The Daily Brief 2020-08-19

by News Desk · AMN

This is a summary of 21 AMN articles on the following subjects: Russia, Syria, Idlib, Japan, Iraq, Israel, China, India, Egypt, Libya, Greece, Turkey, Iran, US, Lebanon, Netanyahu, Aoun, Hezbollah, Haftar, Sisi, Sirte, Hariri, Gaza, Palestine, Deir_Ezzor.

Categories covered in this brief: Syria, World-News, Iraq, Middleeast, North-Africa, Turkey, Iran, Lebanon, Palestine

Let us know how you like this brief in the comments below.
— The AMN Live Team

Syria grants Russia lands and marine space near Hmeimim Airbase

Published 2020-08-19 22:41:19 by News Desk in Syria

BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:25 P.M.) – Syria has agreed to grant Russia a plot of land and marine space in the coastal governorate of Latakia to establish a health center for the Russian Army on it. Russia’s Sputnik Agency quoted from a document published by the official Russian legal information portal, that “the Syrian Arab Republic agreed to transfer a plot of land and water space in the Latakia Governorate to Russia in order to establish a medical center for health and rehabilitation of Russian flying teams.” The area around the site, according to the document, is 8 hectares, and Russia… Read on ->

Tags: Russia, Syria

Syrian Army, jihadist rebels trade heavy attacks in southern Idlib

Published 2020-08-19 22:22:32 by News Desk in Syria

BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:00 P.M.) – The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and jihadist rebels exchanged hostilities on Wednesday, as both parties traded heavy artillery and machine gun fire along the front-lines of Jabal Al-Zawiya. According to a field source in northern Hama, the Syrian Army was engaged in an artillery exchange with Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) and their allies at a number of points in the Jabal Al-Zawiya region, including the area around Al-Bara’a. The Syrian Army also targeted the jihadist positions at the town of Al-Fateerah, which is where the militants have been firing artillery from. While some opposition activists… Read on ->

Tags: Idlib, Syria

Two Japanese jets intercept Russian strategic bomber

Published 2020-08-19 22:09:15 by News Desk in World-News

The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Wednesday that the Japanese Air Force sent its fighters to escort two Russian Tu-95MS strategic bombers during a scheduled sortie over the Sea of Japan and the Pacific Ocean. “Two Russian T-95MS strategic planes made a planned flight over the neutral waters of the Sea of Japan and the northwestern Pacific Ocean. The flight took more than seven hours. At certain stages of the itinerary, Russian aircraft were escorted,” the ministry said in a statement. Russian strategic aviation regularly flies over the neutral waters of the Arctic, the North Atlantic, the Black Sea, the… Read on ->

Tags: Japan, Russia

Iraqi politician calls for peace agreement with Israel

Published 2020-08-19 20:16:28 by News Desk in Iraq, Middleeast

BEIRUT, LEBANON (8:00 P.M.) – The leader of the Ummah Party in Iraq and former member of the House of Representatives, Mithal Al-Alousi, said that the Iraqi government should normalize relations with Israel, similar to what the United Arab Emirates did last week. In a special statement to Shafaaq News, Al-Alousi said, “Iraq needs to get out of the camp of wars, extremism and delusions, and it needs to build stable relations with all countries of the world.” He continued, “For this, Iraq needs a peace agreement with Israel, similar to the Emirates.” Al-Alousi revealed that “there is informal communication… Read on ->

Tags: Iraq, Israel

Satellite images reveal presence of Chinese stealth fighters along Indian border

Published 2020-08-19 18:56:04 by News Desk in World-News

BEIRUT, LEBANON (6:40 P.M.) – Satellites detected Chinese stealth fighters at a Chinese army base on the Sino-Indian border, in a new escalation against the backdrop of tension between the two countries. Two J-20 fighters appeared at an airbase in the far west of China, as the confrontations and tensions between India and China entered their fourth month. The twin-engine J-20 jets can be seen in commercial satellite images at the Hotan Air Force Base in Xinjiang’s Uyghur Autonomous Region. https://twitter.com/naija_reports/status/1295568134326411264?s=20 According to Forbes, the deployment of these combat aircraft, albeit temporary, indicates “Beijing’s intentions at a time when China… Read on ->

Tags: China, India

Egyptian President orders armed forces to maintain highest level combat readiness along Libyan border

Published 2020-08-19 18:24:28 by News Desk in North-Africa

BEIRUT, LEBANON (6:20 P.M.) – Egyptian presidential spokesman Bassam Radi announced on Wednesday that President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi met with the commander of the 2nd Field Army, the head of the Army Engineering Authority, and the head of the Financial Affairs Authority. The presidential spokesperson stated that Al-Sisi directed “to continue to maintain competence and the highest levels of readiness and combat readiness to carry out any tasks entrusted to members of the armed forces to protect Egypt’s national security, in light of the current challenges in the region and the great capacity of the Egyptian Armed Forces in all… Read on ->

Tags: Egypt, Libya

New images of Turkish ship reveals damage caused by collision with Greek frigate

Published 2020-08-19 15:51:56 by News Desk in Turkey, World-News

BEIRUT, LEBANON (3:30 P.M.) – A picture published by the Greek newspaper Kathimerini on Wednesday revealed the damage sustained to the right side of the stern of the Turkish “Kamel Rais” ship after it collided with a Greek frigate on August 12th. “The collision occurred when the ship, the Kamel Rais, sought to obstruct the Greek frigate, Lemnos, which was monitoring the movements of the Turkish survey ship over the Greek continental shelf in the eastern Mediterranean,” the newspaper said. Greek defense sources told the newspaper that the attempt to obstruct the Greek ship forced them to turn around in… Read on ->

Tags: Greece, Turkey

Iranian official says Iran already sold cargo on tankers seized by US

Published 2020-08-19 14:33:08 by News Desk in Iran

BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:20 P.M.) – The Iranian President’s Chief of Staff, Mahmoud Vaezi, dismissed the U.S. claims about seizing four Iranian fuel tankers, stressing that the ships and cargo do not belong to the Islamic Republic. “Neither the ships nor their flags belong to Iran,” Vaezi told reporters after a cabinet meeting in Tehran on Wednesday, Fars News reported. “The cargo on these ships had already been sold and we had already been paid as well,” he added. The Wall Street Journal had claimed in a report on Friday that the Trump administration has for the first time confiscated cargo… Read on ->

Tags: Iran, US

Lebanese Army responds to Netanyahu’s allegations of weapons in Baabda

Published 2020-08-19 13:31:38 by News Desk in Lebanon, Middleeast

BEIRUT, LEBANON (1:20 P.M.) – The Lebanese Army Command denied the validity of the news circulating and the allegations made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the presence of weapons and ammunition in the Ba’abda-Luweizeh area of Mount Lebanon. The Lebanese Army published a statement on its Twitter page confirming that the aforementioned allegations are invalid. They addressed the people in the area and assured them that the rumors were false and directly mentioned the Israeli Prime Minister, who they said was the source of the claim. https://twitter.com/LebarmyOfficial/status/1295810735906447363?s=20 The statement pointed out that the Intelligence Directorate further investigated the… Read on ->

Tags: Lebanon, Netanyahu

Massive Turkish military convoy enters northwestern Syria after Russian airstrikes

Published 2020-08-19 12:17:46 by News Desk in Syria, Turkey

BEIRUT, LEBANON (12:00 P.M.) – A massive Turkish military convoy entered northwestern Syria on Wednesday, entering the country from the neighboring Hatay Province. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), over 450 Turkish military vehicles entered northwestern Syria, where they reportedly made their way to the agreed upon deescalation zone. The SOHR report said the Turkish military convoy consisted of armored vehicles and heavy weapons. The arrival of these Turkish reinforcements comes just a day after the Russian Air Force launched heavy airstrikes over the Idlib Governorate. According to a Syrian Arab Army (SAA) source, the airstrikes were… Read on ->

Tags: Russia, Syria, Turkey

Lebanese President discusses timetable of disarming Hezbollah

Published 2020-08-19 12:02:40 by News Desk in Lebanon

BEIRUT, LEBANON (11:45 A.M.) – Lebanese President Michel Aoun discussed during an interview with an Italian newspaper, the timetable for disarming Hezbollah, stressing that the idea of disarming the party will take place after Israel stops its attacks on Lebanon. Aoun was asked, in an interview with the Corriere della Sera newspaper, about the protester demands in Lebanon to disarm the party. President said that “when the conflict is resolved, Hezbollah give its weapons as a gift to the Lebanese army.” The Lebanese President pointed out that “there has been no problem between Hezbollah and the army or civilians, except… Read on ->

Tags: Aoun, Hezbollah, Lebanon

Egyptian leader sends ‘important’ message to Libya’s Haftar

Published 2020-08-19 11:48:43 by News Desk in North-Africa

BEIRUT, LEBANON (11:30 A.M.) – The Information Office of the General Command of the Libyan National Army (LNA) announced that Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar had received an important message from Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. The office said that the message was delivered by the Director of the Military Intelligence Department in the Arab Republic of Egypt, Major General Khaled Majawar, to the General Command of the Libyan National Army. The contents of the message were not revealed by the Libyan National Army; however, they did specify that it contained important information from the Egyptian President. Last June, Sisi announced… Read on ->

Tags: Egypt, Haftar, Libya, Sisi

Israeli military chief sends letter to Lebanese gov’t about Hezbollah missiles

Published 2020-08-19 11:30:06 by News Desk in Lebanon, Middleeast

BEIRUT, LEBANON (11:20 A.M.) – The Israeli Chief of Staff, General Aviv Kochavi, sent a letter to the Lebanese government, in which he said that they must extend its control over what is happening in the country. The letter was mentioned by the IDF spokesman, Avichay Adraee, who made it clear that General Kochavi’s statements came during a recent military ceremony. “The Lebanese government is blocking the fulfillment of the UNIFIL mission in the same way that it did not move a finger with the shipment of ammonium nitrate,” Kochavi said. He added, “This is how you stand idly by… Read on ->

Tags: Israel, Lebanon

Turkish-backed forces seize Russian-made helicopter in northern Libya: photo

Published 2020-08-19 11:15:32 by News Desk in North-Africa

BEIRUT, LEBANON (11:00 A.M.) – The Turkish-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) forces have seized an abandoned Russian-made helicopter near the strategic Libyan city of Sirte. According to Clash Report, who shared a photo of the helicopter, the GNA seized an abandoned Russian-made Mi-17 chopper west of Sirte. https://twitter.com/clashreport/status/1295828383763439628?s=20 It’s was not stated when the Libyan National Army (GNA), who is led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, abandoned the chopper; however, it was likely during the GNA’s large-scale counter-offensive west of Sirte. The city of Sirte is currently under the control of the Libyan National Army; they captured the area… Read on ->

Tags: Libya, Sirte

Two US military drones crash into one another over Syria

Published 2020-08-19 10:56:46 by News Desk in Syria

BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:40 A.M.) – The U.S. military lost two drones over the Idlib Governorate this week after they reportedly crashed into one another on Tuesday. Citing a defense official, the Military Times reported that the U.S. lost the two drones when they crashed into one another over northwestern Syria. “Images of burning aircraft crashing to the ground were posted on Twitter Tuesday. There was speculation that the aircraft were MQ-9 Reapers — a remotely piloted aircraft used predominately as an armed hunter-killer drone, but also capable of surveillance and intelligence collection — and were shot down,” Military Times reported…. Read on ->

Tags: Idlib, Syria, US

Libyan Army announces reopening of country’s ports and oil fields

Published 2020-08-19 10:38:59 by News Desk in North-Africa

BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:30 A.M.) – The Libyan National Army (LNA) announced on Tuesday, the reopening of the country’s ports and oil fields. According to Al-Ain News, Al-Senussi Al-Zawy, head of the Supreme Council of the Zawiya Tribes, said that the decision includes only the first stage of the opening of oil and gas crude stocks in the fields. He added that the Supreme Council of Libyan Tribes had previously handed over the General Command of the Libyan Army and the elected parliament a list of demands and conditions for opening the oil fields and authorized them to negotiate in the… Read on ->

Tags: Libya

US, Israel devising plan to fight S-400s if they end up in Iran: media

Published 2020-08-19 09:49:09 by News Desk in Iran

On Friday, the United Nations Security Council rejected a US draft resolution to indefinitely extend the UN arms embargo against Iran, which is set to expire in October. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the decision “scandalous,” while senior US Senator Lindsey Graham claimed it makes “a major conflict” with Iran “much more likely.” The United States and Israel are already preparing for a scenario in which Russia sells advanced air defence systems such as the S-400 to Iran, including by conducting drills involving the destruction of advanced surface-to-air missile threats, Breaking Defense has intimated. The outlet points out that… Read on ->

Tags: Iran, Israel

Saad Hariri issues first comment about verdict regarding his father’s assassination

Published 2020-08-19 09:32:47 by News Desk in Lebanon

BEIRUT, LEBANON (9:20 A.M.) – Commenting on the decision of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said on Tuesday, that “we accept the court’s ruling and we want justice to be done and there is no compromise with blood.” Hariri said, “There is no waiver of the right of the Lebanese to truth and justice regarding the explosion at the Beirut port. The time for the use of the crime politically is over, and this is my message and the message of the court.” Hariri demanded that all facts be revealed about the explosion atthe… Read on ->

Tags: Hariri, Lebanon

Israel launches heavy overnight strikes over Gaza

Published 2020-08-19 09:19:04 by News Desk in Middleeast, Palestine

BEIRUT, LEBANON (9:00 A.M.) – The Israeli Air Force launched new raids on Tuesday evening that targeted a number of sites inside the Gaza Strip. In a statement issued during the attack, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said their attack on Gaza came in response to a number of rockets that targeted the nearby settlements. The Israeli Defense Forces said that it holds Hamas responsible for any escalation from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, explaining that the raids focused on targets belonging to the movement in different parts of the Strip. Israel has now launched strikes over the Gaza Strip… Read on ->

Tags: Gaza, Israel, Palestine

Largest US base in eastern Syria targeted in attack amid increased tension with Arab tribes

Published 2020-08-19 09:02:17 by News Desk in Syria

BEIRUT, LEBANON (8:40 A.M.) – The largest U.S. base in Syria was targeted by a number of missiles in the eastern countryside of the Deir Ezzor Governorate on Tuesday. According to reports from eastern Syria, the U.S. base at the Conoco Oil Fields was targeted with a number of rockets fired by unknown group in the Deir Ezzor countryside. Meanwhile, the U.S. Coalition said that at least three rockets were fired towards the base, but the projectiles did not manage to hit the installation. Despite no group claiming responsibility for the attack, the U.S. Coalition and their allies from the… Read on ->

Tags: Deir_Ezzor, Syria

Russian general killed in roadside bombing attack in east Syria

Published 2020-08-19 08:24:45 by News Desk in Syria

The incident was said to have taken place in Deir ez-Zor province, northeastern Syria. A Russian major-general was killed and two troops were injured in Syria Tuesday after vehicles they were traveling in were hit by an improvised explosive device (IED), the Russian Ministry of Defence has announced. The blast was said to have taken place near the At-Taim oil field, about 15 km outside the city of Deir ez-Zor, with the Russian convoy said to have been hit while returning from a humanitarian action. “As a result of the explosion, three Russian servicemen were injured. During evacuation and while… Read on ->