Syria in 2016 (October onwards)

[OUTLAW 09]

AND this is the Trump future partner in Syria placing air strikes on civilians everywhere BUT NOT on IS.....

[OUTLAW 09]

From "ISIS" to "Незаконные вооружённые формирования" (illegal armed formations) in one hour ...
Russian MoD Your lies rock! ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6S6UuH9OnDg&feature=share#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Photos The effects of the rockets landed in Jabal al-Hoss and the source is "Russian battleship" in Aleepo
http://stepagency-sy.net/en/archives/110509#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Syria Airstrikes wipped out high school of #Atarib town west of #Aleppo
https://youtu.be/EwZ2GgHUCog

At least 3 hospitals were struck by airstrikes in the 24hrs preceding today’s all-out assault by #Assad & #Russia:
http://reut.rs/2fROumN

EuphratesShield forces liberated the town of #Qabasin (11.000 inhabitants) from #ISIS.

[OUTLAW 09]

Major #Russia escalation underway today, as cruise missile & airstrikes target opposition in #Aleppo & #Idlib.
High use of cluster bombs.

Hard to ignore the timing of #Russia’s offensive being 12hrs after #Putin’s call with #Trump.
Russia now has 2 free hands in #Syria.
Russia’s #Aleppo offensive has been expected for weeks, with leaflets yesterday indicating a 24hr warning.
Expect heavy casualties.

[OUTLAW 09]

Sources in #Aleppo speak of 150+ strikes (artillery, air & [cruise] missile) since this morning - substantial damage & casualties.

[OUTLAW 09]

AND this the Kurdish so called YPG/SDF THAT the so called CIA vetted as being NOT PKK....a US named terrorist group.....

The #PKK is apparently making its move on Tal Afar.
http://ind.pn/2frcFeI

AND who Trumps wants to continue working with in Syria ..SO Trump will be supporting one US named terrorist group attacking first the FSA and THEN just maybe a second US named terrorist group Islamic State......

BUT WAIT......
Syria Assyrian Monitor for Human Rights"Asayish #PYD arrested Assyrian council deputy Reyadh Lahdo Ado in #Hasakah
http://aranews.org/2016/11/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%B5%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A2%D8%B4%D9%88%D8%B1%D9%8A-%D9%8A%D8%AA%D9%87%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A5%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B0%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%8A%D8%A9/#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Back to normal.
#Assad and #Putin will obliterate eastern #Aleppo and no leader or organisation on earth has the guts to stop them.

UKUN_NewYork
✔
@UKUN_NewYork
Regime & backers, including Russia & Iran, currently besieging up to 275,000 in #Aleppo. Starvation used as weapon of war.

[Dishonesty]

Kuznetsov Air Group video

https://ria.ru/syria/20161115/1481416374.html

3 Su-33 long runway take off(200m) Red Nr.78,84,88.
They are all Lemon.
Only Air to Air Missiles-2xR-73,2xR-27R&Wing tip ECM Pod SPS-171.
No fuel tank.

[OUTLAW 09]

Breaking - Aleppo: heaviest bombardment in weeks underway, civil defence tells Reuters, warplanes are in the sky dropping parachute bombs

Homs: Horrific photo from besieged #Homs suburb #Al_Waer after heavy #Russia|n airstrikes today
GRAPHIC!!!!!!!!!!.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=34.742600&lon=36.670990&z=13&m=b#

Hit by Russian incendiary cluster munitions deliberately targeting civilians....

What you're seeing in this pictures are CIVILIANS deliberately targeted and were burned by #Russian phosphor in #Alweaar Suburb of #Homs

AND REGARLESS OF WHAT TRUMP AND HIS MERRY BAND OF ADVISORS THINK...ISLAMIC STATE WAS NOWHERE CLOSE TO THIS RUSSIAN AIR STRIKE...IT WAS JUST ORDINARY PLAIN NORMAL CIVILIANS FLEEING RUSSIAN AIR STRIKES.....

THIS RUSSIAN AIR STRIKE WAS A TERRORIST ATTACK AS IT HIT SPECIICALLY RESIDENTIAL AREAS NOT INVOLVED IN ANY FIGHTING FRONT LINE NOR HOUSED ANY REBELS AND OR REBEL GROUPS.....

[OUTLAW 09]

Potential Trump ally in Syria along with Putin...Iran and Assad.....against IS....

"You have ideological, admin & financial relations with #Iran?" Iraqi Sectarian militia leader: "We do not deny this, it is true".

[OUTLAW 09]

Pro-rebel journalist Bassel Abu Hamza injured in #SyAAF airstrike vs #Fardous district in besieged East #Aleppo

[OUTLAW 09]

203,000 civilians killed in #Syria, 93% [189,000] by #Assad and Putin

Russia killed in a year:
- ≈ rebels did in 5.5 yrs
- more than IS in 3.5 yrs

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo right now.
The inferno continues.
7 civilians killed, 20 injured since the morning.

[OUTLAW 09]

Sectarian islamist militias under Iran's control announce invasion in Syria.

Iraqi Day #
🇮🇶
‏@iraqi_day
#BREAKING
Hadi Al-Amari: The #PMU will fight #ISIS in #Syria after #Mosul battle & Bashar al-Assad has invited us.

[OUTLAW 09]

BreakingNews
Air strikes continue on besieged eastern #Aleppo this morning.
While kids wanted to go to school ...

[OUTLAW 09]

Besieged Al-Waer this evening.
#Assad burns the remaining civilians, 2 months after the #FSA was evacuated by the @SYRedCrescent.

Syria|Homs|Al Waer on fire after air attacks on homes and medical#center
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmiFGEhWQm8#…

Guess who facilitated the displacement of the purely-moderate rebels from al-Waer, leaving defenceless civ. behind?!
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201609281045780218-syria-withdrawal-families-russia/#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Liwa Ahrar Souriya & Kataib Saif al-Shahba have both merged with Nour al-Din al-Zinki in northern #Syria:

Iraqi Kurds deny 'strategic' plan to demolish Arab homes
BTW...same exact tactic in areas the Kurds have taken in Syria....
http://reut.rs/2gayeBo#

Interesting YPG/PKK excuse for giving up Manbij....maybe they saw the handwriting on the wall with TAF/FSA taking now al Baba a seriously important center of gravity for northern Aleppo ...

YPG announces withdrawal of their forces to east of Euphrates to participate in Raqqa Ops after handing Manbaj to Manbaj military council.

[OUTLAW 09]

Syria Deep impact crater of #Russia'n "bunker buster"- bomb in #Aleppo
NW suburb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8dRAHvcdd4

Syria 15 dead today after airstrikes on #Aleppo city

W. #Aleppo: Jaish Al-Mujahideen blew up with a #TOW a bulldozer used to erect new barriers in Al-Assad suburb.

[OUTLAW 09]

The world had 3 weeks of calm to FORCE #AssadPutin not to resume the annihilation of eastern #Aleppo
It did nothing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI6moHz_xII#…

OVER Russian 50 air strikes JUST this morning alone in Aleppo...

AssadPutin resumed air strikes on eastern #Aleppo as thousands of children tried to go to school.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrZ35XNvSc0#…

Death-toll from yesterday's Russia/Assad blitz across #Syria reaches 55, including 8 children & 2 women. But who's counting.
Needless to say that these are all civilian/rebel areas, ISIS presence is nowhere near any of the areas targeted, but you knew that already

[OUTLAW 09]

Syrian areas hit by Russia/Assad yesterday using regular/cluster/incendiary munitions/cruise missiles/barrel bombs/naval mines/mortar shells.....LIERALLY EVERYTHING except Putin's personal bathtub and toilet......

[OUTLAW 09]

HOW to waste precious #Kilbr cruise missiles. #Aleppo #Syria

Absolutely empty and building was not being used by even a mouse..MAYBE though a few cats and stray dogs.......

BUT in standard Russian MoD speak a GREAT hit on the target was achieved they think?????

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Rebels have repelled #YPG attack south of #Azaz and confirmed killed 5 #YPG militants today.

Raqqa: This #ISIS SVBIED has confirmed killed 14 #YPG militias today.

Aleppo: Heavy #Russian airstrikes on #Syria|n civilians, but no progress on the ground by pro-#Assad forces today OR yesterday so the Russian/Assad ground offensive is basically stalled...

[OUTLAW 09]

"Jet fighters and helicopters bombing east Aleppo hit a children’s hospital on Wednesday morning"
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/16/horror-has-come-back-to-aleppo-airstrikes-continue-in-rebel-held-east?CMP=share_btn_tw#

U.S. Officials Fear Trump Is Playing Into Terrorists’ Hands
http://thebea.st/2fVORAx

[OUTLAW 09]

The village of Asameerah, south of #Aleppo, 45 minutes ago.
@SyriaCivilDef search for victims after an #AssadPutin air strike.

[OUTLAW 09]

This ambulance in eastern #Aleppo took a direct hit.
Hard to believe, a regime barrel bomb caused this ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olkcR7KKyG8#…

[OUTLAW 09]

AND Russia lies and lies and lies...basically nothing that the Russian FM and their MoD match "truth".....

Russia:

>There have been NO air strikes on #Aleppo today.<

#PutinAtWar

[OUTLAW 09]

RUSSIA lied today when they stated...there are no air strikes on Aleppo today....

TELL that to this eastern Aleppo family.....father comforts one injured son of this two injured sons and his wife and their mother was killed....BY THOSE NON EXISTENT RUSSIAN AIR STRIKES....

AND THE ENTIRE WEST SAYS NOT A SINGLE WORD...TOTAL SILENCE EVEN FROM THE UNSC....

AND TRUMP....NOTHING BUT CRICKETS.....

Aleppo: #Russia|n & #Assad airstrikes have confirmed killed 40 civilians in Eastern #Aleppo today, most of them women and children

Aleppo Killing Restarts. Barrel bomb flattens building onto seven families. Rescuers are currently searching for survivors.

[OUTLAW 09]

Insane!
The #AssadPutin air force AGAIN targeted the hidden place of the last incubators in eastern #Aleppo ...
#AssadGenocide

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Fierce clashes between #FSA and #YPG northeast of #Qabasin.

Aleppo: #FSA rebels are in control of #Qabasin. There were heavy clashes with #ISIS for several hours.

The US has said that YPG to be removed from manbij but right now it's other way around them rather attacking against al bab

AGAIN further evidence the Islamic State coordinates their withdrawals with YPG....YPG is not attacking IS....simple as that...AND this is the new Trump IS solution?

Aleppo: #ISIS retreated from several villages east of #Qabasin. #YPG captured these villages without a fight.


BUT WAIT........
YPG and #Obama administration lying like always. Remember: They telling us the same story since months.

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #FSA rebels have officially confirmed that they have repelled #ISIS attack on #Qabasin.

'Our depots are empty': food aid runs out in Syria's Aleppo
http://f24.my/2ghxTO6

#UN agencies & #Assad working together to defeat opposition?. As #UN cuts aid to #Syria,#Assad blocks whats left.
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/11/15/while-assad-bans-aid-deliveries-un-tells-agencies-to-cut-back-syria-funding-requests.html#
…

[OUTLAW 09]

Massive clash looming between TAF/FSA and YPG.....BUT WAIT YPG declared today that they are withdrawn from Manbij??????

Aleppo: #YPG militants plan to advance along the #Manbij-#Al_Bab Highway towards #Al_Bab. The only barrier there is #Bzaah town.

Aleppo: #YPG militants near #Qabasin calling themselves now #SDF #Al_Bab Military Council. They want to capture #Al_Bab.

Aleppo: #FSA rebels have captured #Sab_Wiran and #Shuwayhah villages from #YPG.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.520397&lon=37.636242&z=13&m=b#


Syria US attack helicopters support #SDF battle against #IS at Tal as-Saman /northern #Raqqa
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=36.227658&lon=38.971939&z=13&m=b#

Aleppo: Zero clashes between #YPG and #ISIS, just heavy clashes between #FSA and #YPG and between #FSA and #ISIS.


Aleppo : The number of dead from the earlier #Russian airstrike massacre in #Sukkari neighborhood has increased to eleven.

Syria: At least 20 civilians killed, 50 wounded in multiple heavy Russian and regime strikes on the rebel-held village of Batbo, w-Aleppo.

[OUTLAW 09]

Human Rights Watch
✔
@hrw
Russia/Syria: Satellite, Video Imagery Confirm School Attack
http://bit.ly/2ghlhGH

[OUTLAW 09]

US Coalition not backing #Turkey move on Al-Bab #Syria: Pentagon @AFP
Interesting to say the least.....as it is counter to the so called US agreement told to Erdogan by the US concerning the YPG and Manbij....

[OUTLAW 09]

Syria this morning
MANPADS could stop #Assad's helicopters for the sake of humanity.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8WL3mGGkBU#…

[OUTLAW 09]

NewsMap
#Russian soldiers in #YPG-held Umm Hawsh to "investigate a militant Mustard gas attack" on the town.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfSns7u-dIw …
Russia is trying desperately to flip the use of CWs by Assad into use of CWs as an excuse to continue massive air strikes….and make Assad sound “sane and a reliable partner” in the fight against terrorists especially one’s using CWs WHICH is really Assad these days and veriied a number of time WITh Russia denying he uses CWs….

[CrowBat]

US Coalition not backing #Turkey move on Al-Bab #Syria: Pentagon @AFP
Interesting to say the least.....as it is counter to the so called US agreement told to Erdogan by the US concerning the YPG and Manbij....
Something is in the making there (in al-Bab area), but I can't figure out what exactly.

Clearly, the centrepiece of this affair is the TSK/FSyA (i.e. Euphrates Shield Forces) advance on al-Bab. Actually, they have reached the suburbs four days ago, even entered northern parts of the town, before the Daesh counterattacked at Qabasin, yesterday, and kept them busy for the entire day.

Fans of the PKK/PYD/YPG conglomerate are now all stressing the 'SDF' is advancing in the same direction. At the same time, they are zip-lip about the 'liberation' of al-Arimah - which was simply abandoned by the Daesh, and taken over the PKK/PYD/YPG without a bullet being fired. Why should the US-supported Kurds and the Daesh fight each other, eh...?

Fans of Assad can't stop reporting about some sort of biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig concentration of all sorts of Assadist militias in Kweres area. Actual evidence consists of a few photos showing meetings of bosses of the Quwwat Nimr (Tiger Force) and the Liwa Suqour as-Sahra, but these took place back in late October, before the JAF launched its failed offensive on Western Aleppo. The rest are usual photos of quite young, certainly 'green' troops there, and then of convoys of armoured vehicles _supposedly_ bound for Kweres.

Finally, and in complete silence, Russians have moved their S-300 SAM-site from Lattakia area to as-Safira, back around 23 October.

Assadists already have one SA-17 site at Kweres (perhaps a SA-2 site too, but my guess is that the latter is used as a decoy).

But, in turn, as-Safira is meanwhile regularly rocketed by BM-21s of the Ahrar ash-Sham and the Jayash al-Mujahideen (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Hm-Mieg3Rs) (so much so, the good Brig-Gen Hajizadeh of the IRGC went for the record to blame an 'US attack' (http://www.tehrantimes.com/news/408351/IRGC-U-S-struck-Iran-built-arms-factory-in-Syria) on one of IRGC-established missile factories there, just yesterday).

Gauging by what happened back in May, when the (then) 'SDF' announced its 'offensive on Raqqa' (which then turned in direction on Manbij), it could be the regime/IRGC are curious to go in the same direction - i.e. advance on al-Bab.

But, back then, the launched their operation much too early - i.e. before it became clear that the SDF's announcement of 'offensive on Raqqa' was a ploy - and got their backsides served on a silver plate by the Daesh.

So, my guess is that they are waiting to see what is the TSK/FSyA force going to achieve in al-Bab. If this punches through and really captures the place, and the regime intel finds out the Daesh is overstretched with this affair - they might launch an advance in the same direction....

And that's 'just' three elements of this equation...

Namely, it's still unclear: what is the Russian design for this affair?

Are they really going to let Turkey establish its own zone inside Syria?

If so: why?

In attempt to lessen IRGC's influence upon Assad?

If so, that would be an illusion: the IRGC is meanwhile so deeply 'embedded' within the regime, that it's actually forming its skelleton: Assad would fall right away if the IRGC withdraws from Syria. But, if Assad falls, IRGC is just taking over (at least in fashion it controls Lebanon).

On the other hand: do the Russians expect the PKK/PYD/YPG to establish a land connection between their western and eastern cantons, as a sort of 'buffer zone' between Assadists and Turks?

If so, why? What is their interest in that?

And why are Kurds so dumb as to think they can really cooperate with Assadists - if it should be plain clear that, should it happen for the IRGC and Assadists to 'win' anything serious in Aleppo area, they are at least as likely to turn against the PKK/PYD/YPG conglomerate. After all, not only Assad but Tehran too, repeatedly signalled they want to 'liberate (not only) Aleppo', but indeed: 'every inch of Syria'.

[OUTLAW 09]

More than 50 #AssadPutin air strikes on #Aleppo city since the morning.
37 casualties so far.

Aleppo city this morning:
Remember #Peskov's words from yesterday: „There are no air strikes on Aleppo city.“

Near #Aleppo last night.
#Putin's barbaric incendiary bomb attacks on innocent civilians continue nonstop.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtvLRjl25cM

Syria: At least 40 civilians killed, tens wounded in heavy Russian and regime strikes across rebel-held parts of Aleppo since this morning.

YPG (PKK) is lying again, they haven't withdrawal from #Manbij and are in fact trying to move east towards #Bab and corral the #FSA drive.

Breaking Russian Parliament approves bill enabling the Russian military to send conscripts to #Syria

An #Assad air force attack destroyed the @UNRWA school in Khan ash-Shih, S-W of #Damascus.

Recent "precision" strike by #Russia Kalibr cruise missiles hit (1) empty space & (2) a shed.
MoD hid inaccuracy.
https://medium.com/@DFRLab/hit-and-miss-38a489b45ed6#.spbgpmt7u …

[OUTLAW 09]

Video of Russian cruise missile before hit Aleppo
http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/17-november-video-of-russian-cruise-missile-before-hit-aleppo
… pic.twitter.com/iJsHHoftCP

Great summary,
great parody,
too realistic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aU3kX5V634 …

Putin & #Assad killed nearly 140 civilians in Eastern #Aleppo since yesterday. Meanwhile the Western media are busy with #Turkey bashing.

Aleppo: 40 civilians were killed and nearly 100 wounded by heavy #Russia|n & #Assad airstrikes on besieged Eastern #Aleppo JUST since this morning.

Jaysh al-Islam battling the pro-#Assad coalition on al-Rus front in Damascus.
https://youtu.be/nPHTVXj6nc0

[OUTLAW 09]

Turkey's moving to secure her interests in #Syria, this time without a by-your-leave from US.
http://bit.ly/2f3xrNG

Obama's biggest concern is that #FSA rebels could capture #Al_Bab with Turkish help.

Also the #US sees #EuphratesShield as a #Turkish operation (not #FSA) and #Turkey sees #EuphratesWrath as a #PKK operation (not #SDF/#US).

Fresh source (for the first part of the sentence. 2nd was already announced by the Turkish govt.)
https://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/33241416/coalition-not-backing-turkish-move-on-al-bab-us/#page1

The #US is not backing #Turkey in liberating al-Bab from #ISIS & #Turkey is not backing the #US in liberating #Raqqa from #ISIS.
A disaster.

Aleppo: #FSA rebels have captured #Kandarliyah, #Birsha, #Qanqawi and #Sab_Wayran villages from #YPG.

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Unexploded #Russia|n parachute bomb in Eastern #Aleppo today.
Russia'n FAB-500ShL

[OUTLAW 09]

The United States is giving Putin the green light for atrocities in Aleppo
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/the-united-states-is-giving-putin-the-green-light-for-atrocities/2016/11/15/3b9647cc-ab63-11e6-977a-1030f822fc35_story.html?utm_term=.b9ec0f839b0c

[OUTLAW 09]

WHILE Trump cannot get his transition act in order and Obama is on a victory lap before leaving office Syria is being destroyed simple as that and no one in the West which is right now basically leaderless says also nothing and even the UNSC appears to look the other way...


Saraqib is the place to be, if you wanna see #Russian child killers & their helpers on their way to / from #Aleppo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiWxZqdhpL8#

AND the Republican Party of Reagan that confronted Russia APPEARS now to be the party that "loves Putin and Russia"....

[OUTLAW 09]

UNDER the rubric "the truth fears no questions" of the new Trump National Security Advisor Flynn....maybe he needs to rethink his position on Russia since it lies and lies and lies......


Lavrov and #Shoigu say, their bombers target #Homs and #Idlib.
I geolocated all recorded Tu-95 strikes in #Aleppo.
https://ria.ru/syria/20161118/1481623595.html#…

Report
49 civilians were killed by #AssadPutin in and around #Aleppo today.
Around 160 more were injured.
- LCC / White Helmets
BUT WAIT the Russian MoD stated publicly they are not bombing Aleppo.....THEN who is?????

I found the 2 cruise missile targets near #Aleppo
Both abandoned regime military complexes near #Anadan & #KafrNaha
Far from ISIS of course.

Footage
A #Russian Tu-95 fired cruise missiles on "ISIS and Nusra" (not.) targets in #Syria today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjYplYsKJ3E#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo ist voller Kinder, die #Assad und #Putin in den nchsten Monaten umbringen werden.
Die Schande unserer Zeit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Op5-7aoB44M&feature=youtu.be

[OUTLAW 09]

Merciless #AssadPutin air strikes killed and wounded dozens of innocent children in #Syria today.
The world's reaction: "Not nice."

APPEARS to be a one heck of a serious deficit of morale courage on the part of Western leaders these days staritng with Obama...who talks about democracy...

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat....reference Al Bab/Manbij


One of just a handful of online journalists who push back against info warfare FROM both Russia AND the US....

By the way: I will bust lies and propaganda wherever I see it.
No matter on which side.
This is called impartiality.
U can hate me now :D

How can a force,that "withdrew" over the Euphrates 3 months ago,capture new villages from #ISIS & attack the #FSA WEST of #Manbij @CJTFOIR?!

The #US is either misinformed about the strong & offensive presence of #SDF/#YPG west of the #Euphrates or deliberately lies about it.

@anadoluagency
[Infographic] After initially denying, #US now admits PKK/PYD presence in #Syria’s Manbij
http://aa.com.tr/en/info/infographic/2597#…

[OUTLAW 09]

BACK TO REALITY.....that Flynn...Trump and the Obama WH are running from these days...


EuphratesShield With #Turkish Support Captured 1700 km sq in 86 days #Aleppo and less that 2 KM separate them from Capturing #Al_bab

Syria Airstrikes with parachuted bombs on several neigborhoods in #Aleppo city

Syria Airstrikes with Chlorine Gas on Hanano neigborhood in eastern part of #Aleppo city.

Getting more complicated around #Bab (source map: http://syria.liveuamap.com/#)

[OUTLAW 09]

EuphratesShield forces seized over village of Qandarliyah in a bid to stop #SDF/#YPG advance towards Qabasin.

CIT (en) ‏@CITeam_en
Unexploded Russian/Soviet FAB-500ShL parachute-retarded bomb dropped on Al-Firdaws neighborhood in East Aleppo
https://youtu.be/xEMe0yKYEsc?t=61#…

S. #Aleppo: 1st Regiment shelled Tell Oum Qara using a SPG-9 in an original way using it as an indirect fire artillery piece....innovative http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=36.145222&lon=37.122631&z=14&m=b#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Kremlin trying so hard to associate their support to Assad's war on rebels with war on IS in Syria & Iraq. This could work with new US admin

For a moment there, I thought this is some sort of a joke. Apparently Russia MOD is more confused than I thought!


Lavrov.....Russian jets are striking Homs and Idbid to prevent IS from fleeing Mosul into Syria.........

BUT WAIT......BOTH Idbid and Homs are nowhere close to Mosul the last time I checked a local map of the region........

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian Army serving officer in #Syria reports #RuAF bombing prepares #Aleppo for #Russian Army ground assault.
https://twitter.com/vasilymaximov/status/799599105836204032

[OUTLAW 09]

S. #Damascus: pro-Regime forces advancing ineluctably in Khan Ash-Sheih's Rebel pocket after fierce trench & house to house battles.

Aleppo: besieged Rebels repelled on Sheikh Said front the 1st pro-Regime assault since start of massive air campaign.

Syria Airstrikes with cluster bombs on Kafr Zita town on northern #Hama

Children dying like flies in northern #Syria bc #Russia'n & #Assad bombardement on their homes

[OUTLAW 09]

Since the Russian air strikes on the last Aleppo maternity ward and the destruction of the last ten incubators ALL new premature born children are kept outside with as much as the Doctors can do for them....death rate right now is high...

AND the entire so called "civilized" West says not a single word...

[OUTLAW 09]

If the rebels fire 1 rocket on Western #Aleppo, the #UN is "shocked". #Putin & #Assad killing 100 civilians every day & you hear NOTHING

Idlib: #US airstrike on a car at Bab al-Hawa border crossing near #Turkey killed 3 men. Are #Russia|n & #Assad airstrikes not enough?

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #Assad "Tiger Forces" looting in #Aleppo.

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: 160 civilians were killed & 300 wounded by heavy #Russia|n & #Assad airstrikes on besieged Eastern #Aleppo since Tuesday

[OUTLAW 09]

US journos normalizing Assad doesn’t come out of nowhere. A path to Damascus was first cleared by the WH. I show how
http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/218195/obama-pins-syria-policy-on-trump#
…

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: All attempts by pro-#Assad forces to advance in besieged Eastern #Aleppo failed today. It's much harder than killing civilians.


The little guy knows that he will share the destiny of his buddy soon.
All kids in #Aleppo will die.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuhdfOcmwI#

GRAPHIC!

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo today
Father kisses his boy good bye.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i94TvelwU_M#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Syria Indiscriminate & countless airstrikes on #Aleppo. #Idlib & northern #Hama

[OUTLAW 09]

What a miserable headline.
Aleppo's children's hospital bombed as it treats chlorine gas victims
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/18/aleppos-childrens-hospital-bombed-as-it-treats-chlorine-gas-victims#
…

[OUTLAW 09]

Doubts over legality of Russia's membership in UN
& its place as Security Council permanent member
Surprisingly this is actually being discussed by a large number of UNGA members...brought on by the Russian veto's over Syria

[OUTLAW 09]

SE #Aleppo: 2 MRLS positioned in parade ground of #Safira Defense Factories oriented towards besieged districts.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=36.067799&lon=37.362839&z=17&m#
…

[OUTLAW 09]

"All hospitals in eastern Aleppo are out of service."
All of East Aleppo's operating hospitals are now closed because of the intensity of the shelling: doctors. No care for the wounded

Syria #Aleppo city today
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQGzz1FL7R4#

Aleppo: #Assad & #Russia have bombed 4 hospitals in Eastern #Aleppo out of service since yesterday.

Aleppo: #Russia|n airstrikes have destroyed the Omar Bin Abdul Aziz Hospital in besieged Eastern #Aleppo. Several medics were killed.

Syria Footage of regime destruction in besieged #Homs suburb al Waer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcsgSg5JdV0#

Aleppo: 28 civilians were killed and 130 injured by heavy #Russia|n & #Assad airstrikes in besieged Eastern #Aleppo since the morning

Syria Barrel bombing on #Aleppo city
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSZ6TdTzBgw#

Syria Cluster bombing near Al-Lataminah /northern #Hama
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E0AVfkYUU8#

[OUTLAW 09]

MORE INFO on Russian non linear warfare is coming soon....
SurkovLeaks was just the beginning. Ukraine and Russia analysts should brace themselves for unprecedented exposure to Kremlin hybrid war

The first two database hack dumps provided excellent insight into Russian leadership of the eastern Ukraine invasion and current ongoing events as well as depicting Putin's leadership and his second in command who handles eastern Ukraine in his name as well in the invasion and control of Crimea and eastern Ukraine...

THIS next dump is threatening to reveal some documents that will blow the Russian Ukrainian/Crimea info warfare to shreds if the initial documents they have shown to a few analysts do in fact get released...

Appears Ukrainian hackers are just as good as the Russian FSB/SVR....

Russian MoD trying to jump in front of the coming data dump......
Putin issued secret orders to send RU troops to UA confirmed by RU Def Min
https://informnapalm.org/en/putin-secret-orders/#

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #FSA rebels are 800 meters west of #Al_Bab Hospital.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.371677&lon=37.488892&z=16&m=b#…

[OUTLAW 09]

AND this is the Trump declared partner he wants to defeat IS with along with his bromance partners Trump and Khameini……


So #Assad is bombing hospitals in #Aleppo to preserve freedom and western values? This at least was what the regime wants us to believe.

Set up and timing of the #Damascus conference weren't randomly chosen. Goal was justification of war crimes and a number of US MSM types were there and a number of US Putin supporters as well……HELD JUST RIGHT AT THE US ELECTION TIME...STRANGE COINCIDENT RIGHT?

أطباء بلا حدود سوريا
✔
@MSF_Syria
The latest airstrikes in #Syria's east #Aleppo also left two key surgical hospitals and the largest general hospital out of service

طباء بلا حدود سوريا
✔
@MSF_Syria
Airstrikes in #Syria’s east #Aleppo destroyed 3 floors of the only specialised paediatric hospital in the city and left it out of service

Syria 250 airstrikes & 2000 artillery shells hit eastern parts of #Aleppo city since last midnight

Syria ~40 dead in #Aleppo city since morning bc heavy artillery shelling & airstrikes

Unreal footage.
#AssadPutin bomb hospital in #Aleppo today while nurses treat gas victims.
The evil of our time.
https://youtu.be/a0eqVMTUkIc

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo now
Just another day of
"no air strikes on Aleppo"-Peskov
with dozens of #AssadPutin air strikes & deaths.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQGzz1FL7R4&feature=youtu.be#

Footage
#Assad helicopter, spitting its bombs on the people of #EastGhouta today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ka7P3DqkBE#…

Footage
Only one of almost 100plus #AssadPutin air strikes on #Aleppo today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqPqga4CKh0#…

YESTERDAY.......
105 killed by #AssadPutin today.
23 of them #children
76 fatalities in #Aleppo alone.
- LCC

[OUTLAW 09]

AND the Putin Assad genocide just keeps on and the entire Wet an UNSC say not a single word do they????

One of the #AssadPutin air strikes on #Aleppo yday hit a warehouse with the last food.
This is a #genocide.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkp4o7Z88Nw#

[OUTLAW 09]

I am now on my rant for today....this lone photo coming via from Aleppo just now via a lone Aleppo activist thoroughly depicts the sad state of world affairs WHEN the entire WEST led by the US stays silent in the face of genocide...starvation and war crimes being carried out against a defenseless population that dared five years ago to stand up and state "we want the rule of law...and good governance and we are the majority of the country"...ALL those same values we the US claim are so important for a society....

SO have we actually scammed the world into believing that we believe our own values...OR do we as a society simply pay "lip service to those values"?????

This if anything is now proving to the entire world that the so called US values are nothing but a myth.

THROUGH the unwillingness of the US to support Syrians against the Assad and Putin genocide ARE we actually creating a far more serious terrorism threat 5...10...15 years down the road WHEN this child if he or she survives this....... asks themselves WHY do I need the West and are not they actually enemies of Islam as AQ and IS have told me over an over based on the simple fact they supported Assad and Putin when they were killing us by the hundreds not tens.....AND they ignored protecting us from genocide...a genocide AQ and IS has been telling us over and over is the US tactic to destroy all Sunni's....

Valid thoughts are they not with the constant genocide reports flowing in with video and photo evidence of war crimes/genocide being committed right in front of our faces.....

Somehow in the current heated US discussion of what is or is not freedom of speech...freedom from fear and the so called values of humanity and basic human rights...and one of them is to be able to simply be alive...WE have totally forgotten that.......AND in a so called heated fake debate about Islam in the US also driven by fearmongering and racism.....

Has the fear of 9/11 and a group of Takfirists driven that out of us...apparently it has.....one thing is for sure it has driven the concept of simple humanity out of the US English language....AND out of our FP.....

Am I ashamed of the position of my country in the face of genocide.....you bet I am and I defended this country for over 50 years against enemies near and far....HAS the US being living a myth actually a self delusional lie called "exceptionalism"....WHEN they deny others simple humanity......it certainly has....
Look at the photo and then tell me I am absolutely wrong...you cannot.....if that single word humanity means anything to you.....

[OUTLAW 09]

STOPPING this genocide is relatively simply regardless of what this Obama WH and the incoming Trump say and or do......

GIVE Russia a 24 hour notice that if the air strikes do not stop and aid does not flow...SWIFT will be suspended for Russia until such time as Russia decides to stop her genocidal actions....

It is easy to do........BUT do US leaders have the morale courage to do it and lead the entire West....actually do not think so.....

Obama did not show the leadership skills necessary to pull this off and certainly Trump does not have the necessary skills either.

[OUTLAW 09]

Syrian civil defense counts over 470 regime/Russian airstrikes on beseiged east #Aleppo since renewed offensive began days ago.

AND remember the Russian Putin spokesperson stated publicly "not bombing Aleppo"....

Syria Civil Defense...from today and the day is not over yet 58 KILLED and 100s WOUNDED and 100s of air strikes.....
"It's literally raining bombs".....

In the next 20 days over 250,000 civilians could die from #putin #ASSad bombing,starvation,etc in #Aleppo #Syria https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/global-opinions/wp/2016/11/17/more-than-250000-in-eastern-aleppo-could-die-in-less-than-20-days-if-supplies-dont-arrive/?postshare=2801479564486280&tid=ss_tw&utm_term=.884dd1736077#

THIS is all Trump has to worry about as he becomes President as his bromance friend is killing hundreds
Donald J. Trump
Verified account
‏@realDonaldTrump
The Theater must always be a safe and special place.The cast of Hamilton was very rude last night to a very good man, Mike Pence. Apologize!

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: 61 civilians killed today. 180 Airstrikes, 240 barrel bombs and 1350 artillery shells
http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/19-november-aleppo-city-61-civilians-killed-today-after-civilian#
… via @SyriaCivilDef

Syria Huge #Russia'n (made) parachute bomb hit #Aleppo city
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygMmE3M5_Hk#

Huge explosion after parachute bomb hits Fardous neighborhood, #Aleppo

Syria Nearly 300 people killed & 1000 wounded in #Aleppo the past 5 days

[OUTLAW 09]

AND this is the Trump declared partner he wants to defeat IS with along with his bromance partners Trump and Khameini……


So #Assad is bombing hospitals in #Aleppo to preserve freedom and western values? This at least was what the regime wants us to believe.

Set up and timing of the #Damascus conference weren't randomly chosen. Goal was justification of war crimes and a number of US MSM types were there and a number of US Putin supporters as well……HELD JUST RIGHT AT THE US ELECTION TIME...STRANGE COINCIDENT RIGHT?

أطباء بلا حدود سوريا
✔
@MSF_Syria
The latest airstrikes in #Syria's east #Aleppo also left two key surgical hospitals and the largest general hospital out of service

طباء بلا حدود سوريا
✔
@MSF_Syria
Airstrikes in #Syria’s east #Aleppo destroyed 3 floors of the only specialised paediatric hospital in the city and left it out of service

Syria 250 airstrikes & 2000 artillery shells hit eastern parts of #Aleppo city since last midnight

Syria ~40 dead in #Aleppo city since morning bc heavy artillery shelling & airstrikes

Unreal footage.
#AssadPutin bomb hospital in #Aleppo today while nurses treat gas victims.
The evil of our time.
https://youtu.be/a0eqVMTUkIc

Russian Embassy, UAE
✔
@RusEmbassyUAE
#SYRIA | The allegedly destroyed “hospitals” in #Aleppo exist only in the mind of the DoS spokesperson John Kirby |
http://s.mil.ru/2fCYrYo

Ah..one has to really love the "Post Truth era"...these days when truth is taken to mean lies and lies are not even fact checked anymore...

[OUTLAW 09]

EVEN MORE Russian lies......

Alexander Yakovenko
✔
@Amb_Yakovenko
East Aleppo:"moderate" rebels kill 17 civilians who wanted to cross to Government-controlled area, then murder community leaders #SaveAleppo

NOTICE the hashtag and this statement comes from the same Russia that stated they are not bombing Aleppo WHATSOEVER....not a single bomb...nothing but total peace an quite....YEAH sure......:D

THIS is what RT does not want to you know in their broadcasts.....

According to the @SyriaCivilDef there are 289 dead and 950 injured injured after five days of attacks on #Aleppo. 420 airstrikes just today.

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Situation around #Al_Bab: #FSA rebels have lost #Qabasin again. Many #ISIS ATGM strikes against Turkish vehicles west of #Al_Bab.

[OUTLAW 09]

No hope that #Obama take out this mass killing factory of #Syria'n regime south east of #Aleppo- as last humanitarian act of #POTUS

Yet another Assad chlorine gas barrel bomb attack on Sakhour district in #Aleppo after midnight, several suffocation cases reported

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: pro-Regime forces trying to advance again on Sheikh Said front backed by intense shelling.

Family of six, inc 4 children, killed in an alleged chlorine attack in Alsaghour Aleppo by Russian backed Syrian forces

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian Embassy, UAE
✔
@RusEmbassyUAE
#SYRIA | The allegedly destroyed “hospitals” in #Aleppo exist only in the mind of the DoS spokesperson John Kirby |
http://s.mil.ru/2fCYrYo

Ah..one has to really love the "Post Truth era"...these days when truth is taken to mean lies and lies are not even fact checked anymore...

Russian FM Sergey Lavrov again: There are NO air strikes on #Aleppo.
Could we please close the black hole between their and our universe?!

THIS is the Russian reality


THIS is the real and thoroughly real ground reality....if not Assad and Putin THEN it has to be that flying carpet AF of IS.....

Aleppo: 61 civilians killed today. 180 Airstrikes, 240 barrel bombs and 1350 artillery shells
http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/1...fter-civilian#
… via @SyriaCivilDef

Syria Huge #Russia'n (made) parachute bomb hit #Aleppo city
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygMmE3M5_Hk#

Huge explosion after parachute bomb hits Fardous neighborhood, #Aleppo

Syria Nearly 300 people killed & 1000 wounded in #Aleppo the past 5 days

[OUTLAW 09]

NEW MAP: #AlBab | North #Aleppo | #Syria
#FSA surrounding #AlBab and #SDF trying to reach the city.
HD https://goo.gl/qDhFcj

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian FM Sergey Lavrov again: There are NO air strikes on #Aleppo.
Could we please close the black hole between their and our universe?!

THIS is the Russian reality


THIS is the real and thoroughly real ground reality....if not Assad and Putin THEN it has to be that flying carpet AF of IS.....

Aleppo: 61 civilians killed today. 180 Airstrikes, 240 barrel bombs and 1350 artillery shells
http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/1...fter-civilian#
… via @SyriaCivilDef

Syria Huge #Russia'n (made) parachute bomb hit #Aleppo city
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygMmE3M5_Hk#

Huge explosion after parachute bomb hits Fardous neighborhood, #Aleppo

Syria Nearly 300 people killed & 1000 wounded in #Aleppo the past 5 days

Raed Al Saleh @RaedAlSaleh3
At 07:00 am a family of four children, father, mother and 25 injured after exposure Al_sakhour bombed poison gas "chlorine" #Aleppo

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian Syrian Naval Express on the move....

Russian Navy's (Project 1234) Nanuchka class corvette "MIRAZH" (617) northbound on the İstanbul Strait (9:00 am local time)

[OUTLAW 09]

Head of Hizbullah's Executive Council says a new "Resistance" Middle East - free of US influence - will be founded by the party's martyrs.

Trump's newest partner in the ME since he stated he would support Assad and Putin in fighting IS...and by extension that includes IRAN does it not?????

[OUTLAW 09]

11 civilians killed in #US-led coalition air strike on Abu al-Hassan, 24 km north of #Raqqa.
- @24Raqqa

From the anti-ISIS activists behind that reliable news report:
100% true.
#US:"Military mistakes".
#AssadPutin:Targeted extinction.
@24Raqqa

[OUTLAW 09]

5 days of #AssadPutin air strikes on eastern #Aleppo city caused:
- 289 deaths
- 950 wounded
- 100+ missing
- 4 destroyed hospitals

BUT WAIT..the Russian FM stated publicly there were no Russian attacks on Aleppo...BUT WAIT their aircraft were videoed during their air strikes....

SO the Russian FM is not lying is he...no he is just tap dancing.....not actually lying....

Desperate civilians in #Aleppo after devastating #AssadPutin air strikes today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JckKxEEgoug#…

Only death by #AssadPutin's bombs awaits the 275.000 remaining civilians in eastern #Aleppo ...
And they know it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqqVdDHWffU&feature=youtu.be#…

Also in #Idlib province, @SyriaCivilDef could only lift the dead from under the rubble ...
Graphic!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10XARDxjqYI#…

This was once the city of #KafrHamra west of #Aleppo.
Entirely destroyed after recent brutal #AssadPutin air strikes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXhX2Y1gDkI&feature=youtu.be#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Charles Lister ‏@Charles_Lister
By “infighting,” I mean competition, outbidding & rivalry, *not* violent clashes.
Big developments inside JFS in #Syria, as infighting has erupted betw'n pro-AQ & pro-JFS elements.
Talks ongoing, rumors of possible split.
pt: JFS's internal tensions began during the Nusra-to-JFS formation, which was actively rejected by several very senior Nusra leaders.
pts: Most ‘rejectionists’ didn't publicly split from JFS, but have been working to convince JFS fighters to break away & form new AQ group.
pts: JFS's crisis reached its peak when “reformist” figures began pushing for further JFS “reforms,” thereby enraging AQ loyalists further.

NOTE: the current Trump and yes even Obama advisors have often overlooked that the Salafist groups are always discussing and modifying themselves internally and what was said/done two years ago is not what you see and hear now...there urgently needs to be engagement with this development NOT trying to simply kill them and or run from them.....these groups do respond to their supporting civilian societies regardless of what we in the US think....and right now JFS while no longer officially AQ is highly regarded by the Syrian people BECAUSE they are fighting to protect them against the Russian onslaught that Trump wants to work with THUS driving them straight the arms of JFS and indirectly IS....AND CAN we blame them for it???

THIS has been one of the most ardent arguments used by Obama WH WHEN the argument turned to arming the moderate Syrian FSA.....BUT TOTALLY SHREDDED by ground reality......
U.S. maintains relations with 80+ vetted FSA factions.
- 1,073 TOW missiles sent
- Only 12 were proliferated
12 single TOW missiles found their way to other groups...NOT a really big threat it would appear....ESPECIALLY since the TOW launcher was not part of the transfer....
http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/11/17/...-a-disaster/#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian Naval Spy Ship Activities.....

ВМФ Редкое видео - Исследователь "Янтарь" проекта 22010 в #Иран'е 18.11.16
#Iran "Yantar" Russian Research Vessel Berths at Bandar Abbas

I had posted numerous comments on the spy activities of the Yantar loitering over undersea internet cable links in the Med.....with on being directly interrupted after the Yantar "visit" over it....

[OUTLAW 09]

Evidently a Russian/Assad friendly fire turned into a "see the rebels are also shelling schools"..attempt to deflect the world opinion away from their attacks on schools and hospitals...

Not the first time they have one this in the last few weeks.....

BREAKING Syrian state television says that at least 10 people had been killed in rebel shelling of West #Aleppo school including 7 children

[OUTLAW 09]

EuphratesShield: #TSK M60T destroyed an #ISIS SVBIED with a precise shot in outskirts of Qabasin.

This highlights #EuphratesShield forces lack #ATGMs (vital to take out car bombs in open areas) on the contrary of #SDF/#YPG.

NE #Latakia: First Coastal Division's strike vs pro-Regime forces with a #Fagot on Tell Abu Ali.

N. #Aleppo: First Regiment destroyed with a #TOW an #ATGM launcher on Bayanun-Al-Zahraa front.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=36.351080&lon=37.037315&z=12&m#…

SW. #Aleppo: 10 pro-Regime forces killed, incl. Hezbollah, during failed assault on Suq Al-Gibs.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=36.169338&lon=37.078514&z=13&m=b#…

Aleppo: #FIA vid shows Rebels in control of most Owaija Industrial Area despite claims of contrary h/t @AllyOfTruth http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=36.252545&lon=37.182069&z=15&m=b#…

[OUTLAW 09]

W. #Homs: impressive photos from besieged Al-Waer district turned into rubble day after day by airstrikes & shelling.

[OUTLAW 09]

BREAKING TODAY
Many towns in countryside #Idlib now being bombed by #Russia/#ASSad terrorists airstrikes

Idlib: #Assad regime, #Iran and #Hezbollah preparing #Idlib offensive.

BREAKING
#Russia terrorists carried out airstrikes directly targeting #SyriaCivilDefense Warehouse
2 members wounded
#Idlib #Syria Nov 20

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #Turkey warplanes bombing #ISIS positions around #Al_Bab since the morning.

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Photo from a hospital in Eastern #Aleppo. There is no hope left..no medicine...limited doctors and nurses are now available and nowhere to treat incoming injured and wounded.....

AND the entire WEST stands by silently YET this actually makes them just as complicit as Assad and Putin in this genocide against Sunni's...WHEN this dust settles and they look for answers why they did nothing.....their silence is the answer..no Western leadership is seen anywhere anymore.

[OUTLAW 09]

Post 1567 originally:
I am now on my rant for today....this lone photo coming via from Aleppo just now via a lone Aleppo activist thoroughly depicts the sad state of world affairs WHEN the entire WEST led by the US stays silent in the face of genocide...starvation and war crimes....

The little girl in this photo actually died late last night....

The Syrian activist tracking losses and took her photo was also killed this morning in a massive air strike that hit his residential building.

[OUTLAW 09]

Footage
Further #Assad regime attacks on the demilitarised al-Waer area near #Homs city.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjprqytVuaA

Footage
Yet another school bombed during lessons east of #Damascus.
Several pupils killed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmlF3d7ouFw#…

SECOND school hit with an air strike in Idbid.....no students were killed... a number injured by the blasts.....
#

[OUTLAW 09]

PYD/#PKK is trying "to ban any dissenting opinion": arrested more members of Kurdish opposition on Thursday.


http://www.thenational.ae/opinion/comment/local-resistance-is-the-way-to-stop-isil-impetus#full

Local resistance is the way to stop ISIL impetus
Hassan Hassan
November 20, 2016 Updated: November 20, 2016 05:21 PM


At the peak of ISIL’s military momentum in 2014, the Iraqi city of Haditha was in the middle of it all. From its northwestern tip, ISIL had seized areas that stretched to Aleppo. The group’s territorial depth east of the city extended to the Jordanian border. The militants also seized Tikrit, west of the city, and Baghdadi to its south. The group enforced a siege around the city that would last for two years.

Haditha’s remarkable resistance is even more impressive given that ISIL saw the city in western Anbar as a vital prize. In September 2014, ISIL tried to take control of the Haditha Dam, Iraq’s second largest hydroelectric facility after the Mosul Dam. In May 2015, ISIL’s takeover of Ramadi deepened Haditha’s isolation from the south.

But Haditha still survived the pressure from ISIL. In an audio statement released one month after ISIL took over Ramadi, ISIL’s former spokesman specifically mentioned Haditha as a top priority for the group. In particular, he singled out the Jaghayfa tribe that led the effort to protect the city.

"If we do overrun Haditha before they repent, we won’t spare anyone until it is said that there used to be Jaghayfa here and homes for Jaghayfa," said Abu Muhammad Al Adnani, who was killed in an American attack in August.
Attempts to take the city further intensified after Adnani’s speech. As the operation to expel ISIL from Mosul enters its second month and the campaign to isolate Raqqa enters its third week, the story of little-known towns such as Haditha deserves attention. ISIL swept through cities such as Mosul and Raqqa with relative ease but, despite all odds, failed to take ones such as Haditha.

Since the group swept through Mosul and Raqqa in 2014, the question of how disadvantaged local resistance in towns such as Haditha managed to stop ISIL is rarely asked. But the question is the right one to ask today, if the full lessons from the past two years are to be learnt.

"Local" is the key word. Haditha suffered its share of bloodshed over the years since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Local fighters were also involved in the postwar insurgency but they later joined the American-backed Sunni movement to expel Al Qaeda in Iraq from Sunni towns. The town has since become a staunch opponent of the group.

Other Sunni areas went through a similar process. Ramadi, for example, was one of the centres of Al Qaeda when it announced, along with its allies, the Islamic State in Iraq in 2006. But after the Sunni uprising against Al Qaeda at the time, much of Ramadi developed an antibody against the group, which struggled to control it even though it tried incessantly for a year. Ramadi, however, fell in May last year after the local resistance was depleted amid reports that infighting with pro-government militias contributed to the collapse. In February, Iraqi authorities declared the city to be liberated.

For the people of Haditha and Ramadi, the fight against ISIL was theirs. They wanted to protect their areas from a group they knew very well. They also knew the social terrain and prevented ISIL from establishing influence within their society. Individuals who helped ISIL are discreetly named and shamed. Any presence for the group in their midst, however small, is seen as a threat. Since the Mosul operation began, ISIL again tried to enter the city as it did in adjacent Rutbah last month.

Haditha is just one example of local heroism. In Syria, for example, ISIL waged a relentless campaign since its rise in the country in 2014 to control Marea, a town in northern Aleppo. Like Haditha, Marea was besieged in May by ISIL after two years of frequent attacks to control the area, a gateway into Aleppo and not far from two key ISIL strongholds at the time, Al Bab and Dabiq. "During the siege, we were hit with 50 [ISIL] car bombs," a local commander told the Daily Beast after the rebels broke the siege in June. "Each car was filled with 10 tons of explosive."

Haditha and Marea were within ISIL’s field of operation at the peak of its military momentum in 2014. The two towns present a timely reminder about what it takes to defeat this organisation. There is no doubt that ISIL did its best to take these areas. It had the military advantage and territorial depth for several months to do so.
In Mosul and Raqqa, ISIL faced little or no local resistance. The failings of the Iraqi government and the behaviour of the police and military in Mosul are well known. The expulsion of the Syrian regime from Raqqa was made possible by rebels who were largely from outside Raqqa, which was a key factor that enabled ISIL to control the city and prevent the return of the rebels to it. The common thread in the stories of Haditha, Marea, Mosul and Raqqa is the local factor. The war against ISIL can only be won if locals feel invested in filling the void after ISIL and guard their areas against the return of a group they view as their enemy.

[OUTLAW 09]

Footage
Further #Assad regime attacks on the demilitarised al-Waer area near #Homs city.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjprqytVuaA

Footage
Yet another school bombed during lessons east of #Damascus.
Several pupils killed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmlF3d7ouFw#…

SECOND school hit with an air strike in Idbid.....no students were killed... a number injured by the blasts.....


In the first school that was hit...1 adult...6 children killed...23 students injured

[OUTLAW 09]

RuAF airstrikes "in Idlib"
https://youtu.be/cTF5f-H-NnU?t=2s#
… first one near al-Atarib (Aleppo Gouvernorate)
http://wikimapia.org/#lat=36.125327&lon=36.820668&z=18&m=b#

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Photo from a hospital in Eastern #Aleppo. There is no hope left..no medicine...limited doctors and nurses are now available and nowhere to treat incoming injured and wounded.....

AND the entire WEST stands by silently YET this actually makes them just as complicit as Assad and Putin in this genocide against Sunni's...WHEN this dust settles and they look for answers why they did nothing.....their silence is the answer..no Western leadership is seen anywhere anymore.

THERE MUST a secret wave of IS flying carpets carrying 500lb Russian bombs OR this is just more Russian media lying hard at work......

Russia's gov't-sponsored Vesti:"Clearly, Russia doesn't conduct any strikes in #Aleppo. For an entire month our air force avoids the area."

The key secret to the success of any propaganda...say the same thing 100 times and THEN surprisingly people will believe it...

Wow..Russia is not bombing Aleppo ..then who is??????

God this is just so awful
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/11/air-strike-hits-children-hospital-syria-aleppo-161118163200380.html#

Video of the Russian air strike that hit an Aleppo Children's Hospital

THAT RUSSIA claims they never bombed.....

[OUTLAW 09]

While we discuss Trump, and watch French primaries, this is our generation's never ending shame #Aleppo
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/19/aleppo-hospitals-wiped-out-by-bombings?CMP=share_btn_tw#
…

[OUTLAW 09]

Kifah, 10, killed w/his family by regime shelling on Aleppo. Before dying, he wrote,"Your attempts are in vain, a revolutionary never dies."

Russia's gov't-sponsored Vesti airs a clip of @GenFlynn, saying that the U.S. "crossed Russia's red line in #Syria, should work w/ Russia."

[CrowBat]

Russian FM Sergey Lavrov again: There are NO air strikes on #Aleppo.
Could we please close the black hole between their and our universe?!

THIS is the Russian reality


THIS is the real and thoroughly real ground reality....if not Assad and Putin THEN it has to be that flying carpet AF of IS.....
The 'problem' here is this: Lavrov is 'right' in so far that it's not Russians that are flying these murderous air strikes on Eastern Aleppo. Since two times hitting Assadists during the latest JAF offensive on Weastern Aleppo, Russians are meanwhile rarely approaching even that side of the city.

'But', it's foremost Assadist helicopters from as-Safira that are flying them - and they're dropping those 'barrel' bombs, at least each 10th of which is filled with chlorine gas.

So, that cynical a-hole is using this to claim 'there are no air strikes on Aleppo' - because Russians are not flying them.

[OUTLAW 09]

Kids in #EastGhouta returned to their school to collect the books after #AssadPutin destroyed it, injuring them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pW7leEqq9i8#…

[CrowBat]

Here an excellent article on how not only the Assadists and the IRGC, but also the USA, Jordan and Turkey are re-shaping the revolution in Syria, and creating themselves the proxies they prefer to have:

Foreign Backers and the Marginalization of the Free Syrian Army (http://notris.blogspot.co.at/2016/11/foreign-backers-and-marginalization-of.html)

#'During the summer of 2016, the Syrian regime scored two strategic victories over opposition forces: it took control of Daraya, a suburb of Damascus, and imposed a siege on Aleppo. On both these fronts, major factions of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) were conspicuous by their absence.#Since mid-2015, most non-jihadist rebel factions have been marginalized in the fight against the regime, not so much because the FSA no longer exists, as sometimes claimed, but because their backers ask them to deescalate the fight against Assad forces to be able to focus on other enemies instead. This marginalization has two consequences. First, it has made Assad and his allies confident enough in their capacity to militarily defeat the rebellion that they felt no need to seriously take part in political negotiations or abide by negotiated truces. Second, it has left the jihadist and Salafist factions of the rebellion practically alone on the battlefields, granting them near monopoly over the revolutionary discourse.
...
While the strategy of selecting factions to pull away from the battlefield so that they could fight jihadists had proved to be a failure, the alternative strategy was to impose nationwide truces with the regime. On two occasions, a Russian-American deal was reached to impose a truce on belligerent forces. While the truce of February-March 2016 led to a reduction of fighting for over a month, the one in September 2016 was never effectively implemented.#The Assad regime and Russia clearly had no intention of respecting their engagements and saw the truces simply as a way to gain time and to test the determination of the rebellion and its supposed allies. For the regime, truces are not a first step towards a#political negotiation but rather a step towards the complete surrender of rebels, as was the case for local truces in Damascus and Homs.
...

While almost all of the opposition forces rallied to the principle of a political solution and de-escalation with the regime, Jabhat al-Nusra/Fateh al-Sham reclaims the revolutionary discourse and presents itself as the only force striving for the definitive fall of the Assad regime. Those accepting compromise with Assad were called defeatists, if not traitors. The failure of the truces proved the jihadists right. The regime had no intention to respect them and diplomacy has not could not save Aleppo. Only the military action led by Jabhat Fateh al-Sham in August was successful in breaking the siege. During the regime’s major offensive in Aleppo since April 2016, Jabhat al-Nusra/Fateh al-Sham seems to be the only force capable of facing Assad forces. Within FSA factions, morale was at its lowest. During the so-called truce of spring 2016, Jabhat al-Nusra recruited fighters by the hundreds, mainly among die-hard FSA fighters who were convinced not by the ideology of the group but rather by its will to fight.#
...

The following paragraph is of particular interest, then it's one of rare opportunities where the importance and influence of (democratically elected) local council is pointed out. Precisely this is why the regime and the IRGC concentrated on destroying (i.e. forcing into negotiations and then a withdrawal) this pocket first - while entirely ignoring the Daesh-held pocket nearby, just for example:

Daraya is a town in the suburbs of Damascus which served as a model for the Syrian revolutionary movement. Despite years of siege and intense shelling, it kept strong social and civil activities, and was a rare case where the local council maintained control over the armed groups. This model of political-military cooperation with locally rooted factions is still serving as an example to revolutionary forces striving for autonomy from Islamist factions and foreign agendas. #The Battle of Daraya continued until the end of August when the regime’s Republican Guards finally forced the last rebels and civilians out of the town.

Note the US-Jordanian reaction to this development:

In the meantime, the tens of thousands of fighters from the “Southern-Front” were not allowed by their backers to attack the regime, even though they stand only 30km away from Daraya. Even months after the end of the truce, the MOC-backed factions were not allowed to engage battle with the regime and had to concentrate on clearing the Jordanian borders of small ISIS-affiliated factions.
...
Which means that this is just another piece of evidence that there is no trace of interest by Oblabla's administration to 'spread freedom and democracy' in Syria.

Logical consequence:

...
In 2016, two coups by FSA fighters against their own leaders took place in two of the most important factions in the south: Liwa Shabab alSunna in August and Jabhat Thuwar Souriya in September. In early August, Ahmad alAuda, the leader of Liwa Shabab al-Sunna in Bosra al-Sham, was deposed by fighters of the brigade and some civilians. A few days later, the MOC quickly reacted and had factions of the “Southern-Front” attack the group’s headquarters in Bosra al-Sham to put Ahmad al-Auda back in his position.18 An FSA fighter told the author that “everyone hates Ahmad al-Auda, but the MOC wants him there. He is not a revolutionary. He is the slave of the MOC”.

#In the north, criticisms of “Euphrates Shield” operations are rising. The FSA is trying to convince itself that a second phase of these operations consists of taking back Aleppo from Assad. But they are under fierce criticism from other factions, mainly jihadists, who are excluded from the Turkish-backed operation, and who feel left alone on the fronts of Aleppo and Hama. Despite the successes of the operation against ISIS and Kurdish forces, many rebels are wondering whether it is really a priority to take Tel Rifaat or al-Bab, when Aleppo is besieged. An FSA faction from Idlib withdrew from the “Euphrates Shield” operation, according to their statement, because of the situation on the fronts against the regime.22 Several FSA fighters who took part in the first days of the operation went back to their local brigades to protect their community from the regime.
...

Bottom line: there is 'still' - and despite all posible, and imaginable efforts from all involved parties - FSyA, and a lot of it. It is still so large and so important, that because its foreign backers ordered it not to fight, insurgents are losing the war.

However, because of interests of its foreign backers, and in this scenario, there is no place for a sincere (as naive as this might sound) movement of Syrians longing to remove the Assad regime.

[OUTLAW 09]

I will be backing out of posting to the Syrian as well as the Ukrainian threads because in both the killing just keeps on going on as the core problem with the Russian non linear warfare is...it has never been fully countered by either NATO and the US and under Trump it will continue to be potentially a supportive proRussian positon taken by Trump thus making the current global problems even worse.....

SWJ had a recent article on the success or failure of the Russian non linear warfare with the two key cornerstones of 1) cyber warfare and 2) informational warfare....

HATE to admit it and many might not like this... we the US and the entire West have lost and lost badly.....

Russian cyber warfare is still going strong and not a single pushback by the US has occurred and NOW we have a "cyber arms race" and we are even losing that....and that informational warfare using fake news sites....social media trolling companies aided by the Russian government and a Russian state sponsored global disinformation/propaganda media network...being funded for 1B USDs per year and going strong with no pushback by any Western country....WELL they have actually won there with the massive upsurge in "populist" parties culminating in the election of a US "populist" that is proRussian leaning...and who firmly believes as do Russian oligarchs in the concept called "kleptocracy".....and potentially a number of NATO countries also swinging towards "populist leaders/parties" and proRussian leaning leaders being recently elected in Estonia, Bulgaria and Moldavia...

Nothing has changed in eastern Ukraine and in Syria where we the US are now fully complicit in supporting a genocidal dictator and Trump's bromance partner Putin and Trump states a number of times he would support both against IS driving 100,000 well trained and experienced FSA fighters straight in to the arms of JFS ....

We now hear about US Muslim Registries and banning of immigrants from "supposedly terrorist nations" and those that voted for Trump..."see" radical Muslims on every street corner and behind every bush/tree..AND Sharia law literally taking over the entire US State/Federal Court system..and the racist and anti Muslim rhetoric just keeps climbing in the US driving sadly towards an eventual "clash of civilizations" that both IS and AQ have predicted and wanted....

We are sadly now in the "Post Truth Era" and no amount of trying to keep people informed about areas of the world that have sadly become part of this "Post Truth Era" that MSM is failing to fully and completely inform the reading public about is another reason to slowly back away....

One can lead a horse to the pool of "truth" but you cannot make that horse understand that it is the "truth" in this "Post Truth Era"....

The killing still goes on in eastern Ukraine and Syria and just posting that which everyone knows never will change appears to me to be just a exercise in futility and a waste of time...

Interestingly the sheer number of Reads (over 570,000 since 2015 on Syria AND the over more than 400,000 on Ukraine in the same timeframe) over the last year or two indicate to me that some do want to be kept informed even if of another political opinion, but in the end just being informed does not change FP and with this new coming Trump FP....I am thoroughly happy to be getting my German Passport on 4 Jan which is another reason to back away...as I personally feel then that a former US citizen now future German does not have the right to critique the US...

I had thought after Rwanda and Srebrenica genocide had been beaten back into the ground .....it has not...I thought after the Wall fell the issue of changing international borders using force had stopped...it has not and after roughly 15 years of war against AQ and IS we still have not learned a single lesson on how to deal with them other than more killing....and until we learn those lessons that are literally in our faces.... that we must honestly address AQ and IS directly....the killing will continue for the next several decades.

Trump or no Trump....

So it is time to move on....the photo that haunts me from my time in VN was the little nude girl running from napalm and two ... 8 and 10 year old Vietnamese boys killed in my ambush who even though while 8 and 10 both carried VC ID cards and two old rusty US ,45 pistols AND the picture of the little Syrian girl injured from an air strike with an oxygen mask who died later not even achieving the age of 1...sad that the world has never seemed to learn...

If the US FP cannot stand up...lead and provide answers any more...that is a simple declaration of bankruptcy...a bankruptcy of morale values...civil and humans rights....end of story...

Time to move on..... if someone would have told me that I would be ending my life time in a country that will be pushing back on European populism ie fascism with a smile in the coming years I would have called them crazy....

Amazing to watch US citizens using Nazi salutes during Trump rallies and yesterday in DC......this is not the America that I defended from enemies near and far.....

[OUTLAW 09]

Die geschundenen Kinder #Aleppo's auf Seite 1 der @BILD.
Nicht alle vergessen euch!

[OUTLAW 09]

Last formal postings depicting the complexity of Syria that no MSM journalist outside of four very good ME SME's have been writing about YET somehow never gets paid attention to in DC..........AND it depicts the range of problems that the Trump administration will actually either encounter and fail to resolve and or make the problem even worse...

The @UN confirmed today: The last six months (#CoH period) doubled the besieged people in #Syria.
From 500.000 to 1 MILLION now.

BreakingNews
Entire #EastGhouta suspends school (of 100.000+ school children) due to nonstop #AssadPutin massacres among children.

A short summary of what you missed in #Syria TODAY so far.
Terrorism by #AssadPutin, all across the country.

[OUTLAW 09]

Another video of the massive fleet.
Tu-154 and a fighter escort, I found it on @flightradar24.
Came from Rus.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISrkFW8b4NI#…

The sky over #Idlib right now.
The "Russian world" is coming for your.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7I5LoyeMNU#…

[OUTLAW 09]

NewsMap
#EuphratesShield troops captured Sheikh Nasser from YPG forces which moved west of #Manbij despite promising to move east.

[OUTLAW 09]

Chlorine gas canister used in an alleged chemical attack in Syria came from a Jordanian company

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian Syrian Express.....

Coming from Latakia Syria flag, Gen. Authority For Maritime Transport SYRIAMAR vessel Laodicea transits Bosphorus en route to Sevastopol

[CrowBat]

I will be backing out of posting to the Syrian as well as the Ukrainian threads because in both the killing just keeps on going on as the core problem with the Russian non linear warfare is...it has never been fully countered by either NATO and the US and under Trump it will continue to be potentially a supportive proRussian positon taken by Trump thus making the current global problems even worse.....
Can perfectly understand your sentiments, Outlaw. Just monitoring these conflicts is turning into one, big permanent and disgusting frustration...

I've experienced the same while monitoring Assadist and Russian air strikes - with help of all available sources, on take-off-by-take-off and (as far as possible to reconstruct) bombing-by-bombing basis - over the last five weeks.

Here a short summary of related conclusions: Syrian Regime Bombs Eastern Aleppo While Russia Focuses Its Bloody Strikes Elsewhere (https://warisboring.com/syrian-regime-bombs-eastern-aleppo-while-russia-focuses-its-bloody-strikes-elsewhere-726795a93f11#.7nn12bjxy)

Air strikes have resumed in war-torn eastern Aleppo. But exactly who is bombing who?

Boosters of Russia and Syrian president Bashar Al Assad’s regime — and even Iranian news agencies — tend to attribute the majority of the air strikes to Russia. Western journalists, various NGOs and even diplomats make the same mistake, and blame Russian air strikes for most of the devastation and civilian deaths in eastern Aleppo.

They’re all equally wrong. Yes, Russia is bombing the Hell out of Syria. But its forces are mostly targeting rebel- and civilian-controlled areas outside of Aleppo. And the Russians are not hitting Islamic militants, as they claim.

Meanwhile, the aerial slaughter in Aleppo is the fault of Al Assad’s own air force.
...

[OUTLAW 09]

A rainbow of colours - a spread of nationalities - this is the Syrian Arab Army

[OUTLAW 09]

Russia smuggles jet fuel to Syria through the #EU waters
http://uatoday.tv/news/russia-smuggles-jet-fuel-through-eu-terrotorial-waters-reuters-811188.html#

Exclusive: Russian tankers defy EU ban to smuggle jet fuel to Syria - sources
http://reut.rs/2gihNjH

"Ships visited Cypriot and Greek ports before delivering fuel to Syria."

[OUTLAW 09]

Assad CW attacks just keep on..and the WEST says nothing...

Video: Helicopter dropping bomb containing toxic gas on Eastern Aleppo
http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/22-november-video-helicopter-dropping-bomb-containing-toxic#
… pic.twitter.com/bH7fhjhsal

[OUTLAW 09]

Assad CW attacks just keep on..and the WEST says nothing...

Video: Helicopter dropping bomb containing toxic gas on Eastern Aleppo
http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/22-november-video-helicopter-dropping-bomb-containing-toxic#
… pic.twitter.com/bH7fhjhsal

Eliot Higgins
✔
@EliotHiggins
So, who call tell me what's really interesting about this chlorine cylinder used in a CW attack in Aleppo?
http://youtu.be/PiDntC_E0SY

Eliot Higgins
✔
@EliotHiggins
@Mr_Ghostly @HamishDBG I think the metal stripes would have held the fuze/detonator/charge

@EliotHiggins It wasn't packed into a barrel bomb but itself was made into a bomb with a retrofit kit. Absolutely CW by design.

The #Assad regime has further improved its munitions designed to drop chlorine gas in #Syria:

After6 days bombing city with all available weapon incl.CHLORIN GAS
Day 7 registered without gas
Day 8 GAS again!

[OUTLAW 09]

Here an excellent article on how not only the Assadists and the IRGC, but also the USA, Jordan and Turkey are re-shaping the revolution in Syria, and creating themselves the proxies they prefer to have:

Foreign Backers and the Marginalization of the Free Syrian Army (http://notris.blogspot.co.at/2016/11/foreign-backers-and-marginalization-of.html)


The following paragraph is of particular interest, then it's one of rare opportunities where the importance and influence of (democratically elected) local council is pointed out. Precisely this is why the regime and the IRGC concentrated on destroying (i.e. forcing into negotiations and then a withdrawal) this pocket first - while entirely ignoring the Daesh-held pocket nearby, just for example:


Note the US-Jordanian reaction to this development:

Which means that this is just another piece of evidence that there is no trace of interest by Oblabla's administration to 'spread freedom and democracy' in Syria.

Logical consequence:


Bottom line: there is 'still' - and despite all posible, and imaginable efforts from all involved parties - FSyA, and a lot of it. It is still so large and so important, that because its foreign backers ordered it not to fight, insurgents are losing the war.

However, because of interests of its foreign backers, and in this scenario, there is no place for a sincere (as naive as this might sound) movement of Syrians longing to remove the Assad regime.

CrowBat....what do you think of this FSA analysis by Charles Lister via Brookings.....

Must read report from @Charles_Lister on the complicated history of the Free Syrian Army
https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/iwr_20161123_free_syrian_army.pdf#
…

[CrowBat]

CrowBat....what do you think of this FSA analysis by Charles Lister via Brookings.....

Must read report from @Charles_Lister on the complicated history of the Free Syrian Army
https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/iwr_20161123_free_syrian_army.pdf#
…
I tend to agree with most of it, especially in regards of statements like this one (p24):

The FSA could potentially have become an effective, single and centralized armed organization, but to have done so would have required substantially more and singularly coordinated support than it received. That it took the U.S. an entire year to acknowledge the value of providing even non-lethal assistance to the FSA reveals a significant misjudgment of the situation that resulted in the loss of a potentially invaluable opportunity. A more determined U.S. effort to coordinate a substantial program of support to the moderate opposition would not have to have been about regime change.

[CrowBat]

BTW, Lister, Weiss... me etc. are not the only with such opinions. See here:

It’s Time to Stop Abandoning the Syrian Opposition (http://muftah.org/stop-abandoning-syrian-opposition/#.WDVhXIWcGHt)

[OUTLAW 09]

Chlorine gas canister used in an alleged chemical attack in Syria came from a Jordanian company

IMAGE of Green Chlorine gas released by #Assad/#Putin helicopter over besieged E. #Aleppo civilians #Syria #Russia

Russia propaganda news Sputnik -@OPCW to examine chemical weapons samples (they & #Assad drop? #Syria Rebels don`t have helicopters)#Aleppo

[OUTLAW 09]

EuphratesShield forces (Turkish Army and the #FSA) captured 2 villages from #ISIS and 4 from #YPG/#SDF around al-Bab.

FSA rebels have captured #Duwayrah village from #ISIS. #Al_Bab


The heavy offensive continues so more villages could follow during the next hours.

TAF and FSA are now battling both IS and YPG/PKK at the same time....amazingly they still move towards al Bab and IS....WHEN the US is doing everything possible to slow them down and support YPG/PKK.....

[OUTLAW 09]

France: Assad is using US political uncertainty to launch 'total war' on Syrian rebels
http://read.bi/2frDpeK

Scoop by @WSJSolomon : Donald #Trump Jr. Held Talks on #Syria with #Russia supporters in Paris
http://www.wsj.com/articles/donald-trump-jr-held-talks-on-syria-with-russia-supporters-1479920753

[OUTLAW 09]

#Hama: Rebels have killed #Assad Brigadier General Gull Zaher with this TOW strike at #Souran, Northern #Hama.

[OUTLAW 09]

ProRussian/Syrian commenter....

Not often you see the Russian flag paired with the Confederate flag:

Russia chose a Confederate-design flag for its "Novorossiya" special services operation, about 10 years ago.

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian soldier and radar station at Quweires airbase in Northern Aleppo
http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/19-november-russian-soldier-and-radar-station-at-quweires#

Alleged that Assad L39s are based at this air base

*L-39, and L-39 stationed at Quweires airbase, first deployed on 16 December,2015
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2QEmlKLI4A#


CNN Türk ENG
✔
@CNNTURK_ENG
#BREAKING Turkish military says 3 soldiers killed,10 wounded in airstrike thought to be conducted by the Syrian regime

BreakingReport
An #Assad air force L-39 "Albatros" war plane hit and killed Turkish soldiers near al-Bab. TK F-16 on standby.
Unconfirmed!

Turkish army blames #Syrian regime for deadly airstrike @AFP

NOW...interesting will be the Erdogan response...meaning TAF now flying counter Assad/Putin AF AD missions over their troops and FSA troops....

[OUTLAW 09]

Chemical Weapons use of Chlorine AGAIN AND the WEST and UNSC say not a single word do they?????

At least 13 people, mostly children, experiencing suffocation after regime drops chlorine-filled barrel bombs on Ard Hamra, besieged Aleppo.

For the 5th time this week Assad targets besiged #Aleppo w/ chlorine gas barrel bombs. 13 suffocation cases reported in Ard al-Hamra area

[OUTLAW 09]

Chemical Weapons use of Chlorine AGAIN AND the WEST and UNSC say not a single word do they?????

At least 13 people, mostly children, experiencing suffocation after regime drops chlorine-filled barrel bombs on Ard Hamra, besieged Aleppo.

For the 5th time this week Assad targets besiged #Aleppo w/ chlorine gas barrel bombs. 13 suffocation cases reported in Ard al-Hamra area

SO do we now see the US FP in Syria under Trump to be proAssad? AND then by extension the US FP WILL BE for the use of CWs on civilians....

Trump's FP will be driven by his children not the DoS.....

Trump's son went to Paris to talk about Russia's role in Syria, organized by pro-Bashar group endorsed by Kremlin
http://www.wsj.com/articles/donald-trump-jr-held-talks-on-syria-with-russia-supporters-1479920753#

[OUTLAW 09]

AND the war crimes just keep on and the WEST says absolutely nothing..WHY it is Christmas time....AND Western leaders are all out shopping.

Syria The only medical facility in besieged Waer, #Homs now completely destroyed by Assad airstrikes & shelling
https://youtu.be/5v038eG3g78

[CrowBat]

Turkish military says 3 soldiers killed,10 wounded in airstrike thought to be conducted by the Syrian regime (https://twitter.com/CNNTURK_ENG/status/801695563796332544)
Along my own sources:

- The General Staff of the TSK confirmed an air strike by a single SyAAF L-39 Albatros on Turkish Army special forces deployed north of al-Bab, killing 3, critically injuring 1, and wounding 10 others.

- A single Assadist L-39 is known to have taken-off from Hama AB around 02.10hrs the last night (so much about Pentagon's assessments Assadists wouldn't fly by night).

EDIT: the Turkish SF unit in question was deployed on the frontline to the Daesh.

Means: this attack means that Assadists are flying CAS for the Daesh now.

[OUTLAW 09]

Turkish military says 3 soldiers killed,10 wounded in airstrike thought to be conducted by the Syrian regime (https://twitter.com/CNNTURK_ENG/status/801695563796332544)
Along my own sources:

- The General Staff of the TSK confirmed an air strike by a single SyAAF L-39 Albatros on Turkish Army special forces deployed north of al-Bab, killing 3, critically injuring 1, and wounding 10 others.

- A single Assadist L-39 is known to have taken-off from Hama AB around 02.10hrs the last night (so much about Pentagon's assessments Assadists wouldn't fly by night).

EDIT: the Turkish SF unit in question was deployed on the frontline to the Daesh.

Means: this attack means that Assadists are flying CAS for the Daesh now.

News
#Turkey ordered a media blackout (gag order) on the alleged Syrian regime air strike on Turkish troops near al-Bab.

I assume it means that Turkey interested in maintaining pre-determined understandings with Syria/Russia regarding hostilities in N Syria

[OUTLAW 09]

Chemical Weapons use of Chlorine AGAIN AND the WEST and UNSC say not a single word do they?????

At least 13 people, mostly children, experiencing suffocation after regime drops chlorine-filled barrel bombs on Ard Hamra, besieged Aleppo.

For the 5th time this week Assad targets besiged #Aleppo w/ chlorine gas barrel bombs. 13 suffocation cases reported in Ard al-Hamra area

An entire family of 6 was gassed to death by #Assad regime in #Aleppo Sunday.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/11/23/assad-just-gassed-an-entire-family-to-death.html#
…

[OUTLAW 09]

Latakia: Rebels have killed #Assad General Loay Bahjat Dib, leader of the #Latakia offensive.

[OUTLAW 09]

BreakingNews
New #AssadPutin air strikes on besieged #Aleppo city again hit innocent children.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3S2CLOQ5eU#

Stated by an old man at the scene of this bombing.

Burn our trees & land,
Destroy our homes & kill us all,
We will not leave,
We will stomp on your head & all those aiding you.

News
The #AssadPutin air force destroyed another school in Hamoryah, east of #Damascus.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00eTXYKmj-g#

[OUTLAW 09]

Turkish military says 3 soldiers killed,10 wounded in airstrike thought to be conducted by the Syrian regime (https://twitter.com/CNNTURK_ENG/status/801695563796332544)
Along my own sources:

- The General Staff of the TSK confirmed an air strike by a single SyAAF L-39 Albatros on Turkish Army special forces deployed north of al-Bab, killing 3, critically injuring 1, and wounding 10 others.

- A single Assadist L-39 is known to have taken-off from Hama AB around 02.10hrs the last night (so much about Pentagon's assessments Assadists wouldn't fly by night).

EDIT: the Turkish SF unit in question was deployed on the frontline to the Daesh.

Means: this attack means that Assadists are flying CAS for the Daesh now.

T-155: TOPUNUZ GELİN @AkEl_Saruman
#FLASH

#DETAILS

1 L-39 flew above 4 some time

then launched ATS Rocket on TR Troops building

& raked them with GSH-23 mm Gun

[OUTLAW 09]

Russia smuggles jet fuel to Syria through the #EU waters
http://uatoday.tv/news/russia-smuggles-jet-fuel-through-eu-terrotorial-waters-reuters-811188.html#

Exclusive: Russian tankers defy EU ban to smuggle jet fuel to Syria - sources
http://reut.rs/2gihNjH

"Ships visited Cypriot and Greek ports before delivering fuel to Syria."

USA called to help stop Russian oil tankers.
#Russian MFA asked #USA not meddle in fight with global terrorism.

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #Hezbollah media: "Pro-#Assad forces and #YPG working together and advancing in Northern #Aleppo."

[OUTLAW 09]

Turkish military says 3 soldiers killed,10 wounded in airstrike thought to be conducted by the Syrian regime (https://twitter.com/CNNTURK_ENG/status/801695563796332544)
Along my own sources:

- The General Staff of the TSK confirmed an air strike by a single SyAAF L-39 Albatros on Turkish Army special forces deployed north of al-Bab, killing 3, critically injuring 1, and wounding 10 others.

- A single Assadist L-39 is known to have taken-off from Hama AB around 02.10hrs the last night (so much about Pentagon's assessments Assadists wouldn't fly by night).

EDIT: the Turkish SF unit in question was deployed on the frontline to the Daesh.

Means: this attack means that Assadists are flying CAS for the Daesh now.

Breaking : Turkey: We will respond to the attack which caused three of our soldiers killed in Syria

Aleppo: Turkish warplanes bombing #YPG positions west of #Manbij.

[OUTLAW 09]

Assad regime losses on Wednesday:
#Latakia: 46 killed, 1 captured
#Aleppo: 15 killed
#Hama: 12 killed
#Damascus: 8 killed

Syria|n rebels have killed 82 #Assad regime forces on Wednesday, including 1 brigadier general & 4 four lieutenants.

[OUTLAW 09]

T-155: TOPUNUZ GELİN @AkEl_Saruman
#FLASH

#DETAILS

1 L-39 flew above 4 some time

then launched ATS Rocket on TR Troops building

& raked them with GSH-23 mm Gun

T-155: TOPUNUZ GELİN @AkEl_Saruman
#FLASH

#HUGE

Reports of 2nd Airstrike by some warplanes

on TR Troops near Azraq village, west of Bab

Several TR soldiers wounded

[OUTLAW 09]

Unconfirmed reports: #UN envoy for #Syria , Staffan de Mistura, has resigned from his post.

[OUTLAW 09]

Pics of #Turkey Leopard 2A4 tanks with desert camouflage -alleged taken at border to #Syria

[OUTLAW 09]

FSA News ‏@FSAPlatform
#MAP || #EuphratesShield

Free Syrian Army advances against #Daesh & Kurdish militia today in northern rural #Aleppo province

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo now:
#AssadPutin war crimes continue at minutes intervals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPZNdbgQcbw&feature=youtu.be#…

[OUTLAW 09]

NewsMap
Combined #Assad/#YPG forces are now only 4 km from the location, where a regime jet bombed #TurkishArmy forces last night.

Attacks on #EuphratesShield forces north of al-Bab from the west and the east now.
#Turkey has no allies on the ground (beyond #FSA).

Putin gave Erdogan security guarantees to surrender Aleppo for fighting ISIS in N Syria.
Then he allowed YPG & Assad to attack his troops.

Not sure if I should laugh or cry, seeing how #Turkey, #YPG, #Assad and even #ISIS are played by #Russia to weaken each other inside #Syria.

Syria New contact area btw #FSA (#EuphratesShield) & #Assad-forces in northern #Aleppo
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.375409&lon=37.352314&z=14&m=b#
…

[OUTLAW 09]

Syria Pro regime map shows allegedly cooperation btw #Assad-forces & kurdish #YPG/#SDF in northern #Aleppo

[OUTLAW 09]

T-155: TOPUNUZ GELİN @AkEl_Saruman
#FLASH

#HUGE

Reports of 2nd Airstrike by some warplanes

on TR Troops near Azraq village, west of Bab

Several TR soldiers wounded

FROM FIRST strike....

Step News Agency EN @Step_Agency1
#Photos #Assad Airstrike warplanes was bombed this evening #EuphratesShield forces in "#AlBab" Northeast of #Aleppo

FROM second strike today....
Syria al Jazeera now claim "more dead #Turkey soldiers after new regime airstrikes" in northern #Aleppo

BreakingReport
More Turkish soldiers die in #Assad regime air strikes and artillery attacks on their positions near al-Bab.

Aleppo: Third round of #Assad airstrikes on #FSA & Turkish soldiers west of #Al_Bab

Appears the Russians approved the series of attacks.....
Syrien-Analyst @michaelh992 zu @BILD: Russland stimmte dem Angriff wahrscheinlich zu.

Raqqa: Zero fighting between #YPG and #ISIS in Northern #Raqqa. All #YPG militants on the way to #Manbij and #Al_Bab?

With 3 sets of air strikes by the #Assad regime in Turkish troops, #Turkey reached a crossroads: Withdraw from near al-Bab or go all in.

Turkey will retaliate against Assad
http://bit.ly/2fvz4r2

[OUTLAW 09]

Attention @TulsiGabbard:

23,863 children have been killed in #Syria.

90.81% of them killed by #Assad & #Russia.

Get your priorities right

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #FSA rebels have captured #Ajami and #Aji villages from #ISIS. #FSA has reached the #Al_Bab - #Manbij Road.

[OUTLAW 09]

6 German lawyers are filing a complaint against Syrian dictator Basher al-Assad for violations of international law.

[OUTLAW 09]

Translation: "Stop attacking us for god's sake, we have a deal with your master!"

Turkey PM: "We have strongly warned all sides about any future attacks.This will not derail us from our goals."

[OUTLAW 09]

YPG/PKK changed to #SDF. #SDF changed to #Manbij & #Al_Bab Military Councils.

[CrowBat]

Additional air strikes were flown

- by the THK against the Daesh and the PKK/PYD/YPG during the afternoon and evening,

- but also by Assadists against the TSK/FSyA Forces around al-Bab.

Indeed, meanwhile there are rumours that the third 'wave' of air strikes involved not only SyAAF, but VKS aircraft too. Rumour has it, another Turkish soldier was KIA (https://twitter.com/taylieli/status/801853267294687232), and several injured.

Official Turkish sources (http://www.cnnturk.com/dunya/turk-ucaklari-el-bab-yakinindaki-deas-hedeflerini-vuruyor?utm_content=buffer99878&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer) deny any additional strikes, though. Supposedly, the second 'strike' should've been a mortar grenade from the Daesh, and the third 'never happened'.

Similarly, some of Assad-fans report (https://twitter.com/MIG29_/status/801889293656539136), the Syrian military denied any further air strikes.

But still.. notable in this regards are following today's statements by Russian spokeswoman for the FM, Zakharova (http://tass.com/politics/914403):

Russia believes that Turkey has learned a lesson from last year’s tragedy in which a Russian Su-24 bomber was shot down by Turkey and a pilot was killed, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

"As for the tragedy that occurred a year ago, it seems to me that it is the Turkish side that must give comments on this day, not us," she said. "We said a lot, and it should be noted that the Turkish side has made adequate conclusions, on the basis of which and after respective statements, the decision was made to restore relations," she added.

"I think that the Turkish side has drawn necessary lessons," she added. "And accordingly, a mechanism for restoration of relations was launched," she said.

Zakharova said "it is very simple to mar relations, but it is very difficult to bring things back to the former level" and although Russia is demonstrating a bid to get relations back on track, "it is a long process as much time has been missed".
...
This can be interpreted as following: we've pulled you by the nose with that 'groundbreaking agreement' on Aleppo. Now you're alone against all of us here, and you'll pay for what happened one year ago.

[OUTLAW 09]

Chemical Weapons use of Chlorine AGAIN AND the WEST and UNSC say not a single word do they?????

At least 13 people, mostly children, experiencing suffocation after regime drops chlorine-filled barrel bombs on Ard Hamra, besieged Aleppo.

For the 5th time this week Assad targets besiged #Aleppo w/ chlorine gas barrel bombs. 13 suffocation cases reported in Ard al-Hamra area

Russian media cites #Russian MoD has proven beyond any shadow of doubt #Syrian defenders of #Aleppo have used Chemical Weapons.

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat....yesterday there was a comment concerning Egyptian AF AC going to Syria....and again similar comments this morning with an Egyptian comment they are joining the Assad/Putin fight against IS......

BreakingNews
#Egypt to join the #Assad/#Iran/#Russia axis of evil in #Syria.

Valid??????

[CrowBat]

Russian media cites #Russian MoD has proven beyond any shadow of doubt #Syrian defenders of #Aleppo have used Chemical Weapons.

The only thing 'proven beyond doubt' in regards of deployment of CWs in Syria is, that these are deployed by the regime only.

So, sort this BS in the same file with all the other Russian BS there...

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Turkish F-16 warplanes bombed #YPG west of #Manbij and #ISIS in #Al_Bab again.

Aleppo: #YPG headquarters in #Arima was destroyed by Turkish airstrikes. #Al_Bab

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Rebels regained control of locations in #Hanano District after fierce clashes with pro-#Assad forces.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.232574&lon=37.207603&z=14&m=b#

Breaking news
Fateh Aleppo Operations Room regains control of locations in Masaken Hanano in #Aleppo from regime forces

Aleppo: #Russia & #Assad have confirmed killed 508 civilians & wounded 1871 in Eastern #Aleppo since November 15

Syria Joint assault by #Assad-forces & kurdish #YPG on rebel held parts of #Aleppo
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.239601&lon=37.193184&z=15&m=b#…

[CrowBat]

CrowBat....yesterday there was a comment concerning Egyptian AF AC going to Syria....and again similar comments this morning with an Egyptian comment they are joining the Assad/Putin fight against IS......

BreakingNews
#Egypt to join the #Assad/#Iran/#Russia axis of evil in #Syria.

Valid??????
Not entirely. Since Sissi explained that the militaries of Egypt and Syria should 'cooperate in combating terrorism', Egyptian military has deployed something like 'monitoring team' to Syria.

Apparently, some of these visited Hama - but no F-16s were deployed there: although the local air base remains operational, and helicopters, L-39s, MiG-21s and MiG-23s based there are still flying about a dozen of sorties a day, the place is still regularly rocketed by insurgents. Means: this would be the worst imaginable place for deployment of F-16s.

Anyway, rumour has it, this 'Egyptian delegation/team' might be a vanguard for some sort of larger operation, supposedly planned to be launched in early 2017. But, right now, I'm sorting such rumours under 'usual background noise' in cases of this kind (especially when it comes to 'Arabs').

That said, I'm sure that Putin is hard at getting Egyptians involved in Syria: that would be a major PR-coup. I'm sure that Sissi is curious to 'confront Turks' too, like his troops are already doing in Libya.

Just... sigh... well, Egyptians can't bring the Daesh on the Sinai under control - but should help 'combat terrorism' in Syria...? :rolleyes:

[OUTLAW 09]

Additional air strikes were flown

- by the THK against the Daesh and the PKK/PYD/YPG during the afternoon and evening,

- but also by Assadists against the TSK/FSyA Forces around al-Bab.

Indeed, meanwhile there are rumours that the third 'wave' of air strikes involved not only SyAAF, but VKS aircraft too. Rumour has it, another Turkish soldier was KIA (https://twitter.com/taylieli/status/801853267294687232), and several injured.

Official Turkish sources (http://www.cnnturk.com/dunya/turk-ucaklari-el-bab-yakinindaki-deas-hedeflerini-vuruyor?utm_content=buffer99878&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer) deny any additional strikes, though. Supposedly, the second 'strike' should've been a mortar grenade from the Daesh, and the third 'never happened'.

Similarly, some of Assad-fans report (https://twitter.com/MIG29_/status/801889293656539136), the Syrian military denied any further air strikes.

But still.. notable in this regards are following today's statements by Russian spokeswoman for the FM, Zakharova (http://tass.com/politics/914403):

This can be interpreted as following: we've pulled you by the nose with that 'groundbreaking agreement' on Aleppo. Now you're alone against all of us here, and you'll pay for what happened one year ago.

CrowBat.....what the heck is Assad up to...at some point he will in fact provoke a Turkish retaliation attack just because the Turkish people demand it....this is getting solid play in the Erdogan media outlets right now....would not think Putin wants to widen this war to include TAF engaging directly against Assad even though some in the Assad inner circle seem to want to attack Turkey directly.

No-fly zone declared to Assad’s planes over Bab, Afrin, Jerabulus and Manbij by Turkish Army since last midnight.

Right after the announcement....
4 Turkish F-16s still hovering over Al-Bab.
Probably waiting for some Assadite plane show up.

About 1 hr ago, Turkish F-16s escorted by fighter jets resumed bombing the surroundings of Al-Bab.

4 Turkish F-16s, 2 F-4s and 1 KC-135 Stratotanker are hovering over North Syria since last midnight.


Air war heating up between Assad and Turkey...not so sure Russia wants it to go this way....

Breaking: Assad's warplanes attack Turkish military camp in Azraq village. Injuries reported. Turkish tank on fire. #Syria

[OUTLAW 09]

Deep last night, some Russian plane made a direct flight from Latakia to Ankara. Reason unknown so far.

[OUTLAW 09]

Turkish hackers group Aslan Neferler announced they have hacked many official Syrian sites including that of SAA.

[OUTLAW 09]

Thanksgiving in besieged Aleppo:

[OUTLAW 09]

EuphratesShield forces seized Ajmi from #ISIS, cutting off the M4 highway between #Manbij-Arimah & Al-Bab.

ANOTHER hospital destroyed....
News
The #Russian regime destroyed the hospital of Turmanin near #Idlib today, killing 3, wounding 7.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jrhkW7Udxo#

The real Q is: How many times can Russia bomb same hospitals 2 keep them out of service?
Russia bombs, ppl repair, Russia bombs ppl repair

[CrowBat]

[B]CrowBat.....what the heck is Assad up to...at some point he will in fact provoke a Turkish retaliation attack just because the Turkish people demand it....this is getting solid play in the Erdogan media outlets right now....would not think Putin wants to widen this war to include TAF engaging directly against Assad even though some in the Assad inner circle seem to want to attack Turkey directly.
What is he up to?

Proving he's in charge, and 'not' the IRGC or Russians, that's what he's up to.

Here a recommended reading in this regards: Syria regime set “red line” around Al-Bab: pro-Assad daily (https://now.mmedia.me/lb/en/NewsReports/567519-syria-regime-set-red-line-around-al-bab-pro-assad-daily)

...“The timing of the airstrike targeting Turkish soldiers came to set Syria’s redlines in the strategic region; storming Al-Bab is forbidden,” an article published Friday by Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar said.
#
The report comes less than a day after a Syrian airstrike outside the ISIS stronghold of Al-Bab killed three Turkish soldiers, prompting Ankara to threaten retaliation.
#
Syria’s government, for its part, has made no official statement on the potentially escalatory incident, while pro-regime outlets based in the war-torn did not broach the subject.
...

Why?

Because: while one could call this article 'full of speculation', actually it's so that if al-Akbar publishes statements of this kind, these were 'sanctioned' by either Hezbollah, or even the Assad regime.

'No evidence'?

OK, then check this tweet by Hosein Mortada (https://twitter.com/HoseinMortada/status/801889673769525251) (a....hm... 'journalist' close to Assad), stating more of such air strikes can be expected in the next days.

Why all of this?

Well, because these are people from the so-called 'Old Guard' in Damascus: those left behind from Hafez's times.

Here a story about the most important thug between them - who now dares speaking out because he's apparently short of retirement:

A Voice From the Shadows (aka: The head of Syria’s Air Force Intelligence Directorate says Bashar al-Assad was too soft) (http://carnegie-mec.org/diwan/66240?lang=en)

A political taboo was quietly shattered this month, when one of Syria’s most powerful security officials, Lieutenant General Jamil al-Hassan, gave his first-ever interview to a Russian news site.
Though Hassan mostly voiced common pro-government positions that are in themselves unremarkable, the interview itself was a groundbreaking event. As head of the Air Force Intelligence Directorate, Hassan has almost never been heard from in public before, and Syrian intelligence chiefs take great care to stay out of the limelight. But another thing stood out, too: Hassan’s implicit criticism of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for having shown too much restraint in the early days of the Syrian uprising in 2011.
...

In the time of President Hafez al-Assad in the 1980s, these people were given a painful blow. It was almost lethal, particularly in Hama. I was a young first lieutenant. The decision at that time was a wise one. This time, we did not settle the matter from the beginning, which is why we have ended up where we are. But it was the decision of the leadership. As for me, my view was different. Take, for example, the students at the [Tiananmen] square in China, which changed China. If the Chinese state had not settled the student chaos, China would have been lost and the West would have destroyed it.
...

Many government loyalists seem to agree with that sentiment, but lesser figures than Hassan would hardly dare to place explicit blame on “the leadership,” which is government-speak for Bashar al-Assad. However, Hassan did not push his criticism any further. To the contrary, he insisted that the president enjoyed between 70–80 percent popular support in Syria and, when asked how he thought the late Hafez al-Assad might have handled the rebellion of 2011 had he been alive, Hassan gently defused the question: “I cannot guess at what he would have done, but every person is in his own particular situation. President Bashar al-Assad has endured major troubles, worse than those endured by the late president Hafez al-Assad.”
...


(That all said, the only thing really 'remarkable' about all of them - Bashar, Hassan, all sorts of their supporters [in real life or on the internet] etc. - is that they are all so convinced 'everything's going to be OK', if they 'only kill or brutalize any kind of opposition'.

And that 'forever'.)

************

BTW... talking about Assad always brings me to Oblabla... (isn't that association interesting...?). Here the newest example of his giant success in staying out of the '#### story':

PYD hits Turkish tanks with US#rockets (https://yallasouriya.wordpress.com/2016/11/25/1-hour-pyd-hits-turkish-tanks-with-us-rockets/)

The PYD, which targeted 2 armored vehicles belonging to the Turkish Armed Forces with Tow rockets, maintained similar attacks on the following day. Yet, another Turkish tank was reportedly exposed to a PYD attack on Wednesday afternoon in the region.
...

Namely, I can confirm such reports. One of my sources with PKK links said today that the PKK/PYD/YPG re-directed the entire stock of TOWs delivered by the USA about a week ago - from the frontlines to the Daesh, to those facing the TSK/FSyA north and west of Manbij.

With other words: the USA are now at least supporting if not outright 'at war' with literally everybody in Syria - including its NATO-ally Turkey.

[CrowBat]

Deep last night, some Russian plane made a direct flight from Latakia to Ankara. Reason unknown so far.
Sure. Somebody there had to explain the story on supposed Egyptian deployment to Syria, but also the next piece of Russian nonsense:

Hezbollah and Russia in first direct military meeting: report (https://now.mmedia.me/lb/en/NewsReports/567517-hezbollah-and-russia-in-first-direct-military-meeting-report)

Hezbollah military officials have held their first ever direct meeting with their Russian counterparts in a landmark sitdown that tackled the Aleppo front, according to a daily close to the powerful Lebanese militant organization.

“Less than a week ago, Aleppo witnessed the first direct meeting between Hezbollah field commanders and Russian army officers,” Al-Akhbar reported Thursday.

The Lebanese daily said that the gathering “came at the request of the Russians” who were impressed by Hezbollah’s military performance during the “Battle of Martyr Abu Omar Saraqeb,” a failed rebel offensive launched in late October against regime positions in western Aleppo.

After observing the results of the rebel campaign, which was turned back thanks in part to Hezbollah’s large military presence on the frontlines, Russia last week called for a meeting with the Lebanese organization, according to Al-Akhbar.
...

Oh man... this deserves a big bag of popcorn and a year-supply of Cola to watch.

Namely, I can't wait to see how Putler thinks he can separate Hezbollah (Lebanon) from he IRGC. :D :D :D :D

[OUTLAW 09]

Turkey does not fire at #Assad's jets,attacking its troop near al-Bab.
It invites #Russian invasion command reps from #Latakia to #Ankara.

Just another proof that Turkey and Russia sealed a deal (Aleppo for northern Syria) and some regime elements are not happy with it.

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat....who is on first base.....second base and who is on homeplate...I am not so sure the actors themselves quite know anymore....???

Aleppo: Turkish airstrikes on a #YPG headquarters in #Arima have killed 7 #YPG militants and wounded many more.

[Azor]

Thanksgiving in besieged Aleppo:

Heartbreaking. However, some perspective is required.

Thus far since June, civilians have accounted for roughly 41% of the total fatalities inflicted in the fighting over Aleppo, a ratio that is in line with the Syrian Civil War overall and also analogous to the conflict in Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos).

While Assad may be a butcher and a tyrant, and a user of chemical weapons, in terms of cold hard numbers he is far more discriminating in the use of force than either the Soviets in Afghanistan or the Russians in Chechnya. Indeed, Putin's adventure has a higher ratio of civilian losses than Assad's ground game...

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #FSA: "We will keep going towards #Al_Bab and we will fight any forces who will stand in front of us."

YPG: "#US must fulfill their duty and stop #Turkey and #FSA."

YPG calls all #YPG units who fight for #Assad regime west of #Al_Bab "neutral Kurdish militias".

Many of these #YPG units were armed and trained by pro-#Assad forces since the siege of Eastern #Aleppo has begun.

Iran|ian #IRGC Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari: "After #Mosul we should send more #Iraq|i Shia militias (#PMU) to #Syria to help #Assad."

After #YPG the #SDF (alias #YPG alias #Manbij/#Al_Bab Councils alias #PKK) said they wouldn't be involved in the fighting vs #FSA & #Turkey.

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat.....what do you think?

A snr western intelligence type tells me he doubts West's ability to penetrate Russian air defences in Syria: "they could just shut us out"

[OUTLAW 09]

BreakingFootage
#SDF hits #TurkishArmy tank between al-Bab and Manbij with an ATGM.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Z6Z3edZi8A#

[OUTLAW 09]

Northern #Syria.
- EuphratesShield vs. SDF
(probably with US arms)
- EuphratesShield vs. YPG, Hezbollah & Assad
- EuphratesShield vs. ISIS

And here comes the funny part of this epic disaster: This is exactly what Putin lured (not so smart) Erdogan & FSA into forgetting

[OUTLAW 09]

Heartbreaking. However, some perspective is required.

Thus far since June, civilians have accounted for roughly 41% of the total fatalities inflicted in the fighting over Aleppo, a ratio that is in line with the Syrian Civil War overall and also analogous to the conflict in Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos).

While Assad may be a butcher and a tyrant, and a user of chemical weapons, in terms of cold hard numbers he is far more discriminating in the use of force than either the Soviets in Afghanistan or the Russians in Chechnya. Indeed, Putin's adventure has a higher ratio of civilian losses than Assad's ground game...

The White Helmets @SyriaCivilDef
39 civilians killed &110+ injurd in #Aleppo & countryside tday
12-Taqad
7-AlMansura
5-Shaar
5-Karm Homad
5-Sakhur
5-Mashhad

[OUTLAW 09]

Friends or foes? A closer look on relations between YPG and the regime via @bellingcat
https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2016/09/12/friend-or-foes-ypg-regime/

One of Syria’s most powerful security officials has given first interview, offering a rare look into the regime
http://carnegie-mec.org/diwan/66240

Extremely important interview! Head of #Syria's Air Force IntelService, Jamil Hassan, implicitly criticised #Assad for his actions in 2011

[Azor]

Extremely important interview! Head of #Syria's Air Force IntelService, Jamil Hassan, implicitly criticised #Assad for his actions in 2011

The interview is unprecedented but how significant are Hassan's opinions, truly?

By my reckoning a repeat of Hama was impossible, given that the civil uprising was more widespread and predicated upon human rights, liberty and democracy rather than Islamism. Indeed, Assad followed the advice of his Iranian Revolutionary Guards advisors and used paramilitary and military force to crush the uprising, prompting the defections in the first place.

Means is not equivalent to will, and just like Berlin (1953), Budapest (1956) and Prague (1968) were not repeatable in Moscow (1992), Hama was not repeatable in 2011 across the whole of the country.

[CrowBat]

While Assad may be a butcher and a tyrant, and a user of chemical weapons, in terms of cold hard numbers he is far more discriminating....Beg your pardon?

This alone makes me not 100%, but 1000% sure: you have never interviewed a single of what I call 'Assadist' pilots.

Namely, you don't know that Alawites between them are raised to hate Sunnis and to consider them 'rats'. You don't know that they are actively seeking every opportunity to kill civilians: it's not even 'punishment' any more for them, but extermination that counts. You don't know that their mindset is such that every evening when they gather to watch news on the state TV, they're de-facto staging a championship in cheering how many has each of them 'burned' that day.

If they're 'aiming' when they bomb, then only because they're seeking to cause 'mass destruction' and to 'burn Sunnis'. That's a direct translation of their own words.

What do I mean with that? All tactical training and all kind of weapons firing exercises were strictly prohibited in the last 10 years before the war. Since the start of the war, some of pilots decided to teach themselves how to use iPads as 'navigational and targeting aids'. And they would all love to have far heavier bombs, so they can kill more with one of them.

So, please, be so kind and don't ever again come to the idea to explain anything about 'discriminate' (or 'indiscriminate') bombing of civilians by Assadists (at least not when I'm around): what they do when they bomb is absolutely intentional, yet - as tragic as it is - also the best they can do.

EDIT: should you wonder how comes I know as much about them... I've interviewed about 24 SyAAF pilots and officers over the last 20 years, while working on the book series Arab MiGs, Volume 1 (https://www.amazon.com/Arab-MiGs-Mikoyan-Gurevich-Service/dp/0982553927), Arab MiGs, Volume 2 (https://www.amazon.com/Arab-MiGs-Supersonic-Fighters-1956-1967/dp/098255396X/ref=pd_sim_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=9QZHAFQ881J7JHE03KFZ), Arab MiGs, Volume 3 (https://www.amazon.com/Arab-MiGs-June-1967-War/dp/0982553994/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=NJZVKGT528F120M9SV5A), Arab MiGs, Volume 4 (https://www.amazon.com/Arab-MiGs-Attrition-War-1967-1973/dp/0985455411/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=4GAZ0JGRZ6PK040FV2RF), Arab MiGs, Volume 5 (https://www.amazon.com/Arab-MiGs-October-1973-Part/dp/0985455446/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=KXCSWGN9M8CNWMFRAZQT), and Arab MiGs, Volume 6 (https://www.amazon.com/Arab-MiGs-October-1973-Part/dp/0985455446/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=DGR9A8SE966A8GJV0PP7) (this developed into a sort of an 'encyclopaedia of Arab air forces at war with Israel, 1955-1973'). Six of them are still serving - and de-facto praying to Bashar, at least considering him some sort of a 'God' - and all are absolutely convinced they are doing 'the right stuff' with what they are doing every single day.

[CrowBat]

CrowBat.....what do you think?

A snr western intelligence type tells me he doubts West's ability to penetrate Russian air defences in Syria: "they could just shut us out"
I've heard or read a lot of that over the last 12-13 months - the 'most prominent example' was the article Political Airpower, Part I: Say No to the No-Fly Zone (http://warontherocks.com/2016/10/political-airpower-part-i-say-no-to-the-no-fly-zone/) - and I simply do not understand such standpoints.

At most, I can't describe it as anything else but, 'politically and/or religiously-motivated hysteria'.

Sure, things got complicated since Russians moved their SA-10 (S-300) and SA-19 (Pantsyr) SAM-sites to the area between Kweres AB and as-Safira, thus reinforcing the single Assadist SA-17 (Buk-M1) site deployed at Kweres since January this year.

Such re-deployments kind of 'broke' the terrain-caused isolation and degradation of Russian air defence capabilities in Lattakia area (caused by the fact that their SAMs stationed there are low at the Med coast, and 'blind' in northern and eastern direction because of 2,000m-high Anti-Lebanon mountains).

But, hand on heart: if US + allied air forces don't know how to tackle such threats, or think they're not equipped or not trained to do so, most of the DIA (and similar, allied agencies of NATO members), and all of their commanders - from the rank of major upwards - should get fired on the spot.

[CrowBat]

The interview is unprecedented but how significant are Hassan's opinions, truly?
Azor,

sorry mate, but such questions indicate you really have no trace of clue about 'construction' of the Syrian regime.

Please, read that article. While its official designation might sound like 'ah, another intelligence service busy collecting info on OPFOR'...the 'Air Force Intelligence' in Syria is the very core essence of the regime. It was the tool and the means with help of which Hafez al-Assad climbed to power, and ever since it is the primary tool of keeping that regime in power.

It is such a huge apparatus (over 50,000 employees and over 2 millions of informers before the war) that has a file on every single Syrian citizen and every single foreigner who ever visited Syria. It is so powerful, so well-organized, so embedded within the entire system, that the Stasi was a kindergarten in comparison.

Correspondingly, until the IRGC launched its military intervention in Syria, in early 2013, Hassan was the - declared - 'second-most-important' (and most powerful) man in the country.

That said, I do agree with you in regards of 'repeat of Hama was impossible'. The Moslem Brotherood proved 'too much 'for majority of Syrians and its insurgency of the late 1970s and early 1980s lost all of popular support. That's why it was easy to isolate and destroy it in Hama. Protesting and then the uprising of 2011 was an entirely different pair of shoes: a nation-wide, inter-ethnic and inter-confessional movement.

So, there was no comparison and there was no way to stop it even with a dozen of 'Hamas' Hussein eventually instigated - in Dera'a, in Homs, southern Damascus, Hama, Aleppo etc.

[Dishonesty]

7 November

Saudi Arabia has informed Egypt that shipments of oil products expected under a $23 billion aid deal have been halted indefinitely, suggesting a deepening rift between the Arab world's richest country and its most populous.



http://www.reuters.com/article/us-egypt-saudi-oil-idUSKBN1320RQ

[Azor]

Firstly, my objective with respect to quantifying and comparing the civilian fatalities in Syria was to provide some broader context or perspective beyond the daily tragedies of the war. I am well aware that the bitter fighting has led to sectarian hatred that perhaps was not as salient as in 2011. For instance, despite the acts of mass murder, war rape and attacks on towns and cities, civilian deaths comprised some 35% to 38% of the Bosnian Civil War, yet the Western mainstream media reporting would suggest that the war was a vast one-sided slaughter of civilians.

Secondly, if the Alawites of Syria were indoctrinated to consider themselves superior to the Sunni Arabs and Kurds that they governed, than so too were the Sunni Arabs of Iraq with respect to the Shia Arabs and Sunni Kurds that they governed. Yet Hafez’ suppression of dissent pales in comparisons to the punishments meted out by Hussein against Kurds and Shias alike. In fact, until 2011, Syria’s ethnicities and sects were far more harmonious than those in Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Lebanon or even Turkey.

Thirdly, I am well aware of the disproportionate role that SyAAF intelligence plays in the Syrian government. What I find insignificant is that Hassan believes that quicker and tougher suppression would have been more appropriate, as it is obvious that Assad and his inner circle believe that all of Syria can be reconquered, and are pressing forward irrespective of any diplomatic efforts at imposing a ceasefire. While Moscow seems open to Assad retaining Latakia and the country being de facto divided between the Alawites, Kurds and Sunni Arabs, Teheran seems to agree with Assad for now.

Fourth, I also agree that the S-300 and S-400 systems deployed in and off the coast of Syria are not the threat claimed by opponents of the no-fly zone. I believe that the opposition to the no-fly zone revolves around the following related but different issues, namely:


The no-fly zone would ostensibly apply only to Syrian aircraft, allowing Russian and perhaps even Iranian aircraft to continue bombarding rebels and civilians
There is a possibility that de-confliction with Russia would break down, leading to a skirmish
Syrian air defenses would have to be suppressed, leading to accusations that the US is initiating a coup d’état
Russian personnel could be stationed at Syrian air defense facilities making their suppression impossible
US or Coalition pilots may demand that Russian and Syrian air defenses be suppressed
Any kinetic or non-kinetic SEAD operations would allow the Russians to analyze the latest American tactics and technology
The war is primarily land-based and therefore a no-fly zone would have no impact on Assad’s tanks or artillery

[CrowBat]

Firstly, my objective with respect to quantifying and comparing the civilian fatalities in Syria was to provide some broader context or perspective beyond the daily tragedies of the war. I am well aware that the bitter fighting has led to sectarian hatred that perhaps was not as salient as in 2011.No.

This is the essence of the problem all the people babbling about 'Assad is a lesser evil than IS', 'secular regime', or 'quantifying civilian fatalities within broader context' etc. have: you do not understand that 'Assadists' are only comparable with Himmler and various of his 'managers' of the Holocaust; that they would do exactly the same the SS did with Jews and various other ethnic groups - and that with anybody they consider 'against' them or 'worthless' in comparison to their 'ideals', and that without any trace of mercy, right on the spot.

They just lack the means to do so (bar their stocks of chemical weapons), and they are nowhere as competent in doing what they do as Serbs proved to be in Bosnia (not to talk about Himmler's SS).

And the supposed 'sectarian conflict' in Syria is not some sort of 'accident', it didn't happen because there is general hatred between different ethnic and religious groups there etc.: it was instigated and provoked by Assad (https://kyleorton1991.wordpress.com/2014/12/24/what-to-do-about-syria-sectarianism-and-the-minorities/) - and then precisely with purpose of making such like you think the way you do.


Secondly, if the Alawites of Syria were indoctrinated to consider themselves superior to the Sunni Arabs and Kurds that they governed, than so too were the Sunni Arabs of Iraq with respect to the Shia Arabs and Sunni Kurds that they governed.Yes, that's right. That's why so many of Iraqi Ba'athists became involved in organising the 'ultimate police state' of the IS.


Yet Hafez’ suppression of dissent pales in comparisons to the punishments meted out by Hussein against Kurds and Shias alike.Not the least. You just don't know what was Hafez's 'security apparatus' doing to Syrians for 30+ years, and you still lack the insight into what Bashar's 'security apparatus' is doing to Syrians the last 16 years.


In fact, until 2011, Syria’s ethnicities and sects were far more harmonious than those in Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Lebanon or even Turkey....yeah - and then exactly like Soviet ethnic groups were far more harmonious under Papa Stalin, and Yugoslav ethnic groups were far more harmonious under Tito's dictatorship, and Iraqi ethnic groups were far more harmonious under Saddam's dictatorship, and Libyan ethnic groups were far more harmonious under Q's dictatorship...

....and of course: all of these ethnic and religious groups are then declared for 'incompatible with democracy', and for 'supporting jihadism and terrorism', and they could 'never live together in any other kind of political system but an oppressive dictatorship', eh...?

Such POVs are leaving me at lack of words. They cannot even be described as 'daydreaming': not even as 'underrating' daily terror applied by all of these megalomaniacs, and their gangs of thugs considering them gods. They are pure idiocy making me sick: naive illusions created by spoiled kids that never experienced the life under dictatorships (nor are able of imagining what that looks like).

This is really nothing personal, but you do not have a trace of clue - you really can't understand - at least what a disgusting state of mind is necessary to do what such creatures like Assad, Saddam, Q, Himmler and their cohorts are (or were) doing.

And here is a perfect example for what I'm talking about:

Thirdly, I am well aware of the disproportionate role that SyAAF intelligence plays in the Syrian government. What I find insignificant is that Hassan believes that quicker and tougher suppression would have been more appropriate, as it is obvious that Assad and his inner circle believe that all of Syria can be reconquered, and are pressing forward irrespective of any diplomatic efforts at imposing a ceasefire.
No, it's not about Assadists being convinced they could 'reconquer' Syria.

It's about 'some of them' being so sick, they are convinced that some sort of 'even more massive' application of violence would have 'prevented' an uprising - which was caused precisely by decades of that very application of violence.

It's about Hassan's statements from that interview providing a plain insight into the state of mind of such creatures like him, like Assad etc.

Now ask yourself, please: how do you want to understand 'some war', if you do not understand the core reason for its outbreak? ...if you're at least 'misjudging' the core reason?

I do not blame you for this. You're not the only one, not even something like 'minority' thinking that way. In the West in particular, we've got several generations that do not have a trace of clue of what it is like to live under oppressive dictatorships. We've got two generations of such people even in Eastern Europe and certain other parts of the World. And we've got a host of such generations in post-Leninist/Stalinist societies.

But, sorry: this is just not making any of you 'right'.

Two days ago a video interview (http://www.msn.com/de-at/nachrichten/politik/das-video-von-gertrude-bewegt-ganz-%C3%B6sterreich/ar-AAkJU3O?li=AAaVEHq&ocid=spartanntp) appeared in Austria, startling millions here.

It's a video-interview with an old lady, who directly compared her recollection of what one has got to hear during the early days of the Nazi dictatorship in Germany and Austria with what one gets to hear from certain right-wing, aka 'populist' politicians in Austria and in the EU nowadays.

She is old enough to recall this: BUT, the mass of people nowadays is NOT old enough to have such recollections.

That is your problem, Azor, and that is the problem of the mass of other people thinking the way you do, or at least 'similar things'.

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian carrier jets flying from #Syria, not Kuznetsov -
http://www.janes.com/article/65775/russian-carrier-jets-flying-from-syria-not-kuznetsov#…

[OUTLAW 09]

A map to understand what's happening in #AlBab between SDF+MMC+SAA vs FSA+TURKEY vs IS / HD :
http://www.agathocledesyracuse.com/archives/872#

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo today
The only chance for #AssadPutin to advance is to destroy the city.
Air & arty strikes, every few mins.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruGgXPkC53c#…

Under gas, artillery and #AssadPutin air strikes, pro-#Asssad forces capture more parts of eastern #Aleppo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVE_wesCFwI#…

[CrowBat]

Few thoughts re. 'establishing a possible no-fly zone' over Syria...




Fourth, I also agree that the S-300 and S-400 systems deployed in and off the coast of Syria are not the threat claimed by opponents of the no-fly zone. I believe that the opposition to the no-fly zone revolves around the following related but different issues, namely:


The no-fly zone would ostensibly apply only to Syrian aircraft, allowing Russian and perhaps even Iranian aircraft to continue bombarding rebels and civilians
There is a possibility that de-confliction with Russia would break down, leading to a skirmish
Syrian air defenses would have to be suppressed, leading to accusations that the US is initiating a coup d’état
Russian personnel could be stationed at Syrian air defense facilities making their suppression impossible
US or Coalition pilots may demand that Russian and Syrian air defenses be suppressed
Any kinetic or non-kinetic SEAD operations would allow the Russians to analyze the latest American tactics and technology
The war is primarily land-based and therefore a no-fly zone would have no impact on Assad’s tanks or artillery

In my last post to this topic, I've posted a link to the article Political Airpower, Part I: Say No to the No-Fly Zone (http://warontherocks.com/2016/10/political-airpower-part-i-say-no-to-the-no-fly-zone/).

I've written a lengthy reply to this article, dissecting it in-depth, and sent it to the WOTR, last month. Their editor announced he's going to publish it, but as far as I can say, didn't do so by now.

Summary of my conclusions was as follows:

- Military-intelligence assessments about Syrian air defence capabilities published in the USA were either a) politically coloured, or b) based on hopelessly outdated OSINT.

Specifically:

a) Regardless the reason (would be a topic on its own, i.e. deserve its own thread), the Pentagon convinced itself there are no 'moderate insurgents' in Syria already back in 2012. Means; it convinced itself that any kind of an intervention there would only serve the purposes of transnational jihadism. Correspondingly, all of its published assessments are aiming to 'scare' politicians away from the idea of launching a military intervention in Syria.

This is actually a giant pile of stinking BS. But, that's the way the Pentagon thinks, and therefore the way the US military and large segments of the US and Western European public think.

b) Articles like the one linked above are using OSINT based on commercially available satellite imagery, by no means cross-examined with any other sorts of intelligence.

Their result is badly misleading. Actually creating an illusion: at best, it could be described as 'what the Syrian air defences used to look like in the late 1980s'.

- On its own (i.e. without Russians), the modern-day Syrian air defence system is actually concentrated in two areas covering less than 10% of that country's territory (Damascus-Homs axis, and the coast). While including such modern weapons like SA-17 (Buk-M1) and SA-19 (Pantsyr), even these are well-known to the US + NATO already since late 1980s (if for no other reason, then because of the deeds of this specific person (https://warisboring.com/the-man-who-ruined-the-soviet-warplane-industry-b1bd3527e508#.95psxnym8)).

Don't ask me where, but I've got specific tactical manuals from the late 1980s, providing precise advice about tackling such threats like SA-17 and SA-19. That means: 'solutions' for confronting these were available already 30 years ago.

Should they 'all of a sudden', 'not be available' now, and/or if responsible intelligence services failed to update it, and/or if the industry and flying services failed to develop necessary countermeasures - then something is deeply rotten in the US and NATO air forces. That's why I say: if this is the case, then all the responsible officers deserve to get fired on the spot.

- Something similar is valid for Russian air defences deployed in Syria. No doubt, their S-300 (SA-10) system deployed in Syria is a much-upgraded variant; but it's still a system I can say was well-known to the USA/NATO back in the late 1980s - and should be even better-known ever since, considering Slovakia and Greece have got it too.

Mind: this system was lately (around 23 October) re-deployed to as-Safira, about 20km south-east of Aleppo. If the US/NATO forces failed to detect this re-deployment, their commanders should be fired on the spot.

The S-350/400 system Russians deployed south of Lattakia (and which is still there, together with another of Russian SA-19s) is largely a new threat, but it is neither a major nor a negligible obstacle. It is a powerful system, no doubt, but also one hampered by its positioning low at the coast, because of which it has sizeable blind zones (to better understand these, see the attached illustration).

Foremost: because neither system is AWACS-supported, and because of other inherent weaknesses in the Russian C3/C4 systems in Syria recognized over the last 14 months, these systems are de-facto isolated, and would therefore be easy to outmanoeuvre/outflank. That is making them highly vulnerable to any kind of determined attack by the means currently in service with US/NATO air forces (alone the use of decoy-UAVs would easily force them to spend most of the missile stock deployed in Syria). All of which means that the Russian air defence system in Syria can be outmanoeuvred, disrupted and - at least 'gradually' - degraded with zero to no cost (except in terms of fuel and decoy UAVs spent for that purpose, of course).

- Problem is therefore one of political nature: primarily one of how far are specific politicians ready to go, and then one of difference between 'public perception' and 'military realities'.

Military-wise, there is a giant difference between demonstrative deployment of (supposedly) 'all-mighty' SAM-systems for political purposes, and actual value of systems in question in a war scenario.

Russians know about this, and precisely this is why Putler has repeatedly threatened with 'deployment of nuclear weapons' in the case of serious threat for Russian troops.

That means: the essence of any kind of scenario that might involve a clash with Russians in Syria depends on ability of US/NATO intel services to assess how far is Putler ready to go should the matters get 'really serious'.

My assessment is: he is certainly ready to go what might appear as 'very far' to most of people in the West - but this is so only because the US/NATO are currently ruled by gangs of spinless opportunists, half of whom are bribed by Russia anyway. However, this means not that he would deploy nukes if the US/NATO would go for a determined action there (which would be more than legal, considering a host of negative repercussions this conflict actually has for the US/NATO): he just never found himself confronted with that kind of action, i.e. the US/NATO simply never attempted to confront Putler seriously.

- Viability of any kind of NFZ over Syria actually depends on the part of the country that would be covered by the same. For example: the large, insurgent-controlled area in Idlib and western Aleppo governorates is actually well away from areas covered by Assadist and Russian air defence assets, or at least 'isolated' from these by the terrain.

Similarly, the large insurgent-controlled area in Dera'a (southern Syria) is entirely free of any kind of coverage by Assadist and Russian air defence assets.

Allied operations in these areas could be undertaken with minimal risk while reaping several potential benefits - foremost being provision of humanitarian assistance. This in turn could significantly alter the balance between Syrian insurgents and transnational extremist groups, because currently the latter are far better supplied than most of genuine combatants.

But, a large number of insurgent-held pockets in between - especially the two large ones (one east of Damascus, another north of Homs) - are an entirely different pair of shoes. Especially Damascus area is covered by 'the best' of what Assadists have.

There is little doubt that dismantling the integrated air defence systems in these two areas would require a determined, massive operation using the most advanced assets in the US and allied arsenal, and then a continuous follow-up operations of stealth aircraft, and plenty of stand-off weapons.

Finally, re. 'deconfliction with Russians': with one exception (see: 24 November 2015) - and even then it was Russian fault - this is actually working quite well. Back then, Russians forgot to announce two Su-24s to Turks, but ever since, they're far more careful.

Indeed, this deconfliction works so well meanwhile, that USAF's A-10s can go hunting the JFS in Idlib area at the same time VKS Sukhois are bombing FSyA and civilians just 30km north, 20km west, and 25km south from Idlib, as happened two days ago.

However, a NFZ should be a NO FLY zone: it would be pointless to establish it 'if' Russians would still be granted permission to go bombing the FSyA and civilians.

...with which we're back to the point about political decision-making: if there is political resolve to launch such an operation, then the military has to get very specific, robust mandate about what to do. And this has to be applied consequently. Anything else would only worsen the situation.

*******

Note: the illustration below is showing the Russian radar coverage, i.e. its blind spots, if the radar in question is mounted atop a 65m high tower at Hmemmem AB.

[OUTLAW 09]

AssadPutin air strikes on #Daraa city this morning.
Still, no meaningful reaction by the Southern Front.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPNarZ8XGbI#…

No aid for the starving people of #Aleppo while #Iran keeps supplying the besieged towns of #Fuah and #Kefraya.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6DP51HE0h8&feature=youtu.be#…

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat...any idea why AAS and JFS are so quiet?

Only three FSA groups keep targeting the western #Aleppo frontline.
All larger islamist groups incl. AaS and JFS withdrew from the area.

Rebels not just ended their efforts to break the siege of #Aleppo from outside.
They (mainly Jaish al Fateh) ended all diversionary attacks.

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat....there are constant comments of a Russian/Turkish deal concerning Aleppo falling to Assad in exchange or Turkish control of the border and blocking YPG....anything solid that you have seen on such an agreement outside of say the military moves that appear to support that idea?????

Appears weapons resupply shipments have fallen off especially on the artillery and GRAD side...any confirmation of that?????


EuphratesShield is totally lost.
They cannot advance & cannot withdraw b/c they operate under #AssadPutin permission to #Turkey.

They also cannot go east due to a #ErdoganObama deal.
They also cannot go back to #Aleppo due to #ErdoganPutin deal.
Epic strategic failure.



Full conversation. BUT, As #Aleppo is already under siege, theres no difference if Rebels enter Al Bab, which can still happen

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian Syrian Express

ВМФ Ropucha class LSTMs Cф NF Georgiy Pobedonosets 016 & #Бф BF Korolev 130 transit fog covered Bosphorus towards the Black Sea

[OUTLAW 09]

Old footage? Latest episode on tvzvezda shows both MiG-29KR's (blue 47&49) still on board Adm #Kuznetsov. #МиГ29К
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24xOeH9vBec#

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #Assad helicopters have bombed pro-#Assad forces in the small part of #Hanano District they have captured from rebels yesterday.

Quneitra: Rebels launched a new offensive in #Quneitra Province to break the siege of Western #Ghouta.

[OUTLAW 09]

Hasakah: Strong explosions inside #YPG camp in #Tell_Tamir in #Hasakah Province. There are also #US soldiers.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.653409&lon=40.370979&z=13&m=b#

[OUTLAW 09]

TWO Russian spetsnaz officers wounded in combat...

Aleppo: 2 #Russia|n officers were seriously wounded by rebels on the Eastern #Aleppo frontline.

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: 2 Turkish Atılgan air defense systems were deployed at the #Turkey - #Syria|n border. #Al_Bab

[CrowBat]

CrowBat...any idea why AAS and JFS are so quiet?

Only three FSA groups keep targeting the western #Aleppo frontline.
All larger islamist groups incl. AaS and JFS withdrew from the area.

Rebels not just ended their efforts to break the siege of #Aleppo from outside.
They (mainly Jaish al Fateh) ended all diversionary attacks.
AFAIK, this is entirely wrong info.

It's so that the AAS and the JFS are holding the frontline: about 20 FSyA factions have withdrawn from there (have reported this a few days ago). Only three are supporting the AAS and the JFS.

[CrowBat]

CrowBat....there are constant comments of a Russian/Turkish deal concerning Aleppo falling to Assad in exchange or Turkish control of the border and blocking YPG....anything solid that you have seen on such an agreement outside of say the military moves that appear to support that idea?????
The actual problem seems to be a sort of a power-struggle between Moscow and Tehran: they're in clinch over who's going to control Damascus in the future.

Moscow is attempting to work with official positions in Damascus - which is extremely hard, because these have no say anywhere outside the city.

But, that's why we get to hear about that 'IV Assault Corps', or now about the 'V Assault Corps'; why Moscow is reaching agreements with Turkey; trying to get Egypt involved etc., etc., etc.

The IRGC, on the contrary, is working with militias only, and aiming for its own aims - which is to secure control of Syria, no matter if with our without Assad.

Problem (from the Russian POV), is that the IRGC has militias in its hand. It's paying for them, and this means it can order them to go where it needs them. Moscow has only a limited control over Assadists in NE Lattakia, but otherwise can only 'follow the gang' into areas like Aleppo: it has no say there.

So, now Moscow is trying to work with Hezbollah too, while on the other side Assadists have bombing Turks - to show them they are 'better friends' (than Turks), but also in attempt to spoil agreements between Ankara and Moscow.

EDIT: if you prefer it 'official', here from the WP (https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/in-syrias-aleppo-shiite-militias-point-to-irans-unparalleled-influence/2016/11/20/2f1a47c2-92cd-11e6-bc00-1a9756d4111b_story.html?postshare=8461479766063657&tid=ss_tw):

...Eventually, analysts say, Iran could even find itself in direct competition with Russia for influence in Syria.
...
Replace 'could' with 'already is', and you've got the picture.


Appears weapons resupply shipments have fallen off especially on the artillery and GRAD side...any confirmation of that?????Nope. Even Assadists do not report interception of any of supply convoys, the last few days.


[/B]EuphratesShield is totally lost.
They cannot advance & cannot withdraw b/c they operate under #AssadPutin permission to #Turkey.

They also cannot go east due to a #ErdoganObama deal.
They also cannot go back to #Aleppo due to #ErdoganPutin deal.
Epic strategic failure.
Don't call it the day before dawn.


Full conversation. BUT, As #Aleppo is already under siege, theres no difference if Rebels enter Al Bab, which can still happen
That is correct - and it's going to happen. Erdogan is not going to let the PKK unite the areas it controls in northern Syria.

[CrowBat]

Old footage? Latest episode on tvzvezda shows both MiG-29KR's (blue 47&49) still on board Adm #Kuznetsov. #МиГ29К
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24xOeH9vBec#Of course they are still on the carrier - and they (plus few Su-33s that are still on board) are flying 4 sorties a day on average.

For example: they flew 4 on 21 November, 4 on 22 November, then had a day off, then 4 on 24 November.

But, most of pilots are not as experienced in embarked operations as the few 'Heroes' (of the Soviet Union or Russian Federation, or whatever else) - and thus most of Su-33s are at Hmemmem AB.

[CrowBat]

...here an info-graphic, speaking literal 'volumes'... (especially in regards of 'who is fighting IS in Syria')...

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat...have you heard anything on this out of Iranian circles.....

#Iran|ian military: "We may set up naval bases in #Syria and #Yemen in the future."

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Rebels have killed 42 #Assad forces (including several officers) in Eastern #Aleppo in the last 48 hours.

FSA rebels at captured #Umm_Shukayf village today. #Al_Bab

[OUTLAW 09]

SDF: us taking al-Bab would be great, but we'll also be fine with anyone except Turkey having it. Wink, wink.
http://www.anfenglish.com/features/what-is-happening-in-bab-and-manbij-fronts-who-is-planning-what#

[OUTLAW 09]

Russian Naval Syrian Express

BМФ #ЧФ BSF Krivak II Class frigate Pytlivy 868 hoisted Andreevsky during its BlackSea-bound Bosphorus transit

[OUTLAW 09]

IS is returning to it's roots in both Iraq and Syrian.....this was standard for QJBR and AQI starting 2003..back to guerrilla warfare as some ME SME's that I have posted their articles here have long stated would happen if driven out of Mosul and Raqqa...AND AQI was good at it from 2003 to 2010 in Iraq....

Last ISIS video follows a trend noticed by some analysts, video-lessons, from basic marksmanship to urban combat TTPs and placing IEDs

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: 2 Turkish Atılgan air defense systems were deployed at the #Turkey - #Syria|n border. #Al_Bab

FSA source: #TSK #Turkish air defense system has reached suburb of Al bab, Loaded with Stinger anti aircraft missiles


The ATILGAN PMADS (Pedestal-Mounted Air Defence Missile System) is a fully automated firing unit for Very Short-Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) missiles such as the FIM-92 Stinger, providing autonomous as well as coordinated operation with C3I systems and other air defence assets
Source: http://defence.pk/threads/turkish-atilgan-turkish-defence-exports-continue.202208/#ixzz4R8m4C1pI

General Specifications​
High hit probability
High fire power
Short reaction time
Coordinated operation with command control systems
8 ready-to-fire stinger missiles
12.7 mm. automatic machine gun for self defense and missile lead zone coverage
Passive surveillance, acquisition and tracking sensors, incorporating thermal and daylight TV cameras
Multi-pulse laser range finder for target ranging
Two-axes, gyro stabilized turret providing target surveillance, detection, automatic tracking and shoot-on-the-move capabilities
Fire control computer providing fully automated system functions
IFF system providing interrogation for friend or foe
Remote control capability
Light-weight, modular turret with high speed, which can be integrated on various types of carrier vehicles

[OUTLAW 09]

Hasakah: Strong explosions inside #YPG camp in #Tell_Tamir in #Hasakah Province. There are also #US soldiers.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.653409&lon=40.370979&z=13&m=b#

Hasakah: Report from @TRTalarabiya that 5 #US soldiers and 2 #YPG militants were killed by the explosions in #Tell_Tamir.

[OUTLAW 09]

SDF: us taking al-Bab would be great, but we'll also be fine with anyone except Turkey having it. Wink, wink.
http://www.anfenglish.com/features/what-is-happening-in-bab-and-manbij-fronts-who-is-planning-what#

Raqqa: Zero progress by #YPG against #ISIS in Northern #Raqqa this week. They are more interested in #Manbij & #Al_Bab.

[OUTLAW 09]

Chilling words from a 1944 analysis of wartime rumours
http://poq.oxfordjournals.org/content/8/1/22.full.pdf+html#…

[OUTLAW 09]

SDF: us taking al-Bab would be great, but we'll also be fine with anyone except Turkey having it. Wink, wink.
http://www.anfenglish.com/features/what-is-happening-in-bab-and-manbij-fronts-who-is-planning-what#

BREAKING: Turkish-backed forces cut off road between #Manbij and Al-Bab, Syria.

[OUTLAW 09]

Turkey's President @RT_Erdogan in second phone-call with Russian President Vladimir Putin within past 26 hours on Aleppo, Syria.

BREAKING: Turkey says #ISIS group has used chemical weapons against its soldiers in Al-Bab, 17 wounded soldiers transported to #Turkey.

Iran has stated Russia can use their airfields to strike Syria...

[OUTLAW 09]

Footage of the destruction caused by Russian airstrikes to the Shifa pharmaceutical factory in Mansoura w of #Aleppo https://youtu.be/Eh3s2hPTjHM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVzDomXFTZE#…

Aleppo - Mash'had where 14+ civilians were killed last night by a Russian ballistic missile. Destruction everywhere
https://youtu.be/8Rxncgp-Wv8

EuphratesShield forces seized Um Shukayf/Adessa from #ISIS, further isolating #SDF/#YPG from Al-Bab & preparing pincer movement to take it.

Russian air strikes and #Iranian drone coordination.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vY8rUeKxxak#…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsCpgqt_bus#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Telling.
#Assad's troops are not advancing towards al-Bab "to fight #ISIS".
But "to repel the #Turkish invasion".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00gCzo_YXz4#…

[OUTLAW 09]

Russia & #Assad’s fight for #Aleppo in 12 days:

- 500 people killed
- 1,600 more wounded
- 4 hospitals destroyed

= extremism strengthened

[OUTLAW 09]

It is critical to understand the internal development and internal conflicts within JFS

Charles Lister ‏@Charles_Lister Nov 25
More info is now emerging regarding JFS’ internal divisions - now suggestion of AQ Central involvement & a possible demotion of al-Jolani.

Concerning that some dismiss this as ‘fake’ & simulation.
Terrorists aren’t supremely smart & unified, much as that’d make our jobs easier.

pt: The existence of 2 competing currents within al-Nusra/JFS is common knowledge - between the “progressives” & “AQ loyalists/hardliners."

pt: Faced by strong external pressure, al-Jolani gambled that a rebrand to JFS wld further Nusra’s influence across #Syria’s armed groups.

pt: Al-Jolani’s gamble promised that a broad-spectrum merger with #Syria’s opposition would follow the formation of a “non-AQ” JFS faction.

pt: These “unity talks” resolutely failed after JFS’ formation, due to opposition-wide suspicion of JFS motives & AQ-linking implications.

pt: Having seen his gamble fail, Jolani has faced heavy pressure from former Nusra leadership figures who strongly opposed JFS’ formation.

pt: Some of these “hardliners” (e.g Sami al-Oraydi & Abu Julaybib) have been lobbying for new changes or creation of new AQ group in #Syria

pt: Given the extensive AQ histories represented within both “progressive” & “hardliner” currents, the debate in #Syria is also dividing AQ

pt: Accusations are being thrown around by some that AQ figures formerly in #Iran & now released are conspiring against the global movement

pt: To solve the divisions, some figures have suggested changes to JFS’ leadership. Others are pushing to form a new AQ group altogether.

[OUTLAW 09]

Israel airforce has struck targets belonging to ISIS affiliated Shuhaha al Yarmouk In Syria
http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/27-november-israel-airforce-has-struck-targets-belonging#

[OUTLAW 09]

Turkey's President @RT_Erdogan in second phone-call with Russian President Vladimir Putin within past 26 hours on Aleppo, Syria.

BREAKING: Turkey says #ISIS group has used chemical weapons against its soldiers in Al-Bab, 17 wounded soldiers transported to #Turkey.

Iran has stated Russia can use their airfields to strike Syria...

Syria attack causes 'chemical gas' symptoms in rebels: Turkish media
http://reut.rs/2gum5qJ

[OUTLAW 09]

Interesting development/modification of the old stand by RPG...seen in eastern Ukraine by Russian mercenaries...appears to be a rocket powered 82mm mortar round used in indirect fire mode...

[OUTLAW 09]

All of those went to turn off #IsraelFires, But no one could stop the #Assad and #Russian fire in #Syria and #Aleppo

[CrowBat]

Telling.
#Assad's troops are not advancing towards al-Bab "to fight #ISIS".
But "to repel the #Turkish invasion".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00gCzo_YXz4#…Why spoil an alliance (with the Daesh), that works so well...?

[OUTLAW 09]

Shopping in the Souk ? Russian SOBR (Interior Ministry SOF) likely in Syria

[OUTLAW 09]

Russia Agrees to Iran’s Condition for Purchase of Su-30 Jets said Iran MoD...
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2016/11/26/1250825/russia-agrees-to-iran-s-condition-for-purchase-of-su-30-jets-dm#…

THIS is after the Russian MoD stated they would not sell the ac due to UN restrictions.....

[OUTLAW 09]

Challenge ...what SOF unit does he belong to?????

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: pro-Regime forces deploying huge firepower to try to advance on Sheikh Lutfi front, incl T-72B w/ Kontakt-5 http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=36.173634&lon=37.176704&z=14&m#…

Video footage filmed by Russian 300% own global media outlet Ruptly...

FSA || rural north #Aleppo
Video: Free Syrian Army tank demolishes Hezbollah missile launcher on Zahra front:
https://youtu.be/J76291vGBMA

FSA || #Quneitra
#Video:
First day of FSA Southern Front's new operation in southern #Syria's Quneitra province
https://youtu.be/Bu1y4nA_9_w

Breaking || #Aleppo
Free Syrian Army forces achieve direct hits on regime militia groups with grad missiles on Masaken Hananu front

[OUTLAW 09]

Infographic || #FSA in #Aleppo
Free Syrian Army forces fighting in & around Aleppo within Fatah Haleb operations room

[OUTLAW 09]

Syria faces long-term occupation by Shia militias (Obama's Iranian "equities"). How could it possibly go wrong?
http://wpo.st/Ye_H2

Aleppo: #FSA rebels & Turkish troops advancing near #Al_Bab...now close to the physical outskirts of Al Bab..and attempting a pincer encirclement to cut it off from the rest of IS controlled areas and block YPG...... .

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: 1st Reg. claims it damaged a T-90 after hit by a #TOW on Aziza front (could also be a T-72B w/ Kontakt-5 previously spotted there).

Aleppo: Ahrar Sham claims destruction of a Regime ammo depot & several vehicles on Sh. Said front (Tell Syriatel) after hit by Grad rockets

I believe it's T-72B 1989 due to the 3 smoke grenade launchers visible in a row
https://www.youtu.be/8j3Hicl51vo


Yeah there's a couple details that should be visible on a T-90 from that angle.

[OUTLAW 09]

Raqqa: #ISIS has recaptured several positions from #YPG at #Qaltah village in Northern #Raqqa since yesterday.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.200789&lon=39.002838&z=13&m=b#

[OUTLAW 09]

FSA || #Aleppo
Video footage of Free Syrian Army progressing on operations against #Daesh in rural east #Aleppo:
https://youtu.be/66xwlXTuSIc

[OUTLAW 09]

Ismail Alabdullah @ishmael12345611
Non-stop bombing just today we have responded to more than 20 airstrikes +40 barrel bombs.
#Aleppo

[OUTLAW 09]

THIS effects Syria as well as the Iraqi Iranian supported Shia militias which are on the US named terrorist list have publicly stated they will go into Syria ater Tal Afar and Mosul......

Hassan Hassan
✔
@hxhassan
New:

Shia militia law adds to the challenges in Iraq
http://www.thenational.ae/opinion/comment/shia-militia-law-adds-to-the-challenges-in-iraq#

[CrowBat]

Infographic || #FSA in #Aleppo
Free Syrian Army forces fighting in & around Aleppo within Fatah Haleb operations room
Now compare this with forces that are assaulting besieged Eastern Aleppo:

- Hezbollah Lebanon (here a Twitter showing 'al-Manar reporter' (https://twitter.com/IvanSidorenko1/status/802882147979849728); presence of al-Manar reporters is always indicating [strong] presence of Hezbollah/Lebanon)

- Liwa al-Qods (Palestinians; sort of 'kids of Palestinian refugees from 1948')

- Liwa 2000 (Iraqi Shi'a Jihadists (https://twitter.com/IvanSidorenko1/status/801653379629977600) from the Harakat an-Nujba - a movement very close to Harakat Hezbollah, which is Iraqi Hezbollah)

- Liwa Imam Ali (Iraqi Shi'a Jihadists (https://twitter.com/IvanSidorenko1/status/802388879781326848) from the Abu Fadl al-Abbas)

These four groups concentrated about 9,000 combatants to about one third of the total frontline around Eastern Aleppo. The Fatah Halab has about 8,000 combatants inside the pocket.

What a surprise they had to abandon Hamadaniya, Bustan al-Basha, al-Haik and Sakhour Districts today...

Congrats to Oblabla, Khamenei and their IRGC hordes...

[OUTLAW 09]

Quneitra offensive failed because of disagreements under the rebel groups

[OUTLAW 09]

Now compare this with forces that are assaulting besieged Eastern Aleppo:

- Hezbollah Lebanon (here a Twitter showing 'al-Manar reporter' (https://twitter.com/IvanSidorenko1/status/802882147979849728); presence of al-Manar reporters is always indicating [strong] presence of Hezbollah/Lebanon)

- Liwa al-Qods (Palestinians; sort of 'kids of Palestinian refugees from 1948')

- Liwa 2000 (Iraqi Shi'a Jihadists (https://twitter.com/IvanSidorenko1/status/801653379629977600) from the Harakat an-Nujba - a movement very close to Harakat Hezbollah, which is Iraqi Hezbollah)

- Liwa Imam Ali (Iraqi Shi'a Jihadists (https://twitter.com/IvanSidorenko1/status/802388879781326848) from the Abu Fadl al-Abbas)

These four groups concentrated about 9,000 combatants to about one third of the total frontline around Eastern Aleppo. The Fatah Halab has about 8,000 combatants inside the pocket.

What a surprise they had to abandon Hamadaniya, Bustan al-Basha, al-Haik and Sakhour Districts today...

Congrats to Oblabla, Khamenei and their IRGC hordes...

Aleppo: All the Western idiots who have been telling us for 5 years that there is no military solution in Syria have been totally proven wrong.

WHAT an utter and total US FP failure and a total failure of what the US has stood for....

THIS is exactly why Assad is conducting ethnic cleansing...of Arab Sunni's.....

Assad's strategy can work long term if he gives Shia militia incentives to stay. Particularly letting fighters settle their family in Syria

EXACTLY what Stalin did when he forced Ukrainian farmers into collectivism....and starved them to death in the early 30s and then replaced the dead Ukrainians with Russians....especially in the Russian occupied eastern Ukraine...

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: #FSA rebels have captured #Sab_Wiran and #Shuwayhah villages from #YPG.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36.520397&lon=37.636242&z=13&m=b#…

Aleppo: Turkish army bombed #YPG positions in #Sab_Wiran earlier today

EuphratesShield forces seized 3 villages today: Zurzu & Khaliliyah from #ISIS and Sab Wiran from #SDF/#YPG.

[OUTLAW 09]

Breaking pro-Kurdish sources now claim the YPG took parts of Bustan al-Pasha in northern #Aleppo city, during pro-regime op

[CrowBat]

One can now only hope the IRGC is going to manage keeping its Iraqi Jihadis under control - and Assadists out of captured districts.

Otherwise, this is going to turn into a slaughterhouse of historic proportions.


Assad's strategy can work long term if he gives Shia militia incentives to stay. Particularly letting fighters settle their family in SyriaThat's actually the IRGC's strategy: Assad was forced to accept it in order to remain in power.

On the contrary, removing Assad and declaring the 'Islamic Republic of Syria' would be bad for PR.

It would be bad for Iranian economy too (http://carnegieendowment.org/sada/60280): it would mean Iranians can't officially 'buy' real estate in Syria any more (http://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/iranians-buying-up-land-war-torn-syria/3252852.html) ('sold' to them as 'return payments' for all the money they loaned to Assad (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/majid-rafizadeh/iran-buying-syria-lands-t_b_12303128.html)).

...and that would be bad news for Khamenei personally, because it would put him at odds with a number of involved IRGC-cliques, most of which are meanwhile so powerful, word is they could remove him in a matter of one hour.

[CrowBat]

....in that sense, enjoy the sights and sounds from the Islamic Republic of Syria (https://twitter.com/Omar_Madaniah/status/802572590619295745)...

[OUTLAW 09]

In a world post-#Syria uprisings (both armed and peaceful) hardly stand a chance to succeed without massive bloodshed.

So true.
The west has betrayed its alleged 'values'.
The time of peaceful revolutions is over.
Authoritarianism will rise around the globe.

[OUTLAW 09]

Aleppo: Rebels have killed Muhammad Refa, commander of the Al-Quds Brigades, in Eastern #Aleppo today.

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat...was this chlorine attack conducted by YPG or IS?....Chlorine is normally now an Assad CW weapon not necessarily IS...and IS does not necessarily have the delivery systems ie ac......


Suspected chemical(chlorine)attack on #Turkish Army backed #FSA forces near #Manbij- #AlBab road,injuries brought to hospital in #Kilis

[OUTLAW 09]

THIS effects Syria as well as the Iraqi Iranian supported Shia militias which are on the US named terrorist list have publicly stated they will go into Syria ater Tal Afar and Mosul......

Hassan Hassan
✔
@hxhassan
New:

Shia militia law adds to the challenges in Iraq
http://www.thenational.ae/opinion/comment/shia-militia-law-adds-to-the-challenges-in-iraq#

“We believe that this is the start of partitioning Iraq and a clear rejection of the Sunnis in the country,”
http://www.wsj.com/articles/iraqs-sunni-lawmakers-to-challenge-legal-recognition-of-shiite-militias-1480262389#

Ethnic cleansing of Sunni's in Iraq and now in Syria......and yet KSA..the GCC and Turkey say not a single word.....

[OUTLAW 09]

CrowBat...recognize something.......

US policy in Syria worked against Turkish interests. Now Turkey successfully pursues its interests, US objects:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/turkeys-push-to-expand-safe-zone-in-syria-risks-slowing-fight-against-isis-1480069805?mod=e2twtt#

[OUTLAW 09]

URGENT: #Russian tourist bus crashes in #Syria

[OUTLAW 09]

Warfare in the Information Age!

[davidbfpo]

Oulaw09 posted this week an interview (Post 1671) - originally given to a Russian journalist - with a General Jamil Hassan, the C.O. of the Syrian Air Force Intelligence, now Robert Fisk of 'The Independent' has an interview with him too:
Tougher tactics would have ended Syrian war, claims the country's top intelligence general

Exclusive: Speaking for the first time as the bombardment of Aleppo continues, General Jamil Hassan – a man facing sanctions from both the US and EU – says he's ‘astounded the US and UN make all this effort for this very small district’Link:http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-war-aleppo-exclusive-top-syrian-general-robert-fisk-tougher-tacts-a7442161.html

[OUTLAW 09]

BREAKING Syria army takes key rebel district, dividing east Aleppo: state TV


Aleppo is being taken over by hard core pro #Assad extremists like the Mukhabarat spin off "Tiger Forces".

[CrowBat]

Oulaw09 posted this week an interview (Post 1671) - originally given to a Russian journalist - with a General Jamil Hassan, the C.O. of the Syrian Air Force Intelligence, now Robert Fisk of 'The Independent' has an interview with him too:Link:http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-war-aleppo-exclusive-top-syrian-general-robert-fisk-tougher-tacts-a7442161.html
Not one question about 200,000 'disappeared' Syrians; not one question on Cesar Files, not one on deployment of chemical weapons, not one on nearly 100,000 deserters from the military...

Classic Fisk.

[CrowBat]

CrowBat...was this chlorine attack conducted by YPG or IS?....Chlorine is normally now an Assad CW weapon not necessarily IS...and IS does not necessarily have the delivery systems ie ac......


Suspected chemical(chlorine)attack on #Turkish Army backed #FSA forces near #Manbij- #AlBab road,injuries brought to hospital in #Kilis
Apparently the Daesh: Turkish General Staff: 22 Syrian opposition fighters showed signs of chemical exposure after IS attack in Khalidiyah (http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/turkey-says-syrian-fighters-exposed-to-chemical-gas/693982).

[OUTLAW 09]

Oulaw09 posted this week an interview (Post 1671) - originally given to a Russian journalist - with a General Jamil Hassan, the C.O. of the Syrian Air Force Intelligence, now Robert Fisk of 'The Independent' has an interview with him too:Link:http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-war-aleppo-exclusive-top-syrian-general-robert-fisk-tougher-tacts-a7442161.html

The ME academic community......the entire well known ME SMEs who really know the ME/IS/JFS have literally shredded anything that Fisk has written in the last three years about the ME.....

Fisk is a proRussian/Assad shill for their actions in Syria and he knows little to nothing about IS or JFS.........and his articles have holes large enough to literally drive tanks through..

The interesting question though is normally those that pull 300% positions for either Assad and or Putin tend to have taken some form of Russian..
payment....question is just how much....

Fisk interviews a sanctioned Syria military officer...interesting to ask the question WHY...WHY is simply this is part and parcel of the media push that Assad and the Russians are doing to make Assad more fashionable than IS....when FSA is out of the way...

[OUTLAW 09]

Apparently the Daesh: Turkish General Staff: 22 Syrian opposition fighters showed signs of chemical exposure after IS attack in Khalidiyah (http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/turkey-says-syrian-fighters-exposed-to-chemical-gas/693982).

CrowBat....any idea on delivery method....as Assad has been using barrel bombs....possibly an IED?.

Noticed the Turkish medical side was in full HAZMAT suits so more than just chlorine which then might indicate mustard gas via mortar shells which we did find often in Iraq???

[OUTLAW 09]

BREAKING Syria army takes key rebel district, dividing east Aleppo: state TV


Aleppo is being taken over by hard core pro #Assad extremists like the Mukhabarat spin off "Tiger Forces".

Medic in E Aleppo watched "stream of people" flee Sakhour district, says "This is the worst moment in Aleppo since the revolution began"