At Least 20 Escape Syria Prison Holding ISIS Inmates after Quakehttps://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4142711/least-20-escape-syria-prison-holding-isis-inmates-after-quake
At Least 20 Escape Syria Prison Holding ISIS Inmates after Quake
At least 1,444 people died Monday across Syria after the devastating earthquake that had its epicenter in southwestern Türkiye, the government and rescuers said. Omar HAJ KADOUR / AFP
At Least 20 Escape Syria Prison Holding ISIS Inmates after Quake
At least 1,444 people died Monday across Syria after the devastating earthquake that had its epicenter in southwestern Türkiye, the government and rescuers said. Omar HAJ KADOUR / AFP
Prisoners mutinied in a northwestern Syria prison Monday following a deadly earthquake, with at least 20 escaping the jail holding mostly ISIS group members, a source at the facility told AFP.
The military police prison in the town of Rajo near the Turkish border holds about 2,000 inmates, with about 1,300 of them suspected to be ISIS fighters, said the source.
The prison also holds fighters from Kurdish-led forces, said AFP.
"After the earthquake struck, Rajo was affected and inmates started to mutiny and took control of parts of the prison," said the official at Rajo jail, which is controlled by pro-Turkish factions.
"About 20 prisoners fled... who are believed to be ISIS militants."
The 7.8-magnitude quake -- which was followed by dozens of aftershocks in the region -- caused damage to the prison, with walls and doors cracking, the source added.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said it could not verify whether prisoners had escaped, but confirmed there was a mutiny.
At least 1,444 people died Monday across Syria after the devastating earthquake that had its epicenter in southwestern Türkiye, the government and rescuers said.
In rebel-held parts of the country's northwest, at least 733 people were killed and more than 2,100 injured, according to the White Helmets rescue group.
The incident in Rajo comes on the heels of an ISIS attack in December on a security complex in their former de facto Syrian capital of Raqa, which aimed to free fellow militants from a prison there.
Six members of the Kurdish-led security forces that control the area were killed in the foiled assault.
The conflict in Syria started in 2011 with the brutal repression of peaceful protests and escalated to pull in foreign powers and global fighters.
Nearly half a million people have been killed, and the conflict has forced around half of the country's pre-war population from their homes, with many seeking refuge in Türkiye.
2,300 Houthis Killed and Wounded Across Eight Fronts in Three Dayshttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5323720-2300-houthis-killed-and-wounded-across-eight-fronts-three-days
A structure appears in the crosshairs in an undated screengrab taken from a social media video released September 27, 2026, which the Media Center of the Yemeni Armed Forces said shows airstrikes against Houthi militia positions. Media Center of the Yemeni Armed Forces/via REUTERS
2,300 Houthis Killed and Wounded Across Eight Fronts in Three Days
A structure appears in the crosshairs in an undated screengrab taken from a social media video released September 27, 2026, which the Media Center of the Yemeni Armed Forces said shows airstrikes against Houthi militia positions. Media Center of the Yemeni Armed Forces/via REUTERS
The Houthi militias have suffered heavy human and military losses across eight Yemeni battlefronts, according to figures released by government forces, as the fiercest clashes remain concentrated in Taiz and Lahj.
There, the group’s offensives have collided with preemptive government strikes aimed at consolidating front lines and disrupting supply routes from Houthi-controlled areas.
The Yemeni Armed Forces said they carried out 706 precision strikes on fronts in Kitaf, Al-Baqa, Alab, Al-Jawf, Marib, Al-Bayda, Lahj, and Taiz, using warplanes, drones, snipers, artillery, and rocket launchers. According to the military, these operations resulted in 2,316 Houthi fighters being killed and wounded over a three-day span.
Government forces said the operations targeted Houthi positions, personnel, and military capabilities, destroying or disabling troop carriers, vehicles, military reinforcements, missile launch platforms, weapons depots and equipment.
According to the military’s account, the figures reflect an expansion of targeting efforts from direct front-line engagements to the group’s logistical depth. This comes as the Houthis continue deploying additional fighters and reinforcements to maintain recent gains along the western coast.
Smoke rises following an airstrike targeting Houthi positions east of Taiz city (Reuters)
Battle for Taiz
Taiz has emerged as the most active front, with Houthi ground assaults coinciding with airstrikes targeting assembly points, storage facilities, and troop movements.
According to official military sources, warplanes carried out five airstrikes on Houthi positions east of the governorate, hitting Mawiyah Junction, the vicinity of Saleh City, and the Reception Camp belonging to the Engineering Corps.
Field sources said the strikes coincided with a meeting of Houthi military leaders and the arrival of reinforcements in the area, noting that some targeted locations were being used to store weapons and equipment.
Warplanes also targeted Houthi reinforcements in the Al-Marzam area of Al-Rubaie, west of Taiz city. Military sources said one of the strikes hit and destroyed a tank.
On the western fronts, government forces repelled a Houthi assault in the Al-Anin front. Local sources also reported that government troops and local fighters thwarted attacks launched by the group against Bani Bakari and Al-Anin in Jabal Habashi district after substantial Houthi reinforcements arrived in the area.
At the same time, government artillery targeted Houthi gatherings and positions in Al-Aqroudh, Al-Kadahah, Saila Ghurab, Al-Ja’sha, and Al-Zaybiyah. According to a briefing by the Taiz Axis Media Center, artillery also destroyed a gun emplacement in Al-Bahabah and struck a military vehicle in Dhahat Al-Rabah.
Government air defenses announced that they had shot down a Houthi drone over the Al-Kadahah front.
Meanwhile, Houthi artillery attacks continued. The group reportedly fired more than six shells toward villages in the Al-Dabab area west of Taiz, causing material damage to homes and spreading panic among residents, according to local sources.
Smoke rises from an area targeted in what the Media Center of the Yemeni Armed Forces said was an airstrike against Houthi militia positions, in an undated screengrab taken from social media video released September 27, 2026. Media Center of the Yemeni Armed Forces/via REUTERS
Supply Lines Under Pressure
The confrontation between Yemeni government forces and the Houthis is no longer confined to front-line positions. Routes used to transport fighters and military equipment have become major targets of government operations.
Local sources said the Houthis sent hundreds of fighters from the Al-Udayn district in Ibb province toward Jabal Ras in Hodeidah aboard dozens of buses to reinforce fronts in Al-Waziyah, Al-Barah, and Bani Omar.
The group has also dispatched substantial manpower reinforcements toward the Hayfan front in Taiz. Field sources report ongoing Houthi movements aimed at exerting pressure on the districts of Al-Shamayatayn, Al-Turbah, and Al-Maqatirah from multiple directions.
These movements indicate that the group is seeking to maintain military pressure west of Taiz while simultaneously advancing toward Hayfan and eastern and southern areas in an effort to create multiple avenues into the governorate.
Government forces, in contrast, are focusing on striking reinforcements before they reach the battlefield, using warplanes, drones, and artillery.
Military spokesman Majed Al-Nazeeli said government forces had killed four Iranian experts in Taiz province who, he claimed, specialized in operating and launching drones and missiles. He provided no details regarding their identities.
Pressure in Lahj
In Lahj, clashes continued along fronts connected to the western coast and areas overlooking the Bab Al-Mandab Strait, amid ongoing shelling and military movements in Al-Waziyah, Al-Mudarabah, Ras Al-Arah, Al-Aghbarah, and Kahbub.
Field sources said the Giants Brigades carried out drone strikes against Houthi gatherings and vehicles in Kahbub while simultaneously repelling another attack by the group.
The developments coincided with government military movements on the Al-Subaiha fronts, where Presidential Leadership Council member Lt. Gen. Mahmoud Al-Subaihi, accompanied by Fourth Military Region Commander Maj. Gen. Hamdi Shukri, inspected operations and readiness levels along front-line positions.
Al-Subaihi stressed the importance of maintaining a high state of readiness, vigilance, and preparedness to deal with field developments, praising the steadfastness of forces across various positions.
Israeli Strikes Kill at Least Two People in Gaza, Officials Sayhttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5323709-israeli-strikes-kill-least-two-people-gaza-officials-say
The destroyed car after it was targeted by the Israeli military in Gaza City, 27 September 2026. (EPA)
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Israeli Strikes Kill at Least Two People in Gaza, Officials Say
The destroyed car after it was targeted by the Israeli military in Gaza City, 27 September 2026. (EPA)
Israeli strikes killed at least two Palestinians and wounded several others on Monday in two separate attacks in the Gaza Strip, health officials in the enclave said.
A woman was killed and her husband and others were wounded in one Israeli strike on the rooftop of their building in Gaza City, medics said. Another strike killed a woman and wounded others in central Gaza's Nuseirat refugee camp, they added.
The Israeli military said it struck a militant in Nuseirat, without giving further details. It did not immediately comment on the reported strike in Gaza City.
Palestinian authorities say more than 73,000 people have been killed in Israel's assault on Gaza, launched after Hamas-led fighters killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel in October 2023.
A US-brokered ceasefire agreed last year calls for the eventual reconstruction of the territory, but little progress has been made as negotiators have failed to agree terms for Hamas to disarm and Israel to withdraw its troops. Israeli airstrikes have continued.
At least 1,400 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.
Israel and Hamas trade blame over responsibility for violations of the ceasefire agreement.
Lebanon Hopes for New Staff-Level Agreement with IMFhttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5323708-lebanon-hopes-new-staff-level-agreement-imf
A view of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) logo at its headquarters in Washington, DC, US, November 24, 2024. (Reuters)
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Lebanon Hopes for New Staff-Level Agreement with IMF
A view of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) logo at its headquarters in Washington, DC, US, November 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Lebanon hopes for a new staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund, Finance Minister Yassine Jaber has said, adding that a full IMF program still required Beirut to pass a final law to address losses from its financial crisis.
Lebanon first signed a staff-level agreement with the IMF in April 2022, more than two years after its financial system imploded following decades of profligate spending and corruption in the ruling elite. But it was slow to implement the promised changes.
The current government has fast-tracked reforms, including a bank restructuring law that was welcomed by the IMF in August.
Jaber was in Washington on Monday to meet with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. In comments published late on Sunday, Jaber said he would tell her it was imperative to start work on a full IMF program, which would be expected to involve loans, as Lebanon had worked seriously on financial reforms over the last 18 months.
"Lebanon has accomplished a phase; it passed the banking restructuring law, which was of course a very important message to the Fund and to the world that the parliament and the Lebanese government are serious about reforms," Jaber said in a video released by his ministry.
He said a full-scale agreement with the IMF would have to wait for the passing of the "financial gap law", legislation intended to distribute the losses from the 2019 crash.
In 2022, the government put the losses at about $70 billion, a figure that is likely to be higher now. Those losses need to be distributed between the state, the central bank, commercial banks and depositors, to allow depositors who have been frozen out of their savings to gradually recover their money.
A source familiar with the process said a staff-level agreement could be signed as soon as Monday. A second source said it was likely by the end of the year.
A full IMF program in any case takes longer as it requires approval by the IMF board.
The government put forward a financial gap bill last year but it has yet to be passed.
Financial reforms have been repeatedly derailed by political and private interests over the last seven years.
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