Author: Steven Sahiounie

The permanent representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations, Ambassador Abdullah bin Yahya Al-Muallami, stressed on Wednesday, the need for Syria to return to the Arab League. Al-Muallami said in an interview with RT Arabic that the relations between Riyadh and Damascus can be restored simply any day and any moment if the Syrian crisis ends and the factions of the Syrian people agree on the future directions in the country. On the possibility of opening the Kingdom’s embassy in Damascus along the similar lines of the United Arab Emirates, Al-Muallami said that “there is currently…

On Tuesday, a number of satellite images showed a large aircraft carrier anchored in an Iranian port with a squadron of combat aircraft. The photos shown show a life-size aircraft carrier, much like the aircraft carrier of the U.S. Navy Fleet, anchored off Iran’s southern coast The aircraft carrier photographed by the lenses is about 650 feet (198 meters) long and 160 feet (48 meters) wide. According to Fox News, Iran built this “imaginary” model with the aim of conducting military exercises with live fire for a possible war in the region in light of the escalating tension with America.…

In the context of the growing rejection of the U.S. presence east of the Euphrates, the residents of the village of Al-Dardara and the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) intercepted an American military convoy in the Tal Tamr countryside of Wednesday. According to reports, the Syrian Army and the villagers refused to let the U.S. military convoy pass the checkpoint and forced them to turn around near the village of Al-Dandara in western Al-Hasakah. The reports did not specify how long the standoff lasted; however, the location of this incident was the same as the previous interception, which was one of…

On June 10th, the offensive on Sirte by the Government of National Accord (GNA) and its Turkish support are on-going. The GNA is yet to undertake a ground operation, and is rather shelling Libyan National Army (LNA) positions in and around the city There are several reports claiming that the shelling has killed and injured numerous civilians. Meanwhile, in the city of Tarhuna, which was recently captured by the GNA Jordanian-made weapons were allegedly discovered in caches According to GNA army spokesman, Colonel Pilot Mohamed Gnunu, LNA positions inside Sirte itself have been targeted in shelling. In the southern part…

On June 10, the Russian Military Police and the Turkish military conducted a 16th joint patrol on the M4 highway in the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib. A new breakthrough was achieved during the joint patrol, which started from the government-held town of Tronba. The patrol overpassed the town of Muhambal for the first time reaching the village of Jannet Elqora. Muhambal is located in the middle of the opposition-held part of the M4 highway, which links the cities of Lattakia and Aleppo. The new joint patrol didn’t pass without any problems. Security personnel of al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)…

On June 9, Twitter user Aldin shared satellite images showing what appears to be a Turkish-made KORKUT self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG) in the Banana Project area near the Libyan capital of Tripoli. The Turkish military deployed several KORKUT systems, among other heavy weapons in Libya last year. The step was meant to support the Government of National Accord (GNA) against the Libyan National Army (LNA). Developed by Turkey’s defense giant ASELSAN, KORKUT is based on the FNSS ACV-30. The system is armed with a twin 2×35 mm Oerlikon KDC-02 cannon that can fire up to 1100 rounds a minute up to a range of…

On June 10, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) concluded the first stage of its security operation against ISIS cells in northeast Syria. In an official statement, the SDF said that vast areas between southern al-Hasakah and southeast Deir Ezzor were combed with help from the US-led coalition and in cooperation with Iraqi government forces. The group summarized the results of the first stage as follows: A 175 km long, 60 km wide area, including more than 150 towns and farms, was combed;56 positions and hideouts of ISIS cells were raided;110 ISIS terrorists and suspects were apprehended;Loads of weapons, including hand…

Syrian pro-government forces are conducting new security operations against ISIS remnants in the country’s central region. The al-Quds Brigade, a Palestinian pro-government force, and units of the National Defense Forces (NDF) are currently conducting a new operation against the terrorist group’s cells in the Homs desert. A video of the operation was released by the al-Quds Brigade on June 9. The video shows the group’s fighters combing the desert between Homs and Raqqa. A similar operation was launched on June 10 by the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) in Deir Ezzor’s western desert, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human…

On June 10, US F-22 Raptor fighter jets, supported by KC-135 Stratotanker and E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft, escorted Russian formations entering the NORAD’s Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone. “The first formation consisted of two Tu-95 bombers, accompanied by two Su-35 fighter jets and an A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft, which came within 20 nautical miles of Alaskan shores. The second formation consisted of two Tu-95 bombers supported by an A-50 and came within 32 nm. The Russian military aircraft remained in international airspace and at no time did they enter United States sovereign airspace,” NORAD (North American Aerospace…

As President Donald Trump leans on religion to reconnect with his political base ahead of the November election, most Americans dismiss the notion that he himself is a man of faith. Only 27 percent of registered voters in a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll said they somewhat or strongly agree that Trump himself is religious, while 55 percent somewhat or strongly disagree. Among subgroups, just over a third of all Christians view the president as religious (50 percent do not), while 23 percent of Catholics and 18 percent of independents see him that way. Evangelicals were more likely to view Trump…