Author: Steven Sahiounie

The Russian Center for Reconciliation in Syria announced that two drones were shot down near the Russian Hmeimim Airbase in Latakia on Monday evening. The head of the center, Alexander Sherpetsky, said in a statement on Tuesday, that the Russian air defenses spotted around 22:30 P.M., Monday, drones that approached the Hmeimim Airbase and the city of Jableh in the Latakia countryside. He added that the Russian and Syrian air defense systems shot down two combat planes, which were fired by the jihadists. The Russian center confirmed that there were no losses or damages, noting that the Russian base operates…

Aqila Saleh, Speaker of the Libyan Parliament, announced that the Libyan people will formally ask Egypt to intervene with military forces if the necessities of maintaining Libyan national security and Egyptian national security require. He stressed that “the Libyan people ask Egypt to intervene to protect our common national security if the militias cross the red line in Sirte and Al-Jafra.” He continued: “We trust that Egypt will not let us down and will not abandon us and will not leave us unjust or an enemy that wants to attack the Libyan people,” considering that: “Egyptian intervention in Libya is…

The Turkish Ministry of Defense announced in a statement on Wednesday that a Turkish soldier was killed and two others were wounded in the southeastern part of the country after they came under fire from the Iranian side of the border. The statement did not say who shot the soldiers. The ministry indicated that the soldiers were on a reconnaissance and observation mission along a border town in the Hakkari province of southeastern Turkey when the shooting took place. Turkey has been fighting the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) on its borders with Syria and Iraq for decades, while also dealing…

By: Lilly Martin, Journalist I wish I could tell you that Syria is being rewarded for resisting terrorists and because we have returned to peace and security through blood and sacrifice that we are now able to rebuild and resume our lives. But, we cannot rebuild, and cannot live a normal life. The United States government and the European Union have place sanctions on Syria which prevent importing any medical machines, prevent importing medicines, prevent importing parts and machines for factories, prevent any and all items necessary to rebuild Syrian homes, shops, factories, schools, and hospitals. We are surviving on…

In a televised speech, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Tehran was ready to negotiate with Washington, but only if the US first apologized for leaving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA, Iran Nuclear Deal). In a tweet in early June, Trump repeated Washington’s call for a new deal with Tehran aimed at putting stricter limits on Tehran’s nuclear work, curbs its ballistic missile program and ends its decades of regional proxy wars. Hassan Rouhani said the following, in his televised address: “We have no problem with talks with the U.S., but only if Washington fulfils its obligations under the nuclear…

On June 24th, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) begun deployment of 40 fresh companies across various locations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China in view of the escalating situation, and the apparent stagnation of negotiations between commanders. This was reported by unnamed Indian officials. According to them, these units number approximately 4,000 troops, and would make the total number positioned there approximately 7,000. The decision to induct ITBP battalions in support of the army was taken on June 20 after Director General Military Operations, India, Lt General Paramjit Singh and Director General (ITBP and BSF) S S Deswal vested…

On June 23rd, the USS Nitze, Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, navigated near the Venezuelan coast in a freedom of navigation exercise, aimed at challenging an area that the Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s “regime falsely claims control over.” The move comes after the Trump administration in April said it was deploying more US military assets to the Caribbean, in part to disrupt alleged narcotics shipments by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. A spokesman told AFP that a similar operation had taken place in January. On June 22nd, an Iranian-flagged cargo ship Golsan docked at the port of La Guaira carrying what the Tehran…

On June 24, a unit of the Russian Special Forces attacked a position of Turkish-backed Suqur al-Sham in southern Idlib, according to opposition sources. Russian forces raided the position, which is located in the outskirt of the town of Benin, in the early hours of the morning. Suqur al-Sham claimed that its militants fought back. However, the results of the attack say otherwise. Sources in Suqur al-Sham, a part of the so-called National Front for Liberation, revealed that four militants of the group were killed and three others were injured in the raid. The slain militants were identified as Mohamad…

A Turkish drone strike has claimed the life of Zahra Barkal, an official in the Self-Administration in North and Northeast Syria. Barkal and two other Kurdish women, Amina Wissi and Habun Khalil, were killed on June 23 when a Turkish combat drone targeted a house they were meeting inside, in the village of Helince, southeast of the border town of Kobane in northeast Aleppo. 33-year old Barkal, a law graduate from the University of Aleppo, worked with the Kurdish Red Cross in Kabane in 2013. Later, she occupied several key positions in the town’s local administration, which is overseen by…

Late on June 23, ISIS cells assassinated Col. Adnan Mahmoud Bakar of the Syrian National Army in the Turkish-occupied part of northern Aleppo. According to opposition sources, the colonel was shot and killed by the group’s fighters as he was leaving a mosque in the town of Kafr Ghan, near the town of Azaz. “With the grace of God Almighty, Caliphate soldiers targeted an officer from the apostate Sahawat [term for Sunni factions fighting against al-Qaeda or ISIS] in the village of Kafr Ghan in the vicinity of the town of Azaz, with a handgun, which led to his death,…