Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/653460
ByVladimirIsachenkov and Jamey Keaten The Associated Press MOSCOW PresidentVladi- mir Putin ordered the Rus- sian military to withdraw most of its forces from Syria, timing his move to the launch of Syria peace talks Monday — an end game that allows the Rus- sian leader to cash in on his gains and reduce his risks in the conflict. The start of the nego- tiations in Geneva offers Putin an opportune mo- ment to declare an offi- cial end to the 5 ½-month Russian air campaign that has allowed Syrian Presi- dent Bashar Assad's army to win back some key ground and strengthen his positions ahead of the talks. With Russia's main goals in Syria achieved, the pullback will allow Putin to pose as a peace- maker and help ease ten- sions with NATO member Turkey and the Gulf mon- archies vexed by Moscow's military action. At the same time, Pu- tin made it clear that Rus- sia will maintain its air base and a naval facility in Syria and keep some troops there. Syria's state news agency also quoted Syrian President Bashar Assad as saying that the Russian military will draw down its air force contingent but won't leave the country al- together. Announcing his deci- sion in a televised meet- ing with Russia's foreign and defense ministries, Putin said the Russian air campaign has allowed Assad's military to "radi- cally" turn the tide of war and helped create condi- tions for peace talks. "With the tasks set be- fore the Defense Ministry and the military largely ful- filled, I'm ordering the De- fense Minister to start the pullout of the main part of our group of forces in Syria, beginning tomorrow," Pu- tin said. He didn't specify how many planes and troops should be withdrawn. The number of Russian soldiers in Syria has not been re- vealed. Russia has deployed more than 50 jets and heli- copters to its Hemeimeem air base, in Syria's coastal province of Latakia, and they have operated at a frenetic pace, each flying several combat sorties on an average day. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to Putin that thanks to the Russian air support the Syrian mil- itary has extended its con- trol to 400 towns and vil- lages over an area of 10,000 square kilometers. State TV quoted Assad as saying that the collab- oration between Russian and Syrian forces has se- cured "victories against terrorism and returned se- curity to the country." The U.N. special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mis- tura, who restarted peace talks between the Syrian government and the oppo- sition in Geneva on Mon- day, said he had no com- ment on Putin's announce- ment when contacted by The Associated Press. Earlier in the day, he warned that the only alter- native to the negotiations is a return to war, and de- scribed political transi- tion in the country as "the mother of all issues." The Russian- and U.S.- brokered cease-fire that be- gan on Feb. 27 has largely held, but both the Syrian government and its foes have accused one another of violations. The deal with Washington has achieved a key Putin goal: raising Russia's global profile to appear as an equal to the United States in mediat- ing the Syrian conflict that has dominated global at- tention. The Islamic State group and al-Qaida's branch in Syria, the Nusra Front, are excluded from the cease- fire and Russia has said it would continue its fight against the groups con- sidered terrorists by the United Nations. END GAME Pu ti n or de rs s ta rt o f Ru ss ia n military pullout from Syria MIKHAILKLIMENTYEV—SPUTNIK,KREMLINPOOLPHOTO Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, listens to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during their meeting in the Kremlin on Monday. By Suzan Fraser The Associated Press ANKARA, TURKEY Turkey lashed out Monday at Kurd- ish targets, bombing mili- tary positions in northern Iraq and rounding up doz- ens of militants at home after a suicide car bomb- ing in the heart of the cap- ital drew the country even deeper into the complex Syrian conflict. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said there were "strong indications" that Sunday's attack was car- ried out by the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Davutoglu added that authorities had detained 11 people directly con- nected to the suicide bombing near a line of bus stops that killed 37 people. DNA tests were underway to identify the bomber and another body believed to be that of a person who as- sisted, he said, while a se- nior government official has said the bomber was a woman. "There are very serious, almost-certain indications that point to the separatist terror organization," Davu- toglu said, referring to the PKK. The attack further com- plicated Turkey's place in the region as it battles a host of enemies across its borders including the Syr- ian government, Kurd- ish rebels in both Iraq and Syria, and the Islamic State group, even after be- ing forced to absorb 2.7 mil- lion refugees from the con- flict. Turkey is also battling the PKK, a Kurdish group fighting for autonomy in southeastern Turkey for three decades. A frag- ile, 2½-year peace process broke down in July. Tur- key blames the PKK, say- ing it was inspired by the success of the Kurdish mi- litia forces in Syria against IS in the city of Kobani and elsewhere. The PKK blames Turkey for failing to deliver on promises. More than 200 people have died in five suicide bombings in Turkey since July that were blamed ei- ther on the Kurdish rebels or IS. Sunday's attack was the second suicide bomb- ing in the capital: a Feb. 17 attack for which a PKK off- shoot claimed responsibil- ity killed 29 people. "All five attacks are linked to the fallout of the Syrian civil war," said Soner Cagaptay, a Turkey expert at the Washington Institute. "Ankara's ill-executed Syria policy ... has exposed Turkey to great risks." Bill Park, a lecturer on Turkish foreign policy and security at King's College London, said Ankara's ag- gression toward the Kurds in Syria has angered Kurds inside Turkey and inspired attacks. "Bombings in Turkey now look like a campaign and we have to assume that there will be more," he said. SYRIAN CONFLICT Tu rk ey l au nc he s airstrikes a er deadly Ankara bombing The Associated Press BAIKONUR, KAZAKHSTAN The European Space Agency has begun the first stage of a two-part mission to explore Mars and hunt for signs of life on the red planet. The unmanned ExoMars probe— a collaborative proj- ect with Russia's Roscos- mos— was launched aboard a Russian rocket Monday and is expected to reach Mars in October. The probe consists of an orbiter that will analyze gases in the atmosphere of Mars, and a small lander that will put a rover on the surface in 2018. Europe's Beagle 2 probe disappeared during the landing process in 2003, a setback which ESA is keen to avoid this time. Paolo Ferri, ESA's head of mission operations, says traces of methane previ- ously discovered in the Martian atmosphere indi- cate recent geological or even biological activity. EXPLORATION ESA and Roscosmos launch a rocket to Mars By Robbie Corey-Boulet The Associated Press GRAND-BASSAM, IVORY COAST Before the shoot- ing started, an armed man stood quietly at the en- trance to a beachfront res- taurant, holding a Kalash- nikov rifle and coolly sur- veying the crowd. Francois Tanon, who rents beach chairs to tourists at Ivory Coast's Grand-Bassam re- sort town, thought the man was a security guard. A few minutes later, Tanon was talking to a cus- tomer when a bullet hit the client in the neck. "The patron I was speak- ing to fell down right in front of me," Tanon said. "The man that I saw before at the entrance, now I saw him down near the water, his gun in his hand, he was firing everywhere." In the end 18 were killed Sunday, leaving Grand-Bas- sam and all of Ivory Coast reeling from its first Is- lamic extremist attack. President Alassane Ouat- tara's government began work Monday to tighten security and prevent sim- ilar violence. Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, or AQIM, has claimed responsibility for the attack. AQIM said Sun- daythatthreeattackerswere killed.Thegroupclaimedre- sponsibility for the attack, according to SITE Intelli- gence Group which moni- tors jihadi websites. WEST AFRICA Ivory Coast reels from terror attack, boosts security Construction Burrows Construction Remodel, New Additions, Siding Repair and Replacement, Water and Dryrot New Construction Foundation to Finish Ph:(530) 515-9779 Residential•Commerical PATIOS•DECKS REFRENCES Lic#824770 InPrintEveryTuesday-Thursday-Saturday Online:Publishes24/7 www.redbluffdailynews.com Threeadditionalonline locations at no extra cost! Print and On-Line HOME SERVICES DIRECTORY Full Size $ 117 .50 Per Month No early cancellation, non-refundable TWO SIZES TO CHOOSE FROM Half Size $ 70 .00 Per Month Roofing Call for Estimates! Residential, Commercial & Mobiles www.harbertroofing.com HARBERT ROOFING, INC. 530-223-3251 Lic# 696974 Time To Roof? Blinds Need Blinds? C A L L P A U L 527-0842 North State Blinds & Draperies www.nsbd.biz Lic.#906022 Paul Stubbs Lawn Service (530) 566-7951 ★ LAWN SERVICE ★ WEED EATING ★ HEADING ★ GUTTER CLEANING ★ FULL TREE SERVICE ★ FIRE BREAKS ScottWest HONEST& DEPENDABLE Green again landscaping Construction A l l en s C o n s t r u c t i o n FREE ESTIMATES 530 949-6162 CA LIC#914460 Advertisement Ifthiswasyour Service Directory ad customers would be reading it right now!! Call us at 527-2151 For more information Advertisement If this was your Service Directory ad customers would be reading it right now!! For Suzy 530-737-5056 For Gayla 530-737-5044 For more information Landscape/Fence Steve's Tractor & Landscape Service www.stevestractorandlandscape.com • Fence Building • Landscaping • Trenching • Rototilling • Disking • Mowing • Ridging • Post Hole Digging • Blade Work • Sprinkler Installation • Concrete Work Cont. Lic. #703511 SteveDyke 385-1783 Lawn Care A L L L A W N C A R E • Mowing • Edging • Weedeating • Clean-ups • Free Consultation Commercial • Residential (530) 529-3689 Serving The Greater Tehama County Area Since 1994 Professional Lawn Care Lic # 6478 www.alllawncare.net Flooring Carpet/Linoleum Installation/Restretch/Repair Vinyl/Laminate/Tile Installation Sub-Floor Installation and Repair 530-200-3821 License #558476 Tractor Service Tractor and Weed Control Rotary, Flail Mowing Rototilling, Disking Dump Trailer Call Dennis Conner 530-200-1040 Pool Service AndersonPool Service PumpandFilterRepair Spring Clean-Ups Serving Red Bluff and Cottonwood for over 30 years Dependable Pool Service (530) 365-9012 George Dunn Advertisement If this was your Service Directory ad customers would be reading it right now!! For Suzy 530-737-5056 For Gayla 530-737-5044 For more information Advertisement If this was your Service Directory ad customers would be reading it right now!! For Suzy 530-737-5056 For Gayla 530-737-5044 For more information | NEWS | REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM TUESDAY, MARCH 15, 2016 6 B