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Time Limit of Few Weeks to Dissolve HTS in Syria’s Idlib

Syrian fighters attend a mock battle in anticipation of an attack by the regime on Idlib province and the surrounding countryside, during a graduation of new Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) members at a camp. AFP
Syrian fighters attend a mock battle in anticipation of an attack by the regime on Idlib province and the surrounding countryside, during a graduation of new Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) members at a camp. AFP
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Time Limit of Few Weeks to Dissolve HTS in Syria’s Idlib

Syrian fighters attend a mock battle in anticipation of an attack by the regime on Idlib province and the surrounding countryside, during a graduation of new Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) members at a camp. AFP
Syrian fighters attend a mock battle in anticipation of an attack by the regime on Idlib province and the surrounding countryside, during a graduation of new Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) members at a camp. AFP

Pressure exerted by western countries and Turkey on Russia seems to have deferred a looming offensive by the Moscow-backed Syrian regime on the province of Idlib and allowed Ankara to dissolve Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham HTS within weeks.

Turkey fears that a wide-range regime attack on Idlib, which has a population of 3 million people, could cause a new wave of exodus towards its territories.

Media reports said Friday that Ankara has sent reinforcements, especially armored vehicles, to the border with Syria and to observations points it has lately established in the north of the country.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will meet next Monday in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi to review the situation in Idlib.

"I believe an offensive, if there will be one, will not come before several weeks," a senior Turkish official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Erdogan had met with Putin and Iran’s Hassan Rouhani in Tehran on September 7 to discuss Syria and prevent regime forces from attacking Idlib.

However, Erdogan and Putin failed to agree on the main strategy to solve the crisis in the province.

Ankara fiercely opposes a military option in the northwest of its neighboring country.

Meanwhile, UN special envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura met Friday with the so-called "small group" of allied nations, including members from Egypt, France, Germany, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom.

The meeting came two days following similar talks held between the UN envoy and representatives from the there guarantor countries - Russia, Turkey and Iran.

De Mistura is expected to inform the UN Security Council next Tuesday about the results of his latest talks with parties concerned with the Syrian crisis.

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Syria President Vows those Involved in Church Attack will Face Justice

The attack was the first of its kind in the Syrian capital since Islamist-led forces toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December - AFP
The attack was the first of its kind in the Syrian capital since Islamist-led forces toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December - AFP
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Syria President Vows those Involved in Church Attack will Face Justice

The attack was the first of its kind in the Syrian capital since Islamist-led forces toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December - AFP
The attack was the first of its kind in the Syrian capital since Islamist-led forces toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December - AFP

Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa vowed Monday that those involved in a "heinous" suicide attack on a Damascus church a day earlier would face justice, calling for unity in the country.

The shooting and suicide bombing Sunday at the church in the working-class Dwelaa district of the Syrian capital killed 25 people and wounded 63, the health ministry said, raising an earlier toll of 22 killed.

The authorities said the attacker was affiliated with the Islamic State group.

"We promise... that we will work night and day, mobilising all our specialized security agencies, to capture all those who participated in and planned this heinous crime and to bring them to justice," Sharaa said in a statement, AFP reported.

The attack "reminds us of the importance of solidarity and unity of the government and the people in facing all that threatens our nation's security and stability", he added.

Condemnation has continued to pour in from the international community after the attack -- the first of its kind in the Syrian capital since the toppling of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December.

It was also the first inside a church in Syria since the country's civil war erupted in 2011, according to a monitor, in a country where security remains one of the new authorities' greatest challenges.

Since the new authorities took power, the international community has repeatedly urged the government to protect minorities and ensure their participation in Syria's transition, particularly after sectarian violence in recent months.