Orientul Mijlociu

On May 1, 2017, Hamas published a policy document approved by all the movement leaders. The leaders clarified that the document was not replacing the Hamas Charter[1] but was aimed at adapting the movement’s position to the current time. The document was presented by Hamas spokesmen as a development that did not compromise their principles.[2]

On October 10, 2023, three days after the Hamas attack on southern Israel, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei set out Iran’s official position – i.e. that Iran had no hand in the attack.

However, statements by some senior Iranian officials and leaders of the Palestinian resistance groups indicate that one of the aims of the attack was to thwart the U.S.-Saudi-Israel initiative to expand Saudi-Israeli normalization, implement the Saudi solution to the Palestinian issue, and grant legitimacy to a Saudi nuclear program. This is because this joint initiative would cause strategic damage to Iran and to the resistance axis that it leads.

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has extolled as “historic” its latest retaliatory operation against the Israeli regime in the occupied territories and vowed that the attacks on the illegal entity will continue until the full liberation of Palestine.

The Iranian-backed Houthis fired missiles and drones at three commercial vessels and a U.S. warship in the Red Sea. The Houthis claimed credit for targeting the commercial vessels Unity Explorer and Number Nine, while the Pentagon confirmed that it downed missiles and drones that were fired from Yemen. Today’s attack is the latest by the Houthis against international shipping, which the terror group claims is designed to support Hamas as Israel targets it in Gaza.

About Deir Azzour
Syria’s Deir Azzour governorate encompasses the two most important remaining wilayat (provinces) of ISIS’ would-be caliphate, Wilayat al-Furat/Wilayat al-Badiya and Wilayat al-Khayr, in an area that runs south into Iraq on the Middle Euphrates River Valley (MERV) in eastern Syria. These two provinces, Wilayat al-Khayr/Wilayat al-Badiya (from the areas west of the city of Deir Azzour down the MERV to the area of Albu Kamal) and Wilayat al-Furat (the area of Albu Kamal in Syria to the area of Qa’im in Iraq), will be the next target of the U.S.-led coalition’s campaign. This area of the MERV is also the current target of forces loyal to the Bashar al-Assad government, which maintains a significant presence in the governorate via control over the Deir Azzour Airport and a large part of the city of Deir Azzour. The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) coalition, mainly through its constituent organization the Deir Azzour Military Council, is also advancing toward the city of Deir Azzour.

The coalition between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Arab tribes in Deir ez Zor is fracturing amid clashes over long-standing grievances. The SDF’s response to the clashes very likely will undermine its ability to maintain control in the province for at least the next several months. The SDF and the Deir ez Zor Military Council (DMC) began fighting after the SDF arrested the DMC commander on August 27. The conflict rapidly expanded after August 30, as other tribes joined the fighting driven by long-running grievances against the SDF.[1] These grievances included limited reconstruction in the Arab areas, repeated SDF abuses of the local populations, and a lack of representative Arab leadership.[2] The tribes captured the southern areas of SDF-administered Deir ez Zor province by September 2.[3] The SDF recaptured the territory on September 10 by force and through actions that local media portrayed as abuses. Anti-SDF tribal fighters began conducting hit-and-run insurgent attacks on September 6, meaning anti-SDF forces are contesting the SDF’s control of the population in Deir ez Zor. CTP defines control as “uncontested physical or psychological pressure to ensure that individuals or groups respond as directed.”[4] The SDF has not taken steps to address the tribes’ grievances as of September 14.[5]

Key Takeaways

Turkey has conducted a series of airstrikes in northern Syria against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)—the United States’ sole security partner in the country—since October 5. These attacks are placing significant pressure on the SDF, which, in turn, puts at risk the US mission to defeat ISIS.
Iran has demanded that the Iraqi central government extradite members of Iranian Kurdish opposition groups to Iran, according to independent Iraqi outlet Al Mada. Such a demand would appear to violate international law.

Ever wondered why the Islamic world appears divided on the issue of Palestine? To unravel this intricate dilemma, I’ve integrated three levels of foreign policy analysis with the constructivist perspective of international relations. The three levels involve examining internal factors such as political structures, leadership dynamics, and public sentiment, providing insights into how these elements shape a nation’s approach to foreign policy.

Clashes in Eastern Syria curiously coincided with the claims of an impending American military operation Iyad al-Jaafari writes in Syria TV.

The Iranian response to the ongoing protests in As-Suweida, which could potentially spread across Syria, stands in contrast to their actions during the early stages of the 2011 revolution. This time, the Iranian intervention is more immediate and proactive, signalling an attempt to anticipate and shape developments on the ground by initiating a new front of conflict in the eastern part of the country. This indicates that the “Iranian axis” recognizes the gravity of the situation in Syria and fears the prospect of entering into a protracted, costly, and politically challenging war to rescue the Assad regime once again.

From his military coup in 1970 until his death in 2000, Hafez al-Assad failed to appreciate Syria’s diverse regions, according to Bassam Youssef for Syria TV.

Deir-ez-Zor has endured significant suffering under the rule of the Baath regime, particularly during the Assad family’s leadership. Apart from intentional marginalization, impoverishment, and resource exploitation, Hafez al-Assad perpetrated a grave injustice by eroding the region’s values, ethics, and traditions, while elevating those loyal to him and suppressing its male population.