Author: Steven Sahiounie

The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) has been carrying out a combing operation against the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL/IS/Daesh) sleeper cells inside the Hama Governorate.Units from the Syrian Arab Army, along with the National Defense Forces (NDF), have targeted several Islamic State hideouts in the Khanasser countryside and eastern region of Hama, inflicting heavy damage on the terrorist positions.Video footage of the combing operation was captured by the Syrian field reporter, Abu Sham, who showed the SAA troops gathering and tracking the terrorist forces.

On Friday, the U.S. military announced that it was boosting its military presence in northeastern Syria despite previous efforts to limit its forces there.The spokesman for the U.S. Central Command, Bill Urban, said in a statement, as reported by Monte Carlo Al-Doualiya, that their leadership deployed the Sentinel radar system, intensified the sorties of American fighters over their allied forces and deployed Bradley combat vehicles to reinforce American troops in the area controlled by the U.S. military and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).A U.S. official, who asked not to be identified, stated that the number of armored vehicles that were sent…

Iran’s permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Kazem Gharib Abadi, said that the explosion that occurred at the Natanz nuclear facility some time ago was an act of sabotage by the enemies.This came in a speech delivered by Abadi on Thursday, during the meeting of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency, in which he reviewed his country’s positions on safeguarding their facilities.With regard to the sabotage at the Natanz facility, Abadi warned of such a dangerous adventure, stressing Iran’s right to an “appropriate response” to these threats, Fars News reported.He stressed that Iran attaches…

In May, the largest Venezuelan oil tanker reportedly raised the Russian flag and renamed the vessel, “Maxim Gorky”, according to the EQUASIS shipping database.Since 2013, the ship had been operating in Venezuela under the name Ayacucho, but on May 1, 2020, it was renamed Maxim Gorky.The tanker has been operating under the flag of the Russian Federation since June 1 of this year, the maritime traffic site revealed. According to the documents of the Russian International Register, at the end of May the tanker was registered in the Russian Federation, and the Russian River Registry of Cargo issued a certificate…

The Iraqi Army plans to reintroduce the Soviet-era T-62 tank to its forces, a new report from the Russian newspaper, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, said this week.Citing evidence at a repair facility near the Taji Military Base, the Russian newspaper said the T-62 tank is being worked on so that it can be reintroduced into the Iraqi Armed Forces.The report said that due to financial restrictions, the Ministry of Defense has not been able to acquire new equipment, so the army is now working to restore their older equipment.Initially, they brought back the T-55 and the Chinese Type 69, then they began…

The Russian military has accused the United States of provoking tensions in the region, due to increased flights of strategic-bombers and spy planes over the Black Sea.As a result of increased activity of the US Air-Force over Crimea and the Black Sea, Col.-Gen. Sergei Rudskoi, head of the Russian General Staff’s main operational department, warned the United States and said that the “US and NATO carry full responsibility for a possible escalation.”The bombers which flew as close as 11 km near the Russian border, simulated missile strikes at Russian facilities in its southern region, according to the General.However, the US…

President Xi Jinping and the Communist Party’s Central Committee have announced a new plan to take more control of the private sector in the country.The 5000-word statement put an emphasis on greater involvement of party members in private companies to ‘rejuvenate’ the nation and boost law abidance and moral standards.“We must also see that socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, the scale of the private economy has continued to expand, risks and challenges have increased significantly, the values and interests of the private economy have become increasingly diverse, and the united front work of the private economy…

The Chinese State Council released on Friday a white paper titled “China’s Armed Forces: 30 Years of UN Peacekeeping Operations” to lay out the country’s achievements and expectations with regard to its contribution to the UN peacekeeping operations (UNPKOs).“China has always resolutely safeguarded the UN-centered international system and the basic norms governing international relations underpinned by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and worked with countries around the world to uphold multilateralism, equity and justice. China takes concrete actions to safeguard world peace and has actively participated in the UNPKOs” the preface to the document read.The authors throw…

US Assistant Secretary of State for Proliferation Christopher Ford will urge members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to adopt a Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement for civilian power generation during a September 21-24 policy conference, while pressing for a nuclear-free North Korea and for new limits on Iran’s production of nuclear fuel, the State Department said in a press release.“The US delegation will highlight the ongoing threats posed by the Iranian and North Korean nuclear programs,” the release said on Friday.The release restated the US goal of a “complete denuclearization” of the Korean Peninsula and criticized Iran over what it…

The United States may work out a deal on Syrian oil with local Kurds and withdraw the troops that guard the reserves, US President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday.“We will make a determination. We will probably be dealing with the Kurds on the oil. We’ll see where it all ends up and will be out,” Trump said during a White House briefing.The US troops, jointly with the Arab-Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces, maintain control over a part of northeastern Syria, concentrating around the oil and gas fields in the provinces of Al-Hasakah and Deir ez-Zor.Trump first announced the possible deal…