Women Wage War on Islamic State

an ideal that you’ll defend, come what may.

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Fight ISIS online - Beginners Guide

Beginner Level
Click on the Images in this Post to go to those Web Sites & Links
These are tools for the ISIS Hunters Toolbox

This method requires no knowledge of the issue. They have a online Data Base of known ISIS members web sites. it is a updated constantly 24/7. When a ISIS site goes down it is removed form the list. Read the details on their web site below for more info on how you can help by simply click on the twitter link and send report and then block it.

Lucky Troll Club

"WARNING: Profiles may contain extremely disturbing graphic images/"
This is a very helpful web site lots of helpful links. The link to the left * Here is the ISIS Block list. the following text is from that link

The following is the complete list of active suspected ISIS accounts from this site's database. It is a subset of the much larger databases maintained by @CtrlSec and @Iridium_Blacker.If, after viewing an active acount on this list, you feel that it is the account of an ISIS supporter, please report it to Twitter for violating Twitter content policies.

If you are going to evaluate/report accounts using the links provided here, please start at the top and work your way down. The more people that report an account, the more likely it is that it will be suspended. Suspended accounts are removed from the list at least once a day.WARNING: Profiles may contain extremely disturbing graphic images.

OpNewBlood 
This is a great source to really get up to speed on how to surf the internet safely. Everyoone who uses the internet should learn and know these basics/

Virtual Private Network (VPN) A virtual private network is a connection from your computer to another network. Some of you may be familiar with these type of connections as they are widely used by businesses to handle their internal communications needs and to allow employees to access systems from remote locations. Setup properly, they can also be used by anyone to create a safer connection to the internet and have the added benefit of disguising your true location. Click the link below for a short tutorial on the different types of
VPN connections and encryption. Virtual Private Networks

The Onion Network (TOR) The Tor (The Onion Router) Network is a means of relaying your traffic to either an exit node (whereby your traffic then exits the network and into the open web) or to a hidden service/site maintained within the network itself. The traffic is routed through an 'untrusted' relay circuit, whereby each relay node only knows the node before it and the node after, thus no complete list of nodes used to route your traffic can be enumerated. The network exhibits end-to-end encryption but only within itself: if your traffic is not encrypted in the first place, any person data-sniffing the exit node will be able to see where you are then going and what you are doing while there.  Tor Information

Security Security online is a very long and involved subject. The various possibilities and methods of securing your client computer are combined by you to suit your unique environment. No one solution is good for every internet user. The reason for this is simple: We all use the internet in different ways. Some surf the web and read emails. Others spend their days on social media sites and twitter. Most do some degree of business online, either paying bills or making purchases. For these reasons, we cannot possibly cover every aspect of online life and we will make no attempt to cover every situation. We can give you a start and from there, we can assist you more once you are connected to the network. Click the link below and read the information, as many times as you have to until you have a basic understand then we can move to the next phase. Security Handbook

Encryption Recent news of how extensive the NSA's efforts to compromise internet security might make privacy seem impossible, but there is still hope. Edward Snowden said it in an online Q&A soon after he made his first document public: "Encryption works. Properly implemented strong crypto systems are one of the few things that you can rely on." We've put together a short primer to help get you started with more secure email (and files). Email Encryption Basics

IRC Clients  The IRC client is the application that allows you to connect to the IRC servers. The clients are free, easy to use but the initial setup can be confusing. Each of the links below contain the basic information to get connected to our network. If you cannot connect to the network after following the guide use the webchat link further down the page.

Windows - Mac OS X - Linux - Android - Irssi

Connecting to IRC Connect to IRC

6-Point Plan to Defeat ISIS in the Propaganda War

Below is a Great Article refereed to me by The Anthropologist

Each of ISIS’s propaganda goals is vulnerable to a messaging counteroffensive
1.  Stop exaggerating ISIS’s invincibility

2.  Amplify the stories of the real wives of ISIS, and other defectors3.  Take on ISIS’s version of Islam4.  Highlight ISIS’s hypocrisy5.  Publicize ISIS’s atrocities against Sunnis6.  Aggressively suspend ISIS social media accounts

https://fightisis.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/6-point-plan-to-defeat-isis/

But first my thoughts on this
There is some online differences between al Qaeda and ISIS. They still operate in Cells. The leader of the Cells run the Cell and communicate with whoever runs those specific Cells. a cell in Al Qaeda would focus on one thing like Martyrs or recruiting. ISIS does use the cell structure but their aims are more broad and they don't focus on just one topic (i.e. recruit, hail martyrs, hail Ops, etc.)  Number 6 on their list of how to counter ISIS and their online machine is the one I know we can do. In Australia they have sedition laws so it is much easier to prosecute people and get them the help they need to show them ISIS is a fraud and a shame and full of false prophets eager to send young men to their death for their global and political aims. ( Note I did NOT say RELIGIOUS..... I said POLITICAL ! ) These bad guys want all non-Muslims to hate all Muslims. That has been al Qaeda's main goal for over 2 decades. ISIS is using the same play book, but they have found a way to use social media to make their cause the most visible and for some disenfranchised people it also is the most attractive and alluring. The nobodies in this world want to be somebody and they think this will make them someone who is heroic, admired, and part of a historic event, that will make their name live forever. The reality is most will end up as cannon fodder, the total dorks even the bad guys are not going to like much they end up as a Suicide bomber, wanting to please their Wahhabi master. That is the other thing people really need to understand what is Wahhabi where are they, and who are they. The Wahhabi are the puppeteers pulling  the strings on the Jihadis, suicide bombers, Salafi', and others, too ignorant to realize they are nothing but someone's political puppet. Currently the Hackers Anonymous members like The ☢ The Doctor ☢ , Anthropologist ,Controlling Section , @WauchulaAnon , @DigitaShadow , OpMopUpISIS , IS Hunting Club  are doing a great job of fighting ISIS online but we need more help, we need the public's help, we need the help of the Media, Governments, and we need more tools in our tool boxes.

- IAn BAch 

Next Article 6 - Point Plan - by  - Jessica Stern and J.M. Berger are the authors of "ISIS: The State of Terror."

Each of ISIS's propaganda goals is vulnerable to a messaging counteroffensive

For the first decade of its life, al-Qaeda was publicity-shy. Outside of a small group of people who closely followed terrorism, few people even knew al-Qaeda’s name until it started attacking Westerners. Even after al-Qaeda got into the business of publicizing its goals and achievements, it failed to reach the kind of audience ISIS has, in part due to its choice of public faces, largely consisting of old men giving long, boring speeches.

ISIS, in contrast, is a publicity whore. While it’s important to keep ISIS’s propaganda and social media activities in the proper perspective (no one was ever killed by a tweet), it’s clear that ISIS considers messaging one of the most important fronts in its war with the world — and it’s also the primary method by which ISIS extends its influence outside of its physical domain in Iraq and Syria.

Western efforts to counter ISIS must account for both the content and distribution of its message. The ISIS propaganda machine is a calculated affair. It has several major goals, all of which involve an effort to simplify the complexity of the real world into a cartoonish battle between good and evil.

Here, then, are the goals ISIS is pursuing with its propaganda:

• To project an image of a victorious, functioning state with the aim of retaining its current recruits and attracting new ones
• To goad its enemies to invade ISIS-held territory by disseminating images of atrocities — perpetrated against both humans and ancient artifacts — while at the same time projecting an image of invincibility, to plant doubts that military action can succeed
• To excite those with violent tendencies using images of extreme brutality
• To advertise the benefits of joining ISIS, including: free housing, ISIS-approved schooling for children, wives, and access to sexual slaves
• To place the blame for any conflict that does result on the aggression of Western governments and the incitement of “Zionists”
• To recast any military action against ISIS as an action against Muslims in general, specifically by highlighting civilian casualties

Each of these goals is vulnerable to a messaging counteroffensive. We propose a 6-point plan:

1. Stop exaggerating ISIS’s invincibility: A first step in countering ISIS is to put it in perspective. We should not downplay its threat below a realistic level. But neither should we inflate it. ISIS relies on its projection of strength alongside the illusion of utopian domestic tranquility. Even under coalition assault, it has labored to maintain its aura of invincibility and defiance. When Western policy makers discuss “degrading” ISIS, it should be in the context of forcing ISIS to make visible concessions in order to counter military pressure. Strikes designed to degrade the group’s real internal strength are good, but our targeting priorities should also aim to expose vulnerabilities for counter-propaganda purposes.

2. Amplify the stories of the real wives of ISIS, and other defectors: We need to amplify the stories of defectors and refugees from the areas that ISIS controls. For example, one of the three British schoolgirls who left their East London homes in February, apparently to join ISIS, had been in contact with an infamous ISIS recruiter, Aqsa Mahmood, who specializes in recruiting young women to serve as “jihadi wives.” Stories about the horrific real lives of jihadi wives need to be told, by women who manage to run away.

3. Take on ISIS’s version of Islam: ISIS has developed convoluted arguments about why it engages in war crimes that are forbidden by Islamic law. Hundreds of religious scholars have taken on ISIS’s interpretation of “Islam.” Those arguments need to get to the right audience: ISIS’s potential recruits. At least some of those recruits can be reached via social media, including via one-on-one conversations.

4. Highlight ISIS’s hypocrisy: ISIS makes much of its supposedly puritanical virtue and promotion of chastity, whipping women who do not wear attire ISIS considers appropriate and executing gay men by throwing them off the tops of buildings. Yet according to the United Nations and ISIS’s own propaganda, its fighters are involved in a wide range of horrifying sexual abuse, from sexual slavery to the reported rape of both men and women, including adults and children. In this area, and many others, ISIS’s deranged double-standards should be addressed head-on.

5. Publicize ISIS’s atrocities against Sunnis: We need to fully exploit aerial and electronic surveillance and remote imaging to show what really happens in the belly of the beast. We should pay particular attention to documenting war crimes and atrocities against Sunni Muslims in regions controlled by ISIS. It is patently obvious that ISIS has no qualms about advertising its war crimes against certain classes of people — Shi’a Muslims primarily, and religious minorities such as the Yazidis. ISIS claims to protect Sunnis from sectarian regimes in both Iraq and Syria. While ISIS is happy to flaunt its massacres of Shi’ites and Iraqi military personnel, it has been relatively quiet in regard to its massacres of uncooperative Sunni tribes. Our counter-messaging should highlight the murder of Sunnis in particular.

6. Aggressively suspend ISIS social media accounts: There is a robust debate over the merits of suspending extremist social media accounts, which encompasses a complex set of issues including free speech and the question of who should decide what content is acceptable. What we do know, based on an analysis of tens of thousands of Twitter accounts, is that suspensions do limit the audience for ISIS’s gruesome propaganda. The current rate of suspensions is damaging the ISIS social media machine. It should be maintained at the current rate, at the very least — but it would be better to get more aggressive.

The nations fighting ISIS need an organization to run a counter-narrative campaign. Madison Avenue advertising gurus aren’t capable of leading this effort; it should instead be led by individuals who know how to access at-risk youth. A commission needs to study how ISIS and related groups market themselves, and develop a plan for competing directly in those markets, while at the same time developing a strategy for expanding into other markets.

One model, still in a testing phase, is called “P2P: Challenging Extremism.” This initiative provides an opportunity for university students from the United States, Canada, the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, Australia, and Asia to create an online community whose goal is to counter the extremist narrative by becoming educated influencers. With support from the U.S. Department of State, the effort is being run by a private organization called EdVentures, that helps companies such as Honda market to youth. After students conduct primary research, they will be competing to develop the best products, tools, or digital initiative that will be developed in the language of their peers, the effectiveness of which will be measured.

Containing ISIS will take a multi-pronged approach, including, most importantly, pressure on its real world components. But the presence of Western troops on the ground entails significant risk, and could backfire by helping ISIS recruit additional personnel who buy into its false narrative about a Western crusade against Islam. While a propaganda campaign will not defeat ISIS, it can lead to “seeds of doubt,” which former terrorists often describe as central to their decisions to leave terrorism behind. With a major effort, it has been possible to alter narratives in respect to other dangerous activities. Consider the CDC anti-smoking campaign involving “tips from former smokers,” which reportedly led 100,000 individuals to give up smoking in its first three-month long effort. We need an analogous campaign, with tips from former jihadis, spread widely over the ever-changing social media environment and beyond. Such a campaign, to be effective, will require money and effort. But the costs of such efforts are tiny compared to military force, whether counted in dollars, loss of life, or blowback on American streets. It’s a smart investment.

Ocalan brings an end to the 40 year struggle of the PKK in Turkey

Kurds commit to Turkish peace process as PKK leader announces definitive end to '40-year-long armed struggle' with the state

..............Above the jubilant cheers of the hundreds of thousands of Kurds celebrating the festival of Newroz, Kurdish new year, the jailed leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) Abudallah Ocalan yesterday called for a definitive end to the “40-year-long armed struggle” against the Turkish state.

As Mr Ocalan’s statement was read to the huge rally, the sun broke through the clouds and the thudding rain eased: even the weather seemed to recognise a momentous occasion. His emphasis on a democratic solution is seen as a pivotal step in a process that many officials from both sides believe is the single most important issue the country faces.

“I see it as historical and necessary to hold a congress to stop the armed struggle which has been carried on by the PKK against the Turkish Republic for nearly 40 years and to determine political and social strategies and tactics which are suitable for a new period,” he said in a two-page letter read out by deputies of the Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP), first in Kurdish and then in Turkish.

Hillside fires are lit for celebrations marking spring and the new year in Turkey’s Sirnak province last week (AFP)

Mr Ocalan called late last month for the PKK leadership to convene an “extraordinary congress in the coming spring months” to make the decision to definitively relinquish the armed fight............

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Jailed Kurdish chief Ocalan says Turkish insurgency unsustainable

...............Peace efforts

The peace efforts have also revealed tensions between Mr Erdogan, who seeks executive powers as president but does not constitutionally have them, and the government.

In unusually direct criticism, deputy prime minister Bulent Arinc accused Mr Erdogan of being “emotional” and of meddling in government business after he said he did not agree with the establishment of a committee to monitor the peace process, a step agreed with Kurdish politicians.

“It is the government which is running the country,” he told reporters. “The president speaking like this, to the point of criticising our government, may wear out the government.”.................
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Pro-Kurdish party seeks breakthrough in Turkey elections

...........The leader of Turkey’s outlawed Kurdish rebels has redoubled his call for an end to armed conflict, as the political party that draws inspiration from him seeks a breakthrough in coming general elections.

The latest appeal from Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers party (PKK), for the PKK to abandon its armed struggle comes as the pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic party attempts to transform itself from an ethnic political grouping into a broader leftwing anti-establishment force................

The Iranian Foreign Minister, Dr. Javad Zarif responds to an open letter of 47 US Senators to Iranian leaders

Asked about the open letter of 47 US Senators to Iranian leaders, the Iranian Foreign Minister, Dr. Javad Zarif, responded that "in our view, this letter has no legal value and is mostly a propaganda ploy.  It is very interesting that while negotiations are still in progress and while no agreement has been reached, some political pressure groups are so afraid even of the prospect of an agreement that they resort to unconventional methods, unprecedented in diplomatic history.  This indicates that like Netanyahu, who considers peace as an existential threat, some are opposed to any agreement, regardless of its content.

Zarif expressed astonishment that some members of US Congress find it appropriate to write to leaders of another country against their own President and administration. He pointed out that from reading the open letter, it seems that the authors not only do not understand international law, but are not fully cognizant of the nuances of their own Constitution when it comes to presidential powers in the conduct of foreign policy.

Foreign Minister Zarif added that "I should bring one important point to the attention of the authors and that is, the world is not the United States, and the conduct of inter-state relations is governed by international law, and not by US domestic law. The authors may not fully understand that in international law, governments represent the entirety of their respective states, are responsible for the conduct of foreign affairs, are required to fulfil the obligations they undertake with other states and may not invoke their internal law as justification for failure to perform their international obligations.

 The Iranian Foreign Minister added that "Change of administration does not in any way relieve the next administration from international obligations undertaken by its predecessor in a possible agreement about Iran`s peaceful nuclear program." He continued "I wish to enlighten the authors that if the next administration revokes any agreement with the stroke of a pen, as they boast, it will have simply committed a blatant violation of international law.

He emphasized that if the current negotiation with P5+1 result in a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, it will not be a bilateral agreement between Iran and the US, but rather one that will be concluded with the participation of five other countries, including all permanent members of the Security Council, and will also be endorsed by a Security Council resolution.

Zarif expressed the hope that his comments "may enrich the knowledge of the authors to recognize that according to international law, Congress may not modify the terms of the agreement at any time as they claim, and if Congress adopts any measure to impede its implementation, it will have committed a material breach of US obligations.

The Foreign Minister also informed the authors that majority of US international agreements in recent decades are in fact what the signatories describe as "mere executive agreements" and not treaties ratified by the Senate.

He reminded them that "their letter in fact undermines the credibility of thousands of such mere executive agreements that have been or will be entered into by the US with various other governments.

Zarif concluded by stating that "the Islamic Republic of Iran has entered these negotiations in good faith and with the political will to reach an agreement, and it is imperative for our counterparts to prove similar good faith and political will in order to make an agreement possible."

5 thoughts Petraeus has about the future of the Middle East

I do not share General Petraeus dim view of the situation. However I would like to share this info so other can make their own opinions and form their own views. - I.B.

Gen. David H. Petraeus, who commanded U.S. troops during the 2007-2008 surge, was back in Iraq last week for the first time in more than three years. He was attending the annual Sulaimani Forum, a get-together of Iraqi leaders, thinkers and academics, at the American University of Iraq – Sulaimani in northern Iraq’s Kurdistan region.

[Read the full q&a: Petraeus: The Islamic State isn't our biggest problem in Iraq]

In his most expansive comments yet on the latest crisis in Iraq and Syria, he answered written questions from The Post’s Liz Sly, offering insights into the mistakes, the prosecution and the prospects of the war against the Islamic State, which he refers to by its Arabic acronym, Daesh.

Here are the five key takeaways from the interview.

1. Shiite militias and Iran now pose a bigger regional threat than the Islamic State

The Islamic State is already “on a path to defeat,” at least in Iraq, thanks to international, regional and Iraqi effort to rally against them. The biggest threat now is the Shiite militias taking over former Islamic State territories, with Iranian support.

“The foremost threat to Iraq’s long-term stability and the broader regional equilibrium is not the Islamic State, it is Shiite militias, many backed by — and some guided by — Iran.”

“The current Iranian regime is not our ally in the Middle East. It is ultimately part of the problem, not the solution. The more the Iranians are seen to be dominating the region, the more it is going to inflame Sunni radicalism and fuel the rise of groups like the Islamic State.”

2. You can't find a solution to the Islamic State without empowering capable local Sunni forces

It will not be enough to have Shiite units of the Iraqi army or militias conquer territory. Capable Sunni forces that will be regarded “as liberators, not conquerors” will have to be identified before battles are launched. And that will require broad political reconciliation between Iraq’s Shiite-dominated government and the country’s Sunnis.

“The bottom line is that Daesh’s defeat requires not just hammering them on the battlefield, but simultaneously, revived political reconciliation with Sunnis. Iraq’s Sunnis need to be brought back into the fold. They need to feel as though they have a stake in the success of Iraq, rather than a stake in its failure.”

As it is, reports of atrocities committed by Shiite militias against Sunnis in areas they conquer “constitute Daesh’s best hope for survival, pushing Sunnis to feel once again the need to reject the Iraqi forces in their areas.”

3. Syria is a "geopolitical Chernobyl" and needs to be addressed immediately

Though the Obama administration is embarking on a program to train and equip moderate Syrian rebels to fight the Islamic State, the effort falls short. If the new force is to function effectively, steps will also be required to halt airstrikes by the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad against areas under opposition control.

“Legitimate questions … can be raised about the sufficiency of the present scale, scope, speed and resourcing of this effort.”

It is also not enough to focus on Iraq and set aside the problem of Syria’s war to be solved later.

“I am profoundly worried about the continuing meltdown of Syria, which is a geopolitical Chernobyl. Until it is capped, it is going to continue to spew radioactive instability and extremist ideology over the entire region.”

4. America's influence is waning in the Middle East

The withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, indications from the Obama administration that its priorities lay elsewhere and the lack of attention paid to Syria’s war have created the impression that American influence is waning.

“Our withdrawal from Iraq in late 2011 contributed to a perception that the U.S. was pulling back from the Middle East,” he says. “This perception has complicated our ability to shape developments in the region and thus to further our interests. These perceptions have also shaken many of our allies and, for a period at least, made it harder to persuade them to support our approaches.”

“Neither the Iranians nor Daesh are ten feet tall, but the perception in the region for the past few years has been that of the U.S. on the wane, and our adversaries on the rise. I hope that we can begin to reverse that now."

5. Petreaus told Iranian general Qasem Soleimani to “pound sand”

In 2008, as fierce battles raged in Baghdad between U.S. troops and Shiite militias – including those fighting against the Islamic State today – an Iraqi intermediary conveyed a message to Petraeus from Iran’s top general in Iraq, Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Quds Force of the powerful Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.

"General Petraeus, you should be aware that I, Qasem Soleimani, control Iran’s policy for Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, and Afghanistan," the message said.

Petraeus says he responded by telling the interlocutor to tell Soleimani to "pound sand."

These days, Maj. Gen. Soleimani regularly visits the front lines in Iraq, much as Petraeus used to when he commanded troops in the country. Photos of his former adversary’s battlefield tours, widely posted on social media, provoke thoughts that Petraeus said he could not share.

“I have several thoughts when I see the pictures of him, but most of those thoughts probably aren't suitable for publication in a family newspaper.”

The Drone Wars in Iraq and Syria

by Ian Bach   3-21-15
The Wars in Iraq and Syria have been the first Wars that the enemy is also using drones in. So far it seems like everyone has drones. Jabhat al-Nusra has used them in Syria, the FSA has them in Aleppo and Damascus, ISIS has used them in Syria and Iraq, Iraqi Shia militias have Iranian ones, Iranians have theirs, and the U.S. of course has them. It seems like the only people without drones are the Kurds. 

The western media and the blogger community has fell in love with the Kurds and their struggle. Yet the governments of the West have not properly backed them. The governments in the Middle East are not about to arm the Kurds for various reasons most of which is their own fears. 

The U.S. gives weapons and ammo directly to the Iraqi Gov and will not give them directly to the Kurds. Meanwhile Iraq Gov is dragging their feet in giving those arms and ammo to the Kurds. The Germans, Danish and Italians have supplied limited amounts of light and medium weapons and ammo, and they are also offering training to the Kurdish forces, but it is not nearly enough when you consider the amount of work the Kurds have done in the fight against the #Daeshbags of the so called (rolls eyes) Islamic State. - Ian Bach

Here is some excerpts of a few News Articles regarding Drones:
From "War is Boring"

A Bunch of Iranian Drones Have Crashed in Iraq

"Shortly after Mosul fell to Islamic State forces in June 2014, Iran began flying Ababil-3 UAVs out of Baghdad’s Al Rasheed air base in order to track the jihadists, according to The New York Times."
Iran’s Drones Are Back in Iraq
"In recent years Iran’s drones have buzzed into action over Israel, Syria and Lebanon. And now Iranian drones are returning to the scene of their birth—the skies of Iraq, where Tehran’s flying robots saw their combat debut during the 198os Iran-Iraq war."
"Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps is deploying the Mohajer-4 surveillance drone and its cousins—descendants of the country’s first Mohajer-1—in its bid to halt Islamic State jihadists in Iraq."
Iran Has a Dogfighting Drone

"Hatami told the assembled press that the air-defense Mohajer can shoot down enemy fighter jets, helicopters and even cruise missiles. But a closer look at the air-to-air drone reveals that it’s not quite the engineering marvel the good general would have you believe."

The Guardian - US drone shot down by Syrian Gov over Latakia a beach resort city relatively untouched by the War.

"Syria’s state news agency, SANA, has published a video purportedly showing the wreckage of a “hostile” surveillance plane and said it was shot down in the same area where the Pentagon confirmed contact was lost with a Predator drone."

"SANA said the Syrian military had downed the plane in northern Latakia and the authorities were conducting an investigation to determine who it belonged to."

"In a statement on Tuesday, the Pentagon said it had lost contact with an unarmed Predator drone but could not confirm whether it was shot down."

US Says It Struck Islamic State Drone in Iraq

"Associated Press | Mar 19, 2015

WASHINGTON — The U.S. military says it bombed an Islamic State drone aircraft in Iraq that was being used for battlefield surveillance."

"A spokesman for the U.S. military command in charge of the conflict against the Islamic State said Wednesday that the drone was a small, unarmed hand-held type of the sort that can be purchased commercially."

"The spokesman, Maj. Kim Michelsen, said that Islamic State fighters had been flying the drone for a short time before placing it in a vehicle. A U.S. airstrike hit the vehicle near the city of Fallujah in western Iraq. He said the drone was targeted because it was being used for surveillance along IS front lines."

It seems like Unmanned Vehicles UAV's / Drones are here to stay and it is not just the USA using them anymore the cat is out of the bag and what is next is anyones guess - I.B.

Iran’s Drones Insights

America isn’t the only country that deploys drones to spy on its enemies. In the skies over Syria’s bloody civil war, above Iraq’s jihadist insurgency and across a number of regional conflicts, Iran’s drones are becoming an increasingly common sight.

Ever since the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, Iran has been an early adopter of unmanned technology. But as drones have become more important in warfare, Iran’s development of the pilotless aircraft has intensified.

Iranian officials’ penchant for showing off fake new weapons can make it hard to separate the fact from fiction about what Tehran’s drones can do. So much of what we know—or what we think we know—about Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles comes from propaganda outlets, which are only too keen to play down the impact of sanctions and play up Iran’s martial and engineering skill, often with ludicrous assertions.

The truth, as ever, lies somewhere in between two extremes. Sanctions haven’t stopped the the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps from putting more unmanned planes in the air. But the Guards still face challenges in arming them with air-to-ground missiles and building a communications infrastructure with greater bandwidth and range in order to control the robots over more distant battlefields.

The story of Iran’s drone development isn’t the underdog tale of scrappy Iranian engineers scrambling to catch up with the United States, as the Guards so often claim. Instead, it’s the story of Iran’s military prudently developing UAVs that are just good enough—and progressively improving successful designs.

A number of export control laws, multilateral agreements and international sanctions complicate Iran’s ability to purchase drone parts on the open market. Moreover, the United States, the United Nations and other countries and world bodies have levied specific sanctions against Iranian entities — and those of Tehran’s allies — for their role in Iran’s UAV production.

Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company, Qods Aviation and Hezbollah’s Stars Holding Group are all subject to sanctions.

Read the full Article Here

Iranian Jets Operating in Syria

The Syrian Arab Air Force (SyAAF), entangled in a bloody civil war that will soon reach its four-year mark, relies heavily on Russia and Iran to keep attrition from diminishing its firepower. After having upgraded several SyAAF Mi-17s with armour plates and FLIR cameras, stationing Mojaher 4, Yasir and Shahed 129 UAVs in Syria and even providing an Il-76TD to the SyAAF on behalf of Syrian Air, Iran is now further consoldating its stake in the conflict by the delivery of ten Su-22s to Syria.

These ten aircraft, part of a batch of 40 flown to Iran during Operation Desert Storm for safekeeping, were finally overhauled in recent years after idly standing around at Shiraz airbase for decades while their fate was decided upon. Initially regarded as “guests” and maintained only to keep them in good condition, they were formally put into Iranian possession in July 1993 but could not be made operational due to budgetary constraints: A team of Ukrainian technical advisors were contracted to overhaul the Su-22s, but at the time this proved to be too expensive for the ill-funded Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF). Instead, the IRIAF was to restore the ten Su-22M-3 and Su-22M-4s to operational condition without any foreign help by using other Su-22s and Su-20s as a source for spare parts. This programme only commenced in 2013, when the Revolutionary Guard’s Pars Aviation embarked on the task of bringing the first Su-22s back to operational condition.

Back to the midst of the war in Syria, where the SyAAF fighter-bomber fleet continuously finds itself flying an increasing amount of sorties while the number of operational air frames continues to dwindle. The SyAAF, originally geared towards fighting a fierce but short war with Israel, never anticipated to get tangled up in a war of attrition between the pro-Assad party and its adversaries. As a result, all of Syria’s MiG-23BNs and most of the Su-22s originally destined for replacement in this decade are now on the forefront of the aerial bombing campaign against rebel positions and villages. This led to a decreasing availability of the MiG-23BN and Su-22 fleet, which in turn  are grounded for weeks at a time to allow for some much needed maintenance for certain air frames, their role being temporarily taken over by fighters such as the MiG-23MF, MiG-23ML(D) and MiG-29.

The fate of Iran’s Su-22s was also sealed in the meantime: The fleet was to join the Aerospace Wing of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGCASF) instead of the IRIAF. At least six Iranian pilots were subsequently converted to the Su-22 in Syria, and later sent to Belarus for further training on simulators in preparation of the introduction of the Su-22. The programme took a surprising turn after it was suddenly cancelled several months ago, and on the direct order of Khamenei, the ten Su-22s were put onboard Il-76s and flown to Syria. By this time, only the Su-22’s fuselages had been completely overhauled, and once arrived in Syria, the SyAAF completed the process.

The first of these new Su-22s was spotted while bombing the town of Talbeesa, Homs Governorate, on the 9th of March 2015. The title of the video claims ”New type of warplanes bombing Talbeesa in Homs”. The aircraft donned a new camouflage scheme that appears to have been applied recently, and although it has not been seen on Syrian Su-22s in the past, it bears some resemblance to that of the SyAAF’s overhauled L-39s.

The sighting of the aircraft comes amidst a series of discoveries about Iran’s increasing military presence and exports in Yemen, Sudan, Libya, Iraq and of course Syria, and follows a widely covered exercise in which a mock-up aircraft carrier was destroyed by anti-ship missiles and fast attack craft.

The continued stream of military support to Syria shows the extent of the Iranian determination in their effort to support the Syrian regime, and once again shows how far the conflict is from finally reaching a conclusion.

Special thanks to Tom Cooper and ACIG original post here.

Iraq militia leader hails Iran’s support

 In a battlefield interview near Tikrit, where Iraqi forces are fighting to retake Saddam Hussein’s hometown from the militants of the so-called Islamic State, commander Hadi al-Amiri criticized those who “kiss the hands of the Americans and get nothing in return.”

Iraqi forces entered Tikrit for the first time Wednesday from the north and south. On Friday, they waged fierce battles to secure the neighborhood of Qadisiyya and lobbed mortar shells and rockets into the city center, still in the hands of IS militants. Iraqi military officials have said they expect to reach central Tikrit in two to three days.

The Iranian-backed Shiite militias have played a crucial role in regaining territory from the Sunni extremists of the Islamic State group, supporting Iraq’s embattled military and police forces.

An Iraqi government official told The Associated Press that Iran has sold Baghdad nearly $10 billion in arms and hardware, mostly weapons for urban warfare like assault rifles, heavy machine-guns and rocket launchers. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media.

In November, President Barack Obama authorized the deployment of up to 1,500 more U.S. troops to bolster Iraqi forces, which could more than double the total of American forces in Iraq to 3,100. The Pentagon has made a spending request to Congress of $1.6 billion, focusing on training and arming Kurdish and Iraqi forces. According to a Pentagon document prepared in November, the U.S. is looking to provide an estimated $89.3 million in weapons and equipment to each of the nine Iraqi brigades.

The U.S.-led coalition of eight countries has launched more than 2,000 airstrikes in Iraq alone since August 2014, and the U.S. is also hitting the militant group from the air in Syria. Iraqi and U.S. officials have acknowledged the role airstrikes have played in rolling back the militants, saying the air campaign was an essential component in victories at the Mosul Dam, in Amirli, and more recently, in the crucial oil refining town of Beiji.

But the U.S. is not taking part in the operation in Tikrit, with U.S. officials saying they were not asked by Iraq to participate.

Al-Amiri, the Shiite militia commander who also is head of the Badr Organization political party, said that “help from Iran is unconditional.”

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Jubbour rejected ISIS calls for them to Join ISIS

The Jabbour Tribe has been in battles with ISIS ever since. Now they are a key player in the Iraqi Governments battle to retake Tikrit i Northern Iraq. – I.B.

The only way for civilians to get to the town of Dhuluiya is by boat across the river Tigris, since the so-called Islamic State blew up the main bridge here and tribesmen battling them commandeered the other.

Steering through long reeds, we pull into a little dirt harbor. Here, about 60 miles north of Baghdad, is the home of a branch of the Jubbour tribe. They’re a big Sunni group in this agricultural area and they want to tell me how they’ve halted the advance of the Islamic State.

At first glance, the village seems lush. We bump along backstreets — “It’s safer,” they tell me — past houses with gardens full of pomegranate trees.

It’s really beautiful here, I say. But the men giving me a ride into town reply that it’s not all that beautiful right now, actually. We’re about two miles from the front line. The Islamic State fires maybe a dozen mortars a day at the town, and at the little boats chugging across the river.

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An Iraqi Sunni fighter holds a position during clashes with Islamic State group fighters in October the town of Dhuluiyah.

Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images

The nearest hospital is behind that front line, so they’ve converted a school into a makeshift clinic. It’s there that I meet senior men from the Jubbour tribe.

They crowd into a disused classroom and tell me how the Islamic State blazed down from the north in mid-June. The villages north of here are Sunni, where many feel oppressed by the Shiite-led government. Some allied with the Sunni militants. Others fought, and fell.

Until those militants reached Dhuluiya.

“Since that time, the fighting started, and everyone from third-grade students to sheikhs took part in it,” says Barzan Ahmad, a Jubbouri and a university professor. “Everyone raised their weapons.”

He says that after the fighting had been going on for two days, the militants proposed negotiations. So a delegation from the Jubbour tribe went to meet an Islamic State leader.

He ordered the Jubbouri to join them and to kill 30 members of their tribe — army officers and doctors — as punishment for working with the Shiite-dominated government of former Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki, which many Sunnis despised.

“They said, ‘We came to liberate you from this injustice and oppression caused by Maliki’s rule,’ ” says Ahmed.

The Jubbouris were outraged. Sheikh Mawloud Awad Hassoun says the tribe believes in peaceful co-existence. A lot of them are educated — engineers and lawyers.

Iraqi Sunni fighters secure an area during clashes with ISIS fighters in Dhuluiyah.

Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images

“We don’t see ourselves as slaughterers,” he says. So the tribe declined the offer to join the extremists and began fighting against them again.

In the chaotic hallway of this makeshift hospital, I meet Ahmed Issa, who joined the fight against the extremists — and lost his leg.

“They’re criminals,” he says. “They’re killers. If they enter your house, they are going to kill you.”

The war here is often deeply sectarian. The Shiite-led government recruits Shiite militias. Sunni tribes join with the Islamic State. But here, Shiite fighters from Balad, a town across the river, came to help out.

“We’ve become more than brothers,” says Issa. “What hurts them, hurts us, and what hurts us, hurts them.”

Fighting together, they pushed the militants back. It helped when Iraqi army helicopters hit some Islamic State positions. But they say they need more help from the government.

re captured by the Islamic State.