g********2
发帖数: 6571 | 1 Syria's New US-Backed Force Stumbles in First Test
The call came around noon, about four hours after U.S.-backed Syrian
fighters announced they had taken over an air base outside a town held by
the Islamic State group near the Iraqi border. "We are trapped. Pray for us,
" a commander called into the operation room.
Then communication was cut. Six hours later, the exhausted fighters from the
group, known as the New Syrian Army, returned to their base in Tanf, nearly
150 miles (240 kilometers) across the desert to the west, having lost four
fighters, four vehicles and ammunition.
The swift, humiliating defeat last Wednesday marked the end of a widely
advertised offensive launched less than 24 hours earlier with intense U.S.-
led air cover. The fighters had hoped to capture Boukamal, a prize
possession of IS and the extremist group's last border crossing between Iraq
and Syria.
The Boukamal offensive was the first serious attempt to take on IS in the
northeastern province of Deir el-Zour, and the first major test for the
nascent force of some 1,000 fighters, formed in November from a coalition of
Syrian army defectors, local militias and Islamist fighting groups, many of
them from the area.
The quick collapse of the offensive reflects the difficulties the U.S. faces
in creating an effective Syrian force against IS, given the complex terrain
, competing personal and tribal loyalties — and the extremists' continued
ability to fight on multiple fronts.
The U.S. has struggled to find local partners in Syria. The exception has
been the Kurds, who heavily dominate the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic
Forces, which have had success wresting territory from IS in the north.
All other known attempts to train rebel groups have largely failed, in part
because of Washington's focus on the fight against IS rather than toppling
the Syrian government, and its failure to protect its partners from better-
equipped rivals.
The offensive on Boukamal, a city of nearly 160,000 people along the
Euphrates River — mostly Sunni Arab tribes that move freely between Iraq
and Syria — aimed to take advantage of IS' focus on defending its northern
stronghold of Manbij, which is under attack by the SDF.
Some 200 New Syrian Army fighters took part in the Boukamal operation,
according to activists and media reports. They had extensive air support
from the U.S.-led coalition, a vote of confidence in the new force, said
Jennifer Cafarella, of the Institute for the Study of War. But the group "is
definitely not off to a good start," she told The Associated Press.
Commanders of the U.S.-backed militia say they have received extensive
training since June last year by U.S. and British special forces, with the
Jordanian military playing an advisory role. Activists and observers say the
group appears to have equipment and weapons not often seen with other
rebels, such as special vehicles for difficult terrain and exclusively U.S.-
made small arms.
U.S. officials have not specified the extent of their support for the group,
which has been channeled through the Pentagon. The U.S. military refers to
the New Syrian Army as a "partner."
The group's first major operation — though much smaller than the Boukamal
push — was in March, when it took over Tanf, a smaller IS-held crossing on
the border with Jordan.
Ahead of the Boukamal offensive, the American-backed fighters posted a
number of messages online indicating that an attack was imminent and
taunting IS as "rats." Days before the New Syrian Army offensive, IS
announced it had killed five Boukamal residents, describing them as spies.
The fighters made gains early on, taking the small Hamdan air base — but
then the offensive quickly unraveled.
A member of the New Syrian Army debriefed on the battle said the American-
backed force closed two or three routes to the base but left another one
unguarded. IS then used that approach to attack and surround the facility.
The member of the force spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not
authorized to speak to reporters.
After hours of fighting and heavy airstrikes, the U.S.-backed fighters found
a way to escape, but were chased for six hours. Reinforcement from a
separate U.S.-backed brigade arrived, the group member said, adding that
some tribal members in the area offered logistical support but didn't take
part in the fighting.
The spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition, Col. Christopher Garver, described
the Boukamal operation as a "very tough fight," and acknowledged it had
been a setback. He said the implications will need to be analyzed to
determine the way forward.
Analysts and members of the American-backed force believe it has the
advantage of being able to draw on local support, unlike Shiite or Kurdish
forces. Many Arab Sunni tribes in the area have allied with IS, either out
of fear of the extremists or anger at the Shiite-led government in Baghdad.
Soon after IS declared its so-called caliphate in 2014, some local tribes
tried to rise up against it. The extremists responded with a brutal
crackdown, shooting and beheading hundreds of members of the prominent
Shueitat tribe, which lives in the area north of Boukamal. An estimated 700
to 1,000 tribesmen were killed or are missing.
IS recently imposed an internet blackout in Boukamal, in what some saw as an
attempt to prevent locals from joining the New Syrian Army. The member of
the U.S.-backed force said that at one point during the offensive, IS spread
rumors online that fighters had entered the city, hoping to expose and
arrest "sleeper cells" who tried to help the New Syrian Army.
Khaled al-Hamad, a member of one of the main component groups of the New
Syrian Army, said they had hoped for support from Iraqi Sunni tribal
fighters, but it didn't materialize.
Jordanian military analyst Fayez al-Duweri said any sleeper cells in areas
controlled by IS "will not move until they are certain that IS will be
defeated because they know the group's brutality."
The spokesman for the New Syrian Army insisted his group was not a lost
cause, despite the defeat.
"This was a strike in the heart of the so-called Daesh state amid its core
of supporters," Mozahem al-Saloum said. "The desert is their playing field,
and we tackled them in it to strike at their stronghold."
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/syrias-us-backed-force-stumbles-test-40310216 | d*****n
发帖数: 754 | 2 那个叫伪军
us,
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【在 g********2 的大作中提到】
: Syria's New US-Backed Force Stumbles in First Test
: The call came around noon, about four hours after U.S.-backed Syrian
: fighters announced they had taken over an air base outside a town held by
: the Islamic State group near the Iraqi border. "We are trapped. Pray for us,
: " a commander called into the operation room.
: Then communication was cut. Six hours later, the exhausted fighters from the
: group, known as the New Syrian Army, returned to their base in Tanf, nearly
: 150 miles (240 kilometers) across the desert to the west, having lost four
: fighters, four vehicles and ammunition.
: The swift, humiliating defeat last Wednesday marked the end of a widely
| g********2
发帖数: 6571 | 3 奥巴马指望靠这些人打败ISIS和阿萨德政府军，完全是笑话。
也许按俄国人的计划，先不动阿萨德政府，只消灭ISIS，或许还有点希望。 |
|
