Al-Nusra Front with a large volume of arms and ammunition in Idlib province.

The Kurdish-language Hawar news quoted well-informed sources as saying that a military convoy of the Islamic al-Turkistani Party operating in different regions in Idlib province, including in Ein al-Baydha and Khirbet al-Jowz regions were dispatched to Hama province to join the fight against the Syrian Army troops.

The Hawar news further said that the Turkish Army was delivering a large volume of arms and ammunition to the al-Turkistani party via a secret border-crossing in Ein al-Baydha region in Idlib.

It added that the dispatched weapons and munitions were distributed among terrorists of al-Turkistani, Ahrar al-Sham and Al-Nusra.

The Turkish army forces and affiliated militants launched a massive offensive against the Kurds in Afrin in Northwestern Aleppo.

Aleppo: Turkish Army, Militants Launch Heavy Attacks on Kurds in Afrin
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961023001575

The Kurdish-language Hawar News reported on Saturday that forces affiliated to the Turkish army targeted the hills near the two villages of Jalameh in Jandariseh region and Iska in Shirawa region with artillery and missile fire.

Meantime, the Turkish army conducted a fierce attack on Shieh region and the village of Deir Baloit in Jandariseh region of Afrin from a checkpoint in Hatay province.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip said on Saturday that Turkey’s military would crush Kurdish forces that control the neighboring region of Afrin. “If the terrorists in Afrin don’t surrender we will tear them down,” Erdogan told a congress of his ruling AK Party.

“In Manbij, if they break the promises, we will take the matter in our own hands until there are no terrorists left. They will see what we’ll do in about a week,” Erdogan added.

The Syrian army continued its mop-up operations in Southwestern Aleppo by purging terrorists from key areas and regions.

Syria in Last 24 Hours: Army Makes New Gains in Aleppo Countryside
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961024000199

The army units also took back the villages of al-Qawas and al-Hamra and paved their way towards Idlib province. The army then focused on advancing towards key Abu al-Dhohour airbase in Idlib province. The Syrian troops killed tens of terrorists and injured dozens more in fierce clashes over controlling of strategic regions. They also destroyed military equipment of the terrorists. The Syrian army also continued its advances in other key provinces across Syria.

Aleppo - The Syrian Army troops pushed the Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) back from five more regions in Southwestern Aleppo on Saturday in their push towards the key Abu al-Dhohour airbase in Idlib province.

The army men beat the Al-Nusra back from al-Safa, Talil al-Safa, Kafr Kar, Banan and Um Jaran South of the town of al-Safireh, killing a number of terrorists and destroying their equipment. The army forces are advancing towards Abu al-Dhohour airbase in Idlib from two flanks in the Western direction of the town of Khanasser and al-Safireh in Southwestern Aleppo.

Field sources confirmed earlier on Saturday that the army men in the last round of clashes with Al-Nusra captured the villages of al-Atshanah, al-Salehiyeh, Beit al-Hamadat, al-Jufrah, Wadi al-Hob and Tal al-Sabiyeh near the town of al-Safireh. The sources said that the army has thus far imposed control over 60 villages and towns following its advances in Southwestern Aleppo in the last four days. The sources said that the army has started fresh operations South of al-Safireh to access the key Abu al-Dhohour airbase, capturing 26 villages. The sources further said that the terrorist groups have launched more attacks on the army to slow down their rapid advances and prevent them from laying siege on the militants trapped in a large region expanded from Southern and Southwestern Aleppo up to Southeastern Idlib.

Idlib - The Syrian Army soldiers beat back terrorists from more regions in Southeastern Idlib, tightening the noose on the militant-held Abu al-Dhohour military airport, field sources confirmed on Saturday. The sources said that the army men captured the villages of Hamidiyeh, Hamidiyeh Shaddad and Aljaki'yeh near Abu al-Dhohour strategic airbase in Southeastern Idlib. The sources said that the army men inflicted major casualties on the terrorists and recaptured lost lands in Atshan, Um Khalakhil, Zerzour, Khi'yareh, Ajouz and Kafraya regions. The army men, meantime, repelled terrorists' heavy offensive on the villages of Kharbiyeh and Rabi'eh in Southeastern Idlib, targeting and destroying two bomb-laden vehicles of the terrorists before they could hit the army positions.

Local sources confirmed on Friday that tens of militants, including three notorious commanders of the combat units of three main terrorist groups were killed in the Syrian Army troops' operation in Northeastern Hama and Southeastern Idlib. The sources said that Ibrahim al-Alyan nom de guerre Abu Rabi'a, a military commander of Jeish al-Nasr-Free Army, was killed in the army attacks in Northeastern Hama.

In the meantime, Basam Khatab nom de guerre Abu Seif Kafr Owayd, a commander of Ahrar al-Sham and field Commander of Faylaq al-Sham Hassan Abu Khadija were killed in the battels with the army men in Khwein region in Southeastern Idlib.

Damascus - Field sources reported on Saturday that ISIL has once again stormed the positions of its rival terrorist group of Jeish al-Islam in the Southern countryside of Damascus city, taking control over a number of their strongholds. The sources said that ISIL engaged in clashes with Jeish al-Islam in Hajar al-Aswad region to the South of the capital, imposing control over three buildings in al-Zein neighborhood. The clashes inflicted several casualties on both sides.

The Arabic-language al-Watan daily reported last week that the residents of Bebeila, Yalda and Beit Saham in the Southern countryside of Damascus city started protests after terrorists started capturing the people that asked for implementation of the reconciliation plan. It went on to say that at least 200 residents of Bebeila poured into the streets and moved towards the Syrian Army positions in the Bebeila' outskirts but the terrorists prevented them and started clashes with them.

Other media activists said that most of the residents in the region support implementation of the reconciliation plan, adding that the terrorist groups have announced in a joint statement that they will confront those people that intend to join the reconciliation plan. Terrorists of Jeish al-Islam, Jeish al-Ababi, Ajnad al-Sham, Ferqa Damascus and the brigades of Seif al-Sham and al-Forqan are still operating in the Southern parts of Damascus province.

People in the key town of Manbij in Northeastern Aleppo took to the streets and condemned the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) for killing two young civilians after torturing them, and called for the expulsion of Kurds from the region, dissident-affiliated websites reported on Saturday.

Popular Uprising Reported in Northern Syria after Cold-Blooded Murder of Two Civilians by SDF
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961023000699

The Orient net reported that hundreds of people in Manbij poured into the street and protested at the SDF's criminal and cruel measures against civilians.

The popular uprising in Manbij came after people found the tortured bodies of two young men in the village of Qabr Imo East of Manbij, the websites said, adding that the two were in SDF custody. The protestors urged the SDF to leave their region.

Local sources said in November that a large number of residents of the town of Kobani (Ein al-Arab) took to the streets, condemning the SDF's forced recruitment in the region.

The source said that the demonstration in Kobani was carried out to support the same move in the town of Manbij, adding that people in Kobani also condemned the SDF's intention to secede the region from Syria.

Unlike Manbij where 95 percent of people are Arab, most of residents in Ein al-Arab are Kurds.

 

[angelburst29]

Two Russian Syria-embedded journalists have put together a damning firsthand report on the true purpose of the secrecy-laden US military mission at At-Tanf, southern Syria.

Russian Journalists Blow Lid Off Alleged US Terrorist Training Network in Syria
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801141060746468-us-occupation-cooperation-with-terrorists-southern-syria/

The Pentagon was forced to go into full public relations mode late last month amid fresh allegations by the Russian General Staff that US instructors were providing training assistance for some 350 ex-Daesh (ISIS) militants at the US Army's al-Tanf garrison in the southern Syrian province of Homs. Chief of Staff General Valery Gerasimov accused Washington of intending to use the militants to create a so-called 'New Syrian Army', a military formation aimed at further destabilizing the war-torn country after Daesh had been defeated.

A Pentagon spokesperson soon responded, telling Sputnik that Moscow's allegations were "false and absurd," and stressing that the US and its allies engage in capturing and killing Daesh, not training them.

In a special investigative report for Russia's Federal News Agency, embedded Syria correspondents Igor Petrashevich and Roman Martynovich made their way south to try to figure out what was really going on in the US-occupied area with their own eyes.

Al-Tanf, a settlement situated near Syria's border with Iraq and Jordan, is one of three official border crossings between Syria and Iraq, and the main border checkpoint along the Damascus-Baghdad highway. Intense fighting for the area took place in the spring and summer of 2017, as US-allied militia attempted to solidify their foothold in southern Syria. However, a Syrian Army counteroffensive backed by Russian air power stopped the militants' advance, prompting them and their US-led coalition allies to secure a patch of territory running about 55 km deep into Syria.

Late last month, General Gerasimov pointed to al-Tanf as being one of two staging areas for the continuation of an armed struggle against the Syrian government by the jihadists, with the other located at Shaddadi camp, under the control of Kurdish forces operating in Syria's north. According to the general, the al-Tanf militants, many former members of Daesh, were brought into the area by US special forces from Deir ez-Zor province, where Daesh had suffered total defeat.

According to Petrashevich and Martynovich, the presence of these former Daesh fighters made local residents wary of helping them to make their way into the US military-administered enclave. "A young man named Marshod warned our correspondents about this and said that two of his own attempts to make his way to a nearby village beyond the line of demarcation led to threats against his life from militants guarding the enclave's inner perimeter."

Undeterred, the journalists continued their investigation via interviews with eyewitnesses and representatives of the Syrian military stationed in the region.

There May Be Close to Four Times as Many Militants as Previously Estimated

Although the Russian military conservatively estimated the presence of roughly 350 Daesh militants at al-Tanf, Syrian military sources speaking to Patrashevich and Martynovich explained that the number may, in fact, be upwards of 1,200 fighters, some 200 of them Daesh jihadis brought to the area by US special forces, mostly from Deir ez-Zor province. Other forces include the so-called 'New Syrian Army', the Forces of Martyr Ahmad al-Abdo (formally part of the Free Syrian Army), and the Martyrs of Islam Brigade (an Islamist group). According to the Syrian military, these forces' armament includes large-caliber mortars, anti-tank missiles, tanks and other heavy weaponry.

The New Syrian Army, commanded by one Mekhenda Talla, reportedly has a strained relationship with the other formations, who cooperate with his forces only on a for cash basis.

"In general, the relationship between the militants from the individual groups is quite tense, as civilian testimony makes clear," Patrashevich and Martynovich wrote. "One local, a man named Amjad Sahim, who managed to escape the US-controlled territory to neighboring Damascus Governate, told us that he and his brothers witnessed clashes between the NSA forces moving toward the border and former Daesh fighters attempting to leave the area into Jordanian territory. As a result of the clashes, the small group of Daesh terrorists was completely wiped out."

Furthermore, the journalists' Syrian Army source said that other members of the US-led coalition were also deployed in the area, with about 400 mercenaries, intelligence operatives and members of the special forces of the UK, France, Jordan, and possibly other countries, operating in the region. These forces' arsenal includes HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems, as well as anti-aircraft artillery, tasked with defending the US base.

'Passive Reserve' of 5,000 More Jihadists

Local freelance journalists told Patrashevich and Martynovich that in addition to the so-called 'active reserve' of militants, the US and its allies also has a passive one.

"While the main jihadists are based at the US Armed Forces base and receive a monthly allowance, another 5,000 Islamists reside at the Rukban refugee camp, some still armed and in contact with their field commanders. Last November, militants began voicing their dissatisfaction with the noticeable decline in US funding. As a result, the al-Tanf base's command, fearing military insurrection, decided to pay out a severance payment of several thousand dollars to each fighter, and gave them the right to remain inside the enclave in the tent camp zone."

As for the New Syrian Army, their job, according to a Syrian Army serviceman stationed near the front line, includes guard duty at checkpoints along the makeshift border, and defense of the perimeter of the al-Tanf base and the Rukban camp. Talla's troops maintain discipline over the other units via payments the performance of various duties.

Life in Region a Living Hell for Civilians

Speaking to locals, Patrashevich and Martynovich were told that the jihadists' presence in the region has had a severe impact on civilian life. In the town of Al-Qaryatayn, the correspondents met with Farah Alhamsih, a young woman who had lived outside al-Tanf before managing to escape the area once it fell under US and jihadist control.

According to Alhamsih, while some militants engaged in "building homes or carried out shooting practice, most of them, left almost without a livelihood,
robbed local houses, or trucks passing along the Damascus-Baghdad highway." According to the eyewitness, while US forces first tried to exert pressure on the radicals or even evict them from the Rukban camp, they eventually gave up, closing their eyes to their criminal activities.

Last fall, a group of some 300 Daesh militants carried out an offensive toward Al-Qaryatayn, successfully avoiding the Syrian Army's hidden outposts using coordinates Moscow and Damascus later alleged were obtained through aerial reconnaissance provided by the US. Although the offensive was stopped, the Syrian military has concerns that new attacks may be in the offing. Furthermore, US and jihadi occupation of the area put important roads, including the Homs-Deir ez-Zor and Damascus-Palmyra highways, as well as strategically important oil and gas fields, under threat.

Russian officials have also voiced concerns about the state of the Rukban refugee camp, the Russian Center for Reconciliation describing the situation there as being close to 'catastrophic,' and the US military closing access to the camp to the UN and other humanitarian organizations. Thus far, Patrashevich and Martynovich recalled, "any attempts by Syrian government convoys or pro-Russian forces to come close to the enclave have been met with airstrikes by the US coalition." This includes incidents in May and June 2017.

Sahim, the local man now living in Damascus Governate, confirmed to the journalists that the humanitarian situation in the US-occupied territory is approaching desperate, with basic foodstuffs and other necessities unavailable, while militants have seized local wells, selling water to locals at marked up prices.

"When I was very thirsty, I had to spend a fortune. A bottle of water which could earlier be bought for 50 lira is sold by the terrorists for 500. And people buy it. What else could they do? Many parents tried to save their children. I know several local families who gave away their girls for marriage just to get them out of the area," Sahim recalled.

The eyewitness added that when locals tried to organize to get the attention of US military command about arranging the supply of necessities, their requests fell on deaf ears. This, combined with the lack of any effort to rein in the militants, has given rise to anti-American sentiments, as well as hopes for cooperation with the Syrian government or even representatives of the Russian military.

The Russian Center for Reconciliation has offered to assist refugees from the Rukban camp. Despite the absence of any security guarantees from the US side, and the presence of roaming jihadist militants in the region, last month, Center representatives assisted in the evacuation of a small group of refugees from the camp. The reporters captured the evacuation on video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbHM_iPNJTw (1:16 min.)

For now, Patrashevich and Martynovich noted, the fate of the occupied Syrian enclave is in American hands. So long as the illegal US occupation of the border area continues, Damascus will not be able to rest easy with regard to the security of its southern territories.

 

[angelburst29]

American counterterrorism forces are active in 40 percent of the world's countries – and their presence comes with striking repercussions.

Where in the World Is the U.S. Military? Everywhere! Jan. 12, 2018 (Map)
https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2018-01-12/us-counterterrorism-forces-are-active-in-many-more-places-than-you-know

As we enter the 17th year of the United States' "war on terror," it is both appropriate, and necessary, to take stock of where our troops are located and for what purpose. The deaths of U.S. soldiers this fall in Niger were a stark reminder that much of the American public, and even many of our country's lawmakers, aren't exactly sure what the war on terror looks like, much less where many of our other military operations are located.

According to a new map published this week by the Costs of War Project at Brown University's Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, the U.S. is waging this war on terror in 76 countries – or more simply put, 40 percent of the countries on this planet.

What started with President George W. Bush's launch of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan in October 2001 is now a rapid expansion of the U.S. military footprint across the globe. Notably, beyond the Middle East, the tentacles of this expansion stretch into Africa more than any other region.

Right now, across Africa, the U.S. military is providing massive amounts of military technology, hardware, training and expertise to local African militaries and police forces. The continent is home to an "extensive archipelago of African outposts," including U.S. military bases, camps, compounds, port facilities, and "cooperative security locations." U.S. special operations forces have been deployed to track local insurgents across the African Sahel region. Drone strikes to kill terrorist targets have increased substantially (67 into Somalia since 2007, and 125 in Yemen in 2017 alone), causing hundreds of civilian casualties. African and U.S. forces have conducted joint military exercises across the continent.

This expansion is the unsurprising result of the military's emerging focus on Africa, inaugurated with the 2007 creation of AFRICOM. Perhaps this concentration reveals more about the fears of (unknowability ???) and criminality that continue to underlie U.S. views of that continent, rather than representing an effective military strategy to combat terrorism.

Several key voices influencing the Department of Defense, including national security expert Sean McFate, argued that enhanced security – training local militaries and police forces – was a necessary precursor to investing in economic development in the region. "Unlike traditional Unified Commands, AFRICOM will focus on war prevention rather than warfighting," reads the Department of Defense description of AFRICOM's mission. This new "security paradigm" shifted U.S. investments in Africa away from diplomacy, democratic institutions, and civil society, towards military action.

In recent years, the U.S. has used militarized solutions for African challenges of all kinds. During the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, the U.S. sent 4,000 troops to help eradicate the disease (instead of helping, they caused riots in local communities). Taken altogether, this clearly shows that the militarization of Africa is a major U.S. foreign policy objective.

This militarization must be understood as part of a mushrooming of U.S. counterterrorism strategy across the globe. To this day, the government does not release information about counterterror activity to the public. In creating the map shown above, the Costs of War Project assembled this data in one place for the very first time. The project gathered information country-by-country from reputable news sources, government websites and expert input. Every article or passing mention in the U.S. Department of State's "Country Reports on Terrorism," for instance, provided a glimpse of a tiny node in an expansive network of shadowy U.S. combat operations.

Security forces around the world are being trained or assisted by the U.S. military in counterterrorism. Countries around the world are home to U.S. military bases and/or lily pads used in counterterror operations, host U.S. combat troops deployed in counterterror missions and are targeted by U.S. air and drone strikes.

And to what end? Only after being targeted by the U.S. military did local insurgencies like Al Shabaab in Somalia and al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb expand into serious regional terrorist operations. According to the latest Pentagon report, there are now more than 20 terrorist groups in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Rather than quell terrorist activity, U.S. counterterrorism seems to be linked to exactly the opposite, fomenting insurgent recruitment in Africa and the Middle East.

Without taking U.S. military activity in Africa and elsewhere into account, we cannot fully grasp U.S. national security. We cannot assess military budgets, debate foreign policy or hold public officials accountable. Nor can we fully comprehend the enormous, devastating costs of the U.S. counterterror wars and accompanying militarization to human beings in every corner of the planet.

Turkey condemns the plans of the United States to create the so-called Border Security Force (BSF) on the Syrian territory controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces militia, given the absence of consultations with Ankara, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said Monday in a statement obtained by Sputnik.

Turkey Condemns US Plans to Create 'Border Security Force' in Syria
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801151060751610-turkey-condemns-usa-syria-border-force/

On Saturday, the Defense Post news website published an article, in which the spokesman of the US-led coalition fighting against Daesh (Islamic State) terrorist group, said that the coalition was engaged in training of a 30,000-strong force on the territory within Syria currently controlled by SDF to maintain security in controlled area along the Syrian border.

"The coalition did not hold consultations with Turkey about the creation of [these] forces, and it is unknown what coalition members made this decision. Unilateral steps, which are presented as actions of the coalition, is a seriously wrong action that will be detrimental to the fight against IS," the statement reads.

Continued US cooperation with the YPG [US-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units], which is contrary to its [the US’s] own obligations, jeopardize our national security and territorial integrity of Syria, and that is unacceptable. We condemn the persistence of the United States in this erroneous approach, and once again remind that Turkey is determined to eliminate any threats against it, and has all possibilities to do this," the Turkish Foreign Ministry stressed.

"Fighting IS with the use of another terrorist organization YPG is fundamentally wrong and carries great risks," the statement adds.

On Saturday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the Turkish Armed Forces might launch an operation in YPG-controlled areas of Manbij and Afrin in northern Syria. Over the recent weeks, Turkey has repeatedly shelled the areas and even sent military equipment including tanks to the border with Syria.

 

[angelburst29]

Since the US confirmed training new force in northern Syria, tensions with Turkey have been running high, with Ankara accusing Washington of building a "terrorist army."

Erdogan Vows to 'Strangle' Syrian Border Force Formed by US
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801151060762094-turkey-us-eliminate-border-force/

"The United States is now creating a terrorist army near our borders that threatens the security of Turkey. Our task is to strangle this army until it is born. If the United States wants to establish cooperation with these savage creatures, it is their business. But we will not allow this," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

The president noted that the Turkish army would continue shelling the SDF positions in Syria's northern Afrin district.

"Our Armed Forces will hopefully solve the problem in Afrin in the near future, the operation may begin there at any moment," Erdogan added.

Erdogan's latest statement comes after earlier on Monday he said that the United States were forming a "terrorist army" under the disguise of so-called Border Security Force (BSF) on the Syrian territory controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militia, and threatened to eliminate these troops.

Ankara's anger was provoked by the article published in the Defense Post on Saturday, in which the spokesman of the US-led coalition fighting against Daesh said that the coalition was engaged in a training of a 30,000-strong force on the territory within Syria currently controlled by the SDF
to maintain security in controlled area along the Syrian border.

The coalition's representative clarified that a half of the planned force will consist of retrained SDF fighters, an alliance of militias in Syria dominated by the Kurdish YPG (People's Protection Units), which Ankara regards as a terrorist group associated with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), banned in the country. Turkey has repeatedly accused Washington of arming Syrian Kurdish groups, which is listed as terrorist organizations by Ankara.

Total of 24 Armored Vehicles Reportedly Deployed by Turkey Along Syrian Border
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801151060774041-24-armored-vehicles-turkish-syrian-border/

Ankara has set up a secret border passageway at its border with Afrin region in Northern Syria as it is prepared to launch imminent operation against Kurds, a Kurdish media outlet reported on Monday.

Turkey Sets up New Passageway at Border with Syria as Countdown Starts for Attack on Kurds
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961025001439

The Kurdish-language Hawar news reported that the Turkish army has removed two large cement blocks of the buffer wall that separates Afrin in Northern Syria from Bakour region in Balbaleh and replaced them with a metal-made bullet-proof passageway with walls that are as high as 3 meters.

Hawar news further said that the passageway is between the villages of Balia and Marjouq in Bakour, adding that military vehicles can easily move over the passageway that is 6 meters wide.

Field sources reported Sunday that the Turkish Army forwarded a large volume of military hardware to the border with Syrian amid intensifying attacks on the SDF by the Ankara forces and their militant allies in the town of Afrin in Aleppo province.

The sources said that the Turkish army sent a military column, including five tanks, to the town of Reihanli in Hatay province at the border with Syria under strict security measures.

In the meantime, Kurdish sources pointed to the heavy fighting between the Kurdish fighters and the Turkish army and said that the Turkish units targeted Qara Baba and Jisr Hashrakiyeh regions and the village of Ferferkeh in Rajo region in Afrin.

Turkey's President Erdogan vowed Sunday to "purge terrorism" from the country's southern borders, adding that he plans to launch an assault against Peoples' Protection Units (YPG) in Syria's Kurdish Afrin enclave "in the coming days."

Ankara Retaliates With Artillery Fire at Afrin After Kurdish YPG Missile Attacks
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801151060759319-turkey-afrin-kurds-attack/

Turkish armed forces have shelled YPG units' strongholds in the city of Afrin in response to rocket fire from northern Syria, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Monday.

According to the media, on Sunday night, YPG militias fired a large number of missiles targeting settlements in the bordering to Turkey Syrian region of Azaz controlled by the opposition Free Syrian Army. The assaults caused material damage, but there were no reports of casualties. Ankara's forces, which were deployed in northern Syria after the completion of its anti-terrorist Operation Euphrates Shield, conducted punitive strikes at YPG targets in Afrin.

Turkey has been shelling the Afrin district of Aleppo targeting the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) for three days in a row, with the Turkish army sending military equipment to the country's border with Syria under strict security measures. The latest attack comes amid Ankara's statement that it plans to carry out a military operation in the northwestern Syrian regions of Manbij and Afrin controlled by Kurdish militia forces.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry has slammed Washington's intention to form a 30,000-strong force inside the country with the proclaimed goal of maintaining security along its borders. The Syrian Army is poised to put an end to any form of US presence in the country, a Syrian foreign ministry source said, according to state TV.

Syria Considers US Plan on Creating Border Security Force 'Blatant Aggression'
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801151060757592-syria-us-kurds-aggression/

Syria has condemned Washington's announcement of the formation of an armed militia in the northeast of the country, and regards this move a “blatant aggression on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria and a flagrant violation of international law,” the foreign ministry said, as quoted by SANA.

Col. Thomas Veale, public affairs officer of the US-led coalition fighting against Daesh, said in an interview with The Defense Post news outlet that the coalition, supported by the Kurdish-led Syrian Defense Force (SDF), was working to establish a 30,000-strong force to maintain security along Syria's borders. The statement prompted Ankara's threats to launch an offensive in Kurdish-controlled Afrin in the country's north to purge terror from Turkey's southern borders.

The United States-led international coalition has been operating in Syria since 2014, conducting airstrikes and establishing military bases without either UN endorsement or with Damascus' agreement. Syria has repeatedly spoken against the coalition's unauthorized presence as aggression against its integrity and statehood. The coalition's actions have led to civilian casualties.

Russia and its partners will undertake measures as a response to the US-led coalition's decision to create the so-called "Border Security Force" on the Syrian territory controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces militia, Chairman of the Defense Committee of Russia’s State Duma Vladimir Shamanov told Sputnik on Sunday.

Russia May 'Undertake Measures' After US Decision on Border Force in Syria
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801151060753205-russia-measures-usa-syria-security/

"[Such a behavior by the US-led coalition] stands in direct confrontation [with Russia’s interests], and we and our colleagues will certainly undertake certain measures on stabilization of the situation in Syria," Shamanov said when asked whether such actions of the US-led coalition intersected with the interests of Russia in Syria.

Thousand of terrorists retreated from their positions in Southern Aleppo and Northern Hama and moved to Southeastern Idlib to back the Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) against the Syrian Army troops that are rapidly advancing towards Abu al-Dhohour airbase, field sources confirmed on Monday.

Thousands of Terrorists Arrive in Idlib to Slow down Syrian Army Advances
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961025001068

The sources said that thousands of gunmen from the Al-Nusra, the Islamic al-Turkistani Party and Ahrar al-Sham have retreated from their positions in Southern Aleppo and Northern Hama in the last seven days.

The sources said that the terrorists left their positions to avoid an army siege in Aleppo, Hama and Idlib, adding that the fleeing terrorists have arrived in Southeastern Idlib to back the Al-Nusra militants to slow down the army's devastating advances towards Abu al-Dhohour airbase.

The sources said that the army has started fresh operations South of al-Safireh to access the key Abu al-Dhohour airbase, capturing 26 villages.

The sources further said that the terrorist groups launched more attacks on the army to slow down their rapid advances and prevent them from laying siege on the militants trapped in a large region expanded from Southern and Southwestern Aleppo up to Southeastern Idlib.

The Syrian Army has sent a large number of fresh forces to Southeastern Idlib to intensify attacks on terrorists, field sources confirmed on Monday.

Syrian Army Dispatches More Soldiers to Idlib
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961025000375

The sources said that a large number of forces and a large volume of military hardware left Homs Badiyeh (desert) for Southeastern Idlib and Northern Hama.

The sources said that the army has made significant gains in it push towards the Abu al-Dhohour airbase in Southeastern Idlib in recent days.

Relevant reports said on Sunday that the army men engaged in tough battle with the Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) and the Islamic al-Turkistani Islamic Party along al-Mosheirefeh-Atshan and Astablat-Rabi'eh roads in Southeastern Idlib.

Military sources said that the army retreated from several positions under the terrorists' heavy offensive temporarily.

The sources added that the army men, supported by the Syrian Air Force and army's artillery and missile units, repelled the attacks.

 

[angelburst29]

The Kurdish parliament failed to get their illegal "Kurdistan in Iraq" - so Plan B is to set up and establish "a federal region of northern Syria"?

The SDF and YPG spokespersons commented on the US initiative to form a so-called Border Security Force in northern Syria. According to the spokespersons, the new military formation will defend the borders of the self-proclaimed Kurdish federal entity.

SDF Spokesman: 'US Is Positive About the Idea of a Federal Syria'
https://sputniknews.com/analysis/201801161060795293-syria-us-federalism/

Representatives of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) confirmed the US-backed plans for creating a new military structure on the border territories controlled by the Kurds.

"We have a project of forming a 30,000-strong force to ensure the security of frontier zones," a spokesman for the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Mustafa Balli, told Sputnik Turkey. "We maintain allied and partner relations with the United States. We intend to implement some joint plans in 2018 within the framework of these relations. One of these initiatives is to increase the number of our military personnel up to 30,000 and train them for fulfilling tasks of ensuring border security."

Balli pointed out that Washington had taken a favorable view of the "federal region of northern Syria" unilaterally proclaimed by the YPG. The entity has not been recognized by any country.

Thirty thousand fighters will ensure the security of the borders of the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria (DFNS)," the SDF spokesman said. "America has a positive view about the idea of federalism, and is supporting us on this matter."

According to Balli, the 30,000-strong force will protect the Syrian-Turkish and Syrian-Iraqi borders, as well as the border that separates the self-proclaimed entity from the Syrian government forces.

"This means that a border of a federal entity has been formed within the Syrian territory," the spokesman specified, adding that "the US has adhered to an allied position on this issue."

The spokesman underscored that the newly formed army will become a large-scale and all-encompassing military force. He emphasized that the SDF wants to turn their military contingent into a professional well-trained army.

"We want to move confidently towards federalism," Balli stressed. "Our partners [Washington and the US-led coalition] approve of our actions. The YPG self-defense units, SDF fighters, as well as some other elements will be incorporated into the new military structure. The new army will include Kurds, Arabs, Assyrians and other peoples."

He further specified that the new military structure, which will be trained and equipped by the US, will be called "Border Security Force": "This army will be part of the SDF. It will be called 'Border Security Force.' The training of the new force is already underway."

According to the SDF spokesman, the US provides both training and weapons supplies for the new structure. "Especially, a lot of recruits come from Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa to join the ranks of the new army," he remarked.

A spokeswoman for the self-defense units of the Kurdish YPG and women's defense forces (YPJ) division, Nesrin Abdullah, underscored that the 30,000-strong force will not be regarded as an independent army since it subordinates to the SDF.

"It would be more correct to call this formation not an army, but a military force within the SDF," Abdullah explained. "Our military plans envisioned the creation of such a force. [The US-led] coalition will conduct the training of soldiers. In addition, the coalition will continue to provide arms. We continue to negotiate with the coalition forces. The YPG women's detachments will not be part of the new military formation, since our women fighters do not take part in ensuring security at the border."

The US announced Sunday that it would support the creation of a "border force" to protect territories controlled by US-backed Kurdish-dominated fighters in northern Syria.

In response, the Syrian Foreign Ministry denounced the plan as a "blatant aggression on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria and a flagrant violation of international law."

Ankara echoed Damascus in condemning the plans of the United States to create the so-called Border Security Force in the Syrian territory controlled by the SDF militia.

Speaking to Sputnik on Sunday, Chairman of the Defense Committee of Russia's State Duma Vladimir Shamanov pointed out that Russia and its partners are likely to take measures in response to the US-led coalition's move.

"[Such a behavior by the US-led coalition] stands in direct confrontation [with Russia's interests], and we and our colleagues will certainly undertake certain measures on the stabilization of the situation in Syria," Shamanov stressed.

The US has been conducting military operations against Daesh (ISIS/ISIL) on the territory of Syria since 2014. The US-led coalition's activities on the territory of the sovereign state have not been authorized by the UN or Damascus.

Washington has established a secret airbase in Syria to protect the Kurdish forces who have occupied large areas of the Arab country, media reports said on Tuesday.

Media: US Setting Up Large Secret Airbase in Syria to Protect Kurdish-Held Areas
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961026001190

The Arabic-language Lebanese Addiyar newspaper revealed that the US airbase in Syria can host 100 fighter jets and is in good distance from al-Tanf military base in Southeastern Syria.

The daily disclosed that the airbase has been secretly built to protect one fourth of the Syrian territories occupied by the Kurds. It added that the airbase is 3.5 times larger than Lebanon (nearly 35,000km).

According to Addiyar, Washington has supplied the Kurds with 300 tanks, over 600 armored personnel carriers, anti-armored missiles and full personal equipment, weapons and ammunition and built a large base in Northern Syria to protect them against missile attacks.

The US-led coalition announced on Sunday it is helping to create a new Border Security Force to fight terrorists in Syria. The unit, stationed along the Syrian border with Iraq and Turkey, as well as along the Euphrates River Valley, is expected to be comprised of up to 30,000 people. SDF veterans will make half of the unit, while the other half are yet to be recruited.

Damascus, Moscow and Ankara have strongly blasted the US new decision to form a Border Security Force.

The United States' military support for the militia first began under the administration of US President Donald Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama, which provided Kurds with weapons and training.

Washington also continues providing Kurdish fighters with more military hardware in Syria despite US President's promise to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan to halt arms shipment to the Kurdish fighters.

Ankara had said late November 2017 that Trump told Erdogan that he had issued instructions that weapons should not be provided to Kurdish fighters in Syria.

According to reports, the US plans to keep its troops in Syria long after the defeat of ISIL. Washington has been justifying its deployment of ground troops in Syria, which violates the embattled nation’s sovereignty, by citing the need to fight ISIL.

Washington provided the Kurdish fighters operating in Syria, man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) within the framework of the secret agreement, according to a report.

US Sends MANPADS to Kurds in Syria as Part of Secret Deal
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961026000340

The AMN reported Monday citing own sources that the US had provided the MANPADS to the Kurdish forces earlier in the month under the agreement between Washington and Kurds.

According to the news outlet, the MANPADS have been delivered to the Kurds in the Northwestern part of Syria near the town of Afrin.

It comes as Ankara announced that Turkey is ready “at any moment” to start an operation in a besieged border area of Syria.

Ankara intends to prevent all military support to Syrian Kurds' People's Protection Units (YPG), which it considers an extension of Turkey's Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), and urges NATO to treat all terrorist groups equally, Chief of the General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces, Gen. Hulusi Akar said.

Ankara to Prevent All Military Support to Syrian Kurds' YPG Militia
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801161060792729-turkey-syrian-kurds-support/

The US-led coalition against the Daesh terrorist group is training a force expected to ensure border control in Syria, the Defense Post news website reported on Saturday, citing a coalition spokesman. The force is expected to be stuffed partly by veterans of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), affiliated with the YPG.

We cannot and will not allow the terrorist organization, YPG, which has been proven as an extension of the PKK, to be supported and armed under the guise of it being an ‘operational partner’," Akar said, as quoted by Anadolu news agency.

The Turkish military chief added that NATO should not give a preferential approach to any terrorist groups.

Following the coalition's announcement, Ankara has been indicating it might launch an offensive in Syria’s northern Kurdish-controlled Afrin.

The PKK, involved in an armed conflict with Ankara, is designated a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, the European Union and NATO.

Turkey’s possible offensive in Syria’s northern Kurdish-controlled Afrin enclave will start with airstrikes on 149 targets of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), Turkish media reported on Tuesday.

Turkey to Assault Syrian Afrin With Airstrikes on 149 Kurdish Targets - Reports
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801161060787556-turkey-afrin-kurds-offensive/

Since Saturday, Ankara has been threatening to start an operation against the Syrian Kurds in Afrin following an announcement by the US-led coalition about training a border protection force composed of the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), affiliated with the YPG, in northern Syria. Various Turkish media have been reporting about shelling by the Turkish army of the territory under YPG control in Afrin. Ankara has reportedly sent armed convoys to the Syrian border.

The Turkish Vatan newspaper reported, citing military sources, that the country's airstrikes would be carried out by fighter aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Ankara also plans to start a ground operation after the elimination of the main YPG strongholds by airstrikes. Turkey plans to attack the Kurdish forces from three directions to make them retreat to the regions under Damascus control to the southeast of Afrin, the outlet added.

The Ankara-backed militants targeted heavily the Kurdish fighters' positions in the town of Afrin in Aleppo province, a Kurdish media outlet reported on Tuesday, adding that Turkish reconnaissance planes have been patrolling over Afrin during the day.

Turkey-Backed Militants Launch Heavy Attacks on Kurds in Northern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961026001203

The Kurdish-language Hawar news reported that the Turkey-affiliated militant groups' artillery units deployed on Mount Sheikh Barakat in Western Aleppo have targeted Afrin.

The militants' mortar units affiliated to the Turkish army pounded Kurdish forces' positions in Bani, Badr Khan and Baker hills in Jandariseh region and in the villages of Bafloun, Qastal Jandu, Qatma and Ma'araska, Hawar news added.

It further said that four spy planes of the Turkish army have also been carrying out reconnaissance operations over Kurdish fighters' positions in Afrin and its countryside.

A Lebanese newspaper said the US means to loot the rich regions that it intends to bring under the rule of the Border Security Force in Syria.

Lebanese Daily: US to Face New Vietnam War in Syria by Forming Border Security Force
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961026001145

The Arabic-language Addiyar newspaper wrote in an analysis that the Border Security Force has been planned by Washington to form in regions rich with agricultural products of Syria that have made the country needless of wheat imports, adding that the wheat cultivated in the region in any season is sufficient for 5 years of consumption.

It added that Syria also exports its wheat to the former Soviet republics, Italy and Spain because of its high quality.

Also, the territories in Northern Syria enjoy rich oil and gas resources which can be exported to other countries.

The Lebanese daily warned that the US will face another Vietnam war as a result of its attempts to disintegrate Syria, adding that it will not be a conventional war that can be won by air raids, but it will be a war between the Guerillas and the Kurds who have joined the Americans.

A Syrian official said on Tuesday that several mass graves with 10,000 bodies, including one with 4,000, have been found in Raqqa city in Northeastern Syria.

10,000 Bodies Discovered in Several Mass Graves in Syria's Raqqa
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961026000772

The Arabic-language al-Watan daily quoted General Director of the Syrian Forensic Medicine Zaher Hajo as reporting that based on intelligence 10,000 bodies have been buried in mass graves in Raqqa.

He further told al-Watan that 4,000 bodies were buried in one single grave, adding that the discovered graves are located in the regions that are under the Syrian Democratic Forces.

Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said on Thursday that the humanitarian situation in Syria’s Raqqa was close to a disaster, though everyone was putting the best face on matters.

"The humanitarian situation in Raqqa is awful, but everyone is playing it cool. Our American colleagues leveled the city to the ground as they were fighting ISIL there, and currently the whole city is rigged with explosives, full of corpses of killed people, lacking water, electricity and any medical facilities.
Nothing is going on, the city is not being restored, people cannot come back, living in awful unbelievable conditions in refugee camps," the diplomat stressed.

According to Nebenzya, the current state of affairs in Raqqa was "a humanitarian situation close to a humanitarian disaster."

He added that Western countries place emphasis on what was going on in the Syrian province of Idlib where the Syrian army was carrying out an operation against terrorists, and in Eastern Guta, a suburb of Damascus. "They discuss what they are interested in," he noted.

A stronghold of the ISIL terrorist group, Raqqa was liberated in mid-October by Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

Members of the Free Syrian Army have apparently asked the US to revive the previously suspended CIA military aid program to rebel groups seeking the ouster of Syria’s President Bashar Assad.

Syrian Rebels Plead With the US to Supply More Weapons Via CIA
https://sputniknews.com/world/201801161060781718-syrian-rebels-cia-arms-program/

Mustafa Sejari, a senior representative of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) said that the group’s envoys who visited Washington explained to US officials the downsides of President Donald Trump’s decision to shut off the CIA-facilitated supply of weapons to certain rebel groups in Syria.

"We asked for the resumption of aid and explained the dangers of leaving moderate FSA forces without support," Sejari said.

According to him, these measures would be necessary to fulfil Trump’s intent to “confront Iranian hegemony in the region” and to curtail the activities of “the Iranian militias that are expanding without serious resistance.”

"With every US statement about the need to confront Iran's influence, Iran has been expanding in Syria while moderate forces that are backed by Washington see aid being dried up and are weakened," the FSA representative complained.

Sejari added that the FSA delegation included recipients of the CIA-led program in question, launched in 2013 and used to supply money, weapons and instructors to select rebel groups opposing the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

The CIA came under fire in March 2016 when a CIA-backed rebel group based in northern Syria was attacked by the Pentagon-backed, Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces.

Earlier, in 2015, it was admitted that a large proportion of the weaponry originally intended for 'moderate' rebels eventually found its way into the hands of the internationally-condemned terrorist groups Al Nusra and Daesh, either due to FSA defections or their sale on the black market.

 

[angelburst29]

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday the US-backed plans to create a new military structure on the border territories controlled by the Kurds.

Kurds Disclose US Plot to Establish Federal Governing System in Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961027001557

Spokesman for the SDF Mustafa Balli reported that Washington has taken a favorable view of the "federal region of Northern Syria" unilaterally proclaimed by the YPG.

The entity has not been recognized by any country.

"We want to move confidently towards federalism," Balli stressed, emphasizing that "Our partners (Washington and the US-led coalition) approve of our actions. The YPG self-defense units, SDF fighters, as well as some other elements will be incorporated into the new military structure.

According to the SDF Spokesman, the US provides both training and weapons supplies for the new structure.

A Syrian outlet reported earlier today that the SDF have forced 1,000 young people in Northern Aleppo to join the group in line with the US plan to form a new army at the country's border.

The Arabic-language al-Watan daily reported that the SDF have forced 1,000 civilians, mostly teachers, in the province of Hasaka and Deir Ezzur to join the SDF.

SDF Continues Forced Recruitment in Northern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961027000775

According to Turkish media reports on Tuesday, Turkey’s possible offensive in Syria’s northern Kurdish-controlled Afrin enclave is set to start with airstrikes on 149 targets of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG).

Turkey May Expand Syrian Operation to Manbij, East of Euphrates Amid YPG Worries
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801171060813447-syria-kurds-pyd-turkey-strikes-afrin/

The Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) has called on the international community to take action against Turkey's strikes on Afrin.

According to the PYD, Afrin "will not be alone" as all Kurdish-held areas in the north and east of Syria are ready to stand with it.

At the same time, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Ankara cannot limit its precautionary measures against the YPG to Syria's Afrin district, it might move to the city of Manbij, also in Aleppo province, and to the east of the Euphrates River.

"Turkey’s precautions against YPG/PKK cannot be limited to only Afrin. There is also Manbij and east of the Euphrates River," Cavusoglu said Tuesday, as quoted by Anadolu news agency.

The foreign minister also reportedly said that, contrary to US promises, the cities of Manbij and Raqqa were not governed by local councils after being liberated from the Daesh terrorist group, but rather came under the control of the PYD.

"The U.S. has previously stated that the PYD/PKK was not their strategic partner, [that] in fact, they were only working together to defeat Daesh… As we can see, we have so many reasons to be skeptical, and we have enough reasons to take our own precautions," Cavusoglu stressed.

The statements come in the wake of Tuesday's report by the Vatan newspaper, saying that Turkey’s possible offensive in Syria’s northern Kurdish-controlled Afrin enclave will start with airstrikes on 149 targets of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG).

The US-led coalition refused to disclose realities about arms shipment to Kurds amid reports on dispatch of more weapons and ammunition to the Kurdish fighters by Washington and the US plan for establishment of a new border army in Northeastern Syria.

US Resorts to Secrecy over Arms Shipment to Kurds in Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961027001378

The US-led coalition refused to say whether it gave man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Syria,
the Public Affairs Office of the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) said.

"The international Coalition is resolved to train, equip and support our SDF partners to attain the lasting defeat of ISIL. Due to operational security concerns, we will not provide details of weaponry provided to specific units in specific locations,” the press office said when asked about reports that the US had provided MANPADS to Kurdish forces in Syria.

The AMN reported on Monday citing own sources Washington provided the Kurdish fighters operating in Syria, MANPADS within the framework of the secret agreement.

The US had provided the MANPADS to the Kurdish forces earlier in the month under the agreement between Washington and Kurds, according to the report.

According to the news outlet, the MANPADS have been delivered to the Kurds in the Northwestern part of Syria near the town of Afrin.

The Turkish Army has forwarded a large volume of arms and ammunition for Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) in Idlib, a Kurdish media outlet reported on Wednesday.

Syria: Turkey Provides Al-Nusra Terrorists with Arms, Ammunition Supplies
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961027000823

The Kurdish-language Hawar news reported that the Turkish army has sent a convoy of weapons and ammunition to the Al-Nusra from Bab al-Hawa passageway to Idlib.

Hawar news said that a convoy, consisting of several armored vehicles and trucks carrying weapons and munition arrived in regions under Al-Nusra's control.

It added that terrorists in Jandariseh and Shirawa regions in Afrin have already been equipped with the weapons and ammunition.

The Syrian Army rescued 24 civilians that were kidnapped by the terrorist groups in Eastern Ghouta, military sources confirmed on Wednesday.

Syrian Army Releases Civilians Kidnapped by Terrorists in Eastern Damascus
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961027000666

The army men together with the country's Red Crescent have released 24 civilians that had been kidnapped by terrorists in Karaj al-Abaseen region near the town of Arbin in Eastern Ghouta, military sources reported.

They went on to say that there were women and children among the released civilians, adding that the kidnapped civilians had been in terrorists' custody from 8 months to 3 years.

The Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) and other terrorist groups in Quneitra province refused to endorse peace with the Syrian Army, a media outlet reported on Wednesday.

Quneitra: Terrorist Groups Declare War on Syrian Army
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961027000618

The Arabic-language al-Watan daily reported that the terrorists of Al-Nusra, Ahrar al-Sham and other groups affiliated to the Quneitra Operation Room, in a joint statement, declared their disagreement with reconciliation or ceasefire with the army.

The statement further said that the militants who embark on signing the peace agreement with the army will be badly punished.

In the meantime, the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria had already announced that talks were underway over the nationwide peace plan with militants in the towns of al-Hamidiyeh, Majdoliyeh and Jabat al-Khashab.

Military sources said last month that the army's artillery and missile units launched a heavy shelling on the movements of the Al-Nusra Front in Northern Quneitra and blocked the terrorists' to move towards Southwestern Damascus.

The top field reporter for the Syrian Ministry of Defense, Walid Khalil, was killed on Wednesday after militants attacked the area he was deployed.

Famous reporter for the Syrian Ministry of Defense killed in eastern Damascus
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/famous-reporter-syrian-ministry-defense-killed-eastern-damascus/

According to a report from the Ministry, Khalil was killed inside the Harasta suburb in east Damascus, when the Islamist rebels fired several mortar shells towards the area he was reporting from.

Khalil was one a well-known field journalist that was behind most of the reports from the Syrian Ministry of Defense.

A former resident of Harasta, Khalil and his family were forced to leave the suburb after militants took over the suburb in the early years of the war.

Damascus, SANA- Military correspondent Walid Khalil was killed Wednesday during covering the Syrian Arab Army’s military operations against terrorist organizations in Harasta area in Damascus Countryside.

Military correspondent Walid Khalil killed while covering army operations in Harasta
https://sana.sy/en/?p=124662

“Lieutenant-Colonel Walid Khalil was killed during performing his national and professional duties as an army officer and a military correspondent while covering the military operations launched against the terrorist groups in Harasta area,” the Political Administration of the Army and the Armed Forces said in a statement.

Khalil was born in Damascus in 1978. He studied journalism at Damascus University and graduated from it in 1997.

He joined the Army as a university officer in 2006 and worked at the Political Administration as a journalist and a military correspondent until the date of his death in Harasta.

Martyr Khalil covered the army’s operations against Daesh (ISIS), Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist organizations in Deir Ezzor, Aleppo, Homs, Quneitra and Damascus Countryside.

 

[angelburst29]

Ten Syrian nationals were found dead in eastern Lebanon, Friday, after their bodies were discovered by the Lebanese Civil Defense in the Al-Mansaa area.

Ten Syrians tragically freeze to death while attempting to flee to Lebanon 19/01/2018 (Photo)
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/ten-syrians-tragically-freeze-death-attempting-flee-lebanon/

“They died of the cold. They included two children, six women and two men,” said Georges Abou Moussa, head of operations at the Lebanese Civil Defense, as quoted by the AFP News Agency.

According to the National News Agency of Lebanon, one of the victims was identified as Hassan Jaber ‘Eid.

The NNA added that the Syrian nationals were found along a smuggling route from Syria.

In pictures: Massive dust storm hits northeast Syria
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/pictures-massive-dust-storm-hits-northeast-syria/

The US military reportedly deployed about 1,000 fighters loyal to the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) in the Syrian Tel-Abyad area on the Syrian-Turkish border.

US military stationed 1,000 YPG fighters at Turkish- Syrian border: Turkish state media
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/us-military-stationed-1000-ypg-fighters-turkish-syrian-border-turkish-state-media/

According to Anadolu Agency, the US military carried out reconnaissance operations in the Syrian Tel-Abyad area on the Syrian-Turkish border prior to deployment.

Minutes ago, fierce clashes broke-out between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Turkish-backed Euphrates Shield in the Al-Bab Plateau region of northeast Aleppo.

Fierce clashes breakout between Turkish-backed troops, Kurdish forces in Al-Bab
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/breaking-fierce-clashes-breakout-turkish-backed-troops-kurdish-forces-al-bab/

According to pro-SDF activists, the Euphrates Shield forces attacked their positions near the town of Hazwan this evening.

In response to the Euphrates Shield attack, the Kurdish-led forces responded with a heavy barrage of missiles and artillery shells.

Both parties are still exchanging gunfire and missiles at the moment, while the Turkish Army continues to bombard the Afrin Canton from the Hatay Province.

Despite the political disagreements between the Syrian government and Kurdish PYD, the former will continue to allow YPG units to reinforce the Afrin Canton from within their territory in Aleppo.

Despite political disagreements, Syrian gov’t to allow Kurdish YPG to reinforce Afrin from their territory
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/despite-political-disagreements-syrian-govt-allow-kurdish-ypg-reinforce-afrin-territory/

According to a military source in Damascus, the Kurdish YPG have been allowed to consistently reinforce the Afrin Canton from the government-held parts of Aleppo.

Reinforcements from the YPG traveled along the shared Hasakah-Aleppo Highway to the city of Aleppo, where they eventually made their way to the Afrin Canton in the northwestern part of the province.

The military source added that the YPG has sent several hundred reinforcements to the Afrin Canton over the last 48 hours.

On Friday, the Turkish Minister of Defense stated after his meeting in Moscow that his forces were going to invade the Afrin Canton, despite the Syrian government’s disapproval and warnings.

The Syrian government has rejected the Kurdish PYD’s proposal to restore state institutions in the Afrin Canton, a source in Damascus told Al-Masdar News this afternoon.

Syrian government rejects Kurdish PYD’s proposal to restore state institutions in Afrin
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/breaking-syrian-government-rejects-kurdish-pyds-proposal-restore-state-institutions-afrin/

According to the source, the PYD offered to raise the flag of the Syrian Arab Republic over their buildings and to restore state institutions in exchange for their continued support in the Afrin Canton.

However, the government rejected the proposal after the PYD refused to allow Syrian security forces inside the Afrin Canton.

The government fears that accepting this proposal will leave their institutions at the mercy of the Kurdish security forces, who have harassed their employees in other regions of the country, including in the northeastern cities of Hasakah and Qamishli.

The Russian military is not withdrawing from the Afrin Canton in Aleppo’s northwestern countryside, pro-government Damascus Now reported this afternoon.

Russian troops not withdrawing from Afrin: Syrian media
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/russian-troops-not-withdrawing-afrin-syrian-media/

According to Damascus Now, their sources in Aleppo have denied the withdrawal of any Russian troops, despite earlier claims by pro-Turkish regime media outlets.

Should the Russian troops withdraw from the Afrin Canton, this will open up the region for a Turkish military invasion. The Russian Ministry of Defense has yet to respond to these rumors.

The Syrian government said on Thursday that a US military presence in Syria represented an “aggression” against Syrian sovereignty, and vowed to free the country from any “illegitimate” foreign presence.

Damascus Deplores US Military Presence in Syria
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2018/01/19/1631975/damascus-deplores-us-military-presence-in-syria

The Syrian Foreign Ministry statement was a response to a speech by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday in which he signaled that US forces would stay in parts of Syria indefinitely.

“The American military presence on Syrian land is illegitimate and represents a blatant breach of international law and an aggression against national sovereignty,” the statement said.

Syria would continue its “relentless war against terrorist movements with their different names until every inch of Syrian soil is cleansed” and would work with “the same determination” to free Syria of any “illegitimate foreign presence”, the statement noted, according to Reuters.

The United States has around 2,000 military personnel in Syria, deployed as part of the US-led coalition’s campaign against Daesh (ISIS or ISIL) terrorists. The Syrian Foreign Ministry statement said the government was not in need of US dollars “stained with the blood of Syrians”.

In another development, Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Meqdad warned Turkey against launching a military operation in the country’s northwestern region of Afrin, stressing that Syrian air defense systems are prepared to repel such an attack.

“We warn the Turkish leadership that if they initiate combat operations in the Afrin area, that will be considered an act of aggression conducted by the Turkish army,” he told reporters in Damascus on Thursday.

The comments came after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu stated that the recent statements from the United States regarding plans to create a 30,000-strong “terror army” on Syria’s northern borders with Turkey were not satisfactory for the Ankara government.

Cavusoglu told Turkish-language CNN Turk television news network on Thursday that Turkey would intervene in Afrin and Manbij to counter the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militants, and that its mistrust of Washington continues.

In response, the US State Department on Thursday urged Turkey not to take any action in northern Syria, calling on Ankara to remain focused on fight against Daesh terrorist group.

At a news briefing, US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the US wanted Turkey to abstain from violence in Afrin.

"We would call… on the Turks to not take any actions of that sort,” Nauert said. “We don't want them to engage in violence but we want them to keep focused on ISIS,” she said, using another acronym for Daesh.

An operation in Afrin -- a region bordering Turkey's Hatay and Kilis provinces -- is widely expected in the wake of Turkey's seven-month Operation Euphrates Shield in northern Syria, which ended in March 2017, according to information gathered by Anadolu Agency.

AL-MINTAR, Syria - A new photo has been revealed on social media of Saudi weapons in the hands of Al-Qaeda affiliates in the recently liberated village of Al-Mintar.

WHAT?! How did Saudi weapons end up in the hands of Al-Qaeda in Syria?
http://www.fort-russ.com/2018/01/what-how-did-saudi-weapons-end-up-in.html

The recently liberated village in the southern countryside of Idlib in Syria's northwest had a pre-war population of around 500 people.

However, since a jihadist coalition who mobilized and launched their attack against the Syrian Army in early 2015, the town has been under jihadist occupation.

Saudi Arabia, although officially denying it, has been one of the key backers of militant groups in Syria, particularly ones affiliated to Al-Qaeda. This is just the latest occurrence of Saudi weapons being found in the hands of Al-Qaeda affiliates in Syria.

ALEPPO, Syria - Russia has rebuilt the Djab al-Kaba hospital in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo.

PHOTOS: Russia rebuilds hospital that was destroyed in Syria's Aleppo
http://www.fort-russ.com/2018/01/photos-russia-rebuilds-hospital-that.html

The Djab al-Kaba was significantly damage during the years long battle for Aleppo. The damage done can be seen in the two photos below.

Many hospitals were damage in the battle between the Syrian Army and Al-Qaeda affiliated militants groups. However, the Syrian Army won the final victory in Aleppo in December 2016.

This has allowed reconstruction efforts to begin in the destroyed Syria, with Russia taking a lead role.

 

[angelburst29]

A summary of the first day of a globally-disputed military operation launched by the Turkey against Kurdish organizations in Syria.

Operation Olive Branch: What Happened in Syria Today?
https://sputniknews.com/military/201801211060927116-turkey-syria-military-operation-wrapup/

On January 20 Turkey made good on threats that it would begin a military operation against Kurds in Syria, as Turkish jets bombed targets around the Kurdish-populated Syrian city of Afrin.

The attacks, curiously dubbed ‘Operation Olive Branch' by Ankara, were announced by Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim.

"From this moment, the heroic Turkish Armed Forces have launched an air operation to destroy the PYD/PKK and Daesh elements in Afrin," Yildirim said.

Yildirim's announcement was later followed by remarks from President Recep Tayiip Erdogan.

"The Afrin operation has de-facto been started on the ground," Erdogan said in a televised speech, adding that, "this will be followed by Manbij," referring to another Kurdish-controlled Syrian town.

The operation is thought to be targeting Kurdish organizations Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and its affiliates Democratic Union Party (PYD) and People's Protection Units (YPG).

The Turkish Foreign Minister stated that Turkey had notified Russia, Syria, the UN and the US about the operation.

"We are notifying the Syrian regime, as well as all other sides, including the United Nations, about the operation in written form," Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlut Cavusoglu said, quoted by the NTV broadcaster.

Officials in Damascus, however, denied that Erdogan notified them of the operation and declared it to be a violation of Syrian sovereignty.

"Syria completely denies claims by the Turkish regime that it was informed of this military operation," a Syrian foreign ministry source told state news agency SANA.

"The Syrian Arab Republic decisively condemns Turkish aggression against the town of Afrin, which is an inseparable part of Syria,"

Also on January 20, Yildirim announced that airstrikes will be followed by an invasion by Turkish ground forces to "carry out the necessary work."

"They will move together with the Free Syria Army," he said, referring to a Turkish-backed militant group.

Arab-Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) issued a statement denying any hostile operations against Turkey and saying that they will defend themselves against what they claim is Turkish aggression.

"Allegations that we have launched attacks across the border are false and a pretext for Turkey to bring its military forces and its extremist opposition groups onto Syrian soil. This would be an act of aggression against us, our people, and Syria," the SDF said.

"If attacked, we will have no choice but to defend ourselves and our people, but we state in front of the world that we harbor no hostile intent towards Turkey and would only take measures in our own defense in the event of hostile operations against our people," the organization added.

The results of the initial strikes were announced in a statement of the Turkish General Staff.

"Out of 113 designated targets of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) Kurdish Syrian terrorist group, 108 have been destroyed as of 18:30 [15:30 GMT]. All the killed and wounded people, who have been sent to hospitals, are members of terrorist groups," the statement asserted.

The later statement was refuted by Rojahat Roj, press secretary of the Kurdish Self-Defense Forces YPG in Afrin. Talking to Sputnik, he said that Turkish air Forces hit some 100 positions in the Afrin area, but did not injure any YPG staff.

According to Roj, Turkey did injure at least seven civilians. Authorities in Afrin raised that number to 10, including two children. Three people reportedly suffered severe wounds, city authorities told Sputnik.

"According to the recent figures, 10 people were injured, including three people who suffered severe wounds. The list of injured people includes two children," the press service said, adding that local authorities had called on the residents of Afrin to donate blood to victims of the Turkish airstrikes.

During the airstrikes, Turkish air forces reportedly hit the Menagh Military Airbase, which the US has used for supplying weapons to Kurdish armed forces in their participation in the successful fight against Daesh, according to Turkish newspaper Hurriyet.

In an interview to Radio Sputnik, Professor Dr. Bora Bayraktar from Kultuk University in Istanbul opined that the United States, with whom Turkey has had tense relations for the last few years, intended to use Kurdish territory to chop off a part of Syrian territory so as to create a pseudo-state and use it as grounds to conduct further military operations in the Middle East.

US State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert called on the country not to engage in any invasion of Syria's Afrin, reiterating a statement made by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who also assured that the US had no intention of building a Syria-Turkey border force, saying the issue, which has incensed Ankara, had been "misportrayed."

In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that Russia was withdrawing its troops from Syria's Afrin, the target of the Turkish offensive.

"The command of the Russian group of troops in Syria has taken measures to ensure the security of Russian servicemen located in the district of Afrin, where the Turkish Armed Forces launched a special operation against the Kurdish armed groups," the statement read.

The Russian Foreign Ministry stated on Saturday that Moscow was closely following the situation in Syria's Afrin and was concerned by the news about the Turkish military engagement in the city.

Turkish Prime Minsiter Binali Yildrim stated that nearly all targets had been destroyed with air strikes as part of the military operation in Syria's Afrin.

Turkey's Land Forces to Carry Out 'Necessary Activities' in Syria on Sunday - PM
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801201060924529-turkey-syria-afrin-olive-branch-military-operation/

Turkey's Prime Minister said in a statement that land forces are expected to carry out "necessary operations" in Syria's Afrin on Sunday depending on developments in the region.

"Today our air force hit most of the designated targets. Tomorrow, depending on the circumstances, out ground forces will carry out the necessary work. They will move together with the Free Syria Army," Yildirim told reporters.

The Russian Army Command in Syria is undertaking security measures for personnel present in Afrin, after the launch of the Turkish military operation against Kurdish forces.

US Arms Supplies to Loyal Groups in Syria Led to Turkish Op - Russian MoD
https://sputniknews.com/russia/201801201060921199-russia-turkey-military-operation-afrin-concern/

The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the Pentagon's arms supplies to US-backed groups in Syria triggered Turkey's military operation in Afrin and undermined the peace process.

The main reasons that have contributed to the development of a critical situation in this part of Syria were the provocative US steps aimed at the separation of regions with a predominantly Kurdish population," the statement said.

The Ministry added that the US has undermined the process of political settlement of the Syrian crisis and impeded the Geneva peace talks.

"Uncontrolled deliveries of modern weapons, including reportedly the deliveries of the man-portable air defense systems, by the Pentagon to the pro-US forces in northern Syria, have contributed to the rapid escalation of tensions in the region and resulted in the launch of a special operation by the Turkish troops."

Russian Embassy in Turkey confirmed to Sputnik that the Turkish Foreign Ministry had summoned the Russian ambassador to inform him about the beginning of the military operation in Afrin.

We can confirm the fact of summoning. We have received information from the Turkish foreign service for passing it on to the Russian authorities," the embassy's spokeswoman Irina Kasimova said.

In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that Russia was withdrawing its troops from Syria's Afrin, target of the Turkish offensive.

"The command of the Russian group of troops in Syria has taken measures to ensure the security of Russian servicemen located in the district of Afrin, where the Turkish Armed Forces launched a special operation against the Kurdish armed groups," the statement read.

The Russian Foreign Ministry stated on Saturday that Moscow was closely following the situation in Syria's Afrin and was concerned by the news about the Turkish military engagement in the city.

Moscow has been calling on the warring parties to exercise restraint. The Ministry added that the Russian position was based on the need to safeguard Syria's territorial integrity, respect for its sovereignty and the political settlement within the framework of the UN Security Council resolution, as well as the accords reached under the Astana process.

US troops should not further stay in Syria without approval from Damascus as this may negatively affect the upcoming Syrian National Dialogue Congress, Russian Special Envoy to Syria Alexander Lavrentyev said Saturday.

US Troops Shouldn't Remain in Syria Without Damascus' Approval - Moscow
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801201060918251-us-troops-syria-approval/

"Our position is clear, the US troops should not further stay on the territory of a sovereign state without approval from its government. It may negatively affect the congress. Moreover, we expect that the United States, as a permanent member of [UN] Security Council, will send its representative to the Sochi forum in the status of observer," Lavrentyev told reporters.

The diplomat stated that the situation directly on the ground in some areas of Syria remains quite tense, but underlined that it should not in any way affect the results of the Congress.

"Most importantly, I repeat, this is a demonstration by the Syrians of the desire to achieve peace, to observe the ceasefire regime and not only in de-escalation zones, but practically throughout Syria," he said.

A similar stance was expressed by Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Jaberi regarding the Turkish advance in Afrin. The minister explained Iran's position on the issue, as a guarantor of the peace settlement in Syria.

The developments on the Syrian territory, for sure, might influence the congress in a negative or positive way. We wish that our guarantors take this into the account and create a favorable atmosphere. Any military action that might have a negative or a positive impact on the Sochi congress should be properly regulated by the guarantors. We hope that such an operation will not take place," Ansari said.

The statements were made after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the de-facto launch of a ground operation against Kurdish militias in the Syrian region of Afrin by the Turkish forces.

Syrian National Dialogue Congress - Lavrentyev went on by speaking about the upcoming Syrian National Dialogue Congress, set to take place on January 29-30 in Russian resort city of Sochi.

"I think the meeting was successful, we have managed to agree on the list of participants of the forum… the participants of the congress will receive the invitations," Lavrentyev told reporters after consultations with Iranian and Turkish representatives regarding the organization of the Congress.

He stated that Moscow expected participation of the US side in the congress in Sochi as observers.

"We would like very much that the UN representatives be at the Sochi forum at the highest level. We hope that the UN secretary general will send his Special Envoy [for Syria] Staffan de Mistura here, who will participate actively in the opening of the forum," Lavrentyev told reporters after consultations with Iranian and Turkish representatives regarding the organization of the congress.

The Syrian government said on Thursday that a US military presence in Syria represented an “aggression” against Syrian sovereignty, and vowed to free the country from any “illegitimate” foreign presence.

Damascus Deplores US Military Presence in Syria
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2018/01/19/1631975/damascus-deplores-us-military-presence-in-syria

The Syrian Foreign Ministry statement was a response to a speech by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday in which he signaled that US forces would stay in parts of Syria indefinitely.

“The American military presence on Syrian land is illegitimate and represents a blatant breach of international law and an aggression against national sovereignty,” the statement said.

Turkish sources reported on Saturday that a sum of 1,000 Kurdish fighters have been deployed in a region along the border between Syria and Turkey.

1,000 Kurdish Fighters Deploy at Syria's Border with Turkey under US Supervision
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961030000539

The sources said that the US military vehicles arrived in the Kurdish-held town of Tal Abyadh on Tuesday and Friday.

The sources further said that the Kurdish fighters deployed near the Tal-Abyadh passageway across the town of Aqjah Qala in Turkey after two days of reconnaissance operation by the US forces.

They added that a sum of 1,000 Kurdish fighters left the town of Ein Issa South of Ein al-Arab (Kobani) for Tal Abyadh and deployed in ten positions, including the villages of Quneitra, Tal Fandar, Salib and Khan that overlook the border with Turkey.

The Arabic-language al-Hadath news quoted the Turkish Haberturk newspaper as reporting on Friday that the Turkish army would launch heavy attacks on 150 Kurdish positions before starting the ground operations in Afrin.

It added that the Turkish intelligence forces specified 149 Kurdish targets, including fixed positions and vehicles, from last October to January 16, 2018, reporting that the operations would take 6 days and the Turkish air force and artillery units, stationed at the borders, would participate in them.

According to the report, given the fact that the Kurds built strongholds and ditches in 9 regions of Afrin, the Turkish forces would send special units skilled in war of attrition, if necessary, to carry out final cleansing operations in Afrin.

Meantime, the Turkish Milliyet newspaper reported that the country's joint chief of staff adopted the marching tactic by using armored tanks which were equipped with jamming systems, after airstrikes.

The Syrian government on Saturday strongly condemned the “brutal Turkish aggression” against the Kurdish-controlled enclave of Afrin, and categorically rejected Ankara’s claim about having informed Damascus of the operation.

Syria Describes Turkey’s Attacks on Afrin as Brutal Aggression
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2018/01/21/1631896/syria-describes-turkey-s-attacks-on-afrin-as-brutal-aggression

Damascus "strongly condemns the brutal Turkish aggression on Afrin, which is an inseparable part of Syrian territory," state-run news agency SANA cited a Syrian foreign ministry source as saying on Saturday.

"Syria completely denies claims by the Turkish regime that it was informed of this military operation," the source added.

Earlier in the day, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told the 24 TV broadcaster that Ankara was informing the Syrian government "in writing" on the Afrin assault.

 

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At least five people were killed and eight others were injured after militants shelled the historical center of the Syrian capital of Damascus, press service of local police told Sputnik on Monday.

Mortar Fire in Damascus Historical Center Kills 5 Civilians, Injures 8 - Police
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801221060970812-damascus-mortar-fire-5-killed/

"Five civilians were killed, over eight citizens were injured as a result of a mortar shelling of the Bab Touma district," the press service said.

The press service added that several other areas of Damascus had been shelled, however, the casualties were registered only in Bab Touma.

Militants have repeatedly shelled Damascus, including its historical part, from its suburbs.

In recent weeks, Damascus has come under fire at least twice. On January 9, the shelling of the center of the Syrian capital killed five and injured 30 people. On January 4, the attack on the historic center of the city left one woman dead and 22 people wounded.

Ankara is pressing forward with the operation against the Kurdish forces in Syria’s northwestern Afrin district, which began on Saturday, amid concerns and condemnation of some of the regional players.

Ankara Pursuing Offensive Against Kurds in Afrin Despite Damascus' Disapproval
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801221060976970-turkey-operation-syria-afrin/

The offensive started with 72 Turkish aircraft carrying out airstrikes in the district, while on Sunday, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim confirmed the beginning of the ground operation.

Afrin, located close to the border with Turkey, is controlled by the Syrian Kurds' militia, People's Protection Units (YPF), which Ankara considers a branch of Turkey's Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), designated as a terrorist organization in several countries.

Comments From Abroad

The international reactions have varied from cautiousness to outright indignation. Damascus, in part, has slammed Ankara's actions as a violation of Syria's sovereignty.

This is sheer act of aggression, in breach of international law, an infringement on Syrian national territory, and a violation of all UN resolutions calling on respecting the sovereignty of Syria," Syria’s ambassador to China and former ambassador to the United States, Imad Moustapha, told Sputnik on Monday.

The ambassador stressed that Damascus would "take every possible action to liberate" any Syrian territory held by the Turkish troops.

The offensive will affect the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Russia's Sochi, although Moscow and Tehran, which along with Ankara are the key forces behind the upcoming intra-Syrian talks, are trying to find a diplomatic solution to the issue at hand, the Syrian ambassador said.

To give Russia credit, it has tried hard to convince the Kurds in Afrin to reintegrate the town with the Syrian state, but their hubris would cloud their judgment, and now they are paying the price for their obstinacy," Moustapha noted.

The Russian Defense Ministry said Saturday that Moscow was closely following the situation in Syria's Afrin and voiced its concern over the beginning of Turkey's operation. Moscow reiterated its position, based on the need to preserve Syria's territorial integrity, respect of its sovereignty and the political settlement within the framework of the UN Security Council resolution.

France has called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Syria, following the beginning of the Turkish campaign. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Sunday that not only Afrin, but several other regions, required urgent attention.

US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert on Sunday called on Turkey to show restraint during the operation in northern Syria. Washington stated, however, that it recognized Turkey's right to carry out legal activities in order to ensure its security.

Turkey's Motives

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan may use Afrin as a bargain chip in negotiations with other regional actors, Russia, Iran, the United States, Tarek Ahmad, a foreign policy spokesman of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party, told Sputnik.

However, the Kurds, for their part, should join the negotiation process in Sochi, rather than rely on the backing of the United States, the politician suggested.

"The Kurds should enter Sochi process and open dialogue with the Syrian government instead of being blindly used as a tool by Americans, which still have not given up plans to divide Syria," Ahmad said.

Thierry Mariani, a French politician and member of The Republicans party, also pointed out the danger, for Ankara, of even a possibility of a Kurdish state in neighboring Syria.

"Turkey cannot tolerate even an embryo of the Kurdish state as it is crucial for its territorial integrity," the French politician said.

Turkey has a sizable Kurdish minority of its own and for years has been involved in an armed conflict with the PKK. Ankara, wary of Kurdish nationalism, has denounced the support given to the Kurdish forces in Syria by the United States. Besides, the territories controlled by the mainly Kurdish forces, in Northern Syria, close to the border with Turkey, are de facto largely autonomous.

Losses After First Three Days

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which incorporate several militias, including Kurdish ones, said that three SDF fighters died in the first three days of the Turkish campaign. Eighteen civilians were killed and 23 were injured, the SDF said, according to the ANF news outlet.

The Syrian militias claimed that 40 Turkish troops and affiliated forces were killed, and two Turkish tanks were destroyed in the offensive.

Rodi Osman, a representative of Syrian Kurdistan to Russia, said Monday that 17 civilians had been killed and 28 had suffered injuries as airstrikes and clashes continued in Afrin.

Osman said that neither Turkey, nor its ally, the Free Syrian Army (FSA), were able to take control of any territories. The Turkish offensive prompted a push-back as as a rocket launched from Afrin hit the FSA camp n the Turkish province of Hatay, killing at least two and injuring 12 others.

However, Erdogan vowed on Monday that Ankara would not retreat before settling the issue. According to media reports, the Turkish forces have launched a new offensive in the city of Azaz east of Afrin.

Field sources said on Monday that 25,000 militants have taken part in the Turkish Army-led Olive Branch Operation against Kurdish fighters in the town of Afrin in Northern Aleppo, adding that Kurds have dispatched more fighters and equipment to the region to face the Ankara forces.

Syria: 25,000 Turkey-Backed Militants Fighting against Kurds in Afrin
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961102000574

The sources said that 25,000 militants have participated in the battle against Kurdish fighters within the framework of the Olive Branch Operation led by the Turkish army in Afrin, adding that most of the militants have been recruited and trained in Turkey.

In the meantime, a militant commander said that the Free Syrian Army will not enter Afrin but they only lay siege on the Kurdish fighters to force them to retreat from the town.

Field sources said that the Syrian Democratic Forces (FSA) has forwarded more fighters and equipment from Sheikh Maqsoud district in Aleppo city to Afrin to face the advances of the Turkish soldiers and allied militants.

Moscow slammed Washington actions in Syria that “encourage separatist sentiments among Kurds” as either a provocation or ill-informed after Turkey launched a major operation against US-backed fighters in the Arab country.

Russia: US Actions in Syria Either Provocation or Lack of Understanding
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961102001461

"Washington has actively encouraged and continues to encourage separatist sentiments among Kurds," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday, adding that "This is either a lack of understanding of the situation or an absolutely conscious provocation", World News reported.

"The United States has long been dissuading the Kurds, with whom they are cooperating, from dialogue with Damascus, completely ignoring the sensitive nature and regional dimensions of the Kurdish problem," Lavrov stressed.

He also recalled the statements made by the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Defense, in which Moscow called for "restraint and respect for the territorial integrity of Syria."

"We have long been paying attention to the fact that the United States has set its sights on creating alternative authorities on the Syrian territory. Washington is carrying out both open and covert arms deliveries to Syrian groups they are cooperating with, first and foremost to the SDF based on the Kurdish militia," the Russian Minister underlined.

The Syrian Army is vastly operating modern anti-missile defense System that can deactivate the US-made anti-tank TOW missiles used by the terrorists in the battlefields, a Russian media outlet reported on Monday.

Syrian Army Utilizing Modern Electronic System to Deactivate US-Made TOW Missile
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961102000952

The Arabic-language website of RT reported that the army is vastly using Mirage-2 Electronic Defense System to deactivate the US-manufactured TOW anti-tank missiles.

The Arabic RT further said that the System that is mounted on the army tanks, armored and light vehicles is capable of deactivating TOW missiles.

The Mirage-2 System is equipped with more noise breaks in comparison with the older version of Mirage-1.

Military sources conformed earlier this month that the Syrian air defense forces deployed several heavily-modified S-125 Pechora batteries (a Soviet-designed system originally built in the 1960s) to the Marj Ruhayyil airbase South of Damascus city.

The modernized variant in question was reportedly the M2 version of the S-125 Pechora, which in addition to having an improved kill probability record, was technically capable of tracking and intercepting low-flying cruise missiles.

The upgrading of the Marj Ruhayyil base’s local air defense network is likely a response to the increased number of air attacks carried out by Israeli warplanes against Syrian military assets in the province of Damascus and neighboring regions over the course of 2017.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday Moscow requests the United Nations pay attention to the consequences of the US-led coalition’s operation to free Syria’s Raqqa.

Russia Urges UN to Pay Attention to US-Led Coalition’s Operation in Syria’s Raqqa
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961102001215

"A thing to note is that while they have been expressing concern over Idlib and Eastern Ghouta, but they are unwilling to assess the US-led coalition’s operation in Syria’s Raqqa," Lavrov said, adding that "We insist that the United Nations, the Security Council pay attention to it", TASS reported.

The US effort to create security forces along Syria’s borders with Turkey and Iraq may be a deliberate provocation and the statements made to deny these plans look clumsy, he said.

"In the follow-up of this course towards gross interference in Syria’s affairs, it was announced that some border security forces would be set up along Syria’s entire border with Turkey and Iraq," Lavrov added.

"After that, some clumsy statements were made to dismiss this information but in actual fact this entire activity for assuming control of the border continued. This is either failure to understand the situation or a deliberate provocation," Russia’s top diplomat stressed.

Kurdish representatives are on the invitation list for the Syrian National Dialogue Congress due in Russia’s Sochi, he went on.

"Kurdish representatives were put on the list of Syrians invited to the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi," Lavrov said, adding that Kurds must be involved in the process of a political settlement in Syria.

"As for the role of Kurds in the further political settlement, of course this role must be ensured," the senior diplomat stressed.

Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya had said the humanitarian situation in Syria’s Raqqa was close to a disaster, though everyone was putting the best face on matters.

"The humanitarian situation in Raqqa is awful, but everyone is playing it cool. Our American colleagues leveled the city to the ground as they were fighting ISIL there, and currently the whole city is rigged with explosives, full of corpses of killed people, lacking water, electricity and any medical facilities. Nothing is going on, the city is not being restored, people cannot come back, living in awful unbelievable conditions in refugee camps," the diplomat stressed.

According to Nebenzya, the current state of affairs in Raqqa was "a humanitarian situation close to a humanitarian disaster."

The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) seized the entire Abu Dhuhour Military Airport in the eastern countryside of the Idlib this past weekend.

Jihadists leave behind large cache of weapons before fleeing Abu Dhuhour Airport (video)
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/jihadists-leave-behind-large-cache-weapons-fleeing-abu-dhuhour-airport-video/

Led by their elite Tiger Forces, the Syrian Arab Army was able to impose full control over the Abu Dhuhour Airport on Saturday after overrunning the last jihadist defensive line.

Since capturing the military airport, the Syrian Army has uncovered a large cache of weapons left behind by the jihadist rebels that once occupied the area.

Below is footage from the airport; it shows weapons left behind and the heavy damage done to the installation.

 

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A suicide car bomb attack by Al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorists against the Syrian Arab Army in eastern Idlib province has hit its mark, reportedly resulting in the death of an entire squad of soldiers.

Al-Nusra car bomb attack kills squad of Syrian Army troops near Abu Duhur in east Idlib
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/al-nusra-car-bomb-attack-kills-squad-syrian-army-troops-near-abu-duhur-east-idlib/

On Monday, the Al-Qaeda affiliate militia Ha’yat Tahrir al-Sham (formerly called and more commonly known as Jabhat al-Nusra) targeted a gathering of Syrian troops at a small hamlet near the city of Abu Duhur in Idlib’s eastern countryside with a bomb-laden vehicle.

The car bomb appears to have approached the hamlet undetected, moving right into the center of the gathering location before its driver detonated his payload.

According to reports, at least five soldiers of the Syrian Army – more or less representing an entire infantry squad – were killed in the explosion.

Despite the loss of life suffered as a result of the attack, the Syrian Army managed to seize the city of Abu Duhur on Monday following a two-day battle with Islamist militias.

Nine civilians were killed and 21 others were injured when militant groups fired shells on Bab Touma neighborhood in Damascus in a new breach of the de-escalation zone agreement in Eastern Ghouta.

30 People Killed, Wounded in Shelling Attacks in Damascus
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103000333

A source at Damascus Police Command said that the armed groups positioned in some areas of the Eastern Ghouta in Damascus Countryside fired a number of shells on the neighborhood of Bab Touma, one of which landed on a bus station, claiming the lives of nine civilians and injuring 21 others, some of them are in critical condition, SANA reported.

Material damage was also caused to public and private properties when a number of shells fell in al-Qass’a and al-Shaghour areas, the source added.

In response to the attacks, Syrian army units directed precision strikes on the areas from which the shells were launched, destroying a number of launching pads and inflicting losses upon the armed groups.

Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russian and Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey spoke over phone to discuss the situation in Syria, including near Afrin, where Turkey is conducting a military operation, the Kremlin press service said on Tuesday.

Putin, Erdogan discuss situation in Syria, including near Afrin — Kremlin
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/putin-erdogan-discuss-situation-syria-including-near-afrin-kremlin/

“Russian President Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The two presidents exchanged views on the situation in Syria, including in the northwest of the country, near Afrin, where the Turkish armed forces are conducting a military operation.
Both sides stressed the importance of further joint efforts towards crisis settlement that are to be based on the principles of respect to Syria’s territorial integrity and sovereignty,” the Kremlin said.

According to the press service, the two leaders also touched upon preparations for an upcoming Syrian National Dialogue Congress due to be held in Russia’s Black Sea resort city of Sochi on January 29-30.

“The two presidents discussed final preparations for the upcoming Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi. The sides expressed the hope that it will be a representative Congress and will help reach lasting political settlement in Syria in conformity with United Nations Security Council Resolution 2254 and agreements reached within the Astana process,” the Kremlin said.

“The sides were satisfied to note positive dynamics in the Russian-Turkish relations in various spheres,” the press service added.

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Tuesday called for Turkey to show “restraint” in its offensive against a Kurdish militia in Syria.

US Defense Secretary Calls on Turkey to Show Restraint in Syria
http://english.almanar.com.lb/431792

“The violence in Afrin disrupts what was a relatively stable area in Syria and distracts from the international effort to defeat ISIL,” Mattis said during a tour of Asia, referring to the militia’s enclave in northern Syria.

“We urge Turkey to exercise restraint in the military action and the rhetoric.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized the US call to limit the time and scope of his nation’s operation in Afrin in Syria, pointing to Washington’s decades-long military presence in other countries.

Turkey Rebuffs US Call to Limit Afrin Operation: How Long Will You Be in Iraq, Afghanistan?
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103000389

“The Afrin operation will end when it reaches its goal like the Euphrates Shield did,” Erdogan said while addressing an awards ceremony in Ankara on Monday, RT reported.

“The US says it ‘should not last for too long.’ And I’m asking the US, how long have you been in Afghanistan, when will it end? You came in Iraq before we came to power. Has the time duration ended in Iraq? You are still there,” Erdogan added.

The US had asked Ankara on Sunday to “ensure that its military operations remain limited in scope and duration".

Turkey does not have any plans to take over “the territories of another country” and will eventually leave Syrian soil, he stressed.

The operation is not targeting the Kurdish population, but solely terrorists, according to the Turkish leader.

“It is very clear that we do not have any problem with our Kurdish citizens; it is also not a matter of a Kurdish corridor,” he said, adding that “The main purpose of this operation is to contribute to the safety of life and property of Syrian people as well as the territorial integrity of Syria along with Turkey’s national security.”

A sum of 14 militants have been killed or wounded in a rocket attack from the Kurdish regions in Northern Syria on a camp of the Ankara-affiliated Free Syrian Army (FSA) in Southwestern Turkey, dissident sources said on Tuesday.

Several People Killed, Wounded in Rocket Attack on Militant Camp in Turkey
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103000616

The dissident-affiliated websites reported that at least two people have been killed and 12 others injured after a rocket, launched from the Syrian Northern district of Afrin, hit a camp in the Turkish province of Hatay, where the FSA militant group is located.

Also, local sources said that two missiles hit a tent camp located on the Turkish-Syrian border, adding that the injured have been transferred to a hospital.

Relevant reports said on Monday that missile units of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) targeted the towns of Reyhanli and Kilis near Turkey's border with Syria in response to the attacks on the Kurdish-held town of Afrin in Northwestern Aleppo by the Turkish Army troops and allied militants.

The sources said the missile attacks left one person dead and tens more wounded.

Iraqi sources disclosed dispatch of forces and equipment to the border with Syria after the predominantly-Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) withdraw from the region in a surprising move, the Arabic-language media reported on Tuesday.

SDF Withdraws from Syria-Iraq Border
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103000735

"The SDF forces who were stationed along Deir Ezzur and Iraq's al-Qaem border region in Western Al-Anbar have retreated from their positions in a sudden move," the Arabic-language al-Maloumeh News quoted Iraqi Hashd al-Shaabi forces in Al-Anbar province Qatari al-Abidi as saying on Tuesday.

He noted that subsequent to the withdrawal, a large number of Iraqi army and Hashd al-Shaabi forces have been sent to the Iraq-Syria border region to prevent any possible penetration of the terrorists into Iraq's territories.

In a relevant development in early November 2017, a large number of the Iraqi volunteer forces of Hashd al-Shaabi have crossed the border into Syria to prevent the Washington-backed Syrian Democratic Forces from capturing the ISIL-held town of Albu Kamal in Southeastern Deir Ezzur at the border with Iraq.

The AMN quoted local sources as saying that the Hashd Al-Shaabi fighters have entered Syria to block the SDF from taking Albu Kamal in Deir Ezzur province.

The Iraqi Armed Forces liberated the border town of Al-Qa'em on Friday, ending the ISIL’s long reign over this important crossing that links Iraq’s Anbar province and Syria’s Deir Ezzur province.

The Syrian Army troops are marching towards Albu Kamal from two different flanks, in the meantime, the SDF fighters are about to move towards the town before the government forces.

The Turkish Army plans to expand the scope of its military operations against the Kurdish forces to cover areas at the border with Iraq in Eastern Syria after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu held meetings with senior Iraqi officials, the Arabic-language media reported.

Report: Turkish Army to Expand Military Operations to Iraqi Borders
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103000879

During the meetings, the Turkish foreign minister has discussed PKK's presence in Sinjar and the military base recently set up by the group to launch attacks on Turkish territories, the Arabic-language Sputnik news agency quoted unnamed informed sources as saying.

The sources said that the Turkish and Iraqi officials also voiced their concern over the US support for the Kurdish groups stationed along Syria-Turkey borders and some border regions along the Turkey-Iraq-Syria triangle.

Meantime, Deputy Head of Security Research Center Emad Olov said the meeting was linked to the military operations in Afrin region.

Olov reiterated that the Turkish military operation underway against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) will expand to the Iraqi borders.

In a relevant development on Monday, a Turkish media outlet reported that the Turkish armed forces have advanced into Azaz region East of Afrin within the framework of the Olive Branch Operation in Northern Syria.

The Turkish Army and Ankara-backed militant groups have opened five different fronts against the Kurdish fighters in Afrin region in Northwestern Aleppo within the framework of the Olive Branch Operation in the last three days, field sources reported on Tuesday.

Northern Syria: Turkish Army, Militant Allies Attacking Kurds in Five Directions
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103001079

The sources said that the army and affiliated militants known as the Olive Branch Operation forces kicked off their attacks on the Kurds from five flanks, including the town of Bolbol North of Afrin, Rajou region Northwest of Afrin, Sheikh al-Hadid region West of Afrin, Jandaris region Southwest of Afrin and Azaz region to East of the Kurdish-held town of Afrin.

Also, the Turkish Air Force continues massive bombing raids against the Kurds in the villages and settlements in Afrin region, hitting residential areas and the Kurdish fighters' positions.

The Kurdish sources reported on Monday that over 25 civilians were killed or wounded in heavy attacks by the Turkish Army and Ankara-backed militants on the town of Afrin in Northern Aleppo.

The sources said that 11 civilians, including 6 women and children, were killed and 16 more were wounded in air and artillery attacks by the Turkish army and Ankara-backed militants on Afrin.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced in a statement on Tuesday that 53 Turkish soldiers and Ankara-backed militants have been killed in the Olive Branch Operation against the Kurdish combatants in Afrin region in Northwestern Aleppo.

Over 50 Turkish Soldiers, Allied Militants Killed in Clashes with Kurdish Fighters in Northern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103001199

The SDF's statement said that the entire attacks carried out by the forces of the Olive Branch Operation have been repelled in Afrin and Shahba regions, and the Kurdish fighters have carried out a number of counter-attacks on the Turkish soldiers and their allied militants.

The SDF further said that 53 forces of the Olive Branch Operation have been killed and 38 more have been wounded in clashes with the Kurdish fighters, adding that the Kurds have not thus far recaptured the entire lost lands due to heavy air raids by the Turkish Air Force.

Dissident sources said earlier today that a sum of 14 militants have been killed or wounded in a rocket attack from the Kurdish regions in Northern Syria on a camp of the Ankara-affiliated Free Syrian Army (FSA) in Southwestern Turkey.

The dissident-affiliated websites reported that at least two people have been killed and 12 others injured after a rocket, launched from the Syrian Northern district of Afrin, hit a camp in the Turkish province of Hatay, where the FSA militant group is located.

Also, local sources said that two missiles hit a tent camp located on the Turkish-Syrian border, adding that the injured have been transferred to a hospital.

Ankara carried out airstrikes in Northern Iraq against the strongholds of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants, whom it said were planning to launch attacks on Turkish soil.

Turkey Hits Kurdish Bases in Iraq amid Syria Operation
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The military said on Tuesday that its bombers carried out the raids in the Zap region in Northern Iraq, destroying hideouts and arms caches belonging to the PKK militants, World News reported.

The statement added that the militants were planning an attack on border security posts and bases manned by Turkey.

The airstrikes in Iraq coincides with Turkey’s military operation in Northern Syria against US-backed Kurdish fighters.

A senior Syrian parliamentarian warned that Turkey's military attacks against Afrin and Northern Syria are aimed at reoccupation of Aleppo with the US support.

Syrian MP: Turkey Seeks to Reoccupy Aleppo by Afrin Attack
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103001436

"The Turkish officials had earlier revealed the country's goal in attacking Afrin which is actually occupation," Fares al-Shahabi said on Tuesday.

"Turkey's invasion of Northern Syria is meant to end up in reoccupation of Aleppo," he added.

Al-Shahabi said that the US which is aware of Turkey's intentions in the region doesn’t want to darken relations with the country as it prefers Ankara to the Kurdish forces and will throw the Kurds away after attaining its goals.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu believes that the future of relations between Ankara and Washington depends on the further steps the US takes, and who supports who in Syria.

Turkish FM Expects US to Back Ankara in Syria, Not Terrorists
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103001520

The Turkish Foreign Minister told Haberturk newspaper that US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has expressed doubts that the Syrian Kurds from People's Protection Units (YPG) had shelled Turkish territory.

"We do not know where they get the data, but we take into account what we experienced and saw. I told him to check his sources of information, and not to talk to us about their position," Cavusoglu said.

"The future of relations with the US depends on the next steps of the United States. As for me, I am taking the steps that I should, otherwise my country will be in danger. We will not be afraid of anyone: if we have to die, we will die, but we will not live in fear," he stressed.

He added that he expects "from such allies as the US that they will be on the side of Turkey, and not on the side of terrorists."

Cavusoglu underlined that before starting the operation, Turkey fully informed all interested parties about its military plans.

Dissident-affiliated websites reported on Tuesday that Israeli military is planning to cross into Syria amid intensified tensions between ISIL and other rival terrorist groups in the Southern part of the country.

Israel Planning to Interfere Militarily in Southern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961103001503

The websites disclosed that ISIL has gathered its gunmen and military equipment in Hawz al-Yarmouk region to launch attack on a region that drives a wedge between the terrorist groups in Syria's Golan and those on the strategic al-Jabiyeh hill.

The websites further said that the buffer region consists of a large number of settlements and villages, including Jabiliyeh Bakar, al-Naseriyeh, Seida, al-Hanout, al-Rafid and al-Mo'alaqa that are under fire control by Israeli forces.

The websites added that ISIL will be capable of cutting off Dara'a-Quneitra road and separate the terrorist-held regions in Southern Syria from each other if it manages to capture the buffer zone.

Analysts believe that terrorist group's territorial claims in Southern Syria are in line with Israel's objectives to kick off a military invasion of Syria.

The Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) is in control of Tal al-Jabiyeh and Syria's Thowar Front, al-Waya al-Forqan and Jeish al-Ahrar are in control of other territories in Southern Syria.

Photos released on social media in August showed that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) medical personnel were recovering wounded terrorists from the Syrian side of the Golan Heights and then treated them in medical centers on the Israeli-occupied side of the region.

According to sources, the militants were treated by the IDF Israel's medical centers only to then be sent back into Syria were they continue to commit terrorist acts.

Despite the fact that such gunmen were labeled as “rebels” by Western and Persian Gulf media due to their apparently “moderate” stance against the Syrian government, the actual reality stands that a vast majority of the Golan-based militants which Israel provides medical and military aid to were committed militants who pursue sectarian ideals in Syria.

Israel is known to have assisted Golan-based militants of the Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Nusra Front with medical aid and military equipment since as early as 2013.

 

[angelburst29]

The Turkish intervention into Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces-controlled areas in Afrin, northwest Syria has intensified, entering its fifth day on Wednesday. Sputnik offers a summary of the day's most important military reports and political and diplomatic announcements.

Casualties Mount on Day Five of Turkey's Operation Olive Branch in North Syria
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801241061041267-operation-olive-branch-day-five-roundup/

Military Activity - Turkey's General Staff announced Wednesday that the Turkish Air Force conducted air strikes involving 27 aircraft against 47 Kurdish and Daesh targets on Wednesday. The military estimates that a total of 287 terrorists were killed in the first four days of Operation Olive Branch, the Turkish incursion into northwestern Syria which began after the US announced plans to create a Kurdish-militia operated border security force in the region.

A YPG militia representative speaking to Sputnik challenged the Turkish military's claims, saying that no more than 15-20 Kurdish militiamen had been killed. An SDF representative speaking to Reuters said that militia had caused dozens of casualties among Turkish and allied Free Syrian Army militia since the start of the fighting.

Also on Wednesday, Afrin region's health department told Kurdish news agency Hawar that civilian casualties amid the operation had climbed to 35 amid Turkish shelling of populated areas, with more than 100 others sent to hospital. On the Turkish side, the governor of Kilis, a city near Turkey's border with Syria, said that one civilian had died in hospital after a missile attack fired from Afrin hit a local mosque. At least five others were wounded in that attack. The figures follow up on earlier reports of 15 civilians injured in Kurdish shelling of Turkish territory in border areas.

Television channel Al-Mayadin reported Wednesday that a column of Turkish tanks had entered an area in southern Aleppo province in an effort to crush Kurdish fighters in Afrin. The Firat news agency also reported that Kurdish militants in Afrin had repelled attacks by FSA militia, destroying three tanks and forcing the rest to retreat.

Clashes have been reported to be ongoing throughout the day.

Political and Diplomatic Announcements - Speaking to Sputnik, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek emphasized Wednesday that Operation Olive Branch is "about border security, about national security," and that Turkey has "no quarrel with our Kurdish brothers." Reiterating the Turkish position that the Kurdish YPG militia are affiliated with the PKK, a Turkish Kurdish organization Ankara considers a terror group, Simsek pointed out that Turkey has recently faced some 700 incursions and attacks along the border with Afrin.

The politician added that Ankara wants to see a united, "strong, stable and prosperous Syria," and does not have any interest in even "a single inch of the Syrian territory."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed Wednesday that Ankara would not limit its military campaign to Afrin, and that the operation would be continued in Manbij, about 100 km to the east. "By launching Operation Olive Branch, we have stopped the games of different powers who seek to implement their plans in our region. We will completely clear the region of terrorists, beginning with [the Syrian city of] Manbij and throughout our entire border [with Syria], thereby ensuring our security," Erdogan said, speaking to local government officials in Ankara.

Also on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had proposed the creation of a 30-km security area in northern Syria to avoid clashes between the Turkish and US militaries in a telephone conversation. Cavusoglu told Turkish media that he had urged the US to end its support for the YPG, and said that the US "does not want to face Turkey in the north of Syria."

In the meantime, a Pentagon spokesperson told Turkish media that the US would cut training, advice and assistance to any Kurdish forces "not specifically focused" on combating Daesh, including those considering heading to assist Kurdish militia in Afrin in their fight against Turkey.

Finally, Turkey's Anadolu news agency reported Wednesday that police had detained close to 150 people for social media posts in support of the Kurdish militia groups in Syria and Turkey. A law enforcement source speaking to the news agency confirmed that Turkish social media accounts are being monitored by police, and that all users spreading the propaganda of groups that Ankara characterizes as terrorists will be held accountable.

The Turkish military launched Operation Olive Branch on January 20, following repeated warnings by Ankara that it would intervene in Kurdish-controlled areas in northern Syria after the US announcement that it would begin the training of a border protection force consisting of Syrian Kurdish militia units.

Damascus has condemned the operation as an assault on Syria's sovereignty. Moscow, meanwhile, has urged all parties to exercise restraint, and called for the parties to respect Syria's territorial integrity.

While Paris criticizes Ankara’s military campaign in the northwestern region of Syria and seeks to take action against it within the UN framework, it remains to be seen how this initiative will affect relations between Turkey and Europe as a whole.

Turkey's Campaign in Syria Thwarts Attempts to Create 'Kurdish Corridor'
https://sputniknews.com/analysis/201801241061035960-turkey-europe-relations-strain/

France’s initiative to hold a UN Security Council meeting on the ongoing Turkish military operation in Afrin, Syria, has put a strain on relations between Paris and Ankara, with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu even likening the move to openly supporting terrorists.

Turkish security expert Can Unver told Sputnik Turkiye that even though “today France looks like it does not have a military presence in the region and does not openly interfere in the Syrian issue”, it’s worth remembering that after the end of World War I Paris played a key role in the Middle Eastern mandate system.

"I believe that by calling to discuss the operation in Afrin at the UNSC, France seeks to make a statement about its right to participate in the Syrian conflict resolution. And I think that the most important thing in the current situation is the fact that European countries appear resolute in their intent not to refrain from playing the “Kurdish card," he explained.

Unver also sharply criticized a statement made by EU top diplomat Federica Mogherini who urged to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in Afrin and said that the strategic military operations in the region should be focused against Daesh (ISIL/ISIS).

"She says she’s extremely concerned and points out that YPG units ‘fight against Daesh,’ while it is Turkey that actually fights against Daesh. We received information about YPG allowing Daesh terrorists to safely leave Raqqa, and about YPG freeing the imprisoned Daesh terrorists on condition that they will fight against Turkey. The Turkish military operation in Afrin worries the Western world because Turkey displayed its intent to thwart all attempts to create a Kurdish corridor in the region," the expert declared.

According to Unver, Europe keeps acting "like it’s still the 19th century," apparently regarding Turkey as the Ottoman Empire rather than a NATO ally.

"By acting this way, the Western countries jeopardize the future of relations between Turkey and the EU. The support of terrorist groups they exhibit is defined by the politics of imperialist forces, and the concerns about the Russian-Turkish cooperation displayed by the West play an important role in this process," he claimed.

Turkish political analyst Sezgin Mercan also added that the difference of opinion between the EU and Turkey had actually emerged some time ago and is primarily related to "matters related of the fight against terrorism and to the definition of ‘terrorist groups.’"

The West is concerned about a possible humanitarian crisis in Syria’s north, but Turkey is the country that made the biggest effort to help resolve the Syrian refugee issue. Despite that, as soon as Turkey begins an operation on the other side of the border (with Syria), the Western countries immediately become concerned about the need to keep this operation limited," Mercan remarked.

The Turkish military launched the military operation in Syria's Afrin on Saturday after the United States announced their plans to establish security forces consisting of Kurdish militants in Syria in the vicinity of the Turkish borders.

US Reportedly Proposed Setting Up 30-km Security Zone in Northern Syria
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801241061034097-us-syria-security-zone/

On Wednesday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the US State Secretary proposed to establish a 30-kilometer security area in the north of Syria in order to avoid possible clashes between the militaries of the US and Turkey, according to Turkish NTV channel.

Cavusoglu, who discussed the situation in Syria with Tillerson on the phone, said he called for the end of the US support for the Kurdish People's Protection Units, also known as YPG, in Syria. He pointed out that the "United States does not want to face Turkey in the north of Syria" amid Operation Olive Branch, according to the report.

The phone talk follows the reports of Turkish tanks entering the Syrian province of Aleppo. A source in Idlib told Sputnik later that Ankara had sent a military convoy to Aleppo and Idlib to set up the monitoring checkpoints to observe the situation in the de-escalation zones.

Deputy Chief Commander of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) Haitham Afeisi declared that the operation against Kurds will continue in Manbij once the Afrin assault concludes.

Ankara-Backed FSA Planning to Send 10,000 Fighters to Manbij in Northeastern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961104001405

“We have no shortage in terms of weapons, ammunition or fighters, and we are morally ready as well. A 10,000-strong force is ready for Manbij,”
Afeisi said in an exclusive interview with Yeni Şafak daily.

Highlighting the significance of a possible operation in Manbij, Afeisi pointed to the US activities in the region.

“We regard Manbij as strategically important as Afrin, so as Syria’s National Army (“al-Jaysh al-Watani”) we have declared war against the Kurdistan workers’ Party (PKK) formations in Manbij. Rather than the PKK, the US is the more pressing problem. In the case that the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and the FSA were to enter Manbij, the US, as it did in Afrin, will withdraw its support from the terrorists. If it does not, we will battle US forces deployed in that region as well.”

Over 200 members of the Ankara-affiliated militant groups have been killed in clashes with the Kurdish combatants in the Turkey-led Olive Branch Operation in Afrin region, the Kurdish sources said on Wednesday.

Over 200 Turkey-Backed Militants Killed in Clashes with Kurds in Northern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961104001298

The Kurdish-language Hawar news quoted the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as declaring that 203 members of militants affiliated to the Turkish army, including four commanders, have been killed in different battlefields in Afrin region in the last two days.

The SDF further said that the Kurdish fighters destroyed seven military vehicles of the Turkish army and seized two armored vehicles.

The SDF said that the Turkish Air Force has continued targeting heavily different Kurdish-held regions, including the village of Iska in Shirwa and nearby region in the village of Jomleh in Jandaris region.

Kurdish sources said earlier today that a notorious field commander of Ankara-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) was killed amid the Turkey-led Olive Branch Operation forces' withdrawal after fierce clashes with the Kurdish fighters.

Over 250 members of Kurdish armed groups have been killed so far in the Turkish Army's Olive Branch Operation in Syria's Afrin region in Aleppo province, a Turkish official said on Wednesday.

Over 250 Kurds Killed in Military Operation by Turkish Army, Allied Militants in Northern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961104000388

"... At least 260 terrorists have been killed since the start of the operation. The operation continues as planned," an official in the Turkish Army General Staff said in a statement.

Turkey’s Olive Branch Operation kicked off on Saturday from air and ground in Afrin region in Syria's Aleppo to target the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and the Syrian branch of the Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK).

A huge Russian shipment of weapons bound for Syria in the form of one government-contracted sea-lifter and a naval landing ship has recently transited the Bosphorus Strait, a media outlet reported.

Russia Delivering Massive Arms Shipment to Syria via Turkey
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961104001218

Observers from the Bosphorus Strait in Turkey said the transiting of two Russian vessels – one a sea-lifter and the other a navy landing ship – inbound for the Syrian port city of Tartus; both are carrying a wealth new military equipment, the AMN reported.

The logistical carrier, identified as the RoRo Altay, has been photographed with what sources count as 133 Ural military-grade transport trucks above its hull. No information exists on what army equipment is present within the ship’s actual cargo bay.

The RoRo Altay’s naval accomplice has been identified as the Ropucha-class landing ship ‘Alexander Otrakovsky’ whose military cargo is completely hidden inside internal bays and can only be guessed.

All military equipment being delivered will most likely be pressed into service with the Syrian Armed Forces.

An official with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced on Wednesday that US, British and German volunteers who have fought ISIL with Kurds in Syria are in the Afrin region to battle a Turkish assault in the region.

Official: US, British, German Citizens Join Battle Against Turkey in Syria's Afrin
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961104001343

“There was a desire on the part of the foreign fighters who fought in Raqqa and who are fighting in Deir Ezzur to go to Afrin,” senior SDF official Redur Xelil told Reuters.

He declined to say when the foreigners had gone to Afrin, but said they numbered in the “tens”, adding that “They will wage battles against the Turkish invasion".

Xelil underlined that “There are Americans, Britons, Germans, different nationalities from Europe, Asia and America".

The United Nations expressed its deep concern over Turkey's ongoing operation in the Kurdish enclave of Afrin in Northern Syria, which has already claimed lives of civilians and forced about 6,000 of people leave their homes, according to UN Secretary-General Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have arrested a number of young people in Northern Raqqa, forcing them to join the group amid fierce clashes between the Kurdish fighters and Turkish army and its allied militants in Northwestern Aleppo, local sources reported on Wednesday.

SDF Continues Forced Recruitment in Northeastern Syria
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961104000803

The sources said that the SDF has embarked on arresting a number of residents in the town of Ein Issa in Northern Raqqa to force them to join the SDF.

The sources further said that the UN representative in the region has not allowed the Kurds to enter Ein Issa camp but tens of civilians have been arrested by the SDF outside the camp.

The Arabic-language al-Watan daily reported last week that the SDF forced 1,000 civilians, mostly teachers, in the province of Hasaka and Deir Ezzur to join the SDF.

Al-Watan quoted an analyst as saying that the SDF's move was in line with the recent US decision to form a 30,000-member army in Northeastern Syria.

A senior Kurdish official said that the Kurds are now seeking negotiations with Damascus as they resist against Turkey's attacks.

Official: Kurds Want Negotiations with Damascus
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961104001165

"Turkey has deepened the crisis in Syria and supported terrorism financially. When it failed in its policies, it sent its army to launch attack against Afrin," Fouzeh Yousef, the head of the executive board of democratic federalism in Northern Syria, was quoted as saying by the Arabic-language al-Akhbar newspaper on Wednesday.

He stressed that the Kurds will stand against Turkey's attacks and occupation of Afrin, noting, "The Syrian Kurds want negotiations with the Syrian government but consider federalism as a better solution."

His remarks came after UN Secretary-General Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that the United Nations expresses its deep concern over Turkey's ongoing operation in the Kurdish enclave of Afrin in Northern Syria, which has already claimed lives of civilians and forced about 6,000 of people leave their homes.

The UN representative also added that more than 120,000 displaced people currently reside in the targeted district.

The head of the Kurdish YPG forces in the Afrin Canton, Bahjat ‘Abdo, stated on Wednesday that all reports of his organization agreeing to allow the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) into this region are false.

Kurdish forces deny agreement to allow Syrian troops into Afrin
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/kurdish-forces-deny-agreement-allow-syrian-troops-afrin/

‘Abdo’s comments come just hours after a Kurdish official told Al-Mayadeen TV that an agreement had been reached by the YPG and Damascus to allow the Syrian Army into the Afrin Canton.

The Syrian Army currently has no presence inside Afrin and previous negotiations with the YPG have failed because of Damascus’ insistence that their security forces be allowed into this region.

While Damascus continues to allow the YPG forces to use the roads within their territories, they have not taken part in any battle involving the Turkish-backed rebels and Kurdish forces.

 

[angelburst29]

The announcements and denials of the Trump administration concerning military developments in the North of Syria reveal a heavy secret. Paradoxically, Turkey has come to the assistance of the United States to correct “the error” of their superior officers.

US Secrets, Lies and Confusion in the North of Syria. Operations in Afrine and Manbij January 23, 2018
https://www.globalresearch.ca/us-secrets-lies-and-confusion-in-the-north-of-syria-operations-in-afrine-and-manbij/5626961

The denial expressed on 17 January by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson concerning the declarations of the commander-in-chief of CentCom, General Joseph Votel, on 23 December, and of the spokesman of the anti-Daesh Coalition, Colonel Thomas Veale, on 13 January, has sowed confusion.

The denial did not satisfy Turkey who, after having warned the US Chargé d’Affaires, Philip Kosnett, on the 10th and 13th of January, began preparing military operations in Afrine and Manbij, effectively launched them on 20 January.

Contrary to the declarations proffered by various participants, the US programme was not intended to create a sovereign, independent State in the North of Syria — that is the French plan — but a non-recognized State, like the Puntland State of Somalia or the Iraqi Kurdistan. The latter structure is absolutely independent, and despite the Iraqi Constitution, does not respond to orders from Iraq, of which it is nonetheless a part. Iraqi Kurdistan also has its own embassies abroad.

The Syrian Border Security Force is officially to be composed of 30,000 men, half of whom would be ex-Democratic Syrian Forces (SDF), sponsored and supported by the US. These combatants would receive three weeks of training in interrogation techniques and biometric scanning. 230 cadets have already followed this course.

In practice, the other half would be composed of 15,000 ex-jihadists from ISIS- Daesh who would thus be discretely recycled.

In reality, President Trump’s special representative to the Coalition, Brett McGurk, was the lawyer who participated, alongside John Negroponte and Colonel James Steele, in the creation of the Islamic Emirate in Iraq in 2006. With Colonel James Coffman, he was tasked with giving President George Bush an account of this secret operation, which was intended to combat the Iraqi resistance to the occupation by dividing their forces into Sunnis and Chiites, and artificially creating a civil war.

After a passage at Harvard, Brett McGurk was re-assigned to the State Department under John Kerry. He helped with transforming the Islamic Emirate in Iraq into ISIS-Daesh, and co-organised the preparatory meeting for the jihadist invasion of Iraq, on 27 May 2014 in Amman. He reorganised Iraq, then trained the International Coalition which was tasked with fighting … Daesh.

A good student, McGurk agreed to serve President Trump in order to get rid of the jihadist organisation that he had himself created, and some of whose members he is now attempting to recycle.

The project of the Syrian Border Security Force has a lot to say about the sincerity of the YPG militia, which professes the gentle anarchy of Murray Boochkin, but which, without hesitation, are ready to form a single unit with the killers of Daesh under US command.

Contrary to appearances, the Turkish attack on Afrine, and probably soon on Mambij, was approved on 8 and 19 January by the Russian military staff, which was alerted by the number 2 of the régime and head of the secret services, the director of the MIT (Milli İstihbarat Teşkilatı), Hakan Fidan, who journeyed specially to Moscow for this reason. The attack was facilitated by the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from the combat zone.

Identically, Turkey informed Syria of the attack in writing, even if Damascus claimed that it had not received the letter.

President al-Assad, who doesnot want to put Syria in direct confrontation with the United States in order to stop the recycling of the jihadists, left Turkey, a member of NATO, to so to speak deal with it, namely to confront US sponsored Kurdish forces.

President Trump had not been informed about the Votel-McGurk plan. The Secretary of Defense, James Mattis, confirmed to US military commanders the instructions of the White House concerning the jihadists. However, Votel and McGurk are still in place.

In regards to Secretary of Defense, James Mattis ...

On Tuesday, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis was given the chance to witness Indonesian special forces show off their survival skills, which included chopping the heads of King Cobras and drinking their blood.

Mattis Watches Indonesian Troops Drink Snake Blood, Walk Through Fire (VIDEOS) 24.01.2018
https://sputniknews.com/asia/201801241061039510-mattis-watches-indonesian-troops-drink-snake-blood/

Dressed in camouflage gear, soldiers gave a demonstration of their martial arts abilities after they'd broken apart pieces of wood and stacks of concrete with kicks, punches and headbutts, Channel News Asia reported.

In a separate demonstration, one Indonesian soldier showed off his shooting skills by wearing a blindfold and firing at a balloon that was in between another soldier's legs. Though one of the shots missed, no injuries were reported, according to Reuters.

In another segment, Mattis looked on as the soldiers brought out a bag of snakes with the intention of killing them and drinking their blood. Though most opted for just cutting the snakes' heads off with knives, one fighter chose to bite the serpent apart. According to reports, the act of serving each other snake blood is a sign of brotherhood.

"You could imagine how much training went into each individual there, that they were able to do that," the Washington Examiner reported Mattis telling reporters. "When you watch a force do that, many small things, perfectly, you can imagine that they can also put the bigger things together."

Some of the other demonstrations included a hostage rescue operation that was acted out while the "Mission Impossible" theme song played in the background.

The display by soldiers follows the recent announcement that Mattis is interested in re-establishing ties with Indonesian counterterrorism troops after human rights abuses prompted the US to impose restrictions on their relationship.