Category Archives: Middle East

Link – Ramadi – The Way It Looks

19 Tuesday May 2015

Posted by in Conflict - Culture - Language - Psychology, Iran, Iraq, Islamic Small Wars, Middle East, Politics

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It’s obvious that the US did the bare minimum in the fight for Ramadi. The list of targets destroyed by American air strikes reads like satire or gallows humor.

“Near Ramadi, seven airstrikes struck one large and five small ISIL tactical units and an ISIL IED facility, destroying four ISIL resupply structures, three ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL buildings, two ISIL heavy machine guns, an ISIL VBIED and an ISIL motorcycle.”

No artillery positions were struck, even though they ringed the city. None of the ten trundling Islamic State armored bulldozers were struck. No waves of Islamic State assault infantry were struck. My guess is that President Obama wants to simply run out the clock and leave this mess to his successor. He’s pretending to help, but our contribution is often worthless.

Wictor, Thomas.  “Without Resolve, All is Lost”.  Thomas Wictor, May 18, 2015.

“Anybody who supported the government will probably be executed within the next 24 hours,” said Baer. “Their families will be driven out. It will be a bloodbath over the next couple of days. All the soldiers who were captured will be executed.”

A flood of residents has been pouring out of Ramadi toward safer parts of Anbar and Baghdad in recent days.

“We are witnessing a humanitarian crisis,” said Haimour, estimating that as many as 8,000 people had left the city Sunday.

Mullen, Jethro.  “ISIS seizes key Iraqi city of Ramadi: What happens next?”  CNN, May 18, 2015.

Related, same day: Hoft, Jim.  “ISIS Holds Massive Military Parade in West Anbar Celebrating Victory in Ramadi . . . (Where’s the Coalition?).  Gateway Pundit, May 18, 2015.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Monday he was “absolutely confident” that the situation could be reversed within days.

Merthi, Karim Abou.  “Iraq forces eye swift Ramadi fightback before IS digs in.”  Yahoo News, May 19, 2015.

The way it looks for Ramadi, Sunnis, and Shiites in Iraq is not good.

The additional forces summoned by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi: Hashed al-Shaabi, Shiite “popular mobilization” units with a reputation for deeply seated Sunni-directed animus.  Merthi’s piece in Yahoo goes on to note, “Abadi and Washington had hoped to rely on regular forces and locally recruited Sunni tribal fighters newly incorporated into the Hashed al-Shaabi to fight IS in Anbar.”

In light of de facto black-and-white divisions in perception — for some (to many) in some spaces, one is either a this or a that, choose a label, and not to be noted for the better qualities of one’s more essential humanity — political habits may pit “all against all” (and some simply spoil for the Great Shiite vs Sunni War) when and where “all for all” is essential to forestall the march of the tyrannical.

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Taiz, Yemen – Fighting, Pleading, Fighting

18 Monday May 2015

Posted by in Conflict - Culture - Language - Psychology, Islamic Small Wars, Middle East, Politics, Syndicate Red Brown Green, Yemen

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Meanwhile, the three-days of talks on Yemen’s future saw hundreds of politicians and tribal leaders gather in the Saudi capital. The meeting was boycotted by the rebels and their Iranian backers voiced objections to the venue of the talks.

Western countries accuse Shiite power Iran of backing the Houthi rebels, something the Islamic Republic and the rebels deny. The absence of the Houthis at the conference in Riyadh, which is to end Tuesday, means the dialogue is unlikely to end the violence.

AP.  “After truce, Saudi-led coalition resumes airstrikes in Yemen.”  Boston Herald.com, May 18, 2015.

Related:

Reuters. “At least 10 killed in overnight fighting in Yemen’s Taiz.”  May 17, 2015.

Posted to YouTube May 17, 2015.

Maria al-Masani: “I am a woman from Taiz, please save my family and loved ones, let the world know about the Houthi genocide of South and Middle Yemen and share this video.”

News24 – Posted to YouTube May 17, 2015.

Link rot inside of hours — the same footage may be seen by searching up “Taiz Battle: Heavy fighting erupts in Yemen streets”, and it should be found on RT’s YouTube channel.  Date of that posting: April 26, 2015.  😦

Update – 5/18/2015/1330 EDT

Al-Haj.  Ahmed.  “Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen resume after truce expires.”  Houston Chronicle, May 18, 2015.

As suggested by the now blank “News24” patch in this post, even “newsies” appear to lift material and label it new.  BackChannels avoids doing that but until “vetted trusted direct sources” feed up authentic reportage, the view from journalism’s “second row seat to history” may be skewed by what appears and can be accessed in open source online.

Update – 5/19/2015/1251 EDT

SANAA, Yemen — The Saudi-led coalition carried out the heaviest airstrikes near the Yemeni capital since the expiration of a five-day truce with Yemen’s Shiite rebels, hitting weapons depots in the mountains surrounding Sanaa and shaking several residential areas on Tuesday.

The bombardment began shortly after midnight Monday, with airstrikes targeting rebel-held military depots in the mountains of Fag Atan and Noqom, where missiles, tanks and artillery are kept, the residents said.

Al-Haj, Ahmed.  “Saudi-led coalition carries out some of the heaviest airstrikes on Yemeni capital after truce.”  Minneapolis Star Tribune, May 19, 2015.

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Link – Iran – Kurdish Revolt

17 Sunday May 2015

Posted by in Conflict - Culture - Language - Psychology, Iran, Middle East, Politics

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The Iranian regime is known for its intolerance of anti-regime sentiment of any kind, and its anti-riot tactics include shutting off the Internet, wireless services and other means of communication in addition to banning reporters from the area. This means the Iranian Kurdish “revolution” has not yet been televised, but much like the uprisings in Syria and Egypt, it is being broadcasted on social media.

Masi, Alessandria.  “The Iranian Kurdish ‘Revolution’ The World Doesn’t Know is Happening.”  International Business Times, May 15, 2015.

Wikipedia maintains listings for Kurdish revolts in Iran for years 1967, 1979, and 1983:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1967_Kurdish_revolt_in_Iran

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979_Kurdish_rebellion_in_Iran

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurdish_rebellion_of_1983 (integrated with the Iran-Iraq War of the period).

Related: http://www.merip.org/mer/mer141/major-kurdish-organizations-iran (n.d.)

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Link – Iranian Provocation – Persian Gulf

14 Thursday May 2015

Posted by in 21st Century Feudal, Conflict - Culture - Language - Psychology, Iran, Islamic Small Wars, Links, Middle East, Political Psychology, Politics, Syndicate Red Brown Green

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The incident began with the Iranians ordering the ship into Iranian waters. When the ships master refused, the Iranians began to fire in a way to try to disable the ship, not just as warning shots, the U.S. official said.

Several shots hit the cargo ship, but did not disable it. The ship went into UAE waters and the Iranians followed it into those territorial waters, continuing to fire, before breaking off.

Starr, Barbara.  “First on CNN: Five Iranian boats fire shots in the Persian Gulf.”  CNN Politics, May 14, 2015.

The Khamenei style makes for a bad movie, but, nonetheless, a movie in the making appears to be what the chest-thumper script follows.  Repeatedly.  Recall the 2007 header, “Iran seizes 15 British marines and sailors” (Aref Mohammed, Reuters, March 23); drift back to 2004 (thanks, Wikipedia): “2004 Iranian seizure of Royal Navy personnel”; and more recently in the news: Maersk Tigris, a cargo ship (the incident took place between April and May this year), Maersk Kensington (CNN URL dated April 29).

A senior Iranian military official warned that any effort to board a Yemen-bound ship – supposedly filled with aid supplies – would “spark a fire,” amid speculation that Tehran is using the shipment to try to provoke an incident.

One U.S. official told Fox News the Iranian ship has media aboard.

“Iran is begging for us to board the ship. This is all for show,” he said.

Fox News.  ‘All for show’? Iran warns against boarding Yemen-bound ship, US questions motives.”  May 13, 2015.

From the same piece: “”I bluntly declare that the self-restraint of Islamic Republic of Iran is not limitless,” Gen. Masoud Jazayeri, the deputy chief of staff, told Iran’s Arabic-language Al-Alam state TV late Tuesday.”

There should be no question about the defects in personality involved in Iranian belligerence and its version of military and political reality testing in service to extraordinary kleptocracy and political manipulation in turn associated with an equally ambitious and piratical expansionism.

Connect the dots:

The Ayatollah appears incapable of restraint except when confronted with the prospect of main force — and the smaller parts of “main force” — “diplomacy”, sanctions, excoriations — appear of little concern given the regime’s comfortability with its criminality, limitless ambitions, and largely unimpeded operating style.

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Links – Syrian Injured Treated in Israel – More Than 1,600

12 Tuesday May 2015

Posted by in Conflict - Culture - Language - Psychology, Islamic Small Wars, Israel, Middle East, Syria

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Post to YouTube May 10, 2015.

Related source: Liebermann, Oren.  “Injured Syrians find treatment in Israel.”  CNN, May 11, 2015.

Ben-Yishai reported that since the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) first arranged for the transfer of injured Syrians almost two years ago, some 1,600 Syrians have been treated in Israel. Now that UNDOF has fled its postings after frequent attacks, Israel relies on “trusted intermediaries.”

The Tower.  “Despite Risks to Personnel, Israel Has Treated 1,600 Syrians in Last Two Years.”  May 12, 2015.

Sideways Related Reference

AP.  “US Secretary of State Kerry meets Putin in Russia amid Ukraine, Syria tensions.” U.S. News & World Report, May 12, 2015.

BBC News.  “Syria conflict: Aleppo civilians suffer ‘unthinkable atrocities'”.  May 5, 2015.

BBC News.  “Syria conflict in number – in 60 seconds.”  November 12, 2014.

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On Arab Israelis and the Arab World – ” . . . forging bonds of cooperation”

06 Wednesday May 2015

Posted by in Conflict - Culture - Language - Psychology, Islamic Small Wars, Israel, Middle East, Politics

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Posted to YouTube 5/5/2015.

Featured: Arab-Israeli diplomat George Deek.
Event: First Annual Reception
Link: http://www.standwithus.com/news/article.asp?id=3930
Reference: Doherty, Rosa.  “Israel’s Arab diplomat tells StandWithUs guests why he backs the Jewish state.”  The Jewish Chronicle Online, May 1, 2015.

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Link – Obama and Detente with Iran

22 Wednesday Apr 2015

Posted by in 21st Century Feudal, Conflict - Culture - Language - Psychology, Iran, Islamic Small Wars, Middle East

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Thanks to retreats like this one, it is Khamenei’s red lines, not Obama’s, that have determined the shape of the emerging deal—a fact that prompts the president’s critics to accuse him of fecklessness and/or naïveté. But these descriptions miss the mark. The president is not wedded to any set of specific demands. For him, the specific terms of the nuclear agreement are far less important than its mere existence. One of Obama’s greatest diplomatic successes is to have persuaded much of the world, including many of his critics, that the primary goal of his Iran diplomacy is to negotiate a nuclear arms-control agreement. In fact, the primary goal is détente with Iran.

Doran, Michael.  “The Tectonic Shift in Obama’s Iran Policy: A nuclear deal is only the beginning. The president’s goal, at the expense of America’s allies, is full-fledged détente with Iran.”  Mosaic, April 22, 2015.

BackChannels comment: It makes complete sense, and I hope it’s completely wrong — but it’s a complete and lucid analysis of a foreign policy that has been wrested from the awareness and perception of most Americans and fellow travelers.

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Aden

13 Monday Apr 2015

Posted by in Conflict - Culture - Language - Psychology, Islamic Small Wars, Middle East, Politics, Yemen

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Reuters – April 13, 2015.

Iran’s war-by-proxy sneaked under cover of negotiations over its nuclear program has tragically turned Aden, Yemen into another battered middle east war zone in the fashion known to “Putin-Khamenei-Assad” — merciless, mindless, piratical, and ruthless.

The troika have been waging the medieval against the modern — the destructive and thieving potential of absolute power against the productive democratic distribution of power — for years, and visible so since the onset of Syria’s civil war.  With the distribution of military personnel into Crimea and Yemen, the dynamic Putin-Khamenei duo have brought payback in flooded oil markets and online opprobrium, although I don’t think either Putin or Khamenei bothered by criticism, at least not on the surface and outside of their bailiwicks.

Three sources in the southern port city’s anti-Houthi militias said the Iranians, identified as a colonel and a captain, were seized in two separate districts that have been rocked by heavy gun battles.

“The initial investigation revealed that they are from the Quds Force and are working as advisors to the Houthi militia,” one of the sources told Reuters.

Mukhashaf, Mohammed.  “Yemeni militiamen say captured two Iranian officers in Aden.”  Swissinfo.ch, April 11, 2015.

“How can Iran call for us to stop the fighting in Yemen?” asked the the top Saudi diplomat at a news conference alongside French counterpart Laurent Fabius. “We came to Yemen to help the legitimate authority, and Iran is not in charge of Yemen.”

Tharoor, Ishaan.  “Saudi and Iranian leaders wage war of words as Yemen burns.”  The Washington Post, April 13, 2015.

Justice, Adam.  “Yemen: Food shortages and ‘people have not water’ in Aden as fighting rages.”  April 13, 2015.

VICE – September 10, 2014.

Lonely bloggers cannot compete with funded international media in reporting the news, unless we have unusual friends on the ground.

However, as audience to mainstream media — and conflict adventure media — we may wrap events differently online, read about what we are seeing when we’re offline, and perhaps approach conflict and political analysis with something combining humanism, journalism, and scholarship.

As regards the above clip, this blogger may reflect on what a single lie can do in the way of evil.

At 2:31 in the video immediately above, Iman Dr. Taha says to his gathering, “I told him, “What are you doing?  Your country is getting destroyed.  This is all part of an action by American intelligence.  And today, a new order was given telling the world that 70% of foreigners are terrorists who want to rip our country apart.  They want to kill our people and our nation and destroy our unity.  The faith is Yemeni and the wisdom is Yemeni.  God is great.  Death to America.”

That audience: handled, misguided, maneuvered, used.

It appears they haven’t the means or temerity to question what they’re told (and independently discover for themselves who has been lying to them all along — and why).

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