International
Bashar al-Assad, still in Syria but increasingly surrounded by the insurgent offensive
Syrian President, Bashar al Asad, is increasingly surrounded after the insurgent coalition led by Islamists and with the support of Turkey that launched an offensive against his government last week has advanced this Saturday from different fronts towards Damascus.
The Syrian Presidency confirmed today that Al Asad “continues with his work, and his national and constitutional tasks from the capital, Damascus,” and denied that he had made any lightning trip or left the country, in response to the persistent rumors that he had fled the city after almost five days without news of the president.
Meanwhile, Abu Mohamed al Jolani, Islamist leader of the Levant Liberation Agency – heir to the former Syrian affiliate of Al Qaeda and who leads the offensive – sent a message this Saturday to Syrian citizens and told them that Damascus awaits them as the final destination of the contest.
“I ask you not to waste a single bullet except in the chest of your enemies, because Damascus is waiting for you,” he said.
From northern Syria to Damascus
Lieutenant Colonel Hasan Abdelghani, who acts as military spokesman for the insurgent alliance, said in a statement that his units have entered the city of Al Mashrafah, in addition to 13 villages and towns on the outskirts of the city of Homs.
He also indicated that the defensive lines of the Syrian Army are “collapsing,” both in the city and on the periphery.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an NGO headquartered in the United Kingdom but which has a wide network of collaborators on the ground both in official areas and taken by the rebels, indicated that the advance of Islamist factions towards the city of Homs has stalled due to the counterattacks of the Syrian Army and its ally Russia.
The Syrian Army reported that its units operating on the outskirts of Hama (city occupied this week) and Homs are carrying out “intense artillery and missile fire against positions and supply lines of the terrorists, achieving direct impacts between them,” according to the official Syrian news agency, SANA.
“The Syrian-Russian joint war aviation also carried out attacks against terrorist concentrations in northeastern Homs, eliminating dozens of them, and destroying their vehicles and equipment,” he added.
The conquest of Homs would leave Damascus without a land connection with the Mediterranean cities of Tartús, a fief of the Al Asad family, and Latakia, the main base of the Russian troops that support the president.
Three key capitals in southern Syria
While the great offensive is being fought in northern Damascus, the greatest advances of the day came from the south, after the Military Operations Command of the rebels announced that they had control of three capitals in southern Syria.
The capitals are: Deraa, cradle of the popular revolts that began in 2011 within the framework of the so-called “Arab Spring”; Al Sueida, whose population is Drusa and has demonstrated in recent years against the Syrian Government for the living conditions in the country; and, Quneitra, which borders the Golan Heights occupied by Israel.
These cities have been taken by local factions opposed to the government, within the framework of a broad insurgent coalition that, in addition to the Levant Liberation Agency (HTS in Arabic), the groups supported by Turkey, and, in the case of Al Sueida, the Druse population, participate.
The Syrian Army confirmed today that it was retaching its units from Deraa and Al Sueida to reposition themselves in other areas due to the “terrorist attacks” against its troops.
About 50 kilometers south of the Syrian capital
In the north of the province of Deraa, the insurgents indicated that they took control of the city of Al Sanamayn.
That means they would be about 50 kilometers south of the Syrian capital.
In the province of Rif Damascus, which borders Damascus, protests against the Government took place in the city of Jaramana, where they knocked down a statue of Hafez al Asad, former president and father of the current leader, reported the Observatory, which published a video of the moment, a recording that could not be verified independently.
The city of Jaramana is already located on the outskirts of Damascus and is an area inhabited by the Druse population, the NGO said.
However, a Syrian Army source denounced that “some sleeping cells linked to terrorist organizations are publishing videos on their media channels from squares and streets in areas of Rif Damascus and other provinces, stating that terrorist elements have taken control of them, all with the aim of sowing chaos among citizens and terrorizing them,” the official Syrian agency reported.
Iran, Russia and Turkey, steps to start a dialogue
The two main allies of the Syrian government, Iran and Russia, and the greatest support of the armed opposition to President Bashar al-Assad, Turkey, brought positions closer on Saturday to call for a cessation of hostilities in the midst of the offensive of the Islamist rebels and to start a dialogue that ends the war in Syria.
The Doha Forum was the scene of the first contact between the foreign ministers of these three powers that guarantee the ceasefire in Syria and that are part of the so-called Astana Format, a mechanism established in 2017 to find a solution to the war in the Arab country.
Official silence in the US over a possible fall of Al Asad in Syria
Joe Biden’s government considers that there is a growing possibility that the Executive of Syrian President Bashar al Asad will collapse “in days” due to the rapid advance of the insurgent coalition led by Islamists and backed by Turkey, according to five US officials revealed to CNN.
For its part, the CBS network, which cites three US officials, reported this Saturday that “Damaskus is destined to fall,” although, unlike CNN, its sources did not offer a specific deadline.
According to officials quoted by CBS, the Iranian forces defending the Syrian president have evacuated “practically in its entirety” from the country.
Despite these media leaks, the US government has not yet made public a formal assessment of the future of Al Asad, who until just a week ago seemed to be in a stable position after having managed to crush the opposition in fourteen years of civil war.
International
Iranian leader warns foreign powers have “no place” in Strait of Hormuz
Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said Thursday that the Persian Gulf is entering a new era marked by a “bright” future without the presence of the United States in the region.
His remarks came during the commemoration of Persian Gulf Day, amid ongoing regional tensions following recent military confrontations involving Iran, the United States, and Israel.
“Today, two months after the largest military buildup and aggression by the bullies of the world in the region and the humiliating defeat of the United States, a new chapter is being written for the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz,” Khamenei stated.
The Iranian leader insisted that the future of the region would be free from American influence and focused instead on the internal development and prosperity of Gulf nations.
“By the power and strength of God, the bright future of the Persian Gulf region will be a future without the United States and dedicated to the progress, welfare, and prosperity of its nations,” he said.
Khamenei also questioned the effectiveness of U.S. military bases in the region, arguing that they do not provide security even for Washington’s allies.
“Foreigners who come from thousands of miles away and commit evil and malicious acts have no place there except at the bottom of its waters,” he declared.
In addition, the Iranian leader defended new measures being prepared by Tehran to regulate maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, including fees for vessels passing through the strategic waterway. According to Khamenei, the policies would generate economic benefits and greater stability for the region.
Regional tensions remain high following the conflict that erupted on February 28 between the United States and Israel against Iran, leading to strategic blockades in the Strait of Hormuz, a route through which nearly 20% of the world’s oil supply previously passed. The situation has disrupted maritime trade and contributed to rising global oil prices.
Central America
U.S. and Regional Allies Back Panama Amid Dispute With China
The United States, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Guyana, Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago issued a joint statement in support of Panama’s sovereignty, arguing that China’s recent actions represent an attempt to politicize maritime trade and undermine the sovereignty of nations in the hemisphere.
“We are closely monitoring China’s selective economic pressure and recent actions affecting vessels flying the Panamanian flag,” the statement released Tuesday said. “Panama is a pillar of our maritime trading system and, as such, must remain free from undue external pressure.”
The statement comes amid growing tensions surrounding the Panama Canal and the operation of key ports linked to global trade.
At the end of January, Panama’s Supreme Court invalidated the legal framework supporting the 1997 concession that granted Panama Ports Company, a subsidiary of CK Hutchison, the right to operate the Balboa and Cristóbal terminals located on the Pacific and Atlantic entrances of the Panama Canal.
The ruling followed mounting pressure from the United States to curb Chinese influence around the strategic waterway, through which roughly 5% of global maritime trade passes.
CK Hutchison, which managed the ports for nearly three decades, rejected the court’s decision and accused Panamanian authorities of illegally confiscating its assets. The company has launched international arbitration proceedings against Panama, seeking more than $2 billion in damages.
Following the court ruling, reports emerged of increased detentions and inspections of Panamanian-flagged vessels in China, actions widely viewed as retaliatory measures.
On Wednesday, China’s Foreign Ministry dismissed the joint statement as “completely unfounded and misleading,” accusing the United States of politicizing port operations and warning that Beijing would take steps to protect its interests in Panama.
International
King Charles III Says U.S.-UK Alliance Is “Irreplaceable and Unbreakable”
King Charles III of the United Kingdom reaffirmed the strength of the British-American relationship on Tuesday during a speech before the United States Congress, describing the alliance between the two nations as “irreplaceable and unbreakable.”
The address, delivered at the Capitol, marked the first speech by a British monarch before Congress since Queen Elizabeth II in 1991 and comes at a time of political tensions between Donald Trump’s administration and the Labour government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
“As President Trump himself observed during his state visit to Britain last autumn, the bond of kinship and identity between the United States and the United Kingdom is invaluable and eternal. It is irreplaceable and unbreakable,” the king said.
While reflecting on the upcoming 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, which will be commemorated this year, Charles III stated that the partnership between the two countries “was born out of disagreement, but is no less strong because of it.”
The monarch emphasized the democratic values shared by both nations and noted that major global changes have occurred whenever the two allies found common ground.
“When we have found that way to agree, great changes have taken place not only for the benefit of our peoples, but for all peoples,” he said.
King Charles also quoted British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who recently described the relationship as “an indispensable alliance.”
Concluding his speech, the monarch described the shared history of the United States and the United Kingdom as “a story of reconciliation, renewal, and an extraordinary partnership.”
He added that Washington and London have forged “one of the most consequential alliances in human history.”
“I pray with all my heart that our alliance continues to defend our shared values, together with our partners in Europe, the Commonwealth, and around the world, and that we ignore calls urging us to become increasingly isolationist,” Charles III stated.
The king ended by urging both nations to “recommit to one another in selfless service to our peoples and to all peoples of the world.”
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