Pentagon plan to seize Raqqa calls for significant increase in U.S. participation

A Pentagon plan for the coming assault on Raqqa, the Islamic State capital in Syria, calls for significant U.S. military participation, including increased Special Operations forces, attack helicopters and artillery, and arms supplies to the main Syrian Kurdish and Arab fighting force on the ground, according to U.S. officials. The military’s favored option among several […]

Expert says Islamic State has badly damaged major Palmyra monument

Islamic State militants have severely damaged a major Roman monument in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, an antiquities official said after visiting the site on Saturday. Under heavy Russian air cover, the Syrian army and allied militias drove the jihadist group out of the UNESCO world heritage site on Thursday, two months after it […]

Syrian opposition accepts U.N. principles at end of peace talks

The Syrian opposition has provisionally accepted 12 principles given to delegates by the United Nations at the end of an eight-day round of peace talks, chief negotiator Nasr al-Hariri said. The general principles on the future of Syria were derived from points set out by U.N. mediator Staffan de Mistura last year, Hariri told reporters […]

Meaningful resolution for Syrian peace talks unlikely as talks falter

Tenuous peace negotiations are ongoing between the Assad government and a representative of the Syrian opposition in Geneva, supervised by Russia. Russia is playing head diplomat within the United Nations-backed peace talks, which have had a rocky track record over the past few years. Historically, these peace talks have done nothing to abate the fighting […]

Al Qaeda confirms leader killed by drone strike in Syria

Al Qaeda confirmed on Thursday that a U.S.-led coalition drone strike had killed senior leader Abu al-Khayr al-Masri in Syria. A statement issued by the militant group’s Maghreb and Arabian Peninsula branches said he died in a “treacherous” drone strike it described as a “new crime by America and the crusader coalition.”   Read the […]

And the Oscar goes to… Alt-Qaeda!

When I watched the documentary “White Helmets” I was somewhat less impressed than the Oscars apparently were.  This week, the White Helmets documentary took home an Oscar for best documentary in the short subject category.  The documentary is about a group of Syrians who wear white protective helmets and rescue civilians from bombed out buildings. […]

​Russian and Syrian Aircraft Bomb US Supported Rebels in Syria

The commander of the Operation Inherent Resolve coalition, Army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, said that Tuesday Russian and Syrian aircraft bombed militia forces that are supported by the US in Syria. It is being reported that the series of bombings came within about three miles of US forces operating in the area. US personnel advising and […]

Russia and the Syrian regime bombed U.S.-backed fighters in Syria, U.S. general says

Russian and Syrian regime forces bombed U.S.-backed fighters Tuesday in villages near the Syrian city of al-Bab, a U.S. general said Wednesday, characterizing the incident as a likely mistake. Army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, who leads the fight against the Islamic State in both Iraq and Syria, told reporters Wednesday that he believes the pilots […]

Syrian government forces enter Palmyra, drive back Islamic State: monitors

Russian-backed Syrian government forces and their allies fought their way into Palmyra on Wednesday, driving back Islamic State militants who have held the historic city since December, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group reported. A Hezbollah-run media outlet earlier reported that the Syrian army and its allies had recaptured the Palmyra citadel, on […]

Plan to defeat Islamic State will potentially increase military commitment in Syria

The Department of Defense’s plan to defeat the Islamic State, as directed by President Trump to Secretary of Defense James Mattis to prepare over a month ago, is complete and ready for the President. The plan reportedly reflects the rapidly changing conditions on the ground in Iraq and Syria against ISIS, where the terrorist group’s […]

U.N. to vote Tuesday on Syria sanctions despite Russia veto pledge

The U.N. Security Council is set to vote on Tuesday on a bid by Western powers to ban the supply of helicopters to the Syrian government and to blacklist Syrian military commanders over accusations of toxic gas attacks, despite a pledge by Russia to veto the move. The Security Council showdown – pitting Syrian ally […]

ISIS churning out car bombs like an assembly line in the fight for Mosul

The Islamic State in Mosul has turned the process of creating devastating car bombs into one that has all the hallmarks of assembly line efficiency. Iraqi Army and counterterrorism units are encountering car bombs with frustrating regularity, so much so that they have developed tactics, techniques, and procedures more designed to mitigate the damage when one […]