Since the beginning of the Syrian Civil War, at least 3,613 Kurdish soldiers have been killed fighting the totalitarian Islamic State and the little-better authoritarian alternative, Bashar Al-Assad’s government. The Kurdish YPG (“People’s Protection Units”) is the largest portion of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a military coalition of Kurds and Arabs that the United States backs through weapons sales… Read more »
(DAILY SABAH): Turkish forces have killed at least 14 Daesh terrorists in northern Syria in the last 24 hours. In a statement released on Wednesday, the Turkish General Staff said that Turkey’s land and air forces hit 110 Daesh targets as part of the ongoing Operation Euphrates Shield. A total of 89 Daesh targets, including shelters, command and control facilities, weapons… Read more »
(DEUTSCHE WELLE): An alliance of Arab and Kurdish fighters has seized a dozen villages in eastern Syria. The move is part of a drive to encircle the so-called ‘Islamic State’ (IS) group’s stronghold of Raqqa ahead of new peace talks. Backed by air strikes from the US-led coalition, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – an alliance dominated by the Kurdish People’s… Read more »
(REUTERS): The U.S.-backed Syria Democratic Forces (SDF) alliance has crossed into Deir al-Zor province for the first time as part of an offensive against Islamic State, a Kurdish military source said on Tuesday. The advance into the province, most of which is under the control of the ultra-hardline group, is part of an operation to encircle and ultimately capture its de… Read more »
(AL JAZEERA): The commander of Kurdish fighters in Syria’s Manbij city has told Al Jazeera that his forces will fight to defend any move by Turkey to take over the area. Adnan Abu Amjad’s comment came after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that when his country’s forces finished helping Syrian opposition fighters take over Al Bab from ISIL , they… Read more »
At the end of 2016, a $5 billion dollar foreign aid package expired and now Jordan’s economy is seeing the consequences. In an effort to reduce the Jordanian budget deficit of 827 million Jordanian dollars, or $1.2 billion, the Jordanian government approved the 2017 budget which seeks to raise $643 million in taxes and tariffs on food items, fuel, commodities,… Read more »
Following the recent announcement that the United States will no longer be seeking a two state solution to resolve the Israel- Palestine conflict, many Middle Eastern alliances have begun to be reevaluated and reconsidered, notably, that between Egypt and Hamas. The relationship between the two has been strained recently but the Egyptian government is seeking to rebuild it in an… Read more »
Reuters: A young Israeli soldier who killed a wounded and incapacitated Palestinian assailant was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment on Tuesday, in a show of leniency that drew Palestinian outrage after one of the most divisive trials in Israel’s history. Eleven months ago, Sergeant Elor Azaria was serving as an army medic in the town of Hebron in the occupied… Read more »
Reuters: Syrian government warplanes carried out several air strikes against towns in mostly rebel-held Idlib on Tuesday after insurgents fired on two besieged Shi’ite villages in the province, a pro-Damascus media outlet and war monitors said. The air strikes killed at least six people and wounded 21 others in Maarat Misreen, and left several injured in nearby Binnish, just a… Read more »
Reuters: After years of strained relations, Egypt is moving closer to Hamas in Gaza, offering concessions on trade and free movement in return for moves to secure the border against Islamic State fighters who have killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers in northern Sinai. Egypt has been at odds with Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, since a crackdown by… Read more »