May 22 2013

Russia Adds Two More Warships To Mediterranean Task Force Near Syria

A few days when reporting that the Russian Pacific fleet had crossed the Suez canal for the first time in decades in order to form a Mediterranean task force parked in Cyprus for obvious symbolic reasons (in close proximity to Syria and the Israel-parked Kearsarge), some observed that while the submarine support was adequate, the actual warship fleet designated to support any potential escalation in Syria would be largely insufficient. Perhaps the Russian Navy heard these complaints, and several hours ago RIA reported that two extra warships from the Russian Black Sea fleet had joined the Mediterranean task force, citing Capt. First Rank Vyacheslav Trukhachyov, has said. None of these recent deployment should come as a surprise: in March Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said a permanent naval task force in the Mediterranean was needed to defend Russia’s interests in the region. Read Syria, Cyrpus (where the task force will be on anchor indefinitely), and, of course, any and all western offensive involving Iran. And slowly but surely said task force is nearing completion.

“During a planned rotation, large landing ships Nikolai Filchenkov and Azov from Russia’s Black Sea Fleet have started performing their tasks in the Mediterranean,” Trukhachyov said.

The two ships in question:

the Azov

and the Filchenkov

 

 

The two ships will be added to a fleet that is becoming increasingly imposing in both numbers and capability: the task force currently includes vessels from the Pacific, Northern, Baltic and Black Sea fleets: the Admiral Panteleyev and Severomorsk destroyers, the Yaroslav Mudry frigate, the Peresvet and Admiral Nevelskoi amphibious warfare ships, the Fotiy Krylov, Altai and SB-921 salvage/rescue tugs, the PM-138 repair ship, the Pechenga, Lena and Dubna tankers. The task force may be enlarged to include nuclear submarines.

Admiral Vladimir Komoyedov, head of the parliamentary defense committee, previously told RIA Novosti that the Mediterranean task force should be comprised of 10 warships and support vessels as part of several tactical groups tasked with attack, antisubmarine warfare and minesweeping.

In other words, check to you America, we are ready.

And speaking of checking, just a month earlier it was the US that was deploying its own naval support in the area with the LHD-3 Kearsarge crossing the Suez canal, and now on anchor in Israel. Here is a 60 second timelapse video of what it looks like when a US naval ship cross the Suez Canal, direction escalation.

Source: Zero Hedge

May 22 2013

Les relations entre les Américains et les islamistes tunisiens remonteraient à 2004

20130522-073455.jpg
le Logo de Ennhada

Tunisie-secret.com via E&R

On ne remerciera jamais [assez] Wikileaks. Dans les documents suivants, on découvre la servilité des Nahdaoui à l’égard des Américains et la naïveté de ces derniers à l’égard des islamistes. C’est sous la présidence de George W. Bush, le criminel de guerre en Irak, que les relations de maître à esclave entre certains hauts dirigeants d’Ennahda et les Services de l’ambassade américaine en Tunisie se sont renforcées. Mais elles existaient depuis le début des années 80, lorsque les Américains ont décidé d’écarter Bourguiba et de placer leurs pions islamistes, aussi bien en Tunisie qu’en Algérie.

Ils ont raté leur coup en 1987, mais pas en janvier 2011. Ce qui est étonnant dans ces documents, c’est que Ben Ali était au courant des tractations islamo-impérialistes, mais il laissait faire. Pourquoi n’a-t-il pas réagi ? Pourquoi n’a-t-il pas remis en prison ces traîtres ? Pourquoi a-t-il manqué de fermeté ? Autant de questions auxquelles il va falloir un jour répondre. À la lecture de ces documents de Wikileaks, on comprend que, ce n’est pas parce qu’ils sont majoritaires ou populaires que les islamistes sont arrivés au pouvoir, mais parce qu’ils ont vendu leur âme à l’Oncle Sam. Merci aux USA d’avoir imposé ces obscurantistes à un peuple qui voulait la démocratie.

Des documents émanant de l’ambassade américaine à Tunis et faisant partie des récents documents qui ont filtré et ont été révélés récemment par Wikileaks attestent des très bonnes relations entre les membres du parti islamiste tunisien Ennahda et la mission diplomatique américaine à Tunis du temps du président déchu Ben Ali. Échange de visites entre les deux parties et insistance des dirigeants d’Ennahda sur le fait qu’ils représentent l’islam modéré, ce qui est à leur avis la solution pour la démocratie dans la région et précisément en Tunisie. Mais il semble qu’il y a une grande différence entre ce que déclarent (pour la consommation locale) les Nahdaouis à propos de la politique des États-Unis et ce que révèlent ces documents à propos de leurs cordiales relations avec eux.

Continue reading →

May 21 2013

Main al-Nusra Front commander killed in Qusayr clashes

Syrian troops celebrate as they take control of the village of Haydariyah, some 7 km outside al-Qusayr on May 20, 2013.

The main commander of the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front has been reportedly killed in clashes with the Syrian army in the western city of al-Qusayr.

According to Syria’s national television, top al-Nusra Front commander identified as Abu Omar was killed in al-Qusayr on Tuesday as clashes between Syrian troops and foreign-backed militants in the border town entered their third day.

The Syrian army says it is now in control of more than 70 percent of the strategic city, which connects the capital city of Damascus to the Mediterranean port of Tartous.

Intense fighting is reported to be still under way in some parts of al-Qusayr, about 30 km southwest of Homs, with the Syrian army making advances on terrorist groups fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

According to Syria’s official news agency, SANA, scores of militants were killed in clashes with government forces on Tuesday. Syrian troops also defused several explosive devices in the city.

Syrian troops entered al-Qusayr from several directions on May 19 after weeks of clashes with militants. Syrian sources say over 100 militants have been killed in the military operation to clear al-Qusayr of militants.

On Monday, Syrian army confiscated an Israeli military vehicle used by foreign-backed militants in al-Qusayr. A number of military uniforms as well as wiretapping and jamming equipment were found in the vehicle.

Source: Press TV

May 21 2013

Syrian army destroys Israeli military vehicle in Golan Heights

File photo shows the line that separates Syria from the Israeli-occupied lands on the Golan Heights.

 

Syria says its army has destroyed an Israeli military vehicle that had crossed the ceasefire line in the occupied Golan Heights.

The Syrian army said in a statement issued on Tuesday that the vehicle drove toward the village of Bir Ajam, located in the “liberated area of Syrian territories where there are armed terrorist groups.”

“Following that, the Israeli enemy fired two rockets from the occupied site of Tal al-Faras toward one of our sites in al-Zubaydiah site; no casualties reported,” the statement added.

Also on Tuesday, the Israeli military said its troops had shot at a target inside Syria, following an incident where gunfire from Syria hit the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

The Israeli regime has recently boosted its military activities in the Golan Heights, where clashes between the Syrian army and the militant groups continue.

Syria has been gripped by unrest for over two years, and many people, including large numbers of Syrian soldiers and security personnel, have been killed in the foreign-sponsored militancy.

Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad said on May 18 that militants from 29 different countries were fighting against the government in different parts of the country.

Source: Press TV

May 21 2013

‘Israel forces fired at target in Syria’

The file photo shows an Israeli tank on Syria’s illegally annexed Golan Heights.

The Israeli military says its troops have shot at a target inside Syria, after gunfire from Damascus hit the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

The military said in a Tuesday statement that the gunfire from Damascus damaged a military vehicle without causing any injuries.

The statement added that the Israeli soldiers “returned precise fire.”

Tel Aviv has recently boosted military activities in the occupied Golan Heights, where clashes between Syrian forces and foreign-sponsored militants have spiked dramatically in recent weeks.

The Israeli military has set up a “military field hospital” at military outpost 105 in the occupied Golan Heights to treat wounded militants fighting against the government in neighboring Syria.

The Israeli military has carried out three airstrikes against Syria so far this year.

On May 5, Syria said the Israeli regime had carried out an airstrike targeting a research center in a suburb of Damascus, following heavy losses of al-Qaeda-affiliated groups at the hands of the Syrian army. According to Syrian media reports, Israeli rockets struck the Jamraya Research Center.

The Jamraya facility was also targeted in an Israeli airstrike in January.  Continue reading →

May 21 2013

France to buy American drones for Mali operation

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An Air Force MQ-9 Reaper. (AFP Photo / James Lee Harper Jr.)

RT

Two of America’s medium-altitude Reaper drones will be sold to France as backup for the country’s operations against Islamist rebels in Mali.

The news comes from the ‘Air et Cosmos’ specialist magazine, which reported online that a deal had been reached between France and the United States for the sale of two non-armed MQ-9 units.

The French air force had already deployed a European-made Harfang drone to Mali, with the country now wishing to acquire more modern models quickly, although any purchase of the US Reapers directly from the manufacturer (as was done with Harfang) is expected to delay delivery by seven months.

French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian is presently on a visit to the US, where he is expected to make the announcement, according to Air et Cosmos. The defense ministry has declined to comment.

In a bid to curb the spread of extremism and Al Qaeda-linked militants in the northern parts of its former colony, France started a military operation in January of this year. The anti-government Islamists had spread Sharia law everywhere they went, and it is widely feared that if they are successful in Mali, the country will become a hotspot for extremism and the launching of terrorist attacks against European and other African nations.

French efforts have since pushed the militants into mountain and desert hideouts. However, this changed the rules of the game in such a way that they now launch sporadic guerrilla attacks.

Operation ‘Serval’ started with a deployment of 2,500 troops and the French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius declaring on January 30 that they would be out of there “quickly”. Since that time, that number has risen to 4,000, while the departure date had been moved up. Currently, the idea is that half will leave by July, when Mali holds their presidential election.

Although Paris has begun withdrawal from the West African nation, ahead of the security handover to the International Mission for Support to Mali (MISMA), Le Drian’s recent visit to London paints a different picture, whereby 1,000 French troops will stay in Mali indefinitely, in case further problems arise.

“This is the reason why France will remain with roughly 1,000 troops on Malian territory for an undetermined period of time to carry out counter-terrorism operations if necessary,”said Le Drian.

As the battle against extremism in Mali shows no signs of abating, international donors have pledged €3.25bn to its rebuilding, as currently the country is in a state of complete destitution.

May 21 2013

De l’antiracisme à Égalité & Réconciliation : rencontre avec Farida Belghoul

À la fin de l’année 1983, suite aux incidents de l’été entre des jeunes de la banlieue lyonnaise et la police, se déroulait la « Marche pour l’égalité et contre le racisme », plus connue sous l’appellation « Marche des Beurs ». L’année suivante, une jeune femme du nom de Farida Belghoul organisait une seconde marche : « Convergence 84 ». Vingt-neuf ans plus tard, en exclusivité pour Égalité & Réconciliation, elle livre sa version de l’histoire, qui diffère radicalement du roman antiraciste officiel…

Farida Belghoul rencontre E&R (1/2)

Farida Belghoul rencontre E&R (2/2)