GRP 175-Inside the War Against ISIS: A Soldiers Journey From The Italian Military To A Kurdish Special Unit
Global Recon
John Hendricks
4.8 • 592 Ratings
🗓️ 23 March 2023
⏱️ 94 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
GRP 175-Inside the War Against ISIS: A Soldiers Journey From The Italian Military To A Kurdish Special Unit
We hear from Alex Pineschi, a veteran of the Italian Mountain Troop who served a Kurdish Special Unit and spent five years fighting ISIS in Iraq. Pineschi worked counter-piracy operations in Africa as a security contractor before traveling to Iraq to help train troops in their fight against ISIS. He would eventually join a newly formed Special Operations unit and participate in several major battles, including the first phase to retake Mosul. This podcast provides a unique and insightful perspective on the ongoing fight against terrorism as an ideology. Pineschi, owns a tactical training company and runs courses in Northern Italy and Switzerland.
We discussed western volunteers joining the war against ISIS and going to fight in Ukraine. We also talked about Alex's difficult transition back into Italian society and much more. Tune in.
Main Takeaways
- Italian Military
- Working counter-piracy
- Training Kurds in Iraq
- Joining a Special unit
- War Tourist
- The ideology of terrorism
- Transition back into society
Get a copy of Alex Pineschi's book, visit his website, and follow his social media:
PESHMERGA: FACING DEATH - The First-Hand account of the Italian volunteer that fought ISIS
This episode is sponsored by 4 Patriots, a survival food company. You can visit www.4patriots.com and use the code RECON for 10% off
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The U.S. airstrikes in Iraq that began a month ago saved thousands of refugees trapped by ISIS on Mount Sinjar |
| 0:07.0 | and stopped the ISIS advance on the Kurdish capital of Erbil. |
| 0:12.0 | Kurdistan is a semi-independent region in northern Iraq. It has its own military called the Peshmerga, |
| 0:20.0 | and today we found them eye to |
| 0:22.9 | eye with ISIS. The ISIS advance stopped just short of Lieutenant Mohammed's bridge. That's the |
| 0:30.5 | ISIS flag on one end, and Mohammed's men on the other. Why is this bridge so important? |
| 0:40.3 | This is the road to Kirkuk, he told us. Kirkuk is the gateway to Iraq's oil fields. Do you have orders to destroy this bridge if it comes to that? |
| 0:48.3 | No, Mohammed said, the people will need the bridge. No one's going to take my bridge. |
| 0:56.6 | He couldn't have said that a month ago when these troops were forced back toward the capital |
| 1:01.7 | or bill. But now, the American Air campaign means that ISIS can't mass its forces or move with |
| 1:08.5 | any speed. Thanks to the U.S. airstrikes, the Peshmerga are now on the offensive. |
| 1:13.9 | And eventually the Peshmerga will be moving toward Mosul, which is an occupied city of |
| 1:18.9 | more than a million and a half people. |
| 1:23.2 | These are the pictures coming out of Mosul these days. |
| 1:25.9 | It is chaos, according to a doctor we found, who is moving in and out of Mosul these days it is chaos according to a doctor we found who is moving |
| 1:29.7 | in and out of the city we won't identify him for his safety |
| 1:33.5 | moussel is like a big prison with limited water and gas he told us electricity only shows up |
| 1:41.9 | once every two days the The people have no work. |
| 1:45.1 | There's a massive shortage of medicine. |
| 1:47.7 | What are some of the rules in Mosul today that people have to live under because of ISIS? |
| 1:53.3 | They control life, clothing, everything in a very harsh way, very strict and very strict punishments. |
| 2:02.6 | ISIS is posting those punishments online, |
... |
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