Syria death toll surpasses 170,000

a reply to: r0xor

Yes Israel and Saudi Arabia are involved but Assad forces still remain firm. I hope it is all talk.

a reply to: r0xor

Well ISIS self-proclaimed that they run as the Islamic State now (notice how the media call them it) and they seem to be holding their ground in Iraq and Syria...There's even some reports that their flag have been spotted in Gaza...would make sense to go over there though to protect the Sunnis

Wouldn't even be able to make a guess at who they're fighting for, or against or if they're being funded and/or controlled...Whatever the truth is the chances are slim that we would be told

a reply to: conz1992

Today, Saudi citizens continue to represent a significant funding source for Sunni groups operating in Syria. Arab Gulf donors as a whole -- of which Saudis are believed to be the most charitable -- have funneled hundreds of millions of dollars to Syria in recent years, including to ISIS and other groups. There is support for ISIS in Saudi Arabia, and the group directly targets Saudis with fundraising campaigns, so Riyadh could do much more to limit private funding. U.S. officials have hinted that a combination of politics, logistics, and limited capabilities have impeded more effective Saudi efforts to counter terrorism financing. One particularly difficult problem is how to monitor cash transfers, a method common among Saudi donors.

RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF SAUDI FUNDING
Although Saudi donors and other private contributors were believed to be the most significant funding source for the original forerunner to ISIS, the importance of such donations has been marginalized by the group's independent sources of income. This income, which is now estimated to overwhelmingly exceed private donations, is generated by activities such as smuggling (of oil, weapons, antiquities), extortion (e.g., the group levies around $8 million per month in "taxes" on local businesses), and other crimes (e.g., robberies, counterfeiting). The group's June 11 seizure of Mosul's central bank alone netted tens of millions of dollars (though U.S. officials note that the $400 million figure often cited in connection with the heist is not accurate).

www.washingtoninstitute.org...

a reply to: dragonridr

Ah maybe it has been put in the open then, thanks for the link! Yeah I knew about them siezing money from the bank, but didn't know how much they were being funded from outside sources (local business taxes etc.).

Can and would a terrorist group such as ISIS really make bargains and sales with the west though? Say if ISIS miraculously extorted a few oil fields, and starting selling the oil to the Sauid's, or a Saudi run oil company that sell to America, would the officials even pick up on that? Even if they did I think they would keep quiet about it tbh, money > life