SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
This article talks about the newest addition to the Iraqi Air Force, a drone. Surely this is unremarkable piece of equipment, we seen it before right? Except upon closer inspection (or by reading TFA, which is less likely) you quickly realize it is not in fact the U.S. made Predator drone, but a Chinese CH-4. The CH-4 is far from a cheap knock-off, but instead is claimed to be superior in every way to the U.S. drone. It sports such revolutionary additions as longer wing-span, bigger payload, and of course "upside down tail thingy."
Is this a story of every increasing proliferation of armed drones around the world, the willingness of some nations to export advance hardware anywhere, or simply a piece about military/industrial espionage? You be the judge.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by tibman on Thursday October 15 2015, @05:01PM
The pendulum swings both ways. The previous Sunni government under Saddam crushed the Shia pretty hard. The mass graves outside Karbala with tens of thousands of Shia in it are a big motivation to never let the Sunni come to power again. You are right, of course, that if the government was more equal then the Sunni might fight more. But i think the Shia militias of southern Iraq who are fighting to retake Sunni towns in the north is more than good enough incentive.
I helped recruit and train the southern police and we tried to instill a sense of nationality in them. That their duties extend beyond the borders of their town. I have more faith in the southern police (which includes SWAT) to repel invaders than their national army. I fought the Mahdi army, a southern militia, because they saw the US as an invader (we were). They are certainly not cowards. But because they fought the US so hard back then they are being marginalized now by the US in the fight to retake cities from Daesh. If a Shia militia, a non-government army, retakes the north (while also rejecting US support) then what does that say about the real iraq army (with US support)? Nothing good, that's for sure.
SN won't survive on lurkers alone. Write comments.