Belgian Physicists Calculate that Everyone Is Lying About the Downed Russian Jet

originally posted by: earthling42
a reply to: 23432

It has been mentioned by several sources that Assad buys oil from IS/ISIS, but that there is a Syrian-Russian business network behind it is new to me.
However this would certainly be an answer to why the oil industry which obviously is very important to IS hasn't been targeted sooner.
Also this could be a good reason why Russia has been so opposed against an intervention.
Up to now i've failed to see any viable reason for the Russian stance on Syria, its obviously not the syrian population he cares about, all the civilian casualties since August are proof of that.
The Qatar-Turkey pipeline that must go across Syria would be since Putin will not want competition from the gulf states that eat away a part of the european market.
If this is so, then Assad is in the way of Turkey and Qatar's plans to realize this pipeline.

Do you have sources which you can share on this network?

By David Blair, Chief Foreign Correspondent 12:01AM GMT 07 Mar 2015 A Syrian businessman described as the "middleman" for oil deals between Isil and Bashar al-Assad's regime will be targeted for European Union sanctions on Saturday.

The listing of George Haswani, the owner of HESCO engineering company, sheds more light on financial links between Syria's regime and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil).

In public, the two belligerents claim to be sworn enemies. Isil has vowed to topple Mr Assad and transform Syria into an Islamic "Caliphate".
But the rise of the jihadist movement has served Mr Assad's interests by allowing him to pose as an essential bulwark against Islamist terrorism.
Isil fighters captured the oilfields of eastern Syria in 2013. Since then, the regime is believed to have funded the jihadists by purchasing oil from Isil.
But those links are understood to extend further than was previously thought. Instead of merely being a customer for Isil's oil, the regime is understood to be running some oil and gas installations jointly with the terrorist movement.
Mr Haswani's company, HESCO, operates a gas plant in Tabqa, a town in central Syria which was captured by Isil last August. Officials believe this installation is being run jointly by Isil and personnel from the regime. The gas facility continues to supply areas of Syria controlled by Mr Assad.

George Haswani buys ISIS oil for ASAD.

Other oil and gas fields in Isil's hands are thought to be operated by personnel who remain on the payroll of the regime's oil ministry.
The oil is then sold to Mr Assad, who distributes it in areas he controls at relatively low prices, helping him to win the loyalty of local people.
Sometimes, the regime has paid for the oil by supplying Isil-held towns with electricity. Mr Haswani, a Christian from the town of Yabroud, will be forbidden from visiting any of the EU's 28 member states from Saturday onwards.
Any assets he holds in EU banks will also be frozen. Philip Hammond, the Foreign Secretary, described Mr Haswani as a "middleman buying oil from Isil on behalf of the regime".
Mr Hammond added: "This listing gives yet another indication that Assad's 'war' on Isil is a sham and that he supports them financially."
Oil probably amounted to Isil's single biggest source of revenue, allowing the movement to achieve financial self sufficiency and avoid dependence upon outside donors.
But this could be changing. Western intelligence services have placed Isil's oil business under the microscope with the aim of identifying its weaknesses.
The goal is to discover the "various points, from upstream to downstream, which might present vulnerabilities," said a senior US Treasury official.
The studies have concluded that Isil's refineries are the weakest link. Facilities of this kind have duly become a priority target for US and allied air strikes in Syria.
About 200 such installations have been destroyed with "enormously disruptive" consequences for Isil's finances, said the official. "We believe there to be a major decrease in their oil revenues from those strikes," he said.
"It's the reason why we think 2015 will show a substantially reduced set of oil revenues from 2014." However, Isil is believed to have adapted its strategy. It now uses smaller and more rudimentary refineries which are harder to target and easier to repair if they are damaged.
The movement is also looking for alternative sources of revenue. One possible motive for its decision to loot the ancient city of Nimrud could be to sell priceless antiquities to smugglers.
The addition of Mr Haswani to the sanctions list brings to 55 the number of Syrian companies and individuals singled out for EU counter-measures.
Another company added to the list on Saturday is accused of supplying Russian-produced banknotes to the Central Bank of Syria. DK Group is described as transferring the banknotes in cargo aircraft flying from Russia to Damascus via a variety of third countries.

US accuses Syria of buying oil from ISIS Geoff Dyer and Jack Farchy Thursday, 26 Nov 2015 | 12:14 AM ETFinancial Times

The US on Wednesday accused Syria of buying oil from the Islamist militants of Isis and imposed sanctions on a Syrian businessman it claimed is at the centre of the trade. The US Treasury department also announced sanctions on Cypriot and Russian businessmen who they allege have helped Syria evade international sanctions, including Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, the head of the world chess federation. While US officials have often claimed that the Syrian government purchases oil from Isis, Wednesday's announcement represents the most direct accusation yet by the administration about the links between the Syrian regime and Isis. "The United States will continue targeting the finances of all those enabling Assad to continue inflicting violence on the Syrian people," said Adam Szubin, acting under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, in a statement. Flag of Taiwan Islamic State thinks Taiwan is an independent country The four individuals and six entities listed by the Treasury will have any assets in the US frozen and will be barred from doing business with US companies or individuals. The administration has been criticised for doing too little to go after Isis's oil infrastructure. However, the sanctions follow three weeks of stepped up air strikes against oilfields and trucks used by smugglers to transport the oil. They were also announced the day before a visit to Moscow by French President François Hollande when he is expected to discuss international co-operation in the campaign against Isis, including efforts to damage the group's finances. The targets of the new sanctions include George Haswani, a Syrian national, and his company, Hesco Engineering and Construction. The Treasury said Mr Haswani, who was placed on an EU sanctions list earlier this year, "serves as a middleman for oil purchases by the Syrian regime from Isis". It said that Hesco operated oil production facilities in Syria "reportedly in areas controlled by Isis". Mr Haswani, who could not be immediately reached on Wednesday for comment, has dismissed the similar European accusations as "fantasies". The Treasury also sanctioned a group of Russian and Cypriot businessmen and companies for allegedly helping the Syrian central bank evade international sanctions. For Mr Ilyumzhinov, the alleged financial association with the government of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad adds to the eccentric Russian millionaire's already eclectic array of connections — from the Dalai Lama to aliens. Mr Ilyumzhinov, a soft-spoken chess fanatic with a penchant for Rolls-Royces, was governor of the tiny Buddhist republic of Kalmykia until 2010 and has led the world chess federation (Fide) for two decades. However, he is best known for his belief in aliens — he has repeatedly recounted an instance when he was abducted in 1997 by "people in yellow spacesuits". More from the Financial Times: Isis: Boots on the ground? Cameron to press for UK bombing of Isis targets in Syria Proxy war in northern Syria threatens US-led strikes The Treasury on Wednesday said that Mr Ilyumzhinov had been added to its sanctions list for "materially assisting and acting for or on behalf of" the government of Syria and the Syrian central bank, as well as two Syrian central bank officials. It did not give further details of the nature of the support, but it pointed to his links with Mudalal Khuri, who the Treasury said "represents [the Syrian] regime business and financial interests in Russia". It also placed under sanctions Russian Financial Alliance Bank, in which Mr Ilyumzhinov is a shareholder. Bernard Kerik Bernie Kerik: Paris-style attack will happen in US Mr Ilyumzhinov has a diverse business empire, stretching from sugar to banking, and a network of contacts to match. He regularly meets the Dalai Lama, and he played chess with Libyan president Muammer Gaddafi shortly before his overthrow. On Wednesday he reacted with surprise to the Treasury's announcement. "I've visited Syria several times, I have met president Bashar al-Assad and other officials. At one time I used to play chess with Saddam Hussein. In chess there is no politics, we are promoting our sport in all countries and we talk to everyone," he told R-Sport, a Russian sports news agency. "As far as the US Treasury is concerned, they are arresting foreign bank accounts, but I don't have a foreign bank account, or flats, or yachts — nothing." He said he would be in the US next week for talks for his next chess world championship match, and had no plans to cancel his trip.

a reply to: 23432

That's also the guy who helped the Maaloula nuns get back to their home, where as Christian they feel safe. He denied at the time most of the BS-grade propaganda you're serving here.
And the fact the EU or the US point the finger at someone is more likely to be sign of loyalty to a particular side rather than a proof of anything.

But the rise of the jihadist movement has served Mr Assad's interests by allowing him to pose as an essential bulwark against Islamist terrorism.

Who has been toppling secular leaders for oil interest all across the middle east for years ?

Isil fighters captured the oilfields of eastern Syria in 2013. Since then, the regime is believed to have funded the jihadists by purchasing oil from Isil.

So Assad-ISIL relations are as of you :
"I buy you oil I could have extracted myself if you weren't there so you can wage war against me ... "
Yeah right !

I find it hard to believe that both sides would be lying about the same thing when they both have different agendas.

docur