The American-led coalition in Syria conducted air and artillery strikes against forces loyal to President Bashar Al Assad, killing 100, the US military said, in one of the worst ever such clashes.
The operation overnight on Wednesday underscored the spiralling nature of the war, with the United States saying it took the action in Deir Ezzor province to repel an attack on Kurdish fighters it has partnered with in the area against ISIL.
The regime was likely seeking to reclaim ground once held by ISIL but now controlled by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. But the American strikes also followed days of allegations that Mr Al Assad's regime was using chemical weapons in rebel-held areas. The claims are under investigation by the United Nations.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, local tribal fighters loyal to Mr Al Assad — who has pledged to reclaim all Syrian territory — and Afghan Shiite militias fighting alongside them launched the initial attack against the SDF.
The US military said its operations centred on an area eight kilometres east of the Euphrates River de-confliction line, a reference to a boundary agreed by Russia and the US, with the former's area of operations west of the river and the latter's to its east.
ISIL fighters were flushed out of their last strongholds in eastern Syria and over the border in western Iraq late last year. But the SDF continues to hunt down insurgents who remain in the area ready to restart an insurgency.
The combination of air and artillery strikes countered an "unprovoked attack against well-established Syrian Democratic Forces headquarters", the US Central Command said.
US military officials said the attacks were conducted to "repel acts of aggression".
"We estimate more than 100 Syrian pro-regime forces were killed while engaging SDF and coalition forces," an official said, adding that the strikes targeted nearly 500 "pro-regime" forces armed with tanks and artillery.
According to the US Central Command, coalition advisers were present in the area that was attacked.
The operation was launched after "20 to 30 artillery and tank rounds landed within 500 metres of the SDF headquarters location."
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The Observatory gave a significantly lower toll, confirming 45 dead among pro-regime forces, and saying the initial attack took place near the town of Khasham.
The head of the Britain-based monitoring group, Rami Abdel Rahman, said the aim of the regime attack appeared to be the retaking of a major oilfield and a large gas plant in the SDF-held area.
The Omar oilfield, one of the biggest in Syria, had a pre-war output of 30,000 barrels per day, while the Conoco gas field had a pre-war capacity of 13 million cubic metres a day.
In western Syria, meanwhile, four consecutive days of regime bombardment on the rebel-held zone of Eastern Ghouta, outside Damascus, have killed more than 100 civilians, drawing global attention to the regime's deepening effort to reclaim opposition territory.
Warplanes dropped bombs for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday, killing at least 38 civilians and wounding dozens, according to the Observatory.
The latest bloodshed moved the death toll close to 200 for the week and left medics completely overwhelmed. The UN's call earlier this week for a month-long ceasefire to address what it calls a dire humanitarian situation has gone unheeded.
With few bulldozers and precious little fuel to operate them, rescue workers have struggled to reach trapped civilians and are having to work under fire.
"There was a huge, huge escalation against the city. More than one place was reduced to rubble," said Abu Mohammad Omar, a 23-year-old rescue worker.
The bombardments are suspected to have involved use of chlorine gas.
British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Thursday that the last week had involved "new levels of suffering in Eastern Ghouta and Idlib, among these are reports of chemical weapons use".
"This has to stop," he said. "The world is looking at the Assad regime, Russia and Iran: you hold the keys not only to the end of this obscene conflict, but to the safety, humanitarian aid and basic medical treatment that is being denied to millions of people right now in Syria. Your failure to provide this is simply unconscionable."
Eastern Ghouta was one of several so-called de-escalation zones agreed last year by three of the main outside players in the conflict — Turkey, Iran and Russia.
Turkey announced on Thursday it would host a new three-way summit to revive efforts to end the war, which has killed at least 340,000 people and displaced millions since 2011.
A similar effort involving Turkey, Iran and Russia earlier this month made no significant progress.
8 UAE companies helping families reduce their carbon footprint
Greenheart Organic Farms
This Dubai company was one of the country’s first organic farms, set up in 2012, and it now delivers a wide array of fruits and vegetables grown regionally or in the UAE, as well as other grocery items, to both Dubai and Abu Dhabi doorsteps.
www.greenheartuae.com
Modibodi
Founded in Australia, Modibodi is now in the UAE with waste-free, reusable underwear that eliminates the litter created by a woman’s monthly cycle, which adds up to approximately 136kgs of sanitary waste over a lifetime.
www.modibodi.ae
The Good Karma Co
From brushes made of plant fibres to eco-friendly storage solutions, this company has planet-friendly alternatives to almost everything we need, including tin foil and toothbrushes.
www.instagram.com/thegoodkarmaco
Re:told
One Dubai boutique, Re:told, is taking second-hand garments and selling them on at a fraction of the price, helping to cut back on the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of clothes thrown into landfills each year.
www.shopretold.com
Lush
Lush provides products such as shampoo and conditioner as package-free bars with reusable tins to store.
www.mena.lush.com
Bubble Bro
Offering filtered, still and sparkling water on tap, Bubble Bro is attempting to ensure we don’t produce plastic or glass waste. Founded in 2017 by Adel Abu-Aysha, the company is on track to exceeding its target of saving one million bottles by the end of the year.
www.bubble-bro.com
Coethical
This company offers refillable, eco-friendly home cleaning and hygiene products that are all biodegradable, free of chemicals and certifiably not tested on animals.
www.instagram.com/coethical
Eggs & Soldiers
This bricks-and-mortar shop and e-store, founded by a Dubai mum-of-four, is the place to go for all manner of family products – from reusable cloth diapers to organic skincare and sustainable toys.
www.eggsnsoldiers.com
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
BANGLADESH SQUAD
Mashrafe Mortaza (captain), Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim (wicketkeeper), Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan (vice captain), Mohammad Mithun, Sabbir Rahaman, Mosaddek Hossain, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Jayed (Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru Editing by Amlan Chakraborty)
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
