Sep. 25th, 2017 Welcome to our weekly summary of Syria Deeply’s top coverage of crisis in Syria. Eastern Syria: The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in eastern Syria said they captured the major Conoco natural gas field in their advance against the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) in Deir Ezzor. The Conoco gas plant is capable of producing nearly 450 tons of gas a day, according to the Wall Street Journal. According to al-Jazeera, it had the largest capacity of any natural gas field in Syria prior to the conflict, producing up to 459 million cubic feet (13 million cubic meters) of natural gas a day. Tension also risks rising between Russian and U.S.-backed forces in the area. Russian special forces supporting Syrian government loyalists are only miles away from the SDF in Deir Ezzor. They are fighting simultaneous but separate campaigns against the militant group. An American official told CNN on Sunday that U.S. forces have amped up surveillance efforts of Russian troops in Syria. The move comes after last week’s statement from Russia’s defense ministry that said Moscow would target U.S.-backed militia positions in east Syria if its forces come under fire by the group. Russia accused the SDF of opening fire on Syrian troops and allied forces on the eastern bank of the Euphrates twice over the past week, and any more “attempts to open fire from areas where SDF fighters are located would be quickly shut down,” the statement said. Syrian-Kurds Vote: Kurdish-held regions of northern Syria held the first round of a three-phase election on Friday, as part of a plan to set up a federal system of government. Residents cast their ballots to select community leaders for some 3,700 communities spread across three regions of Kurdish-held northern Syria. Elections did not take place in the city of Manbij, which is controlled by the SDF or in areas recently liberated from ISIS near the city of Raqqa, senior Kurdish politician Hadiya Yousef told Reuters. The second round of voting will take place in November with the election of local councils, and the final stage is expected to take place in January with the election of a local assembly that will act as a parliament, Reuters said. The Syrian government is opposed to elections, but Syrian Kurds insist that they are not seeking independence from Syria. Yousef told Reuters that Friday’s elections were “a message to the Syrian regime that we as the Syrian people have will and want our will to be represented in the election of our administration to run our regions and societies.” Syria at the UNGA: Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem said that recent pro-government gains on the ground “prove that victory is now within reach,” in a speech on Saturday to the United Nations General Assembly. As examples, al-Moualem cited military gains by pro-government forces in Aleppo and Palmyra, the recent breach of an ISIS-siege in an area of Deir Ezzor and the “eradication of terrorism from many parts of Syria.” He also discussed the plans to create four de-escalation zones in Syria. Russia, Iran and Turkey signed off on the plan, proposed by Moscow in May. “Syria reserves the right to respond to any violation by the other party,” al-Moualem said. “Syria also stresses that these zones are a temporary arrangement that must not violate the territorial unity of Syria.” David Miliband, president and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, pointed out that the crisis in Syria was otherwise largely overlooked at the UNGA, despite ongoing human rights violations and fighting in many of the country’s provinces. Read the full summary MOST POPULAR This Week’s Top Articles WAR ECONOMY Long Read: Elites, War Profiteers Take Aim at Syria’s Economic Future Despite the Syrian government’s recent push for reconstruction and economic renewal in the country, most people in Damascus still struggle with low wages, high inflation and an unstable security situation – and will likely be left out of the coming reconstruction boom. DISPLACEMENT Inside Ain al-Issa: Hunting for ISIS in the North Raqqa IDP Camp In the second of a two-part series, we report on Kurdish-led forces’ rigorous security screening procedures at the Ain al-Issa IDP camp that aim to weed out potential ISIS fighters from the thousands of civilians fleeing militant-held territory every day. EDITOR’S PICKS Community Insight CIVIL SOCIETY Chronicle of Care: Providing Health Services for Millions of Syrians Mahmoud Mustafa,  Field ophthalmologist and the director and founder of Independent Doctors Association (IDA) In the first in our series of diary entries from Syrian doctors, Mahmoud Mustafa, director of the Independent Doctors Association, explains how he went from being an eye surgeon in Aleppo to providing emergency care amid attacks, sporadic aid access and exhaustion. ARTS & CULTURE Pixels of War: Photographing Damascus From Besieged Rooftops Tom Rollins,  Cairo-based freelance journalist In this installment of ‘Pixels of War,’ our series on Syrian photographers, Faris al-Khattab discusses his view of Damascus from a besieged village in the south of the capital and a looming reconciliation deal in the area. DIPLOMACY & FOREIGN AFFAIRS Why the Euphrates Crossing has Deep Implications for the U.S.. in Syria Andrew Tabler,  Senior fellow in the Program on Arab Politics at The Washington Institute, where he focuses on Syria and U.S. policy in the Levant By enabling Assad’s forces to bridge the Euphrates river, Moscow is denying Washington leverage over the Syrian government and is raising the risk of direct confrontation between U.S. and Russian proxies in east Syria, writes the Washington Institute’s Andrew Tabler. FIRST LOOK Upcoming coverage We are always looking for new writers, experts and journalists who are covering the crisis in Syria and are interested in writing about a variety of topics. Please send us your ideas, story pitches and any other thoughts about our coverage via email, Twitter or Facebook. You received this email because you’re signed up to receive updates from us. Click here to unsubscribe. Copyright © 2017 News Deeply, Inc. All rights reserved.