In the province of Raqqah, the Syrian Army Tiger Forces liberated the Tawhrah oil fields and the nearby points, pushing towards the village of Resafa. Clashes between government troops and ISIS members were also reported near the Habbari field.
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This is the best way to choke ISIS financially.
And of course kurdish traitors and land grabbers are storming isis in Bir Addad to cut SAA from road…
This is not such bad idea, SDF attacking ISIS, because ISIS have to fight two fronts, if SDF have good intention and plays nice with SAA.
Let them take the road, the SAA has the only oil/gas-fields in the area. The people in this area are not occupied by ISIS but support it so if the Kurds want to control them for the short term so much the better. After ISIS and the FSA are beaten the SDF will be very happy to just trade that whole area for some political influence and autonomy (if their US masters let them).
Jealous loser they are not going after resafa.
Personally I will advance till Resafa is reached and make same buffer zone in this area. Than I will turn East and liberate the Itria-Raqqah road and the entire packet North, but if SAA has resource to go West and East the same time, they should proceeds. The North packet of Itria-Raqqah road should be easy and quick advance as their is only desert and SAA will approach from behind ISIS front lines, therefore most likely withdraw from the hole packet, including the front line Itria-Aleppo road.
This also will shrink SAA front line and free a lot of SAA infantry and military hardware and can be deploy or help SAA Tiger Force to liberate other areia
The SAA has the vast bulk of the population, now it must secure the economic resources. They seem to be doing that very well. After that it just becomes a waiting game with years of political talks. Foreign funds will dry up as the Takfiri conflict moves more to Jordan and Saudi Arabia and the Shia crescent is stabilized. The Kurds will probably side with them in the long run because the US must please Turkey more then them.
I agree, but SAA has to secure the rest of the Syria, that means clean all the packets and clear all strategic roads, so they have only the boards as the front lines.
Further, I don’t see any political solution for Syria. Western including the americans will press for division of Syria, which Syrian government will not agree to that, and I understand why. Therefore, I would advise Assad to negotiate with RUssia to obtain S-400 and Pantsir Air Defence System, new High Tech air planes and better infantry hardware, such as Verba ManPad, anti tank missile etc.. create special forces and better training.
The Russians and Chinese have restructured the Syrian army and providing some special forces training and counter terrorist training . Iran is training new Popular Mobilization units in Syria which have proven to be very successful fighters against ISIS . The equipping of the new Syrian Army will be a priority in the next coming months , the SAA will be an Army on par with NATO armies where the SDF are inadequately trained .The west didn’t put much training into them they actually sabotaged their training , the Kurds expected the west to fully equip them ,lol.
There are probably many places in Syria where it’s much easier and cheaper to just control the roads going in and out than to police a rebellious population. Assad should learn some lessons from the West Bank. Let them invite the army in if they want to improve their lives.
I agree. Once ISIS is defeated and Damascus controls most of the east in connection with Shia governed Iraq the Kurds will be of diminishing importance to Washington. One’s value as boots on the ground for hire is relative to whatever issue is in fashion in Washington. Who knows where else ISIS will rear its ugly head? In a sense the genie is out of the bottle and wherever ISIS pops up again, that’s where US money and interest will go.
Or maybe ISIS pops up where US money and interests go (and aren’t welcome). The classic mafia protection scheme is to offer protection against ‘bad men’ you never saw around before but if you refuse to pay then they suddenly appear out of the blue.