Press
Showing 101-120 of 453 Items
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SDF says no plans to attack Abu Kamal held by Iran-backed forces
A spokesperson for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Wednesday denied rumors of a fresh military operation in Syria. Mustafa Bali, an SDF spokesperson and hea...
By Nicholas Heras
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A month after IS 'caliphate' defeated, challenges aplenty
Sleeper cells, prisons teeming with jihadists, camps crammed with their wives and children -- perils abound in Syria, nearly a month after the Islamic State group's "caliphate...
By Nicholas Heras
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Security forces in Raqqa bust ISIS sleeper cell
Security forces in Syria’s Raqqa on Sunday arrested six people who were allegedly involved in Islamic State sleeper cell activities. Raqqa Internal Security Forces (RISF), a p...
By Nicholas Heras
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SDF leader says ready for talks with Turkey if they leave Afrin
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are ready for talks with Turkey if they agree to leave Afrin and end Ankara’s threats on northeastern Syria, a Kurdish commander said on Mon...
By Nicholas Heras
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How a 'smarter' Islamic state is quietly taking over swathes of Syria after ISIS defeat
The Islamic State’s caliphate is no more. Four years after its fighters captured large swathes of Iraq and Syria and declared its intention to spread jihad around the world, t...
By Nicholas Heras
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ISIS defeat in Syria fuels debate over foreign fighters’ repatriation
As the last scraps of the Islamic State’s caliphate fall to the Western-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, the victors must deal with a potentially dangerous pea...
By Nicholas Heras
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ISIS sleeper cell attack kills one SDF fighter in Syria’s Deir al-Zor
In The News
A car bomb in the Syrian province of Deir al-Zor on Friday killed a fighter from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an SDF spokesperson confirmed. According to Mus...
By Nicholas Heras
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Syria's Kurds increasingly isolated as Arab tribes cut deals with regime
On a recent morning Sheikh Humaydi Daham al-Hadi reclined on a velvet floor sofa, puffing on a cigarette with a roguish glint in his eye as he held court in his outdoor diwan,...
By Nicholas Heras
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Syria, Iraq border reopening fuels fears of Iran ‘land corridor’
A rare meeting took place in Damascus when the military chiefs of Syria, Iraq and Iran convened there.The meeting and an announcement that a border crossing between Iraq and S...
By Nicholas Heras
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Syria Kurd autonomy under threat after IS 'caliphate' falls
Now the Islamic State group's "caliphate" has fallen, the hard-won limited autonomy of Syria's Kurds will be left in peril if their key US ally goes ahead with its announced p...
By Nicholas Heras
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No One Wants to Help Bashar al-Assad Rebuild Syria
In The News
When the Syrian conflict began, in March 2011, Bashar al-Assad seemed likely to be ousted, like other strongmen swept away by the Arab Spring. Eight years later, Assad is stil...
By Nicholas Heras
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Eight years on, Assad clings on but beleaguered
In The News
Bashar al-Assad has won his war for political survival but as Syria's conflict enters its ninth year, his country is fractured, cash-strapped, and prey to both friend and foe....
By Nicholas Heras
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U.S.-Backed Forces Are Holding 2,000 Suspected ISIS Fighters in Syria
In The News
U.S.-backed forces in Syria are holding more than 2,000 suspected Islamic State fighters, U.S. defense officials said, at least double previous estimates and an obstacle to Tr...
By Nicholas Heras
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Over 200 ISIS prisoners ‘not involved in crimes’ released in northern Syria
In The News
The Democratic Autonomous Administration (DAA) of North and East Syria recently announced the release of 283 prisoners who were members of the Islamic State but “not involved”...
By Nicholas Heras
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US shifts weapons from Iraq to Syria
The Pentagon rerouted millions of dollars’ worth of weapons and vehicles from Iraq to Syria in the second half of 2018, Al-Monitor has learned, as US-backed forces cornered th...
By Nicholas Heras
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UN report suggests Turkish-backed groups commit war crimes in Afrin
In The News
A new report the United Nations ’Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria released on Thursday suggests armed groups in Afrin are guilty of war crimes. “The Co...
By Nicholas Heras
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Turkey continues to face scrutiny over Afrin's olive oil
In The News
More reports have emerged accusing Turkey of selling olive oil it took from Afrin to European countries despite the Turkish-backed Afrin council denying any wrongdoing. Nasir...
By Nicholas Heras
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Kurdish-backed council welcomes US decision to keep troops in Syria
Amjad Othman, official spokesperson and founding member of the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC) said on Friday that the organization welcomes the US decision to keep troops in ...
By Nicholas Heras
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Kurds Laud US Decision to Keep Some Troops in Syria
Kurdish groups fighting Islamic State militants in Syria welcomed the U.S. decision to keep up to several hundred troops in Syria, saying the move would be crucial to keeping ...
By Nicholas Heras
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After Trump announces plan to let troops stay in Syria, experts worry about ‘in-between’ approach
President Donald Trump’s decision to leave 200 of the 2,000 U.S. troops in Syria for a peacekeeping mission signals yet another shift in the administration’s chaotic Syria pol...
By Nicholas Heras
