Alleged Mass Execution By The FSA And Al-Nusra Front In Aleppo

This video showing what appears to be around 20 bound, blindfolded, and mostly shoeless men apparently executed was posted on the Salman Al Farisi Battalion Facebook page

It's described as "The end of the security (forces) at the hands of Salman Al Farisi battalion, Free Al Bab Brigade", and the writing on the bonnet of the vehicle at the beginning of the video reads "Brigade of the Free of Al Bab and the East, Sulliman Al Farisi Battalion" and "FSA". The location of the video appears to be "Saba'a Bahrat" in Aleppo.

A post made a few minutes later claims that the Salman Al Farisi Battalion destroyed 3 tanks, and killed a bus load of army and shabiha members, in a joint operation with Al-Nusra Front.  It's unclear if it's related to the above video.

The Facebook account appears to have been opened on June 10th, 2012, and has used other Youtube channels in the past, so it appears to be a genuine opposition battalion.

Thanks to @ali_alsanah, @ArarMaher, and @HasanSari7 for help with translation.

Update September 10th The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has picked up on this and posted an additional video from the scene apparently showing members of the group responsible with the bodies

Update September 11th The New York Times has a piece on the executions which includes this

In one of the videos showing the executed soldiers, a narrator claims that a rebel battalion called Salman al-Farisi was responsible for killing the men. A man who claimed to be a representative of the battalion, contacted through its Facebook page, condemned the killings but said he was not sure whether members of the militia were responsible for them. The video of the executions was subsequently removed from the battalion’s Facebook page.

Update October 4th Now Lebanon reports Al-Nusra Front has claimed responsibility for the executions, from their statement

God enabled the mujahedeen of the Al-Nusra Front in the city of Aleppo to capture and kill 20 heretic soldiers from the Hanano military post

The image described in the Now Lebanon article appears in this article, apparently showing a member of Al-Nusra Front in the process of executing the prisoners. 

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You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

Alleged Shabiha Tried And Executed In Aleppo

Two videos have emerged from Aleppo showing a alleged shabiha in the custody of the FSA, then executed

A statement that was posted on the Aleppo Tawheed (Unification) Brigade Facebook page said that the man in the video, Mohammad Sa'ab, had been put on trial due to his involvement in the killing of dozens of protesters in Sukkari district of Aleppo.  He confessed to murdering the Zreig family, kidnapping, rape and further murders, financing Shabiha, and informing on Air Force intelligence on the activists Nur and Mohammed Khairallah from Andan.

The court ruled that he should be executed and the sentence was carried out in front of a crowd of 2000 people in the Sukkari district on September 5th, followed by celebrations among the local citizens.

The above is based on the statement provided by the brigade, so it's not possible to independently confirm the details, nor confirm the individual executed was guilty of the crimes he was accused of and confessed to, nor is it possible to confirm the events surrounding his confession and execution.

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You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

Reports Of An Aircraft Shot Down in Zamalka

Following yesterday's reports of a MiG-21 being shot down in Idlib there's now fresh reports of an aircraft being shot down in Zamalka, a town just east of the Damascus neighbourhood of Jobar

According to the Facebook page of Saif al-Islam brigade the aircraft was shot down during a raid on the "Al-Anadan checkpoint".  The video is pretty unclear, and it's not certain if the video is genuine or not, but I will be keeping an eye out for more evidence as the day goes on. 

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You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

Updates On The Opposition Syrian National Army And Syrian Army

Back on August 8th the activists THE_47th reported on a number of changes to the structure of the Free Syrian Army, creating a new Syrian National Army, details of which can be found here.  Today he's Tweeted some updates about the situation with the Syrian National Army, and the current situation in the Syrian Army:


I've just had a one hour conversation with my source, and I have new information on the Free Syrian Army and the Syrian Army.

As highlighted in my August 8th Tweets the major push to put all fighting factions that make up the opposition under the Syrian National Army is under implementation.  Yesterday's announcement of the creation of the Syrian National Army under the command of Major General Mohammed Hussein Haj Ali is big.  The Syrian National Army now commands major FSA factions across all Syrian Governorates, including, but not limited to

• Attawheed (the largest in Aleppo)
• Ansar Al Sham (Damascus)
• All of Deraa (All of Horan Valley)
• Most of Latakia (inc Costal Turkmen Brigade) 

Over the next few days (expected on Thursday) the Syrian National Army will announced it's new structure and what it encompasses (brigades and leadership).

Negotiations with the Al Farouq Brigade(s) have failed.  They still want to follow the command of the Syrian Military Coucil of Middle Syria (Mantika Al Wusta).  Al Farouq Brigade of Homs has become like a successful franchise, arming and training franchisee brigades in Rastan, Qusoor, and elsewhere in Homs.

Talks with FSA factions fighting in Idlib are ongoing, and are a little tough.  Given their track record it is hard to convince them to train.  Also, Idlib FSA factions usually have different financiers, so they can't be enticed to join the Syrian National Army via financial motives.  The FSA factions in Idlib have been operating autonimously since the beginning, and have the best track record against the Syrian Army since the beginning of the revolution.

In the mean time, the FSA confirm they have MANPADS, as I have confirmed before.  But you know how it is, it's better to say you don't have any for more to come.

Then we come to Assad's forces; to sum up what my source said eloquently: They are fucked.  Assad forces land supply lines are like walking on thin ice, almost every convoy is attacked.  Tanks can't be moved, no air freight, etc.  That's why you see more and more jets dropping barrels filled with screwdrivers, metal shrapnel, and TNT.  Assad can no longer transport big bombs.

Troops from the 4th, 5th, 9th & 17th Division (estimated around 100k) can mostly not leave their bases.  They can only shell towns from their news base, and the majority of these troops haven't taken a break from their tours since deployment.

In short, Assad Army morale is at an all-time low, the latest loses (including jets and military bases) have increase defection, and they are slowly getting desperate.  The lack of supplies (along with new arms) is exactly why FSA brigades can take over whole military bases like Abu Aduhoor, Taftanaz, etc.

The new commander of the Syrian National Army is from Horan, Daraa, and is one of the reasons all the Daraa factions joined.

Make no mistake, unlike the animosity in between political factions of the Syrian Oppostion, ALL FSA factions agree amicably to disagree.

One more thing my source sounded very sure of, he has been told directly by representatives of regional powers that the refugee problem is becoming really serious.  My source was really sure that Turkey will establish a safe-zone if refugees exceeds 100,000, and I can see he's right because of Syrian Government rhetoric.  Assad met with the Red Cross chief and promised help, Bashar Jaafari was pleading for refugees to return, seems like they know something as well. Yesterday the information minister spent a good 30 minutes begging refugees to come back, pitching safety, honour, rebuilding, etc.

Update September 5th The Guardian has interviewed General Muhammed Hussein al-Haj Ali, commander of the Syrian National Army.

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You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

MiG-21 Shot Down In Idlib

The following video from Idlib has been posted on Youtube today showing the wreckage of a downed jet

The man talking to the camera in the video is Jamaal Maaruf, the leader of Shuhada Jebel al-Zawiya Battalion (thanks for Asher Berman for that ID, who explains that the battalion has been attacking Abu Dhuhur air base for 6 days, and the jets are being used to attack civilians.

From the tail of the aircraft it can identified as a MiG-21, see the below images for comparison

Fadi Mqayed highlighted this earlier video of the MiG-21 shot down in Idlib several days ago which shows it having the serial number 2271, while the new video has the number 2280, confirming this is a different aircraft.  As of yet there's no reports on which weapon was used to shoot down the aircraft.

Update September 4th A second video has been posted from the crash site

Update September 5th Reuters has more details of the incident, quoting opposition fighters as saying the jet was shot down by 14.5mm anti-aircraft guns, likely a KPV heavy machine gun.

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You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

Alex Marunchak - Presumed Innocent

One name has come up again and again during Hackgate is Alex Marunchak, who worked at the News of the World between 1981 and 2006, and who has yet to be arrested or charged in relation to any of the Hackgate police operations (Tuleta, Elvedon, et al).  Marunchak rose through the ranks at the News of the World under editors including Piers Morgan, Phil Hall, Rebekah Brooks, and Andy Coulson.

Marunchak name first came up in the hacking scandal when BBC's Panorama claimed that while working as editor for the Irish edition of the News of the World in 2006 he was sent the private emails of ex-British Intelligent officer Ian Hurst , who wrote a book about the alleged spy who infiltrated the Provisional Irish Republican Army, Stakeknife, under the pseudonym Martin Ingram.  The BBC programme alleged that Alex Marunchak had hired the hacker to target Hurst, and the e-mails were allegedly obtained from Ian Hurst's computer using a Trojan virus contained in an e-mail, with copies of the emails being faxed to the News of the World's Dublin office. Marunchak told the BBC he had

never met with a private investigator whom I asked to hack into computers.

And

It is absolutely untrue any unlawfully obtained material was ever received by me at the News of the World's offices in Dublin

Beyond the claims of e-mail hacking at his direction the BBC also claimed they had evidence that he had paid Southern Investigations for access to stories based on confidential police materials while he was working in London for the News of the World.

Marunchak is alleged to have had a long relationship with Southern Investigations, and it's owner Jonathan Rees, which included using photographers and vans leased to the paper to run surveillance on behalf of Jonathan Rees and his partner, Sid Fillery, on Detective Chief Superintendent David Cook.  The Guardian investigation suggested that the surveillance included, among other things, the alleged use of Trojan viruses attached to emails in an attempt to steal information from his computer.  What triggered this was Cook's appearance on BBC Crimewatch, where he appealed for information to help solve the murder of Daniel Morgan, a crime for which both Jonathan Rees and Sid Fillery were among the suspects.  Cook was warned by Scotland Yard that they had picked up intelligence that Marunchak had been contacted by Fillery, and had promised to "sort Cook out".

The relationship between Marunchak and Southern Investigations goes way back, far enough for some of the conversations between Marunchak and Rees to be picked up by police bugs as part of Operation Nigeria in 1999, including these snippets reported in the Guardian in 2002

Alex Marunchak, of the News of the World, is identified by the transcripts as a lucrative customer of the agency. In a bugged telephone call in July 1999, Rees said Mr Marunchak owed the agency £7,555. The transcript says that the money would be paid in the name Media Investigations. Rees added that the account would be "back within the agreed limit" by the following week.

The transcripts also contain details of a call Rees made to Mr Marunchak the same month in which they discuss information about Kenneth Noye, the notorious criminal later convicted of the M25 road rage murder.

Rees asked: "You know the information I gave you about Noye?" He then explained that his contact had come up with something else and went on to talk about a minor royal couple who, he claimed, were suffering marriage and financial difficulties.

Asked to comment on the transcripts, Mr Marunchak said: "Are you recording this call?" Asked if he disputed that he bought material from Rees, he said: "You haven't heard me admit it."

It's unclear when the relationship between Marunchak and Jonathan Rees began, but in a strange co-incidence the BBC reported that they had seen a witness report that claimed that Daniel Morgan had said one week before his murder that he was taking a story to a newspaper exposing police corruption, and the witness believed his contact at the News of the World was Alex Marunchak.  Sadly for Daniel Morgan the only story that made it to the papers was the one of his brutal murder in the car park of the Golden Lion pub, shortly after meeting Jonathan Rees.

In July 2011 it came to light that Alex Marunchak had found time in between working for the News of the World and setting up businesses with his friends to work as a Ukranian translator for the Metropolitan Police

Between 1980 and 2000 Alex Marunchak was on the Metropolitan Police list of interpreters who provide interpretation and translation services for victims,witnesses and suspects of crime who do not speak English.

Since the records system became electronic in 1996 we know that he undertook work as a Ukrainian language interpreter on one occasion in 1997 and six in 1999 as well as two translation assignments, totaling around 27 hours of work. It is likely he undertook work prior to 1996 as well.  We recognise that this may cause concern and that some professions may be incompatible with the role of an interpreter.

It may have been after one of these grueling translation sessions, while relaxing in a bar near the police station, that a Metropolitan Police offices alleges he heard Marunchak boast that he had relatives of the officers from the Soham murders police investigation on his payroll, a claim repeated by Tom Watson MP in Parliament

I believe the Metropolitan Police are sitting on an intelligence report from late 2002 that claims a police contact overheard Marunchak claim he was paying the relatives of police officers in Cambridgeshire for information about the Soham murders.  These are allegations that as far as we know have not been investigated.  I don't whether these intelligence reports are accurate, but I do know Alex Marunchak was involved in writing stories about how the Manchester United shirts of those young girls were found.

This wouldn't be the only time Marunchak was brought up by Tom Watson in Parliament, who made a series of serious allegations about Alex Marunchak and others about the murder of Daniel Morgan under parliamentary privilege, to which Marunchak responded to by denying all the allegations made.

So the question remains, if all these allegations are true, if there's so much money being put into the police investigations into computer hacking through Operation Tuleta, why has Marunchak not been arrested? 

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You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

The Free Syrian Army Captures SA-6 Surface To Air Missiles

The following video from Hran Awameed 25km east of Damascus has been posted on Youtube showing a convoy that has been captured by the FSA loaded with a number of containers

Something Awful forum member mlmp08 noted that the one missile shown in a container appear to be SA-6 surface to air missile, which can be seen seen in a similar container here

You can make out some identifying features in these screenshots, including the warhead, unusual middle section, and the tail fins

 

As of yet there's no evidence that the FSA have captured the launching platform for the missile, and the missiles are effectively useless without one, apart from their use as IED components.

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You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com