Briefly: Asymmetry Russian Style
I’ll be doing grampa stuff much of the day, but here’s an update that shows that the Russians aren’t waiting to respond to NATO escalations. There’s also lots of activity surrounding Lebanon—including at the big US airbase at Incirlik, in Turkey. I’m not in a position to speculate on what it all means, except that US and associated forces are closely watch Lebanon.
The Russian Air Force destroyed two terrorist bases in the Al-Tanf area controlled by the US. Another similar operation was conducted on June 1st. (old map)
Quote
Russia Says it Bombed "Terrorists" in al-Tanf - The Syrian Observer
The Tanf area (which really includes areas just over the border in Jordan) is the area where the US base was hit by an Iraqi based group and several US service members were killed.
The Russian Defense Ministry reported that its warplanes conducted airstrikes on a base belonging to “terrorists” in the U.S.-controlled Tanf area of the Syrian governorate of Homs on Sunday.
According to the Russian news agency TASS, Yuri Popov, the deputy head of the Russian Center for Reconciliation, a department of the Russian Defense Ministry, stated that the raid targeted an area controlled by US forces in Tanf, situated to the east of Homs governorate. This action marks the second such incident, following a previous strike by the Russian Air Force on June 1st, which targeted a location used by militants who had exited Tanf and sought refuge in remote areas of the al-Amour mountain range in Homs governorate.
They were probably preparing to attack Syrian government controlled areas.
The United States established what is now known as the “55-kilometer” area or the Tanf base several years ago in the middle of the border between Syria and its neighboring countries, Jordan and Iraq. The Free Syrian Army (FSA), a military faction backed by the U.S. and deployed in Tanf, has not reported any targeting within its deployed area, where it operates alongside U.S. forces. Washington has not commented on the reported airstrikes.
This year marks the first instance in which Russia has claimed to have conducted airstrikes on a military site within Tanf. Previous announcements from the Russian Ministry of Defense typically targeted militants who had left Tanf. Despite repeated Russian claims of targeting militants in the Tanf area, east of Homs governorate, where the U.S.-led international coalition forces are stationed, there has been no acknowledgment from Washington regarding Russian strikes in the vicinity, nor have local U.S.-backed factions reported any attacks on their bases by Russia.v
dana
@dana916

Yesterday, joint Syrian-Russian military maneuvers began on Syrian territory:
The exercises will take place in the airspace of the Syrian Arab Republic, on land routes and in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea.
The Russian Aerospace Forces, Naval Forces, air defense and aviation formations and units, and military formations and units of the ground forces of the Syrian Armed Forces are participating in the exercises.
Michael Tracey @mtracey

It's an indication of how extreme the "discourse" around Israel has polarized that now even lifelong pro-Israel stalwart Chuck Schumer can be accused of being "like a Palestinian" by the GOP nominee, and this will be widely believed. Also note that being "like a Palestinian" is meant to be **presumptively insulting**

Michael Tracey @mtracey
Trump says Israel needs to finish bombarding Gaza more quickly. He says unnamed people are telling him the Oct. 7 attack never happened, just like Holocaust Deniers. He laments that the Israel Lobby is not powerful enough, and even Chuck Schumer has become "like a Palestinian"