Tag: syria

Syrian HTS Troops Mass Murder Civilians At Hospital In South, Days After US Drops Terror Designation

There is gruesome evidence emerging of mass atrocities in the southern Syrian province of Suwayda, where government soldiers under the Sharaa/Jolani regime have been conducing sectarian attacks on Druze and Christians, while seeking to get the etho-religions Druze community to lay down their weapons.

New disturbing images emerging Wednesday show dozens of dead civilians strewn about the floor at the National Hospital of Suwayda. The images seem authentic and verified, as Syria expert Joshua Landis of the University of Oklahoma has described that a regime soldier in the aftermath filmed the results of the massacre while proclaiming “God is Great” and that there has been ‘victory’ over the Druze there.

Russia’s RT News has also picked up on the footage, captioning the “HORRIFIC images reportedly out of Suweida hospital in South Syria shows staff MASSACRED” for “Suspected of being Druze” — as the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) describes.

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Marco Rubio Calls New Israeli Bombing ‘a Misunderstanding,’ Calls for ‘De-Escalation’

As a wave of Israeli attacks on Syrian forces rocks the fragile crust of a Middle East peace, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is trying to stop a full-scale war from erupting.

After two days of Israeli attacks on Syrian forces, Rubio said he was hopeful the attacks would stop.

“It’s complicated, obviously. These are historic, longtime rivalries between different groups in the southwest of Syria — Bedouins, the Druze community — and it led to an unfortunate situation and a misunderstanding, it looks like, between the Israeli side and the Syrian side,” Rubio said in a video posted to X.

“So we’ve been engaged with them all morning long and all night long, with both sides, and we think we’re on our way towards a real de-escalation,” he said.

“And then hopefully get back on track in helping Syria build a country and arriving at a situation there in the Middle East that’s far more stable. So, in the next few hours, we hope to see some real progress to end what you’ve been seeing over the last couple hours,” he said.

Most of Syria is Muslim, but the Druze have their own faith. Last year, after a Muslim-controlled government took power, Druze communities expressed their fears that they could become targets of the new regime, which has said it seeks to respect all faiths, and sought to be annexed by Israel, which has its own Druze communities.

On Wednesday, as Rubio spoke in Washington, Syrian and Druze leaders said they had reached a cease-fire, according to NBC. That came after Israeli air strikes hit targets in the Syrian capital of Damascus.

Announcement of the cease-fire drew skepticism from Druze leaders in Syria, according to the Times of Israel.

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The ‘Global War on Terror’ Is Over. Terror Won.

On Sept. 16, 2001, five days after the attacks on New York and Washington, DC, President George W. Bush declared, “This crusade – this war on terrorism – is going to take a while. And the American people must be patient. I’m going to be patient. But I can assure the American people I am determined.”

Four days after that, President Bush declared the “war on terror” to be primarily against al-Qaeda. “Our war on terror begins with al Qaeda,” he said in an address to Congress and the nation, “but it does not end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped and defeated.”

He described the enemy thus:

This group and its leader — a person named Osama bin Laden — are linked to many other organizations in different countries, including the Egyptian Islamic Jihad and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.  There are thousands of these terrorists in more than 60 countries.

Bush was correct in his assessment of the group.

One of those countries into which al-Qaeda jihadists implanted themselves was Syria, where from 2011 – with the support of the Obama Administration – they attempted to overthrow the secular leader, Bashar al-Assad, using terrorist tactics they had been well-trained in.

They soon changed their name – but not their stripes – and became the Al-Nusra Front, headed up by an experienced jihadist who fought against US troops in Iraq by the name of Abu Mohammad al-Jolani. His group was known for chopping off heads. Perhaps even American heads.

Last December Jolani’s jihadists – with support from the US, Turkey, and Israel – finally brought down the Assad government and quicker than you can say “Washington PR makeover” he clipped his beard, switched out his tactical military watch for a $90,000 Patek Philippe World Time Chronograph, and declared himself president.

The “civilized world” cheered the re-emergence of democracy in Syria!

At their first meeting earlier this year in Saudi Arabia, President Trump praised jihadist Jolani as “a young, attractive fellow” and “a tough guy, a fighter, with a very strong background. He has a lot of potential, he’s a real leader.”

This was a US-designated global terrorist with a $10 million bounty placed on his head by the US authorities. His “wanted” poster STILL remains on the X account of the US Embassy in Syria!

This week, President Trump “removed sanctions on Jolani’s Syria at (Israeli Prime Minister) Netanyahu’s request,” and just yesterday Secretary of State removed Jolani’s old al-Qaeda affiliate (which had gone from al-Nusra to HTS over the years) from the US terrorist list.

As one observer on X quipped:

The history of the GWOT (Global War on Terror) began in 2001 with the US invading Afghanistan to dig out Al Qaeda. It ends twenty-four years later with the US recognizing an AQ affiliate as the new ruler of Syria.

According to Brown University’s Cost of War Project, the “Global War on Terror” cost the American people at least eight trillion dollars. It also took the lives of perhaps a million people.

And what did we get for all this blood and treasure? In Afghanistan, the Taliban were after 20 years of US military action replaced by the Taliban, and in Syria a fierce opponent of al-Qaeda was replaced by… al-Qaeda!

As Jake Sullivan, then right hand to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, wrote to the Secretary in 2012, “al-Qaeda is on our side in Syria.” He wasn’t joking!

That was the shot… here’s the chaser:

In the same week the United States removed sanctions on al-Qaeda ruled Syria, it placed sanctions on… UN Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese!

Who is Albanese? She is the fearless defender of human life in a Gaza where it is slowly being extinguished by Israel with the backing (and weapons) of the US government.

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Syrians Fear Israel Normalization Could Trigger Another Countrywide War

Many Syrians fear another country-wide war could erupt if the country’s new post-Assad rulers make peace with Israel through a normalization deal based on Trump’s Abraham Accords.

Last week, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar told reports that normalization with Syria and Lebanon is on the table, as Prime Minister Netanyahu agrees with Washington on a hoped-for expansion of the Abraham Accords.

“Israel is interested in expanding the Abraham Accords circle of peace and normalization,” Saar said. Israel had already signed deals with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan – the result of Trump’s first term in office.

“We have an interest in adding countries such as Syria and Lebanon, our neighbors – to the circle of peace and normalization while safeguarding Israel’s essential and security interests,” Saar added.

PM Netanyahu himself has recently said that the June war with Iran had opened “the path to dramatically enlarge the peace accord.”

From a strategic point of view, Tel Aviv wants to isolate any Arab country which remains resistant and critical of its war in Gaza.

Going back to Hafez al-Assad who ruled Syria since 1970, Ba’ath-ruled Syria had long been Israel’s fiercest enemy and neighbor, with the two having fought several wars.

The average Syrian has long been hugely critical of Zionism and Israeli expansionism, particularly since it came under control of the Golan Heights.

Now under President Sharaa, hundreds of foreign jihadist groups are running around Syria, often persecuting Christians, Alawites, and Druze as Sharaa’s HTS government in Damascus turns a blind eye.

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Germany Begins Process to Restart Deportations to Syria, Starting with Criminals

The German government has begun the process of lifting the protection status for some Syrian refugees with the aim of returning them to their homeland now that the civil war has ended.

Germany has long been one of the top destinations for Syrian asylum seekers after civil war broke out in 2011. This was ramped up during the 2015 Europe Migrant Crisis when then-Chancellor Angela Merkel opened the gates of the EU, allowing in around a million migrants into Germany, including hundreds of thousands of Syrians.

Now, with the fall of the Assad regime in Damascus and the recent election of Christian Democrat Friedrich Merz in Berlin, Germany finally appears set to begin the process of returning at least some Syrians home.

According to broadcaster NTV, this will start with Syrians convicted of crimes, with the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) being ordered to “start revocation activities” for criminals from Syria.

Previously, even criminal migrants from Syria were allowed to remain in Germany as Berlin had determined that their homeland was not safe for them to return to.

However, others have argued that the government needs to go further, with the anti-mass migration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party saying that previous refugees must also be returned home, not just criminals.

AfD MP Gottfried Curio said: “After more than half a year has passed since the fall of the Assad regime, a new government has been established and the fighting has essentially ended. It is time for the federal government to also take these new realities into account in its asylum policy.”

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Report: Syria Talks With Israel Involve Seizing North Lebanon

Israeli media began reporting new specificities about the Syria-Israel peace talks that have been ongoing for awhile, and incredibly they seem to suggest that the deal is centering around discussions of carving off parts of Lebanon to give to Syria’s Islamist government.

The normalization was centering heavily around the Israeli occupation of the Golan Heights. Israel invaded and occupied parts of Golan in 1967, and invaded further parts of Golan in December after the ouster of the Assad government. The new Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) government has argued that public opinion obliges them to try to get the Golan back.

Or at least part of the Golan. Israeli media are suggesting that a compromise under discussion would see Israel return one third of the Golan to Syria, at least nominally, though potentially with Israel being allowed to continuing leasing it, and then compensating Syria with parts of Lebanon.

The HTS is reportedly keen to seize Tripoli, historically Tripoli of the Levant to distinguish it from the one in Libya, arguing it is a Sunni majority city and was separated from Syria proper during the French mandate. They also reportedly want the Bekaa Valley.

This seems like it would be a non-starter for Lebanon, of course, but there is no indication they’re even involved in the discussion. This gives this talk the appearance of Israel and Syria discussing how to carve up their smaller neighbor.

Tripoli is Lebanon’s second largest city, and over 8% of the city’s population is Alawites. That’s another potential problem with Syria annexing the city, because there have been on-again, off-again massacres of Alawites in northwest Syria, resulting in over ten thousand fleeing into northern Lebanon and the Tripoli area. Now, it seems, the city they fled is also up for grabs.

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White House Pressures Syria To Normalize Ties with Israel Amid ‘Quiet Talks’

President Trump believes Syria may soon join the Abraham Accords, based on comments given to reporters by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Friday. The reasoning seems to be that with Assad out, this provides an opportunity to control the outcome and force Damascus to make peace with Israel.

After all, Syria under the Assad family was the single fiercest, longtime enemy of Israel, with a de facto state of war on for half-a-century, centered on the occupied Golan Heights.

Leavitt told reporters that Trump remains optimistic about expanding the peace agreement. She confirmed that the president brought up the issue directly with Syria’s new de facto leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa (aka. US-terror designated Jolani) during this Riyadh visit and Gulf tour. 

“One of President Trump’s main requests during his meeting with President Sharaa was for Syria to join the Abraham Accords,” Leavitt said. “Achieving a lasting peace in the Middle East is a core objective for this administration.”

Sharaa had reportedly told US Representative Cory Mills during a visit in April that Syria was open to joining the accords under the “right conditions.”

US Special Envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack has also been bringing the pressure. He has recently referenced quiet discussions with Damascus underway, amid the reopening of the ambassador’s residence in Damascus – a first since 2012.

Barrack encouraged the international community to give Syria’s new leadership “an opportunity to prove its new direction.”

However, so far the government stacked with Jolani’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham members has turned a blind eye to massacres targeting Alawites, Christians, and Druze – along the coast and in Damascus and elsewhere.

Sadly, this whole ugly reality seems to be missing from White House statements. Why didn’t Trump name as a firm condition the protection of churches, for example, as a basis for dropping sanctions on Syria?

Just last week Mar Elias Orthodox Church in Damascus was attacked by a suicide bomber, resulting in the deaths of 25 people and scores more wounded.

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Offshoot Of Syria’s Ruling HTS Claims Credit For Damascus Church Bombing

On Sunday, a massive suicide bomb attack tore through the important Greek Orthodox church Mar Elias in Damascus, killing 27 and wounding dozens more. The huge attack just added to the spate of sectarian violence across Syria, which undercuts the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) government’s claim to be protecting religious minorities.

The HTS was quick to blame ISIS for the Mar Elias bombing, and on Monday announced the arrest of a number of ISIS associates who they claimed were involved, vowing to bring them to justice. Now that whole narrative seems in doubt.

ISIS never took credit for the Mar Elias bombing, which, since it was the biggest attack in Damascus in a very long time, would be an unusual oversight. Now, another group, Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah (SAAS), issued its own statement claiming credit for the attack.

SAAS, which was said to be formed in February, went on to say that the government’s claims of arresting people involved with the attack were “untrue, fabricated.” The group is being presented as an ISIS splinter group by some reports, but the reality is substantially different.

SAAS does indeed have some ISIS defectors within, according to reports, but it also has a substantial number of HTS defectors.

SAAS founder Abu Aisha al-Shami was an HTS member, and said he broke away and formed his own group because he perceived HTS as being too soft on Shi’ites and other “rejectionists.”

While HTS has undergone a massive reformation in its presentation in the media, the group was a renamed al-Qaeda affiliate that retains its deeply Salafist ideologies.

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They Should Have Been Called Martyrs: Syria’s Church Bombing and the Government’s Possible Involvement

On what should have been a peaceful Sunday morning of worship, 25 Syrian Christians were slaughtered for their faith.

As the faithful gathered for Divine Liturgy at Mar Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Dweila, outside Damascus, on June 22, 2025, at least three terrorists shattered the sanctity of the service with bullets and explosives.

The main attacker entered the packed church, opened fire on the 350 worshippers, and detonated his explosive vest at the entrance as they tried to force him out.

Meanwhile, at least one terrorist remained outside, firing at worshippers and into the stained-glass windows, while the other attempted to enter and detonate a grenade.

Two parishioners intervened and managed to wrest the device away before it exploded. Still, the blast tore through the church, destroying pews, shattering glass, and leaving blood-stained icons and scattered bodies in what should have been a sanctuary.

“People were praying safely under the eyes of God,” said Father Fadi Ghattas, who witnessed the carnage that left 25 dead and at least 63 wounded. Among the victims were children, innocent lives taken in a place meant to offer peace and protection.

This attack is the latest in a series of assaults on Christians, but it is the first known to be launched from inside a church since the Syrian conflict began in 201, marking a disturbing escalation in violence and a grave violation of holy spaces.

But the historical significance was even more damning.

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Pentagon quietly boosts presence in Syria despite ‘withdrawal’ plans

The US-led international coalition has deployed over 100 trucks of military and logistical reinforcements to its bases in northeastern Syria over the past two days, according to a report by Shafaq on 12 June. The move comes despite recent US announcements of troop drawdowns and base closures in the country.

The convoy, which crossed from Iraq through the Al-Waleed border crossing, was loaded with military vehicles, fuel, food, water, and sealed containers believed to contain weapons and ammunition. The supplies were delivered to coalition bases in Khrab al-Jeer, Qasrak, and Al-Shaddadi in Syria’s Hasakah province.

A source from the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) told the Shafaq news outletthat “weekly deliveries of military and logistical equipment are ongoing,” despite Washington’s claims of scaling down operations. The source confirmed that US forces remain stationed at their posts in Kurdish-controlled territories, actively cooperating with the SDF to contain Islamic State (ISIS) activities.

“The Coalition, in coordination with the SDF, continues to monitor ISIS cells to prevent the group from exploiting the current situation to reorganize or carry out attacks in Syria,” the source stated.

On Wednesday, the SDF announced a joint operation with coalition forces in Al-Mansoura, west of Raqqa, that resulted in the arrest of two prominent ISIS operatives. 

Abdul Sattar Abdul Fattah al-Mohammed, known as “Abu Amira,” and his brother, Mohammed Abdul Fattah al-Mohammed, known as “Abu Al-Baraa,” were captured at a workshop used for manufacturing car bombs and explosive silencers.“These individuals were directly involved in producing improvised explosive devices,” the SDF said in a statement. “The Islamic State’s efforts to destabilize the region will be met with firm resistance to safeguard civilians and public institutions.”

The redeployment of coalition assets comes amid renewed warnings from regional and western intelligence sources that ISIS is attempting a resurgence in both Syria and Iraq.

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