Bashar Al Assad’s relatives arrested trying to leave Lebanon
The wife and daughter of one of former Syrian president Bashar Al Assad’s cousins were arrested Friday at Beirut airport, where they attempted to fly out with allegedly forged passports, Lebanese judicial and security officials told the Associated Press.
Rasha Khazem, the wife of Duraid Assad — the son of former Syrian vice president Rifaat Al Assad, the uncle of Bashar Al Assad — and their daughter, Shams, were smuggled illegally into Lebanon and were trying to fly to Egypt when they were arrested, according to five Lebanese officials.
They were being detained by Lebanese General Security. Rifaat Al Assad had flown out the day before on his real passport and was not stopped, the officials said.
Swiss federal prosecutors in March indicted Rifaat Al Assad on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity for allegedly ordering murder and torture more than four decades ago.
Rifaat Al Assad, the brother of Bashar Al Assad’s father Hafez, Syria’s former ruler, led the artillery unit that shelled the city of Hama and killed thousands. That earned him the nickname the “Butcher of Hama”.
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9 ours ago
Syria’s new intel chief pledges restructuring reforms to end abuses
The new head of Syria’s intelligence services announced on Saturday a plan to dissolve the institutions that were so feared under the rule of ousted dictator Bashar Al Assad.
“The security establishment will be reformed after dissolving all services and restructuring them in a way that honors our people,” Anas Khattab said, two days after being appointed to his post by the country’s new leadership that overthrew Mr Al Assad in early December.
He stressed the suffering of Syrians “under the oppression and tyranny of the old regime, through its various security apparatuses that sowed corruption and inflicted torture on the people”.
Many Syrians have rushed to former detention centres in the hope of finding traces of relatives and friends who went missing during the 13 years of a devastating civil war that left more than a half million dead.
“The security services of the old regime were many and varied, with different names and affiliations, but all had in common that they had been imposed on the oppressed people for more than five decades,” Mr Khattab continued.
–AFP
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14 hours ago
Services suspended at Syria’s embassy following deportations by Lebanon
Syria’s embassy in Lebanon suspended consular services on Saturday, a day after two relatives of deposed Syrian president Bashar Al Assad were arrested at the Beirut airport with allegedly forged passports.
Also on Saturday, Lebanese authorities handed over dozens of Syrians — including former officers in the Syrian army under Mr Al Assad — to the new Syrian authorities after they were caught illegally entering Lebanon, a war monitor and Lebanese officials said.
The embassy announced on its Facebook page that consular work was suspended “until further notice” at the order of the Syrian Foreign Ministry. The announcement did not give a reason for the suspension.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Saturday that 70 Syrians, including former army officers, were handed over by a Lebanese security delegation to the security forces of the new Syrian government, led by the former insurgent group Hayat Tahrir Al Sham. Three Lebanese judicial officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the report.
–AP
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15 hours ago
Turkey and US discuss co-operation with new Syrian administration
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan discussed with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday the need to act in co-operation with the new Syrian administration to ensure the completion of the transition period in an orderly manner, the ministry said.
In a phone call, Mr Fidan told Mr Blinken that Ankara would not allow Kurdish YPG militia to take shelter in Syria, the ministry said.
During the call, Mr Blinken emphasised the need to support a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process that “upholds human rights and prioritises an inclusive and representative government”, the US State Department said.
Mr Blinken and Mr Fidan also discussed preventing terrorism from endangering the security of Turkey and Syria, it said.
–Reuters
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a day ago
Syria’s de-facto leader Al Shara meets Bahraini and Libyan delegations
Syria’s de-facto leader Ahmad Al Shara on Saturday met a Bahraini delegation led by the chairman of the Strategic Security Bureau (SSB) Shaikh Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al Khalifa, the new administration said.
The SSB was established in 2022 and is affiliated with Bahrain’s Supreme Defence Council.
Mr Al Shara also met a Libyan delegation led by Minister of State for Communication and Political Affairs in the Government of National Unity, Walid Ammar Al Lafi, Sana news agency reported.
Mr Al Shara, formerly known as Abu Muhammad Al Jawlani, is seeking to establish relations with Arab and western leaders after toppling president Bashar Al Assad.
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a day ago
Chinese and Iranian ministers agree Middle East ‘not battleground for big powers’
Ministers from China and Iran agreed on Saturday that the Middle East is “not a battleground for the big powers” and should not be a place for geopolitical competition between countries outside the region.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi agreed that “the international community should respect the sovereignty, security, stability, unity and territorial integrity of Middle East countries,” according to China’s Foreign Ministry.
Mr Araghchi is on his first visit to China since his appointment in the summer.
The two major trading partners reiterated calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, the proper implementation of the ceasefire in Lebanon, and the “integrated promotion of counter-terrorism, reconciliation and humanitarian processes in Syria”.
“The two sides agreed that the Middle East belongs to the people of the Middle East, and is not a battleground for the big powers, and should not be a victim of geopolitical competition and conflicts between countries from outside the region,” the ministry said.
China and Iran were both supporters of ousted Syrian president Bashar Al Assad. Syria’s new leader, Ahmad Al Shara, is an ardent opponent of Tehran.
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a day ago
Syrian authorities arrest remnants of pro-Assad militias in Latakia
Syria’s interim authorities arrested a number of remnants of pro-Bashar Al Assad militias in the town of Sett Markho in Latakia province on Saturday, official Sana news agency reported.
The forces seized weapons and ammunition and search operations by the Military Operations Department and the Interior Ministry are under way, Sana said.
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28/12/2024 12:04 pm
Russia’s SVR says US and UK trying to force evacuation of Russian bases in Syria
Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service has accused the US and UK of trying to provoke attacks against Russian military bases in Syria in an effort to force an evacuation, the state-run RIA news agency said on Saturday.
The SVR gave no evidence for its allegation.
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28/12/2024 11:05 am
Car bombing in flashpoint northern Syria town, says war monitor
A car bomb exploded late on Friday in the centre of the flashpoint northern Syria town of Manbij, causing damage but no casualties, a war monitor said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast, said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has a network of sources inside Syria.
Manbij, which had for years been held by Kurdish-led troops, fell this month to pro-Turkey armed groups.
The White Helmets group also reported the blast on its Telegram channel on Friday.
The observatory said it was the second such attack in days. On Tuesday, bombs in a car killed two people in Manbij, it said.
Friday’s attack caused “material damage, but there were no immediate reports of human losses”, it added.
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28/12/2024 01:43 am
Silent rally calls for action on disappeared Syrians
A silent crowd gathered in Damascus to press the new authorities on the fate of relatives who went missing under president Bashar Al Assad’s rule.
Dozens of sombre protesters held pictures of loved ones in central Damascus’s Hijaz Square.
“It is time for tyrants to be held accountable,” read a black banner unfurled from the balcony of the train station.
Other placards read: “Revealing the fate of the missing is a right,” and “I don’t want an unmarked grave for my son, I want the truth.”
Tens of thousands of people disappeared under the old regime.
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27/12/2024 09:57 pm
Israel strikes crossings between Syria and Lebanon
Israeli jets struck seven crossing points along the Syria-Lebanon border, aiming to cut the flow of weapons to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group in southern Lebanon.
The commander of the Israeli Air Force, Maj Gen Tomer Bar, said Hezbollah was trying to smuggle weapons into Lebanon to test Israel’s ability to stop them.
“This must not be tolerated,” he said in a statement.
Under the terms of a November 27 ceasefire agreement, Israel is supposed to withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon in phases while unauthorised Hezbollah military facilities south of the Litani River are to be dismantled.
-Reuters
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27/12/2024 08:33 pm
Ukraine sends shipment of grain to Syria
Ukraine has sent a shipment of grain to Syria to help feed more than 150,000 people in a “time of need”, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday.
Five hundred tonnes of Ukrainian wheat flour are on their way to Syria, divided into packages that can feed a family of five for a month, Mr Zelenskyy said. The aim is to reach 33,000 families or 167,000 people. Syria previously imported food from Russia, an ally of Bashar Al Assad’s regime, but food prices rocketed after rebel forces took over Damascus.
“We wish Syria and its people safety, stability, and recovery. We know the true value of these things,” Mr Zelenskyy said. Ukraine is one of the world’s top agricultural exporters although its farms and port terminals have been damaged by the war with Russia.
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27/12/2024 03:33 pm
Who is Mohammad Kanjo Hassan, the former Syrian official accused of Sednaya prison executions?
Hadya Al Alawi reports:
Syria’s new authorities have arrested the former head of the military judiciary in the ousted Assad regime, Mohammad Kanjo Hassan, who issued death sentences for people held in the infamous Sednaya prison, according to UK-based war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
He had held several high-profile roles under fallen president Bashar Al Assad’s government.
“Hassan was arrested in the village of Khirbet al-Ma’za in the countryside of Tartus along with 20 other members [of Mr Al Assad’s government] during a large-scale security campaign carried out by the Military Operations Department”, a day after deadly clashes erupted in the coastal province of Tartus between security forces that tried to arrest him and gunmen who sought to protect him.
Mr Hassan is the highest-ranking officer to have been arrested since Mr Al Assad was overthrown in a lightning offensive by rebels on December 8. He held the position of director of the military judiciary and head of the field court, and was responsible for many executions at Sednaya prison near Damascus, the site of extrajudicial executions, torture and forced disappearances, under the regime.
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27/12/2024 01:32 pm
Turkey aims to provide power to Syria, collaborate on oil and gas, media says
Turkey aims to provide electricity to Syria and strengthen its power infrastructure, Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar was quoted on Friday as saying, adding that Ankara may also work with Syria’s new leadership on oil and natural gas.
After backing the Syrian rebels who toppled President Bashar Al Assad this month after a 13-year civil war, Turkey has emerged as one of the main power brokers and has vowed to help rebuild the country.
Ankara was one of the first countries to reopen its embassy in Damascus, while its foreign minister and intelligence chief both met with Syria’s de facto leader Ahmad Al Shara there.
Mr Bayraktar, who met with Turkish media representatives, said a delegation, which he may chair, was planning to travel to Syria on Saturday to discuss electricity transmission, infrastructure and other matters.
“We must very rapidly provide electricity to parts of Syria that do not have electricity, with imports in the initial phase. In the medium-term, we also plan to increase the set electricity power, the production capacity there,” Hurriyet newspaper cited him as saying.
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27/12/2024 10:16 am
Syria’s journey to justice cannot wait
The National Editorial:
When a country changes government as abruptly as Syria did less than a month ago, the nation’s new authorities are invariably confronted by a formidable list of problems. The crux of the challenge often comes down to prioritisation – what requires action now, and what can be left for later?
Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, Syria’s rebel militia-turned-government, currently faces such a dilemma as unrest breaks out in different parts of the country. On Thursday, Tartus, Latakia and Jableh saw angry protests after a video purporting to show an arson attack on an Alawite shrine in Aleppo was circulated online, although some claim it was footage of an old incident.
A deadlier manifestation of Syria’s many divisions took place on Tuesday when at least 14 personnel belonging to the rebel-led government were killed in a shootout in Tartus by what Interior Minister Mohammad Abdul Rahman described as “remnants” of the old state loyal to Bashar Al Assad.
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27/12/2024 10:10 am
Syrian authorities arrest official behind Saydnaya death penalties, says war monitor
A Syrian war monitor said on Thursday that the country’s new authorities had arrested a military justice official under the ousted government of president Bashar Al Assad, who issued death sentences for people held in the notorious Saydnaya prison.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Mohammed Kanjo Hassan was arrested in the coastal Tartus province, a stronghold of Assad’s clan, along with 20 members of his entourage.
Under the deposed government, Kanjo Hassan issued, according to the Observatory, “thousands” of sentences, including death sentences, for people held in Saydnaya.
Kanjo Hassan headed Syria’s military field court from 2011 to 2014, according to Diab Serriya, co-founder of the Association of Detainees and Missing Persons of Saydnaya Prison.
He was later promoted to chief of military justice nationwide, Serriya said, adding that he sentenced “thousands of people” to death, often in “trials that lasted minutes”.
Serriya’s group estimates that Kanjo Hassan made $150 million from bribes paid by relatives of detainees desperate for information on their loved ones.
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27/12/2024 03:20 am
Defeat ISIS mission remains top US priority
Ellie Sennett reports from Washington
The US State Department has declined to answer if Washington had specifically been in touch with the new government in Damascus or with Ankara in recent days over escalations in the north-east.
A department spokesman told The National that Washington’s Defeat ISIS mission remains “a top US policy priority” in Syria and that the departing Biden administration is working “very hard to avoid an escalation in northern Syria that would limit the ability” of the Syrian Democratic Force’s partner role in that mission.
Fighters from the Kurdish-led SDF are considered by Turkey to be aligned with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, a secessionist group that has fought a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state.
“The security of detention facilities and de-escalation in Manbij and Kobani areas are top US priorities, and we are working to ensure both,” the official said.
“As we have made clear, the United States stands firmly with our Nato ally Turkey and the Turkish people in their fight against the PKK, which the United States has designated a foreign terrorist organisation.”
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27/12/2024 12:22 am
Iran denies interfering in Syria
Iran’s Foreign Ministry has rejected accusations that Tehran has interfered in Syria.
The new Syrian Foreign Minister, Asaad Al Shibani, warned Iran on Wednesday not to spread chaos in Syria and to respect its sovereignty
On Thursday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said: “We reject the baseless accusations by some media … against Iran over interfering in Syria’s internal affairs.”
“It is necessary to prevent the spread of insecurity and violence … and ensure the security of Syrian citizens.”
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26/12/2024 04:57 pm
Iraqi intelligence chief discusses border security with new Syrian administration
An Iraqi delegation, led by the intelligence chief, met the new Syrian administration in Damascus to discuss shared border security, a government spokesman told Iraq News Agency.
“An Iraqi delegation headed by the head of the intelligence service, Hamid Al Shatri, met with the new Syrian administration, and discussed developments on the Syrian arena, and the requirements for security and stability in the common borders between the two countries,” spokesman Bassem Al Awadi said.
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26/12/2024 04:38 pm
Syria’s Information Ministry warns against distributing sectarian content
The Information Ministry in Syria’s interim government has warned against distributing any sectarian media content that “aims to spread division and discrimination among the components of the Syrian people”.
“We stress the need for all media institutions and media activists to commit to working to spread the values of brotherhood and coexistence,” the ministry said, warning that those who ignored the directive will be held accountable.
