Report: Hezbollah Blocked Russian Monitors From Area Near Damascus

Russian Monitors Are Supposed to Confirm Ceasefire Compliance

Reports out of Syria today claim that Hezbollah fighters blocked Russian military observers from entering an area of metro Damascus to check on the status of military activities in Wadi Bardi, with respect to the ongoing ceasefire.

The Russian delegation arrived in the area after being “invited” by local residents, and Hezbollah stopped them when they arrived. Under the ceasefire deal, Russia and Turkey are guarantors of the deal, with expectations they are supposed to monitor areas where fighting is ongoing with factions not included in the deal.

There is already speculation that this could threaten the ceasefire, or indicates some tension between the Russia and Iran, both of which are backing Syria in the civil war, since Hezbollah is generally seen as one of Iran’s proxies within the civil war.

It is unclear, however, whether this is as major an issue as is being reported, or simply a one-off misunderstanding. Either way, it raises further concerns about the ceasefire in the near-term as rebels continue to present everything the military does as a violation.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.