DTN News - DTN TURKEY: Kurds Flee Into Turkey in Their Thousands To Escape Isis Offensive: Call For Aid And US Air Strike

DTN News - DTN TURKEY: Kurds Flee Into Turkey in Their Thousands To Escape Isis Offensive: Call For Aid And US Air Strike

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by K. V. Seth from reliable sources DTN Turkey ‏@DTNTurkey .... http://bit.ly/1mwMm62 
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - September 29, 2014: Kurds flee into Turkey in their thousands to escape Isis offensive: Call for aid and US air strike... 
http://bit.ly/1mwMm62    (DTN Turkey) 

Kurds flee into Turkey in their thousands to escape Isis offensive

Call for aid and US air strikes as Isis extremists' advance on Kobani triggers unprecedented flood of refugees

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DTN News - ISLAMIC STATE NEWS: U.S. and Allies Hit ISIS Targets in Syria

DTN News - ISLAMIC STATE NEWS: U.S. and Allies Hit ISIS Targets in Syria

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by K. V. Seth from reliable sources The New York Times
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - September 22, 2014: The United States and allies launched airstrikes against Sunni militants in Syria early Tuesday, unleashing a torrent of cruise missiles and precision-guided bombs from the air and sea on the militants’ de facto capital of Raqqa, Syria, and along the porous Iraq border.

American fighter jets and armed Predator and Reaper drones, flying alongside warplanes from several Arab allies, struck a broad array of targets in territory controlled by the militants known as the Islamic State. American military officials said the targets included weapons supplies, depots, barracks and buildings the militants use for command and control. Tomahawk cruise missiles were fired from United States Navy ships in the region.

The strikes represent a major turning point in President Obama’s war against the Islamic State and open up a risky new stage of the American military campaign. Until now, the administration has bombed Islamic State targets only in Iraq, and had suggested it would be weeks if not months before the start of a bombing campaign against Islamic State targets in Syria.

The strikes come 13 days after Mr. Obama announced in an address to the nation that he was authorizing an expansion of the military campaign against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS.

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DTN News: Islamic State - ISIL, ISIS or IS Top Stories / Headlines News Dated September 19, 2014

DTN News: Islamic State - ISIL, ISIS or IS Top Stories / Headlines News Dated September 19, 2014

 Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by K. V. Seth 

(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - September 19, 2014: Comprehensive daily news related to Islamic State - ISIL, ISIS or IS Top Stories / Headlines News for the world of TODAY.

*Comprehensive daily news related to Islamic State - ISIL, ISIS or IS Top Stories / Headlines News for the world of TODAY

1. 

   Obama: ISIS threat against US, allies 'doesn't frighten us'

   CNN-15 hours agoShare

   STORY HIGHLIGHTS ... ...We can destroy ISIL without having our troops fight another ground war in the Middle East." ... As top U.S. military leadership approved a plan to strike ISIS in Syria, the Senate on Thursday ... be the first in a series of messages on behalf of the group that calls itself the Islamic State.

   ISIS? ISIL? The Islamic State? We really still can't decide?
   Public Radio International-Sep 18, 2014

   Obama Cant Destroy the Islamic State Without Irans Help
   Politico-Sep 14, 2014

   Charles C. Haynes: Why branding ISIS matters
   Baxter Bulletin-Sep 18, 2014

   House Passes Bill to Train and Equip Syrian Rebels
   TIME-Sep 17, 2014

   

   Public Radio International

   

   Politico

   

   TIME

   

   USA TODAY

   

   Regina Leader-Post

   

   ABC News

   Explore in depth (5,405 more articles)
2. 

   USA TODAY

   Obama outlines ISIS strategy: Airstrikes in Syria, more US forces

   CNN-Sep 9, 2014

   They are known as ISIS, ISIL and Islamic State. .... After his meeting with top congressional leaders at the White House on Tuesday, Obama ...

   Obama's ISIL strategy to dominate Sunday talk shows
   USA TODAY-Sep 13, 2014

   Obama's ISIS speech: How the US will degrade and destroy Islamic ...
   NEWS.com.au-Sep 10, 2014

   WSJ/NBC Poll: Almost Two-Thirds Back Attacking Militants
   Wall Street Journal-Sep 10, 2014

   Haynes: Why branding of ISIS matters
   Monroe News Star-Sep 11, 2014

   

   Wall Street Journal

   

   The Guardian

   

   WCPO

   

   Politico

   

   CNN

   

   Public Radio International

   Explore in depth (10,534 more articles)
3. 

   Steven Sotloff beheaded by Islamic State - latest

   Telegraph.co.uk-Sep 3, 2014

   Nato summit Wales: Isil and Ukraine top agenda - latest .... 17.44 The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) controls an area the ... "Former captives said that he continued observing Jewish holy days and praying while in ISIS custody. ... home safety, this obviously was not how the story was meant to end.

   Steven Sotloff 'beheaded' by Islamic State according to new video
   NEWS.com.au-Sep 3, 2014

   Sotloff beheading video: White House confirms authenticity
   MarketWatch-Sep 3, 2014

   Explore in depth (5,228 more articles)
4. 

   Six Strategies Obama Could Use to Fight the Islamic State

   Politico-Aug 30, 2014

   Top Stories, Videos & Photos ... After a summer in which Islamic State militants have rampaged through Iraq and Syria, declared an Islamic ...

   Why Obama Backed Off More ISIS Strikes: His Own Team Couldnt ...
   Daily Beast-Aug 30, 2014

   President Obama Says 'We Don't Have a Strategy Yet' to Bomb ISIS ...
   ABC News-Aug 29, 2014

   Explore in depth (2,112 more articles)
5. 

   Airstrike kills 40 Islamic State fighters

   USA TODAY-Sep 18, 2014

   WASHINGTON — A U.S. air strike near Mosul on Thursday killed 40Islamic State militants near a terrorist training camp, according to a senior ...

   Charles C. Haynes: What we call ISIS does matter
   Muncie Star Press-9 hours ago

   Explore in depth (224 more articles)
6. 

   Australia Raids Thwarted ISIS Beheading Plot

   ABC News-7 hours ago

   The Islamic State plot to carry out random beheadings in Sydney ... "The regrettable reality is that to mount the kind of attacks which ISILin Syria ...

   Ali Baryalei, an Afghani aristocrat who became the Islamic State's ...
   Herald Sun-11 hours ago

   Australian Police Thwart ISIL Beheading Plot
   WLTX.com-Sep 18, 2014

   Explore in depth (1,571 more articles)
7. 

   ISIS Not as Dangerous to US as al Qaeda, Top Terror Official Says

   ABC News-Sep 3, 2014

   ISIS poses a significant threat to Americans, but the militant Islamic... no credible information that ISIL is planning to attack the UnitedStates," ...
8. 

   Syrian Kurds warn of mounting crisis as ISIS advances, takes more ...

   CNN-43 minutes ago

   STORY HIGHLIGHTS ... The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or "Islamic State," as the group calls itself, took 39 villages ... arming of Syrian rebels as top U.S. military leadership approved a plan to strikeISIS in Syria. ... We can destroy ISIL without having our troops fight another ground war in the Middle East.

   NYT Reporter Receives Threatening Messages Over IS Story
   RIA Novosti-15 hours ago

   Explore in depth (499 more articles)
9. 

   Top US military officer: US ground troops to fight ISIS, if necessary

   CNN-Sep 17, 2014

   STORY HIGHLIGHTS ... Washington (CNN) -- America's top military officer raised the specter Tuesday of U.S. troops in ... should accompany Iraqi troops on attacks against specific ISIL targets, I will recommend that to ... group that calls itself the Islamic State would not include American "boots on the ground.
10. 

    Feds: NY store owner plotted to send jihadists to Syria, kill US troops ...

    CNN-Sep 18, 2014

    ... and a world away from the Middle East, where ISIS (also known asISIL and the Islamic State) has waged a brutal campaign in recent years.

*Link for This article compiled by K. V. Seth 
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DTN News - ISLAMIC STATE OF IRAQ AND SYRIA (ISIS): Arab Allies Pledge To Help U.S. Fight Islamic State #2 (Images)

DTN News - ISLAMIC STATE OF IRAQ AND SYRIA (ISIS): Arab Allies Pledge To Help U.S. Fight Islamic State #2 (Images)

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by K. V. Seth 
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - September 13, 2014: A day after President Barack Obama outlined a strategy to combat Islamic State militants, Washington's international allies didn't make clear how far they would go to join military operations even as they pledged their support.

Mr. Obama vowed to "degrade and ultimately destroy" the extremist group which has grabbed territory across Iraq and Syria and harbors ambitions for more. After a day of consulting with Secretary of State John Kerry in Saudi Arabia, most of Iraq's neighbors signed onto a statement of support.

In the communiqué, leading Arab states committed to working with the U.S. to cut off the flow of foreign fighters and funds into the Islamic State,


Turkey—which has opposed allowing the U.S. to use bases on its territory for airstrikes against Islamic State—didn't sign the communiqué. Nearly 50 Turkish diplomats are being held by militants in the Iraqi city of Mosul, which Islamic State captured in June.

*Link for This article compiled by K. V. Seth 
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DTN News - ISLAMIC STATE OF IRAQ AND SYRIA (ISIS): Arab Allies Pledge To Help U.S. Fight Islamic State

DTN News - ISLAMIC STATE OF IRAQ AND SYRIA (ISIS): Arab Allies Pledge To Help U.S. Fight Islamic State
*Islamic State of Iraq and Syria ISIS
*Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ISIL
*Extent of Cooperation in Military Operations Still Unclear

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by K. V. Seth from reliable sources Reuters
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - September 13, 2014: A day after President Barack Obama outlined a strategy to combat Islamic State militants, Washington's international allies didn't make clear how far they would go to join military operations even as they pledged their support.

Mr. Obama vowed to "degrade and ultimately destroy" the extremist group which has grabbed territory across Iraq and Syria and harbors ambitions for more. After a day of consulting with Secretary of State John Kerry in Saudi Arabia, most of Iraq's neighbors signed onto a statement of support.

In the communiqué, leading Arab states committed to working with the U.S. to cut off the flow of foreign fighters and funds into the Islamic State,

Turkey—which has opposed allowing the U.S. to use bases on its territory for airstrikes against Islamic State—didn't sign the communiqué. Nearly 50 Turkish diplomats are being held by militants in the Iraqi city of Mosul, which Islamic State captured in June.

In Europe, Germany said it wouldn't take part in airstrikes, while the U.K. said it wasn't ruling out participation. Several dozen European and other countries agreed during this month's North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in Wales to support the campaign, but as of Thursday, many were still weighing the specific nature of their involvement.

At the core of the emerging alliance, said U.S. and Arab officials, is an agreement with the Saudi government for it to host a training facility for thousands of Syrian rebel fighters who are combating both the Islamic State and President Bashar al-Assad's regime. Administration officials said Wednesday the deal was in place, but said late Thursday talks were still ongoing.

American air attacks alone won't be enough to stop ISIS according to Daniel Serwer of John Hopkins University. He joins the News Hub to discuss. Photo: Islamic State

Among other uncertainties, U.S. and Arab officials said discussions about Mideast governments providing basing and overflight rights to American warplanes are ongoing. Also unclear is whether any of the leading Arab states would join in U.S. airstrikes against militants in Iraq and Syria. Qatar and the United Arab Emirates joined in the 2011 air campaign in Libya that helped overthrow strongman Col. Moammar Gadhafi.

Adding urgency to the effort, the Central Intelligence Agency in a new estimate Thursday said the size of the militant group at least doubled over the summer. Islamic State "can muster" between 20,000 and 31,500 fighters, said agency spokesman Todd Ebitz, citing a new review of intelligence reports from May through August.

In the agreement reached in Saudi Arabia, countries said they would participate in military efforts "as appropriate," which U.S. officials defended, saying it was reasonable to allow countries to decide on the extent of their participation.

"It was important; we made progress; the coalition is growing and now it has a clarity of purpose with the region, which is essential to our possibilities of success," Mr. Kerry told reporters in Jeddah.

In the cases of Turkey, European and Middle Eastern allies, U.S. officials said there was time to allow for "a deliberate, prudent process."

"'What role can you play? What are we all going to do together?'" State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said, describing the nature of the discussions. "That process will be ongoing."

The U.S. military began a laborious process of gearing up for military training operations following new instructions Wednesday from Mr. Obama, preparing for expanded airstrikes in Iraq and the start of a first-ever air campaign in Syria. Officials said some components of the plan could take several months to come together.

Part of the military training operations will depend on congressional action to approve a $500 million funding request from the Obama administration. The request faced procedural and political obstacles on Thursday.

Overall, the process reflected the difficulty of forming a new international coalition to confront a growing regional threat.

In the communiqué signed by Arabic countries, officials pledged to curb the promotion of the Islamic State's radical Islamist ideology through their religious centers, media outlets and social media sites.

"There is no limit to what the kingdom can provide in this regard," Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal said following the meeting with Mr. Kerry in Jeddah. "The kingdom is determined to face and overcome this scourge."

Mr. Kerry said he would continue his efforts to enlist Mideast support for the U.S. campaign during stops in Turkey, Egypt and France in the coming days.

U.S. officials also said the annual gathering of the United Nations General Assembly in New York this month will be a key venue to promote Washington's operations against Islamic State.

Russian and Syrian officials on Thursday indicated they would challenge Washington's strategy.

Russian officials said the Obama administration would need to get a U.N. Security Council resolution to launch military strikes inside Syria against the Islamic State. Syrian officials said they supported military operations against the terrorist organization but only if they are coordinated with Mr. Assad and his military leaders.

"There should be no mistakes," Syria's deputy foreign minister, Faisal Mekdad, told NBC News on Thursday. "Betting on other forces is a very big mistake."

Mr. Kerry at a news conference brushed off the Kremlin's suggestion that U.S. military action in Syria would violate international law.

"I'm really rather surprised that Russia would dare to assert any notion of international law, after what has happened in Crimea and eastern Ukraine," he said.

For many Arabic governments, a request to commit forces is considered likely to be met with deep reservations, said Alaa Batayneh, a member of Jordan's Senate who served as the country's energy minister until last year.

"Having boots on the ground is a red flag for many countries, and Jordan is one of them," Mr. Batayneh said.

For Saudi Arabia, in particular, the stakes are high in the campaign against Islamic State, which has vowed carry its fight to the kingdom's monarchy. But as one of the leading Sunni Muslim states, Saudi Arabia is hesitant to commit its troops to a war against fellow Sunni Muslims, however extreme they might be, for fear it would generate a domestic backlash.

"The Saudis need to respond and fight. The knife is on their necks, and they can't rely on the U.S. fighting the fight for them anymore," said a Lebanese security official familiar with the discussions over Arab troop deployments.

The Lebanese army has been fighting Islamic State since the militants streamed across the border last month.

While Saudi Arabia has funded and armed Syrian rebels, the training operation would be a new step in its commitment to bring down Mr. Assad's regime, said Jamal Khashoggi, an analyst close to the government.

"When you open training camps for groups that fight another government, that's a declaration of war" with potentially deep repercussions, Mr. Khashoggi said.

—Carol E. Lee, Ahmed Al Omran, Mohammed Alakraa and Jeffrey Sparshott contributed to this article.

Related Images;

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DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: Pentagon Describes Anti-ISIL Operations in Iraq

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: Pentagon Describes Anti-ISIL Operations in Iraq

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by K. V. Seth + DoD News, Defense Media Activity
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - August 19, 2014: (WASHINGTON) The U.S. military used fighters, bombers, attack, and unmanned aircraft to conduct 35 strikes that eliminated ISIL positions in and around the Mosul Dam complex, Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said in a statement released yesterday.

Kirby’s statement reads as follows:
Over the past 72 hours, at the request of the Iraqi government, the U.S. military used fighters, bombers, attack, and unmanned aircraft to conduct 35 strikes that eliminated ISIL positions in and around the Mosul Dam complex. In all, we destroyed over 90 targets including a range of vehicles, equipment, and fighting positions. 

Iraqi forces have cleared the dam and are working to further expand their area of control. Secretary Hagel remains extraordinarily proud of the men and women serving on land and sea who conducted these operations. 

He knows they stand ready to continue such missions as needed. Secretary Hagel also commends the way in which Iraqi forces worked together in this operation. It reflects the growing determination of Iraqis to fight back against ISIL.

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DTN News - IRAQ IN TURMOIL: Iraq's Crisis Changes The Battle Space In Syria

DTN News - IRAQ IN TURMOIL: Iraq's Crisis Changes The Battle Space In Syria

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by K. V. Seth from reliable sources Stratfor
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - June 26, 2014: Concerns that violence in Iraq could disrupt supplies have stoked volatility and driven international benchmark Brent above $114 a barrel. OPEC is ready to pump extra oil in the event of any supply disruptions caused by Iraq and its biggest producer, Saudi Arabia, can ramp up to capacity if needed, oil officials said on Tuesday. For now the market is well-supplied and prices above $114 a barrel are the result of market nervousness, OPEC Secretary General Abdullah al-Badri said. Here’s a look at Iraq’s oil and gas production.

Summary

The conflicts in Syria and Iraq are connected. The border between the two countries has become meaningless, and the emerging crisis in Iraq has direct consequences on the fighting in Syria. Neither the Syrian regime nor the rebels that oppose it stand to gain a decisive advantage from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant's recent actions in Iraq. As things stand now, the primary beneficiary will be the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant itself.

Analysis

Because of the way its military advance in Iraq has played out, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant has earned prestige and a propaganda boost -- it is viewed as a competent organization capable of decisive results. This growing perception will be crucial in the group's ability to attract a growing share of the foreign fighters heading toward the region, and possibly draw additional Syrian rebel fighters to its ranks. The group's seizure of weapons and vehicles -- much of this equipment taken from retreating Iraqi soldiers -- and reportedly more than $1 billion in funds during the recent Iraq offensive will only increase its attractiveness to jihadist fighters. 

Click to Enlarge

The equipment taken includes armored vehicles, small arms, ammunition, artillery, communication devices, uniforms and logistical vehicles. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant may have also seized night vision equipment and air defense weaponry. This gear would provide a substantial boost on the battlefield in Syria, and the group has indeed already begun to transfer some of this equipment across the border.
The growth in the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant's prestige could in theory have detrimental effects on the rebels and on the Syrian regime. Since the transnational jihadists serve the cause of neither, their efforts in Iraq will create a mixed set of variables for the combatants in Syria.

Effects on the Syrian Regime

Perhaps the greatest negative consequence for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al Assad is the shift of Iraqi Shiite militants back to their homeland to confront a resurgent Sunni opposition. The Syrian regime has come to rely heavily on foreign fighters -- be they Hezbollah combatants, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps advisers or Shiite volunteers from across the region -- to bolster its ranks and negate its demographic disadvantage. These foreign fighters, most notably the Hezbollah members, played a critical role in halting the string of defeats that beset the regime in late 2012, and they continue to spearhead regime offensives across Syria. Furthermore, and unlike what has happened with the Syrian rebels, the regime has not suffered from divisive infighting due to the influx of foreign fighters.

Click to Enlarge

With the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and its allies advancing south toward Baghdad from Mosul, and with sectarian emotions flaring across the region, Iraqi Shiite fighters are keen to return to their homeland -- they have made this desire abundantly clear in statements and videos. Even Hezbollah has threatened to dispatch fighters to Iraq. Though Hezbollah is unlikely to shift much of its efforts from Syria to Iraq -- partly for logistical reasons, but mostly due to the regime's critical dependence on the group -- it will probably move additional fighters to Syria to help offset losses of Iraqi militia. There is already substantial evidence that thousands of Iraqi Shiite fighters are on their way home. Iraqi fighters have reportedly withdrawn from Syrian fronts in the coastal province of Latakia and in al-Meliha, in the suburbs of Damascus, while witnesses have reported seeing convoys of trucks leaving the football stadium that served as the Iraqi militia base in the northern city of Aleppo. 

The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant's current focus on Iraq has also wrought a notable decline in the intensity of rebel infighting. In the months prior to the fall of Mosul, rebel infighting in Deir el-Zour province in particular resulted in hundreds of rebel casualties as Jabhat al-Nusra and its rebel allies battled against Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant fighters. Though these clashes continue, particularly in Aleppo and Deir el-Zour provinces, the intensity of the fighting has markedly decreased, a clear sign that the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant has turned its attention, and likely a large number of its fighters, to Iraq. It could always move its forces back across the unrecognized border, but for now, the group appears to be prioritizing Iraq and will likely keep reinforcing its fight there against Iraqi government counteroffensives.

However, Washington and its allies will be increasingly nervous about supplying advanced weaponry to the rebels in Syria. Having shown it can seize weaponry from the Iraqi army, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant's potential ability to seize weapons delivered by the United States to often ragtag rebel groups worries the Americans. This re-evaluation comes at a particularly bad time for the rebels, who seemed on the verge of finally convincing the United States and other allies to deliver substantially more weapons to their fighters. 
Interestingly, while the regime preferred not to interrupt its enemies' infighting, it undertook a notable aerial bombing campaign against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, both within Syria and across the border in Iraq, after the fall of Mosul. Two things can explain this turn of events. First and less important, the regime may sense an opportunity to strike at the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and relieve pressure on regime forces that come into contact with the militant rebels -- particularly the 17th division in Raqqa province -- while the group is busy in Iraq. The primary reason, however, is the regime's need to demonstrate that it is invested in the well-being of its allies, and in particular that it is attuned to the concerns of its patron, Iran. With the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant becoming a major threat to Baghdad, Hezbollah and Tehran's interests in Iraq, the Syrian regime will try to show that it is doing its part in the wider struggle. The al Assad regime can leverage an opportunity to share intelligence with others, since the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant is now the prevalent regional threat.

It is clear that the fall of Mosul and the spike in the fighting in Iraq have further complicated an already elaborate regional conflict where borders are fast losing their importance. For the Syrian battle space, the developments in Iraq bring a mixed array of advantages and disadvantages to the varying combatants. Even if it does not decisively tilt the battle, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant's Iraq pivot will play an important role in the conflict in Syria.

Read more: Iraq's Crisis Changes the Battle Space in Syria | Stratfor
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*Link for This article compiled by K. V. Seth from reliable sources Stratfor
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