PHOTO: Representatives at the UN Security Council on Friday


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UPDATE 1830 GMT: President Vladimir Putin has warned that Russia is ready to step up its bombing and support for ground offensives:

We see how efficiently our pilots and intelligence agents coordinate their efforts with various kinds of forces –– the army, navy and aviation, how they use the most modern weapons.

I want to stress that these are by far not all of our capabilities. We have more military means. And we will use them — if need be.


ORIGINAL ENTRY: The UN Security Council has unanimously passed a resolution for a process to end Syria’s 57-month crisis, while avoiding the central issues in a political settlement.

Following an international conference in New York on Friday, the Council agreed a text calling for ceasefires and opposition-regime talks in January. However, there was no mention of the future of President Assad or a definition of an opposition which would be acceptable in negotiations.

The Syrian opposition and rebels have insisted that Assad’s departure during a political transition must be guaranteed before they will enter talks. President Assad has rejected any discussions before “terrorists” are defeated.

Iran, the main backer alongside Russia of the Assad regime, is insisting that the President can stand in elections. Moscow has not gone as far, but has opposed any statement putting a time limit on Assad’s stay in office.

Meanwhile, the delegates at the international conference continued to debate which Syrian groups will be labelled as legitimate and which would be put on a terrorist list. Russia and Iran are pressing for leading rebel factions to be labelled as “terrorist” and excluded from any political process.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said during the debate on the resolution, “This council is sending a clear message to all concerned that the time is now to stop the killing in Syria and lay the groundwork for a government.” He declared optimistically after the vote:

This will be the first time there’s been a Security Council resolution on Syria and on political transition in Syria during five years of civil war.

The resolution that we just approved is a milestone because it sets out specific concepts with specific time-frames.

Kerry said the resolution seeks a transitional government within the first six months, with elections within 18 months.

Uncertainty continued over the US position. At a meeting on Tuesday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Kerry rejected any notion of “regime change”; however, President Obama said yesterday, “I think that Assad is going to have to leave in order for the country to stop the blood, for all the parties involved to be able to move forward in a non-sectarian way.”

Kerry insisted that the issue of Assad’s rule was not being avoided. “This is not being kicked down the road; it’s actually being timed out.”

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius was far more direct in his address to the Security Council:

There must be safeguards regarding the exit of Bashar al-Assad….How could somebody bring together a whole people when he has massacred so many?

As long as Assad remains in power, Fabius said, reconciliation between Syrians and the state will remain “unattainable.”

The resolution also did not prevent tension between Kerry and Lavrov at a news conference after the vote. The US Secretary of State noted that 80% of Russian airstrikes were hitting opposition groups fighting Mr. Assad, rather than the Islamic State. Lavrov responded that Russia had asked the US to coordinate military operations since Moscow began bombing on September 30.

While saying “a very important step” had been taken, Lavrov summarized, “I am not too optimistic about what has been achieved today.”

A satirical response from the Syrian opposition to the Security Council’s discussion — “Very important decisions will be issued”:

The message from protesters in Kafranbel in Idlib Province in northwest Syria on Saturday:


Video: Rebels Fighting Regime Forces In Base Near Marj al-Sultan, East of Damascus

Rebels fighting regime forces in one of the two airbases near Marj al-Sultan, east of Damascus:

The Syrian military took the village and the two nearby bases, held since 2012 by rebels, earlier this week. Control of the area would enhance the regime’s ability to bombard opposition-held suburbs of Damascus, such as Erbin and Douma.

See Syria Daily, Dec 15: Regime Breaks Through East of Damascus


Almost 1000 Civilians Killed by Russian Attacks Since September 30

The Violations Documentation Center, which established casualties in Syria’s conflict, reports that almost 1000 civilians have been killed by Russian attacks since Moscow began its bombing campaign on September 30.

The VDC also notes that the rate of deaths has increased month-by-month:

See also Syria Feature: Russia Kills Scores in Latest Attacks on Markets


Turkish Prime Minister: We “Do Not Take Seriously” Putin’s Statements

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has said the Turkish government “does not take seriously” Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent criticisms and insults, so he will not respond to the Russian president’s “undiplomatic and insulting” remarks in the same manner:

Perhaps he’s reminiscing about his old [Soviet intelligence service] KGB days. But the KGB is long gone. The era of Soviet-style propaganda is history. With every statement he makes, the world mocks it sarcastically. We cannot take it seriously.

[Putin’s] statements do not suit the nature of the modern world or Turkish-Russian relations. So instead of answering his statements in the same manner, I just smile. Taking his statements seriously would be an insult.

Following Turkey’s downing of a Russian warplane on November 24 near the Syrian border, Putin has accused Ankara of links with the Islamic State’s oil trade and “terrorists” in northwest Syria and said the Government is “Islamizing Turkey”.

On Thursday, the President warned that Russia was prepared to shoot down Turkish aircraft and suggested that Ankara had appeased the US by downing Moscow’s warplane: “If someone in Turkey decided to kiss Americans on a certain body part, I don’t know whether it was right or not.”

See Syria Daily, Dec 18: Putin Combines Bullying, Insults, and a Few Good Words for the US

Davutoğlu said Putin was trying to stir trouble inside Turkey and continued:

I have already said that Putin’s allegations are Pravda lies and a product Soviet propaganda. When I look at Putin, I don’t see Russia as a country that has gotten over the Cold War and turned into a mature democracy. I see an old-Soviet mentality speaking on behalf of the Politburo.


Rebels Counter-Attack in Mountains in Northern Latakia Province

Rebels have counter-attacked in northern Latakia Province, checking regime advances this month in mountainous areas.

A coalition — including Free Syrian Army units, Turkmen fighters, Ahrar al-Sham, Jabhat al-Nusra, and smaller groups — reclaimed the high point at Jabal al-Sayyid on Friday. This morning the rebels said that they regained nearby Jabal al-Nuba (see map) and that regime forces had suffered heavy casualties.

Islamic Front footage on Friday of operations to regain Jabal al-Nuba:

The pro-regime al-Masdar News acknowledged the loss of Jabal al-Sayyid and fighting for Jabal al-Nuba.

Supported by Russian airstrikes, the Syrian military launched its offensive in northern Latakia in early October. Initial attacks made little progress, but regime forces have taken some territory in the past two weeks, both near the Turkish border and in the mountains to the south.


Photographs: A Field Hospital in Bombarded Douma, Near Damascus

Two photographs from a series by Bassam Khabieh of Reuters of a field hospital in Douma, near Damascus, where several hundred civilians have been killed and many more injured by regime bombardment since the summer:

FIELD HOSPITAL DOUMA 12-15

FIELD HOSPITAL DOUMA 12-15 2

At least 45 people were killed last Sunday by shelling and bombing.

See Syria Daily, Dec 14: Regime Carries Out Another Massacre Near Damascus