http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-02/iran-troops-to-join-syria-war-russia-bombs-group-trained-by-cia/6821822 posted:

Russia bombs group in Syria trained by CIA; Iranian ground troops deployed to join war

Hassan Haj Ali, head of the Liwa Suqour al-Jabal rebel group which is part of the Free Syrian Army, said one of the targets was his group's base in Idlib province, struck by around 20 missiles in two separate raids.

His fighters had been trained by the CIA in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, part of a program Washington says is aimed at supporting groups that oppose both Islamic State and Assad.

"Russia is challenging everyone and saying there is no alternative to Bashar," Haj Ali said. He said the Russian jets had been identified by members of his group who once served as Syrian air force pilots.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/russia-vehemently-defends-syrian-airstrikes-and-denies-targeting-us--backed-rebels/2015/10/01/cddada92-67af-11e5-bdb6-6861f4521205_story.html posted:

One strike hit the outskirts of Kafr Nabl, a town that has won renown as a symbol of the peaceful protest movement against Assad family rule. The local council there receives U.S. assistance, and the local rebels have received support under a covert CIA program aimed at bolstering moderate rebels.

The strike hit a training camp for a U.S.-vetted group called Suqour al-Jabal located beside Roman remains on the outskirts of the town, according to activists in the area. Raed Fares, a leader of the protest movement in Kafr Nabl, said the explosion was bigger than anything local residents had seen in three years of airstrikes conducted by Syrian warplanes.

“It was like a nuclear bomb,” he said. “It made a fire six kilometers wide.”

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/01/russia-launches-fresh-airstrikes-on-syria-targets posted:

Syrian civil defence volunteers put the total civilian death toll from Wednesday’s strikes on Homs and Hama at 40, including eight children.

The volunteer group said thermobaric missiles were used and claimed that they struck a public market, bread distribution point and administrative buildings in Homs, as well as civilian homes.

“We can’t believe an even more advanced military power has arrived in Syria to kill civilians,” said one civil defence volunteer in a statement issued by his organisation.

http://www.mensjournal.com/magazine/the-most-dangerous-job-in-the-world-syrias-elite-rescue-force-20141210 posted:

Sweating in the 104-degree heat in Adana, Turkey, former British infantry officer James Le Mesurier is training a group of average Syrians to become members of the U.S.-funded Syria Civil Defense (SCD) team, an elite crew of battle-ready first responders...

To help save Syrians on the front line, the U.S. has funded $13 million so far in humanitarian aid to civil defense teams like the SCD. "It's one of the most important things we can do to increase the effectiveness and legitimacy of civil authorities in liberated areas of Syria," says Mark Ward, a senior State Department official leading the U.S. government's Syria assistance team. "It enables Syrian civilians to do something tangible in the face of the regime's atrocities. There's nothing that brings a community together more than efforts to rescue people."

https://archive.is/2JiSp posted:

Mark S. Ward is the Director of the Syrian Transition Assistance and Response Team (START), which is based out of U.S. Embassy Ankara and is responsible for coordinating all U.S. assistance to Syria from Turkey. Prior to this role, he served as the Deputy Special Coordinator in the Office of Middle East Transition at the U.S. Department of State, the office that coordinates all civilian assistance to Middle Eastern countries in transition to democracy. Mr. Ward is a Career Minister in the Senior Foreign Service of the United States.

Mr. Ward was also on detail to the United Nations Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) from September 2011 to February 2012 as Senior Advisor to the head of the UNSMIL on coordination with the international community.

“We can’t believe an even more advanced military power has arrived in Syria to kill civilians,” said one civil defence volunteer in a statement issued by his organisation.

Putin: Claims Russian jets killed civilians in Syria emerged before airstrikes

Reports of alleged casualties among civilians caused by Russian airstrikes in Syria emerged even before Russian warplanes were launched for their first combat mission, President Vladimir Putin said, branding such reports 'information attacks.'


“Other nations have been bombing Syrian territory for over a year,” Putin told the Russian human rights council on Thursday, stressing that the US-led coalition invades the Syrian airspace with no UN mandate or invitation from Damascus.

“We have such an invitation and we intend to fight against terrorist organizations and them only,” Putin added.

The Russian leader also commented on the alleged civilian casualties caused by Russian warplanes in Syria.

“As for media reports claiming that the civilian population is suffering, we are prepared for such information attacks. The first reports about civilian casualties emerged even before our planes got in the air,” he said.

Dozens of videos allegedly showing the aftermath of Russian bombings of residential areas in Syria surfaced online on Wednesday, after Moscow announced a bombing campaign designed to help Syrian government forces fight the Islamic State terrorist group.

Russia believes them to be information warfare, and has called on the media and foreign officials to carefully verify information coming from Syria before judging it truthful.

Putin added that the US and Russia must establish a mechanism for sharing information about military action in Syria, which would allow the two nations to root out false reports.

“That’s why we are establishing contact between our special services and those of the US, between our military departments,” he said. “I hope it will result in the establishing of some permanent mechanism.”

On Thursday, the Russian Defense Ministry reported hitting 12 targets belonging to the IS terrorist group since starting military action in Syria.

The tasks set for the Russian Air Force in Syria over the last 24 hours have been “fully completed,” said Igor Klimov, a Russian Air Force spokesman.

“Recorders’ data showed that Russian airstrikes hit only the targets belonging to IS terrorist group infrastructure," Klimov said as cited by TASS.

The country's forces neither planned nor carried out any attacks against civilian infrastructure, he added.

The Russian effort is designed to provide air support to the Syria army, which is struggling to contain the spread of jihadist militants in the war-torn country.

Syrian military provides intelligence on prospective targets for Russian forces in Syria, which is double-checked before clearance is given to deliver a strike, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.

A couple of the terrorists Russia tried to bomb today in Idlib https://t.co/oPg8j1VeMN pic.twitter.com/lbSHLdtRUq

— Eliot Higgins (@EliotHiggins) October 1, 2015

discipline posted:

AMA

Can you explain all this crap I read in the news about terrorist?

Petrol posted:

former British infantry officer James Le Mesurier is training a group of average Syrians to become members of the U.S.-funded Syria Civil Defense (SCD) team, an elite crew of battle-ready first responders

HenryKrinkle posted:

this is only slightly relevant, but i'm just curious as to what you guys think of this perspective:

https://storify.com/HenryKrinkle/discussion-between-me-and

If your explanation of why members of group x are killing members of group y in the 21th century is "ancient 1,000 year old blood feud", your analysis of anything isn't very deep.