Russia, Seeking to Keep Bases in Syria, Says It Held ‘Frank’ Talks with New Leader 

Syrian fighters watch Russian armored vehicles driving past near the Hmeimim Air Base, a Syrian airbase currently operated by Russia, in the town of Hmeimim, southeast of Latakia, Syria, Monday Dec. 16, 2024.(AP)
Syrian fighters watch Russian armored vehicles driving past near the Hmeimim Air Base, a Syrian airbase currently operated by Russia, in the town of Hmeimim, southeast of Latakia, Syria, Monday Dec. 16, 2024.(AP)
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Russia, Seeking to Keep Bases in Syria, Says It Held ‘Frank’ Talks with New Leader 

Syrian fighters watch Russian armored vehicles driving past near the Hmeimim Air Base, a Syrian airbase currently operated by Russia, in the town of Hmeimim, southeast of Latakia, Syria, Monday Dec. 16, 2024.(AP)
Syrian fighters watch Russian armored vehicles driving past near the Hmeimim Air Base, a Syrian airbase currently operated by Russia, in the town of Hmeimim, southeast of Latakia, Syria, Monday Dec. 16, 2024.(AP)

Russia said on Wednesday it had held "frank" discussions with Syria's new de facto leader as it tries to retain its two military bases in the country, but it declined to comment on what he was demanding in return.

A Syrian source familiar with the discussions told Reuters that the new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, had requested that Moscow hand over former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, who fled to Russia when he was toppled by Sharaa's opposition forces in December.

Syrian news agency SANA said Damascus also wanted Russia, which backed Assad in the country's civil war, to rebuild trust through "concrete measures such as compensation, reconstruction and recovery".

Asked to confirm whether Russia had been asked to return Assad and pay compensation, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment.

Russia, whose troops and air force backed Assad for years against Syrian the opposition, is seeking to retain its naval base in Tartous and Hmeimim Air Base near the port city of Latakia. Losing them would deal a serious blow to its ability to project power in the region.

The new Syrian administration said after Tuesday's talks with a Russian delegation headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov that it had "stressed that restoring relations must address past mistakes, respect the will of the Syrian people and serve their interests".

But the Syrian source told Reuters that the Russians had not been willing to concede such mistakes and the only agreement that was reached was to continue discussions.

Russia's foreign ministry said there had been a "frank discussion of the entire range of issues". It said the two sides would pursue further contacts in order to seek "relevant agreements", without referring specifically to the two bases.



UN Agency Says Israel Shuts 4 Schools in East Jerusalem

A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
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UN Agency Says Israel Shuts 4 Schools in East Jerusalem

A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees says Israeli forces raided four of its schools in east Jerusalem, ordering their closure.

Israel has severed all ties with the agency, known as UNRWA, and bars it from operating in its territory. It says the agency allowed itself to be infiltrated by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, allegations denied by UN officials.

UNRWA said police entered a training center by force on Tuesday, firing tear gas and sound grenades and ordering its evacuation. It said 350 students and 30 staff were present during the raid on the Qalandiya Training Center.

It said police and city officials ordered the closure of three other schools in east Jerusalem, two of which proceeded with the school day.

Israeli police spokesman Dean Elsdunne said police did not enter the UN buildings and that Jerusalem municipal authorities carried out the closures. He said police were deployed to protect the city workers, using “riot dispersal” means in one case where a crowd threw stones at them outside a UN facility.

Roland Friedrich, UNRWA director for the occupied West Bank, including east Jerusalem, said the raids were an “unacceptable violation of United Nations privileges and immunities,” and a “denial of the right to education for children and trainees.”