As multiple actors compete for land and leverage in northeastern Syria, the risk of country-on-country war looms ever closer.
21WIRE editor Patrick Henningsen described such a clear and present risk in an Oct 18th piece entitled, “Buried in the US-Turkey ‘Ceasefire’ Deal Are More Seeds of Instability,” where he describe a situation designed to foment more hostilities following the US-Turkish brokered “ceasefire” agreement back then:
While this engineered “pause” in fighting offers a temporary calm, the situation remains tense and fraught with endemic conditions that could lead a resumption of hostilities. Those conditions include the ulterior agendas of Turkey and the US which are sure to antagonise Damascus and its allies going forward. Reading between the lines, this latest US-brokered ‘peace plan’ still leaves the door open for long-range US regime change plans for Syria.
It should go without saying that the United States is not unhappy about the sharp resumption of fighting in this region of Syria, for simple reason that it lends supposed credibility to its own illegal presence in the country going forward, but also making further use of Washington’s multi-billion dollar investment in the al-Qaeda-affiliate, Free Syrian Army (recently rebranded to the ‘Syrian National Army’), now assuming the position for their new sponsors in Turkey, as Erdogan’s vanguard force to try and destabilize northeastern Syria.
Former US-backed terrorist brigade, the Free Syrian Army, given some new uniforms and berets by Turkey and rebranded as the “Syrian National Army” (Image Source: Ahval)
South Front reports…
The so-called Syrian National Army (SNA) launched on November 9 a large-scale attack on Syrian Arab Army (SAA) positions in the northern al-Hasakah countryside.
Local sources said that the SNA militants [formerly US-backed ‘Free Syrian Army’] are attack army positions in the village of Umm Sha’Fah and its outskirt with direct support from the Turkish military.
Turkish artillery and battle tanks are reportedly shelling the SAA’s positions in the village, which is located northwest of the town of Tell Tamr. Army equipment were also targeted by Turkish combat drones.
“Intense clashes are taking place in the village of Umm Sha’Fah in Ras al-Ayn countryside with heavy and medium weapons between the Syrian Arab Army and Turkish occupation forces as well as their mercenaries,” the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported in al-Hasakah said.
According to the Hawar News Agency (ANHA), at least three Syrian service members have been killed and four others have been injured, so far.
SAA units and fighters of the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are still holding onto their positions inside Umm Sha’Fah, which is yet to be stormed by Turkish forces.
READ MORE SYRIA NEWS AT: 21st Century Wire Syria Files
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