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+--- Thread: A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria (/thread-6670.html)
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Adele Edisen - 22-06-2013
Magda said:
Quote:What Carter and the Charity & Security Network is asking for is more than reasonable. But the last thing TPTB want in this world is peace. No big profits in that.
I agree with you, but it is still good to know that there is some decency and humanity in ths world.. Sometimes it wins...and we all hope for the best of outcomes.
Adele
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Magda Hassan - 22-06-2013
Yeah, Jimmy is one of the good guys. Over all at least.
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Adele Edisen - 22-06-2013
Fighting Al Qaeda by Supporting Al Qaeda in Syria: The Obama Administration is a "State Sponsor of Terrorism"
By Prof Michel Chossudovsky
Global Research, June 19, 2013
Url of this article:
http://www.globalresearch.ca/fighting-al-qaeda-by-supporting-al-qaeda-in-syria-the-obama-administration-is-a-state-sponsor-of-terrorism/5339728
A major transition in US counter-terrorism doctrine is unfolding.
While Barack Obama, following in the footsteps of George W. Bush, remains firmly committed to waging a "Global War on Terrorism" (GWOT), his administration is now openly supporting selected rebel units in Syria which are part of the Al Qaeda network.
Known and documented, Al Qaeda is a creation of the CIA, which has covertly supported the "Islamic Terror Network" since the heyday of the Soviet Afghan war.
While Al Qaeda is a US sponsored "intelligence asset", a "New Normal" has been established.
An Al Qaeda affiliated organization, namely Syria's Al Nusrah, is being supported "overtly" by the US President, rather than "covertly" by the CIA.
Click on URL above to continue reading.
Adele
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Magda Hassan - 23-06-2013
CIA number two resigns hours before Obamaannounces decision to arm Syrian rebels
America's first war based on Twitter'
By Wayne MadsenPosted on June17, 2013 by WayneMadsen
(WMR)CIA deputydirector Michael Morrell resigned from his post just hours before theObama White House, through deputy national security adviser BenRhodes, announced that the Obama administration had decided toprovide weapons to the Syrian Free Army and its allied groups.
Obama's pretext for arming the Al Qaeda-linked guerrillas isthat U.S. intelligence concluded, after months of saying there wasinsufficient proof, that Syria used chemical weapons to kill Syriancivilians. The Russian government says it doesn't believe Obama'sclaims, especially after Secretary of State Colin Powell's infamouslie to the UN Security Council about Iraqi anthrax was used tojustify America's invasion of Iraq.
Among the top allied group of the Syrian Free Army is the Jabhatal Nusra Front, whose leader, Abou Mohamad al-Joulani, recentlypledged total allegiance to Al Qaeda's leader and Osama Bin Laden'sreplacement, Ayman al Zawahri.
USA Today quoted Tamer Mouhieddine, spokesman for theFree Syrian Army as follows, "The rebels in Syria have one commonenemyBashar Assadand they will collaborate with any factionallowing them to topple his regime." The Al Qaeda-linked al NusraFront is leading the efforts against the Assad government in Aleppo,according to Mouhieddine.
Syria's government responded to Obama's annnoucement bycalling claims that it used chemical weapons "full of lies."
WMR's intelligence sources say Morrell has steadfastly arguedthat there was insufficient proof of claims, mostly emanating fromSyrian rebel sources and Israel, that Assad's forces had usedchemical weapons, including sarin gas, on civilians. One of Rhodes'ssources for his claims of Syrian use of chemical weapons was, asstated in the White House statement, "social media oultets fromSyrian opposition groups and other media sources." Some U.S.intelligence sources are mocking Rhodes's contention by callingObama's decision America's first "war based on Twitter."
Morrell won high praise for his leadership from Obama during thesex scandal involving CIA director David Petraeus. Morrell served asacting CIA director before Obama named his national security deputyadviser, John Brennan, a known supporter of Salafist and radicalWahhabi causes and groups, as CIA director. WMR has also learned thatNational Security Adviser Tom Donilon, who opposed U.S. militaryintervention in Syria, was asked to resign by Obama. Donilon, who isclose to Vice President Joe Biden, is being replaced by Syrianmilitary intervention advocate Susan Rice, who has served asambassador to the UN.
Rhodes, 35, the son of a evangelical Christian father from Texasand a Jewish mother from New York, is taking on a more pronouncedrole in Obama's foreign policy decisions. Rhodes's brother, DavidRhodes, is the president of CBS News. The combination of Rice andRhodes as the number one and two national security advisers to Obamais seen as driving the U.S. military intervention in Syria anddriving away seasoned and more experienced individuals like Morrelland Donilon.
The Russian government has joined Morrell and Donilon in theirskepticism about Syrian chemical weapons use. President VladimirPutin's spokesman Yuri Ushakov told RT, "The Americans tried topresent us with information on the use of chemical weapons by theregime, but frankly we thought that it was not convincing . . . Wewouldn't like to invoke references to the famous lab tube thatSecretary of State Powell showed, but the facts don't lookconvincing in our eyes."
There is more evidence that the Al Nusra Front used chemicalweapons in Aleppo and that Assad's forces never used any chemicalweapons in the Syrian civil war, especially with Obana calling suchfirst use a "red line" that he would not permit Assad to crosswithout U.S. military intervention.
WMR has learned that we can expect other high-level resignationsform the CIA as the Obama administration turns up the heat on forcingthe CIA and other intelligence agencies to "cook the books" onmanufacturing intelligence to prove Syria used chemical weapons.
- See more at:http://www.intrepidreport.com/archives/9934#sthash.5EpsWwLX.dpuf
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Magda Hassan - 23-06-2013
Preparing to Bomb Syria
by craig on June 14, 2013 in Middle East
Quite simply I do not believe the US, UK and French government's assertion that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons against rebels "multiple times in small quantities". Why on earth would they do that? The claim that "up to 150 people have died" spread over a number of incidents makes no sense at all. In a civil war when tens of thousands of people have died, where all sides have been guilty of massacres of scores at a time, I cannot conceive of any motive for killing a dozen or so at any one time with the odd chemical shell. It makes no military sense chemical weapons are designed for use against population centres and massed armies. They are not precision weapons for deployment against small groups.
Why on earth would the Assad regime use a tiny amount of chemical weapons against tiny groups of rebels, knowing the West would use it as an excuse to start bombing? It makes no sense whatsoever. Cui bono?
The Russians have described the evidence as fabricated, and on this one I am with the Russians.
It is of course no coincidence that this humanitarian motive to start bombing Syria arises just as the tide of war turned against the rebels, and the government forces are about to move on Aleppo. I suspect now we will see massive NATO force intervention, with huge air to ground destruction of the government forces all over the country to "defend" Aleppo, just as we saw hundreds of thousands killed and whole cities destroyed in Libya to "defend" Benghazi. Whose people showed their gratitude by murdering the US Ambassador.
It is a further fascinating coincidence that this coordinated western switch of policy happens immediately after the Bilderberg conference. An analysis of which of the corporate interests there stand to gain in Syria might be a fascinating exercise.
There were two main reasons the tide of war turned against the rebels. Firstly, Hizbollah's decision to enter the war on a large scale was provoked by the Israeli Air Force's massive attack around Damascus, a fact the mainstream media has managed to hide completely. Secondly, at Turkish urging, the rebel forces had diverted much of their energies to attacking the Syrian kurds. This opens the interesting question of what the American client Kurds of Iraq will make of their patron sponsoring the massacre of their brethren in Syria.
Finally, chemical weapons are a terrible thing and their use should be condemned unreservedly. But where was all this Western outrage and activity when the Israelis were pouring down white phosphorous and kicking and maiming thousands of women and children in Gaza?
http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2013/06/preparing-to-bomb-syria/
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Jan Klimkowski - 23-06-2013
Former British Ambassador Craig Murray says:
Quote:The claim that "up to 150 people have died" spread over a number of incidents makes no sense at all. In a civil war when tens of thousands of people have died, where all sides have been guilty of massacres of scores at a time, I cannot conceive of any motive for killing a dozen or so at any one time with the odd chemical shell. It makes no military sense chemical weapons are designed for use against population centres and massed armies. They are not precision weapons for deployment against small groups.
Why on earth would the Assad regime use a tiny amount of chemical weapons against tiny groups of rebels, knowing the West would use it as an excuse to start bombing? It makes no sense whatsoever. Cui bono?
Craig Murray continues to speak much sense.
Of course, when he spoke the truth as British Ambassador to Uzbekistan, exposing the regime's systematic use of torture and rape, he was removed from his post.....
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Magda Hassan - 30-06-2013
Brzezinski: "The rebels are more hostile to us than Al Assad"
Published: June 29, 2013 | 15:00 GMT Last Updated: June 29, 2013 | 15:04 GMT
AFP Jim Watson
According to Zbigniew Brzezinski, former aide to U.S. national security, "the rebels are much more hostile to us than it ever was Al Assad".
After asserting that fears the situation is addressed "to a U.S. intervention that lacks effectiveness," Brzezinski, national security exasesor White House under President Jimmy Carter , warned of the dangers of an intervention in Syria and the risk of a supposed victory of the rebels .
"At the end of 2011 there were outbreaks [of violence] in Syria caused by drought and by the complicity of two known autocracies in the Middle East: Qatar and Saudi Arabia," said Brzezinski , noting that Obama supported the unrest in Syria and, sudden, announced that President Bashar al-Assad "must go". "Then in the spring of 2012, as revealed 'The New York Times in an article very revealing on March 24 this year, an election year here [in the U.S.], the CIA, led by General Petraeus, conducted a large-scale effort to help the Qataris and the Saudis and the Turks to join them in that effort, "he continued.
Regarding the administration's policies Obama on Syria, the former aide said it is necessary to ask questions like: "Why suddenly decided he had to destabilize Syria and overthrow the government? Would you ever have explained this the American people? Later, in the latter part of 2012, especially after the elections, the trend of conflict somehow turned against the rebels. It is clear that the rebels are not all as 'democratic'. As all this policy begins to be reconsidered. " "I think these things need to be clarified so that one can have a deeper understanding of what exactly the goal of U.S. policy," he added. Likewise, Brzezinski asked the authorities Americans to be anxious to attract China, Russia and other regional powers in order to reach some kind of peaceful solution to the Syrian crisis.
Texto completo en: http://actualidad.rt.com/actualidad/view/98760-brzezinski-rebeldes-siria-guerra
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Magda Hassan - 30-06-2013
Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger recognizes media manipulation on Syria
By: Telesur | Thursday, 27/06/2013 03:35 PM| Printable version
FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE HENRY KISSINGER
Credit: Archive
27-6-13.-Henry Kissinger, former Secretary of State U.S. during the administrations of various presidents, acknowledged Thursday that the media of this nation lie to say that Syria lives a conflict "between democracy and dictatorship." "The American press described as a conflict between democracy and dictatorship in which the dictator is killing his own people, and therefore must be punished. But that's not what's happening, "said Kissinger Gerald R. School Ford Public Policy at the University of Michigan (north). Kissinger said that "today is a sectarian civil war" and that the result you would like to see in Syria is "a country disintegrated and balkanized with more or less autonomous regions. " No foreign intervention, the former Secretary of State under Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford from 1973 to 1977, provides two possible outcomes: the permanence of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad in power "in a state of war, but without armed confrontation "or the" emergence of a stable federation of various ethnic groups. " Kissinger's remarks come amid complaints against the United States by promoting sectarian strife in Syria and the Middle East to interfere in the internal affairs of nations and support to armed groups seeking to overthrow President Assad. U.S. President Barack Obama has authorized the shipment of arms to Syrian terrorists supported from abroad, further intensifying the conflict in the Arab country. Earlier, former Congressman Ron Paul blamed the U.S. government for the escalating conflict by sending weapons to terrorist groups. Meanwhile, journalist and author Isabel Pisano believes that in Syria the American Executive is leading to division, as it did in other countries. "is responsible for thousands of deaths in South America, the creator of Operation Condor, the inventor of making people disappear. Actually, they rarely criticize their employers, but what I think serious is that again want to divide Syria, "he said. past May, Bashar Al Assad had complained that his country gunmen operate from 29 countries, and that there is foreign interference has become the start trigger factor and the continuation of the crisis in Syria. since mid-March 2011, Syria has been the scene of terrorist attacks against civilians and military in order to overthrow President Assad. These acts of violence have left more than 93,000 people dead, according to estimates by the United Nations. (UN).
http://www.aporrea.org/medios/n231580.html
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Magda Hassan - 30-06-2013
This is what the civilised west supports.
Another act of brutal violence reportedly by Syrian rebels has appeared on the web. Unverified video shows the beheading of 3 supposed government supporters. The title of the graphic footage suggests an orthodox Christian bishop was among the victims, although other reports claim he'd been shot dead in an assault on a monastery. So that's okay then.
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Magda Hassan - 30-06-2013
The Abdication of the Emir of Qatar Due to the Collapse of Anti-Syrian Forces
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On 25 June, following «consultations with his closest relatives and leading members of society», the ruling Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, announced his abdication in favour of his son, 33-year old Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. Local analysts believe that the decision is a result of gathering problems with the policy the emirate has been carrying out over the last 3-4 years, especially regarding the Syria issue. The Emir does have problems with his health (he had a kidney transplant in 1997 and needs constant dialysis), but he is perfectly competent and his state of health has nothing to do with his departure.According to experts, the Emir's abdication was prompted by the keenly-felt defeat suffered by the Syrian armed opposition in Al-Qusayr, which Qatar had invested a lot of resources in the seizure of and which, as a fortified point, is also an anchor point along the route of the planned gas pipeline from Qatar to Europe or, as an alternative, from Iran to the Mediterranean. (1) Qatar's outlay on its ventures into Syria has already reached nearly 3 billion dollars, according to some estimates. (2) Qatar's support of the opposition in Syria and its leadership in the «Arab Spring» as a whole is increasingly turning into a fiasco. The reason is simple Doha was filled with a sense of its own importance and began to believe in its infinite powers to the accompaniment of flattering reviews from the West about this «leading centre of influence in the Arab world», whereas in reality, Qatar is just a tool to fulfil the objectives of Western policy. Although Qatar has a lot of money, its human and organisational potential is rather modest. In recent years, the country has wasted vast resources. This is especially true in Syria, where the help sent by the emirate has given rise to feelings of hostility in Salafis toward Qatar itself. In order to correct the mistakes, a new manager is needed who will have to repair the situation without washing its dirty linen in public or offending powerful patrons.Prince Tamim will be the first of three Qatar rulers from the Al-Thani dynasty who has come to power without a coup, as was the case with both his grandfather and father. In 1995, for example, the outgoing Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani seized the throne in Qatar following a «bloodless» coup, having taken advantage of his father's absence from the country. The current peaceful transfer of power is perhaps the only democratic achievement in the life of this absolute monarchy which somehow miraculously claims to be «the avant garde of democracy» in the Middle East. The change in power is not just going to be limited to the Emir. In order to avoid any unnecessary rivalry with the new ruler, one more member of the dynasty is also expected to leave his post the rather influential Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani who is currently the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, as well as Tamim's cousin. Information regarding the transfer of power to the Emir's successor was received by the United States and Great Britain beforehand and was in fact in agreement with them. The figure of the new ruler of Qatar suits both Washington and London perfectly. The young Qatar monarch studied in prestigious public schools in England and successfully graduated from the same academy as the ruler of Jordan, Abdullah II the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in Great Britain. He can speak English and French fluently and read Old Persian. On 5 August 2005, his older brother Sheikh Jassim abdicated his right to the throne in favour of Tamim. (3) If one takes into account that the new Emir is well-known for his strong bonds with the «Muslim Brotherhood», as well as the fact that up to this point he has been in charge of providing aid to Syrian rebels as First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Qatar's armed forces (4) in Doha, then it is easy to suppose that Qatar's activities with regard to Syria are only going to increase under the new Emir. This is also indicated by the outcome of the «Friends of Syria» meeting held in Qatar recently, at which the country's prime minister declared that «it is only possible to safeguard peace and justice there by supplying arms to the opposition». (5)There are nearly two million people living in Qatar, only 12 percent of whom are regarded as indigenous citizens and receive all privileges. The country has the third largest natural gas reserves in the world with 20 trillion cubic metres, and is the largest supplier of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the world's markets (around 80 million tonnes per year). It has a GDP of 183 billion dollars, or nearly 100,000 dollars per capita the highest in the world. Private enterprise is limited; everything belongs to the Emir and is managed by him. The Emir officially owns all of the country's land and distributes it to all of his subjects to rent rather than own any sidestepping and the contract is terminated, with those out of favour losing everything. Many of the country's inhabitants are proud of the role Qatar is playing in the Middle East, but at the same time are increasingly wondering where such huge amounts of their national wealth are going to. After all, whatever you may say, the wealth is not infinite. What will be left for their descendants over the next few decades? Giant skyscrapers? Stadiums covered with sand? In an interview with a correspondent from The Economist, an unnamed Qatari official lamented: «What have billions bought us in Syria? We've failed to bring down Mr Assad and left 4m Syrians homeless». (6) Total spending on the 2022 FIFA World Cup has already been declared as reaching 100 billion dollars which, according to experts, is at least double the actual cost of planned facilities. It is nearly 60 percent of the country's GDP. Even taking into account Qatar's enormous sovereign fund of 100 billion dollars, the forthcoming championship could simply bury its economy. The first ever municipal elections are only just beginning to take shape in Qatar while parliamentary elections are unheard of; unlike, for example, republican Syria. Political parties, trade unions, associations, marches and demonstrations are all forbidden. Elections to the «advisory council», which does not have any kind of legislative authority, were promised back in 2004 but have still not taken place, while in Qatar itself, there is no evidence of the freedom of speech so often publicised to the world by Qatar's state TV channel Al Jazeera. And in fact upon closer inspection this allegedly «independent» TV channel turns out to be dependent. The American diplomatic correspondence published on Wikileaks shows that Qatar frequently used Al Jazeera as an «intimidation tool» with regard to other countries. So, for example, the coverage of events in Syria changed dramatically in April 2011 on orders from above. (7)Timid speeches within the country criticising the Emir are being firmly suppressed. A book by local academic Ali Khalifa al-Kuwari entitled «The people want reform... in Qatar, too», for example, has been banned. In 2011, the poet and freethinker Muhammad al-Ajami was given a life sentence, graciously reduced by the Emir to 15 years, for a poem eulogising the «Arab Spring» and hinting that it would not be a bad thing if something similar also took place in Qatar. According to the Law on the Press, «insulting the Emir or his family» or «harming state interests» is punishable by a fine of 1 million rials (275,000 dollars) (8). This is where the international human rights defenders should be, but they are fighting «for freedom and democracy» in Syria alongside the Emir! Researchers from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) are paying attention to the fact that Qatar, the «avant garde of revolution», is protecting the monarchy in Bahrain and destroying the republic in Syria. It is surprising that Doha itself does not feel this contradiction and is not worried that supporting change outside of Qatar while preserving the status quo within it may undermine the foundations of the regime in this country (9). Doha's intentions are still unclear not just towards its neighbours, but its closest allies as well. Some of these have not hesitated to point out the Napoleon complex of the outgoing ruler, while others believe his particular understanding of Islam is the key to his behaviour. Monarchs from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman think that their Qatari colleague is a hypocrite «the same kind of despot as them, but pretending to be a democrat». (10) In April 2012, there was an attempted coup d'etat in Qatar instigated by Riyadh. The TV channel Al Arabiya reported that a number of high-ranking military officials came out against the Emir. The result was a fierce battle between some 30 officers and US-backed royal guards outside the Emir's palace. The coup failed following the arrest of the officers involved in the plan. (11) Relations between Qatar and Saudi Arabia remain tense, despite the fact that these two countries are working together in Syria. For example, the Saudis, who are committed to Wahhabism, condemn the closeness of the Emir of Qatar with populists like the «Muslim Brotherhood», especially since the spiritual leader of the «Muslim Brotherhood» throughout the world, the highly-influential Egyptian Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, chose Qatar as his headquarters. Riyadh is also displeased with the criticism being levelled at it by Al Jazeera. Qatar is an extremely important link in America's chain of strategic interests in the Middle East. The two US military bases in Qatar are home to 13,000 American servicemen. The United States Air Force's 609th Air and Space Operations Center is located at Al Udeid airbase close to Abu Nakhlah Airport (one of four such centres the US army has abroad). At the same time, Qatar and the US are effectively becoming major competitors on the wave of the «shale revolution» and in view of the anticipated expansion of American companies into the global LNG market after 2016. Washington could «suddenly» open its eyes to the fact that «the emir has nothing on at all» when it comes to democracy, a «national protest» having already been organised against his government. Then may Doha not be surprised at the variability of the sympathy shown by the great ones of this Earth and forget the former achievements of the current ruling dynasty in the fight for freedom…(1) http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/06/11/308437/qatar-faces-disaster-over-its-policies/(2) http://www.opendemocracy.net/michael-stephens/is-qatar-guilty-of-sectarianism-in-syria
(3) http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=355150
(4) http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/06/qatar-emir-abdicate-august.html
(5) http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/06/22/-Friends-of-Syria-in-Doha-talks-on-arming-opposition-fighters-.html
(6) http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21579063-rumours-change-top-do-not-include-moves-democracy-democracy-thats
(7) http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/15/world/middleeast/qatar-presses-decisive-shift-in-arab-politics.html?pagewanted=2&_r=2&ref=world
(8) http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/10/31/269664/hrw-raps-qatari-censorship-law/
(9) http://csis.org/files/publication/130219_Haykel_SaudiQatar_GulfAnalysis.pdf
(10) http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/regional-consequences-of-qatars-leadership-transition
(11) http://www.thenewstribe.com/2012/04/17/attempted-military-coup-against-qatari-regime-fails/#.T47XRdny_yB
http://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2013/06/30/the-abdication-emir-qatar-due-collapse-anti-syrian-forces.html
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