At around dawn this past Tuesday, a rapid series of airstrikes pulverized a military headquarters located on a hill overlooking Afrin’s Cuma plain. This attack, carried out by the Russian Air Force against Turkish-backed Islamist opposition faction Faylaq al-Sham, was the first of its kind. Since the Afrin region was captured by Turkey and itsContinue reading “An Unprecedented Air Raid in Afrin”
Author Archives: akmckeever
What Süleyman Soylu’s Eid al-Adha trip tells us about the Turkey’s security presence in Afrin
On Tuesday July 20th 2021, Turkey’s Minister of the Interior Süleyman Soylu crossed into Syria, briefly visited the Turkish-occupied cities of Afrin and A‘zaz as part of an Eid al-Adha press tour. Coverage published by various Turkish government social media accounts and state media showed Soylu and his entourage inspecting facilities operated by several governmentContinue reading “What Süleyman Soylu’s Eid al-Adha trip tells us about the Turkey’s security presence in Afrin”
MA Thesis: “Between Kurdistan and Damascus: Kurdish Nationalism and Arab State Formation in Syria”
As this site mostly serves as a collection of writing and projects I’ve had published or have collaborated on, I figured it might as well include my Masters thesis, submitted this past December and now available in PDF form on the CUNY website. It covers the Kurdish nationalist movement in Syria over the course ofContinue reading “MA Thesis: “Between Kurdistan and Damascus: Kurdish Nationalism and Arab State Formation in Syria””
STJ Research Contributions Spring 2021
Reports published by Syrians for Truth & Justice over the last four months that I contributed visual analysis and research to…
Three Years Later: Afrin under Occupation
“I say to you all that I did not feel my release for a single moment… because I left from a small jail to a large jail which is the homeland… Our homeland is a jail now.” These words were contained in a Facebook post shared a week and a half ago by Dr. RiyadhContinue reading “Three Years Later: Afrin under Occupation”
Afrin 360: Street View user uploads to Google Maps
While Google Maps’ stitched-image street view coverage does not include Syria, users have been able to upload geotagged 360-degree panoramas using supported devices since 2012. Most of these images have been uploaded from locations in the country’s major cities, particularly along the coast. In Afrin, several dozen such panoramas exist on Google Maps, shared byContinue reading “Afrin 360: Street View user uploads to Google Maps”
On SETA’s Deleted ‘The Syrian National Army’ Report
Bu metin Dünyadan Çeviri tarafından Türkçeye çevrilmiştir. On November 18, Turkish think tank SETA published a report written by research assistant Ömer Özkizilcik titled “The Syrian National Army.” This work was reportedly based on field research and a survey of Syrian National Army (SNA) fighters conducted by the author. After Twitter users highlighted that someContinue reading “On SETA’s Deleted ‘The Syrian National Army’ Report”
Recent Contributions to STJ
Desertification Threatens the Ghab Plain after TIP Removed Irrigation Pipes Fed by the Orontes River Syrians for Truth and Justice, November 10, 2020. Government Policies Contributing to Growing Incidence of Using Syrians as Mercenary Fighters Syrians for Truth and Justice, November 02, 2020.
Popular Front: the Turkish Backed Syrian Mercenaries Fighting for Azerbaijan
I spoke to Jake Hanrahan of Popular Front about Turkey’s deployment of SNA mercenaries to Azerbaijan, the evidence proving the reports, and Turkey’s rationale behind this move.
SNA mercenaries in Azerbaijan: the Visual Evidence
Bu metin Dünyadan Çeviri tarafından Türkçeye çevrilmiştir. In late September 2020, unconfirmed reports began to circulate on social media alleging that members of the Syrian National Army (SNA), Turkey’s proxy forces in northern Syria, had been sent to Azerbaijan. Initially, as there was no definitive evidence and there appeared little reason for Turkey to sendContinue reading “SNA mercenaries in Azerbaijan: the Visual Evidence”
