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A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - R.K. Locke - 25-02-2015
http://www.almasdarnews.com/article/part-1-stunning-revelations-former-turkish-intelligence-agency-officer-syria/
Part 1: Stunning revelations from former Turkish Intelligence Agency officer in Syria
By Heba Delacres on February 25, 2015 Featured
"I abducted the mass murderer Colonel Harmoush and turned him over to Syria"
Currently on the run from Turkish prison system, former officer Önder Sığırcıkoğlu asserts he wasn't out for money: "I took action to save my identity, my honor, and my conscience."
Lt Col Hussein al-Harmoush was the most senior defector from the Syrian Arab Army early in the Syria conflict. He fled to Turkey in June 2011 where he proceeded to set up a so-called Free Officers Movement to overthrow the Syrian government. His ambitions were short-lived. He disappeared from Hatay Altınözü camp in 29 August together with Mustafa Kassoum, a gym instructor who had been passing himself off as an Army Major. Two weeks later Harmoush was on Syrian TV, confessing to his crimes and to Turkey's complicity.
After a frenzied investigation Turkish security rounded up several people, and seven individuals were tried for the crime' of returning Harmoush to Syria. The seniormost among them, Önder Sığırcıkoğlu, a 19 year veteran of Turkey's Intelligence Agency MIT, was handed a 20 year sentence. After 32 months incarceration at Osmaniye prison, Sığırcıkoğlu made his escape while being transferred to another facility and was able to leave Turkey clandestinely. The following is Part 1 of his revelations to Ömer Ödemiş for leading Turkish news site OdaTV.
Önder Sığırcıkoğlu has harsh words for Turkey's Syria policy. He had been assigned by MIT early on to screen arrivals during the initial refugee onslaught:
"I interviewed thousands in those early days. The first group of refugees consisted of about 250 who crossed the border to Turkey's Altınözü. Their Syrian handlers were law student Seri Hammodi and taxidriver Abdusselam Sadiq. These two were in constant contact with international media, Al Jazeera and others, propagandizing and agitating that the refugees had been forced to flee Syria because of violent oppression. The tales they told were fabrications, but they were campaigning to sway public opinion and secure funding from Turkey, the U.N., Gulf countries and international institutions."
138 KILLED AFTER SURRENDERING TO HARMOUSH
Sığırcıkoğlu points out that the earliest arrivals came equipped with Thuraya satellite phones and with laptops. His first encounter with Harmoush wasn't long afterwards:
"In 10 or 11 June 2011 we received an MIT communique noting the arrival of a dissident Syrian Lt.Colonel in the camp. We were tasked with drawing up a report on his involvement in military operations. Upon inquiry I identified the Lt.Colonel in question to be Hussein al-Harmoush, the leader of the armed opposition in Jisr al-Shughour and instigator of the clashes there. He disclosed in the interview that he was a fundamentalist sunni, a Russia-trained explosives specialist last assigned to the engineering department of the 11th army division in Homs. Harmoush had been in constant conflict with his superiors over his strict Islamism and had played a leading part in organizing the armed opposition in Jisr al-Shughour. He recounted how they neutralized Syrian security personnel and captured Jisr al-Shughour's post office, and how they set off an explosive device of Harmoush's making at the premises of the military unit. Survivors of the explosion were forced to surrender to the forces of Harmoush who, in his own account, had 138 of them summarily executed."
MASS MURDERERS GLORIFIED
As Harmoush described in gory detail how he had ordered the notorious massacre that saw the River Orontes run red with the blood of untold victims, Sığırcıkoğlu went cold with horror and disgust:
"I was appalled, and felt lost. The agency I worked for was coddling and glorifying these mass murderers. We were consorting with bloodthirsty thugs raising havoc in a friendly neighboring country. We were housing and sheltering them, handing them safe phones, and helping their forays in and out of Syria.
Sığırcıkoğlu put in request after request for a transfer elsewhere. But his command of Arabic language and his familiarity with the region was too valuable to his superiors. His requests were denied.
NOT FOR MONEY
In two more years Sığırcıkoğlu would have made it to senior rank in the agency. But his mind was made up. "I planned out the abduction of Colonel Hussain Harmoush, and asked for help from a few trusted contacts. Once they agreed, I put Harmoush in my car and handed him to friends who delivered him to Syria. The murderer had to stand trial in his home country and answer for the hundreds of innocents he massacred. I wasn't out for money. To smear my name they are spreading rumors that I was paid $100.000 for this action. In fact I was receiving nearly TL 7000 monthly salary at the time. I owned a house, a car; I had a good life. I'd never ruin all that for just $100.000. Besides, there's no truth to the claim that Syrian government had put out a reward for Harmoush. Nothing of the sort. I took action to save my identity, my honor and my conscience. I acted out of my convictions against AKP's policies. I feel no remorse. Turkish government's policies constitute a betrayal of the Syrian people and I stood up against it. Supporting murderers against a country that had been a historical friend was not my lawful duty."
THOUSANDS OF JIHADIS SET UPON SYRIA
As the campaign against Syria expanded, planes brought in thousands of murderers and jihadis to Hatay from where they were dispatched over Yayladağı and Reyhanlı to Syria to commit further massacres, says Sığırcıkoğlu: "It was a daily routine. Thousands were brought to Turkey illegally, without passports, from undisclosed points of origin; and they were helped across the border into Syria. Some of it I witnessed, some I was directly involved in. An agency charged with upholding security was working to undermine security in another country. I had lost all faith in my job. Shiploads of weapons arrived at Iskenderun port, were loaded in containers and transported by trucks to Reyhanlı to be slipped into Syria. I didn't want to be a part of it. So I took a stance regardless of personal consequences."
"CHRISTIANS TO BEIRUT, ALAWITES TO THE GRAVE"
Sığırcıkoğlu's Arabic accent hinted at his Alevi origins, and that immediately put Harmoush's hackles up. "Harmoush and his men were Sunnis and very sectarian about it," says the former agent. "When I called them in for an interview, they declared they wouldn't be ordered around by an Alevi. Carrying out my duty was a constant struggle. They frequently put up the inflammatory chant Christians to Beirut, Alawites to the grave,' and attempted provocation saying keep Alevi doctors and nurses away, they will only mistreat us.' These men were trying to carry their sectarian bigotry over into Turkey. I requested to be transferred from Hatay with a report that explained all these problems, but I was turned away."
TRAITORS TO BE REVEALED
Sığırcıkoğlu is firm in his stance against AKP's Syria policy. Determined to name the informers and the secret witnesses who testified against him, he is also prepared to expose in detail where and how jihadi murderers are given passage into Syria, how the weapons are transported, and what instructions he was given by his superiors pertaining to these dark operations.
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - R.K. Locke - 16-04-2015
Syrian Rebels Caught in False-Flag' Kidnapping
https://consortiumnews.com/2015/04/16/syrian-rebels-caught-in-false-flag-kidnapping/
Exclusive: In August 2013, when the U.S. government almost went to war in Syria over a Sarin attack, suspicions that it was a rebel "false-flag" were ridiculed. But new disclosures about a rebel role in kidnapping NBC's Richard Engel several months earlier show the rebels knew such propaganda tricks, says Robert Parry.
By Robert Parry
In December 2012, Syria's U.S.-backed "moderate" rebels pulled off a false-flag kidnapping and "rescue" of NBC's chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel and his crew, getting the crime blamed on a militia tied to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a propaganda scam that NBC played along with despite having evidence of the truth.
On Wednesday, Engel, who had blamed an Assad-linked Shiite militia in reports both for NBC and Vanity Fair, acknowledged that a new examination of the case persuaded him that "the group that kidnapped us was Sunni, not Shia." He added that the kidnappers "put on an elaborate ruse to convince us they were Shiite shabiha militiamen."
Richard Engel, NBC's chief foreign correspondent.
Richard Engel, NBC's chief foreign correspondent.
According to an account published by the New York Times on Thursday in its "Business Day" section NBC executives had evidence from the beginning that the actual kidnappers were part of "a Sunni criminal element affiliated with the Free Syrian Army, the loose alliance of rebels opposed to Mr. Assad."
The Free Syrian Army has been the principal rebel force supported by the U.S. government which, in April 2013, several months after Engel's high-profile ordeal, earmarked $123 million in aid to the group to carry out its war against Assad's government.
The other significance of the Syrian rebels' successful false-flag kidnapping/rescue of Engel is that it may have encouraged them to sponsor other events that would be blamed on the Syrian government and excite the U.S. government and media to intervene militarily against Assad.
On Aug. 21, 2013, a mysterious Sarin gas attack outside Damascus killed several hundred people, causing U.S. officials, journalists and human rights activists to immediately leap to the conclusion that Assad was responsible and that he had crossed President Barack Obama's "red line" against the use of chemical weapons and thus deserved U.S. military retaliation.
Within days, this political-media hysteria brought the United States to the verge of a sustained bombing campaign against the Syrian military before contrary evidence began emerging suggesting that extremist elements of the Syrian rebel force may have deployed the Sarin as a false-flag event. Obama pulled back at the last moment, infuriating America's influential neoconservatives who had long put "regime change" in Syria near the top of their to-do list.
In retrospect, the aborted U.S. bombing campaign, if carried out, might well have so devastated the Syrian military that the gates of Damascus would have fallen open to the two most powerful rebel armies, Al-Qaeda's Nusra Front and the hyper-brutal Islamic State, meaning that the black flag of Islamic terrorism might have been raised over one of the Mideast's most important capitals.
Dangers of Bad Journalism
The revelations about Engel's staged kidnapping/rescue also illuminate the dangers of biased mainstream U.S. journalism in which the big news organizations take sides in a conflict overseas and shed even the pretense of professional objectivity.
In the case of Syria, the major U.S. media put on blinders for many months to pretend that Assad was opposed by "moderate" rebels until it became impossible to deny that the dominant rebel forces were Al-Qaeda's Nusra Front and the Islamic State. In late September 2013, many of the U.S.-backed, supposedly "moderate" rebels realigned themselves with Al-Qaeda's affiliate.
In the case of Ukraine, U.S. journalists have put on their blinders again so as not to notice that the U.S.-backed coup regime in Kiev has relied on neo-Nazis and other right-wing extremists to wage an "anti-terrorist operation" against ethnic Russians in the east who have resisted the overthrow of their elected President Viktor Yanukovych. When it comes to Ukraine, the more than 5,000 deaths mostly ethnic Russians in the east are all blamed on Russian President Vladimir Putin. [See Consortiumnews.com's "Seeing No Neo-Nazi Militias in Ukraine."]
These biased storylines with the "U.S. side" wearing white hats and the other side wearing black hats are not only bad journalism but invite atrocities because the "U.S. side" knows that the U.S. mainstream media with reflexively blame any horrors on the black-hatted "bad guys."
In the case of Engel's staged kidnapping/rescue, the New York Times belatedly reexamined the case not in the context of a disinformation campaign designed to excite war against Syria's Assad but as a follow-up to disclosures that NBC's longtime anchor Brian Williams had exaggerated the danger he was in while covering the Iraq War in 2003 explaining the story's placement in the business section where such media articles often go.
The most serious journalistic offense by NBC in this case appeared to be that it was aware of the behind-the-scenes reality that individuals associated with the U.S.-backed rebels were likely responsible but still let Engel go on the air to point the finger of blame in Assad's direction.
The Times reported that the kidnapping "group, known as the North Idlib Falcons Brigade, was led by two men, Azzo Qassab and Shukri Ajouj, who had a history of smuggling and other crimes. … NBC executives were informed of Mr. Ajouj and Mr. Qassab's possible involvement during and after Mr. Engels's captivity, according to current and former NBC employees and others who helped search for Mr. Engel, including political activists and security professionals.
"Still, the network moved quickly to put Mr. Engel on the air with an account blaming Shiite captors and did not present the other possible version of events. … NBC's own assessment during the kidnapping had focused on Mr. Qassab and Mr. Ajouj, according to a half-dozen people involved in the recovery effort.
"NBC had received GPS data from the team's emergency beacon that showed it had been held early in the abduction at a chicken farm widely known by local residents and other rebels to be controlled by the Sunni criminal group.
"NBC had sent an Arab envoy into Syria to drive past the farm, according to three people involved in the efforts to locate Mr. Engel, and engaged in outreach to local commanders for help in obtaining the team's release. These three people declined to be identified, citing safety considerations.
"Ali Bakran, a rebel commander who assisted in the search, said in an interview that when he confronted Mr. Qassab and Mr. Ajouj with the GPS map, Azzo and Shukri both acknowledged having the NBC reporters.' Several rebels and others with detailed knowledge of the episode said that the safe release of NBC's team was staged after consultation with rebel leaders when it became clear that holding them might imperil the rebel efforts to court Western support.
"Abu Hassan, a local medic who is close to the rebel movement, and who was involved in seeking the team's release, said that when the kidnappers realized that all the other rebels in the area were working to get the captives out, they decided to create a ruse to free them and blame the kidnapping on the Assad regime. It was there that the play was completed,' he said, speaking of the section of road Mr. Engel and the team were freed on.
"Thaer al-Sheib, another local man connected with the rebel movement who sought the NBC team, said that on the day of the release we heard some random shots for less than a minute coming from the direction of the farm.' He said that Abu Ayman, the rebel commander credited with freeing the team, is related by marriage to Mr. Ajouj, and that he staged the rescue."
The Sarin Mystery
While it's impossible to determine whether the successful scam about Engel's kidnapping/rescue influenced the thinking of other Syrian rebels to sponsor a false-flag attack using Sarin, some of the same propaganda factors applied with the U.S. news media jumping to conclusions about Assad's responsibility for the Sarin deaths and then ridiculing any doubters.
Yet, like the Engel kidnapping affair, there were immediate reasons to doubt the "group think" on the Sarin attack, especially since Assad had just invited United Nations inspectors to Syria to investigate what he claimed was an earlier use of chemical weapons by the rebels. As the inspectors were unpacking their bags in Damascus, the Sarin attack occurred in a Damascus suburb, a provocation that quickly forced the inspectors to address the new incident instead.
The inspectors were under extraordinary U.S. pressure to implicate Assad especially after Secretary of State John Kerry described a massive Sarin attack using multiple rockets that he said could only have come from a Syrian military base. But the inspectors only found one crudely made Sarin-laden rocket and when rocket experts examined it, they estimated that it could only travel a couple of kilometers, meaning it was likely fired from rebel-controlled territory. [See Consortiumnews.com's "The Collapsing Syria-Sarin Case."]
Even as the evidence implicating the Syrian government evaporated, the mainstream U.S. news media and many wannabe important bloggers continued to defend the earlier "group think" on the Sarin attack and reject the possibility that the sainted rebels had done it. But the false-flag Engel kidnapping/rescue shows that such propaganda stunts were in the rebels' bag of tricks.
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Lauren Johnson - 19-05-2015
The Russian Embassy in Syria was attacked with mortars today. Coincidence? I don't think so.
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - David Guyatt - 23-05-2015
For those who want proof that IS is the abominable child of US intelligence, the following should quench their thirst.
Quote:Levant Report2012 Defense Intelligence Agency document: West will facilitate rise of Islamic State "in order to isolate the Syrian regime"
May 19, 2015 by Brad Hoff 19 Comments
On Monday, May 18, the conservative government watchdog groupJudicial Watch published a selection of formerly classified documents obtained from the U.S. Department of Defense and State Department through a federal lawsuit.
While initial mainstream media reporting is focused on the White House's handling of the Benghazi consulate attack, a much "bigger picture" admission and confirmation is contained in one of the Defense Intelligence Agency documents circulated in 2012: that an Islamic State' is desired in Eastern Syria to effect the West's policies in the region.
Astoundingly, the newly declassified report states that for "THE WEST, GULF COUNTRIES, AND TURKEY [WHO] SUPPORT THE [SYRIAN] OPPOSITION… THERE IS THE POSSIBILITY OF ESTABLISHING A DECLARED OR UNDECLARED SALAFIST PRINCIPALITY IN EASTERN SYRIA (HASAKA AND DER ZOR), AND THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT THE SUPPORTING POWERS TO THE OPPOSITION WANT, IN ORDER TO ISOLATE THE SYRIAN REGIME…".
The DIA report, formerly classified "SECRET//NOFORN" and dated August 12, 2012, was circulated widely among various government agencies, including CENTCOM, the CIA, FBI, DHS, NGA, State Dept., and many others.
The document shows that as early as 2012, U.S. intelligence predicted the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS), but instead of clearly delineating the group as an enemy, the report envisions the terror group as a U.S. strategic asset.
While a number of analysts and journalists have documented long ago the role of western intelligence agencies in the formation and training of the armed opposition in Syria, this is the highest level internal U.S. intelligence confirmation of the theory that western governments fundamentally see ISIS as their own tool for regime change in Syria. The document matter-of-factly states just that scenario.
Forensic evidence, video evidence, as well as recent admissions of high-level officials involved (see former Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford's admissions here and here), have since proven the State Department and CIA's material support of ISIS terrorists on the Syrian battlefield going back to at least 2012 and 2013 (for a clear example of "forensic evidence": see UK-based Conflict Armament Research's report which traced the origins of Croatian anti-tank rockets recovered from ISIS fighters back to aSaudi/CIA joint program via identifiable serial numbers).
The newly released DIA report makes the following summary points concerning "ISI" (in 2012 "Islamic State in Iraq,") and the soon to emerge ISIS:
- Al-Qaeda drives the opposition in Syria
- The West identifies with the opposition
- The establishment of a nascent Islamic State became a reality only with the rise of the Syrian insurgency (there is no mention of U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq as a catalyst for Islamic State's rise, which is the contention of innumerable politicians and pundits; see section 4.D. below)
- The establishment of a "Salafist Principality" in Eastern Syria is "exactly" what the external powers supporting the opposition want (identified as "the West, Gulf Countries, and Turkey") in order to weaken the Assad government
- "Safe havens" are suggested in areas conquered by Islamic insurgents along the lines of the Libyan model (which translates to so-called no-fly zones as a first act of humanitarian war'; see 7.B.)
- Iraq is identified with "Shia expansion" (8.C)
- A Sunni "Islamic State" could be devastating to "unifying Iraq" and could lead to "the renewing facilitation of terrorist elements from all over the Arab world entering into Iraqi Arena." (see last non-redacted line in full PDF view.)
_____________________________________________The following is excerpted from the seven page DIA declassified report (bold-facing is my own):R 050839Z AUG 12
…
THE GENERAL SITUATION:
A. INTERNALLY, EVENTS ARE TAKING A CLEAR SECTARIAN DIRECTION.
B. THE SALAFIST [sic], THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD, AND AQI ARE THE MAJOR FORCES DRIVING THE INSURGENCY IN SYRIA.
C. THE WEST, GULF COUNTRIES, AND TURKEY SUPPORT THE OPPOSITION; WHILE RUSSIA, CHINA AND IRAN SUPPORT THE REGIME.
…
3. © Al QAEDA IRAQ (AQI):… B. AQI SUPPORTED THE SYRIAN OPPOSITION FROM THE BEGINNING, BOTH IDEOLOGICALLY AND THROUGH THE MEDIA…
…
4.D. THERE WAS A REGRESSION OF AQI IN THE WESTERN PROVINCES OF IRAQ DURING THE YEARS OF 2009 AND 2010; HOWEVER, AFTER THE RISE OF THE INSURGENCY IN SYRIA, THE RELIGIOUS AND TRIBAL POWERS IN THE REGIONS BEGAN TO SYMPATHIZE WITH THE SECTARIAN UPRISING. THIS (SYMPATHY) APPEARED IN FRIDAY PRAYER SERMONS, WHICH CALLED FOR VOLUNTEERS TO SUPPORT THE SUNNI'S [sic] IN SYRIA.
…
7. © THE FUTURE ASSUMPTIONS OF THE CRISIS:
A. THE REGIME WILL SURVIVE AND HAVE CONTROL OVER SYRIAN TERRITORY.
B. DEVELOPMENT OF THE CURRENT EVENTS INTO PROXY WAR: …OPPOSITION FORCES ARE TRYING TO CONTROL THE EASTERN AREAS (HASAKA AND DER ZOR), ADJACENT TO THE WESTERN IRAQI PROVINCES (MOSUL AND ANBAR), IN ADDITION TO NEIGHBORING TURKISH BORDERS. WESTERN COUNTRIES, THE GULF STATES AND TURKEY ARE SUPPORTING THESE EFFORTS. THIS HYPOTHESIS IS MOST LIKELY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE DATA FROM RECENT EVENTS, WHICH WILL HELP PREPARE SAFE HAVENS UNDER INTERNATIONAL SHELTERING, SIMILAR TO WHAT TRANSPIRED IN LIBYA WHEN BENGHAZI WAS CHOSEN AS THE COMMAND CENTER OF THE TEMPORARY GOVERNMENT.
…
8.C. IF THE SITUATION UNRAVELS THERE IS THE POSSIBILITY OFESTABLISHING A DECLARED OR UNDECLARED SALAFIST PRINCIPALITY IN EASTERN SYRIA (HASAKA AND DER ZOR), AND THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT THE SUPPORTING POWERS TO THE OPPOSITION WANT, IN ORDER TO ISOLATE THE SYRIAN REGIME, WHICH IS CONSIDERED THE STRATEGIC DEPTH OF THE SHIA EXPANSION (IRAQ AND IRAN)
8.D.1. …ISI COULD ALSO DECLARE AN ISLAMIC STATE THROUGH ITS UNION WITH OTHER TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS IN IRAQ AND SYRIA, WHICH WILL CREATE GRAVE DANGER IN REGARDS TO UNIFYING IRAQ AND THE PROTECTION OF ITS TERRITORY.
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Drew Phipps - 23-05-2015
I'm curious. Who among, and since when, are the armed forces of the US characterizing the US government as just one of the "Western Countries"? That phrasing sounds too "Cold War"-ish to me, like saying Russia is a "Soviet bloc" country..
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - David Guyatt - 23-05-2015
Drew Phipps Wrote:I'm curious. Who among, and since when, are the armed forces of the US characterizing the US government as just one of the "Western Countries"? That phrasing sounds too "Cold War"-ish to me, like saying Russia is a "Soviet bloc" country..
I suspect the terminology is in use in the same that the US are also the "international community". Since the new cold propaganda war with Russia unfolded over Ukraine, many of the more ignorant on social websites use "the Soviets" interchangeably with "the Russians". I agree it is amazing, but it seems to me that those old cold war attitudes are still quite prevalent in some quarters.
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Drew Phipps - 23-05-2015
The tone of the letter seems to be effectively minimizing the US's involvement in these affairs. I wonder if this document was drafted with declassification in mind?
I also wonder if the author's use of the term "grave danger" to Iraq, implies a good thing, or a bad thing, or is intentionally left ambiguous?
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Michael Barwell - 29-05-2015
Regards the Saudi's apparently using cluster munitions in the Yemen; what I saw on the news footage, was anti-armour self-forging fragment weaps being dropped on a hillside, BLU-108's. How odd, just dosn't make sense, unless they dropped 'em in the wrong place.
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Magda Hassan - 30-06-2015
WikiLeaks: US, Saudis Planned to Topple Syria's Assad in 2012
By TeleSur
June 29, 2015 "Information Clearing House" - "TeleSur" - Whistleblower Julian Assange implicated the United States along with the Saudi Arabian government in a plot to overthrow the Syrian government.By TeleSur
Saudi Arabia, the United States, France, and Britain were involved in a secret 2012 deal to overthrow Syrian President Bashar Assad, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Sunday.
​"Saudi has been one of the dogs of the United States in the Middle East on a leash, and you think the man is walking a dog, but sometimes, if it is a big dog, the dog starts pulling a man," Assange told Russia 1 TV.
Last week, Assange's whistleblowing website WikiLeaks released a batch of more than 60,000 of what it said were classified Saudi diplomatic cables.
​ The leak aimed to prove that Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey had a secret deal to topple Syria's President Bashar Assad as far back as 2012.
Among the revelations contained in the files, believed to have been leaked by a group which calls itself the Yemen Cyber Army, are details about the country's focus on its strategic rival, Iran, and the uprising in Egypt. The leaked files also contain details about Saudi Arabia's allies and clients in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen and other countries in the Middle East.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article42279.htm
A Mediterranean Battlefield - Syria - Lauren Johnson - 15-08-2015
There are a lot of moving parts globally. It looks like Syria is now even more firmly in the cross hairs of the Empire. One report is that 52 Syrian civilians were killed in US airstrikes. BTW, no ISIS terrorists were killed, or even targeted?!
Russia is closely involved diplomatically. Mike Whitney asks whether Russia is dumping Syria.
I have to wonder whether the situation has been ramped up in Ukraine as a threat to Russia.
Quote:Moscow's geostrategic objectives in Syria are the polar opposite of Washington's. Grasping this simple fact is the easiest way to get a fix on what's really going on in the war-torn country.What Washington wants is explained in great detail in a piece by Michael E. O'Hanlon at the Brookings Institute titled "Deconstructing Syria: A new strategy for America's most hopeless war". Here's an excerpt:"…the only realistic path forward may be a plan that in effect deconstructs Syria….the international community should work to create pockets with more viable security and governance within Syria over time…Forget about ISIS and Syrian President Bashar al Assad for a minute and, instead, focus on the terms "autonomous zones", "creation of …sanctuaries", "safe zones" and "a confederal Syria."
Creation of these sanctuaries would produce autonomous zones that would never again have to face the prospect of rule by either Assad or ISIL….
The interim goal might be a confederal Syria, with several highly autonomous zones… The confederation would likely require support from an international peacekeeping force….to make these zones defensible and governable….The autonomous zones would be liberated with the clear understanding that there was no going back to rule by Assad or a successor."
("Deconstructing Syria: A new strategy for America's most hopeless war", Michael E. O'Hanlon, Brookings Institute)
All of these strongly suggest that the primary aim of US policy is to break Syria up into smaller units that pose no threat to US-Israeli regional hegemony. This is the US gameplan in a nutshell.
In contrast, Russia does not want a divided Syria. Aside from the fact that Moscow and Damascus are long-term allies (and Russia has a critical naval facility in Tartus, Syria), a balkanized Syria poses serious threats for Russia, the most significant of which is the probable emergence of a jihadi base of operations that will be used to deploy terrorists across Central Asia thus undermining Moscow's grand plan to integrate the continents into a giant free trade zone from Lisbon to Vladivostok. Russian President Vladimir Putin takes the threat of terrorism very seriously, which is why he has been working around-the-clock to engage leaders from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Iran, the Kurds and Syrian opposition groups in negotiations to put an end to the fighting and reestablish security in Syria. It's worth noting that there's been an effective blackout of these crucial negotiations in the western media, mainly because they make Putin look like a peacemaker who is respected among other world leaders and who is making every effort to stop the spread of terrorism. Obviously, that doesn't jibe with the media's portrayal of Putin as the new Hitler, so they've simply omitted the meetings from their coverage.
The differences between the US and Russia are irreconcilable. Washington wants and end to the nation-state system and create a new world order, while Putin wants to maintain the current system in order to preserve national sovereignty, self determination, and multi-polarity. This is the basis of the clash between Russia and the US. Putin rejects unipolar global rule and is working as fast as he can to build a coalition capable of resisting persistent US intervention, manipulation and aggression. This is no small task, and it involves a great deal of discretion. Putin does not have the wherewithal to confront the US Goliath at every turn, so he must pick his fights carefully and operate largely in the shadows, which is what he is doing.
In the last few months, Putin has convened meetings with all the main players in the Syria drama, and has made remarkable headway in resolving the crisis. The main sticking point now, is whether Assad will remain as president or be removed as Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the US demand. Putin is resisting this outcome for many reasons. First, he doesn't be seen as betraying an ally which would seriously hurt his reputation as a reliable partner. Second, he can't allow himself to comply with a "regime change" doctrine that eschews international law and that could eventually be used against him in a future coup. Allowing foreign leaders to pick and choose who is a "legitimate" leader and who isn't is a prescription for disaster, as is evident in Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan and now Yemen. Finally, Putin cannot simply hand Washington an easy victory on a matter of this magnitude although, in the end, Assad will probably be gone.
So, what's been going on behind the scenes?
Back in June, Putin met with the Saudi Crown Prince and Defence Minister Mohammad bin Salman in St Petersburg an started working on an "international legal framework for creating a coalition to fight terrorism in the region." Soon after, he met with the heads of opposition groups and high-ranking officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran. The goal was to implement the so-called Geneva communiqué that was ratified in June 30, 2012. In brief, Geneva provides for:Establishment of a transitional governing body with full executive powers that could include members of the government and opposition, and should be formed on the basis of mutual consent.As you can see, Geneva does not resolve the central issue, which is: "Does Assad stay or go?" That question is not answered definitively. It all depends of composition of the "transitional governing body" and the outcome of future elections.
Participation of all groups and segments of society in Syria in a meaningful national dialogue process
Review of the constitutional order and the legal system
Free and fair multi-party elections for the new institutions and offices that have been established.
Clearly, this is the result that Putin wanted. Here's how Lavrov summed it up two days ago:"I have already said, Russia and Saudi Arabia support all principles of the June 30, 2012 Geneva communique, in particular, the need to preserve government institutions, including the Syrian army. I believe its participation in the effective struggle against terrorists is truly essential.You can see by this statement what Putin really wants. He wants to "preserve government institutions, including the Syrian army" to avoid another Iraq-type nightmare scenario. (Note: Remember what happened to Iraq after Bremer disbanded the army.) What he doesn't want, is to create a power-vacuum that leads to another failed, balkanized hellhole that serves as a breeding ground for terrorists that will eventually come knocking on Moscow's door. He doesn't want that at all. That only serves Washington's objectives, not Russia's.
I have already said that though we hold identical positions on the settlement of the crisis, we also have our differences, and one of them concerns the destiny of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. We believe that all issues of settlement, including the parameters of the transitional period and political reforms, should be resolved by Syrians themselves. The Geneva communique reads that these issues should be resolved by consensus between the Government and the entire spectrum of opposition forces."
Also, the whole idea of a "transitional governing body" and "free and fair multi-party elections" gives Putin a way to back away from Assad without looking like he's throwing him under the bus.
Some will probably criticize this and say that Putin is "selling out a friend and ally", but that's not entirely true. He's trying to balance two opposing things at the same time. He's trying to maintain his commitment to an ally while accommodating Saudi Arabia so they agree to help him to end the hostilities. So, yes, there is a bit of triangulation involved, but what choice does he have? In practical terms, he can either strike a deal fast or allow the window of opportunity to slam shut.
Why?
Because Washington doesn't want a deal. Washington wants war. Washington cannot achieve its goal of breaking up Syria and redrawing the map of the Middle East if peacemaker Putin prevails. Let's put it this way: If Putin gets Saudi Arabia on board, then a good portion of the funding for jihadi groups will dry up, the Syrian Army, assisted by Iraqi and Kurdish forces, will have greater success on the battlefield, and ISIS will be annihilated.
How does that serve Washington's interests?
It doesn't. And even if Assad is removed, the process (Geneva) is such that the next president is not going to be a hand-picked US stooge, but someone who is supported by the majority of the Syrian people. Needless to say, Washington doesn't like that idea.
The only glitch to the plan is that Putin must move very fast. The US has already gotten the green-light from Ankara to launch its drone attacks and bombing raids from Incirlik air base in Turkey, which means the conflict is going to intensify in the weeks and months to come. Also, Turkey's hardline President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan appears to be using the US aerial attacks as cover for stealing Syrian sovereign territory in the North and declaring it a "safe zone". Get a load of this clip from an August 11 article in the International Business Times:"A group of ethnic Turkmen fighters arrived in Azaz, Syria, on Monday afternoon to launch the first phase of a joint U.S.-Turkish initiative to establish an Islamic State group-free "safe zone" in the country, two soldiers fighting in northern Syria told International Business Times via Skype. Tanks carrying the fighters entered through the Bab al-Salama border, crossing from southeastern Turkey into the town of Azaz, Syria, setting off a wave of attacks by the Islamic State militant group, also known as ISIS or ISIL, in the town of Marea, which forced the al-Qaeda extremist group Jabhat al-Nusra to retreat.So, Turkish tanks loaded with troops that have been armed and trained by Turkey, cross the border into Syria where they are expected to clear and capture territory up to and perhaps including Aleppo?
"At first everyone thought the tanks were filled with Turkish soldiers, but it was the Turkmen," one of the rebel fighters said.
The soldiers, interviewed Tuesday by IBTimes, were trained in Turkey and are in one of the biggest moderate-opposition rebel coalitions in the country. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they are in combat. Shifting alliances among rebel groups in the country have left them fearing retribution if they identified themselves on the record. One of the soldiers, a commander, recently attended talks with the Turkish government in the capital city of Ankara regarding the Turkish-U.S. plan to create a safe zone in the northern part of the country." ("Turkey, US, Syrian ISIS-Free Safe Zone: Turkmen Brigades Move Into Syria, Al-Nusra Moves Out, Soldiers Say", IBT)
That sounds a lot like an invasion to me; how about you?
Bottom line: If Putin wants to prevent Washington from splitting up Syria and transforming it into a terrorist breeding ground, he's going to have to move fast; get the Saudis on board, put an end to the bloodshed, and implement Geneva.
It's not going to be easy, but he seems to be on the right track.