ISIL changes name and declares its territories a new Islamic state with 'restoration of caliphate' in Middle East

ISIL changes name and declares its territories a new Islamic state with 'restoration of caliphate' in Middle East

    Sunday, June 29, 2014   No comments

Caliphate according to ISIL & affiliates

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) has reportedly declared the areas it occupies in Iraq and Syria as a new Islamic state, removing Iraq and the Levant from its name and ushering in “a new era of international jihad”.

The announcement will see the Isis now simply refer to itself as The Islamic State, and the group has called on al-Qa’ida and other related militant Sunni factions operating in the region to immediately pledge their allegiance.

Obama: There is no "moderate" Syrian opposition forces that could topple Assad

Obama: There is no "moderate" Syrian opposition forces that could topple Assad

    Monday, June 23, 2014   No comments

Obama: Notion that Syrian Opposition Could Overthrow Assad a “Fantasy”

President Barack Obama called the idea that the U.S. could readily arm a moderate Syrian opposition force a “fantasy,” saying his administration is still working to bolster rebel groups.

A Country Implodes: ISIS Pushes Iraq to the Brink

A Country Implodes: ISIS Pushes Iraq to the Brink

    Saturday, June 21, 2014   No comments

 An evening curfew has been in force in Mosul since last Monday, says Ali. He and his family heard gunshots near their apartment on Tuesday, and when Ali looked outside, he saw a dead body lying on the street. Then the rumors began. "They've occupied all government buildings and the airport," said a friend. "The power station and the water works, too," a neighbor added. There were television reports of banks being robbed, the release of thousands of prisoners and the confiscation of oil wells. A day later, Masoud Ali loaded his family into his car and stepped on the gas. As they drove away, they could see police uniforms and abandoned military vehicles in the ditch. Government troops, most of them Sunnis, had surrendered to the Sunni ISIS fighters.

What do Iraqi Sunni want? ISIL and its allies have different agendas and different plans; but some want Sunni autonomous regions

What do Iraqi Sunni want? ISIL and its allies have different agendas and different plans; but some want Sunni autonomous regions

    Friday, June 20, 2014   No comments

Iraq is a country with competing ethnic and sectarian identities. Iraq is inhabited by Muslims, Christians, Arabs, Kurds, Turkmen, Azeris, Armenians, and dozens of or other religious and ethnic groups. The divide that is at play today is the Sunni, Shiite, Kurdish one. More than 65 percent of Iraqis are Shi`a. These Shi`as are of Arab, Kurdish, and Turkic ethnicities. 25 percent of Iraqis are Sunnis. These Sunnis are primarily Arab and Kurdish. About 10 percent are Non-Muslim minorities belonging to various ethnic groups as well.

who is supporting ISIS? The Saudi rulers' struggle to remain consistent and the media coverage that shy away from calling them on it

who is supporting ISIS? The Saudi rulers' struggle to remain consistent and the media coverage that shy away from calling them on it

    Thursday, June 19, 2014   No comments

Saudi Arabia’s rulers are trying to block the rays of the sun with a sieve. They claim that they do not support terrorism, yet they are justifying the war crimes committed by ISIL and its affiliates by accusing Maliki of sectarian policies (policies, not violent acts, mind you). The hypocrisy of the Saudi rulers is stunning: they write a law that is supposed to fight terrorism but they selectively apply it to the Muslim Brotherhood, human rights activists, and bloggers; while providing extensions after extensions to Saudi’s still fighting with ISIL who apparently have ignored the call to return home and burned their passports.

The Saudi rulers are accusing Maliki of a “policy of exclusion and marginalization of Sunni minorities” when they sent troops to crush the Shiite majority in Bahrain, which has been oppressed by a Sunni minority for hundreds of years. They also supported Saddam’s regime who also used the Sunni community to suppress Shiite majority and Kurdish minority. It seems that the Saudi rulers see “political exclusion” when it serves their interests. They are calling the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt terrorists but they call ISIL war criminals legitimate “rebels.” They continue to see the world through a sectarian lens and accuse others of being sectarian. A lie repeated in the age of Internet media will never be believed even by other Saudis. The Saudi rulers will fall by the sword they forged and unsheathed in the face of all their victims; unless they fully commit to fighting the ideology of hate they helped produce.

Saudi Arabia wants to remove Maliki by bullets when it failed to remove him by ballets

Saudi Arabia wants to remove Maliki by bullets when it failed to remove him by ballets

    Tuesday, June 17, 2014   No comments

It is no secret that Saudi Arabia and its allies among Sunni Iraqi politicians wanted Maliki out. They have tried since the end of his first term. But he kept winning. Most recently, they expected him to loose the elections that was held on April 30. Instead, he surprised them helping his coalition win about three times more than the Saudi favorites'. He won in a fair and transparent elections. 

It should be noted that Saudi Arabia warned even before the elections that electing Maliki to a third term will mean the splintering of Iraq into three areas: Sunni, Kurdish, and Shiite areas. Saudi Arabia has no respect for the will of the people and for election results. So they used ISIL and its Sunni allies to undo the elections' results. After the fall of Mosul in the hands on ISIL and Baathists, Saudi Arabia issued a statement essentially legitimizing the violence and demanding that Iraq produces a "unity government," again ignoring the fact that elections have consequences. 

Pentagon, State Dept. at odds over coordinating with Iran on Iraq crisis

Pentagon, State Dept. at odds over coordinating with Iran on Iraq crisis

    Monday, June 16, 2014   No comments

The Pentagon is pushing back against a State Department assertion that there is the potential for a military coordination with Iran to help Iraq combat violent al Qaeda-inspired Sunni extremists.

The killing season restarts in Iraq: more war crimes and crimes against humanity taking place in regions inhabited by religious minorities

The killing season restarts in Iraq: more war crimes and crimes against humanity taking place in regions inhabited by religious minorities

    Sunday, June 15, 2014   No comments

ISIL executing civilians in Iraq

The killing season restarts in Iraq: more war crimes and crimes against humanity taking place in regions inhabited by religious minorities:

Iraq is now in the same struggle as Syria; can U.S., and Saudi Arabia solve the problem of one without the other?

Iraq is now in the same struggle as Syria; can U.S., and Saudi Arabia solve the problem of one without the other?

    Thursday, June 12, 2014   No comments

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

Can U.S. and Saudi Arabia fight ISIL in Iraq and not in Syria? Or will they wait and see until another country is taken over?
 
By the time Western governments and their Gulf allies realize their mistake in Syria, ISIL will be in Mecca. The United states spent $25 billion training the Iraqi army. That modern army, whose members were vetted by the U.S. trainers, deserted before the advances of ISIL. The U.S. still insists on building another army of "moderate forces" in Syria to fight both the Syrian government and ISIL; another example of of "keep doing the same thing and expecting different results."

Iraq News Stories:

Battle to establish Islamic state across Iraq and Syria

Battle to establish Islamic state across Iraq and Syria

    Monday, June 09, 2014   No comments

Islamic fundamentalists have opened new fronts in their battle to establish an Islamic state across Iraq and Syria as they launch attacks in cities which were previously under the control of the Baghdad government.

A multi-pronged assault across central and northern Iraq in the past four days shows that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) has taken over from the al-Qa’ida organisation founded by Osama bin Laden as the most powerful and effective extreme jihadi group in the world.

Isis now controls or can operate with impunity in a great stretch of territory in western Iraq and eastern Syria, making it militarily the most successful jihadi movement ever.

Led since 2010 by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, also known as Abu Dua, it has proved itself even more violent and sectarian than what US officials call the “core” al-Qa’ida, led by Ayman al-Zawahiri, who is based in Pakistan. Isis is highly fanatical, killing Shia Muslims and Christians whenever possible, as well as militarily efficient and under tight direction by top leaders.

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Interview with UN Peace Envoy Brahimi: 'Syria Will Become Another Somalia' ... armed group used chemical weapons ... are using civilians as human shields

Interview with UN Peace Envoy Brahimi: 'Syria Will Become Another Somalia' ... armed group used chemical weapons ... are using civilians as human shields

    Sunday, June 08, 2014   No comments

For almost two years, Lakhdar Brahimi sought to bring peace to Syria. But in May, the United Nations special envoy stepped down. He speaks with SPIEGEL about the stubbornness of Syrian President Assad, the mistakes of the West and the dangers presented by Islamic radicals.

 SPIEGEL: Mr. Brahimi, in May, you stepped down as the United Nations special envoy to Syria. When you took the position in 2012, many considered the task of achieving peace in Syria to be a mission impossible. What did you hope to achieve?

Iran president to visit Turkey Monday to meet Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

Iran president to visit Turkey Monday to meet Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

    Thursday, June 05, 2014   No comments

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is expected to visit Turkey on Monday, for the first time since he was elected last year, a Turkish official said.

     

The Iranian leader is expected to meet Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara for talks on bilateral ties and the broader Middle East, the official told AFP on Thursday.

     

"The visit has been in the making for a while, and Rouhani is expected to be flanked by a crowded delegation of ministers," according to the official speaking on condition of anonymity.