Is Russia headed for its own Dien Bien Phu in Syria?
Syrian government troops are attempting a counter-offensive near Hama, but Russians in bases along the coast such as their naval base at Tartus, are in danger of being cut off from the rest of Syria.
Getting whipped twice is not a career pathway to promotion for a general. Gen Kisel should stay away from open windows.
There are also reports that Iraqi Shia militias have crossed into Syria to help Assad.
And in Georgia the protests continue.
Another 1,730 Russians as they close in on three-quarters of a million.
Another 37 Russian officers have bitten the dust, including nine majors.
A large factory in Yekaterinburg, which is east of Moscow, has gone up in flames.
Thanks to the ban on using personal vehicles, Russians along some sections of the front have to resupply with bicycles.
Now, the front in one direction resembles the domain of "Postman Pechkin." Everyone is on bicycles. Some are delivering ammunition, some are heading to positions, others to meetings. Trekking tens of kilometers on foot in full gear isn't very feasible, and official vehicles with military plates aren't always available. They've either burned in combat, broken down, or are occupied with other tasks.
As a result, one of the joking reasons cited by those on the front for why we aren't in Kyiv yet is: because we're walking there on foot.
Apparently, Russia is running low on rocket launchers.
Ukraine has issues with desertions, apparently prompted by a lack of needed equipment.
More Ukrainian soldiers have deserted in the first 10 months of this year than in the previous two years of the war, highlighting Kyiv’s struggle to replenish its frontline ranks as Russia captures more territory in eastern Ukraine.
In a standout case in late October, hundreds of infantry serving in Ukraine’s 123 Brigade abandoned their positions in the eastern town of Vuhledar. They returned to their homes in the Mykolayiv region where some staged a rare public protest, demanding more weapons and training.
“We arrived [in Vuhledar] with just automatic rifles. They said there would be 150 tanks, there were 20 . . . and nothing to cover us,” said an officer from 123 Brigade, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Ukrainian prosecutors opened 60,000 cases between January and October this year against soldiers for abandoning their positions, almost twice as many as they initiated in 2022 and 2023 combined. If convicted, the men face prison sentences of up to 12 years. Some of the 123 Brigade deserters have since returned to the front, others have gone into hiding and a few are in pre-trial detention, according to local authorities.
Russian drone pilots on their human safari in Kherson.
They need a better name for this drone.
NATO’s secret force of attack beavers completes a successful mission in St. Petersburg.
What do y’all think of “war tourism”?
These travelers, mostly from Europe and the U.S., are engaging in what is known as “dark tourism,” a niche industry focused on visiting sites of tragic events. In Ukraine, about a dozen companies offer such tours.
Most routes are concentrated in Kyiv and its suburbs, where Russian forces committed mass killings of civilians. The cost of these tours ranges from 150 to 250 euros.
The moral aspect of this is simply disgusting (from both sides). We can talk about spreading awareness, letting people see the reality, and inspiring more help for Ukraine. But I just can’t get over the fact that for someone it’s a tourism, and for other families here, those are places of execution their fathers, or where their wives and children were raped by the Russians.
Good duet.
You get a cat and you get a cat.
Dad’s home.
Preserving a sense of normalcy.