Syria

IS scored ‘opportunistic’ wins in Syria as Aleppo fell

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AFP on December 24, 2016, 12:37 am Paris (AFP) – The Syrian regime’s all-out offensive to recapture Aleppo enabled the Islamic State group to regain territory elsewhere, including the historic city of Palmyra, and has dimmed prospects of defeating the jihadists, experts say. “The resources deployed (by Damascus and its allies) to retake Aleppo have allowed IS to claim a series of opportunistic victories” in Syria, said Charles Lister of the US think-tank Middle East Institute. During the assault by Syrian, Russian and Iranian forces on rebels in eastern Aleppo, IS jihadists recaptured the historic city of Palmyra on December …

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Syria Daily: Russia-Iran-Turkey Confer in Moscow Today

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December 20,2016 Foreign and defense ministers of Russia, Iran, and Turkey will confer on Tuesday over the future of Syria. The talks, held in Moscow, spurred by the imminent occupation of all of Syria’s largest city Aleppo by foreign forces — including Iranian ground units and Iranian-led Iraqi and Afghan militia, supported by Russian airstrikes — alongside Assad regime units. Russia and Iran have been essential backers of President Assad since the uprising began in March 2011, while Turkey has supported the Syrian opposition and rebels. Relations between Moscow and Ankara were at breaking point in November 2015, after Turkish …

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Russia to veto UNSC resolution calling for observers at Aleppo evacuation

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Russia, a staunch ally of Assad, has vetoed six Security Council resolutions on Syria since the conflict started in 2011 Russia’s UN ambassador has said that his country will veto a French-drafted resolution aimed at ensuring that UN officials can monitor evacuations from Aleppo and the protection of civilians who remain, according to Sky News Arabia. “We cannot allow it to pass because this is a disaster,” Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters. However, he said “there could be another thing which could be adopted today by the Security Council which would accomplish the same goals,” without elaborating. Follow سكاي نيوز عربية-الآن ✔@SkyNewsArabia_B …

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