The Assad regime launches a counteroffensive in Syria while Russia relocates its ships in the region
In the port of Tartus, the Kremlin maintained a fleet of ships that have been moved from the port, of clear importance to Russia in the Mediterranean.
Syrian rebels fire rockets on the outskirts of Hama
Combat is intensifying around the Syrian city of Hama. Government forces loyal to autocrat Bashar Al Assad launched a counteroffensive operation against the city on Wednesday after rebels took the city.
The city of Hama is halfway between Aleppo, the country's largest and recently seized by rebels, and the capital Damascus. The government army considers it essential to stop the advance of radical Islamists supported by Turkey from the north.
AFP sources say there are more than 100,000 displaced people after a week of fighting. Kurdish authorities, who control regions in northeastern Syria, launched an "urgent" appeal for humanitarian aid on Wednesday in the face of the arrival of a "large number" of displaced people.
In Aleppo, under the control of armed rebels, a medical student told AFP on Tuesday that hospital staff were "largely absent, with wards running at half capacity."
"We are trying to respond to emergencies, we are taking care of materials," added the student who declined to give his name.
The country, hit by a civil war that has left half a million dead, is divided into several influential zones, where the rebels have the support of various foreign powers.
Russia withdraws its ships from the Syrian naval base of Tartus
As rebel forces advance, Russian troops in Syria have decided to relocate and update their positions, according to reports from The Telegraph. According to the British media outlet, several Russian warships have left the Syrian naval base in Tartus, the second largest in the country.
Naval analyst H. I. Sutton stated that the Russian naval base at Tartus in Syria is now threatened by rebel attacks as the fast-moving frontline closes: "The dramatic shift in the front lines in Syria now puts the base at risk. There are indications that Russia may evacuate its warships," the analyst told the British media outlet.
Among the Russian navy vessels that have set sail from Tartus is the Yelnya, an Altay-class offshore logistics and replenishment supply ship. Putin assured late last week that his support for the Asad regime remained firm.
Indeed, there are reports that Russian aviation carried out airstrikes on rebel positions with the aim of slowing their advance toward Hama.
It is unclear whether Russia has completely abandoned the port of Tartus, which is considered its main logistical point in the Mediterranean and also a key support for the operations of its allies in other parts of the Mediterranean basin, such as Libya. There, the Kremlin supports one of the factions dividing the country, that of General Khalifa Haftar.
Blinken warns of resurgence of Islamic State group
"Right now, I think the most important thing is that we see a de-escalation of tensions, that we ensure that civilians are protected across Syria and, perhaps most importantly, that there really is a political process moving forward," Blinken said after a NATO meeting in Brussels.
"We still have security interests in Syria, particularly the interest in making sure that ISIS is not resurrected and does not come back," the US diplomacy chief noted.
Allied forces defeated the Islamic State group in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria in 2019, but jihadist fighters still operate in remote Syrian desert areas, though they no longer control territory.
The US military has about 900 troops in Syria and 2,500 in Iraq as part of the international coalition that was established in 2014 to help combat the jihadists.
US forces neutralized a threat in Syria
The Central Command reported Tuesday that its forces present in Syria conducted a series of preemptive strikes in order to eliminate a number of threats near its Euphrates River military base.
According to Centcom, the threat included three truck-mounted multiple rocket launchers, a T-64 tank, an armored personnel carrier and mortars that posed "a clear and imminent threat to US and Coalition forces."
US forces neutralized the threat when it opened fire on the military base. According to some local reports, the military used air support to eliminate the threat.
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