ISIS is losing ground in Syria and Iraq. In Mosul, the Iraqi Army seems to be soundly defeating its insurgent opponents. The liberation of cities such as Palmyra, Aleppo, and Al-Bab in Syria, and Mosul and Fallujah in Iraq, show the terrorist group is on the desperate defense. The Iraqi Army’s push into Mosul supported by US and coalition airstrikes,… Read more »
(GULF NEWS): Kuwait and Turkey have signed three agreements worth $15 million to contribute to the response plan of Syrian refugees living in Turkey. The agreements were signed by Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED)’s Director-General Abdul Wahab Al Bader and the mayors of Gaziantep, Kilis and Sanliurfa, in the presence of Kuwait’s Emir Shaikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah… Read more »
(AL JAZEERA): Ten Egyptian security personnel, including three army officers, have been killed in two roadside bombings during a security operation in Egypt’s troubled Sinai peninsula on Thursday, an Egyptian army spokesman said. The explosions hit the security vehicles during a raid on a group affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS). Security… Read more »
(MIDDLE EAST MONITOR): Oman sent Jordan a messaging saying that the Gulf state will reduce its presence at the Arab Summit scheduled for 29 March or will excuse itself if comments or recommendations made during the event put Muscat in an awkward situation, diplomatic sources have said. According to London’s Rai Al-Youm newspaper, the same sources said that the message did… Read more »
(THE INDEPENDENT): One of the largest ever lawsuits relating to the September 11 terror attacks has been filed against Saudi Arabia in New York. Families of 850 victims who died and the 1,500 injured, are suing the Middle Eastern country’s government, accusing it of providing material and financial assistance to al Qaeda in the years leading up to worst ever terrorist attack on US… Read more »
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 »