The Levant crisis.(Israel,SYRIA,Lebanon,etc)

[TSJones]

rats killing rats.......

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2015/11/24 ... s-brigade/

'Severe blow': Al Qaeda suicide bomber takes out leadership of key ISIS brigade

[Austin]

Turkish F-16 attacked Russian Su-24 without warning, both were above Syria – commander

A Turkish fighter jet launched a missile at a Russian bomber on Tuesday well ahead of the Su-24 approaching the Turkish border, the chief of Russia’s Air Force said. The bomber remained on Turkish radars for 34 minutes and never received any warnings.

The attack on the Russian Su-24 bomber was intentional and had been planned in advance, Viktor Bondarev, the chief of Russia’s Air Force, announced Friday, calling the incident an “unprecedented backstab.”

The commander shared with the media previously unknown details of what happened on Tuesday.

On November 24, a pair of Russian Sukhoi Su-24 tactical bombers took off from Khmeimim airbase in Latakia at 06:15 GMT, with an assignment to carry out airstrikes in the vicinity of the settlements of Kepir, Mortlu and Zahia, all in the north of Syria. Each bomber was carrying four OFAB-250 high-explosive fragmentation bombs.

Ten minutes later, the bombers entered the range of Turkish radars and took positions in the target area, patrolling airspace at predetermined heights of 5,800 meters and 5,650 meters respectively.

Both aircraft remained in the area for 34 minutes. During this time there was no contact between the crews of the Russian bombers and the Turkish military authorities or warplanes.

Some 20 minutes after arriving at the designated area, the crews received the coordinates of groups of terrorists in the region. After making a first run, the bombers performed a maneuver and then delivered a second strike.

Immediately after that, the bomber crewed by Lieutenant-Colonel Oleg Peshkov and Captain Konstantin Murakhtin was attacked by a Turkish F-16 fighter jet operating from the Diyarbakır airfield in Turkey.

To attack the Russian bomber with a close-range air-to-air missile, the Turkish fighter jet had to enter Syrian airspace, where it remained for about 40 seconds. Having launched its missile from a distance of 5-7 kilometers, the F-16 immediately turned towards the Turkish border, simultaneously dropping its altitude sharply, thus disappearing from the range of Russian radars at the Khmeimim airbase.

[Austin]

So it now Appears from Russian Air Chief the Su-24 was attacked by SRAAM likely AIM-9 series carried by F-16

[TSJones]

The conservative American Thinker goes even further by claiming it’s about time to replace Turkey with Russia in NATO,

[RoyG]

the world well remembers what Saddam did to Kuwait and nobody wants a repeat of that. it was extensively documented.

and nobody wants to pay for the repair of an ecological disaster.

so Russia, carpet bomb northwest Syria all it wants too, but their will be an end to this eventually.

Oh yes, it's all about mother earth to you people.

[shiv]

Turkey is playing a Pakistan game and as someone eloquently pointed out there is much for Pakistanis to feel great heartburn. All that Pakistan wanted from the US was some help against India - a few bombs - a few planes shot down, ships sunk etc. The US did not oblige. But Turkey. Turkey's different. Turkey got exactly what they wanted from the US against Assad.

[TSJones]

the only reason why Russia is carpet bombing northwest Syria is to protect their toehold on the Mediterranean sea naval base assets. they aren't carpet bombing anywhere else.

[ramana]

chetak, End of Cold War and collapse of FSU has re-ignited the old Russian-Turkish antagonism. Recall most of Eastern Europe was liberated from Ottoman rule. In fact Turkey joined NATO to be protected from Russia. So enticing NATO to fight Turkish wars is an old Paki game which was to join SEATO and CENTO as insurance against India.

If you read history of Anatolia aka modern Turkey there are many instabilities in there. Real Turkey formed by Seljuk Turks is a small rump state. After WWI, Atatürk retained Kurdish parts which are different nationality.

Russia has a no war option to reduce Turkey to Seljuk size by promoting Kurdistan. And Putin has no Metternich/Talleyrand compulsions of stability.

In fact creating Kurdistan will stabilize Anatolia.


Erdogan will be the dog who broke Turkey by biting the bear.

Peace of Europe was against the scourge of Europe aka Turkey.

[TSJones]

i would point out that it is not Turkey bombing Russia's "near abroad" nor NATO either for that matter. It is Russia doing the bombing of Turkey's near abroad to save their naval base and their client.

[Sid]

the only reason why Russia is carpet bombing northwest Syria is to protect their toehold on the Mediterranean sea naval base assets. they aren't carpet bombing anywhere else.

Everyone fights for their interests, no? There is no knight in a shinning armor who would go about saving people in need of help.

But in this scenario, US and its alliance lost this moral high ground (if they ever had one) and purpose in this campaign. So please stop preaching us on the contrary, and specially stop watching your world in black and white colors.

Assad is no angel, he is a dictator (a brutal one). But he is the last hope for a country on the verge of total collapse (another Afghanistan/Pakistan).

[chetak]

The conservative American Thinker goes even further by claiming it’s about time to replace Turkey with Russia in NATO,

There is some chatter about Putin forming a new alliance with europe minus turkey and the US. The french in particular and also the germans wouldn't object too much.

[chetak]

Don't expect truth from MSM - Turkey is lying

Don't expect truth from MSM - Turkey is lying

Paul Craig Roberts
PaulCraigRoberts.org
Wed, 25 Nov 2015 20:43 UTCMap



© AFP/Getty Images
Photos of Russian Sukhoi Su-24 jet shot down by Turkish F-16 – dead in flame.
Tyler Durden at Zero Hedge has posted the flight paths of the Russian aircraft according to Turkey and to Russia.

We know that Turkey is lying for three reasons.

One reason is that NATO governments lie every time that they open their mouths.

A second reason is that Turkey's claim that the SU-24 was in Turkey's airspace for 17 seconds but only traveled 1.15 miles means that the SU-24 was flying at stall speed! The entire Western media was too incompetent to do the basic math!

A third reason is that, assuming Turkey's claim of a 17-second airspace violation is true, 17 seconds is not long enough for a Turkish pilot to get clearance for such a serious and reckless act as shooting down a Russian military aircraft. If the SU-24 was flying at a normal speed rather than one that would be unable to keep the aircraft aloft, the alleged airspace violation would not have been long enough to be noticed.

A shootdown had to have been pre-arranged. The Turks, knowing that the Russians were foolishly trusting to the agreement that there be no air to air encounters, told pilots to look for an opportunity. In my recent article, I gave a reason for this reckless act.

Turkey's explanation to the UN Security Council gives itself away as a lie. The letter states: "This morning (24 November) 2 SU-24 planes, the nationality of which are unknown have approached Turkish national airspace. The Planes in question have been warned 10 times during a period of 5 minutes via 'Emergency' channel and asked to change their headings south immediately."

As SU-24 are Russian aircraft, as Turkey is able to identify that the aircraft are SU-24s, how then can the nationality of the aircraft be unknown? Would Turkey risk shooting down a US or Israeli aircraft by firing at an unknown aircraft? If the SU-24 takes 17 seconds to fly 1.15 miles, the SU-24s would have only traveled 20.29 miles in five minutes. Does anyone believe that a supersonic aircraft can fly at stall speed for 17 seconds, much less for five minutes?

Do not expect any truth from any Western government or from any Western media. Governments and media know that the Western populations are uneducated, unaware, and can be relied upon to accept any preposterous story. In the West the Matrix has a firm grip. The Russians need to wake up to this fact.

NPR this morning confirmed that the media is a government propaganda organ. The Diane Rehm show on NPR presented us with a group of talking heads. Only one was informed, a professor at the Middle East Institute of the London School of Economics. The rest of the "experts" were the typical dumbshit Americans. They repeated all of the lies. "Russia is attacking everyone except ISIS." How can there be anyone but ISIS to attack when the US general overseeing the area recently told Congress that "only five" of our trained "rebels" remained? Yet the myth of "moderate rebels" is kept alive by these liars.

"The refugees are fleeing the brutal Assad." Notice that it is always Assad who is brutal, not ISIS which has cut out opponents' hearts and eaten them, and routinely cuts off people's heads and commits the most atrocious atrocities. Here we have "experts" blaming Assad. The "experts" said that the refugees are fleeing from Assad not from ISIS. The refugee problem is Assad's fault, not the fault of ISIS. It is all Assad's fault because he doesn't give up and turn Syria over to Washington's ISIS henchmen.

There was no acknowledgement from the "experts" that ISIS is a Washington creation or that until the Paris attack Washington was strongly backing ISIS with both words and weapons against the Russian air attacks that caught both Washington and ISIS off guard. This is extraordinary considering the fact that US responsibility for ISIS was acknowledged on TV by the former head of the Pentagon's Defense Intelligence Agency.

Gullible Americans who give money to NPR are supporting lies and propaganda that have resulted in the deaths and dislocation of millions of peoples and that are leading to WWIII. The Western media whores are complicit in the crimes, because they fail their responsibility to hold government accountable and make it impossible for valid information to reach people. The Western media serves as cheerleaders for death and destruction

[Sid]

There is some chatter about Putin forming a new alliance with europe minus turkey and the US. The french in particular and also the germans wouldn't object too much.

Germans were against sanctions imposed on Russians too. They are dragging their feet for now to comply with their alliance.

But with all this refugee drama and terror attacks in Paris, things are falling apart for alliance , specially Turkey. Europeans are not dumb and deaf, they know what's going down there.

Also news of US sending instructors to Kurdish stronghold may a middle finger to Turkey which started targeting their bases in Iraq and Syria with vigor.

Blow-back of current events on Turkish society will be devastating. Hope Error-gone's is replaced before its too late for Turkey. Every time a "chotu" tries to be rambo, munna takes him down.

[chetak]

Syria’s Cauldron of Fire: a Downed Russian Jet and the Battle of Two Pipelines

Syria’s Cauldron of Fire: a Downed Russian Jet and the Battle of Two Pipelines
by OLIVER TICKELL




pipeline

With yesterday’s shooting down of a Russian SU24 by Turkey, the war in Syria just took a new twist – and one that sends a powerful message to the UK as it contemplates joining in bombing raids on Islamic State militants.

And for those who are hard of hearing, that message is: ‘keep well out!’

Up until now, the war in Syria has looked complicated. On the one side the Syrian state led by President Bashar Assad, supported by its long term ally Russia, Iran and Iraq – ‘Them’.

On another side, Islamic State (IS) and allied terrorist groups.

And finally the US, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, France and Israel as a silent partner, allied with ‘moderate rebels’ in Syria whom they equip and finance. Very possibly to be joined by the UK, at least if David Cameron gets his way. Collectively, ‘Us’.

Of course there have been well-supported allegations that those last two sides are actually one and the same. Much as the US supported Islamic terrorists in Afghanistan to attack Russia in the 1980s (and has been suffering the blowback ever since), the theory goes, so it is now supporting IS as a proxy force against Syria to advance its geopolitical goals.

But now it really looks like it’s all true. NATO member Turkey’s shooting down of a Russian SU24 that was, so the Russians insist, a full kilometre inside Syrian air space, was described by Vladimir Putin as “a stab in back delivered by terrorist accomplices”, going on to add:

“We have long been recording the movement of a large amount of oil and petroleum products to Turkey from ISIS-occupied territories. This explains the significant funding the terrorists are receiving. Now they are stabbing us in the back by hitting our planes that are fighting terrorism.

“This is happening despite the agreement we have signed with our American partners to prevent air incidents, and, as you know, Turkey is among those who are supposed to be fighting terrorism within the American coalition.”

What is beyond doubt is the many credible accusations that Turkey has long been allied with IS as a proxy force in its own internal and external war against the Kurds – a downtrodden and disenfranchised People in Eastern Turkey, but increasingly empowered in their autonomous regions of Iraq and Syria, where they have been highly effective at the sharp end of the fight against IS.

Turkey is also, specifically, training and supplying the ‘moderate’ Turkmen rebels in Syria near its border in order to create a ‘safe zone’ for armed opponents to the Syrian regime. It is these ‘Allahu Akbar’ shouting ‘moderates’ that shot at the parachuting air crew in direct violation of the laws of war – from the 1923 Hague Rules to the 1997 Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions.

So what about all that talk from the US, the UK and other governments that IS represents an existential threat that must be destroyed? A rhetoric that has, of course, grown all the stronger since the horrific attacks in Paris of 13th November?

I am reminded of the fabled words of St Augustine: ‘Lord, grant me chastity. But not yet.’ Yes, IS is an evil, even genocidal organisation that represents a long term threat to civilisation everywhere. But for now, it’s serving Us far too well. The time will come to turn against IS – once Assad is finally defeated.

It was all going so well! Until Russia stepped in

And it has to be said, things were all going to plan. Syrian government forces were outnumbered and outgunned by IS which had been gaining ground across the country, seizing key oilfields and associated infrastructure (earning it a reputed $1.5 million a day in oil sales), and armed by sophisticated mainly US weaponry supplied to ‘moderate’ rebels who promptly joined up with IS.

But then this summer Russia moved into the Latakia air base in western Syria, beefed up its defences, and moved in its military aircraft. Bombing of IS and other rebel positions began in late September and have continued ever since with increasing ferocity and effectiveness.

Suddenly – after IS had somehow survived and flourished after a full year of US bombing raids – IS was suffering serious damage from the air, while re-emboldened Syrian ground forces, working under Russian air support, began to regain territory and key strategic objectives such as the Kweyris military base east of Aleppo which may now form a second base for Russian aircraft.

And for all Our complaints that Russia was mainly attacking ‘moderate’ rebel forces supported by Us, rather than IS, IS was upset enough – or so it seems – to place a bomb in a Russian tourist aircraft returing from Sharm-el-Sheikh to St Petersburg on 31st October and kill all 224 occupants above Egypt’s Sinai desert.

The US was forced to step up to the mark and show that it really was taking the IS threat seriously. For the first time, for example, US aircraft attacked convoys of oil tankers travelling to the Turkish border last week, destroying 116 of them and another 283 over the weekend.

This certainly adds up to a credible military action – but gives rise to the question – why did it take them so long?

Into the cauldron of fire?

It is into this highly unstable situation that David Cameron wants to commit UK armed forces and get bombing. Last time he sought Parliamentary approval for bombing in Syria, remember, he lost the vote on 30th August 2013. And that time, it was President Assad’s forces he wanted to bomb.

Now, barely two years after that well-earned Parliamentary disaster, he’s even keener to get bombing. Only this time, it’s the other side he’s after destroying – IS. But is it really? Or is the truth that it’s the same old game plan all along?

It increasingly looks as if the sudden enthusiasm for bombing IS in Syria has more to do with claiming territory in the east of a broken up and Balkanised Syria for Our so-called ‘moderate’ rebels, and hold Assad and his Russian allies at bay. And that goes not just for the US but for the UK as well.

So what’s going on? One often ignored dimension is the ‘battle of two pipelines‘ to carry natural gas from either Qatar or Iran across Syria to European markets. The Qatari pipeline would transect Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Turkey on its way to Europe. The Iranian pipeline would go across Iraq and Syria before dipping undersea across the Mediterannean to Greece.

As reported on ZeroHedge, “Knowing Syria was a critical piece in its energy strategy, Turkey attempted to persuade Syrian President Bashar Assad to reform this Iranian pipeline and to work with the proposed Qatar-Turkey pipeline, which would ultimately satisfy Turkey and the Gulf Arab nations’ quest for dominance over gas supplies.

“But after Assad refused Turkey’s proposal, Turkey and its allies became the major architects of Syria’s ‘civil war’ … now we’re seeing what happens when you’re a Mid-East strongman and you decide not to support something the US and Saudi Arabia want to get done.”

And it so happens that with a good chunk of eastern Syria under Our belts, Qatar could have its pipeline up through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Turkey after all – while also blocking Iran’s pipeline route to the Med.

Is this really where we want to be sending ‘our boys’

Now all of this is a dangerous game for our airmen and aircraft to be getting involved in. With increasing rancour between Us and Them likely to develop, and hardening competition for land and key pipeline routes across Syria, Turkey’s downing of the Russian SU24 may be only the first of a number of miltary encounters that could ultimately lead to direct confrontation between the US and Russia.

If so, many might feel that his would be something the UK would be best off taking no part in. Despite Cameron’s desire to please the US, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and other allies, it’s hard to see anything at stake here that could really be called a ‘national interest’.

The Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has rightly sounded a cautious note over the UK joining in air strikes on Syria, calling for a “political solution” rather than a military one:

“The experience of Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya has convinced many of our own people that the elite’s enthusiasm for endless military interventions has only multiplied the threats to us – while leaving death and destabilisation in their wake. It is the conflict in Syria and the consequences of the Iraq war which have created the conditions for Isis to thrive and spread its murderous rule.”

He could also point out that there are other far more effective ways in which the UK government could make life difficult for IS if that really is its objective. For example, it could investigate the means by which funds are transferred to IS both within the UK and in other countries that have dealings with the UK and our financial institutions, and act to cut off the flow of funds.

And it could do more to ensure that weapons sold to friendly states like Saudi Arabia do not end up in IS hands. Yet, as former Lib-Dem leader Paddy Ashdown pointed out on the BBC Today Programme this morning, the UK has in fact been singularly reluctant to do either:

“The failure to put pressure on the Gulf states – and especially Saudi and Qatar – first of all to stop funding the Salafists and the Wahhabists, secondly to play a large part in this campaign, and other actions where the Government has refused to have a proper inquiry into the funding of jihadism in Britain, leads me to worry about the closeness between the Conservative Party and rich Arab Gulf individuals.

“Talking about Saudi Arabia and Qatar in particular. I’m not saying their governments have been doing it but their rich businessmen have, and in states like Saudi Arabia you’d imagine the government could stop it.”

Stop and think … are we even on the right side of this war?

And if anyone should be out there bombing IS, he added, it is those same countries that have been funding it: “The one thing the Gulf States haven’t been doing is playing a part in the military coalition which they are committed to. The last Saudi plane seen flying as part of the coalition over Syria was three months ago, the last Qatari plane was nearly a year ago.”

There is indeed a problem that no amount of bombing will solve: other key members of the very military coalition that the UK wants to join in bombing IS in Syria are entirely unwilling to do any such thing themselves, indeed they appear to be closely allied to IS both in their actions (and lack of them) and their geopolitical motivations.

So if there’s any side of the war we should be joining, it’s not with Us, it’s with Them. How about a request from President Assad to Prime Minister Cameron for fraternal military assistance in wiping out IS from his national territory? Because there is one thing for sure here: They really do want to annihilate IS completely and utterly.

And who knows, that might even be an idea that Jeremy Corbyn could agree to. It won’t happen, of course. Cameron climbs out of bed in the morning muttering “Assad must go” and the words are still on his lips as he goes to bed at night. But then again, France’s President Hollande is very serious about wanting to finish off IS after the Paris attacks and is coordinating with Russia – and by association, Assad – to that end.

It may be that we are in the midst of a profound shift in international loyalties and alliances in the Middle East and the wider world. A time of opportunity perhaps, but above all a time of danger: one in which discretion is most definitely the better part of valour.

Anyone for tennis?

Last night President Obama defended Turkey’s right to “defend its sovereign territory”. It’s still not clear whether or not the downed SU24 actually entered Turkish air space, but even if it did, it was a for a period of just 17 seconds, and by the time it was shot down it was some 6km inside Syria.

But think. If Turkey is allowed to shoot down foreign aircraft that enter its territory for a mere 17 seconds, Syria and its ally Russia may reasonably feel it can do the same to those of hostile states. Currently Our aircraft from a number of nations are flying over Syria with no permission from President Assad. They too must be seen as ‘fair game’ to be shot down.

Russia is now beefing up Syria’s air defences with additional installations of its fearsome S-400 anti-aircraft missile system, and with naval support off Syria’s coast. Last night Lieutenant General Sergei Rudskoi, a spokesman for Russia’s General Staff, released a statement in which he said:

“The General Staff is currently working out additional measures to ensure the security of the Russian air base. First: all actions of strike aircraft will be carried out only under cover of fighter planes. Second: measures will be taken to strengthen defense. To this end, the cruiser Moskva, equipped with Fort air defense system, similar to S-300, will assume position in the coastal region of Latakia.

“We caution that any targets, representing a potential danger for us, will be destroyed.”

[deejay]

i would point out that it is not Turkey bombing Russia's "near abroad" nor NATO either for that matter. It is Russia doing the bombing of Turkey's near abroad to save their naval base and their client.

What's this with the new "Near Abroad" term? Pakis keep firing on their "near abroad" all the time, both in East and on West. As long as Russians are bombing in Syria with no sign / declaration / intention of hitting Turkey, what is this crude attempt to stand up and justify for Turkey?

Haven't seen any comments from you on Turkey's support to ISIS or the impact it is having in devastating the country side located 'near abroad' of Turkey both in Iraq and Syria?

Wait, why will you comment? Your Government is up to its nostrils in this ISIS shit! One year of bombing or not bombing to help ISIS kill more and more. Oh! wait there are those moderate Al Nusra a.k.a Al CIAda whom your government needs to nurse.

[chetak]

Competing Gas Pipelines Are Fueling The Syrian War & Migrant Crisis

Tyler Durden on 09/10/2015

Don’t let anyone fool you: As we have detailed since 2013, sectarian strife in Syria has been engineered to provide cover for a war for access to oil and gas, and the power and money that come along with it.

Editor’s note:
This article has been updated to reflect recent Wikileaks revelations of US State Department leaks that show plans to destabilize Syria and overthrow the Syrian government as early as 2006. The leaks reveal that these plans were given to the US directly from the Israeli government and would be formalized through instigating civil strife and sectarianism through partnership with nations like Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and even Egypt to break down the power structue in Syria to essentially to weaken Iran and Hezbolla. The leaks also reveal Israeli plans to use this crisis to expand it’s occupation of the Golan Heights for additional oil exploration and military expansion.

* * *

Images of Aylan Kurdi, the three-year-old Syrian boy who washed up dead on Mediterranean shores in his family’s attempt to flee war-torn Syria, have grabbed the attention of people around the world, sparking outrage about the true costs of war.

The heart-wrenching refugee crisis unfolding across the Middle East and at European borders has ignited a much needed conversation on the ongoing strife and instability that’s driving people from their homes in countries like Syria, Libya and Iraq. It’s brought international attention to the inhumane treatment these refugees are receiving if — and it is a major “if” — they arrive at Europe’s door.

In Syria, for example, foreign powers have sunk the nation into a nightmare combination of civil war, foreign invasion and terrorism. Syrians are in the impossible position of having to choose between living in a warzone, being targeted by groups like ISIS and the Syrian government’s brutal crackdown, or faring dangerous waters with minimal safety equipment only to be denied food, water and safety by European governments if they reach shore.

Other Syrians fleeing the chaos at home have turned to neighboring Arab Muslim countries. Jordan alone has absorbed over half a million Syrian refugees; Lebanon has accepted nearly 1.5 million; and Iraq and Egypt have taken in several hundred thousand.

Although it’s not an Arab nation or even part of the Middle East, Iran sent 150 tons of humanitarian goods, including 3,000 tents and 10,000 blankets, to the Red Crescents of Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon via land routes to be distributed among the Syrian refugees residing in the three countries last year.

Turkey has taken in nearly 2 million refugees to date. Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Erdogan made international headlines for opening his nation’s arms to migrants, positioning himself as a kind of savior in the process.

A paramilitary police officer carries the lifeless body of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi after he drowned when the boat he and his family members were in capsized near the Turkish resort of Bodrum early Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015. (Photo: Nilüfer Demir/DHA)
A paramilitary police officer carries the lifeless body of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi after he drowned when the
boat he and his family members were in capsized near the Turkish resort of Bodrum early Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015.
(Photo: Nilüfer Demir/DHA)

Meanwhile, Gulf Arab nations like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have provided refuge to zero Syrian refugees.

While there’s certainly a conversation taking place about refugees — who they are, where they’re going, who’s helping them, and who isn’t — what’s absent is a discussion on how to prevent these wars from starting in the first place. Media outlets and political talking heads have found many opportunities to point fingers in the blame game, but not one media organization has accurately broken down what’s driving the chaos: control over gas, oil and resources.

Indeed, it’s worth asking: How did demonstrations held by “hundreds” of protesters demanding economic change in Syria four years ago devolve into a deadly sectarian civil war, fanning the flames of extremism haunting the world today and creating the world’s second largest refugee crisis?

While the media points its finger to Syrian President Bashar Assad’s barrel bombs and political analysts call for more airstrikes against ISIS and harsher sanctions against Syria, we’re four years into the crisis and most people have no idea how this war even got started.



This “civil war” is not about religion

Citing a lack of access on the ground, the United Nations stopped regularly updating its numbers of casualties in the Syrian civil war in January 2014. Estimates put the death toll between 140,200 and 330,380, with as many as 6 million Syrians displaced, according to the U.N.

While there is no question that the Syrian government is responsible for many of the casualties resulting from its brutal crackdown, this is not just a Syrian problem.

Foreign meddling in Syria began several years before the Syrian revolt erupted. Wikieaks released leaked US State Department cables from 2006 revealing US plans to overthrow the Syrian government through instigating civil strife, and receiving these very orders straight from Tel Aviv. The leaks reveal the United State’s partnership with nations like Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and even Egypt to use sectarianism to divide Syria through the Sunni and Shiite divide to destabilize the nation to weaken Iran and Hezbolla. Israel is also revealed to attempt to use this crisis to expand it’s occupation of the Golan Heights for additional oil exploration.

According to major media outlets like the BBC and the Associated Press, the demonstrations that supposedly swept Syria were comprised of only hundreds of people, but additional Wikileaks cables reveal CIA involvement on the ground in Syria to instigate these very demonstrations as early as March 2011.

FILE - In this Monday, Dec. 19, 2011 file photo, Syrians hold a large poster depicting Syria's President Bashar Assad during a rally in Damascus, Syria. Some activists expressed regret that one year later their "revolution" against President Bashar Assad's rule had become mired in violence. (AP Photo/Muzaffar Salman, File)
FILE – In this Monday, Dec. 19, 2011 file photo, Syrians hold a large poster depicting Syria’s President Bashar
Assad during a rally in Damascus, Syria. Some activists expressed regret that one year later their “revolution”
against President Bashar Assad’s rule had become mired in violence. (AP Photo/Muzaffar Salman, File)

Just a few months into the demonstrations which now consisted of hundreds of armed protesters with CIA ties, demonstrations grew larger, armed non-Syrian rebel groups swarmed into Syria, and a severe government crackdown swept through the country to deter this foreign meddling. It became evident that the United States, United Kingdom, France, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey would be jumping on the opportunity to organize, arm and finance rebels to form the Free Syrian Army as outlined in the State Department plans to destabilize Syria. (Just a few months ago, WikiLeaks confirmed this when it released Saudi intelligence that revealed Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia had been working hand in hand to arm and finance rebels to overthrow the Syrian government since 2012.)

These foreign nations created a pact in 2012 called “The Group of Friends of the Syrian People,” a name that couldn’t be further from the truth. Their agenda was to divide and conquer in order to wreak havoc across Syria in view of overthrowing Syrian President Bashar Assad.

A Free Syrian Army soldier carries his weapon at the northern town of Sarmada, in Idlib province, Syria, Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2012. (AP Photo)
A Free Syrian Army soldier carries his weapon at the northern town of Sarmada, in Idlib province, Syria,
Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2012. (AP Photo)

The true agenda to hijack Syria’s revolt quickly became evident, with talking heads inserting Syria’s alliance with Iran as a threat to the security and interests of the United States and its allies in the region. It’s no secret that Syria’s government is a major arms, oil and gas, and weapons ally of Iran and Lebanon’s resistance political group Hezbollah.

But it’s important to note the timing: This coalition and meddling in Syria came about immediately on the heels of discussions of an Iran-Iraq-Syria gas pipeline that was to be built between 2014 and 2016 from Iran’s giant South Pars field through Iraq and Syria. With a possible extension to Lebanon, it would eventually reach Europe, the target export market.

Perhaps the most accurate description of the current crisis over gas, oil and pipelines that is raging in Syria has been described by Dmitry Minin, writing for the Strategic Cultural Foundation in May 2013:

“A battle is raging over whether pipelines will go toward Europe from east to west, from Iran and Iraq to the Mediterranean coast of Syria, or take a more northbound route from Qatar and Saudi Arabia via Syria and Turkey. Having realized that the stalled Nabucco pipeline, and indeed the entire Southern Corridor, are backed up only by Azerbaijan’s reserves and can never equal Russian supplies to Europe or thwart the construction of the South Stream, the West is in a hurry to replace them with resources from the Persian Gulf. Syria ends up being a key link in this chain, and it leans in favor of Iran and Russia; thus it was decided in the Western capitals that its regime needs to change.


It’s the oil, gas and pipelines, stupid!

Indeed, tensions were building between Russia, the U.S. and the European Union amid concerns that the European gas market would be held hostage to Russian gas giant Gazprom. The proposed Iran-Iraq-Syria gas pipeline would be essential to diversifying Europe’s energy supplies away from Russia.

Turkey is Gazprom’s second-largest customer. The entire Turkish energy security structure relies on gas from Russia and Iran. Plus, Turkey was harboring Ottoman-like ambitions of becoming a strategic crossroads for the export of Russian, Caspian-Central Asian, Iraqi and Iranian oil and even gas to Europe.

The Guardian reported in August 2013:

“Assad refused to sign a proposed agreement with Qatar and Turkey that would run a pipeline from the latter’s North field, contiguous with Iran’s South Pars field, through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and on to Turkey, with a view to supply European markets – albeit crucially bypassing Russia. Assad’s rationale was ‘to protect the interests of [his] Russian ally, which is Europe’s top supplier of natural gas.’”



Note the purple line which traces the proposed Qatar-Turkey natural gas pipeline and note that all of the countries highlighted in red are part of a new coalition hastily put together after Turkey finally (in exchange for NATO’s acquiescence on Erdogan’s politically-motivated war with the PKK) agreed to allow the US to fly combat missions against ISIS targets from Incirlik. Now note which country along the purple line is not highlighted in red. That’s because Bashar al-Assad didn’t support the pipeline and now we’re seeing what happens when you’re a Mid-East strongman and you decide not to support something the US and Saudi Arabia want to get done.
Note the purple line which traces the proposed Qatar-Turkey natural gas pipeline and note that all of the
countries highlighted in red are part of a new coalition hastily put together after Turkey finally (in exchange for
NATO’s acquiescence on Erdogan’s politically-motivated war with the PKK) agreed to allow the US to fly combat
missions against ISIS targets from Incirlik. Now note which country along the purple line is not highlighted in red.
That’s because Bashar al-Assad didn’t support the pipeline and now we’re seeing what happens when you’re a
Mid-East strongman and you decide not to support something the US and Saudi Arabia want to get done.
(Map: ZeroHedge.com)

Knowing Syria was a critical piece in its energy strategy, Turkey attempted to persuade Syrian President Bashar Assad to reform this Iranian pipeline and to work with the proposed Qatar-Turkey pipeline, which would ultimately satisfy Turkey and the Gulf Arab nations’ quest for dominance over gas supplies. But after Assad refused Turkey’s proposal, Turkey and its allies became the major architects of Syria’s “civil war.”

https://youtu.be/G1p_tFnKqMA

Much of the strategy currently at play was described back in a 2008 U.S. Army-funded RAND report, “Unfolding the Future of the Long War”:

“The geographic area of proven oil reserves coincides with the power base of much of the Salafi-jihadist network. This creates a linkage between oil supplies and the long war that is not easily broken or simply characterized. … For the foreseeable future, world oil production growth and total output will be dominated by Persian Gulf resources. … The region will therefore remain a strategic priority, and this priority will interact strongly with that of prosecuting the long war.”
In this context, the report identifies the divide and conquer strategy while exploiting the Sunni-Shiite divide to protect Gulf oil and gas supplies while maintaining a Gulf Arab state dominance over oil markets.

“Divide and Rule focuses on exploiting fault lines between the various Salafi-jihadist groups to turn them against each other and dissipate their energy on internal conflicts. This strategy relies heavily on covert action, information operations (IO), unconventional warfare, and support to indigenous security forces. … the United States and its local allies could use the nationalist jihadists to launch proxy IO campaigns to discredit the transnational jihadists in the eyes of the local populace. … U.S. leaders could also choose to capitalize on the ‘Sustained Shia-Sunni Conflict’ trajectory by taking the side of the conservative Sunni regimes against Shiite empowerment movements in the Muslim world…. possibly supporting authoritative Sunni governments against a continuingly hostile Iran.”
The report notes that another option would be “to take sides in the conflict, possibly supporting authoritative Sunni governments against a continuingly hostile Iran.”

This framework crafted an interesting axis: Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, U.S., Britain and France vs. Syria, Iran and Russia.



Divide and conquer: A path to regime change

With the U.S., France, Britain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey — aka, the new “Friends of Syria” coalition — publicly calling for the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar Assad between 2011 and 2012 after Assad’s refusal to sign onto the gas pipeline, the funds and arms flowing into Syria to feed the so-called “moderate” rebels were pushing Syria into a humanitarian crisis. Rebel groups were being organized left and right, many of which featured foreign fighters and many of which had allied with al-Qaida.

Saudi Arabia's permanent representative to the League of Arab States Ahmad al-Qattan, center, attends the Arab League summit in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, March, 29, 2012. The annual Arab summit meeting opened in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Thursday with only 10 of the leaders of the 22-member Arab League in attendance and amid a growing rift between Arab countries over how far they should go to end the one-year conflict in Syria. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)
Saudi Arabia’s permanent representative to the League of Arab States Ahmad al-Qattan, center, attends the Arab
League summit in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, March, 29, 2012. (AP Photo)

The Syrian government responded with a heavy hand, targeting rebel held areas and killing civilians in the process.

Since Syria is religiously diverse, the so-called “Friends of Syria” pushed sectarianism as their official “divide and conquer” strategy to oust Assad. Claiming that Alawites ruled over a majority Sunni nation, the call by the “moderate” U.S.-backed rebels became one about Sunni liberation.

Although the war is being sold to the public as a Sunni-Shiite conflict, so-called Sunni groups like ISIS, the Syrian al-Qaida affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra (the Nusra Front) and even the “moderate” Free Syrian Army have indiscriminately targeted Syria’s Sunnis, Shiites, Christians and Jews. At the same time, these same foreign nations supported and even armed the Bahraini government, which claims to be Sunni, in its violent crackdown on the majority Shiite pro-democracy demonstrations that swept the nation.

The Syrian government army itself is over 80 percent Sunni, which indicates that the true agenda has been politically — not religiously — motivated.

In addition to this, the Assad family is Alawite, an Islamic sect that the media has clumped in with Shiites, though most Shiites would agree that the two are unrelated. Further, the Assad family is described as secular and running a secular nation. Counting Alawites as Shiites was simply another way to push a sectarian framework for the conflict: It allowed for the premise that the Syria-Iran alliance was based on religion, when, in fact, it was an economic relationship.

This framework carefully crafted the Syrian conflict as a Sunni revolution to liberate itself from Shiite influence that Iran was supposedly spreading to Iraq, Syria and Lebanon.

But the truth is, Syria’s Sunni community is divided, and many defected to join groups like the Free Syrian Army, ISIS and al-Qaida. And as mentioned earlier, over 80 percent of Assad’s military is Sunni.

As early as 2012, additional rebels armed and financed by Arab Gulf nations and Turkey like al-Qaida and the Muslim Brotherhood, declared all-out war against Shiites. They even threatened to attack Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iraq’s government after they had overthrown the Assad government.

Soon after, the majority of the Muslim Brotherhood rebels became part of al-Qaida-affiliated groups. Together, they announced that they would destroy all shrines — not just those ones which hold particular importance to Shiites.

Hezbollah entered the scene in 2012 and allied itself with the Syrian government to fight al-Nusra and ISIS, which were officially being armed and financed by Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. And all the arms were actively being sold to these nations by the United States. Thus, US arms were falling into the hands of the same terror group the US claims to be fighting in its broader War on Terror.

Hezbollah fighters carry the coffin of Hezbollah member Mohammad Issa who was killed in an airstrike that killed six members of the Lebanese militant group and an Iranian general in Syria, during his funeral procession, in the southern village of Arab Salim, Lebanon, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015. Hezbollah has accused Israel of carrying out Sunday's airstrike, which occurred on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights. Issa was the highest-ranking among the group, and was among the senior cadres who headed the group's operations in Syria against the Sunni-led rebellion. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
Hezbollah fighters carry the coffin of Hezbollah member Mohammad Issa who was killed in an airstrike that
killed six members of the Lebanese militant group and an Iranian general in Syria, during his funeral procession,
in the southern village of Arab Salim, Lebanon, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015. Hezbollah has accused Israel of carrying
out Sunday’s airstrike, which occurred on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights. Issa was the highest-ranking among
the group, and was among the senior cadres who headed the group’s operations in Syria against the Sunni-led
rebellion. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

According to reports, Hezbollah was and has been been active in preventing rebel penetration from Syria to Lebanon, being one of the most active forces in the Syrian civil war spillover in Lebanon. Despite this, the U.S. sanctioned both the Syrian government and Hezbollah in 2012.

Also that year, Russia and Iran sent military advisers to assist the Syrian government in quelling the terror groups, but Iranian troops were not on the ground fighting during this time.

What was once a secular, diverse and peaceful nation, was looking more like it was on its way to becoming the next Afghanistan; its people living under Taliban-style rule as jihadists took over more land and conquered more cities.



Effects of foreign meddling outweigh self-determination

If you think that was hard to follow, you’re certainly not alone.

Most sectarian civil wars are purposely crafted to pit sides against one another to allow for a “divide and conquer” approach that breaks larger concentrations of power into smaller factions that have more difficulty linking up. It’s a colonial doctrine that the British Empire famously used, and what we see taking place in Syria is no different.

So, let’s get one thing straight: This is not about religion. It might be convenient to say that Arabs or Muslims kill each other, and it’s easy to frame these conflicts as sectarian to paint the region and its people as barbaric. But this Orientalist, overly simplistic view of conflict in the Middle East dehumanizes the victims of these wars to justify direct and indirect military action.

If the truth was presented to the public from the perspective that these wars are about economic interests, most people would not support any covert funding and arming of rebels or direct intervention. In fact, the majority of the public would protest against war. But when something is presented to the public as a matter of good versus evil, we are naturally inclined to side with the “good” and justify war to fight off the supposed “evil.”

The political rhetoric has been carefully crafted to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable. Ultimately, no matter the agendas, the alliances or instability brought on by foreign meddling, the calls for freedom, democracy and equality that erupted in 2011 were real then and they’re real today. And let’s not forget that the lack of freedom, democracy and equality have been brought on more by foreign meddling to prop up brutal dictators and arm terror groups than by self-determination.

Migrant men help a fellow migrant man holding a boy as they are stuck between Macedonian riot police officers and migrants during a clash near the border train station of Idomeni, northern Greece, as they wait to be allowed by the Macedonian police to cross the border from Greece to Macedonia, Friday, Aug. 21, 2015. Macedonian special police forces have fired stun grenades to disperse thousands of migrants stuck on a no-man's land with Greece, a day after Macedonia declared a state of emergency on its borders to deal with a massive influx of migrants heading north to Europe. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Refugee’s assist a fellow Refugee holding a boy as they are stuck between Macedonian riot police officers and
refugees during a clash near the border train station of Idomeni, northern Greece, as they wait to be allowed by
the Macedonian police to cross the border from Greece to Macedonia, Friday, Aug. 21, 2015. Macedonian special
police forces have fired stun grenades to disperse thousands of refugees stuck on a no-man’s land with Greece, a
day after Macedonia declared a state of emergency on its borders to deal with a massive influx of refugees heading
north to Europe. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

The people in the Middle East once stood united and strong together against foreign meddling, exploitation and colonialism no matter their religious or cultural background. But today, the Middle East is being torn to shreds by manipulative plans to gain oil and gas access by pitting people against one another based on religion. The ensuing chaos provides ample cover to install a new regime that’s more amenable to opening up oil pipelines and ensuring favorable routes for the highest bidders.

And in this push for energy, it’s the people who suffer most. In Syria, they are fleeing en masse. They’re waking up, putting sneakers on their little boys and girls, and hopping on boats without life jackets, hoping just to make it to another shore. They’re risking their lives, knowing full well that they may never reach that other shore, because the hope of somewhere else is better than the reality at home

[habal]

Assad is no angel, he is a dictator (a brutal one). But he is the last hope for a country on the verge of total collapse (another Afghanistan/Pakistan).

I disagree with this description of Assad jr. He is THE MOST QUALIFIED middle eastern ruler there is. He is a pucca gentleman. He has very soft eyes, a long neck, a curious face who looks like he needs serious help. He is an oculist by profession. Maybe the most qualified in middle east right now including that reliable of pardners nutandyahoo. The rest of them rulers look like they are on some crazy power trip. His father Hafez Assad had reputation of being a brutal dictator due to crushing the muslim brotherhood rebellion sponsored by very same people who are doing all the sht now. If he were defeated then the Kurds, yazidis, shias, assyrians wouldn't have made it so far. The syrian security services did practice some hard crackdowns on segmentz of population and were almost paranoid for decades together. Yet they couldn't save it from eventual civil strife after senior Assad passed away.

sometimes people gobble western narrative outright and become unwitting spokespersons of whatever is dished out in western media. why are they not talking today of HOW ASSAD GASSED HIS PEOPLE ? because evidently it was carried out in house by turkish secret service and daesh. But they haven't taken back 'brutal dictator' tag, have they ?

[panduranghari]

Russia has a no war option to reduce Turkey to Seljuk size by promoting Kurdistan. And Putin has no Metternich/Talleyrand compulsions of stability.

Is this the main reason why Uk wants to be actively involved in the bombing campaign. Since the fall of Napolean, Britain has had its fingers in all the European pies. Does it not follow, the main aims for Britain and the US vis-a-vis ISIS are different?

[ManjaM]

now I wonder just exactly what Putin thinks what Pigeon Numero Uno is to do about Turkey shooting down Russian jets?
.
.
.

So US doesn't even have a semblance of control on its supposed minions, and it will go "mano-e-mano" with Russia? puleezz, best you stick with Grenada, Haiti and Mexico. Heck even Pakis send your proud and brave back home in various shades of disrepair and get dollahs in exchange. Didn't Eyeran bring down one of your droneacharyas, and didn't they get a Nooclear deal in return.
Don't grab your nuts so hard that the blood to your brain stops flowing.

[TSJones]

thanks for the Typical Russian agitprop.

1. Commandante Pigeon does not want to lose Turkey from NATO. If Turkey feels we are unsympathetic they can ask us to leave. In some respects we are the bank that loans someone huge amounts of money and now we are afraid of them going bankrupt. So we have legitimate interests in Turkey.

2. All US targeting must be cleared and pre approved by Supreme Pigeon Command on Pennsylvania Ave. No ad hoc targeting by cowboy pilots. Never mind the fact we have wonderful cowboy pilots slobbering over hospitals and wedding parties with hellfire missiles ready to anal probe.

3. The Pigeon of Peace and chess boards is at heart, a community organizer. He would love to do nothing more than to set up peaceful protests with cardboard placards decorated with #(your choice)lives matter. The problem being:

a. He swore upon the Holy Bible when he became president that he would do everything in his power to protect America.

b. NATO is essential to that protection.

c. He thinks it is in NATO's best interest to keep Turkey close at hand.

d. When Islamic terrorists behead Americans, it doesn't look good.

e. Therefore he is raising the overall Arab IQ in the middle east by a couple of points by sending his trusty thug crews and cowboy pilots to whack incredibly stupid Islamic pyscho terrorists. He even had a 16 year old American kid whacked in Yemen who went looking for his daddy (who also had been whacked). Too easy.

So kindly lay off the usual Russian truth news. Nobody is abandoning Turkey. Russian is not going to carpet bomb anywhere else that they deem is not essential to saving Assad or their naval base. Money doesn't grow on trees you know?

[Shreeman]

The next time you read "syrian observatory on human rights" note that it is an individual greengrocer? somewhere in poodlistan. Why does it merit a paragraph as the verifier of death counts in all media everywhere?

[Sid]

thanks for the Typical Russian agitprop.

----------------------------------
So kindly lay off the usual Russian truth news. Nobody is abandoning Turkey. Russian is not going to carpet bomb anywhere else that they deem is not essential to saving Assad or their naval base. Money doesn't grow on trees you know?

How kind of you to enlighten us with gospel from CNN and Fox. We have seen how narratives/ plans from Commandant Pigeon and Owl (from past) worked out for Iraq and Lebanon. Both are still reeling from civil wars and almost broken nations.

Same could have been said for Egypt too. But hey you know the best, we just listen to all phony media circulating garbage.

[Sid]

The next time you read "syrian observatory on human rights" note that it is an individual greengrocer? somewhere in poodlistan. Why does it merit a paragraph as the verifier of death counts in all media everywhere?

There is an excellent article on Guardian on these "observer groups". Very enlightening I say. Someone can re-post it here for TSJones.

[habal]

analysis from Alexei Leonova:

(Yandex translation) Moscow, November 26, 2015, 12:22 — REGNUM Interview, military expert, permanent author of the magazine “Arsenal of the Fatherland”, an expert in the use of Military space forces Alexei Leonova

…In the attack involved several reconnaissance and targeting — at least 3, and two F-16 missiles with modern AIM-9X.

How it all happened?

Plane USAF Boeing E-3 Sentry AWACS took off on November 24 with the aviation base of Preveza in Greece. Second E-3A air force of Saudi Arabia flew from Riyadh airbase. Both aircraft performed a single task of determining the exact location of the aircraft of the Russian space forces. They chose “sacrifice”…

…E-3 all the time gave detailed information about the su-24M2 patrol a pair of Turkish F-16CJ. This plane is specially produced for Turkey. Its special feature is the computer controlling the new radar AN/APG-68 and serving as the second pilot-Navigator.

But this information is insufficient for high-speed target. Used something else?

Indeed, the accuracy of the output of the F-16CJ is additionally provided ground-based air defense systems Patriot USA located in Turkey, or rather their multi-function radar AN/MPQ-53…The trajectory of the F-16CJ is talking about high-precision output for the purpose of method triangulation: a pair of E-3A radar plus Patriot plus geostationary satellites RAP MENTOR and possibly “Geosat”…

It turns out that Turkish fighters knew exactly where to wait for our plane in ambush?

Of course. A pair of F-16CJ reached the area of start-up and from a distance of 4-6 kilometers, almost point blank (!) put a rocket “air-air” AIM-9X Sidewinder in rear hemisphere of Russian bombers. With radar AN/APG-68 launch a rocket fighter worked in the “illuminated goal”: involved in the start-up and passed out after the rocket has confidently captured and hit the target.

If our pilots the opportunity to save the aircraft?

No. The chances to avoid defeat at the crew of the su-24M2 have been equal to zero…

You mean “American partners”, those who belong to the “Patriots” and “AWACS”, as well as satellites, possibly involved in the operation?

Yes, with a high degree of probability. Turkey lacks the necessary capacity to such painstaking and very precise work. And don’t forget about the second E-3 assigned to the air force of Saudi Arabia. The whole scenario is quite transient, followed by the second.

Really everything went so smoothly?

The Turks made a mistake, in which the provocation was not a success. F-16CJ came to defeat with a delay of 2 minutes, when the su-24M2 have already left the disputed plot 68-kilometer territory in Northern Syria … It seems that it saved and our Navigator. He was able to go to the “greenery” and wait for the search party there.

unkil wanted both pilots dead so that their version couldn't be heard, and unkil could fabricate fake narrative of intrusion into turkish airspace.

[TSJones]

Hmmmm, did you really think that Supreme Pigeon does not have the air space over southern Turkey or northern Syria under 24x7 monitor and surveillance? You think that for one second we are open to air attack at Incirlik air base ala Pearl Harbor?

[Satya_anveshi]

As mentioned before, Germany is most sympathetic with Russians and then these:
"Greece was the first to address the council, it set the tone for the discussion, because Turkish aircraft constantly violate the Greek airspace. Then the French representative made a harsh speech," the source told RIA Novosti, adding that NATO's support was not unanimous.

NATO members know that US is using security cover to destroy european economy and they have reasons to not sing to the tunes of US/NATO.

Contrary to many people's perceptions, it is actually US which is stuck in strategic overreach position unable to defend all its pieces.

There is a reason why pigeon analogy is absolutely correct. There is no strategic coherence in US moves because it has violated its own principles.

- On the one side attacking european economy and wants their support of NATO. It lets loose Greece and Volkswagen type issues that further cripple european economy which is already over extended.

- It does not want syrian refugees but at the same time pushes 100s of thousands of refugees to europe and many of them appear to be in 18-25 aged males for potential terrorist operations in future

- All past decade and half it waged a phoney war on terror and now it is using terrorists to destroy nations

- created ukraine mess and mutual sanctions are affecting european nations with nothing to show in return for them

- US signed agreement with Russia on mission safety and proved to be unreliable of keeping with agreement. Next time Russia will want european guarantee to agreements with america (like he did with Minsk deal).

Americans can rejoice at the invention of new game of pigion chess that will surely entertain more audience than blander and serious version of chess. No wonder Bobby Fisher, one of the greatest chess players of all time, preferred to die in a distant land of Iceland instead of his birth place USA.

[Zynda]

It seems the MAWS on the Su-24M is installed on the dorsal spine of the aircraft and this location probably prevents it from providing 360 degree coverage.

I dunno if Turkish F-16 have HMS capability along with AIM-9X. If yes, then that would be the preferred mode of engagement since no radar lock-on is required and thus completely passive.

May be the Turkish F-16 with its radar on stand-by or switched OFF and sneaked up on the Su-24s from a position where its MAWS would have no coverage and fired its missile.

What surprised me is the fact that US DoD began issuing statements just by US late evening that it was a heat seeking missile which probably brought down the Su-24. I think it was on Wed, a Russian MoD video first mentioned short range/heat seeking missile as the weapon.

Speculation Alert Onlee: May be the US DoD was involved in assisting Turkey on how to sneak up & providing inputs about limitations of Su-24

[johneeG]

It's been nearly 6 weeks since Russia's got involved into Syrian mess. I was thinking what's the reason that Putin decided to jump in. Getting involved in some others war is a very very big decision for a country and there must be most compelling reasons behind it. I could think of many small (if I can say that) reasons and still can't find the biggest reason Russia got involved itself in this war.

-to divert attention from Ukraine issue
-because Russia has got Naval Base in Latakia
-Assad always stood shoulder to shoulder with USSR/Russia, Russian duty to stood by it's ally?
-Oil and Gas in Syria and it's impact on Russian petrochemical complex.
-Russia thinks jihadi's having free run in Syria will have implications on Russia's internal security
-Once West is free form Middle East mess they will try to overthrow Putin.
-To show/ display the Russian military power, advancement made by Russia in this field.
-To show USA/West it's place.
-May be Ego?

Or is there some other big factor? or some great futuristic plan execution to change the future balance of power in the world/world order?
Scratching my head

Maybe Putin wants to put an end to Wolfovitz Doctrine. What is Wolfovitz Doctrine?

Putin Has Just Put An End to the Wolfowitz Doctrine

4-Star General Wesley Clark noted:

In 1991, [powerful neocon and Iraq war architect Paul Wolfowitz] was the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy – the number 3 position at the Pentagon. And I had gone to see him when I was a 1-Star General commanding the National Training Center.



***



And I said, “Mr. Secretary, you must be pretty happy with the performance of the troops in Desert Storm.”



And he said: “Yeah, but not really, because the truth is we should have gotten rid of Saddam Hussein, and we didn’t … But one thing we did learn [from the Persian Gulf War] is that we can use our military in the region – in the Middle East – and the Soviets won’t stop us. And we’ve got about 5 or 10 years to clean up those old Soviet client regimes – Syria, Iran, Iraq – before the next great superpower comes on to challenge us.”

(Skip to 3:07 in the following video)



Uploaded on Nov 5, 2007

Link to Utube Video

Wesley Clark discusses "A Time to Lead."

Wesley Clark sought the presidency during the 2004 elections, seeking to bring a less hawkish perspective to the White House. After the campaign, Clark did not end his crusade for what he sees as a better America, one that supports his vision of a responsible foreign policy. He believes that hard work, leadership and determination will ultimately turn the country around. - The Commonwealth Club

Wesley Clark is a retired four-star general of the United States Army. Clark was valedictorian of his class at West Point, was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford where he earned a master's degree in economics, and later graduated from the Command and General Staff College with a master's degree in military science. He spent 34 years in the Army and the Department of Defense, receiving many military decorations, several honorary knighthoods, and a Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The hawks overthrew Soviet allies Iraq and Libya.

And they’ve been pushing for regime change in Syria for years.

By bombing Isis, Al Nusra and other jihadis in Syria who are focused on overthrowing Russian ally Assad, Putin has put an end to the Wolfowitz doctrine.

After Gulf War and Soviet Collapse, Wolfowitz Doctrine became popular in a unipolar world.

After 9/11,

Originally published in March 2007:

“We’re going to take out seven countries in 5 years, starting with Iraq, and then Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and, finishing off, Iran” –

General Wesley Clark. Retired 4-star U.S. Army general, Supreme Allied Commander of NATO during the 1999 War on Yugoslavia .

GEN. WESLEY CLARK:

I knew why, because I had been through the Pentagon right after 9/11. About ten days after 9/11, I went through the Pentagon and I saw Secretary Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary Wolfowitz. I went downstairs just to say hello to some of the people on the Joint Staff who used to work for me, and one of the generals called me in. He said, “Sir, you’ve got to come in and talk to me a second.” I said, “Well, you’re too busy.” He said, “No, no.” He says, “We’ve made the decision we’re going to war with Iraq.” This was on or about the 20th of September. I said, “We’re going to war with Iraq? Why?” He said, “I don’t know.” He said, “I guess they don’t know what else to do.” So I said, “Well, did they find some information connecting Saddam to al-Qaeda?” He said, “No, no.” He says, “There’s nothing new that way. They just made the decision to go to war with Iraq.” He said, “I guess it’s like we don’t know what to do about terrorists, but we’ve got a good military and we can take down governments.” And he said, “I guess if the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem has to look like a nail.”

So I came back to see him a few weeks later, and by that time we were bombing in Afghanistan. I said, “Are we still going to war with Iraq?” And he said, “Oh, it’s worse than that.” He reached over on his desk. He picked up a piece of paper. And he said, “I just got this down from upstairs” — meaning the Secretary of Defense’s office — “today.” And he said, “This is a memo that describes how we’re going to take out seven countries in five years, starting with Iraq, and then Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and, finishing off, Iran.” I said, “Is it classified?” He said, “Yes, sir.” I said, “Well, don’t show it to me.” And I saw him a year or so ago, and I said, “You remember that?” He said, “Sir, I didn’t show you that memo! I didn’t show it to you!”

Link

Iraq - 2001
Lebanon -2006
Libya - 2011

Now, they are trying to finish off Syria. So far, Obama seems to have somehow resisted launching full-scale military campaign. Full credit to Obama for not starting another open war. But, the proxies rebels have not stopped. And credit to Obama for sealing a deal with Iran.

After Soviet Union was weakened, the allies of US wanted US to support them in fight against former soviet allies.
Turkey vs Syria
Saudi vs Iran
Israel vs Lebanon
Pakistan vs India

India opened up to US, so US support to Pak during Kargil was limited. In return, India opened up to US NGOs and companies. India was also seen as a potential to counter China. Also, Pakistan is much less than the rest, so its influence on US is less than the rest. Under Wolfowitz doctrine, competitors to US had to be weakened to keep the position of top power. The potential competitors are the BRICS group where some NGOs could use social grievances to slow down the development and hinder power projection.

The term BRICS was coined in 2001. First BRICS summit was held in 2009. In 2015, BRICS bank has been setup.

In short, 2015 marks the beginning of multi-polar world and end of Wolfowitz doctrine as Russia enters west-asia.

[member_29247]

Syria a while ago when Assad was Ok in Washington
National geographic article before National Geo politics changed everything
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/ ... /belt-text


Those were the days
When Syria was ok
Not demonized as today
When the shades change
The elections are close
Washington wears new color
Exports a revolution
That ends as anhilation
Of civilizations and populations
That were sovereign nations

[chetak]

Turkish F-16 attacked Russian Su-24 without warning, both were above Syria – commander

Published time: 27 Nov, 2015


A Turkish fighter jet launched a missile at a Russian bomber on Tuesday well ahead of the Su-24 approaching the Turkish border, the chief of Russia’s Air Force said. The bomber remained on Turkish radars for 34 minutes and never received any warnings.
Trends
Su-24 downing
The attack on the Russian Su-24 bomber was intentional and had been planned in advance, Viktor Bondarev, the chief of Russia’s Air Force, announced Friday, calling the incident an “unprecedented backstab.”

The commander shared with the media previously unknown details of what happened on Tuesday.

On November 24, a pair of Russian Sukhoi Su-24 tactical bombers took off from Khmeimim airbase in Latakia at 06:15 GMT, with an assignment to carry out airstrikes in the vicinity of the settlements of Kepir, Mortlu and Zahia, all in the north of Syria. Each bomber was carrying four OFAB-250 high-explosive fragmentation bombs.

Ten minutes later, the bombers entered the range of Turkish radars and took positions in the target area, patrolling airspace at predetermined heights of 5,800 meters and 5,650 meters respectively.

Both aircraft remained in the area for 34 minutes. During this time there was no contact between the crews of the Russian bombers and the Turkish military authorities or warplanes.

Some 20 minutes after arriving at the designated area, the crews received the coordinates of groups of terrorists in the region. After making a first run, the bombers performed a maneuver and then delivered a second strike.

Immediately after that, the bomber crewed by Lieutenant-Colonel Oleg Peshkov and Captain Konstantin Murakhtin was attacked by a Turkish F-16 fighter jet operating from the Diyarbakır airfield in Turkey.

Read more
© الفرقة الاولى الساحليةFSA video claims Russian-made helicopter hit with US-made TOW missile near Su-24 crash site
To attack the Russian bomber with a close-range air-to-air missile, the Turkish fighter jet had to enter Syrian airspace, where it remained for about 40 seconds. Having launched its missile from a distance of 5-7 kilometers, the F-16 immediately turned towards the Turkish border, simultaneously dropping its altitude sharply, thus disappearing from the range of Russian radars at the Khmeimim airbase.

The Turkish fighter moved two kilometers into Syrian airspace while the Russian bomber at no stage violated Turkish airspace, Bondarev stressed.

The crew of the second Su-24M had a clear view of the moment the missile was fired from the Turkish F-16, and reported this to base.

Commander Bondarev noted that a pair of Turkish F-16Cs had been in the area close to the attack zone for more than an hour prior to the attack, which explains their presence in the area. The time needed to get the aircraft ready at the Diyarbakır airfield and travel to the attack zone is an estimated 46 minutes.

One of Turkish F-16Cs stopped its maneuvers and began to approach the Su-24M bomber about 100 seconds before the Russian aircraft came closest to the Turkish border, which also confirms the attack was pre-planned, Commander Bondarev stressed.

The chief of Russia’s Air Force also called attention to the readiness of the Turkish media, which released a professionally-made video of the incident recorded from an area controlled by extremists a mere 1.5 hours after the Su-24 was downed.

Commander Bondarev also mentioned the memorandum of understanding regarding the campaign in Syria, signed by Moscow and Washington on October 26. In accordance with this agreement, the Russian side informed its American counterparts about the mission of the two bombers in the north of Syria on November 24, including the zones and heights of operation.

Read more
A Russian Aerospace Defense Force jet bombs Islamic State facilities in Syria ©Terrorists in Su-24 search operation area killed - Russian Defense Ministry
Taking this into account, the Turkish authorities' statement on not knowing which aircraft were operating in the area raises eyebrows, Bondarev said.

The Turkish military not only violated all international laws on protecting national borders, but never delivered an apology for the incident or offered any help in the search and rescue operation for the Su-24 crew.

The Su-24’s pilot, Lieutenant-Colonel Oleg Peshkov, was shot dead by militants while parachuting to the ground, having ejected from the stricken aircraft. His partner, navigator Captain Konstantin Murakhtin, survived being shot at while parachuting and managed to stay alive on the ground in an area full of terrorists.

The rescue operation took several hours and eventually recovered Murakhtin, although one Russian Marine in the team was killed when the rescue helicopter was destroyed by a US-made tank missile launched by the extremists – an incident they filmed and published online.

Commander Bondarev specifically stressed that the Russian pilot who survived the attack was actively looked for not only by the jihadists, but also by a number of unidentified and technically well-equipped groups.

After Captain Murakhtin was rescued, the Russian Air Force delivered “more than massive, devastating” airstrikes against the militants in the region where the operation had been taking place, Bondarev reported

[rsingh]

These days Eiraan is very good country.........all of a sudden. National geo is following state dept very closely.

[chetak]

Syria a while ago when Assad was Ok in Washington
National geographic article before National Geo politics changed everything
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/ ... /belt-text


Those were the days
When Syria was ok
Not demonized as today
When the shades change
The elections are close
Washington wears new color
Exports a revolution
That ends as anhilation
Of civilizations and populations
That were sovereign nations

increasingly, it's beginning to look as though the US is a puppet of the saudis and their pals.

getting singed in the sunni backlash that always follows.

playing the really idiotic power games of turkey and it's greedy politicians.

obama with his ignobel peace prize is fast headed for the dustbin of history.

things will only get worse if a rabid feminazi is elected to office and gets her hands on the throttles of power. It will be one hell of a ride for sure.

[Lisa]

Sinsterji,

You missed out the best one, from Vogue,

http://gawker.com/asma-al-assad-a-rose- ... 1265002284

The following profile originally appeared in the March 2011 issue of Vogue magazine.

How Vogue Covers the Mideast Crisis

[ldev]

In happier times, on holiday together, Mr and Mrs. Erdogan and Assad.

[RoyG]

Like Musharraf and Kulkarni. One wants to put the other on a dinner plate.

[UlanBatori]

Islamic State militants battled rival insurgent groups on Wednesday north of the city of Aleppo, where officials say the Syrian army is preparing an offensive of its own backed by Iranian soldiers and Russian jets. A rebel fighter and a group monitoring the war said Islamic State fighters took control of part of the towns of Ahras and Tel Jabin, about 12 km (8 miles) north of Aleppo, before being pushed back.
Gains by Islamic State north of Aleppo will threaten the supply lines of rival rebels inside the city, which is divided between insurgents and government forces. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the road used by Aleppo residents heading north to the Turkish border remained closed on Wednesday. "Today there are fierce battles between us and Daesh in Ahras, Tel Jabin, and rural northern Aleppo," said Hassan Haj Ali, head of the Liwa Suqour al-Jabal rebel group, using another name for Islamic State.

His unit is one of several foreign-backed insurgent forces which find themselves fighting Islamic State on the ground, at the same time as they are bombed by Russian jets and are bracing for a broad ground offensive by the army.

"There are mobilisations by the regime in most parts of Aleppo, particularly in Bashkoy," he said, referring to another town north of Aleppo, which before Syria's civil war began in 2011 was the country's biggest city and a major commercial and industrial centre.
"There were advances (by Islamic State) at dawn but we were able to recover Ahras entirely. There are battles in Tel Jabin," said Ali, speaking to Reuters via an internet messaging system.
Iran has sent thousands of additional troops into Syria in recent days to bolster one offensive that is underway in Hama province and in preparation for another in the Aleppo area, two senior regional officials told Reuters.
In another sign of Iran's central role in support of President Bashar al-Assad, a team of Iranian lawmakers arrived in Damascus on Wednesday, and pictures circulated on social media showed the head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani, in western Syria.
Soleimani was pictured in a wooded area of northern Latakia province addressing Iranian officers and Hezbollah fighters with a microphone, wearing dark clothes as he spoke to the men in camouflage.
"This leak at this time is deliberate and part of managing the battle in which the Russian Sukhois (warplanes) are taking part," said Salem Zahran, a Lebanese media pundit with close ties to Hezbollah and the Syrian government.
REVOLUTIONARY GUARDS
Two senior Revolutionary Guards officers were killed fighting Islamic State in Syria on Monday, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported, although it did not say where. Another senior Guards commander was killed last week, as was a top Hezbollah commander.
Supported by two weeks of air strikes, the Syrian army and its allies have been fighting insurgents in northern Hama province, and neighbouring Idlib and Latakia provinces, trying to reverse rebel gains over the summer which had threatened the coastal heartlands of Assad's Alawite minority.
Assad's foreign opponents appear to be stepping up support for rebel groups in response to the Russian-Iranian intervention. Rebels say they have plentiful supplies of U.S.-made anti-tank missiles that are helping them to hold off ground attacks.
Two rebel commanders said on Tuesday they have stationed a dozen TOW anti-tank missile platforms supplied from abroad along a 30 km (20 miles) defensive line in Hama province in an effort to contain the army advance.
Activists said supplies of weapons had been stepped up since the Russian air strikes began on Sept. 30. The missiles have been widely seen as important to rebel advances earlier this year that had put Assad under pressure.
"We have an excellent supply of missiles," Fares Bayoush, head of the Fursan al-Haq rebel group, told Reuters from Syria. "We will, God willing, move to attack, not just defence."
Russia has stepped up its air strikes in recent days, announcing on Tuesday it had carried out 88 missions in the previous 24 hours, one of the heaviest days of bombardment of its campaign so far.
Moscow's intervention means Russian and U.S. jets are flying combat missions over the same country for the first time since World War Two, raising fears of possible accidental confrontation.
Russia says it has asked Washington to discuss coordination of military efforts, but Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday the United States had declined to send a high-level military delegation to Moscow for discussions.
Syrian state media said on Wednesday the army had also launched a fresh military operation against rebel-held areas east of Damascus, including Jobar and Harasta, controlled by non-Islamic State rebel groups including Jaish al-Islam.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/syria- ... z3sieK8pqu
Urgent: Rate Obama On His Job Performance For The Ummah. Vote Here Now!

[Bhurishrava]

self-del

[UlanBatori]

ARA News
QAMISHLI – Backed by a Russian air cover, Syrian army forces regained Thursday a strategic hill in Jebel al-Turkman (Mount Turkmen) in Lattakia, western Syria, after being engaged in fierce battles with the armed opposition factions in the area, local activists reported.

Speaking to ARA News in Latakia, media activist Mohammed Muwafaq said the government forces were able to recapture the key hill of al-Zahiya from opposition fighters who operate in the Syrian coastal region.

“Rebels pose a threat to the Russian military presence in the coastal region. This is why the pro-regime forces strive to regain it entirely with the support of Russian warplanes,” Muwafaq reported.

The source pointed out that the Syrian army made a “significant progress” towards the coastal areas held by the rebels, after intensifying their military operations in Latakia.

“Russia uses sophisticated missiles and internationally banned bombs against local rebels in a bid to reduce their advance towards the Mediterranean Sea,” he stressed.

“It (Russia) does this mainly to prevent any possible attacks on its interests in the coastal region,” Muwafaq said.

Russia has built strategic bases in the coastal region of Syria. It recently brought more sophisticated anti-plane missiles to these bases, according to Syrian military officials.

Russian politicians reiterate they do not back Assad, but rather they defend their interests in Syria’s coastal region.

“Turkey has mixed the cards in the region after downing the Russian plane,” a Syrian official told ARA News on the condition of anonymity, pointing out “Turkey is currently trying to support the armed Turkmen factions in Latakia’s mountainous area, which raises concerns of the Syrian regime and Russia.”

“Fighting will definitely escalate in the coming days in the region.”

Rebel groups in Jebel al-Turkman area in the countryside of Latakia have been engaged in fierce battles with the regime forces and allied militias for weeks.

Subsequent to a series of intense fighting with al-Nusra and other rebel factions, the Syrian army forces and allies imposed full control over the al-Zahiya hill. Rebels were forced to retreat northeast towards the Jebel al-Akrad (Kurds mountain), which borders Jebel al-Turkman.

Reporting by: Mir Yaqoob

Source: ARA News

[chetak]

These days Eiraan is very good country.........all of a sudden. National geo is following state dept very closely.

eyraan actively entering the conflict will complicate the power plays of all the present participants.

the troublesome pipelines are sure to hurt their long term commercial as well as political interests too. They are waiting and watching to see who upstages whom before picking up their cards.

turkey has just spectacularly, recklessly and foolishly blotted it's copybook. Putin's newly positioned S-400 batteries have pushed up the stakes and made it too rich for turkey to play at the same table. NATO allies are all very justifiably pissed off and wary, now that the bear has unnecessarily been poked. energy costs in europe will ramp up with the onset of winter and Putin is surely in no mood to allow new suppliers into his backyard market.

the end game and the resulting situation in turkey will finally crystallize a lot of mid east positions. like pakistan, turkey has always fancied punching much above it's weight and like pakistan it has already become a bit player too.

It's the amreki deep state that has to show it's hand now, the very same deep state that lavishes TLC on rogue players like pakistan and turkey.

Putin has showed that he is capable of playing chess at a very high level, perhaps at a level even higher than obama who still has many arrows in his in his fast depleting quiver. The saudi royal family is disintegrating and that will reduce the options for the US in case a palace war breaks out.

[UlanBatori]

In Syria, the West would have been quite happy to have Russia come in and destroy the ISIS. Then the Moderate Rebels would have completed the sweep of Syria, and knocked both Assad and the Russians out. Unfortunately the Russians are not cooperating. They are first going after the Moderate Rebels, causing ISIS to become MORE powerful in a few places. Now this forces NATO to commit air resources to protect their Moderate Terrorists and attack the ISIS. Question is which will happen first - a collapse of the ISIS, which will benefit NATO more, or a collapse of the Moderate Islamists, which will cause panic all over, but bring stability to Syria.