Source: Sky News


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Donald Tusk, the European Council President, confirmed that the Bulgarian Prime Minister had informed him that an incident had taken place on the Bulgarian border. The Bulgarian Prime Minister then left the EU summit he was attending in Brussels early.

It's not yet been confirmed whether the incident took place on Bulgaria's border with Greece or the country's border with Turkey, both of which are on a migrant route.

Bulgaria is not the favoured route for migrants. Most travel further west through the so-called Balkan corridor from Greece through Macedonia, Serbia and Croatia.

If it is confirmed that the border guards used live ammunition against the migrants it would the represent the first such incident in this current migrant crisis.

Read more: http://news.sky.com/story/1570418/reports-bulgaria-border-guards-shoot-at-migrants

Source: Reuters

BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian army and allied Iranian and Hezbollah forces are preparing for a ground offensive against insurgents in the Aleppo area backed by Russian air strikes, two senior regional officials familiar with the plans said on Tuesday.

The offensive would expand on a ground attack launched by the same alliance last week that is targeting rebels in Hama province further west.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said thousands of Iranian troops had arrived to take part in the ground offensives in support of President Bashar al-Assad.

A big government offensive in the area near the Turkish border is likely to further anger NATO member Ankara, which has backed insurgents fighting Assad and has already expressed deep concern over Russian air strikes that have targeted them.

Read more: http://uk.businessinsider.com/thousands-of-iranian-troops-are-now-in-syria-for-ground-offensives-against-insurgents-2015-10?r=US&IR=T

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Getting more WWIIIish every day. I guess next move is for Turkey to make a ground incursion into Syria.

Source: BBC

Russia has launched rocket strikes on Islamic State targets in Syria from its warships in the Caspian Sea, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu says.

Mr Shoigu was quoted by Russian media as saying four warships launched 26 sea-based cruise missiles on 11 targets, destroying them.

President Putin praised the Russian military, saying the targets were about 1,500km (932 miles) away.

Russia denies claims that its week-long strikes have hit non-IS targets.

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-34465425

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Source: The Telegraph

Migrants are being sent to Europe as a campaign of “hybrid warfare” in order to force concessions to its neighbours, EU president Donald Tusk has claimed.

An influx of hundreds of thousands of people is a “weapon” and a “political bargaining chip” used by the EU’s neighbours who want to harm the continent, Mr Tusk said.

He made the incendiary comments as the European Union announced it would give an extra one billion euros in aid, and dangled the offer of visa-free travel, to Turkey as part of a charm offensive to force the country to close its borders.

Sources said Mr Tusk’s remarks were not aimed specifically at Turkey but that he was thinking of leaders across the region, including the late Libyan dictator Gaddafi who threatened to turn Europe ‘black’ unless it handed over billions in aid.

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/eu/11915798/EU-chief-Migrant-influx-is-campaign-of-hybrid-warfare-to-force-concessions-from-neighbours.html