History - The Last Caliph

This short lecture on history is about the fall of the once mighty caliphate of Baghdad when Mongolian horsemen invaded and destroyed its capital and killed the last ruler of the Abasside dynasty.

In the 13th century, the Mongols finally decided to repel the Muslims who had been making incursions from Kazakhstan into Western Mongolia and China for six hundred years.

In 1257, Hulagu, a grandson of Mongolia's famous leader Ghengis Khan, asked the Abasside Caliph al-Mutasim, the 37th of his dynasty, to recognize Mongol sovereignty or perish. Hulagu's claim was based on an ancient agreement between al-Mutasim's predecessors and the Seljuk Turks who were of a clan distantly related with the Mongols. That agreement comprised supremacy of Seljuk rulers over the Abasside caliphate in Baghdad.

The Caliph who called himself "prince of the faithful" sent word to Hulagu Khan that any attack on his capital would mobilize the entire Muslim world from India to north-west Africa. Not in the least impressed by his enemy's overconfidence, Ghengis Khan's successor announced his intention of taking the city of Baghdad by force. It was in 1258 that Hulagu and his huge army of Mongolian horsemen finally succeeded in overrunning the caliphate's defense.

The cruel death of Caliph al-Mutasim and the downfall of his empire, comprising far more than Iraq and Syria, showed repercussions everywhere in the Islamic world and led to a temporary decline of Islamic culture.




In 1258, Mongolian horsemen didn't need the U.S. Cavalry.




Mongolia - The Art of War


故曰：知彼知己者，百战不殆；
不知彼而知己，一胜一负；
不知彼，不知己，每战必殆。

Therefore I say: Know your enemy and know yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles without peril. If you are ignorant of the enemy and know only yourself, you will stand equal chances of winning and loosing. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you are bound to be defeated in every battle.

Iraq - Latest News

مقتل العشرات من مسلحي "داعش" بينهم مسؤول الدفاع الجوي بقصف طيران الجيش في الفلوجة

Title:
Tens of militants from ISIS were killed in al-Faluja during an air raid of the [regular] army. Among them was the [ISIS] responsable for air defence.

From Anbar province:
On Tuesday, a reliable source in the command of operations [of Anbar province] informed that it was possible for army aviation to kill tens of followers of Daesh [ISIS] organization in al-Faluja, among them being the organisation's responsable for air defence.

The article is referring to an air raid directed against some headquarters of ISIS organisation near [al-Karma],13 km east of al-Faluja, and which should have taken place this morning, August 26. The ISIS responsable for air defence who died together with his companions is known by his nickname Abu Abdallah.

[Source: Al-Sumariya السومرية, Baghdad, on August 26, 2014]




The extremist organisation ISIS storms and captures many areas in Iraq and Syria.

伊拉克—ISIS进攻拜伊吉炼油厂被击退

Iraq - An ISIS attack on the Bayji refinery was beaten back.

[Source: China Central TV - Channel 13 news from August 25, 2014]

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Related subject: Iraq’s New Refugee Crisis

Western Alliance Fighting ISIS

تقرير يكشف عن دعم واشنطن للأسد عبر المخابرات الألمانية و برلين تنفي

Title:
Report reveals Washington assisted Assad with the help of German intelligence and which is what Berlin denies.

A British press report revealed the United States assisted the regime of Syria's president Bashar al-Assad in its confrontation with the organization "Islamic State". They acted in cooperation with Germany's reconnaissance apparatus (BND) while rejecting [ultimate] Syrian support with [related] knowledge.


The Arabic source is referring to an article published by the British daily The Independent two days before on August 22.
That article describes the current military situation in Syria and mentions a covert passing of U.S. intelligence to Syria about the exact location of jihadi leaders while using a BND channel. The intelligence business was brought to the attention of British journalists by some source that remained unnamed in the British article.




..... The German reconnaissance apparatus rejected that Syria [had been informed] at any time, and a speaker on behalf of the reconnaissance [agency] told the external of German News Agency (DPA) that " such report is faulty and missing any substance ".....

[Arabic source: Al-Sumariya السومرية, Baghdad, on August 24, 2014]

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المانيا تؤكد موقفها لمساعدة العراق في بناء دولة مدنية متطورة

Titel:
Germany confirms its position to assist Iraq in the building of a developed civil [or: secular] nation.

On Sunday, Germany's ambassador to Iraq [confirmed, once again, the determination] of his country in its assistance of Iraq and the territory of Kurdistan in their fight against "Daesh" [ISIS] organisation, while assuring [his country's application to work for] the creation of a civil nation that should be modern and developed.

The Arabic article is referring to Ekkehard Brose, the German ambassador to Baghdad and whose picture is shown above.

[Arabic source: Al-Sumariya السومرية, Baghdad, on August 24, 2014]

In the following days, Germany's parliament "Bundestag" is poised to discuss the federal government's decision in favour of weapon deliveries to Iraq that might help to stop the advancing militants from ISIS organisation.
Such military aid has already been approved within the European Union. Even though the German government is not obliged to call for parliamentary support on this matter, it has been decided to summon an extraordinary session of parliament on Wednesday, August 27, to create a broad basis of support for the government's decision.

[From different German news sources on August 24, 2014]

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Registered Terrorists Keep ISIS Running

المدرجون على قائمة الإرهاب.. دورهم في داعش والنصرة

Title: Those enlisted as terrorists ... are hanging around with [ISIS] and the Al-Nusra [front].

أدرج مجلس الأمن التابع للأمم المتحدة، أسماء 6 عناصر من داعش على قائمة الإرهاب

The Security Council of the United Nations registered the names of six elements of "Daesh" [ISIS] in [their] terrorism list.

The Arabic article mentions the names of six ISIS members together with their photos and some further information. In addition to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS, the following names are provided:




- Abu Mahmud al-Ednani, 37, comes from Idlib, Syria, and is responsible for information.




- Abdulmahsin ash-Sharikh, 29, comes from Saudi-Arabia and is nicknamed Sinafi an-Nasr.




- Abdulrahman al-Jehani, who should be in his fourties, comes from Saudi Arabia and is nicknamed Abu Wafaa.




- Hajaj al-Ejmi became known from the financial group of the Al-Nusra Front.




- Hamid al-Ali is acting as a rigorous follower from Kuwait.




- Wahid Erif [whose photo is not available] fled from house arrest in France.

[Source: Al-Arabiya العربية on August 16, 2014]

ISIS - Loss of Reputation for Bin Laden

ديلي ميل : العثورعلى رسالة في مخبأ بن لادن حذرته من وحشية "داعش"ـ

Daily Mail: The discovery of a letter in Bin Laden's hide-out which is warning of ISIS brutality.

Al-Bayan

On the occasion of the Bin Laden killing, U.S. special forces allegedly found a letter making part of Bin Laden's personal belongings and that comprised an internal evaluation of Abu Bakr's affiliate organization. That letter, written by one of Bin Laden's senior officials, stated increasing fears that ISIS could damage Al-Qaeda's reputation because of unreasonable cruelties Abu Bakr's militia practised against peaceful Muslims. The document went to list some of the acts of barbarism committed by ISIS, including using chemical weapons, destroying mosques and massacring the congregation of a Christian church.

It was the British "Daily Mail" that came with the news only two days ago on August 10. Meanwhile many Arabic papers quoted the British article. Even People's Network in Beijing reported.




وثيقة في مخبأ بن لادن تحذر من داعش

A document in Bin Laden's hiding-place is warning of Daesh [i.e. ISIS].

Al-Arab Al-Yawm




本拉登遗言：ISIS太残忍 基地应与之切断所有联系

Last words from Bin Laden: The ruthlessness of ISIS
made Al-Qaeda cut off [an existing] relationship.

People's Network




توزيع منشورات لتنظيم "داعش" وسط لندن

Distribution of pamphlets on behalf of Daesh [i.e. ISIS]
in the center of London. [Al-Arabiya, August 14, 2014]




Recent visitors from Northern Iraq.




Recent visitors from Pakistan and
who are interested in the subject.

ISIS - Rule of Caliph Ibrahim

ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
now starring as " Caliph Ibrahim "



On the occasion of a Friday's prayer: Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivers a sermon in the great mosque of Mosul. The above pictures have been taken from a public video. The video's original subtitle is saying:
" Caliph Ibrahim, Commander of the Faithful in the Islamic Nation; may Allah protect him ".




The first official passport of the " Islamic Caliphat ",
recently introduced by ISIS administration in Mosul
[Source: Al-Arabiya العربية on June 5, 2014]

North Korea - Launch of Guided Missile

金正恩指导朝鲜人民军进行战术导弹发射训练

Kim Jong Un guided North Korea's people's army in their tactical training
when conducting the launch of a guided missile.

据朝中社30日报道，朝鲜最高领导人金正恩指导朝鲜人民军进行了战术导弹发射训练。
报道说，发射全程采用科学计算，并对飞行轨道和目标水域进行了安全检查。

[Today,] June 30, North Korea's Central News Agency reported that North Korea's supreme leader Kim Jong Un guided North Korea's people's army in their tactical training when conducting the launch of a guided missile.
The report is saying the launched [missile] used scientific computing during the whole journey. On its flight trajectory as well as in the targeted waters, security checks were carried out.

韩国国防部29日说，朝鲜当天凌晨在江原道元山附近向半岛东部海域方向发射了两枚短程导弹。

On [June] 29, South Korea's defence ministry said that North Korea on that day, before dawn, had launched two guided short-range missiles from the neighbourhood of Wonsan in Kangweon [province] towards the peninsula's eastern sea area [i.e. towards the Japanese Sea].

[Source: Global Network 环球网 on June 30, 2014]




Wonsan Missile Launching Site




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Related News on July 3, 2014:



Presidents of China and South Korea.

China's president Xi JinPing has arrived in South Korea for a two-day visit set to focus on North Korea.

It is the first time a Chinese leader has visited Seoul before Pyongyang, and comes amid cooler China - North Korea ties.

China is North Korea's biggest trading ally and the nation most able to wield influence over it.

But in recent months Beijing has appeared increasingly frustrated with its unreliable neighbour.

Last year, North Korea carried out its third nuclear test and there are reports that it could be planning a fourth.

[Source: World Breaking News , news video on July 3, 2014]

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ISIS Fighters - See You in Baghdad

Last UPDATE: June 28



صحف أميركية: مدن تتساقط و المالكي متوتر

U.S. media: Towns are falling and al-Maliki is under stress.

أولت صحف أميركية اهتماما بالأزمة العراقية المتفاقمة، وأشار بعضها إلى أن مدنا "كانت ترمز إلى الانتصارات الأميركية" سقطت الآن في أيدي المسلحين، وأن رئيس الوزراء العراقي نوري المالكي يعيش حالة من التوتر وسط زحف المسلحين على بغداد.ـ

U.S. media [recently] began to fear a deterioration of the Iraqi crisis and some of them even mentioned towns " that were hinting at [former] U.S. victories " [and are now] falling into the hands of armed militants, and [they mentioned] that Iraq's prime-minister Nuri al-Maliki lives under condition of stress while armed militants advance towards Baghdad.




تجدد القصف على بيجي و نزوح جماعي بشمال العراق

Renewed shelling of Baiji and collective emigration in northern Iraq.

[Source: Al-Jazeera / Arabic الجزيرة نت on June 25, 2014]




"داعش" ينقل عربات عسكرية أميركية من العراق لسوريا

Daesh [i.e. ISIS] " moves U.S. military vehicles from Iraq to Syria ".

ظهرت عربات عسكرية أميركية من طراز "هامفي" للمرة الأولى مع تنظيم "داعش "، اليوم الأحد، في ريف حلب حيث استولى التنظيم على هذه العربات من الجيش العراقي أخيرا ونقلها إلى سوريا، بحسب ما ذكر المرصد السوري لحقوق الإنسان.ـ

On Sunday, U.S. military vehicles, "Humve" brand, appeared for the first time with "Daesh" organization. In the [rural district] of Aleppo was the place where these vehicles finally [landed], confiscated from the Iraqi army and moved into Syria by [Daesh / ISIS] organization according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

[Source: Al-Arabiya العربية on June 22, 2014]




Iraqi visitor from Najaf.

From his modest office in the shrine city of Najaf, Iraq’s highest religious authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, leader of the country’s Shiite establishment, issued a call to arms asking his followers to join with the government military to stop the blitzkrieg by the [Sunni dominated] Islamic State in Iraq and Syria [ISIS].

But one cleric, Moktada al-Sadr, who led a militia that fought the government and lost in 2008, decided instead that he too would challenge the state. Mr. Sadr revived his Mahdi Army, possibly one of the largest and most experienced battle groups in Iraq, and announced that under no circumstances would it be under the control of the government.

His open challenge to Iraq’s Shiite establishment lays bare the latest in a series of cracks that are dividing the country’s three main ethnic groups, the Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds, as the Iraqi state comes unraveled. But as Mr. Sadr’s actions show, the fault lines are not strictly between religious and ethnic groups, but also within each group, a fracturing that could lead Iraq to even greater chaos and uncertainty.

[Source: New York Times on June 23, 2014]




السيستاني يدعو لتسمية رئيس وزراء قبل جلسة البرلمان

Al-Sistani appeals to the designated prime-minister
before the [beginning of the] parliamentary session.

حذر السيد علي السيستاني، المرجعية الدينية في العراق، اليوم الجمعة، من المخططات المبيتة لتفكيك العراق، داعياً الكتل السياسية إلى الاتفاق على الرئاسات الثلاث (رئيس الجمهورية ورئيس الوزراء ورئيس مجلس النواب) قبل موعد عقد جلسة البرلمان الثلاثاء المقبل.ـ

Today, Friday [June 27], Master Ali al-Sistani, the religious authority of Iraq, warned of scheming plannings for Iraq's disintegration, pleading the political factions to seek agreement with the three leaders (i.e. the president of the republic, the prime-minister, and the president of parliament) before the bginning of the third parliamentary session.

[Source: Al-Arabiya العربية on June 27, 2014]


بارزاني: سيطرة الأكراد على كركوك ومناطق أخرى "نهائي"ـ

Barsani: Kurdish control over Kirkuk and other regions [regarded as] "definitive".

أكد رئيس إقليم كردستان العراق، مسعود بارزاني، الجمعة، أن سيطرة الأكراد على كركوك ومناطق أخرى متنازعاً عليها مع بغداد أمر نهائي بعدما اعتبر أن المادة 140 من الدستور الخاصة بهذه المناطق "لم يبق لها وجود".ـ

On Friday [June 27] the president of Iraq's Kurdish territory, Masoud Barsani, confirmed that Baghdad's rivalry of Kurdish control over Kirkuk and other regions can be considered [after final decision on the basis of] article 140 of the constitution, particularly with regard to these regions, as " not longer existing ".

[Source: Al-Arabiya العربية on June 27, 2014]

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UPDATE for June 28:

كيف سيحمي المالكي بغداد بـ"حزامها"؟

How will al-Maliki arouse Baghdad within its zone ?




حدود حزام بغداد والجزء المتوسط يظهر العاصمة

Border of the Baghdad belt; the central part showing the capital.

أكثر ما يرد في أحداث العراق اليوم "حزام بغداد"، وهو التحدي الأخير لقدرة قوات المالكي في الصمود أمام الحراك السريع، الذي قاده الثوار وتنظيم "داعش" في خمس محافظات، هي ربع مساحة البلاد.ـ

More [and more] of the daily incidents in Iraq [are happening] today in the "Baghdad belt". And this is an ultimate provocation for the authority of al-Maliki's [military] in its determination to face the rapid dynamics which guided the insurgents and "Daesh" organization [i.e. ISIS] in five provinces [representing] one quarter of the country's territory.

The article is referring to the difficulties waiting for prime-minister al-Maliki to organize a military response to ISIS activities in the "Baghdad belt" and to arouse its inhabitants in a fight for the current political system and the national integrity of Iraq.
Six regions at the border of the Baghdad belt are mentioned in the original article together with their pecularities. Two of them became known outside Iraq because of their historic importance:

قضاء المحمودية، الواقع جنوب بغداد، ويضم المدينة وقرى مجاورة، ويسكنه نصف مليون نسمة، وكان بوابة دخول الجيش الأميركي إلى العاصمة في 4 أبريل 2003، قبل سقوط العاصمة بخمسة أيام.ـ

The [region] of al-Mahmudia, south of Baghdad, includes the town [of al-Mahmudia] and neighbouring villages. It is inhabited by some half million people and had been the entrance of U.S. troops into the [Iraqi] capital on April 4, 2003, only five days before the fall of the capital.

قضاء أبوغريب، الواقع غرب بغداد، ويضم المدينة وقرى مجاورة، والمطار الدولي وأشهر سجون العراق، ويسكنه 750 ألف نسمة.ـ

The [region] of Abu Ghraib, west of Baghdad, includes the town [of Abu Ghraib] and neighbouring villages, the international airport and the famous Iraqi prison. It is inhabitated by 750.000 people.

The prison of Abu Ghraib became notorious at its time as a synonym for cruel treatment of political prisoners under U.S. rule.
With the exception of al-Madain (100.000 inhabitants south-east of Baghdad), the remaining regions comprise a population between half a million or one million inhabitants each. The region of Taji, north of Baghdad, should house a big garrison of government troops.

وما أن بدأت الثورة من الموصل، وتسارعت إلى المدن المجاورة نزولاً إلى بغداد، عملت قوات المالكي على تحصين العاصمة عبر حزامها، فنشرت قطعاً عسكرية ضخمة، معززة بالفرقة التاسعة المدرعة، واللواء المدرع الآلي في الشرطة الاتحادية، إضافة إلى قوات النخبة.ـ

From the very beginning of the uprising in Mosul, its rushing to the neighbouring towns and down [i.e. southwards] to Baghdad , al-Maliki's army tried hard to fortify the capital during its [encirclement], then surely deployed an enormous military force, [supported by] the ninth armoured division and the motorized armoured brigade in the federal police who added to the elite troops.

[Source: Al-Arabiya العربية on June 28, 2014]

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The unexpected progress of militant Sunnis in Iraq is worrying Shiites in the Islamic Republic of Iran as well. As a result, Iran and the U.S. are now holding informal contacts on that matter.

Physics - Existence of Higgs Boson Confirmed

The so-called "God Particle" found in 2012 by the Large Hadron Collider LHC in Geneva has been confirmed to be the predicted Higgs Boson. This implies a verification of the standard model of particle physics and is good news for everybody interested in the structure of matter. Instead of telling it in my own words, I decided to quote an intelligible and well-written article on this subject and which has been published today, June 24, in the Escapist journal:

It had already been established that the particle discovered in 2012 matched the Higgs Boson with respect to its mass, its lack of spin, and its rapid decay into pairs of photons. However, one key attribute remained unconfirmed: whether it gave mass to fermions, a group of particles that includes quarks and leptons.

Editor's Note: Leptons are particles like electrons and positrons that are known to possess very little mass.

Analyzing data from the Large Hadron Collider, MIT physics professor Marcus Klute and a team of colleagues confirmed with a strong degree of confidence that the 2012 particle meets the final criteria.

"We made this big discovery back in 2012 - we confirmed the particle, its [lack of] spin, everything was consistent," says Klute. "What was missing were the fermions."

But they are missing no more, thanks to the work of his team. "Our findings confirm the presence of the Standard Model Boson," Klute says. "Establishing a property of the Standard Model is big news itself."

The Higgs Boson was first theorized in 1964, and its monumental discovery was announced at CERN in 2012. The importance of the Higgs Boson to our understanding of particle physics is so great that it launched a 40 year search to prove its existence, which culminated in the construction of the LHC, the world's largest particle accelerator. Mainstream media refer to the boson as the "God particle," a name disliked by many physicists, including Higgs himself.

More scientific data for the above quoted findings of Higgs Boson research are available from the following source:
Evidence for the direct decay of the 125 GeV Higgs boson to fermions
It should be noted that a scientific report had already been submitted on February 25 and was finally published two days ago on June 22, 2014. For those practically engaged in particle physics, the quoted results should therefore not come as a total surprise. However, many enthusiasts all over the world are still eager to learn more about it.

Baghdad - Awaiting the Storm

Last UPDATE: June 21



Today, June 19, the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar الأخبار, Beirut, comes with a life report from Baghdad where lots of people are trying to flee into areas that are considered more safe than the capital of Iraq. Here some important excerpts from that report:



The following article has been quoted from the Arabic edition of Al-Akhbar. That article is not included in their English language edition:

مسلحون يهاجمون أكبر مصفاة نفط في العراق

Armed militants attack major oil refinery in Iraq.




عناصر من «داعش» يستولون على ملالة عسكرية للجيش العراقي في صلاح الدين (أ ف ب)ـ

Members of ISIS take on wearing out the troops of
Iraq's [government] forces [in the sign of] religion.

هاجمت مجموعة من المسلحين، فجر اليوم، مصفاة بيجي أكبر مصافي النفط في العراق والواقعة في شمال البلاد، حيث تدور اشتباكات عنيفة مع قوات خاصة تحاول حمايتها، بحسب ما أفاد مسؤول في المصفاة.ـ

This morning, a series of assaults [has been launched] by militants [on] the refinery of Baiji, the biggest of Iraq's oil refineries and which is situated in the north of the country where heated fighting is taking place with special forces [deployed] for its protection according to [somebody] from the refinery.

وقال المسؤول إن «مجاميعاً مسلحة تمكنت، في الرابعة من فجر اليوم، من اقتحام أجزاء من المصفاة في بيجي، وأدى ذلك إلى اشتباكات واندلاع حريق في بعض الخزانات المخصصة لتجميع الفضلات النفطية». وأضاف أن «المصفاة توقفت بشكلٍ تام عن الإنتاج، منذ أول من أمس، حين جرى إخلاء الموظفين الأجانب والإبقاء على بعض الموظفين العراقيين الأساسيين»، معتبراً أن هذا الأمر يمثل «ضربة كبيرة للاقتصاد العراقي».ـ

[That questioned person] said " all militants [came over them] at four o'clock this morning with an [invasion] sufficient for the refinery in Baiji. After that being accomplished, [there were] fightings and an outbreak of fire in certain reservoirs intended for the storage of petrol waste. "

..........

[Source: Al-Akhbar / Arabic Edition الأخبار on June 19, 2014]


According to an official Iraqi source quoted by CNN, 60% of the refinery should be under control of ISIS, while relatives of the refinery staff told Al-Jazeera it was about 75%.

Iraq is known to possess the fourth largest natural resources of crude oil and is ranking among the most important exporters of oil and oil products in the world. Recent reports from different western and Chinese sources mentioned a nine-month-maximum of oil prices which was directly related to sectarian unrest in Iraq.




استمرار الاشتباكات بديالى و لجؤ إلى مناطق

Continued fighting in Diyala and [people]
fleeing into the Peshmerga territories.

Editor's Note: The expression "Peshmerga" means "those looking into the eyes of death" and is referring to the army of Kurdish fighters who are experienced in guerrilla warfare. The Peshmerga are engaged in fighting ISIS north of Baghdad and are reportedly well-equipped with weapons of U.S. and Russian origin.

تجددت الاشتباكات في ديلى شمال شرق بغداد, بين مسلحين و القوات الحكومية شمال قضاء للمقدادية و كذلك في جلولاء.ـ

Renewed fightings in Diyala, north-east of Baghdad, between armed militants and northern government forces passed by Muqdadiyah and Jalula as well.

Editor's Note: Diyala is the name of an Iraqi province neighbouring Baghdad. Its center of administration is Baquba (بعقوبة). The town of Muqdadiyah / Miqdadiyah (298.000 inhabitants المقدادية) where fighting has passed lies about 80 km northeast of Baghdad and 30 km northeast of Baquba. Jalula (جلولاء) is a smaller town located on Diyala River.

[Source: Al-Jazeera / Arabic الجزيرة نت on June 20, 2014]




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