Author: Steven Sahiounie

The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) has sent reinforcements to the Idlib countryside this week amid concerns over the jihadist refusal to withdraw from the M-4 Highway (Aleppo-Latakia Highway). Reinforcements from the neighboring Hama, Latakia, and Aleppo governorates reportedly poured into the eastern and southern countrysides of Idlib on Tuesday and Wednesday, as the military swelled their numbers near the front-lines. According to a military source in the Idlib Governorate, the Syrian Arab Army is preparing to resume their offensive against the jihadist rebels, but will await final approval from their Russian partners, who are currently negotiating with Turkey. Turkey was…

The US assassinated Qasem Soleimani, long-time commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force military unit, in January, prompting Iran to launch a massed rocket strike on a pair of US bases in Iraq, and leading Iraq-based militias to carry out sporadic strikes on American bases and the US Embassy Green Zone in Baghdad. Iran will continue to respond to the January 3 assassination of Commander Soleimani, President Hassan Rouhani has warned, one day after a coalition base holding NATO troops came under rocket fire. “The Americans assassinated our great commander. We have responded to that terrorist act and will respond to…

Turkey has reported the first lethal case in the country caused by novel coronavirus, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca told a news conference in Ankara. “Seven days ago I have reported the first novel coronavirus case in the country,” Koca said. “Today I have to report sad news because one of the infected patients died. He was 89 years old.” “The number of registered [novel coronavirus] cases have increased by 51 and currently totals 98,” the Turkish health minister continued, TASS reports. Koca stated that the man, who died from the virus, was infected by his “Chinese colleague.”

at least three rockets struck the area near the US embassy in Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone. This was the fourth such attack in the span of a week. A day earlier, a pair of rockets struck the Besmaya base south of Baghdad. This military facility is the second largest military base operated by the US-led coalition in Iraq after Camp Taji. The threat of rocket attacks already forced the US military to announce that it is evacuating some of its bases in the country. The al-Qaim base, near the Syrian-Iraqi border, is among them. The al-Qaim facility has been an…

at least three rockets struck Baghdad’s Green Zone, near the US Embassy. It came one day after an attack on the Besmaya training base south of the capital, where US-led coalition troops and NATO trainers were present, Iraqi security officials said. Myles Caggins, a spokesman for the US-led coalition, said the rockets fell at least 2km (1.2 miles) from the embassy. The rockets struck the al-Jadriya neighborhood There were reports that a strike also struck camp Taji. Caggins denied the reports. Camp Taji was attacked twice in a week. On March 11th, a rocket attack killed 3 US marines and…

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave remarks to the press, and expressed Washington’s desire to undermine the Idlib ceasefire, agreed between Russia and Turkey. “Additionally, we believe Russia has killed dozens of Turkish military personnel in the course of their military operations, and we stand with our NATO ally Turkey and will continue to consider additional measures to support Turkey and to end the violence in Idlib and in Syria more broadly.” Thus, he alleged that Russia itself killed “dozens of Turkish soldiers” Earlier in the day, Syrian Defense Minister Lieutenant General Ali Abdullah Ayoub was sanctioned by the US,…

_Turkish-backed terrorist groups have attacked Kafer Nobbel and Hzarin towns in southern Idleb countryside, violating the agreement reached between Russia and the Turkish regime – on March 5,2020- on halting military actions. According to the Syrian News Agency (SANA), the terrorist groups continued to violate the ceasefire deal and targeted the Syrian army’s positions in Kafer Nobbel and Hzarin towns, causing material damages. The Syrian army targeted the source of fire. In the same context, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced today that it had registered five ceasefire violations in Syria over the past 24 hours. “The Russian side of…

The Russian-Turkish de-escalation agreement on Idlib is once again shrinking due to actions of Turkish proxies and its allies. The security zone along the M4 has not been created and the Russian-Turkish patrols initiative turned to be a formality because any such patrols that would enter the militant-held area will immediately become a target of terrorist attacks. While mainstream media outlets prefer to report about some ‘moderate protesters’ blocking the M4 highway, in fact, most of the persons involved are directly or indirectly linked to radical organizations operating in Idlib. On March 16, the Russian Foreign Ministry officially declared that…

By Rep. Ron Paul Governments love crises because when the people are fearful they are more willing to give up freedoms for promises that the government will take care of them. After 9/11, for example, Americans accepted the near-total destruction of their civil liberties in the PATRIOT Act’s hollow promises of security. It is ironic to see the same Democrats who tried to impeach President Trump last month for abuse of power demanding that the Administration grab more power and authority in the name of fighting a virus that thus far has killed less than 100 Americans. Declaring a pandemic…

In his latest bid to end Iraq’s months-long political stalemate, President Barham Salih has designated Adnan al-Zurfi as prime minister, tasking him with forming a government within a month, a decision which has been met with opposition from several factions. State TV reported the appointment of Zurfi, head of the Nasr (Victory) parliamentary alliance, to the Iraqi premiership. Zurfi, the ex-governor of the holy city of Najaf, is a former official of the US-run authority that took over Iraq after the 2003 invasion. He lived in the United States as a refugee in the 1990s after fleeing the regime of…