Syria

'Very Complex': The US Raid That Killed IS Chief

By early December United States (US) intelligence was certain: the man occupying the top floor of a nondescript house in Atme, northern Syria – who never left the premises, emerging only to bathe on the roof – was the head of the Islamic State (IS) group.In the White House Situation Room, a table-top model of the house was set up, and President Joe Biden was briefed on his options to neutralize Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, one of America's most wanted jihadist targets.US officials

4 February 2022
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Lebanon’s Agony

Last week, a warehouse stocked with nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate blew up, laying waste to the port of Beirut and ripping through much of the rest of the Lebanese capital. At least 137 people were killed, thousands were wounded, and hundreds of thousands were rendered homeless.

12 August 2020
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Indonesia’s abandoned children in Syria

The notion of repatriation for the 689 Indonesians associated with terrorists and violent-extremist groups in Syria has led to controversy in Indonesia. Public debate is not only divided on whether the government should repatriate them or not, but also whether or not their nationality should be revoked. In responding to that, the Indonesian government has just declared its decision to not repatriate them.

23 February 2020
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UN 2020 budget includes funds for war crime probes

The United Nations General Assembly on Friday adopted a US$3.07 billion operating budget which for the first time includes funding for the investigation of war crimes in Syria and Myanmar.The budget represents a slight increase from 2019's figure of US$2.9 billion.The increase is due to additional missions assigned to the UN Secretariat, inflation and exchange rate adjustments, according to diplomats.These include the observer mission in Yemen, a political mission established in Haiti, t

1 January 2020
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Iraq marks one year since IS 'victory'

Iraq's premier on Monday marked a year since his country declared victory against the Islamic State (IS) group by pledging to fight corruption next, even as he faces a political crisis within his government.A year ago, his predecessor announced the conclusion of a three-year battle to oust IS, putting an end to the so-called jihadist "caliphate" straddling Syria and Iraq after they seized swathes of Iraq.

11 December 2018
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Impact of US-led airstrikes in Syria on East Asian geopolitics

At approximately 4 a.m. Syrian time, a unilateral US-led effort joined by the French and British, launched more than 100 missiles towards the Syrian capital of Damascus. The primary targets – two chemical weapons storage and production sites and another research facility said to be involved in the development of chemical weapons. The strikes come as a response to the alleged chemical weapons attack by the ruling regime, on civilians in the Damascus enclave of Douma.

16 April 2018
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