Foreign Digest: Iran, Syria and Somalia

Syria: Thousands of Syrians in the rebel-held part of the country attended a rally in solidarity with Ukraine and against Russian aggression. Syrians rose up against the tyrannical regime of Bashar Assad in 2011, but the terrorist sponsor has been able to cling to power with the help of Iran, the Lebanese Shi’ite terrorist organization Hezbollah, and the Russian Federation. Over half a million Syrians have been killed and millions have fled. The Russian atactic of targeting civilian areas in Ukraine is reminiscent of how it targeted civilian areas and even deliberately struck hospitals and rescue workers in Syria. Iran: Islamist Iran fired missiles at a United States consulate in Iraq. Iran, the world’s biggest state sponsor of terrorism, fosters Islamist revolution in Lebanon, the West Bank, Yemen and elsewhere, and tries to wield its influence over Iraq, especially after the American and coalition withdrawal. Somalia: The U.S. carried out a strike on al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Somalia for the first time since last year, a sign that the U.S. is continuing the War on Terrorism, at least to some degree, after the disastrous Trump-Biden withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan last year, and after having withdrawn American advisors from Somalia in addition to the various non-combat measures that have been continued.