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Offensive Against the Syrian City of Manbij May Be the Beginning of a Campaign to Liberate the Area Near the Syrian-Turkish Border from ISIS
June 23, 2016 Offensive against the Syrian City of Manbij May Be the Beginning of a Campaign to Liberate the Area near the Syrian-Turkish Border from ISIS Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters at the western entrance to the city of Manbij (Fars, June 18, 2016). Overview 1. On May 31, 2016, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a Kurdish-dominated military alliance supported by the United States, initiated a campaign to liberate the northern Syrian city of Manbij from ISIS. Manbij lies west of the Euphrates, about 35 kilometers (about 22 miles) south of the Syrian-Turkish border. In the three weeks since the offensive began, the SDF forces, which number several thousand, captured the rural regions around Manbij, encircled the city and invaded it. According to reports, on June 19, 2016, an SDF force entered Manbij and occupied one of the key squares at the western entrance to the city. 2. The declared objective of the ground offensive is to occupy Manbij. However, the objective of the entire campaign may be to liberate the cities of Manbij, Jarabulus, Al-Bab and Al-Rai, which lie to the west of the Euphrates and are ISIS strongholds near the Turkish border. For ISIS, the loss of the area is liable to be a severe blow to its logistic links between the outside world and the centers of its control in eastern Syria (Al-Raqqah), Iraq (Mosul). Moreover, the loss of the region will further 112-16 112-16 2 2 weaken ISIS's standing in northern Syria and strengthen the military-political position and image of the Kurdish forces leading the anti-ISIS ground offensive. -
Future Notes
No. 3, November 2016 FUTURE NOTES ENERGY RELATIONS BETWEEN TURKEY AND ISRAEL Aybars Görgülü and Sabiha Senyücel Gündoğar This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme under grant agreement No 693244 Middle East and North Africa Regional Architecture: Mapping Geopolitical Shifts, regional Order and Domestic Transformations FUTURE NOTES No. 3, November2016 ENERGY RELATIONS BETWEEN TURKEY AND ISRAEL Aybars Görgülü and Sabiha Senyücel Gündoğar1 After six years of détente, on June 2016 Israel and Turkey finally reached a deal to normalize diplomatic relations and signed a reconciliation agreement. Israel-Turkey relations had already been broken after Israel’s offensive in Gaza between December 2008 and January 2009. Turkey voiced strong disapproval of this attack, which killed more than a thousand civilians. When, at the 2009 Davos Summit, Turkey’s then Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Israeli President Simon Peres sat on the same panel, Erdoğan criticized Peres severely for his country’s offensive in Gaza, accusing Israel of conducting “state terrorism” and walked out of the panel. But diplomatic relations were still in place between the two countries until the Mavi Marmara flotilla crisis of May 2010. The Mavi Marmara was a humanitarian aid vessel that aimed to break the sea blockade on Gaza. While it held both Turkish and non-Turkish activists, the initiative was organized by a Turkish humanitarian aid organization (İHH, İnsani Yardım Vakfı) and the vessel carried the Turkish flag. Israel did not allow the vessel to reach Gaza’s port and İHH refused to dock in the Ashdod port, consequently, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) raided the flotilla, killing nine people of Turkish origin and one American Turkish citizen. -
THE PUBLIC MONETARY AUTHORITY in NORTHWEST SYRIA Flash Report 10 July 2020 KEY DEVELOPMENTS
THE PUBLIC MONETARY AUTHORITY IN NORTHWEST SYRIA Flash report 10 July 2020 KEY DEVELOPMENTS The Public Monetary Authority (PMA) is a rebranding of the Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS)'s General Institution for Cash Management and Customer Protection (CMCP) which was established in May 2017. The PMA imposed a mandatory registration on currency exchange and hawala companies and classified them into three main categories depending on the size of their financial capital. The PMA has the right to supervise, monitor, and inspect monetary transactions, data, records and documents of licensed companies to ensure compliance with the PMA’s regulations, during the validity period of the license, or even if the license was terminated or revoked. Licensed companies must provide the PMA with a monthly report detailing incoming and outcoming financial remittances and must maintain financial liquidity ranging from 25% to 50% of the company's financial value in US dollars at the PMA custody at all times. Financial transfers made in Turkish lira will include the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG), as the currency will be brought in from the SSG's Sham Bank. This is not the case of financial transfers made in other currencies including the US dollar. The intervention of the PMA in hawala networks has profound implications for humanitarian organizations operating in northwestern Syria, however hawala agents, particularly in medium to large agencies, can reject the PMA's monitoring and control requirements. INTRODUCTION constant price fluctuation", according to interviews To mitigate the impact of the rapid and continuous published on local media agencies. collapse of the Syrian pound, which exceeded 3,000 SYP per USD in early July 2020, local authorities in Local authorities however have not explained the northwest Syria have decided instead to trade political aspect of this shift with regards to its effect using the Turkish lira. -
QRCS Delivers Medical Aid to Hospitals in Aleppo, Idlib
QRCS Delivers Medical Aid to Hospitals in Aleppo, Idlib May 3rd, 2016 ― Doha: Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) is proceeding with its support of the medical sector in Syria, by providing medications, medical equipment, and fuel to help health facilities absorb the increasing numbers of injuries, amid deteriorating health conditions countrywide due to the conflict. Lately, QRCS personnel in Syria procured 30,960 liters of fuel to operate power generators at the surgical hospital in Aqrabat, Idlib countryside. These $17,956 supplies will serve the town's 100,000 population and 70,000 internally displaced people (IDPs). In coordination with the Health Directorate in Idlib, QRCS is operating and supporting the hospital with fuel, medications, medical consumables, and operational costs. Working with a capacity of 60 beds and four operating rooms, the hospital is specialized in orthopedics and reconstructive procedures, in addition to general medicine and dermatology clinics. In western Aleppo countryside, QRCS personnel delivered medical consumables and serums worth $2,365 to the health center of Kafarnaha, to help reduce the pressure on the center's resources, as it is located near to the clash frontlines. Earlier, a needs assessment was done to identify the workload and shortfalls, and accordingly, the needed types of supplies were provided to serve around 1,500 patients from the local community and IDPs. In relation to its $200,000 immediate relief intervention launched last week, QRCS is providing medical supplies, fuel, and food aid; operating AlSakhour health center for 100,000 beneficiaries in Aleppo City, at a cost of $185,000; securing strategic medical stock for the Health Directorate; providing the municipal council with six water tankers to deliver drinking water to 350,000 inhabitants at a cost of $250,000; arranging for more five tankers at a cost of $500,000; providing 1,850 medical kits, 28,000 liters of fuel, and water purification pills; and supplying $80,000 worth of food aid. -
Policy Notes for the Trump Notes Administration the Washington Institute for Near East Policy ■ 2018 ■ Pn55
TRANSITION 2017 POLICYPOLICY NOTES FOR THE TRUMP NOTES ADMINISTRATION THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY ■ 2018 ■ PN55 TUNISIAN FOREIGN FIGHTERS IN IRAQ AND SYRIA AARON Y. ZELIN Tunisia should really open its embassy in Raqqa, not Damascus. That’s where its people are. —ABU KHALED, AN ISLAMIC STATE SPY1 THE PAST FEW YEARS have seen rising interest in foreign fighting as a general phenomenon and in fighters joining jihadist groups in particular. Tunisians figure disproportionately among the foreign jihadist cohort, yet their ubiquity is somewhat confounding. Why Tunisians? This study aims to bring clarity to this question by examining Tunisia’s foreign fighter networks mobilized to Syria and Iraq since 2011, when insurgencies shook those two countries amid the broader Arab Spring uprisings. ©2018 THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY ■ NO. 30 ■ JANUARY 2017 AARON Y. ZELIN Along with seeking to determine what motivated Evolution of Tunisian Participation these individuals, it endeavors to reconcile estimated in the Iraq Jihad numbers of Tunisians who actually traveled, who were killed in theater, and who returned home. The find- Although the involvement of Tunisians in foreign jihad ings are based on a wide range of sources in multiple campaigns predates the 2003 Iraq war, that conflict languages as well as data sets created by the author inspired a new generation of recruits whose effects since 2011. Another way of framing the discussion will lasted into the aftermath of the Tunisian revolution. center on Tunisians who participated in the jihad fol- These individuals fought in groups such as Abu Musab lowing the 2003 U.S. -
BREAD and BAKERY DASHBOARD Northwest Syria Bread and Bakery Assistance 12 MARCH 2021
BREAD AND BAKERY DASHBOARD Northwest Syria Bread and Bakery Assistance 12 MARCH 2021 ISSUE #7 • PAGE 1 Reporting Period: DECEMBER 2020 Lower Shyookh Turkey Turkey Ain Al Arab Raju 92% 100% Jarablus Syrian Arab Sharan Republic Bulbul 100% Jarablus Lebanon Iraq 100% 100% Ghandorah Suran Jordan A'zaz 100% 53% 100% 55% Aghtrin Ar-Ra'ee Ma'btali 52% 100% Afrin A'zaz Mare' 100% of the Population Sheikh Menbij El-Hadid 37% 52% in NWS (including Tell 85% Tall Refaat A'rima Abiad district) don’t meet the Afrin 76% minimum daily need of bread Jandairis Abu Qalqal based on the 5Ws data. Nabul Al Bab Al Bab Ain al Arab Turkey Daret Azza Haritan Tadaf Tell Abiad 59% Harim 71% 100% Aleppo Rasm Haram 73% Qourqeena Dana AleppoEl-Imam Suluk Jebel Saman Kafr 50% Eastern Tell Abiad 100% Takharim Atareb 73% Kwaires Ain Al Ar-Raqqa Salqin 52% Dayr Hafir Menbij Maaret Arab Harim Tamsrin Sarin 100% Ar-Raqqa 71% 56% 25% Ein Issa Jebel Saman As-Safira Maskana 45% Armanaz Teftnaz Ar-Raqqa Zarbah Hadher Ar-Raqqa 73% Al-Khafsa Banan 0 7.5 15 30 Km Darkosh Bennsh Janudiyeh 57% 36% Idleb 100% % Bread Production vs Population # of Total Bread / Flour Sarmin As-Safira Minimum Needs of Bread Q4 2020* Beneficiaries Assisted Idleb including WFP Programmes 76% Jisr-Ash-Shugur Ariha Hajeb in December 2020 0 - 99 % Mhambal Saraqab 1 - 50,000 77% 61% Tall Ed-daman 50,001 - 100,000 Badama 72% Equal or More than 100% 100,001 - 200,000 Jisr-Ash-Shugur Idleb Ariha Abul Thohur Monthly Bread Production in MT More than 200,000 81% Khanaser Q4 2020 Ehsem Not reported to 4W’s 1 cm 3720 MT Subsidized Bread Al Ma'ra Data Source: FSL Cluster & iMMAP *The represented percentages in circles on the map refer to the availability of bread by calculating Unsubsidized Bread** Disclaimer: The Boundaries and names shown Ma'arrat 0.50 cm 1860 MT the gap between currently produced bread and bread needs of the population at sub-district level. -
The Fall of Dabiq and the Fall of the Caliphate
0 The fall of Dabiq and the fall of the Caliphate Shaul Shay October 2016 Dabiq, which lies about 10km from the border with Turkey, features in Islamic apocalyptic prophecies as the site of an end-of-times showdown between Muslims and their "Roman" enemies based on a hadith. The Prophet Muhammad is believed to have said that "the last hour will not come" until Muslims vanquished the Romans at "Dabiq or al-Amaq" - both in the Syria-Turkey border region - on their way to conquer Constantinople (Istanbul).1 But in October 2016, the fall of Dabiq did not start the apocalypse but the countdown to the end of the Islamic state. Operation "Euphrates Shield" - The attack on Dabiq ISIS fighters fancied themselves as the true Muslims, and the Turkish-backed rebel forces as the infidels. But fears that the thousand-or-so jihadi fighters holed up in Dabiq would fight to the death were quelled, as the militants simply took to their heels and ran, leaving the Free Syrian Army to walk in without much of a battle.2 In the operation's early weeks, Jarabulus and Al-Rai became the first two major settlements to be captured from the ISIS. The attack on Dabiq started on October 15, 2016. Rebels have also taken the villages of Irshaf and Ghaitun, which would cut off Dabiq and another large village, Soran – all in preparation for a ground offensive on the two areas. ISIS had been sending reinforcements into Dabiq over the past weeks, including one of their most elite units, known as Jaish al-Isra, which arrived in recent days3. -
Records Related to Turkish Consul Ali Sait Akin and Any and All Member
' .----N-l_b__fo-r-- - ---.Approved for release by ODNI on 3/17/2016, FOIA Case DF-2013-00182 0 0 3 8 11 redacted portions. UNCLASSIFIED Subject FOIA Request Reviews - 2013-1612 -DOS NC I (,;/UOS/rU To: From: ······Chief of Staff unclassified . - classified; - Date: 12/05/2013 03:26 PM Th s message 1s digitally sig a . Classification: UNCLASSIFIED ====================================================== Please see below for NCTC/DOS' inputs to the FOIA Request under Tasking 2013-1612-DOS. If you -··have any questions, please contact as I will be out of the office on Friday returning on Monday, 9 December. •Thanks, =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Chief of Staff -Directorate of Operations Sup classified: unclassified: ---- Forwarded b·········••lon 12/05/2013 03:24 PM---- Regarding_second item on Turkish Consul Ali Sait Akin, NCTOC found the follow two articles •••I •••• from 8 March 2013 and 26 October 2012: Media Highlights Friday, 08 March 2013 56. Benghazi cover-up continues, nearty six months later Una ... Media Highlights Friday, 08 March 2013 56. Benghazi cover -up continues, nearty six months later Unanswered questions linger on 9111 attacks James A. Lyons, Washington Times • 08 March 2013 One of the hopeful outcomes of the Senate confirmation hearings for John Brennan to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency and Chuck Hagel to be the secretary of Defense was to gain some concrete answers to the Benghazi tragedy. So far, though, no additional useful information has been released . Further, the testimony of fonTier Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey on Feb. 7 before the Senate Armed Services Committee only raised more questions. -
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Viewpoints No. 99 Mission Impossible? Triangulating U.S.- Turkish Relations with Syria’s Kurds Amberin Zaman Public Policy Fellow, Woodrow Wilson Center; Columnist, Diken.com.tr and Al-Monitor Pulse of the Middle East April 2016 The United States is trying to address Turkish concerns over its alliance with a Syrian Kurdish militia against the Islamic State. Striking a balance between a key NATO ally and a non-state actor is growing more and more difficult. Middle East Program ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ On April 7 Syrian opposition rebels backed by airpower from the U.S.-led Coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) declared that they had wrested Al Rai, a strategic hub on the Turkish border from the jihadists. They hailed their victory as the harbinger of a new era of rebel cooperation with the United States against ISIS in the 98-kilometer strip of territory bordering Turkey that remains under the jihadists’ control. Their euphoria proved short-lived: On April 11 it emerged that ISIS had regained control of Al Rai and the rest of the areas the rebels had conquered in the past week. Details of what happened remain sketchy because poor weather conditions marred visibility. But it was still enough for Coalition officials to describe the reversal as a “total collapse.” The Al Rai fiasco is more than just a battleground defeat against the jihadists. It’s a further example of how Turkey’s conflicting goals with Washington are hampering the campaign against ISIS. For more than 18 months the Coalition has been striving to uproot ISIS from the 98- kilometer chunk of the Syrian-Turkish border that is generically referred to the “Manbij Pocket” or the Marea-Jarabulus line. -
The İHH Riddle Why It Doesn’T Make Sense to List the Turkish Humanitarian Group As a Foreign Terrorist Organization
The İHH Riddle Why It Doesn’t Make Sense to List the Turkish Humanitarian Group as a Foreign Terrorist Organization Melis Tusiray, Peter Juul, and Michael Werz July 2010 The Senate’s call to designate the Turkish Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief as a foreign terrorist organization, or FTO, is counterproductive to U.S. efforts to recognize and respond to terrorist threats. Eighty-seven senators have signed a letter calling on the Obama administration to “consider whether the İHH should be put on the list of foreign terrorist organiza- tions.” The İHH is a humanitarian organization run out of Turkey and active in over 100 locations worldwide. It also organized the Gaza-bound flotilla involved in the raid in late May. The letter correctly points out that İHH has questionable links to the Hamas-run Union of Good, but it fails to specify how it wants to des- ignate the İHH as a terrorist organization and could therefore damage our security and relationship with Turkey. The Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, lays out an FTO designation that includes strict sanctions and is usually narrowly applied to violent organizations. The Departments of State, Justice, Treasury, and Homeland Security follow this designation, which is often collectively referred to as the “FTO list.” But the Bush administration’s Executive Order 13224 allows for a broader FTO definition with fewer consequences that is often applied to organizations that provide resources -
S/PV.8449 the Situation in the Middle East, Including the Palestinian Question 22/01/2019
United Nations S/ PV.8449 Security Council Provisional Seventy-fourth year 8449th meeting Tuesday, 22 January 2019, 10 a.m. New York President: Mr. Singer Weisinger/Mr. Trullols ................... (Dominican Republic) Members: Belgium ....................................... Mr. Pecsteen de Buytswerve China ......................................... Mr. Ma Zhaoxu Côte d’Ivoire ................................... Mr. Ipo Equatorial Guinea ............................... Mr. Ndong Mba France ........................................ Mr. Delattre Germany ...................................... Mr. Heusgen Indonesia. Mrs. Marsudi Kuwait ........................................ Mr. Alotaibi Peru .......................................... Mr. Meza-Cuadra Poland ........................................ Ms. Wronecka Russian Federation ............................... Mr. Nebenzia South Africa ................................... Mr. Matjila United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland .. Ms. Pierce United States of America .......................... Mr. Cohen Agenda The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question . This record contains the text of speeches delivered in English and of the translation of speeches delivered in other languages. The final text will be printed in the Official Records of the Security Council. Corrections should be submitted to the original languages only. They should be incorporated in a copy of the record and sent under the signature of a member of the delegation concerned to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Service, room U-0506 ([email protected]). Corrected records will be reissued electronically on the Official Document System of the United Nations (http://documents.un.org). 19-01678 (E) *1901678* S/PV.8449 The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question 22/01/2019 The meeting was called to order at 10.05 a.m. with the provisional rules of procedure and previous practice in this regard. Expression of sympathy in connection with and There being no objection, it is so decided. -
Seven Years of Crisis Islamic Relief’S Humanitarian Response in Syria 2012-2017
SEVEN YEARS OF CRISIS ISLAMIC RELIEF’S HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE IN SYRIA 2012-2017 1 ISLAMIC RELIEF USA Islamic Relief USA has been serving humanity for the past 25 years. With an active presence in over 30 countries across the globe, we strive to work together for a better world for the three billion people still living in poverty. Since we received our first donation in 1993, we Our Values have helped millions of the world’s poorest and We remain guided by the timeless values and most vulnerable people. Inspired by the Islamic teachings of the Qur’an and the prophetic faith and guided by our values, we believe that example (Sunnah), most specifically: we have a duty to help those less fortunate – regardless of race, political affiliation, gender, or Sincerity (Ikhlas) belief. In responding to poverty and suffering, our efforts Our projects provide vulnerable people with are driven by sincerity to God and the need to fulfil access to vital services. We protect communities our obligations to humanity. from disasters and deliver life-saving emergency aid. We provide lasting routes out of poverty, and Excellence (Ihsan) empower vulnerable people to transform their lives and their communities. Our actions in tackling poverty are marked by excellence in our operations and the conduct Our Mission through which we help the people we serve. Islamic Relief USA provides relief and Compassion (Rahma) development in a dignified manner regardless of We believe the protection and well-being of every gender, race, or religion, and works to empower life is of paramount importance and we shall join individuals in their communities and give them a with other humanitarian actors to act as one in voice in the world.