Sources of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said, from inside eastern Ghouta in the countryside of the capital, Damascus, that merchants who hail from the city of al-Mayadin in Deir-ez-Zor, who are directly affiliated with the local Abbas Brigade militia, loyal to the Iranian forces, and working under …

US-Russia relations are at rock bottom. Name-calling over recent weeks, combined with events around eastern Ukraine, required a sudden gesture by US President Joe Biden to call his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to discuss a potential summit and a host of other bilateral security issues. The Biden administration, …

The United States is well aware of Taliban threats to the U.S. military drawdown, which are scheduled to begin May 1 and be completed by Sept. 11, 2021, Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby told the media Friday at the Pentagon. “We’ve seen their threats, and it would be imprudent …

Quite recently, on 30th March 2021 two ships of the French Navy ‘assault helicopter carrier-Tonnerre’ and ‘frigate Surcouf’ reached Kochi (a port city on the South-West coast of India) to participate in the three-day joint naval exercise ‘La Pérouse’. Though the exercise was led by France, four other members of …

A drone attack on Irbil airport in northern Iraq, where US forces are stationed, and a rocket attack on a military compound in the nearby town of Bashiqa, where Turkish troops are deployed, took place on Wednesday. The latter resulted in the death of a Turkish soldier and injured a …

Egypt’s participation in the task force comes as Russia seeks closer defense ties with Cairo and Sudan. Egypt became the 34th member of the US-led Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) on Wednesday, marking the latest regional contribution to the multinational security and counterterrorism coalition. The US Navy’s 5th Fleet commander, Vice …

The Israeli military said its warplanes struck a Hamas weapons manufacturing site, a tunnel and a military post. Israeli warplanes struck Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip early on Friday in what the Israel Defense Forces said came in retaliation for a rocket fired at southern Israel several hours before. …

The forthcoming Palestinian elections have generated a good deal of speculation. Among the many players, one rather enigmatic figure is Mohammed Dahlan. Long believed to harbor the ambition of succeeding Mahmoud Abbas as president of the Palestinian Authority, he is currently facing a political dilemma. “Dahlan is a convicted criminal,” …

Nearly half a millennium ago Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince described three options for how a conquering power might treat states that it defeated in war but that “have been accustomed to live under their own laws and in freedom: … the first is to ruin them, the next is to …

It is now clear that Israel has been left on its own as the Americans strive for a diplomatic resolution of the conflict with Iran. Lt. Gen. Gregory Guillot, head of the US Central Command’s Air Force, visited Israel at the end of February. His host, Air Force Commander Maj. …