Iran, North Korea, Where Else Are We Stirring Up Shit?

Three U.S. special forces soldiers were killed and two more injured yesterday while on a training mission with the military of Niger. The soldiers were Green Berets reportedly caught in an ambush near the village of Tongo Tongo, not far from the Malian border.

Al-Qaida and Islamic State militants are active in that area. U.S. and French commandos have been training and in some cases fighting alongside local forces around the region.

[...]

PETER PHAM, Atlantic Council: Well, we have for several years now had varying numbers, low several hundreds, U.S. personnel in Niger doing two things primarily, one, operating a drone base in Niamey, the capital of Niger, and building another drone base in Agadez, in the center of the country, which will be able to reach surveillance into Mali and Southern Libya.

[...]

JUDY WOODRUFF: So they are there because — who are they? Who is the enemy there?

PETER PHAM: Well, there are a — a nation of various Islamic extremists, roughly in two broad coalitions, one that was announced just this past March that is calling itself the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, GSIM, in the region, which is made up of al-Qaida-linked groups, including those linked with the ethnic Tuareg, with ethnic Fula or Fulani, as well as former members of the Al-Mourabitoun, which is Mokhtar Belmokhtar’s group, as well as members of al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb’s Sahara battalion.

And on the other side, we have this group that is calling itself Islamic State Greater Sahara, which was approved last year by the so-called caliph of the Islamic State.

[...]

JUDY WOODRUFF: Is this viewed as a successful mission, and is it believed that there are going to be more U.S. troops going there?

PETER PHAM: Well, it’s been successful, as far as we have stood up local partners who are now beginning to take the fight out. That’s the success.
  PBS

And where have we heard that before?

Five Nigerien soldiers also were killed in the attack, according to a Nigerien security official.

The officials cautioned that this was still an early assessment. The Green Berets were part of a team advising and assisting local forces when they were attacked.

  CNN

"Advising." Pretty close to the action, apparently.

A US official told CNN that initial indications are the Green Berets were ambushed by up to 50 fighters who are thought to be affiliated with ISIS.

Yeah, we don't know who we're fighting.

Meanwhile...

The US halted some military exercises with Gulf countries over the ongoing diplomatic row targeting Qatar, US Central Command told AP on Friday.

  RT

That ought to pour more fuel on the fire that is the feud between Trump and Tillerson.

“We are opting out of some military exercises out of respect for the concept of inclusiveness and shared regional interests,” US Central Command told AP.

Huh?

“We will continue to encourage all partners to work together toward the sort of common solutions that enable security and stability in the region,” Colonel John Thomas, a Central Command spokesman, added.

I'm guessing he didn't pass that by Trump before he said it.

The Qatari government has repeatedly denied all charges related to terrorism, calling the Gulf states’ move a “campaign of incitement” which is “based on lies.”

[...]

In September, Saudi Arabia suspended all communication with Doha after Qatari media allegedly misreported the contents of the phone talks on the crisis between the two states.

Qatar hosts the US Al Udeid Air Base where over 10,000 American service members are stationed. Qatari soldiers regularly hold drills with US troops. The latest drills took place in June.

So, what "Gulf countries" besides Qatar did we halt "some military exercises" with? I'm thinking it's just Qatar. And the "respect for the concept of inclusiveness" means "putting pressure on Qatar to toe the line laid down by Saudi Arabia."

After KSA and its posse instituted a boycott against Qatar, the latter country restored full diplomatic ties with Iran, with whom it shares a large offshore gas field. I'm also thinking that's going to play into Dolt 45's insistence that Iran is in violation of the nuclear deal. I'm not sure if it's problematic or just really handy that we have 10,000 troops at a base in Qatar.

"We'll find out."

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.