War

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has forced the Pentagon to release classified photos of prisoner abuse at U.S. military facilities in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Defense Department has released 198 photographs in response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit that was filed more than ten years ago. ACLU reports: The photos mostly show close-ups of body parts like arms, legs, and heads, many with injuries. There are also wider shots of prisoners, most of them bound or blindfolded.

Syria’s Foreign Minister has warned that any ground operation in Syria, carried out without consent from Damascus, would be viewed as an act of aggression.

Exclusive: After Saudi-backed Syrian rebels balked at peace talks and the Russian-backed Syrian army cut off Turkish supply lines to jihadists and other Syrian rebels, the U.S. and its Mideast Sunni “allies” appear poised to invade Syria and force “regime change” even at the risk of fighting Russia, a gamble with nuclear war, writes Joe…

Manpower from Iran and bombs from Russia have enabled the Syrian troops to come within a few miles of encircling Aleppo. Thousands are fleeing the area in fear of an impending siege. ISW reports: Battlefield realities rather than great power politics will determine the ultimate terms of a settlement to end the Syrian Civil War.

"We are in a serious situation and there is a high risk that there could be an attack. But the security agencies, the intelligence services and the police authorities are very alert and our goal is to minimize the risk as best we can.”

That’s from Hans-Georg Maassen head of Germany's domestic intelligence agency and it certainly doesn’t inspire much in the way of confidence.