News

What Is Behind Protests Against US-Backed Forces in Eastern Syria?

May 21 2019
Syria
Source: 
Voz de América
For three consecutive weeks, residents in parts of the eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour have been protesting against U.S.-backed forces that recently defeated Islamic State in its last stronghold there.
 
With help from the U.S., Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a Kurdish-led military alliance, has controlled large parts of eastern Syria after removing IS militants from the region.
 

Kuwait’s Apprehension about Normalizing Relations with Syria

May 21 2019
Kuwait
Syria
Source: 
Atlantic Council
With the Syrian civil war winding down, politicians and observers alike recognize that President Bashar al-Assad has managed to retain his position as Syria’s head-of-state. Some countries have moved swiftly in acknowledging the outcome of the conflict by reinstating diplomatic ties with the Assad regime and reopening embassies in Damascus. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain, which, to varying degrees, opposed Assad after the civil war erupted, are two salient examples of this trend.
 

Syrian Government Documents Show Widespread Abuses, Rights Center Says

May 21 2019
Syria
Source: 
The New York Times
Thousands of Syrian government documents recovered amid the country’s civil war provide a paper trail showing widespread and systematic human rights violations by its powerful security agencies, according to a Syrian-led organization that analyzed the papers, the Syria Justice and Accountability Center.
 

France charges Rifaat al-Assad with corruption

Jun 28 2016
Syria
Source: 
Al Jazeera

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's uncle, suspected of using ill-gotten gains to build a property empire in France, has been charged with corruption, French officials say.

Rifaat al-Assad, 78, who commanded Syria's internal security forces in the 1970s and early 1980s, was charged on June 9 with receiving embezzled funds and tax fraud, a spokesman for the financial prosecutor's office said on Tuesday.

Report accuses UN of loss of impartiality in Syria

Jun 15 2016
Syria
Source: 
Al Jazeera

A report released by rights group The Syria Campaign accuses the United Nations of delivering 99 percent of its aid to government-controlled territories, and calls on the UN to "restore its impartiality". 

The report, based on interviews with aid workers, including current and former UN staff, finds the UN in Syria in breach of its humanitarian principles and at risk of fuelling the conflict.

Syria's Assad Hardens Position in Address to Parliament

Jun 07 2016
Syria
Source: 
Naharnet

Syrian President Bashar Assad hardened his position on U.N.-sponsored peace talks in his first address to the newly elected parliament broadcast on state television on Tuesday.

"We will not agree to any topic outside the statement of principles we presented to the U.N. We just won't accept it," Assad told lawmakers.

The document submitted by the government delegation stresses that Syria will be ruled by a "unity government" -- not a "transitional governing body" without Assad as called for by the opposition.

EU extends sanctions on Syria regime for another year

May 28 2016
Syria
Source: 
Straits Times

The EU on Friday (May 27) extended for another year sanctions against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime over its "violent repression" of civilians, maintaining an oil embargo and a freeze on Syrian central bank assets.

The European Council, which groups the 28-member bloc, rolled over existing sanctions in line with a decision it took in December 2014 to continue sanctions "as long as repression continues," it said in a statement.

"The Council extended EU restrictive measures against the Syrian regime until 1 June 2017," the statement said.

Syria Talks on Hold for Two-Three Weeks, Says UN Envoy

May 27 2016
Syria
Source: 
The Wire

Geneva/United Nations: There will be no new round of Syria talks for at least two or three weeks, the office of UN special envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said in a statement on Thursday, after he consulted the UN Security Council for about two and a half hours.

“He briefed on his intention to start the next round of talks as soon as feasible but certainly not within the next two/three weeks,” said the statement.

It said de Mistura wanted to see progress on the ground, particularly relating to the cessation of hostilities and humanitarian access.

Kurdish-led SDF launches offensive on Syria's Raqqa

May 25 2016
Syria
Source: 
Al Jazeera

Kurdish-led forces have massed thousands of fighters as part of a military offensive to take over Raqqa, the northern Syrian city controlled by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group for more than two and a half years. 

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed coalition of armed groups led by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), said it has mobilised thousands of fighters in the countryside north of Raqqa. 

Fighting was reportedly ongoing on Tuesday near Ain Issa, situated 55km from the ISIL-controlled city. 

Assad holds parliamentary election as Syrian peace talks resume

Apr 13 2016
Syria
Source: 
Reuters

Syrians voted in a parliamentary election in government-held areas of the country on Wednesday in what they called a show of support for President Bashar al-Assad, while his opponents and Western powers denounced the poll as illegitimate.

The election went ahead independently of a U.N.-led peace process aimed at ending the five-year-long war. A second round of talks began in Geneva on Wednesday but an upsurge in fighting has darkened the already bleak outlook for diplomacy.

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