southfront--2020-04-25--U.S.-Affiliated Activist Confirms Al-Tanaf Militants Steal Aid To Al-Rukban Refugees

The U.S.-backed Revolutionary Commando Army ( MaT ) are stealing the UN aid to the refugees in the al-Rukban Camp , Mzahem Alsaloum , the former spokesman for the defunct U.S.-backed New Syrian Army ( SNA ) , revealed on April 24 .
In a series of tweets , Alsaloum said MaT commanders plotted to steal a new batch of aid by establishing a committee loyal to them and presenting it to the UN as the “ elderly ” of the al-Rukban Camp .
The fake elderly committee submitted a list filled with fake names of refugees , demanding the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be sent to the camp .
Alsaloum confirmed that the MaT plot was uncovered by the Russian side , which temporary blocked the delivery of aid to the refugee camp .
The coordination headquarters of Russia and Syria first revealed the plot in a statement released earlier this week .
According to Alsaloum , MaT commander Uqbah al-Batah , who is also the head of the supplying department in the U.S.-occupied 55 km zone , is responsible for selling UN aid and selling it to ISIS cells in the nearby Homs desert .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ two thirds of the aid sent to the 55 km zone to ISIS as well as of being involved in the sale of U.S.-supplied weapons and drugs to the terrorist group and Iranian forces .
Al-Batah was reportedly a commander in ISIS .
Prior to that , he worked with an al-Qaeda-affiliated faction .
The U.S.-led coalition expelled the commander a few years ago after discovering that he previously planned an attack on American troops and was involved in war crimes .
However , the coalition appointed a new command for al-Tanaf , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ information revealed by Alsaloum , who worked with U.S.-led coalition forces in al-Tanf , are not a surprise .
Russia and Damascus have been warning from U.S.-backed militants in the region for years now .
As for now , the al-Rukban Camp , which hosts around 40,000 civilians , remain under the control of these militants who are protected and supported by the U.S. military .
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The U.S.-backed Revolutionary Commando Army (MaT) are stealing the UN aid to the refugees in the al-Rukban Camp, Mzahem Alsaloum, the former spokesman for the defunct U.S.-backed New Syrian Army (SNA), revealed on April 24.
In a series of tweets, Alsaloum said MaT commanders plotted to steal a new batch of aid by establishing a committee loyal to them and presenting it to the UN as the “elderly” of the al-Rukban Camp.
The fake elderly committee submitted a list filled with fake names of refugees, demanding the UN to double the aid set to be sent to the camp.
Alsaloum confirmed that the MaT plot was uncovered by the Russian side, which temporary blocked the delivery of aid to the refugee camp. The coordination headquarters of Russia and Syria first revealed the plot in a statement released earlier this week.
“The humanitarian crisis of Rukban Camp has been exacerbated by the corrupted leaders of the U.S.-backed MaT,” the activist acknowledged in one of his tweet.
According to Alsaloum, MaT commander Uqbah al-Batah, who is also the head of the supplying department in the U.S.-occupied 55 km zone, is responsible for selling UN aid and selling it to ISIS cells in the nearby Homs desert.
Alsaloum also accused the commander of smuggling two thirds of the aid sent to the 55 km zone to ISIS as well as of being involved in the sale of U.S.-supplied weapons and drugs to the terrorist group and Iranian forces.
Al-Batah was reportedly a commander in ISIS. Prior to that, he worked with an al-Qaeda-affiliated faction. The U.S.-led coalition expelled the commander a few years ago after discovering that he previously planned an attack on American troops and was involved in war crimes. However, the coalition appointed a new command for al-Tanaf, which allowed al-Batah to return.
The information revealed by Alsaloum, who worked with U.S.-led coalition forces in al-Tanf, are not a surprise. Russia and Damascus have been warning from U.S.-backed militants in the region for years now.
As for now, the al-Rukban Camp, which hosts around 40,000 civilians, remain under the control of these militants who are protected and supported by the U.S. military.
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southfront--2020-04-25--In Photos: Test Flights Of Su-57 Fifth-Generation Fighter Jets

Can ’ t wait for the day that the MiG-41 ( the real deal ‘ FireFox ’ ) pics start @ @ @ @ @ domain… Could be quite some time though admittedly .

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The Russian Defense Ministry has released photos of test flights involving Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jets.
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southfront--2020-04-25--ISIS Assassinates SDF’s Fuel Official In Deir Ezzor

On April 23 , ISIS cells assassinated Hamad al-Mahmoud al-Sheikh , a Deir Ezzor fuel official in the Administration of @ @ @ @ @ NES ) , the administrative wing of the Syrian Democratic Forces ( SDF ) .
@ @ @ @ @ local outlet , said al-Sheikh was shot and killed inside the town of Shheell in @ @ @ @ @ .
A man who was accompanying al-Sheikh was injured in the attack .
In an @ @ @ @ @ Amaq news agency , the terrorist group claimed that al-Sheikh was a “ spy ” @ @ @ @ @ to local sources , al-Sheikh was not only the NES ’ fuel official in Deir @ @ @ @ @ mayor of the town of al-Jurazi .
ISIS cells in Deir Ezzor are targeting SDF @ @ @ @ @ regular basis .
The Kurdish-led group and its main ally , the U.S.-led coalition , @ @ @ @ @ serious efforts to crop the growing influence of the terrorist group in Deir Ezzor .
@ @ @ @ @

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On April 23, ISIS cells assassinated Hamad al-Mahmoud al-Sheikh, a Deir Ezzor fuel official in the Administration of North and East Syria (NES), the administrative wing of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The Euphrates Post, a local outlet, said al-Sheikh was shot and killed inside the town of Shheell in the southeastern Deir Ezzor countryside. A man who was accompanying al-Sheikh was injured in the attack.
In an official statement released by the Amaq news agency, the terrorist group claimed that al-Sheikh was a “spy” of the SDF.
“A spy of the PKK [the Kurdistan Workers’’ Party, ISIS term for the SDF], known as Hamad al-Sheikh, was shot and killed by Islamic State fighters,” the statement reads.
According to local sources, al-Sheikh was not only the NES’ fuel official in Deir Ezzor, but also the mayor of the town of al-Jurazi.
ISIS cells in Deir Ezzor are targeting SDF members and affiliates on a regular basis. The Kurdish-led group and its main ally, the U.S.-led coalition, are yet to take any serious efforts to crop the growing influence of the terrorist group in Deir Ezzor.
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southfront--2020-04-25--SF Needs Your Help Now!

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southfront--2020-04-25--Syrian Army Clashes With ISIS Cells In Eastern Hama

On April 23 , heavy clashes broke out between the Syrian Arab Army ( SAA ) and ISIS remnants in @ @ @ @ @ .
According to pro-government sources , army units destroyed a vehicle of the terrorist group @ @ @ @ @ east of the city of Salamiyah .
At least two fighters of the group were @ @ @ @ @ The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights ( SOHR ) reported that a Syrian service @ @ @ @ @ the clashes .
However , this is yet to be verified .
ISIS cells increased @ @ @ @ @ regions of eastern Hama over the last year .
The terrorists may be moving from @ @ @ @ @ of Hama .
The region is known to be the group ’ s last stronghold @ @ @ @ @ forces are now conducting a large-scale combing operation around the Homs desert .
The operation @ @ @ @ @ include areas in western Deir Ezzor and eastern Hama .
MORE ON THIS TOPIC : @ @ @ @ @ One its Syrian Proxy Groups For Refusing To Send Fighters To Libya

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On April 23, heavy clashes broke out between the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and ISIS remnants in the eastern countryside of Hama.
According to pro-government sources, army units destroyed a vehicle of the terrorist group near Sad Abu Fayad, east of the city of Salamiyah. At least two fighters of the group were killed as a result.
The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that a Syrian service member was also killed in the clashes. However, this is yet to be verified.
ISIS cells increased their activists in the mountainous regions of eastern Hama over the last year. The terrorists may be moving from the Homs desert, southeast of Hama. The region is known to be the group’s last stronghold in Syria.
Syrian government forces are now conducting a large-scale combing operation around the Homs desert. The operation will likely be developed to include areas in western Deir Ezzor and eastern Hama.
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southfront--2020-04-25--Militants From Same Turkish-Backed Group Clash Among Themselves In Syria’s Al-Bab

Late on April 25 , militants of the Turkish-backed Sultan Murad Division clashed among themselves in the town of al-Bab in northern Aleppo .
Opposition activists said two units , one led by Abu al-Taib and another one by Fadi al-Diri , clashed with each other near the youth housing complex in al-Bab and near the Abu Zindin crossing with government-held areas south of the town .
The UK-based monitoring group hinted that the clashes may be related to the Sultan Murad Division ’ s illegal activities .
The group ’ s militants are allegedly involved in the smuggling of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Kurdish areas .
Such conflicts are an ordinary development in al-Bab .
Last month , Ahrar al-Sharqiyah clashed with the Free Syrian Police , a law enforcement group also backed by Turkey .
The conflict lasted for around a week and claimed the lives of several militants , including Ahrar al-Sharqiyah security chief .
Turkey doesn ’ t usually intervene in these internal conflicts , likely to avoid demonstrating that it prefers one group over others .
By doing so , Ankara likely seeks to maintain balanced relations with all of its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ TOPIC :

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Late on April 25, militants of the Turkish-backed Sultan Murad Division clashed among themselves in the town of al-Bab in northern Aleppo.
Opposition activists said two units, one led by Abu al-Taib and another one by Fadi al-Diri, clashed with each other near the youth housing complex in al-Bab and near the Abu Zindin crossing with government-held areas south of the town.
“As a result [of the clashes], at least one personal was injured,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said in a report.
The UK-based monitoring group hinted that the clashes may be related to the Sultan Murad Division’s illegal activities. The group’s militants are allegedly involved in the smuggling of goods and illegal materials to both government-held and Kurdish areas.
Such conflicts are an ordinary development in al-Bab. Last month, Ahrar al-Sharqiyah clashed with the Free Syrian Police, a law enforcement group also backed by Turkey. The conflict lasted for around a week and claimed the lives of several militants, including Ahrar al-Sharqiyah security chief.
Turkey doesn’t usually intervene in these internal conflicts, likely to avoid demonstrating that it prefers one group over others. By doing so, Ankara likely seeks to maintain balanced relations with all of its proxies in Syria.
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southfront--2020-04-25--Syrian Security Forces Launch Operation Against ‘Criminal Gang’ In Southern Al-Suwayda (Video, Photo

Syrian Security Forces Launch Operation Against ‘Criminal Gang’ In Southern Al-Suwayda (Video, Photos)

On April 24 , Syrian security forces launched a special operation in the Druze town of Salkhad in southern al-Suwayda to arrest wanted individuals .
A source in al-Suwayda Police Department told the Syrian Arab News Agency ( SAN ) that special forces , police units as well as local armed groups are taking part in the operation , which is aimed at securing the town .
According to local sources , the operation is targeting an infamous gang led by Nawras al-Eid , who is wanted on several criminal charges .
The gang is reportedly involved in theft , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forces , backed by a local armed group , stormed al-Eid ’ s villa in Slkhad on April 24 afternoon .
Several suspects were arrested .
However , al-Eid managed to flee .
The SANA released photos showing loads of light caliber ammunition and hand grenades which were seized inside the villa .
A source in the police said several IDs and documents of people who were abducted by the gang in the past were also found in the villa .
In the last few years , several armed groups were formed in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Druze communities .
While many of them indeed played this role , others became infamous for arms and drug trafficking as well as for ransom kidnappings and theft .
Government forces confronted these groups on many occasions .
The most recent incident took place on March 26 , when the Syrian military killed four local gunmen who attacked one of its checkpoints near the town of Sad al-Ain in southeast al- Suwayda .
Syrian security forces will likely carry out more operations against rogue groups in al-Suwayda in the near future .
Damascus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an end to actions of these groups .
Local observers believe that some of these groups could be linked to hostile foreign actors .
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On April 24, Syrian security forces launched a special operation in the Druze town of Salkhad in southern al-Suwayda to arrest wanted individuals.
A source in al-Suwayda Police Department told the Syrian Arab News Agency (SAN) that special forces, police units as well as local armed groups are taking part in the operation, which is aimed at securing the town.
According to local sources, the operation is targeting an infamous gang led by Nawras al-Eid, who is wanted on several criminal charges. The gang is reportedly involved in theft, ransom kidnapping and even murder.
Security forces, backed by a local armed group, stormed al-Eid’s villa in Slkhad on April 24 afternoon. Several suspects were arrested. However, al-Eid managed to flee.
The SANA released photos showing loads of light caliber ammunition and hand grenades which were seized inside the villa. A source in the police said several IDs and documents of people who were abducted by the gang in the past were also found in the villa.
“The operation is still ongoing and the rest of the wanted individuals will be pursued until they are apprehended,” a security source told the SANA on April 25.
In the last few years, several armed groups were formed in al-Suwayda under the pretext of protecting local Druze communities. While many of them indeed played this role, others became infamous for arms and drug trafficking as well as for ransom kidnappings and theft.
Government forces confronted these groups on many occasions. The most recent incident took place on March 26, when the Syrian military killed four local gunmen who attacked one of its checkpoints near the town of Sad al-Ain in southeast al- Suwayda.
Syrian security forces will likely carry out more operations against rogue groups in al-Suwayda in the near future. Damascus has apparently taken the decision to put an end to actions of these groups. Local observers believe that some of these groups could be linked to hostile foreign actors.
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southfront--2020-04-25--Global Economic Collapse Reveals the Complete Failure of Neo-Liberal Capitalism

As each day passes by data pours in revealing the immense economic damage caused by the Coronavirus pandemic .
Most politicians and economic pundits will put the blame for up the economic hurricane , blasting tens of millions into unemployment , on Coronavirus lock downs .
Fitch Ratings has given a brief snapshot of the unfolding economic catastrophe which it predicts will last well into the 2020s : “ World GDP is now expected to fall by 3.9 % in 2020 , a recession of unprecedented depth in the post-war period .
This is twice as large as the decline @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and would be twice as severe as the 2009 recession.
” “ The decline in GDP equates to a USD2.8 trillion fall in global income levels relative to 2019 and a loss of USD4.5 trillion relative to our pre-virus expectations of 2020 global GDP .
Fitch expects Eurozone GDP to decline by 7 % , US GDP by 5.6 % , and UK GDP by 6.3 % in 2020.
” Yet at the beginning of this year the financial media and political classes around the world were making rosy forecasts how we were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year built upon solid economic foundations .
There was no cause for worry or alarm just let global capital work its magic and trickle-down economics would ensure living standards would rise for all .
Fast forward 4 months and a global health pandemic has revealed how shallow , brittle and unstable were the economic foundations of the neo-liberal economic order that has been heralded as such a success since the Reagan-Thatcher era of the 1980s .
These foundations were built upon infinitely low interest rates , an exponential rise in debt both public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the $ 250 trillion mark ) and a massive increase in social and economic inequality .
Alongside this , has been the intense exploitation of nations in the developing world and the use of regime change wars as naked resource grabs which cement the neo-liberal economic model in position.The world economy was slowing down during 2019 and heading towards a global recession .
Japan ’ s economy had already entered recession territory in the last quarter of 2019 , meanwhile PMI data from China and Germany indicated that they were hovering just outside @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of 2019 was teetering on the brink and just needed a catalyst or pin to pop the everything bubble which has seen massive inflation in the prices of paper assets across the globe ranging from stocks and bonds to derivatives such as collateralized loan obligations .
The anaemic economic growth experienced by global capitalism since the last financial crisis , which was a mere 12 years ago , has been based upon a gigantic expansion of the global money supply as central banks and governments mistakenly believe that the only way to sustain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ create ever more debt .
The last 12 years since the 2008 global financial crisis have witnessed an unparalleled wealth transfer from the working classes to the billionaire class which wields immense political influence over governments across the world .
Central bank stimulus programs i.e .
quantitative easing together with historically low interest rates fuelled a speculative bonanza which has pushed financial markets to all-time highs across the globe .
Meanwhile , governments across the world have sought to give the hard pressed billionaire class a helping hand by cutting capital gains , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
President Trump ’ s $ 1 trillion tax give away to the economic elites in 2017 is the most egregious example of this phenomena .
At the same time , wages for billions of ordinary people have stagnated or fallen whilst welfare benefits and health care have declined .
We now have the utterly surreal situation whereby 26 billionaires control as much wealth as the poorest half of humanity amounting to over 3.8 billion people .
The working and middle classes together with the underemployed poor of the developing world were made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2008 global economic crisis .
Once the Coronavirus pandemic has finally burned itself out the working people of this world will be confronted with an economic depression which will rival and indeed may exceed in severity that of the 1930s .
Governments across the board will once again seek to make ordinary people pay for the cost of the gigantic debts incurred by government and central bank bailouts .
In a desperate effort to prop up their system and protect the interests of their own class central bankers and corporate politicians across the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transfer that benefits the richest 1 % in society .
Bloomberg has noted how over $ 8 trillion has been printed out of thin air by global central banks and governments to prop up their debt fuelled system .
The bulk of this horde of fiat money has gone to service the needs of Wall Street and its counterparts in London , Paris Frankfurt , Shanghai et cetera.The Wall Street Journal has openly acknowledged this truth in an editorial : As the 2020s progress massive wealth and health inequalities , hunger and poverty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ question the hyper financialised economic system whose sole motive is to protect the interests of the 1 % .
The American dominated monetary system which gives preferential treatment to the empire and its allies is in decline .
Its decline will be exacerbated by the twin hammer blows of the Coronavirus pandemic and the global economic depression now unfolding .
During the coming decade the make the world will become an even more unstable place as the hegemonic power of our era seeks to maintain its dominant position in the global economy at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contradictions and tensions between the United States and its rival China will be greatly exacerbated during the next period .
As we saw in the 1930s once these economic contradictions and tensions reach breaking point then the superpowers of the day have few course of action open to them beyond war or appeasement of their rival.Yet during the 1930s there were instances where the onward march to war could have been averted .
If Republican Spain had defeated Franco ’ s fascist insurgency then the momentum towards war would have been slowed .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Front government in France and halted the appeasement policies that allowed Nazi Germany to grow in strength like a cancerous tumour .
During the next decade there will no doubt be other such instances where the onward march to war can be averted .

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Written by Dr. Leon Tressell exclusively for SouthFront
Fitch Ratings, ‘Unparalleled Global Recession Underway’
Economist Sven Heinrich, ‘Central banks are weapons of economic mass destruction.’
As each day passes by data pours in revealing the immense economic damage caused by the Coronavirus pandemic. Most politicians and economic pundits will put the blame for up the economic hurricane, blasting tens of millions into unemployment, on Coronavirus lock downs. Fitch Ratings has given a brief snapshot of the unfolding economic catastrophe which it predicts will last well into the 2020s:
“World GDP is now expected to fall by 3.9% in 2020, a recession of unprecedented depth in the post-war period. This is twice as large as the decline anticipated in our early April GEO update and would be twice as severe as the 2009 recession.” “The decline in GDP equates to a USD2.8 trillion fall in global income levels relative to 2019 and a loss of USD4.5 trillion relative to our pre-virus expectations of 2020 global GDP. Fitch expects Eurozone GDP to decline by 7%, US GDP by 5.6%, and UK GDP by 6.3% in 2020.”
Yet at the beginning of this year the financial media and political classes around the world were making rosy forecasts how we were going to experience moderate economic growth this year built upon solid economic foundations. There was no cause for worry or alarm just let global capital work its magic and trickle-down economics would ensure living standards would rise for all.
Fast forward 4 months and a global health pandemic has revealed how shallow, brittle and unstable were the economic foundations of the neo-liberal economic order that has been heralded as such a success since the Reagan-Thatcher era of the 1980s. These foundations were built upon infinitely low interest rates, an exponential rise in debt both public and private (sending global debt over the $250 trillion mark) and a massive increase in social and economic inequality. Alongside this, has been the intense exploitation of nations in the developing world and the use of regime change wars as naked resource grabs which cement the neo-liberal economic model in position.The world economy was slowing down during 2019 and heading towards a global recession. Japan’s economy had already entered recession territory in the last quarter of 2019, meanwhile PMI data from China and Germany indicated that they were hovering just outside recession territory.The global economy at the end of 2019 was teetering on the brink and just needed a catalyst or pin to pop the everything bubble which has seen massive inflation in the prices of paper assets across the globe ranging from stocks and bonds to derivatives such as collateralized loan obligations.
The anaemic economic growth experienced by global capitalism since the last financial crisis, which was a mere 12 years ago, has been based upon a gigantic expansion of the global money supply as central banks and governments mistakenly believe that the only way to sustain our debt fuelled economic system was to create ever more debt.
The last 12 years since the 2008 global financial crisis have witnessed an unparalleled wealth transfer from the working classes to the billionaire class which wields immense political influence over governments across the world. Central bank stimulus programs i.e. quantitative easing together with historically low interest rates fuelled a speculative bonanza which has pushed financial markets to all-time highs across the globe.
Meanwhile, governments across the world have sought to give the hard pressed billionaire class a helping hand by cutting capital gains, income and corporation taxes across the board. President Trump’s $1 trillion tax give away to the economic elites in 2017 is the most egregious example of this phenomena.
At the same time, wages for billions of ordinary people have stagnated or fallen whilst welfare benefits and health care have declined. We now have the utterly surreal situation whereby 26 billionaires control as much wealth as the poorest half of humanity amounting to over 3.8 billion people.
The working and middle classes together with the underemployed poor of the developing world were made to pay for the costs of the 2008 global economic crisis. Once the Coronavirus pandemic has finally burned itself out the working people of this world will be confronted with an economic depression which will rival and indeed may exceed in severity that of the 1930s. Governments across the board will once again seek to make ordinary people pay for the cost of the gigantic debts incurred by government and central bank bailouts.
In a desperate effort to prop up their system and protect the interests of their own class central bankers and corporate politicians across the globe are presiding over yet another wealth transfer that benefits the richest 1% in society. Bloomberg has noted how over $8 trillion has been printed out of thin air by global central banks and governments to prop up their debt fuelled system. The bulk of this horde of fiat money has gone to service the needs of Wall Street and its counterparts in London, Paris Frankfurt, Shanghai et cetera.The Wall Street Journal has openly acknowledged this truth in an editorial:
“The Fed may feel all of this is essential to protect the financial system’s plumbing and reduce systemic risk until the virus crisis passes, but make no mistake the Fed is protecting Wall Street first. The goal seems to be to lift asset prices, as the Fed did after the financial panic, and hope that the wealth effect trickles down to the rest of the economy.”
As the 2020s progress massive wealth and health inequalities, hunger and poverty will lead large numbers of people to question the hyper financialised economic system whose sole motive is to protect the interests of the 1%.
The American dominated monetary system which gives preferential treatment to the empire and its allies is in decline. Its decline will be exacerbated by the twin hammer blows of the Coronavirus pandemic and the global economic depression now unfolding.
During the coming decade the make the world will become an even more unstable place as the hegemonic power of our era seeks to maintain its dominant position in the global economy at the expense of other nations. The contradictions and tensions between the United States and its rival China will be greatly exacerbated during the next period. As we saw in the 1930s once these economic contradictions and tensions reach breaking point then the superpowers of the day have few course of action open to them beyond war or appeasement of their rival.Yet during the 1930s there were instances where the onward march to war could have been averted. If Republican Spain had defeated Franco’s fascist insurgency then the momentum towards war would have been slowed. It would have greatly strengthened the Popular Front government in France and halted the appeasement policies that allowed Nazi Germany to grow in strength like a cancerous tumour.
During the next decade there will no doubt be other such instances where the onward march to war can be averted.
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southfront--2020-04-25--Updated: Libyan Army Shoots Down (In Fact No) Turkish Combat Drone Near Bani Waled (Video)

Update : No Turkish UCAVs was shot down in Libya on April 25 .
LNA-affiliated sources have apparently manipulated the wreckage of the UCAV downed on April 17 to make a new video .
On April 25 , the Libyan National Army ( LNA ) shot down yet another Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 unmanned combat aerial vehicle ( UCAV ) .
According to sources close to the LNA , the UCAV was shot down in Wadi al-Dinar , south of the town of Bani Waled .
The town is located 145 km to the southeast of the country ’ s capital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ video showing the wreckage of the Bayraktar TB2 UCAV burning in an unspecified area in Wadi al-Dinar .
A day earlier , several drone strikes targeted tankers transporting fuel for LNA troops near Bani Waled .
The strikes may have been carried out by the same UCAV .
Developed by Turkey ’ s Bayraktar , the Bayraktar TB2 has an endurance of 24 hours and an operational range of 150 km .
The UCAV can be armed with up to four small-diameter laser-guided munitions .
According to LNA ’ s claims , at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shot down in Libya , so far .
These numbers are yet to be verified .
Observers believe that Turkish drones operating in Libya are being targeted by UAE forces .
The UAE reportedly deployed Russian-made Pantsir-S1 and U.S.-made MIM-23 Hawk air-defense systems in Libya last year .
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Update: No Turkish UCAVs was shot down in Libya on April 25. LNA-affiliated sources have apparently manipulated the wreckage of the UCAV downed on April 17 to make a new video.
This means that the April 17 downed UAV was videoed&photographed by the #LNA, had the ordnance removed, set on fire (possibly to depict a shoot down- different scenario),videoed again&footage was kept for release at a future date with propaganda value to depict as a new event.
3/ — Oded Berkowitz (@Oded121351) April 25, 2020
———–
On April 25, the Libyan National Army (LNA) shot down yet another Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV).
According to sources close to the LNA, the UCAV was shot down in Wadi al-Dinar, south of the town of Bani Waled. The town is located 145 km to the southeast of the country’s capital, Tripoli.
The sources released a video showing the wreckage of the Bayraktar TB2 UCAV burning in an unspecified area in Wadi al-Dinar.
A day earlier, several drone strikes targeted tankers transporting fuel for LNA troops near Bani Waled. The strikes may have been carried out by the same UCAV.
Developed by Turkey’s Bayraktar, the Bayraktar TB2 has an endurance of 24 hours and an operational range of 150 km. The UCAV can be armed with up to four small-diameter laser-guided munitions.
According to LNA’s claims, at least 30 Bayraktar TB2 UCAVs have been shot down in Libya, so far. These numbers are yet to be verified.
Observers believe that Turkish drones operating in Libya are being targeted by UAE forces. The UAE reportedly deployed Russian-made Pantsir-S1 and U.S.-made MIM-23 Hawk air-defense systems in Libya last year.
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southfront--2020-04-25--New Attacks Target Turkish-Backed Militants In Northern Aleppo

Kurdish forces have carried out a new wave of attacks in the Turkish-occupied part of Syria ’ s northern Aleppo .
The Afrin Liberation Forces ( ALF ) announced that its units targeted personnel and vehicles of Turkish-backed factions with improvise explosive devices ( IEDs ) on April 21 and 23 .
The group ’ s attacks took place in the district of Shirawa in southern Afrin , in the town of Martah near Afrin ’ s city center as well as in the towns of Jarabulus and al-Rai .
According to the Kurdish guerilla group , 10 Turkish-backed militants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the attacks .
The Olive Anger Operations Room , another Kurdish guerilla group operating in Turkish-occupied Afrin , announced on April 25 that its cells had abducted a Turkish-backed militant named Mohamad al-Said Ahmad .
The militant was later executed by the group that accused him of war crimes .
Last week , Kurdish forces in Aleppo ’ s northern countryside killed 6 Turkish-backed militants and injured 5 others in a similar wave of attacks .
The Turkish military and its proxies usually respond to such attacks by shelling the Kurdish-held areas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ON THIS TOPIC : • U.S. Tasks Experienced SDF Fighters With Guarding Oil Fields In Northeast Syria – Report

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Kurdish forces have carried out a new wave of attacks in the Turkish-occupied part of Syria’s northern Aleppo.
The Afrin Liberation Forces (ALF) announced that its units targeted personnel and vehicles of Turkish-backed factions with improvise explosive devices (IEDs) on April 21 and 23. The group’s attacks took place in the district of Shirawa in southern Afrin, in the town of Martah near Afrin’s city center as well as in the towns of Jarabulus and al-Rai.
According to the Kurdish guerilla group, 10 Turkish-backed militants were killed and 14 others sustained injures in the attacks.
The Olive Anger Operations Room, another Kurdish guerilla group operating in Turkish-occupied Afrin, announced on April 25 that its cells had abducted a Turkish-backed militant named Mohamad al-Said Ahmad. The militant was later executed by the group that accused him of war crimes.
Last week, Kurdish forces in Aleppo’s northern countryside killed 6 Turkish-backed militants and injured 5 others in a similar wave of attacks.
The Turkish military and its proxies usually respond to such attacks by shelling the Kurdish-held areas in the northern Aleppo countryside.
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southfront--2020-04-25--In Video: ISIS Cells Blow Up Egyptian Armored Vehicle In Sinai

On April 25 , the ISIS news agency , Amaq , released a video showing a recent attack on an @ @ @ @ @ military in the Sinai Peninsula .
The video shows a Caiman mine-resistant ambush protected ( @ @ @ @ @ with an improvised explosive device ( IED ) .
Despite receiving a direct hit , @ @ @ @ @ .
According to Amaq , the attack took place on April 10 on a road @ @ @ @ @ west of the city of Rafah .
The result of the attack is unknown .
@ @ @ @ @ , ISIS cells in Sinai intensified their IED attacks on Egyptian military vehicles and troops @ @ @ @ @ 18 only , several Humvee vehicles were targeted in different parts of the peninsula .
@ @ @ @ @

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On April 25, the ISIS news agency, Amaq, released a video showing a recent attack on an armored vehicle of the Egyptian military in the Sinai Peninsula.
The video shows a Caiman mine-resistant ambush protected (MRAP) vehicle getting hit with an improvised explosive device (IED). Despite receiving a direct hit, the vehicle kept moving on.
According to Amaq, the attack took place on April 10 on a road near the al-Fallujah checkpoint, west of the city of Rafah. The result of the attack is unknown.
In the last few weeks, ISIS cells in Sinai intensified their IED attacks on Egyptian military vehicles and troops. On April 17 and 18 only, several Humvee vehicles were targeted in different parts of the peninsula.
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southfront--2020-04-25--Thousands Of Turkish-Backed Syrian Militants Arrive In Libya

Turkey has deployed a new batch of at least 2,100 Syrian militants in Libya , the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights ( SOHR ) revealed on April 25 .
The London-based monitoring group said the number of Syrians fighting for the Government of National Accord ( GNA ) in Libya is 7,400 .
Around 2,500 others are now preparing for deployment in the north African country .
“ Hundreds of fighters are preparing to move from Syria to Turkey , as the process of registering new lists of names by the Syrian National Army ’ s factions continues upon the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the SOHR report reads .
Most of the militants preparing for deployment in Libya are reportedly from the factions of Ahrar al-Sharqiyah , Jaysh al-Sharqiyah and the Sultan Murad Division .
Other groups , like Faylaq al-Rahman , are refusing to send any militants to fight in Libya .
Turkey is pressuring the group by suspending support for it .
Al-Rahman militants have been not receiving their salaries for two months , so far .
Meanwhile , more and more Syrian militants are being killed by the Libyan National Army ( LNA ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ According to the SOHR , the number of Syrian militants killed in Libya has risen to 223 .
Turkey appears to be using Syrian militants as a cannon fodder in the GNA battle against the LNA .
MORE ON THIS TOPIC : • Turkey Suspends Support To One its Syrian Proxy Groups For Refusing To Send Fighters To Libya

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Turkey has deployed a new batch of at least 2,100 Syrian militants in Libya, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) revealed on April 25.
The London-based monitoring group said the number of Syrians fighting for the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Libya is 7,400. Around 2,500 others are now preparing for deployment in the north African country.
“Hundreds of fighters are preparing to move from Syria to Turkey, as the process of registering new lists of names by the Syrian National Army’s factions continues upon the orders of the Turkish intelligence,” the SOHR report reads.
Most of the militants preparing for deployment in Libya are reportedly from the factions of Ahrar al-Sharqiyah, Jaysh al-Sharqiyah and the Sultan Murad Division.
Other groups, like Faylaq al-Rahman, are refusing to send any militants to fight in Libya. Turkey is pressuring the group by suspending support for it. Al-Rahman militants have been not receiving their salaries for two months, so far.
Meanwhile, more and more Syrian militants are being killed by the Libyan National Army (LNA) around the Libyan capital, Tripoli. According to the SOHR, the number of Syrian militants killed in Libya has risen to 223. Turkey appears to be using Syrian militants as a cannon fodder in the GNA battle against the LNA.
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southfront--2020-04-25--U.S. Tasks Experienced SDF Fighters With Guarding Oil Fields In Northeast Syria – Report

The U.S.-led coalition has tasked highly-experienced fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces ( SDF ) with guarding oil fields in northeast Syria , the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights ( SOHR ) reported on April 25 .
According to the London-based monitoring group , the step is one of many the coalition is taking to strengthen its influence in the northeastern region .
U.S. officers are reportedly paying secret visits to the al-Jazzrah base in the outskirt of the city of Raqqa .
The base was one of the sites evacuated by U.S. troops last year to facilitate the Turkish @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said the U.S.-led coalition may be planning to return to the base which is still being used by its local ally – the SDF .
Earlier this month , the SOHR reported that the coalition recalled hundreds of SDF fighters who previously worked with its forces in northeast Syria to protect its bases there .
These steps by the U.S.-led coalition are likely meant to confront the growing presence of Russian and Syrian forces in the northeast .
Moscow and Damascus are working to build strong influence in the region , mainly through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ON THIS TOPIC :

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The U.S.-led coalition has tasked highly-experienced fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) with guarding oil fields in northeast Syria, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported on April 25.
According to the London-based monitoring group, the step is one of many the coalition is taking to strengthen its influence in the northeastern region.
“This step comes in the framework of the ongoing work by the Americans to restate their influence in Eastern Euphrates,” the group’s report reads.
U.S. officers are reportedly paying secret visits to the al-Jazzrah base in the outskirt of the city of Raqqa. The base was one of the sites evacuated by U.S. troops last year to facilitate the Turkish attack on northeast Syria.
The SOHR said the U.S.-led coalition may be planning to return to the base which is still being used by its local ally – the SDF.
Earlier this month, the SOHR reported that the coalition recalled hundreds of SDF fighters who previously worked with its forces in northeast Syria to protect its bases there.
These steps by the U.S.-led coalition are likely meant to confront the growing presence of Russian and Syrian forces in the northeast. Moscow and Damascus are working to build strong influence in the region, mainly through cooperating with Arab tribes there.
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southfront--2020-04-26--Collapse Of Riyadh Agreement: UAE-backed Forces Declare De-Facto Independence Of Southern Yemen

The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council ( STC ) has declared the de-facto independence of southern Yemen , accusing the Saudi-backed Yemeni government , led by President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi , of “ supporting terrorism.
” Following an emergence meeting early on April 26 , the STC declared the establishment of “ self-administration ” the southern region .
The STC announced the state of emergence in the city of Aden and all of the country ’ s southern provinces to facilitate its decision .
STC forces were quickly deployed in Aden to impose control of all state institutions .
According to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ besieged .
In an official statement , the STC justified its decision by accusing the Saudi-backed government of failing to fulfill its commitments under the 2019 Riyadh agreement .
The agreement put an end to a fierce conflict between the two sides , which ended with STC forces capturing key military positions in Aden .
“ With great care , the STC has been following the increase in the conspiracies and plots targeting our revolution , our cause , and our social fabric , which seek to increase the suffering and pain of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ levels , including : 1 ) The salaries and wages of the employees of the military and security establishment , retirees and civilians were not paid for several months ; 2 ) Halting the support with ammunition , food and living requirements for hot fronts ; 3 ) Halting the support for the families of the martyrs and for the treatment of the wounded ; 4 ) Stoking national rivalries and striving to destabilize and tear the national cohesion ; 6 ) The deterioration of public services , particularly the electricity , water @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reads .
The STC also criticized the Saudi-led coalition for its “ unexplained silence ” towards the “ abusive behavior ” of Hadi ’ s government .
The Yemeni government , based in the Saudi Arabia ’ s Riyadh ’ s , said the STC ’ s announcement is a continuation of the “ armed rebellion ” which started last year , holding the council responsible for the “ dangerous outcomes .
“ The so-called transitional council refuses to be logical , to implement its part of the Riyadh agreement or to take @ @ @ @ @ @ @ temporary capital of Aden is going through , and insists on escaping and covering its failure by announcing the continuation of its armed rebellion against the state , ” the government said in an official statement .
Saudi Arabia and the UAE , which provided military support to both the STC and the government during the 2019 conflict , are yet to comment on the new crisis .
A new military confrontation could erupt in Southern Yemen , if government forces attempted to challenge the decision of the STC .
Such a confrontation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s government and the Saudi-led coalition as a whole .
MORE ON THIS TOPIC : • In Videos : Vehicles Of Saudi-backed Forces Fail To Cross River In Marib Province

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The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) has declared the de-facto independence of southern Yemen, accusing the Saudi-backed Yemeni government, led by President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, of “supporting terrorism.”
Following an emergence meeting early on April 26, the STC declared the establishment of the “self-administration” the southern region.
The STC announced the state of emergency in the city of Aden and all of the country’s southern provinces to facilitate its decision. STC forces quickly deployed in Aden to impose control of all state institutions. According to RT, the Central Bank is now besieged.
In an official statement, the STC justified its decision by accusing the Saudi-backed government of failing to fulfill its commitments under the 2019 Riyadh agreement. The agreement put an end to a fierce conflict between the two sides, during which STC forces capturing key military positions in Aden.
“With great care, the STC has been following the increase in the conspiracies and plots targeting our revolution, our cause, and our social fabric, which seek to increase the suffering and pain of our people, on various fronts and levels, including: 1) The salaries and wages of the employees of the military and security establishment, retirees and civilians were not paid for several months; 2) Halting the support with ammunition, food and living requirements for hot fronts; 3) Halting the support for the families of the martyrs and for the treatment of the wounded; 4) Stoking national rivalries and striving to destabilize and tear the national cohesion; 5) Supporting terrorism and extremist forces; 6) The deterioration of public services, particularly the electricity, water and road infrastructure,” the statement reads.
The STC also criticized the Saudi-led coalition for its “unexplained silence” towards the “abusive behavior” of Hadi’s government.
The Yemeni government, based in the Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh, said the STC’s announcement is a continuation of the “armed rebellion” which started last year, holding the council responsible for the “dangerous outcomes” of this decision.
“The so-called transitional council refuses to be logical, to implement its part of the Riyadh agreement or to take into account the catastrophic situation that the temporary capital of Aden is going through, and insists on escaping and covering its failure by announcing the continuation of its armed rebellion against the state,” the government said in an official statement.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE, which provided military support to both the STC and the government during the 2019 conflict, are yet to comment on the new crisis.
A new military confrontation could erupt in Southern Yemen, if government forces attempt to challenge the decision of the STC. Such a confrontation would shake the legitimacy of Hadi’s government and the Saudi-led coalition as a whole.
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southfront--2020-04-26--Military Situation In Afghanistan On April 26, 2020 (Map Update)

Click to see the full-size image A brief overview of the recent developments in Afghanistan : • The Taliban has @ @ @ @ @ attacks per day since the signing of the peace deal with the US , the @ @ @ @ @ Council reported on April 25 .
A total of 2,804 attacks were continued in the @ @ @ @ @ April 19 ; • At least seven Afghan forces were killed in a Taliban attack @ @ @ @ @ Logar province .
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A brief overview of the recent developments in Afghanistan:
The Taliban has conducted an average of 55 attacks per day since the signing of the peace deal with the US, the Office of the National Security Council reported on April 25. A total of 2,804 attacks were continued in the period of March 1 to April 19;
At least seven Afghan forces were killed in a Taliban attack in the Barak-e-Barak district of Logar province.
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southfront--2020-04-26--Military Situation In Syria On April 26, 2020 (Map Update)

Click to see the full-size image A brief overview of the recent developments in Syria : • Turkish forces reportedly @ @ @ @ @ the M4 highway ; • Gunmen threw several hand grenades at the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham @ @ @ @ @ al-Qusur of Idlib city ; • The US military allegedly invovles SDF members in guarding @ @ @ @ @ bank of the Euphrates ; • The Afrin Liberation Forces announced a new series of @ @ @ @ @ Afrin ; • The Syrian Army and security forces are conducting a security operation in @ @ @ @ @ ON THE TOPIC :

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A brief overview of the recent developments in Syria:
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southfront--2020-04-26--Turkish Forces Clash With Supporters Of Idlib Radicals On M4 Highway. Casualties Reported (Videos)

Several supporters of radical Idlib militant groups were killed or injured in clashes with Turkish forces on the M4 highway @ @ @ @ @ 26 .
According to reports 1-2 militant supporters were killed and at least 3 others @ @ @ @ @ .
Pro-militant sources claim that the Turkish military and its proxies once again tried to @ @ @ @ @ of Saraqib to expand the joint patrols with the Russian Military Police there .
The @ @ @ @ @ the main reason behind Turkish actions is the hostile posture of some of the ‘ @ @ @ @ @ military itself .
Earlier in April , Hayat Tahrir al-Sham members that ‘ protest ’ @ @ @ @ @ video threatening to behead Turkish soldiers .
So , Ankara likely opted to give a @ @ @ @ @ .
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#Syria: today at dawn #TSK tried to open the M4 Highway to patrol the road with #Russia|ns. For first time Turkish troops clashed with protestors. One Rebel fighter (pic) killed in addition to at least 3 ppl wounded. pic.twitter.com/iklmh5CphM — Qalaat Al Mudiq (@QalaatAlMudiq) April 26, 2020
Several supporters of radical Idlib militant groups were killed or injured in clashes with Turkish forces on the M4 highway in southern Idlib on April 26. According to reports 1-2 militant supporters were killed and at least 3 others were wounded in the clashes.
Pro-militant sources claim that the Turkish military and its proxies once again tried to reopen the M4 highway west of Saraqib to expand the joint patrols with the Russian Military Police there.
The more likely version is that the main reason behind Turkish actions is the hostile posture of some of the ‘protesters’ towards the Turkish military itself. Earlier in April, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham members that ‘protest’ on the highway recorded a video threatening to behead Turkish soldiers. So, Ankara likely opted to give a lesson to its local proxies.
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southfront--2020-04-26--Costs Mount And Delays Expand For Repair Of Russian Carrier Admiral Kuznetsov

On April 3 , the head of Russia ’ s United Shipbuilding Corporation ( USC ) Alexei Rakhmanov revealed that the cost of damage from a fire on board the heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov on 12 December 2019 now amounts to 500 million rubles ( USD6.6 million ) .
Previously , Rakhmanov estimated the cost at about 300 million rubles .
The repair costs are in addition to those of a major overhaul and upgrade of Admiral Kuznetsov , for which the preparatory work began in October 2017 .
Another problem is that on 29-30 October 2018 the PD-50 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Admiral Kuznetsov in Murmansk sank after a crane fell on the vessel ’ s deck .
On April 4 it became known that the USC ’ s Zvezdocha shipyard suspended the contract ( 6.5 billion rubles ) of the reconstruction of the PD-50 floating doc with “ Investments .
Engineering .
Building.
” ( IEB ) company .
Only about 5 % of the works were finished .
The very same floating doc was set to be used to repair Admiral Kuzntetsov .
The Murmansk prosecutor ’ s office is now studying the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had to conduct the first starge repair works and received the amount of ~2.5 billion rubles in advance .
The contract had to be implemented by November 2019 , but only 5 % of the works were finished .
It is noted that IEB has already signed contracts with subcontractors for 10 billion rubles .
This situation will lead to further delays of the Admiral Kuznetsov repair and modernization program .
Russian media outlets speculate that with such difficulties the work on the warship will unlikely start earlier than in 2023 .
MORE @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Russia ’ s Admiral Kuznetsov After Fire Incident Will Cost $ 1.5 billion : Reports • Fire On the Deck of The Admiral Kuznetsov : Sabotage , Criminal Negligence Or Corruption ?

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On April 3, the head of Russia’s United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) Alexei Rakhmanov revealed that the cost of damage from a fire on board the heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov on 12 December 2019 now amounts to 500 million rubles (USD6.6 million). Previously, Rakhmanov estimated the cost at about 300 million rubles.
The repair costs are in addition to those of a major overhaul and upgrade of Admiral Kuznetsov, for which the preparatory work began in October 2017.
Another problem is that on 29-30 October 2018 the PD-50 floating dock involved in the works on Admiral Kuznetsov in Murmansk sank after a crane fell on the vessel’s deck.
On April 4 it became known that the USC’s Zvezdocha shipyard suspended the contract (6.5 billion rubles) of the reconstruction of the PD-50 floating doc with “Investments. Engineering. Building.” (IEB) company. Only about 5% of the works were finished. The very same floating doc was set to be used to repair Admiral Kuzntetsov.
The Murmansk prosecutor’s office is now studying the contact between Zvezdochnaya and IEB. IEB had to conduct the first starge repair works and received the amount of ~2.5 billion rubles in advance. The contract had to be implemented by November 2019, but only 5% of the works were finished. It is noted that IEB has already signed contracts with subcontractors for 10 billion rubles.
This situation will lead to further delays of the Admiral Kuznetsov repair and modernization program. Russian media outlets speculate that with such difficulties the work on the warship will unlikely start earlier than in 2023.
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southfront--2020-04-26--Military Situation In Yemen On April 26, 2020 (Map Update)

Click to see the full-size image A brief overview of the recent developments in Yemen : • The Southern Transitional @ @ @ @ @ the southern provinces and the state of emergency in the STC-controlled area • Clashes between @ @ @ @ @ continue in the southwestern part of al-Jawf province MORE ON THE TOPIC :

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A brief overview of the recent developments in Yemen:
Ceasefire violations were reported in al-Hudaydah
Saudi-led coalition warplanes struck the Juban area 3 times
Saudi-led coalition warplanes struck the Sirwah area 4 times
Saudi-led coalition warplanes struck Khab and and Shaaf areas 6 times
Saudi-led coalition warplanes struck the Majzar area 12 times
The Southern Transitional Council declared the autonomy of the southern provinces and the state of emergency in the STC-controlled area
Clashes between Ansar Allah and Saudi-led forces continue in the southwestern part of al-Jawf province
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southfront--2020-04-26--Poseidon Multi-Purpose Oceanic System

Poseidon Multi-Purpose Oceanic System

The Poseidon has been described as a “ nuclear torpedo ” , which is true in at least one sense , namely its propulsion .
The Poseidon is , by all accounts , powered by a nuclear reactor which makes it a submersible equivalent of the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile , with an effectively global range .
It is for all intents and purposes an unmanned miniature nuclear-powered submarine , with all the benefits that nuclear propulsion bestows on a submarine .
The absence of a crew eliminates the need for heavy shielding and allows speeds considerably in excess of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ speed is estimated at between 60 and 100 knots , with the upper end of the scale being comfortably in excess of all torpedoes except for the short-ranged , supercavitating rocket-propelled Shkval .
And while conventional torpedoes can develop high speeds only at the expense of range , due to the limited propellant or battery charge , nuclear propulsion means high speeds can be sustained for longer periods of time , subject only to the design ’ s mechanical limitations .
How Nuclear is the Poseidon ?
Virtually all descriptions of the Poseidon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , for use primarily against coastal targets such as cities and naval bases , and possibly also against mobile naval high-value targets such as aircraft carrier battlegroups .
However , this application is too limited in usefulness to warrant the development of a costly system like the Poseidon and specialized submarines designed to carry it .
Even an extremely powerful thermonuclear warhead would have to be brought quite close to the target in order for the underwater explosion to cause significant damage to the coastal site .
In many cases , the high-value @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Washington , D.C. , or shielded by natural coastal features , like New York City .
In order to strike them , the large and heavy Poseidon would have to maneuver at slow speed in shallow coastal waters where it would be vulnerable to underwater defenses that would be surely developed to cope with it .
This points to the likelihood of the nuclear delivery mission being one , and possibly not even the most important , of missions that it will be called upon to carry out .
A Poseidon diagram shown @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a “ multi-purpose oceanic system ” , which rather strongly suggests that it is not only , or even primarily , a nuclear delivery system .
Cruise and ballistic missiles , even with conventional and nuclear payloads , are not referred to as “ multi-purpose systems ” , either .
Likewise the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile is also not referred to as a “ multi-purpose ” system .
In keeping with the general pattern of unmanned combat system development in Russia , which increasingly seeks to pair unmanned systems with manned ones @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the weaknesses of each , it is entirely possible that Poseidon is intended to function not as an underwater Burevestnik , but rather as the equivalent of the stealthy Okhotnik combat drone developed as a “ wingman ” vehicle for the Su-57 fifth-generation fighter .
The peculiar qualities of deep ocean as a theater of war , particularly its opacity to sensors and limits on weapon speed mean that a combat underwater unmanned vehicle ( UUV ) would be of even greater use to a manned submarine than a combat crone accompanying a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would be essentially the same .
The unmanned platform could enhance the lethality and survivability of the manned one by serving as a platform for sensors , weapons , and in extreme conditions even as a decoy .
The size of the Poseidon , specifically the 1.6m diameter and the length of 24m , suggest considerable internal volume suitable for a variety of configurable payloads , though it is unlikely these payloads could be changed once the Poseidon was loaded onto its carrier submarine .
In addition to the already mentioned nuclear warheads @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including sonar arrays , and even anti-submarine torpedoes .
An early artist ’ s impression of the Poseidon actually depicted an underwater vehicle akin to a miniature submarine , complete with an array of torpedo tubes .
That the Poseidon has a broader range of intended capabilities than simply acting as a nuclear delivery vehicle is also suggested by the submarines being built to act as carriers for these torpedoes .
There are currently two boats under construction that are intended for this role , the K-329 Belgorod , and the Khabarovsk .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ interesting as a Poseidon launch platform because it is not a boat intended mainly for the “ kinetic ” combat role .
Rather , this heavily modified Project 949A cruise missile submarine design is intended to act as a mother ship for the highly classified Losharik deep-diving research submarine , Shelf energo-capsules for the Harmoniya underwater sensor system network , and the Klavesin UUVs .
While the diagrams crafted by the respected British undersea warfare analyst H I Sutton have the Belgorod carry Poseidons in forward-mounted horizontal torpedo tubes , the fact that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the external docking and internal recovery of manned and unmanned undersea vehicles could also mean that the Poseidon will be launched and recovered from launch bays .
The original Project 949A design reserved extensive volume for a battery of 24 Granit anti-ship cruise missiles , whose launch tubes were arrayed on both sides of the hull in banks of 12 .
But if Sutton ’ s assessment of the Belgorod as being narrower than Project 949A , with a circular hull cross-section , then the Poseidon could still be carried in payload bays @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be recovered into .
Sutton ’ s analysis of photographs from the launch of the Belgorod led him to believe the boat is fitted with thrusters for precise undersea maneuvers , which would be required if the boat is to recover undersea vehicles .
However , even if the Poseidon is carried in launch tubes and is not recoverable by the carrier submarine , the choice of Belgorod , a dedicated special-missions submarine , would be odd if Poseidon were intended only as a nuclear delivery vehicle .
Even less is known of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ boat whose main weapon system is supposed to be the Poseidon .
Again , Sutton assumes that Poseidon torpedoes would be carried in torpedo tubes in the front of the hull , but the size of the Khabarovsk , a boat of estimated 10,000 ton displacement and 120m length , or only 40m shorter than the Borei SSBN , means there is ample volume for a swim-out launch and recovery bay .
It is not yet clear what place Khabarovsk occupies in the Russian vision of undersea warfare .
Perhaps it is intended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Poseidons with various payloads , to support operations of other submarines , including as escorts for ballistic missile submarines .
It is also possible it is a prototype of a future class of attack submarines that will carry one or more Poseidons with conventional weapon and sensor payloads as a standard fit .
Being a world leader in nuclear technology , it is not surprising to see Russia leverage this advantage by creating novel aerial and naval platforms such as the Burevestnik and Poseidon .
The coming years will no doubt provide additional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is already evident that Russia is not lagging behind in the development of novel applications for unmanned platforms .

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Writen by J.Hawk exclusively for SouthFront
The Poseidon has been described as a “nuclear torpedo”, which is true in at least one sense, namely its propulsion. The Poseidon is, by all accounts, powered by a nuclear reactor which makes it a submersible equivalent of the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile, with an effectively global range. It is for all intents and purposes an unmanned miniature nuclear-powered submarine, with all the benefits that nuclear propulsion bestows on a submarine. The absence of a crew eliminates the need for heavy shielding and allows speeds considerably in excess of even the fastest submarines. Its top speed is estimated at between 60 and 100 knots, with the upper end of the scale being comfortably in excess of all torpedoes except for the short-ranged, supercavitating rocket-propelled Shkval. And while conventional torpedoes can develop high speeds only at the expense of range, due to the limited propellant or battery charge, nuclear propulsion means high speeds can be sustained for longer periods of time, subject only to the design’s mechanical limitations.
Tests of the nuclear-capable Poseidon unmanned underwater vehicle:
How Nuclear is the Poseidon?
Virtually all descriptions of the Poseidon describe it as a nuclear delivery vehicle, for use primarily against coastal targets such as cities and naval bases, and possibly also against mobile naval high-value targets such as aircraft carrier battlegroups. However, this application is too limited in usefulness to warrant the development of a costly system like the Poseidon and specialized submarines designed to carry it. Even an extremely powerful thermonuclear warhead would have to be brought quite close to the target in order for the underwater explosion to cause significant damage to the coastal site. In many cases, the high-value target may be considerably inland, like Washington, D.C., or shielded by natural coastal features, like New York City. In order to strike them, the large and heavy Poseidon would have to maneuver at slow speed in shallow coastal waters where it would be vulnerable to underwater defenses that would be surely developed to cope with it.
A presentation video by the Russian Defense Ministry:
This points to the likelihood of the nuclear delivery mission being one, and possibly not even the most important, of missions that it will be called upon to carry out. A Poseidon diagram shown on Russian TV pointedly referred to it as a “multi-purpose oceanic system”, which rather strongly suggests that it is not only, or even primarily, a nuclear delivery system. Cruise and ballistic missiles, even with conventional and nuclear payloads, are not referred to as “multi-purpose systems”, either. Likewise the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile is also not referred to as a “multi-purpose” system.
Underwater Okhotnik
In keeping with the general pattern of unmanned combat system development in Russia, which increasingly seeks to pair unmanned systems with manned ones to fully exploit the strengths and cover the weaknesses of each, it is entirely possible that Poseidon is intended to function not as an underwater Burevestnik, but rather as the equivalent of the stealthy Okhotnik combat drone developed as a “wingman” vehicle for the Su-57 fifth-generation fighter.
The peculiar qualities of deep ocean as a theater of war, particularly its opacity to sensors and limits on weapon speed mean that a combat underwater unmanned vehicle (UUV) would be of even greater use to a manned submarine than a combat crone accompanying a stealth fighter. But the support function would be essentially the same. The unmanned platform could enhance the lethality and survivability of the manned one by serving as a platform for sensors, weapons, and in extreme conditions even as a decoy.
The size of the Poseidon, specifically the 1.6m diameter and the length of 24m, suggest considerable internal volume suitable for a variety of configurable payloads, though it is unlikely these payloads could be changed once the Poseidon was loaded onto its carrier submarine. In addition to the already mentioned nuclear warheads, these payloads could include sensors, including sonar arrays, and even anti-submarine torpedoes. An early artist’s impression of the Poseidon actually depicted an underwater vehicle akin to a miniature submarine, complete with an array of torpedo tubes.
The Motherships
That the Poseidon has a broader range of intended capabilities than simply acting as a nuclear delivery vehicle is also suggested by the submarines being built to act as carriers for these torpedoes. There are currently two boats under construction that are intended for this role, the K-329 Belgorod, and the Khabarovsk.
The launch of Belgorod special purpose nuclear submarine:
The Belgorod, in particular, is interesting as a Poseidon launch platform because it is not a boat intended mainly for the “kinetic” combat role. Rather, this heavily modified Project 949A cruise missile submarine design is intended to act as a mother ship for the highly classified Losharik deep-diving research submarine, Shelf energo-capsules for the Harmoniya underwater sensor system network, and the Klavesin UUVs. While the diagrams crafted by the respected British undersea warfare analyst H I Sutton have the Belgorod carry Poseidons in forward-mounted horizontal torpedo tubes, the fact that the Belgorod is already extensively fitted for the external docking and internal recovery of manned and unmanned undersea vehicles could also mean that the Poseidon will be launched and recovered from launch bays. The original Project 949A design reserved extensive volume for a battery of 24 Granit anti-ship cruise missiles, whose launch tubes were arrayed on both sides of the hull in banks of 12. But if Sutton’s assessment of the Belgorod as being narrower than Project 949A, with a circular hull cross-section, then the Poseidon could still be carried in payload bays from which it could swim out and be recovered into.
Sutton’s analysis of photographs from the launch of the Belgorod led him to believe the boat is fitted with thrusters for precise undersea maneuvers, which would be required if the boat is to recover undersea vehicles. However, even if the Poseidon is carried in launch tubes and is not recoverable by the carrier submarine, the choice of Belgorod, a dedicated special-missions submarine, would be odd if Poseidon were intended only as a nuclear delivery vehicle.
Even less is known of the Khabarovsk, which is a purpose-designed boat whose main weapon system is supposed to be the Poseidon. Again, Sutton assumes that Poseidon torpedoes would be carried in torpedo tubes in the front of the hull, but the size of the Khabarovsk, a boat of estimated 10,000 ton displacement and 120m length, or only 40m shorter than the Borei SSBN, means there is ample volume for a swim-out launch and recovery bay. It is not yet clear what place Khabarovsk occupies in the Russian vision of undersea warfare. Perhaps it is intended as a mothership for an array of Poseidons with various payloads, to support operations of other submarines, including as escorts for ballistic missile submarines. It is also possible it is a prototype of a future class of attack submarines that will carry one or more Poseidons with conventional weapon and sensor payloads as a standard fit.
Conclusion
Being a world leader in nuclear technology, it is not surprising to see Russia leverage this advantage by creating novel aerial and naval platforms such as the Burevestnik and Poseidon. The coming years will no doubt provide additional information on their actual capabilities. It is already evident that Russia is not lagging behind in the development of novel applications for unmanned platforms.
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southfront--2020-04-26--First Time In History: Russian Paratroopers Airdrop From Lower Border Of Arctic Stratosphere

What are you on about ?
Which is the only nation in the world to send ground samples of the @ @ @ @ @ , for DNA analysis ?
To substantiate their claim to the Arctic Shelf using scientific @ @ @ @ @ did the US never ratify the ‘ Law of the Sea Convention ’ ?
Remember @ @ @ @ @ to the Arctic Seas/Oceans .
How many nuclear ice breakers and mobile units does Russia @ @ @ @ @ breakers , in working order , does the US have ?
How many portable , @ @ @ @ @ US have ?
Why is Mike Pompeo trying to irradicate Russian and Chinese nuclear technology @ @ @ @ @ sanctions ?
Why can ’ t the US compete on a level playing field ?
@ @ @ @ @ , UK , EU , ‘ 5 Eye ’ nations and NATO spend anti-Russia , @ @ @ @ @ Why are the tax payers , who finance those trolls , ignorant of the fact @

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Personnel of the Russian Airborne Forces performed a group parachute jump in the Arctic from an altitude of 10,000 metres, a never-before accomplished feat.
“For the first time in world history, we conducted a group landing of personnel using special parachute systems in Arctic conditions from a height of 10,000 meters using oxygen equipment and subsequently completed combat training missions. Nobody has done this before,” Deputy Defence Minister Yunus-Bek Evkurov said adding that the paratroopers used a “next-generation special-purpose parachute system”.


southfront--2020-04-26--Pandemic Exposes Liberalism’s Free Market, Open Borders Road to National Suicide

Open Borders and Free Trade induce national suicide slowly and gradually , without the victims waking up to what is going on until it is too late .
But the coronavirus has brought home with global clarity that human societies need governments and regulated borders for their own survival .
The bottom line is clear , societies that have had open borders to previous major centers of infection and transmission , like Iran and Italy which kept open strong flows of people to and from China in the early stages of pandemic , suffered exceptionally badly .
Countries obsessed with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ France , Germany , the United Kingdom and the U.S. also suffered disproportionately .
Countries that have allowed their domestic industry to decay have found they can not now produce the crucial equipment they need , from respirators to gas masks .
Countries with strong manufacturing bases like China , or with a prudent nationalist sense of preparing ahead for emergencies like Russia , have done far better .
The shortage of respirators in Britain has become more than a national scandal : It is a national shame .
That is another inexorable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trade .
I documented this history in some detail in my 2012 book “ That Should Still Be Us “ .
There , I showed how even the French Revolution of 1789 was in fact triggered by the catastrophic Free Trade Treaty that hapless King Louis XVI approved with England only three years before .
It led immediately to the worst economic depression in French history which triggered revolution .
In three years , liberal Free Trade succeeded in destroying a society that had flourished for a thousand years and the most powerful @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Roman Empire .
In his classic television series and accompanying book “ How the Universe Changed ” , the great British broadcaster and historian James Burke showed how the discipline of statistics was responsible for discovering the way the cholera bacteria spread through contaminated water in 19th Century London , then the largest urban area ever experienced .
Today , we see a similar pattern in the spread of the coronavirus : While half the counties in the United States remain so far virtually free of the virus , infections have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ especially in so-called Sanctuary cities .
Invariably these centers are ruled by liberal Democrats where illegal immigrants congregate .
They are the places where the values and consequences of Free Trade and Open Borders most clearly flourish .
And they ar ealso the places where the terrifying costs of those policies are most evident as well .
The chickens have come home to roost .
Countries like Russia and China itself , which have reacted most quickly and decisively to shut down international and domestic travel , have been able to keep their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down .
In Europe , by contrast , the impact of the virus has been appalling , The European Union has been as useless as New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio , .
Pro-EU liberal national leaders like President Emmanuel Macron in France and the venerable Chancellor Angela Merkel in Germany ( Berlin ’ s version of Nancy Pelosi ) just sat back in bemused silence till it was too late .
In Italy and Spain , the political splintering of societies has woefully added to the chaos .
This is in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The ruling elites of the world should not have had to relearn it .
But for more than 225 years , the ruling elites of the West have mindlessly embraced Open Borders and Free Trade.Yet these have always been mere assertions of prejudice and mindless faith : They have never been proven to be true in any scientific manner .
Instead , when we look at the factual evidence of economic history over the past two centuries , it has always been the case that developing industrial societies which protect their manufactures behind @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trade and balance of payments surpluses .
Then the livign standards of their people soar .
In contrast , free market societies too powerless , or just too plain dumb to protect their economic borders get swamped by cheap manufactures and their domestic industries get decimated .
This was the case with liberal free market Britain caught between the rising Protectionist powers of the United States , Japan and Germany for the next century .
It has been true for the decline of American industry since the 1950s , the more the United @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more its own domestic manufactures and their dependent populations suffered .
This never bothered the liberal intellectual elites of the East and West Coast at all .
It still doesn ’ t .
Having inflicted lasting ruin and despair on hundreds of millions of people for generations , they despise their victims as “ deplorables ” for crying out in pain and seeking to end the disastrous policies .
Russia suffered the full horrors of the merciless laissez-faire , unregulated Free Market policies of the liberal West in the 1990s .
Boris Yeltsin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bill Clinton and Larry Summers were inflicting on his country .
Over the past two decades , Russia ’ s recovery from that Abyss under President Vladimir Putin has been miraculous .
National social responsibility has succeeded where the crazed , simplistic theories of Adam Smith , David Ricardo and Ayn Rand all palpably failed .
The coronavirus pandemic therefore should serve as a wake up call to the peoples of the West , what Thomas Jefferson memorably called “ A Fire Bell in the Night.
” They need to start following Russia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prudent preparation and maintaining strong borders .
The ravages of Liberalism – its Open Borders and Free Markets – have already stripped the West of all its defenses , social , demographic , industrial and economic .
The West is out of time : The Audit of Pandemic has been taken , and the reckoning is now due .

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Written by Martin Sieff; Originally appeared at strategic-culture.org
Open Borders and Free Trade induce national suicide slowly and gradually, without the victims waking up to what is going on until it is too late. But the coronavirus has brought home with global clarity that human societies need governments and regulated borders for their own survival.
The bottom line is clear, societies that have had open borders to previous major centers of infection and transmission, like Iran and Italy which kept open strong flows of people to and from China in the early stages of pandemic, suffered exceptionally badly. Countries obsessed with maintaining liberal values and open borders like France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the U.S. also suffered disproportionately.
Countries that have allowed their domestic industry to decay have found they cannot now produce the crucial equipment they need, from respirators to gas masks. Countries with strong manufacturing bases like China, or with a prudent nationalist sense of preparing ahead for emergencies like Russia, have done far better. The shortage of respirators in Britain has become more than a national scandal: It is a national shame. That is another inexorable consequence of the pernicious doctrine of Free Trade.
I documented this history in some detail in my 2012 book “That Should Still Be Us“.
There, I showed how even the French Revolution of 1789 was in fact triggered by the catastrophic Free Trade Treaty that hapless King Louis XVI approved with England only three years before. It led immediately to the worst economic depression in French history which triggered revolution. In three years, liberal Free Trade succeeded in destroying a society that had flourished for a thousand years and the most powerful state Europe had known since the fall of the Roman Empire.
In his classic television series and accompanying book “How the Universe Changed”, the great British broadcaster and historian James Burke showed how the discipline of statistics was responsible for discovering the way the cholera bacteria spread through contaminated water in 19th Century London, then the largest urban area ever experienced.
Today, we see a similar pattern in the spread of the coronavirus: While half the counties in the United States remain so far virtually free of the virus, infections have soared in most major metropolitan areas, especially in so-called Sanctuary cities. Invariably these centers are ruled by liberal Democrats where illegal immigrants congregate. They are the places where the values and consequences of Free Trade and Open Borders most clearly flourish. And they ar ealso the places where the terrifying costs of those policies are most evident as well. The chickens have come home to roost.
Countries like Russia and China itself, which have reacted most quickly and decisively to shut down international and domestic travel, have been able to keep their numbers of infections and rates of spread down.
In Europe, by contrast, the impact of the virus has been appalling, The European Union has been as useless as New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio,. Pro-EU liberal national leaders like President Emmanuel Macron in France and the venerable Chancellor Angela Merkel in Germany (Berlin’s version of Nancy Pelosi) just sat back in bemused silence till it was too late. In Italy and Spain, the political splintering of societies has woefully added to the chaos.
This is in fact a very old lesson indeed: The ruling elites of the world should not have had to relearn it.
But for more than 225 years, the ruling elites of the West have mindlessly embraced Open Borders and Free Trade.Yet these have always been mere assertions of prejudice and mindless faith: They have never been proven to be true in any scientific manner.
Instead, when we look at the factual evidence of economic history over the past two centuries, it has always been the case that developing industrial societies which protect their manufactures behind strong tariff barriers flourish with enormous foreign trade and balance of payments surpluses. Then the livign standards of their people soar.
In contrast, free market societies too powerless, or just too plain dumb to protect their economic borders get swamped by cheap manufactures and their domestic industries get decimated. This was the case with liberal free market Britain caught between the rising Protectionist powers of the United States, Japan and Germany for the next century.
It has been true for the decline of American industry since the 1950s, the more the United States embraced global free trade, the more its own domestic manufactures and their dependent populations suffered. This never bothered the liberal intellectual elites of the East and West Coast at all. It still doesn’t. Having inflicted lasting ruin and despair on hundreds of millions of people for generations, they despise their victims as “deplorables” for crying out in pain and seeking to end the disastrous policies.
Russia suffered the full horrors of the merciless laissez-faire, unregulated Free Market policies of the liberal West in the 1990s. Boris Yeltsin never woke up to the catastrophe that Bill Clinton and Larry Summers were inflicting on his country. Over the past two decades, Russia’s recovery from that Abyss under President Vladimir Putin has been miraculous. National social responsibility has succeeded where the crazed, simplistic theories of Adam Smith, David Ricardo and Ayn Rand all palpably failed.
The coronavirus pandemic therefore should serve as a wake up call to the peoples of the West, what Thomas Jefferson memorably called “A Fire Bell in the Night.” They need to start following Russia’s examples of self reliance, prudent preparation and maintaining strong borders.
The ravages of Liberalism – its Open Borders and Free Markets – have already stripped the West of all its defenses, social, demographic, industrial and economic. The West is out of time: The Audit of Pandemic has been taken, and the reckoning is now due.
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southfront--2020-04-26--Militants From Same Turkish-Backed Group Clash Among Themselves In Syria’s Al-Bab

Late on April 25 , militants of the Turkish-backed Sultan Murad Division clashed among themselves in the town of al-Bab in northern Aleppo .
Opposition activists said two units , one led by Abu al-Taib and another one by Fadi al-Diri , clashed with each other near the youth housing complex in al-Bab and near the Abu Zindin crossing with government-held areas south of the town .
The UK-based monitoring group hinted that the clashes may be related to the Sultan Murad Division ’ s illegal activities .
The group ’ s militants are allegedly involved in the smuggling of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Kurdish areas .
Such conflicts are an ordinary development in al-Bab .
Last month , Ahrar al-Sharqiyah clashed with the Free Syrian Police , a law enforcement group also backed by Turkey .
The conflict lasted for around a week and claimed the lives of several militants , including Ahrar al-Sharqiyah security chief .
Turkey doesn ’ t usually intervene in these internal conflicts , likely to avoid demonstrating that it prefers one group over others .
By doing so , Ankara likely seeks to maintain balanced relations with all of its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ TOPIC :

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Late on April 25, militants of the Turkish-backed Sultan Murad Division clashed among themselves in the town of al-Bab in northern Aleppo.
Opposition activists said two units, one led by Abu al-Taib and another one by Fadi al-Diri, clashed with each other near the youth housing complex in al-Bab and near the Abu Zindin crossing with government-held areas south of the town.
“As a result [of the clashes], at least one personal was injured,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said in a report.
The UK-based monitoring group hinted that the clashes may be related to the Sultan Murad Division’s illegal activities. The group’s militants are allegedly involved in the smuggling of goods and illegal materials to both government-held and Kurdish areas.
Such conflicts are an ordinary development in al-Bab. Last month, Ahrar al-Sharqiyah clashed with the Free Syrian Police, a law enforcement group also backed by Turkey. The conflict lasted for around a week and claimed the lives of several militants, including Ahrar al-Sharqiyah security chief.
Turkey doesn’t usually intervene in these internal conflicts, likely to avoid demonstrating that it prefers one group over others. By doing so, Ankara likely seeks to maintain balanced relations with all of its proxies in Syria.
MORE ON THIS TOPIC:
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southfront--2020-04-26--Syrian Security Forces Launch Operation Against ‘Criminal Gang’ In Southern Al-Suwayda (Video, Photo

Do you know how many Druze live and study in Israel , they have passports that allow them to travel to and from Israel nearly as easily as any Israeli citizen could , so the Israeli border has never been closed to the Druze population , they welcome them with open arms .
And right up until June 2018 the Israelis actually supported 2 of the anti Assad Druze militias that were fighting against the SAA , and they did actively supply them with weapons through their mutual border .
And you should know there ’ s enough weapons and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you can buy anything you want to if you have the money , and with free and open borders for the Druze , it makes it easy for Israeli money to get into Syria by air or by bus , not to mention electronic transactions too .
And you think it ’ s just a coincidence that the Rukban camp only had 7 to 8,000 refugees pre october 2017 , but after a 2 month operation to finally eradicate Isis from Homs and Deir ez Zor , by Russia , Syria and Iraq @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but refused ] , that camp swelled to having 50,000+ refugees by January 2018 , and then to 70,000 mid 2018 , that wasn ’ t just a coincidence , all the fleeing Isis fighters and their families all headed for the US run refugee camp after they were beaten , that ’ s why the numbers swelled in just 2 months .
And as I said Assad and Russia rescued all the genuine refugees from Rukban last year , they vetted them all for criminal and terrorist activity , and if they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their old homes if possible , and to other location if it wasn ’ t .
SF had several articles on the matter last year so maybe you missed them .
So I ’ ll say again , most of the refugees left at Rukban now are just Isis fighters and their families , otherwise they ’ re common criminals who can ’ t go back to Syrian controlled territory , but I don ’ t think any genuine refugees would still be there if they refused to accept the Russian and Syrian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
I think all the refugee left at Rukban should all be sent to the US , don ’ t you think that would be a good idea , or don ’ t you like the idea of all those ex Isis fighters living in the US with refugee visa ’ s .
And if they ’ re not really Isis fighters as you say they aren ’ t , why not send them to the good old USA , it ’ s the humane thing to do isn ’ t it , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to live with you , you keep championing the moderate opposition all the time , so go on , sponsor a refugee from the camp at Al Tanf , let them come and live in your home for a while , that ’ s if you really think they ’ re genuine refugees , and then you can let me know if I was right or wrong about them .

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On April 24, Syrian security forces launched a special operation in the Druze town of Salkhad in southern al-Suwayda to arrest wanted individuals.
A source in al-Suwayda Police Department told the Syrian Arab News Agency (SAN) that special forces, police units as well as local armed groups are taking part in the operation, which is aimed at securing the town.
According to local sources, the operation is targeting an infamous gang led by Nawras al-Eid, who is wanted on several criminal charges. The gang is reportedly involved in theft, ransom kidnapping and even murder.
Security forces, backed by a local armed group, stormed al-Eid’s villa in Slkhad on April 24 afternoon. Several suspects were arrested. However, al-Eid managed to flee.
The SANA released photos showing loads of light caliber ammunition and hand grenades which were seized inside the villa. A source in the police said several IDs and documents of people who were abducted by the gang in the past were also found in the villa.
“The operation is still ongoing and the rest of the wanted individuals will be pursued until they are apprehended,” a security source told the SANA on April 25.
In the last few years, several armed groups were formed in al-Suwayda under the pretext of protecting local Druze communities. While many of them indeed played this role, others became infamous for arms and drug trafficking as well as for ransom kidnappings and theft.
Government forces confronted these groups on many occasions. The most recent incident took place on March 26, when the Syrian military killed four local gunmen who attacked one of its checkpoints near the town of Sad al-Ain in southeast al- Suwayda.
Syrian security forces will likely carry out more operations against rogue groups in al-Suwayda in the near future. Damascus has apparently taken the decision to put an end to actions of these groups. Local observers believe that some of these groups could be linked to hostile foreign actors.
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