"Over 100 Terrorists Killed in Syrian-Russian Airstrikes in Idlib, Hama"

Associated Press, please take note of this report! And for crying out loud, start reading FARS; if they're good enough for Reuters, and U.S. News & World Report, and Jerusalem Post, and Pundita, they should be good enough for you. However, my worry is that the FARS editors will start getting a big head with all this recent attention from the international press.  (I, however, have been a loyal FARS reader since the Russians entered the fray in Syria.) 

Where was I? Oh yes -- and notice they quote Sputnik Arabic as one of the sources for the report. Note, too, mention of a contingent of Chechen fighters. I think foreign fighters are still a big presence in Syria; if so, the situation won't change until the governments still trying to overthrow Assad call off their dogs.    

FARS
July 13, 2019 - 1:47

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Syrian and Russian air forces conducted several joint military operations against the terrorists’ military positions and command centers in Northern Hama and Southern Idlib, inflicting heavy losses on the militants.

The Arabic-language website of Russian Sputnik news agency quoted a military source as saying that the Russian and Syrian fighter jets attacked the military positions of Tarir al-Sham al-Hay’at (the Levant Liberation Board or the Al-Nusra Front) and Islamic Turkistani Party terrorist groups several times in Khan Sheikhoun, Ariha, Ma’aret al-Numan and Jisr al-Shoghour in Western Idlib and their centers inside the city of Idlib.

The source reiterated that several command centers of Tahrir al-Sham and Turkistani Party terrorists were destroyed during the attack and over 100 foreign terrorists were killed and tens more were wounded.

He also noted that the joint airstrikes on the military positions of Tahrir al-Sham and Jeish al-Izzaeh in Kafar Zita and al-Latamineh in Northern Hama left several command centers, operation room, gatherings and military operations destroyed.

Meantime, the Arabic-language al-Morasseloun News Website quoted battlefield sources as saying that at least 71 terrorists were killed in a recent foiled attack on al-Hamamiat town in Northern Hama and over 115 of them were also wounded.

In a relevant development on Friday, the Syrian Army backed by the country’s and Russian air forces thwarted a heavy attack by elite militants of Tahrir al-Sham al-Hay’at terrorists aimed at regaining the strategic al-Hamamiat region in Northern Hama, killing at least 40 of them.

The Arabic-language website of the Russian Sputnik news agency quoted a military source as saying that over 1,000 of elite Tahrir al-Sham terrorists also known as Asaeb al-Hamra, most of them from Chechnya, together with hundreds of Turkistani Party terrorists as well as several suicide bombers have attacked the Syrian Army’s military positions in the town of al-Hamamiat in Northern Hama.

The source pointed to the tactical withdrawal of the Syrian Army troops to their military positions in al-Hamamiat region, and said that the Syrian Army fully cleansed al-Hamamiat town and its outskirts after dispatching troops and massive military equipment to the region and starting a heavy attack on the terrorists which left over 40 militants dead and at least 13 vehicles destroyed.

Meantime, the Russian and Syrian fighter jets and the Syrian Army’s artillery units pounded the military positions and movements of the terrorists in the towns of al-Latamineh, Kafar Zita, al-Zuka, al-Arbaeen and Khan Sheikhoun in Northern Hama and Southern Idlib, he added.

The source noted that the terrorist groups intend to cut Mahradeh-Saqilbieh Road by taking full control over al-Hamamiat strategic town.

Meantime, after sustaining heavy defeats in al-Hamamiat, the terrorists launched rocket attacks on residential areas in the town of Karnaz, Sheikh Hadid and Mahradeh in Northern Hama which resulted in the injury of a number of civilians.

The Syrian Army’s air defense systems also repelled two consecutive waves of drone attacks by terrorists on their military positions, and destroyed all the militants’ drones before they could hit their targets.

[END REPORT]

********

The latest in U.S. attempts to put Damascus under full siege

Heaven forbid, we're not trying to starve the Syrians into overthrowing Assad. No no we're doing this for humanitarian reasons. All right, Pundita, calm down. I won't let you return to the Syrian War if you get hysterical every time you read FARS.  Breathe into a paper bag.

And no, this following FARS report isn't Iranian or Lebanese propaganda; the situation has been reported on by various press outlets ever since the Nassib Crossing was first reopened. It's just that the sources FARS quotes now report that it's escalating. 

There were some technical aspects to be worked out between Jordan and Syria about the reopening of Nassib Crossing and this might have also been the case for Lebanon and Syria; I can't recall for certain. But at least between Jordan and Syria, the difficulties have been worked out so now everyone is raring to go with the cross-border trade.  

Yet from everything I've seen over the months, it looks to me as if Jordan could be the primary target in this latest escalation. The Saudis and maybe some other Gulf Arab governments under Saudi prodding want Jordan to remain an economic basket case because that's how they maintain control over the country. That's been the problem for Jordan with the lengthy closure of the crossing; it's hurt them very badly financially. I think it's the same to a lesser degree with Lebanon, which will also profit from a full restoration of the cross-border trade. 

In any case, the country hurting the most from the U.S. attempts to box in Damascus is Syria.    
   
US Pressuring Jordan to Block Vital Border Crossing with Syria
July 13, 2019 - 1:47
FARS

TEHRAN (FNA)- A leading Lebanese newspaper reported that the US has increased pressures on Jordan to close the key border crossing of al-Nassib with Syria in line with Washington's attempts to put Damascus under full siege.

The Arabic-language al-Akhbar newspaper wrote that Washington seeks to reduce trade exchanges between Syria and Jordan at al-Nassib passageway in Southern Syria which is one of the two crossings for export of Syrian products to the Persian Gulf littoral states.

It also revealed the US attempts to close all important economic lifelines to Syria, adding that Washington has also sanctioned all countries and companies which sent oil to Banias refinery in Syria and is attempting to pave the ground for the US-backed Kurds to take control of Eastern Euphrates, which is rich in oil and gas resources.

Meantime, the US forces which have occupied al-Tanf border crossing which links Jordan to Iraq are attempting to gain control of Albu Kamal-al-Qaem border passageway too.

Also, al-Akhbar reported that reopening of al-Nassib passageway and trade exchanges and ties between the Syrian and Jordanian nations has displeased the West and certain Arab states, adding that many believe that the US intensified economic sanctions against Syria after al-Nassib passageway reopened.

Official reports said that nearly 800 trucks crossed al-Nassib on a daily basis before the crisis in Syria, but the number decreased to 47 trucks in the first 5 months of the current year after the US pressures to prevent trade through the passageway.

Al-Nassib border-crossing in Southern Syria, connecting Dara'a province to Jordan, was reopened officially last October after three years of closure due to the terrorists' presence in the region.

Differences between Damascus and Amman were reported [months ago] over reopening of the border-crossing. After a new agreement between Damascus and Amman, the Nassib border-crossing has now kicked off operation. Several vehicles crossed the border and have entered Syria from Jordan via the Nassib passageway.
[END REPORT]
********

Turkey responds to Saudi Arabia's actions in E. Syria. Here we go.

Here's the latest on the twists and turns. The second part of in the following report repeats various passages from the earlier report today at FARS (Paper: Riyadh, Abu Dhabi on Threshold of Confrontation with Turkey in Syria). 

Ankara Sends Heavy Military Equipment, Tanks to Borders with Aleppo to Respond to Riyadh’s Movements in Eastern Syria
July 13, 2019 - 3:10
FARS



TEHRAN (FNA)- The Turkish Army has dispatched heavy military equipment to the borders with Syria in response to the recent movements made by Saudi Arabia and the US in support of the Kurdish forces in Eastern Syria, media reports said Saturday.

The Arabic-language al-Quds al-Arabi reported that the Turkish Army has sent massive military equipment comprising hundreds of tanks and military vehicles to the border with Syria.

The daily said that dispatch of this volume of Turkish military equipment to the borders with Syria is unprecedented ever since Ankara threatened to launch a military operation in Eastern Euphrates.

Al-Quds al-Arabi wrote that most of the military equipment have been sent to regions bordering Kurdish forces in Syria, including Ain al-Arab in Aleppo province and Tal Abyaz in Raqqa.

The newspaper also noted that the measure by the Turkish Army has taken place after a high-ranking Saudi delegation accompanied with Emirati officials held meetings with Kurdish commanders in Eastern Syria.

Al-Quds al-Arabi also said that Washington has called for replacement of the US troops with European soldiers in the region.

It also quoted Turkish soldiers as saying that the Turkish Army has also called on the military commanders of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and Syria’s National Army to meet in Ankara.

The terrorist groups in Ankara-controlled al-Bab and Jarablus regions are now on a state of alert in regions West of the Euphrates.

In a relevant development earlier this week, media reports said that Saudi Arabia had offered Hefty Cash to tribal leaders in Eastern Syria to support the US-backed militants in order to threaten Turkey.

The Arabic-language Al-Watan newspaper quoted special sources in Eastern Syria as saying that Saudi Minister for Persian Gulf Affairs Thamer al-Sabhan in his meeting with Syrian tribal leaders asked for helping Kurdish fighters.

Several US officials were accompanying al-Sahban during his meeting with tribal leaders of Eastern Syria, it added.

They have offered to give a hefty sum of $50 million to them indirectly through local councils and also direct financial aid, the paper further said.

Al-Watan newspaper noted that the efforts by Saudi Arabia are in line with support for the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the presence of al-Sahban in the region is in line with Riyadh's confrontation with Turkey on the issue of Kurds.

The daily noted that Turkey-Saudi Arabia relations are currently very strained.

Al-Watan also quoted special sources as saying that Saudi Arabia threatens Turkey and tries to include itself in the Syrian power balance through the Kurds, specially the SDF.

Meantime, Secretary General of Popular Party Sheikh Navaf Tarad al-Molhem, who is a tribal leader of al-Hasaneh tribe pointed to al-Sahban's cash offer to tribal leaders of Eastern Syria, and said that Eastern Syria tribal leaders will confront any effort by Saudi Arabia, the US and Turkey to disintegrate Syria.

In a relevant development last week, the tribal leaders in Deir Ezzur voiced strong opposition to the Saudi plots to support the SDF's separatist measures in the Eastern parts of the province.

Al-Watan newspaper reported that al-Jamel tribe in Eastern Deir Ezzur had issued a statement to emphasize its opposition to the appointment of SDF-affiliated Ahmed al-Khabil as the Sheikh of al-Bakir tribes in Eastern Deir Ezzur and the head of Syria's military democratic council.

Al-Jamel tribe has referred in the statement to the terrorist acts by the SDF in Eastern Euphrates region, and said that it does not recognize al-Khabil who has been appointed with the support of al-Sabhan and the terrorist militias as the Emir of al-Bakir Sheikhs.

Other Syrian tribes had also earlier stressed their opposition to al-Khabil's appointment.

Meantime, the Arabic-language al-Baladi news website affiliated to the militants reported that one of the leaders of Syria's Arab tribes namely Obaid Khalaf al-Hissan was assassinated in the town of al-Ali Bajeliyeh in Tal Abyadh region in Northern Raqqa after stopping cooperation with the Kurdish forces in Eastern Euphrates.

It added that the SDF commanders had earlier attempted to return him.

Relevant reports also said in June that the Syrian tribes in Deir Ezzur province had stood against a Saudi-US plot to support the Kurds to decompose Eastern Euphrates from Syria.

The Arabic-language al-Ahd news website quoted the leader of al-Moshahedah in al-Jazeerah region in Eastern Euphrates Sheikh Heidar al-Hamadi as saying that all Syrian tribes, except a little number of them, had opposed the recent meeting by al-Sahban to Kurdish-occupied regions to study plots to separate Eastern Syria from the country's territory.

He underlined al-Sahban's attempts to coax the tribes in Eastern Syria into implementation of separatist plots, and said most of them want Damascus to retake control of the region.

Meantime, al-Watan newspaper reported that a Swedish delegation, including the country's representative for Syria affairs, the Swedish foreign ministry official for Syria affairs and the official for the agency on international aid, have entered the Kurdish-occupied regions in Eastern Syria and held meetings with a number of commanders in line with the western states' accelerated attempts to interfere in Syria's internal affairs and assist the SDF in their separatist dreams.

Mohammad al-Akam, a senior Syrian legislator, said that a tripartite coalition has been formed among Saudi Arabia, the Kurdish forces and Israel under the US supervision which pursues pressures on Damascus after gaining victory over terrorist groups, by separating the Northeastern parts of the country.

Head of the politburo of Turkey-backed Lawa al-Mo'etasam-Free Syrian Army terrorists Mostafa Sejari wrote on his twitter page on Monday that Riyadh had stopped financial support for the terrorist groups in Northern Syria in line with a fresh scheme to help Kurds cut off Eastern Syria from the mainland after a Saudi-US delegation met in Deir Ezzur.

He added that Saudi Arabia had decided to cut financial support for the regions occupied by the terrorist groups in Northern Syria.

He added that the measure was adopted after Riyadh started support for the separatist Kurdish groups in Northeastern Syria following a visit by al-Sahban to Kurdish-occupied regions.

Sejari underlined that Saudi Arabia wants to pressure Turkey, warning, "All of us will be harmed by this measure."

Associated Press takes a stab at explaining what's happening in Idlib

"In a relevant development earlier this week, media reports said that Saudi Arabia had offered Hefty Cash to tribal leaders in Eastern Syria to support the US-backed militants in order to threaten Turkey."
-- see FARS report below the AP one.

Stalled Idlib campaign shows limits of Syrian, Russian power

By BASSEM MROUE

July 13, 2019 - approx. 6:45 AM ET

The Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Two months of intensive airstrikes by Syrian government forces and their Russian allies, coupled with a fierce ground assault on rebel-controlled Idlib province, have killed hundreds of people and caused massive displacement while achieving little to no gain for President Bashar Assad.

Despite the heavy bombardment, Assad’s troops have been unable to make any significant advances against al-Qaida-linked militants and other jihadi groups who dominate Idlib province, the last significant area held by opposition forces. Militant attacks have killed an average of more than a dozen soldiers and allied militiamen a day in recent weeks.

The struggling campaign underscores the limits of Syria’s and Russia’s airpower and inability to achieve a definitive victory in the country’s long-running civil war, now in its eighth year.

With crucial military assistance from Russia and Iran, Syrian troops have in the past few years recovered most other opposition-held parts of the country with crushing offensives and long-running sieges.

In each of those places, rebels either surrendered or were forcibly exiled to Idlib, where they are now cornered with nowhere left to go. Bitter and desperate, they can only fight to the end.

Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the leader of the main al-Qaida-linked group in the region, has called on every able person to “perform his religious duty” and join the fight.

Sam Heller, a Syria expert with the International Crisis Group who closely follows the situation in the rebel-controlled area, said, “Idlib’s armed opposition may not be able to win an open battle for the northwest, but they can make a Syrian military victory terribly costly, maybe intolerably so.”

Politically, Idlib reflects the tug of war among international players supporting opposing sides of Syria’s conflict.

[...]

The report continues on at considerable length and with several interesting details but ends with this punchline:

“The Syrian military’s inability so far to make more headway in Idlib does not mean it cannot ultimately achieve victory nationwide,” Heller, of Crisis Group, said. “It does show, however, that its military victory is contingent on politics that are bigger than just Syria.”

It's nonsense that the Russian and Syrian forces can't pulverize the resistance in Idlib right now. So what's really happening? Let's see -- watch carefully don't blink:

Paper: Riyadh, Abu Dhabi on Threshold of Confrontation with Turkey in Syria

July 13, 5:50 AM

FARS

TEHRAN (FNA)- Syria might soon be the scene of new rivalries between Turkey and a coalition of Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Kurdish separatists after a recent meeting between the Saudi and UAE officials and the anti-Ankara Kurdish militia and accelerated dispatch of military equipment by Turkey to its occupied territories in Syria, a leading Arab newspaper wrote on Saturday.

The Arabic-language al-Quds al-Arabi newspaper reported that a high-ranking delegation of Saudi and UAE officials had recently held a series of crucial meetings with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commanders who oppose Turkey.

It added that Riyadh and Abu Dhabi have also promised increased financial aid to the Kurdish-majority SDF during the meetings.

Meantime, Turkey has invited a number of leaders and commanders of affiliated militant groups, including the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) and Syria's National Army to Ankara to hold a meeting.

It has also sent a large amount of weapons and military equipment to the terrorist groups in al-Bab and Jarabulus in Syria's Aleppo province in the Western parts of the Euphrates river to increase their preparedness and has held a series of meetings with the tribal leaders in Syria to organize a front against the Kurdish militias.

Al-Quds al-Arabi said given the recent events and incidents, a confrontation between the Saudi- and UAE-backed Kurdish militias and Turkey-backed militants is now highly possible, an event that marks the start of a completely new proxy war in Syria.

In a relevant development earlier this week, media reports said that Saudi Arabia had offered Hefty Cash to tribal leaders in Eastern Syria to support the US-backed militants in order to threaten Turkey.

The Arabic-language Al-Watan newspaper quoted special sources in Eastern Syria as saying that Saudi Minister for Persian Gulf Affairs Thamer al-Sabhan in his meeting with Syrian tribal leaders asked for helping Kurdish fighters.

Several US officials were accompanying al-Sahban during his meeting with tribal leaders of Eastern Syria, it added.

They have offered to give a hefty sum of $50 million to them indirectly through local councils and also direct financial aid, the paper further said.

Al-Watan newspaper noted that the efforts by Saudi Arabia are in line with support for the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the presence of al-Sahban in the region is in line with Riyadh's confrontation with Turkey on the issue of Kurds.

The daily noted that Turkey-Saudi Arabia relations are currently very strained.

Al-Watan also quoted special sources as saying that Saudi Arabia threatens Turkey and tries to include itself in the Syrian power balance through the Kurds, specially the SDF.

Meantime, Secretary General of Popular Party Sheikh Navaf Tarad al-Molhem, who is a tribal leader of al-Hasaneh tribe pointed to al-Sahban's cash offer to tribal leaders of Eastern Syria, and said that Eastern Syria tribal leaders will confront any effort by Saudi Arabia, the US and Turkey to disintegrate Syria.

In a relevant development last week, the tribal leaders in Deir Ezzur voiced strong opposition to the Saudi plots to support the SDF's separatist measures in the Eastern parts of the province.

Al-Watan newspaper reported that al-Jamel tribe in Eastern Deir Ezzur had issued a statement to emphasize its opposition to the appointment of SDF-affiliated Ahmed al-Khabil as the Sheikh of al-Bakir tribes in Eastern Deir Ezzur and the head of Syria's military democratic council.

Al-Jamel tribe has referred in the statement to the terrorist acts by the SDF in Eastern Euphrates region, and said that it does not recognize al-Khabil who has been appointed with the support of al-Sabhan and the terrorist militias as the Emir of al-Bakir Sheikhs.

Other Syrian tribes had also earlier stressed their opposition to al-Khabil's appointment.

Meantime, the Arabic-language al-Baladi news website affiliated to the militants reported that one of the leaders of Syria's Arab tribes namely Obaid Khalaf al-Hissan was assassinated in the town of al-Ali Bajeliyeh in Tal Abyadh region in Northern Raqqa after stopping cooperation with the Kurdish forces in Eastern Euphrates.

It added that the SDF commanders had earlier attempted to return him.

Relevant reports also said in June that the Syrian tribes in Deir Ezzur province had stood against a Saudi-US plot to support the Kurds to decompose [decouple] Eastern Euphrates from Syria.

The Arabic-language al-Ahd news website quoted the leader of al-Moshahedah in al-Jazeerah region in Eastern Euphrates Sheikh Heidar al-Hamadi as saying that all Syrian tribes, except a little number of them, had opposed the recent meeting by al-Sahban to Kurdish-occupied regions to study plots to separate Eastern Syria from the country's territory.

He underlined al-Sahban's attempts to coax the tribes in Eastern Syria into implementation of separatist plots, and said most of them want Damascus to retake control of the region.

Meantime, al-Watan newspaper reported that a Swedish delegation, including the country's representative for Syria affairs, the Swedish foreign ministry official for Syria affairs and the official for the agency on international aid, have entered the Kurdish-occupied regions in Eastern Syria and held meetings with a number of commanders in line with the western states' accelerated attempts to interfere in Syria's internal affairs and assist the SDF in their separatist dreams.

Mohammad al-Akam, a senior Syrian legislator, said that a tripartite coalition has been formed among Saudi Arabia, the Kurdish forces and Israel under the US supervision which pursues pressures on Damascus after gaining victory over terrorist groups, by separating the Northeastern parts of the country.

Head of the politburo of Turkey-backed Lawa al-Mo'etasam-Free Syrian Army terrorists Mostafa Sejari wrote on his twitter page on Monday that Riyadh had stopped financial support for the terrorist groups in Northern Syria in line with a fresh scheme to help Kurds cut off Eastern Syria from the mainland after a Saudi-US delegation met in Deir Ezzur.

He added that Saudi Arabia had decided to cut financial support for the regions occupied by the terrorist groups in Northern Syria.

He added that the measure was adopted after Riyadh started support for the separatist Kurdish groups in Northeastern Syria following a visit by al-Sahban to Kurdish-occupied regions.

Sejari underlined that Saudi Arabia wants to pressure Turkey, warning, "All of us will be harmed by this measure."

[END REPORT]

So what does it all mean?  I think it means AP needs to get up earlier in the morning to cover events in Syria. I think it could also mean Assad has been waiting for the jackals to turn on each other. 

By the way, I love FARS capitalizing "hefty cash." Does this mean Hefty Cash is a new term of art for an old tactic in the Middle East? 

********

American Christians, have you no shame for what you countenance in Syria?

A center for Jewish, Christian, and Muslim pilgrimages, the mausoleum of John the Baptist in the Umayyad Mosque, or the Great Mosque of Damascus

The Syrian project, as described by Hassan Turkmani, goes even further. It is not a question of simply tolerating that others, who believe in the same God, choose to celebrate Him in a different way. It’s about praying with them. So, every day, the head of John the Baptist was venerated in the Umayyad mosque by Jews, Christians and Muslims. It is the only mosque where Muslims have prayed together with a Pope - John Paul II - around their common relics. ... In most Muslim cultures, the mosques are reserved for the faithful of this religion. This was never the case in Syria, where the centers of the cults of all religions are open to all.(1)

Christianity is not monolithic, any more than Islam or Buddhism can be considered such; deep, long-running divisions exist within the religion as the Lutheran-Catholic schism amply indicates. Yet in an era when American Christians loudly denounce religious persecutions of all kinds, an era when even poorly-informed American Christians are at least dimly aware that Christian minorities in many countries have been a primary target of crimes against humanity, I'd expect that American Christians would express horror at their government's actions in Syria. Instead, I've heard the chirping of crickets from the U.S. government about the plight of Syria's Christians.   

Yet just last night, a famous, nationally syndicated American radio talk-show host, Mark Levin, read passages from Guy Taylor's July 7 report for the Washington Times, Nigerian Christians plead for U.S. help in face of religiously driven violence and upbraided his audience for turning a blind eye to the plight of Christians in Nigeria and other countries. 

I heard no word from Mr Levin about the plight of Syria's Christians despite the fact that the United States has had a direct hand in the genocidal war against Syrian Christians whereas the U.S. has had no part in atrocities against Nigeria's Christians.  

 Taylor's report quoted statements made last year by U.S. President Donald Trump:

“We have had very serious problems with Christians who are being murdered in Nigeria. ... We are going to be working on that problem very, very hard because we cannot allow that to happen.”

The U.S. has been working hard with little to show for it: 

The U.S. has backed Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon in carrying out airstrikes and ground offensives to take back villages and towns held by the extremists, but the results are debatable.

Debatable is right. Yet the country where U.S. military actions would have had a large impact in stopping atrocities against Christians, and would still have a large impact, is Syria. Just one reason for this is the fact that Syria, going far back in its history even before it became a nation, is genuinely secular with a national government that unequivocally supports secularism. 

Nigeria, on the other hand, whatever lip service its government might give to secularism, is a country starkly divided between the Christian and Islamic religions. Finding solutions to strife in such cases is very difficult. Whereas Syrians don't need such solutions. 

What Syrians need most is for foreign governments to stop making war on them -- the Turks, the Saudis, the Emiratis, the Qataris, the British, the French, and the Americans still aided and abetted by Germans -- and in recent years, the Israelis.

But out of this collection of scoundrels, it is Americans who are the most hypocritical whether or not they are Christian.  Americans have come up with two-faced excuses to rationalize the fact that they'd prefer an Islamist regime in Syria to a multi-confessional society overseen by a government that defends secularism.

As for the defense of Syria's Christians among America's Christians, here I am reminded of the Spartan mother's answer when her son complained that his sword was too short: "Try taking a step forward."

1) From Syrian society and secularism; May 14, 2019, Voltaire Network

********

The Nigerian women who dedicate their lives to thwarting Boko Haram attacks

A man once asked Sathya Sai Baba, "Why does God love some people more than others?"

Sai Baba replied, "God loves everyone equally but some He likes more than others."

Over the decades, I have had cause many times to think about Sai Baba's reply. I thought of it again when I learned about the Nigerian women who refuse to submit to the most horrific evil.  

"In 2018, 38 out of 48 children used by Boko Haram as suicide assailants were girls."   

The brave women fighting Boko Haram in Nigeria
By Orij Sunday
July 10, 2019
Al Jazeera

More than 100 women are working with security agents in Borno state to thwart Boko Haram attacks.

Maiduguri, Nigeria - Boko Haram killed the two most important people in Komi Kaje's life within two days.

In November 2015, Komi Akaji, her 46-year-old brother, was shot dead by Boko Haram fighters. 

"There were seven students killed. When I got there, I saw he was shot twice in the head," Kaje said.

The days of mourning followed according to tradition. Kaje was broken but Peter Adam, her 35-year-old boyfriend, provided some relief. On a Saturday afternoon, Adam observed mourning rites with Kaje's family and shared lunch with her.

But Boko Haram attacked again, turning a visit of solace into sorrow.

"They shot him in his chest and head and he fell inside a ditch. The bullet touched his brain," said Kaje, her eyes in tears.

Kaje has tried hard to forget the killings but military sirens, the sound of gunfire, and constant exposure to the areas where her loved ones were shot dead were enough to provoke new trauma.

If she moved to a new city, her parents thought, it might help her heal. Kaje relocated to Abuja, Nigeria's capital, to spend some recovery time.

But Kaje realised the solution wasn't to run, "because Boko Haram was everywhere". 

Maybe, Kaje thought, if she could play a role in defeating the fighters some healing would come. At the time, the armed group held many towns and villages captive as part of a so-called "Islamic caliphate".

Boko Haram since 2009 has killed more than 27,000 people and forced another two million out of their homes.

Fighting Boko Haram

When Kaje introduced the idea of joining the fight against the rebellion to her friends and family, it was received with mockery and indifference. "How can a woman fight Boko Haram?" she was told.

However, other women aside from Kaje, such as 45-year-old Idris Fati, shared her ambition to flush the fighters out of Maiduguri.

Kaje and Fati joined the Civilian Joint Taskforce (C-JTF) - a civilian militia drawn from communities affected by Boko Haram - that partners with and supports the military in its operations.

C-JTF had been an all-male force but there were tasks best-suited for women.

For one, Boko Haram favoured using girls and women in the group's operations, especially as suicide bombers attacking markets, hospitals, mosques, churches and other public places.

"Boko Haram were using many women and girls to fight the war. Women were needed to counter that strategy," Kaje told Al Jazeera.

Between 2011-17, Boko Haram used female suicide bombers in at least 244 of its 338 attacks, according to the United States-based Combating Terrorism Center. In 2018, 38 out of 48 children used by Boko Haram as suicide assailants were girls.

Nigerian soldiers, for religious and cultural reasons, are restricted from searching women and girls in most cases - an opening exploited by Boko Haram to blow up its targets.

Since then the women, from dawn to twilight, search other females at security checkpoints leading to Maiduguri's markets, hospitals, schools, and other public sites vulnerable to attacks.

Many suicide bombers have been exposed and arrested and their murderous assaults foiled.

In some cases, the military involves the women in intelligence-gathering on the armed group's activities. This has helped reveal operations by the armed group, earning them the nickname "Gossipers of Boko Haram". 

When the military receives intelligence that Boko Haram will target a particular location, it deploys the women to detect and expose female suicide bombers who might mingle in the crowd.

In rare, but far more dangerous cases, the Gossipers are involved in military operations targeting notorious female Boko Haram members. 

Death threats

But not everyone is happy with what the Nigerian women are doing.

"My neighbours are always insulting me. They say that one day Boko Haram will kill me. But whenever I am involved in saving people's lives, the joy of it is above all insults," said Fati.

Boko Haram sends warning messages through emissaries, threatening to kill those working security.

"Boko Haram has threatened me so many times," Fati said. "They warn me to quit the job or risk being killed. They say our work hurts and exposes their operations. But I won't stop because I am fighting not just for my life, but for the future of my children." 

During the peak of Boko Haram's violence, the military was accused of arresting, jailing, and killing innocent citizens on suspicion of being collaborators.

Discerning who was involved with Boko Haram was difficult for the military because of a lack of information about the communities.

About 20,000 people, including boys as young as nine, were detained without due process, according to rights group Amnesty International. About 1,200 men were reportedly killed.

"Many have died"

Some locals knew those linked to Boko Haram, but to speak out was to risk death as the fighters retaliated against the families of those who exposed them to the military.

Women helped break the barrier by taking vital information to the military about members of Boko Haram living in their communities.

"Many women have died doing this job," said Umar Habiba, 38, who coordinates the gatekeepers in Monday Market in Maiduguri.

She said there are more than 100 women currently working in Nigeria's northeastern Borno state - the hotbed of the rebellion. Others have resigned as a result of threats, marriage and pressure from society.

Danger is always present in their work as suicide bombers detonate explosives and kill themselves, along with those attempting to search them.

"If I die doing this work, I know my parents would be proud of me because I died for my state," said Kaje, who earns $60 a month from the state government - a huge sum for a job she previously did voluntarily. 

"Many women, unable to cope with the pressure, have resigned."

[END REPORT]

********

How George Washington forged a bunch of bickering states into a federation

So you think you know the story of the American nation's founding, do you? Unless you've read historian Edward J. Larson's 2014 bestseller The Return of George Washington: Uniting the States, 1783-1789 or heard his talks with John Batchelor, first broadcast on John's radio show in 2018 and again during this year's Independence Day holiday, it's a good bet you have an unclear idea of how it happened -- and what you do know most probably has large gaps.

The truth is that after winning the Revolutionary War, the Americans hadn't the foggiest idea of how to make a nation out of their victory. General George Washington didn't know, either, but he tasked himself with finding out and then with the Herculean task of making the impossible work. He didn't do it alone, of course, but without him, the British would've been right: not without creating a monarchy could an American nation-building project have succeeded.

Larson's history is stuffed with important lessons for today's peoples, no matter where they reside. And given that Batchelor is a great raconteur and interviewer, he and Larson make the telling of the history into a whale of a tale. 

All right. Now it's time to listen and learn.

"The Return of George Washington" - John Batchelor Show podcasts at Audioboom: 

Part 1 of 4

Part 2 

Part 3

Part 4

********

"Converting all your sounds of woe into hey nonny nonny!"

Sometimes the most dastardly plots are undone by a fool.
Sometimes the angriest passions are overcome by wiser impulses in time to avert senseless tragedy.

Kenneth Branagh's masterful interpretation of one of Shakespeare's occasional decisions to show compassion for human foibles makes the 1983 film "Much Ado About Nothing" very special, and timeless. There were some complaints from reviewers about Branagh's casting of Keanu Reeves and Michael Keaton, but my only criticism is that the lawn chair in the following scene didn't get an award for Best Supporting Actor.

If you've never seen the scene I'd suggest watching it in full-screen mode on YouTube. But I'd also suggest renting a theater and showing the movie in all its sun-drenched beauty on a really big screen for everyone you know who could use a break from the angst infecting today's media and what passes for mass entertainment in this era. 
   

H/T SST commenter

Speaking of SST, the Colonel's Tour d'horizon post today provides his quick takes on various situations -- Mainland China, Hong Kong, Turkey, North Korea, Iran. By 'stache' he means John Bolton, aka known as The Mustache. Talk show host Tucker Carlton has been making so much sense in several of his commentaries at Fox that I think some people aren't joking when they wish he'd replace Bolton at the Security Council. They can dream on. 

As to the Colonel's discussion of Turkey's actions in Syria -- is the situation really that bad? It's pretty bad, although one SST commenter suggested that the regime doesn't want to go so far as to outright annex northern Syria and instead control the region through puppets. We'll see. Syria isn't Cyprus, so the commenter's analogy is limited. 

Regarding North Korea -- well, I think Kim might wait to see if Trump is elected to a second term before he commits to anything more than a few cosmetic concessions with regard to the nuclear program. I think he'd consider it suicidal if he made concessions that the next U.S. president ignored.   

In addition, Kim knows he is walking a very thin tightrope with China. Only by deploying the most brutal means was he able to purge the North Korean military of outright Chinese control, but their influence is still very active.  

So the question is how far he thinks Trump would go to help him with the Chinese if he sticks his neck out in making concessions on the nuclear front. One thing is certain: he would get no help if Biden is elected U.S. president, and he very well knows it.  

******** 

Who would replace John Bolton at USC? Kim Kardashian?

The people calling loudest for Trump to ditch Bolton aren't facing the reality that the bench he could choose from is very thin. Bolton was the last person Trump wanted running the security council but he finally had no other choice.  

The truth is that many Republicans view the Trump presidency as a fluke. They don't like his attempts to disengage the U.S. from what has become the traditional U.S. relationship with other nations and put the relationship on a more transactional, or at least less ideological, basis.

What's more, they don't think his views on such matters, and those who truly support them, will last 15 minutes in Washington after he leaves the White House. 

So people can grouse about Trump's use of his relatives to interface with foreign leaders -- consider this sour-grapes piece from yesterday's Washington Post on Ivanka Trump's portfolio -- but at least the relatives don't conspire with the Get Trump crowd in the GOP-controlled Senate or grandly ignore his instructions on foreign policy/defense matters. 

It's to be remembered that earlier this year Trump ordered the U.S. military to leave Syria and they went right on doing there what they wanted to do. Which, by the way, amounts largely to cooperating with jihadists in the effort to make as much trouble for Syria's government as possible. What was Trump supposed to do? Call for mutiny charges to be brought?

Would things change if Trump won a second term in office? The problem is that it's not only the bench that's thin, it's also the philosophical defense of Trump's views that continues to go begging in the mainstream Republican establishment.  Trump's frustration with the intellectual desert in his own political party often manifests in sarcasm and Twitter rants that play badly in the mainstream press, which influences so much of American public opinion.

The bottom line is that the status quo is deeply entrenched and has broad support in Washington's defense/foreign relations establishment. And Trump prefers the gesture, showmanship, to make his points rather than the lectern. It takes more than gestures and quips to persuade people who've thought the same way for a generation to turn away from a path that encourages constant conflicts that drain respect for the United States of America.

Thus, the limitations of a real-estate developer who tries to stage a revolution from within.     

*********

Espionage ring at highest level of Pakistan's military in league with U.S. intel

"Clearly, US-Pakistan relations are no longer just a Cold War alliance gone sour but an increasingly adversarial relationship."

"All this time, behind the smoke and mirrors of propaganda against civilians, the Pakistan army was quietly discovering spies and information-sellers within its own ranks. ... To my knowledge, there are several other individuals currently under investigation and there might be more courts-martial and more convictions down the line."

The smoke and mirrors extended to the demonization of India, which nicely diverted the Pak public's attention from what was happening in their own military.   

The following op-ed, dated June 1, is by former Pakistani Ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani and was published in India's The Print. The Associated Press broke the news he discusses on May 30.  

It's not evident from the news reports how long ago the investigations started -- although from Haqqani's writing they started as early as the aftermath of the May 2011 U.S. raid on Abbottabad. So it's possible the two officers who were convicted were active duty at the time they were engaged in espionage. In any case, from Haqqani, it was an entire espionage "ring" operating at the highest levels of Pakistan's defense establishment. 

Espionage case shatters Pakistan army’s myths – and the belief its nuke secrets are secure

The recipient of secrets shared by convicted Pakistani officials was not ‘permanent enemy’ India – but the country that gives it billions of dollars.

The court-martial of three individuals, including a recently retired three-star general, on charges of espionage and revealing classified information to foreign intelligence agencies seriously dents the charisma that helps keep Pakistan’s army in charge of the country.

The fact that senior military officers spied for a foreign country suggests that Pakistan is not as safe in the hands of the men in uniform as is suggested.

If, as has been learnt, the secrets shared by the convicted officers are related to Pakistan’s nuclear programme, the case would increase Pakistan’s paranoia about the security of its nuclear arsenal. Considering that the foreign intelligence service that paid for the secrets shared by the convicted officers belonged to the United States, there is a greater adversarial relationship between Pakistan and the US than is often revealed.

Involvement at the top

On Thursday, Chief of Army Staff, General Qamar Javed Bajwa approved life imprisonment for retired Lt General Javed Iqbal, and death sentences for retired Brigadier Raja Rizwan Haider and Dr Wasim Akram, a civilian who ostensibly worked in ‘a sensitive organisation.’

The espionage ring reached the highest levels of the Pakistani national security establishment. Lt Gen Iqbal served as Director of Military Operations, Corps Commander, and Adjutant General before retiring in 2015; the ‘sensitive organisation’ that employed Akram was one of the Pakistan’s many covert nuclear facilities.

To my knowledge, there are several other individuals currently under investigation and there might be more courts-martial and more convictions down the line.

The investigation into the possibility of military officers sharing intelligence and information with US intelligence services started soon after the raid in May 2011 that resulted in the killing of Osama bin Laden in the garrison town of Abbottabad.

The Pakistani establishment’s propaganda machine created a distraction in the form of the so-called ‘Memogate’ case against me, forcing my resignation as Pakistan’s ambassador to the US and a long-drawn case in the Supreme Court, which never resulted in a trial.

Fake news stories appeared in the Pakistani media about how Pakistan’s elected civilian government had granted visas to the CIA personnel to enter the country and how the US mercenary security corporation, Blackwater, had been covertly allowed in.

In the Pakistani public’s eye, the Abbottabad raid was framed, not as a question of why the world’s most wanted terrorist lived in Pakistan, but as the matter of how the Americans were able to discover him. A major fear was that if the Americans could penetrate Pakistan’s air defences without [detection] to get Bin Laden, what prevents them from coming in to decapitate Pakistan’s nuclear programme?

All this time, behind the smoke and mirrors of propaganda against civilians, the Pakistan army was quietly discovering spies and information-sellers within its own ranks. The members of ISI, and not the civilians, were the CIA’s go-to contacts in Pakistan, and individuals like Lt Gen Iqbal had more useful information than any civilian could have access to.

But, as is often the case, the army wanted to preserve its image and kept its inquiries secret. Stories about the case started to percolate when the family members of one of the accused went to court to find out where and why he was being held. Once it was not possible to keep the matter secret, the army decided to present it as proof of accountability within its ranks.

Threat to Pakistan’s ‘nuclear threat’

Pakistan’s nuclear programme has been pieced together with designs and components acquired from multiple sources over many years. Revelation of sources from where Pakistan acquires the necessary inputs for its nukes, or the location of its covert nuclear facilities, diminish the quality of Pakistan’s nuclear deterrence.

The army is already trying to spin the case as proof of its internal checks and balances. An Inter-Services Public Relations press release only said that the three men had been convicted by a Field Court Martial on charges of espionage and divulging “sensitive information to foreign agencies prejudice to the national security.”

But what was not said is far more revealing. For several decades, Pakistanis have been assured that their army is the only and ultimate guarantor of Pakistan’s security. Several civilians who disagree with the army-backed national narrative – including Fatima Jinnah, sister of the country’s founder – have been described as ‘traitors’ for their contrarian opinions over the years.

None of the critical civilians tagged with the ‘traitor’ label were ever accused of specific crimes and no one has ever been charged with espionage for a foreign intelligence service. Now, it turns out that in a country controlled by the army, the individuals with access to secrets that might interest a foreign intelligence service come from within the army.

Where the enemy isn’t India

Moreover, the recipient of secrets shared by the convicted officials was not ‘permanent enemy’ India, which is the target of constant propaganda by Pakistan’s establishment. It was the United States, the donor of $43 billion in economic and military assistance and for years Pakistan’s patron and ally.

Clearly, US-Pakistan relations are no longer just a Cold War alliance gone sour but an increasingly adversarial relationship.

As the US now deems China a major threat in the Indo-Pacific, and Pakistan continues to draw China closer because of its obsession with India, Pakistanis are keeping more and more secrets from the Americans. The Americans, on the other hand, are trying harder to uncover Pakistani secrets, pitting the two sides against one another.

The discovery of Pakistani military officers spying for the US on Pakistan’s nuclear programme also raises questions about the Pakistani establishment’s national security paradigm.

Instead of the nukes guaranteeing Pakistan’s security against India, Pakistan must now worry about the security of its nuclear weapons against adversaries other than the Indians.

What lessons

But Pakistan’s establishment is unlikely to learn the right lessons and recognise that the ‘soldiers good, civilians bad’ dichotomy hurts Pakistan. It will not diminish its India obsession or understand the totality of the real threats to Pakistan (including the likelihood of economic implosion).

We will probably soon see new lines of attack on Pakistani civilians seeking implementation of the country’s constitution and new distractions from the espionage case. And there will be the usual clamour for a new round of talks with India under the second Modi government even though the Pakistani establishment reveals no intention whatsoever to change its ways.

Husain Haqqani, director for South and Central Asia at the Hudson Institute in Washington D.C., was Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States from 2008-11. His latest book is ‘Reimagining Pakistan’. Views are personal

[END OP-ED]

********

You mean the caste system isn't from Outer Space?

If it's not from Outer Space, where did it come from? Well, according to B.R. Ambedkar, a 'founding father' of the modern Republic of India:  

“It must be recognized that the Hindus observe Caste not because they are inhuman or wrong-headed. They observe Caste because they are deeply religious … The real remedy is to destroy the belief in the sanctity of the Shastras. Caste has a divine basis… this means you must destroy the authority of the Shastras and the Vedas.”

So now we know for certain why post-British India was so screwed up. One of its founders, at least, was barking mad.

All right, Pundita, stop rubber-necking at The Print. You're supposed to be there to read an article on Pakistan -- a blockbuster article, I might add. Next post.

********