Following up on the deadly Israeli drone strikes against Kiswah, in the southern part of metro Damascus, Israel conducted an overnight raid of an old airbase there, with dozens of IDF troops arriving via helicopters and spending over two hours in the base. The troops...
Turkey Defense Deal With Syria Includes Training and Arms – Stops Short of Turkish Bases
As Syria’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) tries to grow its national military after the takeover of the country in December, it was inevitable that Turkey, a heavy backer of the HTS during its offensives last year, would end up playing a big role. Syria and Turkey have...
Turkey FM Warns He Won’t Tolerate Syrian Kurds Becoming Israeli Pawns
Syria’s Foreign Minister was in Ankara today meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, and Fidan took the opportunity, as Turkish officials so often do, to rail about the Kurds threatening regional stability. This time, the warnings were directed at the...
Kurdish PKK Will Disarm and Disband, Seeking End to Decades of Conflict in Turkey
In an announcement on Monday, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) announced that they have agreed to totally disarm and disband, aiming to end a multi-decade conflict with the Turkish government. Turkish President Erdogan praised the move, calling it a move toward...
Turkish Jets Interfere With Israeli Warplanes Attacking Syria
As Israel continues to escalate its attacks across Syria, they are running into some resistance from Turkey. Turkey is reportedly frustrated with the growing Israeli strikes on Syria, and there was an incident over the weekend where two Turkish F-16 fighter jets were...
Syrian Leader Sharaa Says Willing to Normalize Relations With Israel
Syria’s leader Ahmed al-Sharaa has reportedly expressed openness to normalizing relations with Israel under certain circumstances, ending decades of acrimony between the two neighboring states. Sharaa reportedly discussed the matter with Rep. Cory Mills (R – FL)...
Turkey Halts Offensive Against Syria’s Tishreen Dam Amid US-Mediated Talks
Months of fighting over control of the Tishreen Dam in Syria’s Aleppo Governorate seems to be on hold now, according to reports from Kurdish officials, after Turkey agreed to mediated talks and a “provisional” halt to shelling the dam. Turkey and their allies in the...
US Removing Hundreds of Troops From Syria, 1,400 Will Remain
The US military has started removing hundreds of troops from Syria but will leave over 1,000 in the country, at least for now, The New York Times reported on Thursday. US officials told the Times that the US was shuttering three of its eight bases in northeast Syria...
Report: US Tells Israel It Will Begin Drawdown From Syria in Two Months
Pentagon officials have told their Israeli counterparts that the US will begin a phased withdrawal of its troops from Syria within two months, the Israeli news site Ynet reported on Tuesday. A senior Israeli official said that the US withdrawal could be partial,...
Kurdish SDF Hands Key Dam to Syrian Forces Under Integration Agreement
Though it hasn’t always been an easy process, the integration agreement between the Syrian government and the Kurdish SDF continues to advance, and with SDF chief Mazloum Abdi meeting with a delegation over the weekend, it appears to be picking up steam. In recent...