Peshmerga fighters: We stand by guerrillas against Turkish military, An attack on guerrilla will mean an attack on peshmerga.

Peshmerga fighters: We stand by guerrillas against Turkish military. (ANF).

Peshmerga fighters who spoke to ANF stated that they do not accept or want the presence of Turkish troops in South Kurdistan, and will be standing by guerrillas against Turkish military in Kurdistan lands.

The peshmergas who fight alongside guerrillas against ISIS gangs that are openly supported by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, said “Turkish army is occupier in South Kurdistan, and we do not want them in our territory.”

'WE DON'T WANT TURKISH SOLDIERS IN OUR LANDS'

Hewkar Evdıla Remezan: As the peshmerga forces of Kurdistan, we do not want Turkish soldiers in Başurê (Southern) Kurdistan. Turkish army is occupier and ISIS is just an excuse for its deployment which is basically meant for fighting the guerrilla. In the event of any attack against guerrillas, we peshmergas will be standing by them at the same front, and fight together against the Turkish state. We call upon Masoud Barzani to disapprove the deployment of occupier Turkish army in Kurdistan.

'ATTACK ON GUERRILLA WILL MEAN AN ATTACK ON PESHMERGA'

Mıstefa Evdıla Hadi : We peshmerga fighters of Kurdistan object to the Turkish deployment in Başurê Kurdistan. It is not possible for peshmerga to remain silent on this occupation. Guerrilla and peshmerga are united, they are the defense forces of the same folk. An attack on guerrilla will therefore mean an attack on peshmerga.

'THOSE MURDERING KURDS IN THE NORTH CANNOT BE OUR ALLIES IN THE SOUTH'

Aso Evdıla Hadi: How could we ever expect the Turkish state to defend our lands while it murders Kurds in Northern Kurdistan? How could we ever remain silent on the deployment of an occupier force in our land? Those who are murdering Kurds in the North cannot be our allies in the South. This is a trick."

'GUERRILLA AND PESHMERGA ARE THE DEFENSE FORCES OF KURDISTAN'
Mıhemmed Teyip: 

Deployment of Turkish soldiers in Başurê Kurdistan is aimed at pitting guerrilla and peshmerga against each other. Guerrilla and peshmerga are the defense forces of Kurdistan, they are fighting at the same front against ISIS in many areas today. We are defending our people in the front line.

'THEY WANT TO MAKE KURDS ENGAGE IN A CONFLICT'


Berzan Rahman Rehim: Turkish troops have been deployed in Southern Kurdistan with an aim to create a conflict among Kurds.

Yet, we Kurds are united and will always remain so. Everyone should know that guerrilla and peshmerga are one united force. The regional government should also do the necessary to expel Turkish military from Southern Kurdistan.

Turkish troops are in Mosul under deal with Baghdad: Barzani.

OIL Brothers

Turkish troops are in Mosul under deal with Baghdad: Barzani. (yenisafak)

Turkey deployed troops in northern Iraq under prior deal with Baghdad, says president of northern Iraqi autonomous region

Mesud Barzani, head of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in northern Iraq, said on Tuesday that Turkey deployed its troops in Mosul under a pre-arranged agreement between Ankara and Baghdad.

Barzani said that the both country had agreed to deploy Turkish troops in the area to train Arab soldiers who will participate in an anti-Daesh operation to retake Mosul from the terrorist group.

“Of course, this training and support was within the context of an agreement between the two parties," Barzani told Anadolu News Agency.

Barzani stated that the replacement of Turkish troops was a routine procedure and the number of the soldiers was not as much as media claimed. “But it was more exaggerated this time," he said.

“I will discuss the issue with Turkish leaders," Barzani said and added that the crisis should be resolved through dialogue.

Bazrani said he also will meet with Iraqi authorities after his Ankara visit to find a better way to solve the issue. Hmmmm.....Both Barzani and Erdo are in the oil business, a man is known by the company he keeps. Read the full story here.

Iraqi Cabinet 'fully authorised' PM Abadi to take all necessary steps in response to #TurkishInvasion of north #Iraq pic.twitter.com/5PiKgupMwZ

— Iraq Live Update (@IraqLiveUpdate) December 8, 2015

PM Al-Abadi discussed with the Russian ambassador strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries . pic.twitter.com/31eexRGbTB

— PM Media Office (@IraqiPMO) December 7, 2015

Iraq: ISIS smuggles majority of oil via 'Sometimes NATO Ally' Turkey.

Iraq: ISIS smuggles majority of oil via 'Sometimes NATO Ally' Turkey. (AA).

Iraq’s premier Haider al-Abadi said Monday that most of the oil smuggled by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group goes through Turkey, joining a chorus of countries linking it with the militants’ financing.

During a meeting with Germany’s visiting foreign minister, Abadi stressed the “importance of stopping oil smuggling by [ISIS] terrorist gangs, the majority of which is smuggled via Turkey,” a statement from his office said.

It is the latest in a series of accusations linking Turkey and oil smuggling by IS, which overran large parts of Iraq last year and also holds major territory in neighboring Syria.

A senior Turkish official said on Monday that Turkish warplanes have taken part in air operations by United States-led coalition forces but have not bombed Islamic State targets in Syria since Nov. 24, when Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet.

Russia accused Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his family of involvement in the IS oil trade, to which he responded that Russia was in fact involved. Hmmmm.....How much longer will Obama cover his BFF Erdogan? Read the full story here.

@airlivenet Maybe they should ask the #Russians for directions?

— MFS - The Other News (@MFS001) December 7, 2015

Erdogan Moves To Annexes Mosul, In short: This is an effort to seize Iraq's northern oil fields.: ICH https://t.co/3SHxhaxMIw

— MFS - The Other News (@MFS001) December 7, 2015

EXCLUSIVE Pics taken during construction of secret Turkish airbase in Dahuk Irak #TwitterKurds pic.twitter.com/vEnuMNWYK1

— Fer G (@FGunay1) December 6, 2015

Iranian paper: Mosul oil lured 'Neo Ottoman Conqueror' Turkey to Iraq.

Iranian paper: 'Mosul oil lured 'Neo Ottoman Conqueror' Turkey to Iraq. (IH).

Iraqi experts say that Mosul oil is the reason behind Turkey’s troop deployment in Iraq.

Masoud Abdolkhalegh, a political analyst, has said that the Turkish government has set its sights on the oil wells in Mosul, warning that the situation is tense given Russia’s presence in the region.

Political leaders and circles in Iraq have condemned the Turkish troop deployment in northern Mosul, rejecting it as open interference in the internal affairs and gross violation of international rules and regulations. Hmmm....As i said earlier those Turkish troops are bait to escalate the conflict.

FM #Steinmeier has arrived in #Baghdad during the night. In stormy times, #Germany stands at the side of #Iraq. pic.twitter.com/cspQUZb6t5

— GermanForeignOffice (@GermanyDiplo) December 7, 2015

PM @HaiderAlAbadi : We challenge Turkey to present any evidence that shows our knowledge or our consent. pic.twitter.com/jZhtA3rxWx

— PM Media Office (@IraqiPMO) December 7, 2015

PM @HaiderAlAbadi:The entry of Turkish troops into Iraqi territory is unacceptable and occurred without the consent of the Iraqi government

— PM Media Office (@IraqiPMO) December 7, 2015

@SETADC They can protect them by withdrawing from a sovereign nation that did not invite them.

— MFS - The Other News (@MFS001) December 7, 2015

Erdogan Moves To Annexes Mosul, In short: This is an effort to seize Iraq's northern oil fields.: ICH https://t.co/3SHxhaxMIw

— MFS - The Other News (@MFS001) December 7, 2015

6 Tweets by US special envoy for war to #ISIS about #Turkey deployment of troops on #Irak soil: https://t.co/hvxLX2MsJ5

— Piero Castellano (@PieroCastellano) December 6, 2015

This includes deployment of U.S. military personnel, as well as military personnel from any other country. 2/6

— Brett McGurk (@brett_mcgurk) December 6, 2015

EXCLUSIVE Pics taken during construction of secret Turkish airbase in Dahuk Irak #TwitterKurds pic.twitter.com/vEnuMNWYK1

— Fer G (@FGunay1) December 6, 2015

Turkey refuses to withdraw 'occupying' soldiers in Iraq after Baghdad protests.

Turkey refuses to withdraw 'occupying' soldiers in Iraq after Baghdad protests. (TZ).

Turkey said on Sunday it would halt further transfers of troops to an area near the ISIL-controlled Iraqi city of Mosul after Baghdad threatened to appeal to the United Nations to force Turkey to withdraw its soldiers.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said his country might turn to the UN Security Council if Turkish troops sent to northern Iraq were not withdrawn within 48 hours.

He said the deployment of hundreds of Turkish forces happened without the approval or knowledge of the Iraqi government and constituted a violation of national sovereignty.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu wrote a letter to Abadi, saying Turkey's armed forces would not send additional forces until Baghdad's "sensitivities" were placated. He stopped short of agreeing to Abadi's demand to withdraw the soldiers.

"No further forces will be deployed to Bashiqa until concerns of the Iraqi government are overcome," the letter said, according to sources at the prime minister's office in Ankara.

Iraqi Defense Minister Khaled al-Obeidi said he told his Turkish counterpart the latest deployment had been made without informing or coordinating with Baghdad, and should be withdrawn.

He said the Turkish defence minister had explained the deployment as necessary to protect military advisers training Iraqi forces some 30 kilometers (19 miles) northeast of Mosul in preparation for a campaign to retake the city. But Obeidi said the force was too large for such a purpose.

"No matter the size of the force entering Iraq, it is rejected," the statement said. "It was possible to undertake this sort of prior coordination without creating circumstances which contributed to a crisis between the two countries."

In his statement, Abadi said: "Iraq has the right to use all available options, including resorting to the UN Security Council if these forces are not withdrawn within 48 hours." Hmmmm.......Seems the sovereignty of other countries isn't much of a problem to 'Neo Ottoman conqueror' Turkey. This could be meant to trigger a bigger Conflict. Read the full story here.

US against military deployment inside Iraq without Baghdad’s consent https://t.co/XqtJYRY4Tt #Turkey pic.twitter.com/yFt3LG14Q7

— Turkey Media Review (@TurkeyReview) December 7, 2015

Video - DAESH contre JÉSUS (French documentary)

Iranian politicians Warn Turkey of Consequences of Military Aggression against Iraq.

 Iran Warns Turkey of Consequences of Military Aggression against Iraq. (Fars).

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian warned Turkey that its violation of Iraq's soil is a wrong action and has security repercussions for the region.

“We believe such measures, if adopted without coordination with the Iraqi government, are against the regional security,” Amir Abdollahian said in an interview with the state-run TV on Saturday night.

“We believe that such behavior will not help the suppression of terrorism and rather will increase chaos and insecurity in the region,” he added.

Amir Abdollahian underlined that there is no doubt that coordinated fight against terrorism and regional security would benefit everyone.

Iranian Speaker: Turkish Incursion of Iraq Aimed at Justifying Terrorism in Mosul. 

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani blasted Turkey for taking immature steps in the region, and said Ankara’s violation of Iraq’s territorial integrity is aimed at justifying the terrorists’ crimes in Mosul.

“Turkey’s military intervention in Iraq, despite the Iraqi government’s opposition, under any justification is nothing but creating new problems and justifying the terrorists’ measures in Mosul and it seems that attempts are being made to give a new form to the ominous stream of terrorism in Mosul region,” Larijani said, addressing the Iranian legislators in an open session of the parliament on Sunday.

Noting that projecting the blame on others, specially after the recent immature steps in the region, would further increase the problems, he said, “The regional states should have a correct assessment of what has happened in the past few years and organize an atmosphere of cooperation by correcting their moves instead of creating new problems.”

“The Islamic Republic of Iran wants welfare, tranquility and security of the region and invites the regional states to honest and sincere cooperation in campaign against terrorism,” Larijani added.


Spokesman of Iraq's Volunteer Forces (Hashd al-Shaabi) Karim al-Nouri blasted Ankara for dispatching troops to the Northern parts of Iraq, and warned the Turkish government to stop supporting the ISIL Takfiri terrorist group.

"The Turkish government’s dispatch of military forces to Nineveh province (in Northern Iraq) on the pretext of fighting the ISIL is provocative," Nouri told FNA on Sunday.

He called on the Turkish government to stop sending logistic and financial aids for the ISIL.

Nouri reiterated that Iraq does not need foreign troops to fight the Takfiri terrorists, and said, “We are ready to send troops to Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Egypt to fight the ISIL."

He pointed to the areas that the Iraqi forces have taken back from the ISIL Takfiri terrorists, and said, "We are tightly holding the key areas and the ISIL cannot take them back by any means."

On Saturday, the Iraqi volunteer forces warned that they will strike at Ankara's interests in retaliation for the Turkish army's illegal border crossing and deployment in Nineveh province.

The Hashd al-Shaabi's reaction came after Turkey dispatched a battalion comprising 130 soldiers to an area near the city of Mosul in Nineveh province on the pretext of providing military training to the Kurdish Peshmerga fighters. In reaction to Turkey's unsolicited dispatch of forces to Iraq, a battalion of Iraq's volunteer forces threatened that they will target the Turkish government's interests on Iraq's soil.

UN Security Council members chose Egypt to head the Counter-Terrorism Committee, starting January 2016.

UN Security Council members chose Egypt to head the Counter-Terrorism Committee, starting January 2016.  (AlAhram).

Egypt has been chosen to head the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) and two other committees starting January 2016, spokesperson to the Egyptian foreign ministry, Ahmed Abu Zeid, said in a statement.

Abu Zeid said that the choice of Egypt [to head the CTC] reflects the confidence of Security Council members in Cairo. The committee, comprising all 15 Security Council members, is tasked with monitoring implementation of Resolution 1373 (2001), which mandates UN member states implement a number of measures to enhance their legal and institutional ability to counter terrorist activities at home.

Abu Zeid also said that Egypt will be heading two other committees at the UN Security Council.

"Egypt will also be heading the commission ... to follow up on the sanctions regime on Iraq, and the commission ... to follow up on penal system [reform] in the Democratic Republic of Congo," the statement read.

Following the announcement, Abu Zeid, said Egypt will work “vigorously” to defend and support African and Arab priorities at the Security Council. Hmmm.......First action should be kick out Turkey and Qatar, second action outlaw the Muslim Brotherhood....and that's just for starters.

#Russia and #Egypt determined to make list of terror groups in #Syria. https://t.co/qZKTmYa3BM pic.twitter.com/owP5dmfmJo

— MFS - The Other News (@MFS001) December 5, 2015

ISIS in Libya are using simulator devices in Sirte airport, Training to Fly Planes.

ISIS in Libya are using simulator devices in Sirte airport, Training to Fly Planes. (AW).

ISIS terrorists in the city of Sirte, northern Libya, are training to fly planes using at least one flight simulator according to military sources in the North African state. The sources added that there is a prevailing belief amongst investigators that the device was seized from the training departments of Gaddafi’s looted airports.

Other sources stated that “It’s a modern simulator, which may have arrived from abroad”, noting that it was roughly the size of a small car. The simulator is complete with a steering wheel to practice take-off and landing, a radar screen, and a communications device to contact the control tower.

A senior Libyan military officer said in an interview during a recent visit to Cairo that a group of ISIS leaders, amongst them retired officers from Libya and a number of neighbouring countries, obtained the first simulator device that specialises in civilian planes last October. Security services have gathered new information from Sirte during the last two weeks suggesting that another fighter jet simulator had arrived. However, its type remains unknown.

A security official working in a team that follows the activity of ISIS in North Africa said that information about ISIS militants training to fly civilian planes in Libya exists and added that the Libyan Air Force which lacks armaments attempted to hit at least one base where the training is believed to take place several times but that the operations were unsuccessful.

HT And Source:

Reports #ISIS training to fly planes with modern flight simulator in #Sirte #Libya https://t.co/hkeBIyYbUH

— маяковский (@moscow_ghost) December 4, 2015

Obama backed FSA Militia Establishes Facility For Training Fighters Against Russian Army.

Obama backed FSA Militia Establishes Facility For Training Fighters Against Russian Army. (Memri).

On October 29, 2015, the Tahrir Homs ("Free Homs") militia, which operates in the area north of this city and is part of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) that is fighting the Syrian regime, announced that it has established a military training facility near Homs where its officers will instruct as many fighters as possible about the methods of the Russian army.

Tahrir Homs, a union of seven militias, was founded in September 2014 in order to liberate this city and the area to its north from the Assad regime, and to unite all the forces fighting against the regime in this area. It includes over 120 experienced officers who defected from the regime army.

In late June 2015, it founded the Military Advisory Council, whose task is "to gather intelligence and use it in the most effective manner, to prepare military maps and to coordinate with the various revolutionary forces."
The following are details on the new training facility:

The Goal Of The Training Facility: Training Officers, Teaching Warfare Doctrines, Learning Russia's Military Deployment In Syria.

The announcement on the establishment of the facility states that its goals are to:

"1. Train officer teams to command battles;
"2. Impart the military knowledge, expertise and skills of the relevant officers to the trainees, by conducting various courses...
"3. Teach military plans based on experience gained in previous battles against the [Assad] regime and apply [this experience] in practice...
"4. Provide the trainees with all the new information regarding the Russian's military deployment in Syria and the new Russian weapons, their uses and their specifications.
"5. Train the officers who defected [from the Syrian army] in intensive courses so as to promote them to higher [military] ranks..."


The announcement stated further that the facility would serve all rebels factions interested.

Captain Rashid Al-Horani, one of the militia's top officials, said that the facility is headed by Lieutenant-Colonel 'Imad Shahoud and has a staff of 20 officers. He added that, in addition to the course of small-group fighting, there will be courses on sniping, weapons maintenance and also martyrdom operations, because the main goal of the facility is to train groups of fighters who are willing to sacrifice themselves in order to harm the regime forces and militias. Read and see the full story here.

'No-Fly List Is Islamophobia' Poster Boy Arrested in Turkey as Part of alleged ISIS Cell.

MSNBC's 'No-Fly List Is Islamophobia' Poster Boy Arrested in Turkey as Part of ISIS Cell. (PJMedia).

A man, who just two years ago was the poster boy for the far-Left media's attacks against the U.S. government's no-fly list for "unfairly" targeting Muslims, finds himself and several family members sitting in a Turkish prison -- arrested earlier this month near the Turkey-Syria border as members of an ISIS cell.

It's a long way from 2013 when Saadiq Long's cause was being championed by MSNBC's Chris Hayes, Glenn Greenwald, and Mother Jones, and was being represented by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) terror front.

His story got considerable media attention when his CAIR media representatives here pushed the story that Long wanted to return to his native Oklahoma from his current home in Qatar to visit his ailing mother but couldn't because he was on the TSA's no-fly list. They said his case represented institutional "Islamophobia."

U.S. and Turkish officials confirmed Long's arrest to PJ Media, saying that he was arrested along with eight others operating along the Turkish-Syrian border. So far, no U.S. media outlet has reported on his arrest. Read the full story here.

Syrian Grand Mufti: 'They want to divide us into several quasi-states'.

Syrian Grand Mufti: 'They want to divide us into several quasi-states'. (RBTH).

The civil war in Syria is witnessing the participation of representatives of the most varied faiths and from all sides. Some of the conflicting sides are using religious slogans for mobilizing their adherents. Syrian Grand Mufti Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun speaks about how to stop the bloodshed and why the root of the conflict lies not only in religious antagonisms.

There is a common narrative that the civil war taking place in Syria is an interreligious conflict. Is this so?

It is true that in the four years of the war it has always been depicted as an interreligious war. But it's not so. Everyone is running from the places controlled by the Islamic State (IS) or the al-Nusra Front: Christians, Sunnis and Alawites. And they are running to places where the Syrian army is established. The provinces of Al-Raqqah and Idlib are regions where only Sunnis live, yet for some reason those same Sunnis are running away from the al-Nusra Front, which positions itself as the "protector of the Sunnis."


Syria is a secular state and 70 years ago we even had a Christian prime minister. We are currently the only country in the Middle East where children in school have only one subject on religion. In the universities Christians and Muslims study together. In order to enter the government it is not necessary to represent one faith or another.

How would you then characterize this conflict?

The war is now being fought between religious terrorism and the secular government. The war in Syria is not an interreligious war and not a war to topple Assad. It is a war to destroy Syria as the last secular government in the Middle East. All the other Middle Eastern countries became states with a defined religious order a long time ago. This is the case even for Lebanon. It is clearly divided according to religion in several parts: the former president was a Maronite Christian, the speaker of parliament is a Shiite and it is only this balance that helps maintain peace there.

In Jordan the king must be a Hashemite. In Saudi Arabia the ruling dynasty is Sunni and must be composed of members of the Saudi family. In Iraq the president must be a Sunni and the prime minister a Shiite. In Turkey the president must only be a Muslim.

Syria remains the only country where the president and the prime minister can be Christians or Shiites or Alawites or Sunnis or even atheists. They want to divide us into several religious quasi-states.

Why then did the war begin and why are government opposition so strong?
In this sense, what is happening in our country has a non-Syrian nature. It is enough to say that from the first day of the war there were two bases: one in Jordan and another in Turkey. For three years Syria had resisted all these forces rather successfully. Then they provoked the entry of the IS into our country. Now there are 30,000 Uyghur Muslims from China and militants from Chechnya, the UK and a series of European countries fighting against us. They are all killing people regardless of the faiths that the victims adhere to. By the way, these terrorists have killed more Sunnis during the war than anyone else.


When representatives of Saudi Arabia said that Russia is supporting the Shiites against the Sunnis, Putin correctly responded that Russia is just supporting the Syrians in their war against terrorists and not the government of the country or the Shiites or anyone else. Read the full story here.

Video - ISIS launches bizarre Hot Air balloons over the skies of Idlib As Defense against Russian jets?

More about this can be read here.

Iraqi Mobilization Forces Urge Abadi to apply for Russian Strikes

Iraqi Mobilization Forces Urge Abadi to apply for Russian Strikes. (AM).

Iraq’s ruling alliance and powerful Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) have urged Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to request Russian air strikes on the Takfiri group, ISIL (so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Levant), a report said on Wednesday.

Reuters news agency quoted two members of parliament as saying that the prime minister was under “tremendous pressure” from the ruling National Alliance to request Russian intervention.

MPs and alliance members said an official request for Russian air strikes was relayed to Abadi last week and that he has not officially responded.

“Abadi told the meeting parties that it wasn’t the right time to include the Russians in the fight because that would only complicate the situation with the Americans and could have undesired consequences even on long-term future relations with America,” said a senior Shi’ite politician close to Abadi.

Abadi’s spokesman said he has not discussed air strikes with Russia. At the same time he was “not ruling out any side that could provide support to Iraq,” Saad al-Hadithi said. Read the full story here.

Russia will strike any regional country supplying Syrian rebels with MANPADs that can hit its jets

Russia will strike any regional country supplying Syrian rebels with MANPADs. HT: EjmAlrai

Sources close to the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told me “important decisions were taken on regional level, the military needs of the Syrian army to eliminate terrorism, and a serious message Russia is sending to the countries involved in supporting insurgents and terrorists in the Levant. ”


” The early departure of President Assad is not conceivable for both Russia and Syria. Neither side has mentioned this topic. Nonetheless, the Syrian President expressed to his counterpart his readiness for an early election to ensure a place for all, after proposing an amendment of the Constitution.


Putin explained that Russia has used intercontinental cruise missiles to show to all players with proxies fighting on the ground in Syria its determination to target any regional country providing extremists with anti-air missiles (MANPADs) that can damage or shoot down any Russian jet. Any country that supports terrorists exposing Russian jets at risk would be a legitimate target to Russia. Read the full story here.

Who are the #Syria/n moderate that have received or obtained #USA made TOWs https://t.co/cy1ZwFQqjN v @Pyrrha108 pic.twitter.com/DxgXzFKqQw

— Elijah J. Magnier (@EjmAlrai) October 23, 2015

Erdogan slams intellectuals as ‘fifth column,’ HDP as a ‘terrorist organization’

Erdogan slams intellectuals as ‘fifth column,’ HDP as a ‘terrorist organization’. (BG).

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan lashed out in reaction to an open letter from a hundred academics and intellectuals, who urged German Chancellor Angela Merkel not to visit Turkey on the grounds that her presence would legitimize the undemocratic and unlawful actions of Erdoğan and the Justice and Development Party (AK Party).

“The chancellor of Germany comes to Turkey. A mob who calls themselves academics then fabricate a bunch of lies, telling her that a visit will mean tacit support for Erdoğan and [acting prime minister] Davutoğlu. This is what is known as a fifth column action. I see everyone involved with this action as a ‘mankurt,’” said Erdoğan. Mankurt are mindless slaves from ancient Turkic epics who have lost their minds due to torture.

“What’s even more sad is that an important portion of this mob work at public universities and so receive their salaries from the state,” Erdoğan added.

The president also went on to slam the pro-Kurdish, left wing People’s Democratic Party (HDP), saying that he didn’t even consider them a political party anymore, but rather an organization founded for terrorist groups to criticize the government.

He criticized in turn other opposition political parties, namely the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), accusing them of dishonesty and insincerity:

 “These people need to learn that the most important part of being a politician in this country is honesty.” Hmmmm....'Ein volk, ein Ummah .....ein Fuhrer'. Read the full story here.

Russian Intervention Shatters Turkey's Neo-Ottomanist Dreams For Syria.

Russian Intervention Shatters Turkey's Neo-Ottomanist Dreams For Syria. (Memri).

Since the Arab Spring of 2011, Turkey's foreign policy has been focused on Syria and on the ousting of its 'Alawite President Bashar Assad, who Turkey hoped would be replaced by a like-minded Sunni ruler from the Muslim Brotherhood. 

During the 13 years of its rule, Turkey's government, led by the Justice and Development Party (AKP), steered the country away from its traditional alliance with the West and towards the Middle East and the Islamic world, claiming historic hegemony over, and responsibility for, the countries of the region – a role that Turkey sees as its Ottoman legacy. 

President [formerly PM] Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Prime Minister [formerly FM] Ahmet Davutoglu designed a neo-Ottomanist, expansionist and foreign policy that involved grand aspirations to become the region's main superpower. 

They supported Islamist jihadist factions in many countries, incurring sharp criticism from the governments of Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, Iraq and especially Syria, where they played a major role in sparking and escalating the civil war. 

The AKP government allowed free passage to thousands of jihadi fighters into Syria, and provided material and logistic support to radical organizations that are fighting the Assad regime, including ISIS, Jabhat Al-Nusra and Ahrar Al-Sham –with the exception of the Kurdish forces, whom Turkey terms "terrorists" despite their important role in fighting ISIS.

After Turkey, a NATO ally, finally opened its strategically important Incirlik airbase for the use of coalition forces in July 2015, the U.S. and the West turned a blind eye to Turkey's aggression against the Kurds, and agreed to most of Turkey's demands,[1] including by supporting its program for training and equipping an opposition force in Syria to fight both ISIS and the Assad regime– a project that turned out to be a failure. 

When the U.S. and Europe rejected Turkey's initiative for a safe zone in Syria where Turkey would build cities to settle refugees, Turkey pressured them by allowing hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees from camps in Turkey to migrate to European countries, thus presenting Europe with a massive refugee problem. 

Russia's current involvement in Syria has definitely put an end to Turkey's safe-zone plans. Turkey's opposition parties, as well as its independent media, have for years criticized Erdogan and Davutoglu's Syrian policies as "disastrous," yet the AKP government was confident that its plans for Syria would produce the outcome it desired. 

AKP leaders treated Syria as a domestic issue, and claimed that "not a bird could fly over that country without Turkey's approval."[2] In August 2012 Davutoglu predicted that Assad would fall within a few weeks,[3] and in September of that year Erdogan announced that "very soon, we [Turks]will meet and hug our [Sunni] brethren in liberated Damascus, say the Fatiha [prayer] at the tomb of Salah Al-Din Al-Ayyoubi and pray together in freedom at the Emevi mosque."[4]

Russia's recent military intervention in Syria along with Iran, aimed at propping up Assad's rule, as well as its airstrikes that target not only ISIS but also the so-called moderates supported by Turkey (which in reality are also Islamist terrorist groups), have transformed the face of the conflict. Russia's reassertion of its involvement in the Middle East, and its recent incursions into Turkish airspace, threaten to spark a Russia-NATO clash on the Turkey-Syria border. 

With its naval bases in Western Syria, Russia could interfere with Turkish and other vessels along the navigation routes in the eastern Mediterranean. Turkey is certainly the most affected party in this new game, for its dreams regarding Syria, which never matched its actual abilities, are fast becoming a nightmare.

Reactions to the recent development in Syria, some oppositionist Turkish columnists criticized the AKP government for its foreign policies, which they characterize as sectarian, Islamist and based on neo-Ottoman fantasies. 

They also criticized the government for supporting radical Islamist organizations in Syria that have become a threat to the region and to Turkey's own security, and for manipulating the West into believing that there is a moderate opposition to the Syrian government, when in fact there is none.

Conversely, columnists in Islamist and pro-AKP papers slammed Russia's campaign in Syria and accused that it was part of a plan secretly concocted by Russia along with the U.S.

The following are excerpts from some of these articles. Read the full story here. 

Lebanese newspaper claims: Russia blocks Israeli jets over Lebanon.

Lebanese newspaper claims: Russia blocks Israeli jets over Lebanon. (INN).

Russian forces warned Israel over IAF flights in Russian controlled airspace near the Syrian–Lebanese border area after Israeli jets were detected nearby, according to a report Friday in the Lebanese media outlet As Safir.

The report comes a mere day after Russia announced that it had established a "hotline" with Israel in order to coordinate aerial activity over Lebanon and Syria.

As Safir quoted Lebanese diplomatic officials who were "in the know," as saying that the warning was issued after Russian radar identified Israeli aircraft approaching Russian-controlled airspace two weeks ago.

"Russian aircraft immediately blocked the Israeli jets' path while they flew above the Akkar region in northern Lebanon. The Russians immediately sent a clear warning to the Israelis that entering Syrian airspace would be a pretext for opening fire," the source said.



According to the paper, which is considered loyal to Hezbollah, the Israeli aircraft quickly heeded the warnings and changed their course.

Lebanese officials quoted in the report said that Israeli aircraft typically fly over northern Lebanon on a daily basis, "and tended to fly on a path above the Akkar region, later conducting reconnaissance in a circular pattern above the Lebanese territorial waters, eventually reaching the Syrian territorial waters."


The report quoted an official as saying that, "Their goal was to observe the movement of ships in the port of Tartus, as well as tracking the air traffic coming in an out of Latika airport – out of concern over possible weapons transfers to Hezbollah." Read the full story here.

Iraqi Army Makes a Huge Push in the strategic Baiji area in Western Iraq.

Iraqi Army Makes a Huge Push in the strategic Baiji area in Western Iraq.(AM).

Iraqi forces defused booby traps and hunted down holdout jihadists in the strategic Baiji area Friday as part of their biggest advance against the Terrorist group, ISIL, in months.

Baiji lies at a crossroads between several frontlines and control of the area is seen as the key to progress in other regions, including Anbar province where forces were also closing in on ISIL strongholds.

Iraq’s army, police and counter-terrorism services, as well as thousands of fighters from the Popular Mobilization (Hashed al-Shaabi), continued to gain significant ground in and around Baiji, officers said.

“Iraqi forces are moving deep into Baiji, they have retaken the industrial area and several other neighborhoods,” an army colonel told AFP.

“We control about 60 percent of the city, there are not so many Daesh fighters left and they are trapped,” he said, using an Arabic acronym for ISIL.

After retaking most of the refinery to the north of the city, security forces were sweeping the sprawling complex for bombs and die-hard Takfiris.

“Inside the refinery, our forces are defusing booby traps and looking for the last Daesh terrorists we believe are still holed up in some buildings,” he said.

The refinery, which once produced 300,000 barrels per day of refined products meeting half of Iraq’s needs, is said to have been damaged beyond repair and to no longer be of huge strategic interest.

The same officer also said that Iraqi forces had completely surrounded Sinniya, a town west of Baiji on the road leading to Anbar.

“We are firing large numbers of rockets and missiles, while Iraqi warplanes are also striking. This will prepare the ground for an operation to cleanse Sinniya,” he said.

ISIS Demands $ 50,000 Ransom for each of the 280 Assyrian Hostages; 3 Civilians Executed

ISIS Demands $ 50,000 Ransom for each of the 280 Assyrian Hostages; 3 Civilians Executed. (AM).

The Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) has released another a gory video in which they brutally execute three Assyrian civilians that were taken captive during their winter offensive (February 23rd) in the Khabour River region of the Al-Hasakah Governorate.

In the video, the terrorist group threatens to execute the remaining 280 captives if a ransom of $50,000 per hostage is not paid to them in the coming weeks; this monetary demand aggregates to $14 million (U.S.) in order to release the prisoners.

Following their threat, the terrorist group summarily executed the three Assyrian captives and made another threat to execute more of the hostages if their demands are not met.

The three Assyrian men that were identified in the video are Dr. ‘Abdel-Maseeh Aniyah of Tal Jazirah (Al-Hasakah), Ashur Rustam Abraham of Tal Jazirah, and Bassam Issa Michael from Tal Shamiram (Al-Jazirah).

The final fate of the 280 hostages will be contingent on ISIS; furthermore, they have expressed no qualms with mass executions, as they have carried them out on numerous occasions. Hmmm.....I refuse to display their vids or gory photo's, i won't help them in their efforts to intimidate folks. We only have to fear fear itself.

Update: 
An other News source speaks of $ 100,000 Ransom for each of the hostages. HT: @MoscowGhost.