🔴The New Damascus Balances: Street Governance, Deportation of "ISIS" Detainees, and Trump's Proxy-Alternative Gamble


🔘Eighteen months after the fall of the Ba'athist regime in December 2024, Syria's transitional administration, led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa (formerly known as Abu Mohammad al-Julani), is striving to transition from an armed faction into a sovereign central authority.

🔘This transition faces complex field tests centered on containing "ISIS" cells, reshaping the relationship with Kurdish forces, and dealing with international attempts to utilize Damascus against regional powers.

⚪️The "ISIS" Front and the Detainees File

👍Despite divergent ideological origins within the Islamist spectrum, the clash between al-Sharaa's government and "ISIS" is a zero-sum conflict.

👍The transitional Ministry of Interior, headed by Anas Khattab, continues its security and military operations to dismantle the group's cells in the Badia (desert) and central regions.
In a strategic development in early 2026, as government forces advanced eastward to take over detention centers and prisons in Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, and to avoid mass escape scenarios that could destabilize the fragile stability, the US military intervened directly. In coordination with the authorities in Damascus, US forces executed a large-scale transfer of thousands of high-risk "ISIS" members and commanders from prisons in northeastern Syria to secured detention facilities inside Iraqi territory.

👍This measure removed an imminent security burden from al-Sharaa's government, while reflecting a level of operational pragmatism between Damascus and US Central Command.
Integrating the "SDF" and Ending Separated Identity
On the domestic front, following sharp military clashes in early January 2026 around Aleppo and its eastern countryside—which displaced approximately 148,000 civilians—the two sides moved toward a settlement forced by facts on the ground:

🔻On January 16, 2026: President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a decree recognizing Kurds as an "essential component of the Syrian people" and adopting Kurdish as a national language.

🔻On January 30, 2026: Through indirect coordination sponsored by US envoy Tom Barrack, a comprehensive integration agreement was signed, ending the Autonomous Administration framework. The Ministry of Defense began integrating the brigades and units of the "Syrian Democratic Forces" (including the Kurdish Women's Protection Units - YPJ) as full regular blocs within the structures of the Hasakah and Aleppo military divisions of the Syrian Army.


⚪️The Hejaz Railway: Bypassing Closed Maritime Passages

✌Diplomatically and economically, Damascus seeks to establish its regional position through cross-border infrastructure projects. On June 10, 2026, Turkey and Saudi Arabia signed a memorandum of understanding to revive the historic "Hejaz Railway." The project aims to connect Saudi Arabia by land via Jordan and Syria (passing through Damascus and Aleppo) to Turkey, and from there to Europe. This logistical corridor, presented by Ankara and Riyadh as an alternative to maritime routes disrupted by the ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz and shipping tensions, grants Syrian geography a vital role as an economic link between the Gulf and Europe.

⚪️Trump's G7 Statements: An Attempt to Impose a "Proxy" Against the Resistance

✌Confirming this rising shift in Damascus's regional weight, US President Donald Trump’s statements at the G7 summit in France on June 16, 2026, clearly revealed the new American vision. Trump, expressing dissatisfaction with the pace of Israeli operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, openly called for leaving this task to Damascus.

"Israel has been fighting Hezbollah for a very long time, and many people are being killed... I suggested to Israel that they let Syria take care of Hezbollah. Because to be honest with you, I think they would do a better job at it."

🎙 US President Donald Trump, G7 Summit (June 16, 2026)

🔴Daily Summary: Latest Developments in Lebanon

🗒(June 16, 2026)

🔘Field Updates: The Israeli enemy continues to violate the ceasefire in the south, targeting civilians near Kafr Tibnit and Mayfadoun with artillery fire, resulting in casualties. Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Center reported 84 Israeli violations over the past two days, warning of a harsh military response if the attacks do not cease.

🔘 Israeli Media Reaction:

Dissatisfaction grows in Israel over the ceasefire ending without achieving military objectives. Reports indicate that Beirut has become a "no-go zone" for the Israeli army, and that PM Netanyahu and DM Katz ordered the latest strike on Dahiyeh despite military warnings of potential Iranian ballistic missile retaliation.

🔘Casualty Toll:

The Lebanese Ministry of Health updated the total toll of the Israeli aggression to 3,826 martyrs (including 247 children, 364 women, and 133 paramedics) and 11,851 wounded.

🔘Political Stances:

👍Hezbollah Sec-Gen Sheikh Naim Qassem:

✌Sent a letter to Iranian officials expressing gratitude for Tehran's unwavering support in forcing a cessation of military operations, stating that Iran gave everything to the resistance without demanding anything in return.

👍Speaker Nabih Berri:

✌Stated to Al-Joumhouria that Tel Aviv does not have freedom of movement under the understanding, demanding an immediate Israeli withdrawal and rejecting prolonged "trial phases." This was echoed in a call with Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, emphasizing the need to stop village demolitions and respect Lebanese sovereignty.

🔘Local Affairs:

🤲The Islamic Health Authority denied social media rumors regarding its rescue teams recovering a large number of bodies from southern towns.

🤲The Ministry of Education leaned toward canceling official exams, with the final decision deferred to the Cabinet.

☑️ Our website

🔵Link to the article in Arabic

🖋@observer_5

🔴Part 2 :

🤔Speicher: A stain of shame on the forehead of the Tikrit tribes

🤔Speicher: The massacre of the century and an unforgivable crime

✍️From the report of the investigative committee on the #Speicher_Massacre:


1️⃣ The total number of martyrs is approximately more than 2,500. Regarding the (1,700), they were new soldiers at the training center, while the air force cadets numbered (157).


2️⃣ It was not ISIS that captured the soldiers and transferred them to the presidential palaces. Instead, this was carried out exclusively by those termed the "Tribal Revolutionaries," specifically the (Tikrit tribes), because ISIS had not yet entered Tikrit on the day the soldiers were captured. These tribes promised the soldiers that they would transport them to their families, which is why no soldier put up any resistance. The tribes that deceived the soldiers are:

🌕The Al-Bu Nasir tribe, "Al-Bejat" clan (Saddam Hussein’s clan), led by one of Saddam’s cousins, the son of Muzahim Abdullah Al-Humoud.

🌕The Al-Bu Nasir tribe, "Al-Bu Khattab" clan (the clan of Sabawi, Barzan, and Watban), led by Ibrahim, the son of Sabawi.

🌕A faction of the Al-Bu Nasir tribe, "Al-Bu Khattab" clan (relatives of Abid Hamid), led by Fares, the nephew of Abid Hamid.

🌕A large faction of the Al-Bu Ajil tribe.

🌕 A faction of the Al-Jubour tribe in Tikrit.

🌕Scattered individuals from other tribes residing in Tikrit and Al-Awja.


3️⃣ The victim soldiers were deceived by these tribes, who claimed they would protect them and return them to their families. Consequently, the soldiers trusted them and offered no resistance until the tribes gained full control over them and transferred them to the presidential palaces on June 11, 2014, at 2:00 PM.


4️⃣ On the afternoon of June 11, 2014, most of the Tikriti tribes gathered at the "Presidential Palaces" complex, led by the clan of the deceased (Saddam Hussein), to deliberate on the fate of the "soldiers." The tribes held differing views regarding what to do with such a large number of soldiers, and the deliberations went as follows:


👌 A- Some tribes proposed using them as bargaining chips with the government to secure the release of their imprisoned sons and certain Ba'ath party figures.


🤲 B- Others proposed releasing them in exchange for money and ransom, arguing that executing them was useless.


🙌 C- Another group—which included the Al-Bu Ajil tribe and the Al-Bu Nasir tribe with its clans (Al-Bejat, Al-Bu Khattab, and Al-Bu Muslat)—held the decision-making power as they were the clan of Saddam, Abid Hamid, Barzan, Sabawi, and Watban. They stated verbatim: "These are the vengeance for Saddam Hussein and our people whom the Shias executed. We will accept nothing less than killing them all, and strictly inside Saddam's palaces." The consensus finally settled on approving the proposal of Saddam Hussein’s tribe (Al-Bu Nasir with all its clans: Bejat, Al Khattab, Al Muslat, and Al Ghafour).


5️⃣ The massacre and execution operations began on the night of June 11, 2014, after the tribes concluded their consultations and decided to execute them all. The executions took place in multiple batches without differentiation between (Sunni or Shia), and each tribe received a quota of soldiers.


6️⃣ ISIS elements arrived in Tikrit from Mosul on the morning of June 12, 2014, after finalizing their control over Mosul. The "Caliph" issued a pardon for the remaining "Sunni" soldiers, ordering their release on the condition of "repentance." Consequently, the process of separating Sunni soldiers from Shia soldiers began, and they were released via the "Sharia Court" established by ISIS.


7️⃣ The Shia soldiers were distributed among the tribes, passing individuals, and the "houses of Al-Awja" to be executed as a means to prove loyalty to the "Islamic State" (ISIS).


8️⃣ Some tribes were not present at the presidential palaces when the betrayed soldiers arrived or during the meeting.

☑️ Our website

🔵Link to the article in Arabic

🖋@observer_5