Tag: Bashar al-Assad
17 Results
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France says around 450 ISIS-linked to nationals, detained in Syria
A Baghdad court sentenced two more Frenchmen to death Tuesday for joining the ISIS jihadist group, raising the number of French ISIS members on death row in Iraq to six.
May 29, 2019 -
Euphrates eclipse
The fall of Baghouz, an eastern Syrian village on the bank of the historically connected Euphrates River, would mark a milestone in the global campaign against ISIS.
March 5, 2019 -
Assad, not Syria, will be rehabilitated in 2019
The rehabilitation of Syria does not seem to be a realistic outcome for 2019. The rehabilitation of Bashar al-Assad looks rather more likely.
January 4, 2019 -
ISIS Trumped?
In the week of jollity around the world, Wednesday’s announcement by the US President signifies an abrupt change in policy that was unveiled six months ago, notably with three objectives ~ to retain US forces in Syria, to endure the “enduring defeat of ISIS”, and act as a bulwark against Iranian influence.
December 22, 2018 -
A tangled skein
It is Donald Trump’s renewed economic reprisal against Hassan Rouhani’s swift rejection of his offer to negotiate after the US binned the nuclear deal concluded by Barack Obama. In effect, the Iranian President had underscored the glaring contradiction in terms; more recently he has rejected the talks offer as”psychological warfare”, making it explicit that”negotiations with …
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August 9, 2018 -
Assad still has ‘limited’ chemical capability: Pentagon
The Syrian regime remains able to conduct chemical attacks, though only at a limited level, the Pentagon has said following last week's international cruise missile strikes on chemical weapons-related targets.
April 20, 2018 -
Momentary blitz
For a brief while, last Saturday’s missile strikes on Syria were a faint echo of the start of the Anglo-US blitz in Iraq (23 March 2003). Fifteen years after, the bombardment from the skies in response to Bashar al-Assad’s chemical attack on the rebels in Douma appears to have been limited and short-lived. The striking …
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April 17, 2018 -
Clash of Shields
In the context of Syria, Donald Trump has advanced a ‘get ready’ threat to Moscow ~ a remarkable swingback from the simulated post-Cold War bonhomie during the US elections. It would be an over-simplification to greet the latest bluster from the White House as characteristically tactless; it is, on closer reflection. dangerous and direly so. …
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April 14, 2018 -
Chemical Assad
Syria bears witness to a rerun of barbarism with the renewed use of chemical weapons against its own people by the Bashar al-Assad regime. Seven years after the Arab Spring, the irony could scarcely have been more bitter. The irony must be tragic too as the repressor remains entrenched in the presidential palace in Damascus. …
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April 11, 2018 -
Khamenei voices support for Syrian resistance
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday lauded what he called the Syrian government’s resistance against terrorism. “Syria is on the frontline, so our duty is to support the Syrian resistance,” Khamenei said in a meeting with the visiting Syrian Minister of Religious Endowments, Mohammad Abdul-Sattar al-Sayyed, and a number of Syrian clerics. He …
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March 2, 2018 -
UN envoy says Syria talks at ‘very critical moment’
The UN special envoy for Syria said that peace talks due to resume in Vienna on Thursday are taking place at a crucial moment. “Definitely I am optimistic because it is the only way to be at such moments,” Staffan de Mistura said. “It is a very, very critical moment.” He said a “full delegation …
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January 25, 2018 -
Putin meets Assad to discuss Syria war
Russian President Vladimir Putin met his Syrian counterpart Bashar-al-Assad to discuss the war in Syria, the Kremlin said in on Tuesday. The meeting took place on Monday in the Russian seaside city of Sochi. Putin told Assad that joint military operations against terrorists in Syria were coming to an end, with the focus now shifting …
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November 21, 2017 -
Assad looks East
A beleaguered President, whom the Western powers have failed to rein for the past six years, has emitted a robust signal of intent. The Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s message is bound to have an impact on the region’s geopolitics. If the West was dithering at the UN, he has now made his position clear with …
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August 23, 2017 -
UN hopes for substantive Syrian peace talks
The UN’s special envoy to Syria said here he hoped substantive Syrian peace talks involving representatives of President Bashar al-Assad’s government and a unified opposition would take place between the months of October and November. Staffan de Mistura on Thursday said in a press conference here that there may eventually be an opportunity in October, …
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August 18, 2017 -
Trump won’t let Assad get away with ‘horrible’ actions
US President Donald Trump said that he won't let Syrian President Bashar al-Assad get away with the "horrible" actions he has done, the media reported. "I am not a fan of Assad. I certainly think what he has done to that country and to humanity is horrible," Xinhua news agency quoted Trump as saying at …
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July 26, 2017 -
Trump says won’t let Assad get away with ‘horrible’ crimes
US President Donald Trump has accused Syria's leader Bashar al-Assad of committing "horrible" crimes against humanity, and vowed to prevent his regime from carrying out any more chemical attacks. Speaking at a White House press conference with Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad Haririon Monday, Trump also called the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah a threat to the …
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July 25, 2017 -
US says Assad may be preparing chemical attack, warns ‘heavy price’
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad may be preparing a chemical weapons attack that would result in the “mass murder” of civilians, the White House said on Tuesday, warning the regime would pay a “heavy price” if it goes ahead. The White House said the preparations were similar to those undertaken by the Assad regime ahead of …
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June 27, 2017