The following is a selection by our editors of significant weekly developments in Syria. Depending on events, each issue will include anywhere from four to eight briefs. This series is produced in both Arabic and English in partnership between Salon Syria and Jadaliyya. Suggestions and blurbs may be sent to info@salonsyria.com.
Incursion and a Tour
5 August 2019
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country is planning to launch a military operation in northern Syria, east of the Euphrates River to expel the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which Ankara considers a terrorist organization. This comes on the eve of negotiations with the United States on Monday regarding a “safe zone” north of Syria.
“We have entered Afrin, Jarablus, and al-Bab. We will later go east of the Euphrates,” Erdogan said, referring to areas controlled by US-backed Syrian insurgents.
“We said this to Russia and the United States. As long as we are being harassed, we will not be able to remain silent,” the Turkish president added during a televised speech in Bursa, northwest of Turkey.
Erdogan threatened for months last year that he would launch an attack against the YPG east of the Euphrates. However, the Turkish president did not follow through after Washington proposed the establishment of a “buffer zone” to safeguard its Kurdish allies from Turkish threats.
Ankara complained in June about its forces coming under fire from the YPG in northern Syria.
Erdogan’s statement comes on the eve of the arrival of a US military delegation to Ankara to discuss the “buffer zone” with Turkish authorities.
Resignation After Setbacks
4 July 2019
The head of the Syrian Soccer Union and members of the board of directors have all presented their resignation on Sunday, after what the union described as a “series of failures” for the first team, especially after the loss with Lebanon in the current West Asia Championship.
“The head and members of the board of Directors in the Syrian Arab Soccer Union have presented their resignation to the General Director of the Sports Union on Sunday after repeated failures of the first national team and the unsatisfactory results achieved,” the Syrian union said in a statement.
The Syrian team started off their tour in the West Asia Championship in Iraq by losing to Lebanon 2-1 on Friday, and will face Yemen on Monday.
The team was also a disappointment in the FIFA Asia cup that was held early this year in the Emirates, as it left the tournament tailing its group after failing to achieve any win in the three games it played, although it was favored to win the championship.
Syria is getting ready to participate in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers in a group that includes China, the Philippines, Guam, and the Maldives in September.
Truce in Idlib is Welcomed
3 August 2019
The United States cautiously welcomed on Sunday the ceasefire in Idlib northwest of Syria, stressing the need to end “attacks on civilians.”
“What really matters is that attacks on civilians and infrastructure need to stop. We would appreciate efforts to achieve this important objective,” State Department spokesman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement on the sidelines of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Australia.
Ortagus added, “we applaud the efforts of Turkey and Russia who worked to re-impose the ceasefire,” reached in September, extending his thanks to the US General Secretary Antonio Guterres for his personal efforts in the Idlib issue.
Washington reiterated that there can be “no military solution for the Syrian conflict and only a political solution can ensure a stable and secure future for all Syrians.”
Al-Golani and Idlib
3 August 2019
The General Commander of Tahrir al-Sham (previously Nusra) Abu Mohammad al-Golani said on Saturday that his faction would not withdraw from the demilitarized zone in northwest of Syria, two days after a truce announced by Damascus on the condition of establishing this area and the withdrawal of jihadists from it.
Golani’s statements came during a press conference organized by Tahrir al-Sham in the Idlib region. Reporters were not allowed to take photographs.
“What the regime could not take militarily and by force, it will not get through peace by negotiations and politics… We will never withdraw from the area,” Golani said.
“We do not deploy according to what our friends or enemies say,” he said, stressing his faction’s refusal for the entry of Russian forces to monitor the buffer zone as stipulated in the agreement.
Golani said that government forces were “worn down” during the military operations.
Tahrir al-Sham cautioned in a statement on Sunday that any bombardment on areas it controls would lead to its non-compliance with the ceasefire.
Asmaa Without Cancer
3 August 2019
First Lady of Syria Asmaa al-Assad said in a TV interview on Saturday that she had recovered from cancer, one year after she was diagnosed with a malignant tumor in the breast.
“My journey has ended… I finished thanks to God. I completely defeated cancer,” al-Assad said in the interview broadcast on Saturday night.
Al-Assad appeared in the interview wearing a white dress and her short hair was stylized and visible for the first time since receiving treatment, as she used to cover her head with a scarf in previous sightings.
In August of 2018, the Syrian presidency said that Asmaa al-Assad began receiving treatment after being diagnosed with a malignant tumor in the breast, which was discovered in its early stages.
“Cancer treatment is filled with fatigue, pain, and exhaustion of the body, but this does not mean that you should not be positive in your life,” said al-Assad, who received the treatment in a military hospital. She praised her family who stood with her.
In regards to her husband, the Syrian president, she said, “He is my lifetime partner. Cancer was a journey in my life. For sure he was with me.”
In the first picture after she was diagnosed with cancer, Mr. al-Assad was seen sitting next to his wife exchanging smiles.
Asmaa al-Assad, 44, is a mother of three children, two boys and a girl. Her father, Fawaz al-Akhras, is a renowned cardiologist in Britain, and her mother, Sahar Otri is a retired Syrian diplomat. Her family is originally from Homs (middle Syria) and she carries a bachelor degree from King’s College in London.
Explosion and Deaths
2 August 2019
The toll of militants allied to the Syrian government who died in an explosion at a weapons depot in a military airport in middle Syria has risen to thirty-one deaths, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), which previously put the number at twelve.
The chief of the SOHR Rami Abdul Rahman told the AFP that the toll for the explosions, “the causes of which are not yet clear,” which took place on Saturday in al-Shoairat military airport in the northeastern countryside of Homs, “has risen to thirty-one people from government forces and allied militias.”
The official Syrian news agency SANA said earlier that explosion resulted from “a technical error during the transport of expired ordnance,” adding that a “number of martyrs fell,” without specifying the number.
“The cause of the explosion is still not known. It could have been fabricated, a result from a targeted attack, or a result from a technical error,” said Abdul Rahman.
Al-Shoairat airport is one of the most important airports in Syria. Pro-government Iranian forces used to deploy there.
It was targeted by a US missile strike in April of 2017 in response to an attack with sarine gas on the city of Khan Sheikhon (northwest), which Washington accused Damascus of carrying out and left more than eighty civilians dead.
Aleppo Scenario in Idlib
1 August 2019
The United Nations will investigate airstrikes which targeted a number of facilities supported by the UN and civil positions in the city of Idlib, northwest of Syria, according to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday. This means implementing the “Aleppo scenario,” when the UN investigated the targeting of a UN humanitarian aid convoy if the fall of 2016.
“The investigation will cover destruction of, or damage to facilities on the deconfliction list and UN-supported facilities in the area,” said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for Guterres.
Guterres urges “all parties concerned to cooperate” with the investigators, Dujarric said.
The Deputy Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Dmitry Polyanski criticized the investigation, denouncing claims regarding the Syrian government and Russia’s responsibility for the destruction and calling these allegations “fake news.”
He said that this investigation “seeks to accuse Syria and Russia of things they did not do.”
Tripartite on Syria
1 August 2019
The three guarantors of the Astana talks on Syria (Russia, Turkey, and Iran) agreed to hold a summit in September, a source close to the negotiations hosted in the Khazakh capital Nur Sultan said on Thursday.
TASS news agency cited the source as saying that delegations from the three countries agreed to hold the summit on 11 September, however, the Kremlin has not announced a date for the summit, yet.
The formation of the “Syrian Constitutional Committee” will be announced in the upcoming summit. “Work is underway to form the committee,” the source told TASS.
Participants in the talks, which started in Nur Sultan and continue until tomorrow, have reached an understanding on the candidates for the constitutional committee, the source added.
New Israeli Bombardment
31 July 2019
Damascus accused Israel on Thursday of launching a missile attack that targeted Qunaitera governorate, south of Syria, and left no casualties, according to the Syrian official news agency SANA.
“Israeli aggression with a missile on Braiqa hill in Rasm al-Sad in the western countryside of Qunaitera. Material damage only,” SANA said in breaking news.
A spokeswoman for the Israeli army refused to comment, “we do not comment of foreign reports,” she told the AFP.
This comes one week after Damascus accused Israel of launching strikes that targeted areas in the governorates of Qunaitera and Daraa in the south.
The strikes killed nine fighters allied to government forces, three Syrians and six Iranians, according to the SOHR.
Bloody July
31 July 2019
The SOHR said that July has been the bloodiest month for civilians in Syria since the beginning of this year.
According to data collected by the SOHR, one thousand and one hundred and twenty-five people were killed in July, including more than five hundred civilians; the highest toll of civilian deaths since the beginning of the year.
The SOHR said that the number of those killed included five hundred and seven civilians, with one hundred and ninety children below the age of nineteen and sixty women.
تشهد المناطق الواقعة تحت سيطرة الأكراد في شمال وشرق سورية عقد العديد من المؤتمرات لإيجاد حلول للتحديات التي تواجهها هذه المناطق، ومؤخراً نظم “مجلس سوريا الديمقراطية”، وهو الجناح السياسي لـ”قوات سوريا الديمقراطية” اجتماعين في بلدة عين عيسى في ريف الرقة بهدف الحوار السوري–السوري ولدعم جهود التفاوض بين الحكومة والمعارضة، عُقد الأول منذ ثلاثة أشهر بمشاركة نحو ٤٨ شخصية، والثاني عُقد يومي ٢٨ و٢٩ الشهر الفائت بمشاركة حوالي ٨٠ شخصية تُمثل شريحة واسعة من تيارات المعارضة السورية.
وللمرة الأولى نظمت الإدارة الذاتية الكرديةمؤتمراً دولياً بعنوان “التطهير العرقي والتغيير الديموغرافي في عفرين”، وانطلقت جلساته في مدينة عامودا بأقصى شمال الحسكة يوم الأحد الثاني من كانون الأول /ديسمبر لتستمر مدة ثلاثة أيام، بمشاركة ١٥٠ شخصية من دبلوماسيين وسياسيين وباحثين وحقوقيين وكتاب وصحفيين دوليين وعرب.
افتتح الملتقى رئيس مركز روجافا للدراسات الاستراتيجية أحمد سينو، حيث تطرق لما سماه “عمليات الإبادة الممنهجة” التي تتبعها القوات التركية وفصائل المعارضة السورية المقاتلة في عملية “غصن الزيتون”، كما تحدث عن تدمير هذه القوات للقرى والأماكن الأثرية والرموز الدينية والبنى التحتية في المنطقة. وطالب سينو المجتمع الدولي “بمواجهة مخططات الهيمنة التركية والانتهاكات اليومية بحق سكان عفرين” على حد تعبيره.
وشارك في المؤتمر وزير الخارجية الفرنسية الأسبق برنار كوشنير، الذي عبر عن استيائه من ممارسات الحكومة التركية والفصائل السورية المسلحة التابعة لها بحق مدنيي عفرين، ووصفها بـ”الجرائم المنظمة ضد الإنسانية”. وأضاف كوشنر: “إذا عجزت الحكومة السورية عن أداء مسؤولياتها حيال ما يحصل لمدينة سورية، فإن الشركاء الأوروبيين مستعدون لتحمل تلك المسؤولية؛ الاتحاد الأوروبي قادر على إجراء تحقيقات في هذا السياق وكذلك مجلس الأمن ومؤسسات أممية أخرى تعمل على محاسبة الجناة. أعتقد أنه بإمكاننا هنا في هذه المدينة فتح متحف عن الجرائم التركية في عفرين وإيصالها للمجتمع الدولي وتدويل القضية”.
وحول أسباب عقد هذا المؤتمر الدولي حول عفرين، تقول الرئيسة المشتركة للهيئة التنفيذية لمجلس سوريا الديمقراطية إلهام أحمد: “هذا المؤتمر هو الأول من نوعه، وقد نُظم لتسليط الضوء لما تتعرض له عفرين من تجاوزات بحق المدنيين العزل من الكرد على يد فصائل المعارضة السورية والسلطات التركية، ويتناول المؤتمر الجانب السياسي والتاريخي والاقتصادي والحقوقي من عمليات التطهير العرقي والتغيير الديموغرافي في عفرين”، وتزامن انعقاد هذا المؤتمر مع مؤتمر الحوار السوري – السوري في بلدة عين عيسى في ريف الرقة لدعم الحوار والتفاوض بين دمشق والمعارضة، وبحسب أحمد فإن ” كلا الحدثين يؤكدان من الداخل السوري أن الحل السياسي والدبلوماسي هو الحل الوحيد لإنهاء أزمة البلاد”. وحول الصعوبات التي منعت سابقاً حدوث مؤتمرات دولية في الشمال السوري تقول أحمد: “لم تسمح الظروف الاقليمية سابقاً بعقد هكذا مؤتمرات وكان يتم منع زيارة الوفود الدبلوماسية، سواء الأوربية أو العربية إلى المنطقة بسبب الحصار من قبل الدول المجاورة.”
وعن موقف النظام السوري من الدخول التركي لعفرين ومدن سورية أخرى، قال الرئيس المشترك لحركة المجتمع الديمقراطي آلدار خليل “إن صمت الحكومة السورية سيفتح الباب على مصراعيه أمام التمدد والتغلغل التركي إلى بقية المدن والبلدات السورية وصولاً إلى بلدان عربية أخرى وهو الهدف الذي يجهد الرئيس التركي رجب طيب أردوغان لتحقيقه في بناء أمجاد أجداده في السلطنة من جديد، وإعادة الدول العربية مجدداً إلى حضن الدولة العثمانية.”
إعدامات و”تعفيش” ونزوح
وكشف مدير المرصد السوري لحقوق الإنسان رامي عبد الرحمن في مداخلة عبر السكايب شارك فيها في المؤتمر، عن إعدامات ميدانية وقتل تحت التعذيب وخطف واغتصاب تطال المدنيين في عفرين منذ الثاني من كانون الثاني/يناير الماضي بعد عملية “غصن الزيتون”. وأكد “عبد الرحمن” عدم وجود ما يردع الفصائل العاملة في العملية العسكرية عن انتهاك المواطنين الكرد قائلاً “عمدت هذه المجموعات إلى اختطاف السكان واتهامهم بالارتباط أو الانتماء للوحدات الكردية، مما سهل عليها توسيع نشاطها واعتقال المزيد من المدنيين أو خطفهم وطلب فدية مقابل تحريرهم تصل أحياناً لـ ١٠ ملايين ليرة سورية.”
ووثق المرصد السوري لحقوق الإنسان اعتقال ٢٣٨٠ مدنياً ونزوح ٢٥٠ ألفاً إلى مناطق الشهباء. وتقاسمت الفصائل مناطق سيطرتها على عفرين وريفها بعد السيطرة عليها عبر كتابة عبارات تثبت ملكيتها للمنطقة بحسب المرصد نفسه، كما أحرقت بعض تلك الفصائل مزارع الزيتون ونهبت ممتلكات المدنيين والمشافي والمؤسسات الخدمية، وقد تسبب خلاف على سرقة كابلات الكهرباء لنشوب اقتتال داخلي بين عدة فصائل بحسب شهادة الأهالي.
وفي ذات السياق تحدثت ممثلة مركز الدراسات الاستراتيجية منال حاج علي عن فرض الفصائل السورية المسلحة الأتاوات على المدنيين بحجة الزكاة وتهجيرهم من منازلهم وتحويلها لمراكز دينية وإجبار الايزديين في عفرين على اعتناق الإسلام، ومصادرة ممتلكاتهم وتوطين مهجري الغوطة ودرعا وحمص وحماة في بيوت سكانها الأصليين.
المصالح الدولية في عفرين
وحول توافق المصالح التركية الروسية في ملف عفرين، أوضح الباحث الاستراتيجي والمحلل المتخصص في الصراعات الدولية جيرار شاليان أن “ملف عفرين له أهمية كبرى لأردوغان ولبوتين على حد سواء، فكلاهما يسعيان لإبقاء النظام السوري وعدم انهياره”، مضيفاً إن “احتلال عفرين غير شرعي، وهو تغيير ديموغرافي واضح يستدعي العمل على تقديم الرئيس التركي إلى المحاكم الجزائية.”
وأشار لقمان أحمي نائب الرئاسة المشتركة لمجلس سورية الديمقراطية، لسياسة التعريب التي طبقت في عفرين في حقبة البعث، مقارناً ذلك بما تتعرض له المدينة من سياسة تتريك حالياً لإلحاقها بالدولة التركية.
ونوه أحمي إلى تاريخ تهجير السكان الأكراد من مدنهم وبلداتهم قبل نصف قرن تقريباً، وكيف تتبع السلطات التركية حالياً في عفرين سياسة تهجير السكان الأكراد وتوطين مهجري درعا وحمص وحماة وغوطة دمشق بدلاً عنهم.
التوصيات
اختتم المنتدى الدولي جلساته النقاشية مساء الثلاثاء بحزمة توصيات تمحورت حول الدعوة لعقد منتديات ومؤتمرات لاحقة في دول ذات ثقل إقليمي ودولي لإنهاء التدخل التركي في عفرين. أيضاً تمت التوصية بتشكيل لجنة لمتابعة قرارات المنتدى وتوصياته من مختلف الاختصاصات والجنسيات، وتأسيس مركز لتوثيق الانتهاكات والممارسات التركية في عفرين، وتصعيد الجهود الدبلوماسية، وتشكيل لجنة قانونية مهمتها رفع دعاوي ضحايا الانتهاكات أمام المحاكم الدولية المختصة، وتأسيس مركز إعلامي لفضح انتهاكات حكومة أنقرة، ودعم ومساندة الإجراءات الضامنة لعودة النازحين، والدعوة لفرض حظر جوي على مناطق الشمال السوري لمنع تكرار تجرية عفرين مستقبلاً.
وتباينت ردود شرائح الشارع الكردي بين مرحب ورافض لانعقاد المنتدى الدولي حول عفرين، جابر جندو، الذي حضر كواليس الملتقى، يرى أملاً في أن تحقق هذه الفعالية تأثيراً في الضغط على المجتمع الدولي، لأخذ دوره في إحقاق الحقوق، واحترام الدساتير الدولية في مجال حقوق الإنسان، والحد من تدخل الدولة التركية في المسألة السورية. لكن سعيد حامد يعتبر أن عقد هكذا مؤتمرات هو عبارة عن مضيّعة للوقت، وأن هذا المؤتمر لن يكون إلا ” نسخة مكررة عن مؤتمرات سابقة لم تقدم ما يوقف مأساة السوريين منذ أكثر من سبع سنوات” على حد وصفه.
The following is a selection by our editors of significant weekly developments in Syria. Depending on events, each issue will include anywhere from four to eight briefs. This series is produced in both Arabic and English in partnership between Salon Syria and Jadaliyya. Suggestions and blurbs may be sent to info@salonsyria.com.
Northern Syria Between Turkey and the United States
7 December 2018
(Reuters)
The Turkish-US working committee on Syria said on Friday that the two countries agreed to speed up efforts to put in place an agreement on Manbij, in the countryside of Aleppo, by the end of the year. Turkey and the United States reached the deal on Syria’s Manbij this year after months of disagreement, under which the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) is to withdraw from the city. Ankara, which considers the YPG a terrorist organization, says that the withdrawal has not happened yet. During a meeting on Friday, the two sides also agreed to continue joint work with regard to other areas, as mentioned in the Manbij roadmap. The official Anadolu news agency said that Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar told the US Special Envoy to Syria James Jeffrey that the United States should give up on building observation points in Syria.
Last month, the United States Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that his country is setting up “observation posts” along parts of the border between Turkey and Syria to help keep the focus on defeating ISIS in Syria. However, Turkey has expressed unease with the plans and has been angry at US support for the YPG, which is a main ally in the fight against ISIS.
More Eliminations
9 December 2018
A former leader in the Free Syria Army (FSA), Mashhour al-Kanakri, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Da’el, in the countryside of Daraa on Sunday. According to Enab Baladi website, two unidentified gunmen shot al-Kanakri while he was in Da’el and he was killed instantly. Government forces did not comment on his death and no one has claimed responsibility for the assassination. Al-Kanakri was from the city of Da’el and held a leadership role in al-Jabha al-Janobieh Brigade (The Southern Front), which was affiliated with the FSA, before he settled his status and joined the government forces in July.
In Afrin, one person was killed and several others were injured on Sunday 9 December, after an explosive device was detonated in a car for the Sultan Murad Brigade, which is affiliated with the FSA and stationed in the town of Bolbol in Afrin countryside. This is the second explosion of its kind in one week, according to Enab Baladi, after another explosive device was detonated in one of the brigade’s car in the al-Mahmodieh district of Afrin, which left one person dead and another injured. No one claimed responsibility for this explosion either. This incident comes two days after the YPG declared the deaths of members of the Turkish army and the FSA, after targeting their positions in Afrin.
SDF Progressing
9 December 2018
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said that it has gained new territory from ISIS in the Hajjin area in the countryside of Deir Azzor. The SDF stated that its forces were able to advance two kilometers and deploy thirty posts in al-Baghoz and deploy thirty-five new posts after repelling fierce ISIS attacks. On the other hand, the ISIS new agency Amaq said that the group’s fighters targeted a gathering of SDF fighters with a guided missile in the village of al-Bahra, east of Hajjin. SDF has been engaged in military operations with the support of the international coalition to control the Hajjin pocket in the countryside of Boukamal, east of the Euphrates. In the last two days, the US-led international coalition’s airplanes have intensified their airstrikes against Hajjin, the last stronghold for the group.
ISIS Executions
5 December 2018
(Reuters)
The UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said on Wednesday that the UN has reports of ISIS executing people who are perceived as cooperating with opposition fighters in Deir Azzor governorate in eastern Syria.
Speaking to a news conference in Geneva, Bachelet voiced deep concerns for seven thousand civilians who she said were in a trapped situation by the Islamic State fighters, which has prevented them from leaving Deir Azzor and the effects of the air strikes by the US-led coalition. She explained: “we also have reports of ISIS executing people perceived as cooperating with the SDF or other parties to the conflict,” adding that civilians were being used as “pawns and bargaining chips” in the conflict.
Attack on Damascus Airport?
9 December 2018
(Reuters and Enab Baladi)
The official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) issued a report on Sunday saying that the Syrian air defenses had intercepted enemy targets around Damascus international airport, but later in the day SANA said that the attack had not happened. In its initial report the agency said: “our air defenses intercepted enemy aerial targets in the vicinity of Damascus international airport in southern Damascus.” The agency later removed the report from its website. Still, it quoted later a source at the Damascus international airport as saying “there was no attack on the airport and the air traffic is normal.” However, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) declared that there had been firing near the airport. Several explosion sounds were heard in Damascus suburbs as air defenses were launched close to the airport, according to the SOHR.
Al-Ikhbarieh al-Sourieh, an official TV news channel, started its live coverage of the bombing near Damascus at ten in the evening, only to abruptly stop afterwards. Damascus Now network said that, the vicinity of Damascus airport and military positions south of Damascus, were subject to “unidentified” bombardment. Voice of the Capital network also mentioned preliminary information that confirms the targeting of a recently built depot in the vicinity of Damascus airport. Israel did not comment on the bombardment, a policy taken in several bombing events of military positions in Syria in recent months. These latest events come one week after a rocket attack that targeted Syrian government military positions in al-Kisweh, in the western countryside of Damascus, and southern Syria.
North Korea and Syria
4 December 2018
Officials said that Syria and North Korea’s foreign ministers met in Damascus on Tuesday and thanked each other for their support during years of international isolation. The Foreign Minister of North Korea Ri Yong Ho thanked Walid al-Moualem for Syria’s opposition to economic sanctions on Pyongyang, according to Syria’s foreign ministry. Moualem said Syria was grateful for North Korea’s support in international forums. UN monitors say the relationship has gone deeper than diplomacy and accused North Korea in February of cooperating with Syria on chemical weapons–a charge North Korea had denied.
Israel in 2007 bombed a suspected nuclear reactor in eastern Syria which it said was being constructed with help from North Korea and had been months away from activation. Syria, a signatory of the 1970 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, has always denied that the site was a reactor or that Damascus engaged in nuclear cooperation with North Korea. Both countries have faced international isolation, North Korea over its nuclear weapons program, and Syria over its nearly eight-year-old civil war.
Pressure on Refugees
6 December 2018
The Lebanese General Security announced a campaign to close violating shops that are owned or managed by Syrian citizens. The campaign includes various areas only in Akkar governorate, where the General Security is carrying out inspections of institutions and shops owned by Syrians, according to the state-run National News Agency.
In February of 2017, the Labor Ministry issued a decree stipulating conditions for Syrians to open investment projects in Lebanon. Under the decree, a Syrian project owner must have two or more Lebanese sponsors, in addition to paying due taxes. If the shop is small, the decree stipulates that the shop owner must employ a Lebanese citizen, in addition to paying taxes.
This decree led to the closure of tens of shops in various Lebanese governorates because their owners were not able to adhere to the required conditions. The Lebaneses constantly complain about competition from Syrian refugees in the labor market, and have repeatedly demanded that their commercial shops be closed.
Failure of the Return
7 December 2018
(Enab Baladi and Daily Star)
The Ministry of State for Refugee Affairs said that the Russian plan to facilitate the return of Syrian refugees to Syria cannot be implemented from a practical standpoint. In a statement to the Daily Star on Friday 7 December, Minister Mouin al-Merehbi said that Russia does not have the capability to implement the plan because it did not and will not provide the necessary guarantees to encourage refugees to return. Merehbi added that the Russian plan has stalled, but Moscow did not officially acknowledge that.
In July, Russia announced a plan for the return of Syrian refugees to their country, saying that under the plan 1.7 million refugees would go back. Since then, Russia has sought to mobilize international support for its plan, however, it was faced with international refusal, especially after the European Union said that Syria “is not safe yet” for refugees to return.
Although Lebanon was one of the first countries to welcome the Russian plan, Merehbi statements indicate the failure of its implementation in Lebanon. Several Lebanese officials held meeting with Russian officials to discuss the implementation of the plan in Lebanon. Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri asked his counselor for Russian affairs to communicate with Russian officials to understand the details of the suggestions announced by Moscow. A Lebanese official close to the Russian initiative said the government vacuum in Lebanon has hampered the Russian plan in the country.
تترقب مدينة إدلب هجوماً عسكرياً واسعاً تسعى القوات الحكومية شنه لاستعادة المدينة وإنهاء سيطرة فصائل المعارضة السورية المسلحة على هذه المنطقة. ومن الجانب الآخر تتأهب قوات سورية الديمقراطية لسد الحدود مع إدلب من جهة عفرين تمهيداً لتحرير المدينة الكردية من الجيش التركي ومسلحي المعارضة المدعومة من أنقرة.
المشهد السوري يتجه إلى سيناريو أفغنة سورية واستنزاف القوى المتناحرة والفصائل المتقاتلة على الأرض السورية وعجز حكومة دمشق عن حل أزمة البلاد. نظام جديد للإدارة الذاتية الكردية، الهدف الذي يجهد الكرد تحقيقه في شمال سورية، والذي طرحه وفد مجلس سورية الديمقراطية “الجناح السياسي” لقسد خلال زيارته الثانية إلى دمشق. الزيارات تأتي في إطار إلقاء الضوء على الجهود التي تبذلها الإدارة الذاتية، لفتح قنوات جديدة مع الحكومة وضمان الوصول إلى اتفاق يحفظ لهم الحكم الذاتي على الأرض السورية.
صالون سوريا إعداد وتعليق: لامار أركندي تصوير ومونتاج: جوان تحلو
The following is a selection by our editors of significant weekly developments in Syria. Depending on events, each issue will include anywhere from four to eight briefs. This series is produced in both Arabic and English in partnership between Salon Syria and Jadaliyya. Suggestions and blurbs may be sent to info@salonsyria.com.
Syria Between Trump and Putin
28 June 2018
The first summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump will be held on 16 July in Helsinki amid an ambiguous international atmosphere for Trump who has been distancing himself from historical allies and whose mandate has been a subject of investigation for possible Russian intervention in the presidential elections.
The Republican president reached the White House after promising to achieve reconciliation between Russia and the United States, however, after seventeen months in office, he has not fulfilled this promise. Preparations have been underway for two months for this summit between the two presidents who have not met except on the sidelines of international meetings. The White House and the Kremlin symbolically announced the date and time of the meeting simultaneously on Thursday.
The summit, which will be held ten years after former President Barack Obama’ declaration of “reviving relationships” that was not meant to be, constitutes a new attempt to improve these relations that have not been this bad since the Cold War.
In recent years, new issues have been added to the list of disputes, including Moscow’s support for the Syrian government, the annexation of Crimea after the pro-Russian separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine, and the poisoning of the former double agent Sergey Skripal that led to the exchange of diplomatic expulsions, including US diplomats.
The final touches to this summit were made on Wednesday during the White House National Security Adviser John Bolton’s visit to Moscow, which was closely followed in the United States.
Putin said after meeting Bolton in the Kremlin that he hoped to at least achieve “first steps to restore full relationships,” stressing that “he never sought for a confrontation.”
The Kremlin said that the summit will include a private meeting, a business lunch, a joint press conference, and a joint statement.
The Putin-Trump summit will be held a few days after the NATO summit in Brussels on 11-12 July, which is expected to witness tensions between Trump and his western counterparts.
On Thursday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the summit, stressing that NATO’s approach is based on defense and dialogue with Russia.
Israel Prevents Entry of Syrians
30 June 2018
Israel will not allow for the entry of Syrian civilians fleeing the war in their country, said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, adding that his government will continue to provide them with humanitarian assistance.
Tens of thousands of Syrians have fled from the large-scale military operation launched by the Syrian government on 19 June with Russian support in Daraa governorate, with the aim of fully recapturing this government. Some of them have established temporary camps near the Israeli occupied Golan Heights.
“In regard to southern Syria, we will continue to defend our border,” Netanyahu said in his cabinet meeting.
“We will provide humanitarian assistance as much as we can. We will not allow for the entry into our country,” he said. An Israeli officer told the press on Sunday that Israel transported “around thirty tons of food, medical equipment, and a large quantity of clothes” to displaced civilians on the Syrian side of the Golan heights after they fled battles in southern Syria.
Israel set up a program to provide humanitarian assistance for Syrians across the border in the Golan region and treatment for injured Syrians.
On Friday, the Israeli army said that it carried out a night-time operation across the armistice line with Syria.
The surge in violence in the last two weeks has forced around one hundred and sixty thousand people to flee their homes according to preliminary estimates from the UN. This includes twenty thousand people who fled to areas close to the Naseeb border crossing with Jordan, which hosts more than six hundred and fifty thousand registered Syrian refugees and estimates the actual number to be around 1.3 million refugees.
The Israeli officer reiterated that the army would not enter Syrian territory and said, “We will open up the gates, deliver the humanitarian assistance, and then close the gate.” This aid is handled by non-governmental organizations he added.
Amman said that it cannot open its border for more Syrians fleeing the seven-year-old conflict, however, it said that it would send aid across the border for displaced people.
In 1967, Israel occupied vast areas in the Golan Heights and surrounding areas in Syria, and later annexed them in a move that was not recognized by the international community.
Turkey in Afrin
1 July 2018
The Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hami Aksoy said that the Turkish presence in Afrin, north of Syria, will go on for some time in order to “continue its development.”
“Life has gone back to normal in Afrin, but Turkey’s presence will go on for some time to continue work on the development of the area,” according to the official Anatolia news agency. Aksoy pointed out that there are more than one hundred and forty thousand people from Afrin’s residents who went back to settle down in their houses.
“Turkey has gradually begun to hand over some of the tasks to the local council established by the residents of Afrin, which comprises figures from all components in the region, including Kurds, Turkmen, and Arabs,” he said, “Turkey is facing defamation campaigns on the pretext of Afrin,” he added.
On 18 March 2018, Turkish forces and the opposition Free Syrian Army took control over the center of Afrin, according to Anatolia news agency.
Maya Without Legs in Turkey
27 June 2018
The image of the Syrian child Maya who was born without legs and uses artificial limbs that are basically tin cans has circled the world and caused wide shock and controversy. Now, Maya has been transferred to Turkey and is ready to start a new chapter in her life.
The orthopedic treating the eight-year-old child in Istanbul pledged in front of her father saying: “Maya will walk.”
AFP and other media ten days ago published photos showing Maya Morai difficultly moving around with the help of tin cans and plastic tubes in a camp for displaced people in Idlib, northwest of Syria.
Maya’s father Mohammed Moraai (thirty-four years) made these artificial limbs, he himself was born with the same birth defect as that of Maya.
Their pictures motivated the Israeli Red Crescent to evacuate the child and the father from Idlib quickly, and send to a specialized clinic in Istanbul.
“Maya will walk. I hope this will happen in the next three months,” said Dr. Mehmet Zeki Culcu who is taking care of them.
Mohammed Morai and his family used to live in a village in the southern countryside of Aleppo, and they left their homes early this year because of the battles.
A few months ago, Maya was able to move around by crawling just like her father, but after she went through surgery which shortened her amputated legs, she was not able to even crawl.
“After the surgery, she could not move around and she stayed in the tent,” her father said, “Maya has two brothers and three sisters who do not suffer from this birth defect.”
“In order to encourage her to leave the tent, I came up with the idea of placing plastic tubes stuffed with sponges on the amputated legs to ease the pressure on the limbs. After that, I added two empty tuna cans because the tubes could not withstand the friction with the ground very well,” her father said.
Armed with this innovative device, Maya went back to wandering outside the tent and went to the camp’s school all by herself. Her father used to replace the tubes once a month and the tuna cans once a week.
Russia Imposes a Settlement
1 July 2018
Syrian opposition factions in Daraa reached an agreement on Sunday with Russian forces that provides for settling the situation of militants under a general amnesty.
“The Russian military negotiation team reached an agreement with militant commanders in the city Daraa al-Balad and the northwestern countryside of Daraa that provides for handing in heavy and middle weaponry to the Syrian army and settling the situation of all militants under a general amnesty. Militant commanders most probably left for Jordan,” informed Syrian sources said.
A meeting was held on Sunday at noon at the governorate town hall in Daraa that included some militant commanders from Daraa al-Balad and the northwestern countryside of Daraa. The first session of negotiations ended, and the parties left for consultations and came back in the evening, and an agreement was reached.
Another team from the Russian forces held prolonged meetings that lasted for two days in the city of Bosra al-Sham in the eastern countryside of Daraa. An agreement was reached the provides for the handing of heavy, middle, and light weaponry present in Bosra al-Sham. The agreement also provides for the entry of the Syrian army to the city and the opening of a humanitarian corridor between the villages of Kharba and Ira’a.
“On Sunday evening, the armed groups began to hand in their heavy equipment in Bosra al-Sham to army units and then it was transported to the town of Barad in Sweida Governorate, east of Bosra al-Sham,” a Syrian military source told a German news agency.
