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

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Maria Zakharova had something fairly interesting to say yesterday in regards to Russian-US relations:

http://sputniknews.com/russia/20160331/1037248431/russia-zakharova-press-briefing-march-31.html

[...]

Russian-US relations

Restoring full format relations with the United States remains a priority for Russia, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday.
"[Relations] are not at their best at the moment. That is a fact," Zakharova told reporters, answering a question on the current state of Moscow-Washington relations.

"A reassessment of approaches is underway. I believe it will be of a global and systemic nature. At the same time, our priority remains to restore full format relations that would be aimed at implementing the interests of both the countries' residents, in all areas," she added.
[...]

If you read between the lines it seems that Putin and Co. are about to change tactics a bit and substantially. I don't think it is a coincidence that Zakharova made that statement while choosing those words. I think we can expect a couple more suprises from the russians in the near future. Can't wait for it actually

Forewarned is forearmed...

global and systemic nature: I immediately thought about volcanic ash and meteor dust filling skies grounding military drones and jets and reducing all missile systems' success rates to that of a lottery. So only resort remains boots on ground, very limited helicopter activity and tanks. But I'm too apocalyptic in this thinking.

It would be interesting to know, what Putin thinks about the Europe terror attacks.
How Europe should solve its own problem it helped to create?
What will be done about these attacks by Russia, directly or indirectly? I'm thinking about chess moves mainly, like meetings, proposals, business projects that might seem not to have much in common with fighting terrorism, but later turn out to be essential steps in stopping this terror madness.
Moves by Russia and its allies that could potentially switch the ISIS-creators activities off globally. Circumstances, tactical opportunities and interests that Russia might deem important enough to go after and realize and indirectly it will allow Europeans to learn the lessons of recent terror attacks.

It appears this terror age is a very necessary series of 'windows of opportunity' for humanity to learn important lessons - I feel the is universe offering us a way out of darkness, but the first steps out, in the right direction, must be initiated by humanity.

 

[angelburst29]

The Kremlin has denied a report published by London based Al-Hayat stating, "that the US and Russia had agreed on a plan that would see Assad take refuge in an as-yet unnamed country once a political transformation has had time to take hold."

Assad Ready For Snap Elections As Kremlin Denies Report Of Russia-US Plan To Help Him Flee Syria
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-03-31/assad-ready-snap-elections-kremlin-denies-report-russia-us-plan-help-him-flee-syria

Last week, Bashar al-Assad celebrated one of the most significant (at least from a symbolic perspective) military victories in the history of his government’s campaign against opposition groups battling for control of Syria.

With the help of Russia and Hezbollah, Assad’s army liberated the ancient city of Palmyra from Islamic State. Palmyra is a UNESCO world heritage site and over the course of the last nine or so months, ISIS has obliterated a number of priceless artifacts on the grounds that they are monuments to paganism.

Needless to say, it’s better that Assad control the city than ISIS. Even the US State Dept. was forced to (begrudgingly) admit as much.

But Washington’s reluctance to celebrate the liberation of Palmyra reflects growing concerns that Assad, Hezbollah, and other Iran-backed Shiite militias are now poised to march on Deir ez-Zor - and then on Raqqa.

With the “moderate” opposition in the west subdued, a victory in the east would mean Assad has conquered the entire country. Clearly, that raises the question of what happens next. That is, it’s rather difficult to depose someone who has just vanquished the last vestiges of the opposition. Still, you shouldn’t expect Washington, Riyadh, Doha, and Ankara to give up on the effort to oust the Alawite government just yet, which is why we weren’t surprised when London-based al-Hayat reported that the US and Russia had agreed on a plan that would see Assad take refuge in an as-yet unnamed country once a political transformation has had time to take hold.

On Thursday, The Kremlin denied the report. "Al-Hayat published information which does not correspond to reality," Dmitry Peskov said, in a call with journalists.

“Al-Hayat reported that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had told several Arab countries that Russia and the U.S. reached an understanding on the future of Syria's peace process, including Assad's departure to another country at some unspecified stage,”
Reuters writes, recounting the story. "Russia is advantageously different from other nations because it does not discuss the issue of the self-determination of third countries either through diplomatic or other channels,” Peskov added, in what amounted to a pot shot aimed at deriding Washington’s interventionist Mid-East foreign policy.

For his part, Assad says he’s prepared for snap elections - depending on the “will of the people" of course. Here’s what he told Sputnik in an interview published this week:

"This depends on the Syrian people’s stance, on whether there is a popular will to hold early presidential elections. If there is such a will, this is not a problem for me. It is natural to respond to the will of the people and not to that of certain opposition forces. This issue concerns every Syrian citizen because every citizen votes for the president.”

"But I have no problem with this in principle because the president cannot work without the people’s support. And if the president is supported by the people, he must always be ready for such a step. I can say that this is no problem for us in principle, but in order to take such a step, we need the Syrian public opinion and not the opinion of the government or the president,"

"It has been proposed to hold parliamentary elections after the new constitution [has been adopted]. These elections will show the balance of powers on the political arena. Then, a new government will be formed in accordance with the representation of political forces in the new parliament… As for presidential elections, that is a an entirely different issue.”

Sure. While we'll be the first to decry Washington's efforts to destabilize the Syrian government by playing on Sunni fears of Shia proselytizing and highlighting the autocratic tendencies of the Alawite government in Damascus, we'd also note that the idea of Bashar al-Assad agreeing to hold free and open snap elections that could potentially see him lose the presidency is patently absurd. Government representatives in Geneva have continually said that discussions about Assad's grip on power are a red line.

The only question would seem to be this: does Assad really want to be President in perpetuity given the distinct possibility that guerilla efforts to overthrow him will persist as a war of attrition between government forces and the opposition drags on for years? One certainly wonders if perhaps there's some truth to Al-Hayat's report. That is, if Assad can restore his government and claim a military victory over all of those who opposed him, why not simply handpick a successor and live happily ever after in Moscow or Tehran? After all, no one wants to end up like those other two guys... (Photos).

 

[angelburst29]

Russian journalist found stabbed to death in his St. Petersburg apartment.

Journalist found stabbed to death in his apartment in St. Petersburg
http://www.pravdareport.com/news/hotspots/crimes/01-04-2016/134022-journalist_killed_russia-0/

Journalist Dmitry Tsilikin was found dead in his apartment in St. Petersburg on March 31. The journalist was well known for his work on television and radio.

According to Fontanka.ru, the body of the 54-year-old journalist was found in his apartment. He died from stab wounds that he had received more than two days ago.

Dmitry Tsilikin was editing "Culture and Society" rubric in the Chas Pik newspaper (Rush Hour). He was also the author and presenter of several programs on several TV channels and radio stations. His articles were printed in numerous newspapers and magazines. The reporter wrote articles for such publications as the Vedomosti, the Kommersant, the Expert and many others.

Around 20 Islamic State followers were arrested in Moscow trying to recruit new fighters for the group.

20 U.S. Backed ISIS Terrorists Arrested In Moscow, Joint Operation FSB And Police
http://novorossia.today/20-u-s-backed-isis-terrorists-arrested-moscow-joint-operation-fsb-police/

“During a joint operation of the FSB (Federal Security Service) and the police, around twenty people suspected of connections to ISIS (Islamic State) were arrested,” RIA quoted the source as saying. The FSB could not immediately be reached for comment; the police declined to discuss the matter.

“According to preliminary information, they were searching for and recruiting new members in Moscow,” RIA said, citing the source. RIA said the majority of those arrested were citizens of the former Soviet republic of Uzbekistan. They had fake documents, including false Turkish driving licenses, it said. Russia is helping the Syrian army fight Islamic State in Syria providing air support, weapons, and advice. The group, which is outlawed in Russia, has claimed responsibility for several attacks in Russia, mostly in the Caucasus region.

Intense infighting between the al-Nusra Front and ISIL terrorists in al-Qalamoun region.

Infighting between Rival Terrorist Groups Intensifies in Northern Aleppo
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950113000338

Scores of terrorists on both sides were killed and wounded as infighting intensified between them near Al-Ahmadiya and Tal Batal villages in Northern Aleppo.

In a relevant development on Sunday, Field sources in Damascus province revealed intense infighting between the al-Nusra Front and ISIL terrorists in al-Qalamoun region resulted in death of a senior ISIL commander.

Abu Azam, an ISIL field commander, and his men were killed in Jaroud al-Jarajir area in Al-Qalamoun.

The al-Nusra Front captured several ISIL-controlled military positions in these clashes.

Internal clashes among the terrorist groups are on the rise after the Syrian army's advances in more militant-held territories and after a recent ceasefire between the government troops and armed opposition factions that excludes the al-Nusra Front, ISIL and Jeish Al-Islam.

Intense infighting between the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and Al-Nusra Front in the Western parts of Dara'a.

Fresh Infighting Rages among Terrorist Groups in Dara'a
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950113000240

Field sources reported intense infighting between the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and Al-Nusra Front on one side and the ISIL-affiliated Brigade terrorist groups on the other side in the Western parts of Dara'a.

During the clashes, the FSA and the Al-Nusra Front managed to take full control of the Northern part of the town of Tassil in Western Dara'a from Lawa Shohada al-Yarmouk and Harakat al-Mosana terrorist groups.

Score of terrorists from both sides were killed and injured during the infighting on Friday.

Internal clashes among the terrorist groups are on the rise after the Syrian army's advances in more militant-held territories and after a recent ceasefire between the government troops and armed opposition factions that excludes the al-Nusra Front, ISIL and Jeish Al-Islam.

The Syrian army discovered a weapons depot left behind by the ISIL terrorists in Palmyra.

Syrian Army Discovers ISIL's Arms Depot in Palmyra
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950113000208

The discovered weapons deport contained a large number of rockets and mortar shells were uncovered by the Syrian Armed Forces inside this weapons depot.

The discovery comes as the Russian and Syrian demining experts have started clearing the bombs and mines laid by the ISIL terrorists before fleeing Palmyra.

Palmyra which was under the ISIL control is an important center for the army's future military operations to win back strategic regions, specially in Deir Ezzur and Raqqa provinces.

The importance of Palmyra airport lies in the fact that it is located between al-Tal and al-Hayel mountains and to al-Sukhneh to the North and Quaryatayn to the South.

Palmyra military airport is close to Deir Ezzur and Raqqa cities which are high strategic importance.

The Syrian army is preparing for taking control of several oilfields in al-Sukhneh.

Other army units are moving Southward towards al-Quaryatayn which is an important economic hub because several oil and gas pipelines pass through it.

The Syrian army is also planning to prevent the ISIL terrorist group from gaining access to al-Qalamoun mountainous regions in Damascus countryside.

 

[angelburst29]

France and the U.S. are both accusing the Syrian Government of violating the ceasefire with aerial bombardment in Damascus.

France accuses Syrian regime of violating ceasefire
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/210202#.Vv7245sUWig

France on Friday accused the Syrian regime of violating a fragile ceasefire in the five-year war that has devastated the country.

The French foreign ministry also accused President Bashar Al-Assad's regime of trying to undermine efforts by the international community to resolve the conflict.

A spokesman said civilians had been targeted in the aerial bombardment of the Damascus suburbs by regime jets on Thursday, which left dozens dead and injured.

"This attack, which deliberately targeted civilians, shows that the regime is pursuing its actions and violating the ceasefire," spokesman Romain Nadal said.

"This abject act was intended to terrorize the Syrian people and undermine the efforts of the international community to find a political solution," he added.

France’s comments came hours after the United States said it was "appalled" by Syrian government air strikes that killed more than 30 people - including children - in a key rebel bastion east of the capital of Damascus.

"The United States is appalled by aerial strikes March 31, reportedly by the Assad regime, on a school and hospital in the Damascus suburb of Deir Al Asafir," State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement.

"We condemn in the strongest terms any such attacks directed at civilians," he added.

UN-led talks on a peace deal are due to resume in Geneva soon, but the sides are deadlocked over the fate of Assad, whom the opposition insists must leave power before a transitional government is agreed.

Assad said in an interview Wednesday that any transitional government should include both the regime and opposition, without specifying which opposition groups should take part.

The White House replied by saying that Assad should not be part of any transitional unity government, echoing views from regime opponents inside the war-shattered country.



US 'appalled' by Syrian regime's breach of truce
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/210180#.Vv73_5sUWii

The United States said Thursday it was "appalled" by Syrian government air strikes Thursday that killed more than 30 people - including children - in a key rebel bastion east of the capital of Damascus.

The raids took place in Deir Al-Assafir, a town in the opposition stronghold of Eastern Ghouta, one of the areas in Syria where a fragile ceasefire brokered by the US and Russia has been in place since February 27.

"The United States is appalled by aerial strikes March 31, reportedly by the Assad regime, on a school and hospital in the Damascus suburb of Deir Al Asafir," State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement.

"We condemn in the strongest terms any such attacks directed at civilians," he added.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group, has reported that 33 people died in the attacks, including 12 children, updating its earlier toll of at least 23 fatalities.

While there have been occasional incidences of violence, some of them deadly, the ceasefire has largely been hailed as a success by the United Nations.

"In joining the cessation of hostilities, even apart from its commitments to avoid attacking groups participating in the cessation of hostilities, the regime committed to full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which called for an immediate end to any attacks against civilians and for all parties to comply with their obligations under international law," Kirby said.

"Any attacks directed at civilians must stop immediately," he added, calling on all parties to the ceasefire to comply with its terms and observe international law.

In an unusual development, Senator Pat Leahy and 10 other Congressmen are confronting Netanyahu over human rights abuses and have started an investigation. The U.S. gives 3 Billion in Military aid - each year and Netanyahu has his hands out for more. The investigation, if it succeeds to document abuses, may put the hand-out of Military aid in question. Legally and by U.S. Law, Israel is not qualified to receive "Military Aid" under the provision that Israel harbors Nuclear War Heads (which the Pentagon hand delivered) on it's soil.

Netanyahu spars with US senator over Israeli army's rights record
http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?ID=770930

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Senator Patrick Leahy went head to head on Wednesday, after the senior Democrat and 10 other congressmen called for the US to investigate the possibility of human rights abuses by Israeli forces.

In a joint letter to US Secretary of State John Kerry that was published Tuesday, the group of congressmen suggested that some US military aid to Israel should be suspended if reports of "gross violations of human rights," including "extrajudicial killings," should be proven true.

Netanyahu quickly lashed back at Leahy and the congressmen, saying in a statement: "The IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) and the Israel Police do not engage in executions. Israel's soldiers and police officers defend themselves and innocent civilians with the highest moral standards against bloodthirsty terrorists who come to murder them."

The letter was published this week, but sent last month, on Feb. 27, long before an Israeli soldier was caught on camera in Hebron last week shooting dead a Palestinian who lay wounded on the ground -- an incident that has sparked international outcry and been branded an "extrajudicial execution" by the UN.

Netanyahu initially condemned the killing, saying it did not represent the Israeli army's values, but has since reversed his position, in part encouraged by taunts from far-right Education Minister Naftali Bennett, who has lauded the soldier as "outstanding."

The Israeli premier's remarks on Wednesday brought him yet closer to that position. "Where is the concern for the human rights of the many Israelis who've been murdered and maimed by these savage terrorists?" he asked the congressmen. "This letter should have been addressed instead to those who incite youngsters to commit cruel acts of terrorism."

Leahy, who has a history advocating a greater role for human rights in US foreign policy, responded to Netanyahu's comments late on Wednesday, saying it was "only fair" the US investigate the reports of Israeli rights abuses.

In a statement, the Vermont senator reiterated that "respected international human rights organizations" had identified the possibility of "serious abuses" by security forces in both Israel and Egypt.

"Under the Leahy Law it is the responsibility of the State Department to evaluate the credibility of such allegations," he said, referring
to the law named after him that prohibits the provision of US military assistance to military units violating human rights with impunity.

He noted that the law applied only to specific US military personnel and units, and "not to general security forces," but insisted that investigating Israel's human rights track record was "only fair to US taxpayers, and it is necessary in upholding the rule of law that our country stands for."

On Thursday, senior PLO official Hanan Ashrawi tentatively welcomed the letter, saying it was the Palestinians' "hope that this signals a new determination on the part of the Congress to hold Israel to account and to cease military aid to the Israeli occupation and its army."

Every year, the US provides $3 billion worth of military assistance to Israel and it is currently negotiating a package for the next 10 years in which that amount is expected to rise.



US congressmen seek investigation of Israel's 'extrajudicial killings'
http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=770905

US Senator Patrick Leahy along with 10 other Democratic congressmen have called on the US to investigate the possibility of "gross violations of human rights" by Israel's and Egypt's security forces, including "extrajudicial killings."

"There have been a disturbing number of reports of possible gross violations of human rights by security forces in Israel and Egypt -- incidents that may have involved recipients, or potential recipients, of US military assistance," the congressmen said in the letter published on Tuesday by Politico.

The letter cited findings by Amnesty International and other human rights organizations of "extrajudicial killings by the Israeli military and police of Fadi Alloun, Saad al-Atrash, Hadeel Hashlamoun, and Mutaz Ewisa," as well as several cases of torture.

"We urge you to determine if these reports are credible and to inform us of your findings," the congressmen said.

 

[angelburst29]

Promise not to giggle?

At the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington DC on Friday, President Obama stated, "It's no secret that there are some trends within Turkey that I've been troubled with," ......... adding that he is a strong believer in freedom of the press."

Yet, the day before, a meeting between Obama and French President Francois Hollande was video taped, then posted on the White House website. A press watchdog group, Media Research Center (MRC) noticed the video had been altered. Hollande stated, "But we're also well aware that the roots of terrorism, Islamist terrorism, is in Syria and in Iraq," according to a White House transcript. The sound cuts off several seconds when Holland mentions Islam and terrorism in the same sentence. Then the video was removed.



US Finds Turkey’s Crackdown on Media ‘Troubling’ - Obama
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160402/1037361977/turkey-media-approach.html

The approach Turkey is taking toward its media is troubling and could lead the country down the wrong path, President Barack Obama said at the closure of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington DC.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US president’s remarks come in response to a question whether he considered Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan an "authoritarian," a day after Erdogan’s security guards harassed and assaulted journalists in front of the Brookings Institute where he delivered a speech.

"It's no secret that there are some trends within Turkey that I've been troubled with," Obama stated on Friday, adding that he is a strong believer in freedom of the press.

Obama added that "the approach that they've [Turkey] been taking toward the press is one that could lead Turkey down a path that would be very troubling, and we are going to continue to advise them."

Obama noted that Erdogan came to office with the "promise of democracy," and that Turkey had historically been a country in which "deep Islamic faith has lived side by side with modernity and an increasing openness."

He urged Erdogan that that was a legacy the Turkish president should continue to pursue rather than "a strategy that involves repression of information and shutting down democratic debate."

However, Obama also said that Turkey would continue to be a key partner for the United States on a range of international and regional issues, and characterized US cooperation with Ankara as "critical."

In recent months, Turkish authorities arrested three academics who publicly read out a declaration urging an end of Ankara’s security operations in Kurdish regions of Turkey. The Erdogan administration has also detained reporters, having accused them of espionage for publishing reports about corruption and weapons deliveries to the Daesh in Syria.



White House Cuts off ‘Islamist Terrorism’ Comments by Hollande
http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160402/1037359802/islamist-terrorism-french-president.html

A video of a meeting with US President Barack Obama and Francois Hollande was altered to cut the French president’s comments on Islamist terrorism and then posted on the White House website, the press watchdog group Media Research Center (MRC) said in an Internet post on Friday.

In a Thursday session with Obama and other participants in the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, DC, Hollande said, "But we're also well aware that the roots of terrorism, Islamist terrorism, is in Syria and in Iraq," according to a White House transcript included in the MRC post.

However, when watching the video, the sound cuts off several seconds when Holland mentions Islam and terrorism in the same sentence.

Obama has banned any reference to Islam by members of his administration when discussing terrorism. The rule has been criticized by Republicans in the US Congress and elsewhere, who accuse the president of weakness in fighting the so-called Daesh terror group.

Critics frequently use the term "Islamist terrorism," claiming that it reflects an understanding that jihadists are motivated by a perverted interpretation of Islam, as opposed to ordinary criminals.

The MRC post also contains a screen shot of a subsequent notice on the White House website saying the video has been removed.

 

[sToRmR1dR]

Islamic State planted thousands of mines in Palmyra: Syrian army

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-palmyra-idUSKCN0WZ0KO

Islamic State militants retreating from Palmyra laid thousands of mines that they planned to set off simultaneously as the army moved in, a Syrian officer told Reuters in the ancient city after its recapture from the jihadist fighters.

The officer said main streets and side roads in Palmyra had been rigged with explosives weighing up to 50 kg. More than 3,000 had already been safely detonated since government forces, backed by Russian jets, retook the city on Sunday, he said.

He did not say why the Islamic State fighters failed to set off the explosives before pulling out, but his assertion echoed comments from Syria's antiquities chief, who said the militants intended to dynamite a greater area of the city's 2,000-year-old ruins than they already had.

The officer, who did not give his name, said the bombs left behind were linked so they could go off together.

"All the government buildings are rigged in a network connected to the Daesh leadership headquarters," he said, using an Arabic acronym for Islamic State. "The idea was that as we enter it would all go off at once, not just bomb by bomb. And there are a really huge number of bombs."

Islamic State's defeat in Palmyra was not only a significant military victory for President Bashar al-Assad, opening up the country's central desert to government forces and their allies. It also cast the Syrian army as an effective fighting force against jihadists bent on cultural vandalism and wanton killing.

A military source told Reuters on Saturday troops had identified 45 bodies in a mass grave in Palmyra, including civilians and Syrian army members captured by Islamic State.

Parts of Palmyra have been cleared, including the road from Homs. But Syrian soldiers -- soon to be joined by Russian de-mining experts -- are still working on defusing or detonating explosives.

"We cannot leave them there. We are dealing with 90 percent of them by exploding them because they are buried firmly in the ground, cemented in the asphalt," the officer said.

Civilians, most of whom fled before Syrian and allied forces began the offensive, cannot return until de-mining is complete.

Smoke could be seen rising from some parts of the modern, residential city of Palmyra, which lies next to the 2,000-year-old ruins, during a visit by journalists on Friday.

But few people were to be seen and no shops were open. Residential areas had been damaged and traces of explosions could be seen on the ground.

GRAFFITI ON RUINS

As well as a network of bombs, Islamic State left traces of their 10-month rule in Palmyra. Graffiti was evident on some of the ancient stones. "Remaining", it read, part of the Islamic State motto of "remaining and expanding".

On a stone among the remains of the Temple of Bel was scrawled: "No shooting without the permission of the Emir."

A signpost on a road through the ruins, now bent at 90 degrees to the ground, tells travelers in the group's trademark black and white colors to "Respect God".

"When we show humility, God will deliver us," the sign says, above a passage from the Koran which says: "God made you victorious at the (battle of) Badr when you were but a humble (force)," referring to a battle from the early Muslim era which the ultra-hardline group looks back to with reverence.

The ancient Roman amphitheatre, where Islamic State shot dead around 20 men as it took over the city last May, appears unscathed.

The Temple of Bel, an imposing monument before it was blown up last year, has been reduced to a couple of columns and a heap of rubble, although antiquities chief Maamoun Abdelkarim says it is not totally beyond repair.

Other structures blown up by Islamic State include Palmyra's triumphal arch, three funerary towers and the temple of Baal Shamin. Before serious renovation can take place, officials say, the area needs to be made fully safe.

Moscow has sent de-miners to help with the clear-up, and Russian military servicemen will start defusing mines in Palmyra in a few days, Russian news agencies reported on Saturday, citing the defense ministry.

The first batch of specialists has left Russian airbase Khmeimim in western Syria. The convoy, consisting of more than 20 vehicles, will be guarded by Mi-24 and Mi-28 helicopters.

The de-miners will deal with more than 180 hectares of territory, Russia's defense ministry has said, citing initial estimates. The aim is to clear the historic part of the ancient city as well as residential areas

First Russian sappers begin demining Palmyra - source in Damascus

http://tass.ru/en/world/866801

Earlier reports said that two groups of Russian sappers had set off to Palmyra for helping Syria to clear from mines the ancient city of Palmyra

MOSCOW, April 2. /TASS/. The vanguard of Russian sappers has begun demining Palmyra, an informed source in Damascus told TASS by phone on Saturday.

"We can confirm that the first group of Russian sappers have arrived in Palmyra and already started to clear from mines the road leading to the city's ancient part," he said.

Earlier reports said that two groups of Russian sappers had set off to Palmyra for helping Syria to clear from mines the ancient city of Palmyra, the UNESCO World Heritage site, liberated from terrorists.

US to send more special forces to Syria: Report

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2016/04/02/458758/US-Special-Forces-Syria-Daesh/

The United States is considering a new plan to "greatly increase" the number of American special forces deployed in Syria, says a new report.

US officials have told Reuters on condition of anonymity that the administration of President Barack Obama is weighing the proposal to accelerate “recent gains against” Daesh (ISIL) terrorists in Syria.

The officials with direct knowledge of the proposal's details refused to disclose the exact increase under consideration, but one of them explained that it would leave the US special operations contingent many times larger than the around 50 troops currently in Syria.

They said the plan also includes an increase in the number of American troops in Iraq.

The new plan in Syria would be separate from a revised US military effort under way to train militants, according to the report.

Last December, the US announced it was deploying a new force of special operations troops to Iraq to conduct raids against Daesh there and in neighboring Syria. The announcement followed another one in October, which said dozens of US special forces would be deployed in Syria- the first US ground troops to be stationed there.

The additional US forces in Syria would be primarily assigned to establishing sites where they would train militants and eventually provide them weapons.

Currently there are dozens of US special operations forces in Syria, who are working closely with a collection of various armed groups that are trying to topple the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The US has long been supplying the militants with ammunition.

US officials claim that Daesh is losing a battle to forces arrayed against it from many sides in Iraq and Syria.

Washington has, under another new plan, begun training new groups of militants in Syria.

"Dozens of people are now being trained," US Army Colonel Steve Warren, a Baghdad-based spokesman for the US-led coalition, said on Friday. "These are individuals as opposed to units."

Separately, the CIA has been running a similar program aimed at pressuring Assad to step down. The CIA-armed militants, however, are now shooting at Pentagon-armed ones in Syria, according to US officials and militant leaders.

Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. Hundreds of thousands of people have reportedly lost their lives and millions have been displaced as a result of the violence.

The US-led coalition has been pounding purported Daesh positions inside Syria since September 2014, without any authorization from Damascus or the UN. However, they have done little to stop the terrorists' advances in parts of Syria.

Syrian Army Completes Siege of Several Villages in Hama Province

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950114000946

The ISIL supplying routes to the villages of Abu Habilat, al-Hardaneh and Tal Atmeh were cut off by the Syrian army men, which means the villages have fallen into the hands of the Syrian government forces.

On Thursday, the Syrian army and popular forces foiled an attempt by the ISIL terrorists to attack several military positions in al-Sheikh Halal village in Eastern Hama, inflicting heavy losses on them.

The ISIL terrorists tried to open their way into al-Sheikh Halal village, but were pushed back by the Syrian government troops.

Scores of ISIL terrorists were killed and wounded. At least three ISIL military vehicles equipped with heavy machineguns were razed down by the Syrian army and popular forces.

Iranian Navy Warns US-Led Coalition Warship to Stand Down

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950114000597

"The regional and trans-regional warships deployed in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz don't have any supremacy since the most powerful warships and equipment in the region are afraid of blows and damage (that they might receive in any possible clash), and as they, themselves, say they sail through the Persian Gulf with a multi-layer escort," General Salehi said, addressing a ceremony to welcome the Navy's 38th flotilla of warships which returned home on Saturday after a 75-day-long mission in the international waters.

"A while ago, an Iranian oil tanker was threatened by a warship of a (US-led) coalition member, but the Navy's 38th flotilla (deployed in the international waters at the time) rushed to the scene and warned the warship that the oil tanker was supported by the Islamic Republic of Iran's military fleet," he added.

In relevant remarks last month, Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari announced the country's plans to further bolster its naval power in the new Iranian year (started on March 20).

"We are after increasing our military and combat power by training human resources in the new year," Sayyari said, addressing a ceremony in the Southern city of Khorramshahr.

He also said that upon an order of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, building different state-of-the-art weapons and equipment as well as continued deployment in the international waters are also on the Iranian Navy's agenda.

Also in March, Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Navy Rear Admiral Gholam Reza Khadem Biqam announced that Iran is moving ahead with a large scale navy modernization program for wider presence in the high seas.

Speaking to FNA in the Northern city of Rasht, Khadem Bigham said the new warships will be self-sufficient, bigger, and equipped with the latest state-of-the-art technology.

“Iran plans to improve its naval resources in order to have a bigger presence in international waters,” he added.

Khadem Biqam further said Iran’s strong presence in the North and West of the Indian Ocean is in line with the country’s plans to help improve international peace and security.

Aleppo: Emir of Suicide Attackers Killed in Clashes with Army

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950114000994

Abu Mohammad al-Ayoubi, one of the notorious trainers of suicide attacker, was killed in heavy fighting with the Syrian army men in Tal al-Eis region.

The Syrian army also defused several bomb-laden cars of the terrorist groups in Tal al-Eis.

Earlier reports said that the Syrian army foiled two massive attacks by terrorists on Tal al-Eis and Tal Yalat regions in the Southern parts of Aleppo province, killing a large number of Takfiri terrorists.

The Takfiri terrorists' military positions were razed down in army's artillery and rocket attacks in Tal al-Eis and Tal Yalat regions.

The army units also destroyed six military vehicles of al-Nusra terrorists with rockets in Tal al-Eis and Tal Yalat regions.

‘Christians Return to Syrian Town’ as Situation Stabilizes

http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160402/1037388924/christians-syrian-town-stability.html

Residents of the Syrian Christian town Sadad in the province of Homs began returning from Europe after stabilization of the situation in their country due to the actions of the Russian air force according to the head of the city of Sadad, Suleiman Al-Khalil.

“Christians, who left Syria for Europe, began to return to Sadad, as well as to other cities. People believed that the operation of the Russian air force was successful and agreement on the cease-fire is maintained, with peaceful life returning to the country, this is obvious,” Al-Khalil said.

During the crisis in Syria, from the city of Sadad, which has a population of 12 thousand people, around 900 residents left right away. Over the past three months, around ten percent of the refugees have returned. In the near future, the city authorities are ready to take about three hundred inhabitants.

“After the liberation of Palmyra and the surrounding areas including the Christian town of Qaryateyn I decided to restore my poultry farm (which is the largest in Sadad). The city has obtained license for re-opening of three other factories. Everyone is talking about stability and security,” local businessman Mufid al-Sith from Sadad said.

The city of Sadad has both strategic and religious significance. The settlement is located just 14 kilometers from the main highway of Damascus-Homs.

In the northwest of the city on March 16 production of a new oil field started. It will become one of the largest in Syria. Every day, according to the mayor of Sadad, the oil field produces 380,000 cubic meters of natural gas.

 

[angelburst29]

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says an army led by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is fighting in Syria alongside Takfiri militants.

Erdogan army fighting in Syria, says President Assad
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/03/31/458432/Syria-Assad-presidential-elections/

"Today, the war against Erdogan and against Saudi Arabia is a war against terrorists. The Turkish army, which is not even Turkish, is Erdogan's army that is fighting today in Syria," Assad told Russia's RIA news agency.

He said the Turkish president allows the terrorists "to move into Turkish territory, to carry out maneuvers with tanks."

Iraqi security forces have attacked an underground prison run by the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in the western province of Anbar, freeing as many as 1,500 prisoners.

Iraqi forces seize Daesh prison in Anbar, free 1,500 people
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/04/02/458791/Iraq-Anbar-Daesh-prison-Hit/

Malallah al-Obeidi, the head of the al-Baghdadi city council, said Saturday that the large prison was located in the Hit district,
about 70 kilometers (43 miles) west of the provincial capital Ramadi, where civilians and Iraqi security members were incarcerated, Iraq's al-Sumaria news reported.

All the freed inmates were taken to a safe place outside the district, the official further said.

In the past few days, government forces managed to liberate several regions in the district and are now pushing towards the town of Hit, under Daesh control since October 2014.

The operation to liberate Hit, a Euphrates Valley town, started earlier this week and is part of a wider push that includes capture of embattled Mosul, which has served as the de-facto capital of the terrorist group in Iraq.

Daesh has suffered major blows from Iraqi forces over the past months and is increasingly losing areas under its control. The terror group recently moved its key command centers to hospitals and health centers in Iraq’s northern city of Hawijah in Kirkuk province to use civilians as human shields against government airstrikes.

Gruesome violence has plagued the northern and western parts of Iraq ever since the Takfiris launched an offensive in June 2014, and took control of portions of the Iraqi territory.

Only in the month of March, 1,119 Iraqi people, including 575 civilians, lost their lives and 1,561 others sustained injuries due to armed conflicts, acts of terror and violence, the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) announced on Friday.

The US Central Command cannot account for $223 million in orders placed during the international operation against Daesh because of inaccurate records-keeping and poor guidance, according to a Department of Defense Inspector General audit released on Monday.

Pentagon Cannot Account for $223Mln in Anti-Daesh Operation Orders
http://sputniknews.com/us/20160328/1037103209/pentagon-daesh-orders.html#ixzz44ar1MONz

Specifically, the Inspector General said they were unable to verify the accuracy of 72 US Army Central Command ACSA orders valued at more than $202 million "due to a lack of supporting documentation."

In addition, the accuracy and status of 70 US Air Force Central Command ACSA orders, valued at more than $21 million was unknown because of incorrect or incomplete methods used to post transactions, according to the audit.

The report on the audit, filed March 24 and posted to the Inspector General’s website on Monday, concludes that the Defense Department did not have effective controls on Global Automated Tracking and Reporting System (AGATRS).

AGATRS is a web-based records system that tracks, builds and manages Acquisition and Cross-Service Agreement (ACSA) orders in support of efforts against the Islamic State. ACSAs are bilateral agreements between the Defense Department and foreign entities for the exchange of logistics support, supplies and services.

The Defense Department reviewed 175 of 576 ACSA orders placed between June 2014 and September 2015 and found that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff "did not have assurance that 142 orders placed by US Army and Air Force personnel, valued at $223 million, were accurate or had been reimbursed."

Personnel did not include minimum essential data elements on ACSA orders, failed to upload source documents justifying line items on the orders and did not close the orders properly within the AGATRS system, the Inspector General noted.

Some of the missing information included the name and mailing address of the organization issuing or receiving the order, as well as signatures or date and place or the original transfer, it said.

Residents of the Syrian Christian town Sadad in the province of Homs began returning from Europe after stabilization of the situation in their country due to the actions of the Russian air force according to the head of the city of Sadad, Suleiman Al-Khalil.

Christians Return to Syrian Town’ as Situation Stabilizes
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160402/1037388924/christians-syrian-town-stability.html

“Christians, who left Syria for Europe, began to return to Sadad, as well as to other cities. People believed that the operation of the Russian air force was successful and agreement on the cease-fire is maintained, with peaceful life returning to the country, this is obvious,” Al-Khalil said.

During the crisis in Syria, from the city of Sadad, which has a population of 12 thousand people, around 900 residents left right away. Over the past three months, around ten percent of the refugees have returned. In the near future, the city authorities are ready to take about three hundred inhabitants.

“After the liberation of Palmyra and the surrounding areas including the Christian town of Qaryateyn I decided to restore my poultry farm (which is the largest in Sadad). The city has obtained license for re-opening of three other factories. Everyone is talking about stability and security,” local businessman Mufid al-Sith from Sadad said.

The city of Sadad has both strategic and religious significance. The settlement is located just 14 kilometers from the main highway of Damascus-Homs.

In the northwest of the city on March 16 production of a new oil field started. It will become one of the largest in Syria. Every day, according to the mayor of Sadad, the oil field produces 380,000 cubic meters of natural gas.

An UN-backed “unity government,” which was established in January, has set up shop at a Tripoli Naval Base in Libya.

A U.S. Made Government Sneaks Into Libya !
http://novorossia.today/u-s-made-government-sneaks-libya/

Further complicating Libya’s status as an ungovernable desert full of warring factions, the UN-backed “unity government,” which was established in January, has finally managed to sneak into Libya, landing in the capital of Tripoli and setting up shop at a naval base.
The US loudly endorsed the arrival of this new government, and condemned the other governments as “obstructionists” for opposing the group, which itself was formed in Tunis with neither elections nor any real imprimatur from the Libyan people.

The “unity government” was the result of tentative agreements between the two existing Libyan governments, though both ultimately rejected the unity cabinet, and the group was quickly relegated to third-place status among governments with little real control.

Local officials blasted the “infiltration” of this new faction into the capital, but the group managed to get to a naval base, and is now one of three governments, two of which are officially “UN-backed,” and which don’t like one another.

The only real backing this new government has, beyond the UN itself, is that many NATO nations believe they can parlay a “unity government” into an endorsement to invade Libya, while the UN is dangling the possibility of freeing the nation’s massive sovereign wealth fund from sanctions if the unity government is in charge of it.

 

[Cosmos]

Russian Defense Ministry Headquater is on Fire:

http://sputniknews.com/russia/20160403/1037407022/moscow-defmin-fire.html

Around 50 People Evacuated as Russian Defense Ministry HQ Catches Fire

Around fifty people have been moved out of the Defense Ministry headquarters in downtown Moscow after a fire broke out on the second floor of the building, RIA Novosti reported citing a military source on Sunday.

“Forty people managed to leave the building on their own and five more were rescued by firefighters,” the source said.

The blaze broke out on the second floor of the building and has spread to 50 square meters, the source added.
At 11.10 a.m. the fire alert level was raised to 3 from 2 earlier in the morning.

The Defense Ministry has not yet commented on the incident.

 

[sToRmR1dR]

Russian Defense Ministry Headquater is on Fire:

http://sputniknews.com/russia/20160403/1037407022/moscow-defmin-fire.html

Around 50 People Evacuated as Russian Defense Ministry HQ Catches Fire

Around fifty people have been moved out of the Defense Ministry headquarters in downtown Moscow after a fire broke out on the second floor of the building, RIA Novosti reported citing a military source on Sunday.

“Forty people managed to leave the building on their own and five more were rescued by firefighters,” the source said.

The blaze broke out on the second floor of the building and has spread to 50 square meters, the source added.
At 11.10 a.m. the fire alert level was raised to 3 from 2 earlier in the morning.

The Defense Ministry has not yet commented on the incident.

Smoke in defense ministry’s building in Moscow localized

http://tass.ru/en/defense/866845

Earlier on Sunday, the ministry’s press service said smoke in a building of the Russian Defense Ministry in central Moscow is localized

MOSCOW, April 3. /TASS/. The fire has spread to all floors of the defense ministry's building in Moscow, law enforcers told TASS on Sunday.

"The fire in the old five-storey building in Znamenka has spread to all the floors," the source said. "More than 30 fire and rescue teams are called to the site."

Earlier on Sunday, the ministry’s press service said smoke in a building of the Russian Defense Ministry in central Moscow is localized, the reason could be a short circuit in the cabling.

"Today, at about 10 in the morning, smoke was located in a technical room of the administrative building in Znamenka, which is under repairing now," the press service said. "The fire brigades, which arrived to the building, localized the smoke. No victims there.".

Fire that broke out in the building of the Russian defense ministry in central Moscow has been localized after hours of firefighting efforts, the chief of the Moscow city department of the Russian emergencies ministry, Ilya Denisov, said on Sunday.

"The fire was localized in all premises at 16:30 Moscow time," he told journalists.

"I think it was a perfect job - fire fighters have managed to prevent the spread of fire to other buildings," he said.

He also confirmed that no roof collapse has taken place. "The roof was placed on the ceiling structures," he said.

In his words, one fire fighter was hurt. He is currently in hospital. "His life is out of danger," Denisov said.

 

[Renaissance]

At the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington DC on Friday, President Obama stated, "It's no secret that there are some trends within Turkey that I've been troubled with," ......... adding that he is a strong believer in freedom of the press."

Yet, the day before, a meeting between Obama and French President Francois Hollande was video taped, then posted on the White House website. A press watchdog group, Media Research Center (MRC) noticed the video had been altered. Hollande stated, "But we're also well aware that the roots of terrorism, Islamist terrorism, is in Syria and in Iraq," according to a White House transcript. The sound cuts off several seconds when Holland mentions Islam and terrorism in the same sentence. Then the video was removed.

Obama talking about being a believer in 'freedom of the press' is pretty ridiculous when the US media itself is so oppressive, however, the link between Islam and terrorism is a perversion. The irony of the White House removing the segment of Holland's comments is that this perversion only has such prominence because of influence of the West. Perhaps the removal does more to inflame imaginative fears of ordinary Muslims' inclination toward terrorism than anything else. I doubt videos posted on the White House website get a whole lot of traffic, and more attention was probably drawn to this event because of the removal than would have occurred otherwise.

 

[angelburst29]

Netanyahu spars with US senator over Israeli army's rights record
http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?ID=770930

US congressmen seek investigation of Israel's 'extrajudicial killings'
http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=770905

Netanyahu to Kerry: Declare Israel doesn’t commit extrajudicial killings
_http://www.jta.org/2016/04/01/news-opinion/politics/netanyahu-asks-kerry-to-declare-israel-does-not-engage-in-extrajudicial-killings?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly asked John Kerry to publicly state that Israel does not carry out extrajudicial killings, after a group of U.S. lawmakers asked the secretary of state to investigate such claims.

Meanwhile, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the lead lawmaker making the request, rebuked Netanyahu for his initial response to the revelation of the letter, saying the Israeli leader misunderstood the relevant law, which requires defunding military units underwritten by U.S. government funds should they be found in violation of U.S. human rights norms.

The Times of Israel reported that Netanyahu made the call to Kerry Friday.

Netanyahu said in a statement Wednesday that the February letter by Leahy and 10 Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives calling for an investigation of alleged human rights abuses by his nation’s military should instead be directed at Palestinian inciters.

“Israel’s soldiers and police officers defend themselves and innocent civilians with the highest moral standards against bloodthirsty terrorists who come to murder them,” said the statement.

“Where is the concern for the human rights of the many Israelis who’ve been murdered and maimed by these savage terrorists? … This letter should have been addressed instead to those who incite youngsters to commit cruel acts of terrorism.”

 

[angelburst29]

Press Secretary of Russian President Dmitry Peskov is warning of impending journalistic smear against Putin.

Kremlin Warns of Impending "Information Spin" Against Putin
http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/03/kremlin-warns-of-impending-information.html

"Information spin" in the form of sensationalism is being preparing against Vladimir Putin, said Dmitry Peskov. According to him, it is about the President personally, his family, and the businessmen Kovalchuk and Rotenberg.

Press Secretary of Russian President Dmitry Peskov said that in the coming days "information spin" is expected against the Russian leadership, primarily President Vladimir Putin. "Information is being prepared in the coming days that claims objectivity and sensationalism," — said Peskov to journalists, RBC reports.

Massive leak reveals money rings of global leaders, including Putin: media reports
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2016/04/03/german-paper-massive-financial-leak-reveals-offshort-accounts/82586798/

April 3, 2016 - A massive, anonymous leak of financial documents from a Panamanian law firm has revealed an extensive worldwide network of offshore “shell” companies — including ones with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin — that allow the wealthy to hide their assets from taxes and, in some cases, to launder billions in cash, a German newspaper alleges.

The documents, combed through in the past year by dozens of journalists worldwide, show links to 72 current or former heads of state, including dictators accused of looting their own countries.

The data reveal details of secret offshore companies linked to families and associates of Egypt's former president Hosni Mubarak, Libya's former leader Muammar Gaddafi and Syria's president Bashar Assad, among others.

It also alleges a billion-dollar money laundering ring run by a Russian bank tied to associates of Putin. The bank allegedly channeled money through offshore companies, two of which were officially owned by one of the Russian president's closest friends.

"I think the leak will prove to be probably the biggest blow the offshore world has ever taken because of the extent of the documents," said Gerard Ryle, director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalism (ICIJ), a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., which coordinated the reporting.

The cache is larger than the one leaked in 2013 by former CIA employee Edward Snowden — who tweeted on Sunday that the "Biggest leak in the history of data journalism just went live, and it's about corruption."

ICIJ said as much as $2 billion has been secretly shuffled through banks and shadow companies linked to Putin’s associates, and that the bank has been instrumental in building a network of offshore companies.

The so-called “Panama Papers” cover a period from the 1970s to the spring of 2016, according to Sueddeutsche Zeitung, the Munich-based newspaper that obtained the trove of documents more than a year ago from an anonymous source tied to the firm Mossack Fonseca.

The newspaper has since shared the documents with more than 100 news organizations and 400 journalists in 80 countries, who have pored over them for the past 12 months.

Among other revelations, the Mossack Fonseca documents show that Icelandic Prime Minister Sigmundur Gunnlaugsson and his wife bought an offshore company in 2007 that he didn’t declare when entering parliament in 2009.

The offshore company was used to invest millions of dollars of inherited money. Gunnlaugsson sold his 50% share of the company to his wife for $1 eight months later, the documents allege.

Gunnlaugsson, who is now facing calls for his resignation, said he has not broken any rules and that his wife didn’t benefit financially from the arrangement.

Sueddeutsche Zeitung said Sunday that the 11.5 million-document cache, which includes 4.8 million emails and nearly 2.5 million documents, is several times larger than a previous cache of offshore data published by WikiLeaks in 2013.

Mossack Fonseca didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, the Associated Press reported, but it told the BBC that it has always complied with international protocols to ensure the companies it incorporates are not used for tax evasion, money-laundering, terrorist financing “or other illicit purposes.”

"For 40 years Mossack Fonseca has operated beyond reproach in our home country and in other jurisdictions where we have operations,” the firm said, adding that it has “never been accused or charged in connection with criminal wrongdoing.”

"If we detect suspicious activity or misconduct, we are quick to report it to the authorities. Similarly, when authorities approach us with evidence of possible misconduct, we always cooperate fully with them."

On Sunday, #PanamaPapers trended on Twitter as users around the world reacted to the disclosures.

[...] links to 72 current or former heads of state, including dictators accused of looting their own countries.

https://panamapapers.icij.org/the_power_players/

[...] including dictators accused of looting their own countries.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-35918844#%22

List of publications reprinting the USA story.
http://news.usa.extra.hu/latest/massive-leak-reveals-money-rings-of-global-leaders-usa-today

 

[angelburst29]

German Economic News Reports Obama Has Abandoned His ‘Neocons’ Eric ZUESSE
http://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2016/04/03/german-economic-news-reports-obama-has-abandoned-his-neocons.html

German Economic News (Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten, or DWN), the most reliable news-source on geostrategic matters, reported, on March 31st, that US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin had secretly reached agreement on working together to kill the jihadists in Syria, even despite Obama’s having long been carrying out instead the policies of his Administration’s neoconservatives, such as Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden, which prioritize first America’s longstanding effort to overthrow and replace the Russian government (by overthrowing governments that ally with Russia).

If this news-report is correct, then it indicates that Obama has finally come around to the position that Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, had, according to the great investigative reporter Seymour Hersh, been urging upon Obama: to place the destruction of the jihadists as being a higher priority than the anti-Russian campaign (which has been carried out by overthrowing Russia’s allies – especially Viktor Yanukovych in Ukraine, successfully done in February 2014 – and Bashar al-Assad in Syria. Unlike Yanukovych, Assad seems to have become the all-but-certain winner of the American-and-jihadists’ war to overthrow his secular government.)

In the US Presidential contests, Bernie Sanders has been arguing against Hillary Clinton, to prioritize the anti-jihadist effort higher than any anti-Russian strategy; and Donald Trump in the Republican Party has been campaigning against Ted Cruz and John Kasich similarly. The DWN report seems to suggest that, finally, President Obama has come around to Sanders’s and Trump’s position – and, to what, before that, was Martin Dempsey’s position – on this central geostrategic issue: What is the top priority?

However, the DWN news-report also makes clear that both Obama and Putin have, on certain occasions, been deceptive, so that no certainty can be attributed to any conclusions at this stage.

One can, however, say with certainty – and Hersh’s news-reports ever since the last one he did on geostrategy for the New Yorker, «The Redirection», in 2007, have been about this, the redirection of US foreign policy (since 2007) to prioritize conquering Russia – one can say that, ever since Obama first entered the White House in 2009, Obama’s top priority in international relations has, indeed, been to move forward with what has been America’s top foreign-policy objective, ever since 1990 (other than during the conquest of Iraq period, 2003-2007): the goal of placing Russia under US control (i.e., to continue the process that was under way in Russia under former Russian President Boris Yeltsin).

When the editor of the New Yorker accepted that 2007 article by Hersh for publication, perhaps it was because the word «Russia» wasn’t even used in it – instead, Hersh cast America’s central post-2007 target as being Iran – which has been Russia’s chief ally in the Middle East ever since the 1953-CIA-installed dictator Shah had been overthrown by the Shiite Ayatollah Khomeini’s supporters in 1979. After that 2007 article was published, Hersh hasn’t gotten any more geostrategic submissions accepted there. When he did articles starting in 2013 reporting Obama’s follow-through of Bush (Obama’s targeting Russia’s allies for being overthrown), none of the paying US news media would publish them. Hersh’s geostrategic articles have all been published instead by the London Review of Books. Basically, Hersh became too good for his best work to be able to be accepted by the New Yorker (which he’d prefer to have published them, because it pays lots more and has a bigger audience than LRB).

A good example of this top priority, against Russia, was Obama’s National Security Strategy 2015, which named Russia on 17 of the 18 occasions in which the term (or equivalent) «aggression» was being charged by Obama. Here, Obama was, in long form, stating the view that had been more simply expressed about Russia by his Republican opponent during the 2012 Presidential campaign: Mitt Romney’s «This is without question our No. 1 geopolitical foe. They fight for every cause for the world's worst actors». Obama’s deception of US voters, by attacking that statement from Romney (though he secretly agreed with it and was already preparing his second Administration to carry it out), was typical of Obama’s strategic brilliance (at deceiving voters). (He was such a superb deceiver, that he even won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize, by pretending to support a peaceful world.) It helped him to win the US Presidency (since the American public considers jihadists to be vastly more of a threat); but, at least until now, Obama’s Presidency, even overtly, has, indeed, been guided by his agreement with the view that Romney there had so pithily expressed.

In fact, Obama’s overthrow of Yanukovych in Ukraine was such a successful fraud so that even today there is no mention in American ‘news’ media of the fact that it was a coup, and, moreover, an extremely bloody one, which was followed very quickly by an ethnic cleansing campaign to eliminate the residents in the areas of Ukraine that had overwhelmingly voted for Yanukovych. Furthermore, foreign elites know that it was a coup, but the US public are still kept in the dark about it. In fact, the one time when the American geostrategic expert George Friedman, the head of Stratfor, called it «the most blatant coup in history», he was addressing an audience of elite Russians who already knew, from overwhelming evidence, that it was that. In the United States, it’s still called a «democratic revolution» (which merely happened to replace the democratically elected leader of that country).

The recording of Obama’s operative (the super-neoconservative Victoria Nuland) giving instructions to the US Ambassador in Ukraine regarding whom to get appointed to lead Ukraine after the coup, still isn’t enough for US news media to refer to the overthrow in Ukraine as having been a «coup» instead of as something like «the Maidan revolution». Nothing will be enough, for that. Perhaps one won’t even be able to trust US-published ‘history’ books, ever to get that right. The US retrospectively acknowledges that its overthrow of the democratically elected leader Mosaddegh in Iran in 1953 was a US coup there, but perhaps the US elite’s fascism, which was then just beginning to seep into and poison the American body-politic, has by now become far more deeply embedded – too deeply embedded for US ‘history’ books to be much more than US mythology.

While no one can say with certainty whether Obama is changing course on this overthrow-Russia campaign (which was begun in 1990 by US President George Herbert Walker Bush) as his Presidency winds down, there is at least a possibility that Obama is now becoming somewhat more like Sanders and Trump on this central matter, than like Clinton, Cruz and Kasich (who are neo-conservatives, like Obama if not even more so).

Only time will tell for certain, whether DWN is correct in its reading of the situation. If Obama issues a 'National Security Strategy 2016', then perhaps there will be more substantial verbal evidence, at least (if one can even trust such coming from Obama), regarding this matter. However, any effort to end what has been America’s leading geostrategy ever since 1990 would be extremely difficult for any US President, and the entrenched power-structure in the US would resist it every step of the way. Simply deceiving the American public is so much easier to do. It has been the path of least resistance, at least since 1990. From that time till this, there is, as yet, no movement, either in the US or in Europe, to end America’s anti-Russian military club – NATO – despite the fact that the Soviet Union’s equivalent, the Warsaw Pact, ended in 1991, when the Soviet Union itself did.

For some reason, a US President can still refer to Russia 17 out of 18 times as the world’s ‘aggressor’ even while it is the US that so routinely overthrows foreign leaders – even democratically elected ones. The American public don’t trust the US 'news' media much, but they evidently still trust it way too much. Perhaps one would expect that to be the case in a dictatorship. But once a country reaches such a stage as this, what can possibly follow after? What happens in a former democracy?

 

[angelburst29]

Sputnik News now featuring an article "on the leaked Panama Data" propaganda.

Biggest Ever Data Leak Reveals Firms Linked to World’s Most Powerful People (Video)
http://sputniknews.com/business/20160404/1037427142/data-leak-finances.html

A data leak by a Panama firm selling offshore companies has exposed alleged illegal financial activities of some of the world’s most powerful people in tax havens, Germany’s Sueddeutsche Zeitung said Sunday.

SZ, which says it has obtained the documents from the database of Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca, turned to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) to help them sift through this tremendous bulk of data.

​The trove of over 11.5 million secret files totaling 2.6 terabytes – e-mails, pdf files, and files – covers a period spanning from the 1970s to the spring of 2016. This is by far greater than the combined total of the Wikileaks Cablegate, Offshore Leaks, Lux Leaks, and Swiss Leaks, SZ estimated.

The documents reportedly provide information on current and former leaders, as well as celebrities and others who allegedly laundered billions of dollars, evaded taxes and dodged sanctions with the help of shell firms abroad.

Some of the companies were purportedly linked to prime ministers of Iceland, Pakistan, the Saudi King, presidents of Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Argentina, the father of the British prime minister, the family of Azerbaijan’s president, cousins of the Syrian president and a close friend of the Russian president.

Earlier on Monday, the Kremlin announced that an information attack on the Russian leader and his friends and family was set to be launched in several countries in the upcoming days.

According to ICIJ, the documents also show that a law company of the FIFA Ethics Committee had business ties to three people indicted in the ongoing world football corruption scandal.

Mossack Fonseca responded by refusing to validate the information contained in the leaks and accused reporters of gaining unauthorized access to its proprietary documents. It warned that using unlawfully-obtained data was a crime that it would not hesitate to punish by criminal and civil means. Representatives of the above mentioned officials weren't available for immediate comment.

Operation Beluga, a covert Western intelligence scheme intended to undermine Russia and its leaders.

Operation Beluga: A US-UK Plot to Discredit Putin and Destabilize the Russian Federation
http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/operation-beluga-us-uk-plot-discredit-putin-and-destabilize-russian-federation/ri13653

Originally appeared at OpEdNews

Editors Note: Yesterday in a story by Ricky Twisdale we referenced this article which broke the news about Operation Beluga in OpEdNews on Sunday March 27, and it drew a lot of reader interest. We now present that original article in its entirety below.

Renowned French security expert Paul Barril has let loose a bombshell: the existence of Operation Beluga, a covert Western intelligence scheme intended to undermine Russia and its leaders.

Is that what's behind much of the threatening rhetoric now going back and forth between the US and Russia?

Barril exposed Operation Beluga in a recent interview with Swiss businessman Pascal Najadi on the 2006 Alexander Litvinenko death case. Litvinenko was a reputed former spy who many believe was murdered with radioactive polonium on orders of Vladimir Putin.

Najadi says the interview drew out the converse revelation that Litvinenko was actually killed by "an Italian who administered the deadly polonium 210." What's more, he astonishingly says, the operation was carried out under the auspices of the US and UK.

In my books The Phony Litvinenko Murder and Litvinenko Murder Case Solved I've written about an Italian connection. But I can't confirm that Barril is talking about the same person.

Here's what Najadi told me:

"According to Paul Barril, Litvinenko was himself working for the late Boris Berezovsky [a Russian fugitive oligarch that made London his home] who, according to Barril, was in turn working for and with the British intelligence service MI6. Barril said, 'Litvinenko has betrayed his employers, Berezovsky and the
MI6, and has pocketed large sums of money, millions of US dollars, that were destined for agent provocateurs within the Berezovsky clan. The sole goal was to globally discredit Putin and the Russian Federation. This Western intelligence operation was directed from Washington DC and London. Its code name is Beluga.'"

Barril's comments deserve serious consideration. A former officer of the French Gendarmerie Nationale, he's been dubbed "Supercop" in France. Barril is cofounder of the GIGN French antiterror group, and has also served in French presidential security. During his career he has led several private security companies, as well.

Najadi says, "These new revelations from Captain Paul Barril now open a new window to the truth about the motive for killing Alexander Litvinenko."

Litvinenko's death has been a hot topic for officials within British officialdom. A UK coroner's inquest failed to reach a verdict on the manner and cause of Litvinenko's death, even after the passage of almost ten years. Then a politically-motivated official inquiry was authorized by Prime Minister David Cameron. Its final report hypothesized that Putin was behind the death, but it failed to produce any credible evidence. (See "Six Reasons You Can't Take the Litvinenko Report Seriously")

Britain had accused two Russians of poisoning Litvinenko. But the UK prosecutor failed to make his case against them, claiming that he had only "grave suspicions" about who's to blame. Then there was the aborted coroner's inquest, and finally a report was issued under
suspicious circumstances by a discredited judge who lacked the basic qualifications for conducting an official inquiry. (See "Britain Allowed Unqualified Judge to Decide Litvinenko Case. Now Inquiry Report Must Be Recalled" and "Discredited Litvinenko 'Judge' Sends Parliament Untrustworthy Verdict.")

Now the Litvinenko scandal takes on a new proportion. It's no longer just an incessantly long-running murder mystery. It just might be the telltale sign of an enormous geopolitical provocation that is wreaking havoc with world stability.

In the run-up to the American presidential election many of the candidates have talked very tough on dealing with Russia's role in the world. I wonder how many of them have bought into the Beluga scheme.

 

[sToRmR1dR]

BREAKING:

Iranian commandos deployed to Syria

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2016/04/04/459025/Iran-commando-advisors-Syria/

An Iranian military official says commandos from an Iranian army unit have been deployed to Syria on an advisory mission.

(This item is being updated.)

Daesh, Nusra Could Suffer 'Devastating Blow' in Syria - Russian Deputy FM

http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160404/1037434925/daesh-nusra-syria-devastating-blow-ryabkov.html

The liberation of Palmyra tilted the balance of power in Syria and created a chance to strike a crippling blow to terrorists including Daesh and the Nusra Front, according to Russia's deputy foreign minister

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — There is a chance to deal irreparable damage to terrorists in Syria as Palmyra's liberation changed the balance of power, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said.

"Of course, the Americans have a hard time arguing that the liberation of Palmyra was a very important event and, perhaps, largely changed the balance of power in the Syrian conflict in general," Ryabkov told RIA Novosti.

"The real situation on the ground in Syria shows that now there is a chance to deal a devastating blow to terrorist structures, Daesh first and foremost, but also to the Nusra Front and other groups operating there," he said.

Russia, US to Never Share Common Stance on Assad's Future

Moscow and Washington will never reach common ground regarding the future of Syrian President Bashar Assad, Sergei Ryabkov said.

"We will never find common ground with our colleagues from Washington and from some other capitals who think that we should work under the motto 'Assad must resign,'" he told RIA Novosti.

"We will never find common ground on the matter not only because it contradicts our entire foreign policy doctrine, under which regime change, 'color revolutions' and social engineering from the outside are unacceptable, but also simply because such a condition leaves no future for any political process," the deputy foreign minister said.

Moscow believes that its Western partners are not fully implementing the requirements enshrined in the UN Security Council resolution on Syria, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said.

“Like in many cases before Palmyra [liberation] we feel that Washington’s approach depends upon certain priorities and preferences,” Ryabkov said adding that in particular the United States continues to reject Damascus “as a legitimate partner for these or those actions or decisions.”

“That is why, unfortunately, our Western colleagues, and not only Western, are so obsessed with Bashar Assad and the demonization of the Syrian government that … they fail to comply with the requirements of corresponding UNSC resolutions to the full extent,” the Russian diplomat elaborated.

However, despite some differences, Moscow and Washington continue working daily on "specifying and expanding" the UN lists of terrorists, Ryabkov said.

Kurds Must Join Next Round of Intra-Syrian Talks

Moscow expects that the participants of the intra-Syrian talks will be able to make progress on the settlement at the next round.

"We expect the next step to be taken, which envisages talks among the participants, after working on [UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan] de Mistura's document and summing up what they heard during the previous round, formulating what is acceptable in his proposals and what requires adjusting and in what way. Thus, the next step will be taken and the participants of the negotiations will be able to note progress," Ryabkov told RIA Novosti.

“The negotiating process is more or less moving along, despite certain difficulties and despite absence of Kurds. This, by the way, is an extremely serious issue and the next round must definitely take place with full-fledged involvement of Kurdish representatives from Syria.”

Otherwise, the diplomat added, “we would contradict ourselves by stating that the future of Syria, as a unified, secular, territorially intact, independent [state] must be decided by the citizens of this country.”

The Syrian government delegation headed by permanent ambassador to the UN Bashar Jaafari, the Riyadh-formed Syrian opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC), representatives of the opposition group formed after meetings in Cairo and Moscow and a delegation formed after talks at the Hmeimim air base in Syria convened in the Swiss city of Geneva on March 14 as intra-Syrian negotiations resumed.

Kurds representatives received no invitation to the talks.

Syrian, Militia Forces Destroy Large Daesh Explosives Plant Near Aleppo

http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160404/1037432137/syria-daesh-plant-aleppo.html

The Syrian Army and militia forces have destroyed a large Daesh plant producing explosives and ammunition near the city of Aleppo.

ALEPPO (Sputnik) – The explosive plant of Daesh, whose activities are banned in numerous countries including the United States and Russia, was located in a large silo that was captured earlier by the jihadist group.

“We surrounded them, but we had no idea that there was an entire production of explosives and explosive devices. They fought to the end and the battle went on for several days,” Ibn Aliyat, an individual in the militia forces, told a RIA Novosti correspondent on the scene.

Aleppo, the largest city in Syria, was attacked by Daesh and the Nusra Front jihadist groups in 2012. Since then, Syrian government forces have been fighting for Aleppo.

Since 2011, Syria has been mired in a civil war, with government forces fighting a number of militant, extremist groups and opposition factions. According to the United Nations, some 6.6 million people have been internally displaced by the conflict, while an estimated 4.8 million have fled the country.

5 tons of Russian-Syrian humanitarian aid delivered to Homs Governorate village

http://tass.ru/en/world/866908

Each resident was given a humanitarian aid bag containing canned fish, stewed beef as well as two kilograms of rice, peas and beans

KANAYA (Syria), April 4. /TASS/. Some five tons of Russian-Syrian humanitarian aid has been delivered to the inhabited locality of Kanaya in the Homs Governorate, which is under fire from the Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist organization, Russian correspondents reported from the site.

Each resident was given a humanitarian aid bag containing canned fish, stewed beef as well as two kilograms of rice, peas and beans. Special gift sets were given to local kids.

The main source of income in that district of the Homs Governorate is agriculture — olive tree farming. Residents of surrounding settlements were forced to leave their homes and plantations to escape terrorists and settle down in Kanaya, which was defended by the government army and militia.

The Syrian military say that even Kanaya regularly comes under fire from Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist groups.

The ceasefire regime took effect in Syria on February 27. Shortly before, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution supporting a cessation of hostilities. The document drafted by Russia and the United States was backed by all 15 Security Council member states.

The ceasefire regime does not cover the Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist organizations as well as other groups ruled terrorist by the Security Council.

Russia’s Aerospace Forces started delivering pinpoint strikes in Syria at facilities of the Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist organizations, which are banned in Russia, on September 30, 2015, on a request from Syrian President Bashar Assad.

On March 14, 2016, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered to start, from March 15, withdrawing the main part of the Russian Aerospace Forces’ group from Syria. Putin said the tasks set before the military "have been fulfilled on the whole." Russian Deputy Defense Minister Nikolai Pankov said strikes on terrorists will continue to be delivered.

Over 3,000 Families Returning to Iraq’s Ramadi Now Liberated From Daesh

http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160404/1037430035/iraq-ramadi-liberation.html

About 3,000 families are headed back to the Iraqi city of Ramadi which they had to flee when it was seized by Daesh terrorists, Ramadi district mayor Hamid al-Dulaimi told reporters.

Iraqi forces recaptured Ramadi, the capital of the Anbar province to the west of the country, in December 2015.

Residents started to return to the districts cleared of mines and explosives on Saturday, al-Dulaimi said, as cited by Reuters. According to the mayor, the electrical supply network hasn't been restored yet, but drinking water is being pumped to the area from Euphrates river.

Ibrahim al-Osej, a member of the Ramadi district council, told Iraqi Alsumaria TV that on Sunday dozens of families lined the road to the city waiting for their turn. He noted that although the process has started, some parts of the city are not yet ready for the return of the residents.

"Those districts were desolated by military activities and terrorist attacks," he explained.

More people were rescued during an operation to retake another town in Anbar province under control of Daesh terrorists, Hit (alternatively spelled as Heet). Iraqi forces found and liberated about 1,500 prisoners from Daesh "underground" jail, AFP reported, citing police Colonel Fadhel al-Nimrawi.

A local official in Anbar province, Malallah al-Obeidi, confirmed the number of prisoners, adding that most of them were civilians.

In recent months, both Damascus and Baghdad have been able to turn the tide of war against Daesh — thanks in no small measure to outside support. In Syria, Russia's limited military engagement has been instrumental in helping the SAA score victories.

Daesh (Islamic State) is a terrorist group outlawed in Russia and many other countries. The group has seized large areas in Syria and Iraq and seeks to establish a caliphate in the territories under its control.

Pentagon Knows What Will Happen, Trains Islamist Rebels in Syria Anyway

http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160404/1037433554/pentagon-training-syria-rebels.html

The Pentagon has confirmed that it is currently training "dozens" of Syrian rebels to ostensibly fight Daesh, but Washington apparently has something else in mind since there are local ground forces capable of defeating terrorism and there is no need to send additional fighters to the warzone, analyst Sharmine Narwani told Radio Sputnik.

It is all about the timing. The success of the Syrian Arab Army and its allies "undermines" the West and its proxies' "position and their relevance" at the negotiating table in Geneva, the expert noted.

"I think this is all a cat and mouse game – preparing for the upcoming talks in Geneva, trying to get a little bit more leverage on the ground because they've lost so much in the last few months" to the Syrian army, the Russian Air Force and other allies, she explained.

After all, the Pentagon's previous effort aimed at empowering so-called moderate Syrian rebels to help them tackle Daesh turned out to be a disaster – one that left a major stain on the agency's reputation. US defense chief Ashton Carter said last September that the $500 million program produced five or six fighters. The rest, including US-provided military equipment, were absorbed by al-Qaeda, Daesh and other terrorist groups.

"There's nothing that comes out of this training program and it defies logic why they keep plodding ahead when something has failed so dismally," Narwani lamented.

The analyst referred to the US foreign policy in the Middle East as "shortsighted," pointing to the fact that the US has consistently ignored a working regional solution to defeating and degrading Daesh.

"There are ground forces operating in the Syrian theater that are capable of defeating [Daesh] and all other terrorist groups. These ground forces are all native. You don't have to import natives from another country," she explained.

The US wants to "avoid" helping these local fighters because many of these groups are affiliated with what Narwani referred to as the 'Axis of Resistance,' including Iran, Syria and Hezbollah. "The US is prepared to let al-Qaeda, [Daesh] and other terrorist groups thrive in order to keep the 'Axis of Resistance' at bay," she observed.

Lithuanian Seimas Registers Resolution to Prepare for War with Russia

http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/04/lithuanian-seimas-registers-resolution.html

Translated by Ollie Richardson for Fort Russ
3rd April, 2016

_http://www.obzor.lt/news/n20244.html

The resolution on the "general readiness of the citizens for defense" involves the mobilization of the army.

Member of the Lithuanian parliamentary faction "the Fatherland Union" — Christian Democrats of Lithuania, Rasa Juknevičienė, prepared on March 29th, and registered in Parliament, a resolution on the "prevention preparedness of the citizens for defense", which "establishes the need to consistently attend permanent universal military conscription - where young men are drafted to serve immediately after secondary school or when they turn 18 years old", reported IA Regnum citing the Lithuanian Seimas.

"This initiative arose when the experience of the return of compulsory military service within the last year was assessed, and when it was recognized that the principle of a random lottery had not received the support of the majority of society. With this resolution, it is hoped a discussion will start in the future to form a trained reserve. I would like to see political parties and their representatives in the Sejm think responsibly, and continue to prepare society for defense," said Juknevičienė.

The resolution stresses that "the threat caused by the aggressive policy of Russia to the security of the entire region and Lithuania is long-term, and could continue into the next few decades, and to contain it requires obvious practical training, not only for the military, but for the general defenses too." In addition, it states that "to ensure the territorial defence of Lithuania, there is a necessity for a mixed model army, which includes the regular army and a trained reserve, and that current levels of military service (only 3 thousand draftees annually) is too low for the formation of a sufficient reserve in the near future".

The document suggests that the government, "until May 1st of this year, perform the necessary calculations on how a defense system would be ready to move to a system of universal military service, and to submit to the Parliament by September 10th of this year amendments to the laws necessary for the transition to universal military service".

Recall that Lithuania was returned to military duty in connection to "any aggression by Russia".