Aleppo battered as Russia slams ‘unacceptable’ rhetoric
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DefenceTalkSyria’s Aleppo faced worsening food and medical shortages and warplanes again pounded the city as Russia condemned what it called “unacceptable” Western rhetoric after allegations of war crimes. A fresh wave of intense air strikes battered Aleppo’s opposition-controlled east, said an AFP correspondent in the city facing its worst violence in years. During an emergency […]https://www.defencetalk.com/aleppo-battered-as-russia-slams-unacceptable-rhetoric-68222/
Pentagon weighs arming Syrian Kurds ahead of Raqa fight
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DefenceTalkWashington is considering arming Syrian Kurdish forces who will join the offensive to retake the Islamic State group’s stronghold of Raqa, the US military’s top officer said Thursday. Though the United States has already helped arm Kurdish fighters in Iraq, a similar move in Syria is more contentious as key ally Turkey regards the group […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-weighs-arming-syrian-kurds-ahead-of-raqa-fight-68207/
Syria truce teeters on brink after US-led raid kills troops
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DefenceTalkSyria’s ceasefire was hanging by a thread on Sunday, after tensions escalated between Moscow and Washington over a US-led coalition air strike that killed dozens of Syrian soldiers battling jihadists. The truce saw violence drop across Syria for several days after it came into force Monday, but fighting has since erupted on several fronts and […]https://www.defencetalk.com/syria-truce-teeters-on-brink-after-us-led-raid-kills-troops-68187/
Syrian army says it shot down Israeli warplane, drone
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DefenceTalkSyria’s military said Tuesday it shot down an Israeli warplane and a drone in response to an attack on Syrian army positions — a claim denied by Israel. “Our air defences blocked the attack and shot down the military aircraft in (the southern province of) Quneitra and a drone” in the province of Damascus, said […]https://www.defencetalk.com/syrian-army-says-it-shot-down-israeli-warplane-drone-68157/
Turkish jets ‘destroy Kurdish rebel targets’
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DefenceTalkTurkish warplanes have destroyed 10 Kurdish rebel positions in the restive southeast as Ankara steps up its fight against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), state media reported on Sunday. Jets bombed four PKK targets in the Cukurca district of the southeastern province of Hakkari close to northern Iraq on Saturday evening, security sources told […]https://www.defencetalk.com/turkish-jets-destroy-kurdish-rebel-targets-68090/
Germany mulling pullout from Turkish airbase: report
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DefenceTalkGermany’s military is preparing to pull out from a Turkish airbase as a row between the two NATO partners escalates, Der Spiegel magazine reported Thursday. Germany in December agreed to send Tornado surveillance jets and tanker aircraft to the Incirlik base in southern Turkey to aid the multinational coalition fighting the jihadist Islamic State group […]https://www.defencetalk.com/germany-mulling-pullout-from-turkish-airbase-report-68060/
Syrian warplanes fly over flashpoint city despite US warning
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DefenceTalkSyrian government warplanes took to the skies again Saturday over the flashpoint northeastern city of Hasakeh, despite a US warning against new strikes that might endanger its military advisers. In another escalation of the five-year war, regime planes this week bombarded positions held by US-backed Kurdish forces in the city fighting the Islamic State (IS) […]https://www.defencetalk.com/syrian-warplanes-fly-over-flashpoint-city-despite-us-warning-68039/
Turkey launches artillery strikes on IS, Kurdish PYD in north Syria: TV
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DefenceTalkTurkish armed forces on Monday launched artillery strikes on separate targets of Islamic State (IS) jihadists and the Democratic Union Party (PYD) Kurdish militia in northern Syria, television reports said. Turkish army howitzers stationed inside Turkey fired on IS targets in the town of Jarablus and PYD targets around the area of Manbij, the CNN-Turk […]https://www.defencetalk.com/turkey-launches-artillery-strikes-on-is-kurdish-pyd-in-north-syria-tv-68032/
US Nuclear Weapons in Turkey at Risk of Seizure by Terrorists, Hostile Forces
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DefenceTalkThe continued presence of dozens of U.S. nuclear weapons at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey raises serious risks of their seizure by terrorists and other hostile forces, a new report by the nonpartisan Stimson Center finds. The report, titled “B61 Life Extension Program: Costs and Policy Considerations,” found that it was an “unanswerable question,” whether […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-nuclear-weapons-in-turkey-at-risk-of-seizure-by-terrorists-hostile-forces-68011/
Russian Tu-22M3 ‘Backfire’ bombers strike ISIS from Iran base
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DefenceTalkRussia’s long-range Tu-22M3 bombers delivered their first airstrikes on terrorist targets in Syria operating from an Iranian airbase. Moscow and Tehran cooperation in Syria is “strategic,” confirmed the head of Iran’s National Security Council. The long range bombers with full bomb payload took off from Hamadan Airfield to attack Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russian-tu_22m3-bombers-strike-isis-operate-from-iran-base-68005/