Following defeat in Tikrit, Islamic State instructs US-led coalition where to drop their bombs next. - Polidicks

[QUOTE]ISIS has paraded its tanks and heavy weapons inside Mosul, in an apparent bid to boost the morale of its fighters following its defeat in the battles for Tikrit. [/QUOTE] [IMG]http://rudaw.net/ContentFiles/117123Image1.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://rudaw.net/Library/Images/Uploaded%20Images/%20darbaz%20yuns/2-4-2015/da3sh-dababa/da3sh-tank%20(14).jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://rudaw.net/Library/Images/Uploaded%20Images/%20darbaz%20yuns/2-4-2015/da3sh-dababa/da3sh-tank%20(5).jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://rudaw.net/Library/Images/Uploaded%20Images/%20darbaz%20yuns/2-4-2015/da3sh-dababa/da3sh-tank%20(12).jpg[/IMG] [url]http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/020420151[/url]

At this point, I really think it's only a matter of time before IS loses the battle.

[QUOTE=Spetsnaz95;47455627]At this point, I really think it's only a matter of time before IS loses the battle.[/QUOTE] I wonder how long it would be until another Islamic State pops up out of the ashes. It's a sad thought but this part of the world is so unstable and all this fighting breeds more extremism.

[quote][img]http://i.imgur.com/AfH5P6w.jpg[/img][/quote] Lol, is that a T-55?

[QUOTE=download;47455777]Lol, is that a T-55?[/QUOTE] Yep.

I'd be a terrible soldier. After hearing of a big defeat a few towns over and seeing so many tanks and troops parading through my area, the only thing I'd be able to think is "Shit, we had all this crap and we still didn't win!? I'm getting the fuck out of here!"

[QUOTE=willer;47455825]I'd be a terrible soldier. After hearing of a big defeat a few towns over and seeing so many tanks and troops parading through my area, the only thing I'd be able to think is "Shit, we had all this crap and we still didn't win!? I'm getting the fuck out of here!"[/QUOTE] I think the military drill would change your mind about that

[QUOTE=proch;47456016]I think the military drill would change your mind about that[/QUOTE] Didn't stop the Iraqi army dropping their panties when this all started.

Is it me, or do an awful lot of soldiers in those vehicles look a bit too young in the photos?

[QUOTE=download;47455777]Lol, is that a T-55?[/QUOTE] It's still one of the most common tanks in the world and it's probably the simplest and cheapest of all Post-World War II tanks. It's normally used by countries that can't afford anything better or just because they're easy to buy in bulk. I wouldn't be surprised if the Russians still have hundreds of them in reserve. In the fact the T-55 has surpassed T-34 as the most widely produced tank in the world with an estimated 86,000 to over 100,000 produced.

The pictures in the OP were literally the entire military "parade". It just goes to show how limited to heavy weapon arsenal is slowing becoming with nearly all their looted Iraqi and SAA equipment is getting turned to scrap either by US airstrikes or them using tanks and APCs as IEDs.

"tanks" Seriously, most of them don't even have a turret for the tank, what use is there other than being a massive target for rocket launchers? They're like a mantis trying to stop a speeding car.

[QUOTE=iAmaNewb;47456410]"tanks" Seriously, most of them don't even have a turret for the tank, what use is there other than being a massive target for rocket launchers? They're like a mantis trying to stop a speeding car.[/QUOTE] Most of them were probably IFVs or APCs, it's just that the news doesn't bother calling military vehicles by their actual designations.

[QUOTE=iAmaNewb;47456410]"tanks" Seriously, most of them don't even have a turret for the tank, what use is there other than being a massive target for rocket launchers? They're like a mantis trying to stop a speeding car.[/QUOTE] ...because a regular car full of soldiers would be a car full of dead soldiers after a handful of guys with assault rifles shot at it? Whatever you do, you should never really underestimate the enemy's current equipment. While their loot and resources may have been bled dry after half a year of bombardment and a year of combat, what they do have still needs to be taken as a threat. Even if it does appear to be vastly underneath what the Coalition has put up against them.

[QUOTE=CrumbleShake;47455733]I wonder how long it would be until another Islamic State pops up out of the ashes. It's a sad thought but this part of the world is so unstable and all this fighting breeds more extremism.[/QUOTE] Not for a while, especially if the current "Caliph" somehow survives. [editline]4th April 2015[/editline] [QUOTE=croguy;47456159]Is it me, or do an awful lot of soldiers in those vehicles look a bit too young in the photos?[/QUOTE] Young is impressionable and exactly the type that joins them. Not to mention they forcefully conscript some young men into fighting for them regardless.

As long as IS lacks air superiority, that armor is nothing but a target.

[QUOTE=Bbarnes005;47456338]It's still one of the most common tanks in the world and it's probably the simplest and cheapest of all Post-World War II tanks. It's normally used by countries that can't afford anything better or just because they're easy to buy in bulk. I wouldn't be surprised if the Russians still have hundreds of them in reserve. In the fact the T-55 has surpassed T-34 as the most widely produced tank in the world with an estimated 86,000 to over 100,000 produced.[/QUOTE] They're also woefully outdated. Our M60 Pattons could deal with T-55s without too much trouble. Proper modern MBTs can more or less laugh at them. This isn't exactly classified info, either. I'm fairly sure the troops DAESH has driving those things knows damn well that they're more or less a shooting gallery to modern tanks. Makes me wonder if they'll even try to fight back should they find themselves bumping into a Leo 2/Chally 2/Abrams.

[QUOTE=CrumbleShake;47455733]I wonder how long it would be until another Islamic State pops up out of the ashes. It's a sad thought but this part of the world is so unstable and all this fighting breeds more extremism.[/QUOTE] I think IS will be remembered in history as another sad milestone in how terrorists operate. I doubt it'll survive to see the third decade, but it's undeniable that from now on, any further terrorist group will drastically change their methods, since IS has shown that going for small focused targets is a lot more efficient and a lot cheaper than going for large symbolic targets during attacks.

[QUOTE=croguy;47456159]Is it me, or do an awful lot of soldiers in those vehicles look a bit too young in the photos?[/QUOTE] There are older IS fighters, you know. They're just dead, that's all.

I'm glad they're left with soviet era equipment, those vehicles have armour equivalent to a corrugated tin roof, a simple RPG/bomb/missile/ATGM will fuck it over

[QUOTE=TestECull;47456999]They're also woefully outdated. Our M60 Pattons could deal with T-55s without too much trouble. Proper modern MBTs can more or less laugh at them. This isn't exactly classified info, either. I'm fairly sure the troops DAESH has driving those things knows damn well that they're more or less a shooting gallery to modern tanks. Makes me wonder if they'll even try to fight back should they find themselves bumping into a Leo 2/Chally 2/Abrams.[/QUOTE] Much like our aircraft, I think those tanks are for use against forces that can't effectively shoot back. [editline]4th April 2015[/editline] [QUOTE=Ganerumo;47457035]I think IS will be remembered in history as another sad milestone in how terrorists operate. I doubt it'll survive to see the third decade, but it's undeniable that from now on, any further terrorist group will drastically change their methods, since IS has shown that going for small focused targets is a lot more efficient and a lot cheaper than going for large symbolic targets during attacks.[/QUOTE] I don't think you can really call them a terrorist group anymore. They are not an insurgency, and they are currently engaging in an awful lot of conventional fighting. I'd call them more of a non-state army than a terrorist group.

Sooner or later they're going to bite off more than they could actually chew.

znap

[QUOTE=Used Car Salesman;47456973]As long as IS lacks air superiority[/QUOTE] Literally forever.

[QUOTE=Used Car Salesman;47457646]I don't think you can really call them a terrorist group anymore. They are not an insurgency, and they are currently engaging in an awful lot of conventional fighting. I'd call them more of a non-state army than a terrorist group.[/QUOTE] Their main tool of enforcement is terror (kidnapping and beheading people, obtaining presence in foreign countries to stage attacks locally, etc), which makes them quite literally a terrorist group. If it was up to me I'd give them the much more fitting and straight forward designation of worthless criminals, or just plain murderers.

[QUOTE=willer;47455825]I'd be a terrible soldier. After hearing of a big defeat a few towns over and seeing so many tanks and troops parading through my area, the only thing I'd be able to think is "Shit, we had all this crap and we still didn't win!? I'm getting the fuck out of here!"[/QUOTE] But good sir you would be leaving your 6 wives behind. Allah forbid anything could happen to them.

Why are people such cunts?

[QUOTE=sltungle;47460291]Why are people such cunts?[/QUOTE] Because they think they're better than other people.

[QUOTE=Ganerumo;47459715]Their main tool of enforcement is terror (kidnapping and beheading people, obtaining presence in foreign countries to stage attacks locally, etc), which makes them quite literally a terrorist group. If it was up to me I'd give them the much more fitting and straight forward designation of worthless criminals, or just plain murderers.[/QUOTE] Well, by that logic the United States Air Force is a terrorist group because they burned hundreds of thousands of people to death for the express purpose of terrorizing civilians into forcing an end to the war. IMO, a terrorist group is a small group of people that engage in asymmetric warfare primarily targeting civilians with the intention of achieving a political outcome. Al Qaeda was a small group of people that targeted American civilians in 2001 with the intention of goading the US into an overreaction that would achieve the political end of turning the world against US control in the Middle East. IS wants to seize and permanently control territory. They're fighting mostly against state militaries and supporting militias using conventional weapons. At this point, calling them a terrorist group is just propaganda.

A book on Islamic terrorist groups went out to clearly define "terrorism" the best way I accept it: [quote]Terrorism is an act or threat of violence against noncombatants with the objective of exacting revenge, intimidating, or otherwise influencing an audience. Terrorists are defined as nonstate actors who engage in vioelcne against noncombatants in order to accomplish a political goal or amplify a message. Two characteristics distinguish it from other acts of violence: 1) Its target is noncombatants 2) Violence is used for dramatic purpose: instilling fear in the target audience is more important than the physical result; the deliberate creation of dread distinguishes terrorism from simple murder or assualt[/quote] Going by this, Daesh uses terrorist tactics but is not completely (or majority) a terrorist group.