The Construction Demonstrates that
The US Has No Plans to Leave Syria
Dave DeCamp / Antiwar.com
(Ma 25, 2023) — The US-led anti-ISIS coalition is building a new military base in Syria’s northern province of Raqqa, The New Arab reported, citing a source close to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The US backs the SDF and keeps about 900 troops in eastern Syria, allowing the US to control about one-third of Syria’s territory. The report said there are currently about 24 US-led military sites spread throughout eastern Syria.
While the US says it’s in Syria to fight ISIS, the presence is part of Washington’s economic war against Damascus, which includes crippling economic sanctions. ISIS also holds no significant territory, and the Syrian government and its allies would continue to fight the remnants of the terror group if the US withdrew.
But the construction of a new base demonstrates the US plans to continue the occupation indefinitely. In March, the House voted down a resolution introduced by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) that would have ordered President Biden to withdraw from Syria. The legislation failed in a vote of 103-321, with 56 Democrats and 47 Republicans voting in favor of the bill.
The House also recently voted to maintain sanctions on Syria after an earthquake killed thousands of Syrians. Only two members of Congress voted against the legislation.
The US could come under pressure to withdraw from Syria and lift sanctions on the country as more and more regional countries are normalizing ties with the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Saudi Arabia spearheaded an effort to bring Syria back into the Arab League despite US objection.
US-led Coalition Against Islamic State
Building New Base in Northern Syria
The New Arab
(May 24, 2023) — The US-led coalition against the Islamic State group will build a new base in the northern Syrian province of Raqqa, sources close to a coalition partner force have said.
The US-led global coalition against the Islamic State group in Syria has started to build a new military base in the northern province of Raqqa as the militant group continues to carry out attacks in the country.
The base will be in the Al-Suwaidiyeh area west of the city of Tabqa, a source close to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, a local partner of the coalition, told The New Arab’s Arabic-language sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
Plans for the new base come as coalition forces began a few weeks ago to equip a base just south of the city of Raqqa, the source told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
Currently, the largest base housing US troops in Syria is the Al-Omar field. There are currently at least 24 US-led coalition military sites spread throughout Syria’s northeast.
The US says its military is stationed in the country to fight against the remnants of IS.
Raqqa was IS’ de-facto capital during its self-proclaimed caliphate, which covered large swathes of Syria and neighbouring Iraq. The coalition pushed the militants out of all territories it controlled in eastern and northern Syria in 2019.
But the extremist group’s sleeper cells continue to carry out attacks, targeting military and security personnel and civilians.
On Wednesday, at least three soldiers in the Syrian regime army were killed in an attack believed to have been conducted by IS in the Syrian dessert between the Homs and Raqqa provinces.
The soldiers were attacked by “unknown persons” at their military checkpoint in the Maadan area, east of Raqqa, local sources told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. The sources said members of the Russian mercenary group Wagner were killed in the same area two days ago by militants believed to belong to IS.
Russian jets bombed sites in the Al-Resafa desert, southeast of Raqqa, following Wednesday’s attack against the Syrian soldiers, said the sources, who wished to remain anonymous.
Moscow has backed the Syrian regime since at least 2015 in the country’s brutal conflict, which has killed over 500,000 people and displaced millions.
The Syrian regime’s Al-Watan newspaper reported on Wednesday that regime forces carried out operations against IS in the Badia (Syrian desert), claiming to have killed “many of them”.
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