• Turkish, Iranian and Russian FMs meet in Doha today
• Jordan closes border with Syria
• IS captures some areas

BEIRUT: Iran will send missiles, drones and more advisers to Syria, a senior Iranian official said on Friday as US-backed alliance of different rebel groups advanced on the central city of Homs and Kurds seized the biggest city in the east, jolting President Bashar al-Assad’s grip on power.

If insurgents capture Homs in their lightning new offensive, it would cut off the capital Damascus from the coast, where Assad’s Russian allies have a naval base and air base.

In a further setback for Assad, US-backed Syrian Kurdish fighters have taken Deir el-Zor, the government’s main foothold in the vast desert east of the country, Syrian sources said.

It was the third major city, after Aleppo and Hama in the northwest and centre, to fall out of Assad’s control in a week.

Piling on the pressure, an Iraqi security source said the Syrian Kurds were also advancing in the direction of the town of Albukamal on Syria’s far eastern border with Iraq and could take it within the next 24 hours.

Assad’s forces regained control of most of Syria after key allies — Russia, Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah — came to his rescue. But all have recently been weakened and diverted by other crises, giving the militants a window to fight back.

Jordan closes Syria border

Jordan has closed its only passenger and commercial border crossing with Syria, the interior ministry said on Friday.

Armed groups have been firing at Syria’s Nassib border crossing with Jordan, a Syrian army source said.

Hezbollah, meanwhile, sent a small number of “supervising forces” from Lebanon to Syria overnight to help prevent anti-government fighters from seizing Homs, two senior Lebanese security sources said

IS captures some areas

In another alarming development for Assad, the head of US-backed Syrian Kurdish force said the radical Islamic State militant group, which imposed a reign of terror over swathes of Iraq and Syria, had now taken control of some areas in eastern Syria.

Meanwhile, the foreign ministers of Iran, Russia and Turkiye will meet in Doha on Saturday to discuss Syria war.

Russia, Iran and Tur­kiye have regularly held talks on Syria’s future in a trilateral format as part of what is known as the Astana peace process. While Nato member Tur­kiye backs Syrian rebels, Russia and Iran support Assad.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2024