Free Republic

Ukrainian forces pressed their counteroffensive through the Russian-occupied southeast on Thursday, capturing the village of Staromaiorske in a campaign to drive a wedge through Russian defensive positions. The counteroffensive has focused on securing villages on the southward push and areas around the eastern city of Bakhmut, taken by Russian forces in May after months of battles. Ukrainian officials have reported slow, steady progress. Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged intensified Ukrainian attacks over the last few days, but said they had made no headway.

US coalition jets hit attacking forces believed to include Iranian-backed militias operating in Deir Ezzor area: Diplomat US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said they expelled Syrian troops who briefly took control of a string of villages in oil rich areas east of the Euphrates River near the Iraqi border on Sunday.SDF forces led by the Kurdish YPG militia said they launched a counter-attack against Syrian troops backed by Russian forces, adding they were driven "far away" from four villages they had seized earlier in the day."Our forces regained the initiative," they said in a statement.It did not say if the...

"...Given the level of attrition al Qaeda has suffered in the past several years -- and particularly with the death of al-Zarqawi in Iraq -- there are not many at the moment who have the broad public recognition, the background or the respect needed to fill the void that will be left by al-Zawahiri. Though a number of tactical commanders and leaders (such as Abu Ayyub al-Masri, al Qaeda's new leader in Iraq) have risen up to replace those killed or captured, most are not well-known by al Qaeda's supporters and grassroots followers. That is significant: The man who...

"I fear that the government is refraining from sending IDF troops into Gaza to stop the Kassam rockets because it doesn't want to admit its mistake in withdrawing from Gaza in the first place." So said Prof. Moshe Arens today, speaking with Arutz-7's Uzi Baruch. Prof. Arens served as Defense Minister in four different Israeli governments and Foreign Minister in one. Arens said that a military ground operation is necessary because the "IDF's artillery barrage on northern Gaza is totally futile, as the terrorists fire the rockets from densely populated areas while Israel shells empty areas." "The security establishment must...