The Islamic State group began threatening Syria’s new government early. After “Deterrence of Aggression” factions took power, the group released a video warning the Syrian state against applying UN laws and charters. From the outset, the group argued that if the new administration applied UN covenants and laws, it would …

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The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) carried out raid and arrest campaigns in the eastern Aleppo countryside today, Wednesday, 24 December, amid accusations that Syrian government forces violated the truce around the al-Ashrafiya and Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhoods in Aleppo city (northern Syria). Syrian state run al-Ikhbariya reported that the campaign targeted …

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani, describing the talks as “good.” The meeting between al-Shibani and Putin came during a visit by the Syrian foreign minister and Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra to Moscow on Tuesday, 23 December. Al-Shibani …

Recent developments in Iraq show that the country is on the cusp of a deep geopolitical and economic transformation, as the recent elections are a focal point for reshaping the balance of regional power. Iraq, with its oil and gas wealth and strategic location linking the Gulf to Turkey and …

As soon as the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina handed down a first-instance verdict on Republika Srpska president, Milorad Dodik, sentencing him to a year in prison with a six-year ban on holding the presidential office, for not complying with the decisions of the High Representative, Dodik and his allies …

Syria’s Interior Ministry carried out two separate security operations in Rural Damascus governorate (the countryside surrounding Damascus), arresting an Islamic State leader in Damascus and killing another in the town of al-Buwaydah (Rural Damascus), in cooperation with the General Intelligence Service and in coordination with the International Coalition. Brigadier General …

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Israel on Wednesday accused Hamas of breaching the US-backed ceasefire, after an explosive device blew up in southern Gaza, injuring an Israeli soldier. It was the latest incident to threaten the tenuous truce that has held since October 10, as each side accuses the other of breaches. The Israeli army …