Caged prisoners believed to be former army officers from dictator Bashar al-Assad’s Alawite sect were paraded through streets of a rebel-held suburb of the Syrian capital Damascus, apparently used as human shields to deter further bombardments in the area, according to video clips and images posted on social media.
With 95 percent of the vote in, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) appear to have solidified their control of the nation’s Parliament, with significant losses for Kurd-friendly leftist People’s Democratic Party (HDP) and main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
Contents: Russia warns that Syria war could become a ‘proxy war’; Syria’s civil war and Generational Dynamics; Generational Dynamics and crisis civil wars; Generational Dynamics and war between Palestinians and Israelis
New Jersey Governor and Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie said, “we have to work with the rebels in Syria to be able to find out who’s best to be able to bring stability to that country” on Saturday’s “Fox &
ISIS is a fear merchant. It depends heavily upon using fear to intimidate those opposed to it.
Russian President Vladimir Putin appears ready to cooperate with the European Union to remove economic sanctions–after having gained enormous international leverage through his surprise military intervention in Syria.
One of the factors spurring Russia to action in Syria was the success of ISIS recruitment in certain parts of Russia. A notable example of this is the province of Dagestan, which has a large and impoverished Muslim population, a history of unrest, some hot spots of radical Salafist Islam, and lingering resentment against heavy-handed police tactics.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has told the Syrian Kurdish PYD forces, who have worked with the United States in the past, “Pull yourself together” and keep east of the Euphrates River–or face military attack by Turkish forces.
Iran and Saudi Arabia, two states on polar opposite sides of the ongoing civil war in Syria, are set to meet face-to-face in Vienna on Friday, as part of international talks which hope to find a peaceful solution to the conflict.
The Free Syrian Army has been backed by Western powers until now and has been actively targeted by Russian airstrikes, but it has reportedly made overtures to Moscow to discuss military cooperation, or at least an end to Russian bombing of their positions.
The office of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad issued a statement Tuesday claiming to welcome “any political solution” to the Syrian civil war, days after insisting that an election is out of the question until Assad achieves “victory over terrorism.”
Contents: Sunni jihadist suicide bomber targets Shia mosque in Saudi Arabia; Russia’s military intervention in Syria inflames jihadists in Saudi Arabia
While being questioned by Lindsey Graham about the means through which the Obama administration intended to secure the ousting of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter conceded that such efforts were “principally political.”
United States State Department spokesman John Kirby called Iran’s “destabilizing activity” in Syria “unhelpful” but noted that the Islamic Republic would need to be more involved in the diplomatic process of achieving an end to the violence in the region sooner rather than later.
The Russian government wants Syria to hold presidential and parliamentary elections. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has allegedly stated he would rather wait until “terrorism” is eradicated from the country to hold elections again.
Russian lawmakers meeting with Syrian head of state Bashar al-Assad on Sunday claim he is open to holding elections that may result in his removal from power, but only after “terrorists”–a word Assad has often used as a blanket term for any Syrian opposition–are defeated.
A dispute has arisen in Syria over the disposition of a fifty-ton ammunition shipment from the United States, supposedly intended for Syrian Arab rebel groups. The munitions were instead taken by the Kurdish YPG militia, according to both Arab and Kurdish commanders, although the Pentagon officially insists the shipment reached its intended recipients.
Democratic presidential candidate former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated that while she supports a no-fly zone in Syria, “that doesn’t mean you shoot at every aircraft that might violate it the first or second time” in an interview broadcast
A Hezbollah-aligned Lebanese parliamentarian has responded to the possibility of Qatar entering the Syrian Civil War, tweeting that “Doha will be shelled” if Qatar enters the conflict.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that his Syrian counterpart, Bashar al-Assad, reacted “positively” to the idea of working with some rebel groups in the region against the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), particularly the Kurds.
Syrian rebels supporter Qatar said it is considering a direct military intervention in Syria following Russia’s airstrikes in support of dictator Bashar al-Assad but added that it still prefers a political solution to the civil war.
The Turkish government made it known on Wednesday they could accept a transition period for Syria where President Bashar al-Assad stays in power for six months before another person takes over.
Almost four out of every five declared targets of Russian airstrikes in Syria are located in areas not held by the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), according to an analysis of Russian Defense Ministry data by Reuters.
The White House has condemned Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad’s surprise visit to Moscow, chiding Vladimir Putin for rolling out a “red carpet welcome” for a leader “who has used chemical weapons against his own people.”
Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will meet in Vienna Friday to discuss Syria before they both meet with Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
