Hello and welcome to this edition of World War.
My name is Muhammad Saleh.
No American president wants to lose a war in an
election year,
and Joe Biden knows this better than anyone else does.
So when reports started to emerge that the United States
of America had been shipping the long range attack missiles
to Ukraine
even before the American Congress passed the
$61 billion Security Assistance package,
what became abundantly clear was that the American strategy was
to kick the can beyond the November presidential elections before
any resolution or negotiations could be held for the Ukrainian
war theater. Make no mistake about this,
Last year the United States had pumped in a similar
amount of weapons and money into the Ukrainian counter offensive,
which yielded very little on the ground.
The newly sent attack IMS with a range of 300
kilometers will not change the reality on the ground.
In its response, Moscow has begun targeting the Ukrainian railway
lines and other means of logistics that can be used
to transport the American weapons to the Ukrainian front lines.
And this week, Russia has also begun deploying the
S500 Prometheus air defense systems with the claim that these
new interceptors can even shoot down hypersonic missiles.
So what's actually unfolding on the Ukrainian battlefield at the
moment
our next port gets more details.
Russias strategy is clear.
The new weapons pumped in by the West would be
taken down even before they're brought to the front lines
for use.
To this end, this past week
Russia has used its missiles and Air Force to carry
out strikes on Ukrainian railways and weapons depots.
In this video put out with the Russian Defense Ministry,
Kremlin claims that has managed to take up multiple rocket
launcher systems,
electronic warfare stations, over 200 Ukrainian drones besides other military
hardware that's been sent by the West.
After Hemming and hawing for over six months,
Joe Biden managed to get the American Congress to approve
the military aid to Ukraine.
An American weaponry that had dried up in the Ukrainian
war is now
back in the battlefield again.
I'm making sure the shipments start right away
in the next few hours,
literally the few hours we're going to begin sending in
equipment to Ukraine for air defense,
munitions for artillery, for rocket systems and armored vehicles.
You know, this package is literally an investment
not only in Ukraine's security,
but in Europe's security, in our own security.
We're sending Ukraine equipment from our own stockpiles.
Then we will replenish those stockpiles with new products made
by American companies here in America.
Attack comes with the range of over 300 kilometres have
been handed over to the Ukrainian forces
and they've been in use at least since the 17th
of April.
The influx of American military aid means that all negotiations
are off the table
and this is evident on the ground.
Ukraine has resorted to the deliberate targeting of the Russian
oil refining capacity.
This video is from Russias,
Smolensk region. A drone attack on the Russian oil refinery
here sparked a massive blaze on the 24th of April.
In the last two years of the war,
Western sanctions have largely failed in curbing the financial muscle
of Russia,
so Kiev has now taken matters into its own hands
and has been repeatedly striking at Moscow's oil refining capacity
that contributes to almost 40%
of Russias GDP. On the 22nd of April,
after a protracted period of pitched battles,
the Russians claim to overrun the Ukrainian defence forces in
Novam Kalevka in the Donetsk region.
Further north, the Russians claim to be in control of
another settlement called Bovdanovka,
as they're slowly beginning to surround the crucial strategic town
of Chasev Yar.
According to the Ukrainian military,
Russia at this moment has pumped in an estimated
25,000 troops to capture Chasov Yard before the 9th of
May when Moscow observed its Victory Day parade.
For the defending Ukrainian soldiers,
the incoming American aid will only make a difference if
it comes in sufficiently large quantities to push back the
Russian onslaught.
If they had passed the aid package bill earlier,
we would have lost a bit less ground.
We could have maybe taken back some ground
if we already tried that hard with such a small
amount.
Some of that equipment is what the Russians leave behind
when they retreat and we use it against them.
If they had passed it back then,
it would have changed the situation dramatically.
On
the 22nd of April, a Russian missile strike brought down
a
240m tall television tower, disrupting television broadcast across car care.
A deadly Russian drone struck Odessa on the
23rd of April, resulting in injuries to at least nine
people.
A crucial challenge that Ukraine faces at the moment is
the lack of solid air defense systems that would keep
the critical Ukrainian infrastructure safe from the Russian missile and
drone attacks.
LON Maslinski has repeatedly called for at least seven more
Patriot air defense systems to be sent to Ukraine.
Moderate those questions. Lloyd Austin has assured the Ukrainians that
the United States will send across more Patriot interceptors along
with nascent air defense systems.
I'm also pleased to announce today an additional commitment of
$6 billion
through our Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative
that will allow us to procure new capabilities for Ukraine
from the US industry.
This is the largest Security Assistance package that we've committed
to date.
It will include critical interceptors for Ukraine's Patriot
and Nay Sam's air defense systems,
more counter drone systems and support equipment,
significant amounts of artillery, ammunition
and air to ground munitions
and maintenance and sustainment support.
the United States can step in and solve the shortage
of weapons for Ukraine,
but the biggest challenge that confronts Kiev at this moment
is to convince the young men of fighting age to
sign up and go to war against the Russian invading
forces. The patriotic flood of volunteers which signed up to
join the army at the outbreak of the war is
drying up.
In the month of March Kievs,
top military general, it said that Ukraine would need to
mobilize almost
500,000 soldiers for which over
130 recruitment centers across the length and breadth of Ukraine
have been opened up.
But there are issues of trust that are keeping a
lot of Ukrainians out.
Many people are hesitating and don't want to sign anything
with the government.
There is no trust. Objectively and subjectively,
there is none. OK, then it means we couldn't convince
them,
even though there are many arguments as to why signing
a contract has its advantages.
Thus, join the mobilization. But not just anywhere.
There are up to 80 military bases that you can
join through mobilization.
Find yourself a position, communicate and join.
Military contests are decided by logistics and also by the
question as to who can feel technologically superior weapons.
And this week Russia deployed its first batch of
S500 Prometheus air defense systems with the claim that these
missiles can shoot down even hypersonic missiles.
The Russia Ukraine war is a direct contest of weapon
systems fielded by Russia and the West
and so far the Western claims that their weapons Cavaliers
or the weapons fielded by Russia have proven to be
hollow.
University after university in the United States of America are
witnessing anti war demonstrations where youngsters were shocked and their
consciences pricked by.
The horrific carnage that has been perpetrated on the Palestinian
people in the Khaza strip
by the Israeli offensive that has largely used American weapons
have now stepped out to protest.
What began with just about 70 students of the Columbia
University on the 17th of April in New York City
has now gone from strength to strength
despite threats of suspension and arrests.
Students from dozens of universities and institutes have joined the
spreading protests with Columbia University remaining the epicenter of the
student protest movement.
Large scale arrests have been carried out by the police
in universities across the United States.
Chemical irritants and Tasers have also been used on the
protesting students.
But the students have remained steadfast in their demand that
their universities and institutions must divest from companies that are
enabling this brutal war in the Gaza Strip.
What is being witnessed at this moment is reminiscent of
the anti war demonstrations that had rocked the United States
of America in the 1960s
against the USS Vietnam War.
Our next report gets more details.
A wave of anger is sweeping across college campuses in
the United States.
Some of the most prestigious seats of learning in the
US have been rocked by protests over the past few
days.
Students are furious over the Israel Hamas war and the
ensuing humanitarian crisis in the besieged Palestinian territory of Gaza.
More than 34,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children,
have been killed in Gaza by the Israeli forces since
the beginning of the Israel Hamas war on the 7th
of October last year.
Columbia University, which has an exchange program with Tel Aviv
University,
is at the heart of the movement.
Students of the prestigious school camped on the lawns of
the university on the 17th of April,
calling for the school to boycott all activities associated with
Israel
in light of the country's war with Hamas in the
ensuing humanitarian crisis.
The campus protest began after officials at Columbia University called
in police to clear the protest encampment leading to over
100 arrests on the 18th of April.
A day earlier at a 5D Congressional hearing,
the leaders of the Columbia University had to defend the
prestigious New York schools efforts to combat
anti-Semitism on campus. Reportedly, some of the Jewish students had
described the encampment as threatening to
anti-Semitism. The Columbia strives to be a community free of
discrimination and hate in all its forms and we condemn
the
anti-Semitism that is so pervasive today.
Anti-Semitism has no place on our campus,
and I am personally committed to doing everything I can
to confront it directly.
As the protest spread to other US colleges,
the pro Palestinian demonstrators continued to occupy the lawns of
Columbia University,
which subsequently moved classes online.
Emerson College students built pro Palestinian encampments in an alley
in Boston to protest the war in Gaza and in
solidarity with Columbia University students.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard soon followed
as student demonstrations gathered. PACE New York Police Department arrested
133 people at the New York University
were later released after being issued with court summons.
But these arrests failed to dampen the spirit of professors,
which included many Jewish students and even faculty members.
The Gaza Solidarity encampment is a reflection of the Jewish
tradition of togetherness and liberation.
I have never felt more proud to be Jewish and
more in line with the values of my faith than
I was
than when I was being taken out of
Colombia's lawns with my hands zip tied behind my back
alongside
107 other students risking safety and suspension in order to
push our university to divest from genocide,
apartheid and occupation in Palestine.
I am extremely concerned about
anti-Semitism. I have been my entire life,
and I'm extremely distressed right now to see how
anti-Semitism is being weaponized and
used, misused in the under the guise of safety and
security,
but actually in the interests of shutting down academic freedom,
free debate, critical thinking, and the openness and the independence
of higher education and universities in the United States.
Right now, as the pro Palestinian protests spread to more
US campuses,
the US House Speaker, Mike Johnson,
a Republican, suggested that the National Guard could be brought
in to quell protests.
My intention is to call President Biden after we leave
here and and share with him what we have seen
with our own two eyes and demand that he take
action. There is executive authority to be appropriate
if this is not contained quickly.
And if these these threats and intimidation are are not
stopped,
there is an appropriate time for the National Guard.
We have to bring order to these campuses.
We cannot allow this to happen around the country.
We are better than this.
The suggestion evoked strong emotions in a country where in
1970 the National Guardsmen had killed unarmed college students protesting
the Vietnam War on the Kent State University campus.
Since the protest began on the lawns of Columbia University
on the 17th of April,
they have now spread to at least 13 more universities
in the US and even at the prestigious French university
Seon Sport Paris.
As authorities run out of patience and police carry out
large scale arrests,
there has been no let up in cities and boisterous
demonstrations.
United States has a history of campus protests,
whether it be against the Vietnam War,
against Apartheid, Gulf War, Iraq War,
Oregon, during the Black Lives Matter movement.
It's a record of freedom of expression.
The United States prides itself only,
but will it continue to hold itself to such lofty
standards,
or will it sing a different tune this time?
The Miwadi is a key border town and a major
trade hub in eastern Myanmar along the Thailand border.
Fierce fighting between the Myanmar military and armed ethnic groups
had broken out around Miwadi earlier this month,
forcing thousands of people to flee.
On the 11th of April,
in yet another big blow to the Myanmar military,
the resistance fighters and the ethnic minority rebels had seized
Miwadi,
further denting the military's battlefield credibility.
But the Myanmar military had launched a counter offensive,
ultimately forcing the rebels to withdraw from this crucial town.
Does this first major reversal suffered by the rebels now
signify a turning of the tide in
Myanmar's civil war? Our export explores
the Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar was plunged into turmoil
when in the early hours of 1st February
2021, Myanmar military deposed A democratically elected civilian government of
Nobel Laureate Aung San Suchi.
The military accused Suchis Party,
National League for Democracy of widespread fraud during polls held
weeks before in which the military backed candidate was trounced
by the NLT
MASS. Protests against this illegal power grab erupted across the
country.
Military generals responded to these nationwide protests with brute force.
More than 25,000 people were arrested for opposing the coup,
with almost 20,000 of them still in detention.
Simmering anger against the junta snowballed into a nationwide armed
resistance movement which is now increasingly operating in tandem with
established ethnic armed groups challenging the military across Myanmar.
An alliance of three Myanmar ethnic minority groups called the
Brotherhood Alliance waged A coordinated offensive named by rebels as
Operation
1027 since the 27th of October last year,
thereby rattling the military.
On the 11th of April,
the border town of Miyawadi adjacent to Thailand was wrested
from military control by a coalition of anti junta forces
led by current National Union.
Miyawadi is particularly significant to the military considering
$1.1 billion worth of trade passed through it in the
last 12 months.
For the Myanmar military, the gaining control of Mia body
is like reclaiming A vital economic lifeline.
If they let the opposition OK and you continue to
hold on,
it will gradually affect the economy in more Lamini and
Yangon,
which are major cities in Myanmar,
and cause problems. The Myanmar junta is now counting down
to its downfall.
This is because Myanmar military bases along the mountainous border
are under attack
and are seized by rebels and ethnic groups,
leading to an encirclement of the Myanmar military.
This situation puts the Central Command in Nepito,
which controls all military operations,
in a difficult situation.
Replacements of junta forces attempted to advance on Miyawadi for
days but were repeatedly repelled by the rebels who blocked
and intercepted the junta troops.
There are no worries about this.
Since we got the news we've been vigilant and we
fought them.
We managed to destroy one tank and three transport trucks,
and the Myanmar military suffered injuries and retreated.
1 senior officer was among the injured.
But now, in a major reversal of fortune for the
Myanmar military,
the current National Union has retreated from Miyawadi.
The rebels though, have termed the retreat a temporary one.
The military, in their counter offensive to retake Miyawadi,
were assisted by the current national army,
a militia with a history of shifting allegiances.
Despite this recent gain, Myanmar's ruling military,
once considered the most powerful army in Southeast Asia,
is at its most vulnerable in the past sixty years
and is facing its sternest challenge.
At least
223 civilians, including 56 children,
were executed by the Burkina Faso's military in two villages
on the 25th of February this year.
This startling revelation came to light two months later on
the 25th of April in a report that was filed
by Human Rights Watch.
The mass killings have been termed to be among the
worst army abuse incidents in the country in nearly a
decade.
The Burkinaabe authorities so far have not commented on this
report.
Instead, they've suspended a couple of international broadcast stations for
two weeks for their coverage of the Human Rights Watch
report.
But this incident has raised a number of troubling questions.
Why are villagers in Burkina Faso often?
Are the receiving end of the armys counterinsurgency operations
Our next port? Get more.
The Sahel nation of Burkina Faso is ruled by a
military junta
which seized power in a coup d'etat in September
2022 with the promise to end the Islamist insurgency.
The violence though, has continued to escalate with more than
1/3 of the country now under control of the jihadist
groups.
In its fight against insurgency,
Burkina Faso has repeatedly faced accusations of serious human rights
violations,
including indiscriminate killings and forced disappearances.
On the 25th of April,
in a report released by the Human Rights Watch,
another massacre by the Burkina Faso military came to light.
On the 24th and 25th of February,
Islamist armed groups had carried out several attacks across the
country on military targets and on civilian infrastructure,
killing scores of civilians, soldiers and militia members.
According to the witnesses, on the 25th of February,
between 8:30 and 9:00 AM,
but half an hour after Islamist fighters had passed the
Nandin village in the northern Yatanga province,
a military convoy with about 100 Burkinabe soldiers arrived on
motorbikes,
pickup trucks and the police two armoured cars.
The soldiers went door to door,
ordered people out of their homes,
asking them for identity cards.
They then rounded up the villagers in groups before opening
fire on them.
Anyone trying to flee or hide was not spared.
The carnage continued in the nearby Soro village,
where the soldiers arrived. About an hour later.
44 people, including twenty children,
were killed in the Nandin village,
whereas 179 people, including 36 children,
were massacred in Soro. The mass killings are believed to
be retaliation by the military,
which accused the villagers of aiding the armed Islamist fighters.
According to a survivor account,
the military accused the residents of failure to cooperate by
not informing them of the movements of the Islamist fighters.
What's worse is that Burkinabe authorities have failed repeatedly to
prevent and even investigate such atrocities thoroughly.
The villagers are caught in the crosshairs of this conflict
between the Birkenabi Army and the insurgents,
and often end up paying for it with their lives.
It is high time the conduct of Birkenabi security forces
fully complies with international humanitarian and human rights laws
and without the wrap on this edition of World at
War.
And if you want to reach out to me with
any comments,
feedback or suggestions, feel free to do so on the
Rd.
that you're seeing on your screens.
I'm your host, Mohammad Saleh,
and I'll see you again next week.
The.