BEIRUT: A Syria war monitor said on Wednesday that Russian-backed Syrian forces have all but encircled Daesh militants in Deir Ezzor city in eastern Syria.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that Russia extended pontoon bridges across the Euphrates River, facilitating reinforcements to the eastern banks of The Euphrates river where the Syrian regime troops are closing in on the militants from the west.
The official state news agency SANA reported intense clashes in Al-Husseiniyeh, which according to the Observatory is the remaining contested village on the eastern side of the river before the militants are besieged in the city.
Backed by Russia, Syrian forces have advanced since early September on Deir Ezzor. US-backed forces are also racing to control areas along the border with Iraq in the oil-rich province.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry on Wednesday said it had killed five field commanders and 32 fighters from a group formerly affiliated with Al-Qaeda in strikes on Syria’s Idlib province.
The observatory said Russian strikes had killed 37 civilians including children in Idlib in northwestern Syria — the highest civilian toll since the region was designated in May as a “de-escalation” zone.
“As a result of a strike, five field commanders were liquidated,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
It said the strike took place as the terrorist field commanders of the group formerly known as Al-Nusra Front met to the south of the city of Idlib.
“Along with them 32 more fighters were killed,” the ministry said.
The ministry did not say when the strikes took place.
It named the five senior figures killed including the commander of the southern sector of Idlib.
The former Al-Qaeda affiliate, which renamed itself Fateh Al-Sham Front and became the backbone of the coalition that rules much of Idlib, is designated a “terrorist” group by the UN.
The observatory said Russian airstrikes on Idlib on Monday killed at least 37 civilians including 12 children.
Moscow said the strikes were carried out after a Sept. 18 attack on Russian military police deployed in neighboring Hama province.
Since the Hama assault, Idlib has been the target of heavy airstrikes by the Syrian regime and its Russian ally.
Idlib province and some adjacent areas form one of four so-called de-escalation zones agreed in May by opposition backer Turkey and government allies Russia and Iran.
Syrian troops close to encircling Deir Ezzor
Syrian troops close to encircling Deir Ezzor
US makes plans to reopen embassy in Syria after 14 years
- The administration has been considering re-opening the embassy since last year
- Trump told reporters on Friday that Al-Sharaa was “doing a phenomenal job” as president
WASHINGTON: The Trump administration has informed Congress that it intends to proceed with planning for a potential re-opening of the US Embassy in Damascus, Syria, which was shuttered in 2012 during the country’s civil war.
A notice to congressional committees earlier this month, which was obtained by The Associated Press, informed lawmakers of the State Department’s “intent to implement a phased approach to potentially resume embassy operations in Syria.”
The Feb. 10 notification said that spending on the plans would begin in 15 days, or next week, although there was no timeline offered for when they would be complete or when US personnel might return to Damascus on a full-time basis.
The administration has been considering re-opening the embassy since last year, shortly after longtime strongman Bashar Assad was ousted in December 2024, and it has been a priority for President Donald Trump’s ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack.
Barrack has pushed for a deep rapprochement with Syria and its new leadership under former rebel Ahmad Al-Sharaa and has successfully advocated for the lifting of US sanctions and a reintegration of Syria into the regional and international communities.
Trump told reporters on Friday that Al-Sharaa was “doing a phenomenal job” as president. “He’s a rough guy. He’s not a choir boy. A choir boy couldn’t do it,” Trump said. “But Syria’s coming together.”
Last May, Barrack visited Damascus and raised the US flag at the embassy compound, although the embassy was not yet re-opened.
The same day the congressional notification was sent, Barrack lauded Syria’s decision to participate in the coalition that is combating the Daesh militant group, even as the US military has withdrawn from a small, but important, base in the southeast and there remain significant issues between the government and the Kurdish minority.
“Regional solutions, shared responsibility. Syria’s participation in the D-Daesh Coalition meeting in Riyadh marks a new chapter in collective security,” Barrack said.
The embassy re-opening plans are classified and the State Department declined to comment on details beyond confirming that the congressional notification was sent.
However, the department has taken a similar “phased” approach in its plans to re-open the US Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela, following the US military operation that ousted former President Nicolás Maduro in January, with the deployment of temporary staffers who would live in and work out of interim facilities.
