Russian Mediation to Ease Tensions in Northeastern Syria

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks with Guatemala's Foreign Minister Pedro Brolo during their meeting in Moscow, Russia June 24, 2021. (Reuters)
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks with Guatemala's Foreign Minister Pedro Brolo during their meeting in Moscow, Russia June 24, 2021. (Reuters)
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Russian Mediation to Ease Tensions in Northeastern Syria

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks with Guatemala's Foreign Minister Pedro Brolo during their meeting in Moscow, Russia June 24, 2021. (Reuters)
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks with Guatemala's Foreign Minister Pedro Brolo during their meeting in Moscow, Russia June 24, 2021. (Reuters)

Moscow has launched diplomatic efforts with various parties to contain a possible military escalation in northeastern Syria.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met on Saturday with a delegation of the Syrian opposition, while information circulated about a visit that would be carried out by the Syrian Democratic Council (SDF) to Moscow on Tuesday to hold talks with the FM regarding developments in northern Syria, and the possibility of Turkey launching a new military operation in the region.

In a statement, the Russian foreign ministry said that Lavrov focused on solutions to the Syria crisis in talks with Ahmed al-Jarba, the head of the Syrian opposition movement Peace and Freedom Front.

“During the conversation, they exchanged views on the development of the situation in and around Syria with an emphasis on the need to promote the political process based on Resolution 2254 of the United Nations Security Council, including through establishing a sustainable constructive intra-Syrian dialogue in various formats,” the statement said.

“Russia has reaffirmed its continued support for Syria’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, and also emphasized the need for intensified international efforts to improve the humanitarian situation in Syria and the country’s post-conflict reconstruction,” it added.

Following the meeting with Lavrov, the Syrian delegation held extensive consultations with Deputy Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, with whom they discussed in detail the current developments in Syria.

Russian sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that this meeting were part of intensive Russian efforts to contain a military escalation in northern Syria, as Turkey’s allied forces brought in reinforcements to the countryside of Hasakeh and Raqqa.



Top Houthi Leaders Flee Sanaa Amid Trump-Ordered US Strikes

Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
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Top Houthi Leaders Flee Sanaa Amid Trump-Ordered US Strikes

Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)

Senior Houthi leaders have disappeared from public life in Sanaa, gripped by fear of US airstrikes ordered by President Donald Trump, now entering their third week, sources in Yemen said.

The first-tier leadership of the Iran-aligned group is believed to have fled the capital, which remains under Houthi control, seeking shelter in remote areas of Saada and Amran provinces.

According to informed sources, the group’s leaders have severed traditional communication channels and several have either gone into hiding or relocated to undisclosed locations as a precaution against possible targeted strikes.

Since the launch of US airstrikes on March 15, senior and mid-level Houthi leaders have vanished from public view and social media platforms, Yemeni sources say, as fear of targeted attacks continues to grow within the group’s ranks.

Informed sources confirmed there has been no trace of the group’s top two tiers of leadership - neither in the institutions under Houthi control in Sanaa, nor on the streets and neighborhoods they once frequented in luxury vehicles.

Even the sectarian events that Houthi leaders were known to regularly attend have reportedly gone on without their visible presence.

The Houthi group has remained tight-lipped about the extent of its human and military losses following US airstrikes ordered by Trump.

However, sources say several leaders not belonging to the ruling family of Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi are still believed to be in Sanaa.

Many of these figures have adopted strict security measures to avoid detection, including travelling in vehicles with tinted windows and covering their faces with cloaks when leaving temporary residences, sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The precautions reflect growing fears of betrayal or being targeted by further strikes.

A source in Sanaa revealed that third-tier Houthi officials—mostly tribal figures and field supervisors—were instructed to flee to the northern provinces of Saada, Amran and other areas as US air raids intensified.

According to the source, mid-level Houthi officials have lost all direct contact with the group’s senior leadership after the latter switched locations and shut down their communication lines.