Battle for Mosul (key stronghold of ISIS)

[ag]

Some stories say there is a rebellion by the police within the city. Apparently, much of internal security in the city over the last two years has been run by a local group that, though it has allied itself with ISIS, is not really a part of it (ISIS are not local, so they were happy to deputise). Well, apparently these guys have decided to stick it to ISIS in the back (they did the same to Iraqis when ISIS first took the city).

Anyway, this is a rumor from a sort of place I normally do not much trust, but it would be interesting to see if turns out to be true.

[pbrower2a]

Do bad things to America, and President Obama will get revenge. The bad guys might not see it coming...

Die, die, Daesh! A hint: lessons in conversational German begin soon for you, considering how useful German is in Hell!

[‼realJohnEwards‼]

Do bad things to America, and President Obama will get revenge. The bad guys might not see it coming...

Die, die, Daesh! A hint: lessons in conversational German begin soon for you, considering how useful German is in Hell!

Was? Warum sagen Sie dergleichen?


(my student German is showing )

[pbrower2a]

Do bad things to America, and President Obama will get revenge. The bad guys might not see it coming...

Die, die, Daesh! A hint: lessons in conversational German begin soon for you, considering how useful German is in Hell!

Was? Warum sagen Sie dergleichen?


(my student German is showing )

Something to do with World War II. I will leave it at that.

   

[mark_twain]

The time required to retake Mosul is estimated to be 2 months...

http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/18/middleeast/mosul-isis-operation-iraq/


The time to enter the city is estimated to be 2 weeks.

Looks like Obama and Clinton won't be getting a boost of approval in time for the election, but at least they can now say that we're making significant progress...

[pppolitics]

Trump will almost certainly say that Obama and Clinton "created ISIS", or "left a vacuum and let ISIS form".

Depending on the exact progress of the strike on Mosul, Clinton can counter that argument by saying that significant gains have been made against ISIS, in order to validate the strategy taken by the Obama administration.

Even though she is not technically part of the Obama administration now, she was part of it a few years ago and is still closely allied with the administration, so it will be good for her.

Obama wasn't the one that ordered the dissolution of the Ba'ath Party and disband of the
Iraqi Army, causing a power vacuum.

[Meclazine for Israel]

Live feed:

https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera/videos/vb.7382473689/10154763661373690/?type=3&theater

Just click on "Load More" once the video starts playing.

Just looks like a bunch of very confused people.

[Beezer]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

[PresidentSamTilden]

This battle is being livestreamed...how insane is that? I'm not some ideological purist, we all love our vicarious violence. But at the same time, turning war into entertainment for the sheltered western masses is kinda messed up.

If ISIS somehow rebounded and took Baghdad, would the massacre be streamed? Would you watch? What a time to be alive...the critical mass of humanity.

[mark_twain]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

Here's the score for you...

George W. Bush spent 7 years trying to find Osama bin Laden and failed.

Obama took less than 3 years and succeeded. He should at least get allowance for 8 years to defeat ISIS, using Bush's time as a yardstick. After 4 years of a second term, he is almost there.

If Obama guides the coalition in retaking Mosul before his term ends, I would call that an overall success worthy of credit--if we compare it to Bush's progress with Al Qaeda, even though it pales in comparison with his lightning-fast speed in getting Osama bin Laden. His progress is even more remarkable considering that ISIS did not come into prominence until 2014, or less than 3 years ago.

[Green Line]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

Here's the score for you...

George W. Bush spent 7 years trying to find Osama bin Laden and failed.

Obama took less than 3 years and succeeded. He should at least get allowance for 8 years to defeat ISIS, using Bush's time as a yardstick. After 4 years of a second term, he is almost there.

His progress is even more remarkable considering that ISIS did not come into prominence until 2014, or less than 3 years ago.

If Obama guides the coalition in retaking Mosul before his term ends, I would call that an overall success worthy of credit, even though it pales in comparison with his lightning-fast speed in getting Osama bin Laden.

Oh pleAse, give me a break.  Obama had nothing to do with the capture of Bin Laden aside from not standing in the way of the military once they found him.  Gee, Im glad Obama didnt PREVENT his capture, but he hardly deserves credit.

[mark_twain]

This battle is being livestreamed...how insane is that? I'm not some ideological purist, we all love our vicarious violence. But at the same time, turning war into entertainment for the sheltered western masses is kinda messed up.

If ISIS somehow rebounded and took Baghdad, would the massacre be streamed? Would you watch? What a time to be alive...the critical mass of humanity.

Televised battles go back all the way to World War II, where the famous D-Day was filmed on the news.

[mark_twain]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

Here's the score for you...

George W. Bush spent 7 years trying to find Osama bin Laden and failed.

Obama took less than 3 years and succeeded. He should at least get allowance for 8 years to defeat ISIS, using Bush's time as a yardstick. After 4 years of a second term, he is almost there.

His progress is even more remarkable considering that ISIS did not come into prominence until 2014, or less than 3 years ago.

If Obama guides the coalition in retaking Mosul before his term ends, I would call that an overall success worthy of credit, even though it pales in comparison with his lightning-fast speed in getting Osama bin Laden.

Oh pleAse, give me a break.  Obama had nothing to do with the capture of Bin Laden aside from not standing in the way of the military once they found him.  Gee, Im glad Obama didnt PREVENT his capture, but he hardly deserves credit.

The military leadership presented the options, but it was Obama's team that made the final decision.

Timing is critical, and without Obama's guidance, a golden opportunity could have been missed.

[Green Line]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

Here's the score for you...

George W. Bush spent 7 years trying to find Osama bin Laden and failed.

Obama took less than 3 years and succeeded. He should at least get allowance for 8 years to defeat ISIS, using Bush's time as a yardstick. After 4 years of a second term, he is almost there.

His progress is even more remarkable considering that ISIS did not come into prominence until 2014, or less than 3 years ago.

If Obama guides the coalition in retaking Mosul before his term ends, I would call that an overall success worthy of credit, even though it pales in comparison with his lightning-fast speed in getting Osama bin Laden.

Oh pleAse, give me a break.  Obama had nothing to do with the capture of Bin Laden aside from not standing in the way of the military once they found him.  Gee, Im glad Obama didnt PREVENT his capture, but he hardly deserves credit.

The military leadership presented the options, but it was Obama's team that made the final decision.

Timing is critical, and without Obama's guidance, a golden opportunity could have been missed.

What did he do aside from give the go ahead?

[mark_twain]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

Here's the score for you...

George W. Bush spent 7 years trying to find Osama bin Laden and failed.

Obama took less than 3 years and succeeded. He should at least get allowance for 8 years to defeat ISIS, using Bush's time as a yardstick. After 4 years of a second term, he is almost there.

His progress is even more remarkable considering that ISIS did not come into prominence until 2014, or less than 3 years ago.

If Obama guides the coalition in retaking Mosul before his term ends, I would call that an overall success worthy of credit, even though it pales in comparison with his lightning-fast speed in getting Osama bin Laden.

Oh pleAse, give me a break.  Obama had nothing to do with the capture of Bin Laden aside from not standing in the way of the military once they found him.  Gee, Im glad Obama didnt PREVENT his capture, but he hardly deserves credit.

The military leadership presented the options, but it was Obama's team that made the final decision.

Timing is critical, and without Obama's guidance, a golden opportunity could have been missed.

What did he do aside from give the go ahead?

Top secret, my friend.

I'm afraid you won't be able to know the answer in this lifetime.

But for a simplified answer, I'm sure he was involved in the planning of the operation to a significant degree, as was the rest of his inner circle.

[Maxwell]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

Here's the score for you...

George W. Bush spent 7 years trying to find Osama bin Laden and failed.

Obama took less than 3 years and succeeded. He should at least get allowance for 8 years to defeat ISIS, using Bush's time as a yardstick. After 4 years of a second term, he is almost there.

His progress is even more remarkable considering that ISIS did not come into prominence until 2014, or less than 3 years ago.

If Obama guides the coalition in retaking Mosul before his term ends, I would call that an overall success worthy of credit, even though it pales in comparison with his lightning-fast speed in getting Osama bin Laden.

Oh pleAse, give me a break.  Obama had nothing to do with the capture of Bin Laden aside from not standing in the way of the military once they found him.  Gee, Im glad Obama didnt PREVENT his capture, but he hardly deserves credit.

the person he ran against in 2012 WOULD'VE stood in the military's way, so yes, I'm glad Obama didn't prevent his capture also.

[Green Line]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

Here's the score for you...

George W. Bush spent 7 years trying to find Osama bin Laden and failed.

Obama took less than 3 years and succeeded. He should at least get allowance for 8 years to defeat ISIS, using Bush's time as a yardstick. After 4 years of a second term, he is almost there.

His progress is even more remarkable considering that ISIS did not come into prominence until 2014, or less than 3 years ago.

If Obama guides the coalition in retaking Mosul before his term ends, I would call that an overall success worthy of credit, even though it pales in comparison with his lightning-fast speed in getting Osama bin Laden.

Oh pleAse, give me a break.  Obama had nothing to do with the capture of Bin Laden aside from not standing in the way of the military once they found him.  Gee, Im glad Obama didnt PREVENT his capture, but he hardly deserves credit.

The military leadership presented the options, but it was Obama's team that made the final decision.

Timing is critical, and without Obama's guidance, a golden opportunity could have been missed.

What did he do aside from give the go ahead?

Top secret, my friend.

I'm afraid you won't be able to know the answer in this lifetime.

But for a simplified answer, I'm sure he was involved in the planning of the operation to a significant degree, as was the rest of his inner circle.

Mhmm oh yes.  With all of Obama's military expertise, I imagine so.

[Beezer]

Remind me again how beating back an Islamist insurgency eight years into his term is somehow a "feather in the cap" of Obama (or Clinton for that matter)?

Here's the score for you...

George W. Bush spent 7 years trying to find Osama bin Laden and failed.

Obama took less than 3 years and succeeded. He should at least get allowance for 8 years to defeat ISIS, using Bush's time as a yardstick. After 4 years of a second term, he is almost there.

If Obama guides the coalition in retaking Mosul before his term ends, I would call that an overall success worthy of credit--if we compare it to Bush's progress with Al Qaeda, even though it pales in comparison with his lightning-fast speed in getting Osama bin Laden. His progress is even more remarkable considering that ISIS did not come into prominence until 2014, or less than 3 years ago.

The point can most certainly be made that Obama's desire to pull out of Iraq quickly and his apparent misinterpretation of ISIS as "Al Qaida's JV team" if anything contributed to the rise of ISIS. So all he is doing is rectifying some of his mistakes. Good to see that but hardly something to brag about...

[yawa]

I would prefer the topic entitled "Battle for Moscow".

[mark_twain]

The strike on Mosul is moving ahead of schedule now:

http://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2016/10/20/iraq-mosul-operation-ward-lkl.cnn


Maybe they can finish the attack in less than 2 months!

[PresidentSamTilden]

This battle is being livestreamed...how insane is that? I'm not some ideological purist, we all love our vicarious violence. But at the same time, turning war into entertainment for the sheltered western masses is kinda messed up.

If ISIS somehow rebounded and took Baghdad, would the massacre be streamed? Would you watch? What a time to be alive...the critical mass of humanity.

Televised battles go back all the way to World War II, where the famous D-Day was filmed on the news.

True, but it wasn't live streamed, and like 20% of the US male population was in the army at that point. We're just sitting back on our ass watching this go down, acting like it's "our" battle.

[PresidentSamTilden]

I would prefer the topic entitled "Battle for Moscow".

The Russians have a funny habit of winning those, though...

[Meclazine for Israel]

Obama was involved in the capture of Bin Laden.

They had a choice to make to follow certain intelligence concerning the "courier" and Obama had to make a decision whether to follow up the intel on the chance Osama was in the house they located.

To his credit, Obama was all for it, and two choppers were sent in.

[ag]

I would prefer the topic entitled "Battle for Moscow".

The Russians have a funny habit of winning those, though...

Not back in 1812.

Nor in 1605.

Nor in 1571.

Nor in 1382.

Actually, other than in 1941 Moscow was nearly always surrendered to whoever got all the way to it.

[PresidentSamTilden]

Not back in 1812.

Nor in 1605.

Nor in 1571.

Nor in 1382.

Actually, other than in 1941 Moscow was nearly always surrendered to whoever got all the way to it.

Fair enough. I wouldn't get my hopes up about anyone's current chances, though. Plus, 1812 was a Phyrric victory. Napoleon won Borodino tactically, but strategically, he just fell further into a trap.