Middle Orient

A leaked secret message reveals that Assad called for Russian military intervention during the 2013 battles of eastern Ghouta, Sowt Al-Asime reports. The Russian newspaper Zavtra wrote in an article it published on Saturday about a secret message that the head of the Syrian regime, Bashar al-Assad, sent to Russia …

The Biden administration is giving Turkey the cold shoulder on the S-400 dispute. Turkey’s government has hired a law firm in Washington to lobby on its behalf as it seeks rapport with the Biden administration amid a continuing dispute over Ankara’s purchase of Russia’s S-400 air defense system. A defense …

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to reaffirm strategic ties. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman by phone on Thursday to convey Washington’s continued support for the kingdom’s defense against Houthi attacks emanating from Yemen.

Even as Ankara and Athens reengage in exploratory talks over long-running maritime disputes, Turkey is pressing ahead in its campaign for a two-state solution on the island. Ankara is working with its allies in the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus to make a case for a two-state solution in …

Opposition militia HTS has denied the opening of a so-called “corridor” for residents of Idleb to return to government-held regions, writes Zaman Al-Wasl. On Monday, Taqi al-Din Omar, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s (HTS) media relations manager, denied to Zaman Al-Wasl the recent allegations that the Bashar al-Assad regime has been propagating …

As was the case in 2006 and 2010, perceptions of Iranian intransigence in the face of constructive Western overtures—which may well be forthcoming under the Biden administration—could lead to a hardening of Russia’s stance, which is ultimately underpinned by concerns of nonproliferation and the integrity of the P5+1 process. Almost …

US-backed SDF steals 140,000 barrels of crude oil every day, writes Al-Masdar. Militants of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is supported by Washington, stole 140,000 barrels of crude oil on a daily basis from oil fields in Syria’s northeastern province of Hassakeh, according to a report. Ghassan Halim Khalil, …

20 members of the Tarn family have been arrested by the SDF in Raqqa for unknown reasons, reports Al-Souria Net. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) arrested 20 people from the same family in the city of Raqqa, which is under its control, in a raid operation carried out at dawn …

Previously, the Russian ambassador to the United Nations pointed out that while almost every month Syria provides information about terrorists planning chemical weapons provocations, such data is not reflected in the OPCW documentation. Militants in Syria are planning to stage a chemical attack to blame the country’s authorities, Rear Adm. …

The Syrian army today shot down a group from the Islamic State terrorist organization (Daesh, in Arabic) in the desert of the central province of Homs. The operation was carried out with the support of Russian aerospace forces, whose reconnaissance planes detected a hideout where four terrorists were sheltering and …