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Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem on Monday said there had been an apparent change of attitude towards Syria by the US administration following the Russian plan for “de-escalation” zones. “It seems the United States, where (President Donald) Trump has said the Syrian crisis has dragged on too long, might have come to the conclusion that there must be an understanding with Russia on a solution.” Asked about US backing for Kurdish groups fighting Islamic State in northeast Syria, Moualem said that what Syrian Kurds were doing against the jihadist group was “legitimate” at this stage and fell within the framework...

<p>US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said on Monday the United States would closely examine proposed de-escalation zones aimed at easing Syria’s civil war but warned “the devil’s in the details” and that much needed to be worked out.</p> <p>The deal to create “de-escalation” zones in the major areas of conflict in western Syria took effect on Saturday.</p>

As John F. Kerry tries to bounce out of Boston and into a decisive fall campaign lead, a skeleton from the past will slink out of jail - possibly looking to score headlines and undercut the new nominee. David Paul, a central figure in a 1980s savings and loan scandal, is set to be sprung from a halfway house in Miami Sunday - a decade after his conviction on 97 counts of banking fraud. TV news outlets are scrambling to line up the first interview, hopeful the long-silent Paul might spill some beans about his close fund-raising ties to Kerry...

BEIRUT, Lebanon — United States and allied aircraft will be banned from flying over much of Syria as part of a deal struck by Iran, Russia and Turkey to foster a cease-fire in the Syrian war, a senior Russian diplomat said Friday. But a State Department spokesman later said that the agreement, which the United States did not sign, does not “preclude anyone from going after terrorists wherever they may be in Syria.” The spokesman, Edgar Vasquez, said Russian officials’ interpretation of their own agreement “makes no sense.” A senior State Department official was at the talks in Astana, Kazakhstan,...

Kurdish fighters of the YPG. File photo Ilham Ahmed, Kurdish co-president of the Syrian Democratic Council, said on Friday that she hopes the recent deal by Russia, Iran, and Turkey signed in Kazakstan will not be hurtful for the Syrian Kurds.The co-head of the SDC said that Turkey by this deal is trying to hit the safety and stability of the local self-administration areas in northern Syria–Rojava. She said that Turkey is worried about the presence of U.S. troops on the east of the Euphrates, and Russian soldiers on the west of the Euphrates in Efrin, Til Rifaat, and other...

Very little news is being reported on the wars in Syria and Iraq........WHY?? Over 320,000 people have been killed in Syria. It's a hell hole. In Iraq who knows how many have killed, but aid agencies say they do not have resources to care for people escaping fighting in the Iraqi city of Mosul. Camps for the displaced no longer have enough space to accommodate new arrivals. .

Full text of the agreement reached between Iran, Russia and Turkey in Astana on May 4 on the creation of de-escalation areas in Syria has been released. The memorandum released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation stated that the aim was “to put a prompt end to violence, improve the humanitarian situation and create favorable conditions to advance political settlement of the conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic”. Full text of the agreement made between Iran, Russia and Turkey in Astane on May 4 is as follows: “The Islamic Republic of Iran, the Russian Federation...

US President Donald Trump (L), Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. File photo US president Donald Trump will host Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on May 16-17 at the White House, in the first meeting between the two leaders. Syrian Kurdish leaders say that Trump should pressure the U.S. to solve the problems between the Kurds and Turkey.Most likely the Turkish president Erdogan will ask the US administration to end its support to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)–that since November 2016 are engaged in a campaign to defeat ISIS in Raqqa.Sihanok Dibo, a Kurdish official of the Democratic Union Party in Syria (PYD), told ARA News...

In Tabqa, freedom sprouts from war, strife and blood. One of the most important phases in the Wrath of Euphrates operation launched on the night of March 21 is the Tabqa operation. Tabqa is now on the eve of being completely cleared of ISIS gangs. The Tabqa town consists of two parts. The town center, where the people mostly live, has been completely cleared of ISIS gangs. The gangs are now trapped in the 7-story lodging buildings nearby the dam. SDF fighters have turned their barrels towards this area. While SDF fighters clash with the gangs on one hand, on...

RAQQA – Tonight is the most important night for the Tabqa operation, according to a statement released on the official SDF website.The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) spokeswoman Jihan Sheikh Ahmad said the following in her statement on the near liberation of Tabqa: “This night is the night of definite success and the night Daesh (ISIS) gangs will be pushed out of Tabqa.”In the statement, the spokeswoman also said that 90% of Tabqa city had been liberated, that only the Tabqa Dam and a few other minor areas remained for liberation.After heavy clashes between SDF fighters and the ISIS gangs in...

U.S.-backed militias said on Monday they had pushed Islamic State fighters out of the old quarters of Tabqa, a strategically vital town controlling Syria's largest dam, hemming the militants into the remaining modern district along the shore. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance made up of Syrian Kurdish and Arab fighting groups, are fighting a multi-phased campaign to drive Islamic State from its stronghold of Raqqa, 40km (25 miles) downstream and east of Tabqa. The SDF will wait to assault Raqqa until it seizes Tabqa, its military officials have previously said, but it had made slow progress since besieging...

Pastor J.D. looks at the seriousness of what some suggest is a world now on the brink of all out war, the drumbeat of wars and threats of wars are increasing in both their tempo and volume, with each passing day.

Brian Williams has been rebuked by MSNBC for being “patronizing” to the network’s biggest star, Rachel Maddow. After Williams hijacked Maddow’s show to break the Syria missile news earlier this month, he turned to her live on air at the end of the segment and said,“Thanks for visiting tonight. Glad you were a part of our coverage.” Viewers — who were already mad that MSNBC slipped “Lyin’ Brian” in to break the news when Maddow was already at the anchor desk talking about Syria — flipped out. @Barbvas tweeted, “Annoyed to hear Brian Williams thanking Rachel Maddow for assisting with...

Oh noes, how is the U.S. media going to find a way to spin this? It was only a matter of time. President Trump and Secretary Tillerson played out the global strategy perfectly. By assembling international allies in a coalition of influence, specifically by pulling China into a close relationship with President Trump, Russia has been cast into a brutally diminished role. Secretary Tillerson’s exceptionally well received visit to the U.N. Security Council yesterday appears to have been the final straw. The international diplomacy of President Trump, Vice-President Pence, Secretary T-Rex and even Ambassador Nikki Haley has been incredibly well...

Oh noes, how is the U.S. media going to find a way to spin this? It was only a matter of time. President Trump and Secretary Tillerson played out the global strategy perfectly. By assembling international allies in a coalition of influence, specifically by pulling China into a close relationship with President Trump, Russia has been cast into a brutally diminished role. Secretary Tillerson’s exceptionally well received visit to the U.N. Security Council yesterday appears to have been the final straw.... (Reuters) Moscow is ready to cooperate with the United States on settling the Syrian crisis, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei...

A Russian government spokesperson praised the Kurdish forces in their fight against ISIS. Meanwhile, the co-Chair of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), Salih Muslim, and PYD Europe representative Abdulselam Mustafa met with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Gennady Gatilov in Geneva on Thursday.The two sides discussed the recent developments in northern Syria, including the Turkish air strikes against the People’s Protection Forces (YPG). Russian officials have condemned the Turkish air strikes against the Kurds in Syria and Iraq that took place last week.“On April 25, it was reported that Turkish jets carried out a series of strikes on the positions...

A US-led coalition spokesperson on Saturday told ARA News that for the United States there is a difference between the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the People’s Protection Units (YPG). The US-led coalition recognizes the PKK as a threat to Turkey.“We disagree with the Turkish position that the YPG and the PKK are the same organization. The Coalition recognizes the threat the PKK poses to Turkey, but Turkey cannot pursue that fight at the expense of our common fight against terrorists that threaten us all,” the coalition spokesperson said in an exclusive interview with ARA News. “We call on all countries in...

Turkey's airstrikes on Kurdish regions in Syria and Iraq recently raised many an eyebrow around the globe. They left world leaders wondering if there will be more strikes and, if so, how the escalation will unfold. This article is a sequel to Amberin Zaman’s piece on April 25 that reflected the viewpoints of the United States, the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and Baghdad. This will focus on the perspectives of Ankara and Moscow, Ankara's strategic calculations behind the attacks and Moscow’s position on the events. Early April 25, the Turkish air force carried out simultaneous air attacks on Iraq’s Sinjar region and on Mount Qarachok near the...

On Tuesday, Turkey bombed the headquarters of Kurdish fighters in northern Syria, killing 20 of our soldiers. Immediately after the strike, the leaders of our forces — known as the People’s Protection Groups, or YPG — rushed from their operations center near Raqqa, where they’ve been working with the U.S. military to push the Islamic State out of its Syrian stronghold, to view the site of the attack. The American colonel and other officers who accompanied the YPG leaders were met by tens of thousands of protesters, including the mothers of soldiers who have died fighting the Islamic State. They...