Author: Micha Gefen

Micha is a government policy analyst for Israel Rising.
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BREAKING NEWS: Israeli Jets Bomb Locations Near Damascus

Local reports near the Mezze Airforce Base right outside of Damascus claim aerial bombardment of the base at 4am. Although the official Syrian regime response to the attack is that “the base suffered a malfunction causing an internal fire,” eyewitnesses reporting to non-Assad control media detailed the 4am missile attack as coming from the air.

Mezze Air Base Location | Source: Google Maps

All Syria an opposition website reports the following:

Media sources confirmed the pro-regime outbreak of large fires in the Mezze military airport west of the capital, Damascus, on Wednesday at dawn, shortly after explosions likely to have resulted from Israeli raids on the airport.

Mezze military airport is one of the most important military airports in Syria, and separating few kilometers from the presidential palace.

And variations novels pro system for reasons, he said some of the explosions were caused by an internal malfunction in the airport, while others said it was caused by Israeli shelling, and did not issue any official statement until the time of preparation of this article.

The airport is in addition to being an air base, the main concentration of regime forces on the outskirts of the capital, points, and there are inside thousands of items from the forces of order, also it contains a prison, followed by Air Force Intelligence, best known for his ill-treatment and killing of hundreds of detainees, according to the testimonies of survivors of it.

Below is a video taken from the attack, clearly showing the attack coming from the air and not a result of a base malfunction.

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As the Battle for Mosul Turns Sour for Coalition Forces, Obama’s Legacy Lays in Tatters

In the waning days of Obama’s presidency, his grand strategy to wipe out ISIS by taking Mosul has gone from an ingenious weaving of various coalition members fighting under American leadership to a failed slog as the advance of Iraqi forces grinds to a halt.  The battle turned after Iraqi forces entered the Golgali neighborhood.  They have been stuck there fighting a far more ferocious enemy than they imagined. Each day they take to advance mere inches the American backed Iraqi units’ morale lowers, giving ISIS an increasing edge in Mosul. Before Golgali, experts gave ISIS weeks, but now it looks like months if not more.

Compounding the strategy is the fact Abu Bakr Baghdadi, the self appointed caliph of ISIS is no longer there. Despite his absence he continues to inspire all of ISIS through the airwaves. One mission for coalition forces was to take the Nouree Al Kaber mosque early on.  This is the mosque where Baghdadi proclaimed himself the leader of the caliphate 30 months ago.  Coalition forces still have a long way to go in getting close to the mosque, a destination that would crush the morale of ISIS if Iraqi troops succeeded in reaching it.

 

Source: Google Maps
Source: Google Maps

With the multi ethnic coalition collapsing and the Iraqi forces unable to break ISIS, Obama’s waning days in office are a nightmare.  Passing off ISIS to Trump is admitting failure, but with weeks to go it has become clear that Trump and Putin will attempt to work together to destroy ISIS in both Al-Raqqa and Mosul. Then again, ISIS may show to be just resilient to the new administration as they have been with Obama.

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Ukraine Fires Missiles on Russian Border, Will Putin Respond?

Despite Russian threats, NATO backed Ukraine went ahead with missile tests near Russian controlled Crimea on Thursday and Friday.

“No one will stop us,” Western backed Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko tweeted. “We will be acting in the interests of the people of Ukraine!”

Although Ukraine insists that none of the missiles have landed within 30km of Russian controlled Crimea, Russia issued serious warnings to Ukraine before the missile test.

It was reported, “Unnamed sources in Ukraine have told local Ukrainian newspapers that they received a letter from Russia’s Defense Ministry effectively threatening Ukraine with a direct military response if Ukraine goes through with its planned missile test.”

With the Donbass reagion spiralling out of controll as Russian backed Ukrainians threaten an all out revolt against Kiev, Russian threats over the missile test put the ball back in Putin’s court.

With NATO pushing against Russia’s borders, it would seem unlikely that Putin will leave the latest provocation unanswered.  The only question is when and what exactly will be his response.

In the past Putin has opted for causing problems elsewhere in the globe such as Syria, but it seems more than likely that the focus in terms of a direct response will be the Donbass. In the coming days Russia will pour more weapons and support into the region in hopes the break away actually turns into a reality.

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When it Comes to Amona, What is Bibi Netanyahu Afraid Of?

Amona, a small community of approximately 40 families near the community of Ofra north of Jerusalem is set to be demolished by order of Israel’s activist and ultra left leaning Supreme Court. The technical reason for this, is the community rests on “Palestinian” private property. While it’s true a small portion of the community rests on “Palestinian” land, most of the community does not. The Palestinian who with the help of Peace Now brought the complaint directly to the Supreme Court,  has had nothing to do with the property as his family abandoned it more than a generation ago. In fact, the property was of no interest to the Arab until Peace Now who is funded by the EU unearthed this fact in a document.

Although Amona is slated for destruction on December 25th, there is a law that has been tabled in the Knesset entitled the Regulation Law or Normalization Law. The purpose of this law is to retroactively legalize any Jewish community that the State of Israel knowingly provided support in order to grow even if the community is built on Arab private land.  The absentee land owner in each case would be fully compensated.  In most societies these laws are standard. So why is Bibi Netanyahu so afraid of passing this law?

One word: Obama.

The passage of this law  prevents the precedent that the destruction of Amona brings, which is to destroy the communities of Judea and Samaria through judicial fiat.  The Regulation Law also inadvertently applies Israeli sovereignty to large areas of Judea and Samaria.  True it won’t be called this, but everyone knows that’s what it is. Bibi has already been informed by the US government and EU that there will be severe punitive measures at the Hague with the passage of this law.  Expect Obama to use the passage of the law to abstain from a UNSC vote recognizing the final borders of “Palestine.” These threats are well known and with 50 days to go Bii is just trying to hold out for a new far more amicable President Trump.

In a perfect world Bibi would get his way. The law would be pushed off until after Jan. 20th, but Amona’s destruction sets a precedent that his party the Likud and Jewish Home have vowed not to let happen.  If Amona falls the collapse of the government is almost certain.  December 25th is the date to watch, but with the 1st reading of the Regulation Law already finished with its passing (there are two more readings necessary), the trigger for international measures against the only Jewish state may begin by Hanukkah.

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Break the BDS

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War Drums: Russia Threatens Ukraine Over Provocations on the Crimean Border

It has been reported that Moscow directly threatened Ukraine with missile attacks if the Ukrainian government goes through with its planned missile test on the Crimean border. Unnamed sources in Ukraine have told local Ukrainian newspapers that they received a letter from Russia’s Defense Ministry effectively threatening Ukraine with a direct military response if Ukraine goes through with its planned missile test.

Ukraine has denied it plans on testing any missiles near Russia. However, Russia is clear that it stands ready to not only shoot down the missiles, but retaliate against Ukraine directly. When asked if Russia really will retaliate Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, “The Kremlin would like Ukraine to refrain from violating international law and creating unsafe conditions for international flights over Russia.”

Is This For Real?

If the Russian aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia can be believed then yes, there is set to be a Ukrainian missile test after Dec. 1st. Rosaviatsia insists that Ukraine had unilaterally decided in violation of all international treaties to hold missile launches in Russia’s sovereign airspace near Crimea, in the area of civil and government planes’ routes, on December 1-2. If this goes through then expect Putin to finally go through with his plans to take a large chunk of eastern Ukraine as well as pick off targets with his S-300 and S-400 he placed there.

The Romney Factor

The assumption was that Donald Trump would be amicable to Russian interests. Yet, we see that his courtship of Mitt Romney and General Mattis means just the opposite.  Putin knows he may very well have been thrown off by betting on an easy relationship with the Donald.  He now seems to be on the move just in case he gets a far tougher hand than he thought after January 20th.

So, if the Ukrainians decide to go ahead with the test, buckle up, because Eastern Europe will be headed to war.

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