The capital of a strategic southern district — where Western troops once spent months fighting to dislodge Taliban forces in the most famous clash of the 16-year Afghan war — has passed quietly into the hands of Taliban insurgents without a shot being fired. – Washington Post
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Iran depopulates Syria & colonize it with Shia from Lebanon & Afghanistan. Malcolm Hoenlein Conf_of_pres. Saeed Ghasseminejad @followfdd.
"...Whether they’d admit it or not, the Obama administration’s answers were clear. President Barack Obama saw moderates and hardliners engaged in a meaningful struggle for control of the Islamic Republic. Moderates led by Rouhani were no sweethearts, to be sure. But they understood the imperative of ending sanctions, engaging the world economy, and de-escalating Iran’s confrontation with America and the West — first and foremost by curtailing its nuclear program. The bottom line for the Obamians? Rouhani and his ilk were people that America could do business with. The prior administration believed there was a clear interest in strengthening them against regime hardliners who were committed to unceasing conflict and nuclear escalation. From this fundamental premise, a parade of U.S. concessions naturally followed. Permit Iran to keep enriching uranium? Yes. Allow continued R&D on advanced centrifuges? Yes again. Agree that the mullahs shouldn’t be compelled to fess up about past efforts to develop nuclear weapons? Naturally — no need to embarrass Rouhani and give hardliners a stick to beat him with. Front-load billions of dollars in sanctions relief, including secret deals to pay cash for hostages? Certainly — the moderates must show they can deliver real benefits. Take a pass on seriously confronting Iran’s escalating bid for regional hegemony? An unfortunate, but necessary trade-off. Doing otherwise might give the hardliners an excuse to walk away from the nuclear deal...." -http://www.defenddemocracy.org/media-hit/john-hannah-rouhani-the-deceiver/#sthash.mUFG6ZjI.dpuf http://www.defenddemocracy.org/media-hit/john-hannah-rouhani-the-deceiver/ •http://www.defenddemocracy.org/media-hit/badran-tony-after-nuclear-deal-iran-looks-to-profit-in-syria/ •http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/deterring-tehran-an-iran-policy-for-the-new-administration •https://www.yahoo.com/news/iranian-navy-endangering-international-navigation-gulf-u-commanders-170324850.html • https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-delusion-of-the-iran-nuclear-deal-1490213438 Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford said Wednesday that the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, backed by the U.S. in the effort to rout ISIS from Raqqa, has an office in Moscow. – Military.com While the U.S. remains focused on defeating ISIS in Syria and Iraq, al Qaeda in Syria is accumulating strength at an alarming pace and may eventually pose the most daunting counterterrorism challenge that the U.S. has ever faced. – Cipher Brief
Evan Moore writes: if the United States fails to take responsibility for ending the conflict, then it will allow an Islamist terrorism threat to further metastasize. The president should recognize that only Sunnis can defeat Sunni extremism. To truly defeat ISIS and al Qaeda, Mr. Trump must do what his predecessor did not: firmly support America’s natural allies in Syria, thereby creating the leverage necessary to negotiate an end to the Assad regime. – Foreign Policy Initiative
At least four and possibly as many as 14 members of a militia belonging to the Afghan intelligence agency were killed in a suicide car bombing at their base in the southern province of Helmand, Afghan officials said on Tuesday. – New York Times
Afghanistan wants the United States to send more forces to help meet shortfalls in the battle against the Taliban and the Islamic State group, the nation's top diplomat said Tuesday. – Associated Press Afghan authorities expect work on the first phase of a multimillion dollar housing project financed by China to begin within months, as Beijing continues to raise its development profile in the region. - Reuters Caitlin Forrest writes: The U.S. faces pressure from Russia as well as militant groups that seek to undermine the U.S. and NATO missions in Afghanistan during spring and summer 2017. The ANSF faces readiness gaps that will expose multiple provincial capitals to recurrent attacks by the Taliban and escalating attacks in Kabul by multiple groups, including ISIS. These threats will compound the difficulty the ANSF already faces in holding territory recaptured from Taliban forces in 2016. Russia meanwhile will attempt to thwart the U.S. and NATO by brokering peace talks with the Taliban that increasingly incorporate competing international power centers, such as China and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). – Institute for the Study of War A senior Israeli Air Force officer on Monday provided operational context to the unusual March 17 Arrow intercept of a Syrian SA-5 surface-to-air missile, which the jointly developed U.S.-Israel anti-ballistic missile system was not designed to fight. – Defense News
Report: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s primary objective in Syria is to constrain U.S. freedom of action – not fight ISIS and al Qaeda. Russia’s military deployments at current levels will not enable the Iranian-penetrated Assad regime to secure Syria. Moscow’s deepening footprint in Syria threatens America’s ability to defend its interests across the Middle East and in the Mediterranean Sea. The next U.S. step in Syria must help regain leverage over Russia rather than further encourage Putin’s expansionism. – AEI/ISW
Frederic Hof writes: Six years ago, Bashar al-Assad set in motion a process that thoroughly undermined his ability to rule Syria as he and has father had for the previous 40 years. Yet he, his family, and his entourage remain relevant. As Iran’s client, he is the main obstacle to Syria’s resurrection. Moscow knows this to be the case. Will it act? Can it act? These are questions to which patriotic, nationalistic Syrians urgently seek answers. That they do so is the inevitable result of America’s self-imposed absence. – Atlantic Council Jordan rejects US request to extradite ‘most wanted’ terroristJordan’s Supreme Court on Monday rejected the Donald Trumpadministration’s request to extradite Ahlam al-Tamimi, an alleged terrorist on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. The court noted that the parliament had not ratified a 1995 extradition agreement with the United States, according to a judicial source quoted by the Petra news agency.
Tamimi is accused of driving a suicide bomber to a Jerusalem pizza shop in 2001 for an attack that killed 15 people, including two Americans. Israel sentenced her to life in prison in 2003, but she was released in 2011 as part of a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.
Seth Jones writes: With terrorist groups operating in Afghanistan, the Trump administration should aim to prevent the Taliban from winning, pursue political reconciliation where feasible, and target terrorist groups that threaten the United States. These are limited objectives. The major alternative—U.S. withdrawal from the region—would likely lead to a collapsing government in Kabul, a growing terrorism problem, and intensified security competition between regional nuclear-armed powers. That would be in no one’s interest. – Foreign Affairs
Josh Rogin reports: The Syrian defector known as “Caesar,” who brought the world the largest trove of evidence of mass atrocities perpetrated by the regime of Bashar al-Assad, is returning to Washington this weekend. Three years after he helped expose some of the worst war crimes of our generation, the victims of those crimes are still a long way from getting justice. – Washington Post Frederic Hof writes: Six years of suffering for Syria and its people are six years too many. And those who declare victory now—those chiefly responsible for the wreckage that is Syria—will not escape accountability. But the gap between that which exists and that which is right, is oceanic. The consequences of leaving it unbridged will be dire for all concerned. – Atlantic Council
Tony Badran writes: The Trump Administration, as it considers how to approach the nuclear deal and address Iranian subversion in the region, is reportedly weighing the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization. That’s long overdue. But the Administration would do well to expand its designation of IRGC entities as well. Targeting MCI, as part of countering broader IRGC ventures in Syria, is an obvious place to start. – The Cipher Brief Caliphate’s last days: Senior intelligence sources in Iraq say Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed caliph of the Islamic State, has been in neighboring Syria since March 11, writes Sami Moubayed. Al-Baghdadi has been living in Mosul since 2014 but left to escape the Iraqi Army’s current offensive and is now about to move to al-Raqqa, the de facto capital of ISIS, as his troops prepare for a caliphate-defining fight against a coalition of US troops, Kurdish militias and the Syrian Army. Hal Brands writes: This victory, however, will create new dilemmas for the Trump administration. There will be thorny questions about what sort of political endgame to pursue in Syria and whether to leave a residual U.S. military presence in Iraq….Nor will it solve the broader problem of radicalization and extremism in the Muslim world. And so a key question for Trump is what politico-military strategy the administration should pursue in an ongoing struggle against violent jihadist organizations. – Foreign Policy’s Shadow Government The Syrian Kurdish YPG militia said Russia was setting up a military base in northwestern Syria under a bilateral agreement and will help train its fighters - a step that would anger Turkey as it tries to block Kurdish gains near its borders. - Reuters
The Syrian Kurdish YPG militia aims to expand its force by about two-thirds to more than 100,000 fighters this year, it told Reuters, a plan that would strengthen autonomous Kurdish enclaves that are of deep concern to neighboring Turkey. - Reuters
Elliott Abrams reviews “Yitzhak Rabin: Soldier, Leader, Statesman”: The visible reluctance with which Rabin shook Arafat’s hand on the White House lawn in 1993 showed Rabin’s doubts about the treaty he had just signed and the new path it appeared to signify. In the end, even the warm esteem in which he holds Rabin does not prevent Mr. Rabinovich—a scholar with an abiding commitment to historical accuracy—from presenting a portrait of his friend in full. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
Yitzhak Rabin: Soldier, Leader, Statesman (Jewish Lives) by Itamar Rabinovich.
“Yitzhak Rabin was a soldier and a statesman who fought for the security of Israel and for a concept of peace for all nations. Itamar Rabinovich has written a thoughtful and extraordinarily comprehensive account of a significant leader.”—Henry A. Kissinger (Henry A. Kissinger) “Itamar Rabinovich has written an insightful book on Yitzhak Rabin, Israel’s charismatic warrior-statesman who valiantly dedicated himself to the cause of peace in the Middle East. As the head of Rabin’s team during Syrian-Israeli peace negotiations and as Israel’s ambassador in Washington, Rabinovich was at Rabin’s side during key moments in his country’s history. I recommend his book to all those interested in peace between Arabs and Israelis.”—James A. Baker, III (James A. Baker, III) “This highly informative and tightly-packed biography is undergirded by a deep personal knowledge of Rabin’s strengths and flaws as a leader and a sure command of Israel’s military and diplomatic history.”—Derek Penslar, Harvard University and the University of Toronto (Derek Penslar) "Puts the complexities of [Rabin's] career and achievement in fresh perspective."—Kirkus Reviews (Kirkus Reviews) "This well-written, easily digestible biography also provides useful insights into the inner workings of Israeli politics."—Booklist (Booklist) About the Author Itamar Rabinovich is president of The Israel Institute (Washington, D.C., and Tel Aviv); Global Distinguished Professor, New York University; and Non-Resident Distinguished Fellow, Brookings Institution. He served as Israel’s ambassador to the United States and chief negotiator with Syria from 1992–1996. He lives in Tel Aviv, Israel. https://www.amazon.com/Yitzhak-Rabin-Soldier-Leader-Statesman/dp/0300212291/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1489879276&sr=1-1 Pakistan and Afghanistan: A high-level meeting in London on Wednesday was aimed at reducing tensions between Islamabad and Kabul following a series of major terrorist attacks in Pakistan, writes M.K. Bhadrakumar. The talks, painstakingly brokered by the UK, are an attempt to start to untie a three-way knot that tangles Afghanistan, India, Pakistan over allegations and counter-allegations regarding the offering of sanctuary to militant groups.
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