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

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 09:16

YPG has been quietly training this new unit

Unite Kurdistan
‏@UniteKurdistan
Furat-Jarabulus brigade includes Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen from Jarablus area. It was armed and trained by YPG to liberate/secure Jarablus.

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 07 Mar 2016 09:49

The Sultan's ghoolies a-shivering?
"Rubbing salt into the wound"? More like "chillypowder up his a*se"!
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world ... 14796.html

Russian warships and naval assets sailing through Bosphorus strait has Turkey frightened
The strait that separates the Black Sea from the Mediterranean is where Putin flaunts Moscow’s naval prowess
Laura Pitel Istanbul |

A Turkish flag flies from an Istanbul ferry as a Russian warship sails through the Bosphorus en route to the Mediterranean AFP/Getty

He has been watching boats on the Bosphorus strait for two decades; but, until recently, it had been years since Serhat Guvenc had glimpsed a Russian warship. Common in the Cold War era and again during the Balkans conflict, they had become a rare sight on the mighty waterway that transects the ancient city of Istanbul and separates Europe from Asia.

Now, barely a day goes by when the academic and amateur ship-spotter fails to catch sight of a Russian missile cruiser, landing ship or submarine. They goad Turkey by sailing through the heart of its biggest city to supply the conflict in Syria. “It’s like rubbing salt on an open wound,” Mr Guvenc says.

Turkey and Russia have supported opposing sides in the Syrian conflict since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in 2011. Since November, when Turkey shot down a Russian Sukhoi-24 jet, the relationship has teetered on the brink of all-out war. But thanks to a 1930s treaty, in peace time foreign states “enjoy the freedom” to send military and commercial ships from the Black Sea down to the Mediterranean.
Turkey has been put out in the cold by the US and Russia

For Mr Guvenc, 51, and a group of four friends, the parade of military hardware through their city is irresistible. Sipping coffee from a stunning balcony with a panoramic view of the channel, they explain that the photographs they share online are pored over by military strategists and analysts around the world.

“Usually these ships are out of sight. We don’t know what they are doing,” explains Devrim Yaylali, 45, an economist who has been spotting ships for nearly 30 years. “The Bosphorus or the port is the only place you can see them.”

His friend Yoruk Isik, 45, an international affairs consultant, chips in: “Here, you can be in Starbucks with an espresso and a ship is literally 250 metres away.” The sharp bends and strong currents in the channel means that the boats must slow right down to manoeuvre, making them easy to photograph. “There’s no other place on earth where you can capture them so well.”

The city provides a stunning backdrop. The boats glide under three imposing bridges before sweeping past the Ottoman palaces of Dolmabahce and Topkapi and the spires of the Hagia Sophia.

Vladimir Putin greets Bashar al-Assad ahead of a meeting at the Kremlin in October last year. Turkey and Russia have supported opposing sides in the Syrian conflict since the uprising began in 2011 (Rex)

It is not just Russian vessels that come and go. Turkish warships and submarines are a common sight for commuters taking the short ferry hop from one side of the city to the other. Nato ships arrive on port visits and training missions. Vast cargo ships carry multi-coloured containers, and in summer tourist cruisers dock in the city centre. But it’s the Russian ships that have caught international attention as President Vladimir Putin made clear that he was reasserting Moscow’s muscle in Syria and the wider region. The Bosphorus is a vital link between Russia’s Black Sea ports and its naval bases in the coastal towns of Latakia and Tartous.

Already this year, Russian warships have made almost four dozen trips up and down the strait. They include the hulking Moskva, a guided missile cruiser that is the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and provides air cover for Moscow’s deployment in Syria. It sports a red star on each side, and huge silver missiles that glint on deck in the sun.

One of the most frequent visitors of 2016 has been the Yamal 156, a rusting, Soviet-era, Ropucha-class large landing ship that offloads vehicles, cargo and troops on to beaches. It has already made three trips to Syria and back.

The 1936 Montreux Convention gives Turkey control of the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, the strait that leads into the Mediterranean; but it also requires Turkey to grant freedom of passage to commercial and naval ships. Like all foreign powers, however, Russia must inform Turkey before sending a military vessel. This has led to surprising co‑operation between the two states, despite the fraying of relations. Weeks after the downing of the Russian jet the Turkish coastguard escorted the Rostov-na-donu, an imposing black submarine armed with Kalibr cruise missiles, as it made its way down through the city. According to the spotters, it was trailed by a Turkish anti-submarine warfare patrol boat for intelligence purposes.

The escalating tensions between the two countries has thrust the group of amateur enthusiasts into the spotlight. Weeks before President Putin officially announced Russia’s military intervention in Syria, they noticed dozens of armoured vehicles and military trucks barely hidden under tarpaulins on deck. All are convinced that the insouciance was deliberate. “This is like a catwalk,” says Alper Boler, 41, a product designer by day. “We see exactly what they want to show us.”

Mr Isik broke the story of the Russian sailor standing on deck with a missile launcher on his shoulder as his ship passed through a city of 14 million people. After posting it online, he was bombarded by phone calls from news channels. Turkey’s foreign ministry summoned the Russian ambassador, and the Deputy Prime Minister decried the episode as a “childish show”.

The group feels uneasy about being drawn into this kind of political spat. They bristled at seeing their photographs used as ammunition by various factions in Turkey and Russia, each with its own agenda.

Read more

Turkey could be gambling on an invasion of Syria
Turkey accuses Russia of acting like 'terrorist organisation'
Nato will be worried by Turkey's strike on Russia

The ships may be impressive to look at and fun to catalogue, but the group has been only too aware that these vessels are fuelling a terrible conflict that has killed an estimated 470,000 people so far. “You get excited when [you] spot a ship,” says Mr Isik. “But then you think: you are watching a very deadly machine going past.”

Though there is intense international interest in the Russian vessels that pass, the group logs everything from small speedboats that whizz up and down to the vast cargo ships that hulk down the centre of the channel. “The war is going on and [the straits have] come to prominence,” says Kerim Bozkurt, 36, an architect member of the group. When it ends, we will keep watching.”

But even with the shaky ceasefire that began in Syria last weekend, Russian ships have continued passing through the city.

Among the vessels spotted by the group in recent days were two boats packed with military vehicles. Kremlin-watchers say that, whether Turkey likes it or not, Russia is back in the Middle East. And its route runs right through Istanbul.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 10:20

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 12:42

On Sunday afternoon in the Latakia Governorate’s northern countryside, the Russian Air Force launched a large-scale aerial campaign over Jabal Al-Turkmen (Turkmen Mountains) and Jabal Al-Akrad (Kurdish Mountains), targeting Jabhat Al-Nusra’s (Syrian Al-Qaeda group) positions along the vast Turkish border. According to a senior officer from the Syrian Air Defense in Jableh, the Russian Air Force carried out over 20 airstrikes in Jabal Al-Akrad and Jabal Al-Turkmen, hitting several militant camps and border-villages that are used by Jabhat Al-Nusra to house and resupply their fighters combating the Syrian government forces. Despite the proximity of the Turkish border from their targets in northern Latakia, the Russian Air Force did not violate Turkish airspace nor did they hit any refugee camps as opposition activists usually claim. As a result of these airstrikes, the Syrian Arab Army’s 103rd Brigade of the Republican Guard and their allies have been able to take a much needed intermission before they complete the final stages of their northern Latakia offensive. The Syrian Arab Army’s 103rd Brigade and their allies have already entered the Idlib Governorate after they seized the village of ‘Ayn Al-Bayda; however, they are still 15 km away from their ultimate target, which is the strategic city of Jisr Al-Shughour

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/ru ... ey-border/ | Al-Masdar News

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 12:43

^^ translation. the ground forces are having a hard time rooting out the JN from its last strongholds in Latakia.
they will need to secure this area before making a move on Jisr al shughour from the west.

if one looks at Idlib, it is a considerably large province all in the hands of JN + Shams. SAA seems unable to roll them up from the southern countryside which is just north of Hama due to lack of resources. the rebels also enjoy some degree of popular support in Idlib.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 14:48

the agile border crossing chowkidar is back to washing clothes & cooking meals for his new overlords. so much for being the CEO

IS posted video this morning of the tanaf border crossing back in their hands

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 14:50

fighting is on at Mt Qassoun castle, the last hill that overlooks palmyra

probably this one http://photos.wikimapia.org/p/00/04/85/33/03_big.jpg

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 07 Mar 2016 15:05

^^^ This will give a better understanding:

Palmyra town is behind the last hill which has the castle on top.

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 07 Mar 2016 15:09

RT has an interview on why Russian Air strikes have had better results:
https://www.rt.com/op-edge/334715-nato- ... ion-syria/

The rebellion in Raqqa has around 200 ISIS defectors fighting from the side of Civilians with some neighbourhoods being under their control:
https://www.rt.com/news/334758-raqqa-up ... efections/

Finally, Children and ISIS - Pls exercise caution, the content is on how ISIS exploits children. Also, other related links with disturbing pictures may be present
https://www.rt.com/news/334696-is-train ... dren-nazi/

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 17:20

no different from the khalifa cubs being trained in some ghettos all over the world including india.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 17:24

i suppose a inflection point is coming for ISIS where they feel the enemy closing in from all sides and have to decide to accept martydom or try and 'side with civilians' and hope for a pardon or just run away which is impossible given the vast distances.

if they abandon north syria and merge into turkey, that will be the opportunity JN is waiting for to expand and spread their carpet on vacated land with turkish artillery support.

the IS elite have moved to libya or are holding fast in Mosul with turkish special forces ready on warm standby up north to execute a kunduz style airlift if needed.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 07 Mar 2016 17:33

heady days of 2013 - cries of azadi azadi as assad sr statue is toppled and raqqa becomes the first provincial capital to fall

https://twitter.com/ShamiRebel/status/7 ... 7665288192

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 07 Mar 2016 21:15

Singha wrote:

Oh She Will Make even Lucifer Look Like an Angel and GWB a High School Kid

Hillary Clinton on Gaddafi: We came, we saw, he died ..........No Wonder Bill Clinton was Happy with Monica

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 08 Mar 2016 05:10

Talk about horrible, disgusting pictures to post on the thread. Could you PLEASE convert the inline image of Empress Clintonia to just a link? Makes the skin crawl.. Thx in advance. May your goats come back from eating the neighbor's garden, with their rear ends intact. May your polyester burkha not catch fire from your fiery **rts.

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 08 Mar 2016 05:53

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-report ... 29825.html
The US reportedly killed 150 fighters from Africa's deadliest al Qaeda-linked group in a single airstrike

( Not Syria But Not So far Somalia)

The US military carried out a drone strike over the weekend targeting a training camp run by the jihadist group al Shabaab north of the Somali capital of Mogadishu over the weekend, killing more than 150 fighters, the Pentagon said on Monday, according to Reuters.
"It was a successful strike," said Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis, adding US intelligence indicated the group was preparing for a "large scale attack" and posed a threat to US and African Union forces in Somalia.According to The New York Times, the strike targeted a graduation ceremony at a "training facility" in Rasa.The town of Rasa Kaadale sits 120 kilometers northeast of Mogadishu, close to the front line of Shabaab control according to a September 2015 BBC map of territorial control in the country.The strike comes after a series of major attacks attributed to Al Qaeda's powerful Somali affiliate. On January 15th, al Shabaab overran a Kenyan military base in el-Ade, in southwestern Somalia, killing as many as 60 soldiers. The Kenyan military, which is part of a multi-national military force aimed at assisting the country's government in securing the country, pulled out of el-Ade 11 days later, effectively ceding the territory to the jihadists.Last month, Shabaab claimed responsibility for an attempted February 2nd bomb attack on a Somali passenger plane. The bomber was the only person killed in the attack and the plane was able to safely land in Mogadishu.But the plot revealed that Shabaab had both the ability and the ambition to detonate a bomb onboard a passenger airliner, something the group had never attempted before.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 06:41

southern aleppo war will resume shortly. JN + unofficial guests from other formations launched large scale attack yesterday.

meantime, Uighur khalifa cubs in idlib border tracts

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 06:43

compared to hillary, trump looks like a much more profane but fairly harmless man. he is unlikely to fund so many external 'projects' as hillary would

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 08 Mar 2016 07:22

In French, 'Hilary' would be pronounced as

Oilery

and she IS more oily than Saudi Arabia and Kuwait put together.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 08:16

a writeup on the history and current status of the NSA - new syrian army - trained in jordan with american weapons

https://news.vice.com/article/syrias-ne ... amic-state

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 09:51

it seems many uihgurs have sold everything in cheen and relocated to such places ... for them there is no home but middle east now.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 09:51

I have deleted a few posts

more pix of these brainwashed kids
https://twitter.com/newgreatgame/status ... 45?lang=en

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 10:35

wonder if <10,000 means 9999 ? thats a massive number by standards of this war.

Aud™ ‏@CodeAud Mar 6
#ISIS has less than 10,000 militants in #Mosul, says US coalition spokesman

Военный Советник ‏@miladvisor Mar 5
Reports of intensive peshmerga artillery fire and coalition airstrikes on the northern outskirts of #Mosul .

Brett McGurkVerified account ‏@brett_mcgurk Mar 4
Kurdish #Peshmerga w/coalition air support annihilated #ISIL attack near #Kisik today. Terrorists now trapped & desperate on #Mosul fronts.

Inherent ResolveVerified account ‏@CJTFOIR Mar 3
RT @CENTCOM: Past 2 wks: SDF gained more than 900 sq km of territory and further disrupted the supply lines between #Mosul and #Raqqah

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Shingal Protection Units (YBS) and a Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) affiliate, the People's Protection Forces (HPG) claim that their forces are ready to take part in the long anticipated battle for Mosul against Islamic State (ISIS) militants.

However, the head of Mosul Provincial Council said "neither these forces [YBS and HPG] nor [the Shiite militiamen of] Hashd al-Shaabi should take part in the operation."

The military commander of the YBS, Haval Mazloum, told Rudaw that they have 2,000 militants in their forces and are stationed on the Mount Shingal and its outskirts and are presently preparing "to participate in the Mosul liberation operation."

When asked who would allow them to participate in the operation Mazlum replied "It is already decided that we would participate in liberating Mosul."

In the meantime, an official from the HPG forces command, an army wing of Group of Communities in Kurdistan (KCK), told Rudaw that they are also going to "participate as a separate force in Mosul liberation operations."

The HPG official, who spoke to Rudaw on condition of anonymity, added that "some 2500 fighters of the group are on the Mount Shingal, and a vast majority of them will join other forces," in the fight for Mosul.

The KCK is an organization founded by the PKK to put their jailed leader Ocalan’s ideology of democratic confederalism into practice.

In regards to his group's relation with Baghdad authorities the HPG official revealed that there is cooperation between the Iraqi government and the HPG and that Baghdad will permit them to participate in the battle.

He explained that their men have undergone sufficient military training.

But, Hashm Brifkani, the head of security committee in the Mosul provincial council, said the YBS and HPG could not participate without their consent.

"We do not accept a force like Hashd al-Shaabi, how can we accept forces like YBS and HPG to participate?" he wondered adding that, "Without Mosul residents' consent, we can not accept any force to participate in liberating the city."

The reason they reject these forces, Brifkani said, is that "their participation will not be helpful," for ethno-sectarian reasons.

A vast majority of members of the Mosul Provincial Council also voiced their opposition to having the Shiite militia-majority Hashd al-Shaabi group participating in the battle for Mosul on Monday in a meeting held in the Assyrian town of Alqosh north of Mosul.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 10:37

InvestedIraq ‏@InvestedIraq Feb 26
#Iraq: Hundreds of thousands of Shiite Muqtada al-#Sadr supporters protest #corruption in #Baghdad

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 10:37

Ruwayda MustafahVerified account ‏@RuwaydaMustafah Feb 29
#US warns citizens to be ready to leave Iraq if #Mosul dam collapses

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 10:40

nytimes

The Pentagon has declined to predict when Iraqi troops will try to enter Mosul, though General Dunford said on Monday that “it is not something that will happen in the deep, deep future.” Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi of Iraq said two weeks ago that Iraqi forces would start a full military operation to retake the city as early as March, and an American military official said over the weekend that the Pentagon believed that Iraqi troops were ready to launch a credible assault.

Still, military officials acknowledge that the battle will be an uphill slog. “Do I think it’s going to be easy? No,” Maj. Gen. Richard Clarke, the commander of American land forces in Iraq, told reporters during a briefing last week. “It’s going to be tough.”

The long fight by Iraqi security forces to take back Ramadi from the Islamic State, which concluded in December, offers a preview of the battle to come over Mosul. Advancing inch by inch, Iraqi forces, backed by American airstrikes, took more than five months to gain control of the city center of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar Province.

As difficult as that battle was, the fight for Mosul will be much harder, military officials say. The city is five times as large as Ramadi. And while the Iraqi military used two American-trained brigades in the Ramadi fight — the 73rd and the 76th, which General Clarke said were believed to be the best in the Iraqi Army — those forces number some 8,000, far short of the 30,000 troops Pentagon officials say are needed.

Military officials also say it is hard to imagine how the fight for Mosul can be waged without close American air support, which would probably require American attack helicopters, something Mr. Abadi, for political reasons, has yet to agree to.

The Islamic State has lost 14 percent of the territory it held in January, according to a new analysis.

The effort is likely to include Kurdish pesh merga fighters, Pentagon officials say. The American military has trained some 16,000 Kurdish fighters, but their participation is likely to come with its own problems. “I do think the expectation is that the force will be heavily Kurdish, but then you get into the political issues,” said Kathleen H. Hicks, a former Pentagon official who is now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Mr. Abadi’s government is unlikely to want the Kurdish fighters to assume the lead role in the coming fight, a role that Iraq experts say is likely to be filled by the Shiite-dominated Iraqi security forces.

In 2004, it took more than 13,000 highly trained troops, primarily Americans, almost two months to retake and clear Falluja of about 3,000 insurgents in the fiercest fight of the Iraq war. Ninety-five American service members died, and more than 560 were wounded.

The battle for Mosul, many military experts say, could be much worse. Pentagon officials say they are unsure how many Islamic State militants are in the city, but they have been there for almost two years.

“When the coalition cleared Falluja, it took forever, and Mosul is larger than Falluja,” Mr. Martin, the Iraq expert, said. “And the people who will be doing the clearing are not U.S. troops.”

Staff Gen. Talib al-Kinani, the commander of Iraq’s Counter Terrorism Service, said the units that would participate in the Mosul operation had already been chosen. Commanders have moved to a town on the edge of Kurdish-controlled areas to complete the final planning, he said.

General Kinani said the Iraqi military was working with Sunni tribes in Mosul against the Islamic State. The tribes, he said, “are giving information about those locations that are planted with explosive materials and I.E.D.s, and also they talk about the morale and the status of the ISIS fighters inside the city.”

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 08 Mar 2016 11:34

Still can't understand why O'Bomber won't bring on the B-52s.Perhaps the answer is that it is to protect the creatures that the US and the Saudis brought into being as their proxy to wage war in the ME,ISIS.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 08 Mar 2016 12:06

Singha wrote:B-52 is equipped with LDP and fully capable of releasing tens of guided bombs on small individual targets and indeed thats what the B1 was also doing including in kobane. this is something all the 3 russian bombers lack as rus never used them in that role. the tu22 can release preprogrammed glonass guided bombs probably but not laser guided.
having a few B-52 gives the option of on-demand fire support all day long.

juicy targets like shomali plains are not so common.

B52 with litening pod
http://www.minot.af.mil/shared/media/ph ... 4R-013.jpg

B1 with sniper pod
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/imag ... RuDSHcZ3QT

for moving convoys of technicals, they can use the proven CBU105 SFW..from 250lb to 5000lb, khan saheb has a soln for every kind of target. if all else fails MOAB would be devastating if it falls on some static target.

armed drones like reapers could also be brought in for fleeting targets of opportunity.

Correct me if I am wrong , I dont think an LDP would allow release of dozens of weapon because the target needs to be Lased and till the Bomb Does not hit the target you cannot launch another LGP.

Only GPS/GLONASS guided bomb and Bomb Dropped via CCIP ( Aircraft Weapons Computer ) would allow en-mass release.

The Tu-22M3 atleast have shown capability to drop bomb via Later , I am not sure if Russian have used any GLONASS guided bomb

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 08 Mar 2016 12:57

Ok I found out the GLONASS guided weapon they use is KAB-500S-E , The Article has more details

The Smart Weapons Russia is Using in Syria

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 15:01

>> I dont think an LDP would allow release of dozens of weapon because the target needs to be Lased and till the Bomb Does not hit the target you cannot launch another LGP.

I never meant it will drop dozens in parallel because it does not need to. but it can hang around all day and launch precision strikes one by one on small targets like ISIS convoys or dens. and some can be GPS guided with on-board programming of x.y.z also.

it has already done the "on call" thing in afghanistan for example, taking up a orbit and waiting for units to call in for support.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 15:11

The Islamic State beheading a 16-year heresyThe Islamic State beheading a 16-year heresy
A 16 - year - old suffered the atrocities of the Islamic State . He was beheaded after the police discovered the body of the terrorist group that had not attended mandatory Friday prayers in the border town of Jarabulus in Syria .

The victim was arrested last Saturday by the secret services of the jihadist organization after being discovered in the home of a relative near the border between Syria and Turkey.

"The young man was accused of heresy , the most serious in the legal system ISIS office , " said Nasar Taljabini, a resident of Jarabulus, the chain Kurdish news, slogan The Jerusalem Post.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 15:12

Tribe in Ramadi blows up homes of members who joined Daesh. Intra-tribal violence, revenge difficult to contain

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 15:15

the american bogeyman is still there...and he is issueing dark warnings to US and UK consulates to stop meddling in iraqi affairs. this after locking up the vice-PM for corruption in his house

sadr city has been hit hard lately by IS car bombs

Elijah J. Magnier
‏@EjmAlrai
2 days ago, Moqtada al-Sadr imprisoned vice Prime Minister Baha' al-A'raji at Moqtada's house n #Najaf, along with others.A new communique'

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 15:20

caliphate navy keeping a hawks eye on the kafirs along the euphrates

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 08 Mar 2016 15:51

Nice , Do they Caliphites even known to swim ?

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 08 Mar 2016 15:53

they are agile enough to cling to the overturned boat atleast.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 08 Mar 2016 16:15

Singha wrote: I never meant it will drop dozens in parallel because it does not need to. but it can hang around all day and launch precision strikes one by one on small targets like ISIS convoys or dens. and some can be GPS guided with on-board programming of x.y.z also.

For that role a Medium Altitude UCAV operating in dozens with long persistant in air would be more suitable ....some thing like Predator or bigger than that would be more suitable

it has already done the "on call" thing in afghanistan for example, taking up a orbit and waiting for units to call in for support.

I think a Bomber was never designed to fight a terrorist in first place , even in Afghanistan what a bomber would achieve was more like the lowest end of its job and sort of trying to improvise to find a role for it to justify its existence something it was never designed in first place , A modern bomber like Tu-160 or Blackjack or B-1B or B-2 was primarily a cruise missile carrier and secondary bomber for Dumb and now Smart Bomb Carrier.

All the more reason why we must build Medium Altutude High Persistant UCAV as Anti-Terrorist operation would be very common in years and decade ahead.

Having a Stealthy UCAV or even Semi Stealthy one flying over POK and take out HVT would still be politically acceptable to us then the lungi sweating sending in Fighter type decision that every PM would want to avoid after major Terror Strikes inside India.

Sometimes I think Fighter have really become redundant in Indo-Pak Scenario , First we will not send them second even if we do the risk of loosing one wont be politically acceptable , On the other hand loosing UCAV wont be much of an issue and they can do their job very quietly and efficiently

If they are shot we can always claim it lost its way and blame the data link issue or mechanical problem for convenience

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 09 Mar 2016 06:38

UAVs like reaper can at best release hellfire missiles..ok for technicals..not ok for strongpoints or area targets. suppose you need on call fire support to assault a town or hill, a B52 or B1 can deliver some 80 individually guided 1000lb bombs and with refueling can maintain station for 12 hrs for sure. makes up for lack of organic heavy artillery in the SDF.
a lone B1 sweeping in low provided support in kobane.

they exist and are already paid for and online, unlike future UCAVs which can hardly match the bombload.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 09 Mar 2016 06:58

Leith Abou Fadel ‏@leithfadel 7h7 hours ago
The following groups are participating in the Palmyra offensive:

Tiger Forces
Hezbollah
SAA 67th Brigade
Desert Hawks
Liwaa Imam Ali
NDF
Harakat Al-Nujaba
SSNP
Dara' Qalamoun
Kataebat Al-Ba'ath
Kataeb Hezbollah
Liwaa Al-Badr

SSNP is said to be assyrian christian. rest is mix of palestinians, lebanese, iraqis, syrian muslims

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 09 Mar 2016 07:00

Last May, the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) shocked the Syrian government with a large-scale offensive to seize the vast desert area of the Homs Governorate. In one week, ISIS captured the oil rich town of Al-Sakhenah and the ancient city of Palmyra (Tadmur) from the overstretched Syrian Arab Army (SAA), causing the latter to frantically retreat across several kilometers of desert terrain.

Adding insult to injury, ISIS would launch another offensive in August to seize the southeastern countryside of the Homs Governorate, which included the ancient Assyrian city of Quraytayn and the Tanf border-crossing. For several months, the Syrian Armed Forces repeatedly attempted to regain the territory around Palmyra and Quraytayn; however, each offensive ended in disappointment, as ISIS’ defenses proved too strong

. Part of the problem for the Syrian Armed Forces was the scarcity of military personnel to maintain the recaptured territory that was seized from ISIS. As a result of their shortcomings around the country, the Syrian Armed Forces received the greatest gift they could hope for in late September when the Russian Air Force entered the war. Not only were the Russian airstrikes against the enemies of the Syrian government frequent, they were also incredibly powerful. Now, with ISIS forestalled around Palmyra and Quraytayn, the Syrian Armed Forces are in position to conduct their highly anticipated desert offensive to reclaim this oil rich part of central Syria.

Leading the way for the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) are the prominent commanders of the Tiger Forces, Colonel Suheil Al-Hassan and Colonel Shady Al-Isma’el. Fighting alongside the Tiger Forces and the Syrian Arab Army’s 67th Brigade of the 18th Tank Division will be the powerful pro-government paramilitary factions: Liwaa Suqour Al-Sahra (Desert Hawks Brigade), Dara’ Qalamoun (Qalamoun Shield), the National Defense Forces (NDF), the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP), and Kataebat Al-Ba’ath (Al-Ba’ath Battalions). In addition to the Syrian forces, a number of foreign groups are participating in the operations to liberate Palmyra, including Hezbollah (Lebanese), Harakat Al-Nujaba (Iraqi), Liwaa Al-Badr (Iraqi), Liwaa Imam ‘Ali (Iraqi), and Kataebat Hezbollah (Iraqi).

Overseeing all of the desert operations will be the military advisers from the Russian Marines and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The Syrian forces have already made several advances over the last few days; however, the main offensive has not begun yet. According to a senior officer from the Tiger Forces, the massive desert offensive is set to begin in the coming days, but it will be contingent on a number of environmental factors. The Syrian Arab Army’s Central Command and their allies have been planning for this offensive for a long time now; it is expected to be the largest military operation to take place during this brutal war.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/sy ... sive-isis/ | Al-Masdar News

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 09 Mar 2016 07:03