Tag: Syria

The Coming Syrian Civil War

One of Donny’s clueless sycophants, Rubio made a bold statement the other day….predicting there would soon be a Syrian civil war.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Congress on Tuesday that the US assesses the new al-Qaeda-linked Syrian government could collapse within weeks and that the country could descend into “full-scale civil war.”

Rubio made the comments at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, where he explained the administration’s rationale for engaging with Syria’s new de facto leaders, who the US helped put in power, despite their al-Qaeda roots.

…

“The bad news is that the transitional authority figures, they didn’t pass their background check with the FBI. They’ve got a tough history and one that we understand,” Rubio said.

“If we engage them, it may work out, it may not work out. If we did not engage them, it was guaranteed that it would not work out,” he added. “In fact, it was our assessment that, frankly, the transitional authority, given the challenges they’re facing, are maybe weeks, not many months, away from potential collapse.”

Rubio said that a collapse would lead to “a full-scale civil war of epic proportions. Basically, the country splitting up.”

(antiwar.com)

Two points….first there has been a civil war going on in Syria since about 2011….p0resent day is just a momentary lull in the fighting….second….the country has been split up for years with the Assad government holding the Coast  and the extremists holding most of the east and central parts of the country.

To illustrate my point….just very recently….

While the cooperation between the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) government in Syria and the Kurdish SDF originally made it seem like the violence in northern Syria was on the decline, a new round of fighting between those groups has led to increased tensions and concern that the situation is about to blow up all over again.

Syrian media accused the SDF of trying to infiltrate a pair of army bases in Tal Syriatel, close to the Tishreen Dam. This led to what is being called a “limited” military confrontation between the two sides, though the HTS followed by increasing the number of troops deployed in the area around Tishreen Dam in the name of maintaining security.

This couldn’t have come at a worse time for the two sides, as they are conducting joint operations in neighboring Raqqa Governorate, which is mostly under SDF control. The raids are said to be targeting remnants of the Assad government and “drug dealers,” though locals are bristling at the summary detentions of people on accusations of disloyalty.

(antiwar.com)

Just one incident of the on-going war for dominance in Syria.

Rubio broad statement was clueless and not very accurate….but that is what I expect from someone serving on a cabinet of the least qualified.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The End Of Sanctions On Syria

On his very lucrative (for Donny mostly) trip through the hell hole many call the Middle East our boy Donny has decided to be magnanimous and lift the sanctions that have been place for many decades basically because Syria was labeled as a ‘terrorist state’…..why is he being so generous?

But now they can return to the fold of the ‘good guys’….I mean what could go wrong after all the new president of Syria was a commander in al-Qaeda. (Remember them?)

But that aside what does this turn of events mean?

President Trump’s Tuesday announcement that he would lift US sanctions on Syria was greeted with jubilation in the streets of Damascus, with the AP reporting people “whistled and cheered the news as fireworks lit the night sky.” Here’s what you need to know about what the move could mean for the country:

  • History: Syria was designated a state sponsor of terrorism in December 1979, which Middle East Eye reports put it in the same bucket as Iran and Cuba and put financial restrictions on things like US foreign aid; defense sales were banned. More sanctions came in the early 2000s. They reached their extreme in 2011 as the US responded to Bashar al-Assad’s crackdown on protesters.
  • Historic numbers: Middle East Eye reports “bilateral US-Syria trade, which still stood at roughly $900m in 2010, dropped below $60m in 2012.”
  • A decimated economy: The New York Times reports the sanctions “effectively cut Syria out of the international banking system and isolated it from the global economy, blocking money transfers, restricting imports, and barring activity by most international companies.”
  • A February report: The UN found that 25% of Syrians were unemployed and 90% lived in poverty. The report held a “stark warning,” it noted: “At current growth rates, Syria’s economy will not regain its pre-conflict GDP level before 2080. Annual economic growth must rise six-fold to shorten recovery to ten years, and an ambitious ten-fold rise would be needed over 15 years to bring the economy to where it would have been without conflict.”
  • ‘Game changer’: Those are the words the Times uses for what Trump’s move could mean for Syria. It reports that countries that back Syria’s new government, like Qatar and Saudi Arabia, would be able to send financial aid without fear of negative consequences; Syrians abroad could more easily send funds home; and “private companies from Turkey and elsewhere could seek contracts in construction and other sectors.” Al Jazeera echoes that, noting, “Whether the US itself invests in Syria remains to be seen, but increased Arab and Turkish investment is likely.”
  • Mechanics: The Times notes that Trump has the power to lift some of the sanctions, but Congress will need to have a hand in removing others.

All that is well and good but I want to know how Israel is going to react since they have occupied part of Syria for 50 years and they are still bombing Damascus.

Will Israel play nice or will it just be the same as usual with the US covering their asses for them?

Or for that matter…..how will Iran react?

Any thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Man In Charge

Assad is gone and the rebels are in control of the capital and most of the country….and now the watch has begun to see how all this plays out for the Syrians and the rest of the world.

For now it appears the head of the rebel faction is in charge…..and who is that?

It remains unclear who will be the next leader of Syria now that Bashar al-Assad is gone, but one man is clearly positioning himself for the role: Abu Mohammed al-Golani, leader of the main military faction behind the push to oust Assad. However, in a move that speaks volumes about his desire to present a more moderate image, al-Golani has shed that military nom-de-guerre and is now going by his given name, Ahmed al-Sharaa, reports Reuters. Coverage:

  • “By far, he’s the most important player on the ground in Syria,” Jerome Drevon, an analyst at the International Crisis Group, tells the New York Times. The 42-year-old al-Sharaa runs Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, a militant group once affiliated with al-Qaeda before a split several years ago.
  • His shift: When al-Sharaa gave his first interviews a decade ago, he did so in full military garb, notes the AP. Over the years, he has switched to a suit and tie and begun calling for tolerance of different religious beliefs. It’s a big departure from the days when he called for Syria to be ruled by sharia law. “He’s retooled, he’s refashioned, made new allies, and come with his own charm offensive,” another regional expert tells Reuters.
  • Bio, US view: Al-Sharaa was born in Saudi Arabia, but his parents were Syrian exiles, and the family returned there in the 1980s. He went across the border to Iraq in 2003 to fight with al-Qaeda against the US, reports Al Jazeera. He spent about five years in a US military prison before returning to Syria. The US still considers him a terrorist—and still has a $10 million bounty on his head. The US also considers HTS a terrorist organization.
  • The question: Analysts are watching to see if al-Sharaa will continue to espouse—and perhaps enact—more moderate policies amid Syria’s current leadership void. “In a way, this is his Zelensky moment,” says analyst Drevon, referring to the leader of Ukraine. “Zelensky was criticized before the war in Ukraine, and then he became a statesman. The question is can (al-Sharaa) make the same transformation.”

Like I have already said…..the road ahead is a tough one for the country and is full of chaos waiting to take hold and diminish the rewards for free the Syrian people from the vice grip of Assad.

So how does it look for Syria?

Syria’s prime minister said Monday that most cabinet ministers were back at work after rebels overthrew President Bashar Assad, but some state workers failed to return to their jobs, and a United Nations official said the country’s public sector had come “to a complete and abrupt halt.” Meanwhile, streams of refugees crossed back into Syria from neighboring countries, hoping for a more peaceful future and looking for relatives who disappeared during Assad’s brutal rule.

  • There were signs of the difficulties ahead for the rebel alliance now in control of much of the country, the AP reports. The alliance is led by a former senior al-Qaeda militant who severed ties with the extremist group years ago and has promised representative government and religious tolerance. The rebel command said Monday it would not tell women how to dress. “It is strictly forbidden to interfere with women’s dress or impose any request related to their clothing or appearance, including requests for modesty,” the command said in a statement on social media.
  • Nearly two days after rebels entered the capital, some key government services had shut down after state workers ignored calls to go back to their jobs, the UN official said, causing issues at airports and borders and slowing the flow of humanitarian aid. “This is a country that has had one government for 53 years and then suddenly all of those who have been demonized by the public media are now in charge in the nation’s capital,” UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria Adam Abdelmoula Abdelmoula told the AP. “I think it will take a couple of days and a lot of assurance on the part of the armed groups for these people to return to work again.”
  • Rebel leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, who was long known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, also met for the first time with Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi Jalali, who stayed in Syria when Assad fled. “You will see there are skills” among the rebels, al-Sharaa said in a video shared on a rebel messaging channel.
  • Israel said it carried out airstrikes on suspected chemical weapons sites and long-range rockets to keep them from falling into the hands of extremists. Israel has also seized a buffer zone inside Syria after Syrian troops withdrew. “The only interest we have is the security of Israel and its citizens,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar told reporters Monday.
  • Jalali, the prime minister, has sought to project normalcy since Assad fled. “We are working so that the transitional period is quick and smooth,” he told Sky News Arabia TV on Monday, saying the security situation had already improved from the day before. At the court of Justice in Damascus, which was stormed by the rebels to free detainees, Judge Khitam Haddad, an aide to the justice minister in the outgoing government, said Sunday that judges were ready to resume work quickly.
  • European countries including Germany and France said Monday that they plan to freeze all pending asylum requests from Syrians, Le Monde reports. Turkey, meanwhile, opened a border crossing to facilitate the return of refugees.

Then there is the fact that HST is considered a terrorist group….will that change?

The US is considering removing the al-Qaeda offshoot Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) from the list of US-designated terror organizations after the group led the offensive that ousted former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The Washington Post reported that US officials are in contact with HTS and other groups involved in the offensive. One US official said the Biden administration was doing a “real-time assessment” on whether or not HTS should be removed from the list of foreign terrorist organizations.

POLITICO reported there is a “furious debate” among US officials about the issue. “There is a huge scramble to see if, and how, and when we can delist HTS,” one official said.

(antiwar.com)

Another thing to keep in mind….the US has approximately 900 troops in Syria….and their fate could be bad if things do not pan out as people want….keep in mind what happened in Libya and the consequences of deposing Qaddafi.

This situation will be more important as the swearing in day gets closer.

I will be watching and writing….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Escape Into The Night

After 50+ years it appears that the Assad regime in Syria has been eliminated…..what began in late November as a regional conflict blossomed into the the capital city Of Damascus being taken and the Assad family slinking off into the night with their tails between their legs.

The rebel offensive in Syria has picked up speed, with forces moving into the suburbs of the capital, Damascus. Government forces have abandoned the central city of Homs, per the AP, and the location of President Bashar Assad was unknown. The army withdrew from much of southern Syria earlier Saturday, leaving more areas of the country, including two provincial capitals, under the control of opposition fighters, according to an opposition war monitor. The AP reports the redeployment away from the provinces of Daraa and Sweida came as Syria’s military sent large numbers of reinforcements in the futile effort to defend Homs.

The rapid advances by insurgents is a stunning reversal of fortunes for Assad, who appears to be largely on his own, with erstwhile allies preoccupied with other conflicts. Rami Abdulrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Saturday that Iran’s military advisers have started leaving Syria. He added that Iran-backed fighters in eastern Syria, mainly from Afghanistan and Pakistan, have withdrawn into central Syria. Officials with Iran-backed Iraqi militias said a decision hasn’t been made on whether to intervene in support of Assad. “If he resists and does not allow Damascus to fall, it is possible that the Iraqi factions will intervene,” one said.

The shock offensive began Nov. 27 led by the jihadi Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, or HTS, during which gunmen captured the northern city of Aleppo, Syria’s largest, and the central city of Hama, the country’s fourth-largest city. The group has its origins in al-Qaeda and is considered a terrorist organization by the US and the UN. The Syrian army said in a statement that it was setting up a “strong and coherent defensive and security belt,” apparently to defend Damascus from the south.

Not going well for the Assad regime and late Saturday word came out that Damascus had been taken by the rebels.

The 54-year Assad family dynasty appears to have come to an end in Syria. Rebels took control of the capital of Damascus without a fight, and President Bashar al-Assad is nowhere to be seen amid speculation he fled the country, reports the BBC.

  • Rami Abdurrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Assad flew out of Damascus early Sunday, reports the AP. That has not been confirmed. He ruled the country for nearly 25 years after being elected in 2000 upon the death of his father, Hafez Assad. The elder Assad gained power in a bloodless coup in 1970.
  • Leaders of Syria’s army informed officers that the Assad regime is over, reports Reuters. Thousands were gathering at a main square in the capital in celebration. Rebels declared that Syria is “free of the tyrant” on Telegram. Assad had long been allied with Russia and Iran.
  • Syria’s prime minister, Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali, told the nation in a video address that he would remain in his post and work with whatever new government emerges. “We extend our hand even to the opposition who extended their hand and confirmed that they will not harm any person who belongs to the Syrian homeland,” he said, per the Washington Post.
  • The main rebel group behind the lightning-fast military movement to topple Assad—Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS—says it will work with the prime minister and instructed rebel forces to steer clear of government institutions until they are formally turned over, per the New York Times. HTS broke with al-Qaeda in 2016, though they are still considered a terrorist group by the US. Other rebel factions operate elsewhere in the nation. Read more here.
  • Rebels freed prisoners from Saydnaya Prison north of the capital, notorious for its brutality to Assad’s opponents, according to multiple outlets. The takeover of Damascus came after anti-Assad forces took the major cities of Aleppo, Hama, and Homs.

Then there is Biden who is taking credit for the fall of Assad….

President Biden on Sunday celebrated the overthrow of the government of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by al-Qaeda-linked militants, calling it a “fundamental act of justice.”

Biden said Assad’s allies Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah couldn’t defend Syria thanks to US support for Israel and Ukraine.

“The upshot of all of this is, for the first time ever, neither Russia nor Iran nor Hezbollah could defend this abhorrent regime in Syria. And this is a direct result of the blows that Ukraine [and] Israel have delivered upon their own self-defense with unflagging support of the United States,” he said.

Biden also listed ways the US has pressured the Assad government over the years, including through crippling economic sanctions and the US occupation of eastern Syria. “Over the past four years, my administration had pursued a clear and principled policy toward Syria. First, we made clear from the start sanctions on Assad would remain in place unless he engaged seriously in a political process to end the civil war,” he said.

(antiwar.com)

What bull squirt!

Now the question is….where oh where did Assad slink off to to go into hiding?

Ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has arrived in Moscow with his family, Russian state media reported Sunday, and was granted asylum “for humanitarian reasons.” The report could not immediately be confirmed by outside outlets. Russia had supported Assad’s government, and a Kremlin official said Syrian rebels provided assurances, the Washington Post reports. “Russian officials are in contact with representatives of the armed Syrian opposition who have guaranteed the security of Russian military bases and diplomatic institutions in Syria,” per Tass.

Interesting news….Assad has been a thorn in the US ass for years and now there could be one less problem in the Middle East…

That is probably wishful thinking….but we will have to wait and see.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

I Have Been Summoned

Recently I was invited to participate in a round table discussion by the Atlantic Council…..

For those that are not familiar the Atlantic Co8nciul is a worldwide think tank…..

This from their website…..

The Atlantic Council promotes constructive leadership and engagement in international affairs based on the Atlantic Community’s central role in meeting global challenges. The Council provides an essential forum for navigating the dramatic economic and political changes defining the twenty-first century by informing and galvanizing its uniquely influential network of global leaders. The Atlantic Council—through the papers it publishes, the ideas it generates, the future leaders it develops, and the communities it builds—shapes policy choices and strategies to create a more free, secure, and prosperous world.

I am not a big fan of think tanks…..

This is the email I received from the ‘Council’

The Atlantic Council Syria Project is pleased to invite you to a panel discussion: ” How can the United States counter normalization with Assad in the Middle East“. This hybrid public event will take place on Wednesday, July 19, from 9:00 am to 11:00 am ET and will be streamed online.

On May 11, a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers introduced the ‘Assad Regime Anti-Normalization Act’ which could bar the U.S. government from normalizing relations with any Syrian government led by Bashar Assad and enhance the U.S. government ability to impose sanctions on regional individuals and entities that provide support to his regime. The proposed legislation came days after the Arab League, led by Saudi Arabia, allowed Syria back into the League based on a shared understanding to counter Captagon trade and to create a roadmap for national reconciliation and refugee return into Syria.

The event will discuss the unique challenges facing U.S. law makers in a changing Middle East order that warmed-up to Assad, especially amidst Chinese and Russian efforts to edge out the United States in the region, and how this would impact Washington’s strategy in the region.

Speakers

Congressman Joe Wilson
Chairman
House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia

Mohammad Alaa Ghanem
Policy Chief
Syrian American Council

Moderator

Qutaiba Idlbi
Nonresident Senior Fellow & Head of the Syria Project
Atlantic Council 

I have decline because there is no one is representing Syria in this ‘discussion’….the actually Syrian people should have a voice in this as well….not some jumped up organization that is more worried about funding than the people of Syria.

Most are well aware of my thoughts on sanctions….more will not make Syria a better or safer place.

Plus there are too many conservatives on this panel which tells me there is no one there that would do fair representation of the nation of Syria….basically it will be nothing more than Assad bashing.

I appreciate the invite but it needs to be more encompassing than it is.

Peace ….Out.

“lego ergo scribo”

Why Not Syria?

We all know about the conflict in Ukraine, we should the press has been cheer leading the war since the beginning, now that the leaked documents have been scrutinized there was one document that makes me ask questions.

Kiev’s military intelligence agency believed it could carry out attacks on Russian soldiers and Wagner Group forces in Syria, forcing Moscow to redeploy military assets from Ukraine. The story was reported by the Washington Post using documents released by Jack Teixeira.

The Ukrainian defense officials believed they could use Kurdish forces to wage a proxy war against Russia in Syria. According to the Post, the plan never materialized as President Volodymyr Zelensky ordered an end to the planning in December.

It appears that Ukrainian officials engaged in some discussions with the Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish militia backed by the US. The documents said the Kurdish officials requested training on drones and air defenses. Additionally, the Kurds said they would not attack Russian positions in areas held by the SDF, and requested their role in the operations be kept secret.

…

The document says Zelensky could allow the operations to proceed, but would likely require assistance from the US and Turkey. Ankara may be unwilling to support the covert proxy warfare as it views the SDF as a terrorist organization, and has long protested Washington arming the Syrian Kurds.

Additionally, the operations could inflame the war in Syria. The decade-long war has seen a dip in violence in recent years as Assad and his allies have consolidated control over most of Syria. The US and SDF occupy the eastern third of the country. However, the SDF leadership has shown a willingness to work with Moscow. If Kurdish forces allow themselves to become a proxy force for Kiev, Moscow will likely aggressively target SDF positions in eastern Syria. 

(antiwar.com)

Seriously the US would bankroll this operation?

Must we always bankroll these petty wars?

Still waiting for an answer to my original question….what will the US get return on our investment in the Ukraine war?

Why aren’t more questions being asked about this situation?

Just wondering.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Biden Flexes US Muscle

In case anyone was worried that Biden would be a ‘peace’ president then yu may calm your tortured mind….

Biden has ordered his first military action….

President Biden ordered an airstrike in Syria on Thursday, after recent rocket attacks launched on US forces in Iraq. The target was a structure thought to be used for smuggling weapons by two Shia militias backed by Iran, CNN reports. The goal of the US attack was to hurt the militias’ capability of carrying out any more attacks, per Politico, though the site, in the eastern Syrian town of Al Bukamal, has not been tied to the rocket attacks. The Defense Department had not publicly blamed any Iran-backed militias. Last week, per ABC, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the US “reserves the right to respond in the time and manner of our choosing.”

The Pentagon said the strikes were specifically in response to an attack in Iraq that killed a civilian contractor and wounded a service member, per the AP. A Pentagon spokesman called the airstrike a “proportionate military response.” It was the first military action taken since Biden took office. “The operation sends an unambiguous message: President Biden will act to protect American and coalition personnel,” John Kirby said. “At the same time, we have acted in a deliberate manner that aims to deescalate the overall situation in eastern Syria and Iraq.” The airstrikes, which took place about 6pm ET, successfully “destroyed multiple facilities at a border control point used by a number of Iranian-backed militant groups,” Kirby added. Attacks by Shiite militia groups against US targets in Iraq decreased in the months before Biden became president.

After strike briefing the SecDef issued his statement….

“I’m confident in the target that we went after, we know what we hit,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters Thursday after the US launched airstrikes in Syria, targeting facilities near the Iraqi border used by Iranian-backed militia groups. The Pentagon said the strikes, Biden’s first military action, were retaliation for a rocket attack in Iraq earlier this month that killed one civilian contractor and wounded a US service member and other coalition troops. An Iraqi militia official told the AP the strikes against the Kataeb Hezbollah, or Hezbollah Brigades, hit an area along the border between the Syrian site of Boukamal facing Qaim on the Iraqi side. Syria war monitoring groups said the strikes hit trucks moving weapons to a base for Iranian-backed militias in Boukamal.

The US has in the past targeted facilities in Syria belonging to Kataeb Hezbollah, which it has blamed for numerous attacks targeting US personnel and interests in Iraq. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based group that monitors the war in Syria, said 22 fighters from the Popular Mobilization Forces, an Iraqi umbrella group of mostly Shiite paramilitaries that includes Kataeb Hezbollah, were killed. The report could not be independently verified. Defense Secretary Austin said he was “confident” the US had hit back at the “the same Shia militants that conducted the strikes,” referring to the Feb. 15 rocket attack. Austin said he had recommended the action to Biden. “We said a number of times that we will respond on our timeline,” Austin said. “We wanted to be sure of the connectivity and we wanted to be sure that we had the right targets.”

There can be NO doubt that Biden is a Hawk….just as I predicted when he was elected.

This is just the beginning.

Some things never change.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Profiteering From War

Since 1979 and the fateful day when the Iranians took over the US embassy in Tehran there has been some sort of sanctions placed on the Iranian government.

Now we are placing sanctions on Syrians as well.

This time it is some guy that is a friend of Assad’s brother…..and he was targeted for war profiteering….

The Treasury Department imposed sanctions today on Syrian war profiteer Khodr Ali Taher and 11 of his companies – part of the fourth set of designations since the Caesar Act went into effect this past June. The targeting of Taher, a protégé of Bashar al-Assad’s younger brother Maher, is consistent with U.S. efforts to target the Assad family and its closest confidantes, especially the young entrepreneurs who have helped the regime take advantage of war-related business opportunities.

Taher rose to prominence after he began working with Syria’s 4th Armored Division, over which Maher al-Assad exercises control. The 4th Division’s security bureau, which handles its business affairs, began contracting with Taher in 2016 to protect its convoys. The firms Treasury sanctioned today include Castle Security and Protection LLC, which Taher founded in 2017 to manage his protection business. According to Treasury, the firm also operates lucrative checkpoints that collect fees from those crossing the front lines or the border with Lebanon.

Sanctions Target War Profiteer Working for Assad’s Brother

That was a report from a Neocon site…..now I ask what do you call Halleburton, et al?

I know free enterprise, right?

Does that not sound a bit hypocritical?

Now my question is…why is the US the only nation that can participate in free enterprise all others are war profiteers?

Those are rhetorical questions since I understand the concept of might makes right and the US tries to make its own rules.

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“lego ergo scribo”

It Is All So Much Bullsh*t!

It is election time and Trump has gone on record as promising to end our endless wars…..he likes to call himself the “ender of endless wars”.

Sorry sports fans but it is idle bullsh*t…just election rhetoric that holds on truth…..

I wrote a piece recently about all these promises…..https://lobotero.com/2020/09/14/ender-of-endless-wars/

Nice rhetoric too bad it is so much bullsh*t……and now why would I make such a claim?

Trump may be moving troops around and out of Iraq and Afghanistan….but those are not the only wars we have going (in case you were unaware)……what a bout Syria?

Glad you asked!

The US is sending additional forces into Syria after a series of incidents between US and Russian troops in the country, according to three unnamed Pentagon officials speaking to NBC News. The force will consist of six Bradley Fighting Vehicles and fewer than 100 soldiers, who will be operating in northeast Syria on a 90-day deployment.

The US-led anti-ISIS coalition Operation Inherent Resolve said that the Bradley Fighting Vehicles arrived in eastern Syria on Friday.

The unnamed officials told NBC that the additional soldiers and vehicles will serve as a “show of presence” to discourage Russia from entering the eastern security zone where US forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces operate.

US troops have had multiple encounters with the Syrian government and Russia inside Syria throughout the year. Some of the more serious confrontations occurred last month.

One incident took place on August 17th at a Syrian army checkpoint and resulted in US attack helicopters firing on the position, killing at least one Syrian soldier. A few days after the checkpoint incident, US and Russian military vehicles collided, injuring at least seven US soldiers.

US commanders blame the encounters on Moscow and Damascus, but while the US maintains its presence in the country against the will of the Syrian government, confrontations are bound to happen. These additional forces will only make similar incidents more likely.

(antiwar.com)

These wars are not ending…..just a reallocation of troops to give the appearance of a cessation of hostilities.

Dear Mr. Trump…use your magic pen and end these goddamn wars!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

P.S.

Citing increased complexity in the US operation in Syria, the Pentagon has announced they will send a small contingent of mechanized infantry, and several Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles back into NE Syria.

Officials are describing this as a “force protection” mission, and are linking it to an incident last month in which a US vehicle was side-swiped by a Russian vehicle. The US forces in Syria are confined to a small area, and officially they are there as part of a mission to take Syria’s oil.

There are currently an estimated 500 US troops in Syria, and this deployment will see an estimated 100 more troops sent to the country. Though media reports are calling this a show of force, it’s not clear that an extra 100 troops are going to mean that much in the grand scheme of things.

These troops will be moving in through Kuwait. Though the US presence in Syria is fairly small, even 100 additional troops could be quite expensive, and make this war for oil even less economical for the Trump Administration.

“Ender of Endless Wars My Ass!

Egypt–WTF?

As a foreign policy geek I am always looking for situations that are a problem to our policies…..

Using Open Source intel….I have found a problem with our foreign policy and as a geek in international situations this worries me.

The country is a strong ally to the US right? Has been since Saddat was the leader.

As a friend they are entitled to certain perks…..like aid from the US…..in 2020 to the tune of $297.9 in economic aid in 2020 and $1.55 billion in military aid.

That much cash should give the US some pull on the actions of our ‘friends’, right?

To take a different track here…..the US is NO friend of Assad of Syria, right?  As a matter of fact we are trying everything we can short of all out invasion to end Assad’s rule of Syria, right?

Then why is a ‘friend’ sending troops to Syria to help Assad?

Egypt has reportedly sent 150 soldiers to fight alongside Bashar al-Assad‘s regime in a planned operation against against rebel forces in northwestern Syria.

Turkey’s Anadolu news agency on Thursday quoted “reliable military sources” claiming that the soldiers have been sent to Aleppo and Idlib provinces, in coordination with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC),

Iran has been a key backer of the Syrian regime since an uprising against Assad’s rule started in March 2011, sending client militias from around the world such as the Afghan Fatemiyoun and the Lebanese Hezbollah.

The Egyptian troops have been deployed to the Khan Al-Asal area of western Aleppo province and around the town of Saraqeb in southern Idlib province, the agency reported.

Saraqeb was captured by the regime in late 2019 and is on the frontline between regime and rebel forces.

The Syrian news agency Shahed also reported a Syrian opposition military source as saying that “Egyptian mercenaries had arrived to fight alongside regime forces and sectarian militias in northern Syria”.

https://english.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2020/7/30/egypt-sends-troops-to-syria-to-fight-for-assad

Basically, our taxpayer money is inadvertently being used to prop up Assad in Syria.

Just another case for a program to upgrade our foreign policy….but sadly that will not happen any time soon…..

Not to worry though……Egypt will spend cash with Russia for fighter planes……

Russia Today quoted military sources July 27 as saying that the Egyptian army will acquire the Russian Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jet, a first for Egypt, after photos emerged of five of them heading to Egypt. Neither the Russian nor the Egyptian side has so far made any official comments on the alleged acquisition, while the United States objects to any such deals.

According to Russia Today, “The sources indicated that these heavy and long-range fighter jets would give the Egyptian army superiority in the regional sky, which is why the US strongly objected.”


Russia’s Top War website, which focuses on defense affairs, reported July 23 that the first batch of Su-35 fighters took off from the Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aviation Plant and headed to the European side of Russia, from where they will be delivered to Egypt.

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