The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby Grizzly » Mon Oct 14, 2019 8:31 pm

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I put NOTHING past these forever WAR CRIMINALS!

That was no accident nor mistake.

https://twitter.com/PolishPatriotTM/status/1183695628288827392
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby seemslikeadream » Mon Oct 14, 2019 10:13 pm

at this moment the map of the Middle East is being redrawn

More than 275,000 people have been displaced

Haaretz
Analysis U.S. Exit From Syria Could Redraw the Map of the Middle East’s Blocs
Trump’s decision lets the Turks take over more Kurdish areas, while Russia and Iran can breathe a sigh of relief and go ahead with their own plans
https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-new ... -1.6766883
Dec 22, 2018 4:36 PM


Screen Shot 2019-10-14 at 9.43.09 PM.png


And over the weekend, State and Energy Department officials were quietly reviewing plans for evacuating roughly 50 tactical nuclear weapons that the United States had long stored, under American control, at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey, about 250 miles from the Syrian border, according to two American officials.
Those weapons, one senior official said, were now essentially Erdogan’s hostages. To fly them out of Incirlik would be to mark the de facto end of the Turkish-American alliance. To keep them there, though, is to perpetuate a nuclear vulnerability that should have been eliminated years ago.
“I think this is a first — a country with U.S. nuclear weapons stationed in it literally firing artillery at US forces,” Jeffrey Lewis of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies wrote last week.
For his part, Mr. Erdogan claims nuclear ambitions of his own: Only a month ago, speaking to supporters, he said, he said he “cannot accept” rules that keep Turkey from possessing nuclear weapons of its own.
http://archive.is/MdpkG#selection-469.0-489.207


ALJAZEERA
How Turkey's 'Peace Spring' changed the dynamics of Syria's war
Turkey's military action on Syria will have consequences far beyond the 'safe zone' it is trying to establish.

9 hours ago
A Turkey-backed Syrian rebel fighter is seen in the town of Tal Abyad, Syria October 13, 2019 [Khalil Ashawi/Reuters]

After months of pressuring, lobbying and amassing troops along the border with Syria, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan finally succeeded in securing the approval of US President Donald Trump for a military operation in northeast Syria. Operation "Peace Spring" is the third major Turkish military operation inside the country since 2016. The scope and depth of the operation are still unknown, but it is likely to change the dynamics of the Syrian conflict in a major way.

Seizing the moment

Since 2012, Erdogan has been trying to establish a "safe zone" along the section of Turkey's border with Syria that falls to the east of the Euphrates River.

The Syrian opposition succeeded in pushing the forces of the Syrian regime out of the country's northeast in the summer of 2012, allowing the People's Protection Units, known by its Kurdish acronym YPG, to take control. Turkey says the YPG is the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which it classifies as a terrorist organisation.

Before 2016, Erdogan's plans to intervene militarily in Syria were opposed by both the Obama administration and the Turkish military, which the president did not yet have complete control over. Erdogan, as a result, declined to participate in the US-led war against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS), declared by Obama following the fall of Mosul, in the summer of 2014.

The United States was not, therefore, allowed to use the Incirlik airbase in the south of Turkey in the war against ISIL. It had, instead, to rely on bases further afield, such as al-Udiad in Qatar and Riffa in Bahrain. Meanwhile, the US shunned an offer by Turkey to arm and train Syrian opposition factions to confront ISIL and opted instead to use the YPG as a local proxy against ISIL.

To conceal the Kurdish identity of the US's chosen proxy in Syria, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which includes fighters from non-Kurdish groups, was established in 2015. The SDF was trained and armed by the US military.

When Turkey eventually decided to change course and allow the US to use its territories in the fight against ISIL in the summer of 2015, it was too late. By then, Russia had entered the fray on the side of the Syrian regime, changing the dynamics of Syria's conflict completely. This meant Turkey was now participating in a conflict entirely different from the one it was offered a role in a few years earlier. The change in circumstances was demonstrated clearly in November 2015, when Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near its border with Syria, unleashing a major crisis with Russia.

Securing the borders west of the Euphrates

Having received lip service by its NATO allies for its confrontation with Russia, Turkey found itself stuck between a strong rival - Russia - in the Syrian territories west of the Euphrates and an ally unsympathetic to its needs - the US - in the Syrian territories east of the Euphrates.

The failed military coup in Turkey in July 2016 provided Erdogan with an opportunity to mend fences with Russia and to get out of this strategic trap. Just one month after the attempted coup, during which Russia expressed support for Erdogan, Turkey was allowed to move into northwest Syrian and clear the area from both ISIL and the YPG. The operation, named "Euphrates Shield", paved the way for the establishment of the Astana process, wherein Russia and Turkey tried to reach a modus vivendi in Syria. Iran later also joined this arrangement.

In February 2018, Russia allowed Turkey to launch yet another operation, this time named "Olive Branch", to expel the YPG from Afrin. Having succeeded in securing the section of its border with Syria to the west of the Euphrates River, Turkey turned its attention to the east following this operation. With the defeat of ISIL in that region looming, Turkey started preparing to fill the vacuum that the planned departure of US forces would inevitably create there. To the dismay of Turkey, however, the US decided to stay.

Focusing on Trump

In January 2018, the State Department, under former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, outlined a plan for a long-term US military presence in Syria. He defined four key objectives for the open-ended US military presence in northeast Syria. They included ensuring a lasting defeat of ISIL and al-Qaeda, creating the right conditions for the return of Syrian refugees, curbing Iranian influence in the region and holding UN-supervised elections aimed at securing a new leadership in Damascus. The latent motive behind this strategy, as Tillerson put it, was that the US "cannot repeat the mistake of 2011, where a premature departure from Iraq allowed al-Qaeda to survive and eventually become ISIS".

Trump was unconcerned. In March 2018, he fired Tillerson and the following month he took almost everyone off guard when he announced the full withdrawal of US troops from Syria. Under pressure from members of his own administration, as well as from regional and European allies, Trump gave the Pentagon and the State Department six months to finish the job against ISIL and pull troops out of Syria.

Turkey took advantage of this schism within the US administration and opened a direct channel with Trump. Hence, by the end of the six month period, Erdogan had called Trump and received assurances that the US would soon be leaving. Trump was quoted as telling Erdogan during their December 2018 phone call on Syria: "It's all yours. We are done."

The withdrawal plan, however, was shelved again and the US and Turkey entered into a lengthy negotiation on the issue that yielded no concrete results for almost a year.

On Sunday, October 6, another phone call between Erdogan and Trump changed the dynamics again. Trump decided that he would allow Turkey to go ahead with its military operation and establish a "safe zone". Three days later, the Turkish army entered Syria.

New dynamics

Although it is still unclear whether the US is planning to fully withdraw from Syria, or merely give way for Turkey to establish a "safe zone" near its border, the Turkish operation has already transformed the dynamics of the Syrian conflict, resulting in new alignments inside Syria and out.

The Arab Gulf states - Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Kuwait - as well as Egypt and Israel have already voiced their opposition to Turkey's move. Speaking at an emergency Arab League meeting in Cairo on October 12, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit called Turkey's military operation in northeast Syria an "invasion of an Arab state's land and an aggression on its sovereignty". Saudi Arabia State Minister for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir also condemned the Turkish operation and demanded an immediate end to it.

Over the past year, Riyadh has exerted tremendous efforts to convince Trump to maintain a substantial military presence in northeast Syria to counterbalance both Turkey and Iran. Last November, the Saudis committed $100m to convince the US to remain in Syria. At one point, Riyadh even offered to send troops to patrol the area alongside the US and the YPG. Turkey's "Peace Spring" operation is, therefore, seen as a major blow to Saudi efforts to keep Ankara out of Syria.

Israel has also condemned the Turkish military operation and expressed sympathy with the YPG. "Israel strongly condemns the Turkish invasion of the Kurdish areas in Syria and warns against the ethnic cleansing of the Kurds by Turkey and its proxies," Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote. "Israel is prepared to extend humanitarian assistance to the gallant Kurdish people."

Israel has always been a champion of Kurdish separatism. The establishment of a greater Kurdistan is seen by Israel and some circles in Saudi Arabia as a means to weaken the major powers in the region, such as Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria.

Surprisingly, Turkey's Astana partners, Russia and Iran, have shown more flexibility.

Moscow stated that it understands Turkish security concerns in northern Syria and joined forces with the US to block an EU-drafted statement at the UN Security Council calling upon Turkey to end its military operation.

Iran, too, expressed a similar position. This signals a major shift in the policies of the two countries towards the Turkish incursion. Earlier this year, both Moscow and Tehran had expressed opposition to Ankara's plans to establish a "safe zone" in northern Syria.

Now, however, Iran is not in a position to alienate Turkey while facing crippling US sanctions. Moscow also relies on Turkey's cooperation to end the conflict in Syria and secure its interests there. In addition, Russia's major concern at the moment is to expel the US from Syria, punish the Kurds for allying themselves with Washington and push them back into the lap of the Syrian regime.

This is exactly what has happened. Having been abandoned by their American patron, the Kurds now have nowhere to go but back to their old ally in Damascus. This is why they struck a deal with the Syrian regime and asked it to deploy its forces to the Turkish border. This constituted a major shift in the alliances shaping Syria's conflict.

This new arrangement will likely pit the Syrian regime forces against Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian opposition. Will Iran and Russia support the Syrian regime in this fight as they did in Idlib? At this stage, Moscow will likely try to work out an agreement between Turkey and the Syrian regime, revive the 1998 Adana Accord on border security between the two sides and establish a status quo acceptable to all.

Moscow made similar arrangements in the northwest in Afrin and in the areas affected by Turkey's "Euphrates Shield" operation. Moscow ultimately wants all foreign forces to permanently leave Syria, but it gives securing the departure of the US priority over everything else. Because once Washington gets out, Moscow will be able to decide the fate of Syria on its own, and manipulate the actions of all the other actors involved in the conflict, including Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Israel.

The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance.
https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opini ... 13108.html
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Last edited by seemslikeadream on Tue Oct 15, 2019 8:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby Jerky » Tue Oct 15, 2019 3:41 am

Jesus Fucking Nailholes, what a deteriorating mess of a worst case scenario horror show.
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Re: US troops surround Syria on the eve of invasion?

Postby seemslikeadream » Tue Oct 15, 2019 6:37 am

WORLD NEWS
OCTOBER 15, 2019 / 4:31 AM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO
Syrian Kurdish-led authority: 275,000 displaced by Turkish offensive
1 MIN READ
FILE PHOTO: Smoke rises near the border town of Tel Abyad, Syria, October 12, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi/File Photo
BEIRUT (Reuters) - More than 275,000 people have been displaced because of a Turkish offensive that began last week in northeast Syria, the region’s Kurdish-led authority said on Tuesday.

That number includes more than 70,000 children, it added in a statement.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-syri ... SKBN1WU13W



Live Updates: Syrian Troops Enter Manbij as Turkish, Kurdish Forces Battle for Border Town
Pence 'dispatched' to Middle East, will visit Turkey after Trump announces sanctions on NATO ally

Haaretz, The Associated Press and Reuters Oct 15, 2019 12:50 PM

A Turkish-backed Syrian fighter peeks from a hole during clashes with Syrian Democratic Forces in Ras al Ayn, October 14, 2019.Nazeer Al-khatib / AFP
Turkish artillery is pounding suspected Syrian Kurdish positions near a town in northeast Syria as Turkey's military incursion enters its seventh day, while state television reports that government troops have deployed inside the city of Manjib.

The Syrian military's deployment near the Turkish border comes after Syrian Kurdish forces previously allied with the U.S. said they had reached a deal with President Bashar Assad's government to help them fend off Turkey's invasion.

The rapidly changing situation was set in motion last week, when U.S. President Donald Trump ordered American troops in northern Syria to step aside, clearing the way for an attack by Turkey, which regards the Kurdish fighters as terrorists. Faced with unrelenting criticism, Trump said Monday he was putting new sanctions on Turkey, halting trade negotiations and raising steel tariffs in an effort to pressure Ankara to stop its offensive. Vice President Mike Pence also said Trump was sending him to the Middle East because the president was concerned about instability in the region.
Image
Areas of control in Syria.
Areas of control in Syria. Reuters
1:25 P.M. Turkey holds 1,000 sq. kilometers of territory in northeast Syria, Erdogan says

Leader made the claim at a Turkic-speaking nations summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, where he asked for "strong solidarity." (AP)

1:05 P.M. UN urges Turkey to probe 'executions' in Syria

Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, urged Turkey to investigate "summary executions" that could have been committed by the Turkish-backed Ahrar al-Sharqiya armed group.

He cited videos widely shared on social media of militants filming themselves capturing and executing three Kurdish captives on a highway in northern Syria on Saturday.

Turkey "could be deemed responsible" for violations committed by armed groups over which it has "effective control," Colville said. (AP)

12:28 P.M. "It is our duty to help the Kurds," Israel's Chief Rabbi tells Reuven Rivlin

During the president's annual Sukkot visit to Israel's Chief Rabbi, David Lau told Israel's President Rivlin it was a "moral duty to act immediately and before it is too late," according to an official statement.

"Our hearts are now with the Kurdish people who are in danger of mass destruction," the religious leader said, after pointing out the holiday was "a symbol of unity and peace not only among the people of Israel, but also among the nations of the world." (Haaretz)

12:26 P.M. Turkey detains four Kurdish mayors in dawn raids

Four pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) mayors of Kurdish-majority districts near Turkey's borders with Syria and Iraq, were detained over terrorism links in dawn raids, HDP and Turkey's Anadolu state news agency said on Tuesday, without elaborating.

Most of Turkey's opposition parties have backed the Turkish operation in northeast Syria, but the HDP, which Erdogan's government says has links to the PKK, has called for it to stop. The HDP said 151 of its members, including district officials, had been detained over the past week. (Reuters)

12:24 P.M. More than 275,000 people displaced by Turkish offensive, Syrian regional authority says

In a statement released on Tuesday, Kurdish-led authorities in northeast Syria added the number includes more than 70,000 children. (Reuters)

11:57 A.M. Syrian troops enter Manbij, state TV says

Syrian government troops have deployed inside the northern city of Manbij, Syria's Ikhbariya state TV says. The broadcast shows what it says are residents of Manbij celebrating the arrival of government troops. (Reuters)

10:45 A.M. Turkish, Kurdish forces battle for border town in northeast

An Associated Press journalist reports heavy bombardment of targets in the countryside of Ras al Ayn, days after Turkey announced that it had captured the border town. Turkish jets also carried out at least one airstrike. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, reported Kurdish fighters had retaken the town. A Turkish military official denied reports that Turkey had begun an assault on the Kurdish-held town of Manbij, without giving further detail.

Meanwhile, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended Turkey's offensive in an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, calling on the international community to support the initiative or "begin admitting refugees" from Syria. (AP)

10:32 A.M. China urges Turkey to halt military action in Syria

Turkey should stop military action in Syria and “come back to the right track,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a daily briefing. (Reuters)

08:00 A.M. Trump's retreat from Syria is already changing the Mideast for worse

And Israel should beware, says Haaretz's Amos Harel. Read the full analysis here
https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-new ... -1.7973896


Rick Wilson
I fixed the WH statement on Turkey for you, @realdonaldtrump.
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https://twitter.com/TheRickWilson/statu ... 0903852039


12 Hours. 4 Syrian Hospitals Bombed. One Culprit: Russia.

The Times obtained thousands of air force recordings, which reveal for the first time that Russia repeatedly bombed hospitals in Syria.
CreditCreditMacro Media Center
Oct. 13, 2019Updated 12:10 p.m. ET


By Evan Hill and Christiaan Triebert
The Russian Air Force has repeatedly bombed hospitals in Syria in order to crush the last pockets of resistance to President Bashar al-Assad, according to an investigation by The New York Times.
An analysis of previously unpublished Russian Air Force radio recordings, plane spotter logs and witness accounts allowed The Times to trace bombings of four hospitals in just 12 hours in May and tie Russian pilots to each one.
The 12-hour period beginning on May 5 represents a small slice of the air war in Syria, but it is a microcosm of Russia’s four-year military intervention in Syria’s civil war. A new front in the conflict opened this week, when Turkish forces crossed the border as part of a campaign against a Kurdish-led militia.
Russia has long been accused of carrying out systematic attacks against hospitals and clinics in rebel-held areas as part of a strategy to help Mr. Assad secure victory in the eight-year-old war.
ImageFor years, Russia has been accused of attacking hospitals and clinics as part of a strategy to help President Bashar al-Assad of Syria secure victory in the civil war.
For years, Russia has been accused of attacking hospitals and clinics as part of a strategy to help President Bashar al-Assad of Syria secure victory in the civil war.CreditMeridith Kohut for The New York Times
Physicians for Human Rights, an advocacy group that tracks attacks on medical workers in Syria, has documented at least 583 such attacks since 2011, 266 of them since Russia intervened in September 2015. At least 916 medical workers have been killed since 2011.
The Times assembled a large body of evidence to analyze the hospital bombings on May 5 and 6.
Social media posts from Syria, interviews with witnesses, and records from charities that supported the four hospitals provided the approximate time of each strike. The Times obtained logs kept by flight spotters on the ground who warn civilians about incoming airstrikes and crosschecked the time of each strike to confirm that Russian warplanes were overhead. We then listened to and deciphered thousands of Russian Air Force radio transmissions, which recorded months’ worth of pilot activities in the skies above northwestern Syria. The recordings were provided to The Times by a network of observers who insisted on anonymity for their safety.
The spotter logs from May 5 and 6 put Russian pilots above each hospital at the time they were struck, and the Air Force audio recordings from that day feature Russian pilots confirming each bombing. Videos obtained from witnesses and verified by The Times confirmed three of the strikes.
Recklessly or intentionally bombing hospitals is a war crime, but proving culpability amid a complex civil war is extremely difficult, and until now, Syrian medical workers and human rights groups lacked proof.
Russia’s position as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council has shielded it from scrutiny and made United Nations agencies reluctant to accuse the Russian Air Force of responsibility.
“The attacks on health in Syria, as well as the indiscriminate bombing of civilian facilities, are definitely war crimes, and they should be prosecuted at the level of the International Criminal Court in The Hague,” said Susannah Sirkin, director of policy at Physicians for Human Rights. But Russia and China “shamefully” vetoed a Security Council resolution that would have referred those and other crimes in Syria to the court, she said.
The Russian government did not directly respond to questions about the four hospital bombings. Instead, a Foreign Ministry spokesman pointed to past statements saying that the Russian Air Force carries out precision strikes only on “accurately researched targets.”
The United Nations secretary general, António Guterres, opened an investigation into the hospital bombings in August. The investigation, still going on, is meant in part to determine why hospitals that voluntarily added their locations to a United Nations-sponsored deconfliction list, which was provided to Russia and other combatants to prevent them from being attacked, nevertheless came under attack.
Syrian health care workers said they believed that the United Nations list actually became a target menu for the Russian and Syrian air forces.
Stéphane Dujarric, a spokesman for the secretary general, said in September that the investigation — an internal board of inquiry — would not produce a public report or identify “legal responsibility.” Vassily Nebenzia, the Russian permanent representative to the United Nations, cast doubt on the process shortly after it was announced, saying he hoped the inquiry would not investigate perpetrators but rather what he said was the United Nations’ use of false information in its deconfliction process.
From April 29 to mid-September, as Russian and Syrian government forces assaulted the last rebel pocket in the northwest, 54 hospitals and clinics in opposition territory were attacked, the United Nations human rights office said. At least seven had tried to protect themselves by adding their location to the deconfliction list, according to the World Health Organization.
On May 5 and 6, Russia attacked four. All were on the list.
The first was Nabad al Hayat Surgical Hospital, a major underground trauma center in southern Idlib Province serving about 200,000 people. The hospital performed on average around 500 operations and saw more than 5,000 patients a month, according to Syria Relief and Development, the United States-based charity that supported it.
Nabad al Hayat had been attacked three times since it opened in 2013 and had recently relocated to an underground complex on agricultural land, hoping to be protected from airstrikes.
At 2:32 p.m. on May 5, a Russian ground control officer can be heard in an Air Force transmission providing a pilot with a longitude and latitude that correspond to Nabad al Hayat’s exact location.
At 2:38 p.m., the pilot reports that he can see the target and has the “correction,” code for locking the target on a screen in his cockpit. Ground control responds with the green light for the strike, saying, “Three sevens.”
At the same moment, a flight spotter on the ground logs a Russian jet circling in the area.
At 2:40 p.m., the same time the charity said that Nabad al Hayat was struck, the pilot confirms the release of his weapons, saying, “Worked it.” Seconds later, local journalists filming the hospital in anticipation of an attack record three precision bombs penetrating the roof of the hospital and blowing it out from the inside in geysers of dirt and concrete.
The staff of Nabad al Hayat had evacuated three days earlier after receiving warnings and anticipating a bombing, but Kafr Nabl Surgical Hospital, three miles northwest, was not as lucky.
A doctor who worked there said that the hospital was struck four times, beginning at 5:30 p.m. The strikes landed about five minutes apart, without warning, he said, killing a man who was standing outside and forcing patients and members of the medical staff to use oxygen tanks to breathe through the choking dust.
A spotter logged a Russian jet circling above at the time of the strike, and in another Russian Air Force transmission, a pilot reports that he has “worked” his target at 5:30 p.m., the time of the strike. He then reports three more strikes, each about five minutes apart, matching the doctor’s chronology.
Russian pilots bombed two other hospitals in the same 12-hour span: Kafr Zita Cave Hospital and Al Amal Orthopedic Hospital. In both cases, spotters recorded Russian Air Force jets in the skies at the time of the strike, and Russian pilots can be heard in radio transmissions “working” their targets at the times the strikes were reported.
Since May 5, at least two dozen hospitals and clinics in the rebel-held northwest have been hit by airstrikes. Syrian medical workers said they expected hospital bombings to continue, given the inability of the United Nations and other countries to find a way to hold Russia to account.
“The argument by the Russians or the regime is always that hospitals are run by terrorists,” said Nabad al Hayat’s head nurse, who asked to remain anonymous because he feared being targeted. “Is it really possible that all the people are terrorists?”
“The truth is that after hospitals are hit, and in areas like this where there is just one hospital, our houses have become hospitals.”
http://archive.is/4t8XF#selection-275.0-641.135


SERIOUSLY?
Liz Cheney Blames Turkey’s Invasion of Syria on Democrats’ Impeachment Inquiry
“And I think the Democrats have got to pay very careful attention to the damage that they’re doing with the impeachment proceedings,” she concluded.

Justin Baragona
Updated 10.14.19 5:00PM ET
Published 10.14.19 3:18PM ET

During a Fox & Friends appearance on Monday morning, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) suggested that Turkey’s invasion of Syria and attack on America’s Kurdish allies was tied to Democrats launching an impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump.

The Wyoming congresswoman and co-host Brian Kilmeade, both of whom have been critical of Trump’s decision to pull back American troops and abandon the Kurds ahead of Turkey’s invasion, expressed their concerns that ISIS could return to the area and the United States’ reputation among its allies will suffer.

Cheney, meanwhile, took the opportunity to lay blame at House Democrats’ feet for pursuing impeachment against Trump over the Ukraine scandal.

“I’m very concerned about it, Brian,” she said. “I think that what we’re seeing happen is going to have ramifications not just in the Middle East but around the world. If our adversaries begin to seek weakness, if our adversaries begin to think we won’t defend our allies, that we won’t defend our interests, that’s provocative.”

Cheney continued: “But I also want to say that the impeachment proceedings that are going on and what the Democrats are doing themselves to try to weaken this president is part of this.”

After Kilmeade agreed with Cheney, the Republican lawmaker added that it “was not an accident that the Turks chose this moment to roll across the border.”

“And I think the Democrats have got to pay very careful attention to the damage that they’re doing with the impeachment proceedings,” she concluded.

One of the most hawkish members of Congress, the House Republican Conference chairwoman has attempted to straddle a fine line when it comes to criticizing the president’s foreign policy while simultaneously kissing up to Trump. Just last month, Cheney found herself in a “butt-kissing” spat with Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), with the two of them fighting over Trump’s attention.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/liz-chene ... nt-inquiry
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby JackRiddler » Tue Oct 15, 2019 11:54 am

.

These sections (first video) from a longer talk (second video) will be a review for most reading this. It's a compact presentation of the greatest-hits evidence from US government sources themselves (declassified documents, a Clinton e-mail, and the honest speech by Biden as VP that he had to apologize for) showing that, of course, the US supported Salafist international jihadi elements. The CIA and foreign-policy apparatus backed the "allies" of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Jordan in arming and funding the various Al-Qaeda offshoots in Syria, the Nusra/Ansar/Jaysh militias, and other groups who usually adopted the "FSA" brand. The mix eventually spawned ISIS, before that was defeated and ousted from its horror-show "caliphate" by YPG-SDF -- with the U.S. military backing them against the factions the U.S. CIA-State Dept. had sponsored. In the meantime Nusra/Ansar/Jaysh have "repudiated" al-Qaeda and united into HST, which currently holds Idlib province and ehtnically-cleansed Afrin under Turkish supervision.

It's true, YPG-SDF did not fight Assad! And why should they? They arose as a response to the foreign-backed Salafist murder rampage that the Western corporate media have characterized as "the Syrian opposition," despite the repeated examples of what these forces were doing in places like Aleppo or Afrin, or the fact that they were simultaneously attacking the YPG-SDF even when it had U.S. backing in its battle against the "Caliphate." Now comes this important moment, when the propaganda about the "opposition" and FSA (change that one to "Syrian National Army" on your scorecard) has become untenable because the Turkish state has announced a plan for genocide and invaded Syria using mercenaries and Salafist elements as their infantry.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs7RiJL_Zmo


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UlC8OSoDgk
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US troops surround Syria on the eve of invasion?

Postby seemslikeadream » Tue Oct 15, 2019 2:24 pm

from ALJAZEERA

Amid Turkish push, displaced Arab Syrians eye return to homeland

Ankara's cross-border assault on Kurdish fighters raises hopes of return home for Arab Syrians displaced in Turkey.

Farah Najjar
14 Oct 2019
Amid Turkish push, displaced Arab Syrians eye return to homeland
Khalil al-Hassan stands on his rooftop as he watches smoke rising from his hometown of Tal Abyad [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera] [Al Jazeera]
Akcakale, Turkey-Syria border - Khalil al-Hassan stood on the roof of his brick home, gazing into the distance towards the other side of the border.

He fled to Akcakale, a town on the Turkish side of the frontier, four years ago, he says, pointing at the clouds of smoke rising above the "big trees" surrounding his village of Abdikoy, some 4km (2.5 miles) into Syrian territory near the town of Tal Abyad.

"If it's safe, I'd take my family back in a heartbeat," said the 65-year-old farmer, an ethnically Arab Syrian who was forced to leave his ancestral land in northeast Syria after the arrival of Kurdish forces.

"There is nothing more precious than our land."

For the first time in four years, hope appears to have returned for al-Hassan and thousands of ethnically Arab Syrians who believe a Turkish operation in northeast Syria will grant them safe access to the stretch of territory they claim as their own.

For nearly a week, fighters with the opposition Free Syrian Army have been backing Ankara in its push aimed at driving the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) away from the border area.

The SDF, spearheaded by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), was founded in 2015 and has helped the United States in its battle against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS) armed group in the region. It has since significantly expanded its control across northern and eastern Syria and has sought to create an autonomous federation there.

But Ankara views the YPG as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), and has long made it clear it wants to clear the border area from "terrorist elements". The PKK has waged a decades-long armed campaign inside Turkey and is considered a "terrorist group" by Ankara and many Western capitals.

Farah family story
Khalil al-Hassan fled from Tal Abyad four years ago [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
Al-Hassan's Qays tribe is one of many Syrian Arab tribes that live in the country's Jazira region, the largest of the three original regions of the self-declared Kurdish Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria.

The region includes the three governorates of Deir Az Zor, Hassakeh and Raqqa, as well as Ain al-Arab, an area that falls under the Aleppo governorate's administration that is also known by its Kurdish name of Kobane.

With some 4.5 million people, the northeastern Syrian region is predominantly inhabited by Arabs, with Kurds accounting for more than an estimated 10 percent of its population.

Prior to 2015, al-Hassan says they happily co-existed with their Kurdish neighbours, who were a minority among the ethnically Arab tribes of the area.

"We lived side by side for years," he said. "But one day, they turned against us when the armed YPG took the area from opposition fighters."

Farah family story
Khalil al-Hassan's daughter looks out into the direction of Tal Abyad [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
Al-Hassan said he fled his village with eight of his children "when the YPG showed up four years ago".

"All I wanted was for them to be safe, especially after losing my 18-year-old son to their firearms," he said, having moved inside his house. Speaking under a fluorescent light bulb that lit his small living room, al-Hassan recalled how his son, Nafer, died after the arrival of the Kurdish forces in the village.

Holding a rifle, Nafer refused to leave his family home, on the edge of some 50 dunams (12 acres) of farmland. Arriving with heavy machine guns and assault rifles, the YPG "flattened the village", al-Hassan said.

"That day I not only lost my son, but also my home and my land, which proudly was our only source of livelihood," al-Hassan said with a broken voice.

"I lost my world," he added, fighting back tears.

According to al-Hassan, the village's locals were accused of supporting "terrorist" ISIL fighters, which at their peak in 2015, controlled large swaths of land across Syria and Iraq.

"We tried explaining that we were just honest farmers who would die for our land," he said, sitting on a pile of square-shaped pillows.

Even with documentation that carried the family's tribal name, proving ownership of the land, al-Hassan said he was told to "rip the paper up into pieces".

Farah family story
Al-Hassan's grandchildren fled Syria with their mother, Mona, in 2016 [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
In October 2015, Amnesty International accused the YPG of forcibly evicting Arabs and Turkmens from areas they took control of after driving ISIL out. It said the instances of forced displacement and demolition and confiscation of civilian property constitute "war crimes", allegations the SDF denied.

A United Nations investigation in March 2017 cleared the group.

Al-Hassan's daughter, Mona, who fled Tal Abyad's city centre with her husband and two children in 2016 said she was among the lucky ones for still having a "standing home" on the other side.

"My husband and I worked hard to buy the land and build our home on it," the 35-year-old told Al Jazeera. "We had moved in just two years before," she added.

It was not an easy escape, as Mona said YPG bullets targeted "even the truck we drove off in".

Her sister-in-law, who remains on the other side of the border, told her that her home was looted soon after she left for Turkey.

"Every time I go up the hill at the end of the road, I can see all the villages in Tal Abyad," she said, eager to return.

"I can see the big tree planted in my garden from the top of the hill," Mona added.

"There is nothing more difficult than seeing your home, and not being able to return to it."

INTERACTIVE: Syria control map OCT 9 2019
Image
Returning 'soon'

Ankara has long said it wants to create a so-called "safe zone" into neighbouring Syria's northeastern region where some of the 3.6 million refugees currently residing in Turkey can be returned to.

Earlier suggestions indicated that the buffer zone would span a stretch of territory 120km (75 miles) wide and 30km (19 miles) deep inside Syria, but Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday the area may be wider, running between the towns of Hassakeh and Kobane, a stretch of 440km (273 miles).

The announcement, which promoted a reaction from the Syrian government, came after Turkish-backed forces claimed control over parts of Ras al-Ain and Tal Abyad, the two main towns initially targeted in the operation.

It also came after Turkish forces and their Syrian allies seized the town of Suluk on Sunday, which lies southeast of Tal Abyad, approximately 10km (six miles) from the border with Turkey.

This particular advancement was hailed by Ismail al-Habib, a 51-year-old judge from Suluk, who says the operation has given him "purpose again".

After fleeing Syrian government air raids from Suluk in 2012, al-Habib's family, who had moved closer to the border with Turkey, packed up some of their belongings and drove past the border three years later.

"I was wanted by ISIL, so towards the end, my family and I literally fled for our lives," he said.

In June 2016, YPG forces entered Suluk and its surrounding villages, forcing more than 30,000 people to flee - half of whom fled to Turkey, according to al-Habib.

The 51-year-old judge said he finally felt confident that he would return to his hometown "soon" and was keen to offer his expertise to "reintroduce safety and security" to the area.

"As a judge, I feel like I have a lot to offer," he said enthusiastically. "People who fled have witnessed a lot of hardship and need a governing model that acknowledges that, one that offers them direction and care."

Farah family story
The al-Habib family hopes to return to Suluk within six months [Hosam Salem/Al Jazeera]
Al-Hassan's brother, who resides in the same two-story building with his three wives and children, agreed.

"We hope to be back within six months time," he said.

For years, al-Hassan said he turned down opportunities to migrate to Europe and instead, chose to remain just a few kilometres away from his hometown with hopes of one day returning.

"There is nothing like returning to a place where everyone knows who you are, where you can make a difference," he said.

"And most importantly, where you can live without fear."
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/10/ ... 49072.html


US pullout from Syria and the Kurds' 'costly deal' with al-Assad
Damascus has much to gain from deal with Kurds, but its ability to halt Turkey's push depends on Russia, say analysts.

Arwa Ibrahim
2 hours ago

Kurds may lose administrative autonomy over territories controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces following deal with Damascus [File: Rodi Said/Reuters]
In a major shift in alliances, the Kurdish-led administration in northern Syria announced on Sunday a deal with President Bashar al-Assad's government to allow Syrian troops to deploy along the border with Turkey to stave off a military offensive by Ankara.

The pact, brokered by Russia, came hours after the United States announced it was pulling its troops from Syria to avoid getting caught in clashes between the Turkish military and the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

Mazloum Abdi, the SDF's commander in chief, said his people were forced into an alliance with Washington's foes, Syria and Russia, because the US's pullback had left them vulnerable to a Turkish assault.

Turkey considers the Kurdish fighters who form the backbone of the SDF - the People's Protection Units (YPG) - to be "terrorists" linked to Kurdish separatists on its soil. The Kurdish-led forces, however, were Washington's main ally in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL, or ISIS) in Syria. And over the course of the years-long battle, the Kurds - who have long campaigned for self-rule - built an autonomous administration in northeast Syria.

"If we have to choose between compromise and genocide, we will choose our people," wrote Abdi in an op-ed for Foreign Policy. "The Russian and Syrian regime have made proposals that could save the lives of millions of people who live under our protection."

Working with Damascus and Moscow requires "painful compromises", he wrote. But the SDF has little choice: "Our people are under attack, and their safety is our paramount concern."

Ankara, for its part, says its military action is against the YPG, not the Kurdish people, and is also aimed at creating a "safe-zone" to resettle Syrian refugees.

While the details of the Syrian-Kurdish pact to repel the Turkish offensive are unclear, analysts said it was likely "very costly" for the SDF.

Kurdish autonomy

The deal has helped deter Turkish advancement into Kurdish-controlled areas east of the Euphrates River, with Syrian troops taking over Manbij on Tuesday.

But al-Assad, who wants to reassert his rule over Syrian territories lost during the course of the country's eight-year-civil-war, was unlikely to allow the Kurdish-led administration to maintain autonomy in those areas, said Amer Mohammed, a Syria security expert.

"This understanding [between the Kurds and al-Assad] is very costly for the SDF but cost-free for Assad," he said. For al-Assad's government, deploying troops to the border was "only a symbolic deterrence against Turkey", he said, dismissing the likelihood of a military confrontation between Syria and Turkey.

But for the Kurds, the deal "would have involved a lot of compromises," said Mohammed.

"A few months ago, the SDF was in a position to try to maintain everything [it had gained]. But now, being completely under [the authority of] the Syrian government, they will be trying to just maintain the safety and security of their people and towns."

It was the US's troop withdrawal that weakened the SDF, said Marwan Kablan, director of policy analysis at the Arab Centre for Research and Policy Studies.

"The Syrian regime is exploiting the situation to its maximum and will not accept autonomy for the Kurds," he said.

"Damascus will impose its own terms because the YPG is now much weaker than they were before the US withdrew ... While it may accept things like cultural rights and local councils for the Kurds, Damascus will not grant them autonomy."

For the Syrian regime, the deal was also strategic as it could allow al-Assad to regain control over resource-rich areas in northeast Syria without entering into a direct confrontation with the Turks.

"This deal will allow Damascus to recover most of the territories east of Euphrates - including Qamishli, Hassakeh and Deir Az Zour - which are rich in oil and gas," said Kablan.

Russia's stance

However, the success of Syrian government forces in repelling a Turkish advance and reclaiming the Kurdish-controlled north depended on Russia's stance, analysts said, noting the YPG had struck a similar deal with al-Assad last year for the Syrian army to enter the western city of Afrin and deter a Turkish attack.

But that deployment was thwarted after a conversation between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, a major military backer of al-Assad, alongside Iran.

"A similar deal between the YPG and Syrian government during Turkey's January 2018 Afrin offensive failed to significantly alter the trajectory of that Turkish offensive, in large part because Russia did not utilise its own leverage to pressure Turkey to end it," said Dareen Khalifa, a senior analyst at International Crisis Group.

"Thus far, it is unclear how Russia will handle the current situation," she added.

Mohammed agreed: "It all comes down to the sort of understanding that will be reached between Turkey and Russia, and this will be reached bit by bit. They will talk about Kobane and Manbij and then Qamishli.

"And so, when it comes to conflict developments, as we saw in Afrin, a deal [between al-Assad and the Kurds] did not last. And so the deployment of Syrian government troops doesn't mean that Turkey will not advance."

Still, things may be different this time.

Russia's defence ministry on Tuesday said its forces were patrolling the dividing line between Turkish and Syrian forces in Manbij.

"It is difficult to know the dynamic of the Russian-Turkish understanding," said Kablan. "The Russians were not against the Turkish operation at first because they wanted the Americans out. Now that the Americans are withdrawing ... the Russians may start calling on Turkey to stop its incursion into Syria, calling it an invasion of a sovereign state."
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/10/ ... 22288.html



BREAKING: SDNY charges Turkish state-run bank Halkbank in sanctions violations in connection with the record-breaking money-laundering scheme to Iran executed by gold trader Reza Zarrab.

Zarrab was the client whose release Giuliani pushed for between Trump and Erdogan.

https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/sta ... 9686937607


Did Rudy tell trump to pull U.S. troops out of northern Syria?
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby JackRiddler » Wed Oct 16, 2019 12:11 pm

.

It is worth reviving the New York Times article on Timber Sycamore, for all its spins and prevarications, as it shows just how much the official state press (which the Times may as well be, most of the time) understands that there was a regime change war in Syria, funded and armed by the US and its "allies," parallel to any other conflicts and proxy wars going on there.

According to the Times, the operation was proposed in "the summer of 2012" under Petraeus, really got going after an Obama greenlight in 2013, and cost 1 billion dollars. But you can research this and find much earlier activity in the same vein.

The amateur world-exploders, apparatchiks and arms brokers who constitute the American foreign policy apparatus, who don't even speak Arabic and can't keep track of the regional players, flooded the region and the conflict with plentiful loose arms and money. It was altogether foreseeable what would happen as the mercenary and internationalist jihadi element were attracted, as the track record of such projects after all dates back to Afghanistan in the 1980s. The foreign-organized "rebels" displaced, murdered, or took over any original home-grown Syrian revolutionaries and civil-society movements in the first couple of years. They morphed through many factions of Qaeda affiliates and ISIS and Salafist militias, often working at cross-purposes, which reflects the conflicts and mercurial policies of their various foreign sponsors (Saudi, Turkey, Qatar, UAE).

They first fought the (by then also US-backed) SDF years ago, and last year participated in the Turkish attack on SDF and the ethnic cleansing of Afrin under the "FSA" brand. "FSA" has served as a cover that many factions have assumed at different times, whenever they required a "rebel" rather than Islamist camouflage. Many of these fighters are, of course, currently enrolled in the latest iteration of "FSA" (as of now dba the "Syrian National Army") and serving as the infantry for the intended Turkish genocide of the Kurds and others in the SDF-held territories.

Acknowledging these truths in no way makes you into a partisan for Assad, or a friend of anything Russia or Iran also did in response. I write this in the wake of the latest DNC "debate," in which Tulsi Gabbard called it a regime change war. She seemed unprepared, or rather prepared to give a five-minute summary. I don't know if Gabbard would have developed such a case, had she been given more than the soundbite-time allowed to her. With 12 contestants on stage simultaneously, and within the professional wrestling format of these news-product advertisements that the corporate media and DNC have set up as "debates," even the calmest and best-versed soul could do little. I really expected her to be more aggressive. Two easy hits were missing: "Do you support covert wars in which we arm and fund factions abroad without announcing it and having a democratic debate about it? Because that's what we did in Syria and chaos is the inevitable result." The other would have been to have blown up the whole thing by saying, "okay, Hunter Biden's activities were legal, I am sure, but that doesn't make them appropriate or right. Who supports this kind of soft corruption?"

Anyway, Times from 2017: note already how the photos at the top are of Russian jets, not Our Jihadi Friends.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/02/worl ... trump.html

www.nytimes.com

Behind the Sudden Death of a $1 Billion Secret C.I.A. War in Syria

By Mark Mazzetti, Adam Goldman and Michael S. Schmidt


Image Russian warplanes and military personnel at an air base outside Latakia, Syria, last year. Russian bombing helped hollow out a rebel army backed by the C.I.A.

Russian warplanes and military personnel at an air base outside Latakia, Syria, last year.
Russian bombing helped hollow out a rebel army backed by the C.I.A.

Russian Defense Ministry, via European Pressphoto Agency


WASHINGTON — The end came quickly for one of the costliest covert action programs in the history of the C.I.A.

During a White House briefing early last month, the C.I.A. director, Mike Pompeo, recommended to President Trump that he shut down a four-year-old effort to arm and train Syrian rebels. The president swiftly ended the program.

The rebel army was by then a shell, hollowed out by more than a year of bombing by Russian planes and confined to ever-shrinking patches of Syria that government troops had not reconquered. Critics in Congress had complained for years about the costs — more than $1 billion over the life of the program — and reports that some of the C.I.A.-supplied weapons had ended up in the hands of a rebel group tied to Al Qaeda further sapped political support for the program.

While critics of Mr. Trump have argued that he ended the program to curry favor with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, there were in fact dim views of the effort in both the Trump and Obama White Houses — a rare confluence of opinion on national security policy.

The shuttering of the C.I.A. program, one of the most expensive efforts to arm and train rebels since the agency’s program arming the mujahedeen in Afghanistan during the 1980s, has forced a reckoning over its successes and failures. Opponents say it was foolhardy, expensive and ineffective. Supporters say that it was unnecessarily cautious, and that its achievements were remarkable given that the Obama administration had so many restrictions on it from the start, which they say ultimately ensured its failure.

The program did have periods of success, including in 2015 when rebels using tank-destroying missiles, supplied by the C.I.A. and also Saudi Arabia, routed government forces in northern Syria. But by late 2015 the Russian military offensive in Syria was focusing squarely on the C.I.A.-backed fighters battling Syrian government troops. Many of the fighters were killed, and the fortunes of the rebel army reversed.

Charles Lister, a Syria expert at the Middle East Institute, said he was not surprised that the Trump administration ended the program, which armed and trained thousands of Syrian rebels. (By comparison, a $500 million Pentagon program that envisioned training and equipping 15,000 Syrian rebels over three years, was canceled in 2015 after producing only a few dozen fighters.)

“In many ways, I would put the blame on the Obama administration,” Mr. Lister said of the C.I.A. program. “They never gave it the necessary resources or space to determine the dynamics of the battlefield. They were drip-feeding opposition groups just enough to survive but never enough to become dominant actors.”

Mr. Trump has twice publicly criticized the effort since he ended it. After The Washington Post first reported on his decision, Mr. Trump tweeted that he was ending “massive, dangerous, and wasteful payments to Syrian rebels fighting Assad.” During an interview with The Wall Street Journal last month, the president said many of the C.I.A.-supplied weapons ended up in the hands of “Al Qaeda” — presumably a reference to the Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front, which often fought alongside the C.I.A.-backed rebels.

Michael V. Hayden, a former C.I.A. director, said the president’s comments “might give the agency pause with regard to how much he will have their backs on any future covert actions.”

Gen. Raymond A. Thomas III, the commander of United States Special Operations Command, said during a conference last month that ending the C.I.A. program was a “tough, tough decision.”

“At least from what I know about that program and the decision to end it, it was absolutely not a sop to the Russians,” he said. “It was, I think, based on an assessment of the nature of the program, what we’re trying to accomplish, the viability of it going forward.”

A C.I.A. spokesman declined to comment.

President Barack Obama had reluctantly agreed to the program in 2013 as the administration was struggling to blunt the momentum of Syrian government forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad. It soon fell victim to the constantly shifting alliances in Syria’s six-year-old civil war and the limited visibility that American military and intelligence officials had over what was occurring on the ground.

Once C.I.A.-trained fighters crossed into Syria, C.I.A. officers had difficulty controlling them. The fact that some of their C.I.A. weapons ended up with Nusra Front fighters — and that some of the rebels joined the group — confirmed the fears of many in the Obama administration when the program began. Although the Nusra Front was widely seen as an effective fighting force against Mr. Assad’s troops, its Qaeda affiliation made it impossible for the Obama administration to provide direct support for the group.

American intelligence officials estimate that the Nusra Front now has as many as 20,000 fighters in Syria, making it Al Qaeda’s largest affiliate. Unlike other Qaeda affiliates such as Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the Nusra Front has long focused on battling the Syrian government rather than plotting terrorist attacks against the United States and Europe.

The American officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they did not want to be identified discussing a program that is classified.

In the summer of 2012, David H. Petraeus, who was then C.I.A. director, first proposed a covert program of arming and training rebels as Syrian government forces bore down on them.

The proposal forced a debate inside the Obama administration, with some of Mr. Obama’s top aides arguing that Syria’s chaotic battlefield would make it nearly impossible to ensure that weapons provided by the C.I.A. could be kept out of the hands of militant groups like the Nusra Front. Mr. Obama rejected the plan.

But he changed his mind the following year, signing a presidential finding authorizing the C.I.A. to covertly arm and train small groups of rebels at bases in Jordan. The president’s reversal came in part because of intense lobbying by foreign leaders, including King Abdullah II of Jordan and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, who argued that the United States should take a more active role in trying to end the conflict.



ImageMike Pompeo, the C.I.A. director, right, during a cabinet meeting at the White House in June.

Mike Pompeo, the C.I.A. director, right, during a cabinet meeting at the White House in June.CreditDoug Mills/The New York Times
Given the code name Timber Sycamore, the covert program began slowly, but by 2015 the C.I.A.-backed rebel groups had made significant progress against Syrian forces, pushing into areas of the country long considered to be government strongholds. The offensive gained momentum after the C.I.A. and Saudi Arabia began supplying the powerful tank-destroying weapons to the rebel groups.

But the rebel push in Idlib, Hama and Latakia Provinces in northern Syria also created problems for Washington. The Nusra Front, often battling alongside the C.I.A.-supported rebel groups, made its own territorial gains.

It was Nusra’s battlefield successes that Mr. Putin used as one justification for the Russian military offensive in Syria, which began in 2015. The Russian campaign, a relentless bombing of the C.I.A.-backed fighters and Nusra militants, battered the rebels and sent them into retreat.

The program suffered other setbacks. The arming and the training of the rebels occurred in Jordan and Turkey, and at one point Jordanian intelligence officers pilfered stockpiles of weapons the C.I.A. had shipped into the country for the Syrian rebels, selling them on the black market. In November, a member of the Jordanian military shot and killed three American soldiers who had been training Syrian rebels as part of the C.I.A. program.

White House officials also received periodic reports that the C.I.A.-trained rebels had summarily executed prisoners and committed other violations of the rules of armed conflict. Sometimes the reports led to the C.I.A. suspending cooperation with groups accused of wrongdoing.

John O. Brennan, Mr. Obama’s last C.I.A. director, remained a vigorous defender of the program despite divisions inside the spy agency about the effort’s effectiveness. But by the final year of the Obama administration, the program had lost many supporters in the White House — especially after the administration’s top priority in Syria became battling the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, rather than seeking an end to Mr. Assad’s government.

During one meeting in the White House Situation Room at the end of the Obama administration, with C.I.A.-backed rebels continuing to lose ground in the face of withering Russian air bombing, Mr. Brennan pressed the case that the United States continue to back the effort to topple Mr. Assad, according to one person who attended the meeting.

But Susan E. Rice, the national security adviser, shot back. “Make no mistake,” she said, according to the person in the meeting. “The president’s priority in Syria is fighting ISIS.”

Backed by Russian aircraft, Syrian government forces gradually began to reclaim areas near the Turkish border that had long been rebel strongholds, and eventually pushed many of the rebels back to the besieged city of Aleppo.

Aleppo fell to Syrian government troops in December.

A version of this article appears in print on

Aug. 3, 2017, Section

A

, Page

1

of the New York edition

with the headline:

Under Trump, Shell of a Force In Syria Swiftly Lost C.I.A. Aid.
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby Grizzly » Wed Oct 16, 2019 8:39 pm

Image


Otherwise, bravo and thank you and right on and stuff... Jack!

Hat tip, to BS for pointing your (this) post out...
Last edited by Grizzly on Wed Oct 16, 2019 8:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby seemslikeadream » Wed Oct 16, 2019 8:48 pm

ALAJEERA
Erdogan: Syria push would end tonight if 'terrorists' withdrew
Turkish leader rejects international pressure, promises operation will continue until his country's goals are met.

8 hours ago
Erdogan defied demands for a ceasefire [Mustafa Kamaci/Presidential Press Office/Handout via Reuters]

Turkey's military operation in northeast Syria will continue until Kurdish fighters in the region drop their weapons and withdraw from a planned "safe zone", President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said.

Shrugging off international calls for a ceasefire on the eve of a meeting with top US officials, Erdogan on Wednesday told his party's deputies that no foreign power could stop the offensive - now in its eighth day - before all of Ankara's goals were met.

"We would stop the operation tonight, if they withdrew right away," he said, referring to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which Turkey considers a "terrorist organisation".

Erdogan rejected any direct or indirect negotiations with the Kurdish fighters and said the only way for the offensive to be halted was for them to "lay down their arms ... destroy all their traps and get out of the safe zone that we have designated".

"God willing, we will quickly secure the region stretching from Manbij [in northwestern Syria] to our border with Iraq," Erdogan said during his speech in Parliament.
Image
INTERACTIVE: Syria 'safe zone' map OCT 9 2019
Turkish launched its offensive on October 9, aiming to push back "terrorist" elements from the border region east of the Euphrates River and establish a "safe-zone" stretching at least 30km (19 miles) deep into Syria to resettle some of the 3.6 million refugees it hosts.

Ankara considers the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), a group forming the backbone of the SDF, an extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has waged a decades-long armed campaign against the Turkish state for autonomy. The PKK is designated a "terrorist" organisation by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. But unline Ankara, Washington and Brussels do not consider the YPG and its political wing - the Democratic Union Party - as "terrorist" groups.

Since the launch of the operation, Turkey and its allied Syrian rebel forces have secured a number of villages along the border region, according to the Turkish authorities.

However, the town of Ras al-Ain has held out, with battles raging on Wednesday.

Al Jazeera reporters along the border said heavy gunfire and artillery fire was heard across the city amid a "fierce" battle for its control, with Kurdish fighters burning tyres in a bid to blind Turkey's fighter jets and digging in against a ground offensive by Turkish-backed Syrian rebels.

"The fighting today in Ras al-Ain has been intense," said Al Jazeera's Charles Stratford, reporting from Ceylanpinar on the Turkey-Syria border. "The situation is incredibly tense."

Smoke rises over the Syrian town of Ras al Ain, as seen from the Turkish border town of Ceylanpinar
Smoke rises over Ras al-Ain, as seen from the Turkish border town of Ceylanpinar [Murad Sezer/Reuters]
As Turkey's military operation entered its second week, US President Donald Trump was due on Wednesday to dispatch his deputy Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Ankara, in a visit that comes days after imposing sanctions on Turkey over its offensive.

Pence's office said he would meet Erdogan on Thursday and "voice the United States' commitment to reach an immediate ceasefire and the conditions for a negotiated settlement". Robert O'Brien, the US national security adviser, is already in the Turkish capital for lower-level meetings before the arrival of Pence and Pompeo.

But Ankara has consistently rebuffed foreign pressure to curb its offensive.

Speaking in Parliament on Wednesday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said threats and sanctions were unacceptable and pledged that Ankara would retaliate against the US move.

Cavusoglu also said Turkey expected the US Congress to turn back from its "damaging approach", and added that ties between Ankara and Washington were at a critical juncture.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/10/ ... 44236.html
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby Grizzly » Wed Oct 16, 2019 9:02 pm

https://warontherocks.com/2017/08/trump-and-covert-operations-in-syria-a-not-so-artful-deal/

Commentary ...

Image

But muy RUSSIA POOTY POOT BUT BUT,
MUY gUILIANINI
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby seemslikeadream » Wed Oct 16, 2019 9:19 pm

Turkey's govt-owned bank Halkbank paid $2M+ to Trump-tied foreign agents & lobbyists since its deputy chief was arrested over a money laundering scheme with Rudy Giuliani's client allegedly funneling Iran millions of dollars to secretly evade sanctions http://crp.org/bplob
https://twitter.com/annalecta/status/11 ... 5659845632

Federal investigation of Rudy Giuliani includes counterintelligence probe
https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/16/politics ... index.html

Trump-Erdogan Call Led to Lengthy Quest to Avoid Halkbank Trial
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... bank-trial

Turkish bank tied to Giuliani client indicted in money laundering scheme
A Turkish bank known as Halkbank has been charged in a 6-count indictment for "fraud, money laundering, and sanctions offenses related to the bank’s participation in a multibillion-dollar scheme to evade U.S. sanctions on Iran," federal prosecutors in New York announced on Tuesday.
Why it matters: Bloomberg reported last week that in 2017, President Trump pressed former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to help convince the Justice Department to drop a sanctions evasion case against an Iranian-Turkish gold trader named Reza Zarrab — a client of Rudy Giuliani's whose case was a high priority for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Zarrab later pleaded guilty and testified against the CEO of Halkbank, alleging that "Erdogan knew of and supported the laundering effort on behalf of Iran."
https://www.axios.com/halkbank-turkish- ... 89461.html



Live Updates: Trump Says Kurds Are 'Not Angels' as House Overwhelmingly Condemns Syria Withdrawal
Russian troops move into Syrian territory abandoned by U.S. ■ Erdogan: 'There will be no ceasefire ... We are not worried about any sanctions' ■ Assad forces make territorial gains near Manbij following pact with Kurds ■ More than 190,000 people displaced

Haaretz, DPA, The Associated Press and Reuters Oct 16, 2019 11:47 PM

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Baku, Azerbaijan, Octber 14, 2019.,AP
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo are set to leave for Ankara Wednesday to discuss a ceasefire in northeast Syria, as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vows to press ahead with Tukey's offensive despite American sanctions and growing international criticism.

"They say 'declare a ceasefire'. We will never declare a ceasefire," Erdogan told reporters after a visit to Azerbaijan. "They are pressuring us to stop the operation. They are announcing sanctions. Our goal is clear. We are not worried about any sanctions." The Turkish president also made clear he does not intend to meet Pence or Pompeo when they arrive in Turkey, but later clarified he would meet the U.S. vice president.

Haaretz Weekly Ep. 44Haaretz

U.S. President Donald Trump's unexpected decision to withhold protection from Syria's Kurds after a phone call with Erdogan a week ago swiftly upended five years of U.S. policy on Syria. As well as clearing the way for the Turkish incursion, the U.S. withdrawal gives a free hand to Syrian President Bashar Assad and his Russian and Iranian allies in the world's deadliest ongoing war.

02.00 A.M. Assad forces enter Kobane

Syrian forces on Wednesday night rolled into the strategic border town of Kobani, blocking one path for the Turkish military to establish a "safe zone" free of Syrian Kurdish fighters along the frontier as part of its week-old offensive.

The seizure of Kobani by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad also pointed to a dramatic shift in northeastern Syria: The town was where the United States military and Kurdish fighters first united to defeat the Islamic State group four years ago and holds powerful symbolism for Syrian Kurds and their ambitions of self-rule.

The convoys of government forces drove into Kobani after dark, a resident said. The resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal, was one of the few remaining amid fears of a Turkish attack on the town. Syria's state-run media confirmed its troops entered the town. (AP)

00.42 P.M. White House releases Trump letter to Erdogan

U.S. President Donald Trump warned Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in a letter about Turkey's incursion into Syria, "Don't be a tough guy" and "Don't be a fool!" The October 9 letter was released by the White House on Wednesday as Trump battled to control the political damage following his decision to pull U.S. troops out of northern Syria.

"Let's work out a good deal!" Trump said. "You don't want to be responsible for slaughtering thousands of people, and I don't want to be responsible for destroying the Turkish economy - and I will."

Trump had the letter released to bolster his view that he did not give Turkey a green light to invade Syria. "I have worked hard to solve some of your problems. Don't let the world down. You can make a great deal," said Trump in the letter. (Reuters)

11:23 P.M. Pelosi says Trump had 'meltdown' over House vote on Syria

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Democratic leaders' White House meeting was cut short after Republican President Donald Trump had a "meltdown" over a House of Representatives vote condemning his Syria withdrawal. Trump was insulting to Pelosi and the meeting deteriorated into a diatribe by Trump, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told reporters.

"What we witnessed on the part of the president was a meltdown. Sad to say," Pelosi told reporters as she and the other Democrats emerged from the White House.

The Democratic leader said Trump had a temper tantrum because of the number of Republicans who joined Democrats to vote for a resolution condemning the president's decision to withdraw U.S. forces from northeastern Syria, clearing the way for Turkey's offensive against U.S.-allied Syrian Kurds.(Reuters)

10:22 P.M. House of Representatives passes bipartisan resolution condemning Syria withdrawal, report says

The House of Representatives approved a bipartisan resolution to condemn U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to pull out American troops from Syria, the New York Times reported on Wednesday evening.

The resolution, which passed on a vote of 354-60, came as Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo are set to depart for Ankara to push for a cease-fire in the Turkish offensive against Syrian Kurds in the country's northeast.

“At President Trump’s hands, American leadership has been laid low, and American foreign policy has become nothing more than a tool to advance his own interests,” said Representative Eliot L. Engel of New York, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee who introduced the largely symbolic bill to congress. “Today we make clear that the Congress is a coequal branch of government and we want nothing to do with this disastrous policy.”

9:11 P.M. U.S.-led coalition says forces have left Syrian cities of Raqqa, Tabqah, Lafarge factory

Syrian government forces arrive in the town of Tal Tamr, not far from the flashpoint Kurdish Syrian town of Ras al-Ain on the border with Turkey, October 15, 2019.
Syrian government forces arrive in the town of Tal Tamr, not far from the flashpoint Kurdish Syrian town of Ras al-Ain on the border with Turkey, October 15, 2019.AFP
The U.S.-led coalition said that its forces had left the Syrian cities of Tabqah and Raqqa as well as a Lafarge cement factory as part of the withdrawal from northeast Syria.

"Coalition forces continue a deliberate withdrawal from northeast Syria. On October 16, we vacated the Lafarge Cement Factory, Raqqa, and Tabqah," coalition spokesman Colonel Myles B. Caggins said on Twitter.

7:35 P.M. Republican lawmakers introduce Turkey sanctions bill in Congress

Lawmakers from President Donald Trump's Republican Party have introduced a bill to impose sanctions on Turkey, which would target Ankara's highest-ranking government officials and the military.

The draft legislation also calls for additional sanctions on Turkey over its purchase of the Russian S-400 air defence system and orders a halt to visas for certain Turkish government officials.

Russian and Syrian national flags flutter on military vehicles near Manbij, Syria October 15, 2019.
Russian and Syrian national flags flutter on military vehicles near Manbij, Syria October 15, 2019. \ OMAR SANADIKI/ REUTERS
The legislation further wants a report on the personal wealth of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

7:15 P.M. Iraqi president holds security talks with U.S. diplomat

Iraqi President Barham Saleh has discussed the situation in northern Syria with a visiting U.S. official and said they had focused on ways of preventing Islamic State militants from taking advantage of the chaos to rise again.

A statement by Saleh's office said he spoke in Baghdad with David Schenker, a U.S. assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs, about ways of supporting Iraq to preserve its security "amid the current challenges."

The statement said both officials said the extremists should not be given a chance "to revive their criminal activities and threaten the region and world's security."

6:59 P.M. Trump says the area of northern Syria 'has nothing to do with us'

U.S. President Donald Trump said the disputed area in northern Syria "has nothing to do with" the United States as he distanced himself from the conflict there.

"Our soldiers are not in harm's way, as they shouldn't be, as two countries fight over land that has nothing to do with us. And the Kurds are much safer right now," Trump said, apparently referring to the Russian and Syrian governments moving into territory.

6:11 P.M. Trump downplays Turkish offensive in Syria, says Kurds are 'not angels'

President Donald Trump played down the crisis in Syria touched off by Turkey's incursion against U.S.-allied Kurdish forces, saying the conflict was between Turkey and Syria and that it was "fine" for Russia to help Damascus.

Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters fire a heavy machine-gun towards Kurdish fighters, in Syria's northern region of Manbij on October 14, 2019.
Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters fire a heavy machine-gun towards Kurdish fighters, in Syria's northern region of Manbij on October 14, 2019.AP Photo
Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House, said imposing U.S. sanctions on Turkey would be better than fighting in the region and that it was up to the countries there to work it out.

The Kurds are "not angels," Trump said.

5:04 P.M. Erdogan says Turkish offensive will end if Syrian Kurds leave border area

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said Turkey's military operation in Syria will end only if Syrian Kurdish fighters lay down their weapons and leave the border area.

The offensive can only cease if "all terrorists drop their weapons ... and leave the safe zone which we have determined as soon as tonight," Erdogan told members of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) in parliament.

He was referring to a 444-kilometre-long buffer zone along Turkey's border with Syria up to Iraq, and 32 kilometres deep into Syrian territory.

4:41 P.M. Can NATO Members Kick Turkey Out of the Military Alliance? | Explained

4:07 P.M. Russian forces reach area outside Kobani in northern Syria, the Syrian Observatory says

Russian forces have crossed the Euphrates river in northern Syria and reached areas outside the city of Kobani, pushing eastward with Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the Syrian Observatory said on Wednesday.

The troop movement comes days after the SDF cut a deal with the Syrian government for army troops to deploy at the border following a Turkish invasion of northeast Syria last week.

The SDF could not be immediately reached for comment.

4:03 P.M. Pompeo says plans to meet Erdogan 'face-to-face'

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he and U.S. Vice President Mike Pence expect to meet with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan when they travel to Turkey this week.

Pompeo, in an interview on Fox Business Network, said the U.S. delegation was planning to leave later on Wednesday and that the goal was to find a resolution to situation in Syria, not break the U.S.-Turkey relationship.

3:45 P.M. Erdogan clarifies he will meet with Pence

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet U.S. Vice President Mike Pence in Ankara after all, his communications director Fahrettin Altun clarifies.

Erdogan will not receive a U.S. delegation that is visiting Ankara on Wednesday, Altun tweeted. But the president will meet the visiting team led by Pence on Thursday, he added.

2:33 P.M. Syrian Army soldiers enter Raqaa

A group of Syrian soldiers have entered the city of Raqqa and begun setting up some observation posts, pro-Damascus al-Mayadeen TV reported.

The report came days after Kurdish-led forces, who seized the city from Islamic State in 2017, cut a deal with the Syrian government for army troops to deploy at the border.

2:16 P.M. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he will not meet with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, but that Pence will be meeting with his Turkish counterpart. "When Trump comes I will meet with him," Erdogan told Sky News.

2:03 P.M. Erdogan to reevaluate upcoming U.S. visit

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he would decide whether to go ahead with a planned visit next month to the United States after meetings with an American delegation in Turkey this week.

Speaking to reporters in parliament, Erdogan said he would re-evaluate the trip because "arguments, debates, conversations being held in Congress regarding my person, my family and my minister friends are a very big disrespect" to the Turkish government.

Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump are due to meet in Washington on Nov. 13.

Separately, Erdogan also described Tuesday's move by U.S. prosecutors to charge Turkey's Halkbank with evading U.S. sanctions on Iran as an "unlawful, ugly step."

1:14 P.M. Turkey tells Kurds to leave northeast Syria by 'tonight'

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Syrian Kurdish fighters must leave a designated border area in northeast Syria "as of tonight" for Turkey to stop its military offensive.

Erdogan made the comments in Parliament amid pressure for him to call a cease-fire and halt its incursion into Syria, now into its eighth day.

Erdogan made clear Turkey would not bow to pressure and would press ahead with the military operation until Turkish troops reach a depth of some 30 or 35 kilometer inside Syria.

12:24 P.M. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to meet with U.S. National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien shortly

12:21 P.M. Turkey cracks down on opposition to Syria incursion

Turkish authorities have arrested 24 people for spreading "black propaganda" on social media about Ankara's military operation in Syria, the state-run Anadolu news agency said.

Since the start of the operation, authorities have carried out a widespread crackdown on individuals criticising the Turkish operation, launching investigations against hundreds of people, including Kurdish lawmakers.

While most of Turkey's opposition parties have backed the operation, the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party (HDP) has called for an end to what it describes it as an "invasion attempt". Prosecutors launched an investigation against the HDP's co-chairs over their comments.

11:31 A.M. Russia says it will push for agreement between Syria, Kurds

Russia will encourage Syria's government and Kurdish forces to reach agreements and implement them following a Turkish operation in Syria's northeast, the RIA news agency cited Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying.

Lavrov said the Turkish operation had allowed captured Islamic State fighters to escape. He added that Moscow would support security cooperation between Turkish and Syrian forces along their border.

9:39 A.M. Assad forces, SDF, Turkish-backed rebels clash in Ain Issa

At least two Syrian army soldiers were killed when a Turkish shell fell overnight Tuesday on a post they were manning in north-east Syria, a war monitor said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said the soldiers were killed when Turkish troops and their allies shelled an area east of Ain Issa, where clashes were also raging between Turkish forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

The clashes led to the death of nine SDF fighters as well as 21 Turkish-backed rebels, the observatory said.

02:34 A.M. Trump to meet U.S. lawmakers on Syria at White House on Wednesday

The Republican and Democratic leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, as well as the congressional foreign affairs and armed services committees are to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday to discuss the situation in Syria, congressional aides said on Tuesday.

Those invited include the Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the chairman and ranking members of the Senate Foreign Relations and House Foreign Affairs Committees, as well as the Senate and House Armed Services Committees, the sources said.

12:05 A.M. Putin invites Erdogan to Russia as Turkey advances in Syria

Russia's president Vladimir Putin spoke with Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan about Syria by phone and invited him to visit Russia in the next few days, the Kremlin said late on Tuesday. Putin and Erdogan agreed to ensure Syria's territorial integrity.

"The invitation has been accepted," the Kremlin said in a statement.

The leaders also discussed the need to avoid possible conflicts between Turkish and Syrian military, according to the statement.

Tuesday, 10:49 P.M. U.S. military aircraft carries out 'show of force' in Syria after Turkish-backed forces came close to American troops

U.S. military aircraft carried out a "show of force" in Syria after Turkish-backed fighters came in close proximity to American forces during a Turkish offensive into northeastern Syria, a U.S. official told Reuters.

The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said U.S. military aircraft were flown over the area after troops in northeastern Syria felt the Turkish-backed fighters were too close. The Turkish-backed fighters dispersed after the show of force, the official said.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Tuesday, 8:23 P.M. Kremlin envoy says Turkish military must not stay in Syria

Russia's presidential envoy for Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, said that Turkey has no right to deploy its forces in Syria permanently.

Speaking to journalists in Abu Dhabi about the Turkish military operation in Syria, he said that, according to earlier agreements, Turkish military can only cross into Syria and go 5-10 kilometres into its territory.

He said that Moscow does not approve the operation.

Tuesday, 6:00 P.M. Assad troops make territorial gains in Manbij

Syrian forces have taken control of an area of more than 1,000 square kilometres around the northeastern Syrian town of Manbij, the Interfax news agency reported, citing the Russian Ministry of Defence.

Syria's army has taken control of the Tabqa military airfield, two hydroelectric power plants and several bridges across the Euphrates river, the ministry was quoted as saying.

Tuesday, 5:09 P.M. Special Haaretz report from Syria: Desperate Kurds see only enemies around them

QAMISHLI, Syria — It’s 9 P.M. and pitch black. On the M4 highway connecting the towns Tal Tamr and Qamishli, a checkpoint held by Kurdish forces is lit up like a Christmas tree. Cones on the asphalt lead in to the crossing.

But this checkpoint is now vacant. A pickup truck rushes at full speed: The Kurdish fighters of the People’s Protection Units, the YPG, vacate their positions. “We’re leaving, the regime is coming,” one of them whispers through the window.

This was the moment the country’s destiny was seemingly changed forever... Read the full story here

Tuesday, 4:52 P.M. Russia moves to buffer between Turkey and Assad troops in northern Syria

Russia moved to fill the void left by the United States in northern Syria, deploying troops Tuesday to keep apart advancing Syrian government and Turkish forces.

Outside Manbij, Russian troops began patrolling front lines between Turkish and Syrian army positions to keep them separated, Russia's Defense Ministry said... Read the full story here

Tuesday, 3:55 P.M. UN says 190,000 have fled since Turkish offensive began in Syria

The number of people who have been uprooted since Turkey launched its incursion in north-eastern Syria last week has risen to 190,000, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. The displaced people include 70,000 children, according to the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).

At a press briefing of UN agencies in Geneva, a World Food Programme (WFP) spokesman said his agency stands ready to supply 450,000 people in north-eastern Syria with five-day food rations. So far, 83,000 people have received these packages.

Tuesday, 3:12 P.M. U.S. forces 'out of Manbij'

The U.S.-led coalition said its forces left Manbij in northern Syria on Tuesday, after state media said the Syrian army had entered the town.

Tuesday, 11:57 A.M. Syrian troops enter Manbij, state TV says

Syrian government troops have deployed inside the northern city of Manbij, Syria's Ikhbariya state TV says. The broadcast shows what it says are residents of Manbij celebrating the arrival of government troops.
https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-new ... -1.7973896
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby Grizzly » Wed Oct 16, 2019 9:58 pm

WHAT'S REALLY GOING ON IN SYRIA?
https://twitter.com/RaniaKhalek/status/1184516917098373122
Washington’s in meltdown mode over Trump’s Syria withdrawal and Turkey’s invasion, but what does it all really mean?
Image
“The more we do to you, the less you seem to believe we are doing it.”

― Joseph mengele
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby Grizzly » Wed Oct 16, 2019 10:12 pm

Image
“The more we do to you, the less you seem to believe we are doing it.”

― Joseph mengele
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby chump » Thu Oct 17, 2019 6:36 am


https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/ ... yone-wins/

The Russian Masterpiece in Syria: Everybody Wins
by Frederico Pieraccini

“Moscow and Damascus have always maintained they are against any form of partition or illegal foreign presence in Syria.”

Moscow has managed to maintain contacts with all parties in the conflict, even in spite of its stance against partition and illegal foreign presence. Trilateral talks between Iran, Turkey and Russia occurred in Astana at Moscow’s urging. Putin managed to bring together in Sochi the Syrian government and opposition groups to discuss the future of Syria. In Geneva, Moscow mediated between Damascus and the international community, shielding Syria from the diplomatic skulduggery of the US and other enemies of Syria.

Turkey, solely as a result of its defeat in Syria, now finds itself in active dialogue with Moscow and Tehran. As Ankara experiences worsening relations with Washington and other European capitals, Moscow saw a great opportunity to bring Turkey closer to Damascus.

Russia’s operation was complicated and required a lot of patience; but thanks to negotiations supervised by Russia, together with the bravery and courage of Syrian soldiers, almost all of the terrorist pockets scattered around Syria have been progressively overcome.

Other than the Idlib province, the main problem for Damascus lay with the US occupation in the northeast of the country, under the pretext of protecting the Kurds (SDF) from the “Assad regime”, as well as to “fight Daesh”.

Erdogan currently finds himself boxed in, squeezed in by a collapsing economy, threatened by his allies (the purchase of the Russian S-400 system irritated many in Washington and in NATO): he desperately needs to present some kind of victory to his base.

This may be the primary reason behind Erdogan’s decision to move into Syria under the pretense that the YPG is a terrorist organization linked with the PKK — proceeding to create a buffer zone on the border between Syria and Turkey and declaring “mission accomplished” to boost popularity ratings.

With Trump, he is desperate to shift attention away from the impeachment proceedings (a hoax), and similarly needs to present some kind of victory to his base. Why, what better way to do this than with a mini withdrawal of US troops from Syria, leaving the Kurds to their destiny (Trump’s care factor regarding SDF is minimal, as they are more connected to his political opponents in the Democratic Party), while claiming victory over Daesh for the umpteenth time in recent months?

Trump, with a handful of tweets directed against the Pentagon’s “crazy spending” and America’s past wars, finds himself and his base giving each other high fives on their commitment to the doctrine of “America First”.

Erdogan and Trump have also solved the embarrassing internal conflict within NATO between Turkey and the US, probably reestablishing personal relationships (the tough talk from the White House notwithstanding).

The agreement between the Kurds (SDF) and Damascus is the only natural conclusion to events that are heavily orchestrated by Moscow.  The deployment of Syrian and Russian troops on the border with Turkey is the prelude to the reconquest of the entirety of Syrian territory — the outcome the Kremlin was wishing for at the beginning of this diplomatic masterpiece.

Washington and Ankara have never had any opportunities to prevent Damascus from reunifying the country. It was assumed by Moscow that Washington and Ankara would sooner or later seek the correct exit strategy, even as they proclaimed victory to their respective bases in the face of defeat in Syria. This is exactly what Putin and Lavrov came up with over the last few weeks, offering Trump and Erdogan the solution to their Syrian problems.

Trump will state that he has little interest in countries 7,000 miles from the homeland; and Erdogan (with some reluctance) will affirm that the border between Turkey and Syria, when held by the Syrian Arab Army, guarantees security against the Kurds.

Putin has no doubt advised Assad and the Kurds to begin a dialogue in the common interests of Syria. He would have no doubt also convinced Erdogan and Trump of the need to accept these plans.

An agreement that rewards Damascus and Moscow saves the Kurds while leaving Erdogan and Trump with a semblance of dignity in a situation that is difficult to explain to a domestic or international audience.

Moscow has started joint patrols with the Syrian Arab Army on the borders with Turkey for the purposes of preventing any military clashes between Ankara and Damascus. If Ankara halts its military operation in the coming days, Damascus will regain control of the oil fields.

The world will then have witnessed one of the greatest diplomatic masterpieces ever conceived, responsible for bringing closer the end of the seven-year-long Syrian conflict.
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Re: The Syria Thread 2011 - Present

Postby seemslikeadream » Thu Oct 17, 2019 8:00 am

Turkey assault in northeast Syria displaced 300,000: Monitor

AFP, BeirutThursday, 17 October 2019


Turkey’s week-old offensive against Kurdish-controlled areas of northeastern Syria has displaced more than 300,000 people, a war monitor said Thursday.

“More than 300,000 civilians have been displaced since the start of the offensive,” Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said.

The Turkish operation comes after US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of US forces from northeastern Syria, which is currently administered by the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (NES), often referred to as Rojava.

Trump’s move was seen by critics as an abandonment of Kurdish forces which had been the key ally in the fight against ISIS.

Last Update: Thursday, 17 October 2019 KSA 09:51 - GMT 06:51
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/m ... nitor.html




random facts girl.

Ohai, Turkey.

You own Halkbank? And they're charged with being party to transnational organized crime and sanctions evasion?

I don't think adding ethnic cleansing to that list is gonna help any...


https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/tu ... ion-dollar
Image
2:55 PM - 15 Oct 2019

Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Southern District of New York
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Turkish Bank Charged In Manhattan Federal Court For Its Participation In A Multibillion-Dollar Iranian Sanctions Evasion Scheme

Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, John C. Demers, the Assistant Attorney General for National Security, and William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced that TÜRKİYE HALK BANKASI A.S., a/k/a “Halkbank,” was charged today in a six-count Indictment with fraud, money laundering, and sanctions offenses related to the bank’s participation in a multibillion-dollar scheme to evade U.S. sanctions on Iran. The case is assigned to United States District Judge Richard M. Berman.

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman stated: “The facts that emerged at the full, fair, and public trial of Halkbank’s deputy general manager, which culminated in a jury’s January 2018 guilty verdict against him, illustrated senior Halkbank management’s participation in this brazen scheme to circumvent our nation’s Iran sanctions regime. As alleged in today’s indictment, Halkbank’s systemic participation in the illicit movement of billions of dollars’ worth of Iranian oil revenue was designed and executed by senior bank officials. The bank’s audacious conduct was supported and protected by high-ranking Turkish government officials, some of whom received millions of dollars in bribes to promote and protect the scheme. Halkbank will now have to answer for its conduct in an American court.”

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers said: “Halkbank, a Turkish state-owned bank, allegedly conspired to undermine the United States Iran sanctions regime by illegally giving Iran access to billions of dollars’ worth of funds, all while deceiving U.S. regulators about the scheme. This is one of the most serious Iran sanctions violations we have seen, and no business should profit from evading our laws or risking our national security.”

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. said: “As we allege today, Halkbank, a Turkish financial institution whose majority shareholder is the government of Turkey, willfully engaged in deceptive activities designed to evade U.S. sanctions against Iran. Halkbank illegally facilitated the illicit transfer of billions of dollars to benefit Iran, and for far too long the bank and its leaders willfully deceived the United States to shield their actions from scrutiny. That deception ends today. The FBI will aggressively pursue those who intentionally violate U.S. sanctions laws and attempt to undercut our national security.”

According to the allegations in the Indictment, returned today in Manhattan federal court[1]:

From approximately 2012, up to and including approximately 2016, TÜRKİYE HALK BANKASI A.S. (“Halkbank”) was a foreign financial institution organized under the laws of and headquartered in Turkey. The majority of Halkbank’s shares are owned by the Government of Turkey. Halkbank and its officers, agents, and co-conspirators directly and indirectly used money service businesses and front companies in Iran, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and elsewhere to violate and to evade and avoid prohibitions against Iran’s access to the U.S. financial system, restrictions on the use of proceeds of Iranian oil and gas sales, and restrictions on the supply of gold to the Government of Iran and to Iranian entities and persons. Halkbank knowingly facilitated the scheme, participated in the design of fraudulent transactions intended to deceive U.S. regulators and foreign banks, and lied to U.S. regulators about Halkbank’s involvement.

High-ranking government officials in Iran and Turkey participated in and protected this scheme. Some officials received bribes worth tens of millions of dollars paid from the proceeds of the scheme so that they would promote the scheme, protect the participants, and help to shield the scheme from the scrutiny of U.S. regulators.

The proceeds of Iran’s sale of oil and gas to Turkey’s national oil company and gas company, among others, were deposited at Halkbank, in accounts in the names of the Central Bank of Iran, the National Iranian Oil Company (“NIOC”), and the National Iranian Gas Company. During the relevant time period, Halkbank was the sole repository of proceeds from the sale of Iranian oil by NIOC to Turkey. Because of U.S. sanctions against Iran and the anti-money laundering policies of U.S. banks, it was difficult for Iran to access these funds in order to transfer them back to Iran or to use them for international financial transfers for the benefit of Iranian government agencies and banks. As of in or about 2012, billions of dollars’ worth of funds had accumulated in NIOC and the Central Bank of Iran’s accounts at Halkbank.

Halkbank participated in several types of illicit transactions for the benefit of Iran that, if discovered, would have exposed the bank to sanctions under U.S. law, including (i) allowing the proceeds of sales of Iranian oil and gas deposited at Halkbank to be used to buy gold for the benefit of the Government of Iran; (ii) allowing the proceeds of sales of Iranian oil and gas deposited at Halkbank to be used to buy gold that was not exported to Iran, in violation of the so-called “bilateral trade” rule; and (iii) facilitating transactions fraudulently designed to appear to be purchases of food and medicine by Iranian customers, in order to appear to fall within the so-called “humanitarian exception” to certain sanctions against the Government of Iran, when in fact no purchases of food or medicine actually occurred. Through these methods, Halkbank illicitly transferred approximately $20 billion worth of otherwise restricted Iranian funds.

Senior Halkbank officers, acting within the scope of their employment and for the benefit of Halkbank, concealed the true nature of these transactions from officials with the U.S. Department of the Treasury so that Halkbank could supply billions of dollars’ worth of services to the Government of Iran without risking being sanctioned by the United States and losing its ability to hold correspondent accounts with U.S. financial institutions.

The purpose and effect of the scheme in which Halkbank participated was to create a pool of Iranian oil funds in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates held in the names of front companies, which concealed the funds’ Iranian nexus. From there, the funds were used to make international payments on behalf of the Government of Iran and Iranian banks, including transfers in U.S. dollars that passed through the U.S. financial system in violation of U.S. sanctions laws.

* * *

Halkbank is charged with (1) conspiracy to defraud the United States, (2) conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”), (3) bank fraud, (4) conspiracy to commit bank fraud, (5) money laundering, and (6) conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The Office has previously charged nine individual defendants, including bank employees, the former Turkish Minister of the Economy, and other participants in the scheme. See S4 15 Cr. 867 (RMB). On October 26, 2017, Reza Zarrab pled guilty to the seven counts with which he was charged. On January 3, 2018, a jury convicted former Halkbank deputy general manager Memet Hakkan Atilla of five of the six counts with which he was charged, following a five-week jury trial. The remaining individual defendants are fugitives.

Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI and its New York Field Office, Counterintelligence Division, and the Department of Justice, National Security Division, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

This case is being handled by the Office’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit and Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael D. Lockard, Sidhardha Kamaraju, David W. Denton Jr., Jonathan Rebold, and Kiersten Fletcher are in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.


[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and the descriptions of the Indictment constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/tu ... ion-dollar


President Trump gives himself an A+ for his handling of Syria:

“That has nothing to do with us,” Mr. Trump said, all but washing his hands of the Kurdish fighters who have fought alongside American troops against the Islamic State for years but have now been left to fend for themselves. “The Kurds know how to fight, and, as I said, they’re not angels, they’re not angels,” he said.

Mr. Trump insisted his handling of the matter had been “strategically brilliant” and minimized concerns for the Kurds, implying that they allied with the United States only out of their own self-interest. “We paid a lot of money for them to fight with us,” he said. Echoing Mr. Erdogan’s talking points, Mr. Trump compared one faction of the Kurds to the Islamic State and he asserted that Kurds intentionally freed some Islamic State prisoners to create a backlash for him. “Probably the Kurds let go to make a little bit stronger political impact,” he said.

https://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/ ... no-angels/
Mazars and Deutsche Bank could have ended this nightmare before it started.
They could still get him out of office.
But instead, they want mass death.
Don’t forget that.
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