Syrian and Russian defence ministry officials have carried out a joint tour in southern Syria, where Israel has established a military presence, the first such visit since the overthrow of Bashar Al Assad in December last year.
A Russian delegation headed by the deputy defence minister Yunus-Bek Yevkurov arrived in Syria on Sunday, less than a month after Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara met his Russian counterpart and former enemy Vladimir Putin in Moscow, following months of back-channel contact.
“The purpose of the tour was to inspect the situation on the ground as part of the continuing co-operation between the two sides,” Syria's state news agency Sana reported.
The crux of the Syria-Russia negotiations is the future of Russia’s military presence in Syria, the Hmeimim airbase and the naval facility in Tartous, which Moscow is keen to preserve.
Both bases are strategically located at the crossroads of Europe and the Middle East and provide a logistical hub for Russia's operations in Africa.
For Syria, the stakes in the talks are also strategic. Analysts say Syria hopes that a continued Russian military presence will deter Israel from expanding its attacks, but warn of an “optimistic calculation at best”.
“The historical record demonstrates that Russian presence provided virtually no meaningful deterrent to Israeli military action in Syria,” the Russia-Syria specialist and author Ruslan Trad said.
Under a 2018 arrangement with the Assad government, Russian military police patrolled the border area alongside UN peacekeepers.
However, throughout the period of Russian patrols, Israel conducted hundreds of air strikes, “targeting Iranian weapons transfers to Hezbollah, IRGC positions and Syrian military facilities”, Mr Trad said. There were more than 300 Israeli air strikes in 2024 alone.
“Russia's posture is one of tolerance rather than deterrence,” he told The National.
Israel stepped up strikes on Syria after the fall of the Assad regime. It hit targets in Damascus, destroyed much of the country's heavy weaponry and sent its troops across the border to seize territory in the south.
Syria's new authorities have avoided retaliation and say they are not seeking conflict with neighbouring states.
Mr Al Shara formerly led the Hayat Tahrir Al Sham rebel group that deposed Mr Al Assad and had fought Russian forces deployed to support the former president since 2017. Mr Al Assad now lives in Russia, where he fled as rebel forces advanced on Damascus.
'Severe headwinds'
The negotiations between the former rivals have been described by analysts as an exercise in realpolitik, with both sides making concessions.
Russia is seeking to preserve its economic foothold in Syria, including in the energy and phosphate sectors, where it has long been influential, while Syria has requested the extradition of Bashar Al Assad.
While Syria's new government has captured hundreds of officials and security operatives of the Assad regime in recent months, it has not been able to hold accountable its most prominent figures, most of whom are in Russia.
Russian media also reported that Syrian officials are keen that Moscow resumes military patrols in southern provinces to help enforce a disengagement agreement with Israel. This established a buffer zone along the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Analysts said the Syrian government is banking on renewed Russian patrols to allay Israel's security concerns and deter further Israeli military action on the border.
But Mr Trad said Syria's hope faces “severe headwinds”. He explained that while Israel's original justifications for strikes – namely blocking Iranian weapons transfers to Hezbollah and stopping Iranian military entrenchment – are no longer relevant since Mr Al Assad's downfall, Israeli operations have nevertheless scaled up.
“It is now aimed at preventing Syria's new government from reconstituting military capabilities and carving out an expanded demilitarised zone encompassing much of southern Syria,” he said.
He concluded that, given that Russia was unable to curb Israeli military operations when Mr Al Assad, its long-time ally, was in power, and Iranian assets were the targets, “there is little reason to expect Moscow could constrain Israeli operations now”.
“Particularly when Israel views its actions as establishing 'facts on the ground' during Syria's vulnerable transition, and it has demonstrated its willingness to strike near Russian facilities without consequence,” he said.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
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The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
How England have scored their set-piece goals in Russia
Three Penalties
v Panama, Group Stage (Harry Kane)
v Panama, Group Stage (Kane)
v Colombia, Last 16 (Kane)
Four Corners
v Tunisia, Group Stage (Kane, via John Stones header, from Ashley Young corner)
v Tunisia, Group Stage (Kane, via Harry Maguire header, from Kieran Trippier corner)
v Panama, Group Stage (Stones, header, from Trippier corner)
v Sweden, Quarter-Final (Maguire, header, from Young corner)
One Free-Kick
v Panama, Group Stage (Stones, via Jordan Henderson, Kane header, and Raheem Sterling, from Tripper free-kick)
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company: Instabug
Founded: 2013
Based: Egypt, Cairo
Sector: IT
Employees: 100
Stage: Series A
Investors: Flat6Labs, Accel, Y Combinator and angel investors
MATCH DETAILS
Juventus 2 (Bonucci 36, Ronaldo 90 6)
Genoa 1 (Kouame 40)
SHOW COURTS ORDER OF PLAY
Wimbledon order of play on Tuesday, July 11
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Centre Court
Adrian Mannarino v Novak Djokovic (2)
Venus Williams (10) v Jelena Ostapenko (13)
Johanna Konta (6) v Simona Halep (2)
Court 1
Garbine Muguruza (14) v
Svetlana Kuznetsova (7)
Magdalena Rybarikova v Coco Vandeweghe (24)
RESULT
Fifth ODI, at Headingley
England 351/9
Pakistan 297
England win by 54 runs (win series 4-0)
What is the Supreme Petroleum Council?
The Abu Dhabi Supreme Petroleum Council was established in 1988 and is the highest governing body in Abu Dhabi’s oil and gas industry. The council formulates, oversees and executes the emirate’s petroleum-related policies. It also approves the allocation of capital spending across state-owned Adnoc’s upstream, downstream and midstream operations and functions as the company’s board of directors. The SPC’s mandate is also required for auctioning oil and gas concessions in Abu Dhabi and for awarding blocks to international oil companies. The council is chaired by Sheikh Khalifa, the President and Ruler of Abu Dhabi while Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, is the vice chairman.
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
List of alleged parties
- May 15 2020: Boris Johnson is said to have attended a Downing Street pizza party
- 27 Nov 2020: PM gives speech at leaving do for his staff
- Dec 10 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson
- Dec 13 2020: Mr Johnson and his then-fiancee Carrie Symonds throw a flat party
- Dec 14 2020: Shaun Bailey holds staff party at Conservative Party headquarters
- Dec 15 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
- Dec 18 2020: Downing Street Christmas party
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg
Real Madrid (2) v Bayern Munich (1)
Where: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
When: 10.45pm, Tuesday
Watch Live: beIN Sports HD
FIGHT CARD
Welterweight Mostafa Radi (PAL) v Tohir Zhuraev (TJK)
Catchweight 75kg Leandro Martins (BRA) v Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR)
Flyweight Corinne Laframboise (CAN) v Manon Fiorot (FRA)
Featherweight Ahmed Al Darmaki (UAE) v Bogdan Kirilenko (UZB)
Lightweight Izzedine Al Derabani (JOR) v Atabek Abdimitalipov (KYG)
Featherweight Yousef Al Housani (UAE) v Mohamed Arsharq Ali (SLA)
Catchweight 69kg Jung Han-gook (KOR) v Elias Boudegzdame (ALG)
Catchweight 71kg Usman Nurmagomedov (RUS) v Jerry Kvarnstrom (FIN)
Featherweight title Lee Do-gyeom (KOR) v Alexandru Chitoran (ROU)
Lightweight title Bruno Machado (BRA) v Mike Santiago (USA)
US tops drug cost charts
The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.
Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.
In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.
Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol.
The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.
High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.
Company%20profile
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Spare
Profile
Company name: Spare
Started: March 2018
Co-founders: Dalal Alrayes and Saurabh Shah
Based: UAE
Sector: FinTech
Investment: Own savings. Going for first round of fund-raising in March 2019
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
