Iraq.......
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2014/01/06/Maliki-urges-Fallujah-tribes-to-expel-militants.html
The United States is looking to provide additional shipments of Hellfire missiles as early as this spring, White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters in a briefing, according to Reuters.
Carney said the United States will provide 10 ScanEagle surveillance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to Iraq in upcoming weeks and 48 Raven surveillance UAVs later this year to help Iraq track al Qaeda-affiliated groups.
Fighting in Anbar has reportedly killed more than 200 people in just three days, making it the deadliest violence to hit the province in years.
AQI took over the city of Fallujah late last week, and has resisted initial military attempts to retake it. Though the Maliki government is talking up his nation’s military capabilities, they seem to be dependent on allies for equipment to tackle major fights.
“This is a fight that belongs to the Iraqis,” Kerry said, insisting “we are not obviously contemplating returning” and that there was no considering “boots on the ground.”
and.......
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2014/01/05/Iraq-air-strikes-Qaeda-elements-in-Anbar-.html
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/bombings-kill-at-least-15-in-baghdad-as-iraq-readies-attack-to-retake-fallujah.
( While the government "plans " a major attack to retake Fallujah , is Al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), preparing to storm Baghdad ? )
A series of bombings killed at least 15 people in Baghdad on Jan. 5, officials said, as militants held a major city and part of another west of the Iraqi capital.
The three car bombs and one roadside bomb, which hit three separate areas of Baghdad, also wounded at least 40 people, the officials said.
The bombings come as militants hold the city of Fallujah, just 60 kilometres from Baghdad, as well as parts of Ramadi, farther west.
Anbar has in recent days seen the worst violence to hit the province in years, killing over 160 people in the last two days.
Violence in Iraq has reached a level not seen since 2008, when the country was just emerging from a brutal period of sectarian killings.
Iraq readying 'major attack' to retake Fallujah
Meanwhile, Iraq is preparing a "major attack" to retake militant-held Fallujah, a senior official said.
The announcement came as Washington said it would help Baghdad in its battle against Al-Qaeda-linked militants but that there would be no return of U.S. troops.
The takeover of Fallujah and parts of Anbar provincial capital Ramadi, farther west, is the first time that militants have exercised such open control in major cities since the height of the bloody insurgency that followed the US-led invasion of 2003.
"Iraqi forces are preparing for a major attack in Fallujah," a senior Iraqi official told AFP. Special forces have already conducted operations inside the city, the official said.
The regular army has paused on the edge of the city to allow residents time to leave, awaiting orders to launch "the attack to crush the terrorists."
Fallujah is in the hands of fighters of the Al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a senior security official said on Jan. 4.
Secretary of State John Kerry said on Jan. 5 that the United States would provide assistance to Iraqi forces in their battle against the militants but that it was "their fight".
Kerry said Washington was "very, very concerned" about the resurgence of ISIL but said it was not contemplating any return of U.S. ground troops, after their withdrawal in December 2011.
Fighting erupted in the Ramadi area on December 30, when security forces cleared a year-old protest camp where Sunni Arabs demonstrated against what they see as the marginalisation and targeting of their minority community by the Shiite-led government.
The violence then spread to Fallujah, and the subsequent withdrawal of security forces from parts of both cities cleared the way for militants to seize control.
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki had long sought the closure of the protest camp outside Ramadi, dubbing it a "headquarters for the leadership of Al-Qaeda." But its removal has caused a sharp decline in the security situation.
ISIL is the latest incarnation of Al-Qaeda's Iraq affiliate and has made a striking comeback this year, taking advantage of widespread discontent among Sunnis and its newfound bases in neighbouring Syria, where it has become a major player in the nearly three-year-old conflict.
http://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/urgent-isil-takes-ia-elements-as-captives-in-fallujah/#axzz2pZB8f21c
The mess that was emerging yesterday is now more or less a complete disaster, with Anbar Provincial Police confirming the city of Fallujah is now entirely under AQI’s control, and that police are positioned outside the city hoping to eventually make some effort to unseat them.
Officials reported 71 AQI fighters and 32 civilians dead, and an unknown number of tribal fighters as well as Iraqi military and police are also dead in the fighting, which has grown in intensity over the past few days.
It was probably chilly that December day in Fallujah back in 2004. A man you probably never heard of, Lance Cpl. Franklin Sweger — along with thousands of Marines and soldiers — was engaged in some of the worst combat since Vietnam.
The invasion of Iraq was predicated on the notion of ridding the Hussein regime of "weapons of mass destruction" of course. But in 2004, the game was changed to counterinsurgency — ridding the world of "the terrorists."
http://www.presstv.com/detail/2014/01/05/343854/syria-opposition-living-their-last-days/
However, Glenn stated that the damage inflicted on Syria by militants could not be underestimated.
“Let’s not forget who was responsible for destabilizing Syria for three years now. It has been the very same [so-called] FSA (Free Syrian Army) groups and yet they actually have the nerve to accuse some other rival group of bringing destabilization and violence to Syria,” said the analyst.
Glenn also noted that Saudi Arabia is stirring trouble in Syria on behalf of the Israeli regime.
On Saturday, 36 al-Qaeda-affiliated militants were reported to have been killed in clashes with a newly formed militant group in Syria.
Syria has been gripped by deadly crisis since 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies - especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey - are supporting the militants operating inside the country.
http://www.presstv.com/detail/2014/01/05/343863/kurdish-fighters-seize-key-town-in-syria/
The Kurdish fighters retook the town following fierce fighting with al-Qaeda-linked militants, who had heavily occupied the area.
The report added that the forces belonging to the YPG have also advanced in al-Husseinia village situated near Tall Hamis.
The victory is not the first for the YPG, as the group had previously taken control of several areas in the region.
Moreover, in recent weeks, the Syrian army has made major advances in its fight against the armed groups fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies - namely Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.
A British defense study published last September said that about 100,000 militants, fragmented into 1,000 groups, are fighting in Syria against the government and people.
According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions displaced in the foreign-backed militancy.
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2014/01/05/Rebel-on-rebel-fighting-rages-in-Syria.html
The driver claimed to be transporting humanitarian aid on behalf of the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH), a major Turkish aid group active throughout the world. The IHH denied having anything to do with the arms, and the drivers likely just used that as an attempt to avoid a search.
Protesters aligned with the Free Syrian Army (FSA) echoed claims of al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) being secretly aligned with the Assad government, and demanded that they withdraw from Syria entirely. The FSA is waning in combat power, but remains the largest secular rebel faction.
Unlike Senate bails aimed at derailing the talks by imposing new sanctions on Iran, Cantor’s previous bill aimedto dictate the terms of an “acceptable” pact, mirroring Israeli demands which would make such an agreement virtually impossible to negotiate.
http://www.tolonews.com/en/afghanistan/13333-no-delay-in-bagram-prisoner-releases-officials
The 88 in question were among 650 Bagram capitves that the board has already cleared for release, citing a complete lack of credible evidence against any of them.
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2014/01/06/Maliki-urges-Fallujah-tribes-to-expel-militants.html
By Staff writer | Al Arabiya News
Monday, 6 January 2014
Monday, 6 January 2014
The United States said on Monday it is accelerating its military sales and deliveries to Iraq to help the Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government fight al-Qaeda-linked militants in the restive Anbar province.
The United States is looking to provide additional shipments of Hellfire missiles as early as this spring, White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters in a briefing, according to Reuters.
Carney said the United States will provide 10 ScanEagle surveillance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to Iraq in upcoming weeks and 48 Raven surveillance UAVs later this year to help Iraq track al Qaeda-affiliated groups.
Al-Qaeda fighters have taken over the city of Falluja, one of the highest points of conflict during the Iraq War, last week.
Prime MinisterMaliki has called on residents to expel “terrorists” holding the city to avoid an assault by security forces, as they battled gunmen in nearby Ramadi.
Parts of Anbar provincial capital Ramadi, farther west, are also held by al-Qaeda-linked fighters.
It is the first time militants have exercised such open control in major cities since the height of the bloody insurgency that followed the U.S.-led invasion of 2003.
Maliki called on “the people of Fallujah and its tribes to expel the terrorists” so “their areas are not subjected to the danger of armed clashes,” state television reported.
Maliki also ordered security forces “not to strike residential areas in Fallujah”, it said.
Meanwhile, continuous fighting between security forces and militants took place in north, northeast and south Ramadi from early Monday, a police major said, while a captain reported clashes east of Fallujah.
A senior official told AFP on Sunday that “Iraqi forces are preparing for a major attack in Fallujah.”
And ground forces commander Staff General Ali Ghaidan Majeed said the city should “wait for what is coming” -- a reference to the impending assault.
The fighting reportedly killed al-Qaeda’s second in command in Anbar, Al Arabiya correspondent in Baghdad reported on Monday, quoting security sources.
But the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has not confirmed the death of its field commander Abu Abdelrahman al-Bilawi.
Fighting in Anbar has reportedly killed more than 200 people in just three days, making it the deadliest violence to hit the province in years.
Both Ramadi and Fallujah were insurgent strongholds in the years after 2003, and Fallujah was the target of two major assaults in which U.S. forces saw some of their heaviest fighting since the Vietnam War.
American troops eventually wrested back control of Anbar from militants, with the support of Sunni Arab tribesmen of the Sahwa militia, who joined forces with the US from late 2006.
American forces suffered almost one-third of their Iraq dead in Anbar, according to independent website icasualties.org.
But two years after U.S. forces withdrew, the power of militants in Anbar is increasing.
Fighting erupted in the Ramadi area on Dec. 30, when security forces cleared a year-old protest camp where Sunni Arabs had been demonstrating against what they see as the marginalization and targeting of their minority community by the Shiite-led government.
The violence then spread to Fallujah, and the subsequent withdrawal of security forces from parts of both cities cleared the way for al-Qaeda-linked militants to seize control.
Maliki had long sought the closure of the protest camp outside Ramadi, dubbing it a “headquarters for the leadership of al-Qaeda.”
But its removal has caused a sharp decline in the security situation.
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is the latest incarnation of the jihadist group’s Iraq affiliate and has made a striking comeback this year, taking advantage of widespread Sunni discontent and the civil war in neighboring Syria, where it has become a major player in the nearly three-year-old conflict.
Violence in Iraq last year reached a level not seen since 2008, when the country was just emerging from a brutal period of sectarian killings.
More than 250 people have been killed in the first five days of this month, exceeding the toll for the whole of January last year.
Iran General Offers Equipment, But No Troops, for Iraq’s War
Says Joint Operations Not Being Considered
by Jason Ditz, January 05, 2014
Echoing similar sentiments from the United States, Iran’s General Mohammed Hejazi says that his nation is prepared to provide military equipment and advice, but no troops for Iraq‘s ongoing fight with al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI).
AQI took over the city of Fallujah late last week, and has resisted initial military attempts to retake it. Though the Maliki government is talking up his nation’s military capabilities, they seem to be dependent on allies for equipment to tackle major fights.
And that means the US and Iran, who though not on good terms with one another are both close with Maliki. Still, the disastrous nature of Iraq’s security situation means their support will stop short of anything that gets them sucked directly into the conflict.
Gen. Hejazi downplayed the notion that troops had ever been considered as an option, saying Iran believes Iraq has “no need of manpower.” The Obama Administration, meanwhile, has simply conceded that sending troops would be too unpopular to seriously consider.
Kerry: No US Troops for West Iraq Fighting
Fighting 'Belongs to the Iraqis'
by Jason Ditz, January 05, 2014
Secretary of State John Kerry said that the US will “support” the Maliki government in its attempts to retake the city of Fallujah and parts of Ramadi from al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), but that support won’t include any US troops.
“This is a fight that belongs to the Iraqis,” Kerry said, insisting “we are not obviously contemplating returning” and that there was no considering “boots on the ground.”
The Obama Administration has recently been shipping large numbers of missiles and drones to the Maliki government to “confront al-Qaeda.” The potential utility of this in attacking Fallujah remains unclear.
The US has had its fill of destroying the city of Fallujah in the past, engaging in bloody battles there during the American occupation. At present, AQI insists the city is an independent Islamic State.
Anbar Clashes, Baghdad Bombings: 98 Killed, 135 Wounded
by Margaret Griffis, January 05, 2014
At least 98 people were killed, and another 135 were wounded. Although fighting in Anbar was the cause of many casualties, bombers struck again in Baghdad.
Even though no battles were reported in Falluja, heavy fighting in Ramadicontinued. At least 18 civilians and 22 soldiers were killed. Another 58 people were wounded. Clans in Falluja are forming their own forces and hope they can free the city without the help of the Iraqi army. Some may have joined the militants, though.
In Baghdad, a pair of bombs in the Shabb neighborhood killed 11 people and wounded 30 more. Three people were killed and six more were wounded in a blast inBab al-Muadham. Another two bombings left two killed and 13 wounded. A bomb inJamila killed four and wounded 12 more. An unidentified body was found in Bayaa. Gunmen killed a civilian.
In Mosul, 18 gunmen were killed trying to take over a part of the city. An I.E.D. killed a civilian and wounded another. Police killed a gunman.
Five people were killed and 10 more were wounded in a blast in Sadr City.
Six drivers were murdered at a fake checkpoint near Adhaim.
A bomb in Jurf al-Sakhar killed two soldiers and wounded three more.
In Qayara, a bomb killed one oil policeman and wounded another.
Two gunmen were killed in Latifiya.
A bomb injured a policeman in Kirkuk.
and.......
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2014/01/05/Iraq-air-strikes-Qaeda-elements-in-Anbar-.html
Iraq air strikes Qaeda elements in Anbar
By Staff Writer | Al Arabiya News
Sunday, 5 January 2014
Sunday, 5 January 2014
Iraqi government forces launched an air strike on a city in Anbar on Sunday, killing 25 Islamist militants in an attempt to quell an al-Qaeda offensive in the Sunni province, Reuters reported local officials as saying.
Government officials in western Anbar province have met tribal leaders to urge them to step up their efforts to repel al-Qaeda’s Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), who have taken over parts of Ramadi and Fallujah in Anbar, strategic Iraqi cities on the Euphrates River.
ISIL has been steadily tightening its grip in the vast Anbar province in recent months in a bid to create a Sunni Muslim state straddling the frontier with Syria.
ISIL has been steadily tightening its grip in the vast Anbar province in recent months in a bid to create a Sunni Muslim state straddling the frontier with Syria.
The airstrikes came after a senior Iraqi official said that the country’s security forces are preparing for a “major attack” to retake Fallujah from the al-Qaeda-linked militants.
“Iraqi forces are preparing for a major attack in Fallujah,” the official told Agence France-Presse.
On Sunday, Anbar’s Provincial Council confirmed that ISIL has claimed Fallujah.
“ISIL is now controlling Fallujah completely. There is no security apparatus or police,” Hamid al-Hashim, a member of Anbar’s provincial council, told Al Arabiya News Channel Sunday.
ISIL fighters, who have previously attacked police stations in the Sunni province, are “using police vehicles in Fallujah,” he warned.
However, other outlets are saying this information is unconfirmed.
Allied forces of local police and tribesmen made up those fighting the militant group as tribes in Anbar don’t trust the army run by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, who they claim have marginalized the Sunnis in the country.
“As a local government we are doing our best to avoid sending the army to Fallujah...now we are negotiating outside the city with the tribes to decide how to enter the city without allowing the army to be involved,” Falih Eisa, a member of Anbar’s provincial council, told Reuters.
But officials on Saturday said eight Iraqi soldiers were killed during clashes in Ramadi and Fallujah, and the country’s security forces killed 55 ISIL fighters in two areas near the Sunni province’s city of Ramadi, signaling some involvement of the army.
But officials on Saturday said eight Iraqi soldiers were killed during clashes in Ramadi and Fallujah, and the country’s security forces killed 55 ISIL fighters in two areas near the Sunni province’s city of Ramadi, signaling some involvement of the army.
Meanwhile, Hashim described tribesmen fighters inside and outside Fallujah as “ready” to go to battle after being equipped with better weapons.
“There is coordination between the army and the tribesmen. The army is the one that is supporting the tribesmen with weapons and everything they need in the battle against the terrorists,” he added.
He also expressed optimism that the tribesmen will be able to retain Fallujah within days.
However, Abdulrahman al-Zawobaiee, head Fallujah’s Tribal Council, gave a whole different description when he said the city was “empty” from any ISIL fighters or extremists brandishing weapons.
“Fallujah is not witnessing any display of armed elements,” he said, adding “these clashes are on the outskirts of the city.”
Some observes mull that tribesmen in Anbar are divided on whether to fight or support ISIL.
The situation in Anbar is still shrouded in mystery.
Anbar’s mayor, Ahmed al-Dulaimi, accused some political factions he didn’t directly identify as collaborating with ISIL, adding that some people arrested confirmed such allegations when they confessed.
On Sunday, Anbar police sacked its chief and appointed Ismail al-Mahlawi as the new head.
Iran prepared to help Iraq
Meanwhile, Iran is prepared to provide equipment and advice to Iraq to help quash al-Qaeda in its Sunni province of Anbar, deputy chief of staff General Mohammad Hejazi said Sunday.
“If the Iraqis ask, we will supply them with equipment and advice, but they have no need of manpower,” Hejazi was cited by the official IRNA news agency as saying.
However, Hejazi said there had not been any request from Iraq to “carry out joint operations against the 'takfiri terrorists,'” a term used to describe extremist Sunnis who denote Shiites as apostates.
Both Iran and Iraq are predominantly Shiite Muslim nations and their governments have strengthened political and economic ties in recent years.
Iran’s statement came after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry voiced confidence on Sunday the Iraqi government and tribes would be successful in their fight against al-Qaeda and said Washington was not considering sending troops back to Iraq.
“This is a fight that belongs to the Iraqis ... We are not contemplating returning.” Kerry said during a trip to Israel.
“We will help them in their fight, but this fight, in the end, they will have to win and I am confident they can.”
The United States said it was keeping track of developments in Iraq’s Anbar province, condemning al-Qaeda-linked fighters for committing “barbarism.”
“Their barbarism against civilians of Ramadi and Fallujah and against Iraqi Security Forces is on display for all to see,” State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said in a statement.
Last Update: Sunday, 5 January 2014 KSA 21:33 - GMT 18:33
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/bombings-kill-at-least-15-in-baghdad-as-iraq-readies-attack-to-retake-fallujah.
( While the government "plans " a major attack to retake Fallujah , is Al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), preparing to storm Baghdad ? )
Bombings kill at least 15 in Baghdad as Iraq readies attack to retake Fallujah
raqi security forces and people gather at the site of a road side bomb attack in central Baghdad, Iraq, Jan. 5. AP photo
The three car bombs and one roadside bomb, which hit three separate areas of Baghdad, also wounded at least 40 people, the officials said.
The bombings come as militants hold the city of Fallujah, just 60 kilometres from Baghdad, as well as parts of Ramadi, farther west.
Anbar has in recent days seen the worst violence to hit the province in years, killing over 160 people in the last two days.
Violence in Iraq has reached a level not seen since 2008, when the country was just emerging from a brutal period of sectarian killings.
Iraq readying 'major attack' to retake Fallujah
Meanwhile, Iraq is preparing a "major attack" to retake militant-held Fallujah, a senior official said.
The announcement came as Washington said it would help Baghdad in its battle against Al-Qaeda-linked militants but that there would be no return of U.S. troops.
The takeover of Fallujah and parts of Anbar provincial capital Ramadi, farther west, is the first time that militants have exercised such open control in major cities since the height of the bloody insurgency that followed the US-led invasion of 2003.
"Iraqi forces are preparing for a major attack in Fallujah," a senior Iraqi official told AFP. Special forces have already conducted operations inside the city, the official said.
The regular army has paused on the edge of the city to allow residents time to leave, awaiting orders to launch "the attack to crush the terrorists."
Fallujah is in the hands of fighters of the Al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a senior security official said on Jan. 4.
Secretary of State John Kerry said on Jan. 5 that the United States would provide assistance to Iraqi forces in their battle against the militants but that it was "their fight".
Kerry said Washington was "very, very concerned" about the resurgence of ISIL but said it was not contemplating any return of U.S. ground troops, after their withdrawal in December 2011.
Fighting erupted in the Ramadi area on December 30, when security forces cleared a year-old protest camp where Sunni Arabs demonstrated against what they see as the marginalisation and targeting of their minority community by the Shiite-led government.
The violence then spread to Fallujah, and the subsequent withdrawal of security forces from parts of both cities cleared the way for militants to seize control.
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki had long sought the closure of the protest camp outside Ramadi, dubbing it a "headquarters for the leadership of Al-Qaeda." But its removal has caused a sharp decline in the security situation.
ISIL is the latest incarnation of Al-Qaeda's Iraq affiliate and has made a striking comeback this year, taking advantage of widespread discontent among Sunnis and its newfound bases in neighbouring Syria, where it has become a major player in the nearly three-year-old conflict.
January/05/2014
http://www.iraqinews.com/iraq-war/urgent-isil-takes-ia-elements-as-captives-in-fallujah/#axzz2pZB8f21c
Anbar (IraqiNews.com) A security source stated to IraqiNews.com that gunmen from the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant took most of the 53rd Iraqi Army Brigade as captives in Fallujah district on Saturday.
Security source stated to IraqiNews.com “ISIL elements captured 75 members of the Brigade headed by General, Hamid al-Alwani, and killed a commander of a regiment in addition to two snipers.”
“They cordoned the Brigade then captured its elements,” the source concluded.
Hundreds Dead as Fallujah Falls to al-Qaeda
Police: We Control the Walls, AQI Has Everything Else
by Jason Ditz, January 04, 2014
After well over 100 people were killed Friday fighting continued apace in Fallujah, with the military reporting another 55 al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) fighters killed today, along with unknown numbers of civilians and security forces.
The mess that was emerging yesterday is now more or less a complete disaster, with Anbar Provincial Police confirming the city of Fallujah is now entirely under AQI’s control, and that police are positioned outside the city hoping to eventually make some effort to unseat them.
“The walls of the city are in the hands of the police force, but the people of Fallujah are the prisoners of AQI,” reported police chief Hadi Razeij. Parts of the nearby capital city of Ramadi have also fallen, though the extent of that is still unknown.
The Iraqi military appears to be ready for a protracted battle for Fallujah, shelling the city with hundreds of thousands of residents, while AQI yesterday declared that Fallujah is now an independent Islamic State.
Over 100 Killed as al-Qaeda Seizes Most of Fallujah
Fighting Continues on Outskirts, But City Has Fallen
by Jason Ditz, January 03, 2014
Final death tolls are still up in the air and the fighting is ongoing, but well over 100 people are confirmed dead today in fighting over the Western Iraqi cities of Ramadi and Fallujah, and Fallujah appears to have fallen more or less entirely under al-Qaeda of Iraq’s (AQI) control.
Officials reported 71 AQI fighters and 32 civilians dead, and an unknown number of tribal fighters as well as Iraqi military and police are also dead in the fighting, which has grown in intensity over the past few days.
Monday’s violent crackdown on protests in Ramadi gave way to mass resignations in parliament and bigger protests in Anbar Province, which AQI used as an opportunity to attack police stations and seize chunks of both Ramadi and Fallujah.
They still hold part of Ramadi, but their big possession is Fallujah, where Iraqi security forces are no longer seen, and where virtually the whole city is under their control. AQI has issued a statement declaring Fallujah an “independent Islamic state,” and at the moment the only resistence they’re facing anywhere near the city is from local tribal leaders, with the military pushed back to the highway leading from the area into Baghdad.
118 Killed, 53 Wounded in Iraq Clashes
by Margaret Griffis, January 03, 2014
At least 118 people were killed across Iraq today. One of them was a Tunisian al-Qaeda leader. Another 53 were wounded. These are likely conservative figures, as the actual number will not be known before the Iraqi government takes control of Anbar province.
In Ramadi, a local police source reported that 75 al-Qaeda militants have been killedin and around the city. Apparently, a Tunisian al-Qaeda leader is among the dead. Another emir was also killed. At least 16 people were killed in a truck bombing. Another 16 civilians were killed in the mayhem there or in Falluja. A suicide bomberfailed to harm a sheikh who was his target.
Militants retained control in parts of Falluja, where they raised their own flag anddeclared it a new independent state. Some neighborhoods reported heavy bombing. At least 28 people received injuries. The total number of police or pro-government tribesmen who have been hurt or killed was not released, but at least two policemen were killed and six more were wounded.
In Mosul, a bomb killed a civilian and wounded another. A separate bomb killed a soldier.
Two soldiers were killed and a third was wounded in an armed attack in Baquba.
An I.E.D. killed one policeman and wounded 10 more in Jurf al-Sakhar.
One policeman was killed and five others were wounded in an attack on a police station in Tarmiya.
Gunmen in Ouja attacked a convoy carrying the deputy governor of Salah ad Din province; he was not hurt but two bodyguards were injured.
In Baghdad, two gunmen were killed.
Tell Me Again, Why Did My Friends Die In Iraq?
"Everything’s OK mom, don’t worry about me," he told his mother two weeks before. "I think I’m going to make it."
In less than ten days, the city would be for the most part, secure. Its residents would need years to rebuild after the destruction, and its children would see an astronomical rise in birth defects and other abnormalities.
But for Sweger, Dec. 16 would be the last day to fight. "He was the one who was kicking in the doors and going in first," his father Frank Sweger told MySanAntonio.
Along with his infantry platoon from 1st Battalion 3rd Marines, he was going house-to-house, kicking in doors as he had likely done since the battle had started on Nov. 7. But as he entered one room, friends told me later, he was shot and killed by an insurgent lying in wait.
He was on his last deployment and would've gone on to college. He was funny, a good person, and just 24 years old. Why did he die?
***
The battle that took the life of Lance Corporal Franklin Sweger was the second assault that year on the then-lawless city of Fallujah. Called Operation Phantom Fury (Operation Al Fajr in Arabic, or The Dawn), it was a full-scale attack on a city teeming with insurgents who had months to prepare defenses, booby traps, and explosives throughout the city.
When it was all over, American and friendly forces suffered more than 100 killed and more than 600 wounded. The Red Cross estimated 800 Iraqi civilian deaths. Insurgent deaths were much greater than both but impossible to count.
Why did they die?
***
And we sure were successful. Until the U.S. pulled out, American soldiers and Marines certainly killed their fair share of terrorists, insurgents, bad guys, and the like. They in turn, killed plenty of us.
Yet for all the blood spilled — of 4,488 military men and women to be precise — there's no good reason why.
The proof of how pointless the entire endeavour was — if you even needed more — came Friday morning, with a report from Liz Sly in the Washington Post.
"At the moment, there is no presence of the Iraqi state in Fallujah," a local journalist who asked not to be named because he fears for his safety told Sly. “The police and the army have abandoned the city, al-Qaeda has taken down all the Iraqi flags and burned them, and it has raised its own flag on all the buildings.”
Fallujah has fallen, and the same scenario is about to happen in the even-larger city of Ramadi.
It shouldn't be such a surprise the place my friends fought for is falling back into civil war. I shouldn't be surprised when the same thing happens in Afghanistan. But it still is, because I don't want it to happen.
Now looking back on his "Last Letter" written Mar. 18, 2013, Tomas Young, a veteran of Iraq who was shot and paralyzed just five days into his deployment, predicted this moment:
"The Iraq War is the largest strategic blunder in U.S. history," he wrote. "It obliterated the balance of power in the Middle East. It installed a corrupt and brutal pro-Iranian government in Baghdad, one cemented in power through the use of torture, death squads and terror. And it has left Iran as the dominant force in the region. On every level—moral, strategic, military and economic—Iraq was a failure."
I'll never know why they died. It wasn't to stop the "mushroom cloud" or to defend the nation after 9/11. It sure wasn't for freedom, democracy, apple pie, or mom and dad back home.
The only reason they died was for the man or woman beside them. They died for their friends.
I'm just not satisfied with that.
Syria...... Rebel fight against Assad has morphed into fighting between Rebel factions .....actually this is a Western proxy rebel fight against Saudi proxy rebel fighters !
Iran rejects Geneva II involvement incompatible with ‘dignity’
Published time: January 06, 2014 23:24
Iran emphasized Monday its support for a political solution in ending the Syrian civil war while denouncing participation in an upcoming Syria peace conference if doing so “does not respect its dignity.”
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham underscored Iran’s willingness to help resolve the crisis in Syria, but made clear Iran would not do so at the whim of other countries.
“In order to take part in the Geneva II conference, the Islamic Republic of Iran will not accept any proposal which does not respect its dignity,” Afkham said.
She said Iran would stress a resolution through intra-Syrian talks at the Geneva II conference set to begin on January 22.
“From the outset of the Syrian crisis, the Islamic Republic of Iran has said that a political solution will be the only option to defuse tension in the country, and has always welcomed strategies that would safeguard the rights of the Syrian people through Syrian-Syrian dialog,” said Afkham, according to Iranian Press TV.
Her remarks come one day after US Secretary of State John Kerry suggested what role Iran could play in the Syrian peace process short of attending the conference.
"Now could they contribute from the sidelines? Are their ways for them, conceivably, to weigh in? Can their mission that is already in Geneva... be there in order to help the process? It may be that there are ways that could happen," Kerry said.
The US opposes Iran’s presence at Geneva II based on the fact that the Islamic Republic did not sign on to the framework agreed at the Geneva I conference last year.
In addition, an anonymous US official told Reuters other participating nations have opposed Iran’s inclusion in Geneva. Though the official did not name the nations, likely among them are Gulf Arab states like Saudi Arabia, Reuters speculated.
For Iran to simply be considered for a role in the talks, "they would have to demonstrate that they would do things that would be less destructive in Syria,” State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said.
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Iran would have to agree to the Geneva I terms if it wanted to join in Geneva II.
Iran was not among the "first round" of nations invited Monday by the United Nations to attend the peace talks in Switzerland this month, though UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon “is in favor of inviting Iran,”UN spokesman Farhan Haq said, AP reported Monday.
UN Syria envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said in December that the status of Iran’s participation at the conference was on hold pending US opposition.
Yet, according to the UN, Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are to meet and discuss Iran’s role with Syria. The meeting is set to take place on January 13.
Around two dozen countries are expected to send top officials to the Jan. 22 gathering that Ban will lead. Rebel forces fighting in Syria have also been invited.
Peace talks will start Jan. 24 at the UN’s Geneva headquarters. Meetings between Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government and opposition groups will be moderated by Syria’s UN envoy Brahimi, according to AP.
Syria’s three-year civil war has killed an estimated 100,000-plus people and displaced at least two million more.
Last week, negotiations between the P5+1 and Iran yielded an accord on implementation of an interim agreement on Iran’s nuclear program in late January, an Iranian official announced.
"Based on the conclusions the talks held with expert delegations, the implementation of the Geneva accord will start at the end of January,” Iranian nuclear negotiator Hamid Baeidinejad said, according to Press TV, despite no official confirmation by the nations’ delegates.
"The two sides managed to reach an understanding on the implementation of the agreement and now, their views and interpretations are the same," he said.
Syria opposition living their last days: Glenn
Sun Jan 5, 2014 2:30PM GMT
2
Foreign-backed militants fighting the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are living their last days, an analyst tells Press TV in an interview.
“I think the Syrian opposition as a whole is basically on its last legs,” Mark Glenn said on Sunday.
“The money and the leadership and the direction that was being provided by the United States and other players, basically has been removed. And this is why we see now the center falling apart,” he added.“I think the Syrian opposition as a whole is basically on its last legs,” Mark Glenn said on Sunday.
However, Glenn stated that the damage inflicted on Syria by militants could not be underestimated.
“Let’s not forget who was responsible for destabilizing Syria for three years now. It has been the very same [so-called] FSA (Free Syrian Army) groups and yet they actually have the nerve to accuse some other rival group of bringing destabilization and violence to Syria,” said the analyst.
Glenn also noted that Saudi Arabia is stirring trouble in Syria on behalf of the Israeli regime.
“Saudi Arabia of course is the indispensable link in all of this. Israel cannot directly fund and train these groups. They have to have a middleman to do it. Saudi Arabia obviously is furious over the developments that are taking place in Syria,” he added.
On Saturday, 36 al-Qaeda-affiliated militants were reported to have been killed in clashes with a newly formed militant group in Syria.
Syria has been gripped by deadly crisis since 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies - especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey - are supporting the militants operating inside the country.
Kurdish fighters recapture Tal Hamis in NE Syria
Kurdish fighters in Syria have recaptured a key town in the country’s northeast, Press TV reports.
According to the report, the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, known as YPG, regained control of Tall Hamis near the Turkish border on Sunday.The Kurdish fighters retook the town following fierce fighting with al-Qaeda-linked militants, who had heavily occupied the area.
The report added that the forces belonging to the YPG have also advanced in al-Husseinia village situated near Tall Hamis.
The victory is not the first for the YPG, as the group had previously taken control of several areas in the region.
Moreover, in recent weeks, the Syrian army has made major advances in its fight against the armed groups fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies - namely Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.
A British defense study published last September said that about 100,000 militants, fragmented into 1,000 groups, are fighting in Syria against the government and people.
According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions displaced in the foreign-backed militancy.
Rebel-on-rebel fighting rages in Syria
By Staff writer | Al Arabiya News
Sunday, 5 January 2014
Sunday, 5 January 2014
Clashes continued Sunday between moderate rebel groups and the al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in some of the most serious infighting among those trying to topple President Bashar al-Assad.
The fighting marks the strongest pushback yet from Syrian rebel groups claiming that their uprising against Assad has been hijacked by ISIL, which seeks to impose Islamic rule in opposition-held portions of the country.
While clashes were mainly concentrated in Aleppo and Idlib, fighting shifted to a new province on Sunday, this time to the town of Tabqa in Raqa on the northern border with Turkey, where ISIL is extremely powerful, Agence France-Presse reported.
ISIL jihadists killed at least 24 rival rebels in northern Syria, AFP reported on Sunday, citing insurgents and medics.
Near Tal Rifaat, a village in the northern province of Aleppo, at least 10 rebels were killed Saturday in an ISIL attack on their vehicles, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
Near Tal Rifaat, a village in the northern province of Aleppo, at least 10 rebels were killed Saturday in an ISIL attack on their vehicles, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
Also in the Aleppo town of Hreitan, five rebel fighters were killed Saturday in a car bomb attack by ISIL, the Britain-based Observatory said, citing rebel and medical sources on the ground.
Liwa al-Tawhid, a brigade in the massive Islamic Front rebel alliance, said on its Facebook page that its members were targeted in the car bomb attack.
In Idlib in the northwest of Syria, which has also seen major fighting between the rebels and ISIL, four rebels were killed in an ISIL ambush near Jabal al-Zawiya, while five others were executed by ISIL in the town of Harem.
Violence has raged between the two sides since rebels, including Islamists, attacked checkpoints and bases manned by ISIL, which is accused of abuses against other insurgents, activists and civilians in areas where they operate.
On Saturday, ISIL distributed an audio statement warning the rebels to stop pressuring the jihadists, or else they would withdraw from the frontlines in Aleppo city and let the Assad regime in.
Liwa al-Tawhid, a brigade in the massive Islamic Front rebel alliance, said on its Facebook page that its members were targeted in the car bomb attack.
In Idlib in the northwest of Syria, which has also seen major fighting between the rebels and ISIL, four rebels were killed in an ISIL ambush near Jabal al-Zawiya, while five others were executed by ISIL in the town of Harem.
Violence has raged between the two sides since rebels, including Islamists, attacked checkpoints and bases manned by ISIL, which is accused of abuses against other insurgents, activists and civilians in areas where they operate.
On Saturday, ISIL distributed an audio statement warning the rebels to stop pressuring the jihadists, or else they would withdraw from the frontlines in Aleppo city and let the Assad regime in.
ISIL pulling out from strategic areas
Reuters, meanwhile, reported that the rebels scored some successes against ISIL fighters.
It cited opposition activists saying that the al-Qaeda-linked jihadists pulled out from strategic areas of northern Syria near the Turkish border on Sunday after coming under heavy fire from other Islamist brigades.
Fighters from the Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham militant group took over the ISIL positions in two towns, activists in northern Syria said.
“The Islamic State is pulling out without a fight. Its fighters are taking their weapons and heavy guns. They appear to be heading in the direction of Aleppo,” activist Firas Ahmad said.
But the pullout on Sunday, which included the ISIL stronghold of al-Dana in Idlib and the important supply line town of Atma involved no fighting, suggesting a possible deal to avoid larger confrontations that would sap the strength of the two sides and play into the hands of Assad, opposition sources and Middle East diplomats said.
Fighters from the Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham militant group took over the ISIL positions in two towns, activists in northern Syria said.
“The Islamic State is pulling out without a fight. Its fighters are taking their weapons and heavy guns. They appear to be heading in the direction of Aleppo,” activist Firas Ahmad said.
But the pullout on Sunday, which included the ISIL stronghold of al-Dana in Idlib and the important supply line town of Atma involved no fighting, suggesting a possible deal to avoid larger confrontations that would sap the strength of the two sides and play into the hands of Assad, opposition sources and Middle East diplomats said.
Meanwhile, the Associated Press said that Syrian rebels on Sunday seized a compound held by ISIL.
ISIL has been said to seek hegemony by taking over key roads and checkpoints from the hands of its rivals, while some opponents of Assad have even accused it of serving the interests of his regime.
The Secretary General of the Free Syrian Army, Captain Ammar al-Wawi went further by saying that ISIL was “a group of gangsters following” President Assad’s regime, Iran and Iraq.
Captain Wawi told Al Arabiya News Channel that the sole aim of ISIL is to “hijack the Syrian revolution.”
ISIL has claimed responsibility for a suicide attack killing four people this week in a Hezbollah bastion in southern Beirut. The Lebanese Shiite movement is a key ally to President Assad and has sent thousands of fighters into Syria to support his regime.
In Iraq, ISIL took over the city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, this week.
In Iraq, ISIL took over the city of Fallujah, west of Baghdad, this week.
Turkish FM Davutoğlu talks Syria, Iraq and
bilateral ties with Iran’s Zarif
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu (R) discussed bilateral relations and regional issues including Syria and Iraq with his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif (L) late Jan. 4 in Istanbul. DHA Photo
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğludiscussed bilateral relations and regional issues including Syria and Iraq with his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif late Jan. 4 in Istanbul.
Expressing concerns over the escalating violence in Syria despite calls for cease-fire from both countries, Davutoğlu said they are ready to stop the intensifying humanitarian crisis in Aleppo and alleviate all of Syria’s misery and pain.
The foreign minister also said the two countries aimed at increasing the trade volume up to $30 billion by 2015 and raise it to $50 billion, while the necessary legal framework is being set, adding they decided to establish a “High-Level Cooperation Council” with an eye to improve commercial relations.
Zarif, for his part, said the $30-billion trade target was “achievable and a must” for the two countries, while urging boosting bilateral relations in energy, trade, transportation and other fields. A joint meeting with Azerbaijan and the two countries is also scheduled in upcoming months, said the top Turkish diplomat. Davutoğlu also stated Turkey welcomed the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, as Turkey supported peaceful initiatives to produce nuclear energy without a military agenda behind it.
Both ministers expressed their unease over the recent developments in Iraq, the seizure of some Iraqi towns by al-Qaeda-linked groups and hopes for a peaceful period ahead of national elections on April 30 without ethnic and sectarian clashes.
Expressing concerns over the escalating violence in Syria despite calls for cease-fire from both countries, Davutoğlu said they are ready to stop the intensifying humanitarian crisis in Aleppo and alleviate all of Syria’s misery and pain.
The foreign minister also said the two countries aimed at increasing the trade volume up to $30 billion by 2015 and raise it to $50 billion, while the necessary legal framework is being set, adding they decided to establish a “High-Level Cooperation Council” with an eye to improve commercial relations.
Zarif, for his part, said the $30-billion trade target was “achievable and a must” for the two countries, while urging boosting bilateral relations in energy, trade, transportation and other fields. A joint meeting with Azerbaijan and the two countries is also scheduled in upcoming months, said the top Turkish diplomat. Davutoğlu also stated Turkey welcomed the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, as Turkey supported peaceful initiatives to produce nuclear energy without a military agenda behind it.
Both ministers expressed their unease over the recent developments in Iraq, the seizure of some Iraqi towns by al-Qaeda-linked groups and hopes for a peaceful period ahead of national elections on April 30 without ethnic and sectarian clashes.
The Turkish government has seized a truck filled with weapons and ammunition in the southern Hatay Province. The truck was bound for Syrian rebel territory.
The driver claimed to be transporting humanitarian aid on behalf of the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH), a major Turkish aid group active throughout the world. The IHH denied having anything to do with the arms, and the drivers likely just used that as an attempt to avoid a search.
Turkey has been the preferred route for smuggling weapons into Syria throughout the civil war, to the point where control over the border crossings has been a top priority for rebel factions looking to demand a cut of any shipments into the nation.
As the secular rebels have fallen by the wayside and al-Qaeda has come to dominate a lot of the region, Turkey appears to be looking to limit some of those shipments in a way that early on they simply didn’t care to.
Key Syrian opposition bloc rejects Geneva II
By Staff writer | Al Arabiya News
Saturday, 4 January 2014
Saturday, 4 January 2014
The Syrian National Council, a key group within Syria’s mainstream opposition National Coalition, reaffirmed on Friday it will not attend the “Geneva II” peace talks scheduled for later this month in Switzerland.
“After meetings with many international delegations in recent weeks... the Syrian National Council (SNC) confirms it sees no reason to attend the Geneva conference,” SNC member Samir Nashar told Agence France-Presse.
The talks were originally scheduled to be held in the Swiss city of Geneva but have been moved to nearby Montreux and a Jan. 22 date for the peace talks has been set.
Although the National Coalition which has still not taken a definitive decision, Nashar forecast that the umbrella organization would similarly not show up.
The statement reiterates an earlier announcement by SNC president George Sabra in October that the group had taken a “firm decision” not to attend the talks. Sabra had also said the SNC would withdraw from the National Coalition if it decided to attend.
The group has long insisted that it refuses to negotiate until President Bashar al-Assad’s regime exits power.
Nashar said the decision was taken after many meetings, including with the “Friends of Syria” grouping of states that support the opposition, U.N.-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi and the Russian foreign ministry.
“The whole idea of Geneva is flawed. It is based on bridging the demands of the Syrian regime and the opposition, placing them on an equal footing. We reject this,” said Nashar.
“There is nothing the international community has to offer that would make us revise our earlier decision.”
The SNC has long held the view there should be no talks without guarantees they would lead to Assad’s fall.
“And the message we are getting is that whether Assad stays or goes will be up to the Syrians to decide. The United States supports our demand that he must fall but the Russians do not accept this as a precondition,” said Nashar.
“The whole idea of Geneva is flawed. It is based on bridging the demands of the Syrian regime and the opposition, placing them on an equal footing. We reject this,” said Nashar.
“There is nothing the international community has to offer that would make us revise our earlier decision.”
The SNC has long held the view there should be no talks without guarantees they would lead to Assad’s fall.
“And the message we are getting is that whether Assad stays or goes will be up to the Syrians to decide. The United States supports our demand that he must fall but the Russians do not accept this as a precondition,” said Nashar.
Despite the date being set, doubts still remain over whether the conference will go ahead.
“You have to look at what the revolutionaries on the ground are saying: they too reject Geneva,” said Nashar.
“What this means is there will be no Geneva at all,” he added.
“What this means is there will be no Geneva at all,” he added.
In statements to pan-Arab newspaper al-Hayat this week, head of the National Coalition Ahmad Jarba accused the Syrian regime of obstructing the international conference from going ahead
Jarba addressed the countries brokering Geneva II talks, including the U.S., Russia, France and Britain, asking them, “Do you want to just hold the conference or make a success out of it?
“It is possible to hold [the conference], yet it is impossible for it to succeed. If they want to hold the conference for the sake of media [propaganda] so that cameras can show the world’s foreign ministers gathering, in an attempt to prove to the world that the president and members of the Syrian opposition are sitting with representatives of the Syria regime and to just have every speaker deliver a speech and leave, this is shameful. I feel that this is what many foreign ministers want. Then, after all of this they tell the Syrians: Leave now, while the fighting is going on. This does not work and will prove ineffective in light of the current situation.”
Rebel Factions Fighting One Another in Northwest Syria
Islamic Front Demands al-Qaeda Withdraw From Aleppo District
by Jason Ditz, January 03, 2014
The Syrian Civil War’s process of balkanization looks to be picking up steam today, as protesters aligned with some rebel factions protested against others, and open fighting erupted in Syria’s northwest.
Protesters aligned with the Free Syrian Army (FSA) echoed claims of al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) being secretly aligned with the Assad government, and demanded that they withdraw from Syria entirely. The FSA is waning in combat power, but remains the largest secular rebel faction.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Front, which is establishing itself as a powerful Islamist bloc in the country, also took shots at AQI, demanding they withdraw from a key Aleppo district that they believe is rightfully theirs.
The Assad government has secured much of southern Syria under their control, while the northeast is dominated by Kurdish militias. The northwest remains under the control of rebels, in general, but the fractured nature of the rebellion means these various groups will continue to contest internal control over “rebel Syria” with one another, even if the Assad government is unable to make inroads back into the north.
Syrian Rebels Wage New Battle Against Al-Qaeda Affiliate
Rebels battled the al-Qaeda affiliated Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) on Friday in the Syrian cities of Aleppo and Idlib, following months of discontent with ISIS’ treatment of civilians in opposition held-areas of northern Syria.posted on
Fighting broke out between Syrian rebels and ISIS factions in northern Syria on Friday, as protestors took to the streets to shout slogans against both Syrian President Bashar Assad and ISIS, and calling for ISIS to leave Syria.
Anti-ISIS protest in al-Achrafieh, Aleppo today, everyone in Guy Fawkes masks
“The protests today are the result of tensions that have been building in northern Syria for several months now, mostly relating to ISIS’ treatment of civilians and localized rebel units and individuals,” Charles Lister of the Brookings Doha center told BuzzFeed in an email.
Speaking from Aleppo, Syrian media activist Murad Alshawakh told BuzzFeed that the fighting erupted because many Syrians were angry over ISIS aggressions and wanted them out of the country.
The Assad regime has been battling rebels groups in northern Syria since the opposition gained control in 2012. In recent weeks, the government has unleashed a barrage of bombings that have killed hundreds, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Anti-Assad groups have also faced competition among themselves. The well-armed and funded ISIS, which originated as an Al-Qaeda affiliate out of Iraq, has gained considerable ground in recent months. ISIS has raised the ire of civilians and Syrian rebels for imposing a harsh form of Sharia Islamic law in areas under its control, including death by stoning for slight transgressions.
According to news reports, ISIS’ recent alleged killing of a senior commander of the large Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham, Hussein al-Suleiman (also called Abu Rayyan), in part ignited Friday’s anger. A graphic photo of Abu Rayyan’s disfigured and allegedly tortured body was shared widely on social media this week. Protestors named the Friday protests after Abu Rayyan.
Friday’s fighting in Atareb, Aleppo, involved a new anti-ISIS and anti-Assad rebel coalition called Jaish al-Mujahideen, formed Thursday night, according to activists. There were also reports of fighting between ISIS and other rebel groups, including localized Free Syrian Army (FSA) units and Liwa al-Tawhid, another rebel group associated with the FSA.
A civil war within the civil war is looming over northern #Syria. ISIS on one side, other revolutionary & Islamic battalions on the other.
Videos of FSA supporters protesting against ISIS and Assad were posted to social media sites.
A video appeared to show Syrian rebels detaining an ISIS fighter during fighting in Atareb.
ISIS forces reportedly opened fire on protestors at an anti-ISIS demonstration in Kafr Makharim, Idlib, according to the SOHR.
The Islamic Front (IF), the most powerful Syrian rebel organization, also released a statement demanding that ISIS withdraw from Al-Atareb, Aleppo.
Islamic Front releases statement on recent clashes involving ISIS & rebel groups in #Aleppo: https://t.co/eJFRleGWK5
Friday protests were an integral part of the Syrian uprising’s first few months. The ensuing government repression and the growth of rebel groups shifted the power away from nonviolent mobilization.
Haven't been this excited about a protest in ages:https://t.co/yQVN13vOkH. #Aleppo chants against ISIS & Assad.#Syria
By nightfall, there were reports of continued fighting in rebel-controlled areas around Aleppo and Idlib. There were also unverified reports that some ISIS forces had surrendered, and that ISIS and Jaish al-Mujahideen had reached a temporary ceasefire. From the day’s fighting, dozens were reported dead, including two Syrian freelance journalists, and hundreds injured, according to activists.
Iran........
Cantor Seeks New House Resolution to Kill Iran Talks
Insists Iran's 'Aggression' Must Be Stopped
by , January 03, 2014
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R – VA) expressed annoyance that his attempt at a resolution to derail Iran diplomacy failed last year, and announced today his intention to introduce a new resolution as soon as possible with roughly the same contents.
Unlike Senate bails aimed at derailing the talks by imposing new sanctions on Iran, Cantor’s previous bill aimedto dictate the terms of an “acceptable” pact, mirroring Israeli demands which would make such an agreement virtually impossible to negotiate.
The bill aimed primarily to demand Iran forever be barred from any civilian enrichment of uranium, something Iran has repeatedly ruled out, and if passed would insist President Obama not negotiate any deal that didn’t include this demand.
Cantor went on to declare Iran’s recent diplomatic efforts to amount to “aggression,” and insisted the House would move to stop them. Such a bill would almost certainly be vetoed by the Obama Administration, leaving open the question of whether he can amass enough votes to override it. With Israeli lobbies loudly endorsing anything that might kill the Iran talks, that number of votes may be possible.
Afghanistan.....
After concerns regarding the release of Bagram prisoners were voiced earlier this week, rumors circulated that the releases had been delayed. However, officials involved in the decision making process have said the release of 88 Bagram prisoners is in fact moving forward as planned.
Abdul Shukoor Dadras, a member of the Review Committee for Bagram Prisoner Cases, reported on Saturday that there had been no official decision to halt the release process, and assured that only those prisoners whose cases lacked sufficient evidence to prosecute would be freed.
"So far, we don't have any official letter from the President to delay, cancel, or postpone the release of Bagram prisoners or to delay the process itself," Dadras said.
This is after Dadras told BBC yesterday that the releases had been delayed by President Hamid Karzai.
"The President of Afghanistan has directed us to delay the release for a specific time, and evidence from any investigative organizations must be submitted to this committee," Dadras told BBC on Friday.
The announcement of the 88 prisoners being released was met with condemnation from both Afghan MPs and U.S. officials, who labeled the prisoners "dangerous" and said they would pose a threat to Afghanistan's security if freed.
Washington has expressed major concern with Karzai's recent push to release militant detainees in hopes of building goodwill with the Taliban ahead of potential peace talks. U.S. officials have explicitly said the release of the 88 prisoners expected this month could seriously damage relations between Washington and Kabul.
Since August, over 500 prisoners have been released from Bagram, with a total of 650 having been cleared by the Karzai appointed Review Committee for release already.
Whether or not the U.S. will intervene in the releases remains to be seen. The NATO combat mission is not set to end until December of this year.
"The U.S. has said it is concerned some of these prisoners are too dangerous for the government of Afghanistan to release, and it would take action against them," security analyst Rahmatullah Bezhanpoor told TOLOnews.
"This statement means that if prisons are still not completely handed over to the government of Afghanistan, they might open a prison somewhere else...America has the right to act against some of these individuals who are involved with terrorism and al-Qaeda."
U.S. politicians have argued that the release of the prisoners would be a violation of the terms of agreement set between Kabul and Washington regarding the transition of prisons like Bagram from coalition to Afghan management. Nevertheless, given Dadras comments, it would seem Kabul plans to go ahead with the releases.
"This statement means that if prisons are still not completely handed over to the government of Afghanistan, they might open a prison somewhere else...America has the right to act against some of these individuals who are involved with terrorism and al-Qaeda."
U.S. politicians have argued that the release of the prisoners would be a violation of the terms of agreement set between Kabul and Washington regarding the transition of prisons like Bagram from coalition to Afghan management. Nevertheless, given Dadras comments, it would seem Kabul plans to go ahead with the releases.
Afghan Panel Backs Down: Won’t Release 88 Detainees
Still Waiting for Actual Evidence Against Captives
by Jason Ditz, January 03, 2014
The Afghan Review Board has backed down in the face of US military condemnation, and has agreed to hold off on releasing 88 detainees they already cleared, pending further “review.”
The 88 in question were among 650 Bagram capitves that the board has already cleared for release, citing a complete lack of credible evidence against any of them.
The US Army has argued that they wouldn’t have been detaining them for years without charges if they weren’t “dangerous,” and has also insisted the Review Board was never meant to have the power to release anyone, but rather only could choose between prosecuting those for whom evidence exists, or lacking that to carry out “further investigations” to look for some evidence.
The board says it still doesn’t have any evidence on any of the 88 detainees, but has agreed to hold off on releasing them pending any evidence that might turn up at some point in the future.
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