	Generational Dynamics
	Forecasting America's Destiny ... and the World's

\| HOME \| WEB LOG \| COUNTRY WIKI \| COMMENT \| FORUM \| DOWNLOADS \| ABOUT \|

Generational Dynamics Web Log for 29-Jun-2013
29-Jun-13 World View -- Jihadists from Russia join opposition fighters in Syria

Web Log - June, 2013

29-Jun-13 World View -- Jihadists from Russia join opposition fighters in Syria

Southern Europe gives up the siesta, thanks to German demands

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

Jihadists from Russia join opposition fighters in Syria
Russia withdraws forces from Syria as tensions escalate
Terrorist attack in Iraq kills 19 Sunni 'traitors'
Southern Europe gives up the siesta, thanks to German demands

Jihadists from Russia join opposition fighters in Syria

Top Chechen jihadist Doku Umarov. Some reports say he was recently killed.

Top Chechen jihadist Doku Umarov. Some reports say he was recently killed.

Jihadists from Russia's North Caucasus provinces, particularly Chechnya, are achieving growing prominence in Syria's civil war, much to the distress of the Russians, who fear that they'll get training and develop terrorist skills in Syria, and then come back and use those skills in Russia. Furthermore, the active participation of North Caucasians in the Syria jihad has brought greater world recognition and appreciation among jihadists for the North Caucasus jihad movement, which had formerly been fairly isolated. Doku Umarov, leader of the Caucasus Emirate and the North Caucasus jihadist movement, experienced a sharp flip-flop in policy about the Syria war. A year ago, he was condemning any North Caucasians who went to fight in Syria, saying that the jihad in the Caucasus was more important. But the Syria war has been so popular with North Caucasus jihadists that recently Umarov proudly bragged about the fine work that his fighters were doing in Syria. Jamestown

Russia withdraws forces from Syria as tensions escalate

With tensions rising in Syria, Russia has been withdrawing all military personnel from Syria for weeks. Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said that no military servicemen remain in Russia, although his claims have been disputed with respect to Russia's naval base in Tartus, Syria, on the Mediterranean Sea. According to Bogdanov:

"Russia decided to withdraw its personnel because of the risks from the conflict in Syria, as well as the fear of an incident involving the Russian military that could have larger consequences."

He added that such an incident would likely have some unfavorable reaction from the international community. Russia Today and Debka

Terrorist attack in Iraq kills 19 Sunni 'traitors'

Over 19 people were killed on Friday in a series of terrorist bombings in Iraq targeting Sunni militiamen who joined forces with U.S. troops fighting al-Qaeda during the Iraq war, and are therefore considered to be "traitors" by Sunni jihadist terrorists. The Sunni militiamen were protecting Shias attending the funeral of a Shia leader. Sectarian violence in Iraq has been increasing steadily since December, 2011, when the American troops completely withdrew from Iraq, and Iraq has now become a major battlefield in the sectarian war between Sunnis and Shias that's spreading throughout the Mideast.

Meanwhile, in a major twist that sounds like it came from a late night comedian, a senior advisor in Iraq's Shia government is saying that Iraq is no longer opposed to receiving further military help from the United States to fight the terrorist violence. LA Times and AP

Southern Europe gives up the siesta, thanks to German demands

The financial debates caused by the financial crisis in Europe are forcing southern Europeans "to live like Germans," according to Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben. The debate, he says, has escalated into a battle of mentalities, of a Protestant work ethic against a Catholic savoir vivre. There's even a war against sleep, since you should be working instead of sleeping. In particular, the siesta hasn't existed in Spain since the fall of 2012, when the financial crisis forced the Spanish government to eliminate it. Spiegel

(Comments: For reader comments, questions and discussion, see the 29-Jun-13 World View -- Jihadists from Russia join opposition fighters in Syria thread of the Generational Dynamics forum. Comments may be posted anonymously.) (29-Jun-2013) Permanent Link
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Donate to Generational Dynamics via PayPal

Web Log Pages

Current Web Log

Generational Dynamics Web Log for 29-Jun-2013 29-Jun-13 World View -- Jihadists from Russia join opposition fighters in Syria

Jihadists from Russia join opposition fighters in Syria

Russia withdraws forces from Syria as tensions escalate

Terrorist attack in Iraq kills 19 Sunni 'traitors'

Southern Europe gives up the siesta, thanks to German demands

Web Log Pages

Generational Dynamics Web Log for 29-Jun-2013
29-Jun-13 World View -- Jihadists from Russia join opposition fighters in Syria