Explainer: Shifting power-plays in North and East Syria

With the 13 October agreement between the Syrian Democratic Forces and Damascus, and the 17 October ‘ceasefire’ agreement between Ankara and Washington, the geopolitical situation in North and East Syria has been rapidly shifting. Both…

Desperate pleas to free women and children from Islamic State detainee camps in Syria

Original article by Livia Albeck-Ripka, The New York Times Women and children who fled the Islamic State are seen last spring in the foreigners section at the Kurdish-controlled al-Hol camp in northern Syria. Analysts say that President…

U.S. troops leaving Syria for western Iraq as Kurds look to withdraw amid cease-fire

Original article by NBC News, 20th October, 2019 American forces continued their withdrawal from northern Syria Sunday and headed for Iraq, while efforts continued for a Kurdish evacuation from the area under the terms of the…

Turkey accused of 'utterly callous disregard for civilian lives'

Original article by Michael Bachelard, October 18th, 2019 Duhok, Iraq: Amnesty has identified potential war crimes in Turkey's invasion of northern Syria that include summary killings, bombings of a civilian convoy and a school where internally…

Fighting continues along Turkish-Syrian border despite US-brokered pause in hostilities

Original article by Josie Ensor, Beirut and Raf Sanchez, Middle East Correspondent, October 18th, 2019 Turkish soldiers are seen in the border town of Tal Abyad, Syria Credit: Turkish Defence Ministry/Handout via REUTERS A British …

'The Situation is miserable': IDPs caught between Turkey and Damascus' forces

Original article by Will Christou, October 17th, 2019 A Kurdish Red Crescent employee talks to displaced children hosted in a school in Hasakah, 12/10/2019 (Kamal Derbas) Amman- In just one week, the ongoing Turkish military operation,…

'Damascus is looking stronger than ever': What next for Syria as Kurds join forces with Assad?

Original article by Orlando CrowCroft, October 15, 2019 As U.S. forces withdrew from the north-eastern Syrian city of Manbij on Tuesday - a week after President Donald Trump announced that he was pulling American forces out of the…

Erdogan's "security zone": Refugees and humanitarian aid in North East Syria

This report seeks to provide an analysis of the Turkey's current invasion in terms of its humanitarian impact. We examine Erdogan’s stated reasons for the invasion of North and East Syria, including his proposals for a so-called “security…

Kurdish-led fighters battle pro-Turkish forces for control of key border town

Original article by MEE and Agencies, October 15, 2019 Activist group says SDF fighters have launched a counter-attack against Turkish proxy forces trying to capture Ras al-Ain Smoke rises over the Syrian town of Ras al-Ain Kurdish-led…

Money and Hatred for the Kurds Drives Turkey's Syrian Fighters

Turkish-backed forces from the Free Syrian Army stand in formation during military maneuvers in preparation for a Turkish incursion targeting Syrian Kurdish fighters, near Azaz town, north Syria on Oct. 7, 2019, (AP) Original article…