Introduction In the mainstream view, al-Qaeda did not play a role in the Syria conflict until Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi dispatched his deputy, Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, to Syria in August 2011 to establish a wing of the group there, called Jabhat al-Nusra, or the Nusra Front. Additionally, al-Qaeda allegedly did not carry out any military operations until December 2011 and did not announce its establishment until January 2012. However, there is evidence that al-Qaeda affiliated militants were involved in the Syrian conflict much earlier. Saudi intelligence...
battlefield
News Roundup 12/27/21
Covid Massachusetts halts all elective procedures. [Link] The USS Milwaukee will remain in Cuba after several sailors tested positive for Covid. [Link] USAID is running out of money to distribute covid vaccinations. [Link] The US donates 1.5 million vaccine doses to Egypt through Covax. [Link] Biden will lift the travel restriction from eight African countries on January 1st. [Link] US News LAPD officers killed a 14-year-old girl. [Link] The Pentagon cuts the cost of living stipend it gives to tens of thousands of soldiers living in high-cost areas in the US. [Link] Stu Scheller - who...
Yemen: Fighting Between Saudi Forces UAE Forces In Southern Yemen
Hard to believe the situation in Yemen could get any worse but now their are reports of Saudi and UAE forces fighting in Southern Yemen. From the BBC Yemeni separatists have taken effective control of the port city of Aden after days of fighting with troops loyal to the internationally backed government. Forces aligned with the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) - which wants an independent south - said they had seized control of military camps and the presidential palace. The opposing Saudi-led coalition said it had responded with military action. The government itself...
FPF #208 – Stalin's Military Failures guest Marko Marjanovic
On FPF #208, Marko Marjanovic joins the show to discuss the failures of Stalin's centrally planned military leading up to WWII. The failures amount to the USSR having the most losses on one side of a war. While the Red Army had the equipment and technology to defend against the German invasion, poor strategic decision making allowed the Germans to have early success on the battlefield. Marko and Kyle discuss how the centrally planned military created the environment where the USSR took devastating losses during 1941. In the show, we discuss Marko's article Stalin Gifted Hitler Victory in...
Foreign Policy Focus #163 – Trump’s Tariffs and Putin’s Missiles
On FPF #163, I discuss several events occurring around the world. Trump has proposed new steal and aluminum tariffs. Putin announces that Russia has developed nuclear-armed cruise missiles. At the UN, the US is looking to punish North Korea and Assad. I also update the Syrian battlefield. Links US moves Afghan Army to M4/M16 Walter Jones Letter Europe Nuclear Agreement add-on Daniel Larison on North...
Foreign Policy Focus #163 – Trump's Tariffs and Putin's Missiles
On FPF #163, I discuss several events occurring around the world. Trump has proposed new steal and aluminum tariffs. Putin announces that Russia has developed nuclear-armed cruise missiles. At the UN, the US is looking to punish North Korea and Assad. I also update the Syrian battlefield. Links US moves Afghan Army to M4/M16 Walter Jones Letter Europe Nuclear Agreement add-on Daniel Larison on North...
Foreign Policy Focus #145 – Tillerson’s Losing Policy with Will Porter
On FPF #145, Will Porter returns to the to discuss Tillerson's speech on US policy in Syria. Will explains how the Trump Administration's narrative of the Syrian Civil War is biased and based on lies. Will and I layout the current battlefield in Syria. We update Turkey's invasion of Syria. Will evaluates Tillerson's desired outcomes in Syria. We also demonstrate how Tillerson's policy in action will work against US goals and prevent peace in Syria.
Foreign Policy Focus #145 – Tillerson's Losing Policy with Will Porter
On FPF #145, Will Porter returns to the to discuss Tillerson's speech on US policy in Syria. Will explains how the Trump Administration's narrative of the Syrian Civil War is biased and based on lies. Will and I layout the current battlefield in Syria. We update Turkey's invasion of Syria. Will evaluates Tillerson's desired outcomes in Syria. We also demonstrate how Tillerson's policy in action will work against US goals and prevent peace in Syria.
The Antiwar Comic: Bribe Our Way to Peace
So much money wasted. It boggles the mind. For more comics visit The Webcomic Factory.
Is the Battle for Mosul Doomed?
Since the battle to retake Mosul began in mid-October, Iraqi and coalition spokesmen have touted the significant number of villages retaken around the periphery of Mosul by the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), and the fact that they reportedly recaptured Mosul’s al-Salam hospital, barely a mile from the Tigris. Yet an examination of the battlefield reveals that from the perspective of ISIS, it could be argued that the fight is going better than expected. Such a belief is not without substance. Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi claimed last week that he was very pleased with his troops’...