https://southfront.org/battle-for-mosul-june-27-2017-isis-launches-surprise-counter-attack/
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Voiceover by Harold Hoover
Last weekend ISIS launched a large-scale surprise attack against government forces in the Iraqi city of Mosul. Terrorists attacked the neighborhoods of al-Tanak, Nahrwan, and al-Yarmuk, engaging Iraqi security forces (ISF) in a series of intense firefights. While ISF was fighting terrorists in the Old Mosul area, ISIS used underground tunnels and sleeper cells to push the attack deep inside the government-held part of western Mosul.
By Tuesday, ISIS had allegedly captured the embattled neighborhoods despite ISF attempts to launch counter-terrorism raids in the area.
The ISIS advance disrupted the Iraqi government plan to liberate the entire city by the end of June, a plan which, although unofficial, was widely promoted in the media.
Meanwhile, two ISIS members opened fire on a police officer in Al-Jazar district in eastern Mosul. The militants were killed as a result of that clash.
Despite the recent developments, the ISF successfully advanced inside Old Mosul and captured the Al-Farooq neighborhood there.
ISIS does not have enough resources to change the course of the battle but it is still able to make serious problems for ISF troops operating in the city. ISIS claims that during the last month, its members killed 690 ISF servicemen, destroyed 2 battle tanks, 45 Humvees, 5 BMP vehicles, 13 bulldozers, and 29 other vehicles, as well as downing 26 drones and 3 helicopters belonging to the Iraqi military.
The recent developments demonstrate that even when Mosul is officially declared free from ISIS, the real security situation inside the city will remain very complicated.
In any case, the liberation of Mosul is an important step in a wider effort aimed at expelling ISIS from Iraq and Syria. This will allow the Iraqi army and the Popular Mobilization Units to focus on anti-ISIS operations in the border area with Syria and to clear western Iraq from ISIS terrorists.
Sadly enough the only adult in the room may well end up to be Tillerson
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/tillerson-and-mattis-cleaning-up-kushners-middle-east-mess/
Tillerson is a pragmatist and his may be one of the few sane voices in the Trump administration. The wild card as always is Donald Trump. He appears to be erratic in his thinking and at this point in time seems to be making it up as he goes along, fumbling and bumbling like a blind man lost in a maze.
When looking at Trump’s foreign policy agenda there does not seem to be a coherent strategy, only empty bluster and Twitter proclamations that are quickly contradicted by members of his own cabinet.
May there be method in the madness, or is Trump in over his head?
I would like to invite anyone to read the very interesting link of teranam13.
It is a complete mess. The show appears to be led by a 36 year old shady businessman Kushner (about whom I have read rumours that he is cosying up so much to the Saudis because his business is close to bankkrupcy), and a 31 year old hothead-crownprince Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia. He’s even younger than Kim Yong Un. And the official King is heading for dementia.
Well, it’s not exclusive for the Trump administration that everyone is running in different directions. Obama and Kerry and the Pentagon have done that too.
A commenter at Moon of Alabama wrote this reassuring statement:
The US Regime is obviously in panic mode.
The SAA is rapidly advancing on three fronts:
1. Raqqa – The SAA is quickly moving around the hapless Kurds and moving to the area south of Raqqa. Ensuring IS is unable to execute their agreement with the US Regime to evacuate towards Deir ez-Zur.
2. Deir ez-Zur – Huge numbers of SAA are quickly approaching the defenders in Deir ez-Zur. Once Deir ez-Zur is secure, the SAA will move north to link up with the SAA forces in al Hasakah.
3. al Bukamal – The SAA and Iraq PMU are working as a unified force on both sides of the border and are preparing to surround the border city.
What this means is:
1. The US Regime partion dreams are dead. There is no viable Kurdish ‘state’ other than a bunch of clowns pretending to be a new ‘government’ in Raqqa.
2. The Iraq PMU are increasingly working side by side with the SAA. Any attack by the US Regime puts their bases in Iraq open to attack.
3. The absurd threats from Saudi Arabia towards Qatar now have the various terror groups still alive in Syria attacking each other.
4. Syria is close to a decisive military victory against the foregin terrorists. Once the SAA secures the bulk of the Eurphrates only Idlib and Daraa remain as security problems.
5. Every day the SAA advances and IS or terrorist pockets are cleared, more and more troops are freed up and being moved to the major fronts in either Daraa or the Eurphrates.
6. Turkey and Russia are in complete agreement on preventing any sort of Kurdish state in the north of Syria. Any attempts by the US Regime to establish some sort of giant military base backed by Kurds is going to have to fight Turkey, the SAA, Russia, and quite possibly Iraq.
7. The sucess of the de-escalation zone means that the US Regime is greatly hamstrung in coming up with further faked chemical attacks. The only real options now are Idlib and Daraa.
IS is being wiped out in the eastern Syrian desert by the SAA and in the western desert of Iraq by the PMU. Those giant grey IS areas on battle maps are evaporating and at the same time the entire pretext for the US Regime to be attacking Syria.
Posted by: R Winner
What a superb analysis. I have been heartened by it. The North American ‘Dark Continent’ has been in a news blackout since 1917 or so. In our darkness, we have forgotten the look of light. Thank you for reminding us what it looks like.
The senior war minister in the UK has stated today that Britain is ready for the green light from Trump to bomb Syrian government leadership figures into extinction. Over and over I read naive fools express their certainty that SAA gains mean something. They do not.
Russia refuses to stabilise Syria diplomaticly, and instead provides only better military support (at the moment) than the West’s wahhabi terror hoardes currently enjoy. So the SAA makes gains. But the reason this matters not is witnessed in Libya.
The very moment the West activates its invasion plan- which is a two week ground and air campaign to wipe out all elements of Assad’s legitimate rule- the SAA forces will be utterly leaderless and will fragment within days. America does not intend to take on SAA forces. It intends to cut off the ‘head of the snake’. That means killing every significant Russian friendly figure and their families. And once this campaign starts, Putin has made it clear he will order Russian forces to ‘safe places’ for the duration.
Oh for sure a few Syrian government figures will survive (again see Libya), but the regime will be utterly ended for all time. The ‘best’ that Syria can then hope for is an Iraq situation (and that is utetrly horrible)- but the US war on Iran will be months away and America will be grinding parts of the region not under wahhabi control to dust via every form of depravity imaginable- mostly by a boost in ISIS power as yet unimaginable.
And for sure having lost Syria for good, Putin can carry on taking pot shots at a very ‘target rich’ ISIS- but the game will have moved on since the West will use direct military means against Iran, not proxy terror forces.
Yesterday Trump flew a flag- the old “Assad is going to use chemical weapons, and we are going to respond”. Every zionist media outlet across the West saluted this flag today. The invasion of Syria is on the brink (and understand this is ***not*** an ‘occupying’ invasion but an extreminating invasion, like the ones the jews of Israel inflict on the ‘sub-Humans’ of Gaza.
Putin has backed down and backed down and backed down enough in Ukraine and Syria to convince even the most cautious generals in the USA that Putin will never seek to confront a war-mongering US force intentionally. These generals do not doubt Russian military might- but they now know Putin will never use that might to defend anything outside of the Russian Federation. So all of the US military leadership is now onboard the invasion plan ***if*** public opinion in the USA is seen to be onboard as well.
Russia is universally demonised in the West at this time- and most of the sheeple accept tales of wrong-doing by Putin even if they are soft supporters of Russia.
For the terminally naive on our side- here’s the real wake-up call. When Britain announced today its intention to join Trump in bombing Assad into non-existence in the near future, it was a minister of a minority government whose supposed opponent, Corbyn, had won massive support on a ‘anti-war’ platform. If you are naive, this confounds all possible political logic. The Conservatives hang by a thread, yet unneccessarily trumpet their willingness to support a massively unpopoular President in his illegal war on a sovereign nation. The unfortunate truth is that Corbyn is simply a Tony Blair puppet whose public pronouncements are fake, and whose Labour party has consistently voted for Tony Blair Orwellian and war mongering policies every time across the last years. The Conservatives know that Labour will be a rock solid ally in any war against the Syrian people. The so-called ‘two party’ system is the ultimate in fake news. And in the UK, the Deep State has always ruled, no matter what the sheeple voting patterns.
So Trump promises to destroy team Assad, and the UK promises to join in. And when Team Assad is gone, the SAA will no longer exist, as forces that once fought under that banner fragment, with a good sized fragment immediately choosing to ally with US interests. And Putin has promised to do nothing when the West comes gunning for Team Assad. And so many fools claim it is ‘good’ that Putin does nothing cos the US plan is to ‘provoke’ Russia- as if the USA would ever dare seek early direct confrontation with Russia.
PS the BBC, NYT et al are now saying its ‘game on’ the moment ISIS is ‘defeated’ in Syria- in other words that is the latest date for American/UK military action against Assad and Iran in Syria. And in the words of the BBC, that is no more than 6 months at most from now.
PPS for those of you that really don’t get it- here’s another simple example. Where are the American zones in Vietnam today? Silly question? Well you obviously don’t think so since US military involvement in Vietnam once directly led to the successful conquest of large parts of that nation. But what did those military victories gain America – diddly squat. Russia’s gains in Syria are just as fleeting for the same reason.
@ twilight
You state that the US/UK/Israel/vassals can and will end Syria soonish, at a time of their choosing, and Russia won’t stop them. Quite possible, even likely. But your argument shouts that the Russian are weak and failing, and I assume that they are working a strategy. Would you concede this possibility?
I have assumed throughout that Russia is not defending allies in Syria or Iran, but its own interests. In the same way, the US /UK are not pushing the interests of allies in Syria, but their own interests.
You can’t deny that Russia unequivocally engaged the US/UK/Israeli war machine in 2013, by stopping Obama’s Assad overthrow, have frustrated and crippled the US’s attempts in Ukraine, and that it has since created and strengthened several relatively low attrition fronts – military, cyber and diplomatic – that did not exist before 2012.
I am waiting to see Russia retreat from these as you suggest, sniping, to its home turf where it will then ask the war machine if it would like to try coming in? Which, at some point over the next 20 years on current trajectory, the US will have to try.
Syria is not truly in Russia’s or America’s interest. Russia is the objective of both. They each terminally threaten the existence of the other, one as a threat to US life-blood (its ability to service dollar petro debt) and the other as a threat to sovereignty and physical existence.
Russia’s military tactic has always been to lead its enemies, debilitated after multiple skirmishes, into its own territories and slaughter them there.
Russia traditionally sacrifices anything and everything, knight, pawn, queen and rook, to hold to a well laid tactical plan, believing in its strategic intelligence and understanding the weakness of its enemies. Go and read about the Warsaw Uprising. Given clear opportunity, the red army stood by as the Poles tried to throw of the German yoke and failed for want of an easy Russian intervention. The Russians afterwards described the Pole’s actions as treasonable, because it compromised their strategy, a critical part of which was to forbid the use of Russian airfields by US planes. And rightly so: the war was reaching its end, and Russians knew even then that the Anglo’s would lay claim to areas where their military was stationed.
The Russians are not stupid. It may well be farewell Syria, but rather that than the dawn of Anglo Zionist hegemony.
“A commenter at Moon of Alabama wrote this reassuring statement”
Not being an isreali or zionazi expat, I find the lack of recognition of the role of the pale blue and white hued elephant in the room, let alone its very existence, somewhat less than reassuring. These moa adverts are spam.
Unusually knowledgeable analysis, by my reckoning.
White House Says It Will Fake “Chemical Weapon Attack” In Syria
http://www.globalresearch.ca/white-house-says-it-will-fake-chemical-weapon-attack-in-syria/5596481
This is very serious indeed…. What will Russia do in the case of a false flag chemical attack with an all out NATO retaliatory strike on the Syrian armed forces ?
Worthless propaganda. Anything the anglo/zionists could have done they already did. It is not just that Syria is lost to the empire – it is that the entity is finished. The sinking reality of occultist defeat is the real reason for the scramble by the oligarchy in the US.
The war is rapidly coming to occupied Golan and subsequently directly into occupied Palestine. Did the baby killers think that the war would not come to their front? Massive payback is on the horizon. It will soon turn into a national rout for israel – far worse than flight of European colonialists in the 1960’s and 1970’s.
Syria has escalated into a world conflict and Putin knows this – Putin also knows that he has many friends in occupied Palestine. Specially all those Russian citizens who were con into moving to israel to become slave labour. The millions who arrived not to the homeland of the jews but to the fiefdom of the oligarchy. Living in an entity that did not even consider them real jews.
Wow – what a load of incompetent f**ks the neo cons turned out to be. Not even making the grade of passable villains – naturally this is what happens when marrying your own cousin sounds like a good idea.
” Specially all those Russian citizens who were con into moving to israel to become slave labour”.
I think this is a bit over the top. Naturally many new immigrants had a hard time at the start, but some of the Russians I meet are shop owners, sales people, technologists, university researchers and doctors. If you call this slave labour, are we not all slaves of the 1 percent? (Actually there is even a Russo-Israeli one-percenter, a diamond king).
The Russian respect for culture and enlightenment has also contributed enormously to the cultural life of Israel, in my opinion, and has noticeably lightened the previously rather strait-laced and provincial social tone. For instance, when I first came to Israel there would be only one bottle of wine at a party (the rest were “mitz”) and I was the only one who drank. Now one can buy vodka in the shops. And yesterday, from my local Russian shop, I enjoyed my first can of genuine Russian “kvass” malt beer. I shall be buying more; the Russians call this “Kvass Imperialism”.
Exclusive Updates by Canthama:
Ithriyah, Resafa.
“… ISIS defending fiercely the last 10 kms of road, the use of TOWs and VBIEDs has been huge, way higher than ISIS using at Raqqa city.
The amount of mines and IEDs has been also a key reason for the delay in closing the gap.
The pocket in eastern Khanaser is not defended by a large amount of ISIS terrorists, though they do have the fire power to deliver unnecessary KIA for the SAA and allies.
Not surprisingly the final showdown is at the Ithriyah oil & gas field and the Zakia crossroad.
In few days we will hear from the MoD that the road is 100% safe, with that, the whole pocket will be ISIS free, and the battle for Northeastern Hama and Central Homs will seriously kick off, everything is timed and coordinated at this point, event the Desert Hawks are moving to the NE Hama area, this offensive will happen as soon as the MoD declares the road safe.”
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=pt&lat=35.454937&lon=38.063507&z=13&m=b&gz=0;380056571;354423513;0;0;1155281;241908
T3-T2 Road – Shortest Way to Der ez Zor.
“… The Syrian desert is seeing a classic warfare in the past few weeks, tanks battling tanks, impressive CAS and the incredible amount of TOWs use. So far the SAA and its allies have done an amazing job.
As reported in the last few days, the Syrian High Command made the call to go for the kill on T3-T2 without clearing Bir al Jafeef pocket that was somehow slowing the advance down.
Once the decision was made, the SAA advanced 70-90 kms and basically took control of the road up to Hamaymah village, leaving the pocket to be dealt latter, which happened today in fact. The whole area around T3 is now 100% safe, and the implications are many:
The SAA is about to declare 100% liberated the Hail gas field.
The SAA has now control of part of a desert road that can lead to Der ez Zor
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=pt&lat=34.996254&lon=39.583740&z=9&m=b&gz=0;389245605;345190041;0;0;10025024;3534076;12387084;6761296
The current situation around T3-T2 is as following:
Humaymah is reported safe, though we wont hear from MoD.
Fight is around T2, but the critical aspect is the cut off on many desert roads from al Bukamal to T2, Iraq border and to Mayaden.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=pt&lat=34.377446&lon=40.158119&z=12&m=b
The next key component of the offensive to Der ez Zor will be inside the red triangle below, the T2 is a key corner, Faydat Bin Muwaynah is a frontline against crazy suicidal ISIS coming from Mayaden, al Hail and Doubayat gas fields are another important component, as well as the possibility to control multiple roads that reach Der ez Zor, from the busy highway bypassing al Sukhanah or desert roads.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=pt&lat=34.655804&lon=39.803467&z=9&m=b&gz=0;389163208;343593089;13815307;0;7717895;7055401;0;3586021
With all the above plus the real unreported progress by the SAA, there is good reason to hope for the SAA and allies to reach Der ez Zor in very few weeks and not months.”
Possible False-Flag.
“… There is no doubt that the US is struggling to adapt to this new situation, minimum to zero control of the Iraq border, the loss of initiative to control al Bukamal, the loss of initiative to delay the SAA to reach Der ez Zor.
There is no doubt that the last possible alternative for the US to delay the SAA and allies is to use another murderous false flag in Syria so the use of cruise missiles and air attacks are wide spread on all fronts, but then they may find it harder to face AAs and RuAF/SAAF, the allied force is indeed waiting for the US to make another bad decision.
The SAA and allies can not and will not be distracted with what the US may try to do, they will continue to press forward at high speed toward Der ez Zor while killing as many as US backed ISIS as possible.”
Al Bukamal.
“… Al Bukamal-al Qaim has been US point to exchange weapons, money and goods with ISIS for a long time. This is the place where most of the US/UK/Israel weapons supply came to ISIS, visually checked by hundreds of Iraqis and widely reported since 2014. The US has also abused its luck with dozens of Helis landing and taking off near al Bukamal, all reported as covert ops but they were not.
Iraq has a delicate situation, it curved to the US regime back in 2014, to hold ISIS in Iraq. By them US decided to push ISIS to Syria while reducing ISIS footprint in Iraq, a lot of things went wrong and ISIS became bigger than initially intended.
Abadi has been navigating under tremendous pressure, the financial State of Iraq has difficulties due to the lower oil prices, the US manipulates weapons/hardware deliveries and last but not least the US has a strong influence in the Iraq Army.”
PMU.
“… Having said that, the PMU has a strong influence of Iran and Hizballah, while now it belongs to the Iraq Army influence, it has no to minimum relationship with the US inside Iraq, it has been targeted by the USAF many times, the last major one near al Qaim/al Bukamal, interesting coincidence right ?
The situation with the PMU is excellent, it is getting more power, like the IRGC in Iran, and Abadi is doing that, besides, it has so many branches that people simply can not follow it as a whole unit, several of the PMU branches are heavily present in Syria, many thousands are in fact in the Syrian desert and is supporting the border clean up process from the Syrian side, and the US can not do a thing about that.
Abadi knows it has to balance the US pressure with the Iranian one, but it is Iraq that has a C&C in Baghdad with Syria, Russia, Iran and Hizballah. So, yes, Abadi says thing to calm the US down, but the PMU has life of its own, the US can not stop the PMU in cleaning up all the the Syrian-Iraqi border, it will happen in the next months for sure, up to Sinja.
Keep in mind Mosul will be ISIS free in few days, Tal Afar will be also liberated in a month or so, than there is Hawija pocket, it will be held by the Iraqi Army, mostly, so the PMU will have the Iraq desert to play with, meaning Nineveh and Anbar.
Folks are wrong to think the PMU is only a Shia force, it is primarily Shia due to the larger population in Iraq, but is has a lot of Sunnis, Yazidis, Kurds and Christians. They have turned into a formidable force, and will be used in easing down the situation with the Kurds up north later on.”
The Upcoming 3 Large Offensives.
“…
1)
Der ez Zor – through the desert, by passing al Sukhanah, have been saying this for over a month.
2)
Northeast Hama/Central Homs – eliminate entirely ISIS presence in central Syria, huge undertaking since it is one of the smuggling routes for ISIS with US backed moderats. It will require thousands of soldiers for this offensive (maybe 20,000+), and it will be done from multiple fronts, a la Aleppo city, all at the same time. Heavy losses are expected.
“… Though it won’t be like urban warfare (Aleppo, Jobar, Darayya etc.), it will be village by village, mix of heavily defended places to downhill-uphill battles, and ISIS knows this is it, losing it will mean tens of thousands SAA and allies at the Euphrates mopping up all that remains from this evil US/UK/Israel creation.
But then RuAF and SAAF will be heavily engaged, we may see new weapons used for the first time, and maybe a lot of cruise missiles.
The nbr of local civilian population is unknown, but it is expected to be not many people, few thousands, much less than Aleppo, East Ghouta or else, that may be a good factor to speed up, less civilians around are always good.”
3)
The battle for the Euphrates river, from SE Raqqa to al Bukamal – Tiger will have a saying in part of this offensive, so thus the 5th Corps and PMU toward al Bukamal. This will be a very bloody campaign, it is the core of ISIS, a place where ISIS has presence for 3 years, subjugating the population, lots of recruiting is done here. But then there is the river on its back, depending how one approaches and with a sizeable force, the river will play as a huge issue for ISIS, I believe we will see liberation of Der ez Zor first then pockets will be formed along the river, multiple pockets where ISIS will be trapped and divided.
All the above will happen in high summer, leaving the fall and winter to mop ups and oil&gas fields on the left banks of the Euphrates to be cleared.”
Thank you, _smr. You forgot to acknowledge that Canthama is the highly respected military analyst for the lively English language website SyrianPerspective.com.
And this where it gets worrying,
What happens when the SAA try to cross the Euphrates to continue their liberation of Syria eastwards?
It has been reported in several places that the US intends to seize and occupy Syrian territory, creating a new statelet, garrisoned by the US and defended by them plus the SDFand the Kurds.
For example –
“US army preparing to occupy large part of Syria”
from
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13960403001130
and
“The first shots of America’s new war for Eastern Syria have been fired”
from
http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/first-shots-americas-new-war-eastern-syria-have-already-been-fired/ri20182
Will the Syrian army “be allowed” to cross the Euphrates into an area the US, with air support, controls and into an area Russia has said it will not track other countries aircraft?
This is the acid test for Syria.
You mention Hizballah of being influence on the Iraqi PMU units but should that not be Hezbollah??
One is the spelling of a “terrorist” organisation on the FBI list the other a military force from Lebanon who handed the Israeli’s a big lesson in 2006 when Israel thought they could waltze over the Lebanese border and take what they want unimpeded.
There is a reason for the similar name onbthe FBI list, to confuse people into thinkibg Hezbollah is itself a terrorist organisation and to sway public opinion.
As for Syria and Iraq, may peace reign in those two countries soon and tears dry as a new dawn of self determination and sovereignty take hold.