Safe
zones in Syria will be ‘No Fly’ zones for US coalition
5
May, 2017
The
US has been useless in preventing jihadi atrocities, such as the
refugee-convoy bombing
[ Editor’s
Note: This
was a strange twist of fate, but not a surprising one. The US has
officially been out of the Astana talks, and not unfairly so. That is
because during the two previous ceasefires, the US failed to separate
its opposition forces from Al-Nusra and ISIS, or else Turkey and the
Gulf State-US coalition members refused to do so.
Nor
do we forget the US bombing of Syrian positions in Deir Ezzor, which
were quickly followed by an ISIS attack to capture a strategic hill.
Russia’s calls on the de-confliction hotline went unanswered, with
no one apparently on duty at the US end of the line. It was a cheap
move by the US, and one that burned up any chances of another joint
ceasefire with Russia.
But
this act today was basically for show, as the US has not been bombing
much in Idlib for fear of hitting all the coalition officers that are
in the jihadi command centers. The US will not be the big threat to
these safe zones, but not having proper, enforceable procedures in
place will be.
That
will come from the details not mentioned in the Astana agreement.
How, once again, are the opposition forces and terrorists going
to be separated? Is a database going to be built up of all their
respected IDs and fingerprints? Once the various forces are separated
and refugees begin returning, what provisions will be made to
prevent jihadi re-infiltration?
What
will prevent weapons and ammo from continuing to flow into these
areas hidden inside the Turkish humanitarian convoy trucks? Are all
ammo dumps going to be surrendered, including all the TOWS? Inquiring
minds would love to know… Jim
W. Dean ]
This
includes research, needed field trips, Heritage TV
Legacy archiving, and more – Thanks for helping out
*
–
First
published … May 05, 2017 –
The
four safe zones to be established in Syria will
be closed for flights by US-led coalition warplanes, said the Russian
envoy to the Astana peace talks, where the zones were agreed upon.
“As
for [the coalition] actions in the de-escalation zones, starting from
now those zones are closed for their flights,” Aleksandr
Levrentyev told journalists in the Kazakh capital.
He
added that the flight ban was not part of the memorandum establishing
the safe zones, but assured the coalition would not fly over them.
“As
guarantors we will be tracking all actions in that direction,” he
remarked. “Absolutely
no flights, especially by the international coalition, are allowed.
With or without prior notification. The issue is closed.”
He
added that the US-led coalition would continue airstrikes near Raqqa,
the Syrian stronghold of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), near
some towns near the Euphrates River and close to the city of Deir
ez-Zor.
The
Russian Foreign Ministry was less definitive on the alleged ban of US
warplanes, stating that “these
issues are being discussed at the military level.”
On
Thursday, a memorandum was signed in Astana establishing four “safe
zones” in Syria, where so-called “moderate opposition” fighters
are expected to stay safe from airstrikes and keep jihadist groups
out. The zones are set in provinces of Idlib, Latakia and Homs, as
well as parts of Aleppo.
Russia,
Iran and Turkey serve as guarantors of the arrangement, which carries
hopes of deescalating violence in the war-torn country.
The
move was cheered by the United Nations and welcomed with reservations
by Washington.*
Related Posts:
RT,
5
May, 2017
The
Russian-proposed safe zones in Syria – where no fighting between
the government and opposition is allowed – came into force at 21:00
GMT May 5. RT sums up what’s already known about the initiative
aimed at resolving the conflict in the country.
The
safe or de-escalation zones in Syria are described as a temporary
measure which will be enforced for the next six months with the
possibility of extending it for another six.
The
safe zones were agreed by the guarantor-states – Russia, Iran and
Turkey – during negotiations in the Kazakh capital, Astana
Thursday. All parties expressed hope that the initiative will lead
the way for the settlement of the conflict.
4 zones
The
four safe zones are established in Syria’s Idlib Governorate and
parts of neighboring Latakia, Aleppo and Hama provinces; in the
northern part of Homs province; in the Damascus neighborhood of
Eastern Ghouta, and in parts of southern Deraa and Quneitra provinces
bordering Jordan.
©
RT
Syrian
government forces and the armed opposition will be prevented from
fighting each other and carrying out airstrikes within the safe zones
by means of security buffers, checkpoints and observation posts
controlled by the guarantor states.
Russia,
Iran and Turkey agreed to prepare maps that will separate the areas
controlled by the so-called “moderate
opposition” from
the territories held by the jihadists and provide precise safe zone
demarcation by June 4.
Airspace over safe zones
Russian
Aerospace Forces have already, on May 1 paused their airstrikes in
the areas demarcated as safe zones, Russia’s Defense Ministry said.
The
airspace over the safe zones may also be closed for the planes of the
US-led coalition, with Russia’s Foreign Ministry saying the issue
is being negotiated between the Russian and American militaries.
Fighting terrorists
Around
42,000 opposition fighters currently remain on the territory of the
four security zones, with the majority of the militants located in
Idlib (14,500) and near the Jordanian border (15,000), according to
Russian estimates.
The
establishment of safe zones doesn’t mean that the fight against
Islamic State, Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist groups will stop
in the country. On the contrary, the move will allow Syria to free
additional forces to tackle the jihadists, Russia’s Defense
Ministry said.
The
Syrian government supported the implementation of the safe zones in
the country and confirmed its commitment to fighting terrorism.
Opposition compliance under question
There’s
no certainty over the opposition’s compliance with the initiative
as the representatives of the militants walked out from the signing
ceremony in Astana, claiming, they won’t accept Iran as a guarantor
state.
International reaction
The
United Nations has welcomed the establishment of the safe zones, with
UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, expressing hope that it’ll
improve the lives of the population and UN Special Envoy for Syria,
Staffan de Mistura, hailing the initiative as a step in the right
direction.
Russia’s
President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that he understood from a
phone call with his US counterpart Donald Trump, that the US
administration supports the idea of safe zones in Syria. The State
Department said it appreciated “the
efforts of Turkey and the Russian Federation to pursue this agreement
and have encouraged the Syrian opposition to participate actively in
the discussions”. It,
however, expressed concerns over Iran’s participation in the
initiative.
Syria
Safe Zones Declared: Will The Killing Finally End?
RonPaulLibertyReport
Early today, Russia, Iran, and Turkey signed an agreement to establish "de-escalation" zones at four locations in Syria. The plan is supposed to separate the "moderate" rebels from the extremists and allow citizens to receive humanitarian aid. What will the US do?
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