Center East disaster reside: insurgent chief urges Syrians to take to the streets to rejoice ‘revolution’

The chief of the Islamist rebels that seized energy in Syria final week has referred to as on folks to take to the streets to rejoice what he described as “the victory of the blessed revolution” on Friday.

In a video message shared on Telegram, Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, the chief of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, who’s now utilizing his actual identify Ahmed al-Sharaa, referred to as on folks to “go to the streets to specific their pleasure”.

His name comes forward of the primary Friday prayers since Syria’s new management took management. Through the early days of Syria’s rebellion in 2011, protesters would normally collect after Friday prayers.

He’s set to attend Friday prayers at Damascus’s landmark Umayyad mosque.

Howdy, welcome to our reside protection of occasions in Syria and across the Center East. It’s slightly after midday in Damascus. Listed here are the main developments:

• The US secretary of state, Anthony Blinken, is wrapping up a go to to Turkey as a part of a broader effort to rally assist throughout the Center East for a peaceable political transition in Syria. The US administration is nervous {that a} energy vacuum in Syria may worsen tensions within the area, already heightened by a number of conflicts, and create situations for the Islamic State group to regain territory and affect.

• Blinken mentioned Friday that there’s broad settlement on what each Turkey and the US wish to see in Syria following issues about the 2 NATO allies’ competing pursuits in Syria, as Turkey targets a US-backed Kurdish group seen as key to containing the extremists.

• Blinken additionally mentioned he noticed “encouraging indicators” of progress towards a ceasefire in Gaza and urged Turkey to make use of its affect to encourage Hamas to simply accept. “We mentioned Gaza, and we mentioned I believe the chance… to get a ceasefire in place. And what we’ve seen within the final couple of weeks are extra encouraging indicators that that’s attainable,” Blinken advised reporters.

• G7 leaders are set to assemble nearly on Friday afternoon to debate Syria. The leaders have mentioned they’re ready to assist a transition to an “inclusive and non-sectarian” authorities, and emphasised “the significance of holding the Assad regime accountable for its crimes.”

• Russia has additionally reportedly established direct contact with the political committee of Syria’s Islamist insurgent group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, in line with the Interfax information company, which quoted Russia’s deputy international minister, Mikhail Bogdanov. In feedback to reporters, Bogdanov reportedly mentioned Moscow goals to take care of its army bases in Syria.

• Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, has ordered the army to “put together to stay” all through the winter within the UN-patrolled buffer zone between Israeli and Syrian forces on the strategic Golan Heights. Israel seized the demilitarised zone on Sunday, hours after Syrian rebels ousted Bashar al-Assad.

• Within the US, a former Syrian army official who oversaw a jail the place alleged human rights abuses occurred has been charged by a federal grand jury with a number of counts of torture and conspiracy to commit a criminal offense. Samir Ousman al-Sheikh, who oversaw Syria’s notorious Adra Jail from 2005 to 2008 underneath lately ousted President Bashar Assad, was arrested in July on visa fraud fees.