SYRIAN UPDATES : BLINKEN AND ERDOGAN CLASH ON SYRIA IN HIGH-STAKES TALKS : U.S JOURNALIST AUSTIN TICE FOUND IN SYRIA?

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🚨🇺🇸🇹🇷 BLINKEN AND ERDOGAN CLASH ON SYRIA IN HIGH-STAKES TALKS

U.S. Sec of State Antony Blinken touched down in Turkey for tense discussions with President Erdogan, tackling the chaos brewing in northern Syria.

The topic? Kurdish forces backed by the U.S. squaring off against Turkey-backed rebels. Awkward.

Erdogan didn’t mince words, vowing to crush “terrorist groups” (AKA: U.S. allies) while also insisting he’s all about rebuilding Syria’s institutions.

Blinken countered, calling for calm and reminding Turkey the real goal is stopping ISIS, not creating new battles.

The backdrop: Turkish-backed rebels just seized Manbij, forcing U.S.-aligned Kurdish forces to retreat east.

Meanwhile, Turkey’s intelligence team blew up 12 trucks of Kurdish weapons in northeast Syria—because subtlety isn’t their strong suit.

Blinken and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan are set to continue these “friendly” talks tomorrow.

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🇸🇾 HTS LEADER: SYRIANS MUST RETURN TO THEIR COUNTRY

HTS leader, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani:

“We must give it its right by restoring people’s dignity and pride and by building it properly.

The opportunities are available to us, and the people who have immigrated, who have sought asylum, who have been displaced, they must return.

All these people must return so that hand in hand, we can build the next Syria, God willing.”

Source:
@EndWokeness
, France 24

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🚨🇸🇾 REBELS TORCH ASSAD FAMILY MAUSOLEUM IN SYMBOLIC GOODBYE

Rebels in Qardaha, Bashar al-Assad’s hometown, didn’t just topple the regime—they set its legacy ablaze.

The family’s mausoleum was looted, torched, and left littered with bullet casings.

Even the tombs of Hafez al-Assad and his wife weren’t spared.

Rebel Ahmet al-Abdullah:

“God willing, we will wipe all of Syria’s streets clean of the Assad family and their injustices.

We will become a civilised country without an image of anyone no matter their status.”

Meanwhile, in Latakia, a city long loyal to the Assads, people celebrated the dynasty’s end with flags, selfies, and honking horns.

After 53 years of rule, it seems the Assad era is officially toast.

Sources: Reuters

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🇺🇸BLINKEN: U.S. WORKING TO BRING CITIZEN FOUND IN SYRIA BACK HOME

Efforts to bring back Travis Timmerman, an American citizen found in Syria after the fall of Assad’s regime, were confirmed by Blinken.

The overthrow of Assad’s regime by Syrian rebel groups led to the release of tens of thousands of prisoners.

The search for Austin Tice, a journalist kidnapped in Syria 8 years ago, continues.

Biden reaffirmed his conviction that Tice is alive and pledged to ensure his return.

Source: Reuters

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🚨🇺🇸🇯🇴 BLINKEN MEETS JORDAN’S KING: TRYING TO FIX SYRIA AND GAZA BEFORE THE CLOCK RUNS OUT

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Jordan’s King Abdullah to discuss Syria’s next steps after Assad’s 50-year family rule came to a sudden end.

The U.S. is advocating for a government “chosen by the people”—not one dominated by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a group with ties to al-Qaeda.

Blinken also stressed the need to secure Syria’s chemical weapons, deliver humanitarian aid, and prevent the region from becoming a hub for instability.

With just weeks before Trump takes office, Biden’s team is scrambling for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage releases, but the timeline is tight.

Source: Reuters

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🚨🇺🇸🇸🇾 U.S. TARGETS SYRIA’S CHEMICAL WEAPONS AFTER ASSAD’S FALL

The collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime has handed the U.S. and global watchdogs a golden chance to clean up Syria’s deadly chemical weapons mess.

U.S. ambassador to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Nicole Shampaine:

“We want to finish the job and it’s really an opportunity for Syria’s new leadership to work with the international community, work with the OPCW to get the job done once and for all.”

Syria joined the OPCW in 2013 under a U.S.-Russia deal but repeatedly used sarin and chlorine bombs during its 13-year civil war.

Now, diplomats aim to secure chemical sites, destroy stockpiles, and prevent weapons from falling into dangerous hands.

With Assad gone, the OPCW can finally access long-blocked facilities, closing a dark chapter in Syria’s history.

Source: Reuters

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🚨🇸🇾UNCONFIRMED: U.S JOURNALIST AUSTIN TICE FOUND IN SYRIA?

Footage allegedly from the Free Syrian Army claims to show the American journalist who was abducted in Syria in 2012 while reporting in Damascus.

The video states:

“The American journalist – whose name we still do not know – was found by our brother Moussa, one of the sons of Dhibiyeh and a municipal guard, in the early hours of dawn today.

This American individual, who has been wanted by the United States after disappearing for seven years in the prisons of the tyrannical regime, where he was tortured in Sednaya and the dungeons of Sednaya, is now in the town of Dhibiyeh.

This is a message to the entire world: this man was in the hands of criminals, in the prisons of Assad’s gangs, who recognize neither humanity, human rights, nor any sense of decency.

Praise be to God, the man is now safe, and we are waiting for the official authorities to come and take him from us.”

Source:
@nedalalamari

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🚨🇸🇾SYRIAN PRISONS TO BE SHUT DOWN

Syrian rebel forces have said they plan to close the notoriously harsh prisons run by Assad and hunt those involved in the killing or torture of detainees.

Rebel leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani also said he would dissolve the security forces of the former regime.

Almost 60,000 people were tortured and killed in the prisons run by Assad, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Source: BBC

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🇸🇾NEW SYRIA PM VOWS TO PROTECT RIGHTS OF ALL RELIGIOUS GROUPS

Following the dramatic overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s new prime minister, Mohammad al-Bashir, has made a bold declaration regarding the rights of religious minorities in the country.

Appointed by the alliance of Islamist-led groups that ousted Assad, al-Bashir has pledged that the new regime will ensure the rights of all religious groups are “guaranteed”.

This statement comes amidst a backdrop of significant unrest and the need for national rebuilding and reconciliation.

Source: AFP

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal
🇮🇱🇱🇧 CEASEFIRE PROGRESS: IDF WITHDRAWAL FROM KHIAM, LEBANON

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have initiated their withdrawal from Khiam in southern Lebanon as part of a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah, which took effect on November 27, 2024.

This move is part of a 60-day withdrawal plan, with the Lebanese army stepping in alongside UN peacekeepers.

The process aims at a lasting cessation of hostilities, with CENTCOM’s General Michael Kurilla overseeing the transition in Beirut, emphasizing the importance of this step towards peace.

Source: Times of Israel