southfront--2020-12-03--Conservative Anti-LGBTQ Hungarian MEP Admits To “Strictly” Personal Mistake, After Being Caught At 2

Conservative Anti-LGBTQ Hungarian MEP Admits To “Strictly” Personal Mistake, After Being Caught At 25-Man Gay Orgy Violating COVID Restrictions

On November 28th , a conservative Hungarian MEP and member of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban ’ s Fidesz party resigned from his post after a scandal related to a 25-man orgy .
Jozsef Szajer , who helped write Hungary ’ s ultra-conservative constitution , allegedly tried to flee the 25-person orgy by climbing through a window and shinning down a drainpipe .
He reportedly hurt himself in the process and was caught by police , when he then tried to claim diplomatic immunity before being let off with a warning .
Belgian police detained about 20 people at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on November 27th .
On December 1st , Jozsef Szajer apologized for the incident and denied taking drugs the party , which he did not mention when he announced he was resigning as an MEP for the Fidesz party , which portrays itself as a staunch defender of “ traditional ” values .
“ After the police asked for my identity – since I did not have ID on me – I declared that I was a MEP .
The police continued the process and finally issued an official verbal warning and transported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a statement .
“ I deeply regret violating the Covid restrictions , it was irresponsible on my part , ” he added , without giving any details of the party .
“ I did not use drugs , I offered to the police to undergo an official test , but they did not do one .
Police said an ecstasy pill was found .
It is not mine , I do not know who placed it there or how , ” he said .
“ The misstep is strictly personal , I am @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it .
I ask everyone not to extend it to my homeland , or to my political community , ” said Szajer , who is married to a prominent judge on Hungary ’ s constitutional court .
There will be no prosecution unless the European Parliament is persuaded to waive the MEP ’ s immunity .
Szajer has been elected four times to the Hungarian parliament between 1990 and 2002 , and four times to the European Parliament since 2004 .
His party called him “ the best-known and most-recognised Hungarian member of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ came to power in 2010 Szajer was put in charge of drafting a new constitution , which he said he partly wrote on an Apple iPad on the train between Brussels and Strasbourg .
The socially conservative text sparked controversy , including a definition of “ the institution of marriage as between a man and a woman ” as well as “ the basis of the family and national survival ” .
Orban described his actions as “ unacceptable and indefensible ” and said they had “ no place in the values of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a statement from his office .
Szajer is a known proponent of anti-LGBT measures .
The arrest ’ s circumstances are quite embarrassing for the hardcore conservative agenda-following politician .
“ While he was enjoying himself in LGBT-friendly Brussels , he made life for LGBT people in Hungary miserable , ” tweeted Szabolcs Panyi , a journalist for the Direkt36 investigative site .
Szajer ’ s fall from grace comes shortly after Orban lost two other key players in his Europe policy , MEP Gyorgy Schopflin and adviser Peter Gottfried .
“ These @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meetings and won ’ t be able to convey information back home , ” says Zoltan Lakner , analyst and owner of the independent Jelen weekly .
At the party itself , everybody was “ very careful ” and that the only rule for the party was that everyone had to have previously contracted the coronavirus , according to the organizer David Manzheley , a 29-year-old doctoral student .
Manzheley said it was like any other party .
Regardless of what the party was , Szajer is actually avoiding any actual prosecution against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has diplomatic immunity .
It turns out that the anti-COVID restrictions are only for the ordinary people , and they are the ones who need to adhere them .
The double-standard and quite double-faced approach is a cornerstone of modern European and American politics .
Since every time a story such as this breaks out it reveals that the claims and vows of freedom and justice that are constantly propagated are simply lies , used to push a control-oriented agenda that strongly resembles a totalitarian rule .
MORE ON THE TOPIC : • @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Great Reset – A Call for Civil Disobedience • The -19 RT-PCR Test : How to Mislead All Humanity .
Using a “ Test ” To Lock Down Society

Support SouthFront
On November 28th, a conservative Hungarian MEP and member of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s Fidesz party resigned from his post after a scandal related to a 25-man orgy.
Jozsef Szajer, who helped write Hungary’s ultra-conservative constitution, allegedly tried to flee the 25-person orgy by climbing through a window and shinning down a drainpipe.
He reportedly hurt himself in the process and was caught by police, when he then tried to claim diplomatic immunity before being let off with a warning.
Belgian police detained about 20 people at the house party in a central Brussels apartment on November 27th.
Another, undisclosed person also claimed diplomatic immunity.
On December 1st, Jozsef Szajer apologized for the incident and denied taking drugs the party, which he did not mention when he announced he was resigning as an MEP for the Fidesz party, which portrays itself as a staunch defender of “traditional” values.
“After the police asked for my identity – since I did not have ID on me – I declared that I was a MEP. The police continued the process and finally issued an official verbal warning and transported me home,” Szajer said in a statement. “I deeply regret violating the Covid restrictions, it was irresponsible on my part,” he added, without giving any details of the party. “I did not use drugs, I offered to the police to undergo an official test, but they did not do one. Police said an ecstasy pill was found. It is not mine, I do not know who placed it there or how,” he said. “The misstep is strictly personal, I am the only one who has responsibility for it. I ask everyone not to extend it to my homeland, or to my political community,” said Szajer, who is married to a prominent judge on Hungary’s constitutional court.
There will be no prosecution unless the European Parliament is persuaded to waive the MEP’s immunity.
“I was present,” Szajer admitted, in a statement distributed by his conservative political group the EPP.
Szajer has been elected four times to the Hungarian parliament between 1990 and 2002, and four times to the European Parliament since 2004.
His party called him “the best-known and most-recognised Hungarian member of the European Parliament”.
After Orban came to power in 2010 Szajer was put in charge of drafting a new constitution, which he said he partly wrote on an Apple iPad on the train between Brussels and Strasbourg.
The socially conservative text sparked controversy, including a definition of “the institution of marriage as between a man and a woman” as well as “the basis of the family and national survival”.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban condemned the actions of Szajer.
Orban described his actions as “unacceptable and indefensible” and said they had “no place in the values of our political family”, according to a statement from his office.
“We will not forget nor repudiate his 30 years of work, but his deed is unacceptable and indefensible. Following this, he took the only appropriate decision when he apologised and resigned from his position as member of the European Parliament and left Fidesz,” Orban said.
Szajer is a known proponent of anti-LGBT measures.
“While Fidesz politicians are teaching us about Christianity, family, traditional gender roles and morality, they are actually living a completely different life, as far away as possible from the values they voice,” leader of the DK opposition party Ferenc Gyurcsany said.
The arrest’s circumstances are quite embarrassing for the hardcore conservative agenda-following politician.
“While he was enjoying himself in LGBT-friendly Brussels, he made life for LGBT people in Hungary miserable,” tweeted Szabolcs Panyi, a journalist for the Direkt36 investigative site.
Szajer’s fall from grace comes shortly after Orban lost two other key players in his Europe policy, MEP Gyorgy Schopflin and adviser Peter Gottfried.
“These people will be missing from very important meetings and won’t be able to convey information back home,” says Zoltan Lakner, analyst and owner of the independent Jelen weekly.
At the party itself, everybody was “very careful” and that the only rule for the party was that everyone had to have previously contracted the coronavirus, according to the organizer David Manzheley, a 29-year-old doctoral student.
“To be honest, I don’t see the problem. There were two nurses there, and they didn’t think it was dangerous either,” he said.
Manzheley said it was like any other party.
“We talk, we have a drink – just like at the cafe. The only difference is that in the meantime, we’re having sex with each other. I don’t see what’s wrong with that. We’re all adults, everything is by mutual consent,” he said.
Regardless of what the party was, Szajer is actually avoiding any actual prosecution against him or a fine, since he has diplomatic immunity.
It turns out that the anti-COVID restrictions are only for the ordinary people, and they are the ones who need to adhere them.
The double-standard and quite double-faced approach is a cornerstone of modern European and American politics. Since every time a story such as this breaks out it reveals that the claims and vows of freedom and justice that are constantly propagated are simply lies, used to push a control-oriented agenda that strongly resembles a totalitarian rule.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Get SouthFront-Branded Items Now! Join The Resistance!

During the past years , SouthFront received multiple requests to provide you with an opportunity to buy branded items or @ @ @ @ @ , SouthFront is a mostly volunteer team that operates on audience ’ s donations and @ @ @ @ @ time and resources .
Nonetheless , thanks to your regular support , we finally set @ @ @ @ @ to obtain SouthFront-branded T-shirts , hoodies , mugs and other goods .
We are excited @ @ @ @ @ batch of SouthFront-branded items .
You can find the FULL LIST OF AVAILABLE ITEMS HERE @ @ @ @ @ BUYING THESE ITEMS YOU SUPPORT WORK AND DEVELOPMENT OF SOUTHFRONT : YOU CAN ALSO SUPPORT @ @ @ @ @ Donate via VISA , PayPal , Paysafecard , Bitcoin and other options .

Support SouthFront
DEAR FRIENDS,
During the past years, SouthFront received multiple requests to provide you with an opportunity to buy branded items or other goods.
You know, SouthFront is a mostly volunteer team that operates on audience’s donations and we are limited in our time and resources. Nonetheless, thanks to your regular support, we finally set up a shop allowing you to obtain SouthFront-branded T-shirts, hoodies, mugs and other goods.
We are excited to introduce you the first batch of SouthFront-branded items.
You can find the FULL LIST OF AVAILABLE ITEMS HERE or just check examples below (ALL PICTURES ARE CLICKABLE)
BUYING THESE ITEMS YOU SUPPORT WORK AND DEVELOPMENT OF SOUTHFRONT:
YOU CAN ALSO SUPPORT SOUTHFRONT BY DIRECT DONATIONS:
PayPal
Account: southfront@list.ru
Cryptocurrencies
BTC: 3Gbs4rjcVUtQd8p3CiFUCxPLZwRqurezRZ
BCH ABC: qpf2cphc5dkuclkqur7lhj2yuqq9pk3hmukle77vhq
ETH: 0x9f4cda013e354b8fc285bf4b9a60460cee7f7ea9
DonationAlerts
Donate via VISA, PayPal, Paysafecard, Bitcoin and other options.
Patreon
Donate via SouthFront’s Patreon account (click here)
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Self-Sabotage, Chaos And Failed Planning As Factors Of Armenia’s Defeat. Azerbaijan Celebrates “Glor

Self-Sabotage, Chaos And Failed Planning As Factors Of Armenia’s Defeat. Azerbaijan Celebrates “Glorious Victory”

Mass protests against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan are continuing in Armenia .
People blame him for actually accepting the Azerbaijani conditions for ending the war in Karabakh .
The war in Nagorno-Karabakh , which began early in the morning of September 27 , ended 44 days later with the actual defeat of Armenia .
In the late night of November 10 , Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed an agreement according to which the Armenian side transfers to Azerbaijan the territories it took under its control almost thirty years ago , the territories of seven regions adjacent to the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Shusha , Hadrut and a number of other villages .
The most intense discussions in Armenia and its diaspora abroad are around the surrender of Shusha .
The city is located on the highway connecting Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh .
The same picture is observed for several kilometers in the direction of Lachin – after Shusha – signs of fighting , heavy one .
It is obvious that the Azerbaijani army carried out a large-scale offensive here and met with resistance along the entire line .
It was after the fall of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decided that it was no longer able to continue the war .
The disputes over the surrender of Shushi have escalated even more after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that on October 19-20th , Pashinyan was offered to transfer part of the territory , but at the same time preserve Shusha .
The condition was the return to the city of Azerbaijani refugees who left the city in the first war .
Yerevan did not agree to this , because until 1992 Azerbaijanis accounted for up to 90 % of the population of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how to ensure the safety of the Armenians living there .
In addition , according to the agreement , if it had been concluded then , the Azerbaijani refugees would have to return to other Armenian regions of Karabakh , and here the issue of security would also be raised .
On November 7th , forward defensive troops received an order to withdraw from the village of Karin so , lying at the foot of the rock on which Shusha stands , to the city itself .
On November 9th , the soldiers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at that time the Azerbaijani troops were already in the city .
The Azerbaijani army marched towards Shusho from the village of Avetaranots .
After that , the attacking group split up : some entered along the road from Karin , the others – from the east through the gorge .
When soldiers were ordered to retreat , many were in the suburbs where the fighting was going on .
According to soldiers who were present , they had no problems with equipment , including night vision devices .
Another thing is ordinary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ direction , absolute darkness falls at night .
On the approaches to the trenches with dugouts , covered with a simple tree , they scattered everything that crackles loudly , in the trenches themselves – bundles of empty cans .
This is incredibly poor , and Azerbaijan ’ s drone usage made the Armenian and Artsakh soldiers exquisitely easy to spot .
Azerbaijan did not have enough strength to hold Shusha for a long time , said Armenian military expert Karen Vrtanesyan .
Due to the landscape , the supply of Azerbaijani troops @ @ @ @ @ @ @ task .
It was supposed to pass through the village of Avetaranots , and then through the mountains .
Even almost three weeks after the end of the war , Azerbaijan uses a section of the Lachin-Shushi road controlled by the Armenians to supply the city .
On this section of the road , there are even cars with both Armenian and Azerbaijani numbers .
According to open data , the armies of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh before the start of the conflict lagged behind Azerbaijan in terms of the number of heavy ground @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
However , this gap can not be called critical , given that they had to act on the defensive .
According to the reference book of the International Institute for Strategic Studies ( IISS ) Military Balance for 2019 , the number of the NKR defense army totaled 18-20 thousand people .
It had about 200-300 T-72 tanks and about the same amount of artillery .
The NKR has always been actively supported by the Armenian army , so it is not clear what share of this equipment were Armenian .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 800 people , including conscripts , and had a mobilization reserve of about 220 thousand people .
The country had at least 109 tanks .
Most of them are T-72 , the rest are more ancient .
There was also one T-90 which won at Alabino in the 2014 tank biathlon competition .
The number of the Azerbaijani army is 66 950 people ( ground forces , air force , navy ) , the mobilization reserve is about 300,000 people .
Baku had at least 439 tanks , of which at least 100 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ units ) were T-72s .
The artillery of Armenia consisted of at least 232 pieces of equipment , including 38 self-propelled guns ( 122-mm “ Carnations ” and 152-mm “ Acat ” ) , 131 howitzers ( based on the D-20 and D-30 cannons , as well as “ Hyacinth-B ” ) and 63 MLRS installations , including 47 Grad and at least six Smerch , as well as several Chinese WM-80s .
Baku , according to the Military Balance , had at least 598 units of artillery equipment , including 96 self-propelled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up of Carnations and Acats , but there were also Czech M-77 Dana , as well as Israeli ATMOS 2000 ) , 207 howitzers and MLRS , including more than 60 “ Grad ” , at least 18 “ Solntsepek ” and 30 “ Smerch ” .
Also , in service were several Belarusian “ Rysy ” , “ Polonez ” and at least 21 “ Kasyrga ” .
There were also Czech RM-70 “ Vampir ” and Croatian RAC-12 .
In addition , at least 16 missile systems were in service with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and four Iskander .
Armenia is the only country , apart from Russia , which has Iskanders .
Azerbaijan is armed with Tochka missile systems and Israeli LORA operational-tactical missiles .
Obviously using an Iskander ballistic missile was out of the question , unless the situation was much more critical than it was .
Regardless of all of this , the most important element of modern warfare is intelligence , says Vasily Kashin , head of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies at the Higher School of Economics .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the expert is sure : The role of attack drones like the Bayraktar TB2 in this war is greatly exaggerated , Kashin believes , because the main means of inflicting casualties was artillery , which was helped by reconnaissance .
Armenia is the leader in the region in the field of information technology , and in theory it should have had effective technical and cyber intelligence , he says .
Armenia was ineffective in the area of air defense .
Baku pursued a much more meaningful procurement policy in the field of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 19 , the head of the Military Control Service of the Armenian Defense Ministry Movses Hakobyan gave a press conference , where he made several sensational statements , the most important of which was that during the war , the country was not fully mobilized , although martial law was declared in Armenia at the very first day of conflict .
As a result , by September 30 , Karabakh fulfilled the plan of replenishment by 78 % , and Armenia – by 52 % .
Although , according to Hakobyan , this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ within 40 hours , ” and from here , in his words , further problems arose .
The main mistake of the Armenian side , and it was made at the highest level , is the initial disposition for a short war , Armenian Military expert Karen Vrtanesyan claimed .
The second reason for the defeat is the complete unpreparedness of the state apparatus for the military situation , the expert continued .
Another problem is the “ personnel leapfrog ” and incompetent military command .
After the revolution of 2018 and by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , four heads of the Armed Forces , three chiefs of the General Staff were replaced , in Karabakh – three commanders of the defense army .
After the beginning of the war , the “ old ” and experienced commanders – participants in the first Karabakh war – were not allowed to control the army .
Bad command , almost complete absence of modern weapons , air defense and normal concrete fortifications , betrayal – he listed as additional reasons for losing the fight .
As a result , Azerbaijan ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ December 2nd .
President Ilham Aliyev will likely give another victory speech , even though he gave one when the forces entered Lachin district .
The Russian peacekeepers are also carrying out their activities , clearing mines , guaranteeing the safe return of refugees , and the restore of life such as schools returning to operation .
On December 3rd , with the assistance of Russian peacekeeping units , the educational process is being resumed in schools in Nagorno-Karabakh .
The bell rang in another school in the city of Stepanakert .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ completed mine clearance in the area of secondary school No .
8 in Stepanakert , provided assistance in carrying out repairs in the educational institution , and provided security for the supply of necessary educational equipment .
On December 3rd , military personnel of the International Mine Action Center of the Russian Defence Ministry continue to work on engineering reconnaissance and mine clearance in the area of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping forces in Nagorno-Karabakh .
Russian peacekeepers cleared the southern outskirts of the city of Stepanakert of explosive objects .
During the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were found and neutralized by the sappers on December 2nd alone .
MORE ON THE TOPIC :

Support SouthFront
Mass protests against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan are continuing in Armenia.
People blame him for actually accepting the Azerbaijani conditions for ending the war in Karabakh.
The war in Nagorno-Karabakh, which began early in the morning of September 27, ended 44 days later with the actual defeat of Armenia. In the late night of November 10, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed an agreement according to which the Armenian side transfers to Azerbaijan the territories it took under its control almost thirty years ago, the territories of seven regions adjacent to the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region, as well as the cities of Shusha, Hadrut and a number of other villages.
The most intense discussions in Armenia and its diaspora abroad are around the surrender of Shusha. The city is located on the highway connecting Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.
The same picture is observed for several kilometers in the direction of Lachin – after Shusha – signs of fighting, heavy one.
It is obvious that the Azerbaijani army carried out a large-scale offensive here and met with resistance along the entire line.
It was after the fall of the strategically important city of Shusha that Yerevan decided that it was no longer able to continue the war.
The disputes over the surrender of Shushi have escalated even more after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that on October 19-20th, Pashinyan was offered to transfer part of the territory, but at the same time preserve Shusha. The condition was the return to the city of Azerbaijani refugees who left the city in the first war.
Yerevan did not agree to this, because until 1992 Azerbaijanis accounted for up to 90% of the population of Shusha and because it was not clear how to ensure the safety of the Armenians living there.
In addition, according to the agreement, if it had been concluded then, the Azerbaijani refugees would have to return to other Armenian regions of Karabakh, and here the issue of security would also be raised.
On November 7th, forward defensive troops received an order to withdraw from the village of Karin so, lying at the foot of the rock on which Shusha stands, to the city itself. On November 9th, the soldiers were ordered to leave it too – at that time the Azerbaijani troops were already in the city.
The Azerbaijani army marched towards Shusho from the village of Avetaranots.
After that, the attacking group split up: some entered along the road from Karin, the others – from the east through the gorge.
When soldiers were ordered to retreat, many were in the suburbs where the fighting was going on.
According to soldiers who were present, they had no problems with equipment, including night vision devices.
Another thing is ordinary soldiers in positions. In the Martakert direction, absolute darkness falls at night. On the approaches to the trenches with dugouts, covered with a simple tree, they scattered everything that crackles loudly, in the trenches themselves – bundles of empty cans.
This is incredibly poor, and Azerbaijan’s drone usage made the Armenian and Artsakh soldiers exquisitely easy to spot.
Azerbaijan did not have enough strength to hold Shusha for a long time, said Armenian military expert Karen Vrtanesyan.
“If there were normal planning and management of the operation, then in principle it would have been possible to keep or recapture Shusha.”
Due to the landscape, the supply of Azerbaijani troops in the Shusha direction is a difficult task. It was supposed to pass through the village of Avetaranots, and then through the mountains.
Even almost three weeks after the end of the war, Azerbaijan uses a section of the Lachin-Shushi road controlled by the Armenians to supply the city. On this section of the road, there are even cars with both Armenian and Azerbaijani numbers.
“It is completely incomprehensible why this road, which could have been blocked by small forces, was never cut off,” Vrtanesyan said. “Why wasn’t enough force deployed there?” “You cannot take Shusha, you can only surrender it,” Arsen ascertained. After a pause, he added, as if making excuses: “We are not bad fighters. We were simply handed over.”
According to open data, the armies of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh before the start of the conflict lagged behind Azerbaijan in terms of the number of heavy ground equipment, tanks, artillery and manpower. However, this gap cannot be called critical, given that they had to act on the defensive.
According to the reference book of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Military Balance for 2019, the number of the NKR defense army totaled 18-20 thousand people. It had about 200-300 T-72 tanks and about the same amount of artillery. The NKR has always been actively supported by the Armenian army, so it is not clear what share of this equipment were Armenian. In 2019, the Armenian army numbered 44 800 people, including conscripts, and had a mobilization reserve of about 220 thousand people. The country had at least 109 tanks. Most of them are T-72, the rest are more ancient. There was also one T-90 which won at Alabino in the 2014 tank biathlon competition.
The number of the Azerbaijani army is 66 950 people (ground forces, air force, navy), the mobilization reserve is about 300,000 people. Baku had at least 439 tanks, of which at least 100 T-90s, but the majority (244 units) were T-72s.
The artillery of Armenia consisted of at least 232 pieces of equipment, including 38 self-propelled guns (122-mm “Carnations” and 152-mm “Acat”), 131 howitzers (based on the D-20 and D-30 cannons, as well as “Hyacinth-B”) and 63 MLRS installations, including 47 Grad and at least six Smerch, as well as several Chinese WM-80s.
Baku, according to the Military Balance, had at least 598 units of artillery equipment, including 96 self-propelled guns (the basis is also made up of Carnations and Acats, but there were also Czech M-77 Dana, as well as Israeli ATMOS 2000), 207 howitzers and MLRS, including more than 60 “Grad”, at least 18 “Solntsepek” and 30 “Smerch”. Also, in service were several Belarusian “Rysy”, “Polonez” and at least 21 “Kasyrga”. There were also Czech RM-70 “Vampir” and Croatian RAC-12.
In addition, at least 16 missile systems were in service with Armenia: eight Elbrus, four Tochka, and four Iskander. Armenia is the only country, apart from Russia, which has Iskanders. Azerbaijan is armed with Tochka missile systems and Israeli LORA operational-tactical missiles.
Obviously using an Iskander ballistic missile was out of the question, unless the situation was much more critical than it was.
Regardless of all of this, the most important element of modern warfare is intelligence, says Vasily Kashin, head of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies at the Higher School of Economics. And here was the main advantage of Azerbaijan, the expert is sure:
“You can have parity in the number of artillery units, in heavy ground equipment, tanks, but the potential is determined not by the number of barrels, but by the effectiveness of reconnaissance.” In addition, he adds, the data does not reflect the country’s equipment with modern ammunition: “You have the same MLRS or guns of the Cold War, but one side has modern types of corrected ammunition, and the other does not.”
The role of attack drones like the Bayraktar TB2 in this war is greatly exaggerated, Kashin believes, because the main means of inflicting casualties was artillery, which was helped by reconnaissance. Armenia is the leader in the region in the field of information technology, and in theory it should have had effective technical and cyber intelligence, he says.
“The Azerbaijanis, apparently, were afraid of this and did a great job with social networks and to maintain discipline. But the Armenians clearly had a very poor idea of the location of the Azerbaijani military facilities. This can be seen because even the means of heavy MLRS, which they had, were not used at full range,” the expert explained.
Armenia was ineffective in the area of air defense.
“The entire defense was represented by some kind of separate foci and, moreover, outdated types of equipment like the Wasp,” explains Kashin. – Since the days of the Vietnam War, constant maneuvers and quick withdrawal from positions immediately after firing have become the key to the survival of air defense systems. But, apparently, there was also a problem with the management of those meager forces that the Armenians possessed. On the whole, it seems to me, they did not delve into the experience of armed conflicts in recent decades.”
Baku pursued a much more meaningful procurement policy in the field of weapons, Kashin continued.
“The Armenians had a good potential in the field of creating their own drones and electronic warfare systems. But instead, money was spent on meaningless things – for example, for the purchase of Su-30M, which were not even used in this conflict, and the purchase of several dozen Osa air defense systems from Jordan,” he said. “As a result, Azerbaijan, whose budget was 3-5 times larger than the Armenian budget over the past few years, purposefully and continuously prepared for this war, attracting supplier countries – Russia, Israel, Turkey – and carefully studying the experience of recent conflicts. The fact that the Armenians did not have money is not so bad. Careful strategic planning would have compensated for inequality, but they didn’t have that either,” Kashin summed up.
Armenia’s loss was largely due to systemic problems.
On November 19, the head of the Military Control Service of the Armenian Defense Ministry Movses Hakobyan gave a press conference, where he made several sensational statements, the most important of which was that during the war, the country was not fully mobilized, although martial law was declared in Armenia at the very first day of conflict.
“The head of state has stopped the replenishment. The Prime Minister of the country issues an order to stop the replenishment and instead send volunteers to the front line on the third day of the war,” the colonel-general said and added that many of the volunteers were killed, and about 1,500 fled in panic. They were isolated in Karabakh “so that they would not return and cause panic in Armenia.”
As a result, by September 30, Karabakh fulfilled the plan of replenishment by 78%, and Armenia – by 52%. Although, according to Hakobyan, this plan should have been carried out “within 40 hours,” and from here, in his words, further problems arose.
The main mistake of the Armenian side, and it was made at the highest level, is the initial disposition for a short war, Armenian Military expert Karen Vrtanesyan claimed.
“Those actions and those messages that the state sent – everything testified to this. The normal mobilization never took place. So far, no one has denied what Movses Hakobyan said, said Vrtanesyan. “Even a retreat to new frontiers, which could have been carried out effectively and with the preservation of manpower and equipment, was not carried out, because in the first days of the war there was a feeling that it would not be long.”
The second reason for the defeat is the complete unpreparedness of the state apparatus for the military situation, the expert continued.
“In 2015, very serious, large-scale exercises were held, during which the entire state apparatus was involved, even the scenario of the evacuation of the National Art Gallery was played out,” he recalls. But after Armenia switched to a parliamentary form of government in 2018, the mechanisms for mobilizing the state were not fully worked out, he said. “Those who watched carefully, it was clear that there are serious problems in the system of state administration in Armenia and the new authorities cannot cope with them,” Vrtanesyan said.
Another problem is the “personnel leapfrog” and incompetent military command.
After the revolution of 2018 and by the time the conflict resumed in Armenia, four heads of the Armed Forces, three chiefs of the General Staff were replaced, in Karabakh – three commanders of the defense army.
After the beginning of the war, the “old” and experienced commanders – participants in the first Karabakh war – were not allowed to control the army.
“All this simply cannot but affect the fighting efficiency of the army,” Vrtanesyan summed up. The fact that the “old” generals were not allowed to command was confirmed by retired major general, veteran of the first war, Vitaly Balasanyan. “They didn’t let me and other experienced commanders in,” he said. “We could fight. And even to counterattack, but only one on one with Azerbaijan. Back on September 29 [September] we told them that a political solution was needed – the power was incomparable,” he added.
Bad command, almost complete absence of modern weapons, air defense and normal concrete fortifications, betrayal – he listed as additional reasons for losing the fight.
As a result, Azerbaijan’s forces entered the city of Lachin on December 2nd. President Ilham Aliyev will likely give another victory speech, even though he gave one when the forces entered Lachin district.
The Russian peacekeepers are also carrying out their activities, clearing mines, guaranteeing the safe return of refugees, and the restore of life such as schools returning to operation.
On December 3rd, with the assistance of Russian peacekeeping units, the educational process is being resumed in schools in Nagorno-Karabakh. The bell rang in another school in the city of Stepanakert.
The day before, Russian military personnel had completed mine clearance in the area of secondary school No. 8 in Stepanakert, provided assistance in carrying out repairs in the educational institution, and provided security for the supply of necessary educational equipment.
On December 3rd, military personnel of the International Mine Action Center of the Russian Defence Ministry continue to work on engineering reconnaissance and mine clearance in the area of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping forces in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Russian peacekeepers cleared the southern outskirts of the city of Stepanakert of explosive objects. During the mine clearance, about 100 explosive objects were found and neutralized by the sappers on December 2nd alone.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--U.S. Approves $350M Mission To Help Saudi Arabia To Deal With Houthi Attacks After Successive Failur

U.S. Approves $350M Mission To Help Saudi Arabia To Deal With Houthi Attacks After Successive Failures

On December 1st , the US State Department approved a possible $ 350 million deal to continue providing security support services to Saudi Arabia .
According to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency , the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has asked that U.S. Security Assistance Office continue to provide support services for five more years .
The State Department gave the green light for a five-year extension of the programme which includes salaries for “ U.S .
Military , U.S. Government , and Foreign National staff members ” .
It also covers administrative costs , logistical support , and taxes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to move USMTM ” to a new location in the kingdom .
US Central Command , on its website , describes the mission as a “ unique security assistance ( SA ) and security cooperation ( SC ) organization under the authority of the chief of the U.S. diplomatic mission ” .
Its aim is to “ train , advise and assist ” Saudi Arabia ’ s military , one of the best-funded in the world and a significant buyer of US arms .
“ Our mission is to enhance U.S. national security @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces ( SAAF ) to defend our common interests in the Middle East region , ” it adds .
“ This proposed sale will continue to improve Saudi Arabia ’ s capability to meet current and future threats by utilizing USMTM ’ s continued efforts to train , advise , and assist the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces to build defense capacity and capability through military exercises and professional military education .
USMTM conducts non-combat , institutional advising that assists the MOD in developing , training , and sustaining a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the DSCA said .
Implementation of the proposed sale will continue to require the permanent assignment of approximately 330 U.S. Military , U.S. Government , and Foreign National USMTM staff members to Saudi Arabia .
Additional Training Advisory Field Teams ( TAFT ) and Support teams will travel to the country on a temporary basis as required .
Also , the sale will not be so significant as to alter the military balance in the region , meaning that Saudi Arabia will still likely continue losing the fight against Yemen ’ s Houthi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ support and services will not alter the basic military balance in the region .
There is no prime contractor associated with this proposed sale .
There are no known offset agreements in connection with this potential sale.
” This is not final , as it must pass a vote : In February 2016 the State Department approved a $ 200 million deal for military technical support services to Saudi Arabia .
MORE ON THE TOPIC : • Arabia Fells Victim To Exchange Of Asymmetrical Strikes Between Iran And Israel • King Was Not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Meeting With MbS

Support SouthFront
On December 1st, the US State Department approved a possible $350 million deal to continue providing security support services to Saudi Arabia.
According to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has asked that U.S. Security Assistance Office continue to provide support services for five more years.
The State Department gave the green light for a five-year extension of the programme which includes salaries for “U.S. Military, U.S. Government, and Foreign National staff members”.
It also covers administrative costs, logistical support, and taxes, as well as “future transition costs to move USMTM” to a new location in the kingdom.
US Central Command, on its website, describes the mission as a “unique security assistance (SA) and security cooperation (SC) organization under the authority of the chief of the U.S. diplomatic mission”.
Its aim is to “train, advise and assist” Saudi Arabia’s military, one of the best-funded in the world and a significant buyer of US arms.
“Our mission is to enhance U.S. national security through building the capability and capacity of the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces (SAAF) to defend our common interests in the Middle East region,” it adds. “This proposed sale will continue to improve Saudi Arabia’s capability to meet current and future threats by utilizing USMTM’s continued efforts to train, advise, and assist the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces to build defense capacity and capability through military exercises and professional military education. USMTM conducts non-combat, institutional advising that assists the MOD in developing, training, and sustaining a capable deterrent to regional threats,” the DSCA said.
Implementation of the proposed sale will continue to require the permanent assignment of approximately 330 U.S. Military, U.S. Government, and Foreign National USMTM staff members to Saudi Arabia.
Additional Training Advisory Field Teams (TAFT) and Support teams will travel to the country on a temporary basis as required.
Also, the sale will not be so significant as to alter the military balance in the region, meaning that Saudi Arabia will still likely continue losing the fight against Yemen’s Houthi.
“The proposed sale of this support and services will not alter the basic military balance in the region. There is no prime contractor associated with this proposed sale. There are no known offset agreements in connection with this potential sale.”
This is not final, as it must pass a vote:
“This notice of a potential sale is required by law. The description and dollar value is for the highest estimated quantity and dollar value based on initial requirements. Actual dollar value will be lower depending on final requirements, budget authority, and signed sales agreement(s), if and when concluded.”
In February 2016 the State Department approved a $200 million deal for military technical support services to Saudi Arabia.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Watch: President Trump Delivers His “Most Important Speech Ever” (Rejecting Results Of Election For

Watch: President Trump Delivers His “Most Important Speech Ever” (Rejecting Results Of Election For Sure)

President Trump provides an update on the “ constitutional election process.
” Trump described his speech as “ the most important ” he ’ s ever made , providing an “ update ” on the campaign ’ s “ ongoing efforts to expose the tremendous voter fraud that took place during the ridiculously long November 3rd elections.
” During the full speech ( on Facebook ) , Trump summarized a number of allegations raised by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and other campaign lawyers .
He claimed that “ many people in the media , and even judges @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it.
” “ They know it ’ s true .
They know it ’ s there .
They know who won the election but they refuse to say ‘ you ’ re right , ’ ” he continued .
“ Our country needs somebody to say you ’ re right.
” “ As president , I have no higher duty than to defend the laws and the Constitution of the United States , ” which – along with the election system – is under “ coordinated assault and siege , ” Both Twitter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the clips .
MORE ON THE TOPIC : • Dalio : The United States Is At A Tipping Point That Could Lead To Revolution Or Civil War

Support SouthFront
Originally appeared at ZeroHedge
President Trump provides an update on the “constitutional election process.”
Trump described his speech as “the most important” he’s ever made, providing an “update” on the campaign’s “ongoing efforts to expose the tremendous voter fraud that took place during the ridiculously long November 3rd elections.”
The President noted that:
“Lots of bad things happened during this ridiculous period of time, especially when you have to prove almost nothing.”
Statement by Donald J. Trump, The President of the United States Full Video: https://t.co/EHqzsLbbJG pic.twitter.com/Eu4IsLNsKD — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 2, 2020
During the full speech (on Facebook), Trump summarized a number of allegations raised by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and other campaign lawyers. He claimed that “many people in the media, and even judges so far, have refused to accept it.”
“They know it’s true. They know it’s there. They know who won the election but they refuse to say ‘you’re right,’” he continued. “Our country needs somebody to say you’re right.”
Trump concluded:
“As president, I have no higher duty than to defend the laws and the Constitution of the United States,” which – along with the election system – is under “coordinated assault and siege,”
Both Twitter and Facebook have already slapped warnings on the clips.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Russia Successfully Carries Out Test Flights Of S-70 Okhotnik-B Heavy Attack Drone In Fighter-Interc

Russia Successfully Carries Out Test Flights Of S-70 Okhotnik-B Heavy Attack Drone In Fighter-Intercepter Mode

For the first time , the Russian military conducted a series of flights of the S-70 Okhotnik-B heavy attack UAV in its mode of operation as a fighter-interceptor with simulated air-to-air missiles at the Ashuluk training ground , an unnamed source in the military-industrial complex told RIA Novosti .
Prior to this , the S-70 Okhotnik-B heavy attack drone had already performed a number of flights , but during them only its flight qualities and the operation of the main on-board systems were assessed .
“ From the strip of the military airfield of the Center for Combat Training and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the Ashuluk training ground , several flights of the Hunter were performed with functional simulators of guided air-to-air missiles .
Such missiles in the combat version are designed to destroy other aircraft , ” the source told RIA , noting that the tests were recent .
The source explained that the flights performed “ will make it possible to assess the coupling of the drone ’ s avionics with missile guidance systems and the lead Su-57 aircraft.
” According to RIA ’ s source , simulators of missiles with infrared and radar @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Okhotnik-B heavy attack drone .
The S-70 Okhotnik-B , developed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau , is to become the first heavy drone with strike functions in the Russian Aerospace Forces .
The device is made according to the “ flying wing ” scheme with the use of materials that reduce the radar signature .
According to open sources , the strike UAV has a length of 19 meters , a wingspan of 14 meters , its take-off weight is 20 tons , and its maximum speed is about 1000 kilometers per hour @ @ @ @ @ @ @ took place on August 3 and lasted more than 20 minutes .
There is newly-released footage , but below is the only one released so far showing a flight of the heavy attack drone .
MORE ON THE TOPIC : • Photo Of Russia ’ s First Ever Prototype Of S-70 Heavy Strike Drone , Alongside Su-57 Fighter Jet Released

Support SouthFront
For the first time, the Russian military conducted a series of flights of the S-70 Okhotnik-B heavy attack UAV in its mode of operation as a fighter-interceptor with simulated air-to-air missiles at the Ashuluk training ground, an unnamed source in the military-industrial complex told RIA Novosti.
Prior to this, the S-70 Okhotnik-B heavy attack drone had already performed a number of flights, but during them only its flight qualities and the operation of the main on-board systems were assessed.
“From the strip of the military airfield of the Center for Combat Training and Combat Use of the Russian Aerospace Forces at the Ashuluk training ground, several flights of the Hunter were performed with functional simulators of guided air-to-air missiles. Such missiles in the combat version are designed to destroy other aircraft,” the source told RIA, noting that the tests were recent.
The source explained that the flights performed “will make it possible to assess the coupling of the drone’s avionics with missile guidance systems and the lead Su-57 aircraft.”
According to RIA’s source, simulators of missiles with infrared and radar homing heads were used on the S-70 Okhotnik-B heavy attack drone.
“The simulators have the body and all the electronic stuffing of the corresponding missile, but they lack the engine and warhead,” the source said.
The S-70 Okhotnik-B, developed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau, is to become the first heavy drone with strike functions in the Russian Aerospace Forces. The device is made according to the “flying wing” scheme with the use of materials that reduce the radar signature.
According to open sources, the strike UAV has a length of 19 meters, a wingspan of 14 meters, its take-off weight is 20 tons, and its maximum speed is about 1000 kilometers per hour. The first flight of the Hunter took place on August 3 and lasted more than 20 minutes.
There is newly-released footage, but below is the only one released so far showing a flight of the heavy attack drone.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Peace Proc-What? LPR Representative Addresses UNSC, As Germany And France Informally Give Up On Norm

Peace Proc-What? LPR Representative Addresses UNSC, As Germany And France Informally Give Up On Normandy Format

The Luhansk People ’ s Republic ( LPR ) plenipotentiary representative at the Minsk talks , LPR Foreign Minister Vladislav Deinego got a chance to speak during the UN Security Council meeting on the Arria formula , which took place via videoconference .
The meeting was called to discuss the situation in Ukraine , with representatives of the Donetsk People ’ s Republic ( DPR ) also in attendance .
The “ Arria-formula meetings ” are very informal , confidential gatherings which enable Security Council members to have a frank and private exchange of views , within a flexible procedural @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the event taking place , namely Ukraine which boycotted and didn ’ t attend .
Others who didn ’ t attend were the US , the UK , Estonia , France Germany and Belgium .
Meanwhile , Germany and France also opposed archiving the discussion on the UN website , and it even being held at all .
Germany and France have objected to broadcasting on the UN website of an informal meeting of the United Nations Security Council ( UNSC ) on the conflict in Ukraine at the initiative of Moscow , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ United Nations Vassily Nebenzia said .
“ We are particularly appalled by the efforts of our German and French colleagues , the Normandy format participants , to boycott this meeting under ridiculous pretext that the format of the meeting does not fall under Normandy Format .
Moreover , we know that they worked tirelessly with delegations to dissuade them from participating .
Not only this is shameful , but it also goes contrary to the established Security Council practice whereby Arria-Formula meeting are not blocked or sabotaged whatever the subject is , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
What do Paris and Berlin get by trying to “ silence ” the Donbass people , to prevent the dissemination on the UN site of true information , which is neither watered down nor perverted to please Kiev about what is happening in the process of implementing the Minsk Agreements ?
And how does this fit in with their image as “ lawkeepers ” and defenders of freedom of expression ?
How can one not remember the existence of this double standard , it is difficult to find a more blatant example @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the UN on its Telegram channel .
Russia ’ s permanent representative at the UN , Vasily Nebenzia , introduced the event by denouncing Kiev ’ s attempts to make people believe that the only real negotiating platform is the Normandy Format and not the Minsk Format .
This is yet another attempt by Ukraine to avoid having to negotiate directly with the DPR and LPR , and to make people believe in its fantasy of war with Russia by agreeing to negotiate only with Moscow , which is a total violation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ representation at the UN explained that the attitude of France and Germany regarding this meeting has proved that there is nothing to be expected from them as guarantors of the Minsk Agreements .
And the future of meetings in the Normandy Format is also severely questioned .
“ As for the Germans and the French , they showed their true face in this situation as eloquently as possible .
They do not care about the Minsk process , nor about the Donbass people , nor about the Russian-speaking population of Ukraine as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is to protect their “ protégés ” in Kiev from the truth , to support at all costs their unfounded assertions about the infamous “ Russian aggression ” ( by the way , we will also talk about this ) .
They are not mediators and there is nothing to be expected from them , now it has become absolutely obvious .
The masks have come off , gentlemen !
The question is whether the Normandy Format will survive such a blow .
After all , they can get together and fantasize about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And they don ’ t need the truth or a real settlement !
“ concluded the Russian representation at the UN .
Regardless of what happened , the LPR Foreign Minister Vladislav Deinego did speak .
He said that on April 14 , 2014 , after the start of the so-called anti-terrorist operation , the formation of “ volunteer ” and punitive battalions began and their transfer to the Donbass along with the army units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine .
“ On April 15 , at the entrance to Luhansk , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stopped the advance of a convoy of armored vehicles of the Ukrainian armed forces : six armored personnel carriers and vehicles with towed 122-mm D-30 howitzers were heading from Dnepropetrovsk .
Kiev transferred these weapons for use against the unarmed civilian population , “ the LPR representative emphasized , adding that ” in April 2014 , in the cities of the Luhansk region , citizens were arrested everywhere simply because they opposed the Maidan and the armed coup .
” The head of the LPR Foreign Ministry noted that “ in these circumstances @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at popular gatherings , the creation of the Lugansk People ’ s Republic was initiated ” , “ it was decided to hold a nationwide referendum on May 11 , 2014 on the territory of the Lugansk region on the issue of supporting the state independence of the Lugansk People ’ s Republic ” .
Moreover , “ the presidium of the Luhansk regional council of the sixth convocation , unlike its colleagues from the Donetsk region , at that time did not run away anywhere and on May 5 , 2014 even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ referendum.
” “ In the following days , deputies of the LPR People ’ s Council , a representative body , were elected by direct voting at gatherings of territorial communities in cities and regions .
Since then , the process of forming a militia from scattered self-defense units and maintaining law and order , spontaneously formed in the territories in the previous period , has begun , ” the foreign minister continued .
Deinego noted that after the election on May 25 , 2014 , at the illegally scheduled early elections of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , instead of the promised peace , almost immediately the armed formations of Ukraine unleashed the first battles in the territory of the LPR .
“ Against the civilian population , organized into self-defense units , Ukraine sent battalions of the National Guard , formed from the activists of the “ Maidan ” , and punitive battalions , which consisted mainly of criminals convicted of serious crimes and early released under the obligation to enter the war against Donbass … These armed formations were supported by aviation , tanks , artillery and tactical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ukraine , ” Deinego emphasized .
The Minister of Foreign Affairs noted that one of the first particularly brutal airstrikes was the shelling of the center of the city of Luhansk on June 2 , 2014 from a Su-25 aircraft with unguided rockets .
The air raid killed eight civilians , including five women .
Three more people later died from their wounds .
28 people were injured , mostly on the street in front of the building .
“ The use of heavy weapons and aviation by the armed forces of Ukraine @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Donbass has become systemic .
The aircraft of the Ukrainian Armed Forces delivered strikes almost every day .
Here are some of them : July 2 , 2014 – Stanitsa Luganskaya , 12 people died , including a 5-year-old child ; August 28 – the city of Alchevsk – 2 people were killed , ” he concluded .
This was met by largely no response at all , notably there is no coverage , whatsoever , in MSM of the event or the significant chance that the LPR and DPR were given to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s speech followed by a speech by Mikhayl Pogrebinsky , director and founder of the Centre for Political Studies and Conflict Resolution in Kiev .
The latter said he was uncomfortable to be in some way the only representative of Ukraine in this meeting because of Kiev ’ s boycott .
He gave a history of the various documents making up the Minsk Package of Measures and tried to explain why their implementation was blocked in order to help restart the negotiations .
Ukraine ’ s official stance on the matter is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ thwarted Russia ’ s attempt to legitimize representatives of the occupied Donbas representatives using the Arria formula meeting of the United Nations Security Council.
” He added that Russian PR stunt would not even be broadcast on official UN resources due to the principled position of Ukraine ’ s partners in the UN Security Council .
Kuleba also thanked international partners , including Germany and France as the Normandy format members , for their strong solidarity in support of Ukraine .
In short , Ukraine has already totally sabotaged the Minsk Agreements @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whatsoever .
Following this UNSC fiasco , Germany and France are also set on following the agenda and sabotaged the Normandy Format , proving that they are incredibly biased towards one direction .
The peace process currently appears as an illusion , and a restoration of hostilities in Eastern Ukraine is likely just a matter of time , with Kiev likely pulling the trigger after a pretext of some sort .
After all , with the presumed support of the US and the UK , and with France and Germany showing that they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ likely to start acting with impunity in regard to Eastern Ukraine .
MORE ON THE TOPIC : • Ukrainian Parliament To Vote On Allowing SBU To Censor Media , But Stop Investigating Corruption

Support SouthFront
The Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) plenipotentiary representative at the Minsk talks, LPR Foreign Minister Vladislav Deinego got a chance to speak during the UN Security Council meeting on the Arria formula, which took place via videoconference.
The meeting was called to discuss the situation in Ukraine, with representatives of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) also in attendance.
The DPR representative was Foreign Minister Natalia Nikonorova.
“The UNSC Arria-Formula meeting on the implementation of the Minsk Package of Measures on the Settlement in Ukraine will take place on December 2 DPR Foreign Minister Natalia Nikonorova and LPR Foreign Minister Vladislav Deinego, both representing their countries in the Contact Group, will be speaking.”
The “Arria-formula meetings” are very informal, confidential gatherings which enable Security Council members to have a frank and private exchange of views, within a flexible procedural framework.
There were several opponents of the event taking place, namely Ukraine which boycotted and didn’t attend. Others who didn’t attend were the US, the UK, Estonia, France Germany and Belgium.
“This meeting was a clear attempt to present a false and misleading storyline regarding the conflict in eastern Ukraine,” the United States, Britain and Estonia said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Germany and France also opposed archiving the discussion on the UN website, and it even being held at all.
Germany and France have objected to broadcasting on the UN website of an informal meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on the conflict in Ukraine at the initiative of Moscow, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia said.
“We are particularly appalled by the efforts of our German and French colleagues, the Normandy format participants, to boycott this meeting under ridiculous pretext that the format of the meeting does not fall under Normandy Format. Moreover, we know that they worked tirelessly with delegations to dissuade them from participating. Not only this is shameful, but it also goes contrary to the established Security Council practice whereby Arria-Formula meeting are not blocked or sabotaged whatever the subject is,” said Vassily Nebenzia. “Who benefits? What do Paris and Berlin get by trying to “silence” the Donbass people, to prevent the dissemination on the UN site of true information, which is neither watered down nor perverted to please Kiev about what is happening in the process of implementing the Minsk Agreements? And how does this fit in with their image as “lawkeepers” and defenders of freedom of expression? How can one not remember the existence of this double standard, it is difficult to find a more blatant example! “wrote the Russian Permanent Representation to the UN on its Telegram channel.
Russia’s permanent representative at the UN, Vasily Nebenzia, introduced the event by denouncing Kiev’s attempts to make people believe that the only real negotiating platform is the Normandy Format and not the Minsk Format. This is yet another attempt by Ukraine to avoid having to negotiate directly with the DPR and LPR, and to make people believe in its fantasy of war with Russia by agreeing to negotiate only with Moscow, which is a total violation of the Minsk Agreements.
The Russian representation at the UN explained that the attitude of France and Germany regarding this meeting has proved that there is nothing to be expected from them as guarantors of the Minsk Agreements. And the future of meetings in the Normandy Format is also severely questioned.
“As for the Germans and the French, they showed their true face in this situation as eloquently as possible. They do not care about the Minsk process, nor about the Donbass people, nor about the Russian-speaking population of Ukraine as a whole. All they have to do is to protect their “protégés” in Kiev from the truth, to support at all costs their unfounded assertions about the infamous “Russian aggression” (by the way, we will also talk about this). They are not mediators and there is nothing to be expected from them, now it has become absolutely obvious. The masks have come off, gentlemen! The question is whether the Normandy Format will survive such a blow. After all, they can get together and fantasize about the situation in Ukraine without us. And they don’t need the truth or a real settlement!“ concluded the Russian representation at the UN.
Regardless of what happened, the LPR Foreign Minister Vladislav Deinego did speak. He said that on April 14, 2014, after the start of the so-called anti-terrorist operation, the formation of “volunteer” and punitive battalions began and their transfer to the Donbass along with the army units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
“On April 15, at the entrance to Luhansk, local residents practically with their bare hands stopped the advance of a convoy of armored vehicles of the Ukrainian armed forces: six armored personnel carriers and vehicles with towed 122-mm D-30 howitzers were heading from Dnepropetrovsk. Kiev transferred these weapons for use against the unarmed civilian population, “the LPR representative emphasized, adding that” in April 2014, in the cities of the Luhansk region, citizens were arrested everywhere simply because they opposed the Maidan and the armed coup. ” The head of the LPR Foreign Ministry noted that “in these circumstances, on April 27, 2014, at popular gatherings, the creation of the Lugansk People’s Republic was initiated”, “it was decided to hold a nationwide referendum on May 11, 2014 on the territory of the Lugansk region on the issue of supporting the state independence of the Lugansk People’s Republic”. Moreover, “the presidium of the Luhansk regional council of the sixth convocation, unlike its colleagues from the Donetsk region, at that time did not run away anywhere and on May 5, 2014 even adopted a statement in support of this referendum.” “In the following days, deputies of the LPR People’s Council, a representative body, were elected by direct voting at gatherings of territorial communities in cities and regions. Since then, the process of forming a militia from scattered self-defense units and maintaining law and order, spontaneously formed in the territories in the previous period, has begun,” the foreign minister continued.
Deinego noted that after the election on May 25, 2014, at the illegally scheduled early elections of the President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, instead of the promised peace, almost immediately the armed formations of Ukraine unleashed the first battles in the territory of the LPR.
“Against the civilian population, organized into self-defense units, Ukraine sent battalions of the National Guard, formed from the activists of the “Maidan ”, and punitive battalions, which consisted mainly of criminals convicted of serious crimes and early released under the obligation to enter the war against Donbass … These armed formations were supported by aviation, tanks, artillery and tactical missile systems of the armed forces of Ukraine,” Deinego emphasized. The Minister of Foreign Affairs noted that one of the first particularly brutal airstrikes was the shelling of the center of the city of Luhansk on June 2, 2014 from a Su-25 aircraft with unguided rockets. The air raid killed eight civilians, including five women. Three more people later died from their wounds. 28 people were injured, mostly on the street in front of the building. “The use of heavy weapons and aviation by the armed forces of Ukraine in the war against the population of Donbass has become systemic. The aircraft of the Ukrainian Armed Forces delivered strikes almost every day. Here are some of them: July 2, 2014 – Stanitsa Luganskaya, 12 people died, including a 5-year-old child; August 28 – the city of Alchevsk – 2 people were killed,” he concluded.
This was met by largely no response at all, notably there is no coverage, whatsoever, in MSM of the event or the significant chance that the LPR and DPR were given to speak at the UNSC platform.
Deinego’s speech followed by a speech by Mikhayl Pogrebinsky, director and founder of the Centre for Political Studies and Conflict Resolution in Kiev. The latter said he was uncomfortable to be in some way the only representative of Ukraine in this meeting because of Kiev’s boycott. He gave a history of the various documents making up the Minsk Package of Measures and tried to explain why their implementation was blocked in order to help restart the negotiations.
Ukraine’s official stance on the matter is the following: it considers that it “thwarted Russia’s attempt to legitimize representatives of the occupied Donbas representatives using the Arria formula meeting of the United Nations Security Council.”
“The meeting [Arria formula meeting of the United Nations Security Council] will be boycotted not only by Ukraine but also by the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Estonia and Belgium. That is, it will be boycotted by all OSCE participating states that are members of the Security Council, except for the Russian Federation. This is an important signal because the OSCE takes part in the negotiation process within the Trilateral Contact Group,” Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba said in a commentary to Ukrinform.
He added that Russian PR stunt would not even be broadcast on official UN resources due to the principled position of Ukraine’s partners in the UN Security Council.
“This is a clear response to Russia’s attempts to manipulate international platforms and formats to promote its propaganda,” he said.
Kuleba also thanked international partners, including Germany and France as the Normandy format members, for their strong solidarity in support of Ukraine.
In short, Ukraine has already totally sabotaged the Minsk Agreements, which it refuses to implement, whatsoever. Following this UNSC fiasco, Germany and France are also set on following the agenda and sabotaged the Normandy Format, proving that they are incredibly biased towards one direction. The peace process currently appears as an illusion, and a restoration of hostilities in Eastern Ukraine is likely just a matter of time, with Kiev likely pulling the trigger after a pretext of some sort.
After all, with the presumed support of the US and the UK, and with France and Germany showing that they have no political will, Kiev is likely to start acting with impunity in regard to Eastern Ukraine.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Hezbollah Drone Buzzed Israeli Forces During War-Simulation Exercises In Border Area Near Lebanon

An unmanned aerial vehicle operated by Lebanese Hezbollah managed to cross into Israel ’ s north and monitor the Israeli @ @ @ @ @ Arrow ” , Lebanese media affiliated with Hezbollah reported on December 3 .
The incident @ @ @ @ @ 26 , on the second day of the drills .
The Israeli side promoted the @ @ @ @ @ put to the test a strategy based on network-centered warfare bringing together the capabilities of @ @ @ @ @ and cyber forces to quickly eliminate hostile targets in the event of the conflict in @ @ @ @ @ THE TOPIC : • UAE Condemns “ Heinous ” Killing Of Iran Scientist In Rare @ @ @ @ @ Iranian Nuclear Program Gains Steam Following Assassination Of “ Nuclear Soleimani ” Near Tehran

Support SouthFront
An unmanned aerial vehicle operated by Lebanese Hezbollah managed to cross into Israel’s north and monitor the Israeli military drills dubbed “Lethal Arrow”, Lebanese media affiliated with Hezbollah reported on December 3. The incident allegedly took place on November 26, on the second day of the drills.
The Israeli side promoted the drill as an exercise to put to the test a strategy based on network-centered warfare bringing together the capabilities of ground, air, naval and cyber forces to quickly eliminate hostile targets in the event of the conflict in the area.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Turkey Is Reducing Military Presence In Syria: Russian Foreign Ministry

Turkey is reducing its military presence in northern Syria , Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on December 3 .
Zakharova noted that on November 26 , the evacuation of the 4th Turkish observation post was completed .
More details on the current situation in Syria can be found in SouthFront ’ s war report released on November 17 : In October and the first half of November , the war in Syria remained in a relatively calm phase , which was not marked by any active military actions of the sides involved in the conflict .
Nonetheless , this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the further development of the situation in the war-torn country .
Despite the collapse of ISIS ’ self-proclaimed Caliphate and repeatedly declared defeat of the group , ISIS cells still remain a major factor of instability in eastern Homs , southern Raqqa , in the countryside of Deir Ezzor and in the areas surrounding the US military garrison in al-Tanf .
ISIS cells regularly conduct attacks on civilian and military convoys moving between Homs and Deir Ezzor as well as on patrols and checkpoints of the Syrian Army in the aforementioned areas .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ISIS ambushed a convoy of the al-Qatirji security group , which guards government oil shipments in southern Raqqa .
The incident took place on the Ithriyah-Raqqa road .
5 pro-government fighters were killed .
A day earlier , on November 13 , ISIS blew up an oil tanker guarded by al-Qatirji group with an improvised explosive device .
The al-Qatirji security group is affiliated with the al-Qatirji Company that imports oil from Syria ’ s northeastern region , controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces , to government-controlled areas .
The company and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ list .
On November 11 , ISIS cells stormed SAA military positions north of al-Sukhna and blew up a local gas pipeline .
The ISIS news agency Amaq claimed that 11 Syrian soldiers were killed in the attack .
ISIS also has a wide network of cells on the eastern bank of the Euphrates , especially near the Omar oil fields area , but it rarely conducted attacks there in recent months .
Local sources claim that ISIS members use the eastern bank of the Euphrates and border areas close to al-Tanf as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The US military is present in northeastern Syria in much larger numbers than the US President Donald Trump used to think .
This was an open secret since the very start of the implementation of the Trump-declared troop withdrawal .
However , on November 12 , this fact was openly confirmed by James Jeffrey , former Special Representative for Syria Engagement , that said that US officials routinely lied to Trump over the number of troops deployed in Syria .
Currently , US sources admit that up to 1,000 US troops remain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ military contractors and civilian specialists the real number is most likely closer to 2,000-2,500 .
The south of Syria remains one of the points of instability despite the Russia-backed reconciliation efforts there .
On November 12 , a Tigr vehicle of the Russian Military Police was struck with an improvised explosive device on the road between al-Musayfrah and al-Sahoah in the eastern countryside of Daraa .
The incident took place amid a new round of tensions between pro-government forces and former members of reconciled militant groups in the area .
The Syrian Army @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the relatively moderate part of militant groups there to lay down arms as a part of a wide reconciliation agreement in 2018 .
However , since then , the local reconciliation process has faced several obstacles , including the resistance of a part of the local elites affiliated with militants .
Together with the close proximity to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights , this turns the province into a permanent headache for the Damascus government .
The de-escalation deal in Greater Idlib and the creation of the demilitarized zone in its south is once @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to break its ties with the al-Qaeda-like terrorist groups like Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and the Turkistan Islamic Party because these groups are the core of the so-called Turkish-backed opposition .
This situation can not be changed without another military operation of the Syrian Army or the Turkish will to finally start working against terrorists in Idlib .
The second scenario seems unlikely as it does not go in the interests of Ankara .
Nonetheless , it seems that Moscow has not abandoned the idea to motivate Turkey for some constructive actions and during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Russian Aerospace Forces conducted a large number of strikes on infrastructure and training camps of Turkish-backed terrorists .
At the same time , Ankara has evacuated its observation posts in Maar Hattat , Morek and Sher Mughar , and started withdrawing forces from Qabtan al-Jabal and Sheikh Aqil .
Most of these positions were surrounded by the Syrian Army during the previous anti-terrorist advances .
This move goes contrary to the loud claims of the Turkish leadership that it will withdraw zero posts , even surrounded ones , from Greater Idlib and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Army to withdraw to positions behind them .
This is a visual demonstration that the airstrike diplomacy efforts of the Russian side has a particular effect .
The war in Syria did not end and a comprehensive diplomatic solution has not yet been found due to the serious contradictions between the sides involved in the standoff .
Nonetheless , the current format of the conflict allowed to put to an end the wide-scale military confrontations on the ground and moved the main agenda towards counter-terrorism efforts , economic and diplomatic questions .
MORE @ @ @ @

Support SouthFront
Turkey is reducing its military presence in northern Syria, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on December 3.
“The implementation of the Russian-Turkish agreements on stabilization of the situation in the de-escalation zone of Idlib continues. The Turkish military is reducing its presence in the territories that have come under the control of Syrian government forces,” she said.
Zakharova noted that on November 26, the evacuation of the 4th Turkish observation post was completed.
“A cessation of hostilities is maintained in most of Syria. At the same time, the situation in the Idlib zone remains tense,” Zakharova said.
More details on the current situation in Syria can be found in SouthFront’s war report released on November 17:
In October and the first half of November, the war in Syria remained in a relatively calm phase, which was not marked by any active military actions of the sides involved in the conflict. Nonetheless, this period demonstrated several trends that would shape the further development of the situation in the war-torn country.
Despite the collapse of ISIS’ self-proclaimed Caliphate and repeatedly declared defeat of the group, ISIS cells still remain a major factor of instability in eastern Homs, southern Raqqa, in the countryside of Deir Ezzor and in the areas surrounding the US military garrison in al-Tanf. ISIS cells regularly conduct attacks on civilian and military convoys moving between Homs and Deir Ezzor as well as on patrols and checkpoints of the Syrian Army in the aforementioned areas.
For example, on November 14, ISIS ambushed a convoy of the al-Qatirji security group, which guards government oil shipments in southern Raqqa. The incident took place on the Ithriyah-Raqqa road. 5 pro-government fighters were killed. A day earlier, on November 13, ISIS blew up an oil tanker guarded by al-Qatirji group with an improvised explosive device. The al-Qatirji security group is affiliated with the al-Qatirji Company that imports oil from Syria’s northeastern region, controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, to government-controlled areas. The company and its owners are on the US sanction list. On November 11, ISIS cells stormed SAA military positions north of al-Sukhna and blew up a local gas pipeline. The ISIS news agency Amaq claimed that 11 Syrian soldiers were killed in the attack.
ISIS also has a wide network of cells on the eastern bank of the Euphrates, especially near the Omar oil fields area, but it rarely conducted attacks there in recent months. Local sources claim that ISIS members use the eastern bank of the Euphrates and border areas close to al-Tanf as rear bases for operations in central Syria.
The US military is present in northeastern Syria in much larger numbers than the US President Donald Trump used to think. This was an open secret since the very start of the implementation of the Trump-declared troop withdrawal. However, on November 12, this fact was openly confirmed by James Jeffrey, former Special Representative for Syria Engagement, that said that US officials routinely lied to Trump over the number of troops deployed in Syria. Currently, US sources admit that up to 1,000 US troops remain in the conflict zone. Together with military contractors and civilian specialists the real number is most likely closer to 2,000-2,500.
The south of Syria remains one of the points of instability despite the Russia-backed reconciliation efforts there. On November 12, a Tigr vehicle of the Russian Military Police was struck with an improvised explosive device on the road between al-Musayfrah and al-Sahoah in the eastern countryside of Daraa. The incident took place amid a new round of tensions between pro-government forces and former members of reconciled militant groups in the area.
The Syrian Army took control of the region and allowed the relatively moderate part of militant groups there to lay down arms as a part of a wide reconciliation agreement in 2018. However, since then, the local reconciliation process has faced several obstacles, including the resistance of a part of the local elites affiliated with militants. Together with the close proximity to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, this turns the province into a permanent headache for the Damascus government.
The de-escalation deal in Greater Idlib and the creation of the demilitarized zone in its south is once again stalled due to the Turkish unwillingness to break its ties with the al-Qaeda-like terrorist groups like Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and the Turkistan Islamic Party because these groups are the core of the so-called Turkish-backed opposition. This situation cannot be changed without another military operation of the Syrian Army or the Turkish will to finally start working against terrorists in Idlib. The second scenario seems unlikely as it does not go in the interests of Ankara.
Nonetheless, it seems that Moscow has not abandoned the idea to motivate Turkey for some constructive actions and during the last 2 months, warplanes of the Russian Aerospace Forces conducted a large number of strikes on infrastructure and training camps of Turkish-backed terrorists.
At the same time, Ankara has evacuated its observation posts in Maar Hattat, Morek and Sher Mughar, and started withdrawing forces from Qabtan al-Jabal and Sheikh Aqil. Most of these positions were surrounded by the Syrian Army during the previous anti-terrorist advances. This move goes contrary to the loud claims of the Turkish leadership that it will withdraw zero posts, even surrounded ones, from Greater Idlib and instead of this will force the Syrian Army to withdraw to positions behind them. This is a visual demonstration that the airstrike diplomacy efforts of the Russian side has a particular effect.
The war in Syria did not end and a comprehensive diplomatic solution has not yet been found due to the serious contradictions between the sides involved in the standoff. Nonetheless, the current format of the conflict allowed to put to an end the wide-scale military confrontations on the ground and moved the main agenda towards counter-terrorism efforts, economic and diplomatic questions.
MORE ON THE TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--U.S. Claimed To Keep Major Bases In Afghanistan Amid Breakthrough In Government, Taliban Peace Talks

The Afghan Government and the Taliban announced on December 2 that they had agreed on the procedures for the Intra-Afghan peace talks in the Qatari capital , Doha .
The breakthrough was jointly announced by Mohammad Naeem , a spokesman for the Taliban ’ s Qatar office , as well as Nader Nadery , a member of the Afghan Government ’ s negotiation team .
“ The procedures including its preamble of the Intra-Afghan Negotiations have been finalized and from now on , the negotiations will begin on the agenda , ” the spokesmen said on Twitter .
“ The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that there is a willingness among Afghans to reach a sustainable peace and both sides are committed to continuing their sincere efforts to reach a sustainable peace in Afghanistan.
” The breakthrough announcement was welcomed by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and the Government ’ s top peace broker Abdullah Abdullah .
The initial agreement was also praised by neighboring Pakistan , whose Foreign Ministry said the breakthrough is “ another significant step forward.
” This was the first breakthrough since the launch of intra-Afghan talks between the government and the Taliban in Doha @ @ @ @ @ @ @ facilitated by a U.S. peace agreement with the Taliban , which was reached on February 29 .
The U.S. promised to withdraw all American and NATO troops from Afghanistan .
However , Gen. Mark Milley , chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , revealed on December 2 that the U.S. would keep two large bases and several satellite bases in the war-torn country .
Reuters quoted Milley as saying that the U.S. will also continue with anti-terrorism operations against ISIS and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan .
Despite the breakthrough , the Intra-Afghan peace @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Afghan Government and the Taliban will need more time to build trust .
Any change in U.S. withdrawal plans may also hinder the talks .
MORE ON THIS TOPIC :

Support SouthFront
The Afghan Government and the Taliban announced on December 2 that they had agreed on the procedures for the Intra-Afghan peace talks in the Qatari capital, Doha.
The breakthrough was jointly announced by Mohammad Naeem, a spokesman for the Taliban’s Qatar office, as well as Nader Nadery, a member of the Afghan Government’s negotiation team.
“The procedures including its preamble of the Intra-Afghan Negotiations have been finalized and from now on, the negotiations will begin on the agenda,” the spokesmen said on Twitter. “The current negotiations of both negotiation teams show that there is a willingness among Afghans to reach a sustainable peace and both sides are committed to continuing their sincere efforts to reach a sustainable peace in Afghanistan.”
The breakthrough announcement was welcomed by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and the Government’s top peace broker Abdullah Abdullah.
The initial agreement was also praised by neighboring Pakistan, whose Foreign Ministry said the breakthrough is “another significant step forward.”
This was the first breakthrough since the launch of intra-Afghan talks between the government and the Taliban in Doha on September 12. The talks were facilitated by a U.S. peace agreement with the Taliban, which was reached on February 29.
The U.S. promised to withdraw all American and NATO troops from Afghanistan. However, Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, revealed on December 2 that the U.S. would keep two large bases and several satellite bases in the war-torn country.
Reuters quoted Milley as saying that the U.S. will also continue with anti-terrorism operations against ISIS and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.
“We went to Afghanistan … to ensure that Afghanistan never again became a platform for terrorists to strike the United States,” Milley said. “We believe that now after 20 years – two decades of consistent effort there – we’ve achieved a modicum of success.”
Despite the breakthrough, the Intra-Afghan peace talks are still facing many challenges. The Afghan Government and the Taliban will need more time to build trust. Any change in U.S. withdrawal plans may also hinder the talks.
MORE ON THIS TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Infamous Turkish-Backed Syrian Faction Opened ‘Special Forces’ Base In Northern Aleppo (Photos)

On December 3 , the Turkish-backed Hamza Division held an opening ceremony for a new “ special forces ” base in the northern Aleppo countryside .
The ceremony was attended by Abdurrahman Mustafa , head of the Syrian Interim Government , Salim Idris , the defense minister of the government , as well as commanders of the Syrian National Army ( SNA ) and the Hamza Division .
Majed al-Halabi , head of the Hamza Division ’ s media office , told the al-Mohrar Media that the new base , named “ Martyr Yasser Abu Sheikh , ” includes an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with all Turkish-occupied areas in northern and northeastern Syria .
Activists revealed that the military base was located right next to the Hawar Kilis crossing on Turkish border .
A number of refugee camps are located nearby .
The Hamza Division , which is led by militiaman Sayf “ Abu Baker ” Balud , is one of the SNA ’ s largest factions .
It took part in all Turkish operations in northern and northeastern Syria .
The faction even sent dozens of mercenaries to fight in Libya and Azerbaijan .
In the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ became infamous for its criminal activists as well as for persecuting people in Turkish-occupied areas , especially Kurds .
In spite of its criminal record , Turkey and the Syrian opposition continue to support and foster the Hamza Division .
The faction is apparently posing to become one of the main players in Turkish-occupied areas .
MORE ON THIS TOPIC : • Syria ’ s Ahrar Al-Sham Appointed New Leader After Internal Crisis , Pressure From Turkey • ISIS Ambush Claimed Lives Of Seven Al-Quds Brigade Fighters In Syria ’ s Deir Ezzor

Support SouthFront
On December 3, the Turkish-backed Hamza Division held an opening ceremony for a new “special forces” base in the northern Aleppo countryside.
The ceremony was attended by Abdurrahman Mustafa, head of the Syrian Interim Government, Salim Idris, the defense minister of the government, as well as commanders of the Syrian National Army (SNA) and the Hamza Division.
Majed al-Halabi, head of the Hamza Division’s media office, told the al-Mohrar Media that the new base, named “Martyr Yasser Abu Sheikh,” includes an operations room, that is directly connected with all Turkish-occupied areas in northern and northeastern Syria.
Activists revealed that the military base was located right next to the Hawar Kilis crossing on Turkish border. A number of refugee camps are located nearby.
The Hamza Division, which is led by militiaman Sayf “Abu Baker” Balud, is one of the SNA’s largest factions. It took part in all Turkish operations in northern and northeastern Syria. The faction even sent dozens of mercenaries to fight in Libya and Azerbaijan.
In the last few years, the Hamza Division became infamous for its criminal activists as well as for persecuting people in Turkish-occupied areas, especially Kurds.
In spite of its criminal record, Turkey and the Syrian opposition continue to support and foster the Hamza Division. The faction is apparently posing to become one of the main players in Turkish-occupied areas.
MORE ON THIS TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--OSCE Minks Group Asked Withdrawal Of All Mercenaries From Karabakh

The Co-Chair countries of the OSCE Minsk Group have called for the withdrawal of all foreign mercenaries from the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh in an official statement released on December 3 .
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Minsk Group was formed by Russia , France and the U.S. in 1992 to encourage Armenia and Azerbaijan to reach a peaceful settlement on Nagorno-Karabakh .
In the new statement , the OSCE Minsk Group stressed its support for the peace deal brokered by Russia on November 9 .
The deal put an end to an large-scale Azerbaijani attack on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Azerbaijan to fully implement their obligations under the Russian-brokered deal to stabilize the region .
“ The Co-Chair countries highlight the significance of measures taken by the Russian Federation , in agreement with Azerbaijan and Armenia , to guarantee the non-renewal of hostilities , ” the statement reads .
“ They also call for the full and prompt departure from the region of all foreign mercenaries , and call upon all parties to facilitate this departure.
” The statement said Armenia and Azerbaijan should exchange prisoners , repatriate remains and facilitate the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Many ethnic Armenians of different nationalists volunteered to fight with the Armenian military in Nagorno-Karabakh .
However , more than 2,000 Turkish-backed Syrian mercenaries , including a number of radicals , fought on Azerbaijan ’ s side in exchange for money .
The presence of Syrian mercenaries in Nagorno-Karabakh will not destabilize the region only but the entire Caucasus .
Recent reports revealed that Azerbaijan is departing the mercenaries , despite Turkish plans to settle them there .
MORE ON THIS TOPIC : • Mini Turkey : Azerbaijan Is Forced To Change Date @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Please Big Ottoman Brother • Final Confession : Azerbaijan Said Nearly 2,800 Soldiers Killed In Nagorno-Karabakh War

Support SouthFront
The Co-Chair countries of the OSCE Minsk Group have called for the withdrawal of all foreign mercenaries from the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh in an official statement released on December 3.
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Minsk Group was formed by Russia, France and the U.S. in 1992 to encourage Armenia and Azerbaijan to reach a peaceful settlement on Nagorno-Karabakh.
In the new statement, the OSCE Minsk Group stressed its support for the peace deal brokered by Russia on November 9. The deal put an end to an large-scale Azerbaijani attack on Nagorno-Karabakh.
The group called upon Armenia and Azerbaijan to fully implement their obligations under the Russian-brokered deal to stabilize the region.
“The Co-Chair countries highlight the significance of measures taken by the Russian Federation, in agreement with Azerbaijan and Armenia, to guarantee the non-renewal of hostilities,” the statement reads. “They also call for the full and prompt departure from the region of all foreign mercenaries, and call upon all parties to facilitate this departure.”
The statement said Armenia and Azerbaijan should exchange prisoners, repatriate remains and facilitate the return of all refugees to Nagorno-Karabakh.
“The Co-Chair countries urge Armenia and Azerbaijan to take advantage of the current ceasefire to negotiate a lasting and sustainable peace agreement under the auspices of the Co-Chairs,” the statement adds.
Many ethnic Armenians of different nationalists volunteered to fight with the Armenian military in Nagorno-Karabakh. However, more than 2,000 Turkish-backed Syrian mercenaries, including a number of radicals, fought on Azerbaijan’s side in exchange for money.
The presence of Syrian mercenaries in Nagorno-Karabakh will not destabilize the region only but the entire Caucasus. Recent reports revealed that Azerbaijan is departing the mercenaries, despite Turkish plans to settle them there.
MORE ON THIS TOPIC:
Support SouthFront


southfront--2020-12-03--Syria’s Ahrar Al-Sham Appointed New Leader After Internal Crisis, Pressure From Turkey

The Turkish-backed Ahrar al-Sham Movement has appointed a new leader , ending an internal crisis that began more than a month ago .
Citing sources within the movement , the Istanbul-based Syria TV confirmed on December 2 that Abu Yahiya al-Hamui , also known as “ al-Qalaa , ” had been appointed as the new Commander-in-Chief .
Al-Hamui , whose real name is Muhanad al-Masri , is a native of western Hama and one of Ahrar al-Sham founders .
He was the “ General Commander ” of the movement during 2015 .
Ahrar al-Sham is one of the few large @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Greater Idlib .
The movement fights side by side with al-Qaeda groups .
In October , a serious crisis threatened the unity of Ahrar al-Sham .
The movement ’ s leader , back then , Jaber Ali Basha had a fall out with Inad Darwish , “ Abu al-Munzier , ” the commander of the military wing and Hassan Soufan , a former commander .
Backed by al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay ’ at Tahrir al-Sham ( HTS ) , Soufan and Darwish launched a campaign to sack Basha and his affiliates .
The “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ group of al-Qaeda-affiliated Sheikhs intervened to find a settlement .
Turkey also halted its support for Ahrar al-Sham in order to pressure both wings into finding common grounds .
The appointment of al-Hamui was a part of the final settlement , which also saw the formation of a new Shura Council with Soufan , Darwish and four other members appointed by Basha .
A commander known as Abu Sohib was appointed as the new leader for the military wing .
Darwish remained the representative of the movement in the al-Fateh al-Mubeen Operations Room @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other al-Qaeda factions .
The settlement has saved Ahrar al-Sham for the time being .
The movement , which lost most of its influence and assets over the past four years , will not likely survive another internal crisis or a battle in Greater Idlib .
MORE ON THIS TOPIC : • ISIS Ambush Claimed Lives Of Seven Al-Quds Brigade Fighters In Syria ’ s Deir Ezzor

Support SouthFront
The Turkish-backed Ahrar al-Sham Movement has appointed a new leader, ending an internal crisis that began more than a month ago.
Citing sources within the movement, the Istanbul-based Syria TV confirmed on December 2 that Abu Yahiya al-Hamui, also known as “al-Qalaa,” had been appointed as the new Commander-in-Chief.
Al-Hamui, whose real name is Muhanad al-Masri, is a native of western Hama and one of Ahrar al-Sham founders. He was the “General Commander” of the movement during 2015.
Ahrar al-Sham is one of the few large Turkish-backed factions in the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib. The movement fights side by side with al-Qaeda groups.
In October, a serious crisis threatened the unity of Ahrar al-Sham. The movement’s leader, back then, Jaber Ali Basha had a fall out with Inad Darwish, “Abu al-Munzier,” the commander of the military wing and Hassan Soufan, a former commander.
Backed by al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), Soufan and Darwish launched a campaign to sack Basha and his affiliates.
The “rebellion” ended last month when a group of al-Qaeda-affiliated Sheikhs intervened to find a settlement. Turkey also halted its support for Ahrar al-Sham in order to pressure both wings into finding common grounds.
The appointment of al-Hamui was a part of the final settlement, which also saw the formation of a new Shura Council with Soufan, Darwish and four other members appointed by Basha. A commander known as Abu Sohib was appointed as the new leader for the military wing.
Darwish remained the representative of the movement in the al-Fateh al-Mubeen Operations Room, which is dominated by HTS and other al-Qaeda factions.
The settlement has saved Ahrar al-Sham for the time being. The movement, which lost most of its influence and assets over the past four years, will not likely survive another internal crisis or a battle in Greater Idlib.
MORE ON THIS TOPIC:
Support SouthFront