Shelling of a US military base in Syria

1 Syria

The Syrian news agency SANA reported that several rockets hit a US military base in the north of the Syrian province of Deir ez-Zor. According to the SANA — the base, which is located in the Konoko oil field, was hit with a rocket fire. The oil field is under control of the US troops and Kurdish groups. No casualties were reported among the US military. It was the first attack on 1 of 12 of the US military facilities, since 2015, in the Syrian provinces of Hasakah, Raqqa, and Deir ez-Zor.

2 Syria

The press service of the Russian Defense Ministry reported that as a result of the explosion of an IED in Syria, a Russian military adviser, Major-General Vyacheslav Gladkikh, died. 2 more Russian servicemen were injured as well. The commander of the Syrian national defense of the city of Al-Meyadin, Muhammad Taysar Az-Zahir, and 4 of his subordinates died as well. 3 others were injured — the ‘Russian Spring’ news website reported. It was specified that the explosion took place when a Russian convoy was returning from a humanitarian action, 15 km away from the city of Deir ez-Zor. The IED exploded on the side of the road while the vehicles were moving nearby. «As a result of the explosion, 3 Russian servicemen were injured. During the evacuation and medical assistance, a Russian senior military adviser, major-general, died from the wounds» — the Russian Defense Ministry reported.

3 Mali

A military coup took place in Mali. On Tuesday, the army units, located in the suburbs of the capital of Mali — Bamako — revolted and headed to the capital. It was reported that the government ministers, the heads of the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Finances, the speaker of the parliament, the prime minister, and the president of the country, were arrested. The Mali Armed Forces General Staff is also under control of the rebels. A number of military leaders were arrested as well. Following the arrest, the President of Mali, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, announced his resignation on Wednesday night. The Mali military, who staged the mutiny, announced the creation of the »National Committee for the Salvation of the People». It was reported that the elections will be held in the country «within a reasonable time». The Deputy Chief of Staff of the Air Force of Mali, Colonel Ismael Wage, announced that the »National Committee for the Salvation of the Malian People» has ordered the closure of all external borders of the country, and a curfew for the night time. He also invited all the opposition groups in Mali, who called for reforms, to join the negotiation process, which should lead to the new elections. The UN, the EU, the African Union and the Economic Community of West Africa denounced the coup.

4 Belarus

Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the ex-presidential candidate in Belarus, made a video on YouTube in which she called on the European leaders to not recognize the results of the presidential elections in Belarus. Her appeal was made in English. According to her — “the creation of the National Coordination Council of Belarus was initiated in order to facilitate the peaceful transfer of power in Belarus. It will lead the process of the peaceful transfer of power via a dialogue”. According to Svetlana Tikhanovskaya — «the council will immediately initiate new, fair and democratic presidential elections, under the international supervision». The appeal was published right before the emergency EU summit on the situation in Belarus. Svetlana Tikhanovskaya is currently in Lithuania. Earlier, the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, called the creation of the Coordination Council of the opposition «an attempt to seize power.»

5 The EU — Belarus

The head of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, announced the results of the summit. During the emergency summit, the leaders of the EU countries agreed that they won’t recognize the results of the presidential elections in Belarus, in which the current head of the state, Alexander Lukashenko, have won. They denounced the violence against the protesters in Belarus, and demanded an independent and transparent investigation. It was reported that in the near future, sanctions will be introduced against a significant number of Belarusian officials for «violence, repressions, and an election fraud». According to the head of the European Council, «the issue of including Lukashenko in the sanctions list» will be mentioned as well. The EU expressed their readiness to help the dialogue between the government and the opposition. The Prime Minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki, stated that the summit participants were in favor of re-holding of the presidential elections in Belarus.