Middle Orient

Assad Placates Southern Syria Ahead of Elections

Not a lot of time separates us from the next presidential elections in Syria, which are expected to take place next April. In the meantime, the Syrian regime has been trying to increase the number of measures it is taking to calm tensions in the southern regions of Syria, namely …

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Brigadier General Manaf Tlass To Head Syrian Military Council

High-profile regime defector Manaf Tlass will head the Syrian Military Council, according to Zaitun Agency. The head of the Free Officers’ Association, Brig. Gen. Talal Farzat, emphasized in an exclusive statement with Zaitun Media Agency that the idea behind ​​the Military Council is both old and new, as it was …

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Daesh attack kills 8 regime loyalists in east Syria

A Russian soldier stands guard as troops accompany a convoy of displaced Syrian civilians leaving for their homes in the northern town of Ain Issa in the countryside of the Raqqa region. More than 387,000 people have been killed and millions forced from their homes since Syria’s civil war broke …

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Syrian desert | 130 Russian airstrikes kill 21 ISIS members

SOHR sources say that Russian jets continue their airstrikes on various positions in the Syrian desert, executing at least 130 airstrikes, in the last 24 hours, targeting ISIS positions in the Aleppo-Hama-Raqqah triangle and the deserts of Deir ez-Zor and Homs. Where a squadron of Russian fighter jets consecutively pounded …

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Used for smuggling into Turkish territory | Turkish forces detonate tunnel in western countryside of Idlib

SOHR activists say have reported that Turkish forces detonated a tunnel used for smuggling in the area of Ain al-Bayda in western countryside of Idlib, near the border with the Iskenderun region. According to SOHR sources, the tunnel is used for smuggling operations between Syria and Turkey, whether goods or …

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US seeks ‘fallback’ Saudi bases in case of Iranian threats

The Wall Street Journal reported on plans for ports and air bases in the kingdom’s western desert, which the US military would seek to develop as positions to be used if war were to break out with Iran. The US military is looking for fallback bases in Saudi Arabia to …

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Jordan king channels intelligence energies to ‘security threats’

The intelligence apparatus, according to a Royal Court statement, is to “to focus all energies in its areas of specialty, which are vital to national security and professional intelligence operations, and to dedicate all capabilities to ensure that it remains an example of professionalism in countering terrorism and security threats.” …

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Stop Taking for Granted the Justification for the Existence of Israel

Soapbox (described on Facebook as Russia state-controlled media) is circulating a video of veteran Israeli journalist Gideon Levy lecturing against the Zionist occupation of the West Bank. In the first few frames Levy says: “Palestine must be demilitarized.” Sorry, why should Palestine be demilitarized? Don’t they [Palestinians] have their right …

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‘Leaving Aside’ International Law: Why Democrats are as Dangerous as Republicans to a Just Peace in Palestine

Motivated by their justifiable aversion to former US President Donald Trump, many analysts have rashly painted a rosy picture of how Democrats could quickly erase the bleak trajectory of the previous Republican administration. This naivety is particularly pronounced in the current spin on the Palestinian-Israeli discourse, which is promoting, again, …

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Iran’s supreme leader demands US action, not talk on nuclear deal

As the new administration tries to revive diplomacy with Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Wednesday that “words and promises are no good.” Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Wednesday that his country wants action, not “talk and promises” from the United States as the new administration seeks to rejoin …

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