Mezopotamian Development Society (Registered) GERMANY

THE MOST REQUESTED DAILY & ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWSSERVICE ON KURDISTAN FOR THE HIGHLY INVOLVED PEOPLE – email : mesop@online.de – Watch our website : www.mesop.de

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MESOP TODAYS RECOMMENDATION BY JOEL WING

Friday, February 26, 2016 – MIDDLE EAST INSTITUTE: Assessing Iran’s Support for Regional Militias

Watch all http://www.mesop.de/?p=71643

 

MESOP TODAYS MOST RELEVANT TWEETS & SHORT CUTS

MESOP : CHARLES LISTER KNOWS IT !

Charles Lister@Charles_Lister 2h2 hours agoGood to see @TheStudyofWar highlighting this. AQ’s long-game strategy is something I’ve stressed for some time…

Nick Thompson @nickthompson – Why the most dangerous group in Syria isn’t #ISIS — thanks @TheStudyofWar: http://cnn.it/1TbngZu

 

MESOP : IMAGES FROM BAGHDAD – MASS RALLY AGAINST CORRUPTION

Hamzeh Hadad@HamzehKarkhi 16m16 minutes ago – Hamzeh Hadad Retweeted Haidar Sumeri

Haidar Sumeri @IraqiSecurity – The never-ending sea of Iraqi flags during the anti-corruption/pro-reform demonstration in Baghdad, #Iraq, today

Michael Knights@Mikeknightsiraq 2h2 hours ago

Absorption of MoD/shrine-backed PMU & Sunni volunteers into the ISF will b easier. These patriots want 2 serve Iraq http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2016/02/iraq-popular-demobilisation-160224050939178.html

raqis agree on 4 areas of collaboration, Fite corruption, Fair judiciary, Strong economy, End govt. quotas. https://www.ndi.org/Poll_Points_Path_Forward_Iraq_Reconciliation

ead NDI’S new public opin. poll in Iraq. ‘Those that ID as Iraqis-Sunni&Shia- are far more open 2 reconciliation’. https://www.ndi.org/Poll_Points_Path_Forward_Iraq_Reconciliation

Haidar Sumeri@IraqiSecurity

Amazing scenes in #Baghdad as #Iraq‘s people turn out to stand against corruption. Images from Tahrir Square.

www.mesop.de

MESOP TODAYS LATEST – FACING A SO CALLED “CEASEFIRE SYRIA”

Breaking news : Huge uptick in #Russia airstrikes in final 3hrs before ceasefire. 100+ strikes reported in 4 N. #Aleppo towns, by 12+ jets flying at once. http://www.mesop.de/?p=71637

 

MESOP : THE “CEASEFIRE” TODAY – 27 Feb 2016

Charles Lister@Charles_Lister 16h16 hours agoIf regime bombing of #Darayya continues for 10mins, the ceasefire will – in all likelihood – have lasted -00:01 secs

Charles Lister @Charles_Lister –Lots of talk around #Damascus (& wider) that military strikes on #Darayya during ceasefire will spark a resumption of opposition operations.

00:45 – On my count, it seems that regime forces stand accused of 9+ ceasefire violations, 3+ of which look certain cases. #SyraCeasefire

00:25: Activists claim airstrike or large rocket just struck Al-Marj area outside #Damascus. New reports of gunfire in East Ghouta also.

00:20: Activists claim pro-regime ground forces engaged in assault on Sheikh Aqil in Rif #Aleppo firing guns & jets heard overhead.

00:10 – Activists now reporting that regime mortar fire now hitting Talbiseh in #Homs & also Jebel al-Tafahiya in #Latakia. #Syria

81 retweets 9 likes

Charles Lister@Charles_Lister 16h16 hours ago

00:05 – Activists are reporting shelling and heavy machine gun fire ongoing in areas of N. #Aleppo, outside Deraa, and in #Darayya.

More: www.mesop.de

Yury Barmin@yurybarmin 16h16 hours ago

Yury Barmin Retweeted Yury Barmin

Just a reminder that as per this Russian map ceasefire does not cover Aleppo at this point #SyriaCeasefire

Russian media publish the map of the ceasefire in Syria. Only 6 tiny areas (yellow) are covered by the agreement Watch Graphic : http://www.mesop.de/?p=71654

 

MESOP THE US / ANKARA RELATIONS

US contradicts Turkey, says it is not reconsidering its support http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/syria/270220161 … via @RudawEnglish

 

MESOP ANALYSIS : BY MIDDLE EAST INSTITUTE

Revisiting Western Strategies against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria

Till F. Paasche & Michael M. Gunter

This article suggests a combination of military, political, and diplomatic approaches for Western states to combat the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS). In Syria, support should be strengthened for the only effective moderate force fighting against ISIS: the Kurdish militias. In Iraq, where ISIS relies on local partners from Sunni Arab tribes to help govern, it is incumbent on the West to break this coalition in order to hamper ISIS’s military operations and weaken its governing capacity. Raed all : http://www.mesop.de/?p=71631

 

MESOP TODAYS COMMENTARY : THE “CEASEFIRE” & IT’S PRICE

Syria Truce Comes With Price, but Not for Assad

By DAVID E. SANGERFEB. 26, 2016 – New York Times – WASHINGTON — If the temporary cease-fire in Syria begins to take hold on Saturday, despite the low expectations of the American and Russian officials who negotiated the agreement, it will be a landmark event. For the first time, diplomacy will have succeeded in abating the killing and misery that have already led to more than 250,000 deaths and millions of refugees pouring out of the shattered country.But like everything else in the bloody five-year civil war, even the accord to limit the shooting has come at a high price, not least for President Obama. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=71647

 

MESOP SPECIAL – A PORTRAIT OF GENUINE POLITICAL CORRUPTION : MICHEL “THE CHAMELEON” RUBIN – (American Enterprise Institute (AEI). ) – RUBIN ON “PERSONALATY CULT – WHITEWASHING PKK”

Are Syria’s Kurds Really Pro-Assad?

Michael Rubin / Feb. 23, 2016 – Among supporters of the Syrian opposition, there is increasing cynicism (if not occasional disdain) toward the People’s Protection Units, better known by their Kurdish acronym the YPG. Across the Bay’s Tony Badran gave a fair summary here of some of the concerns. In short, though, at times it seems the Syrian Kurds are siding with President Bashar al-Assad’s allies if not Assad himself rather than the Syrian opposition. Does that mean the Syrian Kurds are on the wrong side of the struggle? Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=71635

MESOP : ISW INTELLIGENCE SUMMARY: February 21 – 26, 2016 Reviewing the Week

Compiled by Christopher Kozak and Dina Shahrokhi

This report is derived and collected and processed at ISW during the reporting period. The report includes analysis on Russia, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, ISIS, KURDISTAN:

Key Take-Away –Russia intensified its efforts to position itself as a rival guarantor of global security. The U.S. and Russia reached an agreement on February 22 that lays the groundwork for a nationwide ‘cessation of hostilities’ in Syria that came into effect on February 27. Russian President Vladimir Putin quickly moved to seize leadership over international efforts to implement the ceasefire with a blitz of calls to his counterparts in Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Israel. The opposition and its foreign backers expressed tentative agreement for the deal despite concerns that the regime and its allies will use the opportunity to solidify their dominant battlefield position under the guise of fighting terrorism. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry cautioned that the U.S. may consider “Plan B” options if the ceasefire fails to gain traction over coming weeks, while other senior administration officials – including U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford – have reportedly pushed for a more muscular response to Russia in Syria. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=71649

 

NORTH KURDISTAN TURKEY

MESOP : ON KANDILS ORDER

HDP against KRG pipeline to Turkey
21 February 2016 / Kurdistan 24 –
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (K24) – The representative of Turkey’s People’s Democratic Party (HDP) to Erbil, Abit Ike said on Sunday that Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) should be more mindful of the political and social situation in Turkey.
http://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/64cffb71-85a3-45b4-aa1c-8ee6c9c61d66/HDP-against-KRG-pipeline-to-Turkey http://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/64cffb71-85a3-45b4-aa1c-8ee6c9c61d66/HDP-against-KRG-pipeline-to-Turkey

 

WEST KURDISTAN (SYRIA)

MESOP Syria Feature: Darayya, the Bombed Damascus Suburb That Will Test the Ceasefire

by Scott Lucas 27 Feb 2016 – eaworldview – At midnight the US-Russian proposal for a “cessation of hostilities” went into effect across Syria.

The ceasefire has formally been formally been accepted by all sides, but it may be tested by both Russia and the Assad regime.

The pretext for continued attacks could lie in the exemption of the Islamic State and the jihadists of Jabhat al-Nusra from the cessation, as well as the declaration by Moscow and Damascus that “other terrorist groups” are not included.When Russia began airstrikes last September, it used a supposed focus on ISIS to devote most of its bombing to opposition-held areas. And all the way to this morning’s ceasefire, Moscow and the Syrian air force continued the bombardments.One of the towns suffering the heavy assault is Darayya, southwest of Damascus, which was captured by rebels in 2012. In recent weeks, hundreds of bombs have fallen as the Syrian army tried to claim part of the town. Read all : http://www.mesop.de/?p=71639

 

MESOP Syria Daily: “Cessation of Hostilities” Begins / THE “CEASEFIRE”

February 27 – by Scott Lucas – eaworldview – A “cessation of hostilities” formally began across Syria at midnight, with the UN hoping for negotiations between the Assad regime and rebels on March 7.The US-Russian proposal for a cessation was reportedly holding early Saturday.Less than an hour before it came into effect, the UN Security Council unanimously supported the pause and demanded that all parties fulfil commitments to end hostilities and to allow “humanitarian agencies rapid, safe and unhindered access throughout Syria by the most direct routes”. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=71641

 

MESOP : VLADIMIR MIKHEEV – PUTINS VOICE ABOUT SYRIA’S FUTURE

Two options for Syria: Federalization or balkanization?

February 26, 2016 Vladimir Mikheev, special to RBTH – Analyst examines two possible divergent futures for the country. (RBTH = Russia behind the headlines)

Today, the talk of the town – namely in Damascus, Homs, Hama, Aleppo and other Syrian cities and hamlets – is focused on renewed rumors concerning the possible next step in the resolution of the civil war that has raged for more than four years now in Syria.

There is a nagging suspicion hanging in the air that the fragmentation of the country along ethnic and sectarian lines leaves no other option but to introduce a federal system of government and create three autonomous regions, which would remain part of a unified Syria. How to keep Syria together: http://www.mesop.de/?p=71645

 

MESOP SERIES ON SYRIAN SAFE HAVENS/ZONES

KERRY NEITHER RULES OUT NOR SUPPORTS SAFE ZONE CONCEPT / PolicyWatch 2574 – February 26, 2016 – By James F. Jeffrey

The assertion that such an effort would require up to 30,000 U.S. troops, and that it could risk a direct confrontation with Russia, requires a much closer look.

The situation in Syria dominated Secretary of State John Kerry’s congressional budget testimony this week. Kerry frankly refused to “vouch” for the Russians and others adhering to the ceasefire agreement he had negotiated in Munich on February 13, with a new start date of February 27, moved from a week earlier. But he was under considerable pressure, particularly in the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and the State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, to explain what would happen if Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and his Russian, Iranian, and Hezbollah backers did not live up to their side of the agreement. Kerry did repeatedly speak of a Plan B, which he asserted was under “significant discussion” within the administration. When challenged, he argued that it would be a mistake to assume that President Obama would allow these parties “impunity” if they once again violated commitments. But he provided no details on what the Plan B would entail and did not even indicate whether it would be military in nature. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=71651

 

THE GERMAN KURDISH CHAPTER

MESOP : GEBEN OHNE NEHMEN ! DER FREXIT

Die Frankfurter Börse geht nach London / Ein stillschweigendes Geschenk von Merkel an Cameron

Das weder Merkel noch ihr Sprecher Seibert den für die BRD bedeutsamen Vorgang auch nur kommentieren möchten, daß der größere Partner sich dem kleineren widerspruchlos assoziiert, damit der Finanzplatz London bedeutsamer wird, der in Frankfurt aber nur noch als Deco weiter exististiert, dient dem (erwünschten) Verbleib Englands in der EU.

Vor Jahren wurden aus ähnlichen Gründen der EU-Stabilisierung die Frankfurter Farbwerke Hoechst (die heute nur noch in Resten hier existieren) an Frankreich vergeben.

Der seit Jahrhunderten blühende (kurmainzische) Satellit der Mainmetropole ist dadurch radikal zum Slumgebiet geworden: ihre erste wesentliche Banlieu.

Die ehemalige Population ist nur noch rudimentär vorhanden. Sie teilt mit den inzwischen mehrheitlich dort lebenden Migranten allerdings das gemeinsame Schicksal, das ihnen die Migrationslobbyisten und Linken bereiten: das Kommunismuus eben ein Zustand ist, in dem es allen gleichermassen schlecht geht.

 

MESOP – CLEVERLE DU, BADISCHES : „KAUF EINEN, NIMM ZWEI!“

Grünen-Politiker Palmer – “Für jeden, den ein EU-Land aufnimmt, nehmen wir noch einen”

Tübingens Oberbürgermeister Boris Palmer schlägt eine neue Quote vor: Deutschland soll rund 50 Prozent der Flüchtlinge in der EU aufnehmen. Das soll auf dem nächsten Gipfel verhandelt werden.

www.mesop.de