ISIS claims a SVBIED attack against Syrian opposition in Atmeh. More than 20 killed.
The Syrian rebel assault on #Akhtarin began.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r69bTfzj1NA#
…
NE #Hama: Jaish Al-Nasr destroyed with a #TOW a 23 mm gun in outskirts of Taybat Al-Ism (Tell Al-Rai).
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=35...z=15&m#…
US sources: "All military options are on the table, but #Obama will do nothing against #Assad, he is only interested in fighting #ISIS."
Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 10-06-2016 at 08:23 AM.
Aleppo: Rebels have recaptured "Institute for Youth Sports" in #Bostan_al_Pasha & killed several pro-#Assad forces.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=de&lat=36...16&m=b#…
Aleppo: Rebels in besieged Eastern #Aleppo City launched a counter-offensive in #Bostan_al_Pasha and #Suleiman_al_Halabi Districts.
Aleppo: Rebels in the captured #Aziziyah village today.
Hama: Rebels have killed #Assad Colonel Mehdi Rajab Mubarak, commander of an artillery regiment in Northern #Hama.
List of Rebuttals to @MaxBlumenthal's Anti-Syrian PieceOriginally Posted by OUTLAW 09
https://hummusforthought.com/2016/10/05/lis
t-of-rebuttals-to-max-blumenthals-anti-syrian-article/#
…
Islamic State BMP on fire after being destroyed by rebels in E. #Qalamoun
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DL2tUEONYKk#…
Powerful, moving film by @waadalkateab on life #InsideAleppo tonight on @Channel4News - Watch it here:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...Z3gUUQ#…
Give the Nobel peace Prize to the SCD...The Guardian....
https://www.theguardian.com/commenti...P=share_btn_tw
The White Helmets @SyriaCivilDefWhen a bomb comes crashing down on a building, leaving devastation in its wake, they rush towards the site instead of towards shelters. With their bare hands, they search for people in the rubble. They try to pull out survivors who are shocked and wounded, tormented by fear and, not least, the knowledge that civilians long ago stopped being collateral damage, and are precisely the target in this war. These rescuers are Syria’s White Helmets, a group of 3,000 local volunteers. Once tailors or carpenters or students or engineers, they are now dedicated to saving lives when fighter jets and helicopters drop barrel bombs, cluster explosives, phosphorus bombs and chlorine shells on neighbourhoods or hospitals. As the Nobel committee prepares to announce this year’s peace prize, the White Helmets deserve#attention.
In Syria’s maelstrom of horrors, it is hard to find anything that points to respect for basic humanitarian principles or even human dignity. The Assad regime has unleashed untold levels of violence on the Syrian population and is being actively assisted by Russia’s military intervention as well as by Iranian-connected ground forces. Jihadi groups have grown, often filling voids left by less well-armed and well-resourced moderates. Civilians are trapped in the middle. In Aleppo, 300,000 people are exposed to a relentless barrage of airstrikes. The Syrian government and Russia now seem intent on crushing Aleppo, the opposition’s last stronghold, before a new American president takes office. Diplomacy has entirely collapsed, with acrimonious exchanges in the UN replacing attempts at a ceasefire.
This is the backdrop against which the White Helmets operate – a western-funded Syrian search-and-rescue organisation whose members put their lives at great risk to save civilians, receiving only a monthly stipend of $150. Danger is made worse by the fact those who bomb routinely resort to double-tap strikes, with fighter jets dropping ordnance and then returning to target rescue teams.
These volunteers know all too well that great power politics, alongside a tyrant’s brutal policies, have brought Syria to the abyss. They entertain no illusions that genuine measures will be taken swiftly to end massacres on a scale unprecedented in decades. The White Helmets do what they can, locally. It’s the very least the west can do to back them. No one should be surprised that Bashar al-Assad has compared these humanitarian activists to terrorists: that’s what he calls anyone who opposes him.
What the White Helmets accomplish may seem like a drop in the ocean, but what they represent is immense: resilience and bravery in the face of barbarism. They are a constant reminder that those targeted by Russia and the Assad regime’s massive bombing campaign in Aleppo are civilians, not terrorists. And they show that individual acts of courage can go a long way to fight indifference.
They also embody a spirit of civic resistance – upholding some of the ideals of the peaceful, popular uprising of 2011 and exemplifying courage and solidarity in the face of state-sponsored terror. The international community has utterly failed Syrians, by failing to protect them from mass atrocities. No Nobel peace prize can erase that. But because symbols can be powerful, the White Helmets should be recognised with#this award.
.@SyriaCivilDef center in Damascus just destroyed by air dropped barrel bomb. Vehicles destroyed and center out of action.
Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 10-06-2016 at 09:18 AM.
A part of the Barada river that supports areas in #Damascus & its countryside was damaged as #Assad shelling hit the area...water now flowing into the countryside and not to Damascus......
Fighters from Jaish al Islam, Fustat Army, and Rahman Corps meet and as leaders to unite.
https://youtu.be/_BtytNzXHLQ# #Ghouta
Fuel processing factory targeted by Russian warplanes
https://youtu.be/frnlKZzghc0
Sons of Qadisiyah Division repel a regime attack on al-Tifahiyah hill in #Latakia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKnrwxh48uY#…
First Coastal Division firing on regime forces on al-Tafahiyah hill in #Latakia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htFhMozYUGg#…
More great video footage from Ahrar Sham....
Ahrar al Sham media release "Redemption of Hama" pt 1
https://youtu.be/byV4sUTZwnU
EuphratesShield @EuphratesShield Oct 5
TAF: AFAD and Turkish Red Crescent continue to provide humanitarian aid to civilians in the region. #EuphratesShield #Jarablus
Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 10-06-2016 at 09:12 AM.
Important Russian development as it is an indicator that neither their PMCs nor recruited Russian eastern Ukrainian mercenaries are getting the job done in Syria .....question is when they are captured ARE they Russian military troops or straight outright mercenaries....we actually have already seen this in eastern Ukraine with the so called Russian "vacationing troops" or "contract troops"...when two Russia active duty Spetsnaz officers were captured...Russia claimed "contract"...they claimed "active duty"....
Leonid Ragozin
@leonidragozin
Russian government has drafted a law which allows hiring military personnel for overseas operations on short-term basis.
Seems to also be a manning problem with Russian personnel....
Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 10-06-2016 at 09:16 AM.
Russia outraged by Singer Robbie Williams song "Party Like A Russian" with some interesting lyrics
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...russian-video#
… & (Ras)#Putin
TASS: Shoigu says that Russian weapons have shown their reliability and effectiveness in Syria.
https://twitter.com/tass_agency/stat...4959133880320#
…
I guess this is a valid comment by the Russian MoD when it comes to deliberate killing of unarmed and undefended civilians...anything is reliable and effective......
For a large number of Iraqi and Syrian Sunni's Turkey is appearing to be their only protecting force against Shia militias and Iranian supported troops in both Iraq and Syria....
#BREAKING: Sunni militia commander: We want Turkish troops to remain in #Iraq.
Iraq's former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki receives Bashar al-Assad's Islamic Mufti in #Baghdad, says Iraq and Syria have common enemies.
"The Sunni's is meant with this comment........
SIPRI @SIPRIorg
'Is the CSTO Preparing for Peacekeeping in Syria?' (Eurasianet):
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/80791
Russia's post-Soviet security bloc, the Collective Security Treaty Organization, has held discussions with the United Nations about taking part in UN peacekeeping missions, an effort analysts said was likely made with Syria in mind.
"We have agreed to prepare a roadmap on the involvement of CSTO peacekeepers in UN peacekeeping operations," said#CSTO Secretary General Nikolay Bordyuzha last month in New York after meeting with UN officials there. The UN "has already proposed the steps that we need to take and there is quite an active dialogue going on," he said.
The CSTO has been developing a peacekeeping structure for years, and held its first peacekeeping exercise in Kazakhstan in 2012. (The CSTO includes Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, in addition to Russia.)#
Lately Bordyuzha has begun to talk more about taking part in UN peacekeeping missions, in particular. At the most recent CSTO peacekeeping exercises, in Belarus in August, the group drilled for the first time on a scenario that envisaged a UN-mandated peacekeeping operation.
This blog has been skeptical about the possibility of that happening, but#Jaïr van der Lijn, a peacekeeping expert at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, says that it is in fact a real possibility. "At the UN, they would love to have some kind of cooperation like this with the CSTO," he told
The Bug Pit in an interview. In recent years the UN has placed a greater emphasis on cooperating with regional blocs as it struggles to find enough soldiers to staff peacekeeping missions. The African Union, European Union, and NATO have all cooperated on UN peacekeeping operations in various capacities, and#van der Lijn said he didn't see any obstacle to the CSTO doing something similar.
Van der Lijn noted that already two years ago the CSTO was discussing the possibility of deploying to UN peacekeeping missions in Africa. He discussed that with various officials in Moscow, and came away with the impression that it was largely "a#public relations offensive by the CSTO."#
At the CSTO Secretariat itself, people were very enthusiastic about deploying to Africa, he said.#"But when you talked to people at the [Ministry of Foreign Affairs], for example, they would say we don't really have any interest in deploying in Africa," he said. "And the [Ministry of Defense] would be even more against it -- we don't have any interests in Africa, we don't want to deploy there."
The UN, meanwhile, was interested but skeptical of the CSTO"s willingness to carry through,#van der Lijn said. He recalls UN officials asking for his assessment.#"'So, what do you know about the efforts of the CSTO, we can't really figure it out. We've had some talks with them but it hasn't really moved forward? So what is really their intention?' -- that was the question I got." (The UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations did not respond to requests for comment from The Bug Pit.)
So what might account for the CSTO's redoubled efforts with the UN?
The development of the war in Syria, in which Russia has played an increasingly large role, has probably changed Moscow's calculation,#van der Lijn said:#"It wouldn't surprise me that once there is a peace agreement, or something to be done in Syria, that the government of Syria and the Russians would say 'we need to have Russian forces here to guarantee the security of the government.' And it could be the CSTO."
It would be one thing for Russia to deploy peacekeepers to Syria, as Russia now sees Syria (in contrast to Africa) as a key interest. Whether any of the other CSTO countries would go along, however, is an entirely different question. Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has categorically ruled out sending troops to fight anywhere abroad, and other CSTO members have been less vocal but have evinced little interest in getting involved with Russia's increasingly ambitious military endeavors.
The CSTO has, over the years, occasionally#discussed deploying to Syria, but has usually done so by denying that it had any plans to do so. Last year, Bordyuzha was asked about the potential involvement of CSTO allies in Russia's operations in Syria, and he responded: "There is no need yet."
At the conclusion of August's peacekeeping exercises, Bordyuzha referred vaguely to the "world situation" which was heightening the military importance of the CSTO:#"Political influence is the main instrument of the organization. But the way the [world] situation is developing suggests just the opposite: the increase in the role of the military component of the organization."
At a press conference in September Bordyuzha explicitly denied plans to deploy to Syria, though with some wiggle room: "To speak now about forming some sort of collective forces group and send it there [to Syria] for a fight with terrorism, simply doesn't make sense." The key word may be "now." Meanwhile, Bordyuzha is set to step down from his CSTO post this month in favor of an Armenian, with uncertain consequences for the group's priorities. Stay tuned.
#
I think I've seen this movie before....
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/syr...-syria-n658741WASHINGTON — In a sharp deterioration of relations, the U.S. on Monday suspended diplomatic contacts with Russia over Syria, while Moscow halted cooperation on a joint program for disposal of weapons-grade plutonium.
The U.S. move followed a threat last week from Secretary of State John Kerry after new Russian and Syrian attacks on the city of Aleppo. The State Department said Russia had not lived up to the terms of an agreement last month to restore the cease-fire and ensure sustained deliveries of humanitarian aid to besieged cities.
"This is not a decision that was taken lightly," State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. "Unfortunately, Russia failed to live up to its own commitments ... and was also either unwilling or unable to ensure Syrian regime adherence to the arrangements to which Moscow agreed."
A scrimmage in a Border Station
A canter down some dark defile
Two thousand pounds of education
Drops to a ten-rupee jezail
http://i.imgur.com/IPT1uLH.jpg
Military Advisor @miladvisor
Russian MoD:Any missile or air strikes on the territories controlled by the Syrian gov.,would pose clear threat to Russian mil. personnel.
A direct threat for the Coalition air force. Now must be clear to everybody why Russia deployed that S-300 missile system to Syria.
Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 10-06-2016 at 03:20 PM.
"Why has it been so hard for Obama & Kerry to see they've been negotiating w/thugs who laugh at their fecklessness."
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opini....870c250f09f0#
Estrn Aleppo could be destroyed by Xmas, warns UN Syria envoy: Grdn. Russia will live w this stain for decades.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/201..._iOSApp_Other#
…
Russia's Ministry of Offense says it will shoot down all planes in #Syria which do not target hospitals
Russia's flexing its muscles in today's newspapers: "We've shot down US planes before in Korea & Vietnam," points out one paper
Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 10-06-2016 at 03:56 PM.
Cardin rips Russia, says U.S. must "revisit" approach to Cold War rival
http://politi.co/2dsDAYT
Russia warns nuclear war with West is imminent
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/wo...a7345461.html#
John Kerry Sends Regrets
Obama officials start to wash their hands of the Syrian catastrophe.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/john-ker...ets-1475708899
Oct. 5, 2016 7:08 p.m. ET
How pathetic is the current Obama/Rhodes/Kerry WH Syrian FP WHEN a Syrian basically "calls you out as a fraud"??????Much of the city of Aleppo lies in ruins after days of airstrikes by Russian and Assad regime forces, and buried in the wreckage is whatever is left of the Obama Administration’s Syria policy. If it’s any consolation to the 275,000 souls trapped in the city, John Kerry has regrets.
That much is clear from a leaked recording of a conversation the Secretary of State had with a group of Syrian civilians engaged in humanitarian work during last month’s U.N. General Assembly. Mr. Kerry complained that “the Russians don’t care about international law, and we do.” He noted that “a lot of Americans don’t believe that we should be fighting and sending young Americans over to die in another country.”
Above all, he lamented that his diplomatic efforts to end Syria’s war were never backed by a credible threat of American military strikes. “I think you’re looking at three people, four people in the Administration who have all argued for use of force, and I lost the argument,” Mr. Kerry said.
The Secretary is right that President Obama doomed whatever chances the U.S. had of shaping a better outcome in Syria when Mr. Obama made clear that nothing, including chemical attacks against civilians, could induce him to deploy even modest force to ground Bashar Assad’s air force or establish no-fly/no-drive zones.
Then again, it’s hard to credit Mr. Kerry as the scorned voice of reason within the Administration when, until last week, he was the most vocal advocate of making common cause with Moscow in Syria.
In May 2015 Mr. Kerry first broke the informal diplomatic quarantine the U.S. had imposed on Russia after it granted Edward Snowden asylum in 2013 and invaded Ukraine the following year. Last month Mr. Kerry was pushing the Pentagon, over the objections of Defense Secretary Ash Carter, to share targeting intelligence with Russia to grease a new cease-fire deal. As with a similar cease-fire Mr. Kerry negotiated earlier this year, Russia violated it within days.
It’s also worth remembering that, until the Syrian revolt began in 2011, Assad had no better friend in Washington than then-Senator Kerry, who praised the dictator as a man of his word who had been “very generous with me.” In his conversation last month, Mr. Kerry continued to press for a plan in which Assad would participate in national elections overseen by the U.N. “under the strictest standards.” That goes further than even President Obama, whose stated policy remains that Assad must go.
Mr. Kerry also seems to doubt there’s any use in arming rebels, lest it fuel another cycle of violence. “The problem is that, you know, you get, quote, enforcers in there and then everybody ups the ante, right?” he said. “Russia puts in more; Iran puts in more; Hezbollah is there more and Nusra more; and Saudi Arabia and Turkey put all their surrogate money in, and you all are destroyed.” As for targeting Assad’s allies in Hezbollah, he insisted the U.S. had no quarrel with the terrorist group. “Hezbollah is not plotting against us.”
In other words, Mr. Kerry claims to regret not having the option of military force, not that he would ever use it against the very people who are now besieging Aleppo. Meanwhile, he rues that Russia and its friends in Syria are indifferent to international law, but he’s prepared to believe they’ll abide by the results of an election they’ll also help oversee.
Following the discussion, a Syrian who had sat in on the conversation summed up the Secretary’s position to the New York Times : “You have to fight for us, but we will not fight for you. How can this be accepted by anyone? It’s unbelievable.” Dishonorable, too.
Remember the Syrian civil society peacefully in 2011 asked for democracy, the rule of law and good governance THE very same things the US professes to believe in as well AND in return they got genocide, war crimes and starvation....
AND the Obama WH.......did nothing.....
QUOTE
Following the discussion, a Syrian who had sat in on the conversation summed up the Secretary’s position to the New York Times : “You have to fight for us, but we will not fight for you. How can this be accepted by anyone? It’s unbelievable.” Dishonorable, too.
UNQUOTE
Last edited by OUTLAW 09; 10-06-2016 at 03:52 PM.
THIS is just a smoke screen from the Obama WH as there never was "any deal" with the Russians....the Russians wanted the US to talk and talk and talk...while they prepared for the destruction of Aleppo....JUST as they have done in eastern Ukraine....
White House and Congress at odds over sanctioning #Assad for war crimes, in fear of upsetting any deal with Moscow.
https://twitter.com/washingtonpost/s...4267785461760#
…
THERE is no deal so move to sanctions....simple as that ...BUT WAIT that will upset the Iran Deal WHICH is why there is a smokescreen coming from this WH.....
REMEMBER the recent Russian Ambassador to Syria statement....Assad is not going to attack Aleppo....sure......
Haaretz.com
✔
@haaretzcom
Assad vows to retake all of Syria, says U.S. using Nusra Front as 'card' in war
http://dlvr.it/MPcsbM
EVEN Assad is not really believing the Russians will tackle headon with Russian troops JFS and IS......
REMEMBER up to now virtually all Russian/Assad air strikes WHERE not on IS and or seldom on JFS.....
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