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

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 24 Mar 2016 12:15

deejay wrote:For TSJ, from trusted sources like BBC

BBC News USVerified account
‏@BBCNewsUS
How heavy are the air strikes against Islamic State really? Judge for yourself: http://bbc.in/1lHYgKY
Video on this link: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsUS/status/669258301280940032

Nice Find Sir ..

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 24 Mar 2016 12:29

nanga hi rakh diya

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 24 Mar 2016 12:41

Austin wrote:...
Nice Find Sir ..

Thank You Austin Ji.

Something is going on at BBC wrt Syria. Yesterday, in another news about Palmyra they refereed to the 'Syrian Army' and not Assad's Army as they usually do.

Change of Narrative after Brussels? Maybe too early to say.

habal · Post by **habal** » 24 Mar 2016 13:08

South Front - USA: Police arrests Erdogan’s gold dealer

US police arrested an Turkish-Iranian gold dealer who belongs to Erdogan’s inner circle. He is said to have violated the now repealed Iran sanctions. It is unclear whether the US Attorney’s Office will extend its accusations to members of the Turkish government.

The Turkish-Iranian Gold trader Reza Zarrab was arrested in Miami on Saturday, reports Bloomberg. The US authorities accuse him to have circumvented the sanctions against Iran over the years, and in this context money laundering. Zarrab, owner of Royal Holding, and two others – Camelia Jamshidy and Hossein Najafzadeh – are accused of having, through a Web company, led US banks unwittingly to carry out illegal financial transactions. This shows the bill of indictment of the prosecution of New York.

Zarrab was regarded as the middleman for Iranian entrepreneurs who due to sanctions couldn’t make any financial transactions and thus had to make payments via detours. Zarrab has supposedly worked together with the Chinese banks Postal Savings Bank of China, Kunlun Bank, Huaksi Banl, but also cooperated with the Indian Bank of Baroda or the Turkish Halkbank.

The arrest could also become a headache for the Turkish government. Because Zarab is said to have paid bribes in the millions to former Ministers of the Turkish Government Zafer Caglayan, Muammer Güler, Egemen Bağış and their sons to get support for his operations and transactions, reported T24.

Zarrab has also close relations with the Turkish leader Erdogan and Erdogan’s inner circle, the newspaper Sözcü reports. Erdogan himself called Zarrab previously a “philanthropist who is engaged in the export of gold.”

In connection with Zarrabs arrest, FBI director Diego Rodriguez said in a statement: “The accusations that have been raised today are a message for the true business partner of the accused, who are trying to hide.”

habal · Post by **habal** » 24 Mar 2016 13:09

South Front - Russian Spetsnaz officially confirmed in Syria

Russian special operations troops are operating on Syria’s territory–they are responsible for guiding aircraft to their targets, according to Colonel General Aleksandr Dvornikov, the commander of Russian Group of Forces in Syria.

“I will not deny that our special operations units are operating on Syria’s territory. They are performing final reconnaissance of targets to be struck by Russian aircraft, are guiding aircraft to their targets in remote regions, perform other special missions,” he said in an interview with Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

Dvornikov also noted that special operations units from the US and other coalition members are also operating in Syria.

Syrian forces also receive assistance from Russian military advisers. “These officers help their Syrian colleagues in planning and conduct of anti-terrorist military operations and in mastering Russian military equipment,” Dvornikov added.

habal · Post by **habal** » 24 Mar 2016 13:13

referring to singha's ISIS patch adjoining israel

ISIS snatches swaths of land from rebels in southern Syria – Map update

The map shows the ISIS territory in question is in the corner of Syria that abutts Israel occupied Golan and Jordan. Otherwise it is entirely circled by FSA territory. So where did cash-strapped and manpower-limited ISIS get the arms and men to fight substantial parts of the FSA? Maybe, it was not a real fight, but a means of transferring territory adjacent to Israel-occupied Golan from so-called moderate FSA to extremist terrorist group ISIS. This would be analogous to the way the US has pretended to attack ISIS whilst actually supplying them in the field. Ignoring the fact that in practice ISIS and FSA are one and the same, this may give Israel plausible deniablility to annex more land in Syria, namely that taken by ISIS from FSA (aka ISIS-lite). It is purely coincidental that this area has been recently reported as being a potential source of oil.gas. Am I being too cynical about Israel and its relationshiop to ISIS?

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/is ... ap-update/

I feel snatching away of parcels of Syrian land was behind entire strategy of israel in supporting isis.
they covet land from every neighbour basically.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 24 Mar 2016 15:51

its going to be a busy night in palmyra...the SAA at various points have filtered into the edges of the orchard , archeology area from the SW.....in the west and north they are further away and have not yet cleared all the ridgelines.

the ruined castle overlooking that area is still in IS hands and presents a strong observation position for IS artillery spotters. they might need to call in a couple of backfires to deal with this threat. or even better a one-off signature move for the world to see - a Tu160 to drop a glonass guided FOAB and finish the ruins in one shot.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 24 Mar 2016 15:54

so far neither party has spoken of how many civilians live in palmyra town.
news is being carefully filtered before being let out.

habal · Post by **habal** » 24 Mar 2016 16:50

once they get control of all hilltops, they can establish fire control. I think 1 or 2 more hilltops till reports from twitter which were 8 hours ago. It will fall anytime.

Syrians, Iranians, Russian spetsnaz everyone is congregating at Palmyra. Any hour now

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 24 Mar 2016 17:04

Singha Ji, on cue from Al Masdar

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/is ... -advances/

Early in the morning (Tuesday), ISIS reportedly called on civilians to flee the city through the loudspeakers of Palmyra. This comes as government forces have captured the ancient city’s outskirts and advanced to within a kilometer of Palmyra’s western gates. While the city did hold 70.000 civilians prior to ISIS seizing Palmyra in May 2015, all but 15.000 civilians have fled; these residents have now been requested to leave for other “secure caliphate areas”. However, with the 15.000 Syrians who remained inside the city mostly too poor to pay for travel costs as of last May, they are unlikely to be able to pay for transportation now. Currently, clashes are continuing on the edge of Hayy al-Gharf neighborhood, southwest of the city, as the Russian Air Force is aiding every move made by various pro-government forces. Just yesterday, the Syrian Arab Army captured Tar mountain which overlooks Palmyra city. Meanwhile, ISIS explosives and mines planted around the city are obstructing the Syrian Government’s efforts to recapture the city. However, with over government 6.000 soldiers deployed, ISIS seems unlikely to be able to defend the city for long. With the Islamic State enforcing harsh religious laws upon the local populace for close to a year, ISIS fighters have also launched a systematic campaign of destruction on the city’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites, blowing up temples and looting relics dating back 2,000 years. Meanwhile, dozens have been publicly beheaded inside Palmyra’s ancient amphitheater. If government troops are able to recapture Palmyra, this would not only spell a huge symbolic victory, it would also allow for pushes towards either ar-Raqqa or Deir Ezzor. The situation in the latter city is critical with approximately 100.000 civilians in government-held areas under complete ISIS-siege.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/is ... -advances/ | Al-Masdar News

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 24 Mar 2016 17:06

SAA have made gains from SW axis on the Palmyra front and hae reached Tadmor.

Hassan Ridha ‏@sayed_ridha now47 seconds ago
Reports of #SAA taking control of the Valley of Tombs west of #Tadmor city (archive pic)

SAA have also entered Ancient Pamyra area.

habal · Post by **habal** » 24 Mar 2016 18:07

Liberation of palmyra castle is imminent according to reporters embedded with SAA.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 24 Mar 2016 18:51

Night of decision is here. They will try to swarm into outlying areas under cover of darkness

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 24 Mar 2016 19:41

Syrian Army are looking to take Palmyra castle. The ancient ruins are heavily IEDed. Moving into Palmyra will be tough. However, ISIS defensive lines have been breached and todays gains have come at a rapid pace.

In Dier Ez Zor, ISIS had struck SAA in multiple positions since yesterday. It seems the SAA has finally managed to gain some momentum there.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/fi ... eir-ezzor/

The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) launched yesterday a wide-scale offensive against the government-held part of Al-Sina’a district in Deir Ezzor, capturing several blocks in the neighborhood. The hours-long fierce clashes forced the Syrian Army to retreat as ISIS used tanks and heavy artillery in the attack. Today, the 104th Brigade of the Republican Guard embarked in a counterattack and recaptured the blocks it has lost the day before. A booby-trapped vehicle has also been dismantled by the Army’s engineering units after damaging it. The suicide bomber fled before getting caught by the Army. The counteroffensive left scores of the jihadis dead and wounded as the Syrian fighter jets took part in the military operation and pounded ISIS positions.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/fi ... eir-ezzor/ | Al-Masdar News

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 24 Mar 2016 19:55

Video of VBIED being dismantled (mentioned in the above Al MAsdar report). The suicide driver ran way leaving the car behind.

[youtube]EJ3ukKUkT1c&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 24 Mar 2016 20:10

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 24 Mar 2016 20:13

tomorrow in the flat terrain of the ancient city , new city and airport they will try with VBIEDs.

bunch of psychos must be getting all dressed and ready for their last ride.

hope SAA frontal units have ATGMs all warm standby and ready.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 24 Mar 2016 21:34

Something is going on at BBC wrt Syria. Yesterday, in another news about Palmyra they refereed to the 'Syrian Army' and not Assad's Army as they usually do.
Hold on to ur noses: CNN too !!

Palmyra: Syrian troops poised to retake ancient city, state media report
By Greg Botelho, Merieme Arif and Schams Elwazer, CNN

The Islamic extremist group ISIS has reportedly blown up a nearly 2,000-year-old temple in the historic ruins of Palmyra, Syria. The temple (of Baal shamin)is seen here on March 14, 2014, before the destruction.[/quote]

IMHO, the "temple" was down to a few pillars, and it was a favor the ISIS did. Now Halliburton Reconstructions can build a swanking new Temple & Casino Complex there, McDonalds, WarMalt, IMAX3D theater & all. Holgraphic reconstruction of the Temple as envisaged by Hollywood for the movie "Cleopatra".

habal · Post by **habal** » 24 Mar 2016 21:39

you can thank russia for that, making it a fait accompli for rats of all hues to give due respect to the regime. pheww

one had their fill when saudis, qatar, uae, kuwait started insanely talking of democracy. And turdogan on a momentary fit of cannabis rage.

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 24 Mar 2016 21:46

ID the IED: (from @PetoLucem twitter feed)

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 25 Mar 2016 01:26

Is corruption suspect's US arrest bad news for Erdogan?

http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/origina ... z43r87fj1D

The March 19 arrest of Iranian-Turkish gold trader Reza Zarrab in Florida came as a bombshell to Ankara politics. Zarrab allegedly was the key figure running a money-transfer network in 2010-2015 that was designed to evade US sanctions against Iran. . His potential disclosures to the US federal prosecutor will surely implicate Turkish officials and, as such, may well be an instrument of pressure on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.Preet Bharara, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York who prepared the indictments against Zarrab, became a sensation overnight as the Turkish opposition's social media favorite. In just a few days, the number of Bharara's Twitter followers exploded to more than 80,000 from fewer than 10,000. By March 23 he had 190,000 followers. Hundreds of the new fans had Turkish names.One Twitter user even asked Bharara, “You want anything from Turkey? Turkish raki, shish kebab, lokuum, Turkish carpet. Just ask. We are on your service.”

Naturally, the pro-government wing took countermeasures. Some accused the US prosecutor of being part of a conspiracy, while the pro-government daily Sabah declared him to be a member of the “Fethullah Gulen terror organization."The Turkish government, on the other hand, has been totally mum about the arrest of Zarrab, whom it had honored with an award for his proficiency in gold exports and his contribution to the national economy. Halkbank, a public bank Zarrab was working with, immediately declared it had nothing to do with the case — but its stock lost 8.7% in one day.Turkey is quite concerned about Zarrab's case being handled by a US district attorney known for tackling tough cases. Turkish officials remember well the infamous Dec. 17-25, 2013, corruption and bribery case, though it has long been shelved. Four Turkish government ministers who were implicated were saved by their immunity. The government helped by reassigning the prosecutors and police who were investigating the scandal.Turkey was already paying Iran with gold for the oil and natural gas it was buying. To this end, Turkey opened an account for Iran in Halkbank. Iran was converting the deposits in that account to gold. To meet the heavy Iranian demand, Turkey had to import gold: $8 billion worth of gold thus reached Iran. The United States reacted by banning gold exports to Iran in July 2013. That meant a major portion of the $13 billion of gold Turkey had imported remained in Turkey.. According to a local allegation, Zarrab was paying the minister of economy, Zafer Caglayan, a commission — that is, a bribe — of 0.3% to 0.4%. Zarrab is known to have paid Caglayan 103 million Turkish lira (some $35 million) and to have paid Halkbank CEO Suleyman Arslan 16 million lira (about $5.67 million). Many believe that then-Prime Minister Erdogan had to have known what was going on. The district attorney is also calling for all of Zarrab's assets to be confiscated.A question frequently heard now is, who will Zarrab destroy with his revelations? Some people wonder if Zarrab's arrest is more than it seems, that the timing — while Erdogan faces tensions with the United States, the European Union and Russia — might indicate that someone has had enough of Erdogan.
“Zarrab moved when Zencani was sentenced to death. He was afraid of getting killed in Istanbul after his protector's powers handed him over to [the] mafia. Zarrab felt that his protectors would kill him to cover themselves. He couldn’t go to Europe. Most likely he made contacts with Americans. It is impossible for Zarrab not to know that the FBI would apprehend him the minute he landed in Miami. Clearly there are CIA-FBI intermediaries. If Zarrab spills what he knows, he will get a light sentence and save part of his wealth. If he speaks out, the Dec. 17-25 graft operation in Turkey will become an international case.Daily Hurriyet Washington correspondent Tolga Tanis is among those who said the case will implicate Turkey. He noted that there were references to Turkey’s Dec. 17-25 investigations in the US indictments.Former Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy Aykan Erdemir agrees. “A deal Zarrab can make with the prosecutor to mitigate his own sentence could well lead to detention decisions for new names. Many politicians, bureaucrats and businesspeople may then refrain from visiting the United States to avoid arrests,” he said.The United States had earlier warned Ankara about Zarrab’s sanctions-evading schemes. David Cohen, who was the Treasury undersecretary in charge of the embargoes on Iran in 2011-2015, made several trips to Ankara before he took over as deputy director of the CIA.

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 25 Mar 2016 02:59

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/ ... &or=btn_tw

GENEVA, Switzerland, March 22 (UPI) -- Two North Korean military units are fighting on behalf of President Bashar al-Assad in the Syria conflict.Asaad Al-Zoubi, the head of the Syrian opposition's High Negotiations Committee delegation, told Russian news agency TASS that North Koreans have committed troops to the civil war.The Syrian delegate provided the information as he attended Syria peace talks at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva.Al-Zoubi added there are fighters from Iran and Afghanistan fighting on behalf of Assad.Russia's Sputnik International also confirmed the Syrian representative's statement on North Korean soldiers in the Middle East, and quoted Al-Zoubi as saying the "North Korean troops are fatally dangerous" during an explanation of the presence of foreign troops in the Syrian civil war.The civil war has continued for five years, and the opposition and the Assad regime are at odds regarding the details of a peace negotiation.But Pyongyang maintains friendly ties with the dictatorship in Damascus, and Russia has supported Assad's rule.North Korea's presence in the Middle East conflict is unprecedented, but the two countries have cultivated military ties for many years.North Korea has been a staunch ally of the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad, opposed by the Islamic State, and Pyongyang helped Syria build a nuclear facility destroyed by an Israeli air raid in 2007.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:17

IS has miraculously taken over all of the green area to the left of the passage that SAA opened to Daraa on jordan border.

where they appeared from, who sustains them is a mystery

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:18

outside the semiramis hotel

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:20

http://www.defensenews.com/story/defens ... /82212500/

GABORONE, Botswana — The Russian government has reportedly pledged to provide helicopters, night-vision goggles and bullet-proof vests to Tunisian security forces to fight al-Qaida and the Islamic State group in North Africa.

The announcement was made by Tunisian Foreign Minister Khemaies Jhinaoui shortly after his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow last week to seek Russian help in securing its border to combat the terrorist threat from neighboring Libya.

The announcement came as Russia and Algeria revealed that an agreement on the sharing of satellite surveillance information on regional terrorist movements has helped the Algerian Army in conducting a string of successful counterterrorism operations.

Jhinaoui traveled to Moscow after the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, claimed responsibility for an attack that killed 50 people in the Tunisian border town of Ben Gardane on March 7.

"The use of Russia’s experience in repelling terrorism was naturally on the agenda (of the meeting in Moscow)," Jhinaoui said. "We think Russia’s experience in this sphere is successful and we are interested in using this experience with an aim of stabilizing the security situation in our country.

"Terrorism is an international phenomenon which concerns all countries and we are convinced that help is needed from all the states in various formats, including exchange of information and contacts between relevant security agencies."

In September 2014, Russia pledged to provide Tunisia with counterterrorism training, night-vision goggles and bullet-proof vests to improve the capabilities of its newly formed counterterrorism units. None of the equipment has been delivered to date.

However, some of the Russian equipment is likely to be delivered ahead of President Vladmir Putin's planned state visit to Tunisia in May. Since 2014, the two countries have deepened diplomatic cooperation through the Russian-Tunisian Inter Governmental Commission on trade, economic, scientific and technological cooperation that meets annually in May.

According to Tunisian daily newspaper Al Sabah, the Russian Army has expanded its counterterrorism strategy in the Maghreb by providing the Algerian and Tunisian armies with satellite imagery of terrorist movements across their borders with Libya, Niger and Mali.

The paper quoted officials saying the information had helped Algeria and Tunisia foil several infiltration attempts by terrorist militias and weapons smugglers from Libya.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:22

Peto Lucem ‏@PetoLucem 9h9 hours ago
As soon #Palmyra is under #SAA control, SAA will advance to #Sukhnah
+ #Shulah to break #ISIS siege of #DeirEzzor.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:22

Peto Lucem ‏@PetoLucem 9h9 hours ago
After #DeirEzzor siege broken #SAA will prob. clear western bank of #Euphrates to support upcoming offensive on #ISIS held #Raqqa. #Syria

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:27

about 10 hrs ago

Ivan Sidorenko ‏@IvanSidorenko1 4h4 hours ago
#Syria #Palmyra #Homs #To_Palmyra Report by #Syrian Reporter ON the ground @AboZain6 FIVE hours ago

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:28

qatari royal villa south of the orchards is wreck now

https://twitter.com/IvanSidorenko1/stat ... 4357085184

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 25 Mar 2016 05:30

Yeah, but the hangup is at Palmyra, it appears. Once D-e-Z is cleared i think the ISIS will vamoose from Raqqa via desert. In fact I don't know why the ISIS hasn't disappeared from both Raqqa and Palmyra - they don't have air support, so it's only a matter of time. Why hang around when they can just slide on out into Libya and live to fight elsewhere? Does this make sense to you guys? I am worried about a giant feint.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:31

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:32

look at wider area showing some gas and oil fields also taken under control.\
not enough resources to totally encircle the place and do a zhukov on the IS

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:33

i recall reading the arak gas field is quite a important source of revenue for whoever has boots on it.
east homs, raqqa and deir azzor are three sources of oil revenue

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:38

gazelle heli armed with 4 ATGMS

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:51

A.J ‏@aj_observations 9h9 hours ago
#Palmayra will fall, #DeirEzzor will then come under immense pressure, then that too will fall. #ISIS is a house of cards, ready to collapse

^^ hope so. reduces casualties of the good people incl civilians

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 05:56

this is a sandstorm in deir azzor - every time it happens, IS attacks. gunnery spotting and non-MMW ATGMS (laser, IIR) useless in all this....very close up, risky fighting happens. and those hateful VBIEDs can get in really close without detection.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 06:04

intent must be turn the defeat at palmyra into a uncontrolled retreat and rout, scatter the remnants into the desert, hunt them near the roads, overtake their retreating columns and get Al-Sukanah on the fly without giving them a chance to break off cleanly and regroup around prepared defences.

in all such battles in history, this rout phase causes the most casualties to the defeated party.

so SAA might be well advised to keep some mobile units fueled up and ready and out of current action, to pour through the broken lines and closely pursue and run to ground any IS mainline units that make it out of palmyra backside. hopefully the spetsnaz spotters are already sited on such desolate retreat routes ready to call in artillery.

deep battle with a levantine twist - instead of masses of T72 and BTR, it will be masses of toyotas and ZSU23-4 on truck beds cued by cheap chinese cots drones for recon vs cosmos sats

intent must be same, move fast, move deep, paralyse the enemy's lines of resupply far into the rear and destroy soft targets like supply depots.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 25 Mar 2016 06:35

one rus ground based FAC kia.

TSJones · Post by **TSJones** » 25 Mar 2016 06:44

deejay wrote:For TSJ, from trusted sources like BBC

BBC News USVerified account
‏@BBCNewsUS
How heavy are the air strikes against Islamic State really? Judge for yourself: http://bbc.in/1lHYgKY
Video on this link: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsUS/status/669258301280940032

so what? it's a chicken sh** point about how often we bomb? who are you to question Obama's bomb rate?

saddam's forces were not the same as ISIS. saddam had way more equipment and infrastructure to bomb.

obama is after a political settlement. period. end of story. there was no political settlement wanted by bush jr. for saddam. we dropped concrete bombs for *years* before bush jr. wacked saddam.

and we're not leaving either. it's our meat and we'll cook it how we want it. missuss clinton may change things. or not.

bark at the caravan all you want.........

habal · Post by **habal** » 25 Mar 2016 06:53

AoA

* takbeer *

this should give fire control over entire city

Hassan Ridha ‏@sayed_ridha 12m12 minutes ago
Hassan Ridha Retweeted دمشق الآن
#SAA have taken control of Jabal Mazar & the warehouses on mountain (Brigade 550) which overlook #Tadmor city