Levant crisis - III

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 07:03

As I had predicted, Kurds see no need to spend their blood and treasure fighting for areas well outside their rojava hopes

habal · Post by **habal** » 13 Jun 2016 07:08

USA wanted desperately to access tabqa airbase so that they could support turds and give air cover for SDF, they obviously cannot bomb JAN from turkish airbase without turdogan throwing a fit so the tabqa airbase was most suited for this forward deployment of CAS. Jiraah airbase is small and can support only helicopters.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 13 Jun 2016 07:16

Sounds like there is a slow-race to reach Raqqa: no one wants to be first to race into the defenses, understandable. Probably better to encircle the city and rout the external perimeter defenses and hinterland supply lines, leaving the wackos to fester inside Raqqa and show their presence, enabling Gen. Vodkov to pick them off. Remember the tactic followed in the eastern Ukraine jollies of last year - Col. Smirnoff's 'Rebels' didn't go into the city until resistance was mostly over. Once the countryside is surrounded that ends any pretense of the mighty US-led SDF sweeping into the city.

What rankles me is the news (or RT propaganda?) of Le Base D'Armee Francaise coming up in Syria. That desperately needs a VBIED or two. Just the champagne supply truck convoys pose a huge vulnerability. Which reminds me: their aircraft carrier still trying to stay afloat with all the champagne? The Rafales doing an occasional launch?

On land the French can be deadly - swifter to put their hands up and hand over their weapons to the ISIS than anyone else.

habal · Post by **habal** » 13 Jun 2016 07:29

the kobane and hasaka base is attempt by nato to consolidate kurdish areas from being overrun by SAA. Former is french latter is usa.

race to tabqa is being led by russia, saa are just covering the flanks and rear, spear tip is russian esp since speed of this assault is unprecedeted. 20 kms is covered in a day, isis on way is brutalized and fertilized instantly.

habal · Post by **habal** » 13 Jun 2016 08:49

US propaganda media outlets and western euro puppet media outlets will not report this even if Saudi Arabia shouts its funding of isis from the rooftops.

Iraq calls for clarity after Saudi Arabia admits fundraising for Daesh

By Ian Greenhalgh on June 12, 2016

It is impossible to keep the secret forever - the Saudis are the principal backers of Islamic State

http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/06/12 ... for-daesh/

Iraq has called on Saudi Arabia for explanation after a senior official admitted fundraising in the kingdom for Daesh terrorists fighting in the Iraqi city of Fallujah.

The call by Iraq’s Foreign Ministry came after Saudi Interior Ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki said earlier this week that Iraq’s current offensive against Daesh has sparked a flurry of new fundraising campaigns in Saudi Arabia.

“You cannot control the sympathies of people,” Turki said before acknowledging that those were potentially fake campaigns to raise money in the name of the “children of Fallujah” that actually funds terrorism.

“They are focusing on any event that results in a humane crisis, like the one going on in Fallujah now in Iraq,” he said.

“This is now heavily being used by many to encourage people to give money for the children of Fallujah,” Turki added during a conference call with reporters on terrorist financing.

In a statement on Saturday, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry denounced the case as “an obvious violation of the Security Council’s decisions.”

“We are waiting for a clarification from the Saudi Government regarding its spokesman’s press statements on the collection of financial donations for ISIS (Daesh) within the kingdom,” the statement said.

“The real efforts exercised to fight terrorist organizations must eliminate its funding sources,” the ministry said, in an apparent jab at Turki’s allegations touting Saudi Arabia’s counter-terrorism efforts.

Turki spoke Wednesday to reporters invited to question him remotely at the Saudi embassy in Washington which has sharply stepped up its lobbying activities in recent months amid new reports about the kingdom’s role in 9/11 attacks.

Saudi Arabia threatened to pull out several hundreds of billions of dollars in assets held in the US if the country was incriminated in the attacks.

Hence, US Treasury officials have said their concerns about wealthy Saudis funneling money to terrorist organizations have largely abated.

Riyadh is widely viewed as one of the major supporters of Daesh, mainly operating in Syria and Iraq.

http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/06/12 ... for-daesh/

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 09:04

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 09:05

^^ they could actually advance behind tabqa from rassafa crossroad and hit it from the rear also, or make a beeline to mansoura along the euphrates.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 09:07

resting and eating well even so far out near tabqah - no dry rations here

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 09:10

Two days after liberating the village of ‘Arak in east Palmyra (Tadmur), the Syrian Arab Army’s 60th Brigade of the 11th Tank Division, alongside the National Defense Forces (NDF) and Russian Air Force, imposed full control over the T-3 Military Airport after an intense battle with the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) terrorists. According to an Al-Masdar field correspondent, the Syrian Armed Forces killed over 20 Islamic State militants and destroyed a large number of armored vehicles that were mounted with anti-aircraft machine guns. As a result of this large advance in the east Homs countryside, the Syrian Armed Forces have opened the road to the imperative desert village of Al-Sukhanah, which is located along the International Highway to the Deir Ezzor Governorate. Currently, the Syrian Armed Forces are advancing towards Al-Sukhanah from two different axes, leaving them only 28 km west and 31 km south of the aforementioned village

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/sy ... hanah-map/ | Al-Masdar News

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 09:13

i hope the SDF do not remain fixated on manbij where the local serpents are bottled up, but spread the ISIS thin by multiple attacks on jarablous (imperative for them, as its across the river from kobane and will rub more tata iodized salt into erdogans wounds), Al-bab, etc and cleave the ISIS into two, with one part scampering south toward raqqa and rest seeking shelter in turkey.

the current SAA activity in n.aleppo seems to be tie down the JN/Shams and minimize their ability to take land in north syria as the ISIS retreats, opening an opportunity for SDF to claim that instead.

SAA could stage an advance across the jaboul lake salt flats and start nibbling and shelling jirrah - khanasser highway ... infact I was hoping tiger forces would focus on east aleppo rather than move to n.aleppo but I guess their presence is a security that JN will not be easily able to penetrate the city there.

habal · Post by **habal** » 13 Jun 2016 09:20

SDF will do as USA asks them to do. Maybe USA can ask more NATO munnas to open bases in newly vacated locations so that SAA do not lay their claim on those areas. Very sneaky way to divide a country.

wonder what effect a phosphorus or a FOAB will have on NATO munnas, much like russian stormtroopers ripping the shirt off the back of brits in france.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 10:14

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Ckw7ioCXIAApiJc.jpg
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Ckw7iX5W0AACefj.jpg

some russis at hymenim caught and ate this snake..being black in colour like the isis flag must have gone against it.

habal · Post by **habal** » 13 Jun 2016 10:24

standard special forces training to catch, kill & eat snakes while out on mission.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 11:10

i saw a pic of a IA lady officer training some exchange cadets in how to catch snakes in some twitter account. they were standing next to a target rich area - a grove of bamboo and bushes with lot of holes in the red earth, the kind which snakes prefer. not exactly my cup of filter coffee but there are people out there comfortable with the whole idea.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 12:23

a depiction of the massacre of 1700 shia cadets in camp speicher two years ago. even juvenile ISIS were shooting people and kicking bodies into the red river.

Lalmohan · Post by **Lalmohan** » 13 Jun 2016 12:51

this is different to the massacre of shia cadets caught at the airbase and frog marched into the desert in their underwear to be shot?

incidentally, why are isis so keen on capturing air bases... ? where is their air-wing?

habal · Post by **habal** » 13 Jun 2016 12:53

Why Raqqa? - link to Off Guardian

Excerpt: "The priority on the battlefield in Syria has shifted from Aleppo to Raqqa (so called capital of the Caliphate) in the East of the country. The reason being that, if the US led alliance captures Raqqa first, it can still implement its plans for a Qatar-to-Europe-through-Turkey gas pipeline, the original route of which was through Aleppo. Since Aleppo is now completely out of the question, Raqqa appears to be the best alternative and thus the race between the Syrian government forces with their allies and the US-led coalition."

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 14:36

Lalmohan wrote:this is different to the massacre of shia cadets caught at the airbase and frog marched into the desert in their underwear to be shot?

incidentally, why are isis so keen on capturing air bases... ? where is their air-wing?

the above is one massacre of many of the same batch of cadets. one batch was killed at a ex Saddam palace which is likely this painting. others in some sites in tikrit.

in tabqah airbase also a few 100 were killed similarly. what happened the syrian army and AF fought very bravely there and managed to retreat generally in good order when the pressure got too high and IS swarmed all over, but someone in command chain goofed up and left the last rearguard to their fate instead of arranging for vehicles, air cover and some tanks to cover the retreat toward Ithriah which by road is some 100km away only (the road is good, so 2 hrs only). the IS pounced and executed a lot of people
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of ... a_air_base
http://syriadirect.org/news/anatomy-of- ... the-march/
http://syriadirect.org/news/anatomy-of- ... e-killing/

the SAA has not forgotten this and will come down very hard on anyone found in tabqa and from here on toward Raqqa also. thats also why you see selfies with piles of dead bodies and people posing with shoes on dead ISIS faces - ppl have lost friends, relatives and brothers...almost every syrian family except the lutyens elite in damascus has someone directly or indirectly serving.

when an army loses chain of command and control of the countryside, it will retreat to places easy to defend and stocked with weapons, with a means of resupply by air - hence the whole airbase thing including deir azzor. if not for the die hard republican guard that place too would have gone under long ago. the US did the same thing in korea and vietnam, setting up firebases supplied by air and mined/wired on all sides, with short barrel 'pack' howitzers and mortars firing in all directions.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 14:43

saddams vast palace in tikrit where one of the massacres took place. one of his half-brothers led the IS in tricking the AF cadets on foot and trying to trek back to baghdad. just as in syria, they were abandoned by their chain of command who decamped or were bribed to deliver these victims into the trap
https://douggrindle.files.wordpress.com ... small1.jpg

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 14:49

deeper I dig, I am convinced much of the IS are not very rational actors interpreting the quran to the letter, a good number are psychopaths who are a danger even without any islam in them. they are the kind who would catch and tie a dog over a fire just to enjoy its pain, or rape someone because she served them cold meal. many of those captured seem to be high on hashish and drugs and barely able to comprehend, let alone think and act sensibly. with ISIS they finally got into a social setup and religious sanction where all this was fine , acceptable and even encouraged. so a natural fit to the job.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 15:43

http://www.thenational.ae/opinion/comme ... rias-south
ISIL’s long game is revealed by Syria’s south
Hassan Hassan

For the past three years, ISIL has tried to establish a footing in southern Syria. It tried in the mountainous Qalamoun region near the Lebanese border, but it was expelled after intermittent clashes with Al Qaeda and Hizbollah. Its attempts to co-opt forces near Damascus did not get far either, particularly as rebels preemptively clamped down on the group’s fledgling cells there.

Following its failure to grow organically, it opted last year for a pincer strategy to link up its pockets of control between Palmyra and Homs to ones in Damascus’s north east, such as Dumayr. That effort also failed since its territory in the Homs desert was largely cleared by the pro-government forces in April. The group was also expelled from the Palestinian Yarmouk camp after a brief takeover in April last year.

But there is now bad news. In Deraa, ISIL may see not only an opening but that the opening could be the first of its kind in the whole of Syria since the group was formed in April 2013.

Last month, three local groups in Deraa formed Jaysh Khaled bin Al Walid. ISIL announced the merger on Friday. The groups -- namely the Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade (YMB), Islamic Muthanna Movement (IMM) and Mujahideen Group – operate mainly in western Deraa. Last Thursday, the US state department designated the YMB as a terrorist group.

For ISIL, the south in general is strategically and symbolically important. Deraa borders Israel and Jordan and has historical resonance. The new formation is named after the historical Muslim figure, Khaled bin Al Walid, who commanded a key battle in the Yarmouk Basin against the Byzantine empire in the 7th century.

Nowhere in Syria has ISIL succeeded in growing organically as it has done in Deraa. This is a remarkable development especially since the Southern Front has been hailed as a good example of international support to the opposition.

Members of the three factions are overwhelmingly locals from Deraa. Many of them are part of prominent tribes in the province. Members often describe the movement as more extreme than Jabhat Al Nusra. Unlike other areas in Syria, these groups have become loyal to ISIL voluntarily rather than because they had no other choice.

The name change to Jaysh, or army, is also meant to affirm the subordination of these groups to ISIL since the organisation does not recognise “movements" or “groups". The word “Jaysh" suggests the new group will operate as other ISIL’s military sections, such as Jaysh Al Khilafah or Jaysh Al Badia. Restructuring of the merged groups is already underway, with reports that the new leader, Abu Othman Al Shami from Idlib, arrived shortly before the merger took place.

ISIL will probably seek to alter the way the new force operates. Before they unified, the three forces were in a constant conflict against rebel forces in Deraa but they rarely coordinated. Recently, the groups started to collaborate but they were also weakened as factions inside the province pushed back against them with help from the multi-country Military Operations Centre in Amman.

The new group will undoubtedly have different priorities and might seek to protect its forces, especially after the US and other countries, including Russia, appear to be turning more attention to it in that region. ISIL is not about to throw such hard-earned strategic assets into an open battle. A combined strategy of persistent fighting and quiet outreach will be its focus, a familiar move by the group.

ISIL will probably benefit from two main factors to increase its presence in Deraa. The Southern Front, a coalition of nationalist forces operating in the south, has been bitterly criticised by people in Syria because it has not conducted meaningful military operations against the regime in recent months. Military stagnation in that region, while Aleppo and Daraya were pounded, is seen as a result of foreign backers’ tight control of the Southern Front – unlike the situation in the north where Turkey provides unfettered support to its allies.

Another factor that might help ISIL is that one of the factions of Jabhat Al Nusra, which was known to have strong knowledge of ISIL’s operatives and cells in Deraa, had relocated to northern Syria. Unlike other anti-government forces, aside from ISIL, Jabhat Al Nusra has an effective underground apparatus that regularly uncovered ISIL cells undetected by the rebels, whether in Idlib, Homs, Deraa or eastern Syria. Examples are abundant, including the YMB.The loyalty of three groups in the Yarmouk Basin to ISIL presents more than a military challenge. Their members are combat ready and locally entrenched in a strategic area in which ISIL long desired to build influence. These groups are still outnumbered and can be defeated, but the story of how ISIL could establish presence despite persistent setbacks sheds light on its long game.

Hassan Hassan is a resident fellow at the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy and co-author of ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror

On Twitter: @hxhassan

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 13 Jun 2016 18:26

Singha wrote:i saw a pic of a IA lady officer training some exchange cadets in how to catch snakes in some twitter account. they were standing next to a target rich area - a grove of bamboo and bushes with lot of holes in the red earth, the kind which snakes prefer. not exactly my cup of filter coffee but there are people out there comfortable with the whole idea.

Even I had an opportunity to munch on some evening "snakes"

. We hadn't eaten for sometime and found it quite filling.

Lilo · Post by **Lilo** » 13 Jun 2016 19:46

Singha wrote:deeper I dig, I am convinced much of the IS are not very rational actors interpreting the quran to the letter, a good number are psychopaths who are a danger even without any islam in them. they are the kind who would catch and tie a dog over a fire just to enjoy its pain, or rape someone because she served them cold meal. many of those captured seem to be high on hashish and drugs and barely able to comprehend, let alone think and act sensibly. with ISIS they finally got into a social setup and religious sanction where all this was fine , acceptable and even encouraged. so a natural fit to the job.

That is nothing too odd for the Arab race.Violence is something inherent to their family life with each act of violence propagating in time till old age and abandonment.

Kids grow up seeing their mothers whacked around, they as kids get it it too abuse of all sorts , if the father can afford he abandons them for the next new wife and sells off his old wife and family to the next old man.
YouTube is full of videos of teenage arabs torturing cats caught on streets as a past time.Stoning dogs, whipping tied animals etc.
They growup a bitmore to become religiously pious and their torture is channelled through sadism inherent to Islamic ideology and they now seek out other humans to torture islamically of course.

Islam is perfectly suited for an Arab to eviscerate his being figuratively by the time he kicks the bucket.All this is managed with out damaging the power equations holding the status quo of the society which is why the Arab elites took to it so willingly.

habal · Post by **habal** » 13 Jun 2016 20:16

composition of IS:

saudis rounded up all the charsis and bhangis they could find in their country and neighbouring kuwait, qatar & pakistan, bangladesh etc. Supplied them with crates of captagon, with promises of more later and sent them packing to Syria via Turkey. The low level grunts are all products of the network of wahabbi mosque network in bangladesh, indonesia, xinjiang, chechen, bangladesh, USA and wherever their agents could get hold of brainwashed recruits from.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 13 Jun 2016 20:21

Daesh has counter attacked in manbij and recaptured some villages behind usual wave of suicide attacks

Gyan · Post by **Gyan** » 13 Jun 2016 21:28

I am coming around to the view that both Saudi Arabia and Deep State of USA do not want Gas pipelines to proliferate even for the benefit of it's allies like Qatar. They just wanted to create most barbaric sort of mayhem first in Afghanistan and now in Syria to prevent any pipeline ever being laid through Syria even for the benefit of Qatar.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 14 Jun 2016 01:39

Graphic: Pest-e-sha'eed

+18: #ISIS #IS militants killed during failed attack on #SAA outpost in Abu Alaj on #Ithriah-#Raqqa road

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 05:01

By holding the ball and waiting outside the penalty box at rasafa crossroads, they are forcing daesh to guess the shot and waste suicide bombers hitting well prepared lines than on the March units.

Some say tabqah is a feint and ball will be lobbed toward Mansurah and even south to sukhnah to cut off the daesh east Homs mountain pocket and take sukhnah from the rear.

Supplies are surely being trucked up to new depots

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 07:32

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/3638 ... yrian-ally

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 07:33

^^ NATO definition of jihadist - not interested in terrorism against western countries.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 07:34

map of isis manbij counter offensive

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 07:36

creeping shariah in londonistan

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 07:43

Al-Masdar News ‏@TheArabSource 17h17 hours ago
Revolutionary Guards kill five Kurdish insurgents during clashes in western #Iran http://bit.ly/1ULcUxD

habal · Post by **habal** » 14 Jun 2016 08:20

Syrian or Russian airforce has killed Abu-bakr al bagdaddy in an airstrike in Al-raqqa, Syria

as per reports.

Yagnasri · Post by **Yagnasri** » 14 Jun 2016 08:31

Singha wrote:^^ NATO definition of jihadist - not interested in terrorism against western countries.

and try not to attack their allies. It has been like that from the start. Remember that the US and Canadian intelligence agencies had prior information on Kanishka and kept quite. Terror even now organized against India from Canada and Britain and they do nothing. Action against the Al Khaida, Taliban did take place because they attacked West. Otherwise, they will be freedom fighters.

What is happening in Syria is back to freedom fighters argument. Nothing new here.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 08:37

habal wrote:Syrian or Russian airforce has killed Abu-bakr al bagdaddy in an airstrike in Al-raqqa, Syria

as per reports.

source sire? a day ago it was a airstrike in iraq that claimed to have injured him.

he surely has many decoys and body doubles...all emirs do.

habal · Post by **habal** » 14 Jun 2016 08:41

this time it's supposed to be real deal. He was recuperating in raqqa as per intelligence sources.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 08:44

ABP news

ISIS leader Baghdadi killed in US-led coalition air strike: Reports
By: IANS | Last Updated: Tuesday, 14 June 2016 9:44 AM

ISIS leader Baghdadi killed in US-led coalition air strike: Reports
ROME: The Islamic State (IS) terrorist group’s alleged leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been killed in an air raid in Syria by the US-led coalition, reports said on Monday.

Baghdadi died in an air strike on IS’s stronghold of Raqqa in northern Syria, Iranian state media and pro-government Turkish daily Yenis Safak said, citing IS-affiliated Arabic news agency al-Amaq.

The statement published by Amaq said IS’s ‘Caliph’ Baghdadi had been killed on Sunday, according to the media reports.

“Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been killed by coalition airstrikes on Raqqa on the fifth day of Ramadan,” said the statement.

The coalition did not immediately comment on the report.

Earlier on Monday, Iraqi TV channel ‘Al-Sumaria’ said that Baghadi had been wounded on Sunday in a coalition air strike on a location 65 kilometres west of the IS-held city of Mosul.

US TV network CNN on Monday cited US defence officials as saying they received credible intelligence that Baghdadi, who has a $25 million bounty on his head, has moved around within the past six months and had travelled to Mosul.

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 14 Jun 2016 08:45

^^ we will know for sure if TSJji inbounds here to gloat over it and super-duper C3I that cued this strike

habal · Post by **habal** » 14 Jun 2016 08:45

they killed him in 2014.

NATO killing bagdaddi is like Pakistan Army killing Al-Qaeda #3.
It happens frequently and still leaves behind another #3.

this time it is the Russians or Syrians and corroborated by their Military Intelligence inside Raqqa. So that I can trust.