Contents tagged with Syria

  • Russia says it cannot guarantee safety of Turkish aircraft in Syria

    The Turkish side cannot count on the safety of its combat aviation in northern Syria, stated the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria, after Turkey shot down two Syrian fighter jets over Idlib.

    "The command of the Russian troops cannot guarantee the safety of Turkish aviation in the skies of Syria," the head of the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria, Rear Admiral Oleg Zhuravlev, said, as quoted by TASS.

    "Amid a sharply aggravated situation, the Syrian government closed the airspace in …

  • Turkish drone destroys Russian-made Pantsir air defense system in Idlib

    On Friday, a missile fired by a Turkish drone destroyed a Russian-made Pantsir-S1 deployed by the Syrian Army in Idlib province.

    A video released by Turkish media, shows an active Syrian Pantsir being destroyed by a Turkish drone.

    According to Turkish media, the Pantsir radar was active when it was hit, indicating that the system failed to detect the incoming missile.

    The Syrian Air Defense Force reportedly has more than 30 Pantsir systems. Russia has also strengthened its Syrian Khmeimim …

  • Merkel's party calls for sanctions against Russia over Syria

    Leading representatives of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) of German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for new sanctions against Russia due to its support for the regime in Damascus. Moscow is responsible for a new escalation of the refugee situation in Syria and Turkey, said German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and Chairman of the Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee Norbert Röttgen in an interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung (FAS) published on Sunday, March 1. …

  • Turkey shots down two Syrian warplanes over Idlib

    Syria's news agency SANA reported that two Syrian aircraft were shot down by the Turkish military over Idlib province. The agency stated that the pilots managed to eject and were not hurt.

    Earlier, Turkish TV channels TRT and CNN Turk reported that of a Syrian government aircraft was shot down in the skies over Idlib. The latter claimed that the plane had been shot down by opposition forces controlling the city of Saraqib.

    There were also reports on Twitter that a Russian Su-24 had been shot …

  • Erdogan: Turkey has opened its border with EU to Syrian refugees

    Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara is opening the border with Europe to refugees from Syria.

    "As of this morning, 18,000 migrants have crossed the Turkish-European border. And we will no longer close those doors, it will continue. We are not in a position to feed so many refugees," he said during his speech In Istanbul on Saturday, February 29, as cited by Anadolu.

    According to Erdogan, there are 3.7 million Syrian refugees in Turkey today.

    The day before, the …

  • Erdogan asks Putin to step aside in Syria

    Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that during a telephone conversation he asked Russian President Vladimir Putin not to interfere in the conflict between the Turkish Armed Forces and Syrian troops.

    "I openly asked Putin, "What are you doing in Idlib? If you want to create a military base, then create one, but get out of Turkey’s way," Erdogan said on Saturday in Istanbul, as cited by Anadolu.

    According to Erdogan, the Turkish military in Syria is "at the invitation of the Syrian …

  • Turkey considers closing Bosporus strait to Russian ships

    The continuation of the conflict in Syria’s Idlib province, which remains in the hands of pro-Turkish forces and radical groups, could force Ankara to close the Bosporus strait to Russian naval vessels, said Muharrem Sarikaya, a correspondent for the Turkish TV channel Habertürk, citing his own sources in the country’s leadership. According to him, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has such options “on the table”. The Montreux Convention, which regulates ship traffic through the Bosporus …

  • Russia reinforces its navy flotilla off Syrian coast

    Two frigates of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Makarov and Admiral Grigorovich, have passed through the Bosporus and Dardanelles in the direction of the Mediterranean Sea.

    The Russian news agency Interfax reported, with reference to the official representative of the Black Sea Fleet Alexei Rulev, that the ships "which are equipped with the Kalibr-NK cruise missiles make a planned transition from Sevastopol to the far sea zone, where they will join the Mediterranean flotilla."

    Russia is …

  • Putin refuses to negotiate with Erdogan and attacks Turkish forces in Syria

    The situation in northern Syria, where Bashar al-Assad’s army, with support from the Russian Aerospace Forces, is fighting for control over Idlib, deteriorated sharply on Thursday.

    The Turkish army, which entered Idlib at the end of last year, was targeted in an air raid, which killed at least 22 soldiers, the Daily Sabah reports, citing the authorities of the Turkish border province of Hatay.

    According to Al-Monitor, at least 30 people were killed in the attack. The Syrian Observatory for …

  • Israeli helicopters attack Syrian Army positions

    Israeli helicopters attacked Syrian Army positions, reported the Syrian government TV channel Alikhbaria on its Facebook page. The information was later confirmed by the Syrian news agency SANA.

    According to the channel, Israeli helicopters carried out a missile attack on a number of military sites in Al Quneitra Governorate. According to the report, positions near Al-Qahtaniyah, Al-Quneitra city, and Jubat Al-Khashab were attacked.

    As a result, three Syrian soldiers were injured.

    On the …