Saudi, Turkish ground operation planning begins in earnest

DUBAI and ANKARA — Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Feb. 13 that Turkey and Saudi Arabia may join forces for ground operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group (ISIL) in Syria. Although a senior Saudi military official said the Royal Saudi Air Force deployed fighter jets to the Incirlik Air Base in […]

Marine Corps role in Iraq rapidly picking up steam

The Iraqi army’s recent triumph in Ramadi made it clear that its soldiers aren’t cut from the same cloth as those who ditched their gear and fled in terror from the Islamic State group in 2014 — and Marines have been a pivotal part of that transformation. Hundreds of Marines have been quietly deploying over the past 16 […]

Third Libyan MIG23 shot down by ISIS in 40 days

BENGHAZI, Libya –  Libya’s air force chief of staff says a fighter jet was shot down while carrying out airstrikes against Islamic militants, the third jet to be downed in nearly 40 days. Brig. Gen. Saqr al-Jaroushi told The Associated Press that a Libyan MIG32 came under fire by militants’ anti-aircraft guns in the eastern […]

Russia hints at potential ‘new world war’

By Richard Spencer, Middle East Editor, Matthew Holehouse in Brussels and Louisa Loveluck in Gaziantep Russia warned of “a new world war” starting in Syria on Thursday after a dramatic day in which Gulf states threatened to send in ground forces. Foreign and defence ministers of the leading international states backing different factions in the war-torn country met in […]