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Checked the last couple of pages and did not see this posted, apologies if it is a repost: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWSOIXS5o3c quote:VICE commissioned renowned photojournalist and videographer Robert King to embed on the front lines with the Free Syrian Army in Aleppo. War-zone chaos ensued. In this episode, Assad forces hit Al Qusayr with a rocket attack while Robert is filming - it was targeted directly.  VERY graphic NSFW footage
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Oct 23, 2012 06:09
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Squalid posted:That summary of Kuwaiti politics reminded me i dont unxerstand the first thing about arab tribal identity. Like i associate the word tribe with ethnicity, and would normally imagine a tribe shares something like language that separates them from outsiders, but that obviously doesnt apply in the middle east where everyone is an arab and speaks arabic. I mean, what binds a tribe together? Especially in a wealthy modern state like Kuwait? Are they just a codified system of nepotism? Or do they provide valuable services to their members not offered by the state? Does everyone have a tribe in Kuwait or are they an achaic institution only preserved by the jerkoff Saudi immigrants. The entire institution seems weird and alien to my western conceptions of identity and governance, which i guess are mostly shaped by the institution of the nation-state and racial identity groupings. Just think of it as a very large extended family. Just like you belong to the family you were born into, your family belongs to a specific tribe. Not everyone has a tribe, it's mostly the Bedouins who still care about tribal identity. The "hadar" (literally, "Modern" people) either don't belong to a tribe or don't care that they do. Family names and reputation are still very important though, the first thing most older people ask when they meet you is your father's name. The tribes have their own leaders, and the benefit to belonging to a tribe is the leader can receive your concerns and convey them to someone else. This is why the have preliminary elections, to guarantee nobody splits the vote in the tribal areas and everyone gets his leader in. Of course nepotism is another benefit but GCC society is built on nepotism. This doesn't mean there aren't still ethnic groupings though.
This feels like a writeup explaining star trek races or something. This is all very poorly documented too, I almost wish I studied a field this was relevant to because the thesis writes itself.
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Oct 23, 2012 06:53
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THE AWESOME GHOST posted:This feels like a writeup explaining star trek races or something. This is all very poorly documented too, I almost wish I studied a field this was relevant to because the thesis writes itself. You should just do what the US does and subsum your identities under blind patriotism and a crusader-like zealotry for free market capitalism and representative democracy.
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Oct 23, 2012 07:09
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colonelslime posted:You should just do what the US does and subsum your identities under blind patriotism and a crusader-like zealotry for free market capitalism and representative democracy. Well The speaker of Parliament for the longest time was the brother of the richest man in Kuwait (40th in the world at one point) so don't worry Capitalism still trumps all
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Oct 23, 2012 07:47
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This would be funny if it wasn't so disgusting:quote:According to Syrian state TV, President Bashar al-Assad has issued an amnesty for all crimes committed in Syria "up until today" - with the notable exclusion of "terrorist crimes".
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Oct 23, 2012 08:57
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Here's the latest Human Rights Watch report I've been helping out with, Syria: Despite Denials, More Cluster Bomb Attacks. Here's the report in video form https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruMWy7MRquc
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Oct 23, 2012 10:02
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CNN Türk is reporting an anti-aircraft shell fired from Syria has hit a hospital in the Hatay province. There haven't been any reports of casualties or injuries yet. EDIT: The Daily Star clarifies that it was a health center that was hit. Still no news of casualties. If confirmed, I doubt that the attack was intended. It seems more like an unfortunate accident. QuoProQuid fucked around with this message at 13:37 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 12:19
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QuoProQuid posted:CNN Türk is reporting an anti-aircraft shell fired from Syria has hit a hospital in the Hatay province. There haven't been any reports of casualties or injuries yet. If that is confirmed (with casualties) this is going to be drat serious. I would go as far as saying that it might even force turkey's hand as far as setting up a buffer zone is concerned. [e]oops, focused on shell and overlooked the AA bit. Still, an AA "shell"? I thought the general term was round? Munin fucked around with this message at 13:53 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 12:27
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Not disputing the claim, but honestly, why would Syria shoot an anti aircraft shell at all, why would it be directed towards Turkey, and as an off chance, why would it hit a Turkey hospital of all places. Considering it's a hospital, then it would more than likely be bad loving luck, or most likely be intentional. Why would it be beneficial in any circumstance for Syria to intentionally attack a Turk hospital. Let's be a little bit realistic here and until there is proof by an independent observer, say that it's pretty loving detrimental and unlikely this event took place as a STATE RUN NEWS AGENCY (are you loving serious? Might as well be Fars reporting this if their allegiance was aligned) reports. The same case can be made for the Kurds that Turkey is easily siding with the Syrian regime giving them no rock and a hard place position in this revolution.
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Oct 23, 2012 13:13
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Lascivious Sloth posted:Not disputing the claim, but honestly, why would Syria shoot an anti aircraft shell at all, why would it be directed towards Turkey, and as an off chance, why would it hit a Turkey hospital of all places. Considering it's a hospital, then it would more than likely be bad loving luck, or most likely be intentional. Why would it be beneficial in any circumstance for Syria to intentionally attack a Turk hospital. It's not a terribly unbelievable report, one possibility is that the FSA (or someone else) was firing at an aircraft near the border, some of their shots missed and landed in Turkey. The ones that landed in empty fields didn't get noticed, the ones that landed on hospitals did.
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Oct 23, 2012 13:30
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Also an anti-aircraft shell could be a lot of things, are we talking a 23mm round, or something larger? If would also give a clearer indication of who could have fired it in the first place.
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Oct 23, 2012 13:39
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Thus, to say, that this would force Turkey's hand to form a buffer zone is unfounded, as we have no facts, I hope you'd agree. The Fars and Al-Arabiya "news agencies" have made similar cases and reports without fact, trying to instigate discussions on unfounded claims, and no evidence.
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Oct 23, 2012 13:49
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Lascivious Sloth posted:Thus, to say, that this would force Turkey's hand to form a buffer zone is unfounded, as we have no facts, I hope you'd agree. The Fars and Al-Arabiya "news agencies" have made similar cases and reports without fact, trying to instigate discussions on unfounded claims, and no evidence. Yeah, as with most initial reports in this conflict absence of confirmation it is nothing. I did a quick news search and the top hit for "turkey shell hospital" is: http://en.trend.az/news/incident/2080014.html That snippet mentions the source as an article in Habertürk and it certainly doesn't seem to be making any headlines there.
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Oct 23, 2012 14:02
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Reuters has confirmed that a shell hit the hospital, but no injuries have been reported yet.
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Oct 23, 2012 16:10
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Lascivious Sloth posted:Not disputing the claim, but honestly, why would Syria shoot an anti aircraft shell at all, why would it be directed towards Turkey, and as an off chance, why would it hit a Turkey hospital of all places. Considering it's a hospital, then it would more than likely be bad loving luck, or most likely be intentional. Why would it be beneficial in any circumstance for Syria to intentionally attack a Turk hospital. Exactly what does the Syrian government have to gain from firing mortars into Turkey for up to a week? Nothing? Right then, so it's confirmed that they're not acting in a logical manner. I would like it to be "unrealistic" for this situation to have happened but it is well past the point where that seems possible. Deliberate or accidental doesn't make much difference at this point because Syria has shown they do not respect Turkey since they continue to have ordinance land in Turkey, and worse, actually kill civilians. Setting up a DMZ and blasting anything that comes within 10km would be a good idea to deter repeats of this stuff and I think Turkey is heading there quickly and that they cannot fail to retaliate for these attacks, as they've been doing thus far.
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Oct 23, 2012 16:38
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So apparently the Emir of Qatar visited Gaza and got a lot of praises from Hamas leader. I'm curious what the "conspiracy theorists" have to say about this...? 
Section 31 fucked around with this message at 18:11 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 18:09
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Al Jazeera reports that the Syrian insurgents have begun to distribute $150 paychecks to each fighter in Aleppo. The program is set to expand nationwide:quote:Colonel Abdul Salam Humaidi defected from the army after 30 years in service, because he says the regime is corrupt and sectarian. He’s now the financial official in the Revolutionary Military Council, and is overseeing the first wave of remittance. HAH! I knew they were foreign thugs paid by their CIA/Mossad masters... 
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Oct 23, 2012 19:10
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Why, with $150 dollars they could be saving up to something like... A BRAND NEW CAR!  I'm feeling half tempted to get over there myself to get a piece of that sweet cash action*. *Action because I'd be getting shot at, mostly.
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Oct 23, 2012 20:08
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Section 31 posted:Al Jazeera reports that the Syrian insurgents have begun to distribute $150 paychecks to each fighter in Aleppo. The program is set to expand nationwide:  Money money money!This is a very interesting development. Hopefully it will help to reign in any sort of post-civil war militia violence through accountability.
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Oct 23, 2012 20:09
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Certainly a good way to get their names, at least.
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Oct 23, 2012 20:31
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PleasingFungus posted:I think you'll find that the PIAT was a fine weapon (against WW2-era armor) which the Syrian rebels would be well-advised to emulate (if they actually had professional manufacturing capabilities, instead of welding together some piece of poo poo that's more likely to blow up in their faces than in the enemies'). I think you meant to quote someone else. I'm still wondering whether new FSA fighters usually receive training before fighting in the war against Assad. How organized is the FSA? Are there many safe zones where they can train, regroup, and resupply before going back to fight regime forces?
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Oct 23, 2012 20:31
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Chamale posted:I think you meant to quote someone else. I've seen training camps associated with various brigades and battalions, but it seems pretty much down to where you happen to be. It's also better to say the armed opposition, as the FSA now really separate from other groups that make up the opposition, such as al-Nusra Front.
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Oct 23, 2012 20:42
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Chamale posted:I think you meant to quote someone else. The impression I have gotten through reports is that the Free Syrian Army (FSA) consists of whoever wants to call themselves the FSA. The group is incredibly disorganized, to the point where high ranking officials have difficulties getting the individual brigades to obey direct orders. FSA coordination rarely extends beyond neighboring towns and never to the provincial or national level. Some areas have training camps but the quality of these facilities tend to vary dramatically from region to region. There were reports in early August about the United States and France deploying officials to act as advisers to the FSA and help training. Rebels say they would prefer heavy weapons to combat Assad's air force. However, the West is hesitant about sending these weapons because they fear the weapons will end up in the hands of jihadist groups like Jabhat Nursa. Observers were alarmed last week when video was released showing rebels with shoulder fired anti-aircraft missiles. We aren't sure who has supplied them yet. EDIT: Brown Moses is completely right about the distinction between the FSA and opposition. There are about 30 groups including the FSA that make up the opposition. QuoProQuid fucked around with this message at 20:56 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 20:52
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I understand, thanks. What QuoProdQuid said certainly relates to what I saw in the Presidential debate last night - both Obama and Romney say they want to help "moderates" in the Syrian opposition without giving weapons to jihadist groups.
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Oct 23, 2012 20:54
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Chamale posted:I understand, thanks. What QuoProdQuid said certainly relates to what I saw in the Presidential debate last night - both Obama and Romney say they want to help "moderates" in the Syrian opposition without giving weapons to jihadist groups. The biggest problem with this is that there are battalions within the Free Syrian Army that are happy to work with extremist groups. Many of these extremist groups have informal networks to bring in weapons and experienced fighters. This is vital in a conflict characterized by untrained fighters and weapon shortages. In interviews FSA coordinators have admitted, "groups such as Al-Nusra have experienced fighters who are like the revolution's elite commando troops". We've seen reports of Jabhat Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham working with the FSA to execute bombings and assaults on government strongholds. QuoProQuid fucked around with this message at 21:10 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 21:07
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A mis-firing missile, I found this rather amusing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeXBZpsjmQE
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Oct 23, 2012 21:09
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Brown Moses posted:A mis-firing missile, I found this rather amusing I certainly hope that's one of those warheads that has to go a specific distance to arm
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Oct 23, 2012 21:16
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This was just posted by Ship to Gaza: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcIdyJtmYgI The guy screaming in the megaphone reminded my of captain Haddock in The Red Sea Sharks  .e: punctuation e2: Oh, and there is another video that shows first contact with IDF: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpbe4C859rw The clips was allegedly smuggled out by carrier pigeon, which you can see briefly in the first video. Qvark fucked around with this message at 21:37 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 21:17
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I feel like this is a completely different planet from 40 years ago. Imagine the Korean or Vietnam wars, and then reconcile that reality of guerrilla warfare with the reality of guerrilla squads with official Facebook pages and paychecks.
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Oct 23, 2012 21:51
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Munin posted:If that is confirmed (with casualties) this is going to be drat serious. I would go as far as saying that it might even force turkey's hand as far as setting up a buffer zone is concerned. They also have some 57 and 85mm flak - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_equipment_and_uniform_of_the_Syrian_Arab_Army#Towed_anti-aircraft_artillery
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Oct 23, 2012 22:00
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^^^ I've certainly seen 57mm AA guns in the hands of the opposition, not many though. I've just put together a new collection of cluster bomb clips showing some of the more unusual videos, Selected Cluster Bomb Videos October 17th - 23rd. Following on from my blog post on the subject yet another Metis AT missile has been spotted, they seem to be making quite a few appearances recently https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iA2tRF1seQ8 Brown Moses fucked around with this message at 22:19 on Oct 23, 2012 |
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Oct 23, 2012 22:14
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Lascivious Sloth posted:This would be funny if it wasn't so disgusting: Maybe I'm just conflating things from the Gaddafi conflict, but isn't it a semi-common tactic to issue amnesties, make structural changes or other such announcements in moments of weakness to distract the opposition and appear benevolent? Perhaps timed to take attention off the fact that the FSA appears pretty close to controlling all but one major supply route into northern Syria.
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Oct 23, 2012 22:38
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I was under the impression that FSA was just a brand name for anyone participating in the opposition; I guess the disparity of organization and the sheer number of different parties involved that are separate even from the FSA really hammers home how volatile of a situation post-Assad Syria may well be. What is the chance that these groups could turn on each other even before the end of the regime?
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Oct 23, 2012 22:42
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spacetimecontinuu posted:I was under the impression that FSA was just a brand name for anyone participating in the opposition; I guess the disparity of organization and the sheer number of different parties involved that are separate even from the FSA really hammers home how volatile of a situation post-Assad Syria may well be. What is the chance that these groups could turn on each other even before the end of the regime? I think it's pretty high, especially when you considering the increasing numbers of foreign jihadists and the Kurdish issues. The irony is that attempts to unify everyone under the banner of the Free Syrian Army seems to have just made everyone splinter off into their own little factions.
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Oct 23, 2012 22:51
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Apparently an arms factory in Khartoum just totally exploded. Probably an accident, but some witnesses are alleging an attack. I don't think the SPLA or its offshoots, nor any Darfuri rebel group, currently have capacity to launch a major urban attack in the city. That all could change, though.
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Oct 23, 2012 22:58
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MothraAttack posted:Apparently an arms factory in Khartoum just totally exploded. Probably an accident, but some witnesses are alleging an attack. I don't think the SPLA or its offshoots, nor any Darfuri rebel group, currently have capacity to launch a major urban attack in the city. That all could change, though. Proportionately, Khartoum has way too much money to be at any risk from the South. The income distribution there is ridiculous.
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Oct 23, 2012 23:33
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Regarding that AA shell that hit that Turkish hospital, in case anyone didn't know, AA guns can be fired in other direction besides up at airplanes/helicopters. AA guns make great anti-infantry weapons as well. As we saw in the Libyan civil war, a pickup truck with a Anti-air gun mounted on the back pointed at enemy soldiers makes a great weapon. Perhaps either rebels or government forces were using something like this and a shell landed in Turkey,unfortunately at a hospital 
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Oct 24, 2012 00:58
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I was just doing some research on Monsanto for a sustainability project, and on their website they list Syria as one of the places that they invest in. Since this has been going on for over a year now, that can't be a mistake, can it?
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Oct 24, 2012 01:18
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change my name posted:I was just doing some research on Monsanto for a sustainability project, and on their website they list Syria as one of the places that they invest in. Since this has been going on for over a year now, that can't be a mistake, can it? LOL its really no surprise that Monsanto invests in Syria.
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Oct 24, 2012 01:53
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Brown Moses posted:Following on from my blog post on the subject yet another Metis AT missile has been spotted, they seem to be making quite a few appearances recently Using a premier anti-tank rocket to shoot a building seems like a waste. Do they have tons to spare or just a more pressing lack of RPGs? Edit: I guess it could be an older Metis model. However, it seems odd to use a wire-guided anti-tank missile against an immobile building. Torpor fucked around with this message at 03:34 on Oct 24, 2012 |
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Oct 24, 2012 03:29
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