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Tag: Syria's War

  • Israeli army launches attacks on targets in Syria and Lebanon

    Israeli army launches attacks on targets in Syria and Lebanon

    As war in Gaza rages, Israel is continuing its campaign against Syrian military and Hezbollah targets, sparking fears of regional spillover.

    Israel has launched attacks on positions in Syria and Lebanon, as part of its ongoing campaign against opposing militaries and armed forces in the Middle East.

    “The [Israeli army] struck military infrastructure belonging to the Syrian Army,” the Israeli military said in a post on the social media platform X on Tuesday.

    “[Israeli military] fighter jets also struck Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure in Lebanon,” it added, promising it would “continue to operate against any threat to Israel’s sovereignty”.

    Israel’s military has been engaged in cross-border fighting with Hezbollah and has launched repeated air raids on Syria since its war on Gaza began on October 7, raising fears of the conflict spilling over into the wider region.

    The latest attacks, which occurred between Monday and Tuesday, marked a spike in tensions between Israel and neighbours it has said have links to its enemy, Iran.

    Earlier on Tuesday, Syrian state news agency SANA said pre-dawn Israeli attacks came from the direction of the Golan Heights.

    The air raids targeted “a number of sites in the Damascus countryside”, SANA reported, citing an unnamed military source as saying only “material damage” had been caused.

    Britain-based war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that one position targeted near the town of Kanaker housed members from Lebanon’s Hezbollah, the AFP news agency reported.

    Parts of the southern Lebanese city of Yaroun also came under fire, the Israeli military said on Tuesday, after Hezbollah announced it had fired on Israeli units near the northern Israeli village of Sarit.

    “What Israel is facing at the moment is fighters in various countries in the region that are mostly backed by Iran,” said Al Jazeera’s Sara Khairat, reporting from Tel Aviv on Tuesday.

    Syria and Iran are regional allies, with President Bashar al-Assad having received staunch support from Tehran during the war in Syria. Since its formation in 1982, Iran-backed Hezbollah has grown into a powerful “state within a state” in Lebanon, and has also backed Hamas in Gaza.

    “Of course the biggest threat so far has been from the Iranian-backed group Hezbollah in Lebanon that has been firing every single day,” Khairat said. “This is just showing that despite [Israel’s] continued war in Gaza, these attacks are going to continue.

    “Certainly there has been a call amongst those in the [Israeli] military to start to look to redirect their efforts especially along that northern border, with Israel itself saying that if diplomatic efforts don’t work then it wouldn’t be afraid to consider other military action against Lebanon,” our correspondent added.

    Tuesday’s attacks follow closely on the heels of an Israeli air raid near Aleppo at the end of December, which caused some material damage, according to the Syrian Ministry of Defence.

    Since the Syrian war began, Israel has launched hundreds of air raids on Syrian territory, both on Syrian military and Hezbollah targets. Israel has repeatedly said it will not allow Iran to expand its presence in Syria.

    In December, an Israeli air raid outside Damascus killed Razi Moussavi, a senior adviser in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) responsible for coordinating the military alliance between Syria and Iran.

    Reports from Iran’s news agency INRA said that Mousavi had been part of an entourage accompanying IRGC General Qassem Soleimani at Baghdad airport when he was killed by a US drone attack almost exactly four years ago.

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  • Syrian reporter and three soldiers killed in roadside bombing: State media

    Syrian reporter and three soldiers killed in roadside bombing: State media

    SAMA TV reporter Firas al-Ahmed killed in Deraa, near the Jordanian border.

    A Syrian reporter and three Syrian government soldiers have been killed in the counry’s southern Deraa governorate in a roadside bombing, according to Syrian state news agency SANA.

    Firas al-Ahmad, a reporter for the Damascus-based outlet Sama TV, was killed during the bombing on Wednesday. An earlier statement said a cameraman had also been killed but an update by SANA later reported he was alive after being rescued by local villagers.

    “The car carrying Firas and the army personnel was targeted by an IED [improvised explosive device] planted by terrorists on a road in the area of al-Shayyiah in [Deraa] countryside, claiming his life along with two members of the army immediately,” a source told SANA, before adding that a third soldier died later on.

    Al-Ahmad had been on assignment on the Syria-Jordan border.

    According to Reporters Without Borders, Syria ranks 175 out of 180 on its press freedom index, with more than 270 Syrian journalists killed since the country’s conflict began in 2011.

    Deraa was the site of the first peaceful anti-government protests that broke out that year, as the country’s opposition attempted to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

    In 2018, the province was recaptured by Syrian government troops, as al-Assad regained control of most of Syria, with the help of allies Russia and Iran.

    The opposition, now mostly based in the northwest around the city of Idlib, is largely supported by Turkey, which has a significant military presence in northwest Syria, after conducting a number of military operations along the border region.

    Despite talk of a Turkish rapprochement with the Syrian government, al-Assad blamed Ankara on Wednesday for an uptick in violence in the country, saying “terrorism in Syria is made in Turkey”.

    The president made the comments during an interview for an upcoming broadcast with United Arab Emirates-based Sky News Arabia, his first interview with a foreign media outlet in months.

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  • US to send F-16 fighter jets to Gulf amid Iran shipping tensions

    US to send F-16 fighter jets to Gulf amid Iran shipping tensions

    US defence official said Washington is considering options amid growing aggression by Russian planes in skies over Syria.

    The United States is deploying additional fighter jets around the strategic Strait of Hormuz to protect ships from Iranian seizures, a senior US defence official said, according to a news report.

    Speaking to Pentagon reporters on Friday, the official said the US will send F-16 fighter jets to the Gulf region this weekend to augment the A-10 attack aircraft that have been patrolling there for more than a week.

    Washington’s increase in military assets in the region comes after Iran tried to seize two oil tankers near the strait last week, the Associated Press (AP) news agency reported.

    The defence official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details of US military operations in the region, said the F-16s will give air cover to the ships moving through the waterway and increase the US military’s visibility in the area, as a deterrent to Iran, AP reported.

    The US Navy said that in two recent instances, Iranian naval vessels backed off when the USS McFaul, a guided-missile destroyer, arrived on the scene.

    The defence official also told reporters the US is considering a number of military options to address increasing Russian aggression in the skies over Syria. The official declined to detail the options but said the US will not cede any territory and will continue to fly in the western part of Syria as part of operations against ISIL (ISIS) fighters.

    Russian military activity in Syria, which has increased in frequency and aggression towards US forces since March, stems from growing cooperation and coordination between Moscow, Tehran and the Syrian government to try to pressure the US to leave Syria, the official said.

    The most recent incident was on Friday morning when a Russian aircraft flew repeatedly over the al-Tanf garrison in eastern Syria, where US forces are training Syrian allies and monitoring ISIL activity.

    The official said the Russian An-30 aircraft was collecting intelligence on the base. The US did not have fighter aircraft in the area and took no direct action against the Russian flight, the official said.

    There are about 900 US forces in the country, and others move in and out to conduct missions targeting ISIL.

    In this image from a video released by the US Air Force, a Russian SU-35 flies near a US Air Force MQ-9 Reaper drone on July 5, 2023, over Syria. The US says Russian fighter jets have flown dangerously close to several of their drone aircraft over Syria, setting off flares and forcing the MQ-9 Reapers to take evasive action [File: US Air Force via AP]

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  • US pledges post-earthquake aid, but no contact with Syria’s Assad

    US pledges post-earthquake aid, but no contact with Syria’s Assad

    The United States has said it is “committed” to helping residents “on both sides” of the Turkey-Syria border devastated by deadly earthquakes, but Washington ruled out dealing directly with the Syrian government.

    State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters on Monday that the US will deliver aid to Syria through nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) without engaging with the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which it does not recognise as legitimate.

    “It would be quite ironic — if not even counterproductive — for us to reach out to a government that has brutalised its people over the course of a dozen years now,” Price said.

    “Instead, we have humanitarian partners on the ground who can provide the type of assistance in the aftermath of these tragic earthquakes.”

    Two earthquakes, followed by powerful aftershocks, hit southeastern Turkey and northern Syria early on Monday, causing widespread destruction and trapping thousands under the rubble.

    More than 3,600 people have been killed in Turkey and Syria, according to the most recent estimates, and that number is expected to rise.

    Price said on Monday that the US has already mobilised assistance to help those affected in both countries.

    But the disaster appears to have done little to soften Washington’s stance towards Damascus. The US government called on Assad to step down in 2011 as a popular uprising turned into a protracted civil war that has killed hundreds of thousands of people in Syria.

    Although some US allies in the Middle East have mended ties with Damascus in recent years, Washington has said it would not change its opposition to Assad without an inclusive political settlement to the conflict.

    The Syrian government remains under heavy US sanctions aimed at isolating the country economically in response to widely documented human rights violations.

    On Monday, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), a US-based advocacy group, called for the “immediate” lifting of US sanctions to facilitate the delivery of aid to Syria.

    “We commend and are thankful to existing organizations on the ground providing immediate humanitarian aid and relief to those in Syria, Turkey, and across the region. The reality is more aid and relief is needed, and time is of the essence,” ADC executive director Abed Ayoub said in a statement.

    “Lifting of the sanctions will open the doors for additional and supplemental aid that will provide immediate relief to those in need.”

    But Price said Washington will not change its policy of working with nongovernmental partners to help Syrians. “This is a regime that has never shown any inclination to put the welfare, the well-being, the interests of its people first,” he told reporters.

    “Now that its people are suffering even more, we’re going to continue doing what has proven effective over the course of the past dozen years or so — providing significant amounts of humanitarian assistance to partners on the ground.”

    Price also said the process of delivering aid to Syria and Turkey was different, but the US wants to help people in both countries.

    “In Turkey, we have a partner in the government. In Syria, we have a partner in the form of NGOs on the ground who are providing humanitarian support,” he said.

    Price added that Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu earlier on Monday to offer condolences and convey that Washington is willing to provide “anything” that Ankara needs.

    “We stand ready … to help our ally in a time of need,” said Price, adding that the same position extends to Syrian NGOs in “their efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people“.

    Early on Monday, President Joe Biden said he ordered top US officials to reach out to their Turkish counterparts to coordinate “any and all needed assistance” for Turkey, a NATO partner.

    “Today, our hearts and our deepest condolences are with all those who have lost precious loved ones, those who are injured, and those who saw their homes and businesses destroyed,” Biden said in a statement.

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  • US military reports rocket attacks on its patrol base in Syria

    US military reports rocket attacks on its patrol base in Syria

    Attacks on the US patrol base come as tensions escalate on the Syria-Turkey border following a bombing in Istanbul.

    The United States military has reported two rocket attacks targeting its patrol base in northeastern Syria, but said there were no injuries to its forces.

    In a statement, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the attacks “targeted coalition forces” at its base in al-Shaddadi in Syria late on Friday.

    “The attack resulted in no injuries or damage to the base of coalition property.”

    It did not say who was behind the rocket fire.

    The attacks come as tensions escalate on the Syria-Turkey border with the Turkish military launching a wave of deadly air raids on Kurdish forces in both Syria and Iraq in retaliation for a bombing in Istanbul on November 13. Ankara blames the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the YPG Kurdish forces for the attack, but they deny any involvement.

    There have also been rocket attacks from Syria that have killed civilians in Turkey.

    The US – for which the YPG-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has been a key ally in the fight against ISIL (ISIS) group – has been urging de-escalation.

    CENTCOM said on Friday that the SDF visited the origin site of the attacks and found a third unfired rocket.

    “Attacks of this kind place coalition forces and the civilian populace at risk and undermine the hard-earned stability and security of Syria and the region,” said Colonel Joe Buccino, a spokesman for CENTCOM.

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  • UN says Finland violated child rights in Syria camps

    UN says Finland violated child rights in Syria camps

    A UN committee issues findings after considering a case filed on behalf of six Finnish children held at al-Hol camp.

    The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) has accused Finland of violating the rights of Finnish children by leaving them in life-threatening conditions in Syrian camps.

    The committee of 18 independent experts issued the findings on Wednesday after considering a case filed on behalf of six Finnish children held at al-Hol camp in Syria’s northeast region. The children belong to parents suspected of fighting for armed group ISIL (ISIS).

    The committee said the prolonged detention of child victims “in life-threatening conditions” amounted to “inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment”.

    “Finland has the responsibility and power to protect the Finnish children in the Syrian camps against an imminent risk to their lives by taking action to repatriate them,” the CRC said in a statement.

    A picture shows the al-Hol camp, which holds relatives of suspected ISIL (ISIS) group fighters in the northeastern Hasakah governorate [File: Delil Souleiman/AFP]

    The case was brought to the committee in 2019, after which three of the children were able to leave the camp with their mother, and eventually arrived back in Finland.

    “The remaining three child victims, currently between five and six years old, are still detained in closed camps in a war-like zone,” the experts said.

    The committee said it was the second time it had examined the detention of children in the northeast refugee camps. Previously it investigated three cases filed against France.

    ‘Inhuman’

    The petition from their relatives also mentioned 33 other Finnish children held at the camp without access to legal assistance.

    “The situation of children in the camps has been widely reported as inhuman, lacking basic necessities including water, food and health care, and facing an imminent risk of death,” committee member Ann Skelton warned.

    The committee, whose opinions and recommendations are non-binding, said that Finland had not given due consideration to the children’s best interests when assessing their relatives’ requests for repatriation.

    “We call on Finland to take immediate and decisive action to preserve the lives of these children, and to bring them home to their families,” Skelton said.

    In the interim, the committee said Finland should take further measures to “mitigate the risks to life, survival and development of the child victims while they remain in northeast Syria”.

    Al-Hol camp

    Al-Hol houses approximately 56,000 people and is the largest of several camps in northeast Syria holding relatives of suspected armed fighters.

    A large number of inhabitants are women and children. Aid agencies have long complained of inhumane conditions in the overcrowded camp.

    Most residents are Syrians or Iraqis, but an estimated 10,000 are wives and children of ISIL fighters from other countries. The camp is controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces.

    The UN reported last year that several children had died there. The reasons varied from complications as a result of malnutrition, diarrhoea or internal bleeding.

    In June, Belgium flew back six Belgian women and their 16 children born to ISIL fighter fathers from al-Hol. Meanwhile, in July 2021, Belgium brought home 10 children and six mothers from another camp in Syria.

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  • Lebanon records first case of cholera since 1993

    Lebanon records first case of cholera since 1993

    The recorded case comes as neighbouring war-torn Syria is struggling to contain an outbreak of the waterborne disease.

    Lebanon has recorded its first case of cholera since 1993, the crisis-hit country’s health ministry announced, as neighbouring war-torn Syria is struggling to contain an outbreak of the waterborne disease that has spread across the country during the past month.

    Lebanon began a downward spiral in late 2019 that has plunged three-quarters of its population into poverty. Rampant power cuts, water shortages, and skyrocketing inflation have deteriorated living conditions for millions.

    Caretaker Health Minister Firas Abiad said on Thursday that the case was recorded on Wednesday in the impoverished, predominantly rural northern Lebanese region of Akkar and that the patient, a Syrian national, was receiving treatment and in stable condition.

    According to the World Health Organization, a cholera infection is caused by consuming food or water infected with the Vibrio cholerae bacteria, and while most cases are mild to moderate, not treating the illness could lead to death.

    Impoverished families in Lebanon often ration water and are unable to afford private water tanks for drinking and domestic use.

    Abiad has met authorities and international organisations following the confirmed case to discuss ways to prevent a possible outbreak.

    He said that the case is likely the result of the outbreak in Syria crossing the porous border between the countries.

    Richard Brennan, regional emergency director of the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, confirmed that the organisation has been in talks with authorities in Lebanon and other countries bordering Syria to bring in the necessary supplies to respond to possible cases in the country.

    “Cross-border spread is a concern, we’re taking significant precautions,” Brennan said. “Protecting the most vulnerable will be absolutely vital.”

    Brennan added that vaccines are in short supply relative to global demand.

    In neighbouring Syria, the outbreak has claimed dozens of lives and is posing a danger across the front lines of the country’s 11-year-long war, stirring fears in crowded camps for the displaced who lack running water or sewage systems.

    The UN and Syria’s health ministry have said the source of the outbreak is likely linked to people drinking unsafe water from the Euphrates River and using contaminated water to irrigate crops, resulting in food contamination.

    Syria’s health services have suffered heavily from its years-long war, while much of the country is short on supplies to sanitise water.

    Syrian health officials – as of Wednesday – have documented at least 594 cases of cholera and 39 deaths.

    Meanwhile, in the rebel-held northwest of the country, health authorities documented 605 suspected cases, dozens of confirmed cases, and at least one death.

    Lebanon’s water infrastructure is also decrepit, and the healthcare system has been hit hard by a three-year financial crisis and the August 2020 Beirut port blast that destroyed critical medical infrastructure in the capital.

    Despite humanitarian aid from donor countries, Abiad said the sector would struggle to cope with a large-scale outbreak.

    “We have a very clear signal that the Lebanese healthcare system needs support to strengthen [it],” he said. “Otherwise … it won’t be able to hold.”

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