ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

According to head of the joint command of the coalition forces in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, the defeat of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group, including the capture of the cities of Mosul and Raqqa, will take two years. Head of the joint command of the coalition forces in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend (Photo: Brigitte N. Brantley, TSGT, USAF / Defense. Gov) The defeat of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group , including the capture of the cities of Mosul and Raqqa, as well as clearing the remnants from other, less important areas, will take two years, head of the joint command of the coalition forces in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, told The Daily Beast on Sunday. Townsend noted that the enemy is dangerous and cruel – very often terrorists use children as a human shield in order to prevent airstrikes of the coalition. “A fighter walking out of a building will hold a child over his head so we can see him through ISR [intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance] until

The People’s Protection Units (YPG) intend to establish control over the town of Tabqa and a hydroelectric station, located there on the Euphrates River. Photo: safa.ps The People’s Protection Units (YPG), also known as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in mainstream media, consisting mainly of Kurds, are going to establish control over the town of Tabqa and a hydroelectric station, located there on the Euphrates River , the Izvestiya newspaper reported on Tuesday. The combat actions are conducted within the framework of an operation to encircle Raqqa, which is considered as the capital of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group. As Abd Salam Ali, a representative of the Democratic Alliance, a Syrian Kurdish party, told Izvestiya, the YPG intends to knock the IS out from Tabqa town and a dam, located there. According to Ali, “the battle is currently taking place to the north-west of Raqqa , which is considered as the capital of terrorists. On December 25, there were armed clashes i

The second flying prototype of the China’s FC-31 fighter jet has made its first flight. The second flying prototype of the China’s FC-31 fighter jet (Photo: weibo.com) The second flying prototype of the China’s FC-31 fighter jet has made its first flight, the Sandrermakoff blog reported. In contrast to the J-20 aircraft, which was developed and is produced for the Air Force of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in Chengdu, the FC-31 light fighter jet of a new generation is developed primarily for export. However, developers of the new fighter jet of the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation do not lose a hope to get a contract from the country’s Air Force or Navy in the future. As far as is known, the development of the FC-31 is conducted entirely at the own expense of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China without direct involvement of the Chinese government that greatly restrains the process of the development of the project. So, more than four years have passed since the firs

By Paul Antonopoulos The head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Director of John Brennan said in an interview with National Public Radio (NPR) the the bloodshed in Syria was partially because of their role in the war. "I think we always like to say that we wish that we would have been able to make a difference, in a way that would have prevented the slide and the situation there," Director of John Brennan said in an interview with National Public Radio (NPR). "There's no way you can divorce yourself, emotionally or mentally, from these situations that you play a role in," Brennan said, adding that he “felt some responsibility for the horrific bloodshed” in the Syria war. He then went onto predict that the terrorist forces loss in Aleppo will not end the war in Syria. "This insurgency is not going to go away until there is some type of viable and genuine political process that will bring to power in Damascus a government that is representative of the

After vowing to run a transparent government, President Obama oversaw an unprecedented legal assault on whistleblowers, only now offering up a modest concession, as Linda Lewis explains. By Linda Lewis A finding by an Obama administration panel – reached last May but only now becoming public – that the National Security Agency’s inspector general improperly retaliated against a whistleblower may be an attempt to gussy up President Obama’s otherwise ugly legacy for punishing government officials who protest wrongdoing. Seal of the National Security Agency The private watchdog group, Project on Government Oversight (POGO), reports that a three-person panel — authorized by Obama’s Presidential Policy Directive 19 and consisting of inspectors general from the CIA, Treasury and Justice — concluded last May that the NSA’s inspector general retaliated against a whistleblower whose identity has not been released. Based on the panel’s finding, NSA Director Michael Rogers sent NSA Inspector Gen

St. Andrew Undershaft church surrounded by business skyscrapers © Toby Melville / Reuters 357 Amid the terrorist threat hanging over the world, British counter-terrorism specialists have come up with the idea of sealing off key routes in central London to protect the city's future skyscrapers, according to the Evening Standard. The new cordon, dubbed by the daily the "ring of steel" would block Undershaft, St Mary Axe, and Leadenhall Street, at the same time restricting access to a wider zone. “Pre-booking and / or security vetting” is required to gain access, says the article. The proposal comes as a part of plan to secure several skyscrapers under construction in the Square Mile, according to the Standard. A total of £100,000 ($123,000) has already been raised by Mitsubishi Estate London and AXA Investment Managers, who are behind 40-storey and 62-storey skyscrapers at Bishopsgate respectively. Another contribution will reportedly come from the Trellis Tower project i

Mass graves of torture victims have been uncovered in the Syrian city of Aleppo, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on Monday. “Mass burial sites of many dozens [of Syrians], who had been subjected to brutal torture and [then] murdered, have been found,” Maj. Gen. Konashenkov said. “In many cases, body parts are missing; most victims had been shot in the head. And this, it seems, is only the beginning.” The Russian general emphasized that the cases are being thoroughly recorded as heavy war crimes to be put to maximum publicity “so that European backers of the so-called opposition in London and Paris are well aware of who their wards actually are.” Konashenkov added that militants of the “moderate opposition” mined in eastern Aleppo nearly everything: streets, entrances to premises, and cars. Seven large ammunition depots were also discovered in Aleppo. Last weekend, reports appeared that militants executed over 100 captured soldiers of the Syrian Army before leaving the last nei

Source: dailystar.co.uk Written by Aleksandr Khramchikhin; Originally appeared at VPK , translated by GM Saud Arabia is considered to be the most influential state, not only amongst the Arab countries, but in the whole Islamic world, since Islam was born on its territory, and because it hosts Islam’s sacred cities: Mecca and Medina. The capabilities of the Saudi Kingdom are considerably improved by its enormous reserves in oil and gas and, as a matter of fact, by the considerable financial resources the Kingdom has at its disposal. Saudi Arabia is the only Stare where the Wahhabi (Salafi) branch of Sunni Islam is the official religion. This makes Saudi Arabia one of the most totalitarian countries in the world. Saudi Arabia is one of the main organisers and sponsors of gobal Sunni terrorism, but this doesnt prevent the country from being considered as a major strategical ally by the West in general and by the US in particular. However, the links between Riyadh and Beijing have