U.S. Says Syrian Planes Cross Into Iraq to Attack ISIS

U.S. officials say that Syrian government planes have attacked a series of targets in Syria and Iraq in an attempt to weaken the advancing Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Targets include Raqqa and the Iraqi border city of Qaim.

The AP reports that Wednesday airstrikes on Raqqa, the eastern Syrian city that has been under ISIS control for more than a year and serves as the group’s headquarters in the country, appear to be part of an intensified regime campaign against the extremist faction.

“The strikes come on the heels of an apparent Syrian attack on ISIS in Iraq, with U.S. officials saying there are indications that Syria launched airstrikes into western Iraq Tuesday in an attempt to slow the Al-Qaeda-inspired insurgency fighting both the Syrian and Iraqi governments,” it writes. “ISIS has been fighting along with the rebels opposed to President Bashar Assad’s government and has since moved swiftly across the border into Iraq.”

In a follow-up, the wire says Secretary of State John Kerry spoke out after the strikes, warning other nations to stay out of the turmoil engulfing Iraq.

“We’ve made it clear to everyone in the region that we don’t need anything to take place that might exacerbate the sectarian divisions that are already at a heightened level of tension,” he said at a NATO meeting in Brussels. “It’s already important that nothing take place that contributes to the extremism or could act as a flash point with respect to the sectarian divide.”

But an Iraqi official said that neighboring Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Turkey “were all bolstering flights just inside their airspace to monitor the situation.”

ISIS, Jabhat al-Nusra Merge at Syria-Iraq Border Post

AFP reports that Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian arm of al-Qaida, has issued a “loyalty pledge” to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) at a remote Iraqi border town.

“The merger is significant as it opens the way for ISIS to take control of both sides of the border at Albu Kamal in Syria and al-Qaim in Iraq,” the wire says, citing the the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition-backed watchdog group. The pledge comes as ISIS advances further into Syria’s eastern Deir Ezzor province, where it has been battling Nusra for control since last year.

A Syrian jihadi posted a photograph to social media showing an Egyptian Nusra Front commander shaking hands with an ISIS leader from Chechnya. “They are rivals, but both groups are jihadist and extremists. This move will create tension now with other rebel groups, including Islamists, in the area,” the Observatory said.

Syrian Widows Unite in the Shadow of War

The Washington Post reports that Syria’s war widows have banded together as they start new lives along the Turkish border.

The paper visits Ulfah House, “a weathered old building tucked away on a narrow street in Gaziantep, a large bustling Turkish city near the Syrian border. Ulfah is an Arabic word that has no direct equivalent in English but means something close to ‘the comfortable feeling you have when you’re among familiar people.’ At Ulfah House, a group of Syrian refugees, mostly widows, have come together to help one another while they wait for the violence in their country to end.

“I spent a day with the women of Ulfah House in their newly built kitchen and lively courtyard. Over cups of coffee, they described how air strikes and firefights were destroying beautiful ancient cities and small rural communities in Syria. They explained the feeling of terror and the urgent responsibility to get their children to safety. I was moved by their strength and resilience. While these women were angry about what is happening, they were also hopeful. Together they were caring for one another’s children, learning entrepreneurial skills and praying that they eventually will be able to return home and rebuild their lives in Syria.”

Suggested Reads from Our Editorial Team

Time: Syria and Iran Step up Involvement in Iraq Conflict

Reuters: Syrian Qaeda Wing Pledges Loyalty to ISIL in Border Town

CBS: Syria Struggles to Keep War-Torn Aleppo Running