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Iran to take a seat among world powers for Syria talks

AP Photo/Craig Ruttle Latest Syria News Iran to take a seat among world powers for Syria talks Iran to attend international talks on Syria’s future Russia pounds Syrian rebels, then reaches out to opposition Official: Iran has sent more military advisers to Syria UN: At least 120,000 displaced in Syria in past month var mytd = document.getElementById(‘mytd’); var mydiv = document.getElementById(‘spnrefmoneymarkets’); if (mytd != null) {mytd.innerHTML = spnrefmoneymarkets.innerHTML; mydiv.innerHTML = ”}; BEIRUT (AP) — Iran will take part in international talks on Syria for the first time this week, giving it a voice in the effort to find a resolution to the more than 4-year-old civil war that has so far defied even the slightest progress toward peace. A crucial backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad, Tehran has been shunned from all previous talks on Syria. Its inclusion now marks recognition by the United States that no discussion on […]

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Iran Is Invited to Join U.S., Russia and Europe for Talks on Syria’s Future

WASHINGTON — Iran has been invited to join talks in Vienna this week with Russia , the United States and European nations on whether a political resolution is possible in the Syrian civil war. If Iran accepts, it will be the first time Secretary of State John Kerry will enter formal negotiations with Tehran on issues beyond the nuclear accord reached in July. Russia has been pressing to include Iran, the only other major power giving military support to President Bashar al-Assad in his effort to remain in power. Senior American officials have begun to acknowledge in recent weeks that no serious discussion of a possible political succession plan in Syria can happen without Tehran’s involvement. But the American denunciation of Iran’s activities in Syria, including its support for Mr. Assad’s forces and for terror groups like Hezbollah, has always prevented the United States from including Iran in formal […]

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For Saudis, Any Countermove Against Putin in Syria Carries Risks

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, with his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad in Moscow, on Oct. 20. Russia’s entry into the Syrian civil war has tilted the balance in favor of the government side, and there’s no risk-free way for Saudi Arabia — a key backer of the rebels — to tilt it back. Powerful Saudi clerics are calling for a response to the Russian move, even though the kingdom is already bogged down in another war in Yemen. Analysts say the Saudi government will probably speed up the flow of cash and weapons to its allies in the opposition fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad, who’s also supported by Saudi Arabia’s main rival, Iran. While the Saudis may seek to direct their aid to “moderate forces” in Syria, “the definition of this word is subject to much debate,” said Theodore Karasik, a Dubai-based political analyst. Sending arms “is dangerous […]

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Assad Finds Chilly Embrace in Moscow Trip

Photo The rebel-held area of Douma, east of Damascus, on Wednesday after an airstrike by Syrian forces was reported. Credit Sameer Al-Doumy/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images WASHINGTON — In the winter of 2012, when the civil war in Syria had already consumed tens of thousands of lives, Vladimir V. Putin , the Russian president, sounded dismissive of Syria’s beleaguered leader, Bashar al-Assad , and unconcerned about his future. Mr. Assad, he said, acidly, had spent more time courting leaders in European capitals than he ever had in Moscow. “We are not that preoccupied with the fate of Assad’s regime,” Mr. Putin said then. Three years later, the two presidents have bound themselves together in an alliance that reflects not only the urgent priority of salvaging the crumbling central government in Syria, but also each man’s eroded standing on the international stage. Mr. Putin’s military has forcefully intervened to shore […]

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Russia Makes an Impact in Syrian Battle for Control of Aleppo

Photo A Syrian opposition fighter near Aleppo last weekend during clashes with forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad. Credit Thaer Mohammed/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images ISTANBUL — Government forces across Syria — including army units, fighters with the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah and other loyalist militias — were trying to advance Tuesday on more than half a dozen front lines, with close air support in places from Russian warplanes and helicopters. Syrian Army troops and allied militias inched their way closer to the contested city of Aleppo, as a slowly developing offensive stretched into its fifth day. To the east of the city, forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad appeared to be pushing to retake a military airport surrounded by militants with the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. There are indications that the most prominent members of a new pro-government alliance — Russia and Iran — […]

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Syrian rebels say receive more weapons for Aleppo battle

Free Syrian Army fighters of the 101 Division stand behind sandbags near the town of Morek in the northern countryside of Hama, Syria October 14, 2015. Rebels battling the Syrian army and its allies south of Aleppo say they have received new supplies of U.S.-made anti-tank missiles from states that oppose President Bashar al-Assad since a major government offensive began there on Friday. Rebels from three Free Syrian Army-affiliated groups contacted by Reuters said new supplies had arrived since the start of the attack by the army backed by Iranian fighters and Lebanon’s Hezbollah. But officials from one of the groups said that while new quantities had arrived, the supplies were not enough for the scale of the assault. They declined to be identified due to the sensitivities of the matter. "A few will not do the trick. They need dozens," said one of the officials. A number of […]

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Putin Officials Said to Admit Real Syria Goal Is Far Broader

File photo showing Russian MIG-29 jet fighters. Russian intervention may last as long as a year, official says As Russia’s air war in Syria nears its fourth week, officials now admit that Moscow’s aim is far broader than the publicly announced fight against terrorist groups. The Kremlin’s real goal is to help Syrian President Bashar al-Assad retake as much as possible of the territory his forces have lost to opponents, including U.S.-backed rebels, Russian officials told Bloomberg News. Moscow’s deployment of several dozen planes, as well as ships in the Black and Caspian Seas, could last a year or more, one official said. President Vladimir Putin is willing to run the risk of falling into the kind of quagmire that helped sink the Soviet Union a generation ago for the chance to roll back U.S. influence and demonstrate he can dictate terms to Washington. If the strategy is successful, […]

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Iran backs battle for Syria’s Aleppo with proxies, ground troops

A Free Syrian Army fighter rides on a motorbike with his children past the rubble of damaged buildings Oct. 18 in the old city of Aleppo. (Hosam Katan/Reuters) BEIRUT — A senior Iranian commander is coordinating an assault on the Syrian city Aleppo by a mix of Shiite forces from Iran, Lebanon and Iraq in support of Syrian troops, militiamen say, an indication of deepening Iranian involvement in Syria’s war that has transcended national boundaries. Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani , commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force and the public face of Iran’s military intervention in the region, has ordered thousands of Shiite militiamen into Syria for an operation to recapture Aleppo, according to officials from three Iraqi militias. The militiamen are to join Iranian troops and forces from Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shiite militia, the officials said. The Iraqi Shiite militia Kitaeb Hezbollah has sent around 1,000 fighters from […]

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Syrian Regime, Backed by Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, Expands Ground Offensive to Aleppo

Syrian pro-regime forces backed by Russian airstrikes have expanded their ground offensive to the strategic city of Aleppo, one of the clearest signs yet of how Russia’s recent military intervention has emboldened President Bashar al-Assad and his loyalists. In the bitterly fought multi-sided war, Aleppo is among the most coveted prizes. Losing partial control of the city, which was once Syria’s largest and its commercial capital, was an embarrassment to the regime. But with the backing of Russian warplanes, Iranian forces and the Lebanese militia Hezbollah, Mr. Assad’s forces could now be in position to regain large parts of the city and the surrounding countryside. “I suspect Assad always wanted to take back Aleppo because it is such an important city and retaking it has such strategic and symbolic importance,” said Emile Hokayem, a Middle East analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a London-based military and security […]

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Syrian army, Russian jets attack rebels in southern Aleppo

A frame grab taken from footage released by Russia’s Defence Ministry October 15, 2015, shows a Sukhoi Su-24M military aircraft landing on the tarmac at the Hmeymim air base near Latakia, Syria. Syrian troops and their allies, backed by Russian jets, attacked insurgent fighters south of Aleppo on Friday, a source in Syria and a monitoring group said, as the army expands a counter-offensive with support from Moscow’s two-week-old air campaign. "The military operation has started in rural southern Aleppo," a pro-government source in Syria said. Rami Abdulrahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said there were heavy clashes near the Jebel Azzan region, about 12 km (8 miles) south of Aleppo city, control of which is divided between government forces and rebels. The area the army and Russian jets were targeting was close to a main road heading south towards the capital Damascus, Abdulrahman said. Since […]

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