The Syrian Crisis
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Hindustani78
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http://www.thehindu.com/news/intern...evacuations/article22288710.ece?homepage=true
Four patients were evacuated from eastern Ghouta, where almost 400,000 people have been under siege by President Bashar al-Assad's forces since 2013
Months of deadlock over medical evacuations from Syria's biggest remaining siege broke late on Tuesday when a deal between Damascus and a rebel faction allowed the Red Crescent to evacuate a handful of critically ill patients.
Four patients were evacuated from eastern Ghouta, where almost 400,000 people have been under siege by President Bashar al-Assad's forces since 2013, the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) said in a statement. The evacuees were taken to hospitals in Damascus.
The enclave is a densely populated pocket of satellite towns and farms and the only major rebel stronghold near the capital Damascus. The military has steadily defeated pockets of armed rebellion in western Syria over the past year, with the help of Russian air power and Iranian-backed militias.
The Jaish al-Islam rebel group in Eastern Ghouta said it was releasing 29 detainees. In return, the government is allowing the evacuation of 29 of the most critical cases.
However, one person on the list, a six-month-old baby girl, died before she could be evacuated, said Mohamad Katoub, an advocacy manager for SAMS, on Twitter.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it had facilitated the deal, which came two months after the United Nations asked Assad's government to allow the urgent evacuation of the 29 patients. The operation was still in a very early phase, it said.
“Happy that our negotiations reached this important goal. This is a signal of hope for the future Syria,” Francesco Rocca, president of the International Federation of the Red Cross, wrote in a tweet.
Deputy reconciliation minister Ahmed Mounir said a deal was struck for a number of sick people to leave eastern Ghouta in return for the release of what he called kidnapped people. The number of people involved could increase, he said on television.
A Jaish al-Islam political official in Ghouta said the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) mediated between Damascus and the rebels for the swap.
“We worked to get them out through the Red Crescent, and we are working on evacuating the rest of the nearly 500 cases out," said Yasser Delwan. But there was no indication of whether more evacuations would be allowed, he added.
The United Nations has pleaded for the government to allow evacuation of around 500 patients, including children with cancer, and has said there was no excuse for not permitting their evacuation to go ahead.
Although Eastern Ghouta is officially a “de-escalation zone” under Russian-led ceasefire deals for rebel territory, fighting there has continued. The population, including 130,000 children, is suffering the worst malnutrition seen in the almost seven-year war, the U.N. has said.
Residents and aid workers said the government has tightened the siege in recent months in what they called a deliberate use of starvation as a weapon of war, a charge the government denies.
On Sunday, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey was working with Russia, Assad's ally, on the evacuations. Ankara has backed some rebel factions in the Syrian war.
The number of people needing urgent evacuation has shrunk because they keep dying while waiting for help, the U.N. has said. It has a priority list of 494 patients, while SAMS put the number of critical cases at 641, and said 17 had already died.
The remainder of the 29 patients included in the deal would be evacuated over the coming days, said SAMS, a nonprofit that supports hospitals mostly in opposition areas.
“The list includes 18 children and 4 women suffering from heart disease, cancer, kidney failure, and blood diseases, in addition to cases requiring advanced surgery that are not available in the besieged area,” it said.
Four patients were evacuated from eastern Ghouta, where almost 400,000 people have been under siege by President Bashar al-Assad's forces since 2013
Months of deadlock over medical evacuations from Syria's biggest remaining siege broke late on Tuesday when a deal between Damascus and a rebel faction allowed the Red Crescent to evacuate a handful of critically ill patients.
Four patients were evacuated from eastern Ghouta, where almost 400,000 people have been under siege by President Bashar al-Assad's forces since 2013, the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) said in a statement. The evacuees were taken to hospitals in Damascus.
The enclave is a densely populated pocket of satellite towns and farms and the only major rebel stronghold near the capital Damascus. The military has steadily defeated pockets of armed rebellion in western Syria over the past year, with the help of Russian air power and Iranian-backed militias.
The Jaish al-Islam rebel group in Eastern Ghouta said it was releasing 29 detainees. In return, the government is allowing the evacuation of 29 of the most critical cases.
However, one person on the list, a six-month-old baby girl, died before she could be evacuated, said Mohamad Katoub, an advocacy manager for SAMS, on Twitter.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it had facilitated the deal, which came two months after the United Nations asked Assad's government to allow the urgent evacuation of the 29 patients. The operation was still in a very early phase, it said.
“Happy that our negotiations reached this important goal. This is a signal of hope for the future Syria,” Francesco Rocca, president of the International Federation of the Red Cross, wrote in a tweet.
Deputy reconciliation minister Ahmed Mounir said a deal was struck for a number of sick people to leave eastern Ghouta in return for the release of what he called kidnapped people. The number of people involved could increase, he said on television.
A Jaish al-Islam political official in Ghouta said the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) mediated between Damascus and the rebels for the swap.
“We worked to get them out through the Red Crescent, and we are working on evacuating the rest of the nearly 500 cases out," said Yasser Delwan. But there was no indication of whether more evacuations would be allowed, he added.
The United Nations has pleaded for the government to allow evacuation of around 500 patients, including children with cancer, and has said there was no excuse for not permitting their evacuation to go ahead.
Although Eastern Ghouta is officially a “de-escalation zone” under Russian-led ceasefire deals for rebel territory, fighting there has continued. The population, including 130,000 children, is suffering the worst malnutrition seen in the almost seven-year war, the U.N. has said.
Residents and aid workers said the government has tightened the siege in recent months in what they called a deliberate use of starvation as a weapon of war, a charge the government denies.
On Sunday, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey was working with Russia, Assad's ally, on the evacuations. Ankara has backed some rebel factions in the Syrian war.
The number of people needing urgent evacuation has shrunk because they keep dying while waiting for help, the U.N. has said. It has a priority list of 494 patients, while SAMS put the number of critical cases at 641, and said 17 had already died.
The remainder of the 29 patients included in the deal would be evacuated over the coming days, said SAMS, a nonprofit that supports hospitals mostly in opposition areas.
“The list includes 18 children and 4 women suffering from heart disease, cancer, kidney failure, and blood diseases, in addition to cases requiring advanced surgery that are not available in the besieged area,” it said.
Hindustani78
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http://www.deccanherald.com/content/650364/less-1000-fighters-remain-iraq.html
Reuters, BAGHDAD, Dec 27 2017, 16:32 IST
Fewer than 1,000 Islamic State fighters remain in Iraq and Syria, the United States-led international coalition fighting the hardline Sunni militant group said on Wednesday, a third of the estimated figure only three weeks ago.
Iraq and Syria have both declared victory over Islamic State in recent weeks, after a year that saw the two countries' armies, a range of foreign allies and various local forces drive the fighters out of all the towns and villages that once made up their self-proclaimed caliphate.
The United States has led an international coalition conducting air strikes against Islamic State since 2014 when the group swept across a third of Iraq. U.S. troops have served as advisers on the ground with Iraqi government forces and with Kurdish and Arab groups in Syria.
"Due to the commitment of the Coalition and the demonstrated competence of our partners in Iraq and Syria, there are estimated to be less than 1,000 ISIS terrorists in our combined joint area of operations, most of whom are being hunted down in the desert regions in eastern Syria and Western Iraq," the U.S.-led coalition told Reuters in an emailed statement.
ISIS is an acronym used for Islamic State.
The figure excludes areas in western Syria under the control of President Bashar al-Assad's government and his allies.
Assad's main ally Russia also said on Wednesday the main battle with Islamic State in Syria was over. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the key task in Syria was now destroying another Islamist group, the Nusra Front.
The U.S.-led coalition had said on Dec. 5 that there were less than 3,000 fighters remaining. Iraq declared "final victory" over the group on Dec. 9.
Most of the fighters had been killed or captured over the past three years, the coalition said on Wednesday. It would not respond to a question on whether some fighters could have escaped to other countries, saying it would not "engage in public speculation" but said it was working on preventing that.
"We can tell you that we are working with our partners to kill or capture all remaining ISIS terrorists, to destroy their network and prevent their resurgence, and also to prevent them from escaping to bordering countries," it said.
Reuters, BAGHDAD, Dec 27 2017, 16:32 IST
Fewer than 1,000 Islamic State fighters remain in Iraq and Syria, the United States-led international coalition fighting the hardline Sunni militant group said on Wednesday, a third of the estimated figure only three weeks ago.
Iraq and Syria have both declared victory over Islamic State in recent weeks, after a year that saw the two countries' armies, a range of foreign allies and various local forces drive the fighters out of all the towns and villages that once made up their self-proclaimed caliphate.
The United States has led an international coalition conducting air strikes against Islamic State since 2014 when the group swept across a third of Iraq. U.S. troops have served as advisers on the ground with Iraqi government forces and with Kurdish and Arab groups in Syria.
"Due to the commitment of the Coalition and the demonstrated competence of our partners in Iraq and Syria, there are estimated to be less than 1,000 ISIS terrorists in our combined joint area of operations, most of whom are being hunted down in the desert regions in eastern Syria and Western Iraq," the U.S.-led coalition told Reuters in an emailed statement.
ISIS is an acronym used for Islamic State.
The figure excludes areas in western Syria under the control of President Bashar al-Assad's government and his allies.
Assad's main ally Russia also said on Wednesday the main battle with Islamic State in Syria was over. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the key task in Syria was now destroying another Islamist group, the Nusra Front.
The U.S.-led coalition had said on Dec. 5 that there were less than 3,000 fighters remaining. Iraq declared "final victory" over the group on Dec. 9.
Most of the fighters had been killed or captured over the past three years, the coalition said on Wednesday. It would not respond to a question on whether some fighters could have escaped to other countries, saying it would not "engage in public speculation" but said it was working on preventing that.
"We can tell you that we are working with our partners to kill or capture all remaining ISIS terrorists, to destroy their network and prevent their resurgence, and also to prevent them from escaping to bordering countries," it said.
bhramos
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Coalition group coalition the al Sham & Faylaq Ar Rahman conducted a full siege over base military vehicle after conducting a surprise attack against the Syrian government troops along the ajami-Harasta route. Reported at least + 50 government troops were killed and hundreds of others were still trapped in the siege. Media Pro-government calls the Syrian military forces have conducted an army of units to 4 Mechanical, qalamoun shield, ndf, and asaib people-Haq to the harasta front to conduct attack counter attack against terrorist siege.
bhramos
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From the receiving of the wounded hero Yassin Huwairi family to #President Assad and his family in the village of Umm Haratin #Homs countryside
Hindustani78
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http://www.arabnews.com/node/1218061/middle-east
BEIRUT: At least seven civilians, including five children, were killed Tuesday by air strikes in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, the last outside government control, a monitor said.
Government and allied forces backed by Russian warplanes have been battling jihadist fighters and rebels for over a week in an area straddling the border between Idlib and Hama provinces.
The air strikes targeted the town of Khan Subul in the center of Idlib province, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
“There were at least seven dead, five children and two women,” the Observatory said.
“We do not know if these were air strikes by the Syrian regime or the Russians,” Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.
The government push on the edge of Idlib province follows two months of sporadic fighting that the United Nations says has displaced more than 60,000 people.
“Displacement sites are reportedly overwhelmed. Some services are 400 percent above their planned capacity to serve,” the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said.
An AFP correspondent said there were fresh clashes Tuesday.
A column of white smoke could be seen rising into the sky after a regime air strike in the town of Al-Tamana and rebels were firing artillery at government positions.
Idlib province — currently dominated by a former Al-Qaeda affiliate — was one of four “de-escalation zones” agreed to help halt fighting around the country by regime backers Russia and Iran and rebel supporter Turkey.
The war in Syria has killed more than 340,000 people and displaced millions from their homes since it began in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.
****************
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1218021/middle-east
Two shells from Syria hit southeastern Turkey
REUTERS | Published — Tuesday 2 January 2018
ISTANBUL: Two artillery shells from Syria hit Turkey’s southeastern province of Hatay on Tuesday and Turkish border troops fired back, the state-run Anadolu agency said.
The shells came from an area of Syria controlled by forces loyal to Syria’s Bashar Assad, Anadolu said, adding that there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties after the shells hit a rural area of the border district of Yayladagi.
Last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Assad a terrorist and said it was impossible for peace efforts in Syria to continue if he did not leave power.
Turkey has demanded the removal of Assad from power and backed opposition fighters fighting to overthrow him, but it had toned down its rhetoric since it started working with Assad’s allies Russia and Iran for a political resolution.
Turkey now says its main concerns in Syria are combating both militants and Kurdish YPG militia fighters it considers allies of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) which has fought a decades-long insurgency in southeastern Turkey.
****************
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1218016/middle-east
A prominent Palestinian militant whose followers have fought other factions in a refugee camp in Lebanon has traveled to Syria
A statement by Bilal Badr, who led a hard-line militant faction against mainstream Palestinian groups in the Ain El-Hilweh refugee camp
The rebellion against Syria’s Bashar Assad has drawn fighters from across the region. After fighting in Ain El-Hilweh in August, Palestinian groups urged wanted security suspects to leave the camp.
Badr’s statement addressed his supporters “from the land of jihad and glory, from Assad’s lair in Syria, to which we migrated to support the religion of God.”
The statement was circulated on social media inside the camp and its authenticity was confirmed by a source close to Badr.
Although his statement revealed his presence in Syria, it was issued to thank followers for helping his wife, who had been briefly detained, rather than to describe his whereabouts.
Rebel sources in Ain El-Hilweh said Badr had gone to Idlib province, which borders Turkey in northwest Syria and is controlled by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, a militant alliance spearheaded by the former Al-Qaeda affiliate in the country.
Badr fighters have repeatedly battled the mainstream Fatah and other factions in Ain El-Hilweh, leading to more than a dozen deaths in 2017.
Lebanon’s Palestinian camps mainly fall outside the jurisdiction of the Lebanese security forces. There are 170,000 Palestinian refugees living in 12 camps in Lebanon, according to a recent census announced by Lebanese authorities.
***************
http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/iraqi-turkmen-official-shot-dead-in-iraq/1020982
Gunmen flee after shooting Alaa al-Din al-Salihi dead in Iraq's Kirkuk city
02.01.2018 Ekip Iraq
By Hussein al-Amir
BAGHDAD
An Iraqi Turkmen Front official was assassinated by unknown gunmen in northern Iraq's Kirkuk city, police said Tuesday.
Capt. Hamed al-Obeidi told Anadolu Agency: "Alaa al-Din al-Salihi [also known as al-Bayati], a Turkmen Front official, has been shot dead in the Al-Askari neighborhood in Kirkuk by unknown gunmen."
He added the gunmen fled after shooting him dead.
Police is investigating the incident.
The Turkmen Front occupies two out of 328 seats in the Iraqi parliament and nine out of 41 seats in the Kirkuk provincial council.
Since October, Iraqi forces have controlled the entire province of Kirkuk, ending the presence of the northern regional forces “Peshmerga”.
gadeshi
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Why to post "syrian HR observatory" bullshit?
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1218061/middle-east
BEIRUT: At least seven civilians, including five children, were killed Tuesday by air strikes in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, the last outside government control, a monitor said.
Government and allied forces backed by Russian warplanes have been battling jihadist fighters and rebels for over a week in an area straddling the border between Idlib and Hama provinces.
The air strikes targeted the town of Khan Subul in the center of Idlib province, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
“There were at least seven dead, five children and two women,” the Observatory said.
“We do not know if these were air strikes by the Syrian regime or the Russians,” Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.
The government push on the edge of Idlib province follows two months of sporadic fighting that the United Nations says has displaced more than 60,000 people.
“Displacement sites are reportedly overwhelmed. Some services are 400 percent above their planned capacity to serve,” the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said.
An AFP correspondent said there were fresh clashes Tuesday.
A column of white smoke could be seen rising into the sky after a regime air strike in the town of Al-Tamana and rebels were firing artillery at government positions.
Idlib province — currently dominated by a former Al-Qaeda affiliate — was one of four “de-escalation zones” agreed to help halt fighting around the country by regime backers Russia and Iran and rebel supporter Turkey.
The war in Syria has killed more than 340,000 people and displaced millions from their homes since it began in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.
****************
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1218021/middle-east
Two shells from Syria hit southeastern Turkey
REUTERS | Published — Tuesday 2 January 2018
ISTANBUL: Two artillery shells from Syria hit Turkey’s southeastern province of Hatay on Tuesday and Turkish border troops fired back, the state-run Anadolu agency said.
The shells came from an area of Syria controlled by forces loyal to Syria’s Bashar Assad, Anadolu said, adding that there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties after the shells hit a rural area of the border district of Yayladagi.
Last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Assad a terrorist and said it was impossible for peace efforts in Syria to continue if he did not leave power.
Turkey has demanded the removal of Assad from power and backed opposition fighters fighting to overthrow him, but it had toned down its rhetoric since it started working with Assad’s allies Russia and Iran for a political resolution.
Turkey now says its main concerns in Syria are combating both militants and Kurdish YPG militia fighters it considers allies of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) which has fought a decades-long insurgency in southeastern Turkey.
****************
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1218016/middle-east
A prominent Palestinian militant whose followers have fought other factions in a refugee camp in Lebanon has traveled to Syria
A statement by Bilal Badr, who led a hard-line militant faction against mainstream Palestinian groups in the Ain El-Hilweh refugee camp
The rebellion against Syria’s Bashar Assad has drawn fighters from across the region. After fighting in Ain El-Hilweh in August, Palestinian groups urged wanted security suspects to leave the camp.
Badr’s statement addressed his supporters “from the land of jihad and glory, from Assad’s lair in Syria, to which we migrated to support the religion of God.”
The statement was circulated on social media inside the camp and its authenticity was confirmed by a source close to Badr.
Although his statement revealed his presence in Syria, it was issued to thank followers for helping his wife, who had been briefly detained, rather than to describe his whereabouts.
Rebel sources in Ain El-Hilweh said Badr had gone to Idlib province, which borders Turkey in northwest Syria and is controlled by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, a militant alliance spearheaded by the former Al-Qaeda affiliate in the country.
Badr fighters have repeatedly battled the mainstream Fatah and other factions in Ain El-Hilweh, leading to more than a dozen deaths in 2017.
Lebanon’s Palestinian camps mainly fall outside the jurisdiction of the Lebanese security forces. There are 170,000 Palestinian refugees living in 12 camps in Lebanon, according to a recent census announced by Lebanese authorities.
***************
http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/iraqi-turkmen-official-shot-dead-in-iraq/1020982
Gunmen flee after shooting Alaa al-Din al-Salihi dead in Iraq's Kirkuk city
02.01.2018 Ekip Iraq
By Hussein al-Amir
BAGHDAD
An Iraqi Turkmen Front official was assassinated by unknown gunmen in northern Iraq's Kirkuk city, police said Tuesday.
Capt. Hamed al-Obeidi told Anadolu Agency: "Alaa al-Din al-Salihi [also known as al-Bayati], a Turkmen Front official, has been shot dead in the Al-Askari neighborhood in Kirkuk by unknown gunmen."
He added the gunmen fled after shooting him dead.
Police is investigating the incident.
The Turkmen Front occupies two out of 328 seats in the Iraqi parliament and nine out of 41 seats in the Kirkuk provincial council.
Since October, Iraqi forces have controlled the entire province of Kirkuk, ending the presence of the northern regional forces “Peshmerga”.
This is just a one blogger which takes info from nowhere...
Отправлено с моего XT1080 через Tapatalk
bhramos
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leave it Komrade, he supports FSA terrorists......
Hindustani78
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http://www.arabnews.com/node/1218391/middle-east
Moscow: A Russian helicopter crashed in Syria on New Year’s Eve killing both pilots following a technical fault, Moscow’s defense ministry said Wednesday.
The Mi-24 military helicopter was flying to Hama, northwestern Syria, and there was no firing from the ground, agencies quote the ministry as saying.
“Both pilots died in a hard landing 15 km (nine miles) from the air base,” the ministry said, adding that a technician had been injured and taken to another air base at for emergency treatment.
bhramos
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Not everyone are Assadist dictator and mass murderer fanboy. Some commies maybe
