Today’s news round on Syria highlights key developments, including Donald Trump’s intentions to withdraw U.S. troops from northern Syria to avoid conflicts between Turkish and Kurdish forces, according to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. A New York man was arrested for attempting to join ISIS in Syria, underscoring growing concerns about American supporters of the group. JustSecurity.com released a report on challenges in reintegrating former ISIS affiliates detained in northeast Syria, calling for more structured amnesty programs. Meanwhile, Assad faces pressure to limit Iran’s influence in Syria as Israel intensifies strikes on Iranian and Hezbollah targets. Syrian forces repelled an ISIS ambush near the U.S. Al-Tanf base, amid reports of ISIS activities in the region. Lastly, Iran-backed Al-Nujaba and Hezbollah have established a new training camp in Syria’s Badia, preparing fighters for deployment across Syria and Lebanon.
Trump wants troops out of northern Syria, says Robert F Kennedy Jr
Donald Trump wants to remove US troops from northern Syria rather than leaving them as “cannon fodder” if fighting broke out between Turkey and Kurdish fighters, Robert F Kennedy Jr said on Wednesday.
Speaking to Tucker Carlson during a live broadcast covering the US presidential election result, the Trump ally, who is expected to play a major role in his government, said the president-elect had expressed his intentions for northern Syria during a plane journey.
“We were talking about the Middle East, and he took a piece of paper and he drew on it [a] map of the Middle East with all the nations on it, which most Americans couldn’t do,” he told the right-wing broadcaster.
“He was he was particularly looking at the border between Syria and Turkey, and he said, ‘We have 500 men on the border of of Syria and Turkey and a little encampment that was bombed.'”
Kennedy said Trump told him there were 750,000 troops in Turkey and 250,000 in Syria.
Man arrested at JFK Airport in plot to join ISIS in Syria
USA TODAY reported that a New York man was arrested at the JFK International Airport as he prepared to board a flight to Qatar to join ISIS, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.
Syed Aman faces charges for attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization. The Justice Department said Aman wanted to join ISIS to engage in a holy war, or jihad, in Syria. He told an undercover agent he hated people who “deny the path of Allah” and that if people aren’t killed, they will “kill us and ruin the earth with decay,” according to federal prosecutors.
“During this same time period, Aman also posted on a social media platform his desire ‘to kill Americans’ and wrote in a notebook his intent to study becoming a shaheed, or martyr on behalf of ISIS,” the Justice Department said.
Aman is one of a growing number of Americans arrested for attempting to join or support the organization. George Washington University’s Program on Extremism said in March 2023 that 246 people have been charged for joining since 2014.
Assessing Amnesties and Re-assimilation in Northeast Syria
JustSecurity.com published a detailed report assessing amnesty and re-assimilation programs in northeast Syria, focusing on the challenges surrounding the detention and potential reintegration of former ISIS affiliates. With over 50,000 individuals detained by the Autonomous Administration of Northeast Syria (AANES) in camps and prisons, the report highlights the bleak prospects for trials and resettlement, especially for women and children in Al-Hol camp.
In April 2024, AANES issued an amnesty for minor crimes, allowing the release of 1,500 detainees, although the report suggests that broader, more structured programs are needed for fair processing and reintegration. In response, the Syria Justice and Accountability Centre (SJAC) conducted community focus groups in Deir Ezzor, Raqqa, and Hassakeh, finding widespread support for a mix of formal trials and tribal reconciliation processes to address ISIS-affiliated detainees.
The report also reviews international justice efforts, pointing out limitations in mechanisms like the IIIM and UNITAD, which lack jurisdiction or access in Syria. Although UNITAD has closed, the IIIM has preserved substantial data that could support future justice efforts. The report advocates for international support to strengthen AANES’s judicial capacity and ensure transparency in trials and amnesties, while also emphasizing that victims’ perspectives must be central to any sustainable solution.
Can Syria’s Assad be distanced from Iranian-Hezbollah influence?
Jewish News Syndicate published a report examining how Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is managing the increasing Israeli pressure to limit Iranian influence in Syria. As Israel continues to degrade Iranian and Hezbollah capabilities in Syria, Lebanon, and Iran, Assad faces a complex balancing act. While reliant on Iran for survival during Syria’s civil war, Assad is now cautious to avoid further Israeli reprisals against his regime.
Professor Eyal Zisser from Tel Aviv University suggests that Assad, while unlikely to sever ties with Iran entirely, may be open to reducing Iran’s footprint to avoid provocations. Recent orders by Syria’s 4th Division, led by Assad’s brother Maher, reflect this approach by restricting movement of Hezbollah and Iranian-backed forces in certain areas to evade Israeli strikes.
Israel has intensified operations against Iranian and Hezbollah infrastructure in Syria, recently targeting key Hezbollah intelligence sites and killing top operatives like Mahmoud Mohammed Shaheen. These actions are part of a broader Israeli strategy to weaken Iran’s influence in Syria.
Meanwhile, Israel’s destruction of Iran’s S-300 air defense systems signals to Assad and other regional actors the vulnerability of their defenses against Israeli airstrikes. Russia, though reliant on Iranian drones for the Ukraine conflict, is unlikely to counter Israeli operations, ensuring Israel faces minimal interference in its air campaign.
Ultimately, even partial reductions of Iran’s presence in Syria would mark a strategic win for Israel, highlighting the declining influence of the Iranian-led Shi’ite axis in the region.
Syrian troops foil ISIS ambush near US occupation base
The Syrian Army repelled an attack by ISIS on one of its checkpoints in the country’s Al-Badia desert region in central Syria’s Homs governorate.
“The army repelled an attempt by ISIS to attack one of its checkpoints in the Badia of Al-Sukhnah, starting from the Al-Tanf area known as the 55-kilometer area,” a Syrian military source told Al Mayadeen.
The ISIS militants were “riding two pickup trucks and three motorcycles … their movement from the Al-Tanf area was monitored before they were confronted,” the source added. It also said Syrian–Russian airstrikes targeted ISIS positions in Al-Sukhna, in the Palmyra desert, and other areas in the Syrian desert.
The 55-kilometer area, from which the source said the attack originated, refers to the geographical surroundings of the US Al-Tanf military base in eastern Syria.
According to numerous reports in the last couple of years, as well Syrian and Russian officials, ISIS and other extremist groups receive training inside the Al-Tanf base, and are given logistical support to carry out hit-and-run attacks against Syrian military forces in the country’s desert region.
Iran-Backed Iraqi Al-Nujaba Movement Sends Commanders, Operatives To Run Training Course In Raqqa
MEMRI reported that the Harakat al-Nujaba militia, alongside Lebanese Hezbollah, recently began setting up a new training camp in the Rasafa area of Syria’s Badia. The camp aims to train fighters and enhance their combat readiness, with plans to deploy these forces to southern Syria, Lebanon, and the countryside of Aleppo and Idlib.
According to sources, the camp is overseen by four Lebanese Hezbollah commanders, including the chief commander known as “Hajj Nidal.” Approximately 40 to 45 Syrian and Iraqi fighters are assigned to secure the camp, with snipers positioned nearby to safeguard the area during training exercises.
Training at the camp includes proficiency with light and medium weaponry, including short- and medium-range rockets, and reconnaissance drones. The militia is constructing 10 prefabricated rooms for lodging, administration, and security, with berms and fortifications being raised to protect the site.
This new establishment follows a wave of recent attacks on militia sites and training camps across Deir ez-Zor, Homs, and southern Syria. Hezbollah is reportedly expanding its training operations in Syria, including new camps in the eastern Aleppo and western Deir Ezzor regions, as part of a broader regional redeployment strategy.
