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The American allies that beat back a five-month Islamic State onslaught on the Syria-Turkey border are running a bold experiment in democracy started by … terrorists. From Istanbul, Victor Kotsev examines the Kurdish warrior-democrats doing Washington’s heavy lifting.
The deal announced by Vice President Mike Pence on Thursday leaves more questions than answers.
If the past is not to be ignored, we have every reason to be skeptical of the justifications coming out of Washington for military action in Syria. Is it really about chemical weapons? Two words: Highly. Unlikely.
Two mainstream magazine editors and one former NSC member express skepticism about reports of the Assad regime preparing to use chemical weapons against insurgents.
Outlets sympathetic to the Syrian regime on Sunday hailed what they framed as the beginning of the “systematic destruction” of the Islamic State “across Syria.” But while international media also reported a tenuous reduction in fighting between the army and the rebels, experts are still debating the meaning of the four “de-escalation zones” in Syria […]
Social media went abuzz Friday with videos of US and Syrian Kurdish forces jointly patrolling the Syrian-Turkish border. Reports in the Wall Street Journal and other media subsequently confirmed the patrols. This is the second time this year that US troops have moved in to block an anticipated Turkish attack on Kurds, who […]
VOLUNTEER! Do you have skills you’d like to offer? We have all kinds of needs. Here’s one: Donor Network Coordinator. For more info, visit our Volunteer Page. Now Live on WhoWhatWhy Visas for Al-Qaeda, Part 1: A Sordid Tale By J. Michael Springmann In this remarkable first-hand account, a former US consular official describes a pipeline created by […]
Over the past few days, NATO heavyweight Turkey has once again bombed the Syrian Kurdish forces who have been key to the effort to defeat the Islamic State, just as the jihadists launched a desperate counterattack in Syria, killing up to 70 pro-American forces. Turkey has long been accused of directly or indirectly propping up […]
A day after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to attack Kurdish forces in Syria, social media were abuzz with reports of an impending Turkish operation against these troops, who have been the main US ally on the ground against the Islamic State. https://twitter.com/metesohtaoglu/status/923178493269237760 The enclave of Afrin and the Kurdish-held city of […]
After the fall of the Syrian Kurdish city of Afrin on March 18, the Turkish operation in Syria has entered a particularly dangerous phase, with relations between the regime of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the US fast approaching a make-or-break point. Turkey has set its sights on the next big Kurdish-held city in […]
Trump’s decision to withdraw from Syria, which has stunned friends and foes alike, brought attention to strategic American vulnerabilities on the ground.
As violence in northern Syria continues and war crimes allegations against Turkey mount, it looks as though all US President Donald Trump ostensibly got for his meeting with his Turkish counterpart was an unwanted Islamic State deportee.