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allieggg

Arab states offer to help attack Isis, diplomats say | World news | theguardian.com - 0 views

  • Several Arab states, believed to include the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, have offered to help attack Islamic State (Isis) targets in Syria and Iraq,
  • US officials declined to say which countries had offered help, but one appeared to be the UAE, whose aircraft recently bombed Islamist militia targets in Libya from bases in Egypt.
  • Saudi Arabia felt so threatened by Isis that it was prepared to act in a frontline role. "There is a very real possibility that we could have the Saudi air force bombing targets inside Syria. That is a remarkable development, and something the US would be very pleased to see."
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  • direct threat to Saudi Arabia. "They actually see themselves as the real target.
  • France has indicated that it will back US air strikes against Isis after its president,
  • expressed support for the Iraqi prime minister, Haider al-Abadi,
  • But Turkey, which borders on both Iraq and Syria, has quietly made clear that it would not take part or allow its bases to be used for combat operations – a disappointment coming from Nato's only Muslim membe
  • Syrian ministers have repeated calls for Damascus to join the coalition, though the US and Britain – backed by their Gulf allies – have insisted president Bashar al-Assad cannot take part because he has "lost all legitimacy" in the course of a war that has cost 200,000 lives
  • Details of how the anti-Isis campaign will be waged are still sketchy, though the US reportedly discussed basing and overflight rights at talks in Jeddah last week with the Saudis and the other Gulf states as well as Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt. All expressed support for a "coordinated military campaign".
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    Arab states have began to jump on board offering support to the coalition against ISIS. UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon have recently voiced their support. Turkey, the only Arab member of NATO has voiced their lack of support in the coalition thus far. Saudi, the home to major religious cities, feels like a direct threat to ISIS and have made it clear that they will be playing a major role in the war against the Islamic State. UAE allegedly initiated bombings from Egyptian bases on Libya due to islamic militia takeovers of major cities and institutions. Arab states along with France, Germany, and Britain have agreed to form a "coordinated military campaign." Bringing in Assad from Syria is somewhat crucial, but the coalition is hesitant due to the loss of the Assad Regime's legitimacy over the past years of civil strife. Official plans of attack are still sketchy, but are definitely in the works. The coalition of states have made it clear that in order to tackle this ISIS threat, they must band together to dynamically exterminate the Islamic State from all angles.
fcastro2

U.N. concerned by Islamic State's ability to unite Afghan insurgents - 0 views

  • The United Nations is concerned by the presence of Islamic State in Afghanistan but says the militant group's power to unite insurgents is more significant than its capabilities in the war-torn country
  • forces
  • attempts are under way to broker an end to 13 years of conflict between the Taliban, who were ousted in a U.S.-led war in 2001, and Afghan and foreign
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  • Afghan forces killed 10 fighters who claimed to be part of Islamic State on Sunday
  • growing numbers of disgruntled Taliban fighters have joined the militant group that has seized swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq
  • significance is not so much a function of its intrinsic capacities in the area but of its potential to offer an alternative flagpole to which otherwise isolated insurgent splinter groups can rall
  • U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's latest report to the Security Council on Afghanistan said a handful of Taliban commanders had declared allegiance to Islamic State and that an increasing number were seeking funding or cooperation with Islamic State.
  • The radical Islamist group has declared a caliphate in the territory it controls in Syria and Iraq. A U.S.-led alliance has been targeting Islamic State with air strikes in Iraq and Syria for some six month
  • Militants loyal to Islamic State have also been exploiting chaos in Libya, while Boko Haram, which is seeking to carve an Islamist emirate out of northeastern Nigeria, has pledged its allegiance to Islamic State
  • "an alignment of circumstances that could be conducive to fostering peace talks" between the Afghan government and the Taliban. Officials said last month the Afghan Taliban has signaled it is willing to open peace talks.
  • continues a frank dialogue with the Taliban on humanitarian access and on human right
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    The UN is concerned by the presence of ISIS in Afghanistan but says the militant group's power to "unite insurgents is more significant than its capabilities in the war-torn country."
cbrock5654

US Encouraged by Pledges to Fight IS Fighters - 0 views

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    John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, has been travelling around the Middle East trying to marshal support for the United States' coalition against ISIS/IS (called ISIL). He says that 10 countries have pledged to support the US effort. These countries include Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and the six gulf states (UAE).
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    John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, has been travelling around the Middle East trying to marshal support for the United States' coalition against ISIS/IS (called ISIL). He says that 10 countries have pledged to support the US effort. These countries include Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and the six gulf states (UAE).
mwrightc

ISIS Detainee Tells U.S. of Militants' Plan to Use Mustard Gas - The New York Times - 0 views

  • The Islamic State’s use of chemical weapons in Iraq and Syria has been known, but Mr. Afari’s capture has provided the United States with the opportunity to learn detailed information about the group’s secretive program, including where chemical agents were being stored and produced.
  • Mr. al-Afari was captured last month by a new Special Operations force made up primarily of Delta Force commandos shortly after they arrived in Iraq. They are the first major American combat force on the ground there since the United States pulled out of the country at the end of 2011.
  • Until recently, the United States has largely targeted Islamic State fighters with airstrikes. But the 200-member Special Operations team has been assigned to both kill and capture Islamic State operatives, the latter for use in gathering intelligence. Military officials said the team had set up safe houses and worked with Iraqi and Kurdish forces to establish informant networks and conduct raids on Islamic State leaders and other important militants.
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  • Under interrogation, Mr. Afari, told his captors how the group had weaponized sulfur mustard and loaded it into artillery shells, the officials said.
  • Sleiman Daoud al-Afari
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    US special forces were able to take an ISIS member into custody. Through questioning, the military men were able to learn that ISIS is now beginning to make plans to use mustard gas as a chemical weapon. The Red Cross has been identified because of the possible use of chemical weapons.
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    An Islamic State detainee currently in American custody at a temporary detention facility in Erbil, Iraq, is a specialist in chemical weapons whom American military officials are questioning about the militant Sunni group's plans to use the banned substances in Iraq and Syria, Defense officials said. The member of ISIS who is probably dead at this point reports say, told the miltants that they were planning on using mustard gas with upcoming attacks planned.
fcastro2

Turkish Military Evacuates Soldiers Guarding Tomb in Syria - NYTimes.com - 0 views

  • The Turkish Army sent armored troops deep into Syria late Saturday on a rescue mission, to recover the remains of a major historical figure and to evacuate the guards at his besieged tomb
  • The tomb of Suleyman Shah, grandfather of the founder of the Ottoman Empire, is 20 miles south of the Turkish border, but it has been considered Turkish territory under a 1921 treaty with France
  • there were no clashes during the mission and only one casualty, a soldier who was killed in an accident
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  • He said Turkey notified the Syrian government, rebel leaders and the coalition forces fighting the Islamic State about the operation.
  • 572 troops, 39 tanks, 57 armored vehicles and 100 other vehicles were involved
  • Turkish flag was lowered, and the tomb and security station were destroyed to prevent any possible use by extremists.
  • operation was prompted by the chaos and instability in Syria
  • clashes were likely to erupt nearby between forces of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, and Kurdish troops known as pesh merga, and that the tomb could become a target.
  • “The Suleyman Shah tomb has been a point of vulnerability for Turkey for a long time, and with this operation, such weakness has been eliminated
  • “The Islamic State could have used the presence of the tomb as leverage in case of any confrontation with Turkey
  • in accordance with the 1921 treaty, a new tomb for Suleyman Shah was being established in a part of Syria that is under Kurdish control
  • when conditions in Syria permitted, the tomb would be moved back again to the site that was evacuated, near the village of Karakozak
  • Tensions have mounted around the tomb since March, when the Islamic State took control of the surrounding area and began threatening to destroy the tomb unless guards there lowered the Turkish flag.
  • The militant group raided Turkey’s consulate in Mosul, Iraq, last June and seized 46 Turks and 3 Iraqis as hostages; they were released three months later on terms that were not disclosed
  • crisis discouraged Turkey from joining the United States-led military coalition conducting strikes against the Islamic State, though Turkey has cooperated with the United States in other ways,
  • Turkey has lobbied intensively for international military action in Syria, including no-fly zones and a presence on the ground to strengthen the more moderate Syrian rebel groups who are fighting both the extremists and the Syrian government.
  • Syrian government issued a statement on Sunday calling the military operation a “flagrant aggression” because Turkey did not wait for permission from Damascus to mount i
  • The Kurds were aided by airstrikes and other support from the American-led coalition
  • Mr. Ulgen, the analyst, said the choice of route was a sign of some improvement in relations between the Turkish government in Ankara and the Syrian Kurds, whom the Turks have regarded with deep suspicion.
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    The Turkish government recently went into an extremist-controlled territory in order to evacuate a tomb of a major historical figure, and the soldiers who guarded it. The safe passage of this mission has shown that the relations between Turkey and Syria have gotten a bit better. 
mharcour

A Call to the US: Recognize Palestine - 0 views

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    In this Washington Post opinion article, the author calls for the full recognition of the Palestinian state by the US. A staunch proponent for the two-state solution, the author states throughout his argument that recognition is the only way forward in the peace process.
cbrock5654

President of Egypt wants wider anti-IS campaign - 0 views

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    President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi met with US Secretary of State John Kerry in Cairo this Saturday (September 13, 2014). He said that the US coalition to defeat the Islamist State should also combat "terrorist hotbeds" across the Middle East and Africa. Egypt, unlike many other countries in the area, has supported the United State's anti-IS military action.
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    President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi met with US Secretary of State John Kerry in Cairo this Saturday (September 13, 2014). He said that the US coalition to defeat the Islamist State should also combat "terrorist hotbeds" across the Middle East and Africa. Egypt, unlike many other countries in the area, has supported the United State's anti-IS military action.
fcastro2

Syria keen on Russian expansion in Middle East - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East - 0 views

  • Syria has called on its Russian ally to expand in the Middle East, by expanding its small pier in the city of Tartus and turning it into a base
  • This has coincided with Saudi Arabia leading a coalition against Ansar Allah in Yemen, with a cover by the United States
  • meeting with a group of Russian journalists March 27, and in response to a question on Damascus’ desire to see a wider Russian activity in the Middle East, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said he certainly welcomes “any expansion of Russian presence in the Eastern Mediterranean, precisely on the Syrian shores and ports.
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  • Assad said: “The Russian presence in different parts of the world, including the Eastern Mediterranean and the Syrian port of Tartus, is very necessary, in order to create a sort of balance, which the world has lost after the dissolution of the Soviet Union more than 20 years ago.
  • Syrian president welcomed the Russian presence in his country and the region. “For us, the stronger this presence is in our region, the better it is for stability [in the region], because Russia is assuming an important role in world stability,”
  • Syrian nod is only a repetition of a former call made under the rule of late Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, who saw that the presence of a Russian military representation in Syria in the Mediterranean region contributes to the promotion of the idea of “the balance of terror” against Israel and the United States
  • The talk was, however, halted, until the last two years, when an actual need to promote Russian presence in the Mediterranean emerged in light of the reignition of the Cold War.
  • deployment of missile systems on the Mediterranean coast, as a sort of “symbolic deterrence.” The rumors were repeated as the NATO missile defense project was announced, which was supposed to be deployed in different countries, including Turkey and other countries bordering Russia
  • e US invasion of Iraq, as the US desire to change the face of the Middle East seemed free of any rational considerations. Assad made several visits to Moscow, and although this has not been publicly mentioned, Syrian diplomats and officials stressed to As-Safir that Syria expressed its desire to expand the Russian presence in the Eastern Mediterranean, particularly through Tartus, so that it turns into a military presence with limited standards
  • , Russia and Syria signed the biggest deal of its kind to explore oil in the Syrian waters, which covers a 2,190 square-kilometer surface area, and to achieve economic ambitions, namely extracting 2.5 billion barrels of oil and 8.5 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves, the oil and gas magazine said back then
  • is understandable, without neglecting the importance of other political and military issue
  • “any decision to modernize the infrastructure of the Russian Material-Technical Support Point in Tartus can only be made after a political decision is taken in this regard, in coordination with the Syrian side.” He explained that any modernization should “take into account the political and military situation in the Mediterranean region,” and therefore “it will include the promotion of all sorts of protection in the facility, including surface-to-air missiles and anti-riots weapons, and will be in coordination with the Syrian side.”
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    Syria is determined to keep Russia in the loop when it comes to its presence in the Middle East. As the United States increases its presence so to those Russia and Syria claims that they encourage Russian presence solely to "keep the balance" in the Middle East. 
jherna2a

Make No Mistake - the United States Is at War in Yemen - 0 views

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    The United States has began backing Saudi-led aggression against Yemen by providing targeting intelligence. There are many contradicting justifications for this provided by the NSC, the White House, the Pentagon, and Capitol Hill.
kristaf

Jordan Arrests Muslim Brotherhood Official Over Criticism of United Arab Emirates - NYT... - 0 views

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    According to the article "Mr. Bani Rushaid was arrested on charges of harming relations with a friendly country." The arrest of Mr. Bani Rushaid took place in Jordan because the Muslim Brotherhood's senior leader criticized the United Arab Emirates. Rushaid, had apparently stated that the United Arab Emirates had been "sponsoring terrorism" and "questioned the legitimacy of its rulers." 
fcastro2

UN, Russia take lead in Syria diplomacy - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East - 0 views

  • Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Egypt on Feb. 9-10 signals a “new phase” in Russian diplomacy in the Middle East.
  • Despite deteriorating ties with the United States and NATO countries over Ukraine, Maxim Suchkov writes, "Russia is anything but isolated, while Europe is no longer the promised land for the state that seeks recognition of its global influence."
  • Egypt and Russia have “shared positions on a number of regional issues; closely aligned interests (particularly on fighting international terrorism); a successful track record of bilateral cooperation on various fronts; and a strong personal bond of trust between respective leaders.”
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  • Egypt’s leadership has grown frustrated with US admonitions and criticisms of its governance record, and from Cairo’s perspective, bewildering discussions of conditions on US military aid
  • Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is hardly ready to ditch his country’s long-standing ties to the United States, the prospect of Russian arms and assistance could prove a useful complement to what some in Cairo consider more uncertain US support, especially as Egypt faces an ongoing terrorist insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula.
  • Naumkin adds th
  • Russia also considers Egypt an ally in its efforts to broker a political settlement in Syria
  • as a result of the Russian president’s visit to Cairo, the parties might agree to pool their forces in the context of a Syrian settlement.
  • It might be understandable for some analysts to dismiss the Moscow conference, given the diplomatic false starts over four years in a conflict that has left more than 150,000 dead, 7.6 million displaced, 3.2 million refugees, 12.2 million in need of humanitarian assistance and at least 680,000 injured, according to the United Nations.
  • Syrian opposition figures were not allowed to participate in the Jan. 26-29 Moscow conference as representatives of opposition parties, such as the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces (SOC), the leading umbrella group based in Turkey
  • The absence of the SOC and other representatives of the external opposition no doubt limited the potential impact of the conference,
  • Participants agreed to an 11-point list of “Moscow Principles” and a four-point “Appeal to the International Community” affirming the need to fight terrorist organizations such as the Islamic State (IS), rejecting outside interference and calling for increased humanitarian aid, while agreeing to meet again in a month’s time.
  • acknowledged the possibility for other organizations to play a role in future talks
  • Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vigorously supported the law, claiming its passage is essential in defending democracy
  •  “Success tempted the AKP, prompting it to revert back to its Islamism and initiate a much more ambitious narrative of building a new regional order, and even a new global order. Meanwhile, Erdogan turned into an unquestionable leader who is not limited by facts and creates his own facts, as envisioned by his Islamist ideology and extraordinary intuition. In the eyes of his hard-core supporters, he is not a mere political leader who formulates pragmatic policies. He is a total leader who redefines everything.”
allieggg

The New Arab Cold War - 0 views

  • It stretches from Iraq to Lebanon and reaches into North Africa, taking lives in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt's Western Desert, and now Libya
  • this violence is the result of a nasty fight between regional powers over who will lead the Middle East
  • The recent Egyptian and Emirati airstrikes on Libyan Islamist militias is just one manifestation of this fight for leadership among Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). All these countries have waded into conflicts in Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Bahrain, and now Libya in order to establish themselves as regional leaders.
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  • Turkish government has become a leading advocate of regime change in Syria. Unwilling to intervene in the Syrian civil war and unable to coax the United States to do so, Ankara turned a blind eye to extremist groups that used Turkish territory to take up the fight against Assad.
  • Barack Obama's attempt to disentangle the United States from the Middle East's many conflicts has only intensified these rivalries. From a particular perspective, Iraq's chaos, Syria's civil war, Libya's accelerating disintegration, and Hosni Mubarak's fall all represent failures of American leadership.
  • Yet these regional contenders for power have rarely achieved their goals. Instead, they have fueled violence, political conflict, and polarization, deepening the endemic problems in the countries they have sought to influence. 
  • Yet the war of words between Ankara and Cairo since then and the support that the Turkish government has extended to the Muslim Brotherhood
  • has only contributed to the political polarization and instability in Egypt
  • Qatar has been less circumspect than others in its support for groups fighting in Syria and Iraq, both offering official funding to Islamist groups in Syria and allowing private contributions to groups including al-Nusra Front, al Qaeda's Syrian affiliate.
  • These conflicts have less to do with Iran and the Sunni-Shiite divide than widely believed. Rather, they represent a fracturing of Washington's Sunni allies in the Middle East. Left to their own devices, the proxy wars the Saudis, Emiratis, Qataris, and Turks are waging among themselves will continue to cause mayhem
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    This article basically states that since the US's withdrawal from Middle Eastern affairs, regional actors were left to fight over who will lead the region's future. The fight is baiscally a run off between Turkey, Qatar, Saudi, and the UAE, each country doing their part intervening in conflicts aiding their supported side. Rather than achieving goals, these proxy wars have fueled the violence, chaos, and polarization deepening the problems they originally sought to mend. While the US has succeeded in abstaining from Mid East affairs, the question now is whether or not they should continue this resignation or step in to urge for order and peace. 
blantonjack

US and Russia in partnership over Syria - BBC News - 0 views

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    Syria's "cessation of hostilities" is making a difference - whatever the arguments about early violations, the level of violence across the country has fallen - and with this fragile modicum of progress, the United States and Russia find themselves in harness after years in which Syria was a forum for their rivalry.
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    Syria's "cessation of hostilities" is making a difference - whatever the arguments about early violations, the level of violence across the country has fallen - and with this fragile modicum of progress, the United States and Russia find themselves in harness after years in which Syria was a forum for their rivalry. But privately officials are nervous, both about Russian attempts to brand any group that has ever co-operated with militant elements like the Islamic state or the al-Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front as "terrorist" and, therefore, ineligible to take part in, or make any significant move towards moving President Assad off the political stage. For now there is an agreement to allow the PResident to stay in power and the United States is biting its tongue, hoping that the violence will slow down.
allieggg

US weighs sanctions on Libyan factions to try to halt proxy war - 1 views

  • US sanctions would be separate from potential United Nations sanctions that aim to pressure Libyan factions and militias to take part in UN-backed political negotiations to be led by UN envoy Bernardino Leon.
  • The possibility of using UN sanctions to help bring about political talks has been aired publicly.
  • US officials declined to say who they might target with sanctions or why they felt it necessary to look at US. penalties separate from the United Nations. Nor would they detail what sanctions they would propose.
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  • If applied, the United Nations sanctions would target individuals or groups involved in the fighting, rather than their foreign backers, and would freeze their assets as well as impose travel bans.
  • struggling for power and control of its oil wealth.
  • two potential reasons for unilateral US action.
  • United Nations moves slowly or not at all, US penalties could be imposed whenever Washington wished.
  • US sanctions could be especially worrisome to Khalifa Haftar, a former Libyan army general who fled to the United States after breaking ranks with Gaddafi and returned to launch a campaign against the Islamists in Benghazi.
  • Western officials believe the involvement of outside powers such as Egypt and the UAE is exacerbating the conflict and that the two countries are arming and funding the more secular forces.
  • Haftar, according to Western officials, has become the major proxy in Libya for Egypt,
  • UAE sees Egypt's leadership as a firewall against militants and has given Cairo financial and military support
  • Saudi Arabia, a supporter of Sisi, is sympathetic to the Egyptian and Emirati involvement in Libya but is not believed to have played any direct role,
  • Qatar and Turkey. Qatar, officials said, has given arms and money to Islamist militias while Turkey has offered moral support.
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    The UN is pushing for sanctions to put pressure on Libyan factions and militias to take part in political negotiations. These sanctions would target individual groups rather than the foreign backers involved in the proxy war and would freeze their assets and impose travel bans. US officials have introduced the possibility of using their own sanctions separate from the UN for a few reasons: UN sanctions move slowly if not at all, Washington could impose them whenever they wish. The US places more emphasis on the importance on external actors in the conflict than domestic groups, explaining that these countries are actually intensifying the conflict. 
tdford333

U.S. officials: Al-Qaida rebuilding amid chaos in Yemen - The Portland Press Herald / M... - 0 views

  • U.S. officials: Al-Qaida rebuilding amid chaos in Yemen
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    Agency and U.S. military personnel have been pulled out of Yemen amid escalating sectarian violence in recent weeks. Elite Yemeni units that the United States trained to hunt al-Qaida have been scrambled by the government's collapse.
blantonjack

How U.S. Politicians Are Reacting to the Attacks in Brussels - 0 views

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    "I think it's absolutely horrible," Trump said. "Look at Brussels, Brussels was a beautiful city, a beautiful place with zero crime, and now it's a disaster." He said the Belgian capital "is an armed camp" and added that "Paris is no longer the beautiful City of Lights." The United States GOP party is weighing in on the ISIS attacks, and what they think Obama should be doing. This puts the United States under high alert because several people flock in from the border every day to get to the US.
aavenda2

The most important thing to understand about the coming oil production cutbacks - 1 views

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    The United States and Canada are cutting back on oil production beginning 2015. The high cost of production in the two countries does now allow it to compete with Saudi Arabia oil and other countries with lower costs as market prices begin to fall
tdford333

Everything you need to know about the drone debate, in one FAQ - The Washington Post - 0 views

  • "drone" has come to refer to unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs), which are UAVs equipped with combat capabilities, most commonly the ability to launch missiles.
  • Predators were deployed to Afghanistan almost immediately after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and on Oct. 7, 2001 they conducted their first armed mission there.
  • The current program is jointly administered by the CIA and the Joint Special Operation Command (JSOC).
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  • Predator drones can carry up to two Hellfire missiles. Those have warheads of about 20 pounds, which are designed to pierce tank armor;
  • Reapers are another story. They feature a maximum payload of 3,000 pounds, or 1.5 tons. That means they can carry a combination of Hellfires and larger 500 pound bombs like the GBU-12 Paveway II and GBD-38 JDAM. Those have an "effective casualty radius" of about 200 feet.
  • From 2008 through October 2012, there were 1,015 strikes in Afghanistan, 48 in Iraq, and at least 105 in Libya
  • Primarily al-Qaeda and its affiliates. That includes al-Shaabab in Somalia, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (which works in Yemen), and the Haqqani Network in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
  • Anwar al-Awlaki, an American-born al-Qaeda operative in Yemen, was killed in a drone strike in 2011, as was his American-born 17-year-old son
  • Ahmed Hijazi, also an American citizen based in Yemen, was killed in 2002. 
  • The National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) will prepare lists of potential targets, which will be reviewed every three months by a panel of intelligence analysts and military officials. They are then passed along to a panel at the National Security Council, currently helmed by CIA director nominee Brennan, and then to Obama for final approval.
  • There is, however, substantial evidence that the percentage of casualties borne by civilians is much lower with drone strikes than with just about any other kind of military intervention
  • It derives the authority for the strikes from the Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) passed in the wake of 9/11, which grants the government broad powers against al-Qaeda.
  • allows states to make war in the interest of self-defense
  • Critics, like UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, summary or arbitrary executions Christof Heyns, say that this defense is a stretch, and the killings plainly run afoul of the laws of war and international human rights treaties.
  • Only the United States and the United Kingdom (which assists in the Pakistan drone effort) currently use drones in combat
  • All told, the GAO estimates that 76 countries, at least, have drone technology.
  • The Yemeni government quietly agreed to the strikes
  • Citizens in both countries deplore the campaigns.
  • there are deeper doubts as to whether the strategy is recruiting more militants than it kills, by turning local populations against the United States.
fcastro2

ANNE R. PIERCE: Beware ISIS strategy that fortifies Russia, Iran, and Syria - Washingto... - 0 views

  • President Obama stressed the importance of showing the world “we are united in our resolv
  • Demonstration of united resolve against blood-thirsty terrorists whose ranks, ambitions and territory have grown exponentially is important
  • forging strategy to battle ISIS without also forging strategy to thwart Syria, Russia and Iran is a terrible mistake
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  • brutality and aggression of the Islamic State, he still whitewashes the brutality and aggression of established states Syria, Russia and Iran, and still ignores the need for grand strategy to deal with them
  • We must, therefore, take Iran, Russia and Syria, and the collusion between them, seriously.
  • potentially, an even greater threat to the “free world” than ISIS. Because they are terror sponsors and supporters, WMD in their control means WMD out of control, susceptible to being sold or given to fanatics who are willing to work for their cause
  • working with the Iranian, Russian and Syrian regimes to address Middle Eastern problems and fight ISIS is a sure way to alienate Middle Eastern moderates and traditional partner
  • Russia’s staunch support of Syria and Iran; its ruthless aggression in Ukraine; and its expansionist designs in Eastern Europe, should make containing Russia an American foreign policy priority
  • Instead, much of the White House plan for combating ISIS plays right into Syrian, Iranian and Russian hands, for it revolves around their plans –which include allowing Assad to stay in power, legitimizing Russian-sponsored “peace conferences” that buy Assad time and raise Putin’s stature, accommodating the Iranian nuclear program, and giving Iran the lead in the battle against ISIS and in the Levant.
  • the United States has been mostly passive, while Russia, Iran and its proxies, and al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists, have seized the day.
  • opened the door to extremist groups eager to hijack the Syrian revolt and/or defend the Syrian regime
  • Iran and Russia have worked stolidly to protect Assad and capitalize on the chao
  • While the Obama administration justified its unwillingness to give meaningful aid to Syrian rebels with fear of helping extremists within rebel ranks, that stance allowed extremism within Syria to metastasize
  • development so serious that it now requires a military respons
  • Russia provided cover for Syria in the UN, and supplied many of the very weapons Assad uses to massacre civilian
  • the administration has endorsed yet more Russia-sponsored “peace talks”
  • President Obama and Secretary Kerry have backed even further away from demands that Assad leave, while even the goal of a transitional government which characterized the previous talks has been dropped
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    Working with the Iranian, Russian and Syrian regimes to address Middle Eastern problems and fight ISIS is a sure way to alienate Middle Eastern moderates.
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