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Please guys, stay on topic. This thread is about the situation in Iraq and Syria. | ||
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ahswtini
Northern Ireland22207 Posts
On October 14 2014 14:45 JudicatorHammurabi wrote: ^ Why does it say "REKT" underneath the transcript? :S A lot of jihadists upload on Liveleak, and they were the ones who likely uploaded it when they found the soldier's phone. | ||
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Deleted User 183001
2939 Posts
On October 14 2014 17:33 ahswtini wrote: A lot of jihadists upload on Liveleak, and they were the ones who likely uploaded it when they found the soldier's phone. Right, but that didn't answer my question. I didn't ask who uploaded it. I was asking why in the heck there's gamer terminology as it's rather out-of-place and insensitive. And actually, I highly, highly doubt that guy who uploaded it to liveleak is a fighter in Syria. Maybe the original uploader somewhere else on the web was terrorists, but I don't think this guy is the original uploader. This uploader has uploaded other stuff, mostly Hamas-related. I'm guessing he finds these videos elsewhere, then uploads them. Given his disposition for gamer slang (he also uses it in other videos he's posted), his trolling, and the claim he lives in Palestine, I think there's a good chance he's an angsty Islamic gamer teen, probably living in the West. At the very least, I don't think he's by any means the original uploader of this video to the Internet. On October 14 2014 17:19 Laserist wrote: I would think twice before sourcing Sabah and related newspapers appeared at the bottom of the page. They are the worst. Okay, so if Barzani or Sabah can't be trusted, can we trust BBC? Turkish F-16 and F-4 warplanes have bombed Kurdish PKK rebel targets near the Iraqi border, as their ceasefire comes under increasing strain. The air strikes on Daglica were in response to PKK shelling of a military outpost, the armed forces said. Both sides have been observing a truce and it is the first major air raid on the PKK since March 2013. Kurds are furious at Turkey's inaction as Islamic State (IS) militants attack the Syrian border town of Kobane. Fighters from the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) have been aiding Kurdish YPG militia in Kobane and Turkey has refused to help supply its long-standing enemy with weapons or allow Kurdish fighters to enter Syria. Two PKK commanders wounded in fighting were arrested by Turkish authorities when they arrived for treatment in hospital in south-eastern Turkey, Anatolia news agency reported. Separately, some 260 YPG militiamen were arrested when they crossed into Turkey last week, although 60 of them were allowed to go back, Turkish media reported. French President Francois Hollande appealed to the government in Ankara on Tuesday to open its border, as US-led fighter jets continued to target IS fighters in and around Kobane. The air raids on PKK positions near the south-eastern village of Daglica on Monday caused "heavy casualties", Hurriyet daily reported. The strikes followed a three-day PKK assault on a military outpost with heavy machine guns and rocket launchers, it said. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-29611582 | ||
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{CC}StealthBlue
United States41117 Posts
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ImFromPortugal
Portugal1368 Posts
At least 5,000 Yazidis men shot in cold blood and up to 7,000 women held by Isil, United Nations researchers confirm http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/islamic-state/11160906/Isil-carried-out-massacres-and-mass-sexual-enslavement-of-Yazidis-UN-confirms.html | ||
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Deleted User 183001
2939 Posts
+ Show Spoiler + -22 IS fighters killed in Hanbas village, northeast of Baquba in Diyala province -At least 15 IS fighters die in attack on Baiji in car bomb assault, north of Tikrit (NINA claims "dozens") -13 fighters killed in airstrikes in al-Dolou'eia, al-Balad, and Samarra in Saladin province -Iraqi forces LIBERATE three villages near Al-Dujail in Saladin, with 7 militants and 5 vehicles destroyed src Airstrikes kill 55 IS fighters northeast of Baquba in Diyala (may or may not overlap with 22 in Hanbas; unclear though) Coalition airstrikes strike IS fights west of Kirkuk Haditha, Anbar under attack, but is defended by Iraqi soldiers and allied tribesmen. 6 IS fighters killed in southern Ramadi in Anbar Security in Karbala seize two large trucks filled with explosive-making material Note: This is war, so I do not vouch for the legitimacy of the details and numbers. These are reported by Iraqi military officials to Iraqi and other news sources. WOW: Dutch biker gang members go to Iraq to fight against ISIS ISIS oil production decreased significantly Christian aid workers in northern Iraq with refugees, and Iraqis converting to Christianity? Al-Abadi appeals to Tony Blinken for the US to fulfill its promise of arming Iraqi forces (inb4 more Congressional deadlock and more Iraq-Russia deals) | ||
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RvB
Netherlands6192 Posts
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Deleted User 183001
2939 Posts
On October 15 2014 07:52 RvB wrote: I wonder how inflated those numbers are for propaganda purposes. I agree it's hard to say to be honest, but something tells me that heavy firefights and airstrikes on closely concentrated stationary infantry or convoys tend to cause a lot of casualties, especially for the side that lacks the heavy armor, artillery, and aircraft. Does ISIS in Iraq still have any armor? It's like they've been rolled back to suicide bombings and technicals. ISIS is losing across the board in Babil, Saladin, Diyala, and Nineveh provinces, so something good is happening, to put it vaguely. Considering ISIS's legacy of large-scale assaults on Baiji refinery, the numbers there don't surprise me. A large suicide attack (both literal and figurative) against entrenched soldiers is a bad idea, I hear. Still, we don't explicitly know if these Iraqi generals are for real or not. The Syrian army recently killed a shitton of IS fighters in the Deir Ezzor area and released or leaked the names of the identifiable casualties, so I think there's some truth to the claims of the two governments' media, at least. I read yesterday that the Iraqi military is in a process of heavy reformation and re-training. I imagine this includes the 24 divisions that the US deemed were "sectarianist". Recently, I posted that al-Abadi dismissed 150 officers. He also before that had dismissed other officers, including the highest ranking general of the ground forces / army. In a necessary and wise move, he's even bringing back former military officers, previously disbanded and barred with the rest of the military in 2003. I also read there's a large-scale counter-offensive against ISIS planned for early 2015, but I have yet to verify this. | ||
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iMOOrtal
Canada144 Posts
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AssyrianKing
Australia2111 Posts
Here we go again.... Not very helpful to the situation -.- | ||
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Antisocialmunky
United States5912 Posts
(Reuters) - Lieutenant General Mahdi Gharawi knew an attack was coming. In late May, Iraqi security forces arrested seven members of militant group Islamic State in Mosul and learned the group planned an offensive on the city in early June. Gharawi, the operational commander of Nineveh province, of which Mosul is the capital, asked Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's most trusted commanders for reinforcements. With Iraq's military overstretched, the senior officers scoffed at the request. Diplomats in Baghdad also passed along intelligence of an attack, only to be told that Iraqi Special Forces were in Mosul and could handle any scenario. ... http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/14/us-mideast-crisis-gharawi-special-report-idUSKCN0I30Z820141014 | ||
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ImFromPortugal
Portugal1368 Posts
On October 15 2014 08:17 PiPoGevy wrote: aina.org/news/20141014102911.htm Here we go again.... Not very helpful to the situation -.- Nice timing ... Turkey Bombs Kurdish Separatists (VOA) -- Media in Turkey reported government warplanes had bombed Kurdish nationalist rebels in the southeast of the country in the first significant air operation against the group since peace talks began two years ago. The Hurriyet newspaper said the jets hit Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) targets in Hakkari province on Sunday. There was no immediate comment from the military on the report that it had bombed Kurdish positions, once a regular occurrence in southeast Turkey but something that had not taken place for two years. The bombings are said to be a response to shootings by the PKK at a military outpost in the area. They come amid increased internal tension over Turkey's inaction against the Islamic State group. Refusal to join anti-IS coalition Ankara has refused to join the U.S.-led military coalition against Islamic State fighters unless it also confronts Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. | ||
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pls no ty
86 Posts
On October 14 2014 09:26 JudicatorHammurabi wrote: Yay Turkey has done something helpful. http://www.dailysabah.com/politics/2014/10/13/iraqi-kurdish-leader-says-turkey-provided-arms-against-isis-threat We were also arming Turkmens, the police members of the secret religious group called "CEMAAT" stopped the trucks loaded with guns on its way to Turkmens, some of the policemen found dead in their cars or in their homes after governments war declaration to the CEMAAT. This is the video, you can see police and soldiers bust and arrest them. All the soldiers who commit this out of service now. Strange thing, there is a common rumor about the guns, they say they are in the hands of IS. Either turkmens handed those guns to survive, or turks. In our country this is one of the most important topics and will always be. However, its so clear that Turkey is secretly trying to be BOSS in the area in control of US, while try to look like we dont do dirty things. About the Kurdish thing, yeah. If you assassinate 2 policemen and shell turkish soldiers, what would you expect? Hypocrisy is their main and best policy, what they want? Turkish help. What they dont want? Turkish help. Their officials are saying they are sending militants to Turkey (instead of fighting against IS).. This was their welcome gift. From now on, i dont care if ISIS destroy them all. They made us see they dont understand such things like peace, peace talking or fraternity. The only thing they (PKK) understand is fighting... I hope kurdish citizens of our future will understand how evil they are. http://www.haberkita.com/yasam/pkk-kurban-eti-dagitan-yasinboruyu-boyle-katletti-h233063.html This link is about a kid butchered by PKK from a religious family. I wont translate it, only surviving victim is telling how they killed that 18-20 years old kids: Its simply, they shot him with shot gun and pistols several times, cut his throat, threw him from 3. floor, grind him with car, grind his head with a big rock. Also killed his best friend, knifing him several times, cutting his legs with chopper. Their fault was trying to share some meat in the name of God (islamic tradition) but PKK members thought they were supporting ISIS. Related other news: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-government-empowers-police-amid-kurdish-dialogue.aspx?pageID=238&nID=72991&NewsCatID=338 http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-wont-embark-on-adventure-in-syria-pm-davutoglu.aspx?pageID=238&nID=72953&NewsCatID=510 I really hate this puppet Davutoglu... LEL: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/misunderstood-arabic-script-triggers-alarm-in-turkish-airlines-aircraft-report.aspx?pageID=238&nID=72990&NewsCatID=341 | ||
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iMOOrtal
Canada144 Posts
On October 15 2014 11:11 pls no ty wrote: From now on, i dont care if ISIS destroy them all. They made us see they dont understand such things like peace, peace talking or fraternity. Don't kid yourself or us, you never cared from the beginning if they all died. While I can understand your perspective, I don't think letting them die will result in a better relationship with the surviving kurds. Lets hope they can hold out, as that is the best result for both Turkey, and the Kurds. Hopefully you can let peace and love grow in your heart, and hopefully they can do the same. | ||
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Deleted User 183001
2939 Posts
The issue of arms deliveries from the US to Iraq has come up a lot over the past few YEARS, but in the moment Iraq needs it most, it's still not there. If this was Israel, we would have been sending them arms the day after they requested, and probably for reduced price. Just today, another Iraqi MP complains: Iraq does not need foreign boots on the ground to defeat Takfiri ISIL troops but it needs weapons and a restructuring of its forces, an Iraqi MP tells Press TV. “We will not need any boots on the ground from any country whether the US or Europe or any neighboring country for that matter because we already in Iraq have 1.5 million men and they are armed,” Mowaffak al-Rubaie told Press TV in an interview. “What we need is a revamping of our Iraqi army, Iraqi security forces and federal police. We need a restructuring and the West to speed up the delivery of weapons we’ve already paid money for: the F-16; the Apache; the tanks; the Humvees; the Bradleys and so on and so forth,” said the Iraqi lawmaker. Al-Rubaie noted that the Iraqi government needs to "improve and increase our intelligence capacity.” The comments come as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey told reporters on Friday he may recommend boots on the ground, but that those forces would not necessarily be American forces. Dempsey said troops would be comprised of Iraqis, Kurds and the so-called moderate Syrian opposition. Iraqi political parties have cast doubt on the effectiveness of the US-led coalition’s airstrikes against the ISIL Takfiri militants and have called on Washington and its allies to coordinate their air raids with the Baghdad government, saying that the airstrikes do not fit the threats posed by the ISIL terrorists. ^ The restructuring has already begin, with the dismissal of all sorts of bad Maliki-stooge officers, replacement with competent officers including former Baath officers, and re-organization and re-training of the forces. That will continue, but now it needs the weapons and aircraft. I think the Iraqis are trying to play nice and reach out for the closer relations with the US, especially the very open regime of Abadi, but at the end of the day, I think they have to step back and really evaluate things really closely. I know the US says Iraq is an ally, but it doesn't treat it that way. When arms have been purchased and payments made as early as 2011 or 2012 and nothing has been delivered due to "Congressional deadlock" and other bullshit excuses, the Iraqis need to reconsider who their friends are. The USA, who obliterated their country in a terribly horrific way over a 20 year period of embargo (esp. the embargo) and war and is responsible for the completely incompetent government and especially military after deposing and persecuting its effective predecessors? Or Russia, who's been a faithful and reliable ally since the 1950s even without requiring Iraq to be a Soviet/Russian stooge? The choice is easy. The only disadvantage Iraq has in dealing with Russia compared to the US across all spheres, whether it is political, economic, military, etc. is the plain fact that Russia sells extremely watered-down versions of their own weapons. The infamous "monkey models". Meanwhile, from the US, you get US-grade military gear. Still, if the US is infinitely delaying shipments and being really wishy-washy in its relations with Iraq which is in the most dire position it's ever been in, what choice do the Iraqis have but to turn back to their old arms partners in Russia and France and China? Russia's been rush-delivering arms and aircraft and armor since June. The US made its first shipment, a dropoff of rifle ammunition, just a couple days ago. This is an INCREDIBLE opportunity to reach out and build much stronger relations with Iraq, and instead we (the US) are squandering it. We have made fewer airstrikes in Iraq and Syria combined since August 8 than Iraq did in the last week, so I guess that's something we've done right? USAF has the largest airforce, and USN has the second largest, but we're still getting outpaced by the no-longer-existent Iraqi air force. lol. Both critics on the US and Iraqi side say the US is hardly doing enough against ISIS. I don't believe that, but I'm starting to see where they're coming from. /endrant /grumble | ||
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xDaunt
United States17988 Posts
On October 15 2014 12:43 JudicatorHammurabi wrote: This is an INCREDIBLE opportunity to reach out and build much stronger relations with Iraq, and instead we (the US) are squandering it. We have made fewer airstrikes in Iraq and Syria combined since August 8 than Iraq did in the last week, so I guess that's something. USAF has the largest airforce, and USN has the second largest, but we're still getting outpaced by the no-longer-existent Iraqi air force. lol. Both critics on the US and Iraqi side say the US is hardly doing enough. I don't believe that, but I'm starting to see where they're coming from. /endrant /grumble Are you really surprised? This has been the status quo for the past six years -- ever since Obama assumed the presidency. Pretty much everyone who knows anything has been taking his administration to task for being AWOL when it comes to the Middle East. His entire foreign policy is rife with reckless aloofness. | ||
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pls no ty
86 Posts
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Deleted User 183001
2939 Posts
On October 15 2014 13:14 pls no ty wrote: A stupid question to americans, is it really OBAMA who decides and shapes your foreign policy? I thought it was your congress and somehow your inner state (mostly soldiers or ex soldiers or head of the cia maybe?) ... Is it all Obama and his staff? Obama? Not as much as some people think. Honestly, it seems like our corporations and lobbies probably shape our foreign policy more than anyone else. After that, it's the natural imperialistic ambitions that come with any very powerful country. Then you get to the actual government itself. Which, considering the clear imperialistic/alliance opportunity here, makes it all the weirder that we're not doing everything short of sending half the US Army to Iraq in order to help Iraq. I don't know what's going on. America hasn't been acting like America lately. Maybe we're in worse shape than we think? I don't know. On October 15 2014 12:55 xDaunt wrote: Are you really surprised? This has been the status quo for the past six years -- ever since Obama assumed the presidency. Pretty much everyone who knows anything has been taking his administration to task for being AWOL when it comes to the Middle East. His entire foreign policy is rife with reckless aloofness. Still a hell of a lot better than Bush's though lol. However, the worst part is when the Iraqis are themselves coming to us, and we do this! We need allies. With the Arab spring, we lost Egypt, one of our most important in the Mideast / N. Africa aside from Turkey. Let's not kid ourselves, our relations with Sisi are horrendous. The Gulf states are crazy Islamist monarchies/societies that back Islamic terrorists. Israel is much more of a headache for us to deal with than otherwise. We hate Iran and Syria. Jordan is extremely poor and not too useful for us, and Lebanon is very small itself. Turkey's starting to do its own thing based on its own politics regarding Kurds and Bashar. So who is there? Iraq. And instead what do we do? We be wishy-washy with them in terms of politics and military matters, while they go to Russia and even Iran, a traditional Iraqi and Arab foe even before there was an Iraq, and certainly aren't popular with the Iraqi people. It's just infuriating that we fought, and who knows how many Coalition and Iraqi forces and Iraqi civilians died, just so we can be that really flaky girl after the first date with Iraq, who can instead become a very valuable ally. This is what made me enter rant-mode and I apologize, but I think for our sake, closer ties with Iraq is a good thing, and for Iraq's sake, more American influence (as opposed to Iranian or Saudi) is a very good thing. Win-win scenario and we don't go for it. Opportunities like the one ISIS has given us rarely come up. | ||
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xDaunt
United States17988 Posts
On October 15 2014 13:15 JudicatorHammurabi wrote: Obama? Not as much as some people think. Honestly, our corporations and lobbies probably shape our foreign policy more than anyone else. After that, it's the natural imperialistic ambitions that come with any very powerful country. Then you get to the actual government itself. Which, considering the clear imperialistic/alliance opportunity here, makes it all the weirder that we're not doing everything short of sending half the US Army to Iraq in order to help Iraq. I don't know what's going on. America hasn't been acting like America lately. Maybe we're in worse shape than we think? I don't know. This is incorrect. American foreign policy is almost exclusively the domain of the executive branch -- ie the President. So yes, it is on Obama. You can talk about the influence of lobbies if you want, but they have no more influence on foreign policy than on domestic policy. Ultimately, it is up to the president to decide which lobbies he is going to listen to. The buck stops with him. Still a hell of a lot better than Bush's though lol. However, the worst part is when the Iraqis are themselves coming to us, and we do this! We need allies. With the Arab spring, we lost Egypt, one of our most important in the Mideast / N. Africa aside from Turkey. Let's not kid ourselves, our relations with Sisi are horrendous. The Gulf states are crazy Islamist monarchies/societies that back Islamic terrorists. Israel is much more of a headache for us to deal with than otherwise. We hate Iran and Syria. Jordan is extremely poor and not too useful for us, and Lebanon is very small itself. Turkey's starting to do its own thing based on its own politics regarding Kurds and Bashar. So who is there? Iraq. And instead what do we do? We be wishy-washy with them in terms of politics and military matters, while they go to Russia and even Iran, a traditional Iraqi and Arab foe even before there was an Iraq, and certainly aren't popular with the Iraqi people. It's just infuriating that we fought, and who knows how many Coalition and Iraqi forces and Iraqi civilians died, just so we can be that really flaky girl after the first date with Iraq, who can instead become a very valuable ally. This is what made me enter rant-mode and I apologize, but I think for our sake, closer ties with Iraq is a good thing, and for Iraq's sake, more American influence (as opposed to Iranian or Saudi) is a very good thing. Win-win scenario and we don't go for it. Opportunities like the one ISIS has given us rarely come up. There was a really good article in Foreign Policy magazine last month that argued a very interesting point in great detail: that Obama's foreign policy needs to be more like Bush's was during his second term. Bush did plenty wrong during the first term, but if you look at where things stood by the time that he exited in 2008, the Middle East was in pretty good shape. The USA held a lot of influence over there. Now? Not so much. Obama pissed it all away. I certainly appreciate that his "Don't do anything stupid" foreign policy has kept us largely out of any major wars, but his complete disengagement from the Middle East has caused a whole host of new problems that we'e going to be dealing with for decades. | ||
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Deleted User 183001
2939 Posts
On October 15 2014 13:41 xDaunt wrote: This is incorrect. American foreign policy is almost exclusively the domain of the executive branch -- ie the President. So yes, it is on Obama. You can talk about the influence of lobbies if you want, but they have no more influence on foreign policy than on domestic policy. Ultimately, it is up to the president to decide which lobbies he is going to listen to. The buck stops with him. There was a really good article in Foreign Policy magazine last month that argued a very interesting point in great detail: that Obama's foreign policy needs to be more like Bush's was during his second term. Bush did plenty wrong during the first term, but if you look at where things stood by the time that he exited in 2008, the Middle East was in pretty good shape. The USA held a lot of influence over there. Now? Not so much. Obama pissed it all away. I certainly appreciate that his "Don't do anything stupid" foreign policy has kept us largely out of any major wars, but his complete disengagement from the Middle East has caused a whole host of new problems that we'e going to be dealing with for decades. If it's ultimately up to the president (which yeah, obviously lobbyists/corps. don't make the decisions themselves), then perhaps it's clearer to say it seems the executive and legislative branches listens to them a lot more than one should be comfortable with, then. But hey, that's politics. I agree with that FP article you mentioned, but if Obama wants to make a change, then he's got to take a real stand against ISIS, and he has to decide where he stands on America's relations with Iraq. Hopefully he'll grow up a little after the Congressional elections, but so far, his whole anti-ISIS and pro-Iraq charade is for the most part looks like a farce. If he doesn't want the Iraqis, they'll be more than happy to work with their traditional Russian ally and other European countries they've had long-standing and productive relations with, and on the bad side of the coin, work with Islamist Iran. Obama's choice. Personally, I think it's a pretty easy one. | ||
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Laserist
Turkey4269 Posts
On October 15 2014 09:15 ImFromPortugal wrote: Nice timing ... Turkey Bombs Kurdish Separatists Nice timing indeed! | ||
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