Russia launches airstrikes in Syria after parliament approves intervention - live updates

[bananas]

Source: Telegraph

• Russian airstrikes 'hit Isil targets in Syria', says Moscow
• US officials say Russian jets hit non-Isil area near Homs
• Russia told US to 'leave now' one hour before strikes
• Russia parliament unanimously approved Syria intervention
• Kremlin insists role will be short-term, only air strikes: Putin
• Assad wrote letter to Putin requesting military aid

<snip>

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/11900853/Putin-request-for-use-of-Russian-troops-in-Syria-approved-live.html

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This article has live updates.

[bananas]

1. 13.59 The Pentagon's top official dealing with Russia has just resigned, according to Politico.

From the live updates:

13.59

The Pentagon's top official dealing with Russia has just resigned, according to Politico.

Evelyn Farkas, deputy assistant secretary of defence for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia, will leave at the end of October, a senior defence official told Politico.

Ms Farkas's responsibilities included dealing with Russia on Syria and Ukraine.

[leveymg]

4. Massive policy change in US-Russia and US-Saudi relations? Chinese may come in as well.

Looks like Saudi "allies" are now our frienemies. Expect a real split among the Saudi Royals next. Regime change may come to KSA, after all.

[bananas]

45. Maybe Japan and India, too. nt

[6chars]

77. Is she fired for missing this and screwing up?

Or did she disagree with this kind of stuff? or what?

[bananas]

2. 13.50 Russian air strikes do not appear to be targeting Isil-held areas of Syria, a US official ha

13.50

Russian air strikes do not appear to be targeting Isil-held areas of Syria, a US official has told Reuters.

There have been multiple reports throughout the day of Russian air strikes hitting moderate and other Islamist rebel groups.

In particular, they appear to have hit Jaysh al-Fatah, an Islamist alliance that has become an increasingly strong fighting force against the regime, and also "Tajamou' Al-Izza", a Free Syrian Army aligned rebel group in Hama.

<snip>

[Lychee2]

10. This is total sour-grapes bullshit.

Of course they are targeting ISIS areas. They probably miss a lot, too, just like the US. But maybe the Russians will do what the US was never able to do: defeat ISIS in Syria.

[uhnope]

21. "of course." because Mother Russia wants for Peace and Doves to Fly

right?

[Lychee2]

23. Did I say that, Lech?

I don't think so.

[harun]

49. Real Politik Bro

Russia is there for Russia, the U.S.A. for U.S.A. and Israel. Nothing more nothing less.

[NuclearDem]

27. Because if there's one thing Russia's been capable of

it's defeating fundamentalist Muslims in countries that aren't its own.

Just ask the People's Republic of Afghanistan!

[Lychee2]

28. I'll be sure to quote you if they succeed.

At least they are backing the right horse.

[NuclearDem]

31. Oh this is hilarious.

We haven't had one of you guys around for some time!

[Lychee2]

34. I'm glad I brightened your day.

But your replies are a bit less than incisive.

[Jesus Malverde]

56. They learned from that

Just ask the Saudi backed Chechen jihadists.

[NuclearDem]

58. Yes, by butchering the entire city and turning it into

"the most destroyed city on Earth."

But I guess if Putin doesn't have any qualms about butchering thousands of his own countrymen, he won't have any trouble sleeping over Syrian civilian casualties.

[Jesus Malverde]

60. As I said they learned from their mistakes.

counter insurgency is an ugly business ask Col. Steele the hero from the Iraqi surge who ran the death squads.

[NuclearDem]

71. Your message is getting a little mixed here!

Or is indiscriminate brutality in the name of counterinsurgency only acceptable when the Russians do it?

[Jesus Malverde]

72. whoosh.....

[LanternWaste]

39. A most creative, if yet wholly unsupported allegation.

A most creative, if yet wholly unsupported allegation.

[Lychee2]

48. Ah, but you repeat yourself.

Ah, but you repeat yourself.

[ReactFlux]

65. only take the word of our imperial masters

any other version of the truth is to be bombed or ignored.

[Puzzledtraveller]

78. Exactly

They want us to believe that Russia does not also want Isis defeated. Laughable, perhaps the motives are not the same but at this point who cares. We created a fucking monster there and should be grateful for any help.

[840high]

79. That's the truth. Amen.

[Renew Deal]

14. Of course

They're playing games just like the Turks. Russia attacks Assad's enemies. Turkey attacks the Kurds. Everyone is in for themselves.

[Lychee2]

29. Well, what do you expect?

Eleemosynary acts?

[Jesus Malverde]

55. Bummer

They are going after all the terrorists. To hear anyone from the US complaining about jihadists being attacked is baffling.

[ReactFlux]

64. he said, she said, time

I expect that our Masters of the Universe will not be willing to tolerate others trying to big-foot our world order.

[femmocrat]

3. K & R

Very good article.

Their possible targeting of non-ISIL targets is concerning, however. Could be that their real intent is to hit the rebels.

[jamzrockz]

9. non-ISIL target

May just mean the A Qaeda rebels, rebels lobbing mortars into Alawaite areas. But I am good just as long as they are attacking anyone attacking government forces and not fighting ISIS. These little foreign merc groups just make it that much harder for the legitimate govt to defeat ISIS.

So bomb away Russia and please make sure those foolish men regret the day they left their country to fight Jihad in another man's land.

[Lychee2]

11. +1.

Also I think they miss a lot, just like the US.

[thereismore]

26. second that

ISIL needs to go.

[AngryAmish]

43. N9, targeted FSA, the "moderate" rebels we were supporting

They are more dangerous to Assad than IS.

In case no one can figure this out, this is a gigantic FU to the US. We welcome their help , they kill our guys.

Complete fuck up, like everything the US does in the region.

Never become a US ally. You will die.

[Jesus Malverde]

57. Couldn't be said better [phone]

Neocon have a sadz.

[Yupster]

16. Their real intent is completely transparent

They intend to keep Assad in power and extend his rule throughout the whole country.

They aim to end the Civil War by supporting the existing government.

That means they will attack any group fighting against the Syrian government. Best to leave ISIS for last so the endgame will not be confusing. Do you want Assad or ISIS. Those will be the two choices.

Unless our army of five guys makes a surprising comeback.

[Lychee2]

30. Assad. I would choose Assad over ISIS.

I prefer an ophthalmologist to a bunch of religious fanatics.

[LanternWaste]

41. Is indiscriminate torture part and parcel of an ophthalmologist's business model?

Is indiscriminate torture part and parcel of an ophthalmologist's business model? Or (and I find this a wee bit more likely) is your dramatic lack of that relevant part of his CV purposeful?

[leveymg]

46. Torture was previously very discriminating in Syria. So much so that the CIA used Syrian expertise

before we set up our own torture shops.

So, they torture and so do we, when it suits our purposes. Does that give the Norwegians the right to regime change us?

[Jesus Malverde]

59. Torturing jihadist

Like we did. Your moral high ground is based on fantasy.

Famously we kidnapped a Canadian at JFK and gave him to Assads forces to interrogate. Google it, before you make more uninformed comments.

[7962]

38. The Russians have a better shot than us because they dont care about "collateral damage"

They wont spend one minute checking on whether or not civilians are in an area that has ISIS.
While the Russian military is a fairly hollow force, they make up for it in brutality.

[bananas]

5. 12.04 Roland Oliphant explains the high domestic significance of this morning's Russian vote appro

12.04

Roland Oliphant explains the high domestic significance of this morning's Russian vote approving military intervention in Syria:

Today’s Federation Council vote marks a dramatic departure from previous Kremlin policy.

For years, Russia has condemned Western military interventions for in places like Kosovo, Iraq, and Libya as illegal, shortsighted, and counter productive.

Now Russia seems to be doing exactly the same kind of thing. And that could be tricky to sell at home.

A recent opinion poll by the Levada Centre, an independent pollster, found that 69 percent of Russians were opposed to giving “direct military support” to Assad by deploying troops to Syria.

<snip>

[Lychee2]

32. That's not the significance.

The significance is that Russia is moving in to the US oil-valhalla. What's Obama going to do to protect US interests (i.e., big oil)?

[bananas]

6. 10.18 Russia is not the only country opening an air strike campaign in Syria: France struck Sunday

10.18

Russia is not the only country opening an air strike campaign in Syria.

The first airstrikes by French warplanes in Syria earlier this week killed 30 militants at an Isil training camp, a Syrian activist group has said.

President Francois Hollande said six French jet fighters on Sunday destroyed the camp in a five-hour operation - the first action by France since it expanded its mission against Isil. Until recently, France was only part of the airstrikes on Isil targets in Iraq.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has a network of activists on the ground, said on Wednesday that 12 teenage fighters and several militants from various Arab countries were among those killed near the eastern town of Jalaa.

The youths trained by IS are known as "Cubs of the Caliphate." The Observatory says at least 20 IS members were wounded.

[bemildred]

7. Gives new meaning to the word clusterfuck. nt

[PersonNumber503602]

50. The entire region is a giant clusterfuck right now.

I was explaining the situation to best of my knowledge and understanding to someone the other day, and it really became clear how screwed up things are in that part of the world.

[bemildred]

51. They are all at war, with somebody, except Oman, and it's spreading, it is not getting smaller.

And now all these idiot outsiders are bombing away at different parties to the dispute, working against each other, thus ensuring that growth will continue.

[Lychee2]

33. France has significant historic oil interests in Syria.

CFP (Compagnie Française des Pétroles) was nationalized by the Baathist regime. So they have a dog in this fight.

[Comrade Grumpy]

61. Oh, the poor ex-colonial power. Is Syria guilty of lese-majeste?

[ReactFlux]

66. Not to mention Israle

so much for PNAC, looks like history isn't over, yet.

[puzzledeagle]

8. There's already videos of their "intervention" from the civilians on the ground

Injured child victim WARNING - graphic

[Lychee2]

12. Of course this kind of thing NEVER HAPPENS when the US bombs Syria.

[aceofblades]

13. More whataboutisms?

One fear is that these newly added strikes make a bad problem(collateral damage) even worse. While the ultimate effectiveness (versus that cost) is yet to be determined, I empathize with those whom have had concerns in the past (with US actions) and have additional concerns now (with Russia jumping in as well). We'll see.

[Lychee2]

15. Stop saying "whom." You don't know how to use it.

Just say "who" all the time. It's acceptable now even as an object pronoun. But you don't have to understand that. Just never say "whom." That's better than using it incorrectly.

[bemildred]

17. +1. nt

[uhnope]

19. lol. best example of grammar police instead of argument ever

[Lychee2]

20. I'm glad you liked it.

But try using capital letters when you start a sentence.

[uhnope]

24. very funny, you. The Anglo-amerikanskaya Shkolkas are really putting out aces these day

watch that overuse of sentences starting in "but."

[Lychee2]

37. I'm happy to give you a smile.

But your grammatical comments are worthless. As are your insinuations about Russian ancestry.

[aceofblades]

70. I will accept no demands from you

I would also not trade my apparent grammatical mistakes for your abject logical fallacies if given the choice.

[LanternWaste]

42. Who alleged that specious bit of irrelevancy?

Who alleged that specious bit of irrelevancy?

Not too clever how you attempt to minimize the guilt of one by pronouncing the guilt of another.

[Lychee2]

47. Are you defending the US bombing of thousands of civilians in Syria?

Then you need to revise your moral attitudes.

[PersonNumber503602]

52. Are you defending the US bombings of civilians in Syria?

Correct me if I am wrong, but it sounds like you're saying you support the bombing of civilians by the US, Russia, Assad and everyone else. Is that correct, or are you intending to say you do not support the bombing of civilians by the US, Russia, Assad, and everyone else?

*By "support bombing", I don't mean the intentional bombing of civilians, but rather that you accept collateral damage as being the price of conflict.

[Jesus Malverde]

62. Lol

Now some are posting jihadist video s to DU. you do know that's a jihadist YouTube channel.

Right?

Echoes of sand_wind

[ReactFlux]

67. please provide GRAPHIC warning in title

if these were pictures of our collateral damage, it would be censored.

FYI

[Blue_Tires]

18. So...First sorties and there are already reports of 30 casualties...

Last edited Wed Sep 30, 2015, 12:24 PM - Edit history (1)

And there won't be nary a peep of outrage from fucking Scahill, Greenwald, any of the Putin fan club idiots here on DU, or our resident anti-drone crowd...

EDIT: One of them is actually talking to me -- But no sound is coming out, though...

[Lychee2]

22. So now you are all worried about casualties?

[ReactFlux]

68. yeah, our smart bombs, didn't really mean it...

but "theirs" :faint:

[uhnope]

25. ISIS just got a new recruiting tool. But Assad is still the best one

[jamzrockz]

35. Dont you find it a little weird that

It is Russia helping the Syrians that is the biggest recruiting tool for ISIS. I mean, you already have France, US, Britain, Australia bombing Syria and it didn't do it for them. You also have Israel lobbing bombs into Syrian territory every so often and all that is not as bad as Russia coming in to defend the country from western aggressors who have destroyed 3+ Arab countries now.

Makes one wonder who these people are really working for.

[uhnope]

40. so who do you think they are really working for?

[fadedrose]

36. crazier things have happened

especially where Obama is involved. He always lands on his feet, no matter how hopeless it looks.

I think the Ruskis are bombing Assad himself and they want to put in another president, and have an election. ISIS is next on the list.

Reason is that even the Russian people are fed up with seeing the thousands of refugees going to every country or any country that will let them in. Putin may be an ass, but Russians are not evil people driven by religion. They've been thru enough war to know how terrible these refugees have it....Putin would be a hero in his own country as well if he took care of his buddy Assad himself...

That's my wish and any other outcome I don't want to hear about.

[Sunlei]

44. Doctors without Borders also reported civies living in those areas are prevented from bringing in an

any food or medical supplies. Doctors without borders can't even go in they help online 'medics' on the ground. with no medical supplies what so ever.

this horror uploaded less than an hour ago

This uploaded today

[happyslug]

53. That looks like the SU-24s a precision bomber.

These do NOT appear to be SU-25s, which are tactic bombers but much more advance SU-24s. THe SU-25s are the equivalent of the US A-10 attack planes. The SU-24s are more like the F-111 of the post Vietnam Era, a high end precision bomber. sent in to hit a high value target as opposed to an target of opportunity (Which is what the SU-25 is capable of).

Now, the American F-111 was replaced by attack planes versions of the F-15 in the form of the F-15E:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_Douglas_F-15E_Strike_Eagle

What were the Russians after? That is the real question, this is NOT a Strike by SU-25s, which being conventional attack planes tend to hit any target of opportunity revealed to them by troops on the ground and where precision is NOT needed, but an attack on something within a built up urban area where the Russians only wanted that building destroyed. This was a quick hit and it appears the Russians hits what they wanted to hit.

[Sunlei]

54. looks to me like the same 2 planes. The videos were uploaded at slightly different times by diffe

by different users near each other on the ground.

I can understand why millions of people fled the area and are now refugees.

Most of the homes and buildings are in ruins. Those remaining people are living in bombed out ruins with nothing.

[happyslug]

63. It looks like the same two planes, SU-24s with their wings unswepted

It may be my screen, my eyes or the film itself, but I did see the wings that look to be straight, thus ruling out the Fighter the Russians sent in. That leaves the SU-25 and SU-24. The SU-24 is a variable wing jet, i.e. its wings can be straight or swept, The SU-25 has only a straight wing. Thus I do NOT see these as the fighters sent by Russia, but could be the SU-25, but it looked to me more like the SU-24 with unswept wings.

Remember the Russians only sent in TWO SU-24s, thus we may be seeing these jets in action.

[ReactFlux]

69. Objective Observers, and the young take note...

the tone of the coverage against our competitor's WOT (war on terror) vs our benevolent SMART bombs.

unmistakable.

[Jesus Malverde]

73. All the snak-bars from the videos

Tells me they are right on target.

Jihadists beware!

[jamzrockz]

75. Yup

When you hear "snak- bar" and "take beer", you know you've hit the sweet spot. The only thing I would change is coming back 1 hr after the first bombing round and drop another bomb on the site.

[Jesus Malverde]

76. Take beer is a new one for me.

Classic!



For those who don't know

The Takbīr (تَكْبِير ), also written Tekbir or Takbeer, is the term for the Arabic phrase Allāhu Akbar (الله أكبر ), usually translated as "Allah is great", "Allah is [the] greatest", "God is great" or "God is [the] greatest".

Allahu Akbar (Arabic: الله أكبر ) is an Islamic phrase, called Takbir in Arabic, meaning "God is greater" or "God is [the] greatest".

These phrases are yelled by the Jihadists when they carry out their murderous attacks or need the magic of Allah to protect them. Its a good way to identify a sunni militant. I assume the Assad forces love it, cause they constantly give away their positions shouting that.

Jihadist usage
The phrase is well known in the west for its common use as a battle cry in Islamist protests, Islamic extremism, and Islamic terrorism.

After 9/11, the FBI released a letter reportedly handwritten by the hijackers and found in three separate locations on September 11, 2001—at Dulles International Airport, at the Pennsylvania crash site, and in hijacker Mohamed Atta's suitcase. It included a checklist of final reminders for the 9/11 hijackers. An excerpt reads: "When the confrontation begins, strike like champions who do not want to go back to this world. Shout, 'Allahu Akbar,' because this strikes fear in the hearts of the non-believers." Also, in the cockpit voice recorders found at the crash site of Flight 93, the hijackers are heard reciting the Takbīr repeatedly as the plane plummets toward the ground and the passengers attempt to retake control of the plane.

When in March 2002 Maryam Mohammad Yousif Farhat of Hamas, popularized as "Umm Nidal" (and subsequently elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council), learned that her 17-year-old son had died during a suicide attack in which he killed five teenagers, she celebrated by proclaiming "Allahu Akbar!" and giving out boxes of halva and chocolates. Imam Samudra, who was sentenced to death for his role in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people, chanted the phrase upon hearing his sentence.

In the video of Nick Berg being beheaded in Iraq in 2004, the perpetrators can be heard shouting "Allahu Akbar!". And in the 2007 Fort Dix attack plot, a group of radical Islamists who were convicted of plotting an attack on the Fort Dix military base in New Jersey had videotaped themselves shooting weapons and shouting Allahu Akbar. In 2008, Aafia Siddiqui is alleged to have fired at U.S. interrogators while yelling "Allah Akbar".

During the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, witnesses reported that gunman Nidal Malik Hasan shouted "Allahu Akbar" before opening fire, killing 13 people and wounding 30 others. And Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad smiled and said "Allahu Akbar" after receiving a life sentence in 2010 for his attempted bombing.

During the incident aboard American Airlines Flight 1561 in 2011, the person attempting to bash his way into the cockpit was heard shouting "Allahu Akbar". Mohammed Merah recorded himself shouting Allahu Akbar as he killed three French paratroopers in the 2012 Midi-Pyrénées shootings. In the 2014 Jerusalem synagogue attack witnesses reported that the perpetrators screamed "Allahu Akbar" as they axed and shot at the worshippers. The killers in the January 2015 Charlie Hebdo shooting in Paris shouted Allahu Akbar during their attack.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takbir

[Puzzledtraveller]

74. Good, let them clean the place up.

We need to pull everything out of there, yesterday.

[pampango]

80. "Russia parliament unanimously approved Syria intervention". What Vlad wants Vlad gets -

unanimously.

The Afghan war, which lasted more than nine years, saw around 15,000 Soviet troops die, and prompted the rise of virulent and violent Islamist extremism in the region.

Russian officials of all stripes were adamant Wednesday that the country's military actions in Syria would be limited to air strikes and that no Russian soldiers would be deployed to fight alongside Assad's army against the Islamic State or Western-backed opposition forces. ... However, there is already some indication that Russian forces are on the ground fighting for Assad's survival. Videos appeared online earlier this month reporting to show Russian equipment operated by Russian soldiers engaging in combat in Syria.

However, Yuval Weber, an assistant professor of international relations at Moscow's Higher School of Economics told The Moscow Times on Wednesday that by declaring limited involvement in Assad's war, Russia was repeating U.S. mistakes early in the Vietnam war.

"By committing to an ally facing a determined and indigenous foe, President Putin is putting himself in a similar position to President Johnson regarding South Vietnam in late 1964, early 1965," Weber said. Weber said that when nations commit limited military force, and stake their prestige on the outcome of the conflict, the incentive becomes to increase their military commitment to protect their reputation.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/russia-begins-air-strikes-in-syria/536327.html