Orientul Mijlociu

A slate of recent papers and policy briefings have advised Western governments to reverse their designation of the Syrian group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) as a terrorist organization. Such questionable policy recommendations are usually justified by arguing that HTS, under the leadership of Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, is a viable negotiating partner that is willing and able to rein in more dangerous global jihadist groups in Syria.

At the beginning of the Syrian conflict in 2011, the Iranian government announced it would provide strategic support to the Bashar al-Assad regime without direct military intervention. However, as the conflict wore on and opposition forces began to wrest control of areas from the regime, Iran directly intervened in various Syrian fronts to prevent the fall of Assad, particularly between 2013 and 2018.

The figure was responsible for planning, funding, and approving trans-regional al Qaeda attacks

A senior al Qaeda leader has been killed in a drone strike in Syria, U.S. defense officials confirmed to Fox News Thursday.

Salim Abu-Ahmad was killed in a U.S. airstrike near Idlib, Syria on Sept. 20. He was responsible for planning, funding, and approving trans-regional al Qaeda attacks.

Tehran used to continuously assure the West that the danger did not lie in Shia Islam to global peace, and the episode of 9/11 occurred on the right time for the Iranians to prove their claim. Though Irans then President Mohammad Khatami provided intelligence to the United States and IRGC-QFs (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – Quds Force) Qassem Soleimani oversaw the contact to fight ‘war on terror’ against the Taliban but things could not move towards negotiations between Washington and Tehran. Following Afghanistan`s invasion, George W. Bush in January 2002 labeled Iran as ‘axis of evil’ along with North Korea and Iraq. Because Bush administration wanted to emphasize that these states possess weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) and support terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda and pose threat to US.

In a press conference, Ilham Ahmed claimed that the PKK fought extremism, and expressed the SDC’s willingness to dialogue with the Assad regime and Turkey, according to Syria TV.

“The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has fought terrorism and extremism in several areas where the Kurds are present. They have given everything, their most precious offerings, including the lives of their members,” said Ilham Ahmed, joint president of the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC). She noted that this “puts a moral obligation on the SDC towards the party.”

Despite President Biden’s remarks last week to the UN that the United States is at peace for the first time in 20 years, fighting continues against terrorism in the Middle East.

The US-led coalition conducted several operations against Islamic State fighters and support cells recently, even as the administration is trying to move the American troops from a combat role to an advisory one in neighboring Iraq.