In a move that frustrated the U.S. and has some questioning its adherence to international law, Russia began using a base in Iran to launch airstrikes against targets in Syria on Tuesday. Russia confirmed Wednesday that it launched additional strikes from Iran’s Shahid Nojeh Air Base in Hamedan Province for the second straight day. The U.S. State Department condemned Russia’s actions as “unfortunate, but not surprising,” and added it could be violating a U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolution by utilizing an Iranian air base.

For roughly the past year, Russia has been supporting the Syrian government with airstrikes against the Islamic State, which continues to maintain a presence in the heavily fractured country. Critics say Russia is bolstering Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s president, in his quest to exterminate any rebel groups who oppose his rule by deliberately destroying hospitals in rebel-held regions. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been killed in Syria’s five-year civil war, and millions more have fled the country, seeking asylum in Europe and elsewhere.

Russia said it’s using Iran’s air base strictly to refuel its jets. “In the case we’re discussing there has been no supply, sale or transfer of warplanes to Iran,” said Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister. Lavrov was responding to Mark Toner, the State Department spokesman who insinuated that Russia is breaching UNSC Resolution 2231, which prohibits the supply, sale, or transfer of combat aircraft to Iran without Security Council approval. “The Russian Air Force uses these warplanes with Iran’s approval in order to take part in the counter-terrorism operation,” Lavrov added.

A U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad said that Russia did alert U.S. forces of the move to launch jets from Iran, but that didn’t stop the U.S. from questioning the Kremlin’s use of an Iranian airbase as unlawful. On Wednesday, a spokesman for Russia’s Ministry of Defense, Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, expressed Russia’s exasperation at suggestions that it’s breaching international law. “It’s hard to resist a recommendation for some State Department representatives to check their logic and knowledge of fundamental documents of international law,” he said, referencing Resolution 2231.

The clash underscores the knotted nature of alliances and adversaries that is crippling any semblance of peace in Syria. Russia is providing military support to the Syrian government, which is also backed by Iran. Those three nations, as well as the U.S. and its primary allies, have a common enemy: ISIS. Assad, the Syrian strongman who has exterminated large swaths of his citizenry, is also pitted against a collection of rebel groups who threaten his hold on power.

Emblematic of the violence that is tearing apart the country at the moment, Aleppo, one of Syria’s largest cities, saw seven civilians killed by rebel-launched airstrikes on Wednesday, according to Syria’s state-run news agency. Nine more were injured. Aleppo is split between the rebel-held east and the government-held west. It’s hospitals are being targeted by the Assad regime. Civilians are effectively trapped. On Wednesday, the United Nations warned of a “humanitarian catastrophe” in Aleppo should conditions remain the same or worsen.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Jordanian intelligence operatives have been skimming weapons meant to combat Syria’s tyrannical President Bashar al-Assad to sell on the black market. A co-investigation by the New York Times and Al Jazeera this week uncovered that the weapons were initially funneled into the country as arms for C.I.A-trained Syrian rebel groups, and subsequently stolen from shipments of weapon caches. The weapons include: Kalashnikov assault rifles, mortars, and grenades.

Since 2013, the U.S. has been supplying a collection of Syrian groups that oppose Assad, the murderous tyrant whose government has killed thousands of its own citizens. The program, known as Timber Sycamore, was a cooperative effort between a number of actors including the C.I.A., a host of Arab Countries, and the Jordanian intelligence service G.I.D.

Initially, the C.I.A. armed and trained thousands of rebels, while a host of Arab countries, led by Saudi Arabia, helped fund the program. Jordan, a long and trusted ally of the U.S.,  then helped move the American-bought arms from Europe to training sites across the country.

The path of the stolen weapons is as follows: The U.S. supplied the weapons, many of which were bought in the Balkans, or elsewhere in Eastern Europe. Jordanian intelligence officers then moved the weapons to training points throughout the country. Officials involved in the theft would route a chunk of the weapons to black markets, especially in Ma’an, Sahab, and the Jordan Valley. According to the report, officers involved in the weapons scheme have used the money to buy SUVs and iPhones.

In an ironic and sinister twist, U.S. officials believe the weapons used in a November shooting in Jordan’s capital of Amman that killed five people (including two Americans), can be traced to the U.S. arm shipments.

Several dozen Jordanian officers have been arrested for their involvement in the weapons coup, and there is suspicion that there was a cover-up involving the highest positions of the G.I.D.

While the revelations are surprising, and perhaps undermine the Obama administration’s rebel arming strategy, they will not damage the U.S.-Jordan partnership, which is as important as ever in a roiling region being torn apart by state-less terror.

“The United States deeply values the long history of cooperation and friendship with Jordan,” John Kirby, the State Department’s spokesman told the New York Times. “We are committed to the security of Jordan and to partnering closely with Jordan to meet common security challenges.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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