President Obama is fully aware of the fragile coalition that exists between the U.S. and Russia which has enabled the Syrian regime to gain the upper hand. But he is also aware of the threat from Saudi Arabia and Turkey of wanting to intervene militarily on the ground in Syria, and takes the threat of invasion from NATO ally Turkey seriously. The Syrian war is reaching a climax and the battle lines are changing.
At least 140 people are feared dead following multiple explosions in the cities of Homs and Damascus in Syria on Sunday. Four blasts struck the southern Damascus suburb of Sayyida Zeinab, the location of Syria’s holiest Shia Muslim shrine, killing at least 83 people, state media said. Earlier in Homs, 57 people, mostly civilians, were killed in a double car bombing, a monitoring group reported.
Russia and Iran are on a roll in Syria.
Just two months ago, it appeared as though Moscow was indeed set to get bogged down in the conflict as the Russian Defense Ministry’s daily airstrike video dump seemed to be at odds with a lack of concrete results on the ground.
French President Francois Hollande has warned that a war between Russia and Turkey is a very real possibility due to the escalating tensions in Syria. Hollande has urged the two countries to avoid escalation before a World War breaks out. Pravdareport.com reports: “There is a risk of war between Turkey and Russia. One must to do everything possible to avoid an escalation,” Hollande said on France Inter radio station. According to him, the Syrian authorities and the opposition should resume talks as soon as possible.
B-1B Lancer bombers covering operations in Iraq and Syria against the Islamic State/ISIS are to return to the U.S. for scheduled cockpit upgrades, according to the USAF Central Command. Russia Today reports: With the B-1 taking a back seat, the campaign may lose a “little flexibility,” but the USAF has plenty of other aircraft to compensate for the deficit, Lt. Gen. Charles Q. Brown, who heads the command, told journalists from his HQ in Qatar. Brown said the bombers would return to Iraq and Syria, but didn’t provide any timetable.