At least 48 Syrian troops killed on Saturday
Posted on Throughout Sunday and into Monday, Turkey has launched a flurry of airstrikes against the Syrian military in Idlib Province, and new ground offensives aiming to reclaim territory in the border province, to expel the Syrian government and ultimately replace it with Turkish-backed rebels.
Turkish officials have vowed to continue to move against Syria, and have promised to move against any Syrian government targets as legitimate military targets. On Saturday, 48 Syrian soldiers were killed. Turkey subsequently downed a pair of aircraft.
Syria has responded by closing the Idlib Province’s airspace, and seems set to continue to contest control of the territory. For Syria, any successful control necessarily will require the support of Russia.
Read more at https://news.antiwar.com/2020/03/01/turkey-launches-new-offensives-in-syrias-idlib-province/
Russian military police deployed to strategic Idlib town of Saraqeb – Defense Ministry
2 Mar. 2020
Russian military police have been deployed to Saraqeb in Syria’s Idlib province, the Defense Ministry has confirmed. Until recently, the strategic town has seen heavy fighting between Syrian forces and Turkish-backed militants.
The police presence is especially important because of the key role that Saraqeb plays in assuring the safety of vehicles and the civilian population travelling along the M4 and M5 highways.
The M4 connects the major port of Latakia to the Syrian-Iraqi border, while the M5 links Aleppo with Syrian capital Damascus and goes all the way to Jordan. Saraqeb is located near both of these transportation corridors.
Read more at https://www.rt.com/news/482134-russia-military-police-saraqeb/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Email
Military Situation In Southeastern Idlib Following Second Liberation Of Saraqib By Syrian Army (Map Update)
02.03.2020
On March 2, Syrian government troops retook the town of Saraqib from Turkish-led forces in eastern Idlib. According to pro-government sources, the advance came amid an intense bombing campaign by the Syrian Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Forces. Syrian and Russian airstrikes were also reported in Nayrab and Sarmin.
At the same time, an intense fighting between the Syrian Army and Turkish-led forces erupted near Kafr Nubl. Al-Qaeda members backed up by the Turkish Army briefly entered the town, but then were forced to retreat after a series of clashes with Syrian troops.
Read more at https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-southeastern-idlib-following-second-liberation-of-saraqib-by-syrian-army-map-update/
Erdoğan’s gamble set the stage for the tragic chapter in Syria
By Yavuz Baydar
Mar 02 2020
Given the depth of the Syrian quagmire, it was obvious from the outset how high Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had set the stakes for his political and military acrobatics and inherent risks involved.
The killing of at least 33 Turkish troops in Idlib in seemingly well-calculated Syrian air strikes — which amount to a massacre — is the result of Erdoğan’s gamble, which opens a new phase in the tragic story.
The mass killing of the troops is one of the darkest episodes in modern Turkish history, perhaps only comparable to the Turkish losses suffered in the Korean War. Yet, it is hard to measure the magnitude of the trauma or the horror caused in the theatre of Idlib. There are two reasons for that:The first has to do with the paralysed Turkish media, which systematically blacks out news from the battlefield and the massive blockage imposed on the internet the day after the massacre.
Read more at https://ahvalnews.com/turkey-syria/erdogans-gamble-set-stage-tragic-chapter-syria
