On June 19, units of government forces attacked positions of militant groups near the village of Buser al-Harir northeast of the southern Syrian city of Daraa. Sporadic clashes in the area continued on June 20 but no major advance was carried out by the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and its allies.
Pro-government sources described this development as a trial balloon ahead of possible advance in the area.
If the SAA establishes control of Duweiri al-Harran and Melihit al-Atash, it will encircle a number of militant held villages south of these two points creating a “cauldron”, which would be cut off from the rest of the militant-held area.
Meanwhile, military equipment, including artillery and battle tanks, of the Syrian military continued to enter the province of Daraa.
An Israeli reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle, Skylark, crashed in the province of Quneitra, east of the occupied Golan Heights, on June 19. The Israeli military has likely expanded its reconnaissance operations in the area ahead of the SAA’s expected advance in southern Syria.
On the same day, Russian Presidential Envoy for Syria Alexander Lavrentyev said that there are still notable number of ISIS and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (Jabhat al-Nusra) militants in southern Syria. The announcement, which came following a meeting among representatives of Turkey, Iran and Russia on the de-escalation zones agreement, is another indication that the Russian-Iranian-Syrian block is not going to tolerate the presence of these groups in the war-torn country.
Units of the SAA and other pro-government factions have cleared the areas of Tayyara, al-Bawdah, Wadi al-Luwayziyah and nearby points at the border with Iraq from ISIS cells. This advance was a part of the wider effort to combat the terrorist group’s presence in the area.
The SAA also met with the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) at the Syrian-Iraqi border, southeast of the village of Humaimah.
Following the June 18 strike by the US-Israeli-led bloc on pro-Damascus forces southeast of al-Bukamal, the PMU announced that it is set to secure the border area despite the opposition from any side. So, the PMU’s presence on the border will only grow.
In eastern al-Suwayda, the SAA liberated Khirbat Al-Umbashi and advanced on the settlement of Al-Qara where clashes between government troops and ISIS members are now ongoing.
Here comes the “chemical attacks”.
The US has to create some legitimate (sic) distraction to split the SAA forces now mobilized to clean out the Southwest-Darra zone.
Also, the US would be left with the western flank of their al Tanif zone totally open to flanking by SAA after the Southwest is cleaned.
If the Iraqis stay committed to al Kamal and the eastern flank of al Tanif, the US will have to fight or leave.
PMU air support would come from Iraq, which creates a new problem for the US deconfliction. Will they shoot down their Iraqi allies in American built planes?
Of course, there seems to be every sign that the US and Israel are hand-in-glove and the Israelis would be injected again in the air war-air supremacy over the Jordanian south border of Syria.
Thus, the logic of tactical options is for missiles to be used by Iran, Syria and Russia to nullify the US-Israeli aggression. al-Tanif is loaded with ISIS and AQ fighters under new names. Missiles is the right weapon to use, and the US, Jordanian, Israeli advisers will have to flee or taste the white hot metal in person.
The politics of the Syrian operation is it will eliminate the groups that refuse to come to the negotiation tables in Sochi, Astana or wherever the Russians invite them. Makes Assad’s position easier with the others who have negotiated and want a new Syria Constitution and Parliament elections .
You shouldn’t use the word ‘legitimate’ when commenting on US actions because no matter what they do or intend to do in Syria, nothing is legitimate since they are not sanctioned under the UN, no permission from Syria and are violating International Law. No legitimacy, period.
No being critical on your comment since I agree with most of it except for your concept of “legitimate”.
I think you ought to look up the meaning of (“sic”). I use it ironically.
Thanks for your comment on my comment, otherwise.
Has Russia sent regular government troops into Syria? It was my understanding that only ethnic Russian “soldiers of fortune” (a.k.a. private mercenaries) were fighting alongside the SAA, Hezbollah, Iranian Revolutionary Guards and Palestinian Arab Army units.
I ask this because of the following paragraph included in a ZeroHedge article:
“Russia has bigger plans in the Levant: During my visit to the city of Palmyra and its surroundings, the presence of thousands of Russian troops is striking, indicating that Moscow is sending new infantry and special forces in very large numbers. This large presence has not been announced.”
Here is the article —> https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-06-20/massive-battle-southwest-syria-could-trigger-us-israeli-intervention .
Cut-and-paste, a reminder on the importance of the Southern Syria Front, from Penny BTL SyrPer:
“Why Syria MUST Take Back Daraa
If Syria is to have a chance at remaining intact to rebuil the state they must take this section of Syria back. That’s my opinion. Short, sweet and to the point… – because if Syria can take the Daraa region back, the ball is in their court! In case you are unaware Daraa is where the entire destabilization operation in Syria began [and here come the reasons why it began there and must be stamped out there].
Flashback to March 24 / 2011: Western backed Social Media “revolution” came to Syria. Facebook page “The Syrian Revolution 2011” held Syrian President Bashar Assad responsible for the violence, and called on the Syrian people to hold protests in all Syrian provinces on Friday, which it dubbed “Dignity Friday.” Videos on Youtube and Twitter showed dead and wounded people lying on a street in Daraa, as heavy gunfire crackled nearby and people shouted in panic.
So let’s take a look at the geography of Daara – a border town, located right next to Jordan [which hosts US and UK military AF with training camps for ISIS terrorists]. Conveniently [for NATZO] Daraa is also near to that part of Golan Heights which are presently occupied by Israel [and will now be defended by Israel as part of Israel itself].
Deraa is a city that the Syrian government simply cannot afford to lose.
As written by me [Penny] in 2011- included here because I expect a great many readers are unaware that we’ve come full circle in many ways.”
+12
Fire Control over Lajat Pocket Established.
“A very interesting military move was done by the SAA yesterday that established basically fire control over the remaining 1-2 km gap of the now Lajat pocket.
The SAA have faked a advance attempt in Busra al Harir, a very fortified village that controls the upper flank of Hirak, a critical strategic target to protect eastern Daraa city flank (in a possible attack inside Daraa). The diversion happened by the Tiger Forces storm troopers under an incredible shelling through the night, giving all the impression the SAA was going heads on to it.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=32.834453&lon=36.345177&z=13&m=b
While in fact another branch of the SAA advanced further north and liberated the villages of Dallafah & Musaykah along the last terrorists’ supply-line to Lajat, rendering it under fire control and Lajat as a big desert pocket. The nearby small villages of this corridor are now being cleaned up of terrorists.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=32.913315&lon=36.337624&z=12&m=b&gz=0;363029479;329002001;3433;236341;41198;161410;549316;0;624847;213286;0;308384
We have been talking about a move to cut Lajat off the south for months as a possible starting point, it basically just happened in few hours, the frontline is now shortened and Bursa al Harir northern flank will be widely exposed which in consequence will make the vital city of Hirak to be exposed in few days.
In a week or so this is what the SAA may be trying to do at this first stage, you can see that the terrorists will be pushed to the Jordanian border as cattle to the open killing zone. All the area on the map below represents 25-30% of the pocket.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=32.856518&lon=36.345520&z=10&m=b&gz=0;362260437;327410822;0;0;1647949;225217;1799011;2047953;2952575;3084544;2279663;4246379;755310;3050011;288391;2117097;590515;1056295 ” (Canthama)
What SAA is facing in south west Syria… thouands and thousands ofoutside trained militants…https://sputniknews.com/analysis/201806211065611920-syria-us-military-facilities-militants/
Breaking In a President
https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2018/06/21/breaking-in-president.html
“There have been several ominous developments in Syria, which could bring the U.S. nose-to-nose with Russian forces in the country. A recent Israeli airstrike, initially credited to Washington, appears to have killed 52 Syrian soldiers. There have also been rumors in Washington that the Administration is preparing for something “big” in Syria, possibly related to warnings from the Pentagon that Syrian forces have been threatening the unilaterally declared “de-escalation zone” in the country’s southeast. This suggests that the U.S. will block attempts by the government in Damascus to regain control of areas until recently dominated by terrorists. Trump has also quietly restored funding to the so-called White Helmets, a terrorist front group much loved by Hollywood and Congress.
All of these steps in Syria serve no real American interest. More ominously, Trump has now revealed that he has ordered the Pentagon to create a military Space Force as a new branch of the armed forces. He explained “…Our destiny, beyond the Earth, is not only a matter of national identity, but a matter of national security. It is not enough to merely have an American presence in space. We must have American dominance in space.”
How other nations will adapt to American rule over outer space and the planets is difficult to predict, but if the past seventeen years of Washington’s assertion of its supremacy are anything to go by, the result will be very, very bad. And it is quite unsettling to also observe that a nation that clearly cannot provide access to decent health care for its citizens is now aspiring to turn the moon into a fortified bastion.”
Daraa Update – Operation Basalt Hour Zero.
“Southern offensive build up is close to completion, the last piece has been placed in the chessboard.
“Russia deployed several fighter jets in southern Syria to participate in Operation Basalt.
The deployed jets are protected by a newly installed Russian-operated AD systems in the south.”
The SAA will be able to advance and kill terrorists with its back protected.
Today’s US provocation at Syria’s desert was exactly that, provocation, soon these provocations will be dealt with air defense systems and will be hard for ISIS airforce to continue to do it.” (Canthama)
“This is it, all pieces on board for the southern front offensive, frontline is hot at the moment, battle formation orders were delivered to all commanders. The RuAF has advanced their jets near the frontline as well as its air defence systems that will work connected to the SyAAD and SAAF.
Jordanian regime has sent a large military force to the border with Syria to prevent the terrorists to flee the battle field toward Jordan, it seems the Jordanian regime was advised on the imminence of the offensive.
US backed terrorists were most likely the ones that attacked the SAA garrison in the desert today, it could trigger a pretext for the SAA and RuAF to advance toward al Tanf.
Too many moving parts at the moment, but it all indicates the terrorists are indeed really toast this time in the south, no way out, it will be annihilation after all.
Shelling continues into key areas, but RuAF is not yet presence as CAS, only SAAF at the moment. The triangle below is getting a lot of artillery attention.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=32.720288&lon=36.344147&z=10&m=b&gz=0;361285400;324883344;1606750;3843326;0;1117134;4119873;0
Soon skirmishes will be something from the past and real messy battle will start, zero is upon the south of Syria.” (Canthama)
“Intense SAAF air strikes at Hirak, coupled with artillery and GRADS tonight. All indications that the zero hour is approaching. Tiger Forces are in charge of this area. This up coming weekend promise to be very busy in the south of Syria. Hirak is a major hub in the south, a natural key target. (Canthama)
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=32.743681&lon=36.329041&z=12&m=b