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https://southfront.org/inf-is-dead-nuclear-war-in-europe-is-one-step-closer/ For more than 30 years, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) has been one of the cornerstones of the international security system. This ended on February 2, 2019 when the US officially suspended its participation in the Treaty. Washington said that it will fully terminate the treaty in 6 months if Russia does not comply with its ultimatum – the “verifiable” destruction of what Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
Syrian War Report – Feb. 4, 2019: US-led Coalition Struck Syrian Army Near Al-Bukamal Late on February 2nd, a US-led coalition warplane attacked an artillery position of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) in the area of al-Sukkariya west of the town of al-Bukamal in the province of Deir Ezzor. According to the Syrian Defense Ministry, one artillery piece was destroyed and 2 SAA soldiers were injured. In December, the Syrian
Syrian War Report – Jan. 25, 2019: Israeli Patrol Came Under Fire In Golan Heights A firefight broke out on the contact line between Israeli and Syrian forces in the Golan Heights, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement on January 24. According to the statement, forces from the Syrian side of the contact line opened fired on an IDF patrol. Israeli soldiers returned fire. The IDF reported
Syrian War Report – Jan. 24, 2019: Arab Protesters Clash With SDF In Raqqa Province On January 23, hundreds of civilians took to the streets in the town of al-Mansoura in the province of Raqqa to protest against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) after the group’s security forces had murdered a civilian. According to local sources, Ahmad al-Zaban, a member of the prominent al-Bukhamis tribe, was killed because he had
Syrian War Report – Jan. 16, 2019: Chemical Attack Preparations In Idlib De-Escalation Zone Militants are preparing a new chemical attack in the Ma’aret al-Nu’man area in the province of Idlib, the Interfax news agency reported on January 15 citing an informed source. According to the source, militants store toxic chemicals in several warehouses across Idlib province and the far northern part of Lattakia province. The source stressed that Ajnad
Syrian War Report – Jan. 10, 2019: Al-Qaeda Defeats Another Turkish-backed ‘Opposition’ Group On January 9, Ahrar al-Sham groups in northwestern Hama surrendered and dissolved themselves under pressure from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda), according to local sources. Thus, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) imposed full control over the towns of al-Ankawi and Habit. Ahrar al-Sham is the core of a Turkish-backed coalition of militant
Syrian War Report – Jan. 9, 2019: Turkey Wants US Military Bases In Northern Syria Ankara has asked the US to hand over 16 of its military bases in northern Syria to Turkey or to local authorities in the region after the U.S. withdraws, presidential spokesperson İbrahim Kalın said on January 8 after discussions with U.S. officials. “We are pleased with Trump’s decision for withdrawal [from Syria], but it needs
Syrian War Report – Jan. 8, 2019: Hayat Tahrir al-Sham Expands Further In Idlib De-Escalation Zone Units of the Russian Military Police have started patrolling the surroundings of the northern Syrian city of Manbij in the Aleppo governorate, near the border with Turkey, spokesman Yusup Mamatov told media on January 8. “Today we started patrolling the security zone near the city of Manbij and its surroundings. The task is
Syrian War Report – Dec. 28, 2018: YPG Invites Syrian Army To Manbij On December 28, the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) released an official statement inviting the Damascus government to assert control of the areas, from which YPG units had allegedly withdrawn, in particular Manbij. The YPG added that the decision is caused by the Turkish threat and that the group will concentrate its efforts on combating ISIS. Syrian
Syrian War Report – Dec. 17, 2018: Syrian Army Is Set To Respond To Any Future Israeli Attacks The Syrian Armed Forces will respond by force to any Israeli attack on its bases as a part of new policy, which was adopted by the Syrian leadership following the incident with the Russian Il-20 plane last September, the Kuwaiti al-Ra’i newspaper reported on December 15 citing a high-ranked Syrian official.
Syrian War Report – Dec. 13, 2018: Turkey Threatens US-backed Kurdish Forces With New Operation Turkey has threatened a new plan to launch a military operation against US-backed Kurdish groups in northern Syria. During the Turkish Defense Industry Summit on December 12, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) “will launch an operation east of the Euphrates in a few days to save it from a
Syrian War Report – Dec. 12, 2018: Russian Military – Govt. Forces, Militia Retook 96.5% Of Syria 1,411 residential areas have been liberated from ISIS terrorists since the start of the Russian military operation in Syria, Head of the Russian National Defense Management Center Colonel General Mikhail Mizintsev said on December 11, during a joint meeting of the interdepartmental coordination of the Russian and Syrian headquarters for the return of
Syrian War Report – Dec. 10, 2018: U.S. Officially Accuses Assad, Russia Of Staging Chemical Attack In Aleppo On December 7, the US State Department finally released an official statement on the November 24 chemical attack, which hit the government-controlled city of Aleppo injuring over 100 people. However, instead of condemning terrorist groups, which used chemical weapons, the State Department accused the Assad government and the Russians of gassing Aleppo
A US contractor accidentally revealed a US military specialist deployment in the combat zones in Ukraine via an Job Advertisement on LinkedIn. https://southfront.org/us-military-contractor-is-hiring-personnel-to-support-classified-contingency-operations-in-ukraine/ Similarly to the Atlantic Council’s report on independence of Eastern European countries, as well as the meeting between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin, the posting comes days before the escalation in the Sea of Azov. Mission Essential is a government
https://southfront.org/turkey-attacks-own-proxies-in-syria-netanyahu-names-himself-defense-minister/ From November 18 to November 20, the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) carried out a military operation against their own proxies in the region of Afrin. The TAF attacked and partially disarmed a group of about 200 members of the al-Sharqiyah Martyrs Gathering and its allied groups. The Hamza Division, the Sultan Murad Division, the al-Sham Corps and the 3rd Corps participated in the operation on the side of
https://southfront.org/syrian-war-report-november-14-2018-turkish-pkk-conflict-escalates-amid-fresh-pkk-attacks/ The People’s Defense Forces (HPG), a military wing of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), claimed that it had attacked 6 military bases in the southern Turkish provinces of Hakkari and Sirnak on November 9 and November 10. The HPG stated that 17 Turkish soldiers were killed and 32 others were wounded as a result of the attack. 8 soldiers are also missing, according to the HPG. It should be
https://southfront.org/why-the-u-s-military-is-woefully-unprepared-for-major-conventional-conflict/ The text below is a full version of the anlysis entitled “Why the U.S. Military is Woefully Unprepared for a Major Conventional Conflict“, which was originally released by SouthFront on October 10, 2018: Introduction In the Department of Defense authored summary of the National Defense Strategy of the United States for 2018, Secretary James Mattis quite succinctly sets out the challenges and goals of the U.S. military in
CIA sees instability in the Balkans – Greek minority member murdered by Albanian Special Forces – This is how the plan for Greater Albania unfolds This analysis is made by Evangelos Kokkinos – Pentapostagma Enimerosis and translated exclusively for SouthFront During the “Anniversary of the No”, a day that is celebrated throughout Greece, Cyprus and the Greek communities around the world on 28 October each year, Constantine Katsifas was killed by
https://southfront.org/syrian-war-report-november-1-2018-sdf-halts-operation-against-isis-in-euphrates-valley-because-of-turkish-attacks/ The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which consist mainly of members of various Kurdish armed groups, declared on October 31 that they had halted their operation against ISIS in the Euphrates Valley because of Turkish attacks on their positions in northern Syria. The SDF blamed Turkey for its own inability to eliminate the ISIS-held area of Hajin in the Euphrates Valley and called on the so-called international community to
https://southfront.org/syrian-war-report-october-24-2018-us-troops-clash-with-turkish-backed-militants-near-manbij/ Troops of the US-led coalition have been clashing with Turkish-backed militants near the Syrian city of Manbij, currently controlled by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), according to a video, which appeared online this week. Commenting on the incident to Kurdistan 24, spokesman for the US-led coalition Colonel Sean Ryan admitted that coalition forces “received gunfire from undisclosed persons and returned fire” on October 15, but avoided pointing the
