Siddhant Kishore, Alexandra Braverman, Ben Rezaei, Kelly Campa, and Brian Carter

Information Cutoff: 2:00 pm ET

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Russian cargo vessels have continued to evacuate military assets from the port of Tartus as Russia negotiates its presence in Syria with the interim government. OSINT analyst MT Anderson posted satellite imagery from February 14 showing the Russian cargo vessel Baltic Leader and potentially the Admiral Golovko Admiral Gorshkov-class frigate about 250 kilometers south of the coast of southwestern Cyprus. Anderson said that the Baltic Leader departed the port of Tartus sometime after February 4, when satellite imagery showed the vessel at the port. It is unclear now if the Baltic Leader will bring evacuated Russian cargo to Russia or Libya. Russia sent some assets from Syria to Libya by air in December 2024 and January 2025. Publicly available marine tracking data showed that two cargo vessels that departed Tartus in late January, the Sparta and Sparta II, were sailing off the coast of the Netherlands on February 15, presumably in transit to Russia. Continued Russian-Syria engagement—including a recent phone call between Syrian Interim President Ahmed al Shara and Russian President Vladimir Putin—suggests that Syria seeks some relationship with Russia even as Russia withdraws its military assets from Syria. Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on February 14 that Russia continues to discuss its military presence in Syria with the new Syrian administration.

Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) released three Israeli hostages on February 15. Hamas transferred the hostages to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. Israel released 369 Palestinian prisoners in exchange, including 111 whom the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) detained in the Gaza Strip during the October 7 War. BBC reported that Israel will deport an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners to Egypt.

Key Takeaways:

• Russia in Syria: Russian cargo vessels have continued to evacuate military assets from the port of Tartus as Russia negotiates its presence in Syria with the interim government.

• IDF in Lebanon: The Wall Street Journal reported on February 15 that Israeli officials requested to hold ground in five tactically significant locations in southern Lebanon after the expiration of the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire agreement.

• Gaza Strip: Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) released three Israeli hostages.

• Hezbollah in Lebanon: Pro-Hezbollah protesters set fire to a vehicle in a United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy and injured a UNIFIL officer during protests outside Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport on February 14. 

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