Dallas, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump Thursday welcomed the temporary ceasefire in northern Syria and said he allowed Turkish and Kurdish forces to clash in deadly battle because they were like children who needed to fight each other. “It was unconventional what I did. I said they’re …
Read More »EU ‘has no magic powers’ to stop Turkey offensive
Luxembourg, Luxembourg | AFP | EU foreign ministers on Monday voiced concern and condemnation at Turkey’s assault on Kurdish forces in northern Syria, but warned their options for coordinated action across the bloc were limited. Several European countries including Germany and France have halted arms exports to Turkey over the offensive …
Read More »Trump threatens Turkey after greenlighting Syria invasion
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump has warned Turkey against going too far in Syria, just a day after giving Ankara an apparent green light to invade its southern neighbor and sparking panic among Washington’s Kurdish allies. The US pulled back 50 to 100 “special operators” from …
Read More »IS loss affirms Pentagon plan, but end game vague as US pulls out
Washington, United States | AFP | Now that the Islamic State group has officially lost its geographic “caliphate,” the Pentagon is marking a historic moment in its years-long campaign to defeat the jihadists. From a military perspective at least, the United States can claim significant success in its strategy of …
Read More »Germany wants trial for Syria jihadists but warns of difficulties
Berlin, Germany | AFP | Germany vowed Monday to prosecute German IS fighters but warned that it would be “extremely difficult” to organise the repatriation of European nationals from Syria, after US President Donald Trump called on allies to take back alleged jihadists. Syria’s US-backed Kurdish forces, which are battling Islamic State group jihadists in …
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