Podcast : Adam Shatz talks to Joshua Landis on Syria War.: Trump reverting to the Obama doctrine

For the latest instalment of our podcast, @adamshatz spoke to @joshua_landis about the Syrian War, listen/read here: https://t.co/UahinsDP6B

— London Review (LRB) (@LRB) April 21, 2017

"Russian Campaign Saved Syria from Becoming Part of New Ottoman Empire": PYD co-chairman Saleh Muslim.

"Russian Campaign Saved Syria from Becoming Part of New Ottoman Empire": PYD co-chairman Saleh Muslim. (IFPNews).

Russia’s aerial campaign in Syria has reinforced Moscow’s positions among other countries and contributed to the multi-polarity in the world, Syria’s Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) co-chairman Saleh Muslim said.

“The Russian campaign in Syria has strengthened country’s positions in the world affairs. I believe, this was the end of the uni-polar world. We can talk about multi-polar world now,” Muslim said, as reported by Sputnik and covered by ISNA.

He added that Moscow’s aerial campaign had also changed Washington’s perception of terrorists, pushing the United States to change its stance with regard to several militant groups in the region.


According to the PYD co-chairman, Russia’s support of Syria prevented the Middle Eastern nation “from being cut into pieces and becoming a part of a new Ottoman Empire.”

Al-Hashed Al-Sha’bi head claims ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi arrived in Kirkuk.

Al-Hashed Al-Sha’bi head claims ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi arrived in Kirkuk. (Southfront).

On Tuesday, a leader from Al-Hashed Al-Sha’bi said that the ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi arrived in the outskirts of Hawija southwest of Kirkuk. He also called the leadership of the army’s Air Force to intensify air raids in Hawija.

“We have reliable information that the leader of ISIS Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi arrived in Hawija region and held important meetings with the rest of the field leaders that had been killed in four failed attacks, targeting Alas and Ajil fields, over the past 72 hours,” said Jabbar Mamouri, the leader of al-Hashed al-Sha’bi militia in a statement.

Mamouri added that the arrival of al-Baghdadi in Hawija is a sign of the dire situation of the ISIS of loss of morale and the emergence of flee that led to the collapse of several front lines of defense in Sharqat.

“The [army’s] Air Force to invest the presence of al-Baghdadi by intensifying air strikes in order to eliminate the head of the snake,” Mamouri said. Read the full story here.

IRGC Commander: Iran to Foil U.S. & Zionist Plot to Disintegrate Iraq, Syria.

IRGC Commander: Iran to Foil U.S. & Turkish Ottoman conquerors Zionist Plot to Disintegrate Iraq, Syria. (IH).

Speaking in a conference titled “Gaza, Symbol of Resistance” in Tehran on Wednesday, Major General Jafari emphasized that the plot by the Zionists and the US to disintegrate Iraq and Syria is part of a bigger scheme to harm Iran and its Islamic Revolution.

After failing to carry out their numerous plots against the Islamic Revolution, the Americans resorted to sowing discord among Muslim nations and regional countries in order to use the potentials of the Muslim world against the revolution, he said.

“We consider the scenario for splitting Iraq and Syria as an entirely Zionist and US plot and we will foil it,” the commander underlined.

“Today, no army is capable of standing against the movement of the Islamic Revolution,” Major General Jafari said, adding that the US and Israeli armies are fully aware that if they make a wrong move the movement will eradicate them.

Last year, a controversial US Congress bill was drafted, proposing the division of Iraq into three states and allows the Kurdish forces and the Sunni tribesmen to be armed directly without Baghdad’s approval.

The draft of the US annual defense bill, which was released on April 27, 2015 by the House Armed Services Committee, urged the US government to recognize separate Kurdish and Sunni states and provide them with at least 25 percent of the USD 715-million aid planned to be given to the Iraqi government to help it fight the ISIL terrorist group.

The draft bill also said the figure could even amount to 60 percent of the money, about USD 429 million. Hmmm........Anyone still wondering why the Turkish troops are in Iraq?

Quoting materials from Iran Front Page is permitted only if the source is mentioned by name.

Obama 'Admin' still considering their BFF Erdogan's No-Fly zone.

Obama 'Admin' still considering their BFF Erdogan's No-Fly zone. (AM).

WASHINGTON — The retired Marine general in charge of mobilizing an international coalition against the group that calls itself the Islamic State (IS) says that the United States has not ruled out a no-fly zone or protected corridor in Syria to safeguard the thousands of fighters it intends to train to help defeat the militant group.

“All those things are under consideration,” John Allen told an audience the evening of March 2 at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank.

Allen bristled when asked if the 5,000 moderate Syrians that the United States says it plans to train each year for the next three years in Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia would face certain death once injected onto the battlefield. “We will protect them when the time comes,” Allen said.

Syrian opposition forces and Turkey have long urged the Obama administration to establish a protected zone in northern Syria along the Turkish border to reduce the number of refugees streaming out of the country and make it easier for the opposition to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad to govern a piece of liberated land. 

But the White House has so far resisted these appeals and since last summer has focused less on confronting Assad than on defeating IS forces that have seized a third of Syrian territory and Sunni Muslim areas in Iraq.

Fred Hof, a former US official and a Syria expert at the Atlantic Council, told Al-Monitor that Allen’s remarks about a no-fly zone “was more than an implication. It all comes down to the decision of one man [President Barack Obama].” Hmmm......Anyone still believing that BS that they don't talk to one another? It's 'Neo Ottoman Conqueror' Turkey dictating U.S. Foreign policy......'Useful Idiots' Read the full story here.

Obama 'Admin' praises 'Sometimes NATO ally' Turkey on anti-ISIL efforts. (Not the Onion).

Obama 'Admin' praises 'Sometimes NATO ally' Turkey on anti-ISIL efforts. (Not the Onion). (AA).

The U.S. on Friday said that Turkey plays an important role in the fight against Daesh, also known as ISIL.

“They - Turkey - have taken steps on every aspect of our anti -ISIL coalition, which is not just military,” said State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki. “It is also cracking down on foreign fighters. It's also about financing. It's also about delegitimizingISIL.”

Psaki's comments came after Director of U.S. National Intelligence James Clapper told a Senate committee on Thursday that Turkey does not place a high priority on fighting Daesh – leading to a flow of foreign fighters through its country into Syria. Hmmm....Guess they don't talk much to each other and memo's go straight to the shredder. Read the full 'Fairy tale' story here.

Up to 373 Assyrians Captured By ISIS, Executions Have Begun.

Up to 373 Assyrians Captured By ISIS, Executions Have Begun.(Aina).

According to Assyrian leaders in Hasaka, the number of Assyrians captured by ISIS is as high as 373. There are 150 confirmed captives whose names are known.

Various news agencies reporting today raised the number of captured Assyrians to 250. Aid to the Church in Need is reporting that some of the captured Assyrians have been executed.

The Aleteia news agency is reporting that up to 350 Assyrians may have been captured, and that executions have begun.

Aleteia reports that 12 fighters from the Assyrian village of Tel Hurmiz, two of them women, have been executed by ISIS.

According to Assyrian fighters in Tel Tamar, ISIS has withdrawn from the Assyrian villages of Tel Goran, Tel Shamiran and Tel Jazira. But residents and fighters have not reentered the villages for fear of booby traps left by ISIS.

Assyrian sources in Hasaka say ISIS claims to have sent pictures of the captured Assyrians to the U.S. government with an ultimatum to stop airstrikes against them else all Assyrians will be killed.

Funerals for Fighters

Funeral services were held yesterday for the 9 Assyrian fighters killed while fighting ISIS. Their names are:

• Milad Sammy Adam 
• George Maholian 
• Tamir Darwish 
• Marius Hurmiz 
• Simon Somo 
• Abraham Qatina 
• Joseph Afeh 
• Julian Osi Haysam from Hasaka. Read and see the full story here.

May God have mercy on their souls and give the perpetrators swift and eternal justice.

US intelligence chief James Clapper : "Fighting ISIL not a priority for Turkey".

US intelligence chief James Clapper : "Fighting ISIL not a priority for Turkey".(HD).

Turkey does not place a high priority on fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and as a result foreign fighters are able to travel through the country into Syria, US intelligence chief James Clapper said on Feb. 26.

When asked, Clapper told senators he wasn't optimistic Turkey would take a more active role in the war against the ISIL group.

"I think Turkey has other priorities and other interests," he told the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The effect of Turkey's approach was to allow a "permissive" climate for foreign recruits heading to Syria to take arms for the ISIL, he said.

"And of course, the consequence of that is a permissive environment... because of their laws and the ability of people to travel through Turkey en route to Syria," Clapper said.

"So somewhere in the neighborhood of 60 percent of those foreign fighters find their way to Syria through Turkey." Hmmm.....Sure 'Sometimes NATO ally' Islamist Turkey has other 'Values and priorities'. Read the full story here.

Splits emerging within terrorist group IS in Iraq: sources.

Splits emerging within terrorist group IS in Iraq: sources. (Aawsat).

Erbil, Asharq Al-Awsat—Cracks are appearing within the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) amid reports of divisions and confrontation between foreign fighters and local tribesman in the Iraqi provinces of Nineveh, Salah Al-Din and Al-Anbar.

The divisions have emerged over ISIS’s execution of its governor, or Wali, of Tel Afar, with clashes subsequently erupting between ISIS fighters in Mosul and those in Tel Afar.

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) spokesman for Nineveh Hawkar Jaff told Asharq Al-Awsat: “We have seen battles between the Tel Afar fighters and the Arabs and Iraqi fighters, with each side utilizing mortars against the others.” “The Tel Afar fighters have now defected from ISIS,” he added.

Jaff revealed that Tel Afar’s fighters are predominately local Iraqis, as well as a group of foreign fighters from Tunisia who remain loyal to Wali Abdulrahman Al-Afghani.

Battles erupted between Tel Afarite ISIS fighters and Mosulite ISIS fighters during a meeting in the Hammam Al-Alil area south of Mosul over the issue of the allocation of funds,” Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) official Saeed Mamozeini told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Mamozeini, who is director of the KDP’s media bureau in Nineveh governorate, said that 15 ISIS fighters had been killed in the initial clashes, adding that the fighting is ongoing.

Another KDP official, Ghayath Sawraji, said that divisions and violence between ISIS fighters is not uncommon.

He told Asharq Al-Awsat: “There is violence between armed ISIS fighters in Mosul every now and then, with many people dying as a result of internal conflicts within the group. The reasons for this are varied and include fighting over war booty [including slaves], as well as differences of opinion over issues relating to fighting and hostages.”

“There are also conflicts between different ISIS leaders and their supporters, as well as other conflict between foreign fighters and local Arab and Iraqi fighters,” he added.

Local sources also told Asharq Al-Awsat that the brutal execution of Jordanian pilot Muadh Al-Kasasbeh, who was burnt alive, has been far from the propaganda victory that ISIS envisioned.

“There have been splits within ISIS’s main command after many members objected to the execution of the Jordanian pilot and the manner in which the group is dealing with hostages and prisoners of war,” Anbar tribal Shiekh Fahdan Al-Sadid said.

A leading member of the powerful Shammar tribe, Sadid called for greater cooperation and coordination between the US-led international anti-ISIS coalition and local Sunni forces on the ground. “This is ISIS’s greatest fear,” he said.

Sadid stressed that while ISIS had managed to incorporate smaller extremist and terrorist groups such as the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Tawhid wal-Jihad and others, these groups are now straining under ISIS’s rule.

“More than 60 percent of such groups are no longer as convinced by ISIS and are now actively leaving the group, particularly after they lost some territory in Iraq and preparations are underway for a major military offensive to drive ISIS out of the country,” he added.

Iraqi Army can’t retake Mosul, says Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Barbero.

Will Iraqi troops be prepared to fight child soldiers?

Iraqi Army can’t retake Mosul, says Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Barbero. (Wapo).

The Army general who oversaw training of Iraqi troops says the rushed mission to retake Mosul from the Islamic State this spring is doomed.

Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Barbero said Mosul is booby-trapped with explosives and controlled by thousands of suicidal fighters. Evicting them will take a coordinated ground and air campaign with precise intelligence on enemy locations. 

It is a combat mix that Iraqis simply lack the ability to execute in accordance with an announced U.S. Central Command timeline to attack Mosul in April or May.

“They could be ready to attack. I doubt they’d be successful,” Mr. Barbero told The Washington Times. “Two months is clearly inadequate to think that they could start offensive operations of any effect in Mosul.”

The Islamic State has had eight months to hunker down in Mosul, which was hostile to the Shiite-run government in Baghdad even before the takeover by the extremist group, also known by the acronyms ISIS and ISIL.

“Urban fighting is the most sophisticated, complex fight there is,” Mr. Barbero said.

“Multidimensional. It’s direct fire. Indirect fire. Precision fires. If you want to gain support from the occupants, the Sunnis, you can’t go in there and just run with it. So it has to be a very, very precise application of firepower against an enemy that has no regard for the population and will indiscriminately use violence to hold on. There’s no way the Iraqi Security Forces will be ready for this kind of fighting.” Hmmm......It will be 'Stalingrad' in the desert with the Iraqi army as the Germans.Read the full story here.

Is 'Islamist' Turkey Turning Towards A Full Eurasian Pivot?

Is 'Islamist' Turkey Turning Towards A Full Eurasian Pivot? (SP).

Turkey’s flirtation with purchasing non-NATO-compatible Chinese missiles to complement its planned air defense system indicates that Ankara may be preparing for a grander non-Western policy pivot in the future.

Challenges With the West:

* Eurasian Union Talk:

The West is put off by the fact that Turkey has been talking with Russia about closer cooperation with the Eurasian Union, since if the two are successfully integrated, it would end Brussels’ ability to use the carrot of future EU membership as enticement in getting Ankara to do its bidding.

* ‘Turkish Stream’:

This strategic partnership completely destroyed the EU’s negotiating leverage in using South Stream as a weapon against Russia, and the West is extremely perturbed by Turkey assisting Russia in finding an alternative route for its energy exports.

* SCO Dialogue Partner:

The formal delineation of Turkey’s relationship with the non-Western institutional behemoth opens the way for closer ties to develop between Ankara and its new partners, which could pull the country even further away from its traditional allies with time.

Challenges With Eurasia (Russia):

* The War on Syria:

No matter how close Turkey moves towards Russia and the non-West, it still continues to be the prime external destabilizer in Syria through its role as a terrorist, weapons, and financial conduit supporting illegal regime change against the popular and democratically elected government there.

* NATO Infrastructure:

Even if Turkey decided to do away with the West and abandon NATO (either de-facto or de-jure), it would still have to contend with such obstacles as the US Air Force base in Incirlik (which some reports cite as secretly hosting nuclear weapons), making it unlikely that the US would peacefully abandon its positions without first resorting to some type of political subterfuge (i.e. Color Revolution) to reverse the decision.

* Neo-Ottomanism:

This ideological strain present in the minds of Turkey’s ruling elite (current Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu essentially invented it) means that the country will likely continue to behave in an aggressive manner towards its former sphere of influence in the Mideast and perhaps even the Balkans, thus making it a potential loose cannon that may not be geopolitically dependable as a close Russian partner.

Stepping away from the details and looking at the larger picture, Turkey’s challenges with the West are generally of a soft, asymmetrical nature, whereas the obstacles standing before its relations with Eurasia largely represent harder, more conventional interests.

While the West hasn’t proposed any relevant solutions for overcoming its difficulties with Turkey, Eurasia has, and it takes the form of Chinese missiles. Thus, if Ankara does in fact go ahead with the proposed deal to purchase Beijing’s anti-air armaments, it would represent a more tangible shift away from the West and closer to the Eurasia, which may symbolize the larger overall pivot possibly underway in the country’s geopolitical affairs. Hmmmm........Obama's BFF Erdogan. Read the full story here.

Defected Turkish MIT officer talks about Turkey's role and influence in spreading Terrorism.

Defected Turkish MIT officer talks about Turkey's role and influence in spreading Terrorism. (Almasdarnews).

Currently on the run from Turkish prison system, former officer Önder Sığırcıkoğlu asserts he wasn’t out for money: “I took action to save my identity, my honor, and my conscience.”

Lt Col Hussein al-Harmoush was the most senior defector from the Syrian Arab Army early in the Syria conflict. He fled to Turkey in June 2011 where he proceeded to set up a so-called Free Officers Movement to overthrow the Syrian government. His ambitions were short-lived. He disappeared from Hatay Altınözü camp in 29 August together with Mustafa Kassoum, a gym instructor who had been passing himself off as an Army Major. Two weeks later Harmoush was on Syrian TV, confessing to his crimes and to Turkey’s complicity.

After a frenzied investigation Turkish security rounded up several people, and seven individuals were tried for the ‘crime’ of returning Harmoush to Syria. The seniormost among them, Önder Sığırcıkoğlu, a 19 year veteran of Turkey’s Intelligence Agency MIT, was handed a 20 year sentence. After 32 months incarceration at Osmaniye prison, Sığırcıkoğlu made his escape while being transferred to another facility and was able to leave Turkey clandestinely. The following is Part 1 of his revelations to Ömer Ödemiş for leading Turkish news site OdaTV.

Önder Sığırcıkoğlu has harsh words for Turkey’s Syria policy. He had been assigned by MIT early on to screen arrivals during the initial refugee onslaught:

“I interviewed thousands in those early days. The first group of refugees consisted of about 250 who crossed the border to Turkey’s Altınözü. Their Syrian handlers were law student Seri Hammodi and taxidriver Abdusselam Sadiq. These two were in constant contact with international media, Al Jazeera and others, propagandizing and agitating that the refugees had been forced to flee Syria because of violent oppression. The tales they told were fabrications, but they were campaigning to sway public opinion and secure funding from Turkey, the U.N., Gulf countries and international institutions.”

Sığırcıkoğlu points out that the earliest arrivals came equipped with Thuraya satellite phones and with laptops. His first encounter with Harmoush wasn’t long afterwards:

“In 10 or 11 June 2011 we received an MIT communique noting the arrival of a dissident Syrian Lt.Colonel in the camp. We were tasked with drawing up a report on his involvement in military operations. Upon inquiry I identified the Lt.Colonel in question to be Hussein al-Harmoush, the leader of the armed opposition in Jisr al-Shughour and instigator of the clashes there. He disclosed in the interview that he was a fundamentalist sunni, a Russia-trained explosives specialist last assigned to the engineering department of the 11th army division in Homs. Harmoush had been in constant conflict with his superiors over his strict Islamism and had played a leading part in organizing the armed opposition in Jisr al-Shughour. He recounted how they neutralized Syrian security personnel and captured Jisr al-Shughour’s post office, and how they set off an explosive device of Harmoush’s making at the premises of the military unit. Survivors of the explosion were forced to surrender to the forces of Harmoush who, in his own account, had 138 of them summarily executed.”

MASS MURDERERS GLORIFIED

As Harmoush described in gory detail how he had ordered the notorious massacre that saw the River Orontes run red with the blood of untold victims, Sığırcıkoğlu went cold with horror and disgust:

“I was appalled, and felt lost. The agency I worked for was coddling and glorifying these mass murderers. We were consorting with bloodthirsty thugs raising havoc in a friendly neighboring country. We were housing and sheltering them, handing them safe phones, and helping their forays in and out of Syria.

Sığırcıkoğlu put in request after request for a transfer elsewhere. But his command of Arabic language and his familiarity with the region was too valuable to his superiors. His requests were denied.

NOT FOR MONEY

In two more years Sığırcıkoğlu would have made it to senior rank in the agency. But his mind was made up. “I planned out the abduction of Colonel Hussain Harmoush, and asked for help from a few trusted contacts. Once they agreed, I put Harmoush in my car and handed him to friends who delivered him to Syria. The murderer had to stand trial in his home country and answer for the hundreds of innocents he massacred. I wasn’t out for money. To smear my name they are spreading rumors that I was paid $100.000 for this action. In fact I was receiving nearly TL 7000 monthly salary at the time. I owned a house, a car; I had a good life. I’d never ruin all that for just $100.000. Besides, there’s no truth to the claim that Syrian government had put out a reward for Harmoush. Nothing of the sort. I took action to save my identity, my honor and my conscience. I acted out of my convictions against AKP’s policies. I feel no remorse. Turkish government’s policies constitute a betrayal of the Syrian people and I stood up against it. Supporting murderers against a country that had been a historical friend was not my lawful duty.”

THOUSANDS OF JIHADIS SET UPON SYRIA

As the campaign against Syria expanded, planes brought in thousands of murderers and jihadis to Hatay from where they were dispatched over Yayladağı and Reyhanlı to Syria to commit further massacres, says Sığırcıkoğlu:

“It was a daily routine. Thousands were brought to Turkey illegally, without passports, from undisclosed points of origin; and they were helped across the border into Syria. Some of it I witnessed, some I was directly involved in. An agency charged with upholding security was working to undermine security in another country. I had lost all faith in my job. Shiploads of weapons arrived at Iskenderun port, were loaded in containers and transported by trucks to Reyhanlı to be slipped into Syria. I didn’t want to be a part of it. So I took a stance regardless of personal consequences.”

“CHRISTIANS TO BEIRUT, ALAWITES TO THE GRAVE”

Sığırcıkoğlu’s Arabic accent hinted at his Alevi origins, and that immediately put Harmoush’s hackles up. “Harmoush and his men were Sunnis and very sectarian about it,” says the former agent. “When I called them in for an interview, they declared they wouldn’t be ordered around by an Alevi. Carrying out my duty was a constant struggle. They frequently put up the inflammatory chant ‘Christians to Beirut, Alawites to the grave,’ and attempted provocation saying ‘keep Alevi doctors and nurses away, they will only mistreat us.’ These men were trying to carry their sectarian bigotry over into Turkey. I requested to be transferred from Hatay with a report that explained all these problems, but I was turned away.”

TRAITORS TO BE REVEALED

Sığırcıkoğlu is firm in his stance against AKP’s Syria policy. Determined to name the informers and the secret witnesses who testified against him, he is also prepared to expose in detail where and how jihadi murderers are given passage into Syria, how the weapons are transported, and what instructions he was given by his superiors pertaining to these dark operations.

The US plan to kick ISIS out of Mosul sounds great......BUT!

The US plan to kick ISIS out of Mosul sounds great......BUT! (Vox).

Hmm.....It will be Stalingrad all over again only more bloody.

As Ret. Gen. John Allen warned in 2014: "Destroy the Islamic State Now"

Aug 2014: "What we’re facing in northern Iraq is only partly a crisis about Iraq. It is about the region and potentially the world as we know it." By Ret. Gen. John Allen.

Make no mistake, the abomination of IS is a clear and present danger to the U.S. The only question really is whether the U.S. and its allies and partners will act decisively now while they can still shape events to destroy IS, an act that seems increasingly self-obvious.
HT:

More thoughts on the Mosul assault plan from @Mikeknightsiraq http://t.co/tTvZY8aMzN pic.twitter.com/zIsnFf7Mhq
— aris roussinos (@arisroussinos) February 24, 2015

Good pnts. Best ex s Baiji.After almost taking d city, IEDs & IS fighters hidden re-took it. Mosul is worse @arisroussinos @Mikeknightsiraq
— Elijah J. Magnier (@EjmAlrai) February 24, 2015

#US sending more weapons to #Iraq, preparing for the battle of #Mosul against #IS. #Iraq v @zaidbenjamin pic.twitter.com/1II8pkap7c

— Elijah J. Magnier (@EjmAlrai) February 25, 2015

24 Yazidi women and children break out of ISIS prison in Iraq, safely reach Kurds.

Yazidi women

24 Yazidi women and children break out of ISIS prison in Iraq, safely reach Kurds.(AQ).[Googletranslate].

Iraq - Anatolia - arrived 24 Yazidi of detainees held by the organization Daash to a safe area in Sinjar in northern Iraq,

A source in the Peshmerga (northern region of Iraq's army), "The 24 people from Yazidis, all of them women and children, who were languishing in jails one organization Daash, arrived in a safe place under the control of the Peshmerga."

He added that they "were in detention Daash more than 6 months, were transported from one place to another during this period."

The source declined to clarify whether the survivors had fled or been released in accordance with the deal, saying only that "the most important thing they have come in peace."

The organization Daash has swept Sinjar (124 km west of Mosul), which is inhabited by a majority of Kurds, Yazidis in August 3 / August last, before the Peshmerga enhanced forces could aerial cover of the International Alliance of editing the northern part of the district of Sinjar, lifting the siege on thousands of families The fighters who were trapped in Jebel Sinjar in mid-December last year.

And talking to press reports and activists Aesidein for the organization of committing heinous crimes, from murder, kidnapping and captivity of thousands of civilians Yazidis.

The Yazidis are the religious group most of its members live near Mosul and the Sinjar Mountains in Iraq, and an estimated 600 thousand people, and smaller groups living in Turkey, Syria, Iran, Georgia, Armenia.

According to the researchers, the Yazidi religion of the ancient Kurdish religion, and all texts are recited in religious rituals and rites in the Kurdish language.

On the other hand, announced an official source in Anbar police leadership preferred not to be named, said security forces were able Tuesday to foil the biggest storm the government compound in Ramadi by organizing Daash terrorists.

The source explained that the organization Daash was digging a tunnel adjacent to the start of the government complex and controlled by the organization for more than 6 months and managed to drill 700 meters long to target government complex Haouz region.

"The security forces were able to find out what the organization is why we have to immediately intervene and address the situation and we blew the entire tunnel.""The explosion led to the deaths and injuries of elements Daash still under the rubble"

Video ISIS tunnel found.

Bodyguards of Turkish president's daughter changed due to assassination threat

Bodyguards of Turkish president's daughter changed due to assassination threat. (Taz).

The bodyguards of the Turkish president's daughter Sumeyye Erdogan have been completely changed because of the assassination threat, the Turkish Sabah newspaper reported Feb. 24.

The bodyguards of other members of President Erdogan’s family have also been changed.

Previously, Turkish Sabah newspaper reported citing the country’s intelligence sources that there was an assassination attempt planned at the Turkish president's daughter Sumeyye Erdogan.

An assassination attempt was planned to be made before the parliamentary election, scheduled for June 7, according to reports. Earlier it was reported that Sumeyye Erdogan might take part in the parliamentary election.

The attempt on the president's daughter was planned to be made by the supporters of Gulen movement [Islamic public figure currently residing in the US], the newspaper said. Hmmm......Sounds like Erdo doesn't trust anyone anymore, Fidan's departure really scares him.

Reports ISIL took a Khabour village full of a religious minority hostage.

Latest Update on the Dire Situation of our People in Khabour from AssyriaTV on Vimeo.

More video's on this developing situation can be seen here.

Reports ISIL took a Khabour village full of a religious minority hostage.HT: Elijah J. Magnier.

George Kasten from Sweden:

At 5.00 clock this morning, the 23rd of February 2015, IS members entered the Assyrian villages around Tell Tamr in Syria by force and kidnapped all of the villagers.

The men were later brought to a mountain called Abd al Aziz to be held as hostages. The women and children were left in the village with IS guards controlling them.

A witness left behind due to his poor health was able to raise the alarm and informed his family member in Canada who then spread the word about the latest atrocities of IS.

This information is from a primary source and roughly 70% of those kidnapped belong to the same family. We have called their cellphones; whereupon IS soldiers have answered and told us that we should not call any longer since we cannot do anything about their situation.

IS members have been very clear with their demands. They want the Kurds to release the IS hostages they are currently holding. IS members say that if they do not release the hostages, all innocent men from the village will die. Reports talk of several hundreds of people. More can be found on Facebook here. And here

Richard Spencer of the Telegraph reports on Khabur: "Christian groups said they were checking a report that up to 200 civilians had been kidnapped by Isil jihadists in the fighting and were being held as hostages. 

A number of fighters from the militia, the Syriac Military Council, were also said to be missing.

The council, known by the initials MFS from its title in Aramaic, the ancient language of the Christian church, was founded in 2013 as jihadists began to dominate more of northern Syria.

It is allied to the YPG, the Syrian Kurdish militia involved in the defence of the town of Kobane, and on Sunday joined it in a drive against Isil in the north-eastern province of Hassakeh.

On Sunday night, it claimed to have driven the jihadists out of 22 villages, including a string of settlements occupied by the Assyrian Catholic minority* between Hassakeh town and the Turkish border.

The attack was backed by bombing raids from the US-led coalition against Isil, which said it had carried out 11 air strikes in Hassakeh on Sunday, hitting 10 Isil tactical units and destroying two Isil vehicles, a bunker and a “fighting position”. *The vast majority of Khabur Assyrians are not Catholic.

Confirmed #IS has gathered all #Assyrians in school building in village of Tel Shamiran in #Syria. Most are women, children and old ppl.
— Afram Yakoub (@AframYakoub) February 23, 2015

'Sometimes NATO Ally' Turkey may or may not integrate new long-range missile defense with NATO system.

'Sometimes NATO Ally' Turkey may or may not integrate new long-range missile defense with NATO system.(Bugun).

Turkey will make its planned new long-range missile system harmonious with the NATO system, presidential spokesman İbrahim Kalın told a news conference on Monday in comments apparently at odds with those of the country's defence minister.

Defence Minister İsmet Yılmaz said last Thursday Ankara did not plan to integrate the new defence system with NATO infrastructure. Officials at the time said a $3.4 billion deal with China was still under consideration.

NATO member Turkey chose China Precision Machinery Import and Export Corp as a preferred bidder in 2013, prompting U.S. and Western concern about security and the compatibility of the weaponry with NATO systems. Hmmmm.....Best solution kick 'New advanced dictatorship' Turkey out of NATO.

ISIL Terrorists kidnap 23 people (security forces) in northern Iraq.

ISIL Terrorists kidnap 23 people (security forces) in northern Iraq. (Taz).

Members of the Takfiri ISIL terrorist group have abducted 23 people in Iraq’s conflict-stricken northern province of Salahuddin, Press TV reported.

An Iraqi security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Takfiri militants kidnapped 23 individuals in the city of Shirqat, located some 300 kilometers (190 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad, on Sunday.

According to Iraqi News, the fate and whereabouts of the abductees are unknown, added the source, saying that the civilians were taken hostage on the alleged ground that they were in collaboration with Iraqi security forces.

The development comes a day after ISIL members burned to death 50 civilians in the town of Hit, located about 140 kilometers (85 miles) west of Baghdad.

On February 17, the terrorists torched to death at least 45 people in the conflict-ridden city of Khan al-Baghdadi, situated about 180 kilometers (110 miles) northwest of Baghdad.

The identities of those killed by ISIL in Khan al-Baghdadi have not been released, but local police chief Colonel Qasim al-Obeidi said many of the victims were believed to have been security forces.
ISIL started its campaign of terror in Iraq in early June 2014. The heavily-armed militants took control of Mosul before sweeping through parts of the country’s Sunni Arab heartland.

The terrorists have been carrying out horrific acts of violence, including public decapitations, against all Iraqi communities such as Shias, Sunnis, Kurds and Christians.


Iraqi soldiers, police units, Kurdish forces, Shia volunteers and Sunni tribesmen have recently succeeded in driving the ISIL terrorists out of some areas in Iraq.

"Where they have burned books, they will end in burning human beings."100,000 Manuscripts, Books Burnt by ISIL

100,000 Manuscripts, Books Burnt by ISIL "Where they have burned books, they will end in burning human beings." Heinrich Heine.(SP).

The London-based Arabic language online publication quoted Anbar provincial council member Amal Fahadway as saying that as of Sunday, the Islamic State has burnt more than 100,000 books, including rare and important manuscripts, across the Islamic State-held region.

"Armed elements of the Daash [Arabic designation for IS] bombed the public library in the Faisaliah area east of Mosul on Saturday, using improvised explosive devices," Ghanem Taan, director of Mosul's public library, was quoted as saying in a press statement.

The library director added the Mosul public library has about 8,000 cultural, historical and philosophical and scientific books, as well as a variety of poetry books. Hmmmm......Heine was right.....'Fight Fire with fire'. Read the full story here.

Video - 'Sometimes NATO Ally' 'Islamist' Turkey given free passage by ISIL ?

 Video - 'Sometimes NATO Ally' 'Islamist' Turkey given free passage by ISIL ?HT And Source: 

#IS accounts :"Suleiman Shah is a Museum and no Tomb in it" justifying no collaboration with Turkey. And this.... https://t.co/C09wgJ5oiK …
— Elijah J. Magnier (@EjmAlrai) February 22, 2015

Both questioned the cooperation of turkey government with Daash

This video was published earlier in the detention of the elements of the Turks, during the switch guard guarding the tomb is very near the Turkish Alasmla of Kerkoezag bridge inside Syrian territory that separates the province of Raqqa for Aleppo.

He has organized Batqal convoy which entered Syria from the north without any little resistance and directed him to the place of the tomb and then switch guard Atjho to Manbej from then to the city of Carchemish and entering the territory turkey in full their ingredients and their weapons and armored vehicles. Hmmm....What is remarkable is the previous visit to Suleiman shah's tomb went without problems as well ISIS Gave free passage to the Turks that time as well! At the time ISIS claimed the had the tomb encircled by 1,100 fighters.......