A MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle prepares to land after a mission in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Brian Ferguson)
United States combat drones have been spotted over the Syrian capital, Damascus, for the first known time since the start of the conflict in the country.
The Syria Observatory, a service of the White Helmets civil defense organization that observes and tracks military flights over the country, on April 11 reported the presence of “armed reconnaissance” aircraft, a term it typically uses to refer to U.S. MQ-9 Reaper combat drones, over Damascus’ Eastern Ghouta and Barzeh neighborhood in the northern part of the capital.
Previously, U.S. drone operations in Syria were limited to the central, eastern and northern regions where ISIS and other terrorist groups are known to be active.
Several drone strikes have targeted wanted terrorists since the fall of the Assad regime. Most of the known strikes took place in the northern governorate of Idlib, a key stronghold of the Islamist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group which led the offensive that took down the regime last December. Members of the group, which had been allegedly dissolved, are now dominating the Syrian interim government.
The administration of the former U.S. President Joe Biden welcomed the fall of the regime of former president Bashar al-Assad and was quick to engage with HTS. However, the administration of Donald Trump adopted a more cautious approach towards the government formed by the group.
The U.S. worked with Russia early last March to pass a statement in the United Nations Security Council condemning a government crackdown on the Syrian coast that claimed the lives of more than 1,600 civilians, mostly members of the Alawite religious minority. Since then, Washington has upped its criticism of the Syrian government.
The U.S. maintains a large presence in Syria, with more than 2,000 troops spread in different bases from the north, to the east and southeast of the country.
Late in March it was reported that the U.S. had expanded its presence in the country by taking over the town of al-Dumayr and a nearby air base, which are located less than 40 kilometers to the northeast of Damascus and just under 20 kilometers to the east of the strategic M5 highway leading to the capital.
It is unclear if the U.S. recent military movies near and over Damascus were coordinated with the interim government. There is no doubt, however, that U.S. forces are now at the doorsteps of Damascus. This will put some serious pressure on the government, which is yet to comply with several demands made recently by Washington especially when it comes to combating terrorism and protecting the country’s minorities.
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protecting the head chopper puppets no doubt. 🤮
old joe. the enabler
thanks russia… never rely on partners, always depend on yourself to protect from the evil.
you can’t expect russia to be more syrian that syrians, it’s on those syrians who helped attack their own government and their hts pals and foreign jihadis.
i operate in tel aviv ghay bars
do you hoover for used condoms to recycle ?