President Assad’s Amnesty Decree Is Helpful, But Not Everyone Will Follow It

President Assad’s Amnesty Decree Is Helpful, But Not Everyone Will Follow It

The world should welcome President Assad’s latest decree granting amnesty to military deserters inside and outside of the country, but observers shouldn’t forget that it isn’t a new initiative and might therefore not be observed by the parties that matter most because they ignored his government’s identical outreaches over the past couple of years. Europe’s…

Trump’s “Mr. Kurd” Quip was Followed by a Major Strategic Insinuation

Trump’s “Mr. Kurd” Quip was Followed by a Major Strategic Insinuation

Many in the media are talking about how Trump referred to a Kurdish journalist as “Mr. Kurd”, but they’re missing the major strategic insinuation that he made when responding to his question. The latest “viral” video circulating about Trump is how he referred to a Kurdish journalist as “Mr. Kurd” when calling upon him during…

Turkey Takes On Kurds in Evolving Qandil Operation

Turkey Takes On Kurds in Evolving Qandil Operation

Despite growing tension over the June 24 elections, Turkey’s agenda in recent days has been taken over by its military operation against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq’s Sidekan region. At the moment, about 1,500 Turkish troops of a commando brigade and a light infantry brigade responsible for border security at Semdinli, along with gendarmerie and…

The “Manbij Model” Is Promising, But It’s Still Far from Perfect

The “Manbij Model” Is Promising, But It’s Still Far from Perfect

The so-called “Manbij Model” that the US and Turkey agreed to in jointly administering the strategic city following the YPG’s withdrawal is promising but nevertheless imperfect because it fails to address the Kurdish-led “deep state” that controls the SDF’s political and military activities in northeastern Syria. The US and Turkey finally reached a deal to…

The Ethnic Cleansing of Sunni Arabs in North Eastern Syria Will Come Back to Haunt the United States

The Ethnic Cleansing of Sunni Arabs in North Eastern Syria Will Come Back to Haunt the United States

From “De-Ba’athification” in Iraq to “De-Shi’afication” in Syria Of the dozens if not scores of tactical, strategic and fundamental mistakes the US made in Iraq after illegally invading and occupying the country in 2003, was a strategy which sought to inflict a punitive socio-political and economic disenfranchisement of the Sunni Arab population of the Arab…

What the US and Turkey Really Want in Northern Syria

What the US and Turkey Really Want in Northern Syria

The Kurdish region of Afrin in northern Syria has become a new geopolitical pivot point in the conflict. With so many actors’ interests overlapping, whose positions will be weakened and whose solidified if hostilities escalate? With so many different agendas now converging along the borderlands, many fear that Turkey’s latest military masterplan and march towards…