US bombs Syrian targets after deadly drone attack

a reply to: putnam6

Never thought that for a second. I will admit that this is a sore subject for me. I apologize if I came across as having an attitude.

originally posted by: Ravenwatcher
Are we officially at war with anyone ?

I don't recall hearing we went to war with Syria so why are we bombing if we are using our military to attack targets then that's war ...

I don't think that we have been "officially at war" since 1945.

originally posted by: JIMC5499

originally posted by: Ravenwatcher
Are we officially at war with anyone ?

I don't recall hearing we went to war with Syria so why are we bombing if we are using our military to attack targets then that's war ...

I don't think that we have been "officially at war" since 1945.

Pretty sure that's correct.

But for those who like to make that point (not necessarily you), it's a purely semantic argument. Undeclared wars are still wars by the definition of the word. Vietnam, Iraq, the Russia-Ukraine conflict going on right now, are clearly all wars, despite war never having been formally declared.

For us as citizens, what matters is whether the war is domestically legal. In the U.S., that means whether Congress authorizes the action. If Congress authorizes it and we, as citizens, don't approve, we can vote them out of office. Unfortunately in this country we vote based on far more important issues, like how mean someone is on Twitter.

I couldn't care less if some international body says it's illegal. They have no authority over us.

a reply to: face23785

When I was being shot at in 1983, you couldn't tell me that it wasn't a war. The same thing in 86.

originally posted by: YouSir
a reply to: putnam6


Ummm...being as the US is there in Syria...Illegally...NO UN mandate...No permission from the Syrian government...

Being as it's just another US invasion of a sovereign nation...in a long line of US invasions of sovereign nations...

Being as The US is just there in Syria to steal oil resources with a pretense of protecting the Kurds...

Perhaps there wouldn't be an issue if the US wasn't illegally occupying Syria...

YouSir

You probably aren't wrong FWIW but Lord don't we have other threads that cover that broader aspect of the Syrian situation? LITERALLY, for every incident happening in the socio/political sphere, one could likely reduce it down to its base or root cause.

Generally, my understanding is we are in Syria because one time an American administration thought it would be fun to dump a #load of arms and munitions in the region. Instead of the intended regime change affect the arms fell into some bad hombre's (ISIS) hands and they were consolidating their power, influence, and territorial gains. Thus we needed the Russians to clamp down as well as have our troops there to protect innocents, that was approximately 9 years ago.

That reality isn't going away anytime soon is it YouSir?... so work the problem of protecting our troops that are there. Is all I'm suggesting with this current thread.

a reply to: putnam6

That's basically what I was telling a friend of mine earlier today. We can agree or disagree about why U.S. troops are there at all. But they are, and as long as they are there, they shouldn't have to just sit there and get bombed. They should be able to defend themselves.

originally posted by: face23785

originally posted by: nugget1

DAMASCUS, Syria -- An Israeli airstrike early Wednesday targeted the international airport in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, causing material damage and putting it out of service, Syria's state news agency reported. It was the second attack on the facility this month.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said that in addition the airport, the airstrike also destroyed a nearby arms depot of Iran-backed militiamen.

[abcnews.go.com...]
So...Iran and Israel are doing a proxy war too?

The airport has been a key channel for the flow of aid into the country after the Feb. 6 earthquake hit Turkey and Syria, killing over 50,000 people, including more than 6,000 in Syria.

It sure seems like a nasty move by Israel to take the opportunity to commence bombing. A lot of lives were needlessly lost over the inability to get aid through.

Human lives don't seem to be a priority in any country if profit can be made over their loss.

The western world is poking a giant hornets' nest, and nobody in the western world seems to want to give diplomatic talks a try.

Iran and Israel have been in a proxy war for years. It just doesn't get a lot of media attention.

How about blaming Iran for trying to use humanitarian aid workers and supplies as a human shield to funnel more arms to their proxies so they can commit more terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians.

We tried diplomacy with Iran for years. It doesn't work. Diplomacy only works when both sides are trying to negotiate in good faith. If one side goes into it with the only intention of exploiting the negotiations, you get disastrous results like the JCPOA.

well said.
good, truthful reply
again i say well said

originally posted by: JIMC5499
a reply to: putnam6

Never thought that for a second. I will admit that this is a sore subject for me. I apologize if I came across as having an attitude.

No, it wasn't you all, anytime a vet speaks it carries more weight. Just making sure I didn't sound like an azz

I've heard stories about Lebanon I can't imagine how #ty that was.

Let's just say I hope the military is running the current situation in Syria instead of the azzhats at State Department.

originally posted by: JIMC5499


I'll ask one question. Were our forces in Syria ALLOWED to defend against drone attacks?

Fox just reported that the air defenses at the base "were not fully operational."

Probably code for restrictive rules of engagement that got one of our people killed and others injured, just like in Afghanistan.

So yeah the Pentagon basically just said we saw this drone coming but did nothing.

That's just #ing great. That seems to be this administration's policy anywhere.

originally posted by: face23785

originally posted by: JIMC5499


I'll ask one question. Were our forces in Syria ALLOWED to defend against drone attacks?

Fox just reported that the air defenses at the base "were not fully operational."

Probably code for restrictive rules of engagement that got one of our people killed and others injured, just like in Afghanistan.

For those interested here's a piece about the base from back in 2018 and FWIW the NBC article on the attack said it was a suicide? drone, which I assume means it was flown directly into the base, instead of being able to launch bombs or missiles which is a marginally better situation locally

www.nbcnews.com...

it evidently has been attacked all the time by drones counted 4-5 times mentioned in the news since 2021, and there are probably more.

originally posted by: putnam6

originally posted by: face23785

originally posted by: JIMC5499


I'll ask one question. Were our forces in Syria ALLOWED to defend against drone attacks?

Fox just reported that the air defenses at the base "were not fully operational."

Probably code for restrictive rules of engagement that got one of our people killed and others injured, just like in Afghanistan.

For those interested here's a piece about the base from back in 2018 and FWIW the NBC article on the attack said it was a suicide? drone, which I assume means it was flown directly into the base, instead of being able to launch bombs or missiles which is a marginally better situation locally

They sometimes call them suicide drones, sometimes kamikazee drones, but yes they fly in and explode without actually firing any missiles or anything. The Pentagon spokesman confirmed no munitions were launched by the drone. Meaning they tracked it on radar and watched as it flew into the base and killed and wounded our people.

www.nbcnews.com...

it evidently has been attacked all the time by drones counted 4-5 times mentioned in the news since 2021, and there are probably more.

That's just that base. There's been hundreds of attacks by Iranian-backed forces and drones on our troops. But a certain segment of our political establishment is head over heals in love with the Iranian regime, so they get a pass.

originally posted by: face23785
So yeah the Pentagon basically just said we saw this drone coming but did nothing.

That's just #ing great. That seems to be this administration's policy anywhere.

It bugs the # out of me more than a bit

So we got a crucial base in Syria by all definitions, and it's been attacked by drones many times before over the years, and the World's Finest and most technologically advanced military still can't stop them from attacking, years later. Complete BS

I've said for years that you could take a small Civil aircraft with a GPS autopilot, load it full of explosives, program in it's course, take off, turn on the autopilot and bail out. It would act just like a cruise missile and the odds are that it would hit it's target. Even after 9-11, nobody would shoot it down for fear that it was an aircraft in distress.
If you think I'm wrong, Google Payne Stewart.

Why are we in Syria?

How are we in Syria?

originally posted by: putnam6

originally posted by: face23785
So yeah the Pentagon basically just said we saw this drone coming but did nothing.

That's just #ing great. That seems to be this administration's policy anywhere.

It bugs the # out of me more than a bit

So we got a crucial base in Syria by all definitions, and it's been attacked by drones many times before over the years, and the World's Finest and most technologically advanced military still can't stop them from attacking, years later. Complete BS

It's not a matter of ability, it's a matter of will. The point JIMC has been trying to get across in this thread is that often, our military are given really strict rules of engagement that prevent them from protecting themselves. The diplomats and politicians, rather than erring on the side of caution for our troops, often prefer to err on the side of not causing unnecessary collateral damage or appearing aggressive. Their attitude is that if our people die to maintain that image, so be it.

originally posted by: JinMI
Why are we in Syria?

How are we in Syria?

President Trump struck targets in Syria also as retaliation.

No media has ever asked any president over the last 10 years why we are there.

originally posted by: Timber13
Seems like there are a whole lot more mercenaries in wars today. That seems to also get around the countries being involved directly this way.


Iran backed? Which somehow leaves Iran untouchable?


We're doing it in Ukraine. Russia's doing it around the world. Paid for freedom fighters must be the way to go.

The United States government is paranoid about mercenaries here inside the United States because they create so many of them in other countries, perhaps.

a reply to: carewemust

And congress is complicit instead of reigning in or using its power.



Out of the many things I disagreed with Trump on, bombing Syria is one of them.

originally posted by: JIMC5499
a reply to: YouSir

Which Syrian Government? I believe that at this time there is more than one.

Ummm...oh Jesus Christ...you can't possibly mean the Isis rebel tools that the US.gov is attempting to stand up as some sort of quasi government...right...?

There's only one Syrian government...and their President is Bashar al-Assad...

Why...which one were you referring to...?





YouSir