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However, on August 18, we experienced something never seen before. The domain of our website, southfront.org, was took down (domain delegation was removed) on the international level without any advance notice and explanation.
Apparently, the removal of SouthFront from YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other mainstream social media, the blocking of accounts and years-long discrimination campaign against our team, including summoning our volunteers for interrogation by the FBI, have not achieved results expected by instigators of these censorship acts. Therefore, they have turned to desperate moves like this.
In light of this situation, SouthFront Team wants to thank to our fan club in the White House and among the globalist elites for such high recognition of our work.
We also wish to bring good news to employers of numerous offices of state and state-affiliated entities assigned to fight SouthFront. Your well-paid jobs are secure because we are not going to stop our work even in conditions of such unprecedented pressure. Unlike you, ordinary budget-suckers and turncoats, we do what we do at the bidding of our hearts.
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P.S. Please, follow our Telegram channel for updates regarding the situation: t.me/southfronteng
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SouthFront: Analysis & Intelligence pinned «Through 10 years of its work, SouthFront Team has repeatedly faced blatant acts of censorship from those who seek to take down really independent media and suppress the truth. However, on August 18, we experienced something never seen before. The domain…»
Syria’s HTS Says It Suspended Senior Leader Over Links To Spying Scandal
On August 17, al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) announced that it had suspended Abu Maria al-Qahtani, one of its co-founders and senior leaders, over newly-discovered links to a spying scandal.
The terrorist group, which rules over the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib, said in a statement that al-Qahtani “miss-managed his communications without taking into account his sensitive position.”
Al-Qahtani was called for interrogation after his name appeared in an investigation about a spying ring, according to the group, who said that the Iraqi national was questioned with full transparency and it became clear that he made some communications without any official authorization or a clear excuse.
HTS didn’t identify the side its second-in-command was communicating with. However, Jihadi sources in Greater Idlib alleged that al-Qahtani was spying for the United States-led coalition.
Prior to the 2003 Iraq war, al-Qahtani, whose real name is Maysar Ali Musa Abdullah al-Juburi, was a student at the University of Mosul and a member of Fedayeen Saddam. After the fall of the Ba'athist government, he joined the Iraqi Police in Mosul but later left and was eventually arrested. While in al-Qaeda in Iraq, he served as the head of the religious police.
Al-Qahtani and HTS current leader Abu Mohammad al-Julani were sent to Syria after the 2011 uprising by the Islamic States in Iraq, which later became ISIS.
In 2012, the two formed the al-Nusra Front. The group sided with al-Qaeda when ISIS split in 2014. Later in 2017, the group announced its own departure from al-Qaeda and rebranded as HTS. Al-Qahtani is said to have played a key role in HTS’s conflict with ISIS, split from al-Qaeda and rebranding.
The arrest of al-Qahtani came just a month after HTS announced that its so-called General Security Service had uncovered a large spying ring.
The terrorist group attempted to play down the security breach by claiming that the network was mainly made up of young new recruits. However, Jihadi sources said that more than 200 members from the group’s military wing, security service and political body, including senior leaders, were arrested. The source said that the spies worked for the Russian, Syrian and the U.S. intelligence. They were reportedly uncovered with technical help from Turkish intelligence.
Turkey maintains a large military presence in Greater Idlib to enforce a ceasefire agreed upon with Russia. Despite designating HTS as a terrorist group, the Turkish military, security forces and intelligence coordinate with it.
Jihadi sources, especially those close to ISIS, have been accusing al-Qahtani of spying for the U.S. for years with HTS denying. The public acknowledgment of the al-Qahtani affair was made after pressure and even threats by senior security leaders within HTS to the group’s leadership who reportedly wanted to cover up the story.
The affair is causing tensions within HTS, especially that the group’s top leader, al-Julani, was also accused of working for the Americans by the same sources that outed al-Qahtani as a spy years ago.
On August 17, al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) announced that it had suspended Abu Maria al-Qahtani, one of its co-founders and senior leaders, over newly-discovered links to a spying scandal.
The terrorist group, which rules over the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib, said in a statement that al-Qahtani “miss-managed his communications without taking into account his sensitive position.”
Al-Qahtani was called for interrogation after his name appeared in an investigation about a spying ring, according to the group, who said that the Iraqi national was questioned with full transparency and it became clear that he made some communications without any official authorization or a clear excuse.
HTS didn’t identify the side its second-in-command was communicating with. However, Jihadi sources in Greater Idlib alleged that al-Qahtani was spying for the United States-led coalition.
Prior to the 2003 Iraq war, al-Qahtani, whose real name is Maysar Ali Musa Abdullah al-Juburi, was a student at the University of Mosul and a member of Fedayeen Saddam. After the fall of the Ba'athist government, he joined the Iraqi Police in Mosul but later left and was eventually arrested. While in al-Qaeda in Iraq, he served as the head of the religious police.
Al-Qahtani and HTS current leader Abu Mohammad al-Julani were sent to Syria after the 2011 uprising by the Islamic States in Iraq, which later became ISIS.
In 2012, the two formed the al-Nusra Front. The group sided with al-Qaeda when ISIS split in 2014. Later in 2017, the group announced its own departure from al-Qaeda and rebranded as HTS. Al-Qahtani is said to have played a key role in HTS’s conflict with ISIS, split from al-Qaeda and rebranding.
The arrest of al-Qahtani came just a month after HTS announced that its so-called General Security Service had uncovered a large spying ring.
The terrorist group attempted to play down the security breach by claiming that the network was mainly made up of young new recruits. However, Jihadi sources said that more than 200 members from the group’s military wing, security service and political body, including senior leaders, were arrested. The source said that the spies worked for the Russian, Syrian and the U.S. intelligence. They were reportedly uncovered with technical help from Turkish intelligence.
Turkey maintains a large military presence in Greater Idlib to enforce a ceasefire agreed upon with Russia. Despite designating HTS as a terrorist group, the Turkish military, security forces and intelligence coordinate with it.
Jihadi sources, especially those close to ISIS, have been accusing al-Qahtani of spying for the U.S. for years with HTS denying. The public acknowledgment of the al-Qahtani affair was made after pressure and even threats by senior security leaders within HTS to the group’s leadership who reportedly wanted to cover up the story.
The affair is causing tensions within HTS, especially that the group’s top leader, al-Julani, was also accused of working for the Americans by the same sources that outed al-Qahtani as a spy years ago.
Russian Army Foils Ukrainian Drone Attacks In Black Sea, Belgorod & Moscow
The Russian military has foiled three Ukrainian attacks with drones in the Black Sea as well as over the regions of Belgorod and Moscow.
In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that a Ukrainian naval drone attempted to attack two Black Sea fleet warships to the southwest of the port Sevastopol, but was destroyed.
"At 10:55 p.m. today [on August 17] the armed forces of Ukraine have made an unsuccessful attempt to use a naval drone against the Black Sea fleet warships tasked with overseeing the navigation in the southwestern section of the Black Sea, some 237 kilometers to the southwest of Sevastopol," the ministry said.
The ministry added that the drone was destroyed by fire from standard weapons mounted on the two vessels, the Pytlivyy frigate and the Vasily Bykov patrol ship.
"Currently, the ships continue to perform their assigned tasks," the ministry added.
In a later statement, the ministry said that a Ukrainian drone was shot down by Russian air defenses over the Belgorod region.
"At 10:22 p.m. Moscow time on August 17, the Kiev regime’s attempt to use a fixed-wing drone for carrying out a terror attack on facilities on the Russian territory was thwarted. Russian missile defenses on combat duty detected the drone and destroyed it above the territory of the Belgorod Region," the ministry said, adding that there were no casualties or material losses.
A few hours later, a second Ukrainian drone was shot down by Russian air defenses over the Moscow region, according to the ministry.
"At around 4:00 a.m. Moscow time [on August 18], the Kiev Regime attempted to carry out another terror attack with the use of an unmanned aerial vehicle, which targeted facilities in Moscow and the Moscow Region," the ministry said in a statement.
"After being hit by the air defenses, the drone changed its flight path and fell on a non-residential building near Moscow’s Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment," it said. "[The incident caused] no damage or fire."
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said that fragments from the drone fell on the premises of the Expocenter exhibition complex in downtown Moscow, causing no significant damage to the building.
Meanwhile, emergency services told the TASS news agency that a section of the building’s outer wall had collapsed at an area of around 30 square meters.
The recent wave of attacks came as Kiev forces continue to struggle and sustain heavy losses across the frontline.
Yan Gagin, an advisor to Donetsk People’s Republic Acting Head Denis Pushilin, told TASS on August 18 that the Russian military had destroyed Ukraine’s main group of forces in the Urozhainoye direction.
"The main enemy forces in Urozhainoye were destroyed by our heavy weapons. They are currently having difficulty deploying reserves there as our artillery controls the access to the area, hampering the logistics for the enemy and wiping out any approaching equipment or personnel," Gagin said.
According to the advisor, the Ukrainians have failed to reach the flanks near Urozhainoye, with losses in manpower and equipment growing at this part of the frontline.
In a related development, the Russian Tsentr Group of Forces announced that it had repelled six attacks by Ukraine’s 68th Jaeger Brigade in the Svatovsk and Krasny Liman directions. A spokesman for the group said that Kiev forces lost 40 troops, an infantry fighting vehicle and an armored vehicle were neutralized. In addition, a Strela-10 short-range air defense system was destroyed with a Lancet loitering munition.
Moreover, the group’s artillery targeted 30 firing positions of Kiev forces. A Polish-made Krab self-propelled howitzer was also destroyed with a Lancet loitering munition.
The Russian military has foiled three Ukrainian attacks with drones in the Black Sea as well as over the regions of Belgorod and Moscow.
In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that a Ukrainian naval drone attempted to attack two Black Sea fleet warships to the southwest of the port Sevastopol, but was destroyed.
"At 10:55 p.m. today [on August 17] the armed forces of Ukraine have made an unsuccessful attempt to use a naval drone against the Black Sea fleet warships tasked with overseeing the navigation in the southwestern section of the Black Sea, some 237 kilometers to the southwest of Sevastopol," the ministry said.
The ministry added that the drone was destroyed by fire from standard weapons mounted on the two vessels, the Pytlivyy frigate and the Vasily Bykov patrol ship.
"Currently, the ships continue to perform their assigned tasks," the ministry added.
In a later statement, the ministry said that a Ukrainian drone was shot down by Russian air defenses over the Belgorod region.
"At 10:22 p.m. Moscow time on August 17, the Kiev regime’s attempt to use a fixed-wing drone for carrying out a terror attack on facilities on the Russian territory was thwarted. Russian missile defenses on combat duty detected the drone and destroyed it above the territory of the Belgorod Region," the ministry said, adding that there were no casualties or material losses.
A few hours later, a second Ukrainian drone was shot down by Russian air defenses over the Moscow region, according to the ministry.
"At around 4:00 a.m. Moscow time [on August 18], the Kiev Regime attempted to carry out another terror attack with the use of an unmanned aerial vehicle, which targeted facilities in Moscow and the Moscow Region," the ministry said in a statement.
"After being hit by the air defenses, the drone changed its flight path and fell on a non-residential building near Moscow’s Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment," it said. "[The incident caused] no damage or fire."
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said that fragments from the drone fell on the premises of the Expocenter exhibition complex in downtown Moscow, causing no significant damage to the building.
Meanwhile, emergency services told the TASS news agency that a section of the building’s outer wall had collapsed at an area of around 30 square meters.
The recent wave of attacks came as Kiev forces continue to struggle and sustain heavy losses across the frontline.
Yan Gagin, an advisor to Donetsk People’s Republic Acting Head Denis Pushilin, told TASS on August 18 that the Russian military had destroyed Ukraine’s main group of forces in the Urozhainoye direction.
"The main enemy forces in Urozhainoye were destroyed by our heavy weapons. They are currently having difficulty deploying reserves there as our artillery controls the access to the area, hampering the logistics for the enemy and wiping out any approaching equipment or personnel," Gagin said.
According to the advisor, the Ukrainians have failed to reach the flanks near Urozhainoye, with losses in manpower and equipment growing at this part of the frontline.
In a related development, the Russian Tsentr Group of Forces announced that it had repelled six attacks by Ukraine’s 68th Jaeger Brigade in the Svatovsk and Krasny Liman directions. A spokesman for the group said that Kiev forces lost 40 troops, an infantry fighting vehicle and an armored vehicle were neutralized. In addition, a Strela-10 short-range air defense system was destroyed with a Lancet loitering munition.
Moreover, the group’s artillery targeted 30 firing positions of Kiev forces. A Polish-made Krab self-propelled howitzer was also destroyed with a Lancet loitering munition.
The air defense of the group shot down three Ukrainian drones, according to the spokesman, who added that the group’s fighter bombers carried out airstrikes against a command and observation post, two temporary deployment areas and a field ammunition depot of Kiev forces near Druzhelyubovka, Nevskoye and Serebryanka.
Meanwhile, Russian news sources shared videos from the Zaporozhye direction showing the destruction of several Ukrainian combat vehicles during a recent battle as well as several pinpoint strikes with FPV suicide drones.
With week eleven of the Ukrainian counteroffensive nearing its end, Kiev forces are still bogged down kilometers away from the Russian military’s first line of defense. Repeated attacks on Russian waters and territory will not change this situation.
Meanwhile, Russian news sources shared videos from the Zaporozhye direction showing the destruction of several Ukrainian combat vehicles during a recent battle as well as several pinpoint strikes with FPV suicide drones.
With week eleven of the Ukrainian counteroffensive nearing its end, Kiev forces are still bogged down kilometers away from the Russian military’s first line of defense. Repeated attacks on Russian waters and territory will not change this situation.
F-16 NOT A GAME-CHANGER BUT A PATCH FOR UKRAINIAN MILITARY
The United States approved the transfer of F-16 fighter jets from Denmark and the Netherlands to Ukraine upon completion of pilot training, Danish Foreign Minister confirmed. There are no more obstacles to the delivery of F-16 fighters to Kiev, the head of the Danish Foreign Ministry concluded.
Earlier, the United States agreed to train Ukrainian pilots and added that they could send fighters by the end of the year. Denmark and the Netherlands confirmed their participation in the training program with the support of the United States, Belgium, France and the United Kingdom. The coalition of 11 countries was supposed to start training this month, but the process apparently turned out to be more difficult than expected due to the incompetence of Ukrainian servicemen.
Ukraine has prepared a list of 32 pilots who were ready for training but it turned out that only eight of them reportedly speak English. The others must start their training with English courses in Britain.
Kiev has already received a simulator from the Czech Republic and solemnly issued a postage stamp in honor of the F-16 fighter. However, the real aircraft are still far away. According to various estimates, the F-16s may appear over the Ukrainian frontlines no earlier than in the spring of 2024 or later.
The transfer of military aircraft to Kiev was only a matter of time after the supply of Western cruise missiles.
Today, Washington and its NATO friends have no choice but to throw more perks to their puppets in order to somehow support the helpless and morale-stricken Ukrainian Army. Amid the horrific losses and defeats on the frontlines, the new "gifts" from NATO are the only way to prolong the conflict. Single air defense systems, several dozen modern tanks, a stream of ammunition and even several dozen additional aircraft for the battered Armed Forces of Ukraine are not able to lead the Ukrainian military to victory.
The transfer of aircraft will not change the factor of Russian dominance in the air and the F-16s risk becoming just another target for Russian air defenses. Poor English lessons at school are not the only problem faced by Ukrainian pilots. They will have to work not only under the gaze of the Russian air defense forces, but also on dilapidated airfields under constant attacks by Russian missiles. It should not be excluded that foreign professional pilots will join the war to save the expensive aircraft from their imminent destruction.
Western military equipment has already been humiliated on the Ukrainian fronts and has brought valuable samples to the Russian military for study. F-16 fighter jets will only add to this list.
The transfer of the F-16 will not be able to reverse the course of the conflict, where the Ukrainian front is already close to destruction. The main task of Western patrons is not to lead Kiev to victory, but to prolong the conflict as long as possible until the Russians get tired of the bloodshed.
However, F-16 may trigger a more terrible conflict. The Kremlin warned that their transfer to Kiev would be considered a nuclear threat from the West, because the aircraft can carry nuclear warheads.
The United States approved the transfer of F-16 fighter jets from Denmark and the Netherlands to Ukraine upon completion of pilot training, Danish Foreign Minister confirmed. There are no more obstacles to the delivery of F-16 fighters to Kiev, the head of the Danish Foreign Ministry concluded.
Earlier, the United States agreed to train Ukrainian pilots and added that they could send fighters by the end of the year. Denmark and the Netherlands confirmed their participation in the training program with the support of the United States, Belgium, France and the United Kingdom. The coalition of 11 countries was supposed to start training this month, but the process apparently turned out to be more difficult than expected due to the incompetence of Ukrainian servicemen.
Ukraine has prepared a list of 32 pilots who were ready for training but it turned out that only eight of them reportedly speak English. The others must start their training with English courses in Britain.
Kiev has already received a simulator from the Czech Republic and solemnly issued a postage stamp in honor of the F-16 fighter. However, the real aircraft are still far away. According to various estimates, the F-16s may appear over the Ukrainian frontlines no earlier than in the spring of 2024 or later.
The transfer of military aircraft to Kiev was only a matter of time after the supply of Western cruise missiles.
Today, Washington and its NATO friends have no choice but to throw more perks to their puppets in order to somehow support the helpless and morale-stricken Ukrainian Army. Amid the horrific losses and defeats on the frontlines, the new "gifts" from NATO are the only way to prolong the conflict. Single air defense systems, several dozen modern tanks, a stream of ammunition and even several dozen additional aircraft for the battered Armed Forces of Ukraine are not able to lead the Ukrainian military to victory.
The transfer of aircraft will not change the factor of Russian dominance in the air and the F-16s risk becoming just another target for Russian air defenses. Poor English lessons at school are not the only problem faced by Ukrainian pilots. They will have to work not only under the gaze of the Russian air defense forces, but also on dilapidated airfields under constant attacks by Russian missiles. It should not be excluded that foreign professional pilots will join the war to save the expensive aircraft from their imminent destruction.
Western military equipment has already been humiliated on the Ukrainian fronts and has brought valuable samples to the Russian military for study. F-16 fighter jets will only add to this list.
The transfer of the F-16 will not be able to reverse the course of the conflict, where the Ukrainian front is already close to destruction. The main task of Western patrons is not to lead Kiev to victory, but to prolong the conflict as long as possible until the Russians get tired of the bloodshed.
However, F-16 may trigger a more terrible conflict. The Kremlin warned that their transfer to Kiev would be considered a nuclear threat from the West, because the aircraft can carry nuclear warheads.
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F-16 FOR UKRAINE: STEP TOWARDS GLOBAL NUCLEAR WAR