Islamic State crisis: US-led Syria strikes 'kill dozens of civilians'
Source: BBC
Air strikes by the US-led coalition targeting Islamic State militants have killed more than 50 civilians in northern Syria, activists say.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based group, says Birmahle village was hit on Friday and that some people were still trapped in rubble.
...
Earlier this month, the Observatory said the US-led air campaign had killed more than 2,000 people in total, including at least 1,922 IS fighters.
"Air strikes by the coalition early on Friday on the village of Birmahle in Aleppo province killed 52 civilians," Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP news agency.
Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-32563662
Plucketeer
(12,882 posts)smart enough.
Comrade Grumpy
(13,184 posts)I am generally opposed to US wars in foreign countries, but goddamn, if anyone needs to be obliterated, it's ISIS.
What could be done instead of bombing them in Syria? And Iraq?
Here's some ideas:
1. End the Syrian civil war, beef up the government, and support it in retaking its national territory.
2. Put the heat on Turkey to help get rid of these guys, instead of effectively allying itself with them.
3. Put the heat on Qatar and Saudi Arabia to quit funding them.
4. Continue to support the Baghdad government in its push to retake its national territory.
jakeXT
(10,575 posts)A Solution: Follow ISIS money, and shut it down.
Where is ISIS getting its money? Up to 100,000 ISIS fighters are funded by Gulf State donors, identified in the past as being from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait. Fully equipping and providing for one modern combat-ready soldier can cost $850,000 to $1,000,000 a year. ISIS army could be gaining $85 billion to $100 billion a year from various sources. We can either commit the U.S. military to another war, and the U.S. to further risk of impending attacks through the genesis of a new crusade, or we can fight this threat with intelligent power and high technology.
The administration must identify the specific sources of ISIS money, the individuals, the nations and the means of transfer, and shut them all down. It must sanction countries and individuals, tie up their bank accounts and commercial activities, freeze their assets and cancel their credit cards. Send platoons of accountants from the Treasury Department and the IRS into the fray, not platoons of U.S. soldiers. The U.S. must track oil sales, sales of antiquities and other valuables. Anyone involved in any transactions of any kind with ISIS must be identified and sanctioned.
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/03/11/open-letter-to-members-congress-about-authorization-to-use-military-force/
peacebird
(14,195 posts)Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)No chance...Money is *really* easy to move around, and hide when needed...These folks have a bottomless pit of funding, and even if you shut down a few sources, there will be countless others...
Besides, even if there was a way to properly do this, the dudebros and born-again privacy advocates will be shitting themselves screaming about overreach...
Larry Engels
(387 posts)Guzzle, guzzle. Can't get enough. No matter how many times the US has gone around the world making things worse, you still want to do it again. It's absolutely pathetic.
oberliner
(58,724 posts)Meaning Assad?
christx30
(6,241 posts)Isis militants slaughter more than 300 Yazidi captives in northern Iraq
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3065517/Isis-militants-slaughter-300-Yazidi-captives-northern-Iraq-thousands-taken-captive-villages.html