The Syrian Crisis

[SajeevJino]

Series of blasts heard overnight near Assad arms depot in northern Syria ​

Residents of region report seeing fighter jets near time of blasts; several Assad troops killed in explosions, according to reports.

Several powerful blasts were heard at a weapons depot belonging to the Syrian military late on Thursday night, according to reports gradually streaming in from Syria. BBC Arabic radio reported overnight Thursday that the explosions took place near the port of Latakia in Syria's north.

Subsequent reports offered few new details and drew limited attention. Among them was a statement by the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which said that "huge explosions shook the area where a large Syrian army base and weapons depots are located."

According to the group, residents in the area where the blasts were heard say they were caused by missile fire of unknown origin. However, according to other reports that have reached the rights group, fighter jets were seen in the skies in the area of the city of Al-Haffah. It was further reported that several troops have been killed and wounded in the explosions. Fires broke out in the region.

A similar report carried by the Lebanese TV station Al-Manar said the blasts were caused by rocket or missile fire at a military base near a village some 20 kilometers from Latakia. Al-Manar cited a "military source" as saying that the fire came from the direction of a northern suburb of the city, where rebels and regime forces have been clashing for days.

The same source said that the base contains large stockpiles of weapons. The anonymous source denied the possibility that the explosions were caused by an air or sea strike targeting the Syrian regime's arms store. It remains unclear whether the source was Syrian.

Opposition websites said the weapons depot was attacked by the Free Syrian Army, and that, according to eye-witnesses, the blasts took place at around 2 A.M. Flames could be seen from afar. There were also reports of heavy exchanges of gunfire in the area after the explosions.

The reports cast blame for the blasts upon Syrian opposition groups. The source of the strike, however, remains unclear, as do the details about the damage that has been caused.


Report: Series of blasts heard overnight near Assad arms depot in northern Syria - Middle East - Israel News | Haaretz Daily Newspaper

 

[amoy]

Syrian opposition to hold runoff vote for new coalition leader - Alarabiya.net English | Front Page

Members of the Syrian National Coalition voted on Saturday to elect a new leader, but the top two candidates failed to gain a simple majority required to become the head of the coalition fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad.

A runoff ballot was scheduled for later on Saturday, according to Reuters.

Ahmad Jarba, a tribal figure linked with Saudi Arabia, and Mustafa al-Sabbagh, a businessman who is Qatar's point man, did not gain more than half of the votes in the 115 member SNC in an early morning ballot in Istanbul.

The coalition, which can be split to the Muslim Brotherhood, the Sabbagh faction and a Saudi-backed bloc that includes Jarba, held the vote after failing to agree on a compromise candidate.

The coalition's former leader had quit over disagreement over potential talks with Assad's government.

 

[W.G.Ewald]

"«Ø´Ø§Ù‡Ø¯ كيف نجى الثوار من صاروخ الشبيحة بمعجزة ما بين الحياة Ùˆ الموت لحظة 15 5 2013"¬"Ž - YouTube

Syrian Army tank with Hezbollah fighter as fire control? I don't know Arabic.

Tank-Infantry Teamwork: Combat Lessons, No.-9 (Lone Sentry)

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Post #2501

According to the group, residents in the area where the blasts were heard say they were caused by missile fire of unknown origin. However, according to other reports that have reached the rights group, fighter jets were seen in the skies in the area of the city of Al-Haffah.

If this was an air strike, could only be IAF, right?

 

[pmaitra]

No other news agency that I have seen seem to have reported this other than Haaretz.

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Syrians say they have given up on U.S. weapons promises | Reuters

Members of the Syrian opposition said on Tuesday that they had given up hope that the United States would deliver promised military aid to rebels as war planes and artillery smashed the central city of Homs.

U.S. congressional committees are holding up the plan to send weapons because of fears that such deliveries will not be decisive and that arms might end up in the hands of Islamist militants, U.S. national security sources said.

@The Messiah

 

[trackwhack]

The whole Syrian BS is only to weaken Syria enough to ensure that they are in no position to help Iran when war starts.

 

[nrupatunga]

@trackwhack In a direct warfare, syria could offer very less to iran. Actually iran which had accumalated billions of petrodollars for upcoming war with israel/US have been spending it on syria propping up assad. Actually west is ensuring both syria and iran collapse/drain financially. Since fighting an assymetric warfare is much cheaper than fighting an direct war.

 

[cobra commando]

Syria naval base blast points to Israeli raid



Syria naval base blast points to Israeli raid | Reuters

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Syria naval base blast points to Israeli raid



Syria naval base blast points to Israeli raid | Reuters

Asked about the Latakia blasts, Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon told reporters: "We have set red lines in regards to our own interests, and we keep them. There is an attack here, an explosion there, various versions - in any event, in the Middle East it is usually we who are blamed for most."

See what he did there?

 

[nrupatunga]

See what he did there?

But if am not wrong you dont want obama to send boots on ground in syria, right?? Or creating NFZ is fine??

 

[W.G.Ewald]

But if am not wrong you dont want obama to send boots on ground in syria, right?? Or creating NFZ is fine??

Obama undercut Mubarak and there was the outcome we see today, Arab Spring notwithstanding.

Obama "led from behind in Libya" and later our ambassador was murdered.

Obama can't even articulate a policy on Syria.

 

[SajeevJino]

UN calls on Hezbollah to withdraw from Syrian civil war​

The 15-member UN Security Council has called on militants affiliated with Lebanon's Hezbollah party to cease their involvement in neighboring Syria's civil war.


In a statement released Wednesday, the council did not specifically refer to Hezbollah by name after objections were voiced by Russia, but it was clear that its comments were aimed at the group, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian president Bashar Assad's forces against the country's rebels, in particular the al-Qaeda affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra. "The Security Council calls upon all Lebanese parties to recommit to Lebanon's policy of disassociation, to stand united behind President Michel Sleiman in this regard and to step back from any involvement in the Syrian crisis," the UN body said. Meanwhile, Lebanon's UN envoy pledged that his country would maintain an open border for the influx of Syrians fleeing the violence. Lebanon's UN ambassador, Nawaf Salam, has told reporters that the number of Syrian refugees in his country is now likely to be more than one million.


July 10, 2013 - RT News

 

[IBSA]

12 July 2013 Last updated at 12:35 GMT

Pakistan Taliban 'sets up a base in Syria'
By Ahmed Wali Mujeeb
BBC Urdu

The Pakistani Taliban sees itself as being ideologically opposed to President Assad's rule
Continue reading the main story

The Pakistani Taliban have visited Syria to set up a base and to assess "the needs of the jihad", a Taliban official has told the BBC.

He said that the base was set up with the assistance of ex-Afghan fighters of Middle Eastern origin who have moved to Syria in recent years.

At least 12 experts in warfare and information technology had gone to Syria in the last two months, he said.

Their presence in the country is likely to have a sectarian motive.

Taliban factions feel that Sunni Muslims, who constitute a majority in Syria, are being oppressed by Syria's predominantly Shia rulers.

Thousands of people have died in the year-long armed conflict in Syria between loyalists of the ruling Baath Party and those who want to overthrow it.

The Pakistani government has not commented on the allegations.

'Joint operations'

Mohammad Amin, a senior Taliban operative and "co-ordinator of the Syrian base", told the BBC that the cell to monitor "the jihad" in Syria was set up six months ago.

He said that the cell has the approval of militant factions both within and outside of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella organisation of militant groups fighting the Pakistani forces.

The cell sends "information and feedback" on the conflict in Syria back to Pakistan, he said,

"They were facilitated by our friends in Syria who have previously been fighting in Afghanistan," Mr Amin said.

Their job is to "assess the needs of the Jihad in Syria, and to work out joint operations with our Syrian friends".

"There are dozens of Pakistani hopefuls in line to join the fighting against the Syrian army, but the advice we are getting at the moment is that there's already enough manpower in Syria."

In the past, militant fighters from Pakistan have often gone to fight in Central Asia and the Balkans.

In the 1990s, militant group Harkatul Mujahideen, was known to have sent a large number of men to fight in the Bosnian civil war of 1992-95.

Many Afghan and Pakistani fighters also fought on the side of Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict of 1988-94.

A number of Taliban groups in Pakistan have sectarian leanings, and resent the rule of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - having a Shia background - over Sunni Muslims who constitute about three-quarters of the Syrian population.

Sources say that anti-Shia groups in Pakistan have access to considerable charity funds raised in some Middle Eastern sheikhdoms that see their domestic Shia populations as a problem.

 

[IBSA]

If pakistan aid fsa terrorists, India should engage itself more on Syria conflict like Russia and Iran in order to helps Assad to defeat the paki-allied fsa rats,

 

[SajeevJino]

Series of blasts heard overnight near Assad arms depot in northern Syria ​

Report: Series of blasts heard overnight near Assad arms depot in northern Syria - Middle East - Israel News | Haaretz Daily Newspaper

US officials: Israel is responsible for Syrian missile depot attack ​

Three anonymous US officials tell 'CNN' Israel was targeting Russian-made Yakhont anti-ship missiles; FSA spokesman says rebels not responsible for strike; Moshe Ya'alon insists Israel is "sticking to red lines."



Israel is responsible for a July 5 early morning airstrike in Syria, anonymous US officials told CNN on Friday.

The attack on Latakia, which originally had no claim of responsibility, is reportedly the work of the Israeli Air Force (IAF).

Three unnamed US officials told CNN that the IAF had been targeting Russian-made Yakhont anti-ship missiles that could pose a threat to the Israel.

In response to early rumors that the airstrike could have been carried out by the IDF, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon (Likud) said Tuesday Israel will continue to stand on the side lines of Syria's civil war.

In an apparent reference to the strike that killed between 10 and 20 Syrian soldiers at an arms depot in Latakia over the weekend, Ya'alon maintained: "For a long time we have continued to say that we are not involving ourselves in the bloody civil war in Syria. We have established our red lines and we are sticking to them."

US officials: Israel is responsible for Syrian missile depot attack | JPost | Israel News

 

[SajeevJino]

Experts In Spreading fake news ..!!!

Important update: After Syrian air defence shot down an attacking israeli F16, the israeli air force grounded all flights to look for a solution. After failing to convince Russia to request Syria's deactivation of air defence systems and automatic shoot-down orders, israel has resorted to threatening the nation with ballistic missiles possibly carrying nuclear warheads.

The israelis conducted an unscheduled test which they later claimed was scheduled. This comes on the same day that the July war in Lebanon had started, in a twin message to both Syria and Hezbollah.

The F 16 sufa crash incident

Israeli F-16 fighter jet crashes into Mediterranean Sea; pilots ejected and unharmed | Fox News

 

[The Messiah]

If pakistan aid fsa terrorists, India should engage itself more on Syria conflict like Russia and Iran in order to helps Assad to defeat the paki-allied fsa rats,

Agreed.

If anything India is expert in dealing with such situation. Our experiance could be valuable to syrian army. If anything we should send atleast few advisors to syria. What syria is facing now is what we have faced for decades in kashmir.

 

[nrupatunga]

@The Messiah Let the radicals fight it in syria. Syria is acting like a magnet to all jihadis, if anybody here as well wants to and wage jihad, they should be sent across. Lesser radicals, lesser problems here.

But should really take a such active role when even overtly nato is not willing to send people there (Thought there are reports of some western special op forces present). Should india not have much more proactive role in a country of much more interest to our security i.e. Afghanistan.

 

[cobra commando]

US Official: Israel Launched Airstrike in Syria Last Week



US Official: Israel Launched Airstrike in Syria Last Week - ABC News