Day: August 28, 2014

Egyptian Woman Protests ISIS

WARNING! POST COULD BE OFFENSIVE TO READERS!

A member of FEMEN a protest and activist group mostly made of women has made a video protesting ISIS and Sharia law.  FEMEN are noted for their shock value in their protests.

I have wrestling with myself and agonizing on whether to post this situation or not…..since the graphic nature of the protest I decided to post the link and let the reader decide whether to view it or not.

Keep in mind if you choose to view the link that, I reiterate,  FEMEN are noted for the shock value in protest and believe me this is quiet shocking!

 

I will leave viewing of this to the discretion my reader………Once again……….WARNING:   THIS POST IS GRAPHIC AND CAN BE SHOCKING TO MANY….OPEN LINK AT YOUR OWN DECISION….YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

 

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/reason/HitandRun/~3/42R01zNvq9A/powerful-egyptian-feminists-literally-sh | actu.

Why Israel’s bombardment of Gaza neighborhood left US officers ‘stunned’ | Al Jazeera America

Many people have questioned just why Israel continued to attack Gaza…the tunnel BS has been debunked……rockets are notoriously inaccurate and have killed less than 10 people…..then why?

My opinion is that it was to destroy as much of the infrastructure as possible before the ceasefire……would make a two state solution harder to enact….

Even the US is asking some of the same questions…….read it for yourself…..

 

Why Israel’s bombardment of Gaza neighborhood left US officers ‘stunned’ | Al Jazeera America.

Obama’s No-Win War on ISIS by Shamus Cooke — Antiwar.com

I have been watching and analyzing the Middle East for a long time……and there has never been a time, when we were involved in the region, that I could ever see a clear cut victory….sadly I am NOT seeing one with our newest enemy….ISIS…..

A well thought out article that my readers need to see and understand…..

 

Obama’s No-Win War on ISIS by Shamus Cooke — Antiwar.com.

The Little War That Could

Inkwell Institute

War/Conflict Desk

Since my stint in the army I have studied war and conflicts and their causes and effects…….there is one that I have been watching for many years and it is the one that could push the limits of acceptability…….

While we were watching the antics of the police in Ferguson and the world’s reaction and while we were mouthing our disgust at the actions of ISIS and the death of Foley….a small conflict that has been simmering for decades erupted into a minor skirmish that could turn ugly with a capital “U”………there is so much more to the world than in our little prism…

Let’s return to the year 1947………The partition of the Indian sub-continent along religious lines led to the formation of India and Pakistan. However, there remained the problem of over 650 states, run by princes, existing within the two newly independent countries.

Because of its location, Kashmir could choose to join either India or Pakistan. Maharaja Hari Singh, the ruler of Kashmir, was Hindu while most of his subjects were Muslim.  Unable to decide which nation Kashmir should join, Hari Singh chose to remain neutral.

Indian and Pakistani forces thus fought their first war over Kashmir in 1947-48. India referred the dispute to the United Nations on 1 January.   In a resolution dated August 13, 1948, the UN asked Pakistan to remove its troops, after which India was also to withdraw the bulk of its forces.

In all there have been 3 wars fought over Kashmir region….1947, 1965 and 1999……and during the lulls of actual war there have been many cross border skirmishes between the army of India and Pakistan.

The wars have been over territory but they are also as much about religion as the province of Kashmir……..you know me……there has got to be a reason that I bring up this conflict…a conflict that few seem to care about……

And you would be right in the assumption that there is something going on in the neighborhood of Kashmir…….on 24 August 2014 Reuters reported…….

– Indian and Pakistani troops intensified firing across the border over the weekend killing at least four, an Indian official said on Sunday, straining ties between the arch rivals who recently called off top-level diplomatic talks.

Last week India said its foreign secretary would not meet with her Pakistani counterpart as scheduled on Monday because of plans by Pakistan to consult separatists from the border state of Jammu and Kashmir ahead of the meeting.

 

According to India’s Defence Ministry, there have been 70 ceasefire violations by Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir since Modi took over.

 

“Pakistani troops violated ceasefire again today and restored to heavy firing targeting 22 Border Security Force (BSF) posts,” BSF Inspector General for Jammu frontier, Rakesh Sharma, told Reuters.

There we have a couple of odd army units firing across some line at each other….what could possibly make this so damn important?

These two countries have fought 3 wars over the region….if that is not bad enough both of these countries are nuclear capable states…….think about that for a couple of minutes.  This region could hold the key to the next ‘great war’.

 

Is A Ukraine War Beginning?

While everyone is focused like a laser beam on IS….the Russians and Ukrainians held a possible chance for a peace talks……all reports are that it was contentious but semi-productive.  Only days after the talks there is a report coming out of Ukraine

(Newser) – Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweeted a pair of hashtags last night—#UkraineUnderAttack and #RussiaInvadedUkraine—which appear to sum up the situation on the ground, the Washington Post reports. Pro-Russia separatists backed by Russian troops, artillery, and armored vehicles are now attacking on two fronts, authorities in Kiev say, with fierce fighting along a new southeastern front. The Russian tanks and armored personnel carriers seen in the area—which would give Russia a land bridge to Crimea—appear to have come straight over the border instead of from separatist-controlled areas in eastern Ukraine, the Los Angeles Times reports. President Petro Poroshenko canceled a trip to Turkey, citing sharp aggravation of the situation in Donetsk region, as Russian troops were actually brought into Ukraine,” according to a statement.

Russia has not acknowledged any troop movements. A rebel commander says there are around 4,000 Russians fighting with the separatists, but they are all volunteers. “Many former high-ranking military officers have volunteered to join us. They are fighting with us, considering that to be their duty,” he tells the BBC. “There are also many in the current Russian military that prefer to spend their leave among us.” The US has expressed its “deep concern” about Russian involvement in the rebel offensive. “Russia is clearly trying to put its finger on the scale to tip things back in favor of its proxies,” a senior American official tells the New York Times. “Artillery barrages and other Russian military actions have taken their toll on the Ukrainian military.” After days of fighting, the strategic southeastern town of Novoazovsk now appears to be under rebel control, the AP reports.

If true it sounds like a misdirection on the part of the Russians to have those “peace” talks.  Nothing is official but it would make perfect sense that this would be actually happening.

When Is A Terrorist Not A Terrorist?

There is a question of the day.  We know that the US does not negotiate with terrorists, right?  But is that true?  To be honest it is more a slogan than a reality.  Sounds good when being quoted in the press but it is not a reality behind the closed doors of DC…..yes it is BS…it is a tag line, a slogan and a talking point that has NO footing in reality……..

We hear daily of the terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah as well as Al-Qaeda….but what about the group known as PKK which at this time on the list of terror organizations?

 

(The map above details the areas that are considered Kurdish)

The terrorists I am thinking of at this time is the Kurdish Workers Party, the PKK, and its paramilitary wing the ….wait for it….Peshmerga.  Does that name sound familiar?

The Kurdish counteroffensive against extremist Sunni militants in northern Iraq is now gathering speed. Local troops from Iraqi Kurdistan, known as peshmerga, are back in control of large chunks of territory — including a string of towns and villages, and the strategically important Mosul Dam — lost to a shock offensive by insurgent group the Islamic State (formerly known as ISIS) earlier this month.

Semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan had another equally important ally, although it’s one that officials are not keen to talk about; a Kurdish guerrilla group that the US and the EU have branded a terrorist organization due to a history of killings and bombings on civilian and military targets during a 30-year fight for autonomy from the Turkish state.

Hundreds of fighters from the paramilitary wing of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) reinforced the peshmerga after the Islamic State advance, providing a much-needed boost in morale and fighting abilities. The new arrivals have made a decisive difference in a number of battles, often fighting under cover of US air support.

That’s right. Irene……the fighting force that is holding IS in tow is manned by a group of…..wait for it…..TERRORISTS!

So the US is in bed with terrorists.  The good news is that there is a move by special interests to have these fighters removed from the terror list.  You might want to ask Turkey what they think of that idea……….

See if you are terrorist and you do the bidding of the US you can be removed from the list……..you just thought you knew what the country was capable of….now didn’t you.

Something to think about……after this IS thing is dead and gone…….what will the Kurds be?  Will they get a country out of this deal?  Or will they go back to killing civilians in the name of freedom?

Unlike the US the Kurds will have their eye on the prize and will do what is necessary to achieve that prize.  The map shows how many countries will be effected by a resurgence of Kurdish nationalism….then when it returns…what will the US do?