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Category: Syria

  • 4 US soldiers killed in Syria

    4 US soldiers killed in Syria

    The slain soldiers were taken to a US base in the Shaddadi area in the Hasakah countryside.reports Asian Lite News

    Four US soldiers were killed by an explosive device in Syria’s Hasakah province, according to a state media report.

    On Sunday, explosive device tore through a US military vehicle in the village of Markadeh on the Hasakah-Deir al-Zour road, Xinhua news agency quoted the report as saying.

    It added that a translator was among the slain soldiers.

    Following the explosion, the US forces cordoned off the area.

    The slain soldiers were taken to a US base in the Shaddadi area in the Hasakah countryside, the state media report said.

    It said the US forces and their allies of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) control the majority of oil fields in northeastern Syria.

    The report added that thousands of truckloads of military gears reached US bases in Hasakah.

    Also read:Syrian President alters military service law

  • Syrian President alters military service law

    Syrian President alters military service law

    Syrian males have to serve in the military upon reaching the age of 18 and those who study in the universities can postpone the service until finishing their education…reports Asian Lite News

    Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has made a big change in the military service law, mainly for Syrian expatriates.

    The new amendment to the law announced on Sunday is mainly about setting military service exemption fees for Syrians living abroad and for one category of Syrians inside the country, reports Xinhua news agency.

    Syrian males have to serve in the military upon reaching the age of 18 and those who study in the universities can postpone the service until finishing their education.

    Previously, Syrian males living abroad for four years and above could pay $8,000 to get exempted from the two-year mandatory military service.

    Now, the law covers those who spend as short as one year abroad as they have to pay $10,000.

    For those who spend two years, three years and four years and above abroad, they should pay $9,000, $8,000 and $7,000, respectively to get exempted.

    For Syrians who live inside the country, there was no exemption fee for military service before the new amendment.

    Now, Syrians with medical conditions whose service is in fixed places in the army, largely office service, can pay $3,000 to get exempted.

    The new amendment to the law is welcomed by Syrians, which will also help in supporting the state coffers as the country is reeling under tough economic pressure.

    Also read:Syria to host refugee conference next month

    Also read:UN expects ‘common ground’ over Syrian political process

  • UN expects ‘common ground’ over Syrian political process

    UN expects ‘common ground’ over Syrian political process

    Pedersen made the remarks on Sunday after meeting Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem in the capital Damascus, saying he had an “expansive and comprehensive” discussion…reports Asian Lite News

    UN special envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen said he hopes that a common ground could be reached to help push forward the political process in the war-torn country.

    Pedersen made the remarks on Sunday after meeting Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem in the capital Damascus, saying he had an “expansive and comprehensive” discussion, reports Xinhua news agency.

    The envoy said the talks with al-Moallem touched upon issues related to UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which was endorsed in 2015 and laid forward a roadmap to resolve the Syrian war politically.

    It called for a ceasefire and political settlement in Syria.

    “The Syrian people have been living through an extremely difficult period… And of course there is only one way out of this and that is to start to implement the Security Council resolution and to start focusing on the political process,” he told reporters.

    Pedersen, meanwhile, hoped that the meetings he is having during his visit and the meetings he will have with the opposition could be the “beginning of something new”.

    “Hopefully we can see if it’s possible to find more common ground on how to move this (political) process forward,” he said.

    During their meeting, al-Moallem and Pedersen also discussed the economic situation in Syria and the Western sanctions that increase the hardships in the country particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to state news agency SANA.

    Regarding the Syrian Constitutional Committee, which comprises delegations from the government and opposition to discuss the Syrian constitution, both sides stressed the need for the committee to carry out its work without foreign intervention.

    Also read:Covid 19: WHO donates medical aid to Syria

  • UN plans aid for Syrian wildfire victims

    UN plans aid for Syrian wildfire victims

    Early estimates indicate that up to 140,000 people may have been impacted by the damage…Asian Lite News Reports

    The UN and its humanitarian partners have coordinated with authorities in Syria to develop a contingency response plan after wildfires have killed three people and displaced as many as 25,000 others.

    In a statement on Monday, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said that 79 others were also hospitalised due to the wildfires in the coastal regions of Latakia and Tartous and Homs, Xinhua news agency reported.

    Early estimates indicate that up to 140,000 people may have been impacted by the damage.

    “Our colleagues at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs are coordinating with authorities and humanitarian partners to help develop a contingency response plan,” Dujarric said.

    At least 156 wildfires were reported in the three governorates, with significant spread reported across several areas on October 9 and 10, he said.

    Local authorities reported on Sunday that all the fires had been contained but the risk of reignition remains in some areas

    Also read:Oman Restarts Diplomatic Mission In Syria

    Also read:Boris Unveils 3-Tier Covid Restrictions