ACLED Regional Overview – Middle East (1-7 May 2021)
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By Ameneh Mehvar, Tarek Albaik, and Fanan Bilal
Last week in the Middle East, protests were held in several countries in support of Palestinians as tensions escalated in East Jerusalem. Clashes were reported at the Al Aqsa mosque and in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. In Yemen, fighting between pro-Hadi and Houthi forces decreased across the country, particularly in Marib, although pro-Hadi and Southern Resistance forces made significant territorial gains in Ad Dali. Elsewhere, a weapons warehouse belonging to an Islamist armed group was targeted by an unidentified drone attack, resulting in three fatalities. Lastly, one demonstrator was killed in the Iraqi capital after security forces used live ammunition to discourage hundreds of former Popular Mobilization Forces demonstrators from storming the Ministry of Finance.
Syria: 10 years on
By Muaz A. and Tarek Albaik
Ten years since the start of the war in Syria, conflict dynamics vary across each region of the country. This report maps the latest conflict developments, with a focus on the northwestern, southern, and eastern regions of Syria, including the impact of ongoing Israeli airstrikes.
ACLED data show that while conflict levels in northwest Syria plummeted when compared to those in 2019, the Idleb enclave remained one of the most unstable regions in the country in 2020. Nearly a third of all organized political violence events recorded in the country in 2020 occurred in Idleb. Meanwhile, discontent in the southern provinces, notably in Dar’a, remained a source of violence in the south. The Islamic State (IS) remained active in central and eastern Syria throughout the year, carrying out attacks in urban hubs, as well as in the Syrian desert. Lastly, Israel expanded the scope of its airstrikes in Syria in 2020 in response to Iranian entren
ACLED Regional Overview – Middle East (17-23 April 2021)
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By Dr. Ameneh Mehvar, Jacob Uzman, and Tarek Albaik
Last week in the Middle East, clashes between pro-Hadi and Houthi forces continued in Yemen’s Marib and Hodeidah governorates while the overall level of violence across the country decreased compared to the week prior. In Syria, Israeli warplanes targeted the positions of regime and pro-Iran militia forces in retaliation for a surface-to-air missile fired from Syria that exploded in Israeli airspace. Elsewhere, the Balad Airbase in Sala Al Din and Camp Victory inside the Baghdad International Airport were targeted by an unidentified group’s rocket fire. Lastly, East Jerusalem was the scene of heightened tensions as police forces clashed with Israeli far-right Lehava members and ultra-Orthodox Jews, as well as Palestinians.
ACLED Regional Overview – Middle East (3-9 April 2021)
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By Dr. Ameneh Mehvar, Jacob Uzman, and Tarek Albaik
Last week in the Middle East, clashes were reported between pro-Southern Transitional Council (STC) and pro-Hadi forces in Yemen’s Abyan for the first time in 2021. In Bahrain, protests continued over the death of a political prisoner amid the outbreak of COVID-19 at Jaw Prison. In Iraq, the Al Balad Airbase housing US and Coalition forces was shelled by an unidentified armed group. Meanwhile, in Syria, the Russian military carried out airstrikes in Idlib, while Israeli warplanes targeted weapons and ammunition depots in Rural Damascus province. In Jordan, the former Crown Prince Hamzah was placed under de facto house arrest and several other people were arrested for alleged undermining of national security. Lastly, an Iranian vessel was damaged by a mine in the Red Sea, in an apparent Israeli attack.