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Syrian army to help Kurdish forces repel Turkish Invasion in Afrin: reports

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Syrian army to help Kurdish forces

Syrian army to help Kurdish forces

The Damascus government and Kurdish forces have reportedly agreed to join forces in Afrin to counter an ongoing Turkish offensive. Syrian state media report that the deployment of pro-regime troops is imminent.

Damascus will deploy its militia fighters to Afrin “within the next few hours” to reinforce Kurds against the Turkish offensive, Syrian state agency SANA reported on Monday morning.

The move aims to “support the steadfastness of its people in confronting the aggression which Turkish regime forces have launched on the region,” SANA said, citing its correspondent in Aleppo. Syrian state television also announced that the deployment was imminent, without providing details.

Turkey’s foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu reacted by saying any Syrian fighters deployed to “cleanse” the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and its Syrian offshoot the Democratic Union Party (PYD) would have “no problems,” but if they enter to defend the Kurdish militia known as the People’s Protection Units (YPG), which Turkey considers a terrorist organization linked to the PKK, then “nothing and nobody can stop us or Turkish soldiers.

Last month, Ankara launched an operation against the YPG which controls Afrin.

Monday’s developments come a day after a senior Kurdish official told Reuters that the Kurds had reached a deal with Damascus.

The agreement, supposedly brokered by Russia, further complicates the conflict in Northern Syria as rivalries and alliances among Kurdish forces, the Syrian government, rebel factions, Turkey, the United States and Russia become more entangled.

What the Kurds said

  • The agreement allows paramilitaries allied with the Syrian government to enter Afrin to support the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in fending off Turkish forces, the DPA news agency reported, citing an anonymous source.
  • Badran Jia Kurd, an adviser to the Kurdish-led administration in northern Syria, told Reuters that Syrian army troops would deploy along some border positions in the Afrin region.
  • Jia Kurd said the agreement with Damascus on Afrin was strictly military with no wider political arrangements, but added: “We can cooperate with any side that lends us a helping hand in light of barbaric crimes and the international silence.”
  • Jia Kurd said there is opposition to the deal that could prevent it from being implemented.

What does this mean? The Damascus government and Kurdish forces each hold more territory than any other side in the Syrian civil war. Their cooperation could be pivotal as to how the conflict unfolds.

Who are they repelling? Ankara launched an air and ground offensive on the Afrin region in January against the YPG militia. It views the YPG as terrorists with links to an armed insurrection in Turkey. For the Turkish government, attacking Afrin is about assuring geopolitical interests and domestic security.

Are Kurdish goals compatible with Syria’s? President Bashar al-Assad’s government and the YPG have mostly avoided direct conflict. However, they have occasionally clashed and have very different visions for Syria’s future. Both believe in a possibility for a long-term agreement, but Assad has said he wants to take back the whole country.

How powerful are the Kurds? Since the onset of Syria’s conflict in 2011, the YPG and its allies have established three autonomous cantons in the north, including Afrin near the Turkish border. Their sphere of influence has expanded as they seized territory from the “Islamic State” group with the help of the US. However, Washington opposes the Kurds’ political ambitions, as does the Syrian government.

What happens next? Jia Kurd has said forces are to arrive in two days, but the deal has not been confirmed.

Breaking: Syrian Army unleashes biggest east Damascus offensive in years on unexpected front

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By Andrew Illingworth

BEIRUT, LEBANON (3:59 P.M.) – The Syrian Arab Army has kicked-off a massive offensive – the biggest in years – against militant forces in eastern Damascus, attacking on a front that has for been exceptionally quiet for over a year now.

Moments ago, the units of the Syrian Army’s 4th Mechanized Division and Republic Guard brigades opened up a new and very powerful offensive in the far southeast sector of the East Ghouta pocket. The operation is targeting armed rebel groups in the district of Marj along the Tal Firzat, Hazrama, Hawsh Al-Fadaiyah and Al-Nashabiyah axes.

According to Al-Masdar News journalist Ibrahim Joudeh, this is by far the largest offensive that the Syrian Arab Army has unleashed on the east Damascus front in many years.

So far, Syrian army forces have managed to break through the first line of militant defenses in the target sector, capturing five key points.

Syrian troops are advancing under cover of heavy missile and artillery strikes and to this effect, 4th Mechanized Division’s Golan-300 rocket-thrower systems are used to smash key defense points.

This development comes amid reports that the elite 42nd Brigade of the 4th Mechanized Division will not be deployed to southern Damascus as originally stated, but rather to this newly opened front in the city’s eastern districts.

Forced into Genocide: Memoirs of an Armenian Soldier in the Ottoman Turkish Army

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The Armenian Assembly of America is pleased to co-sponsor a book presentation of Forced into Genocide: Memoirs of an Armenian Soldier in the Ottoman Turkish Army by Adrienne G. Alexanian. The event will take place on Thursday, November 16th in Glendale, CA at Abril Bookstore, with an introduction of the author by Armenian Assembly Western Region Director Mihran Toumajan. Click here for the flyer.
There will be a book signing immediately after the book presentation, during the reception. Admission is free and open to the public.

Forced into Genocide is the riveting memoir of Yervant Edward Alexanian, an eye-witness to the massacre and dislocation of his family and countrymen in Ottoman Turkey during World War I. Adrienne G. Alexanian, Yervant’s daughter, has spent years preparing her father’s manuscript for publication.

Breaking News: Iraqi army begins advance on Kurdish-held Kirkuk – state TV

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Forces start moving at midnight on Sunday towards oil fields and an air base amid rising tensions after Kurds vote for independence.

Iraqi forces were reported to be advancing on Kirkuk after the prime minister of Iraq, Haidar al-Abadi, ordered his army to “impose security” on the oil-rich Kurdish city.

Kurdish and Iraqi officials reported that forces began moving at midnight on Sunday towards oil fields and an important air base held by Kurdish forces near the city.

The governor of Kirkuk, Najmaldin Karim, urged the public to come out onto the streets and voiced his confidence that Peshmerga forces would be able to protect the city. “We saw some of the young people who expressed their readiness to help their Peshmerga brothers to defend the land,” he told Rudaw, a Kurdish media network.

There were unconfirmed reports from Peshmerga commanders of clashes south of Kirkuk, around Taza Khurmatu, Rudaw reported, with both sides exchanging fire involving heavy weaponry. One Kurdish official claimed to have twice pushed back Iraqi forces.

Kurdish president Masoud Barzani, has ordered his forces not to initiate a conflict but to respond if attacked, Hemin Hawrami, a senior assistant to the president, was quoted as saying.

Al-Iraqiya TV said Iraqi military, anti-terrorist units and federal police had taken control of some areas around the city, advancing without firing a shot. The objective was to take control of the K1 airbase, west of Kirkuk, Lieutenant Colonel Salah el-Kinani of the Iraqi army’s 9th armoured division said.

A photographer with Agence France-Presse reported seeing columns of Iraqi troops heading north from the town of Taza Khurmatu, which lies south of Kirkuk.

Tensions in the area began rising several weeks ago, when the country’s Kurds voted for independence from Baghdad. The referendum was bitterly opposed by Iran, Baghdad and Turkey and has since led to a blockade of the region by all three powers.

On Friday, Kurdish and Iraqi government rushed troops and armour to the city. Peshmerga forces massed about 20 miles from Kirkuk’s southern limits after units loyal to the central government took positions on the city’s approaches, prompting fears of fresh violence in one of the most bitterly contested corners of Iraq.

At the time, the likelihood of an imminent battle for the ethnically diverse city had dissipated, with political leaders on both sides trying to calm nerves. Al-Abadi, who is commander-in-chief of the country’s military, insisted he had no plans to launch an attack.

Following Sunday’s reported advance, the Kurdistan regional government (KRG) security council said: “Iraqi forces and Popular Mobilisation are now advancing from Taza, south of Kirkuk, in a major operation; their intention is to enter the city and take over K1 base and oil fields.”

A commander of the local Kurdish police force said Kurds remained in control of Kirkuk province’s oil wells.

Neither side reported any armed confrontation one hour after the initial report of the Iraqi advance.

Israeli jets hit Syria army position in Hama Province, kill 2 soldiers

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At least two Syrian soldiers have been killed after Israeli fighter jets targeted an army position in the west-central province of Hama, in yet another act of aggression against the Arab country

“Israeli warplanes at 2:42 a.m. today fired a number of missiles from Lebanese air space, targeting one of our military positions near Masyaf, which led to material damage and the deaths of two members of the site,” the army said in a statement on Thursday.

The statement further warned against the “dangerous repercussions of this aggressive action to the security and stability of the region.”

“This aggression comes in a desperate attempt to raise the collapsed morale of the ISIS (Daesh) terrorists after the sweeping victories achieved by the Syrian Arab Army against terrorism at more than one front, and it affirms the direct support provided by the Israeli entity to the ISIS and other terrorist organizations,” it added.

Masyaf is located approximately 60 kilometers east of the coastal city of Tartus, where Russia holds a naval base.

Earlier media reports said the Israeli military had struck a scientific research facility in Masyaf.

Citing pro-government activists, Al-Masdar News, a pan-Arab news and commentary website, said Thursday that Israeli warplanes targeted the Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC) in Masyaf in Hama.

Meanwhile the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said two facilities were hit, a scientific research center and a nearby military base. It said the Israeli assault also wounded five people.

“Many explosions were heard in the area after the air raid,” said the group’s head, Rami Abdulrahman, adding that some of the blasts may have been secondary explosions from a missile storage facility being hit.

Israeli officials have not immediately commented on the reports.

Over the past years, the Israeli military has carried out sporadic attacks against various targets across Syria in what Damascus views as an attempt to boost the Takfiri terror groups that have been taking heavy blows from the Syrian army and allied forces on the battle ground.

The latest Israeli strike comes just days after the Syrian army, backed by popular defense groups and Russia airpower, managed to break the years-long siege imposed by the Daesh terror group on the eastern city of Dayr al-Zawr.

Lebanese army gearing up for operation against ISIS with help from Hezbollah: Reports

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The Lebanese military is reportedly making preparations to launch a long-awaited operation against hundreds of Islamic State terrorists operating along the Syrian border with the help of the country’s Hezbollah resistance movement.

The Associated Press reported on Tuesday that the offensive will also involve Hezbollah resistance fighters and the Syrian military.

More than 3,000 Lebanese troops, including elite special forces, are expected to take part in the upcoming campaign to rid the border regions of Takfiri elements.

Meanwhile, a source at Lebanon’s presidential palace told The Daily Star that the counterterrorism mission will be discussed at a meeting of the Higher Council of Defense headed by President Michel Aoun later on Tuesday.

The meeting will focus on military plans on the outskirts of the town of al-Qaa and the village of Ras Baalbeck as well as the current security situation in Lebanon.

The operation follows Hezbollah’s six-day joint offensive with the Syrian army at the highlands of Arsal bordering Syria. Lebanon’s army did not formally declare its role in the offensive, but shelled terrorist positions in the operation area.

The resistance movement later said it had accomplished the main objective of the Arsal campaign.

Lebanon’s border areas have been hardly hit by the spillover from the Syria crisis over the past few years.

Some 400 Daesh terrorists are holed up in areas on the Lebanese side of the frontier, while hundreds more are on the Syrian side, according to Lebanon’s Interior Minister Nohad Machnouk.

On Monday, the Lebanese army pounded Daesh positions in the vicinity of al-Qaa and Ras Baalbeck.

The attack came in retaliation for the Daesh firing of seven Grad rockets into Lebanese territories.

Breaking News: US-Led Coalition Shoots Down Syrian Army Aircraft – Reports

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U.S. jet shutdown Syrian JetUS-led anti-terrorist coalition has reportedly shot down a Syrian government forces’ aircraft.

Syrian Arab Army announced that the US-led anti-terrorist coalition had brought down its aircraft in southern Raqqa countryside, Syrian media reported citing a statement by the Syrian Defence Ministry.

According to the report, the Syrian jet fighter was carrying out military tasks fighting Daesh terrorist organization.

“Our aircraft was downed at lunch time today near the [Syrian] city of Raqqa, when it was fulfilling its mission against the IS,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that the US-led coalition was responsible for downing the aircraft.

The ministry noted that the coalition’s “actions are aimed at halting the Syrian army and its allies in the fight against terrorism, whereas our army and allies make great progress.”

According to the ministry, the pilot of the aircraft has not been found to date.

This is not the first time the US-led coalition’s activities in Raqqa cause casualties. Syrian media reported earlier that at least 43 civilians were killed as a result of the US-led coalition airstrike in the region. The Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned the airstrikes and sent two letters the UN secretary general and the head of the UN Security Council, in which the coalition’s actions were compared to Daesh crimes. Just a few days later, the Lebanese media reported that the coalition’s airstrikes killed more than 30 civilians more near Raqqa.

Raqqa has been under the control of Daesh since 2013, and is the de-facto capital of the self-proclaimed Daesh caliphate. The operation to retake Raqqa, conducted by a coalition consisting of almost 70 countries, has been on-going since November 2016. The strikes in Syria are not authorized by the UN Security Council or the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Karabakh army retaliates to suppress adversary’s actions, three Armenian soldiers were killed

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Karabakh army retaliatesSTEPANAKERT. – Azerbaijani side violated ceasefire regime around 300 times from different caliber weapons along the line of contact from June 11 to 17.

At the different sections of the line of contact adversary used 60mm and 82 mm mortars and anti-tank grenade launchers.

“The Karabakh army vaneguard units retaliated to suppress the adversary’s offensive activity and continuing to confidently carry out their combat task,” the Karabakh army said in a statement.

As reported earlier, three Armenian soldiers were killed as a result of the firing by the Azerbaijani armed forces on Friday. Defense Army servicemen Arayik Matinyan (born in 1997), Vigen Petrosyan (born in 1997) and Vardan Sargsyan (born in 1997) were fatally wounded.

On Saturday morning Karabakh army said Azerbaijan resorted to a new provocation as a result of which 20-year-old soldier was killed in the morning.

Armenian, Artsakh Presidents visited a range of military units of the Defense Army

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Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan together with President of the Republic of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, who arrived in Artsakh on March 25, visited a range of military units of the Defense Army.

As the Information department of the President’s Office reported, the Presidents got acquainted with the service and living conditions of the servicemen, met the servicemen’s parents and attended a concert organized in one of the military units with the participation of the Armenian music stars.

Armenia, Karabakh senior officials visit Yerevan military pantheon

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YEREVAN. – Senior officials of Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR/Artsakh) on Saturday paid a visit to Yerablur Military Pantheon in Yerevan, the capital city of Armenia

Presidents of Armenia and the NKR—Serzh Sargsyan and Bako Sahakyan, respectively, Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan of Armenia, the defense ministers of Armenia and Artsakh, and several dignitaries visited Yerablur on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Armenian Army, the Armenian News-NEWS.am reporter informed from on location.