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Islamic State fighters have attacked a Syrian prison where ISIS supporters are being held. Eleven soldiers were killed in a raid in Iraq. The Islamist militia Islamic State (IS) has killed more than 70 people in attacks in Syria and Iraq. In north-eastern Syria, militants have attacked a prison in the city of Al-Hassaka where at least 3,500 suspected ISIS members are being held there. More than 20 Kurdish security forces and nearly 40 IS members were killed, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Eleven soldiers were killed in a raid on a military base in eastern Iraq, local authorities said. The fighters reported on both attacks via Amaq, the IS news channel. The aim of storming the prison in Hassakeh was "to free the prisoners," the extremists said. At least 23 Kurdish security forces and 39 IS fighters were killed in the fighting, according to the UK-based Observatory for Human Rights. Some prisoners escaped.  Russia Announces International Maneuvers The more than 1...

Prime Minister Naftali Benett wants to build new settlements on the rocky plateau. The Foreign Ministry in Damascus calls the project dangerous and unprecedented. Syria has criticized Israel's plans to expand settlements in the Golan Heights. Israel wants to cement its occupation of the area with this dangerous and unprecedented act, announced the Foreign Ministry in Damascus. Syria feels an obligation to its compatriots who live in the area and who have steadfastly resisted occupation and annexation. The Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced in a special meeting of the government on Monday that the number of settlers on the Golan Heights would be doubled and about one billion shekels (about 280 million euros) would be invested in the development of the area. Two new quarters are planned in the city of Katzrin. In addition, two new settlements were to be built on the Golan Heights, Assif and Matar. Bennett said the region is set to become Israel's renewable energy te...

After three months, the state of emergency in Poland will expire in the border region with Belarus. But a new law allows journalists to continue to be denied access. After the end of the three-month state of emergency , Poland is restricting access to the border area with Belarus with a new law. The regulation passed by the Polish parliament and signed by President Andrzej Duda makes it possible, on the recommendation of the national border protection authority, to deny access to an area 15 kilometers wide for security reasons. Exceptions should only be made for residents or for people who work or study there. The border guard management also decides on access for journalists. The controversial state of emergency for the border region, which has been in force since September, automatically expires at midnight. Russia Tests Another Hypersonic Missile According to Polish law, the state of emergency can only be imposed for a maximum of three months. The government in Warsaw had proclaimed...

Many civilians were killed in the air strike in 2019 - something the military tried to cover up, according to a media report. Now it is about possible legal consequences. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has ordered a re-investigation into a deadly US military air strike in Syria in March 2019.  According to his spokesman, John Kirby, General Michael Garrett was tasked with the examination. This should decide within 90 days whether those involved should be held accountable. Many civilians, including children, were killed in the attack. Classification as a possible war crime The attack, first fully covered by the New York Times this month, occurred near the city of Baghus in eastern Syria, near the border with Iraq.  US Defends Airstrikes That Kill 'Civilians' In Syria The newspaper reported that a military judiciary was quick to classify the attack as a possible war crime that warranted an investigation.  However, the armed forces intervened in phases to cover up th...

At the border between Poland and Belarus, the situation is only apparently easing. Many refugees are still stuck, it is difficult to take care of them - and it is getting colder. For weeks, the news situation on the Polish-Belarusian border was the same: Thousands of people were stuck in catastrophic humanitarian conditions between the two countries, lured by the false promise of the Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko to get safe conduct into the EU. In the past week something suddenly seemed to move: The EU decided on further sanctions against the regime in Minsk, at the same time Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke to Lukashenko on the phone. Suddenly he agreed to provide overnight accommodation and buses to bring people back inland from the forests in the border area. At that time, the Polish authorities suspected around 4,000 people in the border area. The Belarusian regime accommodated 2,000 people in a logistics center near the border, and according to official information, several...

The death of nearly 30 refugees creates tension between Britain and France. The English Channel should not become a cemetery, said Emmanuel Macron. Britain and France blame each other after at least 27 people died in the English Channel. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for stricter controls on France.  The measures taken so far have not been enough to deter migrants from making the dangerous crossing, he said. The mayor of the French coastal city of Calais, Natacha Bouchart, accused Johnson of cowardice in return. The prime minister takes no responsibility. On Wednesday, a boat with 33 migrants who wanted to cross illegally to Great Britain capsized in the English Channel . According to French sources, at least 27 people died, including five women and a girl. Two people are said to be in critical condition in the hospital. They were suffering from severe hypothermia, it was said. EU Commission Threatens Airlines With Sanctions For People Smuggling Four suspected smuggle...

From visas to taxis to the border: the EU accuses Belarus of organized migration. The Commission intends to sanction the travel companies involved in this in the future. In the refugee dispute with Belarus, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke out in favor of sanctioning options for travel companies. The EU Commission is proposing a blacklist for all transport companies involved in human trafficking and human smuggling, said von der Leyen in the European Parliament in Strasbourg.  The legislative proposal had been submitted to the European Parliament and the member states. In its organized migration strategy, Belarus is "specifically relying on the complicity of tour operators and their middlemen," said von der Leyen. There are specialized travel agencies that offer migrants everything from visas to flights and hotels to taxis to the border.  That is why we propose a black list for all modes of transport and modes of transport on the basis of international agree...

Violence between refugees and security forces has again broken out on the border between Belarus and Poland. There were several injured. Several people were injured in violent clashes between Polish security forces and refugees on the Belarusian border. Polish security forces said they used tear gas and water cannons against refugees after stones were thrown at them from their ranks. Seven police officers, a border guard and a soldier were injured. According to Belarusian sources, several refugees also had to receive medical treatment. The Polish Ministry of Defense said there had been "an attack by migrants" to which the security forces had responded. The situation escalated when refugees tried to destroy the border fence near the Bruzgi-Kuznica crossing. Read also:  Belarusian Border: Polish Border Guards Use Water Cannons Against Migrants According to the Belarusian Ministry of Health, around 20 of the migrants currently camping on the Polish border have received medical t...

Migrants are said to have thrown stones at security forces on the border between Belarus and Poland. They used water cannons - despite the freezing cold. Polish security forces used water cannons against migrants on the border with Belarus. The people waiting at the Kuźnica-Bruzgi border crossing on the Belarusian side  threw stones at the border guards beforehand, according to video footage from the security authorities. A spokesman for the Polish police said the people had been equipped with fire grenades and tear gas from the Belarusian side. According to unconfirmed reports, tear gas was also used by the Polish side. The Defense Ministry in Warsaw spoke of an "attack by migrants" at the border crossing. An officer was therefore hit by a thrown object and seriously injured. He was taken to hospital with a suspected fracture of his skull. Poland's border protection agency released video footage showing a water cannon aimed across the border at a group of migrants in a m...

An attempt is being made to persuade migrants to return home on the border with Poland, claims the Belarusian ruler Lukashenko. The EU is preparing new sanctions. According to the ruler Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus is trying to return migrants on the Belarusian-Polish border to their home countries. "Active work is being done to convince people to please return home. But nobody wants to return," said Lukashenko, according to the state news agency Belta. Belarus also wants "no border conflict" with Poland. This is "absolutely harmful to us," Belta quoted the Belarusian ruler as saying. The refugee crisis should not develop into a conflict. The Belarusian airline Belavia has now imposed a flight ban on the route from Dubai to Belarus for people from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Yemen. Belavia announced that the move was made at the request of the United Arab Emirates. Lukashenko said Belarus could also accept an offer from the city of Munich to fly the refu...

The U.S. military says an airstrike in Syria in 2019 killed dozens of people. The United States has said it attacked the so-called Islamic State militant group, which killed 80 people. The United States has said it has identified 16 of the dead as militants and four as civilians. Authorities have not been able to determine the identities of the more than 60 people, but a spokesman told the BBC it was "very possible" that more civilians had been killed in the attack. According to the New York Times, the attacks were never independently investigated and the newspaper's report accused the US military of covering up the incident. The US airstrikes took place on March 18, 2019, in the eastern Syrian town of Waqe Baghdaz, the last stronghold of the Islamic State. According to the New York Times, the American plane dropped three bombs, although according to the footage obtained from the drone, a large number of civilians were present at the place where the bombs were being dropp...