IS

[Timsup2nothin]

At least Britain thinks IS is a more serious than most people here:

Or Cameron sees them as another opportunity to scare the public into allowing another great leap backwards in civil liberties. As he suggests, governments have gotten just about all the oppression mileage they can get out of Al Queda. More oppression requires a new and greater threat, and here it is.

 

[kochman]

Or Cameron sees them as another opportunity to scare the public into allowing another great leap backwards in civil liberties. As he suggests, governments have gotten just about all the oppression mileage they can get out of Al Queda. More oppression requires a new and greater threat, and here it is.

Yes, I've noticed a lot of "IS is going to nuke Chicago" type stories... obviously for the same reason.

 

[bhsup]

Golly. It's almost a pity we don't have some sort of plan for a missile defense system somewhere over there to deal with missiles launched from the Middle East. I'm thinking Poland and Czechia would be ideal locations. Oh wait....

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Yes, I've noticed a lot of "IS is going to nuke Chicago" type stories... obviously for the same reason.

Well, you see the stories because the stories sell papers generate click. Eventually the US government will no doubt take any advantage so offered by the situation created as well.

But for right now it looks like Cameron is taking the lead with 'here's a chance to start seizing passports'. I see Reagan preparing a 'Mr Cameron, tear down that wall' speech even now.

 

[Gucumatz]

Not sure if the weight of your comment corresponds to the weight of this yet another gruesome tragedy. Not watching IS videos is sometimes the only way to avoid depression, special forces need to watch them, not the average civilians. This is the very same desert where 100 years ago Young Turks been sending Armenian women, elderly, and children to die in hundreds of thousands. Everytime they say Syrian Desert, Armenians hear "hell".

Anyways, after 100 years world seem to evolve to have more responsive while witnessing atrocities. At least Britain thinks IS is a more serious than most people here:

Quote:
Prime Minister David Cameron says he'll introduce new laws to combat terror suspects, pledging to seize passports to fight what he described as an extremist threat more dangerous than any previously seen.
Cameron's remarks came just after authorities on Friday raised the terror threat level to severe, the second highest level. The decision was related to developments in Iraq and Syria, but there was no information to suggest an attack was imminent.
Cameron told reporters that while the Taliban facilitated al Qaeda terrorism, the Islamic State group is "effectively a state run by terrorists."

"We could be facing a terrorist state on the shores of the Mediterranean and bordering a NATO member," he said.

I wonder if this is in response to the relatively high (compared to other western nations) number of British citizens/residents who have joined ISIS?

 

[Goodfella]

Britain raised its terrorism alert on Friday to the second-highest level with Prime Minister David Cameron saying the Islamic State (IS) group operating in Syria and Iraq posed the country's greatest ever security risk

I swear there were at least a couple others that were more important.

 

[Gucumatz]

Also an update on the UN Peacekeepers.

http://www.dw.de/fiji-says-un-peacekeepers-detained-in-golan-are-safe/a-17889222

All of them from Fiji and so far safe, but appear to have been abducted by 150 or so Al-Qaeda backed rebels (most probably Al-Nusra, the other evil in Syria)

 

[Borachio]

Didn't Al-Nusra recently release a hostage they'd been holding for two years? Free of ransom?

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Didn't Al-Nusra recently release a hostage they'd been holding for two years? Free of ransom?

Well, at the very least free of anyone admitting there was a ransom.

 

[kochman]

Golly. It's almost a pity we don't have some sort of plan for a missile defense system somewhere over there to deal with missiles launched from the Middle East. I'm thinking Poland and Czechia would be ideal locations. Oh wait....

How would that help us?
You think IS has intercontinental missiles?

 

[Timsup2nothin]

How would that help us?
You think IS has intercontinental missiles?

He's trying to parley fear of IS into a little good old Russophobia. Probably less harmful than parleying it into a little 'domestic security' like passport seizure, so I'd say harmless and let it go.

 

[Commodore]

I know for a fact these forums have some Iraq war veterans and I would enormously appreciate their take on current situation.

As a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, my initial take was to stay out of it as much as we can and let regional powers decide how to handle it. However, with each passing day it is looking more and more like the international community is going to have to do something as regional powers prove unable to contain the ISIS threat.

I don't want another war there, but it is looking like ISIS isn't going to give us a choice in the matter. If we are to commit to military action though, we must fully commit to it and fight to win. We can't do it alone either, we need to muster all the allies we can to ensure ISIS gets hit so hard they can't recover. I'm talking about doing whatever it takes to get the likes of Russia and China involved as well as letting Israel off the leash. We also need to strike deals with Assad and the Iranian governments to get them in on the fight as well.

We also should take a look at the recent French campaign in Mali to see how to effectively deal with a group like ISIS.

 

[Tigranes]

I honesty believe it is time to make moderate Muslims fight radical Muslims. Otherwise Islamic State will frame it as a war against ... Islamic State.

 

[kochman]

I think they are also moderate in that they believe war is a bad idea...
That's why bad guys win a lot.

 

[Tigranes]

Earlier on Saturday, a Reuters cameraman spotted 11 U.N. armored vehicles returning to their base in Israeli-controlled territory about 12 hours after the peacekeepers came under fire at around 6 a.m. (11 p.m. ET).

"All 32 Filipino personnel from this position have been extricated and are now safe," the United Nations press office said in a statement issued in New York.

"The U.N. peacekeepers returned fire and prevented the attackers from entering the position," it said. Officials in the Philippines said a total of 72 soldiers had been trapped.

Separately, 44 UNDOF peacekeepers from Fiji were detained by militants 8 km (5 miles) away from the Philippine troops on Thursday and remain missing.

I dislike this bar. We got IS, we got Al Nusra, we got Russian backed Assad, we got Syrian Kurds and Iraqi Kurds, Fiji and Filipino UN, American airforce, Hamas, Hesbollah, Iraqi Shias, all kinds of Sunnis, NATO Turkey and Iran with nuclear ambitions. Will Middle East ever get any breaks? Is this all an 100 year old curse of Ottoman Empire, which controlled these lands for 400 years?

 

[Agent327]

That's why bad guys win a lot.

No, they don't. Unless they have a nice, big country supporting them they will end up before a tribunal (or if they happen to piss off the US simply be executed).

 

[kochman]

You're not even making an argument, just being obtuse.

The bad guys do win a lot, without nice, big country support. Look at Africa and the Middle East.
That's why the idea of tribunals came around, after all.

I don't support the drone strikes, but I guarantee all your Euro governments are more than happy to let us do the dirty work for them. Hypocrites.

 

[Gucumatz]

ISIS has beheaded a 2nd US journalist, Steven Sotloff, in another gruesome video. I don't believe the US state department has confirmed any more journalist hostages, but ISIS in the video apparently threatened to target more American civilians

 

[kochman]

I guess it's the war tribunal for the decapitators, eh?

 

[Tigranes]

I have more hopes on Israeli justice, "Eichmann style". Mr. Sotloff was Jewish, he studied in Israeli religious school, was working for Israeli media outlets, and observed his faith in secret even in captivity. IS never learned about his Jewish ties.

I know a person who knew him. He was fluent in Arabic and very emphatic about suffering of Palestinians. Very sad day for all the people of good will indeed. RIP.