Year: 2019

Assad says Idlib is key to ending Syrian war in rare visit

Defeating terrorists in Idlib is the key to ending Syria's civil war, President Bashar al-Assad said in a visit to the embattled northwestern region

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German coalition government divided over call for international Syria border security mission

Germany's coalition government was divided after defense minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer's surprise call for international troops to secure northeast Syria

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‘We can’t lose hope’ – SDF willing to work with US despite ‘huge blow’ in northeast Syria

Senior Syrian Kurdish leader called for a halt of Turkey’s invasion of northeast Syria, saying the SDF are willing to work with the US

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Germany to pitch international control of Syria-Turkey border zone to NATO allies

Germany's defense minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer will present a proposal for an internationally controlled security zone on the Syria-Turkey border to NATO allies

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Bahrain hosts Gulf maritime security conference with Israel in attendance

Representatives from more than 60 countries including met in Bahrain to discuss maritime security following attacks on tankers in the Gulf and Saudi oil installations

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US may leave troops to protect eastern Syria oil fields, Esper says

Some US forces could remain in eastern Syria to secure oil fields controlled by the SDF, U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said

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Iran slams Turkish plan for northeast Syria military bases

Iran denounced as "unacceptable" any move by Turkey to establish military bases in northeast Syria, saying such a step would face opposition

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ISWAP fighters kill Nigeria troops in clashes near Jakana

At least four Nigerian soldiers and a militia fighter were killed in clashes with Islamic State West Africa Province fighters near Jakana in Borno state

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SDF forces withdraw from Ras al-Ayn on Syria-Turkey border

SDF fighters have left Ras al-Ayn following two days of evacuations of wounded civilians from the border city, Redur Xelil said

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UN report documents highest Afghan civilian casualties in a single month since records began

An “unprecedented” number of civilians were killed or injured in Afghanistan between July and September this year, the United Nations said in a new report released on Thursday, October 17, calling the violence “totally unacceptable.” The quarterly report, which also charts violence throughout 2019 so far, underscores how “Afghans have been exposed to extreme levels of violence for many years” despite promises by all sides to “prevent and mitigate harm to civilians.” The figures – 1,174 deaths and 3,139 injured from July 1 until September 30 – represent the largest number of civilian casualties the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan has recorded in a single quarter since it began systematically documenting civilian casualties in 2009, and a 42% increase over the same period last year. July also saw the most civilians killed and injured in a single month since UNAMA records began in 2009. “Civilian casualties are totally unacceptable,” said the U.N.’s special representative in Afghanistan, Tadamichi Yamamoto, adding they demonstrate the importance of talks leading to a ceasefire and a permanent political settlement. “The impact of Afghanistan’s conflict on civilians is appalling,” said Fiona Frazer, UNAMA’s Human Rights Chief. Afghanistan violence surges in Q3 2019 The U.N. laid …

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