Turkey Continues its Drone War in Northern Syria

A checkpoint for the Syrian National Army loyal to Turkey in northwestern Syria (AFP)
A checkpoint for the Syrian National Army loyal to Turkey in northwestern Syria (AFP)
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Turkey Continues its Drone War in Northern Syria

A checkpoint for the Syrian National Army loyal to Turkey in northwestern Syria (AFP)
A checkpoint for the Syrian National Army loyal to Turkey in northwestern Syria (AFP)

A Tal Tamr Military Council member of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) was killed by a Turkish drone strike in Tal Jumaa on Thursday.

The areas east of the Euphrates witnessed an increase in Turkish drone attacks, which killed leaders and prominent fighters of the People’s Defense Units.

The new development comes after the Tehran summit between the presidents of Russia, Vladimir Putin, Iran’s Ebrahim Raisi, and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Observers believe that Turkey is following a new strategy to weaken the SDF after failing to secure international support that would allow it to carry out a military operation in northern Syria.

They considered that the Turkish escalation came after the Tehran summit, where Turkey may have obtained a green light from Russia and Iran to weaken the SDF by targeting its leaders instead of launching the military operation aimed at establishing safe areas 30 kilometers inside Syrian territory south of the Turkish border.

On July 24, Turkey announced the killing of the commander of military operations in Ain al-Arab, and a week later, the intelligence announced the death of Arhan Arman, a member of the Executive Council in Ain al-Arab.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said the Turkish armed drones killed at least ten SDF fighters, including prominent leaders.

The Observatory recounted 43 Turkish drone attacks in the areas under the control of the Autonomous Administration of North and Northeastern Syria.

Since the beginning of the year, 35 soldiers and one civilian were killed and 80 others injured.

The Turkish forces and the Syrian National Army (SNA) factions bombed the SDF locations in al-Hasakah, where several artillery shells fell on Tawila village in Tal Tamr.

The Turkish Ministry of Defense said in a statement Thursday that it eliminated two SDF members who were preparing to launch an attack on the Spring of Peace area, which is controlled by Ankara and its loyal factions in northeastern Syria.

The statement said that the Turkish army continues its pre-emptive operations against terrorists in northern Syria.

Syrian regime forces directly targeted a vehicle of the Turkish troops on the Efes axis in the eastern countryside of Idlib. They shelled the vicinity of Maklabis village in the western countryside of Aleppo, coinciding with the flyover of a Russian warplane in the de-escalation zone in northwestern Syria.



Israeli Strikes in Gaza Kill Two People, Including a Child, Medics Say

FILE PHOTO: Young Palestinians amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during the war, at Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Young Palestinians amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during the war, at Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa/File Photo
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Israeli Strikes in Gaza Kill Two People, Including a Child, Medics Say

FILE PHOTO: Young Palestinians amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during the war, at Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Young Palestinians amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during the war, at Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa/File Photo

Israeli airstrikes hit a vehicle, killing at least two Palestinians, including a child, and wounding seven others in the northern Gaza Strip neighborhood of Sheikh Radwan on Tuesday, the territory's health officials said.

The Israeli military said it had struck a militant in the area, without elaborating.

Witnesses said some of the casualties resulted from a second strike that hit near a group of people who rushed to help in the rescue. A video, that wasn't immediately verified by Reuters, showed a missile exploding near at least five men.

Palestinians earlier held funerals in Gaza for two people who were killed by Israeli strikes a day ago, Ahmed Al-Batsh and

Rafat Zummar.

Batsh was a local Hamas commander, according to Hamas sources and the Israeli military. Medics said Batsh died in an attack on his vehicle in northern Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military said in separate statements that it had killed both men, and it described Zummar also as a Hamas commander. Hamas didn't immediately comment on Zummar's affiliation.

Relatives and friends paid farewell to Batsh's body draped in a white shroud and a Hamas green flag inside Gaza City's Al Shifa Hospital. An M16 assault rifle was placed on top of the body.

"Israel thinks... it will eliminate the resistance and the spirit of jihad (devotion) within us," said Khalil Al-Batsh, a relative of the dead Hamas militant, of the killing.

"I tell them that this cowardly operation only strengthens our people's determination to continue on this path,” he told Reuters at the funeral.

An October 2025, US-backed, ceasefire halted large-scale fighting in Gaza, but it has not ended Israeli strikes and there has been little progress on steps towards permanent peace.

Hamas accuses Israel of violating the ceasefire and undermining efforts to implement US President Donald Trump's broader plan to end the Gaza conflict, which includes the Israeli withdrawal from the strip and the disarmament of Hamas.

Israel says Hamas has been violating the deal.

More than 1,300 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect, according to the territory's health officials, while the Israeli military says four Israeli soldiers have been killed.

Hamas does not usually disclose information about fatalities among its fighters.


Syria Protests Spread to Kurdish-majority Northeast

A man holds Syrian opposition flags as he celebrates after Syria's army command notified officers that President Bashar al-Assad's 24-year authoritarian rule has ended, in Aleppo, Syria December 8, 2024. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
A man holds Syrian opposition flags as he celebrates after Syria's army command notified officers that President Bashar al-Assad's 24-year authoritarian rule has ended, in Aleppo, Syria December 8, 2024. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
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Syria Protests Spread to Kurdish-majority Northeast

A man holds Syrian opposition flags as he celebrates after Syria's army command notified officers that President Bashar al-Assad's 24-year authoritarian rule has ended, in Aleppo, Syria December 8, 2024. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
A man holds Syrian opposition flags as he celebrates after Syria's army command notified officers that President Bashar al-Assad's 24-year authoritarian rule has ended, in Aleppo, Syria December 8, 2024. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri

Hundreds of people took to the streets in Syria's Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli on Tuesday amid wider protests over fuel price hikes, the largest against the new authorities.

Syrian authorities on Sunday announced an increase in fuel prices amid global surges due to the Middle East war. The price of diesel saw a 40 percent increase, while petrol prices increased by 26 percent.

An AFP correspondent on Tuesday saw men and women in Qamishli holding placards that read "no to the policy of starvation", "preserve people's strength" and "no to the increase in fuel prices" while others chanted "our fuel is for the people".

North and northeast Syria contain the country's largest oil and gas fields and are now under government control after Damascus earlier this year seized areas previously held by Kurdish forces.

Despite a January agreement to integrate Kurdish forces and areas into the state, tensions have remained, as Kurds demand safeguards for their rights.

"This decision is wrong. It's a decision against farmers, workers, and students -- against all the poor in Syria," Abdul Rahman Khalil, 56, said.

"People will not remain silent about this decision," he added.

Khansa Nehmat, 48, said "the prices of diesel and bread must return to what they were, and they must comply with the people's demands".

Protests have erupted for three consecutive days in different parts of Syria's north, northwest and northeast.

Damascus has sought to justify the move, citing higher prices in global energy markets due to the regional war, as Syria currently relies heavily on imports to meet its fuel needs.

The country's energy infrastructure remains dilapidated as a result of more than a decade of war and neglect.

The ongoing protests are the first of their kind since the new authorities seized power after ousting in December 2024 longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, under whom demonstrations were strictly prohibited.


Arab Parliament Condemns Terrorist Houthi Militia Attacks on Saudi Arabia

Arab Parliament Condemns Terrorist Houthi Militia Attacks on Saudi Arabia
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Arab Parliament Condemns Terrorist Houthi Militia Attacks on Saudi Arabia

Arab Parliament Condemns Terrorist Houthi Militia Attacks on Saudi Arabia

Arab Parliament Speaker Mohammed Al-Yamahi expressed the Arab Parliament's strong condemnation of the terrorist attacks carried out by the Houthi militia using ballistic missiles and drones against the cities of Khamis Mushait, Abha, and Taif in Saudi Arabia, which resulted in injuries to several civilians and material damage to homes and vehicles.

In a statement, the Arab Parliament speaker stressed that these blatant attacks constitute a flagrant violation of international law, international humanitarian law, the UN Charter, and relevant UN Security Council resolutions, SPA reported.

Al-Yamahi renewed the Arab Parliament's full solidarity with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its support for all measures it takes to protect its sovereignty, security, and stability, as well as its citizens and residents, emphasizing that the Kingdom's security is an integral part of the pan-Arab national security system.

The Arab Parliament called on the UN Security Council to fulfill its responsibilities, take a firm position to stop these repeated attacks, and hold those responsible and their supporters accountable in a manner that preserves the security and stability of the region.