INTERNACIONAL
Turkey says Syria using force is an option against US-backed fighters who helped defeat ISIS
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Tensions between Syria’s transitional government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) escalated this week after Turkey warned that Damascus could resort to military force against the group, following days of deadly clashes in and around Aleppo. The SDF played a critical role in aiding U.S. forces to defeat the Islamic State in Syria.
Turkey’s foreign minister, Hakan Fidan, said Thursday that Syria’s use of force against the SDF seems an option, adding he hoped the crisis could be resolved through dialogue, according to Reuters.
The remarks came after several days of fighting between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters that displaced tens of thousands of civilians and left at least 23 people dead, Reuters reported.
The warning underscores mounting regional pressure as negotiations aimed at integrating the SDF into Syria’s national army remain stalled nearly a year after a U.S.-backed framework agreement was signed.
FROM SYRIA TO SOMALIA, US TROOPS REMAIN DEPLOYED THIS HOLIDAY SEASON UNDER MISSIONS THAT NEVER FORMALLY ENDED
Syrian army soldiers in the entrance of Sheik Maksoud neighborhood during fighting against the SDF on Jan. 10, 2026, in Aleppo. (Adri Salido/Getty Image)
The United States remains deeply involved in efforts to prevent the confrontation from spiraling, with U.S. Central Command mediating daily on the ground in Syria alongside partners such as France, the U.K., Turkey and Jordan. «CENTCOM is on the ground inside Syria playing an active mediating role every single day,» said Charles Lister, senior fellow and director of the Syria Initiative at the Middle East Institute.
«Fundamentally, the United States remains the SDF’s biggest and most important backer, supporter, provider of finance, training and, to an extent, defense,» he said.
Lister said Washington has already used significant leverage, including compelling SDF leader Mazloum Abdi to sign the March 2025 framework agreement.
DEADLY STRIKE ON US TROOPS TESTS TRUMP’S COUNTER-ISIS PLAN — AND HIS TRUST IN SYRIA’S NEW LEADER
U.S. forces provide military training to members of the SDF in the Qamisli district in the Al-Hasakah province, Syria on Aug. 18, 2023. (Hedil Amir/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
«We would not have had the March framework agreement had it not been for basically Gen. Mazloum being strong-armed onto a helicopter, flown to Damascus, and told that he needed to sign that agreement,» he said.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the SDF accused Syrian government forces and Turkey of what it described as a «dangerous military escalation» across eastern Aleppo’s countryside, including Deir Hafer, Maskanah and the area surrounding the Tishreen Dam.
The SDF claimed Syrian government forces carried out more than a dozen attacks using artillery, mortars and suicide drones and said civilian infrastructure, including a post office and a bakery, was struck.
The SDF also said Turkish Bayraktar drones struck multiple SDF positions near Maskanah and Tabqah. Turkey and the Syrian government had not publicly responded to the claims.
The crisis stems from a failed March 2025 agreement intended to merge SDF forces into Syria’s Ministry of Defense.
«There’s no question that Damascus has been a tough negotiator,» Lister said. «Having said that, the government has also bent significantly.»
TRUMP DECLARES IMPORTANCE OF NOT DERAILING ‘SYRIA’S EVOLUTION INTO A PROSPEROUS STATE’
Some 900 U.S. troops are still stationed in Syria. (Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images)
Lister claims the deal stalled because of internal divisions within the SDF. «The fact that no deal has been implemented is quite frankly because the SDF is not a united, cohesive movement,» he said. «There are elements within the SDF who absolutely do not want this deal to be implemented.»
He said some factions are deliberately delaying implementation. «Their calculation is clearly that the longer that they can stall, they hope that the Syrian transitional government will do something to destroy its international credibility,» Lister said. «It’s just a stall-and-wait-and-see approach.»
«That approach is intrinsically dangerous,» he said. «It only guarantees conflict.»
«Over the past two or three days, there have been a number of Turkish drone strikes on SDF military bases in this frontline district in eastern rural Aleppo,» Lister said.
«Turkey is primed to get back involved,» he said. «When Turkey has gone all out on the SDF, the SDF haven’t stood a chance.»
According to Lister, only pressure from the highest level could alter the trajectory.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
People holding Kurdish flags demonstrate against the constitutional declaration that was signed by Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Qamishli, Syria, March 14, 2025. (Orhan Qereman/Reuters)
«The only thing that’s going to change the equation here is if President Trump makes it publicly clear that this deal has to be made and implemented expeditiously,» he said.
«This is not contained,» Lister warned. «All the preparations are clearly being made for this to become an active military zone unless serious diplomacy pulls both sides off the brink.»
Reuters contributed to this report.
syria,turkey,state department,conflicts,isis
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
While California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom blames President Donald Trump’s actions in Iran for the price of gas, critics are calling him out for «insane» climate policies as the state’s prices at the pump soar significantly above the national average.
On Tuesday, Newsom, who is widely considered a top contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, took to X to slam «Trump’s war with Iran» over gas prices.
Newsom wrote that «Americans will pay $1.5 BILLION MORE at the gas pump just this week because of Donald Trump’s war with Iran.» He added that California «will continue using the tools we’ve spent years developing to help fight price spikes and lessen the blow from Trump’s recklessness.»
In response, Steve Hilton, a Republican candidate for California governor, slammed Newsom, saying, «California has the highest gas taxes and fees in America.»
CALIFORNIA VOTER ID INITIATIVE CLEARS SIGNATURE THRESHOLD, SETTING UP NOVEMBER SHOWDOWN WITH NEWSOM
California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is taking criticism for the state’s soaring gas prices after blaming «Trump’s war with Iran» for the spike. (Chris J. Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images; iStock)
«Gavin Newsom is trying to shift blame,» said Hilton, «and he’s blaming these insane gas prices in California, $5.49, $5.69, heading to $6, on the war in Iran. It’s not the war in Iran, because in the rest of the country, they don’t have $5.49, they have $3 gas.»
«It’s entirely because of Gavin Newsom’s insane climate dogma that we have the highest gas taxes in the country,» he continued.
Hilton called on Newsom to end his national book tour and to immediately «suspend the gas tax.»
At approximately $5.33 per gallon, California has by far the highest average gas prices in the U.S., according to AAA. California gas prices significantly exceed those in the next two highest-priced states, Washington and Hawaii, which have average prices of $4.72 and $4.69 per gallon, respectively. Meanwhile, the national average in the U.S. is $3.57 per gallon.
California has the highest gas tax, at roughly 70 cents per gallon, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
In a 2025 opinion piece on Fox News Digital, Hilton wrote that «California’s sky-high gas prices» are the «direct result of 15 years of one-party Democratic rule.»
He added that «Gavin Newsom, former Vice President Kamala Harris and every other leading Democrat in the state have been cheerleaders for this ‘war on fossil fuels,’ endlessly bragging about ‘leading the world’ on climate change.»
SUPREME COURT BLOCKS CALIFORNIA BAN ON NOTIFYING STUDENTS’ PARENTS ABOUT GENDER TRANSITIONS
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum speaks alongside Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodriguez (out of frame), after their meeting at the Miraflores Presidential Palace in Caracas on March 4, 2026. (Federico PARRA / AFP via Getty Images)
Hilton is not the only one criticizing Newsom’s oil and gas policies.
Roxanne Hoge, chair of the Los Angeles County GOP, called Newsom’s take «a textbook case of projection, pointing fingers at others while his own record is riddled with mismanagement and failure.»
«Californians have seen the cost of gas be higher than the rest of the USA for reasons having nothing to do with President Trump. He has driven supply down by banishing producers while not fixing infrastructure with gas tax money as promised,» Hoge told Fox News Digital, adding, «We all know that Gavin Newsom has moved on to campaigning for president in spite of his atrocious record at home.»
On Wednesday, Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum posted on X that «California is KILLING their economy!»
The secretary wrote that while Newsom «continues to close refineries & drive up gas prices for California,» the department approved over 6,000 drilling permits «to advance [Trump’s] American Energy Dominance Agenda & lower gas prices nationwide.»
Chevron President Andy Walz also recently sounded the alarm, warning California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state regulators that newly proposed «cap-and-invest» amendments are a death knell for California’s remaining refineries.
‘UTTERLY UNAFFORDABLE’: STUDY REVEALS HOW DEEP BLUE CITY’S MINIMUM WAGE LAW IS RAVAGING KEY INDUSTRY
The California Air Resources Board is aiming to make companies cleaner by aggressively lowering the cap on how much total pollution is allowed in the state. Specifically, the board is proposing to pull 118.3 million allowances out of the state’s market between 2027 and 2030 and has more recently increased its carbon reduction target to 90% by 2045.
The energy giant warns the move will kill more than half a million jobs, threaten national security and spike gas prices by more than a dollar per gallon — all to fuel a state-run «shakedown» of the energy sector — in a letter addressed to Newsom and obtained by The California Globe.
«The proposed regulation will cripple the survivability of the state’s remaining refineries, which will result in California losing the entire industry to this misguided program,» Chevron President Andy Walz wrote.
«This regulation will increase transportation and aviation fuel prices for consumers. It will risk significant job losses, including many high-paying union jobs, while reducing funding for essential public services,» he continued, adding that «it will upend California’s fuels market and threaten critical energy and national security assets.»
In the same vein, Tim Stewart, a spokesperson for the U.S. Oil & Gas Association, told Fox News Digital that «California’s energy malaise is beginning to infect the other western states’ economies and unless there is a course change immediately, we will all feel the pain of decades of horribly bad California energy policy led by Governor Newsom.»
One expert predicted «we will all feel the pain of decades of horribly bad California energy policy led by Governor Newsom.» (Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
«California’s gross mismanagement of its energy production and distribution economy is becoming a national security issue, and it now impacts all of us,» Stewart continued, adding that in addition to this, «agriculture, manufacturing, housing, the financial system is all impacted.»
«It doesn’t have to be this way, and Governor Newsom knows it,» said Stewart. «He also knows that no matter how hard he tries – he can’t pin this on Trump or our industry. The public isn’t buying it anymore.»
Fox Business’ Kristen Altus contributed to this report.
gavin newsom,energy,energy in america,california,democratic party,donald trump
INTERNACIONAL
La Unión Europea advirtió que la guerra en Medio Oriente podría impulsar su tasa de inflación por encima del 3%
La Unión Europea advirtió que su tasa de inflación podría superar el 3% este año si la guerra en Medio Oriente mantiene el precio del petróleo Brent cerca de 100 dólares por barril y los precios del gas permanecen elevados durante un período prolongado. El escenario también implicaría un menor crecimiento económico en 2026, según explicó el comisario europeo de Economía, Valdis Dombrovskis, durante una reunión con los ministros de Finanzas del bloque.
De acuerdo con personas familiarizadas con las conversaciones consultadas por Bloomberg, bajo ese escenario el crecimiento económico de la Unión Europea en 2026 sería hasta 0,4 puntos porcentuales inferior al ritmo de 1,4% que el bloque había previsto a finales del año pasado.
El escenario que analizó la Comisión Europea también contempla que los precios del gas en Europa se sitúen en torno a 75 euros por megavatio hora durante el resto del año. Con esas condiciones, la inflación sería entre 0,7 y 1 punto porcentual superior al 2,1% que se había proyectado previamente para 2026.
Un aumento significativo de la inflación podría llevar al Banco Central Europeo (BCE) a elevar las tasas de interés. Los operadores del mercado incrementaron sus apuestas sobre una posible subida de tasas durante este año. La próxima decisión de política monetaria del BCE está prevista para el 19 de marzo, aunque no se espera un aumento de tasas en esa reunión.
Según las personas informadas sobre las conversaciones, Dombrovskis también advirtió que el conflicto podría provocar efectos negativos adicionales en la economía europea debido a su impacto sobre los mercados financieros, el comercio y las cadenas de suministro.
Durante la reunión con los ministros de Finanzas, el comisario europeo explicó que los indicadores económicos recientes mostraban señales de mejora antes de la escalada del conflicto.
De acuerdo con las personas familiarizadas con el encuentro consultadas por Bloomberg, Dombrovskis indicó que las perspectivas económicas del bloque resultaban ligeramente mejores en comparación con el otoño, con un crecimiento esperado de alrededor de 1,5% este año y 1,6% el próximo. Sin embargo, ese panorama se vio afectado por la expansión del conflicto regional vinculado a la guerra en Irán.
Misiles y drones impactaron instalaciones energéticas en países como Arabia Saudita y Qatar, lo que afectó la producción de petróleo y gas natural licuado (GNL). Además, el tránsito de petroleros y otras mercancías a través del estrecho de Ormuz, una de las rutas energéticas más importantes del mundo, se redujo casi por completo.
En declaraciones a periodistas el lunes, Dombrovskis afirmó que “el impacto en la economía europea dependerá de la duración, alcance e intensidad del conflicto”. El comisario europeo también advirtió sobre los riesgos que implican los ataques contra infraestructuras energéticas y rutas comerciales.
“Una persistente ofensiva contra el transporte marítimo y la infraestructura energética expone a la economía mundial a un shock estanflacionario a más largo plazo”, dijo.
Los precios de la energía registraron fuertes movimientos desde el inicio de la guerra. El gas europeo subió con fuerza y el miércoles cotizó cerca de 50 euros por megavatio hora, después de haber alcanzado 70 euros a comienzos de la semana. El petróleo Brent se situó por encima de 90 dólares por barril.
En respuesta a las tensiones en el mercado energético, la Agencia Internacional de Energía acordó el miércoles liberar 400 millones de barriles de reservas estratégicas de petróleo, en lo que constituye la mayor liberación de este tipo realizada por el organismo.
Las autoridades del Banco Central Europeo siguen de cerca el impacto del conflicto sobre la inflación. La responsable de política monetaria del BCE Isabel Schnabel afirmó el miércoles que, aunque se espera que la inflación de la zona euro se sitúe en el objetivo del 2% en el mediano plazo, la nueva proyección que el banco central publicará en marzo reflejará parte del impacto de la guerra.
Schnabel señaló que la proyección “al menos reflejará parcialmente” el efecto del conflicto.
(Con información de Bloomberg)
Corporate Events,Diplomacy / Foreign Policy,Europe
INTERNACIONAL
Histórica liberación de reservas de petróleo: 32 países vuelcan 400 millones de barriles para frenar el precio del crudo
Alemania y Japón se adelantan
La mayor liberación de reservas
¿Qué pasa con China e India?
El efecto Ormuz
Reuniones preparatorias
Establecieron un nuevo protocolo para la realización de los festivales aéreos en Argentina
ATE anunció un paro de una semana en más de 27 aeropuertos y podría afectar a los vuelos
Juan Miranda: ‘Tendría difícil jugar en el Barça con Balde y Gerard Martín’
Milei subordinó su agenda internacional a necesidades domésticas: consolida a los industriales como enemigos
El tierno posteo de Indiana Cubero a su novio Thiago Silvero para celebrar sus tres meses de amor: “Mi vida”
Newsom knocked for ‘insane’ California gas prices after blaming Trump for rising costs
La cruda confesión de Amalia Granata por el trastorno que sufre su hijo Roque: “Le hicimos estudios y salió que tiene TDAH, dislexia y disgrafia”
Jenny Mavinga angustiada tras una quemadura en Gran Hermano 2026: “¡Ay, me quemó!
El mercado le está corriendo el arco a Caputo y el riesgo país no baja: en la City palpitan medidas
¿Fraude? Robertito Funes Ugarte contó todo sobre el “porro” y el celular dentro de Gran Hermano: “Se dice que les pasan información a los chicos”
CHIMENTOS3 días agoJenny Mavinga angustiada tras una quemadura en Gran Hermano 2026: “¡Ay, me quemó!
- POLITICA2 días ago
Juan Carlos Schmid deja la conducción de Dragado y Balizamiento después de 33 años
- CHIMENTOS1 día ago
Muni Seligmann respondió las críticas tras el accidente de su bebé y su viaje a Miami: “Hay que contarlo y naturalizarlo”
