Friday, December 29, 2017
Thursday, December 28, 2017
British Army:Operation Inherent Resolve Deputy Commander Briefs Pentagon Reporters
Operation Inherent Resolve Deputy Commander Briefs Pentagon Reporters: UK Maj. Gen. Felix Gedney, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve Deputy Commander-Strategy and Support, briefs Pentagon reporters via satellite on operations to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, Dec. 27, 2017.
Wednesday, December 27, 2017
Operation Inherent Resolve:Special Ops Raids Staged in Syrian Desert
Today,27 December 2017,a press release was received from the Special Operations Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve.Datelined Southwest Asia,it stated that:
In union with Coalition counter-Daesh forces,the Maghawir al-Thawra (or MaT,an Arab unit of the Syrian Democratic Forces),conducted a series of ground clearance operations Dec. 23 to drive Daesh out of the Hamad Desert in southern Syria.
Ongoing successful operations follow previous engagements earlier this month,in which the MaT killed several Daesh terrorists in the 55km de-confliction zone recognized by the Coalition,Russia,and the Syrian Regime.*
According to Major General James Jarrad,Commander of OIH's Special Operations Joint Task Force:
The combined operations are a result of many hours of planning,building trust and close cooperation between Coalition Special Operations Forces and the MaT.These operations have disrupted Daesh's freedom of movement by clearing several caves they have historically used to store weapons,explosives and communications equipment.ISIS has repeatedly surfaced in the Hamad Desert.However,inside the de-confliction zone,our partner forces have successfully thwarted ISIS' movements.*
No details were given as to which other Coalition partners participated or what their roles were,nor whether there were any casualties.
In union with Coalition counter-Daesh forces,the Maghawir al-Thawra (or MaT,an Arab unit of the Syrian Democratic Forces),conducted a series of ground clearance operations Dec. 23 to drive Daesh out of the Hamad Desert in southern Syria.
Ongoing successful operations follow previous engagements earlier this month,in which the MaT killed several Daesh terrorists in the 55km de-confliction zone recognized by the Coalition,Russia,and the Syrian Regime.*
According to Major General James Jarrad,Commander of OIH's Special Operations Joint Task Force:
The combined operations are a result of many hours of planning,building trust and close cooperation between Coalition Special Operations Forces and the MaT.These operations have disrupted Daesh's freedom of movement by clearing several caves they have historically used to store weapons,explosives and communications equipment.ISIS has repeatedly surfaced in the Hamad Desert.However,inside the de-confliction zone,our partner forces have successfully thwarted ISIS' movements.*
No details were given as to which other Coalition partners participated or what their roles were,nor whether there were any casualties.
Saturday, December 23, 2017
Shop Talk - Christmas Break
Have a blessed Christmas,if you are celebrating it.Thank you for being my readers.Ad astra,to the stars.
Thursday, December 21, 2017
Tuesday, December 19, 2017
Crush the Enemy:CIA Covert Forces Expand Afghanistan Mission
Far from being drawn down as US military forces are being augmented in Afghanistan under the President's new South Asia Strategy,the CIA's Special Activities Division/Special Operations Group paramilitaries are reportedly also expanding their role in a conflict that has spanned more than sixteen years.It is said that President Donald Trump and his CIA director,Mike Pompeo,are determined to make the most of the Agency's paramilitary capability in hopes of quickening the end of the Taliban militants and other Islamist extremist elements who are trying to wreck the emergent democracy,such as al-Qaida,the Haqqani Network and ISIL-Khorasan.Speaking at the University of Texas in October,Mr.Pompeo said:
This is unforgiving,relentless.You pick the word.Every minute,we have to focus on crushing our enemies.If we are not out pushing the envelope,the Agency will not succeed.*
Immediately after the 9-11 attacks,the CIA was first on the ground in Afghanistan in the form of a small paramilitary team codenamed JAWBREAKER.This team and its follow-ons linked up with the indigenous resistance,the Northern Alliance,under Ahmad Shah Masood,gathering HUMINT on the Taliban and their al-Qaida guests and conducting joint operations with US and British military SOFs and the NA to eject the Taliban from cities such as Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif.Once the Taliban had been thrown out of power in Afghanistan,however,the SAD Ground Branch settled into the role of training Afghan forces and collecting HUMINT,while the Air Branch struck targets inside Pakistan with armed Predator drones.*
The Agency's paramilitaries,be they recruited from the Armed Forces' Special Operations Command or from within the CIA,are trained for proficiency in:
sabotage;abduction;bomb damage assessment;personnel and material recovery;hostage rescue;and counterterrorism.That's not surprising,what with them being the heirs of the World War II Office of Strategic Services.
Typically operating in teams of six or less,they may even be tasked with solo missions.On the other hand,they have been frequently sent on joint operations with the Pentagon's SOFs and the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces.This is the joint role they are moving into now,as leaders of hybrid Counterterrorism Pursuit Teams with Pentagon SOFs detailed to the CIA under the Omega Program and ANDSF members.They are to range across the country seeking to quash Taliban bomb-makers in particular,as the mainline US SOFs and Afghan commandos focus on recapturing Taliban territory.The Taliban IED factories are a rising threat as the militants turn more to destabilising bombing campaigns,unable to make headway against the greatly improved ADNSF and their US advisors.
The CPTs will also include Afghan intelligence officers from the National Directorate of Security as well as CIA contractors.The SAD Air Branch was trying to expand its role to include an armed drone campaign within Afghanistan itself,not just striking militants in neighbouring Pakistan,but it isn't known if that was finally approved.
This is unforgiving,relentless.You pick the word.Every minute,we have to focus on crushing our enemies.If we are not out pushing the envelope,the Agency will not succeed.*
Immediately after the 9-11 attacks,the CIA was first on the ground in Afghanistan in the form of a small paramilitary team codenamed JAWBREAKER.This team and its follow-ons linked up with the indigenous resistance,the Northern Alliance,under Ahmad Shah Masood,gathering HUMINT on the Taliban and their al-Qaida guests and conducting joint operations with US and British military SOFs and the NA to eject the Taliban from cities such as Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif.Once the Taliban had been thrown out of power in Afghanistan,however,the SAD Ground Branch settled into the role of training Afghan forces and collecting HUMINT,while the Air Branch struck targets inside Pakistan with armed Predator drones.*
The Agency's paramilitaries,be they recruited from the Armed Forces' Special Operations Command or from within the CIA,are trained for proficiency in:
sabotage;abduction;bomb damage assessment;personnel and material recovery;hostage rescue;and counterterrorism.That's not surprising,what with them being the heirs of the World War II Office of Strategic Services.
Typically operating in teams of six or less,they may even be tasked with solo missions.On the other hand,they have been frequently sent on joint operations with the Pentagon's SOFs and the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces.This is the joint role they are moving into now,as leaders of hybrid Counterterrorism Pursuit Teams with Pentagon SOFs detailed to the CIA under the Omega Program and ANDSF members.They are to range across the country seeking to quash Taliban bomb-makers in particular,as the mainline US SOFs and Afghan commandos focus on recapturing Taliban territory.The Taliban IED factories are a rising threat as the militants turn more to destabilising bombing campaigns,unable to make headway against the greatly improved ADNSF and their US advisors.
The CPTs will also include Afghan intelligence officers from the National Directorate of Security as well as CIA contractors.The SAD Air Branch was trying to expand its role to include an armed drone campaign within Afghanistan itself,not just striking militants in neighbouring Pakistan,but it isn't known if that was finally approved.
Monday, December 18, 2017
Tuesday, December 12, 2017
Afghanistan:'It's A New War,'Air Force General Says - fifth generation fighters used
On 12 December 2017,US Air Force Brigadier General Lance Bunch,Director of Future Operations CJ-35,Resolute Support Headquarters,Kabul,Afghanistan,addressed the media at the Pentagon via teleconference.He is in charge of synchronisation,contingency planning and air campaign integration for Resolute Support Mission and Operation Freedom's Sentinel.BRIG GEN Bunch said that:
As General Nicholson has said,we will be here until the job is done.Our future shop developed an air interdiction campaign,a counter-revenue campaign using air power.We have been able to target the Taliban in their safe zones,their command and control nodes,illicit revenue-generating ventures and their logistical network.This new air interdiction campaign directly strengthens the Afghan defence forces and their continued battlefield success.In the past three weeks,since the campaign began,we have been able to eliminate 25 narcotics processing labs from the Taliban inventory.This amounts to nearly 80 million dollars in drug money from the kingpins' pockets,while denying over 16 million in direct revenue to their Taliban partners.*
The US Marines have also been able to use their HiMARS rockets against such facilities.The Afghan National Interdiction Unit also conducted two simultaneous raids of Taliban narcotics bazaars as part of this campaign.This resulted in over 2,000 kg of heroin and 5,000 kg of opium getting confiscated.The Taliban narcotics leadership has been caught off guard,so we were able to target Mullah Shah Wali,the Taliban special forces branch,or Red Unit,commander of this Taliban squad in Helmand Province,delivering yet another blow to this criminal network.This was a joint effort by the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces,the US Army,Air Force,Navy and Marines,all collectively exercising authorities granted under the South Asia Policy-and it's not over;in fact,it's only just begun,and this will be a very long winter for the Taliban,as we will continue to disrupt their resources again,and again,and again-but a key part of these operations are a strong Afghan defence forces.Whereas before we could only embed at the Corps level,our new SAP will allow us to embed all the way down to the Kandak,or Battalion level.This allows us to train,advise and assist Afghan units and leaders directly controlling the fight,and accelerate their transition to increased ability and capacity.The US force uplift announced in the new SAP has already happened.This policy,coupled with our air campaign,will allow Afghan defence forces to keep pressure on the Taliban through the winter.*
In early 2018,the new Security Force Assistance Brigade will deploy into theatre and further enhance our assistance to the Afghan security forces going into the next fighting season.The Taliban have been unable to take a provincial capital or even a single city.This year,the Taliban have fared poorly.We,along with our Afghan partners,are on the path to victory.Now,with our new authorities,we're able to target networks,not just individual fighters.Our SFAB will deploy in the March of 2018 time frame.*
We're currently unfolding the air interdiction campaign.We continue to leverage our Intelligence,Surveillance and Reconnaissance across the theatre to find the enemy wherever they may be so that we can develop targets.There's been much said that as the war in Iraq and Syria starts to wind down,the main effort will shift to Afghanistan;and as those assets become available and come to us,we'll of course be able to leverage them to full effect.*
We're looking to triple the size of the Afghan Air Force by 2023.They did 500 more sorties in 2017 than 2016.This is a new war,and the gloves are off,if you will.We are able to go after the Taliban support structure,whereas before we could only strike in support of the Afghan forces that were in contact with the enemy.So now we're able to go after their weapons cache sites;their revenue generators;their C2 nodes-all the ones where they thought they were safe and they are no longer,so it has definitely been a game changer and the Taliban is definitely feeling it.I think what General Nicholson said is that the war is in a stalemate,but the momentum is definitely shifting to the ANDSF.*
The assets we've been using include the B-52 with its new conventional rotary launcher;the F-22;F-16;A-29;HiMARS;F/A-18;over the horizon air refueling assets;JSTARS and ISR assets.We used the fifth generation F-22 fighter jet to limit collateral damage in the Northern Helmand interdiction campaign.The most precise weapon at our disposal is the small diameter bomb carried by the F-22s.*
We're looking for opportunities to disrupt their ability to fund their operations,to recruit fighters or buy weapons.The Taliban gets 300-500 million a year as their total budget.Sixty percent comes from their narco-processing trade;the vast majority of that comes from Northern Helmand,which is their economic engine.The forces we have right now are enough to keep the ANDSF on the offensive through the winter.*
BRIG GEN Bunch said that,besides the Taliban,ISIL-Khorasan had up to 1,000 fighters in Afghanistan;but he didn't have the number of recent US air strikes on al-Qaida fighters on hand.US Forces Afghanistan does not currently have the authority to conduct airstrikes on Pakistan.Asked whether the uplift in US forces has resulted in the drawdown of the CIA's Ground Branch paramilitary operatives,who have been active in Afghanistan since right after 9-11,BRIG GEN Bunch said that was beyond his pay grade.
As General Nicholson has said,we will be here until the job is done.Our future shop developed an air interdiction campaign,a counter-revenue campaign using air power.We have been able to target the Taliban in their safe zones,their command and control nodes,illicit revenue-generating ventures and their logistical network.This new air interdiction campaign directly strengthens the Afghan defence forces and their continued battlefield success.In the past three weeks,since the campaign began,we have been able to eliminate 25 narcotics processing labs from the Taliban inventory.This amounts to nearly 80 million dollars in drug money from the kingpins' pockets,while denying over 16 million in direct revenue to their Taliban partners.*
The US Marines have also been able to use their HiMARS rockets against such facilities.The Afghan National Interdiction Unit also conducted two simultaneous raids of Taliban narcotics bazaars as part of this campaign.This resulted in over 2,000 kg of heroin and 5,000 kg of opium getting confiscated.The Taliban narcotics leadership has been caught off guard,so we were able to target Mullah Shah Wali,the Taliban special forces branch,or Red Unit,commander of this Taliban squad in Helmand Province,delivering yet another blow to this criminal network.This was a joint effort by the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces,the US Army,Air Force,Navy and Marines,all collectively exercising authorities granted under the South Asia Policy-and it's not over;in fact,it's only just begun,and this will be a very long winter for the Taliban,as we will continue to disrupt their resources again,and again,and again-but a key part of these operations are a strong Afghan defence forces.Whereas before we could only embed at the Corps level,our new SAP will allow us to embed all the way down to the Kandak,or Battalion level.This allows us to train,advise and assist Afghan units and leaders directly controlling the fight,and accelerate their transition to increased ability and capacity.The US force uplift announced in the new SAP has already happened.This policy,coupled with our air campaign,will allow Afghan defence forces to keep pressure on the Taliban through the winter.*
In early 2018,the new Security Force Assistance Brigade will deploy into theatre and further enhance our assistance to the Afghan security forces going into the next fighting season.The Taliban have been unable to take a provincial capital or even a single city.This year,the Taliban have fared poorly.We,along with our Afghan partners,are on the path to victory.Now,with our new authorities,we're able to target networks,not just individual fighters.Our SFAB will deploy in the March of 2018 time frame.*
We're currently unfolding the air interdiction campaign.We continue to leverage our Intelligence,Surveillance and Reconnaissance across the theatre to find the enemy wherever they may be so that we can develop targets.There's been much said that as the war in Iraq and Syria starts to wind down,the main effort will shift to Afghanistan;and as those assets become available and come to us,we'll of course be able to leverage them to full effect.*
We're looking to triple the size of the Afghan Air Force by 2023.They did 500 more sorties in 2017 than 2016.This is a new war,and the gloves are off,if you will.We are able to go after the Taliban support structure,whereas before we could only strike in support of the Afghan forces that were in contact with the enemy.So now we're able to go after their weapons cache sites;their revenue generators;their C2 nodes-all the ones where they thought they were safe and they are no longer,so it has definitely been a game changer and the Taliban is definitely feeling it.I think what General Nicholson said is that the war is in a stalemate,but the momentum is definitely shifting to the ANDSF.*
The assets we've been using include the B-52 with its new conventional rotary launcher;the F-22;F-16;A-29;HiMARS;F/A-18;over the horizon air refueling assets;JSTARS and ISR assets.We used the fifth generation F-22 fighter jet to limit collateral damage in the Northern Helmand interdiction campaign.The most precise weapon at our disposal is the small diameter bomb carried by the F-22s.*
We're looking for opportunities to disrupt their ability to fund their operations,to recruit fighters or buy weapons.The Taliban gets 300-500 million a year as their total budget.Sixty percent comes from their narco-processing trade;the vast majority of that comes from Northern Helmand,which is their economic engine.The forces we have right now are enough to keep the ANDSF on the offensive through the winter.*
BRIG GEN Bunch said that,besides the Taliban,ISIL-Khorasan had up to 1,000 fighters in Afghanistan;but he didn't have the number of recent US air strikes on al-Qaida fighters on hand.US Forces Afghanistan does not currently have the authority to conduct airstrikes on Pakistan.Asked whether the uplift in US forces has resulted in the drawdown of the CIA's Ground Branch paramilitary operatives,who have been active in Afghanistan since right after 9-11,BRIG GEN Bunch said that was beyond his pay grade.
Monday, December 11, 2017
Thursday, December 7, 2017
Wednesday, December 6, 2017
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
Korea:As War Becomes More Likely,Large Airpower Drill Gains Importance - plus which other nations are committed to help defend South Korea
In a swirl of rhetorical skirmishing between the US and North Korea,US-South Korea Airpower Exercise Vigilant Ace 18-1 began on 4 December 2017 and concludes on 8 December.About 12,000 US personnel and Republic of Korea Airmen are taking part in a realistic air combat drill with 230 aircraft stationed at eight bases,US Pacific Air Forces said.There will be a decided emphasis on US fifth generation fighters,with 12 US Marine Corps F-35B and six US Air Force F-35A aircraft joined by US Air Force F-22 Raptors.In addition,the stalwart F-16 Fighting Falcon and F-15 Eagle will assist;as well as US Navy and Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet/Super Hornet fighters;US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II ground attack jets;E/A-18 Growler electronic attack jets;B-1B Lancer bombers;C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft;and ROK F-15K Slam Eagle and F-4 Phantom II fighters as well.*
According to a release from 51st Fighter Wing Commander Colonel William Betts,Osan Air Base,ROK:
My biggest expectation for the Wing is to remove any 'exercise' mindset from the equation and maximize the realism of every response.We will ensure we have no regrets if we find ourselves executing contingency operations.
In the event we need to help defend our 5.1 million Korean allies,I need to be sure the 51st Fighter Wing is synchronized with the Combined Joint-Force.Vigilant Ace is a chance for us to do just that;focus on getting smarter,faster and more capable than we were yesterday while we generate combat airpower and strengthen the alliance.*
Korean locations involved in the drills are:Kunsan,Osan,Jungwan,Gwangju,Wonju,Daegu,Seosan and Cheongju.At these bases,the USAF,US Marine Corps and US Navy will be testing their warfighting skills with the ROK Air Force,focused on the full-spectrum deterrence of,or,if necessary,actual defeating of,the rapidly evolving threats from the North.Units from across US Pacific Command are embedding at these bases to augment their combat forces and ensure VA 18-1 is as true to life as possible,enhancing operational and tactical level coordination,while integrating and practicing combat operations against realistic air and ground threats.The drills will ensure the capability to deter aggression,preserve the armistice,defend the ROK and defeat any attack against the alliance.
North Korea calls VA 18-1:
a ceaseless large-scale war game,creating a situation that a nuclear war could break out at any moment.*
To the mind of US National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster,the risk of war from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un:
I think it's increasing every day,which means we are in a race to be able to solve this problem.Every time he conducts a missile launch,a nuclear test,he gets better.He's getting closer and closer,and there's not much time left.*
In the event of war,besides the US and ROK,15 other nations committed to help defend the ROK when the 1953 armistice was signed.Several of them sent contingents to annual wargames on the Korean Peninsula in 2017,including:
Australia,Canada,Columbia,Denmark,France,New Zealand,the Netherlands and the UK.The USAF 7th Air Force says:
This effort will require coordinated and integrated Airpower in a congested and contested battlespace.
According to a release from 51st Fighter Wing Commander Colonel William Betts,Osan Air Base,ROK:
My biggest expectation for the Wing is to remove any 'exercise' mindset from the equation and maximize the realism of every response.We will ensure we have no regrets if we find ourselves executing contingency operations.
In the event we need to help defend our 5.1 million Korean allies,I need to be sure the 51st Fighter Wing is synchronized with the Combined Joint-Force.Vigilant Ace is a chance for us to do just that;focus on getting smarter,faster and more capable than we were yesterday while we generate combat airpower and strengthen the alliance.*
Korean locations involved in the drills are:Kunsan,Osan,Jungwan,Gwangju,Wonju,Daegu,Seosan and Cheongju.At these bases,the USAF,US Marine Corps and US Navy will be testing their warfighting skills with the ROK Air Force,focused on the full-spectrum deterrence of,or,if necessary,actual defeating of,the rapidly evolving threats from the North.Units from across US Pacific Command are embedding at these bases to augment their combat forces and ensure VA 18-1 is as true to life as possible,enhancing operational and tactical level coordination,while integrating and practicing combat operations against realistic air and ground threats.The drills will ensure the capability to deter aggression,preserve the armistice,defend the ROK and defeat any attack against the alliance.
North Korea calls VA 18-1:
a ceaseless large-scale war game,creating a situation that a nuclear war could break out at any moment.*
To the mind of US National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster,the risk of war from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un:
I think it's increasing every day,which means we are in a race to be able to solve this problem.Every time he conducts a missile launch,a nuclear test,he gets better.He's getting closer and closer,and there's not much time left.*
In the event of war,besides the US and ROK,15 other nations committed to help defend the ROK when the 1953 armistice was signed.Several of them sent contingents to annual wargames on the Korean Peninsula in 2017,including:
Australia,Canada,Columbia,Denmark,France,New Zealand,the Netherlands and the UK.The USAF 7th Air Force says:
This effort will require coordinated and integrated Airpower in a congested and contested battlespace.
Friday, December 1, 2017
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