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Wagner Group
The Wagner Group (), officially known as PMC Wagner (, ), is a Russian state-funded private military company (PMC) controlled 2023 Wagner Group plane crash, until 2023 by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former close ally of Russia's president Vladimir Putin, and since then by Pavel Prigozhin. The Wagner Group has used infrastructure of the Russian Armed Forces. Evidence suggests that Wagner has been used as a proxy by the Russian government, allowing it to have plausible deniability for military operations abroad, and hiding the true casualties of Russia's foreign interventions. The group emerged during the war in Donbas, where it helped Russian separatist forces in Ukraine from 2014 to 2015. Wagner played a Wagner Group activities in Ukraine, significant role in the later full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, for which it recruited Russian prison inmates for frontline combat. By the end of 2022, its strength in Ukraine had grown from 1,000 to between 20,000 and 50,000. It was reportedl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
TASS
The Russian News Agency TASS, or simply TASS, is a Russian state-owned news agency founded in 1904. It is the largest Russian news agency and one of the largest news agencies worldwide. TASS is registered as a Federal State Unitary Enterprise, owned by the government of Russia. Headquartered in Moscow, it has 70 offices in Russia and in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), "along with 56 global branches in 53 countries". In the Soviet period, it was named the Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union () and was the central agency of the Soviet government for news collection and distribution for all Soviet newspapers, radio and television stations. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, it was renamed Information Telegraph Agency of Russia (ITAR-TASS) () in 1992, but reverted to the simpler TASS name in 2014. Currently, on a daily basis TASS is "publishing nearly 3,000 news items in six languages and about 700 photographs and videos from correspondents in Russia and a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Central African Armed Forces
The Central African Armed Forces (; FACA) are the armed forces of the Central African Republic and have been barely functional since the outbreak of the Central African Republic Civil War, civil war in 2012. Today they are among the world's weakest armed forces, dependent on international support to provide security in the country. In recent years the government has struggled to form a unified national army. It consists of the Ground Force (which includes the Central African Republic Air Force, air service), the gendarmerie, and the National Police. Its disloyalty to the president came to the fore during the mutinies in 1996–1997, and since then has faced internal problems. It has been strongly criticised by human rights organisations due to terrorism, including killings, torture and Sexual assault, sexual violence. In 2013 when militants of the Séléka rebel coalition seized power and overthrew President Bozizé they executed many FACA troops. History Role of military in d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Al-Nusra Front
Al-Nusra Front or Jabhat al-Nusra or Jabhat Nusrat Ahl al-Sham, also known as Front for the Conquest of the Levant, and also later known as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham was a Salafi-jihadist organization that fought against Ba'athist Syria, Ba'athist regime forces in the Syrian Civil War. Its aim was to overthrow president Bashar al-Assad and establish an Islamic state ruled by Sharia law in Syria. Formed in 2012, in November of that year ''The Washington Post'' described al-Nusra as "the most aggressive and successful" of the rebel forces. While secular and pro-democratic rebel groups of the 2011 Syrian Revolution, Syrian Revolution such as the Free Syrian Army were focused on ending the decades-long reign of the Assad family, al-Nusra Front also sought the unification of Islamism, Islamist forces in a post-Assad Syria, anticipating a new stage of the civil war. It denounced the international assistance in support of the Syrian opposition as "imperialism"; viewing it as a long-term t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Islamic State
The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied significant territory in Iraq and Syria in 2013, but lost most of it in 2019. In 2014, the group proclaimed itself to be a worldwide caliphate, and claimed religious, political, and military authority over all Muslims worldwide, a claim not accepted by the vast majority of Muslims. It is List of designated terrorist groups, designated as a terrorist organisation by the United Nations and many countries around the world, including Muslim world, Muslim countries. By the end of 2015, its self-declared caliphate ruled an area with a population of about 12 million, where they enforced their extremist interpretation of Islamic law, managed an annual budget exceeding billion, and commanded more than 30,000 fighters. After a grinding co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Syrian Democratic Forces
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is a Kurds in Syria, Kurdish-led coalition of U.S.-backed Left-wing politics, left-wing ethnic militias and rebel groups, and serves as the official military wing of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES; also unofficially known as Rojava). Founded on 10 October 2015, the SDF claims that its mission is fighting to create a secular, democratic and Federalization of Syria, federalized Syria. The SDF is opposed by Turkey who view the group as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which it has designated a terrorist group. On 10 March 2025, the SDF agreed to integrate into Syrian state institutions under the Syrian caretaker government. A new committee assigned by Syrian leader to implement the deal that was signed by Ahmad al Shaara and Mazloum Abdi. They have agreed to start implementing it in early April. Formed as a rebel alliance in the Syrian civil war with United States, American support, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Free Syrian Army
The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defected from the Syrian Armed Forces. The officers announced that the immediate priority of the Free Syrian Army was to safeguard the lives of protestors and civilians from the Syrian revolution#Crackdown, deadly crackdown by Bashar al-Assad's security apparatus; with the ultimate goal of accomplishing the objectives of the Syrian revolution, namely, the end to the decades-long reign of the ruling Assad dynasty, al-Assad family. (Pages 6, 14–17.) In late 2011, the FSA was the main Syrian military defectors group. Initially a formal military organization at its founding, its original command structure dissipated by 2016, and the FSA identity was later used by several different Syrian opposition to Bashar al-Assad, Syrian opposition groups. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Syrian National Army
The Syrian National Army (SNA; ), also known as the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (TFSA), is a coalition of armed Syrian opposition groups that participate in the Syrian civil war. Comprising various rebel factions that emerged at the start of the war in July 2011, it was officially established in 2017 under the auspices of Turkey, who provides funding, training, and military support. The SNA emerged out of the Free Syrian Army (FSA), a loose collection of armed opposition groups founded on 29 July 2011 by defected Syrian military officers. After Turkey formally condemned the regime of Bashar al-Assad in November 2011, it provided arms, training, and sanctuary to the FSA. Initially the principal opponent of the Syrian government, the FSA was gradually weakened by infighting, lack of funding, and rival Islamist groups. In August 2016, Turkey began assembling a new coalition of Syrian rebel groups, which included many former FSA fighters, in an effort to create a more co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tahrir Al-Sham
Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was a Sunni Islamist political organisation and paramilitary group involved in the Syrian civil war. It was formed on 28January 2017 as a merger between several armed groups: Jaysh al-Ahrar (an Ahrar al-Sham faction), Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (JFS), Ansar al-Din Front, Jaysh al-Sunna, Liwa al-Haqq, and the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement. The unification process was held under the initiative of Abu Jaber Sheikh, an Islamist militant commander who had been the second emir of Ahrar al-Sham. HTS, along with other Syrian opposition groups, launched an offensive that led to the fall of the Assad regime on 8 December 2024. Proclaiming the nascent organisation as "a new stage in the life of the blessed revolution", Abu Jaber urged all factions of the Syrian opposition to unite under its Islamic leadership and wage a "popular ''jihad''" to achieve the objectives of the Syrian revolution, which he characterised as the ouster of the Ba'athist regime a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Armed Forces Of Ukraine
The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) are the Military, military forces of Ukraine. All military and security forces, including the Armed Forces, are under the command of the president of Ukraine and subject to oversight by a permanent Verkhovna Rada parliamentary commission. They trace their lineage to 1917, while the modern armed forces were formed again in 1991. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are the List of countries by number of military and paramilitary personnel, fifth largest armed force in the world in terms of both active personnel as well as total number of personnel with the List of countries by military expenditures, eighth largest (List of countries by military expenditures, 14th largest) defence budget in the world, and it also operates one of the largest and most diverse drone fleets in the world. Due to the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War, the Ukrainian Armed Forces has been described as "the most battle-hardened in Europe," but has suffered many casualties. Ukraine's armed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Malian Armed Forces
The Malian Armed Forces (, FAMa) consists of the Army (), Republic of Mali Air Force (), and National Guard. They number some 7,000 and are under the control of the Minister of Armed Forces and Veterans. The Library of Congress as of January 2005 stated that "[t]he military is underpaid, poorly equipped, and in need of rationalization. Its organisation has suffered from the incorporation of Tuareg irregular forces into the regular military following a 1992 agreement between the government and Tuareg rebel forces."Library of CongressCountry Profile, January 2005 In 2009, the IISS Military Balance listed 7,350 soldiers in the Army, 400 in the Air Force, and 50 in the Navy.IISS Military Balance 2009 p.310 The Gendarmerie and local police forces (under the Ministry of Interior and Security) maintain internal security. The IISS listed paramilitary total force as 4,800 personnel: 1,800 in the Gendarmerie (8 companies), 2,000 in the Republican Guard, and 1,000 police officers. A few Mal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mozambique Defence Armed Forces
The Mozambique Defence Armed Forces (, FADM) are the national armed forces of Mozambique. They include the General Staff of the Armed Forces and three branches of service: Army, Air Force and Navy. The FADM were formed in mid August 1994, by the integration of the Forças Armadas de Moçambique/FPLM with the military wing of RENAMO, following the end of the civil war. History Coelho et al write: "Independence in June 1975 was preceded by a nine-month transition period in which Frelimo took control of a transitional cabinet where ..it held six of the nine ministries." The previous Forças Populares de Libertação de Moçambique (FPLM), the armed wing of FRELIMO, became the Forças Armadas de Moçambique but retained the FPLM title, becoming "FAM/FPLM". From 1975 to the successful conclusions of the Rome negotiations in 1992, former liberation war leader Alberto Joaquim Chipande served as Minister of National Defence. Under the previous FAM, in 1982, ten provincial semi-aut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rapid Support Forces
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF; ) is a paramilitary force formerly operated by the government of Sudan. The RSF grew out of, and is primarily composed of, the Janjaweed militias which previously fought on behalf of the Sudanese government. RSF has been administered by the General Intelligence Service (Sudan), National Intelligence and Security Service, while during military operations it has been commanded by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). , the commander is General Hemedti (Muhamed Hamdan Dagalo). During the 2018–19 Sudanese protests, Sudanese political crisis of 2019, the 2019 Sudanese coup d'état, military junta that took control of the country employed the RSF to violently crack down on pro-democracy demonstrators. Along with other security forces, RSF carried out the Khartoum massacre on 3 June 2019. On 15 April 2023, Sudanese civil war (2023–present), fighting broke out between the RSF and the SAF after the RSF mobilized its forces in cities across Sudan, including ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
