DEVELOPMENTS AUGUST 12 >See map DEVELOPMENTS AUGUST 12 >Manbij liberated by SDF >Syrian Armed Forces retake area west of Ithriya-Khanasser road that was taken by militants yesterday >This morning Desert Hawks, Syrian Marines & co succesfully defend against 2nd Latakia counteroffensive: Faylaq al-Sham commander killed
possibly, but I doubt it. this war is a war of attrition. big cities and areas won't just fall all of a sudden. shit takes time. But yeah, SAA is not in a good position in Aleppo. I think they should clear out the pockets in Damascus governorate instead
Carson Wright
For Syria! Let's make it Great again! Greater Yemen and Greater Syria will make wonderful allies.
Ethan Bennett
It's not gonna fall in one battle, it'd be a series of battles where the SAA keeps running from position after position, we've all seen this happen before
JaF will focus all their might on one part, either in south or west Aleppo, SAA will fail to stop them, and they'll just continue advancing from then on having lost their main defense line
Connor Myers
I'm glad you take your time answering questions, really appreciated. 1. Have you witnessed anything from the innerkurdish opposition? ENKS have their own peshmerga units, at least on Wikipedia. All I see or hear from them is anti-YPG shilling on twitter. 2. Is the PKK, oh I mean totallynotthePKK PYD theoretically capable to run a state, even after the war in your opinion? We all know how practicable socialist experiments with pipe dream ideologies are in real life. 3.Do the kurdish civilians support the YPG enthusiastically or are they just happy that they are defending them from ISIS? 4.How is the light weapon supply? Did you see any other light weapons apart from Chinese AKs?
Thomas Brooks
there are some early reports of a big explosion in Idlib. it seems that they nuked an ahrar building
Noah Williams
welcome back!
Eli Gutierrez
you don't really need that much. People will spoon feed you essential things. I see that the tl;dr was posted. If you are interested you will find yourself like home here. Most of the people in here are looking for the geo-political aspect, like nato-russia clash, and look at the war from that point of view. /sg/ is pretty different from the rest of Sup Forums, we don't advertise, we are not looking to gain attention or anything. We just want to be left alone and talk among ourselves. There are trolls that seem to stick to the thread, but they fade away in months. /sg/ supports Assad, but we have people that are pro-isis or moderate beheaders. there is also a k thread that supports the rebels. If you willbe polite everybody will be the same
Blake Peterson
Biji biji YPG
Carson Bell
...
Hudson Peterson
>The T -50 aircraft fighter plane Russian fifth generation is exposed
>Russian Defense Ministry issued a unique videos showing Russian jet fighter of the fifth generation "T -50" flight for the first time.
One thing to note is to take the tl;dr with a big grain of salt. Aussiebro is still fixing it as far as I know.
Camden Taylor
Has the Norwegian YPG guy left? Too bad, he was really interesting.
Jaxon Hughes
1. They have these meetings/classes with ideology etc once a while. And even though my Kurmanci is pretty limited they are bashing among others, Barzani, like every single time. Many fighters, myself included, spent some time in Barzani jail on the way in/out of Rojava. And there were tons of PKK gerillas there aswell. It annoyed me at first, they have so many external enemies, so I didnt get why they were fighting each other too. But after being imprisoned by Barzani and his peshmerga goons I sort of understand. It is not good though. But it shows that the Kurds are not just one group, its a big, diverse group of people, most of them very conservative and nationalistic. Though most people hold the PKK and its fighters in high regards, they usually do not agree with their politics. When it comes to the normal kurds in Rojava, they all support the YPG, but if they really know what that entails besides fighting ISIS, I dont know. In Bakur (turkey) and Bashur (Iraq) many people do not like the PKK.
Since Rojava is the bread basket and oil barrel of Syria, they have the means to run a small state. In theory their way of doing it will benefit the common people way more than Assads policies. If it can actually work though? That I cant say.
Light weapon supply is good, they have tons of AKs and some M16, many PKMs too. There is a lack of SVDs, I guess also a lack of heavier weaponary, like APCs, tanks, dushkas etc, as all of these are captured by ISIS and you are dependent on capturing more stuff from them to expand your motorpool.. Once a while you see weird shit, like FN FALs, M4s, those Croatian FAMAS and stuff like that. It is very rare. Those weapons probably traded hands a million times, going from different militia groups until they ended up in that YPG dudes hands.
> @sayed_ridha Syrian Army units advance in Hawsh al-Dhawahirah south of Hawsh Nasri amid clashes with Jaish al-Islam in East Ghouta, Damascus
Chase Fisher
Russia is trash! Please free me from these pidorashkas! I want to live in normal country with minimal wage $15 / hour, not $113 / month! And I want freedom of speech to tell that Putin is midget.
Levi Martinez
terrorists are probably going to go crazy with tunnel bombs
Nicholas Allen
True. I fucking hate the diaspora shills. And refugees that come over here and then take part in APO-marches and whatnot. If they like the PKK so much, why are they not there? There are 17 year old qt's fighting and dying, while all the males are in Europe. And still they do post pictures on facebook about this and that. If you dont like what the turkish govt does to your people, then fucking fight them. For Kurds it is easy to get into the PKK. But most of them are happy with just changing their profile picture in support of PKK/YPG and then work in a pizza/kebab shop, going out clubbing on weekends.
The internetkurds are just as cancerous as ottomanwhen and other grey wolves shills. Both fucking retarded and unable to see bad things about their side.
Justin Cook
Hahaha kys filthy traitor.
Carter Perry
I guess that guy is a '''''moderate'''''
Blake Rogers
Why hasn't Assad re-siege Aleppo the corridor from Al-Ameria to the cement factory is 2-3 KM
Christopher Myers
Add to that the Nejdi parking lot
Bentley Price
1. Did you see many PKK fighters from Bakur, Bashur and whatever-iranian-kurdistan-is-called in Syria ? If yes, how's the percentage Syrian Kurds vs others? 2. What is their view the west, especially the USA? They have this anti-imperialistic, socialist etc folklore after all. 3. How about Russia? 4. What did you do while there was no fighting (i.e. most of the time)? Smoking and drinking tea?
Matthew Parker
I did it by accident but there is a feature on liveuamap where you can tell the distance between 2 markers can someone tell me how to do it again
Zachary Wright
2nd Aleppo pocket when?!
Mason Butler
its rare to see reasonable people, good job on being like that
i have more memes if you want :^)
Jaxson Ortiz
(you)
Noah Cooper
> I want to live in normal country with minimal wage $15 / hour, not $113 / month! And I want freedom of speech to tell that Putin is midget. Go away from Ukraine, crazy rouble Taras =)
Parker Howard
Here's a question for pro-Assad strategy: Issam Zahreddine and his Republican Guard are among the most proficient SAA units. Why are they wasted on Deir instead of being sent to mop up Aleppo, like he was originally assigned?
Why did the SAA waste time on the retarded Raqqa offensive instead of continuing from Palmyra into Deir ez-Zour? Then Zahreddine and his RG could have been sent to Aleppo. No doubt, they could seriously put the hurt on rebel plans were that to happen.
Thoughts?
Jason Hughes
1. Yes. Depends on the units, some units are almost 100% PKK/turkish kurds (blood contract, hardline lifers), others are more local (normal guys with families, getting paid 100$ monthly). I was in mostly PKK units as they are usually the frontline/fighting ones while the local units act like police, second line troops. All in all, maybe 50% of YPG or maybe more is not from Syria. In the SDF the percentage is way lower due to all the local arab militamen.
2. Not good. Yes, they dont trust the americans (who does?) and their policies (capitalism, imperialism etc). Some enlightened guys and girls do however see the use of F16s and stuff as good and know that we would not win without them. Many people truly believe that it was the blood of the martyrs that gave victory in Kobane. 3. Russia is not since there is a lack of democracy there, and that they are helping Assad. Lols were had when the turks shot down the russian fighter as this was sort of a win/win for us. 4. Yes, and yes. Thats about it. If there was a TV you would watch propaganda music videos. Sometimes you are in comfy places with TV and access to turkish internet. Sometimes, in places without electricity, water, anything, and when its quiet, you are bored out of your mind.
Jayden Wilson
Do post :^)
I guess as an outsider (foreigner) I see things from a different angle. There were a few diaspora kurds that I met down there, and many of them were a bit disillusioned by what they experience. Being grown up with tales of the gerillas and the hero worship of the martyrs from their appartments in Sweden, Germany etc, and then now fighting shoulder to shoulder with them. Seeing they are not angels, seeing that many of them dont even know the ideology they are fighting for, many of them being villages idiots, blatant racism etc.
Dominic Sullivan
Here's a question for your datamining business: why are their clients so afraid that they have to know what people think on a vanuatan conch shell organon?
Isaiah Harris
yeah, hell i read an interview months ago by some pkk dude talking about just because the turks did some bad stuff decades ago should not mean we should still hate each other
You are probably going to agree that pkks fight in Turkey they started is retarded as fuck and useless, or do you think otherwise?
Samuel Sanders
pic related How capable is the YPG officer corps? Are they educated, well integrated and cooperating, fighting at the front, or more like the typical Arab armchair generals?
Jaxon Richardson
I fought with the YPG as part of a MLKP unit in al-Hasaka heval.
Noah Gutierrez
Only the ill-minded shall thrive.
Andrew Diaz
Whoa I thought you killed yourself out of embarrassment
Ian Gomez
The best would be a sort of Northern Ireland sort of agreement. Where both sides win and lose a bit. The etneral blood bath that has been going on for 40 years, gives no winners. Only dead teenagers and civillians on both sides. In the long run I think, if they step up the armed conflict, they will do better than previously. Why? Due to international media coverage in Syria they are now not an evil terrorist group anymore. They have stopped their retarded bombing attacks on tourists. They have gotten tons of arms, some of it pretty high tech, and recruits, and combat experience in Rojava, while the turkish army is being cucked by Erdogan. Sort of like the Soviet army before the winter war.
Dylan Bell
>Why did the SAA waste time on the retarded Raqqa offensive instead of continuing from Palmyra into Deir ez-Zour?
The SAA is just fishing for success without thinking it through. They seemingly don't have a big plan for this war, only to attack where they can and hope for the best.
Jaxson Campbell
Tying IS down, inflicting heavy losses for limited costs, keeping some control over the area that produces most oil IIRC.
Also I think it's best to keep the troops that are already familiar with the area and that type of fighting in place. They have become pros at defending DEZ, so maybe the reasoning is that they wouldn't be as good elswhere.
Gabriel Watson
1. Did you wear the all time favorite PKK guerilla Mekap shoe? 2. Did you see any child soldiers (under 15)? 3. What did you eat there? How was the supply?
Gavin Collins
I'm still alive. sorry to disappoint you
Nicholas Martin
Problem is that very often the strongest/bravest/dedicated ones become officers. Not always the smartest one. So they usually lead from the front, and spearhead assaults etc, which ofcourse gives them a high death ratio. They are realizing this, and are in the process of changing their systems, by putting smarter and more cold headed (often women) in charge of units, and putting the crazy ones behind a desk somewhere. There are different opinions on this.
Carter Long
GREATER SYRIA
Lincoln Gomez
From the comfort of my couch I'm guessing hothead would be better placed in lower level leadership so they can still kick some ass.
But the part about the women making smarter leaders is surprising, tell me more!
Luis Lee
>Problem is that very often the strongest/bravest/dedicated ones become officers >Fixing the problem by putting smarter and more cold headed (often women) in charge of units >smarter and more cold headed (often women) >often women
That's some "Sup Forums BTFO" tier shit right there.
Christopher Cook
1. kek. I think they look horrible, but according to people they are pretty comfy. The kurds never put them on properly and wear them the same way people wear wooden shoes. 2. Yes, I belive I did. Never at the front, and not with weapons but in uniform yes. They all said they were 18 and so, but ofcourse they were not. Some of the girls and guys in my unit joined at 14-16, and one at the age of 12 with her entire family. 3. Supply is usually shit. Bread, rice, beans and lentils. A chicken meal maybe once every second week. During operations you get good food, meat, snickers bars, cans of coke etc.
It is a hot blooded culture compared to scandis. And men are more hotblooded in general, and gets into fits of rage, just storming enemy positions without thinking etc. This sometimes gives very good results, but sometimes also end in slaughter and annihaltion of your unit. Women are usually a bit more reserved, thinking before going in. This can be good, saving lives etc, but can ofcourse also be a bit cowardly (not seizing opportunities etc).
Since not many of them are strategical/tactical masterminds, putting someone thats a bit careful in charge (woman) over a hot head (man) can sometimes be benefitial. One of the most notorious/famous/crazy commanders there had done tons of suicidal missions, gotten tons of results, but then again lost tons of people. So he was put behind a desk.
Parker Jenkins
Noice. How was that? I have heard some pretty crazy stories about how things work out inside the MLKP taburs.
Anthony Walker
>Jabhat al-Nusra fighters shoot a gunner out of 23mm-technical with Konkurs near the Aleppo(?) Cement Plant youtube.com/watch?v=hL9K1dwQpsc
Kayden Cooper
because the SAA/Shia militias suck
Im a pro assad fanboy since the beginning of this conflict, but i have to say, if they fail that bad at defending a well fortified area they just SUCK...
They deserve this, they deserve to get slaughtered...
I really hope they get the upper hand but atm they are blown the fuck out like in 2014
Luis Peterson
1. Do people around you know that you went there? If yes, how do they (and Kurds and Turks) react? 2. Do you think ISIS will change the perception of Islam among Kurds? Most are conservative and religious after all. Do ordinary people think ISIS is an American-zionist conspiracy which has nothing to do with "real" Islam like many Arabs? 3. Speaking of that, what about the view of Israel among the YPG?
Dominic Bell
Hey I have a question for you How did you get started with the YPG and what are you doing in Norway? and is it true that most YPG fighters die from IEDs?
Connor Brown
Why havent Assad won yet? I thought he couldnt be mossad?
Juan Nelson
1. Not many, no. Not any kurds/turks, only a few fellow countrymen, and they think its a good thing. Not going to become one of the media shills, besides maybe sexing a kurdish girl it gives me nothing.
2. Nah, at the moment there are thousands (at least used to be) kurds in ISIS. The YPG ones often claim its made by Turkey, Israel, America and whatnot, mind you, these are not the bright ones, these are the village idiots. I honestly believe that many sunnis, even though they dont wholeheartedly support ISIS, they do think its totally okay what they are doing. If it had not been cool doing what ISIS does, they would have been beaten much faster due to the lack of support from sunnis worldwide. Just see how they are making the "moderate groups" in Aleppo into heroes, when they are the same dudes the west has been fighting for 15 years.
3. Dont know. There was a few israelis there, and they didnt get any shit. Most of Syria though is very pro palestine, there are palestinian flags, murals and shit everywhere, so most, with a turkish or syrian background probably dont like them that much. The kurds in Iraq on the other hand really likes israel.
Parker Flores
Followed the early threads here and on /k/, twitter etc. Saw pics of white dudes with the YPG. When I finished my degree I joined.
I dont know if most are correct. But IEDs are a major problem and killer there, and will be after the war aswell. In such a low tech militia it is very difficult to combat IEDs, it is all done very basic, and takes the lives of many of the EOD, or sabotage members as they are known in the YPG.
Jack Long
how easy was it for you to join the YPG? there have been other YPG fighters on these generals and they told me that it was as easy as flying to turkey, crossing into Iraqi Kurdistan and driving into Syria. One YPG fighter even brought back an ISIS flag as a souvenir and posted it here.
Charles Thompson
It used to be that easy. Turkish border is now no-go. You have to be smuggled from Iraq into Syria, this might go wrong and you may end up in Iraqi prison, like I did on my way out, and like dozens have done before and after me on the way in/out.
Which is why I dont have an ISIS flag, since the iraqi prison authorities took it all from me. Or should I say, Kurdistani authorities.
Brody Davis
I ended up in a night combat unit, because of my experience in the Bundeswehr Fernspähtruppe (special reconnaissance). Which wasn't really logically, because I have never been trained as a commando soldier.
Adam Moore
It was bad with ied even when we were contracting in North iraq in 2011. We were in kirkut and mosul. Our jamming system did well to block the IED set off by phones and shit but people got hit everyday with GOOD tech.
Andrew Lee
How do you quit? Do you just say to your superior "I have enough of this sandy hellhole, bye!"? Do they ask you ho long you want to stay when you arrive? Is it actually possible for Kurds to quit, should they want?
Interesting. How come you picked the MLKP and not the YPG? It is just not very usual that former military guys head for the MLKP, most of the people I know that went there were the sort of antifa, squatter types of people, not soldiers.
Indeed. And ISIS are good at adapting, they make a lot of "good" IEDs.
As a white dude with the YPG, yes. If you have been there for 6months+ they will cover you flight back home.
If you are a kurd in the YPG you can quit, its sort of a regular job. But many of the YPG members gets pressured into not quitting, and also gets pressured into joining the PKK (becoming a lifer).
Very few people can legally leave the PKK. Usually they desert, and if caught will receive punishment, sometimes harsh punishment. Some people can leave though, but its a long procedure and you need valid reasons, have a good spreadsheet etc.
Connor Robinson
He seems to be a little bit nervous. I probably wasn't cool enough to give interviews, but I've met "Ernesto".
Record numbers of ATGMs used by the rebels in August so far.
Carson Martinez
wow they paid for your flight back to Norway, that's bro-tier. Did you make any good friends while you were fighting with the YPG? Also, what's the hygiene like in Syria. it's a big desert, so I imagine they just go weeks without showering.
Dominic Brown
I've acted from ideological conviction, my father was part of TKP/ML Hareketi before he came to Germany; he established the contact for me. My time in the bundeswehr wasn't easy, most guys there didn't like communists - I wonder why :^)
Robert Garcia
No one has a good response to VBIEDs. They pack more a lot more ordinance than a cruise missile and have a better guidance system.
Every defense by SAA starts like the Oklahoma City Bombing
Blake Fisher
best salami ever
Evan Rodriguez
And the ATGM specifically mentioned to see a record number of uses is the Russian-made Kornet... Oh, the irony!
Luke Foster
They said they no longer receive an endless supply of TOW missiles. Maybe Turkey and its friends are getting them different models as a result. Or maybe they're burning through the stockpiles captured from the SAA that they didn't use for exactly a shortage like this.
Parker Jones
Saudi is probably dumping AGTMs into Syria. they have endless money anyway.
Julian Harris
That is such a shitty way to die, frantically shooting at some crazed motherfucker's vehicle as he inevitably comes up to you and blows up
gonna armchair a bit here, but couldn't they barricade the roads? if that car had to explode outside the base, it would barely do damage
Nathaniel Cruz
How's it going, lads?
Is Basher the Lion winning? Greater Yemen when?
Brayden Butler
>they have endless money anyway. Not any more. Russia is on track to surpass Saudi Arabia in reserves sometime next year.
Due to low oil prices and the need to spend like crazy to stop revolution, Saudi Arabia is burning through their savings fast. While Russia, surprisingly, is actually growing their savings.
Adam Bennett
I think they could actually take the mountainous bits, desu. So easy for them to fight there.
Jonathan Sanchez
Very interesting. So your father is turkish/kurdish? If that is the case, how was it to fight with your fellow countrymen, at the same time, being kind of a foreigner to them?
Yes, that is standard if you spend more than 6 months there.
Landon Hall
why are there tenthousand communist Turkish parties anyway when they appearently get along rather well when it gets serious?
Daniel Smith
LE SAVOIR EST UNE ARME
VIVE BASHAR EL-ASSAD
Jace Diaz
Ya and they do do some of that, but there are lots of work arounds. (removing barriers through various methods)
In some of the attacks on the artillery base in Aleppo, the rebels used tandem suicide bombers. The first one was used to blow a hole in a retaining wall, then the second one drove into the base through the hole in the wall and killed the defenders.
With the amount of armor they put on the front of these things, you need an anti-tank tier gun to take them out. And it is hard to bring them to bear on a target moving that fast.
Really, what you need is 24-7 integrated CAS. But that isn't in the budget for SAA or Russia.
Luis Bailey
>Russia, surprisingly, is actually growing their savings Devaluation of currency is one of the reasons why. Plus, despite a widely-shared view, Russia actually produce things beside petroleum and gas.
John Nelson
Isn't it just "using what is around"? It seems like ATGM is taking the place of certain kinds of artillery because it is easy for outsiders to deliver.
So when they need a lot of firepower, like in the Aleppo offensive, they mass these weapons and use them for pretty much everything: technicals, tanks, strongpoints, ...
That they use Kornets doesn't mean they are not foreign supplied, by the way. Modus operandi of the CIA is to buy weapons stocks on the black / foreign / spook market, and deliver those. So not necessarily US made kit.
Angel Walker
Take care, my friend. I love it when actual fighters come and post on our general
Robert Roberts
This guy is right. I only experienced VBIEDs twice on close range. One rammed us, one was stopped since we had 2x23mm's, a tank and a javelin at our position (the javelin missed kek) and we could see it a click away, but didnt manage to stop it until it was about 150-200meters away. Procedure when it comes is as long as you dont have a dushka or an RPG, run.
The one that rammed us was a bmp loaded with explosives, and they had a gunner in the turret aswell. We had only PKMs and shit RPGs, nothing could stop it.
Berms are used a lot to stop VBIEDS.
Xavier Bell
Wait, so you were a legit operator?
Tell us! What's the most impressive thing you did in your time?
