US, Russian Forces Mobilize in NE Syria

Fighters of the Syrian opposition factions loyal to Turkey during training exercises in the countryside of Manbij city in Aleppo (AFP)
Fighters of the Syrian opposition factions loyal to Turkey during training exercises in the countryside of Manbij city in Aleppo (AFP)
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US, Russian Forces Mobilize in NE Syria

Fighters of the Syrian opposition factions loyal to Turkey during training exercises in the countryside of Manbij city in Aleppo (AFP)
Fighters of the Syrian opposition factions loyal to Turkey during training exercises in the countryside of Manbij city in Aleppo (AFP)

In northeastern Syria, US and Russian forces mobilized with the aim to deter Turkey from carrying out a new attack against the Arab-Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). While US forces moved on the ground, Russian warplanes scrambled in the air.

A prominent Kurdish official in northern Syria revealed that Kurdish forces are in intensive contact with the countries involved in the Syrian crisis, especially those in the Arab world.

The official explained that they are looking to put an end to Turkish interference in Syrian affairs.

The civil and military administration in the city of Manbij in the eastern countryside of Aleppo governorate has documented the outcome of the attacks on its areas of influence, warning that the Turkish operation will lead to the displacement of the indigenous population and the city’s religious, sectarian and ethnic components.

Turkey’s armed incursion into Syrian territory “will prolong the Syrian crisis and increase its complexity, in addition to destabilizing areas and giving an opportunity for ISIS cells to reorganize themselves again,” Abdulkarim Omar, head of the Kurdish department of foreign relations, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“We are communicating with the international community and the countries concerned with the Syrian war, especially inside the Arab world, to play a role in resolving the Syrian crisis at the expense of the growing Turkish and Iranian role,” said Omar.

“Turkey and Iran have special agendas and interests that are far from the interests of the Syrian people, their values, principles and revolution,” he explained.

Omar called on the international community to pressure Turkey to curb its attacks, warning that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's project for Syria will lead to a demographic change in the north of the country.

Turkey plans to resettle a million displaced Syrians after their voluntary return to their country.

As for field developments, a US force toured the front lines in the town of Tamer in the northern Hasakah governorate.

In contrast, the Russian army reinforced the presence of its ground and air forces at the airport of Qamishli city in Hasakah.



UN Agency Closes the Rest of Its Gaza Bakeries as Food Supplies Dwindle under Israeli Blockade

Palestinians receive bags of flour and other humanitarian aid distributed by UNRWA, the UN agency helping Palestinian refugees in Jabaliya, Gaza Strip on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians receive bags of flour and other humanitarian aid distributed by UNRWA, the UN agency helping Palestinian refugees in Jabaliya, Gaza Strip on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (AP)
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UN Agency Closes the Rest of Its Gaza Bakeries as Food Supplies Dwindle under Israeli Blockade

Palestinians receive bags of flour and other humanitarian aid distributed by UNRWA, the UN agency helping Palestinian refugees in Jabaliya, Gaza Strip on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians receive bags of flour and other humanitarian aid distributed by UNRWA, the UN agency helping Palestinian refugees in Jabaliya, Gaza Strip on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (AP)

The UN food agency is closing all of its bakeries in the Gaza Strip, officials said Tuesday, as food supplies dwindle after Israel sealed the territory off from all imports nearly a month ago.

Israel, which tightened its blockade and later resumed its offensive in order to pressure Hamas into accepting changes to their ceasefire agreement, said that enough food entered Gaza during the six-week truce to sustain the territory's roughly 2 million Palestinians.

Markets largely emptied weeks ago, and UN. agencies say the supplies they built up during the truce are running out. Gaza is heavily reliant on international aid, because the war has destroyed almost all of its food production capability.

Mohammed al-Kurd, a father of 12, said that his children go to bed without dinner.

“We tell them to be patient and that we will bring flour in the morning,” he said. “We lie to them and to ourselves.”

A World Food Program memo circulated to aid groups on Monday said that it could no longer operate its remaining bakeries, which produce the pita bread on which many rely. The UN agency said that it was prioritizing its remaining stocks to provide emergency food aid and expand hot meal distribution. WFP spokespeople didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

Olga Cherevko, a spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said that the WFP was closing its remaining 19 bakeries after shuttering six others last month. She said that hundreds of thousands of people relied on them.

The Israeli military body in charge of Palestinian affairs, known as COGAT, said that more than 25,000 trucks entered Gaza during the ceasefire, carrying nearly 450,000 tons of aid. It said that amount represented around a third of what has entered during the entire war.

“There is enough food for a long period of time, if Hamas lets the civilians have it,” it said.

UN agencies and aid groups say that they struggled to bring in and distribute aid before the ceasefire took hold in January. Their estimates for how much aid actually reached people in Gaza were consistently lower than COGAT’s, which were based on how much entered through border crossings.

The war began when Hamas-led fighters attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages. Hamas is still holding 59 captives — 24 of whom are believed to be alive — after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel's offensive has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, including hundreds killed in strikes since the ceasefire ended, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which doesn't say whether those killed in the war are civilians or combatants. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 militants, without providing evidence.

Israel sealed off Gaza from all aid at the start of the war, but later relented under pressure from Washington. US President Donald Trump's administration, which took credit for helping to broker the ceasefire, has expressed full support for Israel's actions, including its decision to end the truce.

Israel has demanded that Hamas release several hostages before commencing talks on ending the war, negotiations that were supposed to have begun in early February. It has also insisted that Hamas disarm and leave Gaza, conditions that weren't part of the ceasefire agreement.

Hamas has called for implementing the agreement, in which the remaining hostages would be released in exchange for the release of more Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli pullout.