A B O U T I N T E G R I T Y U K Integrity UK is an organisation committed to preventing extremism through innovative approaches to promoting integration, cohesion and social reconciliation within the MENA region and the UK. S Y R I A I N T E L L I G E N C E R E P O R T 10th – 12th August 2019 The United States and Turkey made further contact over the northern Syria safe zone over the weekend. On Friday evening, the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, praised the recent progress made between the two sides. At the same time, Turkish Presidential Spokesperson, İbrahim Kalın, spoke with the US National Security Adviser, John Bolton, to discuss the safe zone issue. However, the relatively optimistic tone in Washington was contrasted with the cautiousness of Ankara where the Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, reiterated that the People's Protection Units (YPG) would be cleared, either together [with the US] or by Turkey on its own. Highlighting Turkish suspicion, the arrival of a US logistical support convoy to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) over the weekend was reported widely in Turkish media. Subsequently on Monday, a delegation of 90 US soldiers arrived in Şanlıurfa to launch the Mutual Coordination Centre, with the centre expected to become active in the coming days, after which the real challenge of aligning US-Turkish interests will be faced. With Ankara and Washington seemingly under mutually-contradictory impressions on how the safe zone will look like, the process is unlikely to be straightforward. The Turkish frustrations over the lack of clarity on the agreement were echoed in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, with Ilham Ahmed, the co-chair of the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), noting that there is no agreement between Washington and Ankara over the safe zone. Ahmed called for efforts to be made to ensure security and stability on both sides of the border. Mustafa Bali, the head of the SDF Press Office, was more critical, claiming that Turkish-backed factions are too undisciplined and untrained to maintain control over an area with an active Islamic State (IS) insurgency even as the Syrian National Army (SNA) struggles to maintain control over its much smaller share of land in northern Aleppo. Bali made these comments in the context of two men being executed in Jarablus over the killing of an SNA officer last week, with their bodies desecrated by a mob afterwards. Bali, as well as a number of activists, also suggested that the men were innocent, whose confessions to guilt were obtained under torture. Over the course of the weekend, a number of pro-Opposition activists in Greater Idlib began accusing the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, of “selling out” the areas around Khan Sheikhoun after the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) made tangible gains in the region, coming close to encircling the city and cutting northern Hama off from the rest of the region. Messages on pro-Opposition social media called for the evacuation of Khan Sheikhoun immediately. The spokesperson for the National Front for Liberation (NFL), Naji Mustafa, rejected these accusations, stating on Monday that Turkish support is continuing and highlighted the NFL's continued use of anti-tank rockets against SAA armour. Mustafa acknowledged that the SAA push intensified and the clashes are extremely violent. Ankara itself, which does not formally support the NFL, did not comment on the issue. Regardless, if the SAA is successful in encircling Khan Sheikhoun and cutting northern Hama off from Idlib, it will also cut off the Turkish Observation Post in Morek, likely forcing the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) to visibly evacuate the area, putting Turkey’s Syria For further information, contact Integrity UK on: [email protected] policy under more strain. Clashes in Greater Idlib have intensified significantly since the Syria Peace Talks in Nur-Sultan, with the Syria Response Coordinators announcing on Monday that 25 civilians have been killed in the region since August 2nd. Russia's Ambassador to the United Nations, Gennady Gatilov, announced on Sunday that the Syrian Constitutional Committee (SCC) is expected to convene in the coming months, possibly in September. Gatilov noted that an agreement on the members of the committee is near and that the UN Special Envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, will likely make the announcement. The 13th round of Syria Peace Talks in Nur-Sultan saw some progress towards the SCC, but all news of an agreement have since been untrue. The British Government has announced that it will not be taking any measures to bring back the children of British citizens in northern Syria. The decision was reportedly made after cross-departmental review and was decided on the basis that it is too dangerous to dispatch military or civilian personnel to rescue babies and minors with British citizenship from the camps. The British Home office is also reported to have sought assistance about the legal implications of the move, as well as the options for what can be done with these children, if they are returned. The likelihood of the children growing up stateless and in a radicalising environment has been cited as a particular concern for the future. Meanwhile news sources from the Autonomous Administration reported that 54 families - 184 individuals - living in al-Hawl Refugee Camp have been evacuated and been allowed to return to their homes in Deir ez-Zour. The families, all from the Sur Region, were given leave under the framework established with the SDF under the Syrian Tribes Forum back in May, with investigations establishing they had no active IS links. Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, performed Eid prayers on Sunday morning at the Afram Mosque in Damascus. Assad was accompanied by numerous important figures including the Minister of Religious Endowments (Awqaf), Mohammed Abdul Sattar, and the Grand Mufti of Syria, Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun. During the sermon, Sheikh Awad, who led the prayers, congratulated Assad for the “triumph over terrorism”. Also marking Eid, the Syrian Defence Minister, Major General Ali Ayyoub, conducted a field visit to the town of Hobait in Idlib, hours after its capture by the SAA. Ayoub congratulated the soldiers present for the gains made. Elsewhere in Syria, the environment has been more sombre, with many parts of Greater Idlib cancelling celebrations due to on-going bombardment. Prominent pro-Government journalist and director of Damascus Now, Wissam al-Tair, has been released from prison after nine months over charges that remain unclear. According to a moderator from the Syrian Electronic Army, his release came as a result of a Presidential amnesty and he was picked from jail by his family. Many pro-Government commentators and journalists had criticised his arrests, noting that he was always an avowed loyalists and criticising efforts by numerous agencies to put an end to his work over petty issues or fear of an independent media no matter how loyalist. Amidst these developments, clashes across Syria have continued. In Greater Idlib, numerous significant developments took place over the weekend, with the SAA making a number of significant gains. On Saturday, the SAA launched a new offensive from southeastern Idlib, capturing the hills around Sukaik, subsequently capturing the village on Sunday and pushing towards Tamanah. In southwestern Idlib, the SAA took control of Maghar al-Haman east of the village of Hobait itself before capturing Hobait on Sunday. With these gains, the SAA is in progress towards encircling Khan Sheikhoun and cutting Kafr Zita, Lataminah and Morek from the rest of the region. Indeed, this weekend also saw rumours of the SAA capturing Morek, but these were rejected by pro-Government media. Responding to the developments, a number of groups including Hayy'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) have been mulling withdrawal towards more defensible points while hard-line faction Ansar al-Tawhid was reported to have sent reinforcements into the region. For further information, contact Integrity UK on: [email protected] There have also been numerous other incidents across Greater Idlib. In northern Latakia, the SAA appears to have launched a new offensive towards the village of Kabani. While successive attacks on the village were unsuccessful, there were reports on Monday morning that the SAA took control of the Zuwayqat Mountain south of the village, giving the SAA an opening to enter the area. In southern Aleppo, pro-Government media reported that the NFL launched an attack near Wasta, killing a number of soldiers. In the Hamsin Valley near Lataminah, Jaish al-Izza claimed to have launched an attack against the SAA and allied militias, killing and injuring 30 loyalist fighters. Pro-Opposition media also reported that a Russian Special Forces unit attacked Hakoura in Hama but were repelled. In Latakia, activists reported that a new drone attack targeting the Hmeimim Airbase took place, but was repelled on Saturday. Activists also reported that two HTS militants were killed by unknown assassins in Kafr Takharim. The HTS itself conducted a raid near Salqin, killing Abu Khalid Tal Manas, the current leader of IS operations in Idlib following the capture and killing of his predecessor, Abu Abdulatif al-Jubouri, back in July. His assistant, Abu Abdo al-Shahid, was also killed. In conjunction, shelling and airstrikes in the region continued. Over the weekend and on Monday, the SAA and Russian and Syrian aircraft shelled the towns of Morek, Kafr Zita and the Shashbo Mountain area in northern Hama; Kursa, Khan Sheikhoun, Tamanah, Ma'arat al-Seen, Khuwain, Oum Jalal, Nukair, Madaya, Hish, Kafr Sajnah, Sheikh Damas, Tamanah, Shaikh Mustafa, Oum Zaitouna, Tahtaya, Sheikh Damas, Amiriyah, Ma'ar Zita, Ma'arat Hurmah, Kafr Nabl and Hass in southern Idlib; Kabanah, Kafr Niji, and Alia in northern Latakia and western Idlib; and Hamira, Hraitan, Zammar, Kafr Halab, Jazraya and the ICARDA facility in western Aleppo.