syrian

UN Envoy Launches Intra-Syrian Talks

November 9, 2019 1:17 pm

Syrian government and opposition representatives sat down to draft a new constitution, in what UN mediator Geir Pedersen called a “historic moment”.

The fact that the warring sides agreed to sit down face to face for the first time after nearly nine years of conflict “is a powerful sign of hope for Syrians everywhere,” Pedersen told the 150 delegates.

“I encourage you to be patient and also to be persistent, to be ready to compromise and to engage constructively,” the Norwegian UN diplomat said.

He pointed out that the talks could pave the way to a broader peace process.

“I …

In Iraqi Refugee Camp, Syrian Kurds Curse Trump And Erdogan

October 23, 2019 10:54 am

“May God avenge us against Trump and Erdogan” is a common refrain among the thousands of Syrian Kurds who have taken refuge in Iraq since Turkey’s assault on their homes.The numbers, which aid workers say have reached more than 7,500 since Turkish forces and allied militiamen launched the offensive on October 9, is increasing by the hundreds on a daily basis.

They have been crossing to Bardarach inside neighbouring Iraqi Kurdistan to a tent camp previously used to shelter Iraqis fleeing the Islamic State group.

The US-led coalition which backed the Syrian Kurds in defeating IS “has betrayed us and

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Turkish Soldier Killed In Syrian Kurd Attack – Minister

October 20, 2019 6:26 am

A Turkish soldier was killed and another wounded in an attack by Syrian Kurdish forces on Sunday despite a ceasefire deal brokered by the United States, the defense ministry said.

“One of our heroic comrades fell martyr and another was wounded after anti-tank and small arms fire by… terrorists during their reconnaissance and surveillance mission” in the Tal Abyad border area, the ministry said in a statement.

The army returned fire in self-defense, it added. Turkey had agreed to suspend its Syria offensive for five days to allow Kurdish forces to withdraw from a safe zone along the border.

But

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Turkey-Syria: Syrian Army Heads North After Kurdish Deal

October 14, 2019 12:54 pm

Syria’s army has started to reach the north of the country, hours after the government agreed to help Kurdish forces facing Turkey.

State media said government forces, which are backed by Russia, had entered the strategic town of Tal Tamer, 30km (19 miles) south of the Turkish border.

The deal came after the US, the Kurds’ main ally, said it would withdraw its remaining troops from northern Syria.

Turkey’s offensive aims to push Kurdish forces from the border region.

Areas under the control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) came under heavy bombardment over the weekend, with Turkey making …

France ‘Worried’ After 800 IS Relatives Escape Syrian Camp

October 13, 2019 1:30 pm

France said Sunday it was “worried” after Kurdish authorities reported that hundreds of relatives of foreign jihadists had escaped from a displacement in northern Syrian camp in an area under Turkish assault.

France has been hit by a wave of jihadist attacks since 2015, many claimed or inspired by the Islamic State group, and has expressed concerns that a Turkish assault on Kurdish forces at the helm of the fight against IS in Syria would bolster the radicals.

Kurdish authorities and foreign powers have warned repeatedly that fighting could allow jihadists to break out of captivity.

“Of course we are …