In face of Ghouta defeat, Syrian rebels blame each other https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...-syrian-rebels-blame-each-other-idUSKBN1H21VX Spoiler BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian rebel factions are blaming each other for opening the way to their defeat near Damascus, underlining splits that plagued the armed uprising against President Bashar al-Assad since its earliest days. The rivalry between the factions of eastern Ghouta - Failaq al-Rahman and Jaish al-Islam - had led to the effective partition of the enclave since 2016 and fueled bouts of deadly violence that played to the government’s advantage. Their rivalry has at some points mirrored tensions between their regional sponsors: Saudi Arabia, which has backed Jaish al-Islam, and Qatar, which supported Failaq al-Rahman. With the help of Russian air strikes, the army has waged one of the most ferocious offensives of the war to recapture eastern Ghouta, killing more than 1,600 people since Feb. 18 according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Still, in media comments late on Sunday, the groups laid blame on each other for speeding up the government’s advances. The Jaish al-Islam military spokesman, in an interview with al-Hadath TV, said Failaq al-Rahman had rejected a proposal to mount a shared defense of Ghouta and accused it of cutting water supplies needed to fill defensive trenches. “These trenches dried up which sped up the regime’s advances,” said Hamza Birqdar, the spokesman. The Failaq al-Rahman spokesman told the same TV station that Jaish al-Islam had staged a weak defense of the enclave, which advancing government forces split into three separate pockets. FILE PHOTO: Rebel fighters gather and pray before they leave, at the city limits of Harasta, in the eastern Damascus suburb of Ghouta, Syria March 22, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki “Failaq al-Rahman was stabbed in the back ... via the frontlines that Jaish al-Islam was supposed to be at,” said Wael Olwan, Failaq al-Rahman’s Istanbul-based spokesman. A Syrian official said the “conflict between the terrorist groups” in eastern Ghouta was one of the factors that had helped the military “achieve what it has achieved in a short space of time”. It echoes a pattern at other key moments in the seven-year-long war: rebels blamed each other as government forces and Iran-backed Shi’ite militias thrust into opposition parts of eastern Aleppo, won back by Assad in 2016. Thousands of Failaq al-Rahman fighters, accompanied by their families, are leaving their zone of eastern Ghouta in a negotiated withdrawal to insurgent territory in northern Syria. Jaish al-Islam says it is holding out in its part of the enclave in the eastern Ghouta town of Douma. Assad’s Russian allies said on Monday that Jaish al-Islam fighters were also ready to lay down their arms and leave, which the group denied. Rebels who have left eastern Ghouta so far have gone to Idlib, an insurgent-held region at the Turkish border. Idlib has also been blighted by fighting between the dominant faction - fighters formerly affiliated to al Qaeda - and other rebels. The fragmented state of the anti-Assad armed opposition has been seen as one of its critical weaknesses since the start of the conflict, which the UK-based Observatory says has killed half a million people since 2011. Russian and Iranian military backing for Assad has also far outstripped support that had been offered to rebel groups from foreign states including Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United States. In addition to their foothold in the northwest, anti-Assad rebels still hold a chunk of territory at the frontier with Jordan and Israel, and small enclaves near Damascus, Homs and Hama. Reporting by Tom Perry and Ellen Francis; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Peter Graff
Syria war: Troops mass around last rebel town in Eastern Ghouta Spoiler Syrian government forces have massed around the last rebel-held town in the Eastern Ghouta area, after rebels were reportedly given a deadline to leave. A newspaper said troops were preparing for a "huge" operation in Douma, which is controlled by Jaysh al-Islam. The government's ally Russia is said to have told the group late on Monday it had 48 hours to agree to be evacuated to Idlib province like other factions. But Jaysh al-Islam has said its fighters want to disarm and stay. The United Nations is concerned about the fate of the estimated 70,000 civilians trapped in Douma, where fighting has continued despite the talks with Russia. The world's toughest place to study? 'We will stay until the end': A doctor's battle in Eastern Ghouta Eastern Ghouta devastation seen from space Why is there a war in Syria? More than 1,700 people are reported to have been killed and thousands injured since the government and its allies launched an offensive on 18 February to retake the Eastern Ghouta, which was the last major rebel stronghold near Damascus. The UN says 80,000 civilians have fled on foot to government-held territory on the edge of the capital, as troops made dramatic advances in recent weeks and split the region into three pockets - the largest of which was around Douma. Almost 20,000 rebels and civilians have also been evacuated to Idlib under deals between the government and the rebel factions Ahrar al-Sham and Faylaq al-Rahman, which controlled the pockets around the towns of Harasta and Arbin. Jaysh al-Islam, a hardline Islamist group backed by Saudi Arabia, is believed to have as many as 10,000 heavily armed fighters inside Douma. Over the past two weeks it has allowed civilians to leave the town on foot under an agreement with Russia that has also resulted in a reduction in hostilities. However, the group has stressed that its fighters and their families do not want to go. "We have presented our decision to stay. This is not only a decision by Jaysh al-Islam, but by all the revolutionary institutions and figures in Douma," spokesman Hamza Bayraqdar told Reuters news agency on Tuesday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, reported that Jaysh al-Islam had offered to lay down its heavy weapons in exchange for the restoration of Douma's water and electricity supplies. Russian military police, and not Syrian soldiers, would then be deployed in the town. But opposition sources said Russian officials had told the group's representatives at a meeting on Monday that they had two choices: "surrender or face an attack". The pro-government al-Watan newspaper said on Wednesday morning that forces in the Eastern Ghouta were "preparing a huge military operation in Douma if the Jaysh al-Islam terrorists do not agree to hand over the town and depart". A Syrian official told Reuters: "These two days will be decisive." Image copyrightEPA Image captionThousands of civilians have been allowed to flee Douma on foot in the past two weeks Jaysh al-Islam reportedly has serious concerns about going to Idlib, where it does not have a presence and where a fierce rival - the al-Qaeda-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham alliance - holds sway. The group also does not have good relations with Turkey, which backs several rebel factions operating there. On Tuesday, 101 buses carrying more than 6,400 rebel fighters and civilians from towns held by Faylaq al-Rahman arrived in Idlib province. It was the largest convoy yet to leave the Eastern Ghouta under Russian-mediated evacuation deals. Faylaq al-Rahman spokesman Wael Alwan told AFP news agency that as many as 30,000 people living in Arbin, Zamalka and Jobar might be evacuated in total. Image copyrightEPA Image captionRebels and civilians are being evacuated from other rebel-held areas by bus More than 4,500 people were bussed out of Harasta last week after Ahrar al-Sham fighters agreed to lay down their arms. The displaced civilians have endured months of bombardment and limited access to food, medical care and other essential items. A senior UN official who met some of the 50,000 people living in makeshift shelters around Damascus said they were "tired, hungry, traumatised and afraid". The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) warned that the shelters were overcrowded and had no proper sanitation. Children who were already extremely weak were being exposed to further health hazards like diarrhoea, lice and skin diseases, it said.
I'm assuming this "US-led coalition to block any further advance by Turkey" is just the Kurds with U.S supplies and weapons?
There was some machine gun fire which triggered the Iron Dome system to perceive incoming rocket fire and that was a the interceptors flying over some dudes head. At the end I’m assuming they have some flight termination based on what the radar doesn’t see anymore.
Ghouta looks to be done, only the Yarmouk Camp area controlled by ISIS is left until Assad has complete control over Damascus
Kind of related, I stumbled upon the US Green Beret helmet cam footage turned ISIS propaganda video of the Niger ambush that happened last October, four US soldiers killed by some local group that pledged allegiance to ISIS. Hard to watch, but they fought their asses off. More info coming out makes it sound like a royal fuck up by the command structure. Also there’s supposed to be a new podcast called Caliphate coming soon, produced by the NY Times and that female reporter whose name escapes me, covers them/does a good job. Looking forward to that.
Yeah it was pretty awful. Especially when they knew it was hopeless and had to just take off running.
taques started a thread but gas attack in Douma next few days will be interesting/scary to say the least
Any clue as to what you think will happen? I'm almost certain we will respond, but in your (obviously) educated opinion do you think it will be a limited strike like last time or something larger, more sustained in size and scope?
Russia being in the area complicates matters, especially with their antiair capability. I wouldn't rule out a punitive strike but with our current leadership, who knows.
Not an educated opinion but even grounding their entire air force wouldn't change the conflict at this point. Tomahawks make the most sense like before but who knows.
It sounds like an Israeli raid as they've done a bunch. Pentagon and White House denying we're involved.
siap Russia has figured out how to jam U.S. drones in Syria, officials say Four U.S. officials said Russia's signal scrambling has seriously affected military operations. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/military/russia-has-figured-out-how-jam-u-s-drones-syria-n863931