ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

By TRT TV, click to see the full-size map On March 7, the Turkish Army and its proxies from the Free Syrian Army (FSA) captured the town of Mash’alah of the Shara district, only 8km north of the city of Afrin, according to FSA-linked sourcces. Additionally, the Turkish Army reportedly captured the Maydanki Dam and the village of Hallubi Sagher northeast of Mash’alah. Earlier, the Turkish Army and its proxies advanced in the southern part of the Shara district and  captured the villages and towns of Kafr Janneh, Tall Hamu, Shirkan, Metinli and Qatma and Tel Hamu . Kurdish and Turkish sources reported that the Turkish Air Force (TAF) had stepped up its aerial operations against the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in the center of the Jandaris district, west of Afrin. At least two women were injured in the TAF’s bombardment. Meanwhile, the YPG press announced that YPG fighters had repelled several attacks by the Turkish Army and its proxies on their posit...

On March 7, a booby-trapped car exploded at a checkpoint of the Free Syrian Police in the southern entrance of the city of Jarabulus in the area in northern Aleppo occupied by Turkey during its Operation Euphrates Shield. According to the Syrian pro-opposition news outlet Zaman al-Wasl, 11 civilians were killed and two members of the Free Syrian Police were injured in the explosion. A day earlier, a similar booby-trapped car targeted a HQ of the Free Syrian Police in the city of al-Bab, located southwest of Jarabulus. According to Syrian opposition and Turkish sources, one civilian was killed and more than five others were injured in the attack. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attacks. However, Syrian opposition activists have accused the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) of carrying out the both attacks in response to  its recent loses in Afrin. An unnamed security source in the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) told the Syrian pro-opposi...

Map of the situation around Hays during December 2017 On March 7, fighters loyal to Saudi-backed Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi repelled several attacks by the Houthis on their positions in the southern part of the Hays district in the western province of al-Hudaydah, according to the UAE-based al-Arabiya TV. Pro-Hadi fighters supported by Apache attack helicopters of the Saudi-led coalition killed 30 Houthi members. The Hays district was captured by the Saudi-led coalition and pro-Hadi forces on December 10, 2017 . The district is one of the key positions in western Yemen as it overlooks the highway toward thh al-Hudaydah port. In response to the Houthis’ attacks on Hays, Saudi-led coalition warplanes conducted a series of airstrikes on positions, camps, ammo depots and headquarters of the Houthis in the districts of al-Jarrahi and Tuhayat, south of Hays. Al-Arabiya said that more than 100 Houthis fighters had been killed and dozens others had been injured in the S...

For the first time, the United States Army has begun the testing of  a ground-based robot that can shoot  at specified targets with a .50-caliber top-mounted machine gun. It’s a self-driving vehicle called the “Wingman”. It’s part of a broader program and initiative to develop other armed robotic vehicles just like it. According to reports on its development, it is currently being tested to measure its ability to accurately identify and shoot its targets. According to a statement from the U.S. Army itself, the Wingman is best described as an autonomous remote engagement system that can help reduce the time that it usually takes to identify targets. It does this by relying on a “vision-based automatic target detection and user-specified target selection,” the Army report noted. They already began tests involving the Wingman some time last year, but the Army  now hopes to conduct even more exercises  with other types of heavily armed ground robots quite soon....

The Russians have offered militants a safe passage out of the Syrian region of Eastern Ghouta [near Damascus] suggesting them to leave with their families and personal weapons through a humanitarian corridor out of the region. The proposal comes amid a rapidly developing military operation of the Syrian Army in the area, which has already led to a situation when joint forces of Ahrar al-Sham, Jaish al-Islam, Faylaq al-Rahman and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham have lost over 36% of the pocket.  MORE DETAILS “The Russian Reconciliation Center guarantees the immunity of all rebel fighters who take the decision to leave Eastern Ghouta with personal weapons and together with their families,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement adding that vehicles would “be provided, and the entire route will be guarded.” While the statement provided no details to what area militants would be evacuated, most likely, the proposed evacuation route will provide militants an opportunity to reach t...

On March 5, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian arrived Iran to discuss the 2015 nuclear agreement with President Hassan Rouhani, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and other top officials. However, the French diplomat immediately showed an official stance of his country accusing Teheran of “destabilizing” the Middle East hinting to the Iranian missile program as well as the country’s involvement in the conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. The Iranian foreign minister responded saying that it is the US and its allies who are resnponsible for the current crisis in the region. “The United States and other countries that have turned our region into a gunpowder depot by selling arms must stop such actions,” Zarif said, according to Iran’s IRNA news agency. Zarif cointuned in his twitter account: 5 Mar Javad Zarif ✔ @JZarif In meeting today, told France FM: EU should compel US to abide by JCPOA rather than trying to appease it by repeating its ext...

The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, center, meeting in Pyongyang, the capital, on Monday, with South Korean envoys. Credit North Korean Central News Agency, via European Pressphoto Agency North Korea and South Korea have ageed to hold a summit meeting between Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in on the country’s border in late April. According to the South, the sides have also agreed to estabsih a “hotline” between their leaders. The first phone conversation will reportedly take place before the summit. “The North Korean side clearly stated its willingness to denuclearize,” the South Korean president’s office said in a statement. “It made it clear that it would have no reason to keep nuclear weapons if the military threat to the North was eliminated and its security guaranteed.” “The North expressed its willingness to hold a heartfelt dialogue with the United States on the issues of denuclearization and normalizing relations with the United States,” the statement said. “It made i...

Click to see the full-size image On March 6, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), the Tiger Forces and their allies advanced on positions of Jaish al-Islam, Ahrar al-Sham, Faylaq al-Rahman and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra) in the areas of Harasta, Hawsh Ashari, Bayt Siwwa in the Eastern Ghouta region. Clashes also continued in the area of Rayhan. On March 5, government forces entered it, but was not able to supress the militants’ resistance there. In total, government troops had already established control over about 36% of the area controlled by militants before the start of the operation. While the SAA and its allies made a major part of its gains in the eastern part of Eastern Ghouta, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham members and their counterparts also faced a significant pressure in the district of Harasta. According to pro-government sources, the SAA is now aiming to cut the district off from the areas of Duma and Madera. Click to see the full-size image The ...