A very large thank-you to Patrick Bhazad for the work he's put in on the report, which includes a map showing his best estimate about which factions control ground what in Syria at present. The kind of analysis he's doing is what Americans should be able to expect from the big news media organizations and aren't getting. Not just Americans, of course.
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2 comments:
What is R+6?
It's shorthand that SST contributors use for the totality of armed forces fighting in Syria against ISIS, AQ, and the other foreign-backed mercenary armies. Because these factions can't be considered a coalition, it's "plus plus." Sic Semper Tyrannis referred to these in earlier reports as R+5:
1. Russian forces
2. Syrian government forces
3. Hizbullah (fighting under Iranian military command)
4. Iraqi Shia militias (mostly or all under Iranian military command)
5. Syrian militias that work with the Syrian Army; e.g., the muti-sectarian Desert Hawks (Syrian Christians, Sunni, Shia, etc., who support a secular Syrian government and 'united' Syria; i.e., not balkanized into different sectarian regions)
Recently SST upped the number of forces to 6, which I assume refers to Syrian Kurdish forces that have a kind of truce with Assad and are fighting his same enemies (which includes Turkish-backed forces) or at least are opposed to his enemies.
I can't remember the name of this Kurdish faction but i'm pretty sure Gregory Copley mentioned them the other night to Batchelor's audience; see the podcast link I provided a few posts back, although I can't tell you offhand where that part of the conversation starts in the podcast.)
The 6th could also include Syrian rebel groups that aren't pro-Assad but have cast their lot with the Syrian Army to drive out the foreign fighters. Certain Kurdish groups would also fall in this category. See this Breitbart article from Oct. 23 for background on the highly fluid situation:
"Putin: Assad Ready to Work with Rebels, Especially Kurds, Against ISIS"
Your question inspired a post so I'll expand on the theme then.
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