Russia’s feared “Spetsnaz” special forces units have surrounded the Syrian city of Aleppo. 70,000 of Syrian refugees are fleeing the fighting between ISIS and a coalition of Syrian government forces together with Russian special forces and Iranian-Lebanese Hezbollah fighters. The commandos are said to be acting covertly with regime forces in retaking parts of Aleppo from ISIS militants after years of civil war.
Two days ago, a Saudi military spokesperson told AP that the kingdom is ready to send ground troops to Syria “to fight ISIS.”
That served as confirmation of what we’ve been saying for months and represented an affirmative answer to the following question that we posed in December: "Did Saudi Arabia just clear the way for an invasion of Syria?"
Hezbollah in Lebanon has ambushed an Israeli patrol with a roadside bomb at its disputed border with Israel. The militant group has claimed retaliation for the death of one of their senior commanders, allegedly assassinated by Israel recently. The patrol supposedly included a senior Israeli officer that was targeted, according to the group. The Belfast Telegraph reports: Hezbollah said it set off a large explosive device as the patrol passed in the disputed Chebaa Farms area, destroying a vehicle and causing casualties among the soldiers inside.
Two weeks ago, the IAF assassinated infamous Lebanese militant Samir Kuntar.
Kuntar was held by Israel for nearly three decades in connection with his role in a 1979 raid that killed four people including a four-year-old girl. He returned to Lebanon in 2008 in a prisoner swap with Hezbollah, which he subsequently joined.
To the Israelis, Kuntar is evil incarnate - the very embodiment of terrorism. For many in Iran and Lebanon, he’s something of a folk hero. Here he is with Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah:
Earlier this month, in “Israel Conducts Secret Training Exercises Against Russian Air Defense Systems,” we highlighted a Reuters report which suggested that Israel has been conducting tests against an S-300 missile system in Crete.