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Syrian Civil War (Graphic Photos/Vid Not Allowed)

http://indianexpress.com/article/world/iran-to-continue-sending-military-advisers-to-syria-4638414/

Iran will provide military advisers to Syria for as long as necessary in support of President Bashar al Assad’s forces, a senior commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards was quoted on Tuesday as saying. Iran has provided military support to Assad’s forces since at least 2012, but initially did not comment publicly on its role. But as the military support increased and Iranian casualties also rose, officials began to speak more openly. “The advisory help isn’t only in the field of planning but also on techniques and tactics,” the Fars news agency quoted Mohammad Pakpour, head of the Revolutionary Guard ground forces, as saying. “And because of this the forces have to be present on the battlefield.”

“We will continue our advisory help as long as they (the Syrians) need it,” he added. An Iranian official said late last year that more than 1,000 Iranians had been killed in the Syrian civil war. These include a handful of senior commanders of the Revolutionary Guards, according to Iranian media reports.

Iran has helped to train and organise thousands of Shi’ite militia fighters from Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan in the Syrian conflict. Fighters from Lebanon’s Hezbollah are also working closely with Iranian military commanders in Syria.

Pakpour said the Revolutionary Guards’ ground forces were in Syria to help the Quds Force, the branch of the Guards responsible for operations outside of Iran’s own borders. “There is very close coordination between the Syrian army and the Revolutionary Guards advisers,” Pakpour said.

Iran and Russia are Assad’s main allies in the conflict, while the United States, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states support opposition groups seeking to overthrow him.Russia’s intervention in the conflict has tilted it decisively back into Assad’s favour.
 
http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/car-bomb-kills-four-in-syria-s-azaz/810366

Four people were killed -- and at least four others injured -- when a car bomb rocked Syria’s northern city of Azaz on Wednesday.

According to an Anadolu Agency correspondent near the scene of the attack, an explosive-laden vehicle exploded outside Azaz’s Maytam Mosque near an office associated with Syria’s pro-opposition interim government.

Dr. Hassan Ubeid, who works at a local field hospital, told Anadolu Agency that four people had been killed by the blast -- including one Free Syrian Police officer -- and four civilian residents injured.

Interim government head Jawad Abu Hatab, for his part, told Anadolu Agency that he had been in Azaz when the bombing occurred.

“There had been a scheduled meeting [of interim government officials] in Azaz, but the venue was changed due to security concerns,” Abu Hatab said, noting that the interim government office had not been damaged by the attack.

The same office had come under attack two months ago, he added, while refraining from saying who had attacked it.

Abu Hatab went on to say that an interim government minister -- along with 10 other people -- had been killed in an earlier attack by the Daesh terrorist group on an interim government office in the city of Daraa, while another interim government office in Idlib had been targeted by Russian airstrikes.

Syria has remained locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.

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http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/syria-4-civil-defense-workers-killed-in-roadside-blast/810064


Four civil defense workers died when a bomb exploded in Syria’s southwestern city of Daraa, a local civil defense official said Tuesday.

Ammar Ebu Zeyd told Anadolu Agency that four civil defense workers in an ambulance en route to the Nahta district, were killed in a roadside explosion.

The Daraa Civil Defense Center said in a statement that those who were targeted in the attack were headed to evacuate victims of a previous shelling.

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afrin-russia.jpeg

Russia now maintains a significant troop presence in the valley linking Afrin’s villages of Deir Sufan and Zeitouna, the Bifanun Mountain region and the village of Tal Acar.

Russia had already deployed troops to Afrin’s northwestern Kafr Janneh, Deir Ballut and Gazzavia areas, all of which are held by the PKK and its Syrian affiliate, the PYD.

In mid-March, Russian troops were deployed to Kafr Janneh, located some 10 kilometers north of Afrin’s district center, where they have begun carrying out joint patrols with PKK/PYD militants.

According to local sources, Russian soldiers -- along with terrorist elements -- have been stationed north of Kafr Janneh and along the valley linking Deir Sufan and Zeitouna near the Turkish border in order to monitor Turkish military dispositions.

Local sources also note that additional Russian forces have been deployed in Tal Acar’s Tal Rifaat district, which was captured by terrorist elements last year with the help of Russian air support.

According to anti-regime opposition groups, Russian troops -- accompanied by PKK/PYD terrorists -- are also currently patrolling the area between Tal Rifaat and the nearby Al-Bab district.

Local sources further say that Russian troops have set up an observation post in the Gazzawia region, which overlooks the opposition-held Darat Izza and Kaptan Cebel areas.

Syrian opposition sources tell Anadolu Agency that recent Russian military activity in Afrin could indicate plans by Russia, the Assad regime and the PKK/PYD to stage a joint advance on opposition-held parts of Idlib.

Afrin’s town of Rajo, meanwhile, which sits only 5 kilometers from the Turkish border, is home to a helicopter base used by Russia, the Assad regime and PYD/PKK terrorists.

Since the early days of the war in Aleppo, the Assad regime has reportedly dispatched numerous helicopters, weapons and ammunition to the area.
 
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