Syrian Troops Gain Ground in Idlib, Push Toward Turkish Observation Post

FILE PHOTO: People walk near rubble of damaged buildings in the city of Idlib, Syria May 27, 2019. Picture taken May 27, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People walk near rubble of damaged buildings in the city of Idlib, Syria May 27, 2019. Picture taken May 27, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi/File Photo
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Syrian Troops Gain Ground in Idlib, Push Toward Turkish Observation Post

FILE PHOTO: People walk near rubble of damaged buildings in the city of Idlib, Syria May 27, 2019. Picture taken May 27, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People walk near rubble of damaged buildings in the city of Idlib, Syria May 27, 2019. Picture taken May 27, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi/File Photo

Russian-backed Syrian regime forces pushed deeper in their offensive on the last remaining opposition stronghold in the country's northwest on Sunday, getting very close to a Turkish observation post in the area.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the opposition's Syrian Civil Defense, also known as White Helmets, reported shelling and airstrikes on opposition-held villages in Idlib province on Sunday, saying that at least one civilian was killed.

Idlib has been at the center of a Syrian forces' push under the cover of intense aerial strikes in recent weeks, with more than a dozen villages captured.

The offensive has already forced tens of thousands of civilians to abandon their homes and flee, including thousands who crossed into neighboring Turkey seeking safety. The attacks resumed after a cease-fire in force since the end of August collapsed recently.

Saraqeb and Maaret al-Numan are two major opposition-held towns on the highway linking the capital, Damascus, with the northern city of Aleppo, Syria's largest. The two towns have been emptied of civilians since becoming the target of the offensive, which aims to reopen the highway, closed since 2012.

Syrian troops, advancing from the east toward Maaret al-Numan, neared the Turkish observation post outside the village of Surman from three sides, according to the Observatory. The Step news agency, an activist collective, said regime troops were now about 4 kilometers from the Turkish post.

Syrian state media made no mention of the post but said government forces captured several villages near Maaret al-Numan.

Turkey has 12 observation posts in the northwest, part of a deal with Moscow and Tehran in
2017 to avert large-scale fighting in Idlib.

Four months ago, Syrian troops captured all territory around another Turkish post in the village of Morek, also in Idlib province, leaving the Turkish monitors only a nearby road to use. No friction has since been reported between Syrian and Turkish troops in Morek.



Israel Ready to Negotiate Permanent Gaza Ceasefire during 60-day Truce, Netanyahu Says

09 July 2025, US, Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with the press at the US Capitol in Washington. Photo: Douglas Christian/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
09 July 2025, US, Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with the press at the US Capitol in Washington. Photo: Douglas Christian/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
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Israel Ready to Negotiate Permanent Gaza Ceasefire during 60-day Truce, Netanyahu Says

09 July 2025, US, Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with the press at the US Capitol in Washington. Photo: Douglas Christian/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
09 July 2025, US, Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with the press at the US Capitol in Washington. Photo: Douglas Christian/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will likely have a ceasefire agreement with Hamas to release more Israeli hostages held by the Palestinian group. 

Netanyahu said 50 hostages were still being held captive by Hamas. Of that figure, he said, only 20 are believed to be alive. 

"I want to take them all out. We now have a deal that supposedly will get half of the living and half of the dead out," Netanyahu said in an interview on Newsmax show "The Record with Greta Van Susteren" that aired on Thursday. 

"And so we'll have 10 living left and about 12 deceased hostages, but I'll get them out, too. I hope we can complete it in a few days." 

On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Israel's retaliation has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, Gaza's health ministry says, and reduced much of Gaza to rubble. 

The two sides have had two ceasefires - one in November 2023 and another in January 2025- since the fighting started. 

Netanyahu said Israel and Hamas will likely have a 60-day ceasefire, which the two sides could use to try to end the conflict. 

Hamas said on Wednesday there were several sticking points in the ongoing ceasefire talks including the flow of aid, withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, and "genuine guarantees for a permanent ceasefire." 

Netanyahu's interview with Newsmax comes as he wraps his third visit to Washington since President Donald Trump took office in January. 

Speaking of Trump, the Israeli leader said his country has never had "such a friend, such a support of Israel, the Jewish state in the White House." 

Last month, the US joined Israel in striking Iran, a move that Trump has said "obliterated" three of Iran's nuclear sites. 

When asked about a damage assessment, Netanyahu said, "Within months, they could have produced atomic bombs."