Russian intervention in Syria 59 months on | Ongoing tension with US forces… Retaliatory operations in Syrian desert… Repeated attacks on joint patrols with the Turks
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
August 30, 2020
At a time when Syria experiences new developments on the ground, Russia’s plans are proceeding in the 59th consecutive month of its involvement in the Syrian crisis. On September 30, 2015, the Council of the Russian Federation granted the Russian President Vladimir Putin the mandate to militarily engage in the Syria crisis. At that time, Putin announced that Russian intervention would be limited to airstrikes in order to defeat the “Islamic State” and other extremists in the legitimate war of the Syrian army against these groups, upon the request of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad. Despite this announcement, Russian operations continued during the past five years, not differentiating between civilians and combatants. Indeed, such attempts went so far as to try to empty Syria from fighters operating under the banner of opposition factions by sending them to Libya, in order to pave the way for regime forces to capture the largest possible chunk of territory.
With 59 months of the Russian intervention in the Syrian war, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights continues to monitor and track the recent developments on the ground, including the return of bombardment in the “de-escalation zone”
Syrian desert: Retaliatory operations
On August 25, SOHR sources reported that the regime-backed Palestinian “Liwaa Al-Quds, working under the guidance of Russian forces, started with other regime loyalists a new sweeping operation in Deir Ezzor desert. The operation covered an area stretching from Al-Shawla desert in western Deir Ezzor to Al-Bokamal desert to the east, with the purpose of searching for ISIS cells in the wake of the killing of a Russian general a few days earlier. This campaign coincided with escalating Russian airstrikes on the Syrian desert, targeting ISIS positions. Moreover, a squadron of Russian jets executed intensive airstrikes on August 21, targeting ISIS positions in the Syrian desert in Homs and Al-Suwaidaa.
NE Syria: growing tension
Since Turkey launched its operation “Peace Spring” in northern Syria on October 9, Turkish forces and Turkish-backed factions advanced inside the SDF-held areas with an extensive air and land cover in a total area of 4875 km2 (9.2% of the total area previously controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces), which is more than a quarter of the area of Lebanon. At the same time, regime forces deployed in the region under an agreement between SDF and the regime through Russian mediation, into an area estimated at 18,821 km2 (35.6% of the total area of the SDF), which means that the SDF lost control of 23,641 km2, after it has been in control of an area of 52,916 square kilometers (28.6% of the total area of Syria) before the start of the Turkish military operation, meaning that “SDF” now only controls 15.7% of the total Syrian territories.
North-eastern Syria region witnessed renewed tension and skirmishes between Russian and US forces thismonth, as SOHR sources reported on August 26 a dramatic and dangerous vehicle-chase between Russian and American patrols nearby Al-Malikiyah city (Dayrik) in the far north-eastern Syria. Given the ongoing tension between the two sides in the region, such daily skirmisheshave become a common occurrence. Observatory activists had also monitored Russian forces patrolling village near Al-Malikiyyah, at the same time when US patrols were stationed on the main roads to Al-Malikiyyah and Rumaylan towns in order to block the Russian patrols in case the Russian took these roads to Smelka crossing on the border with the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
It is worth noting that US-Russian tension noticeably escalated recently, as Observatory activists reported in June that U.S. forces prevented a patrol of Russian “military police” from entering Al-Malikiyah city (Dayrik) in Al-Hasakah countryside in the far north-eastern Syria near Turkey border. A day earlier, a checkpoint affiliated to the “National Defence Forces” (NDF) intercepted a U.S. patrol in Al-Dardarah town in the western countryside of Abu Rasin town “Zarkan”, while it was heading towards the western entrance of Tal Tamr in rural Al-Hasakah.
NDF and Syrian regime loyalists pelted the U.S. patrol with stones, which pushed the Americans to take off-roads, getting beyond the Russian base. The patrol later established a roadblock on the road between Tal Tamr and Abu Rasin in areas under the control of Russian and regime forces, exactly nearby the Russian base in the area.
On the other hand, Russian and Turkish forces continued to conduct joint patrols in Al-Hasakah and Aleppo countryside. SOHR activists have monitored several Russian-Turkish joint patrols in August, covering areas in Ain Al-Arab countryside (Kobani) and Al-Darbasiyyah. Several joint patrols were also conducted in Idlib on Aleppo-Latakia international highway (M4), some were attacked, leaving several Russian soldiers injured.
As months pass, the Syrians suffer the scourge of the Russian intervention, which seems to resemble a kind of revenge and retaliation against Syrians for protesting against the regime that committed the worst violations against its own people. At a time when the map of alliances and power balances is changing, Russia has become the ultimate winner, succeeding in helping the Syrian regime regaining control over about two-thirds of the country after losing control of most of its territory. Moscow used the pretext of “the war on terror” to commit massacres against civilians, and sponsored and struck agreements which soon after abandoned. Moscow and its war machine spilt in the blood of Syrians despite claiming to be “political mediator” or “broker” that can deal with all parties to the conflict.
With all recent changes in the balance of powers, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights renews its appeals to the international community to put pressure on Russia to stop its aggression against the Syrians, and to find a political solution to end the Syrian crisis that is nearing its tenth year.