Syria Accuses US Forces of Smuggling Wheat, Oil to Iraq

A convoy of US armored vehicles in northeastern Syria (Getty Images)
A convoy of US armored vehicles in northeastern Syria (Getty Images)
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Syria Accuses US Forces of Smuggling Wheat, Oil to Iraq

A convoy of US armored vehicles in northeastern Syria (Getty Images)
A convoy of US armored vehicles in northeastern Syria (Getty Images)

Syria accused US forces of using a military convoy to smuggle stolen wheat to northern Iraq through the al-Walid border crossing in the Hasakah region.

The Syrian News Agency (SANA) reported that a convoy of 45 vehicles of covered trucks, oil tankers and a number of refrigerators left the Syrian territories towards Iraq on Monday.

The trucks were loaded with wheat from the silos of Tal Alo and left through the al-Walid crossing.

SANA said the American troops brought out a convoy of 27 military vehicles, including Hummer cars and armored vehicles, trucks laden with stolen wheat and oil tankers stolen from the Syrian oil fields.

Meanwhile, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) seized oil tankers that were on their way to areas under the regime's control.

Dozens of tankers belonging to the Katerji company were seen heading to regime-held regions and were seized upon their arrival at the Tabqa Bridge checkpoint, west of Raqqa. Some of the drivers were arrested for unknown reasons.

Eye of the Euphrates network reported that 250 tankers were transporting oil from al-Hasakah towards regime-controlled areas. Twelve drivers were held by SDF.

The network added that they will be transferred to the security investigation, without providing additional details.

Authorities recently dismissed Major General Nizar Ahmed al-Khader, the commander of the 17th Division and the head of the Security and Military Committee in Deir Ezzor.

He was referred to investigation over charges of oil smuggling and dealing with the US Army and SDF.

Meanwhile, the SDF, in coordination with the operations room of the US-led international coalition, carried out a military security campaign to track down active ISIS cells in Wadi al-Ajij, in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor.

A military leader said that the forces destroyed many hideouts, and uncovered roads and tunnels used by militants to smuggle weapons across the Syrian-Iraqi border.

An SDF spokesman, Farhad Shami, announced that the operation targeted a desert area where ISIS movement was detected and that was used to smuggle mercenaries and weapons into Syrian territory.

This is the second security campaign carried out by the SDF, with coalition air support, within a month.

The SDF had launched numerous campaigns to pursue ISIS remnants, however, they have yet to stop terrorist activity in the region.



Southern Yemen United in Welcoming Riyadh Conference

National Shield forces in Hadhramaut. (Reuters)
National Shield forces in Hadhramaut. (Reuters)
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Southern Yemen United in Welcoming Riyadh Conference

National Shield forces in Hadhramaut. (Reuters)
National Shield forces in Hadhramaut. (Reuters)

Parties in southern Yemen welcomed on Sunday Saudi Arabia’s call to hold a comprehensive conference on the issue of the South.

The conference will be held in Riyadh at an official request by Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) Chairman Dr. Rashad al-Alimi. The meeting will help shape the path of the southern issue, meeting the ambitions of southern and eastern Yemen governorates.

Local authorities in Hadhramaut, al-Mahra, Lahj, Shabwah and Socotra welcomed the conference, as did prominent political leaderships in the south. The Southern Transitional Council (STC) also notably welcomed the conference.

Saudi Arabia’s move to host the meeting was welcomed by Gulf and Arab countries and the international community over the weekend. It was viewed as a necessary step towards restoring dialogue in the South, overcoming efforts to eliminate the other and viewing the southern issue within a national and regional framework that would lead to a fair and sustainable solution.

Member of the PLC Dr. Abdullah al-Alimi expressed his deep appreciation for Saudi Arabia’s stance, calling all southern components, starting with the STC, to positively approach the conference and comprehensive dialogue that prioritizes the interests of the South above all else.

Serious dialogue is the only way to bridge divides, achieve rapprochement and unify southern ranks to serve security and stability, he stressed.

Shura Council Speaker Ahmed bin Dagher underlined the importance of the Riyadh conference, saying dialogue will help defuse strife.

The meeting will present realistic solutions to pending issues in the South, he added.

The STC welcomed Saudi Arabia’s call to hold the conference, saying it is in line with its policies that are based on dialogue.

It did place conditions, however, underscoring the “will of the people of the south” and demanding international guarantees, a clear timeframe, and popular referendum.

Observers said the conditions are an attempt by the STC to preserve its political position.

They noted that the very fact that it agreed to join the conference is an acknowledgment that the southern issue is greater than one party that is taking unilateral decisions.

The regional and international climate do not allow unilateral actions, they added.


Two Dead in Israeli Strike on South Lebanon

The wreckage of a car at the site after an Israeli strike on Al-Khiyam, in the Nabatieh governorate, southern Lebanon, 03 January 2026. (EPA)
The wreckage of a car at the site after an Israeli strike on Al-Khiyam, in the Nabatieh governorate, southern Lebanon, 03 January 2026. (EPA)
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Two Dead in Israeli Strike on South Lebanon

The wreckage of a car at the site after an Israeli strike on Al-Khiyam, in the Nabatieh governorate, southern Lebanon, 03 January 2026. (EPA)
The wreckage of a car at the site after an Israeli strike on Al-Khiyam, in the Nabatieh governorate, southern Lebanon, 03 January 2026. (EPA)

Lebanon said a strike in the south killed two Sunday while Israel said it had struck a Hezbollah operative, the latest raids as Beirut seeks to disarm the Iran-backed group.

Despite a year-old ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, Israel carries out regular strikes on Lebanon, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah sites and operatives, and has maintained troops in five areas it deems strategic.

Lebanon's health ministry said two people were killed in an "Israeli enemy strike that targeted a vehicle" near the town of Jmaijmeh, around 10 kilometers (six miles) from the border.

An Israeli military statement said that "in response to Hezbollah's continued violations of the ceasefire understandings", it had struck an operative from the group in the area.

Under heavy US pressure and fears of expanded Israeli strikes, Beirut has committed to disarming Hezbollah, which was badly weakened after more than a year of hostilities with Israel including two months of open war that ended with the November 2024 ceasefire.

Lebanon's army was expected to complete the disarmament south of the Litani River -- about 30 kilometers from the border with Israel -- by the end of 2025, before tackling the rest of the country.

Lebanon's cabinet is to meet on Thursday to discuss the army's progress, while the ceasefire monitoring committee -- comprising Lebanon, Israel, the United States, France and UN peacekeepers -- is also set to meet this week.

On Sunday, Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar acknowledged on X that the Lebanese government and army had made efforts to disarm Hezbollah but said "they are far from sufficient", citing "Hezbollah's efforts to rearm and rebuild, with Iranian support".

Israel has previously questioned the Lebanese military's effectiveness and has accused Hezbollah of rearming, while the group itself has rejected calls to surrender its weapons.

At least 350 people have been killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon since the ceasefire, according to an AFP tally of Lebanese health ministry reports.


Syrian Media Say Govt and Kurdish-Led SDF Meet on Military Merger without Progress

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa signed a deal in Damascus last March with SDF commander Mazloum Abdi on integrating the force into state institutions (AP)
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa signed a deal in Damascus last March with SDF commander Mazloum Abdi on integrating the force into state institutions (AP)
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Syrian Media Say Govt and Kurdish-Led SDF Meet on Military Merger without Progress

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa signed a deal in Damascus last March with SDF commander Mazloum Abdi on integrating the force into state institutions (AP)
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa signed a deal in Damascus last March with SDF commander Mazloum Abdi on integrating the force into state institutions (AP)

Syrian government officials held talks Sunday with the commander of the main Kurdish-led force in the country over plans to merge it with the national army, state media reported, adding that no “tangible results” had been achieved. 

The leadership in Damascus under interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa inked a deal in March with the Kurdish-led and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, which control much of the northeast. The SDF was to merge with the Syrian army by the end of 2025, but there have been disagreements on how it would happen. 

A major sticking point has been whether the SDF would remain a cohesive unit in the new army or whether it would be dissolved and its members individually absorbed. 

The SDF said in a statement Sunday that a delegation led by top commander Mazloum Abdi held talks with government officials in Damascus related to the military integration process. 

The SDF later said talks had ended, with details to be released later. The SDF has tens of thousands of fighters and is the main force to be absorbed into Syria's military. 

State TV said the meeting did not produce "tangible results” that would accelerate implementation of the agreement. It said the sides agreed to hold further meetings at a later date. 

The deal signed in March also would bring all border crossings with Iraq and Türkiye and airports and oil fields in the northeast under the central government’s control. Prisons holding about 9,000 suspected members of the ISIS group also are expected to come under government control. 

Türkiye has been opposed to the SDF joining the army as a single unit. Ankara considers the SDF a terrorist organization because of its association with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has waged a long-running insurgency in Türkiye, although a peace process is now underway. 

In late December, clashes broke out between security forces and SDF fighters in the northern city of Aleppo during a visit to Syria by Türkiye’s foreign minister. 

Sunday's meetings in Damascus came hours after three rockets struck a western neighborhood of the capital, causing some damage to a mosque and a telecommunications center without inflicting casualties, state media said. 

The state news agency called the rockets “random” without giving details on where they were fired from or who was behind it.