Amid heightened discontent among loyalists due to rising soldier deaths and poor social services, the wife of President Bashar al-Assad breaks with regime’s usual machismo image to appear in a video promoting the values of motherhood in Aleppo’s crippled districts
With the power balance in northern Syria looking as if it could tip the way of the Kurds, will Syria’s previously neglected community repeat the mistakes of Assad’s dominant minority experience, Eyed al-Jaafari asks in Lebanese Al-Modon
Coalition media office quotes HNC head as saying the Assad regime shifted focus of the talks to countering terrorism as a way to avoid discussing a political transition, adding that Moscow’s efforts to ensure a peace deal will not succeed while it supports the government on the ground
With fighting slowing on a number of fronts in Syria’s north, weapons traders face a sharp drop in arms prices as new players enter the market, bringing with them a surplus of stock, Iqtissad reports
Gatilov avoids making comments on the progress of the ongoing intra-Syrian talks, stating that a number of meetings are still to take place with different Syrian participants
As key players look to fill the vacuum after the expected fall of ISIS’ capital of Raqqa, Al-Hayat columnist Ibrahim Hamidi breaks down the serpentine motivations behind the recent surge in international action on Syrian soil
Russian FM urges joint action from countries involved in the Syrian file, whether they were ‘invited to Syria by the legitimate government’ or not
Defense Ministry spokesperson rejects claims made by militant group that rebel fighters shot down a Russian helicopter, saying that all aircraft in in Syria can be accounted for, Syrian government media writes
Fate of crew remains unknown after key rebel group claims responsibility for hitting a possible regime helicopter near the Suffiyat area in Kurds Mountain, opposition media Zaman al-Wasl reports
Toxic gas attack on the Latamaneh hospital kills medic and patient, as a medical relief agency releases a report claiming over 100 hospitals were hit by Syrian or Russian strikes in 2016
Second batch of aid to arrive within a month raises the total amount of soft wheat provided by Russia to over 50,000 tons, government media reports
As intense fighting continues in areas of the capital, a Russian daily newspaper rebukes the regime and backs opposition claims that government forces fled from battles and that Republican Guard units suffered heavy losses, website Alsouria Net reports
Opposition media reports that rebels located in the mountains of the regime’s coastal stronghold launched 17 Grad missiles at Hameimim airbase
After an Israeli attack against an Iranian weapons shipment to Hezbollah in Syria, the writing is on the wall that Assad no longer commands respect anywhere as Russia and Iran try in vain to prop up a discredited regime
Syria’s forceful response to the recent Israeli aggression is a Russian message that U.S. hegemony is ending in the region
The four military officials will be banned from traveling to the EU and unable to access any assets in the bloc or its banks
Assad tells a visiting Russian-European delegation that the government will pursue two tracks to resolve the conflict in Syria, counterterrorism and the political process, stressing the importance of striking national reconciliation deals in doing so
Head of government delegation calls the Astana talks a major achievement, as the issue of terrorism was resolved satisfactorily with the world acknowledging its existence in Syria
Syrian regime not receptive to de Mistura’s proposed visit to Syria as the next round of talks in Geneva approach
Sheikh Rakan al-Khudeir, the head of the Army of Free Tribes, tells All4Syria that guarantor states have failed to commit to the cease-fire achieved in previous rounds of negotiations, leading to opposition groups boycotting the recent Astana talks
