Levant crisis - III

Rishi Verma · Post by **Rishi Verma** » 14 Dec 2016 20:17

IndraD wrote:She is Yumi not Ankita : Putin often show cases her. ^

OT, it's not Ankita, it's Akita the breed of Putin's dawg.

habal · Post by **habal** » 14 Dec 2016 20:24

syrper uvacha

muhaysini packed off to Saudi by his mentors

Confirmed reports indicate the escape of ‘Abdullah Al-Muhaysini to Turkey and his flight to Saudi Arabia. His flight has been delayed because of wrangling over what to do with him when he arrives in Riyaadh. Many Saudi clerics have been asked to intercede on his behalf claiming that he is not an incorrigible terrorist, but, instead, a committed fighter of Wahhabism’s mortal enemies (read: Dr. Bashar Al-Assad). Needless to say, it is upsetting that he was allowed to escape having been promised his scorched femur as a burnt offering. Yet, it’s just another example of the rats leaving a sinking ship.

The details are found in yesterday’s report on the convoy of weapons sent from Hama via Highway 45 to resupply the trapped rodents of ISIS in Palmyra. It has become somewhat evident that the rodents in Hama who belonged to Jaysh Al-Fath were opposed to sending the supply convoy over flat desert which would guarantee SAAF and RuAF interception. In other words, the rodents in Hama did not want to send much-needed supplies to a city like Palmyra which had become surrounded with no corridors for entry.

The plan to resupply the rodents in Palmyra came on direct orders from a Saudi officer liaised with MI6 contractors in Gaziantep who suddenly realized that the multiple attacks on the Syrian Army defending the city consumed most of their heavy weapons leaving them with lighter ones and a severely reduced amount of ammunition. Couple that to the fact that RuAF has destroyed most supply trucks which accompanied the attacking rodents and you have a military disaster no less humiliating for the British than it was for the Nazis at the Battle of the Bulge. ISIS rodents are now like sardines in a can, unable to move and awaiting the glistening teeth of the cat.

Al-Muhaysini’s direct order from Turkey to send in the resupply column after his meeting with the Saudi officer, was viewed as pure folly and inconsistent with the decisions of a prudent military commander. He is now on the list of expendables. He has been told not to return lest he face execution or assassination as Aleppo falls completely to the Syrian Arab Army. This disaster is playing out in the very rat nests of Al-Nusra/Alqaeda, Jaysh Al-Fath and especially, Harakat Ahraar Al-Shaam, which is, by the way, a collapsing enterprise.

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 14 Dec 2016 20:37

Assad years ago as surgical trainee

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Dec 2016 21:22

Yume, which means "dream" in Japanese, was presented to President Putin four years ago by representatives of Japan's Akita Prefecture as a thank you gift for Russia's help after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

Read more: https://sputniknews.com/art_living/2016 ... akita-inu/

Suresh S · Post by **Suresh S** » 14 Dec 2016 21:33

Allowing these killers to escape from east Alleppo is a mistake. Also fall of palmyra is a humiliating defeat for Putin and saa,no two ways about it.Putin has made several mistakes in this war. First trying to be super intellectual and continuously trying for ceasefire with kerry/obama when only bad faith is the result. Trying to look good with the MSM and western public is a fool,s strategy, only result will be many more poor syrian and russian dead soldiers .

Lilo · Post by **Lilo** » 14 Dec 2016 21:48

http://twitter.com/nntaleb/status/809015340340486145

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Dec 2016 22:10

photos are on twitter of the down f-solah pieces with shrapnel holes

Dr Shahid
‏@DocPakistan
#Breaking PKK armed wing claims responsibility for shooting down a Turkish F-16 in Diyarbakir on December 12

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Dec 2016 22:11

Hassan Ridha ‏@sayed_ridha 4h4 hours ago
Jaish Fateh fire 15 Grad rockets onto besieged Fuah-Kafraya in Idlib countryside

^^ they are doing this now with 1000s of rats still in aleppo . imagine what they will do if aleppo is evacuated with no quid pro quo of moving these two towns people out of idlib

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Dec 2016 22:15

Military Advisor ‏@miladvisor Dec 13
Russian MoD: All our appeals to West and int. org. to send promised humanitarian aid to the civilians who left Aleppo remained unanswered

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Dec 2016 22:19

habal · Post by **habal** » 14 Dec 2016 22:45

Today, the Iraq PMU has announced they will move to the Syrian border to secure it from ISIS, they were not clear which part of the border but it seems to be Nineveh, which will mean a flanking help for the SAA and allies in Deir ez Zor.

Am positive that this announcement came after the fall of Palmyra and the knowledge the C5 group has that the NATO plan was to have ISIS stronghold move to central/eastern Syria after Mosul.

Bhurishravas · Post by **Bhurishravas** » 14 Dec 2016 23:48

70-80% sunnis in Assad army.

I would very much doubt that.
He wouldnt need Iran and Hezbollah help if that were the case.

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 00:00

Bhurishravas wrote:
70-80% sunnis in Assad army.

I would very much doubt that.
He wouldnt need Iran and Hezbollah help if that were the case.

core of Sy army is very much Sunni

The current minister of defense, Fahd al-Freij, is one of the most decorated officers in Syrian military history and hails from the Sunni heartland of Hama. The two most powerful intelligence chiefs, Ali Mamlouk and Mohammad Dib Zaitoun, have remained loyal to the Syrian government—and are both Sunnis from influential families. The now-dead and dreaded strongman of Syrian intelligence, Rustom Ghazaleh, who ruled Lebanon with an iron fist, was a Sunni, and the head of the investigative branch of the political directorate, Mahmoud al-Khattib, is from an old Damascene Sunni family. Major General Ramadan Mahmoud Ramadan, commander of the Thirty-Fifth Special Forces Regiment, which is tasked with the protection of western Damascus, is another high-ranking Sunni, as is Brigadier General Jihad Mohamed Sultan, the commander of the Sixty-Fifth Brigade that guards Latakia.

The history of the Syrian Army that Hafez al-Assad built is instructive today. As president, the elder Assad brought senior members of the Syrian Air Force into the military high command. Naji Jamil (another Sunni) served as air force chief from 1970 to 1978 and was promoted to the General Staff committee overseeing defenses on the Iraqi border. Another air force commander was Muhammad al-Khuli, who until 1993 held coveted logistical positions between Damascus and Lebanon. Other prominent officers above the rank of Brigadier in military and civil defense positions post-2000 were Sunnis, including Rustom Ghazaleh, Hazem al Khadra and Deeb Zaytoun. Since 1973, the strategic tank battalions of the Seventieth Armored Brigade, stationed near al-Kiswah near Damascus, have had rank-and-file Alawis under the command of Sunni officers. As well, two of the most decorated officers who rose to be Chief of General Staff under Bashar al-Assad were Sunnis: Hassan Turkmani and Hikmat Shehabi.
From the 1970s until the 1990s, the Syrian Arab Army had a mandate to stabilize Lebanon. During these years, it worked to outmaneuver both the IDF and the U.S. Marines by supporting various proxies in Lebanon. In post-Saddam Iraq, the Americans could never understand which elements of both the Sunni and Shia insurgencies were supported by Syrian military intelligence, much of this owing to the stealth with which the Syrian Army controlled various Iraqi agents dating back to the Lebanese civil war.
The Syrian Arab Army is also the only Arab army with multiple Christians serving as generals. The most famous of these was Daoud Rajha, the Greek Orthodox army chief of staff. The two most influential Lebanese Christian leaders, now on the verge of becoming the next president of Lebanon, are Michel Aoun and Suleiman Franjieh, who are also allies of the Syrian Arab Army and President Assad. Deir al-Zour is an entirely Sunni city which has held out against ISIS encirclement for two years—and is commanded by the Druze General Issam Zahreddine.

Bhurishravas · Post by **Bhurishravas** » 15 Dec 2016 00:08

^^ I dont doubt that there are many many sunnis in Syrian Army, just that the numbers wont be anywhere around 70%.

LokeshC · Post by **LokeshC** » 15 Dec 2016 00:20

Singha wrote:

Missed SriLanka.... and Alaska has seceded. Plasphemyyyyyyyy

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 00:22

@BS ji
The majority of the Syrian military are Sunni, but most of the military leadership are Alawites. Alawites make up 12 percent of the Syrian population but are estimated to make up 70 percent of the career soldiers in the Syrian Army.[13][45] A similar imbalance is seen in the officer corps where some 80 percent of the officers are Alawites. The military’s most elite divisions, the Republican Guard and the 4th Armoured Division, which are commanded by Bashar al-Assad's brother Maher, are exclusively Alawite. Most of Syria’s 300,000 conscripts were, however, Sunni but that number is speculated to be changing now.[13][46]

wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_Armed_Forces
but the sources quoted are CIA, stratfor etc .

Y. Kanan · Post by **Y. Kanan** » 15 Dec 2016 00:23

I doubt the Govt in Baghdad was ever onboard with the US plan to shift ISIS from Iraq to Syria. Baghdad views the fight against ISIS as one fight, not "good ISIS in Syria" and "bad ISIS in Iraq". The Iraqis also have Shia militias fighting in Syria, after all.

Bhurishravas · Post by **Bhurishravas** » 15 Dec 2016 00:38

I am saying the same thing. After 5 years of war and sectarian divisions and desertions, it is difficult to imagine that Syrian military continues to remain 60-70% sunni. There are around 40,000 casualties as well.
If there was such widespread support, the war wouldnt have continued for 5 years and Assad wouldnt have needed Iranian and Hezbollah manpower. Sunni component certainly cannot be 70% in any case.

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 00:46

Syrian army demographics are tightly held secrets : does US govt provide demography of their army btw? (just being curious)

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 01:08

Dasesh manufacturing arms on industrial scale with Turkish products http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/12/14 ... ucts-Mosul

Bevan further said he believes Daesh has already moved its experienced bomb-makers out of Mosul and into northern Syria as well as southern Turkey.

“They place a very high value on technical capacity and they will do everything they can to preserve it,” he said.

TSJones · Post by **TSJones** » 15 Dec 2016 02:40

IndraD wrote:Syrian army demographics are tightly held secrets : does US govt provide demography of their army btw? (just being curious)

certainly. does India? does Russia?

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 02:47

link please re US army.^

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 02:49

Breaking BBC
Aleppo evacuation agreement 'back on'

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 02:54

https://twitter.com/Souria4Syrians/stat ... 7291366400

The 'Nimr' Tiger ‏@Souria4Syrians Dec 13
Al-Qaeda war criminal who took a selfie with executed Syrian soldiers just days ago in East Aleppo was killed by Syrian Army today

TSJones · Post by **TSJones** » 15 Dec 2016 02:58

IndraD wrote:link please re US army.^

you first. link please India.

be a leader.

I can produce religious preference and race,

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 03:01

No I did not find India's.
Nor did I find US's from official site.

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 03:03

ISIS may have stolen Syrian missile system after retaking Palmyra, US general warns http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/12/14 ... warns.html

Rudradev · Post by **Rudradev** » 15 Dec 2016 03:14

^^This is probably a cover story for supplying MANPADS, and maybe other kinds of ADS, to ISIS.

TSJones · Post by **TSJones** » 15 Dec 2016 03:17

IndraD wrote:No I did not find India's.
Nor did I find US's from official site.

ah geez, that's too bad.....

here's an official link to US military demographics....

http://www.people.mil/Portals/56/Docume ... 154051-563

and here is a study on religious diversity in the US military.

https://www.secular.org/files/mldc-rips ... hics_0.pdf

the US military is one of the most open and transparent military in the world.

I'd like to see the breakdown stats of India and Russia militaries but I don't think that's gonna happen.

IndraD · Post by **IndraD** » 15 Dec 2016 03:44

Access Denied

You don't have permission to access "http://www.people.mil/Portals/56/Docume ... ummary.pdf?" on this server.
Reference #18.a4c44543.1481753429.1b2d07a
that link leads to no where

TSJones · Post by **TSJones** » 15 Dec 2016 03:51

link works for me.

here is one from business insider....

http://www.businessinsider.com/us-milit ... ics-2014-8

Sid · Post by **Sid** » 15 Dec 2016 04:16

TSJones wrote:link works for me.

here is one from business insider....

http://www.businessinsider.com/us-milit ... ics-2014-8

Pentagon is an enterprise, and this data is segregated based on race/marital status of troops. I donot see data based on religion and other social order. At ~77% whites, it's truly a TFTA force and hardly a flag bearer of diversity. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nati ... y/5564363/

And can you please share data on diversity in exclusive clubs, like SFs, where selection process is a bit more subjective than rest of the force structure.

And since Indian army is all "brown", race really does not matter to us

gashish · Post by **gashish** » 15 Dec 2016 04:58

"Independent" Canadian journalist challenges MSM, explains what actually is going on in Syria

youtube

the western "journalist" gets his a$$ handed down

Though Eva Bartlett betrays her affiliation to Assad regime when she alludes to elections

habal · Post by **habal** » 15 Dec 2016 05:36

Bhurishravas wrote:^^ I dont doubt that there are many many sunnis in Syrian Army, just that the numbers wont be anywhere around 70%.

Tiger force in aleppo is 95% sunni.

habal · Post by **habal** » 15 Dec 2016 07:28

The story of ceasefire until now. The cease fire was for 1000 fighters and 5000 family members.. Turned out to be 4000 fighters and 15000 family members. When SAA found out the number they wanted similar exchange in some areas like fua in idlib instead of the 1000. Thats why it failed.

habal · Post by **habal** » 15 Dec 2016 07:32

Near T4

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 15 Dec 2016 07:34

Isis have taken one sa3 system. A bit hard to smuggle around given its bulk.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 15 Dec 2016 07:42

AMN Al Masdar News المصدر نيوز

Field report: Syrian Army fights off ISIS near key airbase
Fighting in Aleppo resumes as evacuation agreement falters
Russia to build new naval aircraft carrier based off experience in Syria
BREAKING: Kurdistan Workers Party take responsibility for downed Turkish jet
11 headless bodies found close to Aden in Yemen
Lavrov says call for ceasefire in Syria only aimed at allowing militants to take breath
Iraqi commander: Only six districts left in East Mosul to capture from ISIS
Home Syria
Syria
Field report: Syrian Army fights off ISIS near key airbase
By Zen Adra - 14/12/20163

Syrian government forces thwarted a massive ISIS attack launched last night on the T4 pumping station, located to the east of the imperative T4 airbase.

According to a military source, government troops were capable of prematurely destroying a VBIED before reaching the defending forces. Fierce clashes then broke out whereby at least 20 ISIS fighters were killed in the failed offensive.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Army and allied forces launched a counter offensive early this morning, and recaptured the Tiyas Mountain – located to the north of the T4 airbase – as well as the Abandoned battalion to the northwest, thus expanding control around one of the largest and most important airbases used by the Syrian And Russian air force, which proved pivotal in driving ISIS back.

Today, a squad of Russian Special Forces who once played a major role in ousting ISIS out of Palmyra last March, have made it to the airbase to support the Army's military operations.

ISIS has taken over the desert city of Palmyra for the second time last Sunday after a surprise attack.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 15 Dec 2016 07:43

The sof unit will be better as to direct air strikes

habal · Post by **habal** » 15 Dec 2016 07:53

700 hezbollah deployed to Palmyra.

And that results in immidiate gains. The northern part of T4 overlooking the base has been taken back from ISIS. Thereby denying isis fire control over T4.