More Than 20 Islamic State Militants Killed in Turkish Offensive

Turkey said on Wednesday its military killed 23 militants from the so-called Islamic State group in clashes in Syria, Reuters reported.

One Turkish soldier has been killed and three others wounded in the past 24 hours in clashes in the Syrian town of Ziyara, according to the Turkish military.

Two Turkish-backed Syrian rebels were also killed in separate clashes with the Islamic State, the Turkish military said.

Turkey sent its troops into Syria in August in operation “Euphrates Shield,” aimed at pushing back Islamic State militants at its border and preventing the Syrian Kurdish militia, the People’s Protection Units (YPG), from consolidating territory. The Turkish military said the rebels it is backing have taken control of 378 square miles (980 square km) since the joint operation began.

On Monday night an Islamic State suicide bomber killed at least 30 people at a Kurdish wedding in northeastern Syria, BBC News reported. This is the latest in a string of Islamic State suicide attacks on civilians in Kurdish-held territories, where Kurdish forces have largely pushed the extremists out.

Russia Sends Air Defense Missiles to Its Naval Base in Syria

The Russian defense ministry confirmed that Moscow has sent an S-300 air defense missile system to its naval base in Syria, BBC News reported.

The purpose of the system is to protect the Russian naval base, located in the Syrian government-held province of Tartus, from air attacks, according to defense ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov.

“Let me remind you that the S-300 is a purely defensive system and poses no threat to anyone,” Konashenkov said. “It is unclear why the deployment of the S-300 caused such alarm among our Western partners.”

Talks with Russia on Syria were suspended by the United States on Monday, two weeks after a Russian- and U.S.-brokered cease-fire failed in the war-torn country.

The highly mobile S-300 system represents a significant ramping-up of Russia’s air defense in Syria. The deployment of the system to Tartus marks the first time Russia has installed the missiles outside its own territories.

Peace Efforts in Syria Will Continue Without Russia, Kerry Says

Peace efforts in Syria will continue without Russia said U.S. secretary of state John Kerry on Tuesday, Reuters reported.

One day after the United States decided to suspend its talks with Russia over Syria, Kerry said the U.S. is not giving up on the Syrian people or the pursuit of peace.

“We will continue to pursue a meaningful, sustainable, enforceable cessation of hostilities throughout the country – and that includes the grounding of Syrian and Russian combat aircraft in designated areas,” Kerry said in a speech in Brussels.

Russia is turning a blind eye to its ally’s scorched-earth policy, Kerry said, accusing the Syrian government of “utter depravity” in its use of toxic gas and barrel bombs against civilians.

“You also have the irresponsible and profoundly ill-advised decision by Russia to associate its interests and reputation with that of Assad, a man who has been responsible for torturing more than ten thousand people,” Kerry said, adding that Russia knows what it has to do to implement a cease-fire in Syria, insisting all parties must work to ensure the delivery of aid.

Recommended Reads:

• Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders: Syria: ‘I Have Seen People With Injuries That I Cannot Describe’
• The Guardian: Russian Media Could Almost Be Covering a Different War in Syria
• The New York Times: U.S. Election Cycle Offers Kremlin a Window of Opportunity in Syria
• The Christian Science Monitor: Pounding Aleppo, Russia and Syria Reprise the Politics of Brutality
• Quartz: Syria’s Currency Crisis Means Big Trouble for Bashar al-Assad’s War Efforts