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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Russian Air Force completely obliterates jihadist command center in Idlib, Syrian shells kill 22 innocents
2019-04-05
[ALMASDARNEWS] The Russian Air Force carried out a strategic attack over the western countryside of the Idlib Governorate on Wednesday morning.

According to sources in Damascus, the Russian Air Force’s attack on Wednesday targeted several sites in the Jabal al-Zawiya region of Idlib.

Among the targets for the Russian Air Force were a command-and-control center and communications base in the rural Idlib town of Tal al-Nabi.

Army shelling kills 22 civilians in Syria's Idlib: Monitor

[AlAhram] Heavy bombardment by the Syrian army of the jihadist-controlled Idlib region has killed 22 civilians, a monitor said Thursday, the latest violence to theaten a seven-month-old truce.

The ceasefire was brokered by the main foreign backers of the warring parties in September to head off a government offensive that prompted UN warnings of humanitarian disaster for the region's three million residents.

But since the region was overrun by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham
 alliance led by former al-Qaeda gunnies in January, the fragile truce has come under mounting assault.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem accused The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor....
, which signed the September deal on behalf of the rebels, of failing to honour its commitments and warned that his government's patience was running out.

The UN humanitarian affairs office said the escalating violence threatened aid deliveries to some 2.7 million people in need.

In the latest flare-up, army artillery and rocket fire on the Idlib towns of Kafrnabel and Maaret al-Noman killed 13 people on Thursday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

It came after shelling of adjacent jihadist-held areas of Hama and Aleppo provinces killed nine people late on Wednesday, the Britannia-based watchdog said.

The UN humanitarian office said that the ecalating violence had already killed 90 civilians in the Idlib region in March, nearly half of them children.

More than 86,500 people fled their homes in February and March as a result of the escalation, it added.

The UN expressed concern over "increased shelling along front lines, an intensification of air strikes and a growing number of attacks involving improvised bombs in urban areas."

The Syrian foreign minister said his government was growing impatient to recapture Idlib, the last region outside its control apart from the Kurdish-held north and northeast where Washington retains a troop presence.

Muallem said Turkey had failed to ensure the withdrawal of jihadist forces from a planned buffer zone along the front line as stipulated by the truce agreed in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi.

"It is known that Turkey is responsible for a delay in implementing" the deal, he said at a joint presser with his Venezuelan counterpart Jorge Arreaza.

"Honestly, we are still waiting for the Sochi deal to be implemented but our patience has its limits and we must liberate this land.

"We are losing patience," he warned.

More than half of the population of the Idlib region have already fled government offensives on other rebel-held regions of Syria.

Many live in tent cities where they are dependent on humanitarian aid and deeply vulnerable to a resurgence of all-out conflict.
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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Syria will retake the Golan Heights by any means necessary: FM
2019-04-05
Get it out of your system, dear heart. You’ll feel better, and it’s not as if the Israelis care what you say on the subject.
[ALMASDARNEWS] Syria’s Deputy Foreign Minister Walid al‐Moallem stated during a presser with his Venezuelan counterpart Jorge Arreaza on Thursday that the occupied Golan Heights is Syrian, stressing that his country will retake it by any means necessary.

Moallem said U.S. President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
’s decision to recognize Israel’s illusory sovereignty over the Golan Heights has only isolated them in the region, adding "our right in the occupied Syrian Golan is firm and can’t be disclaimed by time lapse and every inch of the occupied Syrian territories will be liberated."

"Syria will liberate the occupied Golan by all means and all choices are on the table," Moallem said.

He continued that " Israel mustn’t go far...We have will and determination and our war since 2011 till now is to protect Syria’s illusory sovereignty and independence and to liberate every inch of its territories."

However,
nothing needs reforming like other people's bad habits...
 Moallem didn’t just criticize the U.S.’ decision, but also the Arab League
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
’s condemnation, which he believed was a poor statement.

"Is it possible that the Arab Summit issues a statement on the occupied Syrian Golan which is weaker than Britannia’s stance?"

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
If Israel continues to attack Syria, Iran will respond: defense council head
2019-02-06
[ALMASDARNEWS] Secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani said on Tuesday at a meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem that Israel will receive a decisive response if it continues attacks in Syria.

"In case of continuation of such actions, specific measures will be taken to contain it and to respond decisively and symmetrically, giving an exemplary lesson to the lying and criminal rulers of Israel," Shamkhani said, as quoted by the IRNA news agency.

Muallem, in turn, said that the Syrian government was committed to ensuring the security of the Iranian forces in the country.

Last month, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps second-in-command Brig. Gen. Hossein Salami said in a television address that Iran’s strategy was to wipe "the Zionist regime" of Israel off the political map.

Relations between Israel and Iran have been very strained recently. Israel has been opposing Iran’s military presence in Syria, fearing Tehran might gain increased influence in the region. Iran has stressed that in only sends advisers at the request of the Syrian government.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Damascus Rejects U.N. Plan on Constitution Committee
2018-10-27
[An Nahar] A United Nations
...an organization which on balance has done more bad than good, with the good not done well and the bad done thoroughly...
 plan to end the seven-year civil war in Syria has run aground after Damascus blocked the world body's proposal for a committee to draft a new constitution, provoking anger among western powers.

U.N. special envoy Staffan de Mistura has been working since January on forming a group of 150 members to thrash out a new constitution, seen as a first step to winding down a conflict that has cost more than 360,000 lives.

Under the U.N. plan, the Syrian regime would choose 50 of the committee members, the Syrian opposition another 50 and the U.N. would nominate the final 50, composed of representatives of civil society and technical experts.

De Mistura, a veteran Italian-Swedish diplomat due to step down next month, said Friday that Foreign Minister Walid Muallem rejected the last list of UN-proposed names and suggested his own method to the final 50 members during talks in Damascus this week.

"Walid Muallem didn't accept a role for the U.N. in identifying or selecting a third list," the envoy told the U.N. Security Council by video conference during an emergency session called by the United States.

"Rather, Mr Muallem indicated that the governments of Syria and Russia had agreed recently that the three Astana guarantors (Iran, Russia and The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor....
) and the Syrian government would in consultations among them prepare a proposal as regards the third list."

De Mistura said withdrawing the U.N. list was only possible "if there was an agreement on a new credible, balanced and inclusive list" that complied with U.N. resolutions and commitments made in January talks in the Russian resort town of Sochi.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Kurdish leader says Syria gov’t will meet Daesh’s fate if they attack eastern Euphrates
2018-10-17
[ALMASDARNEWS] The leader of the Kurdish-led PYD organization Salih Mohammad tweeted on Monday that anyone who targets their forces in Syria will ultimately meet the same fate as ISIS.

Salih Mohammad tweeted in response to Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem’s comments regarding the Syrian Arab Army’s (SAA) future operations in the eastern part of the Euphrates River Valley.

Muallam said that the Syrian Arab Army will be shifting their attention to the eastern part of the Euphrates River Valley once the situation in the Idlib Governorate is settled.

The Syrian Foreign Minister said that the presence of foreign forces in the eastern part of the Euphrates River Valley is a violation of international law and detrimental to the grinding of the peace processor.

While the Syrian Arab Army and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) do not actively target one another, there have been tensions in the Deir Ezzor Governorate in the past.

In a recent meeting between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Council and government, the latter demanded that all U.S. and French forces withdraw from the SDF’s areas.

This demand from the Syrian government was met with several objections from the SDC because they rely on the US for military support and protection from The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund....
 in northern Syria.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
‘After Idlib, our next target is east of the Euphrates’ -- Syrian FM
2018-10-16
[ALMASDARNEWS] Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem held a presser on Monday after his meeting with his Iraqi counterpart Ibrahim al-Ja’afari concluded in Damascus.

During the presser, the veteran politician touched on a number of topics, including the situation inside the Idlib government.

Muallem said that if the jihadist rebels do not accept the Idlib agreement, the Syrian Armed Forces is prepared to deal with them militarily.

Furthermore, Muallem told the news hounds at the presser that once the situation in Idlib is resolved, the Syrian military will shift their attention to the territories to the east of the Euphrates River.

"After Idlib, our target is east of the Euphrates," Muallem stressed.

This comment is in direct reference to the U.S. Coalition’s presence along the eastern bank of the Euphrates River.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Turkish troop convoy enters Syria rebel zone
2018-10-04
[AlAhram] A Ottoman Turkish military convoy entered rebel-held northwestern Syria early on Wednesday, an AFP correspondent reported, as the deadline for establishing a buffer zone between rebel and government forces draws closer.

At least 40 vehicles, including trucks and armoured personnel carriers, were seen moving slowly south along a main highway under the cover of darkness.

The troops they were carrying are expected to be deployed at "observation posts" The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire....
 has already set up in rebel-held areas of Idlib and Aleppo provinces.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britannia-based war monitor, said the vehicles were heading to Ottoman Turkish monitoring posts, including in the southwestern parts of Idlib.

There was no word from Turkey on any reinforcements to the area. It last sent a similar troop column into northern Syria just over a week ago.

Wednesday's convoy entered as the deadline for implementing a Ottoman Turkish-Russian accord on the future of Syria's last major rebel bastion draws closer.

Last month, Moscow and Ankara agreed to set up a demilitarised zone ringing rebel territory to avert a threatened government offensive.

All factions in the zone must withdraw heavy weapons by October 10, and radical groups must leave by October 15. It will then be monitored by Ottoman Turkish troops and Russian military police.

The region's dominant gang, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham
 (HTS), an alliance led by jihadists of Syria's former al-Qaeda affiliate, has still not officially responded to the accord.

Turkey's main rebel allies, the National Liberation Front, gave the deal a cautious welcome before objecting to its provisions for a Russian troop presence inside the zone.

The NLF says it is still hammering out the details of the agreement's implementation with Ankara, and is wary that the current proposals would eat into their territory too much.

In an interview aired Tuesday, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said he hoped the deal would prove to be a "step towards the liberation of Idlib."

Muallem told Leb's al-Mayadeen television he was confident in Turkey's ability to fulfil its side of the deal "because of its knowledge of factions" on the ground.

Fighters from the area would be allowed to stay, he said, while those from other areas would go home and foreigners would leave through Turkey.
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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
All of Syria to be protected by S-300 system: FM
2018-10-03
[ALMASDARNEWS] The Syrian sky "will be safely protected after Russia’s supplies of S-300 missile defense systems," Foreign Minister Walid Muallem told Al Mayadeen television on Tuesday.

The minister said the Israeli Arclight airstrikes in Latakia on September 17 were "aimed to prolong the Syrian conflict" and "undermine success in the liberation of Syria, achieved by the government army assisted by its allies".

Muallem, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, said that in rebuffing the attack on Latakia, Syrian air defense weapons had brought down more than two thirds of Israeli missiles. "Our anti-aircraft gunners showed that they are capable of defending Syria against the Israeli aggression," he stressed.

A Russian electronic surveillance Il-20 plane was downed over the Mediterranean Sea late on September 17 when it was flying back to the Russian airbase at Syria’s Hmeymim.

According to the Russian defense ministry, the plane was shot down by a missile from a Syrian S-200 air defense complex when it was firing at four Israeli F-16 aircraft attacking targets in the Latakia governorate. The Israeli pilots actually used the Russian plane as a cover exposing it to Syrian missiles, the ministry stressed. Fifteen Russian servicemen who were onboard the plane were killed.

Following the incident, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on September 24 that Russia planned to supply S-300 missile defense systems to the Syrian army within two weeks

The S-300 is an air defense missile system able to eliminate advanced aircraft, including planes using stealth technology, medium-range ballistic missiles, tactical and cruise missiles, and also airborne early warning and control (AWACS/AEW&C) aircraft and reconnaissance and strike systems.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Syrian gov’t welcomes Turkish military operation to clear radical groups from Idlib: Muallem
2018-10-03
[ALMASDARNEWS] Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem sat down with Leb’s al-Mayadeen TV this afternoon in order to discuss a number of topics, including the situation in the Idlib Governorate.

Muallem told the presenter at al-Mayadeen TV that The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor....
 is more than capable of carrying out the military operation clear the radical groups from Idlib.

The Syrian Foreign Minister then told the presenter that Damascus would more than welcome the operation, despite the absence of diplomatic relations with Ankara.

"According to our information, we believe that Turkey is capable of carrying out its obligations," Muallem said.

Muallem has returned to Damascus after a short visit to the United States, where he spoke in front of the United Nations
...where theory meets practice and practice loses...
 on behalf of Syria.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Turkey should understand Idlib belongs to Syria -- Muallem
2018-09-03
[ALMASDARNEWS] Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem stated that Turkey should understand that Idlib province is part of the Syrian state, during an interview to RT aired on Saturday in Moscow.

“At first, the international community should admit the Idlib province is part of Syria and the Syrian state has to have its territories back. No one has a right to prevent it.

"At second, as the President Bashar Al-Assad stated, the priority at this moment is to liberate Idlib whether by reconciliation, which is more preferable, or with the help of army.

"At third, it’s clear that Jabhat al-Nusra, which is the most important organization in Idlib, is put on the list of terror agents by the United Nations Security Council.

"So, Syria along with its allies believes Idlib should be liberated either by reconciliation or by force of arms. In order to protect civilians from dangerous acts of military nature we opened a humanitarian corridor through Abu al-Ẓuhur aerodrome. This corridor has been open for a week. We welcomed hundreds of Syrian families who came from Idlib to the provinces controlled by the Syrian army.

"So, I state that if it would be necessary to apply force, it would be necessary to resist Jabhat al-Nusra. Speaking of these units which want to settle this conflict, they should declare their position and carry out further obligations.”

The Syrian Foreign Minister also mentioned the talks between Russian and Saudi Foreign Ministers Sergei Lavrov and Adel Al-Jubeir which took place in August in Moscow.
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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Idlib rebels blow up bridges to hamper expected assault: monitor
2018-09-01
[Rudaw] Rebels from Idlib have blown up two key bridges in a bid to hamper an expected government assault on Syria's only remaining rebel-held province, a monitor said on Friday.

The bridges over the Orontes River linked areas of neighbouring Hama province under government control to rebel-held territory in Idlib, the Britannia-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

They were blown up by Islamist factions from the National Liberation Front (NLF), the main non-jihadist alliance in Idlib, Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said.

"They were the two main bridges in the area, but there are others," he told AFP.

The bridges were located in the al-Ghab plain, which straddles Hama and Idlib provinces and could be one of the first targets of any government offensive.

Government forces have been massing around Idlib province for weeks, particularly in al-Ghab which was once a key farming area.

"The rebels have seen the intense activity on the regime side, with the arrival of tanks and armoured vehicles," Abdel Rahman said.

"Rebel groups are reinforcing their positions in anticipation of a military operation."

In recent days, both the government and its ally Russia have stepped up their rhetoric against the rebel presence in Idlib, which is dominated by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham
 (HTS) jihadist alliance formed by al-Qaeda's former Syrian branch, al-Nusra
...formally Jabhat an-Nusrah li-Ahli al-Sham (Support Front for the People of the Levant), also known as al-Qaeda in the Levant. They aim to establish a pan-Arab caliphate. Not the same one as the Islamic State, though .. ...
 Front.

"The Syrian command has taken a decision to defeat al-Nusra Front in Idlib no matter the sacrifices that it would entail," Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called on the West not to stand in the way of an "anti-terror operation" in Idlib, saying: "This abscess needs to be liquidated."

Ottoman Turkish troops are also stationed in the area and Ankara -- which backs the NLF -- has expressed opposition to any large-scale offensive that sparks a new exodus of refugees.

An assault on Idlib by Damascus and Moscow could be the last major battle of the civil war that has torn Syria apart since 2011.
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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Lavrov warns West ‘don’t play with fire’ in Syria
2018-08-31
[ALMASDARNEWS] Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Syrian counterpart Walid Muallem warned Western powers "not to play with fire" in Syria during a presser in Moscow on Thursday.

"With facts in our disposal through Defense Ministry and Ministry of Foreign Affairs we clearly and sternly warned our Western partners not to play with fire," Lavrov said regarding any possible provocation using chemical weapons.

Russia’s top diplomat added that the West’s meddling in OPCW investigation process of two previous cases of using chemical weapons in Khan Shaykhun and Ghouta was a violation of Chemical Weapons Convention.

Muallem stated the USA was a loser from military perspective and is now trying to take advantage of the situation.
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