Russia Begins Operations in Syria: End Game for the US Empire?

[angelburst29]

Drafting counter-terrorism resolutions - a step in the right direction.

Russia Stresses Importance of Its Anti-Terrorism Draft
http://sputniknews.com/politics/20151121/1030492821/russia-stresses-importance-aniterrorism-draft.html

Russia will continue to push for the adoption of its renewed draft UN Security Council resolution on counter-terrorism measures, in addition to the French anti-terrorism resolution already adopted by the Council, Russia's Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said.

"We believe the French resolution a political appeal not changing the legal principle of the counter-terrorism combat. We think it’s a step in creating a broad anti-terrorism front through the organization of the comprehensive cooperation of all states to stem all manifestations of terrorism and eradicating its root causes. This was also the aim of the Russian draft resolution," Churkin told the UN Security Council on Friday.

Earlier, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a France-initiated counter-terrorism resolution, which recognizes Islamic State (ISIL), as well as other radical groups, as a global threat and calls on all UN member-states to redouble their counter-terrorism efforts.

On Thursday, French diplomats distributed a draft resolution that called on UN Security Council member-states to "redouble and coordinate their efforts" against ISIL in the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks that took the lives of at least 129 people. ISIL has claimed responsibility for the attacks.

The French-proposed document emerged a day after Russia submitted a renewed text of its own draft resolution.

The Russian draft called for global counter-terrorism action based on the principles of international law, stipulating that any anti-terrorism operation on the territory of a foreign state, such as Syria, must be conducted with the permission of the state’s authorities.

Russia has been conducting airstrikes against ISIL radicals in Syria at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad, while a US-led international coalition, which includes France, has been targeting ISIL positions in the country without the permission of Damascus or the United Nations.


Russia to push for adoption of its draft antiterror resolution in UN Security Council
http://tass.ru/en/politics/838256

Russia will push for the soonest possible adoption of its draft resolution on the fight against terrorism in the United Nations Security Council despite the adoption of a France-proposed document, Russia’s Permanent Representaive to the global organization Vitaly Churkin said Friday.

He said the attempt by "some members of the Council" to block the document submitted for the Security Council consideration in September is "politically shortsighted".

"It’s impossible to fight terrorists with one hand and actually play along with them with the other while being guided by opportunistic reasons. We plan to continue active work to coordinate our draft for it to be adopted as soon as possible," Churkin said

"The organizers and perpetrators of these bloody crimes will have their inevitable punishment. They should be looked for wherever they are hiding," Churkin said, adding that Russia is ready for "broad interaction with other states for these purposes".



First VP: Iran Rejects ‘Selective’ Fight against Terrorism
http://en.alalam.ir/news/1759830

Iran’s First Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri has dismissed a “selective” approach to the fight against terrorism, calling for firm determination at the international level to battle the phenomenon.

Jahangiri said on Sunday that terror acts threaten global peace and security whether in Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon or in Paris, adding, “They are victimizing innocent humans.”

He emphasized that those who are organizing terrorist groups and providing them with financial and arms support should be confronted.

Jahangiri said some countries have definitely played a role in the formation of the ISIS Takfiri terrorist group and its survival.


ISIS Activities beyond Syria and Iraq by Statistics & Maps
http://en.alalam.ir/news/1756985

The ISIS has grown beyond Syria and Iraq, extending its operations into other parts of the Middle East and North Africa by establishing alliances and absorbing other terrorist groups.

According to these analysis the majority of ISIS attacks carried out in Syria and Iraq, where the group's campaign began. Groups in other countries frequently pledge allegiance to the ISIS but are not always accepted. In some cases, the ISIS leadership formally declares some of these regions as part of its so-called caliphate.

 

[angelburst29]

What's going on in Kurdistan?

Paranoid Iraq seized Canadian military plane hauling weapons for special forces in Kurdistan
http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/paranoid-iraq-seized-canadian-military-plane-hauling-weapons-for-special-forces-in-Kurdistan

Iraqi officials temporarily seized a military aircraft carrying weapons for Canadian special forces in Kurdistan, amid a wave of anti-western conspiracy theories rife in Iraqi politics.

The seizure and the reasons for it raise questions for Canada’s new Liberal government, which has vowed to do more military training in the country.

The Iraqis said they held the Canadian Forces Hercules transport aircraft, carrying supplies into Kurdistan without authorization, for four days.

Other Iraqi lawmakers and military commanders claim that the U.S. and its allies have secretly armed the Islamic State (ISIL) in order to keep the country in chaos.

Both the Canadian Forces and the Department of Foreign Affairs discussed the issue with Iraqi officials. The transport plane was allowed to fly back to Kuwait four days later. “No equipment or cargo was confiscated by Iraqi authorities,” Koronewski added.

Hakem al-Zameli, head of the Iraqi Parliament’s Security and Defence Commission, told local media that two aircraft had been seized: one from Canada and the other from Sweden. He said that the crews were trying to fly weapons into the Kurdistan region without informing the Iraqi government.

“The inspection committee in Baghdad International Airport has found a huge number of rifles equipped with silencers, as well as light and mid-sized weapons,” Zameli said.

Zamli said eight weapons equipped with silencers were discovered on the Canadian plane. The Swedish aircraft, also on its way to Kurdistan, carried 92 guns, including silencers, he added. The Swedish aircraft was sent back to the Turkish base it had flown from.

Other Iraqi lawmakers have accused the U.S. of secretly arming ISIL to fuel the ongoing crisis in the country. By shoring up ISIL, the U.S. and other western interests have an excuse to maintain a presence in the oil-rich nation, they argue.


Canada reacts to Baghdad’s denial to military cargo for Kurds
http://www.kurdpress.com/En/NSite/FullStory/News/?Id=11812#Title=Canada reacts to Baghdad’s denial to military cargo for Kurds

The Iraqis said they held the Canadian Forces Hercules transport aircraft, carrying supplies into Kurdistan without authorization, for four days.

The Department of National Defense confirmed that there were problems with a Canadian Forces aircraft that landed in Baghdad on Oct. 28.

“While flying in support of Operation Impact, a CC-130 Hercules was denied onward movement to Erbil, Iraq, by authorities at Baghdad International Airport, due to an issue with customs documentation with respect to its cargo,” said Department of National Defense spokesman Evan Koronewski.

Both the Canadian Forces and the Department of Foreign Affairs discussed the issue with Iraqi officials. The transport plane was allowed to fly back to Kuwait four days later. “No equipment or cargo was confiscated by Iraqi authorities,” Koronewski added.

According to Ottawa Citizen for security reasons, the Canadian Forces declined to describe the equipment being transported or the Canadian unit for which it was destined.

Canadian special forces are operating in Erbil in northern Iraq. Members of the Canadian Special Operations Regiment from Petawawa, as well as the Joint Task Force 2 counter-terrorism unit from Ottawa, have served on the task force.

Hakem al-Zameli, head of the Iraqi Parliament’s Security and Defense Commission, told local media that two aircraft had been seized: one from Canada and the other from Sweden. He said that the crews were trying to fly weapons into the Kurdistan region without informing the Iraqi government.

“The inspection committee in Baghdad International Airport has found a huge number of rifles equipped with silencers, as well as light and mid-sized weapons,” Zameli said.

Zameli called on the Iraqi foreign ministry to protest the incident and warn coalition members not to proceed with such shipments in the future.

“The U.S. ambassador to Baghdad has tried to send the weapons to the Iraqi Kurdistan region, and the government should investigate this and arrest the perpetrators,” he added.

Zamli said eight weapons equipped with silencers were discovered on the Canadian plane. The Swedish aircraft, also on its way to Kurdistan, carried 92 guns, including silencers, he added. The Swedish aircraft was sent back to the Turkish base it had flown from.

 

[angelburst29]

Wonder ....... what is "up" with this:

US, French Aircraft Carriers Rush Toward Syrian Coast to Find Numerous Russian Warships Already There
http://www.blacklistednews.com/US%2C_French_Aircraft_Carriers_Rush_Toward_Syrian_Coast_To_Find_Numerous_Russian_Warships

Two weeks ago, on November 5, and one week before the Paris terrorist attack, we reported that somewhat unexpectedly, France had dispatched its only aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, to “the eastern Mediterranean for operations against Isis in both Syria and Iraq.”

It was unclear just what these pre-emptive operations would be and why France is getting so dramatically involved in the campaign against ISIS. Not knowing the dramatic attack that was about to unfold (whose false flag origins have been quickly ignored as nobody has yet explained why a fake Syrian passport was found next to the suicide bomber), we speculated that this move had to do with the departure of the CVN-71 Theodore Roosevelt which had left the Persian Gulf region a month ago, leaving the entire 5th Naval Fleet without a US carrier presence for the first time in a decade.

One week later, we found out that Paris may have had an advance hint of what was about to unfold when on the night of Friday 13 it all fell into place.

But with the French aircraft carrier full steam ahead toward the Syrian coast, the US could not afford to leave the airborne defense of the region to the French, so it did what was just a matter of time: it weighed anchor on the CVN-75, Harry Truman which was deployed toward the Middle East where according to the Daily Press it will “fight the Islamic State.”

While the Truman’s departure date was set more than a year ago, it came about six months earlier than first planned. In October 2014, it was announced that the ship would switch deployment cycles with the Norfolk-based USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, which required an additional 10 months in the shipyard.

As the Navy Times reports, “there were no immediate changes to deployment orders as a result of Friday’s terror attacks, but there is great resolve among the sailors to support their French allies, said Capt. Ryan Scholl, Truman’s skipper. Scholl said his crew is ready to bring peace or “violent destruction.”

Something tells us it will be the latter.

Once again, here is the ETA: Carrier Theodore Roosevelt left 5th Fleet in mid-October, leaving that region without a carrier until the Truman CSG gets there, which should be about six weeks, or just around the New Year.

Then again, according to the latest Stratfor naval map, the Truman is already approaching Gibraltar. If accurate, it means the carrier will be next to Syria in a couple of weeks tops.

Scholl offered assurance to coalition and U.S. forces still in the fight across Syria and Iraq as part of Operation Inherent Resolve.

“The Harry S. Truman battle group will be there in due time and execute our mission successfully,” he said. “We hope that brings some peace of mind to the people that are out there, both our coalition partners as well as our troops on the ground, and it brings a hard-to-swallow, deliberate pause in our enemy.”

Where things get very interesting is what the Navy Times says next:

ISIS is not the only challenge that awaits the flotilla, which includes the cruiser Anzio, Carrier Wing Air 7, and destroyers Bulkeley, Gravely and Gonzalez. Russian, Chineseand Iranian marines have established their presence in Syria, and Russian warships from the Black Sea have relocated to the eastern Mediterranean to protect fighter jets conducting airstrikes in support of Syria’s Assad regime. In preparation, the strike group’s Composite Training Unit Exercise focused on adversaries that more closely resembled those of the Cold War.

Russians and Iranians we knew about, but Chinese? While we await the answer, what we do know is that suddenly the east Mediterranean is about to become a warship and aircraft carrier parking lot, with the Truman and de Gaulle side by side, just as we predicted it would be a month ago when we said that the summer of 2013 naval scenario is unfolding once again.

Then there are the Russians. Here’s the latest from Tass:

Ten ships of the Russian Navy are involved in the anti-terrorism operation in Syria, Russia’s Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin on Friday.

“The naval group comprises ten ships, six of them are in the Mediterranean,” the minister said.

Shoigu said the Caspian Flotilla warships on Friday launched 18 cruise missiles at terrorist positions in Syria hitting seven targets.

“On November 20, the Caspian Flotilla warships launched 18 cruise missiles at seven targets in the Raqqa, Idlib and Aleppo provinces of Syria. All the targets were hit,” Shoigu said.

As we said: busy, and it’s only going to get busier.

But the punchline is Russia is already treating the Syrian coastline as its own playground, and has imposed explicit no fly zones in the eastern Mediterranean.

What happens when both the French and the US navies, both packing dozens of airplanes, arrive and convert the Mediterranean off the Syrian coast into one big warship parking lot.

We can only hope that the sudden confluence of goodwill and best intentions by the superpowers to crush ISIS is genuine instead of merely a ploy to get everyone in the same place and result in the biggest ever Gulf of Tonkinredux and an “accidental” sinking of one or more ships… with or without a fake Syrian passport planted next to it.


Now Truth Emerges: How US Fuelled Rise of ISIL in Syria, Iraq
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13940830000777

On Monday the trial in London of a Swedish man, Bherlin Gildo, accused of terrorism in Syria, collapsed after it became clear British intelligence had been arming the same rebel groups the defendant was charged with supporting, the Guardian reported.

The prosecution abandoned the case, apparently to avoid embarrassing the intelligence services. The defense argued that going ahead with the trial would have been an “affront to justice” when there was plenty of evidence the British state was itself providing “extensive support” to the armed Syrian opposition.

That didn’t only include the “non-lethal assistance” boasted of by the government (including body armor and military vehicles), but training, logistical support and the secret supply of “arms on a massive scale”. Reports were cited that MI6 had cooperated with the CIA on a “rat line” of arms transfers from Libyan stockpiles to the Syrian rebels in 2012 after the fall of the Gaddafi regime.

For the past year, the US, British and other western forces have been back in Iraq, supposedly in the cause of destroying the hyper-sectarian terror group ISIL (formerly known as al-Qaeda in Iraq). This was after ISIL overran huge chunks of Iraqi and Syrian territory and proclaimed a self-styled Islamic caliphate.

Last month, ISIL rolled into the Iraqi city of Ramadi, while on the other side of the now nonexistent border its forces conquered the Syrian town of Palmyra. Al-Qaeda’s official franchise, the Nusra Front, has also been making gains in Syria.

Some Iraqis complain that the US sat on its hands while all this was going on. The Americans insist they are trying to avoid civilian casualties, and claim significant successes. Privately, officials say they don’t want to be seen hammering Sunni strongholds in a sectarian war and risk upsetting their Sunni allies in the Persian Gulf.

A revealing light on how we got here has now been shone by a recently declassified secret US intelligence report, written in August 2012, which uncannily predicts – and effectively welcomes – the prospect of a “Salafist principality” in eastern Syria and an al-Qaeda-controlled Islamic state in Syria and Iraq. In stark contrast to western claims at the time, the Defense Intelligence Agency document identifies al-Qaeda in Iraq (which became ISIL) and fellow Salafists as the “major forces driving the insurgency in Syria” – and states that “western countries, the Persian Gulf states and Turkey” were supporting the opposition’s efforts to take control of eastern Syria.

Raising the “possibility of establishing a declared or undeclared Salafist principality”, the Pentagon report goes on, “this is exactly what the supporting powers to the opposition want, in order to isolate the Syrian regime, which is considered the strategic depth of the Shia expansion (Iraq and Iran)”.

American forces bomb one set of rebels while backing another in Syria.

Which is pretty well exactly what happened two years later. The report isn’t a policy document. It’s heavily redacted and there are ambiguities in the language. But the implications are clear enough. A year into the Syrian rebellion, the US and its allies weren’t only supporting and arming an opposition they knew to be dominated by extreme sectarian groups; they were prepared to countenance the creation of some sort of “Islamic state” – despite the “grave danger” to Iraq’s unity – as a Sunni buffer to weaken Syria.

That doesn’t mean the US created ISIL, of course, though some of its Persian Gulf allies certainly played a role in it – as the US vice-president, Joe Biden, acknowledged last year. But there was no al-Qaeda in Iraq until the US and Britain invaded. And the US has certainly exploited the existence of ISIL against other forces in the region as part of a wider drive to maintain western control.

The calculus changed when ISIL started beheading westerners and posting atrocities online, and the Persian Gulf states are now backing other groups in the Syrian war, such as the Nusra Front. But this US and western habit of playing with jihadi groups, which then come back to bite them, goes back at least to the 1980s war against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan, which fostered the original al-Qaeda under CIA tutelage.

It was recalibrated during the occupation of Iraq, when US forces led by General Petraeus sponsored an El Salvador-style dirty war of sectarian death squads to weaken the Iraqi resistance. And it was reprised in 2011 in the Nato-orchestrated war in Libya, where ISIL last week took control of Gaddafi’s home town of Sirte.

In reality, the US and western policy in the conflagration that is now the Middle East is in the classic mould of imperial divide-and-rule. American forces bomb one set of rebels while backing another in Syria, and mount what they claim as being effectively joint military operations with Iran against ISIL in Iraq while supporting Saudi Arabia’s military campaign against the Houthi forces in Yemen. However confused US policy may often be, a weak, partitioned Iraq and Syria fit such an approach perfectly.

What’s clear is that the ISIL and its monstrosities won’t be defeated by the same powers that brought it to Iraq and Syria in the first place, or whose open and covert war-making has fostered it in the years since. Endless western military interventions in the Middle East have brought only destruction and division. It’s the people of the region who can cure this disease – not those who incubated the virus.

 

[goyacobol]

Assad describes the current situation.

Syrian army making advances since Russian airstrikes began – Assad

Russian airstrikes have shifted the tide in Syria and, thanks to them, the army is now gaining at the terrorists’ positions, Syrian President Bashar Assad said. He added that the militants are supported from abroad, primarily by “Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.”

“Recently, after the participation of the Russian air forces in fighting terrorism, the situation has improved in a very good way, and now I can say that the army is making advancement in nearly every front,” the Syrian president told China’s Phoenix TV Channel.

Assad also pointed out that over the past year terrorists managed to capture more Syrian territories and gained more recruits from all over the world despite US-led coalition’s airstrikes. While in contrast to that, only a month of the Russian air operation forced many terrorists to retreat and flee Syria for Turkey, Europe, Yemen and elsewhere.

“You cannot fight terrorism through air raids. You need troops on the ground. The Americans only fight through their airplanes,” the president said.

What about the Russians? They are depending on the Syrian troops on the ground. They are cooperating with us. So, the difference, the main difference, is that the Americans don’t cooperate with any ground troops, while the Russians are doing this,” he added.

President Assad also said that there is no tangible opposition group in Syria – there are just militants and terrorists.

“It [opposition] is a political term, not a military term. Whenever you hold a machinegun, you are a militant, you are a terrorist, whatever you want, but you cannot call “opposition” people who hold machineguns or any kind of armaments,” he said.

At the same time, Assad confirmed that the Russian and the Syrian government have been cooperating with some of the militant groups, which is a part of the nation-wide reconciliation process.

President Assad pointed out, however, that it is impossible to make concrete political steps before defeating the extremists.

What we are doing in parallel besides fighting terrorism, we need to make the dialogue, but the concrete steps should follow at least a major defeat of the terrorists and the government takes control of a major area that has been captured by the terrorists,” he said.

The Syrian president believes that Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) is strongly dependent on foreign support.

In the interview with the Chinese TV, Assad has alleged that the main IS supporters are Turkey, Saudi Arabia – with its strong “Wahhabi institution” – and Qatar. He described the Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan as being “Muslim Brotherhood in his heart.”

Turkish support is especially important for IS because the illegal oil trade – one of the chief sources of revenue for the group – comes through this country.

Assad also blamed western countries for “overlooking of what is going on”.

Without this logistical space, or let’s say backyard to ISIS, ISIS cannot survive, because it doesn’t have incubation in Syria, it doesn’t have the incubator in Syria,” the president said.

From Assad’s point of view, without foreign support it would take less than a year to defeat IS. Two more years are needed to accomplish the peace process.

The war in Syria erupted in 2011 after mass protests which were a part of the so-called Arab Spring. Islamic State took the advantage of the destabilization in Syria and Iraq and gained control over large territories in these countries. On September, 30, Russia launched airstrikes against IS on the Syrian request – a year after the US-led coalition started to bomb this terrorist group.

 

[loreta]

I just fall on this news. Is it true?

Report: Russia Starts Ground Operations in Syria

"The Russian infantry forces, supported by tanks and fighter jets, participated for the first time in operations to attack the Takfiri militants in Syria in a region between Lattakia and Idlib provinces" and they could take control of strategic heights without sustaining any casualties, Kuwait's al-Rai newspaper quoted Syrian dissident commanders as saying.

It added that the conditions for Russia's ground operations in Syria were prepared by the country's advanced 130-mm artillery and SU-25M fighter jets.

"This shows that Russia is preparing its forces at a high level to fight against enemies… since Russia has decided to enter Syria powerfully and assumes the Levant territory as a real training field to show its power and develop its weapons and military equipment which have not been used in any real war for years," the paper claimed quoting the same sources.

They also claimed that the Syrian command has been in charge of logistical support for the first-time war fought by the Russian infantry forces in Syria.

Moscow itself had demanded the Syrian forces and its allies not to participate in the operations so that the Russian infantry forces will be tested in the battlefield in Syria, the sources said, adding that the battle lasted some hours and a strategic hill was purged of terrorists and a number of them were also killed.

On September 30, Russian military aircraft began executing precision strikes against ISIL forces in Syria at the behest of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Since the beginning of the airborne campaign Russian aircraft have carried out over 2,000 sorties, destroying about 3,000 ISIL targets and eliminating hundreds of militants.

The warships of Russian Caspian Flotilla also launched a series of cruise missile strikes against the ISIL assets in Syria.

But Moscow has repeatedly underlined that it will not fight any ground battle in Syria.

_http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13940902000753

 

[Persej]

A Question of Trust: Serbia Prefers 'Alpha' Putin Over Own Prime Minister

A Serbian survey found that Serbs trust Vladimir Putin more than their own leader, and most would be happy to enter into a political and economic union with Russia.

Serbs trust Russian President Vladimir Putin more than any other leader, including their own, and would rather join a political and economic union with Russia than the European Union, a survey has found.

The poll of 1,100 adults in Serbia was carried out by the magazine 'New Serbian Political Thought,' [NSPM] and asked them which political leader they had most faith in. Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandr Vucic was the most trusted Serbian politician, and had the trust of 34.6 percent of respondents.

However, Russian President Vladimir Putin enjoyed more trust from respondents, who were also asked which foreign leader they trusted the most. According to the survey, President Putin has the trust of 36.1 percent of Serbs, far ahead of Angela Merkel, the next most popular, trusted by 7.3 percent.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras was next with 1.6 percent, and US President Barack Obama has the trust of just 0.5 percent of Serbs.

'New Serbian Political Thought: Russia and Putin are in the hearts of Serbs, opponents and supporters of the EU are almost tied.' — NSPM published the results of the survey online.

Serbia's Blic newspaper asked sociologist Neven Cveticanin to explain the results. He described President Putin as a "political Clint Eastwood," who is cool, collected, and decisive.

"Putin is global. He attracts people with his strength, charisma, he has a specific lifestyle, image … that is interesting to people, regardless of whether they are pro-Russia orientated or not. Psychologically speaking, men identify with him because he is an alpha male, and women like that kind of man," explained Cveticanin.

Serbs were also asked their feelings on a possible union with Russia, or the EU. When asked if they support union with Russia, 68.2 percent replied positively, 18.9 percent were against, and 12.9 percent weren't sure. Asked if they support Serbia's entry to the EU, respondents were much more evenly split; 46.8 percent said yes, and 41.5 percent no.

"The picture of Russia we get is a picture of strength and confidence, while news about Europe is crisis," expert Marko Savkovic of the Belgrade security forum told Blic.

Given a choice between the EU and Russia, respondents again voiced greater support for political and economic union with Russia; given the choice, 35.7 percent would chose Russia, and just 21.1 percent the EU.

_http://sputniknews.com/europe/20151123/1030614543/serbia-trust-putin-leader.html#ixzz3sL1vnUsI

:D

 

[Gawan]

I'm not sure how legit this information is, because it supposedly comes from infowars according to one sputnik article. But it is reported that the US warned the ISIS oil trucks before they got bombed and dropped leaflets with the text "Leaflet used to warn civilians that the area was not safe during". It is also reported from one - so it seems - official twitter account (OIRSpokesman).

It seems legit since it is reposted on _http://www.defense.gov/News-Article-View/Article/630352/oir-spokesman-coalition-cripples-isil-oil-distribution

 

[Beau]

I just fall on this news. Is it true?

Report: Russia Starts Ground Operations in Syria

The source is a Kuwaiti paper, who says the information is from Syrian dissident commanders. With how open Russia has been about their combat operations, I would think if this were true it would have been announced by the Russian Defense Ministry.

 

[Laura]

I just fall on this news. Is it true?

Report: Russia Starts Ground Operations in Syria

The source is a Kuwaiti paper, who says the information is from Syrian dissident commanders. With how open Russia has been about their combat operations, I would think if this were true it would have been announced by the Russian Defense Ministry.

But it says the US was the one warning the terrorists.

 

[angelburst29]

Here's another idem to question - if it's legit?

4.25 minute Video by Iranian Leader Khamenei's Office: U.S. and Its Allies Were Behind Paris Attacks
_http://www.memri.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/5168.htm

Video in English language. Clip #5168 Broadcast: November 17, 2015 - alleges that it was the US, Israel and their allies who helped create ISIS in order to further their own interests and thus, the West is directly responsible for the Paris terror attacks that reportedly killed 132 people.


H.R.4108 - To prohibit the use of funds for the provision of assistance to Syrian opposition groups and individuals.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4108

Sponsor:
Rep. Gabbard, Tulsi [D-HI-2] (Introduced 11/19/2015)

Committees:
House - Armed Services; Intelligence (Permanent); Foreign Affairs

Latest Action:
11/19/2015 Referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committees on Intelligence (Permanent Select), and Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.


France's Charles De Gaulle Strikes ISIL Targets in Syria
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20151123/1030589728/france-charles-de-gaulle-syria-strikes.html

Warplanes from the French aircraft carrier "Charles de Gaulle" engaged in their first combat mission, striking Islamic State positions in Syria and Iraq on Monday.

The French media reported that the Charles de Gaulle's mission is expected to last at least four months and that it may be prolonged.


The ship houses 18 Rafale fighter jets, eight Dassault Super-Etendard supersonic deck attack aircraft and two Hawkeye aerial early warning aircraft (AEW). The carrier's crew consists of 1,9 thousand sailors, pilots and mechanics.


Moscow Court Bans Church of Scientology
http://sputniknews.com/russia/20151123/1030602483/scientology-church-ban.html

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – During the inspection the Russian Ministry of Justice found out that the word 'scientology' had been registered as a trade mark owned by the US Religious Technology Center.

The court backed the Russian Justice Ministry's claim that the organization's activity did not comply with the federal law on freedom of religion.

 

[angelburst29]

I'm not sure how legit this information is, because it supposedly comes from infowars according to one sputnik article. But it is reported that the US warned the ISIS oil trucks before they got bombed and dropped leaflets with the text "Leaflet used to warn civilians that the area was not safe during". It is also reported from one - so it seems - official twitter account (OIRSpokesman).

It seems legit since it is reposted on _http://www.defense.gov/News-Article-View/Article/630352/oir-spokesman-coalition-cripples-isil-oil-distribution

Defense.gov seems to be a bonifide site for Military news.

Also being reported here by a retired Naval Intelligence officer.
Leaflets warned drivers to ‘Run away!’ before U.S. aircraft buzzed ISIS tanker trucks
_http://libertyunyielding.com/2015/11/21/leaflets-warned-drivers-to-run-away-before-u-s-aircraft-buzzed-isis-tanker-trucks/

It does puts Obama’s prohibition on our strike-fighters actually dropping ordnance in an informative light. The Obama administration isn’t just sitting around, refusing, in a boring and passive manner, to let our forces attack targets. It’s enthusiastically creating new ways to avoid attacking targets. It’s demanding that our forces act out strongly worded messages and do haka dances to impress the enemy. Out of the hell of war, it’s making performance art. One almost has the sense that there may be merit badges involved, or at least little trophies for originality.

Story at American Thinker. Emphasis added:

According to Bridget Johnson of PJ Media, actions taken by U.S. forces in the wake of the Paris massacre include an effort to interdict ISIS oil tanker traffic. U.S. aerial assets carried this out by bombarding the trucks with leaflets warning drivers that an air strike would follow within forty-five minutes. What followed was, evidently, not air strikes at all, but low-level buzzing by U.S. Navy fighter-bombers. (Consider for a minute what the pilots must have thought.) …

You see, the important thing isn’t hurting ISIS. No – the important thing is not hurting civilians. This is how it was put by Col. Steve Warren, in a passage of pure Obamese that would be hard to beat by the master himself:

So we had to go through that whole process of one, determining whether or not we felt it was in our best interest to strike these trucks. And then once we determined that, yes, it is in our interest to strike these trucks, how do we go about ensuring that we’re able to mitigate the potential of civilian casualties? And these things take time[.]

 

[anka]

Hard to say if this project is about what the creators claim it to be. It appears some of their sources are there, inside Syria. But how much they are independent or serving some side(s) of the conflict and whether the videos are staged or not - I am not able to tell so far.

http://sound-and-picture.com/en/

Sound and Picture project :
We are a group of Syrian human rights activists.
We noticed the lack of bodies which document abuses against civilians inside Syria, therefore we decided to establish this project, it is specialized to document the violations which have committed by all sides in the ongoing conflict in Syria against civilians in a professional way.
The project is documenting all kinds of violations, and working on the accounting for the groups which committed these violations by the international community.
The project is completely independent, and does not follow any political or military bodies, whether inside or outside Syria.

 

[Laura]

Here's another idem to question -

I think you mean item, yes?

Since idem means to refer to a previously quoted author or source.

 

[angelburst29]

Here's another idem to question -

I think you mean item, yes?

Since idem means to refer to a previously quoted author or source.

Yes, you are correct. My mistake, I did mean "item." Thank You for the correction.

 

[goyacobol]

Turkey, may get cooked on this one(sorry it's almost Thanksgiving):

Turkish F16 fighter shot down Russian Su-24 jet over Syria, MoD confirms

The Russian Su-24 military jet was shot down by a Turkish F-16 over Syrian territory while returning to Khmeimim airbase, the Russian Defense Ministry has confirmed.

The Ministry's Twitter says that “analysis of the objective monitoring data” showed the downed SU-24 jet did not violate Turkish air space.

Earlier in the day, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he regards the downing of the SU-24 as “a stab in the back” by “terrorist accomplices,” adding that Turkey gets the flow of oil from Islamic State-controlled territories.

President Putin said the SU-24 pilots “were conducting an operation to fight ISIS in northern Latakia which is a mountainous area where the rebels – mostly from the Russian Federation – are stationed. In this sense they were carrying out their duty to make preventive strikes on terrorists who could return to Russia at any time.”

The president said Russia had always treated Turkey as a friendly state, but concluded: “This tragic event will cause serious consequences for Russian-Turkish relations. […] I don’t know who was in need of what was done today, at any rate, it wasn’t us.”

The SU-24 tactical bomber jet was downed on Tuesday morning after being hit by an air-to-air missile fired from a Turkish F-16 fighter jet.

Both pilots managed to eject, but were reportedly shot while parachuting by rebels from the ground. Video footage released by the rebels shortly afterwards shows the dead body of a Russian pilot being inspected by armed men. A Russian air rescue team from Latakia airbase is still airborne searching for the other pilot.