Wednesday, November 22, 2023

Why One Has To Be Constantly Alerted To...

... a load of BS which many YT "experts" spew. Here is an example: 

The authors should have stayed on the message of the video and not get into the larger framework of warfare, especially trying to compare what happens in Gaza and happened in Afghanistan during Soviet occupation there. The only commonality between the two are tunnels and Islamic fighters, period. The rest is not even in the same universe. Why? 

1. IDF fights a pure urban combat in the city size-vise somewhat similar to Grozny circa 1999-2000. Incidentally, Grozny also had (still has) a vast network of sewers which have been used extensively by both sides. But in Gaza, we are taking about the size of operational zone around 45-60 square miles, whole Gaza is about 145 square miles. In related news, Afghanistan occupies more than 250,000 square miles. So, if the authors of this "report" have issues with math and geography--Afghanistan is 250,000/145= 1,724 times larger.  Feel the difference, not to mention Afghanistan's extreme topography. 

2. Afghan mujaheddin have been equipped not just with classic small arms (RPGs, Stingers et al) but had on their side in the South and East of Afghanistan Pakistani Air Force which was shooting at Soviet Air Force from Pakistani air space (see Alexander Rutskoi). Moreover, mujaheddin in Afghanistan also had heavier weapons such as artillery ranging from 30-mm AAA to much heavier pieces. Even WiKi gives the list of things. E.g. 82-mm and 107-mm are very serious weapons and mujaheddin had plenty of those, among many other things. HAMAS weaponry consists primarily of some rockets and light arms, including modified RPG with tandem charge. 

3. Soviet 40th Army in Afghanistan never exceeded 100,000 personnel, while IDF already mobilized by different estimates around 200,000 troops. Talk about Operational Capacity (Volume) of the theater of operations. In Gaza case--where would you place those 200,000? Jam them into the streets? But then again, for those who have issues like the authors of this video--Afghanistan size is about the size of the Germany and Italy combined. The size of Gaza (all of it) is about 7 times smaller than the area of Moscow. 

And these are just three factors, there are many more, which completely remove any substantial similarity between IDF's Gaza atrocity and Soviet War in Afghanistan. Obviously, authors of this video never heard of Vietnamese using an immensely extensive underground tunnels system and this was 15 years before mujaheddin started to use it. I omit here altogether a dramatic difference between extended supply lines of the 40th Army and IDF,  how about more than 220 miles between Termez and Kabul over Salang Pass as the crow flies, in reality the distance is at least twice this long over treacherous mountain terrain. 

So, how long are exactly IDF's supply lines? 3 miles, 5? 

Finally, as one may have guessed it by now, even the tactics, let alone operations are completely different in cases of Gaza and Afghanistan. So are operations by IDF and the Soviet 40th Army. But, evidently, such videos are prevalent among those who root for HAMAS which by now, at least temporarily, disassociated itself from Gaza atrocity by Israel, but which also needs to think what price they were willing to pay for their actions. Horrifying numbers of killed civilians, especially children of Gaza raise a warranted question--was it worth it? I speak here as human, whose heart breaks from seeing Gaza children killed. As you noticed, I do not appeal to Netanyahu and Likudniks consciousness--they have none.

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