Comment: It's true that northeastern Syria is resource-rich (see: The one-third of Syria illegally occupied by US and proxy forces contain most of its oil, water and gas), but that's not what's going on here. Turkey is almost certainly playing a role to stimulate Damascus-Kurdish rapprochement, all with RUSSIA's approval...

Comment: As always, Putin's gifts are a cut above, although the poor Arctic falcon may not have been so keen on his new owners:


The Saudi military band made a real hash of the national anthem. Putin looked, well, non-plussed?!

Comment: Dissidents on social media are circling the wagons...

Comment:

• Spanish judges ruled Catalonia can't vote for independence, but Catalans will go ahead anyway
• You are not free: Spanish court axes Catalonia's independence plans
• Double standards: EU hypocrisy spins out of control over Catalonia
• Catalan ex-president facing trial for holding independence vote

The probable reason Spain is bringing the hammer down on Catalonia's aspirations:

Spain's loss: A fifth of its economy if Catalonia departs

Comment: Only briefly mentioned are the tireless efforts of Russia, both military and diplomatic, to bring about a just conclusion to the tragedy the West created in Syria.

• Lavrov in marathon talks with Kerry in Geneva over Syria crisis
• How Russia upset U.S. strategic dominance of the Mediterranean
• U.S. needs to admit Russia was right all along about Syria
• Russia's real strategy in Syria: Peace, not war

If the policy-wonks in the depths of The Swamp are having conniptions, it's clear that Commander-in-Chief Trump is not:

The Kurds make a deal with Damascus: Trump's checkmate in Syria

Comment: The Kurdish authorities released the following statement about their Moscow-mediated deal with Damascus:

"To prevent and repel this attack, an agreement has been reached with the Syrian government to protect the border and sovereignty of Syria. The Syrian army will enter [Kurdish-controlled areas] and deploy troops along the entire Syrian-Turkish border in order to help the [Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, SDF] repel this attack and liberate areas occupied by the Turkish army and its affiliates", the statement issued by the authorities of the Kurdish autonomy said.

According to the statement, the agreement is aimed at "liberating [...] other Syrian cities occupied by Turkey, including Afrin".

Another senior Kurdish official added this:

"After the Americans abandoned the region, and gave the green light for the Turkish attack, we were forced to explore another option, which is talks with Damascus and Moscow to find a way out and thwart these Turkish attacks," senior Kurdish official Badran Jia Kurd said.

"This is a preliminary military agreement. The political aspects were not discussed, and these will be discussed at later stages."

"The priority now is protecting the border's security from the Turkish danger," Xelil said. "We are in contact with the Damascus government to reach common [ground] in the future."

Syrian troops have entered Tell Tamer, a small but strategically located town in Kurdish-held Syria:

Earlier, the government troops were reported entering Al-Thawrah, a city in the Raqqa governorate located on the Euphrates River, which is famous for its proximity to a major dam.

The mobilization of Syrian troops comes as Kurdish militias in northeastern Syria face an incursion from neighboring Turkey. Ankara launched a cross-border military operation with the stated goal of creating a "safe zone" along the border. The Turks see Kurdish fighters in Syria as terrorists allied with Kurdish guerrillas in Turkey itself.

The Kurds in Syria previously enjoyed the protection of the US, which used the Kurdish forces as ground troops for their campaign against the terrorist group Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS). The protection, however, was de facto withdrawn last week by President Donald Trump, who pulled out US troops that had previously been embedded with the militias.

Syrian troops have also entered Ain Issa north of Raqqa (for the first time in 5 years), the Taqba airbase, Manbij, and secured the Euphrates dam. See the map here for details.

Erdogan's response to his NATO allies:

Erdogan on Monday criticized a lack of support from nations that are supposed to be allies under NATO. "According to Article 5 of the NATO treaty, which side should they take? They need to stand by us," he told reporters, referring to the cornerstone of the agreement that says a military attack on one member is an attack on all of them.

Trump's response to criticism of the partial withdrawal of US troops:

Russia too has no plans to go to war with Turkey:

Russia has consistently supported the process of political settlement in Syria and vehemently opposed any steps that could potentially harm it, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in the wake of the ongoing Turkish operation.

"There is absolutely nothing new about Russia's approach to this issue," Peskov told the Russian media, commenting on the developments in northern Syria, where Turkish forces have launched an offensive against the Kurdish militias holding the area, who are considered terrorists by Ankara.

The Russian president's spokesman said that, from the very beginning of Turkey's 'Operation Peace Spring', Moscow has been pointing out that "any actions that could hamper or stall the process of political settlement in Syria and further escalate tensions" there are "absolutely undesirable."

At the same time, he made it clear that Russia "does not even consider" a possibility of a potential military conflict with Turkey in Syria. The spokesman said that the two nations have close contacts both between diplomats and the military that would help them avoid such a development.

The Russian and US militaries have been in contact. Macron's office says France is taking steps to ensure the safety of its soldiers in the region, adding that "France will increase its diplomatic efforts ... to obtain an immediate end to the Turkish offensive." Erdogan's spokesman says Turkey will not stop until it reaches its goals. Commenting on the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army, one anonymous American official described them aptly: "crazy and not reliable." (That's the same FSA the Americans armed and trained.)

Kurdish media report that a Turkish airstrike on a Kurdish convoy killed 11 and injured 74, including journalists:

According to the ANHA news agency, one of its correspondents was also killed in the Turkish airstrike.

The France 24 broadcaster said at least one of their journalists was also among the dead, while two French reporters were reportedly injured in the attack. "Our team is fine but some colleagues are dead", Stephanie Perez, a French journalist, tweeted earlier.

The attack hit a convoy outside the border town of Ras al-Ain which Turkish forces had seized earlier in the day, according to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

Earlier reports suggested that at least 9 people had been killed, but the Kurdish-led military, cited by local media, put the death toll at 11. It remains unclear how many civilians are dead.

Kurdish forces also report that 785+ ISIS captives have managed to escape a camp they were being held in:

In an apparent reference to Ankara-backed militants, the Kurds announced in a statement that "mercenaries" had attacked the camp where "Daesh elements" in turn attacked camp guards and opened the gates.

An official with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), meanwhile, stated that Kurdish-led security forces do not have enough guards for the Ain Issa camp that holds families of ISIS militants and dozens of them have escaped since Turkish shelling struck the area. Already weakened by the redeployment of forces to front lines, the guarding of the camp was further depleted on Sunday when Turkish shells crashed nearby, prompting some of the remaining personnel to flee, SDF official Marvan Qamishlo noted.

"The guarding is very weak now," he told Reuters, saying that there were now just 60-70 security personnel at the camp compared with a normal level of no less than 700.

The camp holds some 12,000 displaced people including some relatives of ISIS militants and ideally would require 1,500 guards, he stated, noting, "We don't have this sufficient number."

Citing sources in the camp at Ain Issa, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights Director Rami Abdulrahman stated there was a state of "anarchy" inside. Kurdish militias had announced that the Turkish military operation in northern Syria had revived the terror group after five Takfiri militants broke out of a prison in the region on Friday. The shelling of the camp at Ain Issa, north of Raqqa, represented "support for the revival of the Daesh organization once again", the Kurdish-led administration for northern and eastern Syria stated.

Moon of Alabama comments:

The strategic plan behind last weeks development must have come from Moscow. Russia has tried for some time to get Turkey into its camp. Russia, Iran and Syria allowed Turkey a limited invasion of Syria to scare the U.S. out. Russia largely supported the Turkish move but it will also set its limits.

Since last year Trump looked for a chance to move the U.S. troops out of Syria. The borg made that politically unfeasible. The Turkish (Russian) move gave him the excuse he needed.

It is possible that the whole arrangement was made for exactly that purpose.

For previous updates, see:

• The Kurds make a deal with Damascus: Trump's checkmate in Syria
• As options narrow on Syria, Trump prepares to drop sanctions hammer on Turkey
• 'Are you with us or with terrorists?' Erdogan lashes out at NATO allies for failure to back Turkey's Syria op
• Hillary tweets: 'Sickening horror' in Syria 'is one man's fault'; Twitter retorts with smack down of her deeds!
• Turkey attacks Rojava - Iran no longer US target in Syria
• Erdogan aims to push 35km into Syria regardless of arms embargoes - Kurds reach DEAL with Damascus, Syrian Army will enter northeast - UPDATES