ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

By Chris Tomson Al-Masdar News has obtained jaw-dropping footage from northern Syria suggesting the US-led coalition has allowed hundreds of ISIS vehicles to leave Raqqa city for areas controlled by the Syrian Arab Army (SAA). Despite Kurdish and American drones hovering above Raqqa on all flanks, the Islamic State convoy remained completely untouched by coalition airstrikes, thus suggesting an under-the-table deal may have been struck between the warring parties: According to an Al-Masdar News researcher, the footage could be traced back to earlier this month while the convoy in the video later was  bombed by the Russian Air Force . Some conspiracy theorists also speculate the US-led coalition allowed thousands of ISIS militants to escape Mosul back in November, 2016 only to capture the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra the following month. This article was first published by  Al-Masdar News  -

Why Are We Attacking the Syrians Who Are Fighting ISIS? By Ron Paul  Just when you thought our Syria policy could not get any worse, last week it did. The US military twice attacked Syrian government forces from a military base it illegally occupies inside Syria. According to the Pentagon, the attacks on Syrian government-backed forces were “defensive” because the Syrian fighters were approaching a US self-declared “de-confliction” zone inside Syria. The Syrian forces were pursuing ISIS in the area, but the US attacked anyway. The US is training yet another rebel group fighting from that base, located near the border of Iraq at al-Tanf, and it claims that Syrian government forces pose a threat to the US military presence there. But the Pentagon has forgotten one thing: it has no authority to be in Syria in the first place! Neither the US Congress nor the UN Security Council has authorized a US military presence inside Syria. So what gives the Trump Administration the right to set u

Click to see the full-size map A prominent Iranian commander, Major General Qasem Soleimani, has been spotted alongside with fighters of Hezbollah and Liwa Fatemiyoun in the area northeast of the US At Tanf garrison at the Syrian-Iraqi border. Soleimani is Commander of the Quds Force, a special forces unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The Quds Force is responsible for extraterritorial operations of the IRGC. Photos and videos of Soleimani and members of Iranian-backed groups like Hezbollah and Liwa Fatemiyoun confirm a deep Iranian involvement in the operations at the Syrian-Iraqi border. The Syrian pro-government forces success northeast of At Tanf would allow to establish a land route between Iran and its allied forces in Syria and Lebanon as well as it will allow to increase supplies and support to the Damascus government. Click to see the full-size image Click to see the full-size image

Phot: mod.gov.sy Units of the Syrian Army and its allied forces have liberated 100 km2 from ISIS terrorists in the countryside of Palmyra in the province of Homs, the Syrian Defense Ministry  said in a statement  on June 13. According to the statement, government forces have successfully advanced northeast and south of Palmyra inflicting a notable damage to the ISIS manpower and military equipment. Now,  government forces are storming the area of Arak and developing momentum in the direction of the T3 airbase .