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WORLD NEWSFriday 26 February 2016
Syrian army recaptures town in Aleppo from IS
ZEINA KARAM
Associated Press
BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian gov-
ernment troops backed
by Russian airstrikes recap-
tured a town in Aleppo
province from Islamic State
militants on Thursday in a
key advance just two days
ahead of a U.S. and Russia-
engineered cease-fire that
is set to take effect in Syria.
In the rebel-held suburb of
Daraya, opposition activists
said the army escalated its
attacks, dropping dozens
of barrel bombs from heli-
copters on the devastated
town located a few kilome-
ters southwest of the Syrian
capital, sending plumes of
smoke rising into the sky.
Russia and the United
States have set a deadline
of midnight on Friday for
the temporary cease-fire
to take effect between the
Syrian government and op-
position forces. But fighting
is expected to continue
in many places, because
the deal excludes groups
deemed terrorist by the
U.N. Security Council in-
cluding Islamic State and
the al-Qaida branch in Syr-
ia, the Nusra Front.
The town of Khanaser cap-
tured by the army Thursday
was seized earlier this week
by the Islamic State group,
cutting state forces’ ac-
cess to the provincial capi-
tal, also called Aleppo,
said the Syrian government
and the London-based Syr-
ian Observatory for Human
Rights, an opposition moni-
toring group.
SANA said the army took
Saudis rebuke Lebanon for siding with Iran Indonesia’s Foreign Ministry
BASSEM MROUE
Associated Press
BEIRUT (AP) — Saudi Arabia
has lashed out at Lebanon,
cutting off billions of dollars group, declined to support
of aid and telling its citizens Iran during two meetings
to leave the country, after
Beirut sided with Iran in the
fallout over the execution
of a Saudi Shiite cleric, in
a diplomatic dispute that
threatens Lebanon’s strug-
gling economy.
The tension reflects the
worsening Sunni-Shiite
conflict in the Middle East,
which is driven by regional
powerhouses Saudi Arabia
and Iran, who are fighting
Khanaser, around 50 kilo-
meters (30 miles) southeast
of Aleppo city, after three
days of heavy battles and
that intense fighting was still the first meeting of a task
underway to reopen the
Civilians carry supplies in Aleppo, Syria. Syrian government troops backed by Russian airstrikes
recaptured a town in Aleppo province from Islamic State militants on Thursday.
road. On Tuesday, IS seized
Khanaser and surrounding
hills, severing the govern-
ment’s main land route to
the city.
In the push on Khanaser,
the Syrian army and pro-
government Shiite militias
were backed by Russian
airstrikes, The Observatory
said. The cease-fire meant
to start on midnight Friday is
aimed at achieving a tem-
porary “cessation of hostili-
ties” that would bring back
the Syrian government and
its opponents to the negoti-
proxy wars in Syrbia, Yemen
and, to a lesser extent, in
Iraq. Saudi’s punitive mea-
sures against Lebanon be-
gan last week after the
Lebanese foreign minister,
Gibran Bassil, an ally of the
Iranian-backed Hezbollah
Saudi resolutions against
of Arab and Muslim foreign
ministers.
The resolution sought to
condemn Iran over attacks
on Saudi diplomatic mis-
sions following Riyadh’s ex-
ecution of prominent Shiite
cleric Nimr al-Nimr in early
ating table in Geneva.
The U.N. special envoy
for Syria, Staffan de Mis-
tura, said he will convene
force meant to monitor
the cease-fire. Speaking
to reporters Thursday in
Geneva, he predicted a
“crucial” day ahead of the
start of the truce brokered
by the United States and
Russia.
The Syrian opposition has
agreed to abide by the
truce but expressed major
concerns and reservations
about what it said were
ambiguities and the lack
of any clear mechanism to
implement the agreement.
Turkey’s prime minister
echoed those concerns on
January.
Riyadh announced Friday
it was halting $4 billion in
aid grants due to what it
described as stances taken
by Lebanese officials which
“were not in harmony with
the ties between the two
countries.”
This week, Saudi Arabia
called on its citizens not to notoriously fractious politi-
travel to Lebanon for safety
reasons and ordered those
staying there to leave. Its
Gulf allies Bahrain, Kuwait
and Qatar predictably fol-
lowed suit, issuing similar
warnings. The United Arab
Emirates also banned its
Australia warns of
possible Indonesia
Thursday, saying he is wor-
ried that Russia will contin- terror attack: AP
ue to hit Syrian civilians or
the moderate opposition SYDNEY (AP) — Australia’s
during the truce. Ahmet government warned on
Davutoglu has accused Thursday that terrorists may
be in the advanced stages
of preparing attacks in In-
donesia, and urged travel-
ers to exercise a high level
(Alexander Kots/K. Pravda via AP) of caution when visiting
the Southeast Asian nation,
Russia of striking the moder- including the popular tour-
ate opposition in Syria over ist island of Bali.
the past five months under The Department of Foreign
the guise of hitting militants. Affairs and Trade issued
Davutoglu said the cease- the travel advisory, which
fire would have “no mean- said only that there were
ing if Russia continues with “recent indications” an
its irresponsible bombings.” attack may be in the ad-
Meanwhile, Turkey’s For- vanced planning stages,
eign Minister Mevlut Ca- and warned people to be
vusoglu told state-run An- vigilant at places of wor-
adolu Agency that Saudi ship and during holiday pe-
aircraft would arrive “today riods. The department did
or tomorrow” at the Incirlik not raise its overall warning
Air Base in southern Turkey level for Australians visiting
to join the fight against Is- the country.
lamic State in Syria. q The advice comes just days
after Australia warned that
terrorists may be plotting
attacks in and around
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s
largest city.
In its warning for Indonesia,
the department cited the
Jan. 14 attacks in the capi-
tal, Jakarta, that left eight
people dead, saying the
assaults demonstrated an
ongoing threat.
“We continue to receive
information that indicates
that terrorists may be plan-
ning attacks in Indonesia,”
the department wrote.
“An attack could occur
anywhere at any time.”
The agency did not im-
mediately to a request for
more details.
said it had no information
citizens from traveling to about possible attacks.
Lebanon and withdrew a “We want to emphasize
number of diplomats from that our security authori-
the country. ties continue to be work-
Lebanon’s political elite is ing and vigilant,” ministry
deeply divided between spokesman Arrmanatha
two powerful Saudi and Nasir said in a statement.
Iran-backed coalitions. The “They have not conveyed
spat has exacerbated di- any indication of an in-
visions among Lebanon’s creased threat.”
In recent years, Indonesian
cians, who traded accusa- counterterrorism forces
tions over the billions of dol- successfully eradicated
lars lost. Lebanon has been the extremist group Je-
without a president since maah Islamiyah that was
May 2014 and parliament responsible for several at-
has failed to elect a new tacks, including the 2002
head of state because of bombings of bars in Bali
lack of a quorum.q which killed 202 people, as
well as two hotel bombings
in Jakarta in 2009 that killed
seven people.q