War of words: News of the Russian strikes against the jihadists came as ISIS militants posted a tweet warning 'Death to Putin: We are coming #soon' with an image of Moscow's St Basil's Cathedral in flames (above)
Julian Borger, The Guardian: Russia in Syria: what damage will it do?
The risks and unintended consequences for the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, will grow greatly as time passes
Sending troops and military hardware into the middle of another country’s civil war to prop up a ruthless and despised dictator rarely turns out well for anyone, and all the signs suggest that Vladimir Putin’s adventure in Syria will be no exception.
Not all the damage Russia wreaks will be self-inflicted. There are likely be plenty of other losers. Most analysts agree that in the absence of a very quick pivot to diplomacy leading to a real political transition in Damascus, the intervention is likely to prolong the conflict and escalate it, drawing other regional powers in more deeply.
The only beneficiaries may be Islamic State (Isis) recruiters, who can only be grateful for the Russian orthodox church’s designation of Putin’s expeditionary campaign as a “holy war”.
WNU Editor: The Islamic State is already tweeting pictures of Moscow burning (see above pic). What's my take .... the U.S. and other coalition countries have far more blood on their hands in the Middle East than Russia .... but for now .... the focus is going to be on Russia whether they like it or not .... and they are the number one target right now.
Update: David Axe has a good analysis on how Russia's intervention is going to make the Syrian conflict more "brutal" .... Russia Is Using Old, Dumb Bombs, Making Syria Air War Even More Brutal (David Axe, Daily Beast).
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