MEZOPOTAMIA KURDISTAN DAILY INDEPENDENT NEWSSERVICE
Mezopotamian Development Society (Registered) GERMANY
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MESOP Top News / NEW YORK TIMES
U.S. Military Campaign Takes Toll on ISIS’ Cash Flow – By MATTHEW ROSENBERG, HELENE COOPER and NICHOLAS KULISH – Nearly two years after the United States entered the fight, officials say the Islamic State has lost thousands of fighters, millions of dollars and much of its territory. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/13/world/middleeast/isis-iraq-syria.html?emc=edit_ee_20160413&nl=todaysheadlines-europe&nlid=73143833
MESOP TODAYS RELEVANT TWEETS & SHORT CUTS
Noah Bonsey @NoahBonsey Apr 11 – Imp points by @Charles_Lister, opp should heed انهيار الهدنة يفيد النظام والنصرة، على حساب القوى الثورية والمدنيين
Charles Lister @Charles_Lister
If #Russia is forced to re-escalate, the opposition will see itself revert to unfavorable balance of power seen pre-COH = #Assad gains. 9/9
Charles Lister @Charles_Lister Apr 11
Opposition HNC is discussing possible internal changes of senior roles. Discussion also continues re. how to include Kurdish PYD in process.
Charles Lister @Charles_Lister Apr 11
UN’s sticking by #Syria talks in #Geneva “starting” on Weds 13th, despite the #Assad regime delegation not due to arrive until 14th or 15th.
Syrian Islamist rebels ask for evacuation of Kurds in Aleppo after massacre – #ARAnews
Fate of ISIS-held Syrian-Turkish border still unclear – #ARAnews
COL Chris Garver @More_B4_9AM Apr 10 – COL Chris Garver Retweeted Inherent Resolve
#Coalition strikes this week – 174 in #Iraq, #Syria – incl 31 in #Mosul and 18 in #Hit for #ISF. #InherentResolve
COL Chris Garver added,- Inherent Resolve @CJTFOIR
WEEKLY STRIKE UPDATE: #CJTFOIR conducted 174 strikes. #Iraq-128 #Syria-46 #NotoDaesh http://ow.ly/10uDgC
Charles Lister @Charles_Lister 6h6 hours ago
Shortly after helping capture Sahm al-Golan, Harakat al-Muthanna announces merging w. #ISIS‘ Liwa Shuhada Yarmouk:
Ahrar al-Sham’s Abu Eissa al-Sheikh is now [military] leader in #Idlib, after demotion from Deputy Political Chief: www.mesop.de
MESOP TODAYS COMMENTARY : POLICY ALERT FROM THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY
IRAN’S ARMY SUFFERS ITS FIRST CASUALTIES IN SYRIA – By Farzin Nadimi – April 12, 2016
Elements of the national army have officially joined the IRGC on Syria’s battlefields, but Tehran’s apparent public-relations strategy could backfire at home if casualties mount.Following a string of unverified reports and social media photographs suggesting that members of the Iranian national army (or Artesh) had been deployed to Syria, their presence was confirmed this week via new casualty announcements and official remarks. As suspected, army personnel have been involved in fighting around the same areas where the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) previously established a presence, namely Damascus and Aleppo. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=73103
MESOP TODAYS ANALYSIS : Terror Bombing in Brussels and Paris: Europe’s “Islamist Legionnaires” Come Home to Fight
By Prof. James Petras – Global Research, April 08, 2016 – In-depth Report: AFGHANISTAN, CRIMINALIZE WAR, IRAQ REPORT, SYRIA: NATO’S NEXT WAR?
The terror bombings in Paris and Brussels have raised a cacophony of voices, ranging from state officials, Prime Ministers and Presidents, to academics, journalists and media consultants. Tons of ink and print have focused on the psychology, networks and operations of the alleged perpetrators – radicalized young Muslim citizens of the EU.
Few have examined the long-term, large-scale policies of the EU, US and NATO, which have been associated with the development and growth of the worldwide terror networks. This essay will discuss the historical links between Islamist terrorists and the US-Saudi Arabian–Pakistan intervention in Afghanistan, as well as the consequences of the US invasion and occupation of Iraq. In Iraq, the US implemented a deliberate policy of destroying all secular state structures and promoting the Balkanization of the country via ethnic-religious and tribal wars – a policy it has followed in subsequent areas of intervention. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=73109
WEST KURDISTAN (SYRIA)
MESOP : THE SECRET MEETING TURKEY & SYRIA IN ALGIERS
Türkei spricht mit Syrien: Erstmals Chance auf Ende der Flüchtlings-Tragödie
Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten | Veröffentlicht: 12.04.16 02:04 Uhr – Regierungsvertreter aus Syrien und der Türkei haben sich offenbar in Algerien getroffen. Das geheime Treffen könnte schon bald zu einem Ende der Flüchtlingsströme aus Syrien führen: Die Türkei fürchtet wegen der vielen Flüchtlinge Chaos im eigenen Land. Sollte dies tatsächlich so sein, wäre dies auch ein Erfolg für Angela Merkel. Volltext http://www.mesop.de/?p=73084
MESOP Syria Feature: US Officials’ “Plan B” Will Press Obama to Give Anti-Air Weapons to Rebels
by Scott Lucas 13 April 2016 – eaworldview – US officials say they will press President Obama to provide Syria’s rebels with advanced weapons, including anti-aircraft systems, if a cessation of hostilities breaks down. – The Wall Street Journal cited the officials in a Tuesday article claiming the CIA and countries near Syria — including Turkey and Saudi Arabia, leading backers of the rebellion — have drawn up plans for arms that can defend against the Assad regime’s warplanes and artillery.
Some US military and intelligence officials have said since February that they were devising a “Plan B” to counter Russia’s intervention supporting the regime. The proposals were discussed by intelligence officials in the Middle East just before the cessation of hostilities on February 27, and in subsequent exchanges between intelligence services. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=73099
MESOP : MANPADS ? – US MESSAGE TO RUSSIA: “REBELS WILL NOT DISAPPEAR”
14 4. 2016 – The American officials said Washington has told Russia — including messages from Kerry and CIA Director John Brennan — that the Syrian rebels will not disappear, and that renewed battles could jeopardize Russian pilots.“If the cease-fire collapses, if the negotiations don’t go anywhere, and we’re back to full throttle civil war, all bets will be off,” a senior Obama administration official said of the message to Moscow. “The outside patrons will double and triple down, throwing everything they can into Syria, including much more lethal weaponry.”
Two Russian warplanes have been downed since mid-March by rebels using portable MANPADS systems, the first time that anti-aircraft weapons have been used by the rebellion. The officials said the assurances to Turkey and Saudi Arabia were twinned with warnings not to act independently of the US.Rebels have captured some MANPADS from the Syrian military since 2012, but reports indicate that Saudi Arabia may have provided a limited number of the systems since late 2015. The CIA’s assessment is that the rebels have obtained a few MANPADS through “illicit channels”. www.mesop.de
MESOP FOCUS : Syria war crimes investigators amass strongest evidence ‘since Nuremberg’ against Bashar al-Assad
David Blair, chief foreign correspondent – 12 APRIL 2016 • THE TELEGRAPH UK – International investigators have amassed the strongest evidence “since Nuremberg” for the prosecution of Bashar al-Assad and his allies for war crimes, smuggling 600,000 pages of official documents out of Syria.
This trove – weighing several tons – includes the records of a secret committee of security chiefs placed in charge of crushing the revolt. Another 500,000 pages are still inside Syria, awaiting safe transit out of the country.The evidence is being held in an undisclosed European city by the Commission for International Justice and Accountability, an organisation of lawyers and investigators partly funded by the British Government. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=73105
MESOP : PYD OFFICAL STATEMENT ON SHEIK MAQSOUD NEIGHBOURHOOD
Public Statement – 13 4 2016
Al Sheikh Maqsoud neighbourhood, which is predominantly populated by Kurdish residents in Aleppo city, is witnessing an indiscriminate and barbaric attacks on innocent civilians. Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds of children, women and the elderly have been seriously wounded. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=73107
SOUTH KURDISTAN (IRAQ)
MESOP : UNITY ! – WHICH UNITY ?
US Biden stresses on Iraq unity in phone calls with Abadi and Iraqi Barzani
14 April 2016 – U.S. Vice President spoke separately today with the Prime Minister of Iraq, Haider Al-Abadi, and the President of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, Massoud Barzani, and stressed on Iraq’s unity.
According to a statement by the White House, Biden also reaffirmed U.S. support for Iraq and the Iraqi people’s ongoing fight against the Islamic State (IS). The U.S. Vice President conveyed continued U.S. support for a unified, federal, and democratic Iraq, and encouraged close cooperation between the Government of Iraq and Kurdish region as they take steps to strengthen political unity and economic stability.The statement added that Bien noted ongoing U.S. efforts to mobilize assistance for Iraq’s economic recovery. The U.S. and Iraqi officials also reaffirmed their commitment to the strategic partnership between the United States and Iraq. www.mesop.de
MESOP : FORWARD TO A REFERENDUM ON KURDISH INDEPENDENCE
KIHEC Ready to Hold a Referendum on Kurdish Independence / The commission is technically capable of holding an independence referendum
Hemin Salih – BasNews – 14 Apr 2016 – ERBIL — Kurdistan Independent High Electoral Commission (KIHEC) stated that the commission is capable to hold the referendum on Kurdish independence in the period that Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani has set. Read more http://www.mesop.de/?p=73093
MESOP INSDE WARNING : THE POLITICAL CRISIS IN IRAQ (BY ISW) By Patrick Martin and ISW Iraq Team
14 4, 2015 – ISW – The session of the Council of Representatives (CoR) to select a new cabinet for the government dissolved into chaos when political blocs could not reach an agreement over the cabinet’s final composition. The CoR members burst into an uproar when CoR Speaker Juburi announced the decision that followed a closed-door meeting of Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi, CoR Speaker Juburi, and the heads of several political blocs during a recess of the CoR session. Reportedly over 100 members of the CoR began a sit-in in the CoR to protest the decision by CoR Speaker Salim al-Juburi to postpone the vote on the cabinet reshuffle until Thursday, April 14. The protesters’ demands include the removal of PM Abadi, President Fuad Masoum, and CoR Speaker Juburi, as well as the end to political quotas determining the composition of the cabinet. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=73091
NORTH KURDISTAN (TURKEY)
MESOP FOCUS : Will government seize Turkey’s largest bank?
12 April 2016 – AL MONITOR – Turkey’s largest private bank, Isbank, increasingly has become a government target the last few years, increasing the perception of growing political oppression of the nation’s banking sector.
Established in 1924 by the founder of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Isbank has been under intense criticism by pro-government media since 2012. The latest attack, in January, came from Yigit Bulut, a key adviser to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan; Bulut openly said that the government must seize the bank. Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=73089