Bashar al-Assad - Page 12

State-sponsor of terrorism Iran is reportedly establishing a permanent military presence inside Syria that will allow the Shiite Islamic Republic to operate close to Israel, according to a Western official.

Contents: Deadly violence increases in English-speaking regions of Cameroon; Cameroon’s 84-year-old president Paul Biya exhibits same violence as other African leaders

Contents: All Saudis ordered to leave Lebanon, as Hariri’s fate is unknown; Saudi Arabia blockades Yemen, threatening millions to die in famine

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Syrian troops and their allies on Wednesday encircled the Islamic State group in Albu Kamal, state media said, edging closer to ousting the jihadists from their last urban stronghold in the country.

A Lebanese newspaper reported this week, and Reuters confirmed with an unnamed “regional official,” that the U.S. government sent an envoy to Damascus, Syria, to talk to high-ranking members of the Bashar al-Assad team.

The Russian government is putting together a meeting on November 18 between the Syrian government and opposition groups to talk about resolving the Syrian civil war. Opposition leaders quoted by the Associated Press denounced the Russian initiative as an effort to undermine United Nations talks scheduled for just ten days later in Geneva.

TEHRAN – Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Tehran on Wednesday for an official visit, with talks expected to focus on Syria, the Iranian nuclear agreement and bilateral ties.

Syrian Prime Minister Imad Khamis offered a rosy outlook for his national economy on Tuesday that seems difficult to square with the reality of a nation devastated by six years of civil war.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein called the Syrian government’s siege of suburban Damascus an “outrage” on Friday, and demanded access for aid workers so they could head off a “humanitarian emergency.”

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters on Thursday that the Trump administration expects Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad to exit politics at some point during the nation’s civil war, telling a reporter the Assad problem “will take care of itself.”

A Hezbollah-aligned Al-Mahdi Muslim center in Germany heard its leader urge supporters to wage “resistance” against the “enemy” state of Israel on Saturday.

Contents: Zimbabwe’s people fear further starvation after food imports are banned; Zimbabwe’s people fear hyperinflation again after last month’s ‘bond note’ crash

BEIRUT — Over several nights in September, some 10,000 men, women and children fled areas under Islamic State control, hurrying through fields in northern Syria and risking fire from government troops to reach a province held by an al-Qaeda-linked group.

Contents: Mattis and Tillerson work to prevent Iraq vs Kurd military confrontation in Kirkuk; ISIS fighters permitted to leave Raqqa, Syria, with human shields; Syria demands ‘immediately’ pullout of Turkey’s forces from Idlib province

Contents: Iraqi troops and tanks seen massing near Kirkuk, poised to attack Kurds; Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas announce unity agreement; Turkey’s tanks and troops cross border into Syria’s Idlib in apparent truce with HTS

The United States announced Thursday it is pulling out of the U.N.’s educational, scientific and cultural agency because of what Washington sees as its anti-Israel bias and a need for “fundamental reform” in the agency. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel plans to follow suit.

Contents: Turkey announces major military operation in Syria’s Idlib province; Turkey’s success in Idlib is far from certain

American intelligence reports suggesting Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime was cremating the bodies of hundreds of prisoners in a facility near Damascus prompted Israel to examine the possibility of bombing the area, but the plan was eventually shelved over the defense establishment’s concerns that the move would lead to a rapid security escalation on the northern border.

Contents: International Red Cross: Fighting in Syria worst since Aleppo; Analyst gives a chilling analysis of where the Syrian war is going

A man living in Sweden has been found guilty of a war crime, becoming the first member of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces to be convicted since the war began in 2011.

Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Tuesday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been “victorious” in Syria’s civil war and was now being courted by former enemies.

Contents: Uganda lawmakers throw fists and chairs at each other over Museveni’s power grab; Uganda follows a familiar pattern of violence for many African countries; Thailand’s Yingluck Shinawatra sentenced in absentia to five years in jail

The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, a militia alliance led by the Syrian Kurds, claims Russian warplanes bombed their positions in the Deir al-Zor province on Monday. Russia has denied the allegations, while U.S. commanders said they could not verify the source of the attack on the SDF.

Contents: Russia’s ‘telephone terror’ forces evacuation of over 200,000 people; Kenya’s government in chaos as it faces a new election delay

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson confirmed that Donald Trump had made a decision about the Iran nuclear deal, but admitted that Iran was still technically in compliance with the agreement.

A major study produced by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in late August has caused a swirl of debate and controversy among museum supporters, academics, Syrian analysts, Jewish leaders, and even U.S. lawmakers.

Pro-Syrian opposition Turkey along with allies of the country’s dictator Russia and Iran are getting close to finalizing an agreement on establishing four de-escalation zones in Syria, according to a senior Kremlin negotiator.

Shiite Iran’s terror proxy Hezbollah, fighting on behalf of forces loyal to Russian-backed dictator Bashar al-Assad in Syria, has reportedly declared victory in the war-ravaged country despite recent claims that al-Qaeda has set up the conditions to establish an Islamic emirate there.

Russia has urged Syrian President Bashar Assad not to retaliate against Israel after an airstrike on the country’s Scientific Studies and Research Center, which the Syrian regime attributes to Israel, a senior Russia official dealing with Middle East affairs told Yedioth Ahronoth in an conversation in Moscow over the weekend.

An Israeli satellite imaging company released photographs on Sunday showing the effects of last week’s airstrike on a Syrian weapons base that was attributed to the Israeli Air Force.

Contents: UN report confirms al-Assad’s massive Sarin gas attack on April 4; Israeli warplanes strike Syrian chemical weapons site in Masyaf

Contents: Putin says that North Korea would rather ‘eat grass’ than end its nuclear program; North Korea threatens the United States with ‘gift packages’

A controversial ceasefire deal between the Sunni Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) jihadist group and Iran’s narco-terrorist proxy Hezbollah has provided the Shiite militia organization with uncontested control over a large area in Lebanon along the border with Syria, reports Voice of America (VOA).

UNITED NATIONS — The United States on Thursday described remarks by a Palestinian Hamas leader boasting of strong military ties with Iran as a “stunning admission” that showed Tehran was violating a UN ban on arms exports.

A senior Israeli official warned the Russian government that if Iran continues to extend its reach in Syria, Israel will bomb Syrian President Bashar Assad’s palace in Damascus, according to reports in Arab media.

UAE reacts furiously to Qatar’s restoring diplomatic relations with Iran; As Hajj approaches, Iran and Qatar remain in dispute with Saudi Arabia