Three HTS militants killed in south ---- as
livelihood protests expand across Syria
September 17th, 11:01am
(PressTV)
At least three militants affiliated with Syria’s ruling Hay’at Tahrir al-
Sham (HTS) regime have been killed and several others injured,
when fierce fighting broke out between the forces and
fighters from a local group in the country’s
southwestern province of Dara’a.
The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that HTS-affiliated
militants and local armed men engaged in a bitter exchange of
gunfire in al-Sanamayn city on Thursday, after the gunmen
opened fire on the militants as they carried out an
operation in the area.
Later on, HTS forces deployed throughout Sanamayn,
and launched a manhunt in pursuit of the gunmen
involved in the attack.
Protests erupt across Syria over fuel price hike by HTS regime
Protests have erupted in Syria after the ruling Hay’at
Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) regime raised fuel prices.
This comes as demonstrations and protest movements have
intensified throughout various territories in Syria amid the
escalating economic hardship and livelihood instability,
characterized by suspended salary disbursements
and delinquent financial responsibilities,
combined with petroleum product
shortages and eroded access to
critical infrastructure services.
In the northeastern province of Hasakah, protesters
have maintained their blockade of the M4
international highway, in the vicinity of
Tal Tamr for a fourth successive day.
The placement of barriers and obstacles has resulted in the
disruption of oil tanker transit and vehicular movement,
with demonstrators demanding improvement of living
standards and the resolution of fuel and service-
related crises.
In the al-Sukkari district of northwestern Aleppo province,
local residents organized a demonstration --- opposing
violent behaviours and property damage that had
occurred during the earlier demonstrations
protesting the fuel price increase.
The demonstrators emphasized that demands and rights should
be pursued via peaceful channels, stressing the detrimental
effects of property damage and the disruption of critical
public services.
In the eastern province of Dayr al-Zawr, personnel and labourers
employed at the al-Omar oil field have maintained a blockade
for the second successive day along the road leading to the
field, at the al-Attal junction and on the outskirts of Dhiban,
in protest against the prolonged postponement of wage
disbursements and outstanding financial obligations,
which have remained unsettled..... for more than
eight months.
The demonstrators set tires ablaze and impeded the passage
of field vehicles, asserting they would sustain their protest
encampment and maintain the roadblock ---- until their
requirements are fulfilled, in light of the insufficient
official communication... regarding their overdue
remuneration and employment circumstances.
________________________________________________
Iran Army: US vessels... ‘do not
dare’ approach Iranian shores
September 17th, 10:07am
(PressTV)
Iran’s Army says US vessels are staying far from its shores
because of the strength of the country’s naval forces,
strongly dismissing Washington’s claims that Iran’s
military has been weakened or destroyed.
Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia, the Army spokesman,
said Iran’s naval forces remain deployed across the Sea of
Oman, the Arabian Sea and the northern Indian Ocean,
where they are maintaining control.
“The US vessels have not been and are not being allowed to
approach our shores,” Akraminia said, adding that the fact
that US vessels are currently operating at a very long
distance from Iran’s coastline... demonstrates the
country’s military strength.
“If, as Trump claims, the Navy had been destroyed, the enemy
would have approached the shores, but it does not dare to
do so,” he said.
His remarks came in response to Trump’s repeated claims
about the destruction of Iran’s military forces. Akraminia
called the claim false and said, “We are present in the
region and control the region.”
The comments come as an IRGC spokesman said on September
9 that US warships had moved at least 400 kilometres from the
Strait of Hormuz and that no US warships were then... inside
the Persian Gulf.
US warships pushed away 400km from Strait
of Hormuz amid --------- ‘severe attrition’: IRGC
The United States lacks the capacity to maintain a long-term
military presence in West Asia, the IRGC spokesman says.
The Army spokesman’s comments.... follow other Iranian assertions
about US naval capabilities in the region. An Iranian parliamentary
deputy speaker recently said targeting US warships and facilities
housing US commanders --------- represented only.. “a fraction” of
Iran’s capabilities.
Akraminia also issued a warning to Washington and Trump.
“If they again make a miscalculation and launch new aggression,
they will be targeted more decisively, extensively and forcefully
than before ---- and will be forced to sustain a heavy defeat,”
he said.
Akraminia also rejected US accounts concerning an alleged
operation in early April to rescue a US pilot inside Iran, as
well as the pilot’s interview about the episode.
“As Western and American media have also announced,
these pilots were asked to appear in front of a camera
and make these statements,” he said.
He said their accounts were clearly stripped of reality,
noting that the United States seeks to create a myth
of its own invincibility, as portrayed in Hollywood
films, and project that image to the world.
He said the interviews and claims....
were part of the same effort.
The pilot’s comments, aired earlier this week, as part of a report on
CBS News’ 60 Minutes, have been met with mockery from netizens
and military experts alike. In part of the interview, the pilot says
he hit the ground at a speed of about 160 km/h but, was not
badly injured and was able to climb... to nearby heights.
Meanwhile, an assessment of the Pentagon inspector general
has also highlighted the impact of the war on the US military
presence in West Asia, affirming that the Iranian strikes had
damaged or destroyed - hundreds of buildings & structures
at US bases - and depleted the stocks of key munitions.
War on Iran - damaged hundreds
of US facilities, depleted key
munitions: Pentagon
Iranian strikes damaged or destroyed hundreds of buildings
and structures at US military bases across the region and
contributed to the shortages of key munitions.
The attacks disrupted Washington’s regional military posture,
forcing the relocation of personnel, assets and storage
facilities and affecting naval and medical logistics.
The assessment also put damage to US diplomatic facilities
across the region at about $184 million ----- and warned that
some changes to the US military and diplomatic presence
could become permanent.