Middle Orient

Systematic Campaign Against Syrian Refugees in Lebanon: Presidential Goals and Economic Ambitions

Lebanese internal factions are using the Syrian refugee issue for political gains, according to Syria TV. The issue of inciting violence against Syrian refugees has once again resurfaced in Lebanon, with several political parties spearheading campaigns to force their deportation. However, some political forces and international organizations still reject this …

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Syria Today – Israel Warns Regime Over Hezbollah Links; EU Sanctions New Individuals; Refugees Killed in Turkey and Sudan

Hundreds protest against Arab rapprochement with Syria’s al-Assad Hundreds of people have taken to the streets of several cities in northwestern Syria to protest against warming ties between some Arab countries and President Bashar al-Assad. The biggest demonstration took place on Sunday in Idlib, a stronghold of forces opposed to …

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Turkey Says Quadripartite Meeting of Defense Ministers and Intelligence Chiefs is Part of Normalization with Syria

Ankara says that the quadripartite meeting planned in Moscow on Tuesday, is part of the efforts to normalize relations with the regime, Asharq Al-Awsat says. Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar surprised many by announcing a quadripartite meeting of defense ministers and intelligence chiefs from Russia, Turkey, Iran, and Syria in …

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Syria Today – Ukraine Planned Attacks on Russian Forces in Syria; Syrians putting down roots in Germany; Kurds Open to Regime

Washington Post: Leaked Documents Show Ukraine Planned Attacks on Russian Forces in Syria Ukraine’s military intelligence made plans to conduct covert attacks on Russian forces operating in Syria with the help of Kurds, leaked U.S. intelligence documents show, the Washington Post reported. The plans appear to have been aimed at …

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Syria Today – Tunisia Appoints New Ambassador; Clashes in Daraa; Iranian Minister in Damascus

Your daily brief of the English-speaking press on Syria. The Turkish-Syrian rapprochement efforts, steered by Russia, are ranked as the second most significant game of diplomacy in the Middle East, Forbes reported. Defence ministers and intelligence chiefs from Russia, Turkey, Syria, and Iran convened in Moscow for a crucial four-way …

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Neturei Karta (NK) and Masar Badil in Ottawa: “Free, Free Palestine from the river to the sea”

I’ve seen them often in the United States at protest rallies organized by pro-Palestine groups against Israel — in Washington DC, in New York. Yesterday in Ottawa, they led Masar Badil — The Palestinian Alternative Revolutionary Path Movement (masarbadil.org)’s May Day Liberation March. They are members of Neturei Karta (NK), an international ultra-Orthodox Jewish …

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Withdraw Foreign Forces From Syria, Arab States Call

The foreign ministers of Syria, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, and Iraq said on Monday after meeting in Amman said the government in Damascus should re-establish the rule of law on all of Syria’s territory, ending the presence of foreign armed groups and terrorists,. Jordan hosted the meeting, the first of …

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Hezbollah behind roadside bomb in Israel last month, Israeli official says

Lebanon’s Hezbollah was behind a rare roadside bomb attack last month that wounded a motorist in northern Israel, Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said on Friday. Israel’s military said that security forces had killed a man carrying an explosive belt after he apparently crossed from Lebanon into Israel and …

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ISIS is back in the open in southern Syria

On Oct. 31, local units previously affiliated with the Free Syrian Army (FSA) launched a large-scale military operation against the al-Hafo-Harfoush group in the southern Syrian city of Daraa al-Balad. The units responsible for carrying out the operation in the Tariq al-Sad and al-Mukhayyam neighborhoods had chosen to remain in …

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ISIS beats back Wagner offensive in central Syria

It has been an accepted fact that ISIS ceased being a territory-controlling entity in Syria after its March 2019 defeat in the town of Baghouz. Yet it is perhaps time to reevaluate this perspective on the group and its insurgent trajectory in the country. While recent massacres of civilians in …

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