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Russia, Iran Begin "Promised" Assault On Syria's Largest City In Final Bid To Restore Assad
Earlier this week, we noted that Iran had reportedly sent “thousands” of troops to Syria in preparation for an offensive aimed at retaking the city of Aleppo.
With a population of more than 2 million, Aleppo was Syria’s largest city prior to the war and it’s now run by a hodgepodge of rebels and militants including al-Qaeda, the Free Syrian Army, and ISIS.
To get an idea of the effect the war has had on the city, have a look at the following before and after nighttime light emissions images:
The battle is also notable for the scale of Iran’s involvement. Between Hezbollah and Iranian forces, the battle for Aleppo is shaping up to be the largest ground operation orchestrated by Tehran to date.
Here’s more, via Reuters:
Syrian troops backed by Hezbollah and Iranian fighters launched an offensive south of Aleppo on Friday, expanding their counter-attack against rebels across western Syria with support from Russian air strikes.
Aleppo, a commercial and industrial hub near the border with Turkey, was Syria's largest city before its four-year civil war, which grew out of protests against Assad's rule.
Control of the city, still home to two million people, is divided between the government and rebels.
"This is the promised battle," a senior government military source said of the offensive backed by hundreds of Hezbollah and Iranian forces which he said had made some gains on the ground.
It was the first time Iranian fighters had taken part on such a scale in the Syrian conflict, he said, although their numbers were modest compared to the army force. "The main core is the Syrian army," the source said.
Hezbollah, which has supported Assad in several battles during the civil war, said the army was carrying out a "broad military operation" with support from Russian and Syrian jets. It made no mention of Hezbollah fighters in its brief statement.
Two senior regional sources told Reuters this week that Iran has sent thousands of troops to Syria to bolster an offensive underway in Hama province and ahead of the Aleppo attack.
And a bit more from AFP:
Russian air cover is backing offensives by Syria's army and allied militias in the central provinces of Homs and Hama, as well as Aleppo in the north and Latakia along the coast.
On Friday, the Syrian army pushed south from the provincial capital Aleppo city, where control is divided between regime and rebels forces, as Russian air strikes pounded the villages of Al-Hader and Khan Tuman and nearby localities.
"The Syrian army started a new front on Friday and advanced to take control of the villages of Abteen and Kaddar" about 15 kilometres (12 miles) south of Aleppo city, said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.
He said "dozens" of Russian aerial attacks in the past 24 hours had struck the area, which is controlled by a patchwork of groups including rebels, Islamist fighters and Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate, Al-Nusra Front.
Note also that Aleppo is near the so-called "anti-ISIS" zone that the US and Turkey humorously proposed to create a few months back, which means that Iran, supported by Russian air power, is now conducting an all-out ground assault very near territory Turkey likes to think it effectively patrols (if not controls).
But the real key here, is this (again from Reuters): "The assault means the army is now pressing insurgents on several fronts near Syria's main cities in the west, control of which would secure President Bashar al-Assad's hold on power even if the east of the country is still held by Islamic State."
In other words, if Iran and Russia manage to retake Aleppo (and you know they will because remember, thanks to Hezbollah, this isn't a team that's going to be confused by the vagaries of urban warfare), Assad's rule is restored.
Just like that.
From there, the situation would morph and what you would have is a kind of Wild West scenario, only in Syria "West" would mean "East" and Assad, Russia, and Iran, having secured most of the critical cities and territory, would be free to simply mount up and push east on a kind of search and destroy mission.
So apparently, the US and its regional allies in Riyadh and Doha have a couple of weeks to figure out what to do here or else this is going to be over and suddenly, Washington will find itself in the awkward position of having to negotiate for a transition away from an Assad government that has been fully restored.
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Devastating "Boko Haram" bombing today. This is the US getting serious about China's influence in Africa.
Putin's real genius is in his timing. He waited until the military industrail complex exhausted the US combat troops, bankrupted the country and got tangled in a web of lies.
Now, all he has to do is tell the truth and everyone gives him a standing ovation!
This is the end result of WINNING at all costs, lead ,follow,or the get the hell out of the way.
More like having no clear objective - no idea what winning looks like.
Lots of joking and levity going on here. When this period in time is looked back upon in history, it may be labeled as the seed that sprouted into WW III. A global depression plus WWIII is something that I never expected would occur in my lifetime. We've really not learned anything. Monkeys with nuclear, financial and cyber weapons. If only man's intelligence (i.e., ability to solve problems in relation to survival) and sense of humanity had also evolved along with his technology. Scary.
The truth is that there is a brotherhood of man. Most all of us can accept and respect the differences that exist between us. Can cooperate with each other and aid each other's survival. It's that darn 20% of the population that cause all the trouble. And so many of these evil types reside in government, military, finance, and mental health (i.e., politicians, heads of state, religious "leaders", generals, economists, bankers, crony corporatists, psychiatrists, etc.). They all should be put into dumpsters and shot off into space.
Most all of us can accept and respect the differences that exist between us. Can cooperate with each other and aid each other's survival
Most in here seem to be of the individalistic persuasion, would rather mistrust an other etnicity than help or accept help.
Good luck to them in the brave new world they're gonna build.
Deleted, dup post
The Fucking cunt Western axis of Evil is going to gets its fucking cunt kicked in.
Game, set, match.
The die is cast. Europe is buying off Turkey to keep the refugees. The terrorists in Syria will soon have their supply lines cut, followed by those in Iraq. Game over. While the US and its allies should rejoice, they will not, because this is not only the end of American control in the Middle East but the end of Zionist dreams of greater Israel. It's the end of over one hundred years of control of the Middle East by Western corporate and national interests. It's over, except for watching the US and its allies move through the five stages of grief. They are still in denial and anger. They haven't even gotten to bargaining, much less depression or acceptance.
Who gives a rip what these three uncivilized countries do?
Apparently quite a few? Sour grapes?
This is your favorite war for oil?
Restore Assad? DIdn't realize he was overthrown....80%+ of Syrians still want him as leader....
What if IRAN doesn't want to give Syrian land back to Assad?
Never happen, what would be the point? Besides Iran has not had an expansionary war for 300 years.
so much for greater Israel
These current events are making the Israelis and the Saudis VERY nervous. Both those countries are run by sociopaths. There is a tenuous link between peace and war for the USA and its allies. Treaties and alliances are the historical common denominator that drag countries into expansive and protracted wars. GULP!
This is what happens when the US is all bluster and no brains...
Please be careful Russia...
Whiile the war theatre is entertaining..
Most of you fell for Ebola too.
False East/West Paradigm And The End Of Freedomhttp://www.alt-market.com/articles/2716-false-eastwest-paradigm-and-the-...
Seriously folks, think deeper and longer about the con that you can imagine.