The Houthi forces recaptured Al-Kabeen region in Lahij province on Sunday night. Dozens of Saudi soldiers were killed and injured from the Yemeni forces’ assault. Meanwhile, the Yemeni army and popular forces made considerable advances in Marib province, killing a large number of Saudi forces and injuring many others.
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The industrialized countries of Western Europe depend on oil from the Persian Gulf, and the shortest route for tankers is through the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea, and the Suez Canal.
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This maritime route is also important for China, who wants to include it in its project of the Maritime Silk Road
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During the Cold War, Yemen represented a battlefield between Tellurocratic and Thalassocratic powers. The major continental power, the Soviet Union, managed to seize control of Southern Yemen, a former British colony, gaining control over the port of Aden near the Bab al-Mandab Strait. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, unified Yemen fell under Saudi influence.
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It is significant that the Saudi Najran region, which borders Yemen, is populated by Shia Sulaimani Ismailis, who are ethnically close to the population of Northern Yemen and are oppressed by the Wahhabi leadership of the kingdom. 10% of the Saudi population is Shia-Muslims. They populate the part of the country that is close to the Persian Gulf where the major oil reserves are situated. By supporting the oppressed Shia population in the Saudi kingdom, Iran can eventually destroy its main enemy in the Middle East. In turn, Saudi Arabia firstly wants to eradicate the Houthi rule in Yemen, and at the same time terrorize its own Shia population
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The kingdom cannot defeat the main enemy – the Houthi led government. The Houthis control the Yemeni capital Sana, and most of the former Northern Yemen.
The Saudi proxy, Al-Qaeda of the Arabian Peninsula, acts more independently. It is capturing more and more cities previously controlled by the Hadi-government supported by Riyadh.
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Houthi rebels use tactical ballistic missiles including SCUD, Tochka, and Qaher-1 against interventionist forces, hitting bases on Saudi territory and destroying the ships of the coalition. Jizan airport, Aramco oil installations, and the Faisal military base were all attacked.
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Houthi-rebels, with the support of local tribes torn from Saudi Arabia, are now attacking the province of Najran, and have invaded Jizan, capturing another Saudi base
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Saudi Arabia and their allies are trying to salvage the situation by using mercenaries from all over the world, including Latin America (specifically Columbia) and the US. Houthi forces have managed to kill some of the mercenary commanders
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Saudi Arabia is forecasted to lose the war. The impasse that is the Yemeni war could be the beginning of the collapse of the kingdom
Japan’s New 5th Generation Stealth Fighter Jet Doing Well in Tests
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Japan’s new Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Agency (ATLA) revealed that tests of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries experimental fifth-generation fighter technology demonstrator (ATD-X), now dubbed X-2 and unofficially named ‘ShinShin,’
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Delays in the development of the X-2 prototype have not been unusual; various technical problems, including issues with the engine control software, have repeatedly pushed back the testing timeline
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The X-2 is the country’s first domestically produced full-scale test model—a technology demonstrator—of a new indigenous stealth fighter jet design, which has been under development at a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries plant in Toyoyama since 2009, with total program costs estimated at 39.4 billion yen (around $331 million).
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The aircraft—an “advanced technology demonstration unit,” according to the Defense Technical Research and Development Institute –unveiled to the press will not be armed and is slated to be retired in three years, after having undergone extensive tests of advanced fifth-generation fighter technologies, for which Japan’s Defense Ministry has allocated 2.3 billion yen ($19.3 million) in the next fiscal year alone. It will be a testbed platform for multiple technologies including next generation electronically scanned array radar systems, multi-dimensional 3D thrust vectoring concepts, and fine-tune the aircraft’s stealth capabilities. (The X-2 features a special carbon-fiber composite material that absorbs radar waves.)
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The X-2 will be the basis for the production of the country’s first indigenously-designed fifth-generation air superiority fighter, dubbed the F-3, with serial production tentatively scheduled to begin in 2027.
North Korean Nuclear Missile Could Explode on Launch - Military Tactician
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Any attempt to mount a warhead on a missile is fraught with danger at the launching pad," Macgregor stated on Wednesday. "The modest North Korean nuclear stockpile presents more of a danger to North Korea than to anyone outside of the country."
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North Korea’s threat to the US mainland is negligible, if that. North Korea is a dead man walking," he maintained.
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The country’s] rocket scientists have performed miracles given the terrible working conditions and paucity of resources to support the North Korean missile development program, but the outcome is pathetic," he noted.
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"It’s a mistake to impute too much capability to North Korea. North Korea is weaker now than at any time since US forces approached the Yalu River [in December 1950]," Macgregor added.
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Doug Macgregor is a US war commander whose squadron destroyed an entire Iraqi Armored Brigade in 23 minutes, while suffering only one casualty, at the Battle of 73 Easting, a decisive tank fight during the 1991 Gulf War
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Is Still a Huge Mess
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Buried inside 48 pages of highly technical language is a gripping story of mismanagement, delayed tests, serious safety issues, a software nightmare and maintenance problems crippling half the fleet at any given time
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Some of the technical challenges facing the program will take years to correct and, as a result, the F-35’s operationally demonstrated suitability for combat will not be known until 2022
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Tests of the F-35’s ability to fire and drop the majority of its planned weapons in a combat-realistic operating environment won’t actually begin until the Block 3F configuration in 2021. Accomplishing those will require a total of 50 test events
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DOT&E believes these more complicated test events “cannot be accomplished within the remaining time planned by the Program Office to complete Block 3F flight test” in May 2017.
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The program currently has a five- percent discovery rate for simpler developmental testing. This means that for every 100 tests, five new problems are discovered. These new discoveries then have to be fixed and tested again, which is a costly and time-consuming process
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testing of the fixes — “include the ejection seat for safe separation, wing fuel tank over-pressurization and the life-limitations of the F-35B bulkhead.”
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The F-35 has had significant trouble with uncommanded “wing drop.” This means flaws in the aircraft’s aerodynamics under heavy maneuvering loads cause the aircraft to occasionally make sudden, uncommanded movements in the air.
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During one test flight of an F-35C — the U.S. Navy’s JSF model — excessive buffeting “adversely affected performance in defensive maneuvering where precise control of bank angles and altitude must be maintained while the F-35C is in a defensive position and the pilot is monitoring an offensive aircraft.”
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Buffeting and the reduced maneuverability caused by the associated control law software “fixes” featured prominently in the now famous example of the F-35 losing 17 dogfights to a 35-year-old, heavily-laden F-16
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In an attempt to find a less compromising buffet fix, spoilers were fitted to test F-35s. These spoilers somewhat reduce the separation of airflow from the wing to lessen the shaking of the airplane during heavy maneuvering, and test pilots have reported some improvement in the buffeting as a result.
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October 2015 after it emerged that he had grounded pilots weighing fewer than 136 pounds because mannequin tests showed that the ejection seat would kill them — and that no mannequin testing at all had been done for pilots weighing 137 to 244 pounds.
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The ALIS software went through four different versions in 2015 — ALIS 1.0.3, ALIS 2.0.0, ALIS 2.0.1, and ALIS 2.0.1.1. While evaluating the software, personnel identified two Category I deficiencies and 56 Category II deficiencies in ALIS 1.0.3. One of the Category I deficiencies, for example, could prevent aircraft from taking off.
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These false positive health reports are not rare. Field reports say that 80 percent of ALIS-reported problems turn out to be false. This places a massive extra burden on the F-35’s already over-worked maintenance force.
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Pentagon officials have already acknowledged the F-35 program suffered a major breach when a foreign power, presumably China, hacked into an unclassified F-35 contractor computer network and stole massive technical data files.
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The program office validated the strong need for F-35 cyber testing in the reasoning they gave for cancelling it. The computer glitch that allows ALIS to ground an aircraft would be an obvious target for an enemy cyber warrior.
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Operation Steel Knight is an annual event for the Marine Corps. Detailed planning for it begins at least six months before the first units move out to the field. Maintenance crews had months to prepare the necessary aircraft to support this exercise and they still barely managed to get the planes to fly once every three days. A future enemy will likely not be so considerate as to provide advanced notice.
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But DOT&E found that significant combat deficiencies remain. “If used in combat, the Block 2B F-35 will need support from command and control elements to avoid threats, assist in target acquisition, and control weapons employment for the limited weapons carriage available (i.e., two bombs, two air-to-air missiles).”
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The same problem preventing F-35s from taking off in a lightning storm also prevents them from performing hard maneuvers with full fuel tanks. Fully fueled F-35’s are limited to only three Gs because harder maneuvering could increase the pressure in the siphon tanks beyond their limits.
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The cost to implement retrofits and the purchase price of planes made obsolete because they never are fixed add up to the program’s “concurrency tax.” With several years of development and testing still to come, the amount of this tax will continue to spiral ever upwards.
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The DOT&E report makes perfectly clear that any further F-35 production at this point is unwise. The plane has yet to prove itself capable of performing even the basic combat tasks used to originally sell the program to the American people.
The Iraqi man being held and interrogated by U.S. officials is a suspected mid-level Islamic State operative whose knowledge of the group’s chemical weapons program allowed coalition strikes to destroy at least two related facilities
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The terror group is suspected of launching as many as 20 chemical weapons attacks across Syria
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The Syrian regime also is suspected of using chlorine in attacks against opposition forces
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The officials would not elaborate on the man’s role in ISIS, the depth of his knowledge of ISIS’s chemical weapons program, or where he was captured in Iraq
Philippines To Get Five Aircraft from Japan Amid South China Sea Tensions
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“We are also leasing from Japan five TC-90 training aircraft to assist our navy in patrolling our territories, particularly in the West Philippine Sea,” he said according to Reuters, using the Philippine term for the South China Sea.
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Aquino did not offer specifics, such as when exactly the planes would arrive or how much they would cost. The cash-strapped Philippines had initially wanted the planes for free, but The Diplomat understands that the TC-90 aircraft, which constitute Japanese defense equipment, will likely be transferred in accordance with the Three Principles of Transfer on Defense Equipment and Technology approved by Tokyo in April 2014 governing arms exports
Russia is bringing back the world’s largest surface combatant ship
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Aerial starboard view of the foredeck of Kirov shows four single 30mm Gatling guns (in purple) 2 pop-up (lowered) SA-N-4 SAM launchers (in red) 20 SS-N-19 cruise missile launchers (in green) 12 SA-N-6 SAM launchers (in blue) and one twin SS-N-14 antisubmarine warfare/surface-to-surface missile launcher (in yellow). These weapons systems will be updated by 2020, Russia claims.
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Russia intends to return the Admiral Nakhimov to their fleet in 2019, at which time the Pyotr Veliky will be docked to undergo the same upgrades.
These include missiles of the Kalibr variety that recently hit targets in Syria from the Caspian Sea, Zircon hypersonic missiles which are slated to be ready by 2020, as well as a nasalized version of Russia’s S-400 missile defense system
Vintage attack planes used in Vietnam are brought out of retirement to help US special forces defeat ISIS in Iraq
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Two vintage planes used in the Vietnam War have been brought out of retirement to help US special forces in Iraq.
A pair of OV-10 Broncos completed 120 combat missions over the Middle East between May and September last year, it has been revealed.
The turbo-prop jet is thought to have carried out 134 sorties over 82 days in May, acting as cover for the soldiers fighting ISIS terrorists on the ground.
Watch These CH-47 Chinooks Get Thrashed During Testing
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All this testing over the Chinook’s 50 year plus career has kept the type as one of the most useful, adaptable, reliable and hardy heavy lifting helicopters ever built. In fact, Chinook production is still in high gear and there is an upgrade path being put into place by the U.S. Army that should see the type serving for many decades to come. In fact, as it sits now Chinooks could still be thumping their way through the air past 2060, by which time the design will be 100 years old.
The oddest fighter plane you've ever seen: Radical low cost twin tailed design is so manoeuverable it '
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is one of the oddest plane designs ever created - a tiny propeller-driven craft with twin tails and two pilots sitting almost on top of each other.
However, Boeing and a South Africa's Paramount Group firm hope the wacky design, currently used to patrol borders, could be turned into a low cost fighter plane.
The two firms plan to add missiles and a slew of sensors to the advanced, high-performance, reconnaissance, light aircraft, which has been named Mwari after an all-seeing mythological being in Southern African folklore.
Russia to Start Mass Production of Advanced Radio Sets for Army in 2017
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The serial production of a new generation radio sets for the Russian army, ensuring the secure transfer of data over distances of up to 600 km (about 370 miles) without silent zones
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"UIMC has completed the development of a new generation of manpack radio sets for the army, security agencies and the Emergencies Ministry. The digital MO1 radio set provides high-speed secure data transfer over distances of up to 600 kilometers ensuring the absence of 'dead zones' where other means of communication cannot work reliably… The start of its serial production is scheduled for 2017,"
Lavrov calls on US to influence Turkey on issue of including Kurds in inter-Syrian talks
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"Kurds, including the Democratic Union (party) headed by Salih Muslim, control, in accordance with common estimates, at least 15% of the territory where they live in peaceful times," Lavrov said. "Now, when Kurds have become allies to the US-led coalition and Russia in the fight against Islamic State and Jebhat al-Nusra (terrorist organizations banned in Russia), they (Kurds) have strengthened their influence ‘on the ground’, their positions," he added.
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"Only Turkey blocks inviting Kurds - the only country that hopes to continue using only ultimatums in the future not only on Syria but also in the dialogue with EU. Other participatns of Syria Support Group speak clearly for the importance of including Kurds from the very start of the negotiations process,"
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"At least US understands it as they are, just like us, the allies to Kurds, including the Democratic Union Party, on the battlefield against terrorists. The main thing is that this understanding is followed by political will to influence one of their allies,"
Super Stealthy: New-Look Russian Nuclear Sub to Join Pacific Fleet
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“The Kuzbass is undergoing sea trials and will soon return to her permanent station in Kamchatka. The submarine now carries a new systems of life support, radio and hydro-acoustic communications,”
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To increase stealth, the sub carries a two-tier anti-vibration mechanism. All the units are placed on elastic foundations and each one is separated from the next by pneumatic shock absorbers. This helps lessen the impact of underwater blasts on the sub’s mechanisms and crew
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The Kuzbass is a multirole Akula-class attack submarine. Unlike a Barracuda sub, which has a titanium hull, the Kuzbass features a steel hull
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The Soviet Union once acquired a number of high-precision metal-cutting lathes from Toshiba to build more streamlined screws and make the subs less noisy. The news of the secret deal was eventually leaked to the media and Toshiba came under US sanctions.
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The modernized Project 971 submarines are armed with Kalibr-PL cruise missiles and jet-powered torpedoes, designed to destroy submarines and surface ships as well as land-based targets
Could THAAD Encourage Negotiations With North Korea?
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United States finally entered into formal discussions with the ROK government over the prospective deployment of the American-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system
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Deploying THAAD could make negotiations with North Korea more palatable to the United States and even act as a precursor to engagement
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First, THAAD deployment will further cement ties with the ROK
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Chinese leaders surmise that THAAD’s true target is China’s own missile arsenals
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Prospective engagement with North Korea sounds very unattractive if South Korea forces the U.S. to accommodate Chinese interests at every turn.
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Accepting THAAD deployment sends a strong message about alliance cohesion and provides Washington with the confidence that when push comes to shove, South Korea will stand with the U.S.
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In early 2012, during a military parade in Pyongyang, a number of North Korean ballistic missiles were ferried by six heavy transport vehicles
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Because of the size and sophistication of these vehicles, they were suspected of being of Chinese origin.
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Deploying THAAD may encourage the U.S. to relax this precondition, knowing that there exists a safety-net should negotiations break down or if North Korea decides to cheat and expand its nuclear and missile programs once more
INTERNATIONAL MILITARY REVIEW – SYRIA, MAR. 7, 2016
Russian warplanes targeted the ISIS oil transport routes near the villages of al-Zara’yah, Wadi al-Dhakara, al-Sakhanah and Arak in Northeastern Homs. Russian air raids in the area forced ISIS oil smugglers to refrain from travel.
On Saturday, the Syrian Army troops repelled ISIS’ attack on Jazal oilfield in the eastern part of the Homs province and forced the terrorist group to pull forces back from the battlefield. Pro-government sources report a heavy death toll among terrorists.
The Syrian Democratic Forces, mainly Kurdish YPG units, struck al Nusra militants’ concentration centers near Tal al-Shaqif and a road towards Castello in Northern Aleppo, which ended in the killing or wounding of several militants and destruction of their military vehicles and equipment.
The YPG Kurds have been coordinating with the Syrian government. The Syrian army sent several arms cargoes to the YPG militia in the province of Hasaka and trained the first group of Kurdish volunteer forces in the city of Hasaka last month.
On Saturday, the ISIL attempted to capture part of the strategic Ithriya-Khanaser road near the village of Sheikh Hillal. The attempt was prevented by the Syrian Army troops.
INTERNATIONAL MILITARY REVIEW – SYRIA, MAR. 9, 2016
The Syrian Army supported by the Russian warplanes continued an advance against Al-Nusra and its allies in the province of Latakia liberating Jabal Zuwayqat. The nearby village of Zuwayqat was also liberated. Thus, the Syrian forces are in position to launch and advance on Kabani which is one of the highest points inside the province’s northeastern countryside.
On Mar.8, Kurdish units and its allies took control of the villages of Al-Hamd, Al-Jad’an, Al-Jadou, Al-Badr, Al-Sarad, Delian and Delian Matli in the province of Raqqa after clashes with the ISIS. In a relevant development on Monday, the Kurdish forces liberated the village of al-Makman in the Hasaka province.
A top ISIS emir, Mahmoud Ahmad Al-Kaleezi, has been assassinated by unknown assailants in the Tabaqa Military airport on Mar.8. Al-Kaleezi is the third ISIS emir to be killed in the last 7 days.
On Mar.7, nearly 100 men left ISIS for the Faylaq al-Sham militant alliance in northern Aleppo. The pro-militant sources claimed that defectors had been mistreated at the hands of ISIS, including being repeatedly accused of treason. On the other hand, there are numerous cases of sharing manpower among militant groups in Syria. Faylaq al-Sham has been formed from 19 different Islamist militant groups some of which directly affiliated with the Qatar-backed Syrian Muslim Brotherhood. Considering Qatar’s role in creation of ISIS, it could be suggested that the case of Mar.7 is an attempt to re-brand ISIS militants excluded from the ceasefire supported by the US and Russia.
According to Syrian officials, over 100 villages have agreed on the ceasefire. The majority of the reconciliation agreements have taken place in the province of Hama.
International Military Review – Syria, Mar. 11, 2016
The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and its allies are continuing to clash against ISIS in Southeastern Aleppo. On Wednesday, the pro-government forces seized the villages of Shabib, Kharbeel, ‘Akeel, Al-Qalay’at, and Sirada in Khanasser Plains expanding a buffer zone along the strategic supply route to Aleppo.
At least 26 members of al Nusra and Jund al-Aqsa have been killed in a series of their failed offensives in Tal al-Eiss. However, there are no indications that militants will cut their attempt to counter-attack in the area.
Syrian and Russian warplanes intensified air raids on ISIS positions at Palmyra. According to reports, the aerial operation focused on as-Sawwanah and al-Bayarat areas near the city. The Syrian artillery units also pounded the militants’ positions in the oil-rich region of Jezl.
Meanwhile, ISIS launched offensive in the Eastern and Southeastern parts of Homs province attacking the loyalists’ strongholds in al-Maqale’a (quarries), Thaniyeh al-Rajmeh and Dhuhour al-Hayyal. The SAA repel these attacks.
The SAA launched an offensive on an ISIS stronghold near the town of Quaryatayn. Calshes are ongoing there.
On Mar.9, there reportedly were sporadic clashes between the civilians and ISIS militants in the city of Raqqa, the self-proclaimed Caliphate’s capital in Northeastern Syria. ISIS answered with setting up additional checkpoints and a new wave of arrests across the city. Earlier there have been a series of reports that some 200 militants switched sides and seized part of the city of Raqqa.
One has to consider the distinctive possibility such reports represent an effort by local Sunni tribes to establish a truce with at least one of the two main forces marching in the direction of Raqqa: the Syrian Arab Army or the Kurdish militias. Such developments represent the fact that ISIS has started to lose the influence even in the formally controlled territories of Syria.
INTERNATIONAL MILITARY REVIEW – SYRIA, MAR. 11, 2016
The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) has advanced in the East Ghouta region of Greater Damascus targeting Al Nusra militants and its allies in the area. Following a violate battle with militants, the SAA seized the villages of Bala Al-Jadida and Hatita Al-Jarsh. Thus, the SAA split the militant forces in 2 different pockets. The government forces’ next step will likely be to clear the Northern pocket where the concentration of Al Nusra militants is especially high.
The SAA and its allies are continuing to expand a buffer zone along the Khanasser-Aleppo road advancing to the East in direction of the Raqqa province. The SAA’s mid-term goal in this advance is to capture such strategic points as Tabqa Airbase and Jirah Airbase. In turn, ISIS is strengthening defenses in the area east to the Al Jaboul Lake.
On Mar.10, the Kurdish YPG units continued their advances against al-Nusra in the Ashafiyeh neighborhood of the Aleppo city. Pro-Kurdish sources report that at least 8 militants have been killed in firefights. The clashes are ongoing there.
Meanwhile, heavy clashes reportedly took place between ISIS and other militant groups near Qara Koubri region in the Northern parts of Aleppo.
Iraqi forces have liberated the Zankura area from ISIS in the western province of Anbar, evacuating some 10,000 civilians, Sabah al-Noman, spokesman of the Counter-Terrorism Service, said on Mar.10. According to al-Noman, 80 ISIS militants were killed in the operation and 56 were arrested.
On Mar.9, the Iraqi security forces also retook villages of Hit, Zankura and Qariya Asriya near Ramadi.
Apache Attack Helicopters Get Skis And Crew Survial Pods For Arctic Combat
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The Pentagon is realizing that fighting in the frigid north may be more of a possibility than ever as Russia prepares its forces for sustained arctic operations
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The Apache’s permanent presence in Alaska is still a relatively new development
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Alaska is the first Army Apache unit to permanently bolt on skis to their aircraft. They are now in the process of training on how to fly and fight with them attached, including developing procedures that will keep themselves from blasting the skies to pieces with their articulated 30mm cannon
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Skis are nothing new when it comes to helicopters in Alaska, Army ones included. They distribute the weight of the helicopter over a much broader area than wheels or skids, and allow for aircraft to land on even marshy areas, known as muskeg
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The skis are build by renowned purveyor of such apparatuses Airglas and weigh just 400 pounds in total
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25th Aviation Regiment is also testing a crew survival pod that will hang on one of the Apache’s weapon stations. The pod provides an additional 13 cubic feet of space for Apache crews to use, which is just enough for the bare minimum cold-weather survival necessities
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An arctic-capable Apache is a good thing for the Pentagon, which is racing to catch up and adapt to Russia’s emerging hawkish foreign policy stance in regards to the arctic
Ready for action: American and South Korean soldiers carry out full scale amphibious beach landing exercise amid growing threats from North Korea who pledged to ‘annihilate' its enemies
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The North has denounced the exercises as 'nuclear war moves' and threatened to respond with an all-out offensive
As part of Xi’s reorganization of the armed forces to focus on five theaters of operation, China has formed a new science and technology committee to manage defense R&D. According to a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Defense, the committee, known in Chinese asjunweikejiwei, is designed to meet the needs of China’s ongoing military modernization. The committee will strengthen management of defense S&T, promote indigenous innovation in national defense, and coordinate integrated development of military and civilian technologies, the spokesperson says. China’s central government plans to spend $147 billion on defense this year; the amount allotted to defense R&D is a state secret. “Nobody knows how much is spent on military R&D,” says Dennis Blasko, a former Army attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.
PLA Navy buoyed by 3 new landing ships and wave of upgrades
Three vessels, CNS Wuyishan, CNS Culaishan and CNS Wutaishan, are delivered to the East Sea Fleet at an unidentified naval port on Monday. (Photo: China News Service/Zhou Pengcheng)
The People's Liberation Army Navy has commissioned three new landing ships with designs it said will improve amphibious capabilities.
The three vessels, CNS Wuyishan, CNS Culaishan and CNS Wutaishan, were delivered to the East Sea Fleet at an unidentified naval port on Monday, the Navy said in a news release.
It said the ships have a displacement of 5,008 metric tons and a maximum speed of 20 knots (37 km/h). Compared with predecessors, the new design has a lower radar signature, which makes it harder to detect it at sea, and a streamlined design that helps speed up the loading of amphibious vehicles.
The ships are armed with close-in weapons systems capable of hitting mid- and short-range targets, and include a flight pad that can accommodate a helicopter.
The ships will strengthen the Navy's capabilities in joint landing operations and transportation, the news release said.
According to IHS Jane's Navy International, the new-type vessel is able to transport 10 armored vehicles and 250 fully armed troops, which means that three ships can ferry roughly an entire amphibious assault battalion.
This is the first time the PLA has received three ships in a single day, even at a time of unprecedented upgrades since 2012. At least 100 new ships and submarines have joined the Navy since then, including an aircraft carrier, three Type-052D guided missile destroyers that have cutting-edge air defense abilities, 13 Type-054A large multi-role frigates and four Type-903A supply ships. In February, the Navy commissioned the CNS Xiangtan, a Type-054A frigate, the CNS Tongren, a Type-056A corvette and the CNS Yimengshan, a Type-071 amphibious transport dock.
However, much of the Navy's new equipment is still not as good as that of their counterparts in the United States Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, according to a PLA officer who wished not to be named.
"There are a great number of things that we need to catch up on - for instance, the technological level of ships and submarines as well as our crew's skills and experience," he said.
Korean Spies Hack Cell Phones, Create Zombie PC Army
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South Korea's intelligence agency has reported a wave of cyberattacks by neighbor North Korea on the cell phones and internet of government officials.
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According to ZDNET, South Korea's National Intelligence Service claims North Korean hackers were able to hack the cell phones of senior government officials by sending texts that in turn planted malicious codes when clicked
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Twenty percent of the attacks were successful.
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The report also says that North Korea created an army of 60,000 zombie PCs—also called a botnet—in South Korea, capable of being tasked remotely to perform tasks such as bombarding servers in a distributed denial of service attack (DDoS)
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North Korea's hacking appears to be for spying purposes, gathering intelligence on what South Korea is up to. It could also be looking for information to blackmail southern politicians and government officials, whatever it can get its hands on
Military Thread V20 
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