Clashes raging near military facilities in Syria's Aleppo

Clashes raging near military facilities in Syria's Aleppo

DAMASCUS, March 1 (Xinhua) -- Clashes continued Friday between government troops and rebel fighters at the vicinity of a police academy and military airbase in Syria's northern province of Aleppo, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The Observatory said three rebels were killed in the clashes that erupted Friday at Khan al-Asal town in Aleppo, adding that the clashes raged on in the vicinity of the police academy in the town.

Fresh fighting also took place near al-Nairab airbase, which is also close to the international airport of Aleppo, the Observatory said.

Now of course we'll hear phrases and labels being tossed back and forth such as "Rebels" and "Terrorists" in the story as this article attempts to give both sides perspectives. It's an interesting read.

So, Are the rebellious terrorists really making headway or are we being spoon fed here?

Taking out the academy would send a powerful signal.

Thoughts?

reply to post by SLAYER69


I’m not good at deciphering all the ME propaganda. To be frank, I don’t try anymore. I really don’t pay attention to it unless US troops are involved.

The only thing I find interesting is the parallel between what’s happening in Syria today and what might happen here in US one day. I can see the same civil conflict playing out here one day and the playbook Assad is using might be a blue print for Obama. In that regard, it’s interesting.

Other than that…I’ll leave the speculation on this to those of you who know more about it. I wish the oppressed people in Syria the best of luck in their fight!

Well the way I look at it, whole thing (ME) is pretty much related to the slowdown in the EU and NAmerican economies.
LINK
The support for the rebels was announced not too long ago by US and EU. John Kerry is overseas as a matter of fact in Turkey discussing who knows what.

reply to post by hp1229


I read that earlier with my morning coffee. In reference to the other thread I post earlier in the week on Syrian issue. It's obvious that this will continue.

Thanks for providing us the link.

reply to post by SLAYER69


We could have boots on the ground, I could be one of the "boots" and I probably wouldn't have a clear idea as to what's going on.

In my dealings and friendships with people from the ME, I've found that Machiavelli had NOTHING on these folks!

Allies, treaties, relations mean as much as a hill of beans.

Loyalty is to self and culture. I'm not trying to go off-topic here, just trying to illustrate that the mindset is very alien to a western culture and that any news from the area is interpreted from a western standpoint and would be suspect.

In my oft humble opinion.

Wonder who was doing the training?

Russia,Assad,CIA, or VEVAK/MOIS after 2 years they are still fighting much like the US experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan "rebels/terrorists" don't last long without funds, and weapons.

reply to post by SLAYER69

So, Are the rebellious terrorists really making headway or are we being spoon fed here?

In my opinion, all the indications seem to suggest that they are making headway. Especially in light of one of your previous threads:

Syria is ready to hold talks with the armed opposition trying to topple President Bashar Assad, the country's foreign minister said Monday, in the government's most advanced offer yet to try to resolve the 2-year-old civil war through negotiations.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

The willingness of the Assad regimes to hold talks seems like evidence to me that current Syrian political leaders are considering the possibility of losing the conflict outright.

As Seabag had mentioned, it is hard to filter out all the BS and no one can say for sure whether or not either side had made any real progress, if you even dare to call it that.

According to the majority of the major media reports, the rebels have successful captured or destroyed key military targets and bases of operation over the past few months and thus far all we have seen reported about regime forces is the random devastating attacks, but have yet to put down this uprising. So, at face value, the reports seem to indicate the FSA have reached some major milestones.

The zionist backed wahabis are taking over Syria, next I believe they will attempt to destroy Lebanon and Hezbollah, followed by Iraq and finally they will turn to Iran at which point the Iranians will teach them a lesson or two about fighting war; thus eliminating them and those who sponsor them.

The future of the Middle East belongs to Iran, I mean who else is there to counter her?

Egypt is split in half and any change or event could turn into a destructive civil war as the Islamists battle it out with the secularists.

Saudi Arabia is as strong as King Abdullah himself, if he dies tomorrow dozens of princes will claim the throne and the country will never unite, Saudi Arabia will cease to exist as each prince will proclaim himself righteous king and custodian of the holy places; this will turn bloody.

Which leaves Turkey, disliked by the Arab populace due to its unfair Ottoman era dark ages; its rule over Iraq, Syria, Egypt and other parts of it empire left such regions backward and made them easy prey for colonialism as they lacked any development, they (Ottomans) harvested these regions out of their resources only to develop Anatolia (modern day Turkey), as well as having other internal problems in which any action would be met with a reaction including popular coups. Turkey is also a part of NATO, which means she can only do as much as NATO wants (or in that case, Turkey can only do as much as whomever controls NATO wants).

Regardless of all this, Turkeys biggest rival and counter weight is Russia, an old time enemy adding to that the fact that Russia is with Syria and Iran; this puts turkey on the front lines.

Iran will role-in once the time is right, perhaps after a US attempted attack on Iran and a forced withdrawal from the region due to its inability to continue the war.

Yes I say this with complete faith that any attack on Iran will leave the US unable to maintain its forces in the region and will be forced to withdraw. As a war with Iran will later expand to Asia, where North Korea will spark her long awaited war of unification, once the US enters this road it will be downhill as the probability of conflict with Russia and China rises.

I personally believe the American home-front will be the main reason for such withdrawal as the American people pressurizes the powers that be to give the county back to the people sparking the 2nd American civil war, blood will be shed on soil and concrete but it will not be in vain.

To conclude my points, I think there will be a lot of death and suffering, it will be hard times for everyone on planet earth, but once its all over a new era should begin of peace and prosperity. Iran will defeat Israel at a heavy cost, at which point both Iran and Israel will cease to exist as countries, what remains of this people will sign a peace treaty and live together as would the entire world. I think most of the world would be destroyed and a lot of its population gone into the forever where they may rest in peace.

For those peoples and groups who would be alive at that time in the future, they will not allow oppression or starvation of their fellow brothers; those people will stand as one, the next war will be so destructive to the point that it will even destroy the borders and boundaries in our minds, there will not be such a thing as race, religion, or nationality; It will be just humanity.

Originally posted by neo96
Wonder who was doing the training?

Russia,Assad,CIA, or VEVAK/MOIS after 2 years they are still fighting much like the US experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan "rebels/terrorists" don't last long without funds, and weapons.

They are lucky a large base of the rebels are Syrian Army that went over to the other side and brought weapons and training with them. The training in particular is what is most needed. Its is easy to get outside supplies of weapons but, that does not do much good unless they are in the hands of trainined fighters. The rest of the world has provided some training but, the fact Syrian forces go over to the rebels everytime they meet means the rebels not only gain territory by staying on the offensive they also gain trained men with weapons. Assad going down is just a matter of time. Has to suck when you have to be afraid anytime your forces confront the rebels that a bunch of them join them. That is what happens when you try to have your Army start shooting your unarmed population.

reply to post by MrSpad

They are lucky a large base of the rebels are Syrian Army that went over to the other side and brought weapons and training with them

Wait what?

All I hear is how the US?CIA is behind the rebels.

The Syrian Arab Army has retaken a vital road leading to Hama.

reply to post by Agent_USA_Supporter


Your source?
Care to elaborate further?

reply to post by RizeorDie


Excellent analysis. Iran will ultimately be countered by the Sunni caliphate. But you posit excellent reasons for Zionist support of the Jihadis.

Originally posted by SLAYER69
Clashes raging near military facilities in Syria's Aleppo

DAMASCUS, March 1 (Xinhua) -- Clashes continued Friday between government troops and rebel fighters at the vicinity of a police academy and military airbase in Syria's northern province of Aleppo, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The Observatory said three rebels were killed in the clashes that erupted Friday at Khan al-Asal town in Aleppo, adding that the clashes raged on in the vicinity of the police academy in the town.

Aleppo is one of those cities that goes back and forth in terms of who controls it... If the rebels can take AND hold those facilities I think it owuld be not only a strategic victory, but a psychological one as well.

Originally posted by SLAYER69
Fresh fighting also took place near al-Nairab airbase, which is also close to the international airport of Aleppo, the Observatory said.

Denying use of an airbase to government forces is, in my opinion, pretty huge. Its the one area the government has an advantage over the rebels. Removing, or at least hampering, the use of military aircraft as well as helicopters (in terms of maintenance / refueling / equipping) could very well push the favor back into the realm of the rebels. On the ground, both sides seem to be somewhat evenly matched (depends on area of the country). The argument some may point out about just using other airbases are not going to be factoring in flight time, especially for helicopters. It will reduce the amount of time air assets can remain in the area in a support role.

Originally posted by SLAYER69
Now of course we'll hear phrases and labels being tossed back and forth such as "Rebels" and "Terrorists" in the story as this article attempts to give both sides perspectives. It's an interesting read.

I think we should look at the 2 terms in their most basic element -

reb·el
[n., adj. reb-uhl; v. ri-bel] Show IPA noun, adjective, verb, re·belled, re·bel·ling.

noun
1. a person who refuses allegiance to, resists, or rises in arms against the government or ruler of his or her country.

2. a person who resists any authority, control, or tradition.

adjective
3. rebellious; defiant.

4. of or pertaining to rebels.

verb (used without object), re·bel.
5. to reject, resist, or rise in arms against one's government or ruler.

6. to resist or rise against some authority, control, or tradition.

7. to show or feel utter repugnance: His very soul rebelled at spanking the child. .

ter·ror·ist
[ter-er-ist] Show IPA

noun
1. a person, usually a member of a group, who uses or advocates terrorism.

2. a person who terrorizes or frightens others.

3. (formerly) a member of a political group in Russia aiming at the demoralization of the government by terror.

4. an agent or partisan of the revolutionary tribunal during the Reign of Terror in France.

adjective
5. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of terrorism or terrorists: terrorist tactics.

A rebel is a person / group who goal is to effect political change by engaging the groups they are opposed to. The end result is to establish a new government.

A terrorist is a person who uses methods that go beyond just engaging legitimate military targets / political groups. The goal behind terrorism is to not only effect political change, but to force those who dont agree to either fall in line or be silent.

It effects change through fear and intimidation of the civilan population. The goal is to get those they terrorize to fall in line and to stop supporting the government in power. In essence they are attacking the wrong group for thr wrong reason.

Purposely hijacking and flying airplanes into civilian targets will not affect foreign policy. Generally speaking terrorism has a 100% failure rate. It does nothing but strengthen the resolve of the side they are trying to defeat. If we look at 9/11 and at the middle East today, we can see the attacks did not accomplish their goal.

Originally posted by SLAYER69
So, Are the rebellious terrorists really making headway or are we being spoon fed here?

Taking out the academy would send a powerful signal.

Thoughts?

I think the rebels (which have terrorist elements among them, just as the Syrian government has terrorist elements among them) are making headway. The constant defections over to the rebels all but assures their victory. The defection of higher ranking persons (Lt. Col's on up) speaks volumes as to their mindset in all of this. Just because they are in the military does not mean all of them support the regime. Just because they are Syrian does not mean they are all evil with the intent on killing all Syrians who oppse the government.

Right now all Assad is doing is rearranging deck chairs on the titanic...

I haven't followed this story that much, mainly because I am just tired of all of these wars. I just think it would be easier if we just had one big dang war with a winner takes all condition. That being said, I do believe the rebels will win in the end, stab their supporters in the back, and show their true agenda. I don't feel those rebels are fighting for their people.

Hope I'm wrong.

Syrian Arab Army has retaken several villages around Aleppo Countryside and a vital road to the Aleppo Airport, Free Syrian Army supporters on twitter are in self denial and claim the FSA will retake it back.

The Iraqi army has reportedly shelled Free Syrian Army positions inside Syria near the border with Iraq. Unconfirmed reports suggest that Iraq was helping Syrian government forces regain control of a border checkpoint seized by the insurgency.

IRAQI_HELP_TO_SYRIAN_GOVERNMENT

WOUNDED_SYRIA N_ARMY_SOLDIERS_IN_IRAQ

As long as it remains in Aleppo, and away from Damascus, and Assad can manage to cling to power through the end of March, and Israel can be restrained from involvement of ANY kind in Syria, and especially restrained from any overt aggression on Iran...

We'll have an opportunity to avoid the worst...

IF the Assad regime is certain that they are going to fall, they will likely launch (suicidal) attacks on Israel. IF they have nothing to lose, there is nothing preventing them. They will (perhaps unintentionally) fulfill the Islamic prophecies that will end the time of conflagrations between Muslim sects (Sunnis, Shiites and Alawite) and unite them in a war with a common enemy. The entire region will likely ignite in a long feared Arab Muslim/Israeli war. A war that will not only be devastating for Israel and the region, but a war that will draw in NATO and the USA, and from there it will no longer be contained to the region. This war WILL come home, and whether you believe it or not, this all could escalate to a point where all of humanity will be threatened....

It would be in the interest of certain parties involved to have Assad remain in power for as long as possible here... IMO

Good luck.

washingtonpost.com...

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — The United States and Saudi Arabia on Monday presented a united front to Iran and Syria. They warned Syrian President Bashar Assad that they will boost support to rebels fighting to oust him unless he steps down and put Iran’s leadership on notice that time is running out for a diplomatic resolution to concerns about its nuclear program.

After a series of meetings in the Riyadh, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal told reporters at a joint news conference that Assad must understand that recent scud missile attacks on regime foes in the city of Aleppo would not be tolerated by the international community and that he had lost all claim to be Syria’s legitimate leader.