Scores dead in heavy fighting in southern Syria

BEIRUT: Intense clashes in southern Syria have killed scores of pro-government and insurgent fighters in the past week, an activist group monitoring Syria's war said Sunday, forecasting even fiercer violence as the weather clears.

Syria's army and allied combatants from Hezbollah launched a large-scale offensive in the region last week against insurgent groups including Al-Qaeda's Syria wing Nusra Front and non-jihadi rebels.

The battle is significant because it is one of the last areas where mainstream rebels opposing President Bashar al-Assad have a foothold. Such groups have lost ground to hardline Islamist militants in the four-year conflict.

More than 50 rebels have been killed in the fighting....................

Click here for entire article

Free Syrian Army (FSA) joins Islamist group Levant Front - Jabhat al-Shamiyya

Hazzm is one of the groups that form the western backed FSA (Free Syrian Army - i.e. "insurgents"). They recently have joined an alliance that includes the "Islamic Front", an Islamist coalition which includes Saudi-backed combatants and other factions. We have een this in the past FSA groups joining al-Nusra and/or ISIS.

Syria has maintain since the start that these were terrorists rebelling, not people who want a secular Syria, instead most wanted an Islamic state with Sunni Arab leadership of the Government, Army and the people. Their idea of a free Syria is something that 90% of all Syrians dread. 

Levant Front - Jabhat al-Shamiyya is a grouping of insurgent factions formed in December in the northern province. Levant Front - Jabhat al-Shamiyya is an alliance of mainly Islamist insurgent factions in Aleppo. Forming the Levant Front was an attempt at unity among factions in Syria that have often fought each other as well as the Syrian army and hardline jihadist groups

Hazzm is also one of ther groups that the U.S. and Saudi Arabia gave TOW anti-tank missle and surface to air anti-plane missles. Both are mobile small and very sophistcated armaments that one to two men can operate and launch. The west may end up being attacked by their own missles if they are not more careful in the future. However McCain in the USA and other politicians and war mongers have already said they have sent over 1,000 troops to train more Syrian fighter. Also they are planing on finding people who they think are okay to use and arming them.

New report by David Kilcullen and others regarding Aleppo Syria

David Kilcullen and others have completed a 4 month review of the situation and facts on the ground within Aleppo Syria. The findings have been compiled into a 97 page report about their findings. They interviewed people in both rebel and regime held areas.

I have been reviewing the report and this is the first of my summary of findings regarding the report.

So far I can state a few things are obvious in regards to Aleppo and Syria:

1. The center of Aleppo was not rebelling against the regime, so the rebels took the fight to those areas. The center of the city is now the most fought over and the residents movement is now very restrictive.
2. Regime forces control about 45% of Aleppo. The Syrian Air Force Intelligence oversees regime-controlled areas away from the front lines. The Republican Guard is deployed to protect some of Aleppo’s most tense front lines.
3. Bread in regime held areas is about 1/3rd to 1/5th the cost compared to rebel held areas.
4. 40% of the people feel that “no one” represents them,
5. Al Qaeda-affiliates remain strong in Aleppo. The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria ISIS controls 1/3rd of all opposition held neighborhoods. Their checkpoints are the most restrictive and intimidating, residents avoid these checkpoints as  much as possible.
6. There is 62 different CSO’s Civil Society Organizations acting within Aleppo.
7. ISIS Controlled the Aleppo national Hospital for the entire period of the survey until January 8th 2014, when rebel forces stormed the Hospital to release several hundred of their brothers in arms who had been imprisoned by ISIS. Since the takeover stories have emerged about the brutality of ISIS
8. The Busiest checkpoints are regime held. At each of these checkpoints approximately 35,000 – 45,000 people cross each day. As many as 60% do so to buy foodstuffs. Opposition held areas have banned people from regime areas to buy foodstuffs in rebel held areas. Many of these people cross to visit family, receive salaries, and even to pay their utility bills.
9. The areas with the highest crime are in the rebel held areas.
10. The rebels control most of the north, north eastern, eastern and southeast areas of Aleppo
11. The Syrian regime controls the west and into the center of Aleppo
12. North of Aleppo is Turkey. This is where most of the weapons are flowing from to supply all of the various rebel groups. Also foreign fighters enter via Turkey into Syria north of Aleppo.
13. The rebels are supported by various domestic and foreign Islamic charities.
14. The ISIS is back by al Qaeda and it gets its money from various sources around the world. The main backers are wealthy Arab Sunni’s in Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt.
    
    Read more here at my main Blog