Everywhere we went, it was impossible to forget who presided over the destruction, and who will preside over what comes next. Moscow has long backed Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad in his nine-year-old war against rebels. The city was held by rebels for most of Syria’s civil war.Credit...Meridith Kohut for The New York Times. We — three journalists with The New York Times — had come to Syria to see what his victory looked like. Aug 7, 2013. [79] Meanwhile, the Army recaptured Al-Nab'in. ... Several Syrian government soldiers were killed during shelling by Turkish-backed armed opposition groups in Latakia … [117], On 7 April, fighting erupted on the edges of the Jabal al-Haramiya area with government forces advancing. [130] The Army further captured Heights 959 and 1017. “I never thought I’d work, but it’s better than having to go ask people for money,” said Um Akil, a 40-year-old woman in eastern Aleppo. Looting, burning, cutting: How a decade of war has shrunk Syria’s forests No more swimming in Latakia; Syrians are strangers in their own country Podcast “Thawriyya”: An enduring revolution for Syrian women activists Zenobia became queen of the Palmyrene Empire in 267, conquered Egypt until 271. Iran is facilitating the participation of Iranian companies in Syria’s reconstruction. The one piece of furnishing they’d managed to save was a burgundy-and-blue rug that Um Fares took with her when they fled to a basement on the other side of town in the early days of the war. She often sits by his grave and sings to him. [85], On 27 March, several helicopter and air strikes were conducted against Observatory 45,[86] while Jabhat Al-Nusra reinforcements arrived in the contested areas. A local source stated that clashes broke out between the Levant Front and al-Moaatsem Brigade due to a dispute over control of sectors within Nour Camp, north of Syria's Aleppo, killing one militant and wounding a civilian. [6] The pilot ejected safely, according to a Syrian military spokesman, who also claimed that the plane was in Syrian airspace;[59] Turkish officials, however, claimed it violated their airspace. Just hours after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s speech vowing victory over the rebels and “terrorist” groups in several areas of the country, those groups have launched a major offensive on the Latakia countryside in northwest Syria, the regime's stronghold. The minders were eager to show us that life was returning to normal. [49] Subsequently, the civilian populations of Kessab and its surrounding villages either fled or were evacuated, with most seeking safety in Latakia, as Kessab remained under the control of rebel groups. But the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, reported that at least 13 soldiers were killed by Turkish fire in Idlib and neighbouring Latakia and Hama provinces. Fighting had also renewed at Al-Nab'in. Her husband had been detained by the government — unfairly, she said — but she was surviving. “Yes.”. The only thing that didn’t look several decades past its prime was the table heaped with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes and mint. The United Nations estimates that more than eight in 10 people are now living in poverty, making less than $3.10 a day per person. [34] A military officer claimed rebels had been pushed back from Observatory 45, but were still in nearby areas. The operation resulted in dozens killed and wounded. The leader of Al-Nusra for Latakia province was killed during the fighting. Most likely there were drones and missiles involved," Sputnik News' source said. Workers at a destroyed home in eastern Aleppo. People are still fleeing the country, though their numbers are far below what they were at their height. On one block, blackened chandeliers visible through huge gashes in one building mutely testified to Douma’s broken middle class. Residential buildings destroyed during the war by government forces in eastern Aleppo. Jahangiri *finalized major economic agreements during the visit including infrastructure, housing, and energy projects. [13] Fighting around Observatory 45 continued. I have no answers. Economic collapse was always the fault of American sanctions, not the war or corruption. The battle of Latakia demonstrated to the world the power of the fast attack craft and the effectiveness of missile evasion techniques. [157][158][159] Around 250 families from Kessab who had taken refuge in Latakia returned to their homes a day after the Syrian Army recaptured the town. She is one of the most iconic queens of Syrian heritage, idolized for her bravery. The souk, or bazaar, in the Old City of Damascus. Syrian state media and Arabic TV channel Al Mayadeen reported that the attack came from the sea. “Should we lie? The location of Latakia, the Ras Ziyarah promontory, has a long history of occupation. [109] But later activists reported that government forces, supported by the NDF, had managed to reach the peak of Observatory 45 and clashes ensued with opposition fighters, including Jabhat al-Nusra. [88][89] A pro-opposition source reported that rebels managed to capture Al-Nab'in but that fighting was ongoing as the military was trying to recapture both it and Kasab. [36] Overall, the SOHR reported fighting in three government-held villages that were coming under a rebel attack and three rebel-held villages which the Army was trying to capture. Stephanus of Byzantium writes that the city was named Ramitha (Ancient Greek: Ῥάμιθα), then Leukê Aktê ("white coast") (Ancient Greek: Λευκὴ ἀκτή) and later Laodicea (Ancient Greek: Λαοδίκεια). He wasn’t crying for his dead father, Um Fares said. Tucked safely away from the six-year-long Syrian war, Latakia is a seaside province that has escaped the fighting largely unscathed. Waiting in a line to buy pita bread in Aleppo. “Even if the Americans sanction us, at least we can eat cucumbers and bread!” she said. According to Rana, our minder, its people never slept. [87] Two pro-government sources reported the military managed to defend their positions at Al-Nab'in and Qastal Maaf and was advancing towards Kasab from the two towns. [5] At this time, Barnabas Aid stated 80 Christian civilians were killed and thousands more displaced after rebel fighters captured Kasab;[96] however, a delegation from the Armenian National Assembly visited and interviewed refugees from Kessab who fled to Latakia and concluded that "fortunately, no casualties were reported on the Armenian side," though around 2500 were displaced. The Syrian government has barred many of our New York Times colleagues and other news media outlets for reporting that it considers overly critical, and it had taken the three of us — me, a correspondent based in Beirut; my Lebanese interpreter; and an American photographer, Meridith Kohut — nearly half a year to obtain entry. Russia has an air base in Latakia. [42] After almost two months of fighting, the offensive stalled and eventually petered out, with rebels losing most of their early gains. A man selling watermelon in front of buildings destroyed by government forces in eastern Aleppo. [88] The military intelligence head in Latakia province was reportedly able to escape after he was surrounded by rebels for five days in Al-Nab'in. Now, it had fallen to survivors like Um Khalil, a 59-year-old, round-faced grandmother, to reckon with their absence. A former christian village, turned into a jihadist mountain stronghold. [60], Turkey's opposition leader, Kemal Kilicdaroglu (CHP) claimed that the Syrian jet was a reconnaissance plane and that its downing was part of a government scheme to provoke war with Syria to divert attention from corruption scandals enveloping Turkey's president Erdogan and his party. There were people who couldn’t afford doors or windows, people living with so little electricity they just sat outside every night until bedtime. [99], During the day, government forces made an attempt to advance towards Kasab as the rebel offensive started to stagnate[100] and state TV made a live report from near the hilltop of Observatory 45 claiming the Army had recaptured it. [84] Another source also confirmed that the Army had beaten back the rebels from Observatory 45, but did not reoccupy it, instead securing the hill's surroundings. At best, we got a narrow, loyalist’s-eye view of Syria: No one we spoke to blamed the Assad government for the catastrophe that had consumed Syria. In a rare public appearance, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad inspected the destruction caused by the recent wildfires in the coastal province of Latakia, state media outlets reported on Tuesday. “Sometimes I sit and think, how did this happen?” Um Khalil said in the apartment of a distant acquaintance, where her remaining family was squatting. News Live. [68] However, according to a military source, neither side had control of the village and the situation was unclear. Siege of Latakia Part of the Civil uprising phase of the Syrian civil war Location Latakia, Syria … Syria’s economy is in tatters, with the currency having lost nearly 80% of its value since the war broke out in 2011. The Syrian capital largely avoided physical damage. Areas in Latakia near the border to Idlib were dominated by the jihadist group HTS. An operation in August 2011 was launched to end rebellion, and was successful. An operation in August 2011 was launched to end rebellion, and was successful. [27] According to the rebel Islamic Front, he was killed when they used Grad rockets to hit a scheduled meeting of pro-government militia leaders in Latakia city. “We rediscovered the Gospel as being a message of hope in the middle of crisis,” Hanna says of ministering during war. Yet by daylight, the area was busy with watermelon hawkers and traffic. “This is the best area,” he said, “in all of Douma.”. Ten to fifteen families with relations too elderly to move were either unable to leave or chose to stay in their homes. [13] During the day's fighting, the NDF commander of Latakia province, Hilal al-Assad, and seven pro-government militiamen were killed in fighting in Kasab. Assad’s ancestral hometown, Qardahah, is a … Ms. Kohut, our photographer, later told me she had seen him dig through piles of belongings in a wardrobe and unearth something from the bottom: the sweets, from their last, carefully hoarded box. The government mobilised thousands of soldiers and NDF fighters to retake the areas that had been lost to the rebels and many government supporters, the majority of them Alawites, volunteered to fight against the rebels. You had the best food, the best.”, The owner, Abdel Ghani Mahmoud, didn’t recognize him at first. We said our goodbyes out on the pulverized street, with Mr. Tohme looking around at what used to be, and somehow still was, his home. [80] Nineteen rebels and 16 soldiers were killed during the day's fighting[78] and 40 soldiers and 100 rebels were wounded. [14] Al Aan TV claimed that 10 pro-government fighters were killed in an attempt by the Army to recapture Observatory 45. The first restaurant he remembered was gone. The city has not experienced as much of the devastating civil war as other cities because the Assad government has defended it vigorously. [56] According to the opposition activist group the SOHR, rebels at the crossing had been targeted by government troops since the previous day. [16][17], During the offensive the Syrian military was joined by Hezbollah, Iraqi Shi'ite militia and Iranian military advisers. “Every single day, he and the government follow up to check on the families of the martyrs.”. I lost him, too. It is hard to imagine that there are still places in war-torn Syria, which have not been seriously affected by military actions, like the city of Latakia, a so-called Mediterranean pearl of Syria. [92] By the end of this day, according to the SOHR, more than 150 pro-government fighters, including 14 officers, had been killed since the start of the offensive. Later, I complained to the information minister about the profusion of chaperones. If it was hard for us to talk to people, it was scary for them. 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