Truce Holds in Syria's Idlib as Turkey Bolsters its Military Posts

The sun setting over the opposition-held northwestern city of Idlib, Syria, June 29, 2021. (AFP)
The sun setting over the opposition-held northwestern city of Idlib, Syria, June 29, 2021. (AFP)
TT
20

Truce Holds in Syria's Idlib as Turkey Bolsters its Military Posts

The sun setting over the opposition-held northwestern city of Idlib, Syria, June 29, 2021. (AFP)
The sun setting over the opposition-held northwestern city of Idlib, Syria, June 29, 2021. (AFP)

Saturday marked two years since the signing of the truce agreement between Turkey and Russia over Syria's northwestern Idlib province and some regions of the Hama, Aleppo and Latakia provinces.

The agreement allowed Turkey to bolster its military positions along over 78 posts. It has also deployed hundreds of heavy armored vehicles and thousands of troops.

In spite of the agreement, the past two years have witnessed violations of the truce in opposition-held regions by the regime and the Russian air force. Hundreds of innocent civilians were killed in the attacks and thousands of other fled to the Jabal al-Zawiya area in southern Idlib.

On March 5, 2020, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to a ceasefire in Idlib to contain the fighting between the opposition and regime forces after the latter had carried out a wide-scale operation, backed by Russia, against Idlib.

The fighting at the time led to the displacement of nearly a million people from Idlib and the death of dozens. Turkey was forced to bring in more troops to contain the situation.

The de-escalation regions, as they are known, have witnessed relative calm in recent weeks. Russian jets rarely fly over the areas. The calm is welcome after two years of air strikes and attacks by the regime and its allied militias against the opposition. The attacks targeted vital facilities, including water pumping stations, medical centers and displacement camps.

Over 270 people, including 120 women and children, were killed in the unrest. Four massacres were reported in the Maarat Masrin and Ariha regions and the villages of Mashoun, Balshoun and Balyoun in Jabal al-Zawiya.

Idlib has in recent weeks witnessed military operations by the US-led international coalition fighting ISIS. Drone attacks targeted members of various extremist factions, including the Hurras al-Din group. Another notable attack led to the killing of ISIS leader Abdullah Qardash in Atmeh in northern Idlib in early February.

Amid the calm, the economy has slowly started to pick up. Administrations in Idlib have started to operate using the Turkish lira instead of the plummeting Syrian pound, demonstrating the extent of Ankara's influence.

The Syrian-Turkish border in Idlib has become the province's window to the world. Turkish commercial goods and food, new and used European and Asian cars and oil derivatives are all brought in from across the border into Idlib.

The local salvation government has recently approved several development and economic projects, including the establishment of a major industrial zone in Sarmada. Main highways have been widened between cities and operations at several vital facilities have resumed, providing new job opportunities for Syrians.



Amputee Palestinian Boy Image Wins World Press Photo Award

This image provided by World Press Photo and taken by Samar Abu Elouf, for The New York Times, won the World Press Photo Award of the Year and shows Mahmoud Ajjour (9), who was injured during an Israeli attack on Gaza City in March 2024, finds refuge and medical help in Doha, Qatar, 28 June 2024. (Samar Abu Elouf, for The New York Times/World Press Photo via AP)
This image provided by World Press Photo and taken by Samar Abu Elouf, for The New York Times, won the World Press Photo Award of the Year and shows Mahmoud Ajjour (9), who was injured during an Israeli attack on Gaza City in March 2024, finds refuge and medical help in Doha, Qatar, 28 June 2024. (Samar Abu Elouf, for The New York Times/World Press Photo via AP)
TT
20

Amputee Palestinian Boy Image Wins World Press Photo Award

This image provided by World Press Photo and taken by Samar Abu Elouf, for The New York Times, won the World Press Photo Award of the Year and shows Mahmoud Ajjour (9), who was injured during an Israeli attack on Gaza City in March 2024, finds refuge and medical help in Doha, Qatar, 28 June 2024. (Samar Abu Elouf, for The New York Times/World Press Photo via AP)
This image provided by World Press Photo and taken by Samar Abu Elouf, for The New York Times, won the World Press Photo Award of the Year and shows Mahmoud Ajjour (9), who was injured during an Israeli attack on Gaza City in March 2024, finds refuge and medical help in Doha, Qatar, 28 June 2024. (Samar Abu Elouf, for The New York Times/World Press Photo via AP)

A haunting portrait of a nine-year-old Palestinian boy who lost both arms during an Israeli attack on Gaza City won the 2025 World Press Photo of the Year Award Thursday.

The picture, by Samar Abu Elouf for The New York Times, depicts Mahmoud Ajjour, evacuated to Doha after an explosion severed one arm and mutilated the other last year.

"One of the most difficult things Mahmoud's mother explained to me was how when Mahmoud first came to the realisation that his arms were amputated, the first sentence he said to her was, 'How will I be able to hug you'?" said Elouf.

The photographer is also from Gaza and was herself evacuated in December 2023. She now portrays badly wounded Palestinians based in Doha.

"This is a quiet photo that speaks loudly. It tells the story of one boy, but also of a wider war that will have an impact for generations," said Joumana El Zein Khoury, World Press Photo Executive Director.

The jury praised the photo's "strong composition and attention to light" and its thought-provoking subject-matter, especially questions raised over Mahmoud's future.

The boy is now learning to play games on his phone, write, and open doors with his feet, the jury said.

"Mahmoud's dream is simple: he wants to get prosthetics and live his life as any other child," said the World Press Photo organisers in a statement.

The jury also selected two photos for the runner-up prize.

The first, entitled "Droughts in the Amazon" by Musuk Nolte for Panos Pictures and the Bertha Foundation, shows a man on a dried-up river bed in the Amazon carrying supplies to a village once accessible by boat.

The second, "Night Crossing" by John Moore shooting for Getty Images, depicts Chinese migrants huddling near a fire during a cold rainshower after crossing the US–Mexico border.

The jury sifted through 59,320 photographs from 3,778 photo journalists to select 42 prize-winning shots from around the world.

Photographers for Agence France-Presse were selected four times for a regional prize, more than any other organization.

Nairobi-based Luis Tato won in the "Stories" category for the Africa region for a selection of photos depicting Kenya's youth uprising.

Jerome Brouillet won in the "Singles" category Asia-Pacific and Oceania for his iconic picture of surfer Gabriel Medina seemingly floating above the waves.

Clarens Siffroy won in the "Stories" category North and Central America for his coverage of the gang crisis in Haiti.

Finally, Anselmo Cunha won in the "Singles" category for South America for his photo of a Boeing 727-200 stranded at Salgado Filho International Airport in Brazil.