Russia Says Coordinates Meeting With Turkey, Syria, Iran Officials – RIA

Reuters:

Russia is coordinating with Syria, Iran and Turkey on a schedule for a meeting of their deputy foreign ministers, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov told the state RIA news agency on Tuesday.

The unprovoked war of regime change that we started in Syria, and our ongoing military presence there, may be coming to an end soon. Our war in Yemen is in jeopardy, too. This is all good news, because the US government has not achieved anything in either country that is in the interest of any American.

Turkey Is Playing Off NATO Against Russia With Eyes On Northern Syria

Newsweek:

Turkey appears to be leveraging its position as a deciding factor in the U.S.-led NATO military alliance’s attempts to counter Russia’s war in Ukraine by planning a new operation in northern Syria, where factions backed by Washington and Moscow both oppose Ankara’s aims.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has declared his opposition to the bids of Finland and Sweden to join NATO, arguing that the two countries offer safe havens for supporters of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a separatist group that has waged an insurgency for Kurdish autonomy for more than three decades. The Turkish leader’s approval would be necessary for the Western bloc to greenlight its latest expansion.

The people who control our government, and the ones who disseminate its talking-points, want you to be outraged by the fact that Russia is currently reclaiming historically-Russian territories lost in the 1900’s. This is, after all, why you are supposed to accept the fact that your cost of living has skyrocketed. We must have all these sanctions to fight back against Russia because our way of life is being threatened by Russia’s behavior.

Simultaneously, if the Turkish state moves on territory in Syria which it lost in the 1900’s, then that is not a problem, because Turkey is a Western democracy.

As The World Watches Ukraine, Turkey Prepares A Military Move Into Syria

The Independent:

Turkey is preparing for yet another large-scale incursion into northern Syria, in what would be its fifth major military offensive into its southern neighbour in six years.

Turkey Prepares To Expand Safe Zones In Syria Despite US Warnings

Asharq Al-Awsat:

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent statement led to a dispute with the US concerning the safe zones in Syria.

Erdogan on Monday said Ankara would soon launch new military operations along its southern borders to create safe zones 30 km (20 miles) deep to combat what he characterized as terrorist threats from these regions.

Erdogan has said the National Security Council would make decisions on military operations at its Thursday meeting.

Recent reports stated that Turkish armed forces and the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army might be targeting Tal Rifaat, Ayn al-Arab (Kobani), Ain Issa, and Manbij.

Turkish sources said that the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with the US on October 17, 2019, has not been implemented. It addresses the withdrawal of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), the largest component of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), to 30 km from the southern Turkish border.

The sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the MoU was signed to stop the military operation “Peace Spring,” which Turkey launched on October 9, 2019, in the SDF-controlled areas east of the Euphrates.

They explained that the withdrawal process was scheduled within five days, but it never happened.

Earlier, the United States warned of any new attack in northern Syria, saying it would undermine stability in the region and endanger its forces.

See also: Turkey’s Plan To Forcibly Relocate Syrian Rrefugees Gains Momentum

Syria Says Any Turkish Incursion Amounts To ‘War Crimes’

Reuters:

Syria’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday that it would consider any Turkish military incursions into its territory as “war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Monday said Ankara would soon create safe zones 30 km (20 miles) beyond its southern borders to combat what he characterized as terrorist threats, in a likely reference to Kurdish armed groups in northern Syria.

Ankara has already conducted three incursions into northern Syria since 2016, mainly targeting the U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish YPG.

Damascus sees the incursions as a violation of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

On Wednesday, Syria’s foreign ministry said it had sent a letter to the United Nations secretary-general and the Security Council, describing Turkey’s actions as illegitimate.

“They amount to what can be described as war crimes and crimes against humanity,” it said in a statement carried by the state news agency.

See also: US Concerned About Turkey’s Plans For New Offensive Along Syria Border

US Warns Turkey Against New Syria Offensive

Al-Monitor:

The United States on Tuesday warned Turkey against launching a new military operation in northern Syria, saying the uneasy NATO ally would be putting US troops at risk.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday that Turkey would soon launch a new military operation into northern Syria to create a 30-kilometer (19-mile) “security zone” along the border.

“We are deeply concerned about reports and discussions of potential increased military activity in northern Syria and, in particular, its impact on the civilian population,” State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters.

“We condemn any escalation. We support maintenance of the current cease-fire lines,” he said.

The illegal and unnecessary presence of all NATO forces in Syria should be ended at once.

Turkey’s President Erdogan Threatens New Incursion Into Syria

PBS:

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened Monday to launch a new military operation in Syria to secure Turkey’s southern border.

Speaking following a Cabinet meeting, Erdogan said the aim of the operation would be resume Turkish efforts to create a 30-kilometer (20 mile) safe zone along its border with Syria.

“We will soon take new steps regarding the incomplete portions of the project we started on the 30-km deep safe zone we established along our southern border,” Erdogan said.

See also: Syria: Russia Redeploys Forces To Ukraine

Why Would Russia Fire A ‘Syrian’ S-300 Missile At Israeli Jets?

Forbes:

If the recent report that an advanced Syrian S-300 air defense missile was fired at Israeli Air Force (IAF) fighter jets for the first time is indeed accurate, it could be a big deal.

See also: Syria Says U.S. Must Pay For Civilians Killed In Strike And Withdraw Troops

US Military Review Of Civilian Casualties In Syria Flawed, Claims Human Rights Watch

Arab News:

Internal US military reviews of operations resulting in civilian harm remain “fundamentally” flawed and require urgent redress despite pledges made last year, Human Rights Watch said on Thursday.

On Tuesday, the US Department of Defense released a public summary, but not the full report, of an airstrike it conducted against Syria in 2019 in which it acknowledged faults for the handling of the operation but found no one accountable.

Sarah Yager, Washington director of Human Rights Watch, said: “It’s disappointing but not surprising the DOD has once again refused to hold itself accountable for civilian deaths.”

She added: “In addition to resolving obvious flaws in its investigative process, the US military should publish the full review, as a show of respect to the victims’ families and to prevent future abuses.”

Pentagon Says No Wrongdoing In Syria Strike That Killed Civilians

Al Jazeera:

An internal United States military review of a 2019 air attack in Syria that killed civilians has found that US troops did not violate the law of war or act negligently.

The Pentagon on Tuesday said no one, including the ground force commander, was disciplined as a result of the attack, which was launched in support of Syrian partner forces who were under heavy fire from the ISIL (ISIS) armed group near the town of Baghuz, in eastern Syria in March 2019.

Pentagon Doesn’t Hold Anyone Accountable For 2019 Syria Strike That Killed Four Civilians Following Review

CNN:

Despite a renewed commitment on civilian casualties, the Pentagon has decided to hold no one accountable for a 2019 strike in Baghouz, Syria, that killed four civilians and wounded 15.

Syria’s Assad Makes Rare Visit To Tehran

Al-Monitor:

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made a rare visit to Tehran to meet with Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. 

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in February 2020, Khamenei has not met with many foreign officials. The only other head of state to meet with Khamenei in recent years is Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. 

During the meeting with Assad, Khamenei praised Syria’s resistance in the country’s civil war, which Iran often refers to as an “international war” given the support the Syrian opposition had from Western and regional Arab countries. He called for an expansion in relations between the two countries. 

Khamenei continued, “The Syria of today is not the Syria of before the war. While the destruction [from the war] was not there, but today the respect and confidence of Syria is more than it was previously and everyone looks at Syria as a power.” Khamenei attributed Assad himself as being one of the factors in winning the war and expressed hope that Assad would use the same energy in the reconstruction of the country post-war. 

Speaking of former Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani, who was assassinated by the United States outside Baghdad’s airport in January 2020, Khamenei said that Syria held an important place for him and he worked as tirelessly in the Syrian war as he did in the Iran-Iraq War. He added that the ties between Iran and Syria “are essential and they must not allow them to be weakened but rather reinforced.”

Turkey Wants Syrian Refugees To Leave — Will This Destabilize Syria?

The Jerusalem Post:

Turkey’s ruling party is claiming it will return Syrian refugees to Syria. This could include resettling a million people in Idlib, an area in northern Syria where Ankara has influence but where extremist groups tend to run the show. This could create conflict and chaos and it could also result in the violation of the rights of refugees.

However, Ankara has in the past abused Syrians and gotten a pass because it hosts millions of them, and human rights groups are afraid to critique Ankara. The Turkish ruling party also has close relationships with some western media and is able to use them to spin its policies. 

Alexanda Kotey: IS ‘Beatle’ Sentenced To Life In US For Murders In Syria

BBC News:

An Islamic State group militant from the UK has been jailed for life by a US court for his involvement with a notorious hostage-taking terror cell.

Alexanda Kotey, 38, pleaded guilty last September to eight criminal charges relating to the abduction, torture and beheading of IS hostages in Syria.

Kotey, originally from London, showed no emotion as judge Thomas Selby Ellis delivered his verdict.

I wish we could stop associating these clowns with the Beatles. An Eric Idle “Islamic State Rutles” parody might be pretty funny, though.

Turkey Blocks Airspace For Russian Aircraft Flying To Syria

Airport Technology:

Turkey has shut its airspace to Russian civil and military aircraft carrying troops from Russia to Syria, a ban that will be effective for three months.

The move is said to add to the growing external pressure on Russia following its Ukraine offensive and could increase the cost of the war for Russia.

However, there is no clarity on whether the decision aims to bar the possible movement of Syrian fighters to Ukraine.

It is said to be the first time that Turkish airspace has blocked Russian aircraft since Russia intervened in Syria’s civil war in 2015.

Turkey Steps Up Attacks On Syria’s Kurds Amid Iraq Operation

Al-Monitor:

Turkey’s military has launched a spate of strikes on Kurdish-run parts of northeast Syria over the past week as world attention is focused on Ukraine.

Syria Sends Letter To UN About US-Led Coalition’s War Crimes In Raqqa In 2017

ThePrint:

Syria sent a letter to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and to the UN Security Council about the war crimes of the US-led international coalition in the city of Raqqa in 2017, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said in a statement released by the state agency SANA.

“In an official letter sent to the UN Secretary General and the President of the Security Council about the war crimes committed by the so-called international coalition in the city of Raqqa in 2017, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs made it clear that the US military operation carried out by the forces of the illegitimate international coalition in Raqqa in period from June to October 2017, led to the almost complete destruction of the city and thousands of its civilians,” the Syrian Foreign Ministry said.

Four US Troops Injured In Rocket Attack On Base On Syria

Military Times:

Four American troops are being treated for minor injuries and evaluated for traumatic brain injury after a Thursday indirect fire attack on the Green Village base in eastern Syria, according to a release from Operative Inherent Resolve.

Syrian Regime, Russian Forces Escalate Attacks In Idlib Amid Stalled War In Ukraine

Al-Monitor:

The battles between the Syrian government forces and opposition fighters have recently intensified in Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib, where both sides have been making military movements and redeploying their troops. The Russian aircraft, meanwhile, have escalated their air raids in support of government forces.

The escalation comes after a relative calm in March, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine Feb. 24.

We (the US/EU/NATO) sponsored color revolutions in Ukraine and Syria partly to jeopardize Russia’s Navy bases in those countries, with the long-term goal of boxing the Russian Navy out of the Black and Mediterranean Seas altogether. Both programs have failed. Russia is now preparing to transfer our mess from Syria to Ukraine.

US And Coalition Forces Could Have Done More To Decrease Civilian Harm In 2017 Battle For Raqqa, Syria, Think Tank Report Finds

CNN:

US and coalition forces that fought in Syria in 2017 to recapture the city of Raqqa from ISIS could have done more to decrease harm done to civilians living in the city during the months-long battle, a think tank report released on Thursday found.

Strategic choices the US and coalition forces made in the battle, like choosing to encircle the city and focus primarily on an air campaign in order to have fewer troops on the ground and decrease risk to them, ultimately had a greater impact on civilian harm, the report from the RAND Corporation said. The report was sponsored by the Department of Defense Office of the Undersecretary for Policy, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Thursday.

The choice to encircle the city was a “more aggressive approach,” that likely made it harder to create “civilian exit corridors” and may have caused ISIS to go further into the “densely-populated heart of the city,” the report said.