Russia positioning tanks at Syria airfield: U.S. officials
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Russia has positioned about a half dozen tanks at a Syrian airfield where it has been steadily building up defenses, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter.
Some of the most compelling photographs from RFE/RL's broadcast region and beyond. For more photo galleries, see our "Picture This" archive by clicking on the banner above.
The top United Nations human rights official has voiced concern at efforts by governments, including China and Russia, to silence critics.
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Taliban insurgents stormed a prison outside the Afghan city of Ghazni, 120 kilometers southwest of the capital, Kabul, killing guards and releasing more than 400 inmates. Suicide bombers apparently used a car to destroy the main entrance of the mud fort being being used as a prison. Ghazni's deputy governor, Mohammed Ali Ahmadi, said 80 inmates had been recaptured but 352 were on the run, including about 150 Taliban. (Reuters)
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, about 95,000 soldiers are taking part in the drills, along with dozens of military jets and naval ships.
The European Union has extended by six months a visa ban and asset freeze targeting several close associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin and others involved in Russia's annexation of Crimea and the pro-Russian rebellion in eastern Ukraine.
Switzerland's Attorney General Michael Lauber says property and apartments in the Swiss Alps have been seized as part of a corruption probe of FIFA, world soccer's governing body.
Police and military forces mistakenly shot at a Mexican tourist convoy while pursuing militants in the country’s Western Desert, killing at least 12 people, officials said.
Western faith in the universality and goodness of liberal democracy has wavered under the challenges of internal splits and movements like Islamism.
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Freer flows of people, goods and data globally can actually separate some people and communities from each other.
The ministers will gather in Brussels after Germany imposed temporary border restrictions, cutting off rail service from Austria and checking cars.
Russia’s real aim is not to beat ISIS, but to prop up its puppet, Bashar al-Assad.
Afghan security officials inspecting the main prison in the southern province of Ghazni on Monday after a deadly attack by Taliban militants.
Russian Flights Over Iraq and Iran Escalate Tension With U.S.by ERIC SCHMITT and MICHAEL R. GORDON
Moscow has been ferrying military equipment and personnel over the countries to Syria, despite stark American warnings against such shipments.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for an emergency meeting to discuss the outbreak, mostly undertaken by Palestinian youths.
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The current crisis is just the latest —and far from the worst — to reshape Europe’s population and politics.
A record 5,809 migrants entered Hungary in a new surge yesterday, smashing the previous day's record of 4,330 - but that figure could be eclipsed today.
Refugee crisis: EU governments set to back new internment camps by Ian Traynor in Brussels
Brussels meeting is also expected to water down demands that at least 22 countries accept obligatory quotas for refugees
EU governments are expected to back radical new plans for the internment of “irregular migrants”, the creation of large new refugee camps in Italy and Greece and longer-term aims for the funding and building of refugee camps outside the EU to try to stop people coming to Europe.
A crunch meeting of EU interior ministers in Brussels, called to grapple with Europe’s largest refugee crisis since the second world war, was also expected to water down demands from the European commission, strongly supported by Germany, for the obligatory sharing of refugees across at least 22 countries.
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Two car bombs in the northern Syrian city of Hassakeh have killed at least 20 people and injured 40, state TV reports.
A plane not certified to fly for long over water safely flew from Los Angeles to Hawaii last month, American Airlines has confirmed.
At least nine people have been killed in two separate US drone strikes in Yemen's southwestern and northern provinces of Hadhramaut and Jawf.
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German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has said 'significant progress' had been made toward a resolution of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
Yemen's exiled government says it will not participate in U.N.-brokered peace talks unless Houthi rebels, in accordance with a U.N. resolution, withdraw from territory the rebels have captured.
Washington should invest more in space operations as they become increasingly vital to military missions against "potential adversaries," says a senior US Air Force commander.
A top U.S. diplomat said Saturday that sanctions against Russia for its role in the Ukraine crisis would remain in place until a long-violated truce agreement was fully honored.
Russian aggression is of concern to the 28-member NATO alliance, with Moscow likely knowing that going into Ukraine is much different than 'crossing a NATO border,' the commander of U.S. forces in Europe said.
The Islamic State (ISIL) militants were forced to withdraw several kilometers away from a military airfield in the Deir ez-Zor province in Syria, according to a source in Syrian army.
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By Glynn CoskerManaging Editor, In Homeland Security
Since 9/11, never has the United States experienced more jihadist inspired terror plots in any full year than in 2015.
The surge of terror-related events point to increasing concern over new attempts on U.S. soil, according to the Terror Threat Snapshot, a new dashboard public-reporting tool, prepared and distributed by the House Homeland Security Committee headed by Chairman Michael McCaul.
The post New ‘Terror Threat Snapshot’ Reports Terror Events Increased in 2015 appeared first on In Homeland Security.
The Iranian Islamic regime was directly involved in the killing of more than 500 American service members in Iraq by supplying Shiite extremists with advanced roadside bombs, rocket-propelled explosives and other munitions, military officials say.
The 500-plus number, during fighting between 2005 and 2011, became the focus of debate last ...
Human rights groups say President Obama's opening bid of accepting 10,000 Syrian refugees next year is far too timid in the face of the humanitarian catastrophe playing out in the Middle East, and even his own party colleagues in Congress are preparing to raise him tenfold, calling for the U.S. ...
BERLIN (AP) - The latest developments as European governments rush to cope with the huge number of people moving across Europe. All times local (CET):
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11:35 a.m.
Over 5,800 people fleeing their homelands have entered Hungary in one day, by far the highest number this year, as the country ...
There was a time when the arrival of Alexander Borodai and his posse of camouflaged gunmen could clear out a restaurant in just minutes.
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Throughout the summer, Russia’s forces in eastern Ukraine kept up a daily drumbeat of attacks on the Ukrainian army, inflicting significant casualties while avoiding a response by Western governments. On Sept. 1, following a new cease-fire, the guns suddenly fell silent. Optimists speculated that Vladimir Putin was backing down.
A hearing on Thursday will lead to a decision whether to court-martial Sergeant Bergdahl,29, who was captured and held by the Taliban for five years.Russian Flights Over Iraq and Iran Escalate Tension With U.S.by By ERIC SCHMITT and MICHAEL R. GORDON
Moscow has been ferrying military equipment and personnel over the countries to Syria, despite stark American warnings against such shipments.
On Sunday, at least 15 militants were killed after military jets bombed the Mana area of Shawal Valley in northwest Pakistan.Don’t Trust Putin on Syria by By ANDREW FOXALL
Russia’s real aim is not to beat ISIS, but to prop up its puppet, Bashar al-Assad.
America’s energy infrastructure is getting bombarded through cyber warfare — attacks that are getting through and which if the big one hits, would signal lights out on huge population centers. It’s not a computer game. It’s real, which is constantly testing corporate resolve.
Kudos to USA Today for getting its hands on the Energy Department’s Joint Cybersecurity Coordination Center, which indicates a steady barrage of assaults on the nation’s vital infrastructure and its energy laboratories.
The post Utilities Engaged In Hand-To-Hand Cyber Combat To Keep The Lights On appeared first on In Homeland Security.
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By William Tucker
Chief Correspondent for In Homeland Security
Chief Correspondent for In Homeland Security
Russia has come to populate media headlines as of late traversing topics related to Syria, Ukraine, China, economics and, of course, U.S. policy. This is hardly surprising given the number of profound issues facing the world and Russia’s perceived place in it, yet the nearly exclusive focus on Moscow deserves analysis.
The post Russia Escalating Involvement in Syria appeared first on In Homeland Security.
September 14, 2015, 4:23 PM (IDT)
The Taliban carried out a predawn surprise attack Monday on a maximum-security prison in Afghanistan, enabling over 350 prisoners to escape.
Four policemen were killed during the assault, in which dozens of insurgents attacked the prison after a suicide bomber blew himself up at the gate. The Afghan Interior Ministry said nearly 150 of the escapees are security threats.
The prison located near Ghazni, central Afghanistan, is about 120 kilometers from Kabul.
Four policemen were killed during the assault, in which dozens of insurgents attacked the prison after a suicide bomber blew himself up at the gate. The Afghan Interior Ministry said nearly 150 of the escapees are security threats.
The prison located near Ghazni, central Afghanistan, is about 120 kilometers from Kabul.
September 14, 2015, 4:54 PM (IDT)
Russia kicked off its annual large-scale military exercise on Monday with a goal of testing the readiness of its forces, amid rising concerns over Moscow’s recent flexing of its muscles including the buildup of its forces in Syria.
About 95,000 Russian troops are participating in the Centre-2015 exercise alongside forces from former Soviet states such as Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The war games will include 170 fighter jets and 20 warships.
Centre-2015 is scheduled to take place in 20 locations, spanning an area from the Volga River to the Ural Mountains and Siberia. The exercise by ground, air and naval forces is to conclude on September 20.
About 95,000 Russian troops are participating in the Centre-2015 exercise alongside forces from former Soviet states such as Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The war games will include 170 fighter jets and 20 warships.
Centre-2015 is scheduled to take place in 20 locations, spanning an area from the Volga River to the Ural Mountains and Siberia. The exercise by ground, air and naval forces is to conclude on September 20.
CNNMoney |
Economists don't see a major slowdown in China
CNNMoney ... continue to pile up. But for now, analysts are taking the long view, arguing that weakness is part of China's "new normal" -- an extended period of slower expansion as the country transitions from an infrastructure-led economy to one driven by ... and more » |
Los Angeles Times |
China, a wounded tiger, could lash out
Los Angeles Times The Chinese Communist Party's power has long rested on four pillars: economic growth, nationalism, repression and communist ideology. The last of these withered away almost entirely as China liberalized its economy, with slogans such as "Long live the ... China issues blueprint for state industry overhaulWashington Times China unveils overhaul of bloated state sectorMarketWatch China issues blueprint on overhauling bloated state industryYahoo News all 73 China issues blueprint for state industry overhaulUSA TODAY Fox News all 63 news articles » |
Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news.
IRAQ and SYRIA
Russia is flying military equipment and personnel to Syria via an air corridor over Iraq and Iran, in defiance of US attempts to prevent shipments to the country’s Assad regime. [New York Times’ Eric Schmitt and Michael R. Gordon]
The US, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Syrian opposition leaders have been in talks on side-lining Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad since at least June,Bloomberg reported today. Russia is said to have expressed a willingness to allow Assad be eased out of power.
Refugee situation. House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul said that refugees taken in by the US must be properly vetted first as “[w]e don’t know who they are,” on ABC News’ “This Week,” saying he would “take ISIS at its word” that it would use the crisis to infiltrate the west. Presidential candidate Ben Carson echoed this sentiment, saying background checks should be carried out on all Syrian migrants and refugees, in an interview on NPR. And UK Prime Minister David Cameron is paying a visit to a Lebanese refugee camp following the country’s pledge to accept 20,000 Syrian refugees over the next five years. [BBC]
Syrians are finding it increasingly difficult to flee the country, forced to traverse tightened Turkish security measures along its border with Syria, reports Raja Abdulrahim. [Wall Street Journal]
The interests of the US and Iran “clash and converge,” report Tim Arango and David D. Kirkpatrick, discussing the increasingly complex relationship between the two in relation to their involvement in conflicts abroad, including the battle against ISIS in Iraq. [New York Times]
The US has made “remarkable progress” against the Islamic State in the last year, according to Gen John Allen speaking on ABC News’ “This Week.”
The mood in the Syrian capital, Damascus is of “fatalism and fear,” reports Ian Black, describing daily life in the war-torn city. [The Guardian]
“Diplomacy, partition, intervention.” Martin Chulov explores potential scenarios for conflict ridden Syria, at the Guardian.
Hopes for a diplomatic conclusion to the Syrian conflict have been stemmed by a recent hardening of positions on both sides, writes The Economist.
“[I]t’s time to admit that our response to the so-called Islamic State has been an abject failure,”argues Bruce Hoffman, explaining that the militant group is winning the war, and describing the steps necessary to stem its expansion, at Politico Magazine.
“We must not let Mr Putin dictate the terms of cooperation.” Andrew Foxall argues that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin must not be trusted with respect to the situation in Syria, at the New York Times.
UKRAINE and RUSSIA
A two-week-old ceasefire between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists has seen some measure of success, leading the foreign ministers of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine to urge all parties to build on that progress, reports Alison Smale. [New York Times]
Some self-proclaimed volunteer fighters from Russia in the Ukrainian conflict have returned home, with many former rebel leaders resuming “comfortable, increasingly public lives in Moscow.” [Washington Post’s Andrew Roth]
Moscow is shifting fronts both in Ukraine and Syria, writes Jackson Diehl, commenting that it is not yet clear what President Putin’s intentions are in either country. [Washington Post]
AFGHANISTAN
Taliban leader Mullah Omar died from natural causes in Afghanistan, his son said in a statement, urging unity among members of the insurgent group. The audio recording released last night has been authenticated by Taliban sources. [Reuters]
The Afghan Taliban stormed a prison on the outskirts of the central city of Ghazni today, killing police and releasing over 400 inmates, officials said. [Reuters’ Mustafa Andalib] The Taliban has confirmed its responsibility for the incident. [BBC]
ISRAEL and PALESTINE
Palestinians and Israeli police clashed in Jerusalem’s Old City at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound yesterday ahead of the Jewish new year; tensions ran high over the past week as two Muslim civilian groups were banned from the compound by defense minister Moshe Yaalon. [The Guardian’s Kate Shuttleworth]
The UN’s Middle East envoy has called for respect of holy sites in Jerusalem following the incident on Sunday. [UN News Centre]
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will convene an emergency meeting tomorrow evening to discuss “the war on stone throwing and fire bombs in Jerusalem and its vicinity,” according to a statement released this morning by his office. [Haaretz’s Barak Ravid]
GUANTÁNAMO BAY
The Pentagon and the White House are trading barbs over the delay in plans to close Guantánamo Bay detention facility in Cuba, with frustrations aired over slow progress in releasing cleared detainees and finding a new facility to move those remaining, reports Lolita C. Baldor. [AP]
Hunger striker Tariq Ba Odah is dangerously ill, according to his lawyers, challenging a military doctor’s claim that the prisoner is stable enough to remain at the facility. [Miami Herald]
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
Egyptian security forces mistakenly killed 12 tourists and guides, including at least two Mexicans and 10 others after they “accidentally” attacked vehicles in the country’s western desert while “chasing terrorist elements,” officials said. [New York Times’ Liam Stack] Mexico’s president condemned the attack and called on Egypt to initiate an investigation. [Washington Post’s Erin Cunningham] The Guardian has a rolling report here.
Al-Qaeda’s leader Ayman al-Zawahiri has urged lone wolf attacks amongst young Muslim men in the US and other western nations and called for greater unity among militants. [Reuters]
The majority of civilian deaths in Yemen’s conflict are caused by Saudi-led coalition airstrikes, often dropping American munitions; Kareem Fahim discusses the campaign which has drawn wide criticism for “collectively punishing” people living in parts of the country under Houthi control. [New York Times]
A bomb explosion at a bus terminal in Pakistan’s city of Multan today killed at least 10 people and wounded 40 others, officials said. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. [BBC]
There is no indication that Hillary Clinton’s private server was “wiped,” according to the company responsible for managing it, meaning that tens of thousands of emails deleted by the former secretary of state could be recovered. [Washington Post’s Rosalind S. Helderman]
Consensus has been reached on the key aspects of a political agreement aimed at resolving the ongoing crisis in Libya, the UN envoy for that country announced. [UN News Centre]
The majority of the American public disapproves of President Obama’s handling of US-Iran relations, according to a new CNN/ORC poll released yesterday.
The Obama-era mantra that “things could be worse” has had a paralyzing effect which must be stopped, opines Garry Kasparov, pointing to the global crises marked out by US inaction caused by Obama’s “timidity and procrastination.” [Wall Street Journal]
Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl needs to be held “accountable” for his alleged desertion of his base in Afghanistan in 2009, according to former Navy SEAL Jimmy Hatch, who said Bergdahl “needs to know how much was risked” trying to save him from the Taliban, in an interview on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360” on Friday.
The Army plans to expand its aerial exploitation battalion forces, providing the military with a greater number of manned intelligence missions around the world. [The Hill’s Kristina Wong]
Over half of Japan’s population opposes government plans to enact a law that would allow troops to fight overseas for the first time since WWII, a newspaper poll said today. [Reuters]
“The only time the US Government pretends to care in the slightest about human rights abuses is when they’re carried out by ‘countries that don’t cooperate’,” writes Glenn Greenwald, adding that support for oppressive regimes is a “staple” of American foreign policy. [The Intercept]
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Israel is entering a sensitive, problematic situation diplomacy-wise.
Russia is sending signals to the U.S. and Saudi Arabia that it may allow Syria’s embattled leader Bashar al-Assad to be eased out of power as it seeks to forge a united front against Islamic State and retain influence in the region, officials and Syrian opposition leaders said.
Officials from the three countries, as well as from the opposition, have been negotiating possible terms for sidelining Assad since at least June, when President Vladimir Putin hosted Saudi King Salman’s son, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed, they said. Saudi Arabia is Assad’s main regional enemy, while Russia is his longtime ally. Since then, Russia’s whirlwind diplomacy has brought key officials from across the region to Moscow for talks.
Syria’s civil war has traumatized the Middle East, spilling into neighbors and enabling the rise of Islamic State amid the turmoil. The latest Russian-backed efforts to end the conflict come as its fallout spreads westwards, with hundreds of thousands of migrants seeking refuge in the European Union.
Like every other aspect of the war in Syria, though, Russia’s policy isn’t straightforward. U.S. and Russian officials say they’re weighing a transition plan that would strip Assad of power while remaining interim head of state.
Putin Gambit
“There’s a convergence on the threat of ISIS,” Paul Salem, vice president of the Middle East Institute in Washington, said by phone, using an acronym for Islamic State. “This convergence wasn’t there when they last tried diplomacy two years ago.”
Yet at the same time, Russia is ramping up military aid to Syria, home to its only naval base outside the former Soviet Union. Big questions remain, the U.S. official stressed, including whether Putin really is prepared to see Assad marginalized and, if so, whether he can persuade him to go quietly.
U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia is set to start flying combat missions from a new air hub inside Syria, other American officials said. Putin may be betting that an increased military presence will either help Assad stay in power or give Russia more sway in influencing the outcome of the crisis if the Syrian leader is forced out.
ISIS controls as much as half of the country, while rebel militias backed by the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar are gaining ground, leaving only about a fifth under the government’s firm control, according to Amos Gilad, a senior Israeli defense official. That area is home to most of the population, though, including key urban centers such as the capital, Damascus.
Diplomacy or War?
If Putin continues to escalate his support for Assad, the Saudis, who are suspicious of the Russian leader’s intentions, will respond by stepping up their aid to the rebels, according to Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi commentator and former government adviser.
“The fact that the Russians are sending servicemen to Syria now proves that it’s not diplomacy, it’s war,” he said.
Publicly, Russia remains far apart from the U.S. and its allies on Syria. Asked if Russia would accept Assad staying on in a purely ceremonial role, Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said that “only the Syrian people can decide the fate of Syria, not some outside countries.”
If the gap is narrowing behind the scenes, it may largely be due to Islamic State. Putin came to power fighting Islamist separatists in the Caucasus, and has reason to fear the rise of jihadists in Syria. Their numbers include about 1,000 Russian-speakers, Elena Suponina, a Moscow-based Mideast expert, has estimated, raising the threat of attacks inside Russia.
Road Map
Putin is more interested in defeating Islamic State and retaining influence in the Middle East than he is in propping up an increasingly weak ally, according to the Soufan Group, a U.S. security consultancy run by a former counter-terrorism official at the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The U.S.-Russian overlap may help shape a new road map put forward by the UN’s special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura. It calls for reducing Assad’s role to “protocol” only, London-based Al-Hayat newspaper reported Sept. 1.
The UN envoy is assembling working groups of Syrian government and opposition figures for a process dubbed Geneva 3, after two inconclusive rounds of talks in the Swiss city.
“The contours of a deal should be ready by year-end,” said Qadri Jamil, a Kurdish politician and former Syrian deputy premier who now lives in Moscow.
UN Address
Hassan Abdel Aziz, an Assad opponent who flew to Moscow from Damascus for talks, said there’s broad agreement that senior posts in the transitional government will be split evenly between current officials and the opposition, though die-hard Assad loyalists will be excluded.
Putin said last week that Assad agreed to hold early parliamentary elections and invite “healthy” opposition groups into his government. The Russian leader may flesh out his plan when he addresses the United Nations General Assembly in New York later this month, according to Peskov.
Other countries will also need to be brought on board if Russia and the U.S. can find common ground. Saudi Arabia may accept Assad staying on as a powerless figurehead but only during the transition, said Haytham Manna, a Paris-based opposition leader who met with officials in Moscow last month.
Iran, Germany
Iran, Assad’s other main ally, will be forced to fall in line if Putin does “wash his hands” of Assad, said Mustafa Alani, the Dubai-based director of National Security and Terrorism Studies at the Gulf Research Center. Iran depends on the Kremlin diplomatically, particularly after Russia helped broker July’s historic nuclear accord, Alani said.
Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, which also negotiated the Iran deal and is the top destination for Syrian refugees, said Saturday that “there’ll be no resolution” to the conflict without cooperation from Russia and the U.S.
While the former Cold War foes have different priorities in Syria, they haven’t always been at loggerheads. Putin averted U.S. airstrikes on Syria in 2013 by convincing Assad to hand over his chemical weapons. In March, Secretary of State John Kerry gestured toward the Russian position when he said the U.S. and its allies would have to negotiate with Assad.
Arms Flow
But the signs that Putin is hedging its bets are still ringing alarm bells in Washington. Russia’s naval facility is just down the coast from the Assad family’s heartland, Latakia, which has seen an influx of Russian materiel and advisers in recent weeks. Two Russian planes carrying 80 tons of humanitarian aid arrived in Latakia on Saturday, Syria’s official Sana news agency said.
President Barack Obama said Russia’s deepening involvement will make it harder to dislodge Assad and find a political solution to the war.
“The strategy they’re pursuing now, doubling down on Assad, I think is a big mistake,” Obama told military personnel at Fort Meade, Maryland, on Friday.
Russia insists its personnel are only in Syria to help government troops operate the weapons being supplied, though it doesn’t rule out taking unspecified “additional measures” as required.
“The Russians are laying the groundwork for some kind of transition,” said Theodore Karasik, a U.A.E-based geopolitical analyst. “It’s just not going to match what the U.S. envisions.”
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The man who will take over the leadership of one of Britain's two major parties has said Britain should abolish its armed forces.
According to a report in The Sun, new Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn made the remarks against the existence of military units in 2012, at an ...
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