Bashar al-Assad

Israeli fighters attack chemical weapons lab inside Syria

Heavy airstrikes struck the Scientific Studies and Research Center, a Syrian government defense laboratory, as well as a military base and warehouse that housed Iranian troops and proxies in Syria. The airstrikes took place at the beginning of this week, according to Syrian state-run media SANA.   Syrian military sources initially told the media that their […]

ISIS terrorists and Syrian troops fight it out around Homs

Islamic State (ISIS) fighters attacked Syrian troops loyal to the government of President Bashar al-Assad. The intense fighting left nearly 50 dead.  The fighting took place, according to the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), around the villages of Badiya Al-Sukhnah and Badiya Al-Sham in Syria’s central province of Homs. ISIS fighters tried to […]

Syrian government used chemical weapons on its own people

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has released the results of a long investigation on the use of chemical weapons in Syria. It concluded that the Syrian air force used such weapons on attacks on its own people in 2017.  Although the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad has repeatedly denied this, the […]

Who benefits the most from the ceasefire in Syria?

The most recent ceasefire in Syria, which was initiated by the Russians and Turks, has temporarily (at least) stopped the bloodshed and the massive humanitarian wave of refugees streaming for the Turkish border. But that ceasefire, while beneficial to both the Turks and Russians, isn’t so for the Iranians, while it leaves the Syrian regime […]

After more bloodshed, Turkey and Russia agree to a ceasefire in Syria

In a move that is hoped to curtail the increased violence in the Syrian province of Idlib Turkey and Russia have announced a ceasefire agreement for Idlib, after a six-hour meeting in Moscow. Idlib is the last rebel stronghold in Syria and has been the hub of increased violence and bloodshed since December when a […]

Breaking: American troops in Syria clash with locals in a village

American troops were fired upon in northeastern Syria after civilians attempted to block them at a crossroads. They returned fire and at least one Syrian was killed and another wounded, Syrian state television reported. U.S. military spokesman Myles Caggins said American-led coalition forces were conducting a patrol of eight vehicles near Qamishli and encountered a […]

US occupies Syrian oil fields as a foreign policy maneuver

Despite President Donald Trump’s pledge to end “forever wars” by withdrawing troops from Syria, the U.S. has in fact taken over oil fields in the country. By doing this, Washington is further entrenching itself in the eight-year-long war as well as setting itself up for long term confrontation with regional actors. Ostensibly, the U.S. presence […]

Just weeks after Syria pullout, US troops return to defend oil fields

Just weeks after President Trump ordered the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Northern Syria, troops have returned to defend oil facilities from falling into the hands of the Islamic State. There were approximately 1,000 American troops in Northern Syria when President Trump announced, “It’s time to come back home,” earlier in October, but with this […]

Watch: Footage of Syrian Su-22 being shot down by a US Navy Super Hornet in 2017

According to the Pentagon, the first U.S. air-to-air engagement since 1999 took place in June of 2017 only after Syrian loyalist forces attacked U.S. backed Syrian Democratic Forces in the village of Ja’Din, southwest of Raqqa.  After a SU-22 dropped bombs near the Syrian Democratic Forces, a U.S. Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet immediately moved to […]