De-escalation agreement is reeling in Idlib, Erdogan seeks to exploit Tunis to implement his project

On Thursday morning, the Arab newspapers touched upon to the escalation in Idlib governorate, as well as to the Turkish movements in the area.

Al-Bayan: " De-escalation" is reeling from the impact of the Syrian progress in Idlib

The Arab newspapers published this morning on the Syrian issue dealt with several topics, the most prominent of which was the situation in Idlib, and in this context Al Bayan newspaper said, "A rapid progress has been made for the Syrian army in Idlib, where two Turkish sites are being trapped as it progresses towards the city of Ma`rat al-Numan in the Idlib governorate located in northwestern Syria, As part of an attack on the last major pocket of armed groups whose Jabhat al-Nusra is the backbone, the escalation agreement reached by Turkey, Russia and Iran, signed in Astana, May 4, 2017, threatens.

According to the newspaper, this agreement has become faltering, while diplomatic efforts aimed at a political settlement in Syria have been disrupted. The opposition that controls Idlib, which borders Turkey, includes the Headquarters for Hayet Tahrir al-Sham (formerly Jabhet al-Nusra), a group affiliated with al Qaeda, as well as factions operating under supervision for Turkey.

The newspaper quoted sources confirmed that "the Turkish military site near the village of al-Sorman and the main opposition-controlled highway that rules north to the government-controlled city of Aleppo and then to the capital, Damascus, to the south, is now under siege by the Syrian forces."

Al-Ain: 5 pro-Iranian elements were killed in an air strike in eastern Syria

In its turn, Al-Ain newspaper said, "5 members of the pro-Iranian factions were killed in Syria after air strikes, on Wednesday, targeting the city of Al-Bukamal in Deir –ez-Zor governorate (east), without being able to determine the source of the raids.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) stated that "high-explosive and unknown source missiles targeted the headquarters of the" Brigade 47 "of the militia (loyal) to Iran in the center of the city of Al-Bukamal in the eastern countryside of Deir-ez-Zor.

He pointed to the recording of "several explosions", while the director of the observatory, Rami Abdel Rahman, suggested that it was launched by "drones".

Al-Arab: Erdogan's visit raises fear of Tunisia turning into base for the Turkish project in Libya

Regarding the visit of the Turkish president to Tunisia, Al-Arab newspaper said, "The sudden visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Tunisia has raised serious concern among the Tunisian political circles, which does not hide its apprehension from the Turkish project in the region from Libya.

The visit, which the Tunisian presidency sought to obscure, before it was announced by the Turkish media, threw a series of questions about its goals, especially with the direct Turkish military intervention in the Libyan conflict, which is pushing towards the transition to a regional conflict in the Mediterranean region.

The Tunis Project movement, headed by Mohsen Marzouk, said, "The unannounced visit of the Turkish president to Tunisia suggests an official Tunisian alignment in favor of the axis of Turkey - the Libyan accord government, which produced an agreement that is the object of rejection by most Arab and European capitals."

The movement expressed its refusal, "that Tunisia uses a political platform for a specific international axis whose interests contradict the interests of Tunisia and the integrity of its Arab and international relations."

"After reviewing the composition of the delegation accompanying the Turkish president, we warn against any thought of using Tunisia as base for any intelligence, security or military action in favor of Turkey in the direction of Libya," she added in a statement.

Observers considered the visit a deep Turkish detour to confront the Greek move to confront the agreement on demarcating the sea border between Turkey and Libya.

The timing of the visit is extremely important for several considerations that start with the variables in the Libyan, regional and international field scene related to the Libyan file, and do not end at the Turkish efforts to drag Tunisia to the Turkish-Qatari axis, which began to lose the margin of maneuver as a result of the actions described as "reckless" by President Erdogan.

(T/S)

ANHA