Saudi Arabia and US to JOIN forces in Syria in fresh bid to FINALLY defeat ISIS terrorists
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Turkish media reported on Tuesday three Saudi Arabian military advisers flew to Kobani, a northern town in Syria, to meet their counter representatives of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The US-supported militia is mainly comprised of the Kurdish YPG but it also includes Arab fighters. It emerged the Saudi advisers held the meeting with the hope of creating a new union of Arab groups able to permanently defeat ISIS. The turkish report claimed Saudi Arabian authorities put up checkpoints in the northern Syrian towns of Al-Asakah and Al-Qamishli seeking to recruit Arab Fighters.
According to the report all the new recruits would be paid $200 upon joining. The Wall Street Journal revealed last month President Donald Trump wanted to gather troops from Arab nations in order to boost the US-supported militia in Syria. Saudi Arabian foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said the kingdom was "in discussions with the US and have been since the beginning of the Syrian crisis about sending forces into Syria." Saudi Arabia is not known for deploying forces in the war-torn country. However, it joined Western nations and Turkey in supporting efforts to overthrow Syrian President Bashar Assad in 2011.
Palmyra after ISIS Tue, August 22, 2017 Islamic State fighters in Syria have reportedly blown up the ancient ruins of Palmyra, an ancient World Heritage home to renowned Roman-era ruins. Play slideshow AFP/Getty Images 1 of 51 A picture of the Arc du Triomphe before and after it was destroyed
An investigation into the origins of ISIS’ weaponry in Syria and Iraq has found weapons supplied by the US and Saudi Arabia to the Syrian opposition in 2011 often ended up in the jihadis’ hands. In 2014, the US announced it was forming a coalition of nations to defeat the nascent extremist group that had taken over vast swathes of Iraq and Syria. It withdrew assistance to Syrian opposition groups and started supporting the Syrian Democratic Forces in 2015. Syrian opposition groups, which are backed by Saudi Arabia, have suffered a number of defeats by the Syrian military which is supported by Russia and Iran.
Other rebel groups have aligned with Turkey, which is also opposed to President Assad but has instead prioritised fighting against Kurdish groups such as the YPG. Turkey considers them terrorist organisations, but the US support for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces has aggravated the relationship between Ankara and Washington. Saudi Arabia’s move to bolster the Syrian Democratic Forces could then further strain its ties with Turkey, which have already been tested by Ankara’s decision to work with Iran and Qatar.
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