Levant crisis - III

[Singha]

perhaps the american warships milling around in the red sea in a war they are not directly involved in is to interdict such arms shipments.

but nothing can be done if Yemen offers a tartous type base to the russians and the russians move in and setup a shop.

what if the russians fitted improved guidance systems to yemeni scuds & tochkas that use glonass for more accuracy.

[Philip]

Russia clearly entrenching itself in the ME/Meditt. As time goes by,any attack against the Syrian regime will be considered an attack against Russia.Russia's clear warning to the US shows its intention and resolve.

https://rbth.com/news/2016/10/10/russia ... tus_637359

Russia to deploy permanent naval base in Syria’s Tartus
October 10, 2016 TASS
Gorbachev: The world has reached a dangerous line; it is time to stop

Currently Tartus is being used as a logistics facility for Russian ships. Source: MIl.ru
Russia plans to deploy a naval base in Syria’s Tartus on the permanent basis, Deputy Defense Minister Nikolai Pankov said on Oct. 10.

"In Syria, we will have a permanent naval base in Tartus. The corresponding documents have been drafted. Currently they are in the process of inter-departmental coordination. The degree of readiness is rather high. We hope that we will soon ask you to ratify these documents," Pankov said at a meeting of the Federation Council’s international affairs committee.

Currently Tartus is being used as a logistics facility for Russian ships. And A Russian aerospace group is stationed at Hmeymim, Latakia province.

The State Duma on Oct. 7 ratified a Russian-Syrian agreement on the open-ended deployment of the Russian air group in Syria. The agreement was signed in Damascus on Aug. 26, 2015. Nearly a year later President Vladimir Putin submitted it to the State Duma for consideration. The Federation Council will consider the agreement on Oct. 12.

Russian on Sept. 30, 2015 launched an anti-terrorist operation in Syria at the request of Syria’s President Bashar Assad. Russian planes are based at the Hmeymim airdrome. In March 2016, Putin issued orders to pull out the bulk of the Russian air group form Syria, but the remaining planes continued to deal strikes against militants.

Source: TASS

Russia: We will shoot down U.S. jets in Syria that threaten our servicemen>>>

https://www.rt.com/news/362290-russia-r ... lon-syria/

‘Where was Britain when ISIS conquered Syria?’ Russia rebuffs UK claims of ‘prolonging’ war
Published time: 10 Oct, 2016
Russia’s Defense Ministry issued an indignant comeback to UK Minister of Defence Michael Fallon a day after the British politician said Moscow was likely guilty of “bombing civilians” in Syria and trying to “prolong the civil war” there.

“Before launching into incoherent conjecture about Russia’s supposed responsibility for the situation in Aleppo in particular, and Syria in general, it is necessary to think – what has the UK contributed to this poor country?” Major General Igor Konashenkov, the Russian Defense Ministry’s spokesman, said in a statement released on Monday afternoon.

“Where was the UK when ISIS [Islamic State/Daesh, formerly ISIL] nearly reached the Mediterranean coast, almost turning Syria into a terrorist caliphate, like Libya. After all, it was you who controlled the skies at the time,” he continued. *(Fart*ng around in the House of Commons)

Konashenkov boasted that Russia has delivered “over 1000 liberated settlements, thousands of tons of humanitarian aid, and thousands of square kilometers freed from ISIS’ hold, to which peaceful life has returned.”

“How many settlements have been liberated, how much humanitarian aid delivered, and how many square feet have been cleared of ISIS by the UK?” asked the Russian official.

At the end of his missive, Konashenkov asked if it is, perhaps, Britain that “should be held responsible for the birth and nurture of ISIS, and Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front, which is now being effectively subdued by the Russian air forces.”

In an interview with the BBC, Fallon, who assumed his post two years ago, said that Russian air forces were likely behind the bombing of the UN aid convoy headed to Aleppo on September 20, which killed 20 people, and destroyed 18 trucks full of food and supplies.

“It looks as if they [Russia] did target that particular convoy and if that can be established, then yes, they should be held accountable,” Fallon told BBC presenter Andrew Marr.

“Russia is determined to prolong this civil war; it is actually conniving with the regime’s bombing of civilians and may indeed have been bombing civilians themselves.”
British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon. © Toby Melville

With most Western countries accusing Russia of the attack, the incident effectively put an end to months of shuttle diplomacy between Moscow and Washington, aimed at establishing a joint operation aimed at eliminating extremist forces in Syria.

The US has now officially suspended bilateral ties with Moscow over Syria, while Russian officials say that the West is still allowing Al-Nusra and other Islamist groups to operate under the guise of the so-called “moderate opposition.”

Russia presented all evidence on aid convoy attack, now wants impartial investigation .

[Austin]

I wonder why GOI never let IAF participate in Syria ops , We could have taken the MKI and Jaguar and expose our folks in real world combat and interoperability with RuAF and Ground forces of SAA.

Saudi has been effectively bank rolling Pakistan Nuclear and Military program , They have known to funded Madrasas in Kashmir and Salafi folks have bankrolled terrorism in India for a long time well known to Indian Intel.

We say we support Russian approach in Syria and Support Assad and yet we are hisitant to do any thing beyond lip service. Even the Egypt has grown some balls and supported UN resolution even though Saudi funds them.

Are we shit scared to annoy the Umah ?

[Singha]

^^ gulf jobs I guess and petrol supply contracts. plus acute diffidence case.

video of 2 IED attacks on a iraqi column....brave guys and well equipped with US kit including BPJs.
https://twitter.com/IraqiSecurity/statu ... 1425580032

[Singha]

our policy decision makers need some of the yemeni soul in them...fighting against tall odds. No air force, but still undefeated and defiant.

[Singha]

2 squadrons of jaguars and 1 sq of su30 operating from palmyra could ravage the ISIS in the desert and set the stage for linking up with deir azzor and tabqah. 1 CSAR unit ofcourse.

ofcourse there are risks but a clear message will be sent that its not a 1-way street of funding proxies to wage war on us. and a clear message to Massa that we are not going to remain confined in a neat little PACOM box they desire.

[Austin]

^^ Well they have their chance to send a strong message to Saudi but Alas we dont have a Yemini soul just a dharmic one !

[Austin]

Clinton says Saudi Arabia, Qatar provide ‘clandestine’ support to ISIS – WikiLeaks

Contrary to Qatar’s assurances that it does not support Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), Hillary Clinton apparently believes that they are in fact providing “clandestine financial and logistic support to IS and other radical Sunni groups in the region,” according to an August 17, 2014 email released by WikiLeaks on Monday.

READ MORE: WikiLeaks releases 2nd batch of 2,000+ emails from Clinton campaign chair

“While this military/para-military operation is moving forward, we need to use our diplomatic and more traditional intelligence assets to bring pressure on the governments of Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which are providing clandestine financial and logistic support to ISIL and other radical Sunni groups in the region,” she wrote to Podesta.

“This effort will be enhanced by the stepped up commitment in the KRG [Kurdish Regional Government]. The Qataris and Saudis will be put in a position of balancing policy between their ongoing competition to dominate the Sunni world and the consequences of serious U.S. pressure,” she added.

Clinton also named Saudi Arabia as a supporter of IS, a country which has previously been accused of funding other terrorist organizations, such as Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. The kingdom also has a policy of torture and public executions, not entirely dissimilar to the actions of IS.

[Austin]

Russia compared to Nazis ahead of UK Syria debate

Mr Hollande also said he might refuse to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is due to visit France next week.

Russia says it is targeting terrorists and has denied carrying out the attack on the aid convoy.

Calling for a Commons debate on the "unfolding humanitarian catastrophe", Mr Mitchell, a former international development secretary, told MPs: "The use of incendiary weapons, munitions such as bunker buster bombs and cluster bombs... the UN make clear that the systematic use of such indiscriminate weapons in densely populated areas amounts to a war crime.
[/b]
"We are witnessing events which match the behaviour of the Nazi regime in Guernica in Spain.

"Russia is shredding the international rules-based system of law

Mr Mitchell, who served in the Army in his pre-parliamentary life, added: "They are destroying the United Nations and its ability to act, in the same way the Germans and the Italians destroyed the League of Nations in the 1930s."

[Austin]

‘Where was Britain when ISIS conquered Syria?’ Russia rebuffs UK claims of ‘prolonging’ war

Before launching into incoherent conjecture about Russia’s supposed responsibility for the situation in Aleppo in particular, and Syria in general, it is necessary to think – what has the UK contributed to this poor country?” Major General Igor Konashenkov, the Russian Defense Ministry’s spokesman, said in a statement released on Monday afternoon.

“Where was the UK when ISIS [Islamic State/Daesh, formerly ISIL] nearly reached the Mediterranean coast, almost turning Syria into a terrorist caliphate, like Libya. After all, it was you who controlled the skies at the time,” he continued.

Konashenkov boasted that Russia has delivered “over 1000 liberated settlements, thousands of tons of humanitarian aid, and thousands of square kilometers freed from ISIS’ hold, to which peaceful life has returned.”

“How many settlements have been liberated, how much humanitarian aid delivered, and how many square feet have been cleared of ISIS by the UK?” asked the Russian official.

At the end of his missive, Konashenkov asked if it is, perhaps, Britain that “should be held responsible for the birth and nurture of ISIS, and Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front, which is now being effectively subdued by the Russian air forces.”

[Philip]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/ ... te][b]Amid Syrian chaos, Iran’s game plan emerges: a path to the Mediterranean[/b]
Militias controlled by Tehran are poised to complete a land corridor that would give Iran huge power in the region

Sunni fighters training ahead of the battle to retake the city of Mosul. Photograph: Thaier Al-Sudani/Reuters
Martin Chulov
Saturday 8 October 2016
Not far from Mosul, a large military force is finalising plans for an advance that has been more than three decades in the making. The troops are Shia militiamen who have fought against the Islamic State, but they have not been given a direct role in the coming attack to free Iraq’s second city from its clutches.

Instead, while the Iraqi army attacks Mosul from the south, the militias will take up a blocking position to the west, stopping Isis forces from fleeing towards their last redoubt of Raqqa in Syria. Their absence is aimed at reassuring the Sunni Muslims of Mosul that the imminent recapture of the city is not a sectarian push against them. However, among Iraq’s Shia-dominated army the militia’s decision to remain aloof from the battle of Mosul is being seen as a rebuff.

Yet among the militias’ backers in Iran there is little concern. Since their inception, the Shia irregulars have made their name on the battlefields of Iraq, but they have always been central to Tehran’s ambitions elsewhere. By not helping to retake Mosul, the militias are free to drive one of its most coveted projects – securing an arc of influence across Iraq and Syria that would end at the Mediterranean Sea.

Iran's arc of influence
The strip of land to the west of Mosul in which the militias will operate is essential to that goal. After 12 years of conflict in Iraq and an even more savage conflict in Syria, Iran is now closer than ever to securing a land corridor that will anchor it in the region – and potentially transform the Islamic Republic’s presence on Arab lands. “They have been working extremely hard on this,” said a European official who has monitored Iran’s role in both wars for the past five years. “This is a matter of pride for them on one hand and pragmatism on the other. They will be able to move people and supplies between the Mediterranean and Tehran whenever they want, and they will do so along safe routes that are secured by their people, or their proxies.”

Interviews during the past four months with regional officials, influential Iraqis and residents of northern Syria have established that the land corridor has slowly taken shape since 2014. It is a complex route that weaves across Arab Iraq, through the Kurdish north, into Kurdish north-eastern Syria and through the battlefields north of Aleppo, where Iran and its allies are prevailing on the ground. It has been assembled under the noses of friend and foe, the latter of which has begun to sound the alarm in recent weeks. Turkey has been especially opposed, fearful of what such a development means for Iran’s relationship with the PKK (the Kurdistan Workers’ party), the restive Kurds in its midst, on whom much of the plan hinges.

The plan has been coordinated by senior government and security officials in Tehran, Baghdad and Damascus, all of whom defer to the head of the spearhead of Iran’s foreign policy, the Quds force of the Revolutionary Guards, headed by Major General Qassem Suleimani, who has run Iran’s wars in Syria and Iraq. It involves demographic shifts, which have already taken place in central Iraq and are under way in northern Syria. And it relies heavily on the support of a range of allies, who are not necessarily aware of the entirety of the project but have a developed vested interest in securing separate legs.

Maj Gen Qassem Suleimani, head of Iran’s all-powerful Quds force. Photograph: HO/AFP/Getty Images
The corridor starts at the entry points that Iran has used to send supplies and manpower into Iraq over the past 12 years. They are the same routes that were used by the Quds force to run a guerrilla war against US forces when they occupied the country – a campaign fought by the same Iraqi militias that have since been immersed in the fight against Isis.

The groups, Asa’ib ahl al-Haq, Keta’ib Hezbollah and their offshoots, accounted for close to 25% of all US battlefield casualties, senior US officials have said. They have become even more influential since US forces left the country. And in one of modern warfare’s starkest ironies, in the two years since US troops have returned to Iraq to fight Isis they have at times fought under US air cover.

The route crosses through Baquba, the capital of Diyala province, around 60 miles north of Baghdad. A mixed Sunni/Shia area for hundreds of years, Diyala became one of the main sectarian flashpoint areas during Iraq’s civil war. Along roads that have been secured by militias, which are known locally as “popular mobilisation units”, it then moves northwest into areas that were occupied by Isis as recently as several months ago.

The town of Shirqat in Salaheddin province is one important area. It was taken by militias along with Iraqi forces on 22 September, delivering another blow to the terrorist group and an important boost to Iran’s ambitions.

The Observer view on Russia’s actions in Syria and the failure of international law
Serial disregard for the United Nations in the Middle East and elsewhere risks a global conflagration
Read more
The militias are now present in large numbers in Shirqat and readying to move towards the western edge of Mosul, to a point around 50 miles southeast of Sinjar, which – at this point – is the next leg in the corridor. Between the militia forces and Sinjar is the town of Tal Afar, an Isis stronghold, which has been a historical home of both Sunni and Shia Turkmen – ancestral kin of Turkey.

A senior intelligence official said the leg between Tel Afar and Sinjar is essential to the plan. Sinjar is an ancestral home to the Yazidi population, which was forced to flee in August 2014 after Isis invaded the city, killing all the men it could find and enslaving women. It was recaptured by Iraqi Kurdish forces last November. And ever since PKK forces from across the Syrian border have taken up residence in the city and across the giant monolith, Mt Sinjar, behind it. The PKK fighters are being paid by the Iraqi government and have been incorporated into the popular mobilisation units. Iraqi and western intelligence officials say the move was approved by Iraq’s national security adviser, Falah Fayadh.

An influential Iraqi tribal sheikh, Abdulrahim al-Shammari, emerges as a central figure further to the north. He has a power base near the Rabia crossing into Syria, receives support from the popular mobilisation units and is close to the Assad regime in Damascus. “I believe that in our area Iran does not have very much influence,” he told the Observer in Baghdad. “There is nobody here, no major power that is helping us with weapons. Ideologically speaking, the PKK is affiliated with the Kurds of this area, so there is no problem having them here.”

From the Rabia crossing, the mooted route goes past the towns of Qamishli and Kobani towards Irfin, which are all controlled by the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia. Throughout the war the YPG (People’s Protection Units) has hedged its bets, at times allying with the US against Isis, and at other times siding with the Syrian regime. “Iran thinks it has them where it wants them now,” said the European source. “I’m not sure it has gauged the Turks correctly, though.”

A fighter in Sinjar
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A fighter sits on a balcony in Sinjar, Iraq after the town was retaken from Isis by Kurdish-led forces. Photograph: Cengiz Yar for the Guardian
Of all the points between Tehran and the Syrian coast, Aleppo has concentrated Iran’s energies more than anywhere else. Up to 6,000 militia members, mostly from Iraq, have congregated there ahead of a move to take the rebel-held east of the city, which could begin around the same time as the assault on Mosul.

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Those who have observed Suleimani up close as he inspects the frontlines in Syria and Iraq, or in meetings in Damascus and Baghdad, where he projects his immense power through studied calm, say he has invested everything in Syria – and in ensuring that Iran emerges from a brutal, expensive war with its ambitions enhanced. “If we lose Syria, we lose Tehran,” Suleimani told the late Iraqi politician Ahmed Chalabi in 2014. Chalabi told the Observer at the time that Suleimani had added: “We will turn all this chaos into an opportunity.”

Securing Aleppo would be an important leg in the corridor, which would run past two villages to the north that have historically been in Shia hands. From there, a senior Syrian official, and Iraqi officials in Baghdad, said it would run towards the outskirts of Syria’s fourth city, Homs, then move north through the Alawite heartland of Syria, which a year of Russian airpower has again made safe for Assad. Iran’s hard-won road ends at the port of Latakia, which has remained firmly in regime hands throughout the war.

Ali Khedery, who advised all US ambassadors to Iraq and four commanders of Centcom in 2003-11 said securing a Mediterranean link would be seen as a strategic triumph in Iran. “It signifies the consolidation of Iran’s control over Iraq and the Levant, which in turn confirms their hegemonic regional ambitions,” he said. “That should trouble every western leader and our regional allies because this will further embolden Iran to continue expanding, likely into the Gulf countries next, a goal they have explicitly and repeatedly articulated. Why should we expect them to stop if they’ve been at the casino, doubling their money over and over again, for a decade?”[/quote]

[IndraD]

Story of the the white helmets

They are NGO/civil society type organisation who pull out half dead and alive out of rubble and send them to hospitals, they also bury dead with honour. Headed by an ex teacher they have been nominated for 'Noble peace prize' this year. US calls them peacekeepers.
They are despised by Sy-Ru who have targeted their camps with air strikes.

Take with pinch of salt , coming from the economist. http://www.economist.com/news/middle-ea ... r-rescuers

[Singha]

they are essentially the dual role medical corps of the rebels. some ppl spotted donning both types of dresses.

[Singha]

[Singha]

saudis tried some reverse swing by claming it was their SF destroying a houthi weapons depot but quickly debunked in the comments.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=cfa_1476121843

[Austin]

17 generals were killed, 12 injured - it was a deliberate decapitation strike

That's a big list and precision strike to take out key people , wonder what is left of them ?

So the houthis just control capital sana and the rebels rest of the country ?

[Bhurishravas]

our policy decision makers need some of the yemeni soul in them...fighting against tall odds. No air force, but still undefeated and defiant.

Our policy makers are doing great by not involving themselves in other people`s wars. India has improved its relations with the gulf kingdoms in the aftermath of Pakistan declining to join the Sunni Arab alliance.
Although, roos loving fellas here would love to see India shun its own foreign policy interests and sync its entire foreign policy goals with Moscow, that is not happening. By staying away from Syria, India manages good relations with all. No mean feat when the world is so divided.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-37616333
Syria conflict: Russia's Putin halts France visit amid row

But after this Russia "let it be known that it wanted to postpone the visit", they added.
A spokesman for Mr Putin confirmed the trip had been cancelled, adding that the visit would take place when it becomes "comfortable for President Hollande".

Russia looks much better when it stops trying to be diplomatic and gives a jhaapad. Nice one there.

[Singha]

Austin, the houthis + saleh govt and his loyalist military control about 30% of country, hadi govt + gcc control 30%, rest are unpopulated tracts and al qaeda enclaves of unclear ownership.

[Singha]

The explosions video at airbase may or may not be genuine...could be older footage

Fox news

The Saudi military said early Monday that it stopped one missile fired toward Marib in Yemen and a second targeting the kingdom's city of Taif.

Saudi state television aired a brief clip of what appeared to be a projectile landing in Taif and the flash of an explosion, following by images of emergency vehicles. The military said the missiles caused no damage.

Taif is home to Saudi Arabia's King Fahad Air Base.

[Austin]

Our policy makers are doing great by not involving themselves in other people`s wars. India has improved its relations with the gulf kingdoms in the aftermath of Pakistan declining to join the Sunni Arab alliance.
Although, roos loving fellas here would love to see India shun its own foreign policy interests and sync its entire foreign policy goals with Moscow, that is not happening. By staying away from Syria, India manages good relations with all. No mean feat when the world is so divided.

It is more of a question of belief and what we stand for , If we feel that what Syria is experiencing is terrorism and we are against it which Sushma says that in as many words then we must fight it with the capability we have.

Nations are great not because if what they have but because what they stand up for.

Todays IS Syrian terrorist taking over , is tommorows terrorist operation in POK or Afghanistan or Bangladesh .......Our do nothing , sit tight attitude has screwed up our our security situation so badly that we are not shift scared to fight defensive battle.

[Rudradev]

Austin, I would think we stand for India, period.

Did Assad (or his father) make any move to help us against Paki-sponsored terrorism in J&K? Forget going to war for us, did he even lift a finger to block the OIC's relentless pro-Paki resolutions on Kashmir? If not, then why do we owe him anything, much less involvement in his civil war?

As far as I know the only WA leader who clearly articulated a pro-India position on J&K was Saddam.

Afghanistan and Bangladesh are our near abroad and absolutely within our immediate national security threat matrix. We have no more at stake with the Russian expedition in Syria than we did with the US expedition in Iraq.

[TSJones]

looks like the houthies are on the dance card schedule to get some Obama style love taps. prolly not a lot, just a liitle smooch or two. see where it goes.

https://twitter.com/WilliamsJon/status/ ... 29/photo/1

[Austin]

Austin, I would think we stand for India, period.

Did Assad (or his father) make any move to help us against Paki-sponsored terrorism in J&K? Forget going to war for us, did he even lift a finger to block the OIC's relentless pro-Paki resolutions on Kashmir? If not, then why do we owe him anything, much less involvement in his civil war?

As far as I know the only WA leader who clearly articulated a pro-India position on J&K was Saddam.

Afghanistan and Bangladesh are our near abroad and absolutely within our immediate national security threat matrix. We have no more at stake with the Russian expedition in Syria than we did with the US expedition in Iraq.

How exactly did we make Saudi Pay for bank rolling Pakistan Nuclear Program and Funding Jahadis in Kashmir and Deobandis in India .....They have since decades funded Indian extremist and backed Pakistan with impunity and continue to do so

Salafism in Kashmir: Why is media silent on Salafi-Wahhabi preachers in the Valley?

http://www.firstpost.com/india/salafism ... 34022.html

[UlanBatori]

Good thing them Houthis ain't got no children's hospitals. Or any hospitals, just funeral parlors.

[Austin]

Russia sends cruise missile ships to Mediterranean

http://www.janes.com/article/64460/russ ... iterranean

[Austin]

*Several nations to join Russian aid operation in Aleppo*
11/10/2016
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/se ... on-aleppo/

---Quote---
ALEPPO, SYRIA (11:30 A.M.) - A coalition of countries have agreed to help deliver humanitarian aid to the beleaguered civilians of Aleppo, Interfax News Agency reported on Tuesday morning.

"China, Azerbaijan, Serbia, India, Kazakhstan intend to join Russia's humanitarian operation in Aleppo," the Russian-based news agency stated.

Armenia and China have already sent humanitarian aid to Aleppo; however, they are reportedly expanding their participation with their Russian allies in Syria.

War has taken a toll on this historical Syrian city, as Aleppo's current population has dwindled to 1.5 million inhabitants, with at least 1.35 million people still living in the government-held neighborhoods.

[Austin]

This news is quite interesting

Mystery Iranian ‘architect’ of Russian ops in Syria: Qasem Soleimani

http://in.rbth.com/world/2016/10/07/mys ... ani_636743

[Paul]

Ray's Yeomanry ‏@raytheonunited · 15m15 minutes ago

SyAAF reported intense Rebel AA Flak fire and as many as 3 MANPADS launches at 2 Su-24s, with one getting damaged and forced to land.

So MANPADs are coming into play...

[Austin]

From Day 1 RuAF has been flying fighter over Manpad envelop , So that threat was always taken into consideration. For Choppers it will be different story as they have to flow low and are vulnerable to manpads , indeed 2 were lost to manpads iirc.

I think flying at 6 Km altitude will be above any known manpad envelop , High Altitude Precision bombing for iron bomb is what they must do coupled with LGB and GLONASS assisted bomb

[Rudradev]

How exactly did we make Saudi Pay for bank rolling Pakistan Nuclear Program and Funding Jahadis in Kashmir and Deobandis in India .....They have since decades funded Indian extremist and backed Pakistan with impunity and continue to do so

Salafism in Kashmir: Why is media silent on Salafi-Wahhabi preachers in the Valley?

http://www.firstpost.com/india/salafism ... 34022.html

Do you consider committing regular Indian armed forces to fight Saudi-funded proxies, and that too not in Saudi Arabia but Syria, an effective form of payback?

The Saudis will get theirs, in a way that costs less to us and lots more to them.

[Bhurishravas]

Our policy makers are doing great by not involving themselves in other people`s wars. India has improved its relations with the gulf kingdoms in the aftermath of Pakistan declining to join the Sunni Arab alliance.
Although, roos loving fellas here would love to see India shun its own foreign policy interests and sync its entire foreign policy goals with Moscow, that is not happening. By staying away from Syria, India manages good relations with all. No mean feat when the world is so divided.

It is more of a question of belief and what we stand for , If we feel that what Syria is experiencing is terrorism and we are against it which Sushma says that in as many words then we must fight it with the capability we have.
Nations are great not because if what they have but because what they stand up for.
Todays IS Syrian terrorist taking over , is tommorows terrorist operation in POK or Afghanistan or Bangladesh .......Our do nothing , sit tight attitude has screwed up our our security situation so badly that we are not shift scared to fight defensive battle.

The same noble logic never seems to apply to Russia. Since Turkey has been aiding ISIS according to Russia itself, what is the logic in Putin courting Erdogan and letting him carve out an area in Syrian territory.
All angst is reserved for India only.
Of course there is truth in the fact that Assad is a dictator. Iran is as islamic as Saudi. Nevertheless we must take sides to the point of intervening militarily. That is laughable.

[Bhurishravas]

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-midea ... SKCN12B160

Turkey has right to combat threats in Syria and Iraq: Erdogan

President Tayyip Erdogan warned Iraq's prime minister he should "know his limits" after he criticized Turkey's military presence there and said the Turkish army, shaken by a failed coup bid, had not lost so much standing as to take orders from him.

"Turkey cannot intervene against the threats right next to it? We will never accept this ... We don’t need permission for this, and we don’t plan on getting it."

[TSJones]

Good thing them Houthis ain't got no children's hospitals. Or any hospitals, just funeral parlors.

indeed.

obviously them houthies ain't scared or else they wouldn't be taking pot shots at Uncle Sam's tin cans.

only thing that would scare them is to start sinking iranian shipping around the yemen coast. but that ain't happening so houthies ain't scared.

obtw, killing the enemy military at funeral parades is a legitimate tactic. nobody said stop the war I'm going to a funeral.

[Lisa]

Good thing them Houthis ain't got no children's hospitals. Or any hospitals, just funeral parlors.

indeed.

obviously them houthies ain't scared or else they wouldn't be taking pot shots at Uncle Sam's tin cans.

only thing that would scare them is to start sinking iranian shipping around the yemen coast. but that ain't happening so houthies ain't scared.

obtw, killing the enemy military at funeral parades is a legitimate tactic. nobody said stop the war I'm going to a funeral.

Does the above bolded suggestion apply in just the middle east or does it have a global application? Please advise.

[nachiket]

obtw, killing the enemy military at funeral parades is a legitimate tactic. nobody said stop the war I'm going to a funeral.

Does the above bolded suggestion apply in just the middle east or does it have a global application? Please advise.

Ah Lisa ji you don't get it. The location does not matter. Only who carries out the attack. If Assad or the Russians bomb a funeral procession of the ahem..."moderate rebel beheaders" in Syria, it's an outrage. If the US or their jihadi wahhabi allies bomb a Houthi procession..."Hell Yeah! Collateral damage be damned!"

[UlanBatori]

You have to admit that a massacre at a cemetery is optimal, funeral parlor is next. Read "Adventurers" by Harold Robbins for further guidance on this.

[Bheeshma]

Waiting to see if Houtis get SA-18/18 now. That will hurt the southis a lot.

[TSJones]

you guys got a strange sense of morality considering so many dead are left rotting on the battle field or just covered up in a ditch. if their bodies ain't booby trapped that is.

if you wanna fight, then you had better be on guard. funerals or no funerals. bunch of nonsense....cry after the war is over......

[nachiket]

you guys got a strange sense of morality considering so many dead are left rotting on the battle field or just covered up in a ditch. if their bodies ain't booby trapped that is.

if you wanna fight, then you had better be on guard. funerals or no funerals. bunch of nonsense....cry after the war is over......

Then why is your media screaming about Russian airstrikes in Aleppo, now? Shouldn't they wait till the war is over too? Our strange sense of morality is trumped by your country's penchant for hypocrisy.

[TSJones]

since when is bombing hospitals and relief convoys equivilent to bombing military high brass at funerals?

yes, you have a strange sense of morality. I'd call it WARPED.