Russian troops raid Georgian town; scores dead

[Bright Eyes]

GORI, Georgia - Russia sent hundreds of tanks and troops into the separatist province of South Ossetia and bombed Georgian towns Saturday in a major escalation of the conflict that has left scores of civilians dead and wounded.
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Georgia, a staunch U.S. ally, launched a major offensive Friday to retake control of breakaway South Ossetia. Russia, which has close ties to the province and posts peacekeepers there, responded by sending in armed convoys and military combat aircraft.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters in Moscow that some 1,500 people have been killed, with the death toll rising Saturday.

The figure could not be independently confirmed, but witnesses who fled the fighting said hundreds of civilians had probably died. They said most of the provincial capital, Tskhinvali, was in ruins, with bodies lying everywhere.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080809/ap_on_re_eu/georgia_south_ossetia;_ylt=AhDVskud6GIeIp4595ObeNp34T0D

[LBJDemocrat]

1. Fuck that

Let's watch the Olympics.

[Bright Eyes]

2. Even more newsworthy, Edwards had an affair!

Maybe I should have made that my headline...I probably would get more replies that way.

[Jackpine Radical]

4. Maddening, isn't it?

The sheep are all off in the far corner of the pasture.

[shadowknows69]

3. "A staunch US ally"

Like that means shit anymore. Georgia will burn.

[Dufaeth]

5. Shouldn't this read: Russian troops defending Ossetian town from Georgia?

I'm not well versed on the scenario but it seems from what I've read that the Russians are trying to protect them.

[Bright Eyes]

7. Gori is part of Georgia, not Ossetia.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7550804.stm

"Russian jets have carried out strikes on military targets in the central Georgian town of Gori, close to the breakaway region of South Ossetia."

[Dufaeth]

9. I stand corrected. Thank you. Is the attack on Gori retaliation?

[Bright Eyes]

15. I'm sure the Russians and South Ossetians consider it retaliation for Tskhinvali

According to Wikipedia, the capitol of South Ossetia was "70% of it was captured by Georgian army and destroyed, then the ruins were taken back by the Ossetians."

Of course, shelling was done by both sides on Tskhinvali.

[tama]

13. Birthplace of Stalin n/t

[Strelnikov_]

8. The Georgians started this flare up

but I have no doubt that the Putinist's will use this opportunity to leverage their control over energy transit routes through the region.

They now have their 'Saddam' with 'WMDs'.

[Strelnikov_]

6. Kurds claim they blew the BTC pipeline pump station

Kurds? Maybe. No such thing as coincidence.

++++

Kurdish rebels say they sabotaged Turkey pipeline

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/08/07/europe/EU-Turkey-Pipeline-Fire.php

Kurdish separatist rebels claimed responsibility Thursday for sabotaging a critical Turkish pipeline, helping push global oil prices back above US$120 per barrel.

The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, which brings Azeri oil from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean for westbound shipments, caught fire Tuesday night and Turkey's state-run Anatolia news agency said it could remain shut down for up to 15 days. The pipeline can pump slightly more than 1 million barrels of crude oil per day or more than 1 percent of the world's daily crude output

It was not clear what ignited the blaze and by late Thursday, the fire still had not been fully extinguished.

Global oil prices jumped back above US$120 a barrel, rising for the first time in four days after the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party, known as PKK, claimed responsibility for sabotaging the pipeline, according to the pro-Kurdish news agency Firat which often carries the group's statements.

[Renew Deal]

10. Why would Russia kill civilians which are mostly Russian citizens?

I don't get this. I thought they were going in to protect their own. I don't see how killing them is helpful.

[AllentownJake]

11. We aren't helping

by trying to take former soviet republics into Nato if I was Russia I'd be angry about that too.....that being said this a tremendous tragedy.

[Strelnikov_]

12. Energy pipeline that supplies West threatened by war Georgia conflict

Analysis: energy pipeline that supplies West threatened by war Georgia conflict

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article4484849.ece


The conflict that has erupted in the Caucasus has set alarm bells ringing because of Georgia's pivotal role in the global energy market.
Georgia has no significant oil or gas reserves of its own but it is a key transit point for oil from the Caspian and central Asia destined for Europe and the US.

Crucially, it is the only practical route from this increasingly important producer region that avoids both Russia and Iran.

The 1,770km (1,100 miles) Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, which entered service only last year, pumps up to 1 million barrels of oil per day from Baku in Azerbaijan to Yumurtalik, Turkey, where it is loaded on to supertankers for delivery to Europe and the US. Around 249km of the route passes through Georgia, with parts running only 55km from South Ossetia.

. . .

Only a few days before the Turkish explosion, Georgian separatists threatened to sabotage the pipeline if hostilities continued.
The latest eruption of violence could easily spur fresh attacks. The BTC pipeline, which is buried throughout most of its length to make sabotage more difficult, was a politically highly charged project. It was firmly opposed by Russia, which views the Caucasus as its own sphere of influence and wants central Asian oil to be exported via its own territory.

[AllentownJake]

14. Oil prices start going down

and now we have another regional conflict...hmmmm

Drill Here Dill Now Pay Less :sarcasm: