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Anton Gerashchenko is an official advisor and a former deputy minister at the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, ex-member of the Ukrainian parliament. Cooperation - @Tatiana_Pravda
I wanted to share with you several points from a Facebook post by Pavlo Kovtoniuk, a Ukrainian public health professional, about Syria and Ukraine.
◾️ In peacetime, Syria was only slightly behind Ukraine in terms of GDP. However, in 2011, the Assad regime's brutal and brutal reaction to the popular uprising, which followed the "Belarusian scenario," led to a civil war, which was later joined by Russia.
◾️ The regime, enthusiastically supported by Russia, demolished cities as an act of punishment. Hospitals were destroyed, doctors who worked there were tortured, and chemical weapons were used against civilians.
◾️ Almost half of all attacks on Syrian hospitals were performed by Russian aircraft and helicopter pilots, and it was in Syria that they learned the tactic of "double-tap strike": performing a second strike on the same location shortly after the first one to target rescue teams on site. Now, they are using the same tactic in Ukraine.
◾️ After 13 years of war, Assad's regime fell in a week, due a lot to the indifference of Russia.
◾️ Authoritarian leaders, promising to solve complex issues easily, bring only economic stagnation, fear, arbitrariness, and chaos. They turn from "courageous leaders and reformers" into murderers.
◾️ At the end of the day, the most terrible thing is not a war with an external enemy but a war of people against the government or of some people against others within the country. The best way to prevent it is through democracy, which gives people the opportunity to be together and have hope, unlike authoritarianism, which takes this hope away and gives nothing back. And most importantly, democracy will never destroy hospitals or kill its people.
📷: analysis of attacks on Syria's medical infrastructure by Physicians for Human Rights
Russia is trying to make Kherson uninhabitable and wages a brutal campaign against civilians— striking vehicles, buses, and even pedestrians with indiscriminate attacks. The occupiers unashamedly say that "this is good practice for young drone operators to upgrade their skills and prepare for real combat operations."
This cruel "human safari" has led to many Kherson residents being too afraid to leave their homes, even for basic necessities, fearing they could become the next target. Many have fled the city.
Russia considers Kherson a "Russian" city. And yet, it is under Russian attacks every single day.
A Russian woman's son decided to study at Donetsk military school. In October 2023, he was killed at war. The woman took a DNA test, but there was nothing left to compare it to.
"I suffer that my son died. But why take offence at Russia? No offense. Only gratitude," she says.
Russian propagandist Skabeyeva:
"Russia does not have to fight for Syria. What we are interested in right now, first and foremost, are the Russian military bases in Khmeimim and Tartus. Our bases are now on high alert, but there is no threat yet."
Meanwhile, OSINT researcher MT_Anderson has analyzed satellite images and reports that it's likely that Russian ships have left Tartus base.
Russian deputy prime minister Savelyev stated that the Russian aircraft industry "manufactures high-quality modern airplanes," such as MC-21, Sukhoi Superjet New, Il-114, Tu-214.
Here are the current production volumes of the aircraft mentioned by Savelyev:
◾️MC-21 - 0 pieces;
◾️Superjet New - 0 pieces;
◾️Il-114 - 0 pieces (the latest airplane was assembled in late 2021);
◾️Tu-214 - 0 pieces.
Russia launched more than ❗️ 6,000 drones and missiles at Ukraine in September, October and November, that is four times more than last fall – The Wall Street Journal
Up to half of the drones launched by Russia may be decoys that Russia uses to deplete Ukrainian air defense. Moreover, the Russian army uses thermobaric warheads and missiles that evade radar.
According to the WSJ, initially Russia supplied Shahed drones from Iran, but now it can produce 1200 drones per month at a plant in Tatarstan.
Source: https://www.wsj.com/world/ukraine-russia-war-skies-winter-35aa1fb5?mod=latest_headlines
The Kremlin has officially confirmed that Bashar al-Assad and his family have been granted asylum in Russia. Peskov said that the decision was made by Putin.
The Kremlin speaker added that the issue of maintaining Russian military bases in Syria has not yet been decided and will be discussed with "future authorities." In the meantime, the Russian military in Syria is "doing everything necessary to ensure the security of the military bases", he said.
By the way, back in 2019, the Financial Times reported that the Assad family bought 19 apartments in Moscow.
Russian Telegram channels published a video of Syrian fighters raising their flag over the Syrian embassy in Russia.
In the past day, Russian media moved on from calling the fighters "terrorists" to "opposition".
Just started Churchill at War on Netflix — you all know I admire Churchill. Watching scenes of the Blitz in London gave me déjà vu. My cities – Kyiv, Kharkiv – and all of Ukraine are living through the same horror again, 84 years later.
Have you watched the show? What are your thoughts?
Instead of a thousand words.
Ukrainian artist Zhanna Kadyrova’s artwork “INSTRUMENT”, a playable organ made of fragments of Russian ammunition.
Local propagandists report that the former head of the colony in Olenivka, Sergey Yevsyukov, has allegedly been killed in a car explosion in occupied Donetsk.
In 2022, a mass murder of Ukrainian prisoners of war was committed in this colony. Yevsyukov was one of those who organized this murder. 53 Ukrainian prisoners were killed.
No official confirmation about Yevsyukov yet.
Aftermath of the “Russian world”.
The Ukrainian cities of Mariupol, Bakhmut, Sievierodonetsk, Lysychansk, Vuhledar, Lyman, Vovchansk, Volnovakha, Marinka, Kreminna... Toretsk has now joined this far from complete list of cities turned into ruins after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
📹: Inter Podrobytsi
As the controversial Russian politician Zhirinovsky (now deceased) said in 2016, Putin supported Assad for 13 years after the Arab Spring for a reason. He and Iran did everything possible to ensure that oil and, primarily, gas from Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia could not flow to the EU via the cheapest route—through pipelines. Now, after the fall of Assad's regime, in the event of stabilization in Syria, pipelines could be laid through Syria and Turkey to the EU, which would forever deprive Putin of the ability to blackmail Europe and diversify energy supplies.
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❗️It is reported that Assad and his family arrived in Moscow, Russian media report, citing sources in the Kremlin.
"Russia, working by humanitarian judgements, gave them shelter," Russian media write.
‼️It would be nice if the radar got into Ukraine somehow so we can develop means to combat Russian air defense.
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Russian propagandist Simonyan:
"Of course, victory will be ours. Of course, this whole chaotic world, which is already beginning to smell like the corpse of a dead democracy, does not concern us. We will build what we need at the pace we need. And our task is simply to help our president do it."
Russian propagandists call it their national trait that they have been fooled for centuries, from Alexander I to the Minsk and Istanbul "peace talks".
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This video appeared in local Telegram channels of Volgograd, Russia. Apparently, this happened after a pipe burst.
"Something was flowing across Volgograd...It looks like a frozen...something," the voice on the video comments.
Is that what I think it is?
For two years now, a dog has been waiting every day near a gas station for his owner, Oleksii Savranskyi, who died in a battle in Donetsk region in April 2023.
Employees of the gas station said that Oleksii worked there. "Lioshka", "Liokha" – this is the name the dog reacts to. Oleksii often took the dog with him to work.
Oleksii's family and friends care for the dog. Despite this, even after the death of his owner, the dog comes to the place where they have always been together and waits for a miracle...
📹: Ruslan Senichkin
Russia continues its efforts to intimidate Europe with Oreshnik: propaganda Telegram channels post a map with the missile's approach time to targets in the West if launched from Belarus.
Nuclear saber-rattling is now joined by an Oreshnik-jingling.
What is Ukraine's role in Assad's bloody dictatorship being thrown down?
The connection is direct! The opposition's lightning-speed march became possible also thanks to the resilience and bravery of Ukrainian Defenders - they forced Putin to get stuck in the full-scale war with Ukraine for almost three years and significantly weakened his troops.
Ukraine has created pre-conditions for liberating Syria from dictatorship by bleeding out the Russian army. Putin didn't have enough potential to defeat Ukraine so he was forced to throw all his troops that were able to fight against us - including those that defended Assad's regime, and so the Russian military units in Syria were weakened.
What is left of Russian troops there are now fleeing the Middle East. They will obviously be sent to fight against Ukraine.
Democracies must support the Ukrainian people who are bravely fighting against tyranny and terrorism. Conclusions must urgently be made about the quick downfall of Assad's regime. Consecutively, urgent concentrated effort must be made to weaken Russia.
The best way to do that is to support Ukraine and make the Ukrainian Army stronger. The stronger Ukraine is, the more shaken Putin's house of cards will be.
Putin:
"No one will be able to break and conquer Russia."
Even his own audience doesn't seem to believe him.
"This is Avdiivka, f*cking hell. Ruins. This is the Russian army. This is where we passed!"
Russian-occupied Avdiivka in Donetsk region.
⚡️ The Security Service of Ukraine conducted a special operation in the Kerch Bay in Russian-occupied Crimea.
On the night of December 6, a group of Ukrainian Sea Baby drones engaged in battle with Russian helicopters, aircraft, and Raptor patrol boats that were trying to intercept them.
Sea Baby drones were equipped with large-caliber machine guns with ballistic programs for automatic targeting and auto-acquisition.
Intercepted radio communications indicate that there are dead and wounded on board the helicopters. Russian helicopters were heavily damaged and now require major repairs, the Security Service reported.
In addition, the drones hit a barge carrying military equipment and equipment for the repair of the Crimean bridge after previous explosions.
Glory!
📹: SSU
Russia asked Turkey to help with withdrawing Russian troops from Syria - CNN Türk.
The media reports that Russian troops will be sent to an area where Turkish military units are located, then sent to Russia by sea.
"It is understood that it will withdraw its soldiers in the field except for Tartus, Deniz and Himeyim air bases," the media writes.
Meanwhile, OSINT researchers note that according to satellite images, Russians have probably withdrawn at least part of their personnel from the Tartus and Himeyim bases.
A 70 million rubles ($708,400) Tesla Cybertruck was spotted in Volgograd, Russia. It was transported on a tow truck with Ossetian license plates was seen on December 8. Turns out, it is being brought to Moscow.
I wonder who's the buyer?
In 2014, Assad promised to stay in Syria until the end and not leave the country under any circumstances.
"I am not Yanukovych!" Assad said ten years ago.
Yanukovych was a Ukrainian president who fled and his title was taken away from him. He was accused of state treachery and sentenced to 13 years of imprisonment in absentia. He fled to Russia where he is currently hiding.
If Prigozhin had entered Moscow in June 2023, Putin's regime would probably have fallen exactly like Assad's regime today.
Can this situation repeat in Russia? It seems impossible but do you remember how improbable Prigozhin's mutiny was at the time?
The house of cards that Putin built is falling apart.
Russia was covering up "an operation to rescue the Syrian president" and those close to him, the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine reported.
The intelligence said Assad left Damascus aboard an Il-76T aircraft, with the loss of the plane's radar signal being deliberate disinformation.
It is said that Russian generals were being urgently evacuated from Syrian territory.
Russia has additionally enlisted ships of the Baltic Fleet for the removal of personnel and equipment.
Reportedly, the rebels have approached close to a Russian airbase and are near a Russian Navy port in coastal Syria. Separate groups of Russian Armed Forces troops may be cut off in remote provinces.
Syrian journalist Rami Jarrah posted a video of the fighters in the city.
According to Russian media, fighters have also taken control of the city of Jableh near Latakia. It is located five kilometers from the Russian Federation's Khmeimim air base of the Russian Air Force. The Fighterbomber Telegram channel close to the Russian Armed Forces notes that Jableh is a checkpoint of the airbase, which means that the base is under fire control of the fighters.
It is reported that rebel groups are not attempting to break through to Russian military facilities.
Several Z-channels report that at least three groups of Russian military remained at strongholds behind the fighters' lines in provinces far from the Russian Armed Forces bases. They have taken up a circular defense, burning their own equipment and waiting for an exit corridor. Fighterbomber claims that the Russian army command has reached agreements with pro-Turkish forces and the Russian fighters should be allowed to withdraw without a fight.
📹: fighters in Tartus