US REACTS TO ANKARA’S IDLIB OPERATION: RESTORES SUPPLIES TO AL-QAEDA-AFFILIATED GROUPS, SUSPENDS ALL NON-IMMIGRANT VISA SERVICES IN TURKEY

FILE IMAGE: Jaish al-Izza member

The US has resumed its support to few Free Syrian Army (FSA) groups in Idlib governorate after 2 months of pausing it, the Syrian opposition news website Enab Baladi reported on October 8.

According to the report, the US Military Operation Center in Turkey, named by Turks “MOM”, resumed its support for Jaish al-Nasser in Idlib. Jaish al-Nasser is considered one of the main allies of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda).

However, the US didn’t resume its support for Jaysh al-Izza, another ally of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in Idlib governorate.

The report claimed that the US paused its support to the FSA groups that refused to take part in the Astana talks and to the FSA groups that supported the HTS attack in the northern Hama countryside.

However, these claims are untrue as Jaish al-Nasser was the key HTS ally in its attack on the northern Hama countryside back in March not only Jaysh al-Izza.

Some Syrian opposition sources even claimed that both Jaysh al-Nasr and Jaysh al-Izza secretly supported the recent HTS attacks in the northern Hama countryside on September 19 and August 7.

The US decision to resume its support to some pro-HTS FSA groups in Idlib governorate could be linked to the millitary operation of the Turkish Army and the FSA in the governorate.

In a related development, the US embassy in Turkey announced in an official statement that the US suspended all non-immigrant visa services at all U.S. diplomatic facilities in Turkey. The US embassy claimed that an unspecified “recent events” have forced the US government “to reassess the commitment of the Government of Turkey to the security of U.S. Mission facilities and personnel”.

The US decision is likely another step in response to the upcoming Turkish military operation in Idlib governorate. The US decision can be considered as another evidence that the battle against HTS does not contribute to the US strategic goals in Syria.

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