2019-10-29 at 8:02 AM UTC
Nil
African Astronaut
[the overexcited four-footed chanar]
Russians placing blackjacks on that coastal venezualan island seems like some cuban missile crisis level shit. any moves in the western hemisphere must really get to washington.
wait wtf, I dunno why i thought this was on going, nvm.
aldra
JIDF Controlled Opposition
I should make a new thread but I really haven't been following events closely enough these last few months.
Two things are worth talking about though:
1. Nasrallah (effective spokesman for Hezbullah and the general 'axis of resistance') has pointed out that israel has been threatening Yemen, and that the Yemeni military commander has responded that he literally does not care and israel is going to be bombarded the same way Saudi oil infrastructure was if they try the same tricks they've been using against Syria and Iraq. This is a possible flashpoint because I don't see either side backing down, and a large-scale israeli attack on Yemen would invite the Gulf states and Iran/Hezbullah on opposing sides. I don't see major US involvement unless other parties (Russia, China) are drawn in considering they're already spread fairly thin in the region.
2. The US has launched several airstrikes against alleged Kataib Hezbullah positions in Iraq and Syria. Kataib Hezbullah is apparently an Iraqi PMU that aligns itself with Hezbullah but isn't actually part of Hezbullah proper. The US has had Hezbullah on their 'Foreign Terror Organisations' list and has claimed that as justification for the strikes - violating both Syrian (as usual) and Iraqi (who they claim to be an ally) sovereignty.
This is not particularly unusual, but this was in response to a missile strike that killed a US contractor. The attack was against the K1 airbase in Kirkuk, officially held by Iraqi military but known to be a hub for US military and PMCs. Historically PMCs have been treated as completely separate from the US military and typically are not able to call in airstrikes or other support, and their losses are not conflated with military casualties. This response appears to muddy the waters - there were US soldiers injured in the initial missile attack, but only a contractor was killed and there's been no statement as to who was actually targeted. I suspect we're seeing the beginning of a change in how the US military interacts with PMC units.
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2020-01-01 at 12:24 AM UTC
Saddam had the right idea. Democracy is a motherfucker.
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2020-01-02 at 12:15 AM UTC
aldra
JIDF Controlled Opposition
Reading more into the initial attack on the K1 airbase, no evidence has been presented that indicates it was, in fact, Kataib Hezbullah that launched the attack. No group has taken responsibility for the attack - it was apparently a volley of 30 107mm Katyusha rockets, which have been used in the same manner in the past by multiple groups such as ISIS and Turkish-backed rebels. 30 is a significantly higher number than recent attacks though, most comprising less than five and either being intercepted or falling on areas not causing significant damage or casualties.
OH yeah, and as a new year's 'gift', Russia has reported that a full regiment of AVANGARD HSGVs have been produced and are currently on active combat duty. 'Russia experts' in the US have often claimed that the AVANGARD system was either a hoax or nowhere near production-stage, but in late November the Russian MoD actually hosted US missile experts and allowed them to inspect the new system.
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2020-01-02 at 12:16 AM UTC
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aldra
JIDF Controlled Opposition
Wow, ok, I've seen very little information on the US strikes and it's now making sense as to why.
The US struck five facilities which were characterised as 'KH bases', all of which were facilities that housed both PMUs and regular Iraqi military. There were 32 reported killed and 40+ injured including several among the Missile Forces. One of the bombing targets was the al-Qaem/al-Bukamal border station; the only active border control checkpoint between Iraq and Syria and a major base for anti-ISIS operations.
This begins to explain the serious nature of the protests at the US embassy as well as the reports that Iraqi security forces allowed protesters to pass into the 'green zone'.
https://twitter.com/TomtheBasedCat/status/1211529280867459072
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2020-01-02 at 3:03 AM UTC
aldra
JIDF Controlled Opposition
The more I dig into this the more it seems likely that the initial attack against K1 was a staged provocation and the following strikes against the PMUs were long preplanned, though I don't understand what the goal was at this point. Might write up a dedicated thread on it later if anyone's interested
2020-01-02 at 4:12 AM UTC
Originally posted by aldra
The more I dig into this the more it seems likely that the initial attack against K1 was a staged provocation and the following strikes against the PMUs were long preplanned, though I don't understand what the goal was at this point. Might write up a dedicated thread on it later if anyone's interested
this might answer your wondering.
https://tomluongo.me/2019/12/30/pompeo-iraq-israel-iran/I have to wonder who Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is actually loyal to. Because, the U.S. strike of Kata’ib Hizbullah forces near the Al Qaim border crossing with Syria in Iraq is a dangerous escalation there.
And it’s completely at odds with Trump’s goals of wanting us out of the Middle East. The Al Qaim border crossing is a particular red line for Israel and their allies in the U.S. State and Defense Departments.
It represents the normalization of commerce between Syria, Iraq and Iran over time. This is the so-called Shia Crescent which is the stuff of nightmares for Benjamin Netanyahu.
And the U.S. has been hopping mad for months since now caretaker Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdel Mahdi opened the border because it undermines U.S. presence in Syria.
The entire point of U.S. occupation of the Al-Tanf border crossing into Jordan and the oil fields in Deir Ezzor province is about starving the Syrian government of any reliable energy and revenue.
When Al Qaim/Al Bukamai was opened it was only a matter of time before a major skirmish would occur over it. Israel staged a series of air attacks previously using U.S. assets and air bases to launch them back in September.
Now, we have the convenient excuse for attacking these forces which are part of the Popular Mobiliztion Units, PMU, which Pompeo despises by ‘retaliating’ for a rocket attack on the K1 base near Kirkuk where one U.S. mercenary was killed and a handful of others injured.
The response from the U.S. Air Force was completely out of line with the initial attack and occurred without any attempt by Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mark Esper to justify it.
They just invoked the phrase, “Iran-backed forces” and then bombed troops over 200 miles away where they wanted to strike anyway.
And what’s important is what both Elijah Magnier and Moon of Alabama pointed out immediately, the U.S. struck member of Shia militias who were made official part of the Iraqi defense forces.
In other words the U.S. just attacked and killed dozens of Iraqi military personnel.
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2020-01-02 at 10:20 AM UTC
aldra
JIDF Controlled Opposition
Yeah I'm aware of the border crossing's problems, but this seems like some very serious escalation just to *temporarily* shut it down. US military presence was already at risk in Iraq due to the PMUs almost uniformly wanting them gone (part of the reason why they were folded into the regular military was to force them to follow the standard chain of command and not take unilateral action against the 'occupying force'), but this has really upped the ante. I can't see any goal here but to intentionally destroy relations between the US and Iraq, possibly an attempt to depose the government and put a more compliant puppet in place but if that's the case they've really misjudged public sentiment.
2020-01-02 at 11:29 PM UTC
aldra
JIDF Controlled Opposition
Fresh rocket attack on Baghdad International Airport; three killed. The only confirmed casualty is a PMU commander.
2020-01-03 at 12:19 AM UTC
aldra
JIDF Controlled Opposition
OK, there appears to be a (((third party))) launching these strikes and taking advantage of reckless escalation on both sides. I WONDER WHO COULD BENEFIT FROM THAT.
Starting new thread
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2020-01-03 at 1:05 AM UTC
aldra
JIDF Controlled Opposition
Regardless of who's actually behind it the events of the last few days are going to be very important to the middle east in general moving forward. Watch closely.
2020-01-03 at 1:12 AM UTC
jedis or jedi ally - We all know who will be blamed. Us goyim.
