Rooted to the organic fabric of Syrian civil society while reaching to the highest political levels, ETANA works for a sustainable solution to the Syrian crisis
🆕 Explainer: Iran in Syria Today
Iran has effectively entrenched itself in Syria by embedding command structures & proxy militias within the regime’s military-security apparatus. As a result, Syria today is essentially an Iranian client-state.
🔗
#Iran
The Syrian regime &
#Hezbollah
do not simply allow smuggling to happen—they are inextricably involved in the inner workings of cross-border narcotics networks
Our new study details regime involvement in drug supply chains:
#Syria
🧵 Is the Syrian regime about to crack down on Suwayda?
Since Friday, the Syrian regime & Iranian-backed militias have deployed a concerning number of military reinforcements to Suwayda as tensions with anti-regime protesters continue to rise.
The volume of the regime
Updated
#Map
showing locations of Iranian-backed militias across south-west
#Syria
including Lebanese Hezbollah & Iranian IRGC. Information from sources on the ground across
#Daraa
&
#Quneitra
provinces
Why is Mohammad Reza Zahedi’s killing so significant?
As the Quds Force’s top commander in Syria, Zahedi oversaw all Iranian-backed militia activity in
#Syria
, where
#Iran
& its proxy forces maintain a land corridor to
#Hezbollah
in Lebanon & prop up the
#Assad
regime in Syria
More than 700 people were aboard the ship that sunk off the Greek coast yesterday
At least 33 of them were from
#Daraa
Syrians today are willing to risk death at sea rather than live in fear & uncertainty under
#Assad
“All honorable Syrians are against the chemical &
#captagon
regime”
Protesters in Tel Abyad, north
#Raqqa
province denounce
#Assad
’s use of chemical weapons & role in the drug trade
Military situation in north-west
#Syria
as regime & Russia begin new heavy military campaign targeting areas of the demilitarised zone in rural north
#Hama
& south
#Idlib
. 50 civilians killed over the last 2 weeks as a result of this escalation
North-east Syria update: ISIS attacks are on the rise, especially in Deir Ezzor & Raqqa, where
#ISIS
elements carried out numerous attacks on SDF, regime & Iranian-backed militia forces last month, incurring dozens of casualties.
In 1 attack, ISIS fighters killed 17 regime
What does the return of Assad regime rule look like in
#Syria
? We took a detailed look at
#EastGhouta
- this report shows what life is like:
@MiddleEastInst
Protests still underway in
#Suwayda
, south
#Syria
, where several
#Druze
leaders are reportedly meeting with Ba’ath party officials
Other local leaders have so far refused to engage with Damascus
Map of newly agreed Demilitarised Zone around
#Idlib
showing three points of intersection with HTS strongholds in addition to highways across the territory
Significant reinforcements of regime forces & Iranian-backed militias over last 48hrs to frontlines of NW Syria is indication that regime is preparing for an offensive on opposition territory
#Idlib
#Hama
#Aleppo
Reports that Iran is withdrawing its forces from south Syria are misleading.
Since 2018, Iran has never had a fixed military presence in the south—instead, it relies on on-the-ground proxies like Lebanese Hezbollah that regularly move in and around Daraa and Quneitra.
Senior
🧵 Update: For the past 48 hours, senior Druze community figures and regime commanders have engaged in mediations to de-escalate tensions in
#Suwayda
. The talks suggest the regime does not want a major confrontation with the Druze community in the south, but local armed groups
🧵 Is the Syrian regime about to crack down on Suwayda?
Since Friday, the Syrian regime & Iranian-backed militias have deployed a concerning number of military reinforcements to Suwayda as tensions with anti-regime protesters continue to rise.
The volume of the regime
Pro-regime Alawite shabiha in the Syrian coast posts video challenging Assad & his wife, accusing them of corruption & Assad of weakness, that he’s using his security “dogs” to protect himself
#Syria
Attacks against regime forces in south
#Syria
since their takeover in July 2018
Number of attacks increases each month, with rising popular anger at regime policies that fuel instability in the area
“The Syrian people are one”
“Freedom. Dignity. Justice.”
Peaceful demonstrators in Al-Bab,
#Aleppo
, stand in solidarity with protesters in south Syria & across the country
Explainer: Iran in Syria Today
Iran has effectively entrenched itself in Syria by embedding command structures & proxy militias within the regime’s military-security apparatus
As a result, Syria today is essentially an Iranian client-state 🔗
#Iran
Military situation in north-west
#Syria
as the civilian death toll rises as the regime & Russia escalate their scorched earth campaign on
#Idlib
&
#Hama
provinces
NEW | More than 10k protesters have gathered in over 200 locations in south
#Syria
over the past week
More on what
#Suwayda
’s dissent means for
#Assad
:
Local Druze leader Sheikh Hijri calls for calm after security forces shot at
#Suwayda
protesters yesterday:
“The squares belong to us & we will remain in them peacefully”
Iran’s vast network network allows it to regularly smuggle weapons parts from
#Syria
to its proxies & partners, including
#Hezbollah
#Russia
is another one of these partners: Moscow has used Iranian-made drones in its war against
#Ukraine
📎
“The people want the overthrow of al-
#Jolani
!”
Popular protests against
#HTS
continued today in the countrysides of
#Idlib
&
#Aleppo
📹 | Kafr Takharim, Idlib
🧵 Rukban is facing its longest-ever siege
Rukban camp, a settlement of up to 8,000 internally displaced persons close to the Syrian-Jordanian-Iraqi border triangle, is facing its longest & most dangerous blockade to date.
Syrian regime forces cut off all access to Rukban in
Across NW Syria, protests against HTS have continued for nearly 2 consecutive months. Officials have promised internal reforms, but the group is still threatening dissenters.
More 🔗
#HTS
Syria is a key staging-ground for Iran to manufacture & transport weaponry to its allies across the region. With Damascus unable & unwilling to act decisively, Tehran uses Syria to store advanced weaponry in forward positions that threaten regional states:
Mapped developments in north-west
#Syria
as pro-regime infighting in east
#Aleppo
widens & regime escalates on Kafr Hamra in violation of
#Idlib
demilitarised zone agreement
Mapped developments in north-west
#Syria
as regime sends convoy of reinforcements to SDF area & civilians brace fearful of new offensive on north
#Hama
& south
#Idlib
#Map
showing locations of Iranian-backed militias positions including Hezbollah across
#Suwayda
province as
#Iran
’s influence increases in Suwayda: 63% Suwayda province now controlled by Iran
On 21 August 2013 the Syrian regime launched several surface-to-surface missiles loaded with sarin gas into Eastern
#Ghouta
More than 1,400 died that morning
A decade later,
#Assad
has not answered for his crimes
The Syrian regime &
#Hezbollah
do not simply allow smuggling to happen—they are inextricably involved in the inner workings of cross-border narcotics networks
Our study details regime involvement in drug supply chains:
#Syria
#captagon
Human rights violations continue in
#Daraa
: there is a list of 370 names who have been arrested in regime arrest campaigns since 28th July, many of those arrested previously worked in organisations supported by the international community
#Syria