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

member_29247 · Post by **member_29247** » 01 Dec 2015 19:20

Do recall the beating of Peter Otoole by Turkish brigadier in Lawrence Of Arabia
Who says those blue eyes you are n a Arab

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 01 Dec 2015 19:25

ah yes... the old snm homo-erotic scene that is much talked about in abbotabad cantonment after dark

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 01 Dec 2015 19:35

It is time to add Turkey to the topic title before the etc.

http://www.dw.com/en/is-supply-channels ... v-18091048
fyi.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 01 Dec 2015 19:52

once the southern airbase is done, around 50 a/c will be on Al Nusra's case in the north from latakia base and the bigger southern base will perhaps house long range flankers and fullbacks, perhaps a few backfires also for the coming storm in deir azzor and southern axis.

some green pockets in the south have struck a deal to be offered safe passage under UN/red cross to Idlib (probably leave their arms behind) and in return govt will lift the siege of these areas.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 01 Dec 2015 19:54

is there a possibility of a sunni client state that does not touch the turkish border? it can include syria and iraq, but be buffered by a kurd zone between alawis and iran?

Satya_anveshi · Post by **Satya_anveshi** » 01 Dec 2015 20:03

UK should carve out a region within itself to provide a safe home for down and destitute <terrorist> sunnis so they can leave Syria/Iraq alone.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 01 Dec 2015 20:18

they have already, its called bradfordistan

Gyan · Post by **Gyan** » 01 Dec 2015 20:55

Frankly USA is playing an interesting Geopolitical Game which is similar to its support to Hitler pre War. Covert support to ISIS will wreck Middele East, Continental Europe and Russia. USA seems to have undermined and converted German and Turkish political leadership and they will happily send their respective nations over the brink. I think it is combination of USA, UK, Saudis, Israelis who are using Turkey, Germany to create trouble in Ukriane, Syria, Iraq to ultimately recreate the world order in new kind of WW3

rajithn · Post by **rajithn** » 01 Dec 2015 21:11

Gyan wrote:Frankly USA is playing an interesting Geopolitical Game which is similar to its support to Hitler pre War. Covert support to ISIS will wreck Middele East, Continental Europe and Russia. USA seems to have undermined and converted German and Turkish political leadership and they will happily send their respective nations over the brink. I think it is combination of USA, UK, Saudis, Israelis who are using Turkey, Germany to create trouble in Ukriane, Syria, Iraq to ultimately recreate the world order in new kind of WW3

It is a stated principle of the United States to never let another country threaten its position. Ergo, they will do all they can to keep these threats, including potential threats, distracted with localised/regional issues. Then preposterously play the role of arbiter as well!!

Russia, China, India....

Well, sometimes these do go awry..like with Russia's actions in Syria. But these will be the exceptions rather than the rule.

Like another poster so rightly pointed out in the earlier pages: Until such time that the US Dollar is the primary monetary instrument..they have us by the short and curlies.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 01 Dec 2015 21:41

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 01 Dec 2015 21:45

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 01 Dec 2015 21:46

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 01 Dec 2015 21:48

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 01 Dec 2015 21:59

Russian attack helicopter Kamov Ka-52 'Alligator' Attack Helicopter has arrived reportedly arrived in Syria, as reported on the reddit thread on Syrian Civil war.

https://m.reddit.com/r/syriancivilwar?c ... =t3_3v0d5r

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 01 Dec 2015 22:49

Even among those classics, that Saudi one is classic.

Bhurishrava · Post by **Bhurishrava** » 01 Dec 2015 23:17

Chetak, JE Menon.
Thanks for checking out that link. I thoroughly searched net too. It also once took me to liveleak page. Said, the video has been removed. Possibly, MIT chief did say something like this which was caught on video but quickly pulled.

Bhurishrava · Post by **Bhurishrava** » 01 Dec 2015 23:25

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/12/ ... 8H4jRu4.97

Syria says deal agreed for insurgents to exit Homs area.

chetak · Post by **chetak** » 01 Dec 2015 23:28

Bhurishrava wrote:Chetak, JE Menon.
Thanks for checking out that link. I thoroughly searched net too. It also once took me to liveleak page. Said, the video has been removed. Possibly, MIT chief did say something like this which was caught on video but quickly pulled.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 02 Dec 2015 02:36

with their weapons as part of a local ceasefire agreement.

Something about handing in weapons, settle down and stay there until next chance comes for the 5th column.. But allowing the sh1ts to take heavy weapons out of the area is very bad news, isn't it? Will they go fight ISIS?

BUT... this is progress. Damascus, Latakia, Homs seem to be in national bag, while Aleppo, Raqqa, Palmyra and Golan Heights are still out? Deir ez Zor still with regime but besieged. Any other centers out?

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 02 Dec 2015 02:41

deejay wrote:Russian attack helicopter Kamov Ka-52 'Alligator' Attack Helicopter has arrived reportedly arrived in Syria, as reported on the reddit thread on Syrian Civil war.

Brief appearance at 1.03

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 02 Dec 2015 02:42

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 02 Dec 2015 02:56

Kamov Ka-52 'Alligator' Attack Helicopter
Brief appearance at 1.03

U mean the thingy with the tall mast straight up like a Baki mijjile, appearing at left upper for half a second? Wow! tough to catch that!
But these are ANCIENT, aren't they? They must be digging these out of their must-use-by-2016 Ukrainian-salvage stocks.

Satya_anveshi · Post by **Satya_anveshi** » 02 Dec 2015 05:15

chetak wrote:
Bhurishrava wrote:Chetak, JE Menon.
Thanks for checking out that link. I thoroughly searched net too. It also once took me to liveleak page. Said, the video has been removed. Possibly, MIT chief did say something like this which was caught on video but quickly pulled.

I commented earlier on the need to legitimize ISIS as there is no way out for Turkey

Here is another post along same lines

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 02 Dec 2015 05:24

Choohe doobnewale jehaz se bahar jaate hain
[quote]President Barack Obama's former top military intelligence official {one step above Cretin} said Tuesday that the White House ignored reports prefacing the rise of ISIS in 2011 and 2012 because they did not fit their re-election "narrative."
"I think that they did not meet a narrative the White House needed. And I'll be very candid with you, they just didn't," retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, the former head of the ~~Defense Intelligence~~ Oxy-Moron Agency told CNN's Jake Tapper on "The Lead."
Flynn, who has been critical of both Obama and former President George W. Bush's handling of the Iraq War and involvement in the Middle East, said that Obama was served poorly by a small circle of advisers who were worried about his re-election prospects at the time.
The story they needed to tell, he said, was that pulling troops from Iraq would not leave the region vulnerable to rise of a radical Islamic group like ISIS.
"I think the narrative was that al Qaeda was on the run, and (Osama) bin Laden was dead ... they're dead and these guys are, we've beaten them," Flynn said, but the problem was that despite how many terrorist leaders they killed they "continue to just multiply."
Obama has been criticized by opponents for referring to ISIS as the "JV squad" and apparently underestimating the group's threat. The Pentagon's inspector general is investigating complaints that that top intelligence officials manipulated reports to make the threat of ISIS look minimal.
Flynn also warned that an attack like the one conducted in Paris was likely at some point in the U.S.
"I really do believe it's a matter of time I believe, there's going to be where our luck is going to run out and they're are gonna be able to achieve something along the lines of what we saw in Paris," Flynn said.
Flynn has been a vocal critic of the Obama and Bush administrations since leaving his job overseeing the Defense Intelligence Agency last year. Flynn told the German news outlet Der Spiegel on Sunday that removing Saddam Hussein and Moammar Gadhafi destabilized the region.
"It was huge error. As brutal as Saddam Hussein was, it was a mistake to just eliminate him. The same is true for Moammar Gadhafi and for Libya, which is now a failed state. The historic lesson is that it was a strategic failure to go into Iraq. History will not be and should not be kind with that decision," Flynn said.
The answer to ISIS, Flynn told Tapper, should be the ~~cretin-nation~~ creation of an "Arab NATO" organized among U.S. allies in the region with a parceling of duties to take out ISIS.

{See 'Cretin' above}
"I do believe that there has to be some type of Arab NATO-like structure formed, so there has to be a recognition that the Arab community in that particular region ... that gets after this problem," Flynn said, adding that the U.S. would have to lead the group with support from Russia and Europe.[/quote]

Satya_anveshi · Post by **Satya_anveshi** » 02 Dec 2015 05:26

There is a flurry of activity in US to get boots on the ground(way beyond those 50 rambos) in order to preempt full fledged russian move.

War is at a turning pt now.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 02 Dec 2015 05:35

Russia will have to rush in the 150,000 bottles of Stolichnaya. Then again, aren't the Friends of ISIS trying to get them to do precisely that? How does Putin get out, unless all of Syria is secured?

Think through that, and there is only one solution: A Russian/Iranian move into Iraq. They will have to secure Mosul and the oil, and set up a good oil-cash-4-protection racket like NATO has had all these decades.

Then there is a reasonable trade possibility: All foreign forces withdraw from Iraq, Syria and Kurdistan. Which now includes the Former Turkish Region of Kurdistan. Forget about Iranian Kurdistan: the Kurds are in no position to armtwist the Iranians.

RoyG · Post by **RoyG** » 02 Dec 2015 05:41

Where exactly are these US forces being stationed? The game plan is clear. Provide access to the Mediterranean for the gulf royals. If the US can provide alternative pipelines for natural gas and oil to Europe, Russia is finished.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 02 Dec 2015 05:42

Satya_anveshi wrote:There is a flurry of activity in US to get boots on the ground(way beyond those 50 rambos) in order to preempt full fledged russian move.

I think that will guarantee a Democrat wipeout in 2016. Which will make matters worse - Rambo will be in the WHOTUS.

Satya_anveshi · Post by **Satya_anveshi** » 02 Dec 2015 05:44

Pipe bomb explodes on overpass near Istanbul metro, five hurt: local mayor - Dec 01, 2015
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/12/ ... 3J20151201

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 02 Dec 2015 05:52

Arabs caught between Turkey’s Sultan and Russia’s Tsar

Should we be angered or grieved by all the comments and reactions of the Arab public opinion after Turkey last week downed a Russian bomber near the Syrian border? Or should we just laugh out loud? Those reacting to the incident were either very happy or very angry, as if they own the skies that the world leaders are fighting over.The confrontation between Russia’s new Tsar Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan seems like a debate that will not end anytime soon: all regional and local circumstances do not suggest the political situation will be imminently contained.The two rivals share a similar nature – especially on the level of their egos. This takes the confrontation to a whole new level, going beyond the dispute in Syria and the fate of Bashar al-Assad, thus turning this into a personal dispute.
It’s no coincidence that both Putin and Erdogan have dreams of greatness and miss the past glories of wars between the Russian and Ottoman empires. This history has seduced those who are politically divided in the Arab world, dragging them behind the illusion of the greatness of the Tsar and the charm of the Sultan’s power. They thus took to Facebook and Twitter, arguing and fighting on behalf of the Turks and Russians as if the Arabs are descendants of the Russian emperors or inheritors of the Ottoman empire.The confrontation between Putin and Erdogan may look interesting, but is however dangerous to us all.Those biased towards the Russian Tsar – whether they are Syrians in support of Bashar al-Assad, Egyptians fascinated by Erdogan’s archrival President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, or the few whom think ISIS is a single existential threat – rejoice when Putin gets angry, as they see their renewed source of power in him.Meanwhile, those who admire Erdogan – whether they are Syrians who oppose Assad, or Arabs who oppose Iran – were thrilled by their Ottoman Sultan when Turkey downed the Tsar’s jet, as they seek to rekindle illusions of the past, of a nation’s history they’re so fond of.Of course, the internet and social media platforms allowed people to express themselves via the most amusing and ironic ways. This is mostly what social media users do. However the exaggeration and illusions that most of those reacting to the incident resorted to implied that they are replacing their helplessness with another power, which is this time embodied by Putin and Erdogan.

Satya_anveshi · Post by **Satya_anveshi** » 02 Dec 2015 06:00

UlanBatori wrote:
Satya_anveshi wrote:There is a flurry of activity in US to get boots on the ground(way beyond those 50 rambos) in order to preempt full fledged russian move.
I think that will guarantee a Democrat wipeout in 2016. Which will make matters worse - Rambo will be in the WHOTUS.

IMO, Clinton will be next president everything else is sideshow. Indians and others be better prepared with Swine Flu vaccinations and other bio warfares that is the home pitch of the hag.

Obama was as much a remote control as was MMS.

Two families ruled US for last 2 decades+. Instead of succeeding in exporting democracy, they successfully imported oligarchy and borderline totalitarianism it appears.

Satya_anveshi · Post by **Satya_anveshi** » 02 Dec 2015 06:07

USA: Special ops to be deployed to Iraq and Syria - Carter - Dec 01, 2015
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjHSr1fYIl8

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 02 Dec 2015 06:58

the mighty cdg with its 18 rafales has made less noise than a mouse so far.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 02 Dec 2015 07:10

Waiting to get Le Champagne chilled to the right temperature after all the shaking and stirring of the journey.
Meanwhile, for President Obama and his Moderate islamic terrorists:

Leith Abou Fadel ‏@leithfadel Nov 30

Moderate rebels and Al-Nusra ban women from wearing make-up in rural Idlib:

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 02 Dec 2015 07:13

Jhujar wrote:
deejay wrote:Russian attack helicopter Kamov Ka-52 'Alligator' Attack Helicopter has arrived reportedly arrived in Syria, as reported on the reddit thread on Syrian Civil war.
Brief appearance at 1.03

Good catch!!!!

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 02 Dec 2015 07:16

UlanBatori wrote:
Kamov Ka-52 'Alligator' Attack Helicopter
Brief appearance at 1.03
U mean the thingy with the tall mast straight up like a Baki mijjile, appearing at left upper for half a second? Wow! tough to catch that!
But these are ANCIENT, aren't they? They must be digging these out of their must-use-by-2016 Ukrainian-salvage stocks.

No no. These are latesht and greatesht. I had posted a video of a slightly earlier avatar Ka 50 at aero India (20 yrs ago !!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUrolSOG5Q8

Santosh · Post by **Santosh** » 02 Dec 2015 07:23

Jhujar wrote:Arabs caught between Turkey’s Sultan and Russia’s Tsar

Delusional Arabs are creating an illusion for themselves. Erdo is no match for Putin. He has not even thought through all the different ways the shooting down of Su-24 would play out. Obviously, given the Allied posturing, if was counting on Nato to enforce some sort of no fly zone over North Syria, he was only deluding himself. OTOH he has lost the lucrative oil trade which Ru was skeptical of hitting couple months ago. Ru is now hitting assets over N Syria with impunity and Erdo can only suck his thumb, all his machoism enforcing blockade in Bosporous not with standing. Now it looks like this incident was his own creation. US/UK may have provided logistical/intel support both thats about it.
US still retains enough firepower in the region but is reluctant to use it over anyone else except ISIS maybe. They can't bomb SAA now since they don't want to be seen overtly ISIS friendly anymore. The boots on the ground thingy is probably to stop RuAF from cleaning up the house because RuAF will be avoid bombing FSA/SDF if US has boots on ground in the area. Ru's only option now is to speed up bombing of N Syria before US Special Ops arrives. Its a race against time for them.

Santosh · Post by **Santosh** » 02 Dec 2015 07:30

Satya_anveshi wrote:There is a flurry of activity in US to get boots on the ground(way beyond those 50 rambos) in order to preempt full fledged russian move.
War is at a turning pt now.

Who ever gets there first gets to keep it. Its wild wild west now... Ru and US will want to avoid shooting at each other at all costs although stray incidents may occur. For Russia this is a quest for survival whereas for US it wants to continue to stay on top of pecking order. Ru may be desperate and Obama is already warning Putin against moving too fast

Satya_anveshi · Post by **Satya_anveshi** » 02 Dec 2015 07:47

Everyone will calm the eff down if Syria issues a statement that its forces have discovered some unaccounted inventory of chemical weapons from territory retaken from ISIS.

Assad can repeat his 2014 statement that if Syria is attacked, 'enemies can expect everything.'

Satya_anveshi · Post by **Satya_anveshi** » 02 Dec 2015 08:01

Peshmerga repels ISIS chemical attack in Makhmour - Nov 30, 2015
http://aranews.net/2015/11/peshmerga-re ... -makhmour/

“On Nov. 26, ISIS extremists tried to launch several chemical mortar shells on the village of Lakja in the area of Baqirt –linked to the district of Makhmour where the Peshmerga forces are stationed.”

“The Peshmerga soldiers, who were aware for the terror operation, foiled the chemical attack before executed. Our engineering units were able to defuse these mortars before launched by ISIS,” the Peshmerga said.

In the meantime, Kurdish officials reported that ISIS carried out three chemical attacks against the Kurdish Peshmerga forces with mortars and that the laboratory analyses have demonstrated using the “chlorine gas”.