It is easy to say that most Syrians are supportive of the regime or the exact opposite.
I think that Syrians are divided on a number off issues and that division is not hard to spot in places like Latakia,Tartous,Aleppo,and Damascus.
Syrians desire to change the regime and end corruption and the family rule and albaath domination can unite them but that unity ends when we start talking about the details especially the issue of foreign intervention and the use of force. The SNC will continue to face internal opposition to its attempts to exclude other political forces inside Syria and its commitment to seek foreign help to topple the regime which is obviously counting on keeping the opposition divided. The SNC may lose the support of hardliners if it agrees to negotiate with the regime and lower its demands,but adopting a more flexible position will actually broaden its appeal and can strengthen the opposition which must insist on basic demands: release of political prisoners,ending article-8,including non Baathists in a new transitional government,a timeline for clean elections monitored by neutral outside observers and bringing security forces under civilian control.
If the regime refuses those demands,a stronger case can be made to isolate the regime further and open the door to harsher measures.

Bronco

“As for the legitimacy of Bashar Al Assad versus the SNC:
How many thousands Syrians demonstrated for the SNC: a few hundreds or less in Turkey? How many demonstrated in favor of Bashar in Syria? Millions.”

Your above comment made me speachless! You must be kidding, don’t you? You are comparing anti-regime demonstrators who risk torture and death every time they leave their house with the bought-love of the pro regime demonstartors. You need to be a HERO to have the courage to demonstrate against Bashar already knowing the fate you may be facing.

Additionally, I am so much surprised with Arab’s devaluation of human life. A prime minister in most countries outside the ME would resign on his own over the death of few demonstrators. 3000 civilians, 187 children died and 30.000 imprisoned and you call Bashar legitimate. Would you still call him legit if you were part of the downtroddens in Banias? Would you still call him legit if your own child was tortured by his thugs? Why do we feel extreme injustice when a foreign entity killing Arabs when we ourselves give no value whatsoever to their lives? Please explain???

I thought your only “beloved” is “yourself” not Bashar. I thought you genuienly loved Syria. I thought you viewd Syrian as simple, kind, open, quite, undemanding, vibrant and genuine people. Did I think wrong?

May be you loved different Syrians than the simple, kind, open, quite, undemanding 30000 who were shot dead or the simple, kind, open, quite undemanding 30.000 imprisoned. I am sorry that you love is selective one!

The latest pro-regime rally in the capitol should be taken into account, not dismissed.

Eshani, regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran, it’s not a perfect government — no government is perfect. True, it began in a naive manner and there was an abundance of novices — not uncommon for revolutions. But in the Iranian case, you must always factor-in the Iran-Iraq War and the ongoing economic war (sanctions) directed against it when assessing the Islamic Republic.

Been to Tehran lately? It’s barely recognizable from its pre-revolution self of ’79. It’s my estimation that, despite it all, the capitol’s progression has exceeded Damascus and Cairo. Only Istanbul might have achieved a greater progression, but with it foreign debt and the relinquishing of some of its cultural identity.

Syria is seeing change. What will eventually be produced, no one seems to know. December is the big month for promised reforms, right? There’s where many inside the country’s expectations are fixed, if only in the backs of their minds for some. Until then, we’ll continue to see the same level of stalemate.

Let us stay focused.

Syrians are getting killed, simply, because they dared to speak after 41 years.

No concessions. No negotiations.

A father of three children, who is fully responsible for the murder of 187 children is not a dictator, but a mass murderer.

Are these daily killing spree, an average of 20 Syrian daily, a project, an experiment or what?

By Sunday another hundred freedom seekers will lose their lives to junior, the father of three beautiful children.

For those of you who missed the raving about Bob Ford courage.

Ambassador Robert Ford’s profile in courage

http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/ambassador-robert-fords-profile-in-courage-132661043.html

Above, Joshua Landis links to the Xinhua news article that says yesterday’s pro-regime rally in Damascus brought out “tens of thousands” of people. Other news agencies have put the figure at “hundreds of thousands”. Joshua is undoubtedly aware that SANA has put the figure at “around two million people” — http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/10/27/378075.htm

This year I’ve seen many big pro-regime rallies in Damascus and Aleppo, and SANA has greatly exaggerated the size of every one of them. I’ve watched the videos taken from on high at the big pro-regime rallies.

Today there was a big pro-regime rally in Latakia city, which SANA says brought out “more than one million citizens… coming from the city and the villages”. http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/10/27/378207.htm

The population of Latakia metropolitan area is 371000 (year 2010): http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x=&men=gcis&lng=en&des=wg&geo=-202&srt=pnan&col=adhoq&msz=1500&va=&pt=a

The population of Latakia governorate is 991000 (year 2010).

I haven’t yet seen the video for today’s Lakatia rally, but on the basis of SANA’s lousy track record, plus Latakia’s known total population, I assume “more than one million” for Latakia today is another big exaggeration by SANA.

There was a bg pro-regime rally in Hasaka yesterday 26 Oct. which SANA says brought out “tens of thousands” of participants — that looks correct, and it’s a big number for Hasaka, whose total population is only 80000 (year 2010).

SANA is or should be everybody’s first place to go learn about reality in Syria. But not when it comes to estimating crowd size at big pro-regime demonstrations.

(Reuters) – Cracks in Syria’s military are widening along sectarian lines, say analysts, fuelling an armed mutiny that may pose an even greater threat to President Bashar al-Assad than the street protests which have rocked the country for months.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/27/us-syria-military-idUSTRE79Q49720111027

Diplomats and military experts say army cohesiveness is fraying and defections increasing as the leadership, largely from the minority Alawite sect, sends troops out to crush unrest across the mainly Sunni Muslim country of 20 million.

“The crackdown is looking increasingly unsustainable. Assad is more unable to rely on the majority Sunni rank and file. It is costing lots of money to move already exhausted core troops and his capability of launching simultaneous strikes on protest centres is diminishing,” a European diplomat said.

“The Sunni backlash against him is growing, and we could see a scenario where he will lose the countryside.”

The ruling elite faces a nascent armed insurgency emboldened by the overthrow and killing of Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi, opposition sources say.

Defectors from the military have in recent weeks launched more deadly guerrilla raids on convoys and fortifications in the province of Idlib near the border with Turkey, and along the main Damascus-Aleppo highway in Hama and Homs to the south.

“TERRORISTS”

Dozens of soldiers have been killed in Homs, Hama and Idlib, opposition sources say. Authorities say “armed terrorist groups” have killed 1,100 soldiers and police since the uprising broke out in March.

Unlike Libya’s successful rebels, defectors from Syria’s military lack international support. A protracted conflict, with Assad holding on to main cities such as Damascus and Aleppo while opponents challenge his control of smaller cities and rural regions bordering Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon.

Core troops from Assad’s Alawite sect, mainly assigned to the best-equipped Republican Guards and the Fourth Armoured Brigade, show no sign of abandoning Assad.

They are backed by Alawite-dominated Military Intelligence and Air Force Intelligence, two units in charge of preventing dissent within the military as it presses on with a crackdown which the United Nations says has killed 3,000 people.

A repeated tactic of security forces is to deploy Sunni conscripts in rings around cities and towns, under the scrutiny of Alawite intelligence agents. Hundreds have been killed for refusing to obey orders, anti-Assad activists say.

The military is effectively commanded by Assad’s younger brother Maher and their brother-in-law Assef Shawkat, who diplomats say has been given enhanced responsibilities in leading the repression of protests.

Defectors from the military are helping defend Sunni neighborhoods coming under assault by the military and a pro-Assad militia in the central city of Homs, 140 km (85 miles) north of Damascus.

Ali bin Abi Taleb brigade, a defector unit named after the cousin of the Prophet Mohammad, is operating in the Homs countryside, residents said. Another brigade, Khaled bin al-Walid, fought Assad’s forces for 10 days before withdrawing from the town of Rastan.

Rebel sources said 100 defectors and insurgents were killed in the battle for Rastan, with loyalist forces sustaining heavy losses. Authorities said seven security police were killed.

NO “TIPPING POINT” YET

In that battle, Captain Abdelrahman al-Sheikh emerged as a leading figure among defectors.

“He proved to be astute on the battlefield. The (other, more senior) defectors in Turkey are playing little role,” said an opposition source.

“The problem is that they lack more effective weapons, such as shoulder-fired anti-tank missiles. And that international support is needed to move the large amounts of cash needed to buy weapons and support them,” the source said.

W. Andrew Terrill, professor at the U.S. Army War College, said insurgents were small in number but could inflict serious casualties because the Syrian army is structured to fight Israel and control Lebanon, not deal with guerrillas and urban warfare.

“Right now (armed rebels) seem to be mostly fighting defensively against regime forces entering areas sympathetic to the rebels. The trend seems to be toward more defections from the army and more confrontations between defectors and soldiers,” he said.

“Trends can be reversed, and we are still not at a tipping point, but things are definitely worse for Assad.”

Terrill said that if controlling Syria eventually looked “hopeless” for Assad and his supporters, they might consider retreating to Alawite regions around the city of Latakia.

“Ceding territory to the rebels means that they (the rebels) could set up something like Libya’s Transitional National Government and request foreign recognition and aid,” he said.

Major General Moussa Hadid, a former Jordanian army strategist, said Syria’s military command had intensified censorship and cut holidays to try to prevent Sunni conscripts from finding out about the extent of killings by the security forces in their home regions.

“They send conscripts from the south to the north and vice versa. Despite all the controls over the senior officers and army and soldiers a lot of them are now becoming more distrustful of the regime and are awaiting the opportunity to support the uprising,” Moussa said.

(Editing by Andrew Roche)

REALITY OF THE MB
The document includes 44 pages and outlines a 4 year plan (2010-2014) , the steps which are being currently applied in Syria in terms of terrorist actions and false media reports.
by Ghassan Ben Jeddo
https://www.facebook.com/notes/%D8%AF%D8%B9%D9%85-%D9%82%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%AE%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D8%B7%D9%84%D9%82%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%B9%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%85%D9%8A-%D8%BA%D8%B3%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%88/%D9%88%D8%AB%D9%8A%D9%82%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D9%83%D8%B4%D9%81-%D8%B9%D9%86-%D9%88%D8%AC%D9%88%D8%AF-%D8%AC%D9%87%D8%A7%D8%B2-%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%AA%D8%AE%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D9%84%D9%84%D8%A5%D8%AE%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B3%D9%84%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%86-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%B3%D9%88%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%85%D9%86%D8%B0-2010/280304115336936

https://www.joshualandis.com/blog/?p=12510#comment-280466

Population of Hasaka city metro area in year 2010 was 82000 according to http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x=&men=gcis&lng=en&des=wg&geo=-202&srt=pnan&col=adhoq&msz=1500&va=&pt=a

I’ve been using the above source, which I hope is correct.

According to http://www.citypopulation.de/Syria.html the population of Hasaka city in year 2004 was 188000.

Zoo

Turkey is pretty annoying.  Powerful but empty threats.

Is it too much Wiskey?  

Ankara will not tolerate Syrian repression, FM says

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=ankara-will-not-tolerate-syrian-repression-fm-says-2011-10-27

Turkey has no intention of permitting any chaos or oppression in Syria, Turkey’s foreign minister has said, adding that Ankara would do everything to ensure that the Syrian people realize their rightful demands.

“We will not allow any chaos or oppression in Syria, this is our responsibility toward the Syrian people,” Davutoğlu told a joint press conference with his Jordanian counterpart, Nasser Judeh, in Amman.

 ………

Tara, thanks for posting.

“Terrill said that if controlling Syria eventually looked “hopeless” for Assad and his supporters, they might consider retreating to Alawite regions around the city of Latakia.”

He is in a “hopeless” situation. A retreat in Qurdaha? This scenario will not happen, Alawite are Syrians first and foremost, they will not allow a thuggish family to burden them any longer.

The percentage of Alawite support might be higher than other groups. This support is not based on love, rather, the uncertainty that comes with change.

This uncertainty is what’s keeping the majority silent.

NZ

Agree it is not based on love. It is based on fear of the change. I do not think the vast majority of Alawis will support the revolution but I believe they would not want to separate and divide Syria when we have a new and free Syria when all are equal under the law

ANTAKYA, Turkey — Once one of Syria’s closest allies, Turkey is hosting an armed opposition group waging an insurgency against the government of President Bashar al-Assad, providing shelter to the commander and dozens of members of the group, the Free Syrian Army, and allowing them to orchestrate attacks across the border from inside a camp guarded by the Turkish military.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/28/world/europe/turkey-is-sheltering-antigovernment-syrian-militia.html?_r=1&ref=world

video
http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/10/27/world/europe/100000001139841/timescast–syrian-defectors-in-turkey.html?ref=world

SANA 27 Oct 2011. Syria’s Central Bank conducted auctions for foreign currency on Wednesday. The exchange rate of winning bids ranged from 51.3 to 52 SYP per USD. The Central Bank is monitoring exchange rates and the state of supply and demand, and it will announce more auctions according to market developments. The Central Bank said rising exchange rate in black markets doesn’t indicate a true rise in demand for foreign currency but is rather a result of speculation that the Syrian currency is going to be further devalued. http://www.sana.sy/eng/24/2011/10/27/378099.htm

Meanwhile the official exchange rate that Syria’s Central Bank was quoting on 27 oct was US$ 1 = SYP 49.51 and € 1 = SYP 69.33. http://www.banquecentrale.gov.sy/forex/forex-ar/forex-today.htm

Since Syrian financial people are willing to bid SYP 52 to get US$1 from the Central Bank, I have to take it that the Central Bank is not selling US$ in the ordinary course, and that its officially quoted selling price, SYP 49.5, is an empty formalism.

JAD, SYAU, and the many others who converted some of their foreign cash into SYP this past summer to help prevent a run on the SYP are going to see a small depreciation in exchange value in the short and medium term. But they should be getting a pretty good interest rate in SYP, which should largely compensate.

I read this in an Israeli mil-blog. Is it a plausible scenario?

In case the Alawis feel that it’s over, they will “confiscate” the equipment of the Syrian army, meaning, all that they can carry, they will move to the Alawi territory, and the rest they will destroy, in order to prevent the possibility that it could be used against them.

In that coastal territory, around Latakie, they will establish an Alawi independent statelet. It will not be recognized by the UN and the international community, but there are previous precedents: Northern Cyprus, Kosovo etc.
.

The best news film out Syria i have seen so far (from ch.4 UK):

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/unreported-world/episode-guide/series-2011/episode-12

It’s long but worth it.

Those who are in jail now in Syria if you put them in Omayya square in Damascus, they will fill it more than those who rallied for Bashar, the killer of children.

Also those who rally in Omayya square,on wednesday,they were bussed to Latakia,and rally there on Thursday.We have not seen simultaneous rally in both cities at the same time.thanks to the busses which take them from one city to the other.

“Major General Moussa Hadid, a former Jordanian army strategist, said Syria’s military command had intensified censorship and cut holidays to try to prevent Sunni conscripts from finding out about the extent of killings by the security forces in their home regions.”

What a sectarian piece of crap!

It’s amazing how propaganda works on people’s minds.
Singling out one sect as ‘THE’ problem of Syria is ridiculous and claiming that the army is only killing Sunni is another f***d up way of looking at the issue.

Most of the newspapers lately show how ‘hopelessly’ low the writers are regarding Syria and it proves that there is an orchestrated mad sectarian propaganda that is targeting Syrians as a society more than supporting them to have democracy and better future.

How about some reality check, how many Syrian Alawites are in the top government/security positions?

31 Minister, 2 Alawites
14 Governor, 2 Alawites
52 Security Branch Chiefs, 12 Alawites
14 Police Chiefs, 2 Alawites
14 City Council Charimen, 2 Alawites
40 Ambassadors, 4 Alawites
19 Secretary of the Baath Party branch, 2 Alawites
16 Presidents of the Syrian Universities, 1 Alawites
about 1600 judge in allover Syria 158 Alawites
about 720 General Manager allover the government, 71 Alawites
Vice President, Premier, Vice Prime Minister, Parliament Speaker, his deputy and his secretary + the President of the High Judicial Council, the Chairman of the Central Organization for Control and Inspection, the president of the Financial Supervision Committee, the Head of the Constitutional Court, the Chief of Staff, the Governor of the Central Bank of Syria + and all heads of Chambers of Commerce and Industry all of them are NOT ALAWITES.

How can these numbers back those sectarians who keep bombarding us with the usual mantra that Syria is run by ‘Infidel’ or whatever sectarian and disgusting word out there, or that the mighty uprising is held back only by the Alawites and minorities while reality is that the majority of Syrians in the top levels are just SYRIANS.
When are we, the Syrians, going to recognize that the problem is not in one person or one sect, it’s a collective of mistakes done by all Syrians regardless of what their sects/religions are and we need to work on fixing those together instead of killing each other and destroy our country?

Calling this Friday ‘no fly zone’, wow, how attractive!!

Majedkhaldoun

See the buses that take them from the mountains to the city

http://m.youtube.com/index?desktop_uri=%2F&gl=US#/watch?v=fG1Y1AnLlvc

Libya yesterday
http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today\27qpt968.htm&arc=data\2011\10\10-27\27qpt968.htm

Amir,
The assad b plan of an alawite entity has been underlined by the new maronite patriarch as source of his fear ,this idea is not new amongst them, and the syrians are aware that they would have to fight this attempt.
The same is true for hezbollah in Lebanon.

There were about 200-250.000 (my estimation) in Omayyad sq (the biggest so far) and if only 50.000 of them were transported from Lattakia as some of SC smarties claim, it means that they need ‘1000’ buses moved at the same time from Lattakia to Damascus so all of them to arrive on the time for the rally.
That is simply IMPOSSIBLE in the existing transportation system of Syria.
Even if the IMPOSSIBLE did happen by some miracle how about the other 150-200.000 who where there where did they come from? CHINA!

Science is cool stupidity is something else!

Bought love
http://www.youtube.com/user/UgaritNews#p/u/28/VG9VcWX5UwQ

I think that this is ‘Kuba’, not ‘Mafroum’. Mafroum, is a Jewish Tunisian dish – a potato stuffed with meat, then deep fried, and finally cooked in a broth.
http://www.youtube.com/user/UgaritNews#p/u/27/so6i1DJOnKE

====
Shami,
I see. Though HA is the strongest party in Lebanon, and is not threatened by others. Unlike the Alawis.
.

Amir,
The fates of assad regime and hezbollah are most likely tied.

The number of people in the crowd that domostrate for bashar in Omayya square did not exceed 5000 person,if half of them transported,it will not take more than 40 bus.the other half are local Alawi,christians who live in Damascus.

Tara

I compared specifically the supporters of the SNC in Turkey (where they are safe) to the supporters of Bashar in Syria. Read well my sentence. Don’t accuse me of saying something I did not say. It was in response to your alleged “legitimacy” of the SNC.

Legitimacy seems to be for you an emotional decision. Legitimacy is not you or I to decide, it is for the people and in my view, neither the people in Syria nor the world community have massively rejected Bashar Al Assad, so until then he is the legitimate ruler of all Syrians. Now if you accuse him of crimes, it is not some Youtubes videos that will decide of his responsibility. It is a grave accusation and you must justify it. Until you do, these are just allegations.
My affection for Syria is why I want the killings to end, soldiers and civilians and contrary to you, I am not accusing any side to be the responsible of the killings. I realize it is a complex situation that went out of control and fell into all kind if excesses. This has to be stopped in any way to preserve human lives. Both provocations and reactions must be stopped. Syria needs badly a cease-fire, but the foreign opposition seems determined to sacrifice more lives by calling for more provocations and more opportunities for criminals using the pretext of the protests to perpetuate the violence. By doing so, the opposition is as much as the government responsible for the incurred death of innocents.

Jad #18

Excellent post about the ridiculous mantra that Alawites “control” the country!

MajedAlkhaldoon #25

“the other half are local Alawi,christians who live in Damascus.”

Oh! these bad 2500 alawis and christians!

“It’s amazing how propaganda works on people’s minds.”
Look who is complaining about propaganda.

As for the Assad regime being sectarian, anyone with an average IQ knows that this is true. Just ask Dr. Landis.

Deeply sectarian
http://www.economist.com/node/21521962
An interview with Dr. Landis

Robert Fisk: ‘The army was told not to fire at protesters’
Our writer presses Assad’s key adviser on the violent battle for Syria’s future

Robert Fisk

Bouthaina Shaaban is one of only six Syrians on America’s personal sanction list against the Assad regime. She is political adviser to the President. A middle-aged mother and author who speaks perfect English, as much at home in Paris as in Cairo. And all those assets of hers, frozen in America. Wow.

So I sit in her Damascus office and ask the obvious question: what does it feel like to be on the sanctions list of the most powerful nation on earth? “Nothing really,” she says, quick as a flash. “I have no assets – except the assets of the love for my people. The Americans understand ‘assets’ only as dollars. I don’t have dollars anywhere in the world.”

The “assets of my people” is a bit of a cliche. But touché. She isn’t on a European sanctions list – yet – and thinks she can go to Europe if she wishes. “It’s a bit ironic, really, to be on an American sanction list when my books are on sale all over the USA. At present my only travel plan is a possible trip to Saudi Arabia.”

It’s one of those frequent Syrian interviews – Shaaban prefers an off-the-record chat. I insist we are on the record. Once in full-flow, however, I can’t stop her, and she confirms what every other Syrian in Damascus says: that the security situation in Homs is terrible, that the army is being attacked all over the country. Anyone with a military registration plate on their car is a target. Shaaban herself is from Homs. “Today is the second anniversary of the death of my mother. And you know we like to go to the grave of our family on the anniversary of their death. But I can’t go to my mother’s grave – I am afraid of being killed in Homs. Everyone is suffering.

“The other day, I went to the woman who is the best baker in Damascus – she works on the road to the airport, I always buy my bread from her but she was crying. She told me that some bearded men came to her and said: ‘You are a Christian and you are putting whiskey in your bread.’ So she had to close her bakery. These are the kind of people who want to destroy Syria. Now people, for the first time, are interested in the religion of their neighbours. This has never happened before. You know, Syria is one of those countries where people have the names of jobs – like Najr (carpenter) and Haddad (blacksmith). Now people are asking about what their religion is.”

The political narrative is, of course, familiar. Violence is being directed at the army. “It is being directed at our public buildings and cities. This has nothing to do with peaceful demonstrations. This violence is the most dangerous thing happening now in Syria. Syrians all want to live in peace, to press ahead with pluralism and reforms. This violence is not the introduction to democracy. There is obviously a sector which is interested in conflict and not in reforms. They are all given money to shoot at demonstrators and the security forces – or they are extremist fundamentalists.”

I have been down this path before. Surely – surely – I said to Shaaban, those original, terrible YouTube pictures of demonstrators being fired at in Deraa and Homs and Hama were real. One even shows Syrian soldiers turning and firing on the man filming them with his mobile camera. We all know how brutal the intelligence services can be. I remember – but do not mention – walking past the “muhabarrat” headquarters not far from my own hotel and commenting to a friend the same night that they must be hard at work on “interrogations”. “They are done in the basements,” he replied. “You wouldn’t want to know what happens there.”

“I think you have to know both sides of the story,” comes the reply. “I would not be able to tell you the other side of the story. There are always now two sides of the story – I will not be defending anybody. Early in the crisis, our army and police and security services paid terrible sacrifices but they were told not to shoot at demonstrators. I really don’t know why people should make things up. The Syrian civilians who went to Turkey – they returned and said the Turks had promised them passports, all kinds of things which turned out to be untrue. Why would a person wanting to flee Idlib go to Turkey? They would go to Aleppo.”

I tell Shaaban that I have spent hours talking to Syrian refugees in Lebanon, poor farming people who told terrible stories of the “shabiha” militia and the brutality of the intelligence services in their village of Tel Khalak. Surely she doesn’t believe these people were all making these things up? She talks about the “armed groups “playing with these people” and about how weapons are coming across the borders. “In Deraa, we found weapons that were Israeli. I told our people they should show these weapons to the media…”

So how come Syria’s former best friends – Turkey and Qatar – are now among its fiercest critics, I ask? “I find the stand of Turkey a mystery. When you have a good friend – and it was Syria which opened for the Turks the front gate of the Arabs, we allowed Turks to come here without visas, Syria was flooded with Turkish products – we do not expect to have to abide by other people’s policies. I think there are bigger, larger reasons. There is to be an anti-missile shield in Turkey, Turkey is a member of Nato – I don’t know what is in the cake for Turkey. When I heard yesterday some statements by a Turkish official about us, I felt like he was supposed to be the teacher and we the students. We did not do anything to provoke this stand from Turkey.”

There is puzzlement over Qatar’s fierce condemnation of Syria but apparent relief that Wednesday’s Arab League meeting with the Syrians went well. “I thought they came with a positive attitude. They said that Syria was a very important country in the Arab world, that anything that happens to Syria will affect all of the Arabs. Of course, a lot of their questions were based on the reports of Al Jazeera and Arabia [TV channels].”

I bet they were. Al Jazeera is banned in Syria.

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-the-army-was-told-not-to-fire-at-protesters-2376892.html

irritated
I did not say they are bad,this is your words, They are supporters or they were either forced to come and demonstrate or they were told you may benefit from going there.they are protected by the regime.
I think you are irritating your self

التسيق ستشارك في الحوار تحت إشراف الجامعه
http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=139245

The author of these numbers must be challenged to cite the names of 3 non alawi persons who hold effective power and are not there for figurative purpose ,exposed corrupt covers to this deeply sectarian system,represent nothing other than their masters,seriously which minister can oppose Rami Mhalouf or assiocates ,who formally doesnt hold a government position?the Zo3bi,Miro,Otri,Safar,Tlass,….Hassoun,…?what do they represent other than assad -makhlouf-shaleesh system ?

ღ❤✔▂▃▅▆▇★☀☀☀☀★▇▆▅▃▂✔❤ღ .. ░░░█░█░█░█░░█░█░█░░░█░█░█░░█░█░ ░▄▀█░█░█░█░░█░█░█░▄▀█░█░█░░█░█░ ░█▄█▄█▄█░█░▄█▄█░█░█▄█▄█░█░▄█▄█░
•*´*´*´محمـ‗__‗ـد رسـ‗__‗ـول اللـ‗__‗ـه `*

Happy Eid,to my fellows muslems

Not only that but the whole post defies its purpose when it acknowledges that there are 12 Alawites heads of SECURITY BRANCHES.. The last thing we heard there are 17 totals. Syria is a police state and it is these heads of the security branches who are terrorizing the country. Of course, under the auspice of what I recently heard the gang head, mother Anisa, with the gang members Bashar, Maher, Bushra, and Asef. So Bronco, it is a fact that Alawis control every breath you take. It is not just a mantra.

Why Friday ‘no fly zone’if planes have not been flying!?! Is this their way of asking NATO to win the “revolution” for them, Libyan style?

Tara #35

There is no point in arguing, your obvious hatred for the Assad family has all the answers.

Tara,
17! You have no clue do you?
Security branches are allover Syria, there are 52 of them not only the 17 you ‘heard’ of.
Interesting that you missed the whole ‘purpose’ of my post, which show that you are consistent in your sectarian view since your famous first ever comment on SC, nothing change since…

Bronco,
If it was reflected as hatred toward a political figure it should be understandable regarding the blood that have been spelled, what is not understandable and really disappointing is this arrogant sectarian hatred toward a whole ‘sect’ not a person or a family.

Memo To: JAD

RE: “…You have no clue…”

Actually there are 53. You missed one, Jaddy

Thank you Dale
53 it is 🙂

No Fly Zone is to prevent the regime from escalating the conflict, Tanks has disadvantage ,tanks can not fight guerilla war they need airforce protection, if there is NFZ the people can arm themselves Tanks will become worthless without air protection.In Syria Guerilla warfare can be fought successfully,it is different from Libya where the land and geography is different.

Jad

I am sorry to tell you that your personal opinion carries no weight what so ever so stop volunteering it because it is irrelevant. I would\’ve usually defended myself when I think the accuser worth it… Not only that, but you twist facts too. I was referring to the different kinds of security apparatus we enjoy in Syria that are headed by Alawis

Bronco @37

You got that right. I hate murderers. I feel nothing but contempt and disgust to children killers. I am sorry that you don\’t share my feelings.

The decision makers in Syrian politics, economy and security are 100% 3alawis.

They are B Asad, M Asad, R Makhloof, and the rest of the Asad-Makhloof Gang.
The ministers, the governors, the Baath party employees, and all of the public sector chiefs are benefactors and merely carry out The Gang’s orders

The main intelligence agencies in Syria are:
– The National Security Directorate
– The Military Intelligence
– The Air Force Intelligence
Each has branches all over the country.

Other independant agencies exit, including those of the palace and special strike forces; their chiefs are 3alawis.

The heads of the branches, not wisstanding their alleged numbers or sects merely carry out the orders of their 3alawis chiefs.

Those who have been giving orders to kill civilians, like those who did in Hama before have been 100% 3alwis; Asad-Makhloof now and Asad-Douba before.

It goes without saying that the chiefs of all of the intelligence agencies in Syria are 3alawis!

Hello,

I’m an Arabic native speaker and just wanted to point out an inaccuracy in the translation of what the Qatari prime minster said in the video:
“halt to violence from both sides and the end of armed demonstrations.”
The actual term used by the prime minister in Arabic was “المظاهر المسلحة” which literally means “armed manifestations” (as in the existance of an armed dimension to the conflict). The translation is therefore very misleading.

Thank you

Building a Pretext to Wage War on Syria: Hidden Agenda Behind UN Security Council Resolution

October 28, 2011

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=27344

VIII – Some Examples of Netizen Comments on the Resolution

While much of the mainstream Western media portrayed the October 4 Security Council meeting in the terms offered by the US and European members of the Council, several responses posted on the Internet demonstrated that there are many people who oppose the actions of the western members of the Security Council.(4)

For example, in one response to media reports that Ambassador Rice said the US was “outraged” by the Russian and Chinese vetoes of the European draft resolution, one netizen asked, “Where is all the outrage over US and Europe’s cracking down on their protesters? Where is the UN resolution on all that?”

A number of netizens applauded Russia and China for vetoing the European resolution against Syria.

Some netizens wrote that Russia and China “should also have vetoed the Libyan resolution.” One netizen explained the view that “they (Russia and China) just allowed NATO to kill Libyans, and destroy the country so they can make big money in reconstruction contracts. “

A US netizen who expressed a similar view said, referring to the US President Obama, “So I guess our Nobel Peace Prize winner wants to spread more peace around the globe. He will have to do it Bush style without UN approval.”

Another netizen said that such a veto a few months ago in the Libyan situation would have prevented the “now ongoing genocide and catastrophe that the US, France and so-called UK have brought the Libyan nation via NATO bombings and flagrant – shameless support of armed revolt. Perhaps there’s still a chance for the ‘United Nations’ to vindicate itself historically and salvage its long lost credibility and honorable standing.”

Expressing a similar viewpoint, a netizen ended his comment, “If a ‘no-fly zone’ is interpreted by Obama and Sarkozy as 6 months of unlimited bombing (of Libya), how could China and Russia risk allowing any kind of resolution on another country.”

IX – Conclusion

Comparing the October 4 Security Council meeting which rejected the hostile European draft resolution against Syria with the March 17 meeting approving Resolution 1973 against Libya, what stands out is that on October 4, some members of the Security Council acknowledged the violent actions of some of the internal opposition against the Syrian government. In March the Council had failed to acknowledge the armed insurrection against the Libyan government.

One lesson that several members of the Council appear to have drawn from the Security Council action on Libya, was the need to avoid passing a vague or hostile resolution which could be abused by powerful nations as a pretext to carry out a hidden agenda of regime change.

The opposition on the Security Council to the European draft demonstrated a determination to prevent a NATO type intervention against Syria, similar to that which had been carried out by the US, France, and the UK against Libya using NATO. The Libyan experience had shown that these powerful western governments would do as they wished using a Security Council resolution as a pretext and the Security Council had no means to stop such abuse of its resolutions.

The UN Charter obligation of the Security Council is to work for the peaceful resolution of conflicts affecting peace and security in the international arena. The situation in Syria, as it was in Libya, is a domestic affair complicated by foreign intervention. The fact that many Libyan civilians have been and continued to be killed by NATO bombing missions in Libya as the Council considered a similar resolution against Syria, offered a grotesque backdrop to the fact that some NATO members who are members of the Security Council have continued to try to use the Security Council to claim legal authority for their clearly illegal attack on the sovereignty of UN member nations.(5)

Netizen comments in response to western media reports in support of such illegal actions demonstrate a rejection by these netizens of the kind of action NATO has undertaken against Libya. The effort of NATO members of the Security Council to use the Libya resolution as a model to support their attack on Syria, was met by a double veto and four abstentions in the Security Council. It was also met by netizens posting articles and comments on the Internet to oppose NATO’s actions and to welcome the Russian and Chinese vetoes of the European draft resolution.

The Freemasons and the New World Order – Friday, 28 October 2011

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=222504

America and Europe are broke, their populations are addicted to insatiable spending and America in particular has a phenomenal debt commitment to settle. Yet instead of fixing their economies the governments of Europe and the US are spending tons of money on “military adventurism” not only in what recently happened in Libya but also still in Afghanistan, Iraq and now Yemen, Pakistan and covertly in Syria. Word out is that US and some European special forces are already in Syria. The US also just pulled out their Ambassador from Syria as of this writing. That usually means that it’s likely going to get hot out there. Same thing apparently happened in Iraq and in Libya.

So we live in a very surreal world where broke countries spend billions bombing other countries while their home populations go on “Occupy” demonstrations!

This is what we have just seen in Libya. In the years to come, the story of Libya will make it into the history books but we are living that history right now. And it is not over yet. There is probably more to come. Iran, Pakistan and/or Syria could be next. As I write this, China and Russia have their respective militaries on highest alert.

The warmongers in the west are profiting from human suffering. They have allowed their economies to decay so that war becomes the inevitable outcome because during wars, no one cares about a bad economy (case in point Nazi Germany of the 40’s). Now we know that the western powers will use their power and might to their advantage if and when they can. With this in mind, one may say that the Cold War was totally justified! Gaddafi and his fighters could not fight CIA satellites in space, CIA-controlled predator drones and state-of-the-art fighter jets dropping precision-guided bombs, using DEPLETED URANIUM bombs on Loyalist Libyan tanks (yes, this happened in Libya, it is a massive war crime commited by NATO) coupled with American Delta Force, SEALS and British SAS soldiers equipped with the best gadgets that kept them abreast with the movements of the Libyan loyalists? Not even the best, most motivated army in the world could win against such odds. Although Gaddafi had some serious fighters, he did not stand a chance against all of this. Left on their own, the Libyan rebel movement will have been extinguished back in February. NATO fought the battle for the Libyan rebels, using weapons of mass destruction only for the rebels to be brought in for scraps at the end. Western mainstream media hid the substantial role played by NATO to make it seem as if the Libyan rebels fought a big part of the war (the same trick was used in Cote d’Ivoire). Which soldier can fight a precision-guided bomb? From the perspective of the soldier that is a weapon of mass destruction.

They then recruited and fielded Al-Qaeda battle-hardened criminals who have killed and continue to kill Americans and European soldiers in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan on the ground in Libya to do their dirty work for them. This is the world we live in today. Western mainstream media show videos on their websites which look like “action movies” but they are real life events. This is Kofi and Ama in Wonderland! All who read this should know that western media will use propaganda during times of war. It was so during the World Wars and has been since every war. You have to expect it.

Memo To: MAJEDKHALDON

RE: “…in Syria Guerilla warfare can be fought successfully…”

Or unsuccessfully.

Don’t get your hopes up, majey. Your boy Besho isn’t the type to head for the hills and lead a guerrilla war against invading Turks. He’s too soft and used to his servants and his toadies and his flatterers. He ain’t no Mao Zedong, he ain’t no Ho Chi Minh, he ain’t no Jomo Kenyatta. He hasn’t got the balls.

Also, in the event of an invasion, do you really think the Syrian Army would fight (and maybe die) for President Pencilneck? Fuck, no! Many of the soldiers (I’m referring to the grunts – the ones who do the dirty work on orders from their Alawi officers) have friends or relatives who have suffered thanks to the Assad Mafia. Why should they lift a finger for Besho? Except, of course, the middle finger…

Memo To: ANN

RE: “…The Freemasons and the New World Order…”

Ann, you ignorant nannygoat, the Freemason/New World Order thing is a myth. The only people who believe that garbage are conspiracy obsessives or insane (or both).

Come to think of it, the kinds of news articles you post on SC fall into those two categories. So I apologize for calling you an ignorant nannygoat. You’re not a goat, you’re just a conspiracy obsessive. Or insane. Or both…

dale (I’m not jewish) anderson,

LONELY?

President Assad of Syria will give a speech on Monday morning

Qatar and Turkey’s game will bring some MB in European parliaments, I suspect. The idea has been of late of “organizing the Muslim communities in Europe” no doubt to be able to bet on their vote when needed. Sarkozy was always very active in the field.

Poor Fisk, to finish his article with “Al Jazeera is banned” is simply a plain lie. As if Syria was Saddam’s Iraq where you could end up in jail for a satellite on your house. No one can cut satellite TV channels (especially when they don’t own the satellite that broadcasts it).
Why not saying, more honestly, the office of Al Jazeera is closed, and develop on Hassan bin Jiddo and others who have denounced the fake news AJA has broadcasted everyweek to ignite the situation on the ground?

As one would expect the “Arab spring” revolutionaries to be using modern technologies and all the ressources available to make their causes heard, here is an extremly important report that will help them launch necessary cases against the “corrupt regime”. 284 pages and many lessons in international finance and politics.
En résumé: “the name of the game”.

Presentation
www1.worldbank.org/finance/…/PuppetMastersFrench_FactSheet.pdf

Report
http://www1.worldbank.org/finance/star_site/documents/Puppet%20Masters%20Report.pdf

Memo To: ANN

RE: “…President Assad of Syria will give a speech on Monday morning…”

We’re all choked with anticipation…

Afghanistan, Iraq, Lybia,
how many success stories do we have to bear yet?
http://original.antiwar.com/updates/2011/10/27/northern-province-declares-autonomy-as-dozens-are-killed-wounded-in-baghdad-attacks/

Dale Anderson #48

What made you think I was talking about Bashar ,Maher and Makhloof?

EHSANI said:
When you have to live on $300 a month with 3 kids only GOD can get you going.
…
They clearly want to try islam.
…
I think that this transition period is inevitable.
…

REALITY

When the world economy is falling , people retorts to “sin” alternatives:
– the West capitalists invest in such recession resilient stocks tobacco , alcohol , gaming, candies , defense ..
– Arabs Muslims are invited to try Islamist religious autocracy.

No doubt for these MB :
The prescriptions of the Koran as applied to Medinan and Meccan society in the 7th century are going to resolve 21th century economic world problems.

No doubt for the Syrian liberal “economists” :
The food and energy subsidies in Syria are a “sin” for the budget of a future liberal State .

I had this suspicion from years back when Landis invented the Qarfan and his filthy sectarian discourse to encourage alawi separatism.

with this interview http://www.economist.com/node/21521962

i now have no doubt that Landis, Ehsani , and Otrakji are most likely to be CIA assets or the assets of some other covert filth operations organisation.

why else would anybody go this far in lying to stir sectarianism in Syria. It can’t be just Spitefulness . this is a man with a diabolic agenda.

@ Ghufran #1

http://www.ahewar.org/debat/show.art.asp?aid=281354

Tara

So I guess you hate Bush, Condoleeza Rice, Cheney and most of the US present Congress and practically the whole western world for the unpunished Gaza crimes on children. And what about Chirac and the other Europeans countries who stood silent when in 2006 children were killed in South of Lebanon? Forgotten?

I condemn western countries that have taken advantages of the inherent flaws and weaknesses in some personalities in the Middle east to manipulate them to reach their own selfish goal.
The Shah, Mobarak, Ben Ali, Saleh, Ataturk were for decades pushed and encouraged by Western countries to oppress their people in the name of ‘fear” either from communism or Islam.
The occupation of Palestine sponsored by western countries has created a generation of Arab and regional authoritarians regime cherished and manipulated by the Western countries.
Syria is the only country that had a leadership opposed to the manipulation by the West, the only “non-puppet” regime in the area.

Just for that, it deserves admiration.

It has been targeted relentlessly to join the cohort of pro-west leaders. While the corruption has been present, the country has had a consistent support of the Palestinian conflict at the core of the whole illness of the region.
With the cost of not developing its economy as fast as other countries fed with millions of dollars for their submission, Syria has stood slow but independent.

The latest attack , using the “arab spring” movement as a cover up is actually an attempt of a coup d’etat. That the government reacts with indiscriminated violence is not justified but understandable when it stands against powerful countries like the US, France, the UK who can manipulate people and media easily.

If you look at it this way, deaths are as much imputable to the Western countries incitations to hatred and to a change of regime that would have made Syria another puppet as to the awkward and excessive methods used by the government on the defense. The government’s aim was to stop and prevent demonstrations that could degenerate into civil war and break the resistance Syria had toward western plans in the region in support of Israel. It was also certainly to keep the power structure intact and in the same hands.

Your hatred is natural but it should also be directed to the countries behind this situation, while you probably believe they are genuinely calling for ‘freedom’ and democracy.

We all care for the lives of children, but foreign policy and greed are cynical, they don’t value human lives.

Haytham Khoury
That was a very good article,I enjoyed reading it.There are two points I want to add
1) the coordination committee does not have money,while SNC has a lot of money, Money is the mother milk of any political movement.
2) the CC does not have a strategy on how to change the regime, while the SNC has good plan.

Bronco
You said
That the government reacts with indiscriminated violence is not justified but understandable
THERE ARE CONTRADICTION in your statement

Tara Said,
(( Additionally, I am so much surprised with Arab’s devaluation of human life))

Tara,

No Arab will say that !.

Revlon,Majedoglu and H khory celebrating SC announcing Syria no fly zone:

Dear SNK#63:

I am not celebrating.

Please review
http://www.ahewar.org/debat/show.art.asp?aid=281354

@ Majed#60

1. I agree with you as regard to the money. We should find a way for that. For this reason, united with the CC is crucial, because they have a lot of people on the ground.

2, As regard to the absence (or ambiguity) of CC plan, I agree with you, too. For this reason, we need to bring them closer.

Intelligence source in the Free Syrian Army on clandestine operation aimed at profiting Asad security officers and paying Shabbeeha’s daily wages :

Asad Security and Baath party chiefs have embarked on a plan for adulterating the traditional heating fuel (Mazoot) with cheap petroleum wastes at a ratio of 18/14 and selling it through a network of Shabbeeha to the public, at regular price!

On that note, seven fuel tankers arrived at SADCOP in Aleppo last Sunday. Their load was distributed to Shabbeeha under the supervision of Baath party committees and Asad Security agents. Colonel Abbas , Head of Asad security branch in Aleppo received his share of the profit in his office, at the third floor, via an “agent” .
28/10/2011
http://www.facebook.com/Youth.Syria.Freedom

حركة سوريا شباب من أجل الحرية Youth Syria For Freedom

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
بيان صادر عن الجيش السوري الحر
علمت كتيبة الابابيل بقيادة (النقيب المظلي عمار الواوي) مكتب العمليات عن طريق سرية الشهيد صخر حلاق الاستطلاعية بالمخطط الذي تنوي اجهزة الامن والارهاب تنفيذه وهو:

في إطار عمليات الفساد والسرقة المستمرة لأموال الوطن والشعب الذي يقوم به تحالف الأمن والحزب والشبيحة كما يلي
:
يتم استغفال المواطنين وسرقتهم جهاراً نهاراً نتيجة التعاون الوثيق بين أجهزة المخابرات وحزب البعث اللص مستغلين ارتفاع أسعارالمحروقات.
حيث بدأت مصافي حمص وبانياس بخلط المازوت بمواد عادمة (فضلات بترولية ) وللدقة فإن هذه المادة تسمى الماء المصبوغة ( كل 18 ألف ليتر مازوت تخلط بــ14 ألف ليتر مواد عادمة) وهذه المادة غير صالحة للاستخدام وتسبب ضرراً كبيراً للمحركات والبيئة الناتجة عن الخليط
تقوم المصافي وفرع الأمن وحزب البعث بتسليم هذه المادة للشبيحة التي تقوم ببيعها بالسوق المحلية أو تهريبها إلى تركيا، والأموال التي يتم تحصيلها وسرقتها يتم توزيعها بين الشبيحة ورجال الأمن
ويقوم الشبيحة بتهريب المازوت المستبدل بالفضلات ، وتعود الأموال لضباط الأجهزة الأمنية في المحافظات…

وللعلم فقد أدخلت صباح الأحد الماضي سبعة صهاريج إلى مدينة حلب واستلمتها (سادكوب) بحلب وهي الشركة العامة لتوزيع المواد البترولية
وتم تفريغ الصهاريج بإشراف لجان حزب البعث السارق للدولةوالمجتمع
، وقد نال العقيد إبراهيم عباس (حسب مصادرنا رئيس قسم مكافحة الإرهاب بفرع الأمن العسكري بحلب) حصته من هذه السرقة
واستلمها بمكتبه بمبنى الفرع بالطابق الثالث. عن طريق احد الشبيحة الذي دخل الفرع بصفة مندوب

2 hours ago

Bouthaina doesn’t like bearded men. “Bearded men” is a code name to… you know who. Especially if those bearded men prevent Bouthaina from consuming her favorite gourmet bread. How many Syrians can afford driving their car to a gourmet bakery ?

But my main question to Bouthaina is, If bearded men ain’t good, then why do you serve a junta which promotes, arms and hosts Palestinian and Lebanese bearded men ?
.

31 dead today, and it’s just 16:10 local time. 2 days to the AL deadline.
.

Defensive Free Syrian Army operations continue.
– In Baba Amr, Homs: an Asad forces armoured vehicle was destroyed.
– In Ratian Village, Aleppo: A Shabbeeha convoy on its way to arrest 75 civilians was ambushed by an FSA unit, resulting in 26 Sahbbeha casualities and the foiling of their mission.

حركة سوريا شباب من أجل الحرية Youth Syria For Freedom
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
بيان صادر عن الجيش السوري الحر كتيبة خالد بن الوليد
قامت بعون الله سرية عمر بن الخطاب التابعة لكتيبة خالد بن الوليد في منطقة بابا عمر السلطانية بإستهداف مدرعة من نوع BTR وتم اعطابها كلياً والحمد لله
والنصر لشعبنا البطل
3 hours ago

حركة سوريا شباب من أجل الحرية Youth Syria For Freedom
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
بيان صادر عن الجيش السوري الحر كتيبة الأبابيل
توجهت قطعان الأمن والشبيحة باتجاه قرية رتيان ليلاً والتي تقع شمال حلب ، لاعتقال ما يقارب 75 رجل من القرية،وفي لحظة وصولهم إلى هناك قامت سريةمن كتيبة الأبابيل بواجبها وتعاملت معهم بمنتهى الحنكة والإبداع واثبتت جهوزيتها العالية في التعامل مع العابثين بامن اهلنا الامنين حيث جرى تبادل كثيف وغزير لإطلاق النار، وبصمود الشجعان وثباتهم اندحرت عصابات الأمن وشبيحتهم المرتزقة وتم خلالها قنص أكثر من ((26)) عنصر
وعادت السرية الى مواقعها سالمة بعدما أدت واجبها تجاه الثورة والشعب
عاشت سورية حرة أبية ، والنصر لشعبنا البطل.
3 hours ago

Hama city neighbourhoods of Qusoor and Ameeriyeh are the scene of a battle between Shabbeha and Free Syrian Army forces who rushed to rescue demonstrating civilians from the onslaught of Asad Shabbeeha.
4 civilians have thus far fallen martyrs!

AlFatiha upon their souls,
May God bless their families with solace anhd empower them with patience.

حركة سوريا شباب من أجل الحرية Youth Syria For Freedom
أموي مباشر سوريا #syria •◄ : حماة : عاجل : جبهة حقيقية في القصور بعد استشهاد 4 متظاهرين علـْـْى الأقل مما استدعى تدخل الجيش الحر لإيقاف حدوث مذبحة على يد الشبيحة
3 hours ago · .

حركة سوريا شباب من أجل الحرية Youth Syria For Freedom
حماة: اطلاق نار كثيف جدا من رشاشات يتم سماعها في حي الاميرية من مختلف الجهات. ورؤية سيارة اسعاف تتجه من شارع ذي قار الى المجمع الطبي مع انتشار لعصابات الامن حول المجمع في حالة استنفار كامل
3 hours ago

Two interesting articles in Alahayat today:

صعود الإسلام السياسي في الشرق الأوسط
By Patrick Seal
http://international.daralhayat.com/internationalarticle/323085

الغرب يصادر الثورات العربية لمصلحة الإسلاميين
By Raghida Durgham (a hater of Syria and Iran)
http://international.daralhayat.com/internationalarticle/323084

التدخُّل الخارجي في سوريا: سجال المحظور وأولويّات المعارضات

في مرحلة انتفاضة مدوَّلة تجري تطوراتها في لحظة شديدة الحساسية، وفي بلد يعاني من «تصحُّر سياسي» عمره عقود، وفي مرحلة التغيرات الكبرى في الإقليم العربي، يصبح التدخل الخارجي في الشؤون السورية لإسقاط النظام المادة الأكثر حساسية، على أساسه توضع خيوط الوطنية والخيانة، وخصوصاً عندما تكون هناك معارضة غير متفقة على شيء إلا على سقوط النظام

أرنست خوري
باريس | تكاد تكون عبارة التدخل الخارجي في سوريا كافية وحدها لرسم خطوط عمودية لا التقاء فيها بين أطراف المعارضة، أكانوا ممن لا يزالون داخل البلاد، أم من هؤلاء المنفيين طوعاً أو قسراً. هكذا تبدو الصورة علناً على الأقل، بما أنّ تدقيقاً في مواقف رموز من «المعارضات» السورية حيال الموضوع يكشف أنّ الأمر ليس بهذه الدرجة من الاختلاف، لذا يصبح التمييز بين المصطلحات ضرورياً، بما أن طلب «التدخل الخارجي» كلمة مطّاطة للغاية، ويمكن أن تشمل حثّ الخارج على الضغط على النظام، وصولاً إلى استدعاء تدخل عسكري مباشر. غير أنّ هذا التمييز في المقصود من هذا التدخل الخارجي يفقد معناه بالنسبة إلى معارضين باريسيين بارزين، كهيثم مناع، القيادي في إطار «هيئة التنسيق لقوى التغيير الديموقراطي»، الذي لا يتردد في تكرار موقفه الذي يفيد بأن كل من يأتي على ذكر التدخل الخارجي هو خائن وغير وطني، ومن بينهم «المجلس الوطني السوري».
ولعلّ السابقة الليبية في ترجمة مبدأ «التدخل لحماية المدنيين» الذي دخل أروقة الأمم المتحدة والقانون الدولي عام 2005، هي ما يعوق نقاشاً أو حواراً جديين بين مَن يطلب التدخل الخارجي على قاعدة أنه لا طريقة للتخلص من النظام السوري إلا بالمساعدة الخارجية، من جهة، ومَن يرى أن مجرّد الإشارة إلى طلب تدخل خارجي هو استدعاء لخرق السيادة السورية ومقدمة لضرب سوريا واحتلالها ربما، من جهة ثانية.
من جهة المعارضة المعترَف بها من قبل النظام السوري، التي يصفها معارضون باريسيون بأنها ديكور معارض خوّله نظام الرئيس بشار الأسد التحدث باسمه في هذه الفترة للإيحاء بأنّ هذه هي «المعارضة الوطنية» المقبولة، كالأمين العام لوحدة الشيوعيين السوريين قدري جميل مثلاً، فإنّ أي إشارة إلى حماية المدنيين من قبل جهة خارجية يعني بالضرورة استدعاءً للسيطرة الخارجية على سوريا وشعبها ومقدراتها. هكذا، يصبح «المجلس الوطني» معارضة غير وطنيّة بتعريف جميل، «لأنه يطلب التدخل العسكري على شاكلة حماية المدنيين». موقف يشارك فيه معارضون «غير معترف بهم» كهيثم مناع على كل حال. هذا في ما يتعلق بالجهة المتطرفة في جبهة رافضي التلفُّظ بأي إشارة لحلول خارجية للمشكلة السورية. أما في المعسكر «المتطرّف» المقابل، الذي يجسّده معارضون، منهم بارزون كهيثم المالح مثلاً، أو مغمورون نوعاً ما كالصحافي فهد المصري المحسوب سابقاً على مؤسسات إعلامية تابعة للنائب الأسبق للرئيس السوري رفعت الأسد، فإنّ التدخل العسكري ليس مجرد احتمال، بل يكاد يكون مطلباً لا سقوط للنظام السوري من دونه، ولا حماية لأرواح السوريين بسواه. هكذا، في حين يشدد المصري، المقيم في باريس، على ضرورة حصول التدخل العسكري غير المشروط، فإنّ المعارض ذا الخلفية الإسلامية، هيثم المالح، يضع موقفه في إطار معادلة رياضية بسيطة تقوم على أن التدخل العسكري الخارجي ضد النظام يبقى، على علّاته، أقل سوءاً من بقاء نظام الأسد، وخصوصاً أن القصف الجوي الذي قد يصاحب هذا التدخل «لن يصيب المواطنين، بل سيستهدف مؤسسات النظام»، وبالتالي فإنّ «تدمير الحجر أفضل من قتل الناس» (على يد النظام)، على حدّ تعبير المالح.
بين هذا وذاك، يرى معارضون بارزون، أكانوا منضوين في صفوف «المجلس الوطني» أم في «هيئة التنسيق الوطنية للتغيير الديموقراطي»، أنّ النقاش في احتمالات حصول تدخل عسكري من عدمه يُطرَح بطريقة خاطئة. على سبيل المثال، يرى المعارض المخضرم ميشال كيلو أن الشعب السوري لا يمكنه أن يوافق على أي تدخل عسكري أو احتلال لبلاده، وبالتالي فإن الأمر غير مطروح أصلاً. ومن جهة أخرى، يرى قادة «المجلس الوطني»، من الدكتور برهان غليون إلى الدكتورة بسمة قضماني، أنّ الجهة المقصودة بالتدخل الخارجي، أكانت الغرب عموماً أم تركيا أم الطرفين معاً، غير مستعدة أصلاً لشنّ حرب عسكرية ولا لدفع فاتورتها، وبالتالي فإنّ الكلام على هذا الموضوع يحيّد النقاش عن سكّته الصحيحة، بحيث يصبح مجرد فزّاعة تخدم بقاء النظام وتخوين الملايين من معارضيه. هكذا، يصرّ الموقف الرسمي، على الأقل لـ«المجلس الوطني»، على أن دور التدخل الخارجي السلمي في سوريا مطلوب ليؤدّي وظيفة معيّنة ومحدودة، وهي التلاقي مع الضغط الداخلي المستمر من خلال حركة الاحتجاجات التي يجب أن تتّسع دائرتها للإطباق على النظام والتسبّب بانشقاق كبير في الجهازين السياسي والعسكري يؤدي في النهاية إلى سقوطه.
وفي ترجمة لهذين الموقفين، يقول ميشال كيلو، في المؤتمر الصحافي الذي عقده مع زميليه فايز سارة وسمير العيطة في باريس في 11 تشرين الأول الجاري، إنه «إذا كان الخيار هو بين احتلال سوريا وتدميرها أو بقاء النظام، فليبق النظام، على الأقل لأنّ مصيره في النهاية إلى زوال. أما إن دُمِّرَت سوريا، فلن يبقى لنا شيء، حتى إننا مستعدون للقتال إلى جانب النظام إن حصل احتلال، وسنحارب ظهور أي أحمد جلبي سوري». كلام حماسي واضح في رفضه لأي تدخل عسكري، يعود كيلو ليوضحه بعبارات أكثر سياسية، عندما يذكّر بأن المعارضة السورية حذّرت النظام، منذ بدء الأزمة، من أن استخدام العنف لحل مشكلة سياسية «سيفتح الأبواب أمام التدخل الخارجي. كذلك فإنّ إرسال الجيش إلى الحدود التركية واللبنانية والعراقية والأردنية يستدعي بالضرورة تدخّل هذه الدول». ويتابع كيلو: «اليوم، لا يوجد أحد إلا يتدخل في الشؤون السورية، من حزب الله وإيران وتركيا والأردن والسعودية وأميركا والصين وروسيا وصولاً إلى (حزب) الكتائب (ساخراً) والإسلاميين في طرابلس، لذلك لم يعد لسوريا أيّ من ملامح سيادة. وإذا استمر النظام بسياساته الراهنة، فإنّ الأزمة سائرة نحو المزيد من التدخل الخارجي». وكخلاصة لموقفه «المستقل عن أي تجمع معارِض»، مثلما يحرص كيلو على توضيحه، فإنّ «النظام لم يكن يملك يوماً شرعية داخلية، بل استند إلى المشروعيات الخارجية لبقائه، وعندما فقد هذه الشرعية الخارجية، لم يسعَ إلى اكتساب أخرى داخلية، بل حاول ولا يزال يحاول إعادة البحث عن غطاء أجنبي جديد، وبالتالي فإنّ ما نريده هو مساعدة عربية لحمايتنا وليس تدخلاً خارجياً». هنا يلتقي فايز سارة في الفكرة نفسها مع زميله كيلو، عندما يجزم بأن الشكل الوحيد المرفوض من التدخل الخارجي هو التدخل العسكري. والفكرة الأخيرة يمكن اعتبارها وصلاً لخطوط مع معارضي «المجلس الوطني» الذين يختصر غليون موقفهم في اعتبار أنّ «المجلس» على ثقة بأنّ الضغط الخارجي، على شاكلة مواقف وتصريحات وعقوبات وإرسال مراقبين عرب ودوليين وإعلام أجنبي، ضروري لحماية المدنيين أولاً، وليس لإسقاط النظام بما أن المهمة الأخيرة تبقى منوطة بالسوريين. لكنّ رفْض مسؤولي «المجلس الوطني» لأي تدخُّل عسكري، ليس محل إجماع بين أركانه مثلما بات معروفاً، وهو ما يفتح ملفاً آخر بشأن عدم اتفاق أركان «هذه المعارضة» إلا على هدف إسقاط النظام. فأحد الأطراف الرئيسة في المجلس، أي الإخوان المسلمون، خطابه مختلف تماماً عن تصريحات غليون وقُضماني مثلاً. من هنا لم يجد أركانهم، من فاروق طيفور ونجيب الغضبان ومراقبهم العام محمد رياض الشقفة مثلاً، حرجاً في إطلاق مواقف مناقضة لتلك التي يعلنها المتحدثون الرسميون باسم المجلس، إذ بهم يكثرون من التبشير بأن التدخل العسكري آتٍ، وأن تركيا سيكون لها دور في هذا السياق، وخصوصاً في مجال تطبيق حظر على الطائرات السورية الحربية وفرض منطقة معزولة من السلاح، ربما أملاً بالتمكن من خلق «بنغازي سورية» تكون منطلقاً لإسقاط النظام. غير أنّ ورقة التدخل العسكري يفهمها «الإخوان» بطريقة مختلفة عمّا يتعاطى معها معارضون آخرون كهيثم المالح، إذ إنّ الأحفاد السوريين لحسن البنا لا يزالون يلوّحون بالتدخل العسكري من باب التهديد، ويرون، على الأقل في تصريحاتهم العلنية، أنّه إذا واصل النظام حملته الدموية، فإنّ التدخل العسكري سيصبح حتمياً، لا بل إنهم (كحزب) سيطالبون به في حينها على قاعدة أنّه الوسيلة الوحيدة لخلاص السوريين.
وفي المؤتمر الصحافي المذكور لهيئة التنسيق وكيلو وسارة (اللذين أوضحا أنهما لا يمثلان الهيئة)، احتلّت مسألة «الحماية الدولية» حيّزاً واسعاً، بما أنها مسألة «سجالية ودقيقة» باعتراف الجميع. وهنا يشير سمير العيطة، متحدثاً باسم «هيئة التنسيق»، إلى أن السوريين «لا يريدون حلاً على الطريقة الليبية، لأنه حلّ مكلف بشرياً، وفي الوقت نفسه يؤدي إلى زوال السيادة السورية»، وهو ما ألزم العيطة بالتشديد على «اللاءات الثلاث» الشهيرة (لا للطائفية لا للتدخل الأجنبي ولا لعسكرة الانتفاضة) التي بات خصوم «هيئة التنسيق» يعتبرونها أداةً لتهرُّب «الهيئة» من رفع شعار إسقاط النظام من دون لبس.
ولأنّ مفهوم مبدأ الحماية الدولية وتطبيق أمر دقيق وحسّاس بالفعل، فإنّ أركان «المجلس الوطني» السوري يعملون جاهدين لإيجاد فذلكة جديدة غير مسبوقة لترجمته، بما يحقق الهدف المرجو منه، ألا وهو منع النظام من الاستمرار بقمعه من جهة، وتفادي التدخل العسكري على الطريقة الليبية من جهة ثانية، على حدّ تعبير بسمة قُضماني. وتلفت المتحدثة باسم المجلس إلى أنه «أمام هذه التعقيدات، يجب أن نجد أشكالاً أخرى من الدعم والحماية الخارجية بعيدة عن التجربة الليبية، وحتى الآن لا جواب لدينا عن هذه المسألة، والوضع صعب لأن مبدأ حماية المدنيين طُبِّق في ليبيا للمرة الأولى في التاريخ، وهو المبدأ الذي دخل حديثاً إلى الأمم المتحدة عام 2005. لكن يجب أن نخترع أشكالاً أخرى لتطبيقها في سوريا من خلال النظر إلى سوابق تاريخية بدل التدخل العسكري على الطريقة الليبية، أكان بما يتعلق بمناطق محمية أم ممرات إنسانية (corridore humanitaire) أم أمور أخرى، وهذه لا مكان فيها للعامل العسكري، أو هي بعيدة عنه في مقابل أنها تحقق حماية للمدنيين، رغم أنها قضايا لا تزال غير واضحة، ونحن نستشير حالياً كل الخبراء والقانونيين الذين عملوا على هذه المواضيع في أوروبا الشرقية وأفريقيا وفي الأمم المتحدة، لأننا بحاجة إلى إيجاد صيغة تتلاءم مع الوضعية السورية الحساسة التي لا تتشابه بشيء مع الوضعية الليبية». أما عن رأيها في السبب الذي يدفع بأطراف متحالفة معها، كالإخوان المسلمين، إلى رفع شعار التدخل العسكري علناً، فإنها تعيد ذلك إلى رغبة «الإخوان» في «التناغم مع موجة الشارع الذي يريد تدخلاً عسكرياً»، قبل أن تستدرك بأنّ على المجلس الوطني أن يخرج بحل وفاقي بشأن هذه المسألة: «نعرف أن الشارع يريد التدخل العسكري الذي نرفضه نحن والمجتمع الدولي معاً».
وكلام قضماني عن أن السوريين المنتفضين في الداخل هم من يريدون تدخلاً عسكرياً يخلّصهم من نظام الأسد، ويضغطون على «المجلس الوطني» لرفع هذا الشعار، يفتح على تناقضات إضافية؛ يجزمون في باريس بأنّ الناس الذين يتظاهرون في الشوارع أدرى بالوضع الميداني من سواهم، وهم حسموا أمرهم، وفهموا أنه لا يمكن إسقاط النظام من دون تدخل عسكري. فرضيّة يؤكّدها البعض ممن مرّت على نفيهم في باريس عقود، حتى إنهم يصلون إلى حدّ التأكيد أنّ «سبب إنشاء المجلس الوطني كان مجرّد إيجاد طرف يطلب تدخلاً خارجياً وحماية دولية». وفي حين يجزم الناشط نفسه بأن الداخل يريد التدخل العسكري، إلا أنه يوضح أن التلويح بالتدخل الخارجي هو ورقة وتهديد، «لأنه عندما يشعر النظام بأن الخارج يريد التدخل، فسيسقط». هكذا، إن صحّ التقدير بأنّ المتظاهرين السوريين يريدون فعلاً تدخلاً عسكرياً، تكون المعضلة كبيرة؛ إن لم تطالب أطراف المعارضة بهذا التدخُّل، يكونوا في موقع مَن لا يعكس مطالب الثورة السورية وروحها. أما إن طالب المعارضون علناً بالتدخل العسكري، مهما اختلفت التسمية من حماية دولية أو حماية مدنيين، فإنّهم سيكونون بالنسبة إلى شريحة كبيرة من السوريين وغير السوريين كمن يحرّض على تدمير بلاده وربما احتلالها، ما دام الجميع متفقين على أنّ «المجتمع الدولي» في النهاية اسم حركي للمصالح الغربية عموماً، وأنّ ما قد يبدأ بخطوات بسيطة تحت شعار حماية المدنيين في دولة حساسة كسوريا، يمكن أن يتحول بسرعة إلى مشروع قتل وتقسيم أو عدم استقرار وهيمنة وإعادة رسم لخريطة المنطقة.

«يلعن أبوك أنا مش إسرائيلي»

في كل مناسبة يجتمع فيها معارضون سوريون مع الإعلام الأجنبي، يكون جزء من الأسئلة والاهتمامات متمحوراً حول «منسوب العروبة» في عروق المعارضين السوريين والموقف المحتمل من إسرائيل في حال سقوط النظام السوري. وأمام هذا النوع من الاستفسارات التي يرى فيها معارضون تاريخيون «استفزازاً»، تأتي إجابات البعض لتختصر الموقف بشكل نكتة. على سبيل المثال، سرد ميشال كيلو، في المؤتمر الصحافي الذي عقده في باريس الثلاثاء 11 تشرين الأول الجاري، سالفةً روى فيها كيف أنه كان يلعب مرةً مع ابنه الذي كان يبلغ من العمر 5 سنوات. لعبة تقوم على أن أحدهما يجب أن يلحق بالآخر ليقبض عليه، وعلى الثاني الهرب من الأول والاختباء منه. ولأنّ هذه اللعبة تقوم على مبدأ إيجاد الحافز القوي لكي يمنع الولد والده من العثور عليه، قال ميشال لطفله «فلنعتبر أنني أنا العربي وأنت الإسرائيلي»، عندها رفض الطفل تقسيم الأدوار هذا، وأجاب والدَه «يلعن أبوك. لأ أنا مش إسرائيلي، إنتَ الإسرائيلي».

http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/24611

The US administration has finally realised that peaceful, civil activism in Asad’s Syria is a highly risky affair, even for the US Ambassador.

The US Administration has probably concluded that for peaceful activism to effect a desirable change in Syria, demonstrators, activists and their families ought to be provided with all means possible to protect their lives and living, including Mr Ford himself.

I hope the SNC can descend from their ivory towers and touch base with the deadly realities on the ground, virtually that is.

The SNC leadership ought to understand that on this Friday, they have been loudly and clearly mandated with securing the No Fly Zone, in much the same way that they were voted as their representative to the outside world!

Activist Fayez Sara to Italian news Agency:
– Statements of Qatari PM indicate fundamental disagreements on the main issues; the halting of the military and security operations, the release of prisnors, and the begining of negotiations with the opposition.
– In due course, the Arab league shall make decisions that may form the basis for further international actions.
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/33744

فايز سارة: كلام الوزير القطري يخفي اختلاف وجهات النظر بين الوفد العربي وسورية

2011/10/27نشر فى: أخبار محلية

وكالة (آكي) الإيطالية للأنباء
اعتبر معارض سوري بارز أن ما قاله الشيخ حمد آل ثاني رئيس الوزراء وزير الخارجية القطري رئيس اللجنة الوزارية العربية هو كلام دبلوماسي يخفي اختلاف وجهات نظر الوفد مع القيادة السورية، وأعرب عن قناعته بأنه لم يتم الاتفاق على أي شيء بين الوفد الممثل للجامعة العربية والقيادة السورية وخاصة في موضوع وقف الحل الأمني والحوار مع المعارضة، ورأى أن الجامعة العربية ستتخذ قريباً قرارات تتصل بدمشق تشكّل قاعدة لتغييرات مهمة في الموقف الدولي

وحول ما أُعلن عن إيجابية المباحثات بين وفد الجامعة العربية والرئيس السوري بشار الأسد الأربعاء، قال المعارض السياسي السوري فايز سارة لوكالة (آكي) الإيطالية للأنباء “ما قاله رئيس الوزراء القطري الشيخ حمد كان جواباً دبلوماسياً يخفي اختلاف وجهات النظر، وبالتالي عدم التوافق بين الوفد والرئاسة السورية، لكنه لم يُغلق الباب فتركه موارباً حتى لقاء الثلاثين من الشهر الجاري في الدوحة، الذي لن تكون نتيجته أفضل لأن السلطات السورية في خياراتها لا تتقاطع مع مبادرة الجامعة” وفق رأيه

وكان رئيس الوزراء القطري قد وصف اللقاء بالرئيس الأسد بأنه “طويل وصريح، وجرى في جو ودي”، وأضاف “تحدثنا في كل النقاط التي أتت في المبادرة العربية بكل إيجابية وصراحة ووجدنا حرصا للتوصل مع اللجنة العربية من قبل الحكومة السورية لحل هذا الموضوع”، وأشار إلى وجود نقاط اتفاق ونقاط خلاف بين الطرفين

وحول أهم النقاط التي لم يتم الاتفاق عليها وتم تأجيلها لنهاية الشهر الجاري، قال سارة “ما تم الاتفاق عليه ليس له قيمة إجرائية، بل هم توافق على الإطار العام حول ضرورة التسوية وفتح الحوار والوصول إلى نتائج، أما في الإجراءات فأعتقد أنه لم يتم الاتفاق على شيء وخاصة في موضوع وقف الحل الأمني وإطلاق المعتقلين والحوار مع المعارضة” حسب تقديره

وحول “المماطلة” التي تُتهم بها الجامعة العربية، واعتبار المحتجين السوريين أنها تمنح النظام مهلة لإنهاء الاحتجاجات، قال المعارض السوري “ليست الجامعة العربية هي التي تماطل بل النظام، الجامعة تحاول التدخل والوصول إلى حل، وهذه هي المحاولة الثانية، والأولى رفضها النظام قبل أن يرفض الثانية ويعود للتعاطي معها شكلاً، وأعتقد أنه يرفضها بالواقع مستفيداً من مدتها الزمنية في متابعة الحل الأمني من جهة ومستفيداً من الناحية السياسة في أنه يقبل بمبادرة عربية” وفق قوله

وتدعو مبادرة الجامعة العربية القيادة السورية إلى الوقف الفوري للعنف والقتل وسحب الجيش من المدن والتخلي عن المعالجة الأمنية، وعقد مؤتمر حوار وطني يضم الحكومة السورية والمعارضة بجميع أطيافها في مقر الجامعة، ولوّحت باتخاذ “ما يلزم” لضمان أمن الشعب السوري

وعن التوقعات في حال فشل الاتفاق بين اللجنة الوزارية الممثلة للجامعة العربية والقيادة السورية، قال سارة “أعتقد أن الجامعة العربية ستتخذ قرارات تتصل بسياسة النظام السوري وممارساته، لكن قد يستغرق ذلك بعض الوقت، وهذا سوف يُشكّل قاعدة لتغييرات مهمة في الموقف الدولي إزاء الوضع في سورية” حسب تأكيده

Tunisians versus Tourists restrictions

“His (Ghannouchi) officials say there will be no restrictions on foreign tourists — a big source of revenue — drinking alcohol or wearing bikinis on the country’s Mediterranean beaches.

Would alcohol be allowed for Tunisians too?

Two incidents of Army defection have been reported in two separate neighbourhoods in Hama city.
The resultant in-fighting resulted in 30 Shabbeha casualties and the destruction of their armored vehicle, transport bus and car.
29/10/2011
http://www.facebook.com/OmawiLive?sk=wall

أموي مباشر – Omawi Live
أموي مباشر سوريا #syria •◄ حماة-28-10-2011- عاجل: ماتزال الحملة الهمجية على حي الجراجمة من قبل ميليشيات الأسد قائمة و استمرار سماع أصوات الرصاص من ال بي تي ار و سماع أكثر من خمس انـْـْفجارات قوية في الحي , علما أنه جرى انشقاق لعناصر من الجيش في المنطقة القريبة للجراجمة .
15 minutes ago

أموي مباشر – Omawi Live
أموي مباشر سوريا #syria •◄ : حماة : عاجل : انشقاق مجموعة من العناصر في حي جنوب الملعب بالقرب من دوار الفروسية وانضمامها لكتائب الجيش الحر بعد تدميـْـْر مصفحة وباص وسيارة وقتل أكثر من 30 شبيح .

17 minutes ago

http://www.facebook.com/OmawiLive?sk=wall

Its rather odd that those who are “anti” the present leadership in Syria are now considered the “good” guys and those who support the present leadership are the “bad” guys. Rationally and intellectually each have equal rights in words and deeds.

Additionally and judicially the issues can only justifiably be resolved by those residing in Syria. My purpose in making these comments are based on the realities that continued rantings and possible requests for radical changes especailly from non-residents only benefits zionist aims.

Salamat to all.

Revlon
Any person who think rationally must agree with Fayez Sarah,If the syrian regime knows what is ready for him the regime would agree to the AL initiative,Gaddafi made the same mistake,and he refused,we saw what happen to him and his family, I believe the regime is taking us and himself to hell

Syria sows mines along Lebanese, Jordanian, Turkish borders

October 28, 2011

Syrian soldiers mining Lebanese border

In the last 48 hours, the Syrian engineering corps has laid minefields along the Jordanian, Turkish borders to cut down on the influx of weapons and armed manpower supporting the anti-Assad opposition and the outflow of army deserters. debkafile’s military sources add: By this action, Syria aims to seal itself off against foreign military intervention by Arab or NATO troops.

Syrian troops were sighted this week sowing mines along the northern bank of the Yarmouk River which marks the Syrian-Jordanian frontier. They started at the juxtaposition of the Syrian, Israeli and Jordan borders thereby linking the newly mined sector to the existing field on Syria’s Golan boundary with Israel.
The mines on the Lebanese frontier were laid near the northern Lebanese villages of Knaysseh and Al-Hnayder and on both sides of the border near Heet and Buwayt. On the Turkish frontier, the Syrian minelayers went to work in the Idlib and Jebel Zawayeh regions where large numbers of officers and soldiers who defected to the rebels are concentrated.

According to our military sources, Turkey recently boosted its direct intervention in the Syrian uprising. The rebel military commands permitted to operate from its soil have now received permission to start recruiting Syrian army deserters and volunteers, bring them over for short training stints and send them back armed with rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), automatic weapons and hand grenades.
The new Syrian minefield is intended to put a stop to this traffic.

Thursday, Oct. 27, the Qatari chief of staff Gen. Hamad bin Ali Atiya admitted for the first time that the emirate had injected ground troops into the Libyan conflict: “We were among them and the numbers of Qataris on the ground were hundreds in every region,” he said.

He did not disclose how they were brought into Libya. debkafile’s military sources report that they were transported by American military freighter planes. Inside Libya, Qatar established a mobile command center which moved around with the troops. The Qatari foot soldiers were not alone. Jordanian special forces also fought with the rebels in Libya.

Since Saudi and Qatari intelligence agencies are organizing and funding the arms consignments smuggled into Syria, military and intelligence chiefs in Damascus fear that the next stage will be incursions by Saudi, Qatari and Jordanian special forces to team up with the indigenous rebels.
There has been no official comment from the Syrian government on Qaddafi’s death, but opposition activists have gone to town on it. This week, they ordered demonstrators to turn out in force Friday, Oct. 28, and to call on NATO to declare Syria a no-fly zone to prevent its air force attacking rebels. That was how Western military intervention in Libyan began last March.

هل تنتظر اميركا فعلاً الجامعة العربية؟
الكاتب: سركيس نعوم – المصدر:صحيفة النهار
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سياسة “الباب المفتوح” مع نظام سوريا التي اعتمدها الرئيس الاميركي باراك اوباما منذ وصوله الى البيت الابيض رُفِعَت عن الطاولة، يقول متابعون اميركيون لسياسة ادارتهم حيال الشرق الاوسط وسوريا. فـ”الباب” المذكور قد أُقفل. وتبدو الادارة سعيدة لرؤية المصاعب الاقتصادية تتصاعد في وجهه. علماً انها لا تكتفي بهذا “الشعور” بل تستمر في دعم “المعارضة السورية” بالنصائح والاموال. إلا أن ذلك لا يعني في نظر هؤلاء ان اوباما سيعتمد حيال الاسد سياسة مُغامِرة. وأسباب ذلك كثيرة، ابرزها ان معركة الانتخابات الرئاسية في بلاده قد بدأت وهو يعتزم الاشتراك فيها طلباً لولاية ثانية. لذا عليه ان يكون حريصاً على عدم انتهاج سياسات تُغضِب الشعب الاميركي او تؤذيه في مصالحه وأمنه وتالياً تدفعه الى التصويت للمرشح الذي سيواجهه في تشرين الثاني المقبل. فهو لديه الآن من المشكلات الاقتصادية في الداخل وفي العالم والسياسية والامنية في الخارج ما يكفيه. وينصبّ همه على معالجة بعضها الداخلي وتحديداً البطالة كي يضمن الى حد كبير إعادة انتخابه. ذلك ان الاعتماد للفوز على عامل واحد فقط، هو عدم وجود مرشح جمهوري قادر على اجتذاب الناخبين، وعلى عامل آخر هو انقسام الحزب الجمهوري المنافس بين محافظ معتدل ومحافظ جديد بل متشدد جداً يمثّله “حزب الشاي”، ذلك ان هذا الاعتماد لن يكون كافياً. طبعاً لن يجمّد اوباما وادارته تعاطيهما مع النظام السوري انطلاقاً من المشار اليه اعلاه. وهذا يعني أنهما وحلفاء اميركا سيفرضون من جديد عليه عقوبات صارمة جداً. ويعني ايضاً انهم سيمارسون ضغوطاً واغراءات على “حليفي” سوريا، اي روسيا الاتحادية والصين الشعبية، من اجل إقناعهما بموقف من نظام الاسد قريب من موقفهم، وتالياً بالتصويت معهم بـ”نعم” على مشروع قرار يتناوله في مجلس الامن، اذا قرروا العودة الى هذا الامر بعد فشله في المرة السابقة بسبب “الفيتو” اي النقض الذي مارستاه.
أما باستثناء العقوبات، يضيف المتابعون الاميركيون انفسهم، فان اوباما وادارته لن يفعلا سوى الانتظار، اي انتظار تطورات عدة قد يكون ابرزها اثنان. الاول، تحرّك جامعة الدول العربية، بواسطة اللجنة التي ألّفها مجلس وزراء خارجيتها في آخر اجتماع له في القاهرة، والتي ضمت الى الامين العام للجامعة مصر والسودان والجزائر وعُمان اعضاء وقطر رئيساً، في اتجاه النظام السوري. والهدف من الانتظار هنا هو معرفة ما إذا كان الرئيس الاسد سيتجاوب، الامر الذي ربما يفتح الابواب امام محاولات جدية لوقف العنف والقمع ولمباشرة إصلاح جدي. وهو ايضاً معرفة ماذا ستفعل الدول العربية عبر “جامعتها” او عبر دولها في الأزمة السورية في حال ناور النظام في دمشق كعادته او ماطل او وعد ولم يلتزم. اما التطوّر الثاني الذي قد تكون اميركا اوباما تنتظره فهو موقف مفوضية حقوق الانسان في الامم المتحدة من كل ما يجري في سوريا. والدافع الى هذا الانتظار هو وجود احتمال جيد او معقول ان تقوم المفوضية المذكورة بتوجيه اتهامات للرئيس الاسد وللعاملين معه بارتكاب جرائم ضد الانسانية. وإذا حصل ذلك فإنه لا بد ان يؤدي ومن دون ادنى شك الى نهاية الرئيس الاسد. ليس في سوريا ربما، ولكن في العالم والمجتمع الدولي.
اما اللافت في الموضوع السوري حالياً وفي تشعباته الاقليمية والدولية، يقول المتابعون الاميركيون انفسهم، فهو ان اليهود الاميركيين والاميركيين من غير اليهود الذين يؤيدون بل يدعمون اسرائيل “ظالمة او مظلومة”، بدأوا حملة منظمة وقوية تهدف الى الضغط على الرئيس اوباما كي يدرس جدياً اتخاذ اجراءات شديدة القسوة ضد نظام آل الاسد، مثل إقامة منطقة حظر طيران فوق سوريا او مناطق، ومثل فرض حصار او حصارات… الى آخر ما هنالك من اجراءات. واللافت في هذا الامر هو انه يعكس اذا استمر تغييراً جدياً في موقف اسرائيل من النظام السوري. ذلك ان تلاقي المصالح معه، وليس التحالف او “التفاهم السري” بينهما الذي يؤمن به اصحاب المخيلات الواسعة، فرض عليها التمسك به والدفاع عنه وخصوصاً داخل اميركا واوروبا، انطلاقاً من نظرية ان شراً تعرفه قد يكون افضل من خير تتعرّف اليه. واللافت ايضاً، يضيف المتابعون انفسهم، هو عودة الاتصال وإن خجولاً وسرياً بين تركيا واسرائيل وهو ربما عودة بعض التنسيق في امور عدة.
طبعاً هناك امر لافت آخر يشير الى تناقض في أقوال المتابعين الأميركيين، هو ان التعويل على تحرك الجامعة العربية يعني ان اوباما لم يقفل الباب بعد امام الاسد. إلاّ اذا كان ينتظر ذريعة لذلك.

http://www.annahar.com/content.php?priority=8&table=makalat&type=makalat&day=Fri

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Syria Spilling Over – Friday, 28 Oct, 2011

The conflict in Syria is reaching a tipping point with the fighting spilling over borders and beginning to threaten the insular economy

The Turkish government’s explanation is that they are protecting this group of between 60-70 individuals on purely humanitarian grounds but for regional observers, it’s a dangerous creep towards intervention.

http://www.majalla.com/eng/2011/10/article55227218

Syria’s crisis appears to be reaching a critical tipping point. The uprising has begun, despite the best efforts of the Assad government, to spill over to neighboring states. The New York Times is reporting that Turkey is providing shelter to the Free Syrian Army and its commander, in a camp guarded by the Turkish army, allowing them to orchestrate attacks across the border with Syria. The Turkish government’s explanation is that they are protecting this group of between 60-70 individuals on purely humanitarian grounds but for regional observers, it’s a dangerous creep towards intervention.

The border between Lebanon and Syria has also become a contentious zone. A Lebanese official has accused the Syrian government of planting mines along the border of North Lebanon, according to AFP news agency who quoted the unnamed official.

The official said on Thursday that Syrian troops planted the mines in the early morning hours on 27 October near two Lebanese villages – Knaysseh and Al-Hnayder in order to prevent cross-border weapons smuggling .

Meanwhile, the fighting in Homs, Deraa and Jableh continues to claim lives with 13 more people killed in the last two days, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). Deraa’s proximity to the border of Jordan may cause unease in Amman.

President Bashar Al-Assad met with members of the Arab League on Wednesday and is said to be seeking an end to the months of violence. The head of the Arab League delegation, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Al-Thani said the “cordial and frank” discussions would continue in Damascus on 30 October, with representatives from Egypt, Algeria, Oman, Sudan and Yemen, as well as Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Arabi.

Videos circulating on the internet showed shops in Deraa closed during a general strike, with a similar one in Homs, protesting against the Syrian authorities’ crackdown on seven months of unrest. Syrian government respresentatives, however, maintain that the impact of the uprising goes no further than civil unrest and that the economy will hold in face of the on-going crisis, as well as US and EU sanctions. The general director of the Syrian Central Bank, Adib Mayalah, has told the press that statistics from the bank show an overall stability and enough currency reserves to sustain the country for as long as is needed to bring the political violence under control.

According to Mayalah, the country has only dug into a fraction of their reserves—using 1 billion US dollars out of an estimated 18 billion—and the Syrian pound remains stable, with mild devaluation from 46.88 to 49.60 Syrian pounds to the US dollar.

Nevertheless, to be safe, the Syrian government has adopted measures to reduce governmental expenditure as well as demanding that Syrian citizens provide additional documentation when buying foreign currency at banks, such as evidence of tourist travel or study abroad.

Syrian daily life however has been significantly affected by the ongoing instability, with business closing and rising food prices forcing residents into a daily struggle with their expenditures to survive. The tourism industry has come to a virtual standstill and local economies are now plagued by striking work forces outside the capital.

With the presence of the Arab League delegation in Damascus, the pressure is now on Syria to ensure that the crisis be resolved quickly, to prevent a regional conflagration or destabilization of neighboring states.

Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya TV

REALITY

Law Enforcement Members Injured by Gunmen’s Fire in Hama, Explosive Device Dismantled in Douma

Oct 28, 2011

PROVINCES, (SANA)- A number of law enforcement forces members were injured on Friday by the gunfire of armed men in al-Qusour neighborhood in the central province of Hama.

An official source told SANA correspondent that the law enforcement members were injured in an attack by gunmen who opened fire on them while they were on duty.

An explosive device planted by armed terrorist groups was dismantled by a military engineering unit in Douma, Damascus Countryside.

SANA correspondent in Douma said that the device was found planted in a street near al-Shuhada Square.

An official source refuted the news broadcast by al-Jazeera TV about warplanes flying over the city and countryside of Homs province, central Syria, stressing the falseness of this news.

SANA correspondent quoted the source as saying that “citizens should compare between what they hear on al-Jazeera and other biased channels and what they see with their own eyes to realize the extent of lying and fabrication they rely on in their coverage of Syria’s news.”

The source said the aim of such untrue news is to provoke and incite the citizens and its comes in the framework of the conspiracy against Syria whose plotters, inside and outside, seek to incite the world public opinion and the international community against Syria.

In another context, a source at Aleppo Police Command also refuted news by al-Jazeera channel that protests took place in al-Hamadaniyeh neighborhood in the city, confirming this news is completely baseless and the city is living a normal Friday.

The source added that this news aims at spreading chaos after failing to drag the people of Aleppo into acts of sabotage and violence.

Director of the Telecommunication Establishment, Aleppo Branch, Eng. Kifah Lababidi, confirmed that communications are available all across the province, dismissing false news of al-Arabiya TV that they have been cut in the area of Marei, to the northeast of Aleppo.

Lababidi said this news is “completely untrue”, adding that any citizen can by himself make sure that the communications are available in all the areas and realize how far such tendentious channels have gone in lying in order to create chaos and harm the reputation of state institutions in the context of their instigating campaign against Syria.

http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/10/28/378419.htm

jazeeration by

Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya TV

REALITY

Law Enforcement Members Injured by Gunmen’s Fire in Hama, Explosive Device Dismantled in Douma

Oct 28, 2011

PROVINCES, (SANA)- A number of law enforcement forces members were injured on Friday by the gunfire of armed men in al-Qusour neighborhood in the central province of Hama.

An official source told SANA correspondent that the law enforcement members were injured in an attack by gunmen who opened fire on them while they were on duty.

An explosive device planted by armed terrorist groups was dismantled by a military engineering unit in Douma, Damascus Countryside.

SANA correspondent in Douma said that the device was found planted in a street near al-Shuhada Square.

An official source refuted the news broadcast by al-Jazeera TV about warplanes flying over the city and countryside of Homs province, central Syria, stressing the falseness of this news.

SANA correspondent quoted the source as saying that “citizens should compare between what they hear on al-Jazeera and other biased channels and what they see with their own eyes to realize the extent of lying and fabrication they rely on in their coverage of Syria’s news.”

The source said the aim of such untrue news is to provoke and incite the citizens and its comes in the framework of the conspiracy against Syria whose plotters, inside and outside, seek to incite the world public opinion and the international community against Syria.

In another context, a source at Aleppo Police Command also refuted news by al-Jazeera channel that protests took place in al-Hamadaniyeh neighborhood in the city, confirming this news is completely baseless and the city is living a normal Friday.

The source added that this news aims at spreading chaos after failing to drag the people of Aleppo into acts of sabotage and violence.

Director of the Telecommunication Establishment, Aleppo Branch, Eng. Kifah Lababidi, confirmed that communications are available all across the province, dismissing false news of al-Arabiya TV that they have been cut in the area of Marei, to the northeast of Aleppo.

Lababidi said this news is “completely untrue”, adding that any citizen can by himself make sure that the communications are available in all the areas and realize how far such tendentious channels have gone in lying in order to create chaos and harm the reputation of state institutions in the context of their instigating campaign against Syria.

http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/10/28/378419.htm

Memo To: MAJEDKHALDOUN

RE: “…the regime is taking us and himself to hell…”

Wrong again, dude!

You’re already in hell. Besho is the devil and the Shabeeha are his demons. The next time you see a Shabeeha, check for his cloven hooves and his tail…

Now the Syrian Kurds are the ones that everybody is trying to please, Burhan Gahlyoun posted an apology letter to the Syrian Kurds for his ‘miscalculated’ words:

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كوادر المعارضة الكردية في فرنسا: سورية لم تقتل مشعل تمو… نضال حمادة

توشك العلاقة بين برهان غليون وبسمة قضماني من جهة والأكراد المنضوين تحت مظلة المجلس الوطني السوري الذي يرأسه غليون، توشك هذه العلاقة أن تنفجر على أثر اللغم الذي زرعه كل من غليون وقضماني بينهم وبين الأكراد بسبب برقية التعزية التي أرسلها غليون لرئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب اردوغان بعد مقتل أربعة وعشرين جنديا تركيا بعملية لحزب العمال الكردستاني. استشاظ الأكراد غضبا من هذه البرقية ومن وصف غليون وقضماني العملية بالإرهابية، ما استدعى ردا عاجلا وإنذارا أخير من الأكراد بالانسحاب من المجلس الوطني في حال تكررت أخطاء كهذه في المستقبل.
غير أن هذا اللغم الجاهز للانفجار في أية لحظة، انعكس على ارض الواقع في الكلام الذي بدأ كوادر في المعارضة الكردية السورية في الخارج ينطقون به حول قضايا كردية في سورية ومنها الكلام الكردي الواضح عن عدم مسؤولية النظام في دمشق عن العملية التي أدت لاغتيال المعارض الكردي مشعل تمو في السابع من شهر تشرين أول الحالي في منزله في مدينة القامشلي السورية والتي يطلق عليها الأكراد اسم (قامشلو).
بعض المعارضين الأكراد الذين التقيت بهم في باريس والذين اعرفهم من زمن طويل صرحوا لنا بهذا الأمر متهمين مخابرات دولة مجاورة لسوريا باغتيال المعارض الكردي السوري، ولإثبات صدق اتهاماتهم عرض علينا أحدهم وثائق دون السماح لنا بأخذ نسخ عنها، وهي عبارة عن رسائل كتبها تمو لأحد المعارضين الأكراد في تركيا يتناوله فيها بعبارات قاسية بسبب رفض الأخير للخيار المسلح ضد الدولة التركية.
وفي رسالة ثانية كانت العبارات التي كتبها تمو تصل لمستوى التهديد والاتهام بالخيانة للناشط الكردي التركي. ويؤكد جل من التقيناهم من الأكراد السوريين في باريس أن النظام السوري لم يقتل تمو وليس له أية مصلحة في قتله في هذا الوقت بالتحديد. وينفي هؤلاء ان يكون إبن مشعل تمو قد اتهم النظام في دمشق بالعملية، ولكن الفتى طلب فتح تحقيق حسب قولهم.
الكلام الجديد لأكراد سورية لا يقتصر على اغتيال مشعل تمو ولكنه امتد بشكل سريع ومتشعب إلى كافة القضايا الخلافية بين الأكراد وباقي أطياف المعارضات السورية وما أكثرها من خلافات لم تكن تحتاج إلى أكثر من بيان لمبتدئ في السياسة اسمه برهان غليون لتظهر على شكل ألغام في كل منعطفات العلاقة بين الأكراد وباقي المعارضات السورية.
ومن تجليات الخلاف الجديد الكلام عن التدخل التركي في شؤون المعارضات السورية كلما حصل نقاش أو حديث حول الدول الداعمة للنظام في دمشق، فكل انتقاد لإيران يجابه بجواب بصيغة سوآل: وهل التدخل التركي محمود..لما لا تتكلمون عن تركيا؟ وكل حديث عن روسيا يقابله حديث عن أميركا التي تدعم تركيا في قصف الأكراد بطائرات الفانتوم، وعندما يتطرق الحديث للعراق وحكومة المالكي تسمع من الأكراد السوريين جوابا واحدا: ليس المالكي أكثر ولاء لأميركا من حكام قطر.
هذا الكلام الذي نسمعه أتى على خلفية برقية برهان غليون لأردوغان “وهو جديد وخطير” يقول معارض محسوب على الإخوان، فيما يقول آخر إنه “لا يمكن اعتبار التناقض الكردي مع باقي المعارضة جديد ولكن حدة الكلام وصيغته المباشرة أمر جديد، إنها برقية أراحت النظام ولم نكن نحتاجها خصوصا أننا فشلنا في إنزال الأكراد إلى الشارع عقب مقتل مشعل تمو، فإذا بنا نرميهم في أحضان حزب البعث”.
في نفس السياق يأتي الكلام عن التمويل القطري للمجلس الوطني أو مجلس غليون كما يسميه بعض القوم من أطياف المعارضات السورية. “غليون يصرف ألان على حساب قطر”، يقول أحدهم ويضيف: “غير ان المبالغ التي تنشر في الصحف غير موجودة، فليس هناك ملايين، وبعض المعارضين الآخرين يتحدث عن بطاقة مصرفية مفتوحة أعطتها قطر لبرهان غليون لتامين مصاريف السفر والعمل السياسي”. ويقول معارض سوري مقيم في برلين ومر في العاصمة الفرنسية باريس لحضور ندوة حول سوريا: “غالبية أعضاء المجلس الوطني ثمنهم تصريح على قناة الجزيرة ليس إلا، قطر لا تدفع وإذا دفعت فقطرة قطرة … يا أخي اسم على مسمى يختم كلامه”…
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Burhan Ghalyoun apology

تصويب واعتذار

اثار حديث مبتسر بثته قناة دوتشه فيله الالمانية، سجل قبل اكثر من شهر، رد فعل عنيف من قبل الكثير من اخوتي الاكراد الذين يعرفون موقفي تماما من حقوق الشعب الكردي وقضيته العادلة. واني اذ اعتذر للاخوة الاكراد عما شعروا به من غبن نتيجة بث هذا الحديث المبتسر اجدد تاكيدي على موقفي الثابت الذي يعتبر الشعب الكردي جزءا لا يتجزا من الشعب السوري، له نفس الحقوق وعليه نفس الواجبات، وانه يعيش في سورية على ارضه وارض اجداده ولا يمكن لا حد ان ينظر اليه لا كلاجيء ولا كمهاجر.ولم يكن المقصود من المقارنة كما هو واضح، وكما حصل من سوء فهم، التقليل من حقوق الاكراد او ارتباطهم التاريخي بالارض السورية، وانما تبيان ان التاكيد على حقوق الاقليات في ضمان هويتها وتاكيدها، التي هي اليوم المعيار الاول لرقي الدساتير والقوانين في الدول الحديثة، لا ينبغي ان يحرم الاكثرية ايضا من حقوقها في تاكيد هويتها، وهنا الاكثرية العربية. وليس الدواء لشوفينية الاكثرية التي حذرنا منها مرارا هو نفي حقوقها ورفض الاعتراف بها خوفا من ان تطغى على حقوق الاقلية. وتعيين هوية البلد لاعلاقة له بالاعتراف بالحقوق المتساوية وهو ليس مسالة اختيار لهذه المجموعة او تلك وانما هو جزء من الوقائع الجيوسياسية والجيوثقافية التاريخية التي تتجاوز خيارات الافراد. وهذا ما يجعل العالم كله ينظر الى سورية كبلد عربي عضو في الجامعة العربية. وهذه العضوية تعكس انتماءات ووشائج قربى وامكانيات تعاون وتضامن لايمكن تجاهلها من دون اضعاف البلاد والتضحية بفرص كبيرة للامن والتنمية والاستقرار وبالتالي تكبيد خسائر كبيرة للبلد وللسكان.
اطلب من اخوتي الكرد ان يثقوا باخوتهم العرب وان لا يضعوا الحقوق الكردية المشروعة في مواجهة الحقوق العربية وانما ان ينظروا اليهما كمكملة واحدتهما للاخرى، وان يكونوا على يقين من ان الشعب العربي في سورية لا يرى فيهم سوى اخوة وشركاء وجزءا لا يتجزا من نسيج الشعب السوري الذي لا تستقيم حياته من دونهم، تماما كما يرى هويته في تعدد الهويات القومية والروحية لابنائه. وان سياسات التمييز والاقصاء والاهانة سوف تذهب نهائيا مع رحيل النظام الذي ولدها، وهو نظام التمييز والاقصاء والاهانة الذي يشارك جميع ابناء الشعب السوري اليوم بالقوة ذاتها والتضحيات نفسها في اقتلاع جذوره والخلاص منه.
ولتحي سورية واحدة ارضا وشعبا حرة ابية منصفة وعادلة ملكا لجميع ابنائه ………..
برهان غليون

SYRIAN “OPPOSITION” STRUGGLES TO UNITE – 46 mins ago

http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-opposition-struggles-unite-182220664.html

BEIRUT (AP) — In a country ruled for more than four decades by an autocratic regime, the Syrian uprising has brought forth an abundance of opposition figures jostling for their first real taste of power.

Seven months on, the opposition is struggling to overcome infighting and inexperience, preventing the movement from gaining the traction it needs to present a credible alternative to President Bashar Assad.

Time is not on their side — the U.N. estimates that the military assault on protesters has killed some 3,000 since the uprising began in March and Assad’s regime shows no sign of giving in to demands that he step down.

The divisions are tied to issues at the heart of the revolution: Whether to request foreign military assistance and accept dialogue with the regime and what ideology should guide a post-Assad Syria.

“There is fairly little experience in a movement whose members have been denied politics as a process for half a century,” Murhaf Jouejati, a Syria expert at George Washington University in the United States told The Associated Press.

Unlike Libya’s National Transitional Council, which brought together most factions fighting Gadhafi’s regime and was quickly recognized by much of the international community, Syria’s opposition has no leadership on the ground.

Regime opponents in Syria are a diverse group, representing the country’s ideological, sectarian and generational divide. They include dissidents who spent years in prison, tech-savvy activists in their 20s, former Marxists, Islamists and Paris-based intellectuals.

Communication between those abroad and those in the country is extremely difficult. Political activists in Syria are routinely rounded up and imprisoned. Many have gone into hiding, communicating only through Skype using fake names, and the country is largely sealed off to exiled dissidents and foreign journalists.

After months of negotiations, the majority of opposition groups from inside and outside the country came together in a broad-based, 230-seat Syrian National Council announced in Istanbul in September to forge a united front against Assad and a rallying point for Syrians and the international community.

The council’s leadership — currently headed by Burhan Ghalioun, a professor at the Sorbonne in Paris — will rotate every three months, reflecting the absence of a single popular leader who stands out among the country’s disparate groups.

The council’s formation is a remarkable achievement given Syria’s complex sectarian and ethnic makeup.

But the group has yet to gain the recognition of any countries other than Libya and faces criticism from opposition groups that declined to join, accusing it of trying to monopolize the movement.

Haitham al-Maleh, an 80-year-old lawyer who was imprisoned for years for his political activism, also accused the SNC of sidelining major figures and said the group never consulted him.

“We have a 50-year history of struggle against this regime, while nobody had heard of these people before,” he said of the SNC leaders.

Bassma Kodmani, another Paris-based academic and a spokeswoman for the council, rejected the accusations and said the SNC was open for all Syrians. “We did not exclude anybody,” she said, insisting the council represented the majority of Syrian society.

An attempt in July to hold a dual meeting in Damascus and Istanbul was canceled when security forces besieged the conference location in Damascus a day before it was scheduled to begin and shot dead 14 protesters in the area.

Foreign leaders have welcomed the formation of the SNC, but say the opposition needs more work to become an effective political force.

“The opposition must still improve its organizational and outreach efforts,” said U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford, who returned to Washington this week over security concerns.

He said developing consensus around a specific political and economic plan would help persuade Sunni business elites and other Syrians still on the fence to defect from the regime.

“There is a huge need for the council to explain what exactly they will bring to Syria,” Ford said during an address this month to The Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

A key sticking point is whether to ask for foreign intervention like the NATO airstrikes that helped oust former Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi.

The SNC’s founding statement rejects foreign intervention, but its members are calling for “international protection for civilians,” an ambiguous statement that leaves the door open for interpretation. The NATO action in Libya was carried out under a U.N. mandate to protect civilians but ultimately proved key to the rebel victory that led to Gadhafi’s death.

Haytham Manna, a Paris-based dissident who heads the external branch of a smaller rival group called the National Committee for Democratic Change, objects to any possibility of military intervention.

“The Libyan experience is a painful one,” he said. “There has been so much destruction and I don’t wish for my country anything like that.”

Manna, whose brother was killed by Syrian security forces in the southern town of Daraa during a funeral in August, says the SNC had no right to say they represented Syria.

“Having one representative is dangerous and reminds us of the one-party rule which we have been fighting for decades,” he said.

Another key point of contention is whether to negotiate with the regime. Some dissidents point to dialogue as one of the only ways out, but others reject the idea as long as the government keeps up its deadly military assault on protesters.

Can someone please explain what is the green white and black flag, with the 3 red stars? Shown in this video..

Thanks!
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Found the answer … http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Syria
.

JAD #18 wrote:

How about some reality check, how many Syrian Alawites are in the top government/security positions?

31 Minister, 2 Alawites
14 Governor, 2 Alawites
52 Security Branch Chiefs, 12 Alawites
14 Police Chiefs, 2 Alawites
14 City Council Charimen, 2 Alawites
40 Ambassadors, 4 Alawites
19 Secretary of the Baath Party branch, 2 Alawites
16 Presidents of the Syrian Universities, 1 Alawites
about 1600 judge in allover Syria 158 Alawites
about 720 General Manager allover the government, 71 Alawites

Vice President, Premier, Vice Prime Minister, Parliament Speaker, his deputy and his secretary + the President of the High Judicial Council, the Chairman of the Central Organization for Control and Inspection, the president of the Financial Supervision Committee, the Head of the Constitutional Court, the Chief of Staff, the Governor of the Central Bank of Syria + and all heads of Chambers of Commerce and Industry all of them are NOT ALAWITES.

JAD, what is your source for that info? Many people on this board (including me) have been assuming and saying all this year that numbers such as the above numbers are roughly correct. But your post above is the first time to my knowledge that anybody has delivered hard data about it. When the question was raised before on this board, nobody could say that there was any hard data. So, please, what is your source? No one should believe it, JAD, nor should you believe it yourself, until you can tell us something about the authenticity of your info.

@ Amir #88.

This is the flag that Syria adopted after the independence from France in 1946. Syria has known three flags in it history, this was the first one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoFpEKOEa1A&t=1m18s

REALITY

What’s the footwear of Syrian officers?

­The Western media show videos of “atrocities of the Syrian army”. Kochneva comments on one of the most popular videos (of an officer beating up a boy): “Why is this officer wearing beach slippers?”

“Unlike foreigners, the entire Syria knows what the army wears on their feet. In the area of Hama, an army uniform warehouse was robbed. Bandits wore these uniforms while looting and ransacking, and making videos of this kind. There was just one trouble – no boots at the warehouse. Therefore the officers in the video are wearing beach slippers. Moreover, after this robbery, the army was quickly transferred to a different type of uniform.
Furthermore, how can anyone understand why officers would record their own dirt and post it in the internet? They aren’t even allowed to go home; when would they find time to spend at an internet café? The army has a high authority, and people really ask them to enter their settlements to protect them.”

Kochneva is convinced that the West intentionally places a barrier for news from Syria. Otherwise, she believes, the EU and the US would not have imposed sanctions on the broadcast of Dunya, a Syrian TV channel which discusses videos of this kind of detail. Particularly, this channel even broadcasts the negotiations of the opposition.

Kochneva believes the authorities managed to take control over the country and to gain the support of the majority:

“People are laughing already at conspirators and their instructors.
A French ambassador who attempted to talk patriarch Ignatius into supporting the US had tomatoes and eggs thrown at him when he was taken outside.
A US ambassador, who was watching a rally to support peace in Syria from his car window, got wrapped in a Syrian flag with Bashar al-Assad’s portrait on it.

450. DARRYL said:

“
I am open to reading books Khalid, but why are you asking me?

Let me be clear with you, I have no issues with the Messenger and Islam and I respect what he was trying to do in Arabia. However, I have issues with close minded Muslims who do not understand their Islam, the Qur’an and have never read any AHadith and only get Islam from apologists and Sheikhs and then want to force their version of Islam on me especially when you do not have solid foundations.

I have read Islam’s foundations, and I make no apology that they do not impress me and do not agree with them, but I still respect you if you were a human being who made a choice to be a Muslim. However, the majority of Muslims did not have a choice and cannot make a choice.
”

Darryl, I did have a choice. I did make a choice to be a Muslim, it wasn’t until I was 21 that I fully understood the religion I was born into and became a practising Muslim. I did make a choice, Islam is all oabot Al Tawheed, i.e monotheism. All human beings are born MUSLIM, becayuse Tawheed is fitrah , i.e human nature, we are MISLEAD BY OUR PARENTS into becoming Christians, Jews, Secular, Communist, Hindus, Shia, Alawi, Sufis, etc. I do not get my Islam from sheikhs or apologists, us Salafis study Islam at its source, i.e Qur’an and authentic Ahadith, ( Sahih Bukhari, Sahih Muslim and Sahih al Tirmidhi). Btw, have you heard about Abdul Raheem Green ?

And you are not religious ? I have yet to see Syrian Christians who are not religious 9 except Communists), and am sure you’re not a Commie. Are you sure ur not religious ? Don’t you visit the Church of Holy Sepulchre in occupied Al Quds ?

The pro-regime rally in Latakia yesterday was really huge.
See the panning video taken from overhead at:

A different overhead view with better resolution is at:

Contrary to SANA, the crowd could not have been “over a million citizens”. But truly it was huge. Huge.

Lovely set of 82 photos from the rally:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.243391152353998.82833.100000493443041&type=3

Out of that set, here’s the one that touched me personally the most:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=305353966157716&set=a.243391152353998.82833.100000493443041&type=3

Haytham, do you know what the 3 stars stand for ? Do they stand for IRAQ EGYPT SYRIA ?

Personally, I like the Iraqi Flag that was used under Saddam Hussein, i.e same colours as Syrian flag with 3 stars. I also like the Palestinian flag. I am an Arab nationalist as well as a Salafi. Isn’t that strange ? But its strue, I find that Arab nationalists and Salafis agree on many issues especially pertaining to our Arabizing mission ( One Arab nation with an Eternal Mission).

88. amir in apartheid tel aviv

great israeli propaganda!

don’t you have a palestinian baby to kill today?!

مهرجان الدوحة يكرم المخرج السوري الراحل عمر اميرالاي

يكرم مهرجان الدوحة-ترايبكا السينمائي المخرج السوري الراحل عمر اميرالاي من خلال عروض وجلسة نقاش واصدار كتاب يتناول سيرته

ا ف ب – الدوحة (ا ف ب) – يكرم مهرجان الدوحة-ترايبكا السينمائي المخرج السوري الراحل عمر اميرالاي من خلال عروض وجلسة نقاش واصدار كتاب يتناول سيرته.
…
ويعرض المهرجان لمخرج الافلام الوثائقية السوري الاشهر فيلم “الحياة اليومية في قرية سورية” الذي انتقد سياسة الاصلاح الزراعي المطبق في السبعينات في سوريا التي منعت عرضه.

وسبق عرض الفيلم ندوة تناولت اعمال اميرالاي ترأسها المخرج السوري اسامة محمد الذي عمل مع اميرالاي وكان صديقا له.

ويعرض المهرجان كذلك فيلم “طوفان في بلاد البعث” الذي يعود فيه ليراجع عملا سابقا له على ضوء المتغيرات على الارض بعد مرور 35 سنة.

وباتت افلام عمر اميرالاي تكتسي اهمية اضافية راهنا معا تشهده الساحة من حراك نظرا لما تضمنته من انتقاد وجرأة.

منح جائزة ساخاروف لخمسة ناشطين من الربيع العربي

ا ف ب – ستراسبورغ (البرلمان الاوروبي) – اعلن البرلمان الاوروبي الخميس منح جائزة ساخاروف لحرية الفكر الى خمسة من ناشطي الربيع العربي، على ما افاد مصدر برلماني.

والفائزون بالجائزة المرموقة هم التونسي محمد بوعزيزي الذي اطلق بانتحاره شرارة الثورة في تونس، والناشطة المصرية اسماء محفوظ والناشط الليبي المعارض احمد الزبير احمد السنوسي والمحامية السورية رزان زيتونة ورسام الكاريكاتور السوري علي فرزات، بحسب المصدر

89. Ya Mara Ghalba said:

JAD #18 wrote:

How about some reality check, how many Syrian Alawites are in the top government/security positions?

….
No one should believe it, JAD, nor should you believe it yourself, until you can tell us something about the authenticity of your info.

AUGMENTED REALITY

It was simple to do .
JAD scanned the ID card of all these people and then extracted the field religion to an Excel sheet using a special program developed by .

Anybody can do the same !!

‘Syrians fight because they have become free,’ opposition writer Kilo tells Al Arabiya

Friday, 28 October 2011

Syria had to choose between either the Arab or the international options and it chose the Arab option, Syrian opposition writer Michel Kilo told Al Arabia on Thursday.

“The crisis in Syria will continue for some time because protesters cannot oust the regime and the latter cannot prevent the people from taking to the streets,” he said.

Kilo’s comments came during Al Arabiya’s weekly program Studio Beirut, presented by Gizel Khuri.

“Syrian protesters do not fight for freedom, but they fight because they have become free. The Syrians will never return back to the prior March-17 conditions,” said Kilo.

The Syrian prominent writer told Al Arabiya that the Syrian regime will not withdraw the troops from the streets. “What happened along the past couple of months was a decrease in the role played by the army and an increase in the role played by security forces and shabbiha (thugs). In doing so, the Syrian regime is trying to show the world that it is responding to the international demands.”

Kilo said that it is unlikely that the Syrian regime would agree to meet with the opposition groups in Cairo, as this would be a kind of “acknowledgment to the presence of two powers in the country.”

He said that the Syrian regime has lost numerous international allies, the most important of which is Iran. “The Iranians are very smart and they do not want strong ties with transitional regimes. Accordingly, Damascus will never be able to regain its relations with Tehran, as they were before the March 17 uprising.”

“World powers do not want a quick resolution to the Syrian crisis. The Americans are concerned with two things: Who will be the substitute? And who will keep the stability of the front with Israel? They have not shown their final stand yet.”

“As for the Arabs, they might be afraid of imposing a democracy in Syria, because such a change in Syria will shake the whole Arab world. This is a very tough and complicated problem.”

Kilo said that he had no fear for the Syrian Christians in case of the fall of the regime, “unless they commit grave foolish acts.”

(Translated from Arabic by Abeer Tayel.)

http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/10/28/174238.html

Dear Khalid #94

The 3 red stars represent the blood that the Syrians have shed for their independence from France.

REALITY
http://rt.com/news/syrian-opposition-violence-video-143/

Syrian opposition violence – shocking video
Torture, booby-trapped cars, machine-guns shooting in the air –
RT has come into the possession of a video that deals with episodes of the day-to-day life of members of the Syrian opposition.

It shows members of the opposition wielding various weaponry – from sickles to pump-action shotguns – and using it, as well as some results of their actions.

Parts of it contain too much violence to be reproduced for an unprepared audience, the rest is available to demonstrate the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe Syria is dealing with.

People accusing the opposition of holding arms and attacking Assad military men are not discovering anything new. It is clear that there is an armed opposition. This is the result of tourtures and mistreatments from the regime to the people of Syria like those seen in this link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiOJ0ySnoak&feature=related

When I see these things I finally decide to boicot Syria Assad Regime. There is no way back. Now and everyday I feel more and more sorrow and hate for the low spirit in those who stand with the regime and their atrocities. And also I feel more and more respect for those citizens who have decided to fight against this decaying Assad regime. Theirs is the future.

I am sure Assad will pay for what he has been doing. Even if he reaches control of the revolution and international community accepts him again, it may happen that when he is in a weak situation in the future all main states will turn their back on him and let him die like a dog, as they did with Khaddafi.

I know too many people who accept atrocities from the regime just to keep their status in society and bussiness. It is a shame. A total shame. God may judge them one day if they believe in something that could be similar to God.

I think it is very simple and easy how to take part in this crisis. For me to decide who is the martyr and the moral winner is not important to analize how much islamist is the NSC nor who is paying their arms, nor which foreign leaders support them the most, nor how many Assad soldiers they killed, nor any other detail. The only and main reason to deny Assad and its criminals is too see how they understand DIALLOGUE and ORDER. They will do whatever they need to maintain power. TORTURE, BOMB and IMPRISON their citizens. They do not care about social justice, people civil rights, human rights, expression rights, NOTHING, they are simply CRIMINALS.

Let´s forgive those pro Assad syrians living abroad because they do not what they defend. But those syrians inside Syria defending the regime are just Damascene or Aleppine suckers.

Those who support the regime just BE SURE that all the world is looking at you and feeling nausea about you concept of justice and society. You have been unmasked and instead you change your regime, you will have no way to try to hide the black side of Syria. Now it is worldwide knowm.

REALITY
The unrest engulfing Syria is mirrored in the internet with a PR-civil-war.
While some videos show “atrocious bandits”, others opt for “atrocious army men”.
And none shows what ordinary Syrians live through.

Unlike other countries of the Arab Spring, there are a lot of different videos about Syria on the internet.
TV channels around the world broadcast selective videos of atrocities by armed men.
At the same time, they fail to show millions of Syrians rallying to support the government.
And they don’t show videos of atrocities against Syrian people.

“The atrocity of bandits in this video is a sign that the US made a misjudgment,” Anhar Kochneva, director of the Jordan Club tourism organization comments on the video.
“And now they are making an attempt of intimidating. It’s not a secret that they started preparing the anti-Syrian campaigns 10 years ago. They were proceeding from their understanding of Syrian people’s hatred toward the government, but they failed to notice that the country changed.
They began supporting the anti-government rallies, but they failed to notice that these rallies actually brought people together. Millions of people just recently rallied in Aleppo, which the US considered an opposition center.
The US believed that Syrians themselves would overthrow and betray Bashar al-Assad, but they failed to achieve an overturn performed by Syrians.
Now they send in bandits, Syrians as well as those who co-operate with Americans among them.
Some who got captured had performed terrible atrocities under the influence of drugs. For many of them, the only education they ever had was several years of school.”

Kochneva believes that the US Security Force rules these atrocities of bandits:

“Facebook didn’t work.
They caused a provocation in Daraa but it didn’t work either.
In the mid-April, the opposition met with Dan Feldman, representative of Hillary Clinton, in Istanbul. WikiLeaks reported that at that meeting a decision was made to start killing servicemen who at that time were unarmed, throughout the entire country. Four or 5 days later, servicemen in different parts of Syria were brutally murdered. And presently, many soldiers and officers are getting killed. Armed groups are kidnapping and murdering state officials.

“There are two centers of unrest left, Homs and Idleb.
These videos show fierce terror of the summer of 2011 in these cities. Three thousand people were killed, a third of them servicemen, and a lot of state officials. Ninety per cent of these murders were performed by bandits.
This is what happened recently: officials stopped for a coffee on their way somewhere, and they got murdered.

“Bandits have been causing outrage in the north of the country, as there are many villages and forests there, which means a place for them to hide,” says Kochneva.

REALITY

In Syria , a majority of people
want reforms in a peaceful process
refuse the “revolution” planned by the MB
reject the terror of the protesters and bandits
abhor any foreign armed interference

Now , the ball is in the camp of the non MB “peaceful” opposition in Syria : Dialogue

AREAL

definetely you are living in a Bubble. You have to look for this Mrs. Kachneva that appeared at Dunia TV to look for arguments that can defend your beloved imaginary country, a russian manager of a Jordan Club organization (nobody knows this club, is this a nightclub or a shooting club?) and have no authority on any field related to politics, human rights or international issues. So sad, so sad to see this poor personalities appear as if they were something. But this is Syria, any pice of a shit defending the regime will appear in Dunia TV specially if he or she is foreigner.

Your are indeed so areal or unreal , hope you can WAKE UP

Anhar Kochneva, director of Moscow-based tourist firm Jordan Club for Middle East. He has lost her bussiness and thinks that by defenidng Assad she will recover bussiness.

Is this an analyst worth hearing to? What a fuXX

الخليج والحرب الصليبية الجديدة

يوسف الاشقر

قرّر إيريك برنس، أمير المرتزقة، ومؤسس شركة «بلاكووتر»، الانتقال إلى دولة الإمارات والإقامة فيها، مزوَّداً بعقد عمل مع أمير أبو ظبي. والمهمة الموكلة إليه هي «حفظ أمن الخليج داخلياً، والتصدي لأعدائه الإقليميين»، لا سيما «الخطر الإيراني».

رافقت ذلك الخبر ملابسات مريبة. فكبار معاوني الرجل يتعرضون لملاحقات قضائية في أميركا على جرائم مشهودة، وذات نزعة عنصرية ودينية متطرفة قاموا بها في الدول العربية والإسلامية. وهو الآن، شخصياً، يواجه تهماً مماثلة. فانتقاله إلى الخليج وإقامته فيه، يؤمّنان له حصانة عربية مزدوجة: حصانة من الملاحقة القضائية الأميركية على أفعاله الماضية (لعدم وجود معاهدة تسليم المجرمين بين أميركا والإمارات)، ثم حصانة مستقبلية ومستدامة، بحكم عمله الجديد تحت المظلة العربية وبالمباركة الأميركية.
لا يبدو أنّ هذا الوضع الملتبس قد استوقف أياً من السلطات الأميركية والخليجية، بالرغم من أنّه ينطوي على مفارقتين أوّليتين، أميركية وعربية. في الأولى، نشهد تواطؤ السلطات الأميركية مع سلطات أجنبية، على منح الحصانة الأجنبية لمواطن أميركي يلاحقه القضاء الأميركي. والمفارقة الثانية، والأخطر، أنّ القضاء الأميركي يلاحق مواطناً أميركياً بتهمة ارتكاب جرائم بحق أبناء البلدان العربية والإسلامية، فتأتي الدول الخليجية فتمنحه الحصانة لمنع مقاضاته، ثم تتعاقد معه فتسلمه مقاليد أمنها وتوكل إليه «حروبها الإقليمية».

المفارقة الثانية، العربية، تنطوي على مفارقة ثانية أدهى. فالسلطات الخليجية لا تسمح لأي مسلم أو عربي بأن تطأ قدماه أرض الخليج، إلا بعد مراجعة سجله العدلي والسياسي، وتهمة «التطرف الديني» جاهزة لحجب سمة الدخول.

نرى تلك السلطات الخليجية إيّاها تتخلى عن كل تلك المبادئ وعن أبسط الإجراءات الأمنية، فتفتح أبوابها، وصناديق مالها، وملفاتها الأمنية والسياسية، الداخلية والإقليمية، وتسلّم أعناق المسلمين لأخطر متطرف ديني نذر نفسه وماله لحرب نيو ــ صليبية.
أسارع هنا وأقول إنّ ذلك ليس رأياً شخصياً في الرجل، أو اجتهاداً في طبيعة عمله. إنّه واقع موثق، ومعروف، ومعلن: في نشأته العائلية، وعقيدته الدينية ــ الحربية، وسيرته وممارساته، ورأي ضباطه فيه وفي أفعاله، وتصريحاته الشخصية. وثمة ما يثبت أنّ موضوع عمله «الأمني» الجديد لصالح دول الخليج قائم منذ سنوات طويلة من جهته هو، ولصالحه هو وصالح مشروعه الحربي في البلدان العربية والإسلامية. أما فكرة العقد مع إحدي الدول الخليجية، فهي فكرة عمل عليها منذ ثلاث سنوات تقريباً ثم سوّقها مع حملة التخويف من الخطر الإيراني والمدّ الشيعي.

ماذا يستطيع أي باحث أن يكتشف، في خلال بضع ساعات فقط من البحث، عن حقيقة ذلك الرجل ومشاريعه الحربية؟
يكتشف، أولاً، أنّ برنس نشأ في عائلة تنتمي إلى اليمين الديني المتطرف، نشطت في مؤسسات منتمية إلى هذا اليمين، وموّلتها. فتجند إيريك الشاب لخدمة هذا الإرث وأسهم في تطويره إلى حركة سياسية، ثم انخرط في العمل في دوائر سياسية يرعاها أعتى اليمينيين الصهاينة من أصدقاء أبيه وغيرهم. ويكتشف، ثانياً، أنّ برنس أسهم مع الصهاينة في تغيير أوليات هذا اليمين ونقلها من الموضوعات الداخلية في الحياة الأميركية (الإجهاض، والتعليم، والقيم العائلية والدينية وغيرها) إلى الموضوعات السياسية الخارجية، لا سيما الكره للإسلام والإسلاموفوبيا.

ويكتشف، ثالثاً، أنّه أسهم في نقل تلك الإسلاموفوبيا من موقع الخوف والتخويف من الإسلام إلى موقف الحرب على الإسلام والمسلمين، وتطويرها إلى مشروع حرب نيو ــ صليبية. ويكتشف، رابعاً، أنّ إيريك برنس انبرى لتنفيذ ذلك المشروع الحربي، وهو «لا يرى نفسه إلا قائداً صليبياً»، بحسب ما يقوله كبار معاونيه السابقين، والاتهامات الموجهة إليه أمام القضاء الأميركي. وهو يعتمد، لتنفيذ مشروعه الحربي، على جحافل المرتزقة وشبكاتها، وهي تشكل قوة موازية للقوات الأميركية النظامية، وتستأثر بالقسم الأكبر من ميزانيات الاستخبارات الأميركية. كما يعتمد على توريط القوات الأميركية والحليفة في عمليات حربية تدميرية. وليس ما حصل في الفلوجة إلا نموذجاً صارخاً لذلك.

ويكتشف، خامساً، أنّ إيريك برنس هو ظاهرة جديدة في تاريخ المرتزقة، إذ لم يعد كسب المال غاية وحيدة، والقتل مهنة لخدمة تلك الغاية، بل أصبح القتل والتدمير، عند الرجل، غاية في ذاتهما. وأصبح جمع المال وسيلة، إلى جانب كونه هدفاً: وسيلة لتحقيق غاية دينية ــ سياسية ــ حربية. فالرجل يؤمن بأنّ عمله رسالة، وبأنّ رسالته حرب نيو ــ صليبية. ويكتشف، سادساً، أنّ هدف الصليبية الجديدة تلك لا يقتصر على «تحرير الأراضي المقدسة» بل «القضاء على الإسلام والمسلمين لإنقاذ الغرب وحضارته من خطرهم».

ويكتشف، سابعاً، أنّ برنس غاضب على الأميركيين والغربيين لأنّهم لا يفعلون ما هو كافٍ لتحقيق الأهداف المطلوبة بالسرعة المطلوبة. وشأنه، في ذلك، شأن سفّاح أوسلو، أندرس بيرينغ براييفك، الذي تجمعه به المدرسة الإيديولوجية الواحدة. ولعلّ غضب صاحبنا على الأميركيين، لا خوفه من القضاء الأميركي، هو ما دفعه إلى الانتقال إلى الخليج والإقامة فيه، للعمل باستقلالية.
ويكتشف، ثامناً، أنّ إيريك برنس غاضب على الأميركيين والغربيين لأسباب أخرى. فهو يطالبهم بأن يوكلوا إليه الحرب، حصرياً، لأنّه الأقدر، بمرتزقته، على تحقيق الأهداف بفاعلية أقوى، وبسرعة أكبر، وبكلفة مادية وسياسية أقلّ، وبقتلى لا أسماء لهم ولا إحصاء لعددهم ولا توابيت محمّلة تصدم الرأي العام. ذلك فضلاً عن عمليات سرية لا تترك بصمات، فتبقى من دون تبعات، وعن حروب مستدامة وفي عشرات الجبهات، من دون استئذان الشعب الأميركي وعموم السلطات الأميركية، من جهة أولى، ومن دون استثارة صيحات الغضب ضد الإمبريالية الأميركية في العالم، من جهة ثانية. بل قد يسمح ذلك للأميركيين بأن يطلوا على العالم بوجه المنقذين والمحررين، تستجدي الشعوب حسناتهم المالية وتدخلاتهم العسكرية.

ويكتشف، تاسعاً وأخيراً، أنّ إيريك برنس الغاضب، والمتلمس قوته وقوة شركائه الحربيين (هم بالعشرات من صنّاع الحرب وقراصنة المال الذين سبقوه إلى التمركز في الخليج، أو من أمثال «القوات الخاصة» المستقوية على المرجعيات الأميركية التي تصول وتجول بحرية في غالبية البلدان العربية والإسلامية وغيرها في العالم من دون حسيب أو رقيب)، قرّروا أن يوكلوا شأن الحرب إلى أنفسهم، إذا تعذر التوكيل، فيتاح لهم أن يعمّموا، في العالمين العربي والإسلامي، النمط الحربي الجديد، من دون مشهد أساطيل بحرية وجوية وجحافل جيوش، بل من دون جندي نظامي واحد، ومن دون بصمات، ومن دون نشرات إخبارية إلا عن مشاهد الموت والدمار وأعداد الضحايا. وتلك هي خلفية قرارهم في أن ينقلوا القيادة العامة لعملياتهم الحربية إلى دول الخليج، بغطاء عقد العمل مع أمير أبو ظبي، وبترغيبهم الحكام السعوديين والإماراتيين، بعد ترهيبهم، بحفظ رؤوسهم وكراسيهم فضلاً عن تمييز أنظمتهم عن جميع أقرانها بصورة البراءة، تماماً كما فعلوا مع الأميركيين بترغيبهم، بعد ترهيبهم، بتجميل صورتهم وغسلها من آثار الجريمة.
لكنّ تلك الوقائع تبقى ناقصة ومصدر التباس، إذا لم نعرف أنّ هذه الحرب الصليبية الجديدة لا علاقة لها بالصليب والمسيحية. هي تهدد المسيحية والمسيحيين بقدر ما تهدد الإسلام والمسلمين. تهدد الغرب بقدر ما تهدد الشرق. ترفع شعار الحضارة الغربية المسيحية لكنّها تهدد الحضارة بعامة بدءاً بتدمير الإرث الحضاري في البلدان الغربية. تغلّب الغرائز الاعتدائية المتوحشة على كل عقلانية وأخلاقية ضامنة لأمن الإنسانية. والنمط الحربي الذي تعتمده هو شرّ وليد لتلك الشرور، صار بدوره مولّداً لشرور أكبر، وناظماً لتفاعلاتها الكارثية.

102. SANDRO LOEWE said:

God may judge them one day if they believe in something that could be similar to God.

REALITY

God damn .

I believe in Darwin , the prophet of Darwinism.

Gaddafi’s son – new nightmare for Western leaders

“But it is what he could reveal about the diplomatic deals hammered out by his father that is bringing Western power-players out in a cold sweat.”

http://rt.com/news/gaddafi-son-war-crime-court-957/
…Meanwhile, some details of the murky dealings have already come to the surface, sullying the reputation of one of Britain’s leading universities.

The London School of Economics agreed a deal with the Gaddafi regime to educate hundreds of its future civil servants in return for more than $3 million. Its director was forced to resign, and now Tripoli University is demanding the money back.

French President Nicholas Sarkozy, in his turn, was never shy of greeting Gaddafi – even letting him pitch his tent in the Elysee Palace as an apparent reward for bankrolling Sarkozy’s path to the presidency.

But Gaddafi’s son, Saif al-Islam, may now become a new nightmare for the West’s current and former leaders.

“Sarkozy must give back the money he took from Libya to finance his electoral campaign. We funded it and we have all the details and are ready to reveal everything,” Saif stated in an interview with Euronews TV channel.

“Saif’s going to have a lot of information on that. I think Tony Blair intervened to help Saif get his dodgy PhD degree from the London School of Economics when a lot of that degree was apparently plagiarized. So there’s a lot of things that have gone on that Saif al-Gaddafi knows about,” Stephen Brown, an independent journalist, told RT.

Saif Gaddafi intends to answer for his own actions in Libya’s drawn-out battle for control. But it is what he could reveal about the diplomatic deals hammered out by his father that is bringing Western power-players out in a cold sweat.

West weighs its interests over Syria intervention
“Nevertheless, Brann believes that the US and its allies could make a move against Assad’s regime without a UN mandate as soon as they define their interests.”
http://rt.com/news/syria-no-fly-intervention-023/

With 37 people reportedly killed by Syrian security forces in anti-government protests on Friday, opposition activists are now urging protesters to rally for a no-fly zone over the country – a move tantamount to foreign intervention.

­Stop the War Coalition activist Jim Brann believes that the reason why the US and its allies haven’t yet pushed for a no-fly zone over Syria is the country’s strategic significance in the Arab world.

“Libya was seen opportunistically as the weakest link and the most productive link for intervention, whereas Syria is seen as being much more problematic,” he said. “And that’s the main reason they haven’t pushed the intervention. Clearly, the Syrian regime is much more firmly based than the Gaddafi regime was. Also, Syria is much more firmly entrenched in the Arab World.”

“Gaddafi was clearly out on a limb and they could paint him as being some kind of weirdo, which they certainly cannot do with Assad,” Brann added.

Brann believes that the West has not decided whether the intervention in Syria is in its interest, and is therefore using quite soft language when talking about the current regime.

“It they wanted to get rid of Assad, they would say it much more clearly,” Brann explained. ”They are saying that his ‘time is up’ etc. But they are using words that are quite muted compared to what they could say. I think they have not quite decided that they want to intervene, that it’s in their interest.”

Nevertheless, Brann believes that the US and its allies could make a move against Assad’s regime without a UN mandate as soon as they define their interests.

“We have the example of Iraq, and we have the example of Libya, and in fact we have the example of Afghanistan,” he said. “We have all these precedents, so yes, it is entirely possible. But I think it is less likely.”

The most recent UN figures suggest that over 3,000 people have died in Syria in clashes with government forces since unrest broke out seven months ago. Fridays have become the main day for regular and massive anti-regime rallies throughout the country, with ever more vocal demands for a multi-party political system and the resignation of the president.

The Syrian government claims that the country is facing a “terrorist threat” and is ready to present a list of more than 1,100 people killed by the protesters in the ongoing unrest.

“My country has suffered numerous threats of war over the last seven months: media war, disinformation, lies of all kinds and deception,” Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faysal Mekdad said earlier this month.

On October 17, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad said he was working on a political solution to the conflict and promised to set up a constitutional committee to debate constitutional reform with the opposition. But the protesters vowed to continue rallies until Bashar al- Assad steps down.

I hope Saif al Islam has the chance to defend himself and declare all he needs to declare. But do not be confident that he declare anything that can be used against him or his father. So whatever he says and whatever accuasations he launches under a tribunal could be lies too just to try to save his honour. He is an animal under pressure and I do not think he damages the war lords hands (France, US, etc) under whose hands his life is pending and who at the end will dictate the sentence.

Interview with Michel Samaha about Ford’s withdrawal and what is behind it.

http://www.youtube.com/user/tamadonte?feature=mhee#p/u/6/RPFrzRoPHKM

Let’s have another bloody no fly zone!

Biggest success? NATO proud of Libya op which killed thousands
http://rt.com/news/nato-libya-operation-success-999/

“With Gaddafi dead and its “military job now done,” NATO has declared its campaign in Libya one of the “most successful in NATO history.” However, untold casualties and a country devastated by war call into question the alliance’s notion of success.”

“Writing back in September, Thomas C. Mountain, an independent journalist currently living in Africa who was a member of the 1st US Peace Delegation to Libya in 1987, estimated that NATO had dropped over 30,000 bombs on Libya, with an average of “two civilians killed in each attack.” Thus, Mountain has estimated that some 60,000 Libyan civilians had been killed by NATO air strikes alone by the end of August. ”

“According to Naji Barakat, the health minister in the new Libyan government, at least 30,000 people were killed and 50,000 wounded in Libya’s six-month civil war.

He said that his report, the first detailed estimate of the high cost in lives, was based in part on reporting from hospitals, local officials and former rebel commanders.

Pierre Guerlain, a professor of political science in Paris, also argued that NATO’s military campaign is not about saving civilians. But, he said, it is unlikely that NATO leaders will end up being prosecuted in The Hague for massacres committed by the alliance.

“Even though there are people who are dying because of NATO military action – massacres – it is very unlikely that the people responsible for these massacres will be held accountable by the International Court of Justice,” Guerlain told RT.”

Bronco @ 59

No Bronco, I am sorry again that you still do not understand me despite my several attempts to explain myself to you and then some.  Gaza and south Lebanon children are never forgotten, not by me or my likes, and Bush, Condy, Cheeney, Chirac, and Israel are to be heavily condemned.

However, it is not correct to ignore the pain of the Syrian people because the Syrian regime is opposed to the manipulation by the west.  It is not correct to give Bashar a cart blanche to kill his own people because he is the only “non-puppet” regime in the area.  

While the concept of resistance will always generate strong emotions and deeply resonates in my mind, such a struggle cannot be carried out at the expense of freedom and dignity.  Nor do achievement of freedom and dignity mean abandoning that same struggle that is at the core gene of every Syrian soul.

The indiscriminate violence against one’s own people is not justified nor understandable in my views.  Conspiracy and foreign manipulation will always lurk in the background but it is never an excuse to deprive a mother from her child or a child from his mother.  It is never an excuse for forcing people to declare “no god except Bashar”.  It is never an excuse to beat up the elderly or the young for that matter….The problem with most regime apologists is that they never mentally acknowledge that for the vast majority of us, this uprising is home-grown and was long long due, and NO, I do no believe that western countries are genuinely calling for freedom and democracy except when it fits their interest.

Now, I am sorry that this time, the Syrian people’s struggle “fits the western interest”.  I ask you not to crucify us for that.  The uprising was inevitable regardless.  

I do not respect where lots of the regime’s apologists are coming from.  I understand it but do not respect it.  The minorities’ complex disorder is the reason why Syrian minorities are supporting the regime and to me it is not noble nor humane to not condemn the killing and torture because one is afraid of for his own fate should the regime change.  I have said before, I prefer to be the victim, not the killer..

On the other hand,  I do respect where you are coming from and what led to your views even though I don’t agree with justifying what in my mind is the unjustifiable.  It is for that reason I have reacted in a very different way to Why-Discuss’ posts compared to the others. Yet, they always caused me a sharp sense of saddness when he failed to understand where I am coming from

To me, the line is clearly drawn in my mind.  The regime is murderous and evil.  You clearly think otherwise.  I am afraid, for you probably nothing takes precedence regardless of how poignant the human price has been.   

Tara,Bronco

The people that you call minorities are not for killing Syrians or for the continuation of the regime as we know it, you and others keep calling us Islamophobe and other things, We just want the peaceful transfere of power back and forth and the mechanism to do that all the time, we do not want to have a new leadership to think that the revolution gives them a card blanch to do whatever they want, Is that too much to ask, the opposition need to gain the support and the trust of the people you call minorities, do you know why they can not provide that support and comfort, it is because they fear the radicals between them who are thirsty for blood, the only way i see any change is to agree on the mechanism of changing leadership peacefully and then go for elections, until then no side can trust the other .

1
+1= 2
+1= 3
+1= 4
+1= 5
+1= 6
+1= 7
+1= 8
+1= 9
+1= 10
+1= 11
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+1= 13
+1= 14
+1= 15
+1= 16
+1= 17
+1= 18
+1= 19
+1= 20
+1= 21
+1= 22
+1= 23
+1= 24
+1= 25
+1= 26
+1= 27
+1= 28
+1= 29
+1= 30
+1= 31
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+1= 33
+1= 34
+1= 35
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+1= 37
+1= 38
+1= 39
+1= 40
+1= 41
+1= 42
…..
…..

Dear Norman# 115:

I am the only one who used the term Islamophobe on SC. Tara and Bronco have nothing to do with that description. I assume the full responsibility if I hurt the feelings of anyone with that description.

@ Bronco #113:

We do not want “no fly zone”. There is no difference between no fly zone and military action.
I am not sure if you have read my article that I listed put the link today at #64.

I sent it yesterday to the SNC leadership.

Robert Fisk: What the killing of Gaddafi means to Syria

Saturday, 29 October 2011

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-what-the-killing-of-gaddafi-means-to-syria-2377442.html

Two days before Gaddafi was murdered, I was reading the morning newspapers in Beirut and discovered a remarkable story on most front pages.

At the time, the mad ex-emperor of Libya was still hiding in Sirte, but there was this quotation by the US Secretary of State, La Clinton, speaking in Tripoli itself. “We hope he can be captured or killed soon,” she said, “so that you don’t have to fear him any longer.” This was so extraordinary that I underlined La Clinton’s words and clipped the article from one of the front pages. (My archives are on paper.) “We hope he can be captured or killed soon.” Then bingo. Nato bombs his runaway convoy and the old boy is hauled wounded from a sewage pipe and done away with.

Now in an age when America routinely assassinates its enemies, La Clinton’s words were remarkable because they at last acknowledged the truth. Normally, the State Department or the White House churned out the usual nonsense about how Gaddafi or Bin Laden or whoever must be “brought to justice” – and we all know what that means. But this week, the whole business turned much darker. Asked about his personal reaction, Obama the Good said that no one wanted to meet such an end, but that Gaddafi’s death should be a lesson “to all dictators around the world”. And we all knew what that meant. Principally, the message was to Bashar al-Assad of Syria. Maybe, ran the subtext, they would meet the same sticky end.

So now here I am in Damascus and I’ve been asking Syrians what they made of the whole business. Whenever I said Gaddafi was a crackpot, they would wholeheartedly agree. But when I spoke to a very senior government official who works directly for the Syrian leadership, he spoke in slightly different terms. “We don’t accept any comparisons,” he said. “But the seriousness of Gaddafi’s killing is that in the West in the future, they are going to say: ‘See how the Libyans behave? See how the Arabs behave? See how Muslims behave?’ This will be used against Islam. It was humiliating for the Libyans more than it was for Gaddafi, and that is why I fear it will be used against all of us. This is my real concern.”

On Syrian television this week, I made the point that Gaddafi was insane and that – whatever else you thought of him – Assad was not. This was met (naturally) by vigorous agreement from the presenter. But wait. I promised to tell readers what happened to the programme. Well, two days ago, quite by chance, I bumped into the journalist who had interviewed me. Alas, he said, he thought the translation and subtitles wouldn’t be ready for Saturday night’s broadcast. Maybe we could do another interview later. Back to that old saw, I guess: we shall see.

In any event, I was made very much aware by her own personal assistant how “deeply hurt” Bashar al-Assad’s wife Asma was at a report in The Independent a couple of weeks ago which suggested that she was indifferent to the plight of civilian opponents of the regime killed by the security forces. The story – not by me – quoted an aid official in Damascus who was present at a meeting with the First Lady, saying that – when asked about the casualties – “there was no reaction”.

Needless to say, this report was gobbled up by the Arab media, including al-Jazeera, Assad’s most hated TV station. Now Asma al-Assad’s assistant has just given me the Syrian Arab Red Crescent’s own official Arabic-language account of the meeting. It makes interesting reading. SARC volunteers told the president’s wife that they received better treatment from the army “which has a clear leadership” than they did from the intelligence services at the checkpoints across Syria – they said the “muhabarrat” intelligence “enjoys no leadership or clear principles, at least from our point of view” – and that vehicles from the Ministry of Health are sometimes misused by “parties without control and this has created a situation of fear among citizens”. Mrs Assad was told how difficult it was for the SARC to work in dangerous areas and to move the wounded.

“Mrs Asma [sic] showed her understanding of the difficulties our volunteers are going through,” the SARC report says, “and expressed her deep admiration for their efforts in serving humanity and individual people … and promised to convey some of their demands to the authorities.” Mrs Assad’s visit was “informal” and the discussions “friendly”.

In the days that followed, the SARC report continued, the behaviour of “security checkpoints” towards their volunteers improved. A subsequent report in the weekly Syria Today quotes Mrs Assad as telling the Red Crescent volunteers that they “must remain neutral and independent during this time, focusing solely on humanitarian needs”.

So there you have it. Certainly not indifferent – but hardly a ringing condemnation of human rights abuses. Of course, I can see Asma al-Assad’s problem. Had she spoken out directly against the killing of protesters, of course, the world’s press and television would not have said that Mrs Assad stood up for human rights. The headlines would have been political, and would have read: “Syrian President attacked by wife.” The truth, I fear, is that once war begins, you just can’t win. Even if you are the wife of the president.

Norman
You are for the peaceful transition to freedom and democracy, so WE are,but the regime is not making it possible to have peaceful change, he made it very bloody,the regime is not reforming ,his promises for reform are hollow, and he is waging killing practice against young syrian, so far 7000 dead and 20000-30000 arrest.

Amir in telaviv
Khalid,

The syrian flag has green on top representing our respect for the period of Rashidin KHilafa, the perion of Abu Bakr Omar, Othman and Ali, immidiately after the death of the Prophet,their flag was green.
The white is for Amawyyeen period, their flag was white, and the Black is the flag of Abbaside dynasty.
The three red stars are for the three revolutions in the twentyth century,the first revolution against the Turkish rule 1918, the second is the revolution against France 1925, the third is the revolution that led to the independence 1945-1946.
The flag changed after union of Syria and Egypt,and finally changed again after The Baath came to power.

مقال جيد لعبد الباري عطوان
http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today%5C28z999.htm&arc=data%5C2011%5C10%5C10-28%5C28z999.htm

علاقات سوريا مع تركيا مرشحه لمزيد من التدهور و الهجمات ضد تركيا من جانب الأكراد مرشحه للتصاعد
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/28/world/europe/turkey-is-sheltering-antigovernment-syrian-militia.html?ref=middleeast

There are three choices for Syria
1 Bashar stay,and later his son become president for life too.
2 Demonstrations last for a year or two.
3 Foreign intervention and removal of Bashar.

All three choices are bad,the worst,God forbid,is that Bsashar stays.

They are saying that Bashar will not send anyone to Qatar,and there will not be any response to AL initiative, instead his message will be that he will make an important speach on Monday afternoon.

From the EU/CIA/Saudi/al-Qaeda/Salafist/JewBoy Press:

Today, there were at least 170 separate protests across Syria.

Memo To: MAJEDKHALDOUN

RE: “…Bashar stays and later his son becomes president for life…”

Bashar’s son becomes President For Life. Hmmmm. Exactly what are the little bugger’s qualifications?

Today, there were at least 17,000,000 separate pro government rallies across Syria.

Robert Fisk’s analysis of what’s driving tens of thousands in Damascus to mass in support of the government: Syrians are frightened.

The images of the destroyed Libyan city of Sirte are very, very frightening. Syrians know their country does not have the resources to rebuild and recover from a civil war like Libya does. They also know the Assad regime would have zero conscience about creating similar urban devastation in its efforts to cling to power.

Majed,

Thank you for the explanation #120. So the red white black flag is national / Arabist, while the green white black flag is more of an Islam oriented, and pays respect to the ancient Muslim dynasties that ruled Syria. Right?
.

Is the West Hijacking Arab Revolutions to the Benefit of Islamist Terrorists?

10/28/11

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/raghida-dergham/the-west-is-hijacking-ara_b_1064180.html

Dubai — While the West speaks of the necessity of accepting the results of the democratic process, in terms of Islamists coming to power in the Arab region, there are increased suspicions regarding the goals pursued by the West in its new policy of rapprochement with the Islamist movement, in what is a striking effort at undermining modern, secular and liberal movements. The three North African countries in which revolutions of change have taken place are witnessing a transitional process that is noteworthy, not just in domestic and local terms, but also in terms of the roles played by foreign forces, both regional and international. The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt is trying to hijack the youth’s revolution with the help of the West. This is while bearing in mind that Egypt is considered to be the “command center” for the Muslim Brotherhood’s network in different Arab countries.

The followers of the An-Nahda in Tunisia are wrapping their message with moderation as they prepare to hijack the democracy that Tunisia’s youth dream of, while being met by applause and encouragement from the West in the name of the “fairness” of the electoral process. Libya, where the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO) is in a “marriage of convenience” with Islamist rebels, has become a hub of extremism and lawlessness, with a plethora of military aid being collected by an assortment of armed Islamists who aim to exclude others from power. In Yemen, where a struggle for power rages on, a war is taking place between extremism and a harsher and more violent brand of extremism, with so-called “moderate Islam” in the middle as a means of salvation, even as the latter’s ideology remains neither modern nor liberal, and is rather lacking when it comes to the fundamentals of democracy and equality.

In Syria, where the battle for freedom is at its most difficult phase, the youths of the revolution fear what could very much be under discussion behind the scenes between the West and the Islamist movements, in terms of collaboration and of strengthening the Islamists’ hold on power, in a clear bid to hijack the revolution of a youth that aspires to freedom in its every sense, not to yet another brand of tyranny and authoritarianism. Yet despite increasing talk and concern over the unnatural relationship between the West and Islamist movements in the Arab region, there is growing insistence among the region’s enlightened and modern youths that they will not allow this relationship to direct their lives and dictate their course. It would thus be more logical for the West to listen carefully to what is happening at the youths’ scene, as well as on the traditional secularist and modernist scenes, and to realize the danger of what it is doing for these elements and the road to change brought about by the Arab Spring.

The obsession of some Westerners with the so-called “Turkish model” of “moderate Islam,” able to rule with discipline and democracy, seems naïve, essentially because of its assumption that such a model can automatically be applied on the Arab scene, without carefully considering the different background and conditions that exist in Turkey and the Arab countries. There is also some naivety in assuming that the “Iranian model” of religious autocratic rule that oppresses people, forbids pluralism and turns power into tyranny, can be excluded as a possibility. What the movements of modernity, freedom and democracy in the Arab region fear is the replication of the Iranian experience and its revival on the Arab scene. What took place in 1979 after the Iranian Revolution is that the Mullahs hijacked it, excluded the youths from it and monopolized power in the “Islamic Republic” of Iran for more than 30 years.

Perhaps the West purposely encouraged what happened to Iran and its exceptional civilization by taking it back to the Dark Ages, to live in seclusion and isolation as a result of the tyranny of the Mullahs. Perhaps taking Iran more than 50 years back in time was a Western goal, which would explain their encouragement for the peaceful nature of this revolution to be hijacked. It should be stressed here that it was Iran’s 1979 revolution that sparked, throughout the Arab region, the movement of reverting to social rigidity instead of modernity and advancement. The environment created by the rule of the Mullahs in Iran led to restricting efforts in neighboring Arab Gulf region, which became unable to embrace modernity for fear of its repercussions and consequences. In fact, hawkishness gained more ground in the Arab Gulf as a means of containing religious extremism. Thus, sectarianism increased hand in hand with extremism, and the whole region became thoroughly consumed by the struggle of religions, away from the social development necessary to accompany the structural development represented by buildings, installations and other basic infrastructure.

The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) play numerous roles, sometimes in concordance, and sometimes in contradiction and mutual opposition. The common denominator among them is preserving the monarchy and keeping the Arab Spring far from the Gulf region with a certain extent of reform, which could either be costly for the regimes or for their relationship with Islamists — be they moderates or extremists. What is even more noteworthy is what is being said about the Islamic Republic of Iran, in terms of its occasional support of groups allied with the Muslim Brotherhood, which it sees as a means to weaken the influence of Saudi Arabia in the region.

Also noteworthy is the fact that the United Arab Emirates is supporting the movement closest to modernism in Libya by providing support in the form of training the police force and strengthening it with equipment. This is while Qatar supports Islamist movements with training and weapons, which undermines the ability of “non-Islamists” to compete for power, and in fact leads to excluding them from power. Regarding Syria, on the other hand, the UAE is worried about what regional interference could lead to, and fears what reaches the extent of preparing for after the revolution. This is why it hesitates to support the Syrian opposition despite its desire — which it has, in fact, sometimes acted on — to provide some support to non-Islamist forces.

GCC countries always have Iran on their mind, as it does them, especially through the relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran, and the many dimensions of the relationship between Sunnis and Shiites. Examining how the West’s policies have evolved regarding this aspect in particular, would require greater space and a more in-depth study. Yet it is noteworthy that former U.S. President George W. Bush strengthened the standing of the Islamic Republic of Iran, its influence and its regional ambitions of hegemony, through his war in Iraq. As for the current President, Barack Obama, he seems to be in the process of strengthening “moderate Islam,” specifically among Sunnis, for it to be the means to confront both Sunni and Shiite extremism, in a policy of attracting “moderate Islam” even at the cost of undermining the forces of modernity, advancement and secularism, and pulling the rug from under their feet. This policy of Obama’s is no less dangerous than that of Bush. They both played the sectarian card at the expense of secularism, and they both adopted policies that lead to weakening the forces of moderation and strengthening the forces of extremism, regardless of whether it is “moderate extremism,” as it at the end of the day is based on the ideology of monopolizing power and not separating religion and state.

Shirin Ebadi, the Iranian judge, human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, addressed the women of the Arab awakening at the Women’s Forum in Deauville, France, and said: Do not repeat our mistake. She said that the separation of religion and state is the only guarantee of democracy, not because the flaw lies in the Sharia itself, but because it can be interpreted by men who want more domination, and who view democracy as an enemy of their monopoly, one that takes away powers they have hijacked and purposely kept women away from.

At the same conference, the Yemeni participant, a friend of Tawakel Karman, the first Arab woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, said that Tawakel is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, and that, compared to the “Salafists,” this group represents moderation itself, as well as salvation. This is an opinion which seems to have been embraced by the West, strengthened and driven forward amid the applause of Islamist movements that present themselves as the alternative moderation, blocking the way for movements of modernity by mounting the steed of democracy, most likely on a single path from which there is no return.

They are inflating themselves and their size, and entering into a temporary marriage with the West — which in their opinion is naïve — a marriage of convenience that is to their benefit as long as it breaks the back of secularists and modernists. In truth, the democratic U.S. administration is not the only one encouraging Islamist movements to take such a course, as there are also some republicans like Senator John McCain. McCain made sure to address Islamists from the rostrum of the World Economic Forum at the Dead Sea during a seminar on the American-Arab relationship, calling for respecting their rights to power, and thereby sending two messages: one to Islamists under the headline “we are with you,” and the other to the modernists under the headline “we do not care about you”.

There are two schools of thought that do not agree with the opinion that there is no escape from accepting the movements of “moderate Islam” because they have been victorious in the revolutions and base themselves on the change brought by the Arab Spring. Those two schools do not agree that the Arab Spring is the spring of Islamists, and they do not agree to the claim that they are the makers of the Arab awakening or spring. These two schools want to stop the Islamists from hijacking the Arab Awakening and climbing to power with the help of the West, whether the latter is naïve or ill-intentioned.

One school says: let the Islamists rule the Arab region, as this is an opportunity to prove their failure at controlling a people that does not want them. Those affiliated with this school point to Hamas and the Palestinian people’s reactions to it, in not accepting it and Islamist rule. They believe that the Arab people will defeat Islamist movements, and that they will fail. Then the modernists will return nearly victorious and welcomed by the people, and things will move forward. This, then, is an opportunity to prove the sure failure of Islamists, so let them fail.

The other school says: the greatest mistake is for the modernists to dwindle and withdraw from the battle now, because the Islamists reaching power will consolidate their rule for decades, not years. We must therefore immediately demand a transitional phase that would give these movements the opportunity to organize into political parties and enter the elections. This is while bearing in mind that the only organized party is that of the Islamists, having been the only opposition movement under the former rulers. Those who are of this opinion insist on yielding neither to the cunning of the Islamists nor to the naivety of the West, and on launching an awareness campaign for world public opinion about Islamists and Western governments hijacking the Arab Spring in order to exclude the modernists, young and old equally.

It would be more logical for Western capitals to hear and to listen closely, because their partnership in hijacking the Arab youth’s ambitions of freedom, pluralism, democracy and modernity will come at high cost for them — not just for the path of change that has emerged from the soul of the youths of the Arab Spring.

RaghidaDergham.com

Ghufran,
Depressing article but much smarter than the one of 3a6wan (he is a creepy dude 😉 )

مات الطاغية، عاش الناتو
أسعد أبو خليل
http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/24694

“تطوي ليبيا مرحلة من الطغيان وتدخل اليوم في مرحلة يكتنفها الغموض وتسود فيها طائرات الناتو وقاذفاتها. من المسلّي الحديث عن الديموقراطيّة وعن الانتخابات الحرّة، فيما تقود الأمور قطر بتمويل وتسليح مَن تريد. هذا كأن تتحدّث عن الديموقراطيّة في لبنان فيما كانت السعوديّة عبر استخباراتها تبتاع سلفاً نتائج الانتخابات. دروس الحالة الليبيّة بليغة على أكثر من صعيد. قتل مجلس التعاون الخليجي الجامعة العربيّة المُحتضرة، وتسلّم أمر الأنظمة العربيّة من الخليج إلى المحيط. فقط الأنظمة التي لا تماشي الإرادة السعوديّة بالكامل تستحق السقوط، أما التي تماشي السعوديّة وقطر، فهي ستحظى بالرعاية والدعم والقمع المُستورد، مثل البحرين. ليبيا الجديدة عنوان لمضاعفات الاعتماد على وعود الدول الغربيّة. هي أيضاً عنوان للعواقب الوخيمة لمن يثق بنماذج تخرّجت من نظام مُستبدّ سابق. ليبيا تحتاج إلى ثورة وانتفاضة لكنس بقايا حكم القذّافي وكنس الحكم الجديد. الحكم الجديد فاقد الصلاحيّة والقوّة قبل أن يتسلّم الحكم. من يتوقّع ديموقراطيّة من رعاية سعوديّة ـــــ قطريّة؟
الانتفاضات العربيّة تكاد تفشل رسميّاً لولا الانتخابات التونسيّة «الحرّة» التي شهدت تنافساً بين المال القطري والمال الأميركي. لكن هذا يدعو إلى اليأس. الخوف العربي إما زال وإما هو في طريقه إلى الزوال. وإلّا، فماذا يفسّر حالة الهلع التي تسود في إسرائيل والتي لن تحمل في أسبابها إلّا بشائر الخير؟”

ظهور علني لبعض قيادات الحراك الشعبي
http://www.elaph.com/Web/news/2011/10/692260.html

Ya Mara Ghalba,
You are absolutely right, those figures are not exact but they are the closest you can get to the correct ones.
I got them through a Syrian friend on FB in Arabic and everybody was mad at him for publishing such info, now the list is allover FB.

Areal,
🙂 No I didn’t scan any ID, besides, the Syrian IDs don’t have any section for ‘sect’ or ‘religion’ in them.

Ghufran
George Zeitoun is a Homsi activist from the beginning and he wasn’t hiding at all, he was very vocal and extremely reasonable and peaceful young man, I read every note of his.
He is one of many nonviolence movement activist and he is one of the first Syrians to get involve in forming political parties.

George Zeitoun
فقط للتوضيح فيما يتعلق بالحراك الشعبي السلمي:
الحراك الشعبي السلمي لا يعني فقط كل من تظاهر فانا لم اشارك بأي مظاهرات أو مسيرات وكنت مراقبا لها فقط وكان جلّ عملي مع اعضاء التجمع الوطني السوري الحر بالحراك الشعبي السلمي بطرق مؤوسساتية تحت سيادة القانون وبواسطة اعادة تفعيل عمل كافة الجمعيات والمؤوسسات واللجان التي تعنى بالحراك الشعبي السلمي ونشر مفهوم المواطنة وغيرها بواسطة عدة وسائل منها الحوار المباشر او الغير مباشر (الانترنت) مع كافة الأطياف وبوسائل الاعلام المختلفة والاجتماعات والمقالات… الخ
فوجودي في مؤتمر الحراك هو لاضفاء نوع جديد من الحراك الواعي والفاعل.
فيما يتعلق بتسميتي قائد ميداني فانا لا افضل تلك الصفة بل اعتبر نفسي محركا ومنسقا ميدانيا ضمن المعاير السابقة.

اتمنى ان تتوضح الصورة اكثر عن سبب ظهوري ممثلا عن التجمع الوطني السوري الحر في المؤتمر السابق.

https://www.facebook.com/george.zetoun?sk=notes

تركيا تنتظر الكونغرس و الأكراد ينتظرون العداله
http://www.azzaman.com/index.asp?fname=2011%5C10%5C10-28%5C996.htm&storytitle=
قطر و ما ادراك ما قطر
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/oct/26/qatar-troops-libya-rebels-support

Moualem, Shaaban and Mokdad are going to qatar on Sunday to meet with the Arab committee:

دمشق : يتوجه وزير الخارجية والمغتربين وليد المعلم ونائبه فيصل المقداد إلى الدوحة غداً الأحد للمشاركة في اجتماع اللجنة الوزارية العربية المعنية بحل الأزمة السورية
اللجنة مكونة من الوزير المعلم ،الدكتورة بثينة شعبان، السيد فيصل مقداد، السفير يوسف
احمد ..
وينعقد اجتماع المعلم والمقداد مع اللجنة العربية الخاصة بسوريا، التي تضم كلا من قطر رئيساً، ومصر والسودان والجزائر وسلطنة عمان، على هامش اجتماعات تعقدها اللجنة العربية حول “مبادرة السلام” في الدوحة غداً على مستوى وزراء الخارجية برئاسة رئيس
الحكومة القطرية الشيخ حمد بن جاسم آل ثاني

هذا هو العراق بعد الغزو و التدخل الاجنبي
http://www.bbc.co.uk/arabic/middleeast/2011/10/111027_iraq_baath_demos.shtml

Majed,

You forgot the most apprpiet solution,

President Assad will set a time table for parliamentary election and municipal ones, declare that the constitution does not allow more than two terms for president so he will not be running, amnesty to all who surrender, all parties will run in the election that will produce the next government,

That is the only way that i see for a peaceful transition that will secure a change of power back and forth.

136. Ghufransaid:

هذا هو العراق بعد الغزو و التدخل الاجنبي
http://www.bbc.co.uk/arabic/middleeast/2011/10/111027_iraq_baath_demos.shtml

0 1
.
October 28th, 2011, 9:28 pm

That is exactly that there is no chance for the Syrian army and Baath party of giving up power under pressure, What we see in Iraq and Syria indicate to me that the target is not Alawat or Sunni, the target is Arab nationalism and anybody who support the destruction of Syria is just an enemy to the Arab nation.

Tara #114

I understand now clearly where you come from: you were sure that this violent uprising would happen anytime because you believed this government is incompetent and corrupted with no salvation possible. Therefore you welcomed the Arab Spring and went with it despite the violence it generated and the pain it caused to all Syrians.
I disagree. In my observations, there was a gradual but perceptible change in the last 6 years in Syria, despite the tense atmosphere created by Israel and the chaos of Iraq. Internet was made available countrywide, people were feeling that the economy was moving ahead after years of stagnation, tourism was booming. There was a strong sense of optimism that the country was improving and that freedom of expression was on its way as peacefully as possible.

Now the country is back to 10 years ago, all the improvements are reduced to null, seeds of hatred has been sewn in the mind of people, violence, suspicion and revenge is everywhere. That is the achievement to this attempt to fast-track democracy as dictated by the Western countries on the wave of the Tunisian and Egytian examples.
For me there is no fast-track to democracy. Examples around us abound. Iraq, Libya and Egypt will remain unstable for years to come and there is no guarantee that, once the people realize that the promises of improvements of their live are not fulfilled, another authoritarian regime, disguised in democracy, will not take over.
Syria was moving safely with successes and failures, now it is in a spinning turmoil that is taking its toll on the poor more than on the rich. What do you do with ‘freedom of expression’ when you are hungry and can’t feed your family?
It saddens me that the country missed the opportunity to improve slowly and in safety. Now it is pushed in all directions as no one knows where the opposition wants to lead the country to: I am still waiting to see their political program. The only program they have until now is the deconstruction of all the Syrian institutions but with nothing to offer in exchange.

Maybe you are able to see where this continuous and irresponsible tragedy will ultimately bring the country, I don’t.

Norman
The suggestion that you said is Ideal,but for the last eight months you have been saying that and it did not happen.

Majed

Egypt is not much better, its has achieved nothing after 8 months..

Majed,

Be patient my friend, be patient, Great things come to people who wait ,

Camels not horses win the long distance race, so do the patient people.

Robert Fisk, explaining the tens of thousands of people rallying in Damascus in support of the government, says that Syrians feel frightened.

Syrians feel fear when they see the photos of the totally smashed and gutted Libyan city of Sirte. They know that Assad would not hesitate to bring on similar urban devastation in his battle to retain power.

They also know their country does not have the resources to recover and rebuild like the Libyans do. And they know the Assad gang is indifferent to that fact.

Norman
You once said it will take two months, then six months, we are now in the eight month,How long we should wait, is there a time limit? or is this going to be like the story of the fly.

Irritated
in Egypt Mubarak left, in Syria Assad is glued.

NATO not Qaddafi destroyed Libya, The Syrian opposition want the same for Syria, No fly zone, That is how it started in Libya.

People who empower themselves withe enemies of their country do not deserve to have a sovereign country. They deserve to be slaves ,

Majed,

That would have happened if the opposition were smart enough to push the president ahead of them and ride him to reform, they elected to call for his execution instead and that showed their real face, not reform that is what they seek but the destruction of Arab nationalism and the surrender to the demand of the West like the rest of the moderate Arabs of Saudi Arabia, Jordon and the Palestinian authority.

One day in Syria-BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00kxdwk
سليم عزوز و كلام للعاقلين
http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today%5C28qpt997.htm&arc=data%5C2011%5C10%5C10-28%5C28qpt997.htm

interesting :

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=ex-assad-consultant-warns-of-a-civil-war-2011-10-28

#43 Syria lover(?)

A slight change in your statement:

“They know that NATO would not hesitate to bring on similar urban devastation in his battle to remove Bashar from power.

Those who feel Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam could present an embarrassment to the west (if he survives to speak about various dealings people had with him and his father’s regime) might have their fantasies dashed.

The delusions of a coke-fuelled vicious wannabe dictator won’t be of much interest.

He’s never been taken seriously.

Here,read about his grotesque paintings he paid to exhibit in the west: http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2002/jul/23/artsfeatures3

And enjoy what the critics had to say about it: http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2002/jul/23/artsfeatures3

Majed

King of Jordan: But anybody would be challenged to say if that’s six months, six years, or 16 years.
….
Q. People are asking about an alternative to President Assad. Can another Alawite or a Sunni overthrow him? How do you see this playing out?

A. I think nobody has an answer to Syria. It is the big question. I think everybody is confused. The regime seems to be quite strong. I think you are going to see continued violence for the time being.

Q. Do you think they can win? In the West, you hear over and over that Assad’s days are numbered; it’s just a matter of time.

A. My view is when you use violence on your people, that never ends well. But anybody would be challenged to say if that’s six months, six years, or 16 years.

{…}
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2011/10/jordan_s_king_abdullah_interviewed_the_arab_spring_is_a_disaster.html

دمشق
يا دمشق البسي دموعي سواراً ****** وتمنّي .. فكلُّ شيء يهونُ
وضعي طَرحَةَ العروس لأجلي ****** إنَّ مَهْرَ المُناضلات ثمينُ
مزقي يا دمشق خارطة الذل ****** وقولي للـدهر كُن فيـكونُ
كتب الله أن تكوني دمشقاً ****** بكِ يبدا وينتهي التكويـنُ

Norman
You did not answer my question, How long time we should wait.

Irritated
Syria will have mini civil war, six year is out of question

Interview with Paul Salem, the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut,
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=8216arab-spring-forces-looking-to-turkey-rather-than-iran-model8217-2011-10-28

Turkish premier’s call for secularism in Arab Spring countries has raised Turkey’s stature as a model for democracy, Paul Salem tells the Daily News.

The Arab Spring has not had a major impact on regional balance of power so far, but this could change if there is a regime change in Syria, says Paul Salem.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s call for secularism has calmed the fears of those concerned Turkey was about to create a network of Muslim Brotherhood-led governments to control the Arab world, said a regional expert. His statement also relieved the secularists who feared the Islamists, said Paul Salem, the director of Carnegie Middle East Center. Turkey stands as the most attractive model, since other models like Iran have failed, Salem told the Daily News in a recent interview in Beirut.

Q: Where are we with the Arab Spring?

A: It is a changed Arab world. Peoples’ mentalities have changed. Even if conditions in certain countries have not changed, people have changed. This change has gone in the direction of people prioritizing democracy and pluralism. This was clearly a pro-democracy revolution.

Now we are entering a new era. We had the era where political Islam in a non-democratic, often violent, format was the proposed solution. This is the era where democratization is the key. Political Islam is coming under the context and conditions of democracy. And obviously the Turkish example of a party with Islamic roots successful in a democratic state is the most attractive model for the states that have been through a revolution.

Today the majority of Arab citizens by number are either living in countries transitioning to democracy like Egypt, Tunisia, Libya or semi-democracies like Iraq or Lebanon or in countries in revolutions asking for democracy like Syria or Yemen. This is significant. But the process is filled with uncertainties, risks and challenges.

Q: How about the impact on international and regional balances?

A: It did not so far have a major impact on regional or international balance of power. This could change if the uprising in Syria reaches its end point with a regime change. If Syria changes its leadership this will mean the new regime will probably not have the same deep relations with Iran or Hezbollah. And it might lose access to Hamas and the Palestinian issue. This will be a major loss for Iran. It will retreat and focus more on Iraq and Afghanistan.

The U.S. has lost in the Arab Spring, but it has lost much less than it thought. The relationship with Egypt like the one with Turkey will be more challenging.

Turkey is one of the slight winners. The revolutionaries did not say we want to be like Iran or Saudi Arabia or America. Most of them were saying we want to be something like Turkey.

And these revolutions are pro-globalization and pro-business. That is good for Turkey. Egypt wants trade and economic progress. The Muslim Brotherhood and Islamist forces, which are likely to be important players, are looking to the Justice and Development Party (AKP) to see if they can learn anything. Now they realize being in the opposition is easier than being in the government. Arab Spring was about poverty and lack of economic progress.

The Muslim Brotherhood is realizing that if they cannot get jobs and the economy going, people will not like them either. And they are aware of that. They look to Turkey for advice. It is not a model. But they know that they have more to learn from Turkey than from Saudi Arabia or Iran.

Q: For “political Islam” to function under democracy, isn’t there a need to reconcile with secularism? Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s call for secularism was not welcomed by all.

A: Secularism has failed as a word and as a strong philosophy to build legitimacy in the Arab world. But what is meant by secularism has legitimacy in the wider Arab world.

Many parties and citizens participating in the Arab uprising actually believe in the details of secularism. Islamists won the argument that if you say you are secularist it means you are atheist. But Islamic slogans were hardly visible during uprisings even though Islamists were there. They agreed on the words “civil state”; they are the new buzz words.

This is where they disagree with Erdoğan: While accepting the civil state, the Islamist say “since we are mostly Muslim, we should include in the constitution a reference to Islam and sharia,” but they don’t say “we want to be an Islamic state.”

Q: So will the Islamist parties be the dominant players in the region?

A: They will do quite well in the elections. They will be the biggest single blocs, but not majority blocs. This partly reflects the strategy of Islamists. They are aware that they are feared.

Their strategy is to move gradually and to enter coalitions.

Q: There are fears that like in the Iranian example, the Islamists will soon get rid of their coalition partners and impose a less tolerant rule.

A: The risk is there, definitely. But, had the revolutions been an Islamist revolution, with millions on the street with Islamist slogans, that would have been a different situation. Second, the biggest Islamist movement, for example the Muslim Brotherhood, has certain Islamist ambitions, in which secularists and Christians disagree. But they are also aware of the Iranian experience and they are aware that it has failed. They don’t like it because it is not popular with its people. It is repressive and people see that it ended up very corrupt and unsuccessful at building jobs and economic progress.

They don’t look at Saudi Arabia as an attractive model; they don’t look to Taliban or al-Qaeda. This movement is coming to power after people have seen the extremists and made a judgment about it. Ten years ago Iran could have been a much more popular model. Ten years ago Turkey was not an attractive model, but it just so happens that it is now.

So 2011 is significant.

Also, in Egypt and Tunisia these parties are not entering into a vacuum. There are military, bureaucracy and business circles. The Islamists will be one among several players.

Any government in Egypt will be pleading for investment and money, so they cannot be extremists. The economics are not there. But in Libya or Syria that could be different.

Q: What makes Turkey so attractive?

A: It is the only real democracy in the entire Middle East. People are impressed that the AKP found a balance between cultural issues like faith, religion, nationalism and globalism. The extremists are anti-globalists. And obviously the economy. It the only rapidly growing non-oil economy in the region.

Q: Is this image not shaken by Erdoğan’s staments on secularism?

A: Muslim Brothers did not like it, but they had always said: “We have a lot of respect for Turkey and the AKP and have a lot to learn from them. But don’t assume everything is the same. We will not follow Turkey’s model as if it is a magical recipe.”

On the other hand it actually calmed a lot of fears. There was a rapidly growing concern that Turkey was building a network of Muslim Brotherhood-led governments to control Arab world. It was drawing hostility. Some started saying “Turkey is becoming too ambitious. It cannot rule the Arab world through Muslim Brothers.”

And also, Islamists were pointing at Turkey, saying “Look at them. Turkey is going Islamic too.” But Erdoğan said, “Wait a minute, we are a secular state.” So that was also welcomed by those who feared the Muslim Brotherhood.

Q: How was Turkey’s assertive role perceived in the region prior to the Arab Spring? There was criticism of neo-Ottomanism.

A: It was assertive toward Israel. But with the Arab world it was engaged with trade relations, visa abolitions. This was nice and welcomed. The neo-Ottoman argument is a bit silly. They are not establishing an empire; they are just engaging in a region that was part of the Ottoman region and are entering for good things like trade. Nobody can blame them.

Q: Is this image changing with the Arab Spring?

A: There is a new image. Before Turkey was about the “Zero Problems Policy.” It was about dealing with the status quo. Stabilize it and establish business deals. But now this has changed. It is not about trade any longer; it is about democratic change. Turkey has a role to play; it has responsibilities. Its position relates to different questions. Will Turkey help democratic change to succeed? Will it play a positive role?

Who is Paul Salem?

Paul Salem, the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, works and publishes on the regional and international relations of the Middle East, as well as issues of political development and democratization in the Arab world.
A graduate of Harvard University, he has also held various positions at the American University of Beirut. Salem is the author of a number of books and articles on the Middle East, including “The Carnegie Papers, Building Cooperation in the Eastern Middle East” and “The Arab State: Assisting or Obstructing Development?”

Majed,

You know that i do not know or claim to predict the future, but the Syrians have to take a deep breath before they become responsible for the destruction of their country and i mean both sides .

To #149 Irritated and Norman #145

To say Gaddafi didn’t destroy Libya is a cruel and ignorant insult to Libyans who have sacrificed so much to get what they yearned for.

Of course, let’s rant about the west – where you are both probably enjoying a comnfortable lifestyle and not feeling the searing anxiety Syrians at home are living with. Amd it’s more satisfying than thinking about what Gaddafi would have done to the people of Libya if left unchecked. He was happy to sacrifice 40,000 lives rather than step aside and go into exile when Libyans demanded it. Without NATO he would have kept going by the tens of thousands. There would be less left of Benghazi and Tripoli now than there is of Sirte.

Bashar won’t hang around for NATO, he’s got Iran to help him smash up the country. And NATO isn’t going to bother to take on Iran. Four thousand dead already – Assad hasn’t even started.

مستشار الرئيس التركي: لا تفكير بإنشاء منطقة عازلة على حدودنا مع سوريا

أكد كبير مستشاري الرئيس التركي ارشاد هرمزلو في حديث لصحيفة “الراي” الكويتية أن الحديث عن ضربة عسكرية لسورية من مجلس الأمن “سابق لاوانه”، نافياً نية القيادة التركية انشاء منطقة عازلة على الحدود السورية. واذ شدد هرمزلو على ضرورة الحفاظ على الطابع السلمي للحركة الاحتجاجية في سوريا، رأى أن زيارة رئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب أردوغان المتوقعة الى مخيم اللاجئين السوريين لن يتم فيها الاعلان عن عقوبات وانما اجراءات “من بينها السماح للشعب السوري بالتظاهر”.
وأوضح أن اللقاء الذي جمع بين وزير الخارجية التركي احمد داوود أوغلو وأعضاء من المجلس الوطني السوري تضمن سلة من النصائح بينها وضع برنامج سياسي “يطمئن الشعب السوري”، مؤكداً أن الموقف التركي لم يتراجع وأن “القرار السوري يطبخ في المطبخ السوري”.
وعما اذا كان هناك تخوف من تسليح الحركة الاحتجاجية في سوريا وانتقال الثورة من الطابع السلمي الى الطابع العسكري، لفت هرمزلو الى ان “كل الاحتمالات واردة، وكنا قد حذرنا في السابق من استعمال العنف ضد المتظاهرين وحذرنا أيضاً من التدخلات الدولية”.

131. Dear Ghufran:
ظهور علني لبعض قيادات الحراك الشعبي
http://www.elaph.com/Web/news/2011/10/692260.html

They are egime approved/supported activists!
Their mantra echoes that of the regime approved/supported national coordination assembly.
They risked nothing; they were invited/encouraged by the regime to make such a stunt!

Free activists are paranoid to deflate while in the toilet lest Shabbeha hear their farts, let alone travelling to Damascus and holding a public meeting!

Mata Malikulmolook,
Waja2 douruDduyook

Demonstration in jabal Azzawiya, Idlib
A banner in arabic reads:
King of the kings is dead; Cocks are next (meaning Jr and Saleh)
Friday of the No-Fly-Zone
29/10/2011
من اجمل مقاطع مظاهرة جبل الزاوية 26-10-2011 دقة عالية – سوريا – أموي

Saudi Revlon
Democracy wahabi,Revloni way:

Egyptian Revlon
With Revlon’s revolution every Syrian will have
Thousands of palaces in heaven:

http://arabic.rt.com/news_all_news/news/570233
“نيويورك تايمز”: تركيا تسمح لمجموعة مسلحة بشن هجمات ضد سورية وقائد المجموعة يطالب بتزويدها بالسلاح
نشرت صحيفة “نيويورك تايمز” الأميركية تقريرا جاء فيه انه بعد أن كانت تركيا من أقرب حلفاء سورية، تستضيف الآن جماعة سورية معارضة مسلحة تشن هجمات ضد حكومة الرئيس بشار الأسد، وتوفر ملجأ لقائدها وعشرات من أعضاء المجموعة، التي تسمى نفسها “الجيش السوري الحر”، وتسمح لهم بتنظيم هجمات عبر الحدود من داخل مخيم يحرسه الجيش التركي. في وقت طالب فيه قائد المجموعة العقيد المنشق رياض الأسعد المجتمع الدولي إلى تزويدهم بسلاح.

وافادت “نيويورك تايمز” في عددها الصادر يوم الجمعة 28 اكتوبر/تشرين الاول بأن “المسؤولين الأتراك وصفو علاقتهم بالعقيد المنشق رياض الأسعد وبمجموعته، المقيمة في “معسكر الضباط”، بأنها إنسانية بحتة”.

ونقلت عن مسؤول في وزارة الخارجية التركية، رفض الكشف عن اسمه، قوله إن سبب تأمين الحماية لهؤلاء المسلحين هو “قلق تركيا على سلامتهم الجسدية، وما يهم الأتراك هو تأمين حماية انسانية لهؤلاء”، مضيفاً “لا يمكننا منع هؤلاء من التعبير عن آرائهم”.

وكانت احدى هذه المجموعات المسلحة قد أعلنت يوم الأربعاء عن تبنيها مقتل تسعة من الجنود السوريين بينهم ضابط، حسبما جاء في الصحيفة نفسها.

وتابع المسؤول التركي قوله: “حين هرب كل هؤلاء الناس من سورية، لم نكن نعلم من كانوا، لم يكتب على جبين كل واحد منهم أنا جندي أو أنا عضو في المعارضة”.

وأشارت الصحيفة الامريكية الى أن هذه المجموعة المسلحة لا تشكل أي تحد حقيقي لنظام الأسد، منوهة في نفس الوقت بأن “تركيا مصممة على دعم هذه المجموعة التي أثبتت جدواها”.

وعلى الرغم من محاولة مسؤولين أتراك رفع مسؤوليتهم عن “ميليشيا” الأسعد بحجة ان بلادهم تقدم لهم مساعدات “إنسانية”، إلا أن الصحيفة قالت انها التقت “رياض الأسعد” في مبنى تابع لوزارة الخارجية التركية، وبحضور مسؤول تركي رفيع.

ووصفت الصحيفة رياض الأسعد بأنه عقيد منشق عن الجيش السوري، وقالت “وصل الأسعد إلى مكان المقابلة محاط بحماية مؤلفة من 10 جنود أتراك مدججين بالسلاح وبينهم قناص”، لافتة إلى أن المقابلة رتبت من خلال وزارة الخارجية، وبحضور مسؤول عن الوزارة.

واكد الاسعد خلال اللقاء مع الصحيفة: “سنقاتل النظام إلى أن يسقط ونبني حقبة جديدة من الإستقرار والأمان في سورية”، مضيفا: “نحن قادة الشعب السوري ونحن من يقف إلى جانبه”.

كما أشارت الصحيفة الى أن المسؤولين الأتراك يتوقعون انهيار نظام الأسد خلال العامين المقبلين، وأن حكومتهم لم تقدم أي أسلحة أو دعم عسكري لهذه المجموعة، وان المجموعة لم تطلب هذا صراحة من تركيا.

غير ان الأسعد، وفي حديثه للصحيفة، اعرب عن شكره للحكومة التركية على ما تؤمنه من حماية للمسلحين، داعيا المجتمع الدولي إلى تزويد جماعته بالسلاح، وقال: “نطلب من المجتمع الدولي أن يوفر لنا السلاح كي نتمكن كجيش سوري حر من حماية الشعب السوري”، مضيفا: “إن وفر لنا المجتمع الدولي السلاح، سنتمكن من الإطاحة بالنظام في وقت قصير جدا”.

وتابع أن المسلحين سيعملون في المستقبل على مهاجمة نقاط الضعف عند الجيش السوري.

وعلقت الصحيفة على قوله هذا بأن “هذه الكلمات تبدو تفاخرا اكثر منها تهديدا، اذ يظهر ان الحكومة اضحت، مع قيام تظاهرات جماهيرية مؤيدة لها والاجراءات التعسفية التي تمكنت حتى الان من ايقاف تعاظم المظاهرات المناوئة لها، في موقف اقوى مما كانت عليه هذا الصيف. ورغم ان الحكومة السورية معزولة الى حد كبير، فانها شعرت بأن الفيتو الروسي والصيني عزز من موقفها. ورغم التكهنات بخلاف ذلك، فان الجيش وقوات الامن، بصفة خاصة، لم تتصدع بعد على مدى الشهور الثمانية”.

واكد العقيد السوري المنشق ان أفراد مجموعته منظمين جيدا على الرغم من أن الأسلحة التي يملكونها هي فقط تلك التي حصلوا عليها حين انشقوا أو التي أخذوها من جنود سوريين قتلوا، مشيرا إلى أن عدد القوات في المجموعة يتجاوز الـ10 آلاف، كما انه لم يرغب في الكشف عن عدد الكتائب، قائلا ان المجموعة تضم 18 كتيبة “معلنة”، وعدد غير محدد من الكتائب السرية. دون أن تتمكن الصحيفة من تأكيد ذلك من مصادر مستقلة.

وقال ان جميع المقيمين في المخيم الذي يعيش فيه في تركيا اعضاء في “الجيش السوري الحر”. ويضم المخيم مساعدا خاصا ومكتب اعلام يعمل فيه حوالي خمسة اشخاص.

وبرر الاسعد انشقاقه عن الجيش وهروبه الى تركيا بنشوب الاحتجاجات في قريته في محافظة ادلب الشمالية “مما دفع الحكومة الى اتخاذ اجراءات تعسفية ادت الى مقتل عدد من اقاربه والى قصف منزل شقيقته”، وكذلك لأنه “ادرك ان هناك احتمالات كبيرة في قيادة العمليات في مكان اكون فيه من دون قيود”.

واوردت “نيويورك تايمز” في عددها رأي العديد من المحللين الذين يعتبرون ان هجمات المنشقين في سورية تبدو غير منسقة ومحلية، الا ان العقيد الأسعد يؤكد سيطرته تماما على العمليات، اذ قال انه مسؤول عن تخطيط “عمليات عسكرية شاملة” بينما يترك الاشتباكات الاصغر نطاقا والقرارات المتعلقة بالعمل اليومي للقادة الميدانيين.

ومع ذلك، فانه على اتصال يومي مع قادة كل كتيبة، حسب قوله، ويمضي ساعات كل يوم في تدقيق الرسائل الالكترونية على الكومبيوتر المحمول المتصل باحد الهواتف الاربعة، ومن بينها هاتف يعمل بواسطة الاقمار الاصطناعية، والتي زوده بها مغتربون سوريون يعيشون في الولايات المتحدة واوروبا والخليج العربي.

المصدر: وكالات

خبير عسكري روسي: بإمكان سوريا خوض حربين على الجبهة الداخلية
والخارجية
أكد خبير عسكري روسي أن سورية قادرة على مواجهة جميع السيناريوهات التي يمكن أن يخبأها له الغرب، وأن الجيش السوري لديه الإمكانية لفتح حربين على الجبهة الداخلية والخارجية في حال قيام الغرب بتهور على غرار التجربة الليبية وستكون حسب وصفه عملية إنتحار للغرب.
الدكتور في العلوم العسكرية والضابط السابق في القوات البحرية الروسية كنسطنطين سيفكوف إعتبر في حديثه مع قناة المنار أن “المواجهات الأقوى بين القوى العسكرية السورية والمجموعات المسلحة تحدث في المناطق الحدودية مما يشيرإلى وجود دول معينة ترسل مجموعات مسلحة للإخلال بالأمن السوري،ولإستفزاز الموجات الإحتجاجية و لزعزعة إستقرار الدولة السورية”.
ورأى سيفكوف أن “القوات العسكرية السورية تمتلك وحدات من القوات الخاصة لديها الكفائة الكاملة للقيام بعمليات نوعية خلف خطوط العدو وهذه القوات وفي ظروف معينة قادرة على تحويل طبيعة عملياتها العسكرية لتحمل طابع حرب العصابات مع تأييد السكان المحليين و بذلك قادرة على تكبيد العدو خسائر فادحة وتجربة حرب تموز عام 2006 أثبتت أن تجهيز قدرات دفاعية فعالة مضادة للدروع قادرة على إيقاف أية هجوم للعدو مهما كانت دباباته مجهزة بأحدث تقنيات التدريع و سورية إستفادت من هذه الخبرات كما وتجارب أخرى أثبتت فعالية الدفاع الجوي المدروس أمام هجمات الناتو”.
وتابع إن “افتراض قيام سورية بحربين على الجبهة الداخلية والخارجية مع إمكانية قيام الغرب بتهور على غرار التجربة الليبية بالطبع نظريا ممكن ولكنها ستكون عملية إنتحار للغرب”. وأردف قائلا” لذلك لا أعتقد أنه في الغرب يوجد سياسيون حمقى لدرجة التفكير في القيام بحملة عسكرية ضد سورية”.
وأضاف” في هذه الظروف قيام إسرائيل بشن حرب على سورية سيكون على قدر من الخطورة لإسرائيل إذ أن ذلك سيحمل جهات عربية أخرى للتضامن مع سورية فهذا الخطر سيواجه بقوة أكبر من مواجهة أي خطر قد يأتي من قبل دول التحالف الغربي، لذلك قيام إسرائيل ولو حتى في هذه الظروف بشن حرب تُجَر إليها سورية سيكون خطوة إنتحار من جهتها”.
وأضاف “بالمجمل يعتبر الجيش السوري ذو قدرات وخبرات قتالية عالية وقدراته واقعية”. ولفت سيفكوف إلى أن “ضباط وجنود الجيش السوري يتمتعون بإحترام وتقدير المواطنين والدعم الشعبي، ما يجعلنا نستخلص أن الجيش السوري ولاءه للوطن وللقيادة السورية”.
وأشار سيفكوف إلى أن الجيش السوري وعلى مدى عشرات السنين يتزود بالسلاح السوفياتي والروسي ، وبذلك يمكننا القول إن “الجيش السوري مزود بسلاح سوفياتي وروسي بشكل كامل تقريبا، وبالتأكيد هذا يشير إلى إستقلالية الجيش السوري ومناعته أمام الضغوطات الغربية في مجال التسليح، والشيء الوحيد الذي يمكن للغرب أن يفعله للضغط على القيادة السورية من الناحية التقنية العسكرية هو عن طريق الضغط على القيادة الروسية بمطالبتها بالحد من تزويد القوات السورية بالسلاح”.
وأردف قائلا “أما من النواحي الأخرى فالجيش السوري هو غير مرتبط ومستقل عن الغرب آخذين بعين الاعتبار أن القيادة السورية تولي أهمية بالغة لمستوى تجهيز قواتها العسكرية و كفائة و مرونة قدرات البلد العسكرية”.
واعتبر سيفكوف أنه من المفترض أن “الجيش السوري يمتلك كميات كبيرة كافية من التقنيات والمؤن و الذخائر العسكرية التي تخوله في ظروف الحصار”.
مشيرا إلى أنه “في حال تخلت روسيا عن دعمه في حال من الأحوال، فهو مخول لمواصلة العمل لمدة طويلة قد تمتد لعدة سنوات و بشكل فعال و ناجح في إدارة العمليات الحربية و العسكرية دون أية مساعدة خارجية”.
سيمكوف رأى أن “العقيدة العسكرية لأي دولة وليس فقط لجيش ما تحدد مسائل وطرق وأشكال الأمن العسكري للدولة المعينة وإستعمالها لقواتها العسكرية ومبدأ بناء قواتها العسكرية والجيش السوري يمتلك هكذا عقيدة قتالية ذات التوجهات الدفاعية، ومضمونها يحدد مصدر الخطرالعسكري الأساسي وفي هذه الحال بالطبع تعتبر إسرائيل مصدر الخطر وهذا ليس سراً أمور عامة وطبيعية”، وتابع “أما عن وحدة الجيش السوري فالروح المعنوية العالية التي يتمتع بها بالدرجة الأولى ضباط هذا الجيش الذين يعتبرون العامود الفقري والركيزة الأساسية للقوات العسكرية السورية”.
وأضاف “بحسب معطياتنا المبنية على حديث خاص مع ممثلي القوات العسكرية السورية ومن حديثنا مع ضباط روس خدموا وعملوا في سورية بالإضافة لتقييم خبرائنا العسكريين الذين تواجدوا هناك على مدى فترات متعددة لدينا الأرضية الصلبة لتكوين قناعة بأن الجيش السوري اليوم يتمتع بوحدة روحية معنوية أيديولوجية خبراتية عملانية”.
ورأى أن “إفتراض أية إنشقاقات في الوضع الراهن ضمن صفوف الجيش والقوات المسلحة، أمر صعب الحدوث نتيجة المعطيات المتوفرة لدينا و لكن إذا إستمرت الضغوطات الإيديولوجية على سورية وإذا أبدت القيادة السورية ضعفا من الناحية النفسية وإذا تهاونت القيادة السورية مع التمردات العسكرية الجارية ولدينا معلومات بأن المعارضين يستعملون السلاح ضد قوات الأمن السوري والتي أدت لمقتل ما يزيد عن 120 عسكريا من الجيش و القوات المسلحة في المناطق الشمالية لسورية، لا يمكن نفي إحتمال حدوث حالات محدودة من الإنشقاقات”، وتابع “لكن في حال كان تعاطي القيادة العسكرية السورية بحزم وفي حال وضع الرئيس بشار الأسد حد قاطع لأعمال العنف والمخلة بالأمن دون أن ينحني تحت الضغوطات، في هذه الحال سيحافظ الجيش السوري على تماسكه ووحدته، وفي هذه الحال يكون إستعمال القوة العسكرية ضد هذه المجموعات شرعي وقانوني بشكل كامل و يجب القيام به بحزم بشكل فوري ودون تراجع”.
ولفت سيفكوف إلى أن “القيادة السورية تعي حجم الخطر الذي يهدد إستقلال ووحدة البلد وسوف تعمل بقوة وحزم ولن تسمح بأي إنقسام وأنا مؤمن بهذا”.
وقال سيفكوف انه “في الوقت الراهن التعاون العسكري الروسي السوري مستمر ومن المعروف أن روسيا تسعى لبناء قواعدها البحرية العسكرية في الموانئ السورية، بالطبع الآن العمل قد يكون مجمدا في هذا المجال”.
وأضاف إن” أحجام التعاون العسكري بين البلدين تضاءلت في الوضع الراهن من عدم الإستقرار ، وهذا ليس مرتبط بعقوبات ما على سورية بل مرتبط بمشاكل تقنية متعلقة بتأمين سلامة توصيل المعدات والتقنيات العسكرية بهدف فعاليتها العملية”.

A very simple test to check the propaganda that has been written on Syria to help get the country where it is.

Just Google “Mass graves” and Syria
even a claimed found of 10 bodies is described as a “mass grave” discovered according to activists and reported in headlines as such by journalists with no proofs whatsoever.

Then Google “Mass graves” and Lybia
Same trick. Except that a “mass grave” of 1,500 supposedly discovered by the rebels near Abu Salim prison would actually be animals bones.

Could we know what happened with the “mass graves” in Syria, how many ended up being hoaxes?

With such activists, Syria is now in the “Peter and the wolf” situation, something that has been foreseen by many.

Responsibilities of heads of Asad security branches
29/10/2011
Sameer Shaaban
http://www.facebook.com/Youth.Syria.Freedom

ما هي مهمات رؤساء فروع الأمن في سوريا :

1. حماية بيوت الدعارة والبترونات ( المستثمرات في هذا المجال ) وذلك مقابل التمتع بالليلة الأولى مع الفتيات الصغيرات العذراوات بعمر الـ14 والـ 15 عام.
– Protection of brothles; in return they get to be the first to try out the 14-15 year old virgins (No need to wait for life after death eh!)

2. ترويج القصص البطولية والأسطورية للقائد صاحب الحنكة السياسية والخبرة العسكرية.
– Spreading propoganda about the Jr’s legendery heroism, political shrewdness, and military expertiese!

3. ترويج القصص الأسطورية عن ملاحم جيش ” أبو شحاطة” في حرب 73 وحرب 82 وأن هذا الجيش كاد أن يبتلع إسرائيل بالكامل لولا خيانة السادات .
– Spreading propoganda about the achievements of their slipper’s-army in 1973 and 1982 wars and who almost took over the whole of Israel, had not been for Sadat’s treason!

4. ترويج قصص خيالية عن بطولات ضباط جيش ” أبو شحاطة ” وقدراتهم الفائقة أمثال توفيق جلول الذي كاد أن يبيد الجيش الإسرائيلي في لبنان وكذلك هاشم معلا الذي قتل جندي إسرائيلي بكف واحد من يده ، وكذلك كسره لرخامة القصر الجمهوري بقدمه أثناء تأديته التحية لحافظ الأسد ( مع إيماننا بقدرتهم على الرفس ولكن ليس إلى هذه الدرجة )وكذلك شك الوسام على جلدة صدره بدل من شكها على البدلة العسكرية .
– Spreading propoganda bout their slipper’s army soldiers exceptional abilities, like Tawfiq Jalloul who almost wiped out the Israeli army in Lebanon, or Hashem M3alla whose kick while saluting Jr broke a marble tile, and pinned a badge of honour in his skin instead of on his suit!

5. دعم الكازينوهات الفضائية التي تبث أغاني الشبيحة على أنها الفن السائد في سوريا مثل أغاني الأخوين المعاقين علي وحسين الديك ، وكنانة القصير وسارية السواس ، وخنيزرة العلي ، والإيحاء بأن بعضهم أيضاَ يضاهي أشهر الموسيقيين والفنانين مثل وفيق حبيب الذي يفوق بافاروتي أوبرالياً ، وطلال الداعور الذي يتفوق على مالك الجندلي عزفاً – Supporting virtual Casinos that broadcast Shabbeeha’s songs

6. نشر أغاني الشبيحة وفرضها على الذوق العام في السرافيس والأكشاك والكراجات وسيارات الأجرة على مبدأ حبة الصبح وحبة المسا .
– Publishing Shabbeha songs and imposing it on the public by forcing private public transport drivers to play it!

7. نقل العساكر من قطعة إلى أخرى مقابل مبالغ نقدية تفوق راتب العسكري بمئة ضعف .
– Excising formidable commissions on army conscripts in return for their transfer to a convenient location.

8. المهمات الإنسانية الرحيمة بإيصال رسائل أو طعام من أهالي المعتقلين السياسيين إلى أبناءهم تحت سابع أرض مقابل أموال طائلة ،
– Excising formidable sums of money on families visiting their jailed loved ones in return for “their humanitarian efforts” in permitting their letters and parcels of food to reach them,7 levels underground!

9. الترويج لبعض العصابات والميليشيات من الدول الأخرى على أنهم أبطال مقاومة وممانعة ( خسئ بظر اللات ) و ( مقتدى القذر).
– Spreading propoganda bout the heroism in resitance of their affiliated Militias in Lebanon and Iraq.

10. نشر صور العائلة الملكية الأسدية على أنهم متفردون في كل شيئ حتى في النظرة ( هكذا تنظر الأسود ) مع أن الكلاب والضباع تنظر بنفس النظرة .
– Prpogating the notion of the uniquness of Asad family members, even the way they gaze; The way lions do!

11. تخليص البلد من أي مواطن ممتعض حتى لو كان سبب إمتعاضه التلوث السمعي أو البصري لكي لا يؤثر سلباً على تفاؤل باقي أفراد الشعب.
– Ridding the country of any disgruntled citizen, even of visual and noise pollution, lest other’s optimism suffers!

12. منع أي فعالية بدون ترخيص حتى لو كان مولد ديني أو ليلة دخلة عريس وعروس ، فعلى الجميع أخذ ترخيص قبل إتمام العملية حرصاً على أمنهم وسلامتهم .
– No party, celebration, or even wedding is allowed without permit!

13. فرض أتاوات شهرية على المحلات التجارية والشركات الخاصة والمطاعم والبقالات مقابل السماح لهم بمزاولة أعمالهم .
– Excizing montly quotas on private businesses, shops and restaurentsneed!

14. ضمان ومتابعة أعمال تهريب النفط والآثار خارج البلد بيسر وأمان .
– Monitoring and protecting fuel smuggling operations

15. منع إطلاق الألعاب النارية في الأعياد خوفاً على الأطفال من الأذى .
– Prohibiting the use of fire crackers in traditional holidays; on the pretext of protecting children!

16. إحصاء عدد الأنفاس التي يأخذها كل مواطن لضمان عدم تجاوزه العدد المسموح به في اليوم لعدم أخذه من حصة غيره .

17. إخصاء بعض الرجال الفحول لعدم زيادة النسل والتسبب بكارثة غذائية- Castrating virile men in order to control public fertility!

18. كتابة خطب الجمعة للمشايخ الموظفين في المساجد .
– Providing Imams with pre-written sermon of the week!

19. مراقبة ومتابعة أي سائح أجنبي والتعامل معه على أنه جاسوس مسبقاً والتحقيق مع كل من يتواصل معه حتى لو كان دليل سياحي أو سائق أجرة .
– Surveying every tourist, on the grounds that every one is a spy

20. مساعدة كل قرد صغير وقردة صغيرة بتوظيفهم فوراً حين تخرجهم من الثانوي ، أو إرسالهم بعثات وتدريبهم على كتابة التقارير .
– Helping every little Monky by slotting them in a government job once they graduate from high school, or sending them on scholarships to train in intelligence gathering.

21. سهولة تصريف منتجات الحشيش المزروع من قبل محمد الأسد ( شيخ الجبل) وشاليش بالشراكة مع نجيب ميقاتي .
– Facilitating the marketing of Hashish (Marijuana)grown by Jr’s family member, Mohammad Asad (Sheikh of the Mountain)and Shaleesh in company with Lebanese PM Najeeb Miqati!

Mr. Revelon:

Calling someone a monkey or a pig is not kosher. We live in the 21st C. and this mentality is outdated and getting you no supporters.

I may agree on all the non-sectarian points in your post # 166, but that sectarian tone that surfaced and name calling throws your argument away and makes you and whoever came up with that text, lose credibility and RESPECT.

Many dmonstrations infront of Syrian embssies in many Arabic countries against the killer of children bashar.

Mr. Syria no Kandahar:

I hope you like this video…

Dear Norman@146:

What does it mean Arabic Nationalism?
Does it mean you are going to liberate Palestine from where you are in the US?
We know well that Hafez Assad was using all that empty language for his own purpose.
What about the Assyrians and the Kurds are they your compatriots?

Mjabali
this is interesting article about your people
http://www.joshuaproject.net/people-profile.php?rop3=114499&rog3=LE

Bronco

The revolution did not start violent.  It started peaceful and remained peaceful in its vast majority.  The indiscriminate killing practiced by the regime incited army defection and some of those who defected are fighting the regime now.  Prior to that, there were perhaps some isolated revenge cases, not unexpected, yet current demonstrations remained peaceful.  I don’t buy the elusive armed gangs story as 8 months have passed and the police state we have was not able to expose them or their sponsors.  Very fishy! Don’t you think? Additionally, they must be the most impotent “armed gangs” ever existed in history as they made no impact whatsoever.

I don’t believe that there was any hope of any improvement under Bashar.  It is so clear and I am surprised you don’t see it.  11 years is more than enough to judge anything or anyone.  Absolute power corrupts absolutely and that is the Syrian story.     

a month ago two senior politicians visited the killer of children Bashar,and bashar told them the crisis is almost finished, watching the demonstrations last friday prove that children killer is lying.

From SANA today:

Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem received a letter from Head of the Arab League Ministerial Committee [i.e., the prime minister of Qatar] late Friday [28 Oct] including stances based on media lies broadcast by misleading instigation channels about what took place in Syria on Friday. “The Head of the Arab League Ministerial Committee was supposed to contact Minister al-Moallem to verify the reality before announcing a stance by the Committee to be circulated by news channels of instigation,” a Syrian foreign ministry official source said 29 Oct 2011. http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/10/29/378551.htm

The Khaleejis drink their own kool-aid, or, in plain English, we see in the Gulf countries that the governments, the editors of the news media outlets, and the consumers of the news media, all believe in all sincerity that the Assad regime has committed atrocities against peaceful protesters and was continuing to commit atrocities even yesterday. They have a lack of trust in the integrity of the regime. Underlying this, the Khaleejis have a lack of understanding of Syrian society and the Syrian government. As you know, the Khaleejis live nearby and have the same Arabic language as the Syrians. Once you accept that the Khaleejis don’t understand reality in Syria, it’s a small step then to accept that the Turks and the Europeans don’t understand it either. There is no foreign conspiracy! Or it’s only secondary! There is foreign ignorance; coupled with a somewhat different set of basic assumptions and basic values among the foreigners; coupled with the foreigners’ lacking trust in what the regime reports because the regime does not allow fully independent sources of news coming out of Syria or least the regime seeks to exercise a lot of control over the news. This control makes the foreigners very wary — especially the foreigners who, for other reasons, have prejudice and bigotry against the regime to start with.

Moving from the Khaleejis to the Turks, here’s a statement by Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu on 27 Oct 2011 in a press conference in Amman, Jordan:

“We will not allow chaos and despotism to take hold in Syria; it is our responsibility to the Syrian people…. We hope that the initiative of the Arab League will work; bloodshed needs to stop first and foremost; reforms are otherwise impossible.” He also said Turkey would do whatever it took to realize the legitimate demands of the Syrian people and said the country was determined to coordinate with Jordan to that end. http://www.todayszaman.com/news-261167-davutoglu-says-turkey-responsible-for-defending-syrians-palestinians.html

Bouthaina Shaaban said within the past few days, and probably in reference to the above: “When I heard yesterday some statements by a Turkish official about us, I felt like he was supposed to be the teacher and we the students. We did not do anything to provoke this stand from Turkey.” http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-the-army-was-told-not-to-fire-at-protesters-2376892.html

Turkey’s foreign affairs minister and prime minister believe, apparently sincerely, that Syria’s security forces have been for seven months committing atrocities against peaceful protesters. They read it in Turkish newspapers and saw it on Turkish TV. The Syrian dissidents won the media war in Turkey, as in most foreign countries. The dissidents won it by falsehoods. Shaaban is correct that “we did not do anything to provoke this stand from Turkey”. But Turkey still doesn’t believe that. The regime won the media war in Syria, and won it with the truth, and so Syria is fine. The foreigners will eventually come around. The regime’s senior personnel get a round of applause from me for keeping on keeping their cool.

Assad: one fatal mistake after the other.  40 some murdered by the regime on Friday, 2 days before the AL’s ultimatum.  Bashar thinks he can manipulate the world.  He agreed to receive the AL and pretended to agree on some conditions yet his action on the ground tell what we already know about him.  

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8857270/Syria-Arab-League-sends-urgent-message-to-President-Bashar-Assad-over-killings.html

Syria: Arab League sends ‘urgent message’ to President Bashar Assad over killings
After one of the bloodiest days in the seven-month popular uprising the Arab League issues its strongest message yet to Syria’s President Bashar Assad to end his killing of civilians.

The league’s committee on the Syrian crisis said it had sent an “urgent message … to the Syrian government expressing its severe discontent over the continued killing of Syrian civilians”.

@ JAD: Thanks for the reply.

Austrian Airlines stops its flights to Damascus
أكد مصدر مسؤول في شركة الطيران النمساوية “توقف رحلات الشركة إلى سورية اعتبارا من 18 تشرين ثان/نوفمبر المقبل حتى 28 آذار/مارس عام 2012 وذلك لأسباب تجارية”.

وقال المصدر لوكالة الأنباء الألمانية (د.ب.أ) اليوم السبت في دمشق، إن مبررات التوقف الرئيسية تعود إلى أسباب تجارية أولا، خاصة مع انخفاض أعداد المسافرين إلى سورية وتضرر قطاع السياحة السوري بشكل ملحوظ نتيجة الأزمة الراهنة التي تمر بها البلاد منذ نحو سبعة أشهر ، وهو الأمر الذي أثر سلبا على الجدوى الاقتصادية لتسيير الرحلات التجارية.

167. Dear mjabali,
Like you, I do not agree with the name calling and I am strongly against it as a matter of principle. I do not practice it myself.

Like you, I found the rest of that gentelmen’s post to be a true reflection of the abuse of power commonly practiced by the ruling clan and its mob, the security forces.

I chose to copy that post without any deletions lest I be accused of being selective by omitting items that could diminish the value of the entire post!

Cheers!

#171 Tara

You obviously continue to see the situation from a very narrow point of view: Injustice, corruption, abuse, and you ignore the much larger picture of the western countries manipulations that may bring hell on Syria as it did in Iraq (hundred thousand of dead, millions of refugees), and Libya ( more than 30,000 dead and 50,000 wounded, cities totally destroyed and chaos).

Whatever injustices can be attributed to the present regime on thousands of people, it is still responsible for the protection of a country of 25 millions people.

The Western strategy has always been to eliminate Syria because it is the staunchiest opponent to Israel and the ally of Iran. It is now using its flaws and defects and exploiting whatever anger and frustrations available (economical, sectarian, political) to reach the goal that decades of sanctions and threats have not achieved. The Arab spring umbrella was a golden opportunity to finally settle the account with Syria.

As long as you refuse to see that what is happening in Syria is part of a plan to crush it, there is no point to argue further.

You are free to continue with your narrow interpretation and your idealistic hopes of justice, I have nothing to add to this discussion. I consider it closed.

Bronco

I agree. The discussion is closed. There is no point of any further argument.

Dear Revlon
Thanks for explaining. Frankly, i was anxious for your response because I agree with Mjabali @ 167. And now, I am also happy that the three of us agree as well.

A civilian brought to his knees in a brutal iterrogation by Asad military security mobsters.

25 10 2011 Al Kisweh, Damascus أوغاريت الكسوة ريف دمشق مقطع مسرب لتعذيب أحد الاحرار في مفرزة الأمن العسكري

Ya Mara Ghalbana #173

It is clear that the AL initiative is rejected by some Arab countries, the western countries and foremost by the SNC that would be obliged to sit in a dialog with ‘the killer’.

In addition the US and the EU are very annoyed that all their predictions may fall apart if the AL succeeds in solving the issue peacefully. They’ll do anything to crush that initiative.

Therefore I am not surprised of the escalation of false news in the media about more killings to create increased outrage and trigger a UN reaction. The whole strategy of the SNC and its western allies is make the AL initiative irrelevant so they can prove that there is no other choice that a ‘no-mercy’ strategy using the UNSC to ‘protect’ the civilians and finally crush the defiant Syria.

I still hope that the AL is wise enough to see that and continue on the path they have chosen, despite the violent opposition and fabricated news that will increase everyday.

Syrian Canadians rally behind embattled president

Protests and massacres in home country denied, blamed on foreign nations and media
Eric Andrew-Gee
Published on October 27, 2011

http://www.mcgilldaily.com/2011/10/syrian-canadians-rally-behind-embattled-president/

A day before Tunisia’s first free national elections, members of the Syrian community in Montreal gathered in force to support the authoritarian president of their homeland, Bashar al-Assad, and to denounce protesters whom the Syrian army has killed by the thousands this year.

Beginning in the late afternoon, and continuing until nearly eight in the evening, around two hundred people met on the west side of Parc Jeanne-Mance, chanting “We support Bashar al-Assad” in Arabic and carrying placards sporting pro-Assad slogans, like “We trust our president.”

The Montreal rally came a few days after a government-organized rally, attended by tens of thousands of Assad loyalists, in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo.

Assad succeeded his father as Syrian president in 2000. Since March, Assad has been sending armed troops, tanks, and snipers into Syrian cities in response to largely peaceful protests calling for democratic reforms and, more recently, for Assad’s ouster. The UN estimates that over 3,000 people have been killed in the government crackdown, including nearly 200 children. Opposition groups maintain the number of dead is over 5,000.

Some of the protestors on Saturday denied the existence of large-scale unrest in Syria. “Thanks to God, everything is perfect,” said one man, who did not give his name. “Everything in Syria is positive. There is nothing negative. And all of Syria, they support Bashar [al-]Assad.”

Asked why there were protestors in the streets of Syrian cities – tens of thousands have participated in protests nationwide – the man replied, “The people of Syria are 23 million. If you see a few – five, ten, twenty – that doesn’t change.”

Those that did acknowledge the protests in Syria were quick to label them the product of foreign interference. The countries named by demonstrators ranged from Turkey and Saudi Arabia to France and the United States.

One man called for “the Americans and the French to leave Syria alone. We can fix our own problems. Our president is working on it.”

U.S. President Barack Obama called for Assad to “step aside” in August, the same day the U.S. imposed energy sanctions on Syria.

Several demonstrators suggested that Israel was bankrolling the protests as retribution for Assad’s hard-line stance towards the Jewish state.

Assad is “the only one right now in the whole world who’s standing up against the West and the Israelis,” said a man who gave his name as Reffat A.

Reffat went on to say that Turkey and Lebanon were assisting the Syrian opposition because “they want to give a good face to the Israeli lobby, the Jewish lobby.”

There was a widespread feeling amongst demonstrators that the international media is inflating the scope of the Syrian uprising, and distorting its true nature.

“I think all the media have no respect…for the reality and for the truth,” said one man, who asked not to be named.

“It’s a media war,” said Rami Kaplo, a Montreal lawyer.

“A lot of people just despise the Western media because of the lies,” he continued. “The Western media is not even admitting there are armed gangs” among protestors in Syria.

He pointed to the BBC, CNN, and France 24 as examples.

A number of demonstrators echoed the claim that the Syrian uprising is made up of criminals. The Syrian government frequently defends its use of force against protestors by saying that “armed gangs” have killed hundreds of soldiers and police. Despite recent reports of sporadic violence by members of the anti-Assad opposition, including the assassination of a pro-regime cleric, the vast majority of people killed since March have been unarmed protestors, according to embassies and human rights groups in Syria. Foreign journalists have largely been barred from the country.

Many of Saturday’s demonstrators were also alarmed by the presence of the Muslim Brotherhood in the uprising, saying Islamists threatened to shatter the Syria’s delicate balance of religious and sectarian groups currently held together by a rigidly secular state.

Rex Brynen, professor of political science at McGill, acknowledged that many Syrians who are not part of the majority Sunni sect of Islam are worried about encroaching Islamism.

But, he noted in an email to The Daily, “a great many of the protesters opposing the current regime in Syria are themselves avowed secularists.”

“In any case, the objection rather misses the point. Syrians should be free to decide on the nature of their political system, whether secular or non-secular, through free and fair elections. Rather than offering his people this most basic of human rights, however, Bashar al-Assad instead offers only bloody repression in an increasingly desperate attempt to cling to political power,” he continued.

One man, watching the rally with friends visiting from Syria, called those participating “kind of ignorant.”

“In Syria right now people are dying. So watching people supporting him, [playing] music while you have people dying, is kind of sad,” he said.

A march in protest of human rights abuses in Syria is scheduled for this Saturday, starting at noon in Norman Bethune Square.

Kaplo offered a cautious defence of the actions of the current regime. “Maybe they could have dealt with it differently,” he said of the crackdown. “If you’re talking about human rights, it might be wrong. But we’re talking about politics.”

Syrian Foreign Ministry astonished at “AL Ministerial Committee’s Reliance on Media Lies”
(Dp-news)

DAMASCUS- Syria state-run news agency SANA along with Syria TV reported on Saturday “An official source at the Foreign and Expatriates Ministry on Saturday stated that Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem received a letter from Head of the Arab League Ministerial Committee late Friday including stances based on media lies broadcast by misleading instigation channels about what took place in Syria on Friday.”

“It was supposed for the Head of the Ministerial Committee to contact Minister al-Moallem to verify the reality before announcing a stance by the Committee to be circulated by channels of instigation,” the Source added according to SANA.

The source expressed the Syrian Foreign Ministry’s astonishment at adopting this way before one day of convening an agreed-upon meeting in Doha between the Syrian Government and the Ministerial Committee.

The source called on the Arab Ministerial Committee to benefit from the positive atmosphere that prevailed its meeting with President Bashar al-Assad, and to help ease the situation and reach a solution that contributes to realizing security and stability in Syria instead of string sedition.

The source underlined that Minister al-Moallem and the accompanying delegation will brief the Committee on the reality of the situation in Syria on Sunday, SANA concluded.

Arab League Ministerial Committee has sent an urgent letter to the Syrian government on Friday to express its anger over the continued bloodshed in the country, said a statement issued by Arab League body late Friday.

The committee hoped the Syrian government could protect its civilians as the committee had urged it, said the statement.

It also hoped the meeting to be held on Sunday between the committee and the Syrian government could achieve practical results, the statement added.

Arab ministers are due to meet Syrian officials on Sunday in Qatar to press for dialogue between the government and opposition.

Last Wednesday, the AL ministerial committee, which included foreign ministers of Qatar, Egypt, Oman, Algeria, Sudan and the AL chief Nabil al-Arabi, met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus. The two sides discussed ways of ending the seven-month- long crisis through a dialogue between the Syrian government and the opposition.

Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani, who headed the ministerial committee, said the meeting with al-Assad was clear and friendly and they felt the Syrian government’s keenness to work with the committee.

At an emergency meeting held in Egypt’s capital Cairo on Oct. 16, the AL decided to give Syria a 15-day deadline to enact a cease-fire and called for a national dialogue between the Syrian authorities and the opposition.

Reports and media quoted the United Nations say “3,000 people have been killed in the unrest.”

Since the start of protests in March, Syrian authorities have blamed the violence on gunmen they say have killed 1,100 soldiers and police.

Media reporters and foreign agencies claimed that Syria`s regime has barred most international media, making it hard to verify accounts from both activists and authorities.

Asad armed forces unit whipping and stamping on two civilian demonstrators in Douma.
Friday of the-No-Fly-Zone
28/10/2011
28 10 Douma ,Damascus أوغاريت دوما ريف دمشق إهانة وتعذيب المعتقلين من قبل الجيش في الشارع , جمعة الحظر الجوي

The atrocities committed by the Syrian regime against the demonstrators on Friday of No Fly Zone is documented on you tube. People can check Shaam news ot Ugarit news for what has happened. You can’t fake the gory scenes of the dead. Moualem’s fake astonishment is not going to impress the AL ministerial committee or anyone except SANA and pree-tv.

Video of little boy Mohammd, gravely wounded by a sniper bullet in the head; Rescuers are impatiently waiting for a Doctor in the hope for a miracle!
29/10/2011
AlBayadah neighbourhood, Homs.
18+ 29 10 Homs أوغاريت حمص البياضة قتل الطفل محمد بالقناصة

Syrian government forces injured in Friday’s clashes: report
2011-10-29 18:19:21
http://www.chinaview.cn/world/index.htm
DAMASCUS, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) — A number of law-enforcement agents were injured Friday by the gunfire of armed groups in central Syria and dozens of wanted gunmen were arrested, the state- run SANA news agency reported Saturday.

The agents were injured in the al-Qusour neighborhood in the central province of Hama during an attack by unidentified gunmen, said the report.

An official source refuted reports broadcasted by al-Jazeera TV that warplanes flew over the city and countryside of Homs, saying such reports aimed to “provoke and incite the Syrian citizens.”

The report “comes in the framework of the conspiracy against Syria,” said the source, adding that plotters, inside and outside, “seek to incite the world public opinion and the international community against Syria.”

Meanwhile, SANA said Syrian authorities in Homs arrested over the past few days scores of wanted gunmen and seized a large quantity of weapons while tracking down the armed groups in al- Nazihin neighborhood in Homs, including automatic rifles, night binoculars and Israeli-made bombs.

An explosive device planted by armed groups was dismantled by a military engineering unit in the Damascus suburb of Douma, SANA said, adding that a engineering unit in Deir Ezzor in northeastern Syria dismantled an explosive device weighing three kilograms.

Another explosive device, weighing 25 kilograms, was also dismantled by the authorities in downtown Deir Ezzor city near the Electric Company.

In another account, the Doha-based al-Jazeera TV cited witnesses as saying that a total of 42 people were killed Friday during confrontations with government forces, as thousands of people thronged to the streets in several Syrian cities calling for international protection and an air embargo.

However, Hasan Abdul-Azim, a prominent opposition figure rejected such calls that “aim to entail the foreign intervention in Syria’s affairs,” according to the private Sham-Fm radio.

Also, the Third Way Movement, a moderate opposition group pursuing a compromise between adamant opposition groups outside Syria and the regime to salvage the country from menacing dangers, decried in a statement that such calls “represent a clear-cut demand for flagrant international intervention.”

The anti-government protest has continued unabatedly for more than seven months with mounting calls for the downfall of the regime.

The Syrian government blamed the unrest on armed groups and thugs acting out a foreign conspiracy, citing the killing of more than 1,000 army personnel during the turmoil. However, the United Nations estimated that more than 3,000 people had been killed over the past seven months.

Robert Fisk published series of articles about Syria lately where his stance in regard to the regime is much softer. Bought-love?

Money and power can buy you almost anything, but not your destiny.

Syrian Americans working in Syria risk US Government litigation should they ignore the newly imposed sanctions on Asad Regime.
2011/10/29
Lamis Farhat, for Ilaf
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/33930
لميس فرحات : ايلاف

يعاني عدد كبير من الأميركيين من أصل سوري بسبب الإجراءات التي أقرتها مؤخرا إدارة الرئيس أوباما، وتعتبر تلك الإجراءات أنّ عمل الأميركي في سوريا يعدّ انتهاكاً للعقوبات التي فرضتها واشنطن على دمشق. واضطرّ الكثير من هؤلاء إلى ترك وظائفهم وتصفية أعمالهم ومغادرة البلاد.

——————————————————————

أميركيون من أصل سوريّ اعتبروا العقوبات الأميركية واسعة جداً وأنها أفضت إلى تعطيل مصالحهم في سوريا

دمشق: بموجب قرار وقعه الرئيس الأميركي باراك أوباما، يعتبر عمل الأميركي في سوريا انتهاكاً للعقوبات التي فرضتها واشنطن على سوريا، الأمر الذي أدى إلى تهديد موارد رزق العديد من الأميركيين من أصل سوري.
في هذا السياق، نقلت صحيفة الـ “لوس أنجلوس تايمز” معاناة الأميركيين من أصل سوري بسبب العقوبات، مشيرة إلى أن العديد منهم اضطروا إلى ترك وظائفهم وتصفية أعمالهم وحتى مغادرة البلاد.
…… More

الجمعة السوداء: جمعة الحظر الجوي، أم جمعة الخيانة الجماعية؟!
بسام القاضي

تاريخ طويل من إعدام العقل، بدأ قبل نحو ألفي سنة، لا يمكنه اليوم إلا أن يتجلى في عقول كثير من السوريين/ات على شكل ثنائيات مطلقة ثابتة لا يغيرها انقلاب الظروف كلها، ولا تأخذ بالحسبان أي تطورات أو تغيرات في الواقع الذي لا يعترف بعقل لا يراه.

هذا ما تعبر عنه المواقف المنحطة التي دافعت عن جموع الذين قرروا أن يبدلوا مستعبديهم من النظام السوري، إلى أنظمة الأخوان المجرمين، والخونة ربائب الكونغرس الأمريكي والشانزليزيه الفرنسي والقصر العثماني.

جمعة “الحظر الجوي” هي جمعة خيانة جماعية بامتياز. إذ لا يحتاج أحد، عاقل كان أو مجنون، عالم بالسياسة أو جاهل، إلى أي دلائل إضافية على أن “الحظر الجوي” و”حماية المدنيين من الخارج”.. ليست إلا صورا مزخرفة لفعل واحد هو “احتلال سورية”. ومن الصومال إلى العراق، ومن أفغانستان إلى ليبيا.. لا مجال لنقاش حول هذه الحقيقة الساطعة مهما تفذلك وتفسلف البعض.

وهي خيانة “جماعية” بكل تأكيد. فحتى الخيانة يمكن أن تكون جماعية مهما حاول البعض التشدق. فعشرات الآلاف في سورية ممن طلبوا هذا الاحتلال هم خونة بالتأكيد. ولا يشكلون حتى “أقلية” في سورية. هم شراذم حتى لو حملوا أعلى الشهادات العلمية، وتمتعوا سابقا بأفضل الأوصاف. تماما مثلما أن شهادات وعمل رضوان زيادة ومرح بقاعي ومحمد العبدالله وغسان المفلح ورزان زيتونة وسمر يزبك ومحمد سرميني وبرهان غليون وغيرهم.. لا يغير قيد انملة من حقيقة أنهم انتقلوا إلى خندق الخيانة بمطالبتهم بالتدخل الخارجي العسكري في سورية.

والحقيقة أن عقل هذه “الثورة” تحول إلى إجرامي منذ أشهر. ولا يعد التهديد بالقتل والاغتصاب والحرق والتخريب لكل من لا يلتزم بالإضراب الذي دعي إليه يوم الأربعاء الماضي (26/10/2011)، بل وإطلاق النار على بعض باصات بعض الشركات التي قررت تسيير رحلات من حلب إلى دمشق وبالعكس.. لا يعد إلا آخر الدلائل على السيطرة المطلقة والنهائية للإجرام على حركة الاحتجاجات، وآخر الدلائل على الخسارة الفادحة للشباب الديمقراطي المدني الذي فشل عبر أشهر في الانفصال عن مجرمي الأخوان المسلمين والسلفيين وتجار الثورات..

إجرام النظام السوري، خاصة أجهزته الأمنية، لم يعد قابلا للنقاش. وإطلاق النار على هؤلاء الخونة حين لم يحملوا سلاحا هو إجرام واضح وبسيط. وتشجيع المدنيين المؤيدين للنظام على حمل السلاح على مرأى ومسمع من هذا النظام في بعض المناطق هو أيضا فعل إجرامي بامتياز. واعتقال المتظاهرين السلميين وتعذيبهم وقتل بعضهم تحت التعذيب هو إجرام..

ومع ذلك، فإن النظام السوري، وبكل أسف، عبر عن “حس وطني” بالمعنى التقليدي للكلمة، أعلى بمرات مما عبرت عنه قطعان بعض المعارضين والمثقفين الذي فقدوا كل عقل، وتداخل مصلحة النظام الخاصة مع “المسؤولية الوطنية” لا يقلل قيد شعرة من هذه الحقيقة. فتداخل مصلحة تلك الفئات الخائنة مع المسؤولية الوطنية هي أضعاف ما لدى النظام. لكنها مارست فعلا الخيانة بتبنيها شعار “الحظر الجوي” و”حماية المدنيين” في الجمعة السوداء (28/10/2011).

الخلاصة: رفض هذه الخيانة والإجرام في الشارع، لا يقتضي أبدا الاصطفاف إلى جانب النظام السوري. فكلاهما أجرم بحق الشعب السوري حاضرا ومستقبلا. إلا أن الخيانة التي يمارسها هذا الشارع اليوم (الفئات التي رفعت دعوات الاحتلال منه) لهي أشد وطأة وخطرا بمرات من خطر إجرام النظام.

وإذا كان النظام اليوم مطالبا اليوم فورا باتخاذ كل الإجراءات التي تكفل توقف سيل الدماء على أسس مواطنة صحيحة، وليس عبر مساومات خسيسة مع الأصوليين والمجرمين، فإن هذا الشارع مطالب بإعلان موقف واحد موحد ضد كل تدخل خارجي. وإلا فقد لا يعود بالإمكان أبدا إيقاف ردود الفعل على هذا الفعل الخياني. وكل من يتابع الواقع السوري عن كثب، وليس عبر قنوات الإجرام أو قنوات النظام الإعلامية، يعرف جيدا أن هذه الجمعة السوداء شكلت ضربة في الصميم دخل الشعب السوري خطيرة وطويلة الأمد.

والأهم هم أولئك الديمقراطيين والمدنيين القلة الذين بقيوا في شارع التظاهرات: لم يعد هناك أية إمكانية لتفهم صمتكم وعدم انشقاقكم الصريح والعلني والحازم عن ثلة الخونة أولئك. إن صمتكم اليوم هو موافقة حقيقية على احتلال سورية. لا يشفع فيها أن أيديكم لم ترفع اللافتات نفسها، ولا أحاديثكم في المحافل الخاصة عن رفضكم التدخل الخارجي، ولا…

والأمر اليوم لا يتعلق بإمكانية حقيقة لغزو سورية من عدمها. رغم أن معطيات الواقع تستبعد كليا إمكانية حدوث ذلك. بل يتعلق بموقف خطير للغاية انتقل من مستوى بعض الأشخاص، ليشمل فئات كاملة مهما كان عددها قليلا.

إنها الجمعة السوداء التي لن تفارق ذاكرة أي سورية أو سورية لعقود قادمة، مهما كانت نتيجة الصراع اليوم. جمعة ستبقى تشعر كل سوري وسورية بالذل والمهانة، وستبقى تؤكد أن العمل المدني السلمي هو وحده الذي لا يمكنه الانحراف نحو مثل هذا المستوى من الانحطاط الجماعي.

http://www.bassam-alkadi.com/content/view/650/44/

Assad had 11 years to improve the situation of the average Syrian. He didn’t because he wanted to stay in power. The West and Israel have nothing to do with the myriad failures of the Assad regime. Nobody forced Assad to put in jail most peaceful dissidents. Nobody forced Assad to pursue inadequate reforms. Nobody forced Assad to prefer Iran to Europe. He and the Syrian people are paying a steep price for his mistakes and arrogance. Assad could have taken the Turkish route but that would have meant sharing or letting go of power, something Assad would just not consider.

أخبار الدنيا- 28.10.2011 التضليل الاعلامي
http://youtu.be/8c6GhNFjU9k

الطبعة الجديدة لخطط التدخل الغربي في سورية

الجمل: برزت بعض الأحداث الخافتة التي تتحدث عن ضرورة ما أطلقت عليه تسمية التدخل العسكري الدولي من أجل حماية المدنيين في سوريا، وذلك في بادرة غير مسبوقة، لأنه طوال التاريخ السياسي السوري لم يحدث أن طالب سوري بذلك: فما هي حقيقة هذه الأصوات الخافتة، وما هي طبيعة الخلفيات والمحفزات التي دفعت إلى صعود مثل هذه النبرة، وهل تتعلق هذه المطالبة بمجرد حس وطني مشوش مرتبك، أم بمعطيات نظرية مؤامرة دولية لم يتسنى بعد إدراكها بالشكل الصحيح؟

* التحريض على التدخل الأجنبي في سوريا: توصيف المعلومات الجارية
استمرت فعاليات الحدث الاحتجاجي السياسي السوري بشكلها المحدود المنحصر، وهي برغم الضجة الإعلامية ـ الدبلوماسية المرتفعة الشدة، فقد ظلت احتجاجات منخفضة الشدة، لم تصل حتى الآن إلى ربع مستوى الاحتجاجات السياسية التي شهدتها تونس ومصر وليبيا واليمن أو حتى البحرين، وبرغم ذلك، فقد ظلت هناك دائماً أطراف تسعى لجهة الهروب إلى الأمام والمضي قدماً في عملية البناء التصعيدي الافتراضي، وفي هذا الخصوص نشير إلى النقاط المتعلقة بمعطيات التدخل الدولي الافتراضي، وذلك على النحو الآتي:
• تحدث بعض رموز المعارضة السورية الخارجية مطالبين بالتدخل الدولي زاعمين بأنه أصبح ضروري لحماية المدنيين السوريين.
• بدأت تظهر بشكل خافت بعض اللافتات التي تطالب بالتدخل الدولي، ضمن بعض المظاهرات الاحتجاجية الصغيرة المحدودة.
• بدأت بعض القنوات الفضائية التلفزيونية المتورطة في معاداة سوريا لجهة القيام ببث اتصالات تلفونية مع بعض الأشخاص الذين يزعمون بأنهم سوريين ويطالبون بالتدخل الدولي في سوريا.
• بدأت بعض الصحف والمواقع الالكترونية ومراكز الدراسات المرتبطة بجماعات اللوبي الإسرائيلي وجماعة المحافظين الجدد بنشر المزيد من المقالات والمواد الصحفية التي تطالب بالتدخل الدولي في سوريا.
إذاً، كل الشواهد والمعطيات تقول بوجود حملة بناء ذرائع تهدف إلى الضغط على أطراف المجتمع الدولي من أجل القيام بعملية تدخل دولي ضد سوريا، وعلى ما يبدو سوف تستمر هذه الحملة في التصاعد، وذلك ضمن أربعة محاور، هي:
• محور دولي: وسوف يتركز في أمريكا وبريطانيا وفرنسا، إضافة إلى بعض دول الاتحاد الأوروبي.
• محور عربي: وسوف يتركز في دول ما يسمى بتجمع المعتدلين العرب، وبالذات قطر، والسعودية وبعض البلدان الخليجية الأخرى إضافة إلى ليبيا.
• محور سوري: وينقسم إلى مكون خارجي ويتمثل في جماعات المعارضة الخارجية، ومحور ومكون داخلي، ويتمثل في عناصر التنسيقيات الذين درجوا على تحريك الفعاليات الاحتجاجية المتقطعة والاتصال بالقنوات الفضائية الداعمة لموقف دول المعتدلين العرب، وبدرجة أقل للمعارضة السورية.
• محور شرق أوسطي: ويتمثل في الدول غير العربية، وبالذات تركيا والتي برغم انخفاض وتائر الاستهداف السافر، فإنه ما زالت أكثر اهتماماً بالتواطؤ مع خصوم دمشق، وبدرجة أقل إسرائيل، والتي وإن كانت تمثل العدو الأساسي، وعراب الاضطرابات في سوريا وبقية مناطق الشرق الأوسط، فإن الخطاب السياسي العلني الإسرائيلي ما زال أكثر اهتماماً بالحديث عن تأثير الاحتجاجات السياسية الشرق أوسطية وبالذات السورية على أمن واستقرار إسرائيل.
هذا، ومن الواضح أن الأسابيع القادمة سوف تشهد نشاطاً متزايداً في فعاليات هذه المحاور، إضافة إلى تفاعلات المساندة المتبادلة بين بعضها البعض طالما أنها تمثل في النهاية شيئاً واحداً يسعى لتحقيق هدف واحد: يعرفه الجميع.

* جماعات اللوبي الإسرائيلي: بؤرة المؤامرة الجديدة
شهدنا قبل فترة قيام اليهودي الأمريكي روبرت ساتلوف (المدير التنفيذي لمعد واشنطن لسياسة الشرق الأدنى) وهو يقدم إفادته أمام لجنة العلاقات الخارجية بالكونغرس الأمريكي والتي طالب فيها بضرورة قيام الإدارة الأمريكية بفرض العقوبات على قطاع النفط السوري، ولاحقاً بعد بضعة أيام تحدث أحد رموز المعارضة السورية المقيمين بالعاصمة الأمريكية وتحديداً الدكتور رضوان زيادة (يعمل بمؤسسة الدفاع عن الديموقراطية التابعة لجماعات اللوبي الإسرائيلي، وكانت هذه المؤسسة أنشئت بالأساس كمنظمة يهودية من أجل تحسين صورة إسرائيل بسبب ما تعرضت له من تشويه في أوساط الرأي العام العالمي بفعل الانتفاضة الفلسطينية، وخلال فترة أحداث الحادي عشر من أيلول سبتمبر قرر زعماء اللوبي الإسرائيلي تحويلها لتحمل اسم مؤسسة الدفاع عن الديموقراطية والتي لعبت دوراً كبيراً في الثورات الملونة البرتقالية الأوكرانية والزهرية الجورجية، إضافة إلى ما عرف بـ”ثورة الأرز”) والذي تحدث مطالباً بنفس ما طالب به روبرت ساتلوف، ثم بعد ذلك أصدرت واشنطن عقوباتها وتبعها بعد ذلك الاتحاد الأوروبي.
الآن بدأنا نشهد سيناريو شبيها بذلك، ويمكن الإشارة إلى خطوات مشاهده الأولى على النحو الآتي:
• تحدث بعض رموز المعارضة السورية مطالبين بالتدخل الخارجي الأجنبي تحت مزاعم حماية المدنيين السوريين.
• رفع بعض المتظاهرين لافتات تطالب بالتدخل الدولي لحماية المدنيين.
• بدأت الفضائيات المعادية لسوريا تجري اتصالات مع بعض عناصر التنسيقيات المطالبين بالتدخل الدولي في سوريا.
ولكن أسلوب رموز جماعات اللوبي الإسرائيلي جاء يتضمن الآتي:
• منظور تماثلي: يطالب بالتدخل الدولي من أجل حماية المدنيين في سوريا.
• منظور لا تماثلي: يطالب بأن لا يكون التدخل الدولي المطلوب في سوريا على غرار التدخل الذي حدث في ليبيا.
ولتوضيح الفرق بين المنظورين نشير إلى ورقة الرصد السياسي التي أعدها اليهودي الأمريكي جيفري وايت خبير الشؤون العسكرية والأمنية بمراكز دراسات اللوبي الإسرائيلي، والتي تحدث فيها بشكل واضح مطالباً بالآتي:
• يتوجب على واشنطن وحلفاءها السعي من أجل التدخل العسكري الدولي في سوريا وإيجاد الصيغة الملائمة للقيام بذلك، وإذا رفضت روسيا والصين دعم التدخل، فمن الممكن البحث عن المسارات البديلة.
• يتوجب على واشنطن أن تسعى لإعداد وإنفاذ سيناريو التدخل العسكري الدولي في سوريا، ضمن صيغة تتفادى السلبيات التي حدثت في الحالة الليبية.
وتأسيساً على ذلك، أشار الخبير جيفري وايت صراحة إلى أن التدخل العسكري الدولي في ليبيا كان ناقصاً، لأنه لم يصل إلى مرحلة الاحتلال الكامل لليبيا، ووضعها تحت سيطرة الأطراف الدولية لفترة احتلال انتقالية على غرار ما حدث في العراق. وبالتالي، فإن نموذج التدخل العسكري الدولي ـ بحسب ما أوردته ورقة جيفري وايت ـ يجب أن يسعى إلى أن يكون نموذجاً تدخلياً كامل الدسم، أي احتلال.
والآن، وعلى خلفية التحليل المقارن للتماثلات واللاتماثلات الواردة في تصريحات رموز المعارضة السورية، وتوجهات رموز اللوبي الإسرائيلي نلاحظ، أن اندفاع رموز المعارضة السورية لجهة المطالبة بالتدخل العسكري الدولي يقابله من الناحية الموازية اندفاع رموز جماعات اللوبي الإسرائيلي لجهة المطالبة بالتدخل العسكري الدولي الهادف لاحتلال سوريا ووضعها لفترة طويلة تحت الاحتلال، تحت مبررات حماية المدنيين.

الجمل ـ قسم الدراسات والترجمة

http://www.aljaml.com/node/77012

Jad & Noarman:

This is my e-mail.

haykhou@gmail.com

I am leaving SC to concentrate on writing (Medical & Politics). I would like if I can keep contact with you.

Asad met Nasrallah a couple of weeks ago. He failed to persuade him not to object to the principle of financing Hariri’s Special court by the Lebanese government.

Nasrallah must have felt that Jr was somehow willing or even trying to hand Hizballah to the international court, in return for a deal with the US that would salvage some of his future in Syria!

مصادر: الأسد التقى نصر الله منذ أيام ولم يمانع تمويل المحكمة الدوليـة
2011/10/27نشر فى: أخبار عربية
نقولا ناصيف – الأخبار

وضع الأمين العام لحزب الله، السيّد حسن نصر الله، مساء الاثنين (24 تشرين الأول) السقف الأعلى والنهائي لموقف الحزب من تمويل المحكمة الدولية، وهو رفضه إياه رفضاً قاطعاً غير قابل للمساومة. وثبّت مباشرة كل ما كان قد قيل في الأسابيع الأخيرة عن تكهّنات متضاربة حيال رفض التمويل أو القبول به في الساعات الأخيرة.
بيد أن السقف الذي رسمه نصر الله يُفصح عن بضعة معطيات منها:
1 ـــــ زيارة قام بها الأمين العام للحزب قبل أقل من عشرة أيام لدمشق، واجتماعه بالرئيس السوري بشّار الأسد، ومناقشتهما مواضيع إقليمية من بينها موقف الغالبية من تسديد لبنان حصته في موازنة المحكمة الدولية. كانت لكل من الرجلين مقاربة مختلفة للتمويل، تأخذ في الاعتبار التعاطي معه تبعاً للمصلحة التي تجمعهما على اتخاذ القرار الأكثر ملاءمة لتقويمهما الوضعين المحلي اللبناني والإقليمي.
لم يمانع الأسد في تمويل المحكمة، وأولى اهتماماً لاستمرار الحكومة وعدم زعزعتها، ومساعدتها على إمرار الظروف الصعبة والدقيقة التي تعبر بها المنطقة، مع تأكيد أولوية حماية المقاومة في ضوء ما يستهدفها من الخارج. إلا أنه عَكَسَ مرونة في التعاطي مع التمويل. في المقابل، أبرَزَ نصر الله موقفه من المحكمة على أنه مسألة مبدئية تتصل بالمقاومة، وهو لا يستطيع الموافقة على التمويل وفق حيثيات شرحها للرئيس السوري.
انتهى الأمر بقول الأسد لحليفه الأقوى والمسموع الكلمة لديه إنه لن يخوض في هذا الموضوع الذي يعدّه شأناً داخلياً لبنانياً، وهو يترك لحزب الله وحلفائه تقدير الموقف المناسب الذي يقتضي أن تتخذه المقاومة ويحفظ مصلحتها.
لم يكن ميل الرئيس السوري إلى تمويل المحكمة هو الأول الذي يبديه.
قبل بضعة أيام على اجتماعه بنصر الله، كان الأسد قد استقبل مسؤولاً لبنانياً بارزاً يوم 8 تشرين الأول، وتحدّث أمامه عن تأييد التمويل، وأوحى بأنه سيحاول إقناع حزب الله بالمضي فيه. إلا أن زيارة نصر الله لدمشق تجاوزت الشكوك في احتمال موافقة حزب الله على التمويل، وثبّتت خياره القائل برفضه كجزء لا يتجزأ من موقف أعمّ هو رفضه أولاً وأخيراً المحكمة الدولية.

…………….. More

Homs where the armed terrorists are running the show is the mad battle field where nobody is safe, kids or adults:

تم إطلاق النار على سيارة تاكسي عمومـــــي في حـــي
البياضة الأمر الذي أدى لاستشهاد طفلة عمرها 4 سنوات
و إصابة أخيها و أمها و سائق السيارة بجروح.
الطفلة الشهيدة اسمها زهـــــــــــراء الرضـــــــــــــــا أصيبت
برصاصة بالعنق فيما كانت إصابة كل من أخيها ذي الـ7 سنوات
و والدتهما سناء عباس ذات 25 عاماً و سائق السيارة كانت
إصابتهم بجروح من جراء طلقات الرصاص و نتنى لهم الشفاء
العاجل.
كما تم استهداف سيارة تاكسي أجرة في حي الخالدية
و أصيب سائقها حسن عبدو الأحمد.
Sham fm

#193 Jad
Thanks for the link. Obviously the Syrian media are learning how to outsmart and expose Aljazeera lies.

I never understood the man but I find him very entertaining

http://all4syria.info/web/archives/33914

قالت صحيفة الديار نقلا عن مصادر مطلعة التي التقط البعض منها ، بالصوت والصورة، حواراً أجراه النائب وليد جنبلاط مع عدد من السفراء الأجانب، قال فيه بأنه اذا سقط النظام في سوريا، سيصعد مسرعاً الى المختارة للاحتفال، وسيطلق الاسهم النارية ابتهاجا، ولن يكتفي بذلك بل سيعمل على إنارة قمم الجبال في المنطقة، هذا الكلام تنقله جماعة سوريا في لبنان 

Dear Haytham,
Please don’t leave, there is no point of leaving, you can write whenever you have time, we can’t afford to let radicals to take over your voice, we may not agree in all our views but we both know that if the voice or reason turned off this whole struggle is going to end bad, it’s better to stay in the struggle and to voice out your free non radical ideas than staying away and let your voice used by radicals for their agenda.
Please Haytham, don’t just stop writing, you know what they say in the academia publish or vanish and you have lots of things to say and to share with us all. Don’t leave the battle field to the ignorant thugs.

P.S. I really enjoyed your last article, it’s a big step forward from the ones before, it leave the reader with new information and a clear political message about what’s next and a realistic criticism to the opposition.

Revlon

Did you read this?

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/michaelweiss/100114106/a-no-fly-zone-may-be-the-only-way-to-save-syria/

By Michael Weiss World Last updated: October 28th, 2011

Is it time for the West to intervene in Syria’s ongoing nightmare?
Bashar al-Assad decided almost a year ago that he’d rather burn his country to the ground than allow the Syrian people have a turn at real democracy. For nearly eight months, I’ve been following the plight of the extraordinary patriots who are defying him, amazed as much by their fearlessness as I have been by their ingenuity in transmitting evidence of the regime’s brutality. In addition to the countless demos and Facebook pages, stray cats have been painted with revolutionary slogans, water fountains have been dyed red, and helium balloons have been released into the air, all in defiance of one massive crime family. For those of us watching this spectacle from afar, there have been thousands of uploaded mobile-phone videos all testifying to the same phenomenon: unarmed protestors demand freedom, then get shot, beaten, arrested and tortured in response, regardless of age, sect or sex. Excellent investigative journalism conducted recently by Panorama’s Jane Corbin and Channel 4’s Ramita Navai corroborates this narrative.
“We’ve Never Seen Such Horror” was the title of Human Rights Watch’s indispensable early report on Syria. Well, now we have seen such horror: and it’s been amplified lately with credible reports of women being gang raped, organs being stolen from activists’ corpses, and other grotesqueries which testify to Orwell’s observation that whatever your darkest imagination can cook up, a totalitarian regime can always do better.
Here’s a fly-leaf calculation worth bearing in mind:
• Syria is a country of 22.5 million people.
•- According to the latest UN report, at least 3,000 people have been killed although the true figure is probably closer to 4,000-5,000 (many bodies have not been “registered” at morgues yet).
•10,000 Syrians are currently living in tents in southern Turkey.
• 4,000 have fled to Lebanon.
• 5,000 more are deemed “missing.”
• 80,000 have, since mid-March, been arrested (and between 30,000-45,000 are still in jail).
• The Free Syrian Army (FSA) of rebel soldiers have got about 15,000 men under their command.
At a minimum, then, roughly 117,000 lives have been affected by this revolution and its repression. Now consider all their friends and relatives. What percentage of the total population has been traumatised over eight long months? What percentage would equal failed statehood?
Calls for Western military intervention began in earnest on the ground in Syria after Tripoli fell in August, and have  increased in volume since Gaddafi was dragged out of a drainpipe and killed in Sirte last week. There’s even a Syrian Facebook campaign called Nato For Syria, which shows pictures of popular sentiment for doing to Bashar what American, French and British war planes did to the mad colonel.
Apart from Russia and China’s obscene intransigence on a UN Security Council resolution, the newly formed Syrian National Council (SNC) rejects “foreign military intervention”. Prominent SNC member and probable SNC president, Burhan Ghalioun, has clarified that the council “rejects any outside interference that undermines the sovereignty of the Syrian people,” which is phrased ever so ambiguously that some have read it as betraying a tacit sympathy for an intervention that doesn’t involve boots on the ground (to say nothing of the fact that Syrian people haven’t got “sovereignty” yet.)
The SNC’s stubbornness on the do-it-yourself model for regime change isn’t completely misguided, although it warrants a rethink if there’s to be any country to salvage for democracy. Dr Radwan Ziadeh, now the head of the SNC foreign affairs bureau, told me months ago that the problem with a no-fly zone is that, unlike Libya, Syria isn’t an expansive desert wasteland interrupted by outcroppings civilisation; military and civilian sites are situated so close to one another that civilian casualties from bombing campaigns could be very high. Also, although helicopter gunships have been used in cities like Jisr al-Shughour, the regime’s reliance on its air force has so far been minimal.
Nevertheless, detailed maps of Syrian military sites have been circulated, purportedly showing the positions of the regime’s air defence system. According to Foreign Policy magazine, “Soviet-designed S-25, S-75, S-125, and S-200 surface-to-air missiles, and the 2K12 ‘Kub’ air defense system” would all have been wiped out from the sky before Western war planes could effectively patrol safe areas. Assad’s got an estimated 3,310 anti-aircraft weapons, which would no doubt be used to down those planes, although the cost for firing them would be considerable, with tough US and EU sanctions against him already in place and getting tougher all the time. The psychological effect of being at war with an international coalition would also stymie the regime’s strategising and likely encourage further military defections from the army.
One defence analyst I’ve consulted has said that, in addition to a no-fly zone, Syria would also likely need a “no-drive” zone imposed to prohibit armored vehicles or pickup trucks from transferring these weapons around the country. This could also be managed aerially with the help of US satellite and radar systems.
What are our other options at this point? The Free Syrian Army can’t fight the Fourth Armored Division or the Republican Guard by itself. Nor, frankly, is that ragtag milita’s headquarters in Turkey beneficial to mounting an protective campaign, as anyone who has followed the fate of captured and presumably killed FSA spokesman Hussain Harmoush can attest. If Turkey wants to lead from the front on the Syrian revolution, it can do so through a perfectly capable, multilateral organisation: Nato. The Allied Air Component Command for Southern Europe is based in Izmir, and the Incirlik Air Base in Adana is co-leased by the US Air Force.
Without outside help, Syria is headed for a major humanitarian catastrophe on the scale of the Balkans or Rwanda. There are no easy solutions to this crisis, but blinding the regime and giving cover to the revolutionaries may be the best course.

Ban condemns latest killings of civilian protesters in Syria

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=40245&Cr=Syria&Cr1=

29 October 2011 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke out today against the reported killing of dozens of protesters in Syria, urging Government authorities to immediately end their military operations against civilians and answer the people”s call for reforms.
Media reports indicate about 40 people have been killed over the past day in Homs and Hama in central Syria, taking the overall death toll since widespread public protests began seven months ago to well over 3,000.

The protests are part of a wider pro-democracy uprising across North Africa and the Middle East this year that has toppled long-standing regimes in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.

In a statement issued by his spokesperson earlier today Mr. Ban condemned the latest killings.

“The Secretary-General believes the calls of the Syrian people for change must be answered with far-reaching reforms, not repression and violence,” the statement noted.

“He appeals for military operations against civilians to stop at once, and for the release of all political prisoners and those detained in connection to their participation in the popular protests. He emphasizes that violence is unacceptable and must stop immediately.”

Mr. Ban and other senior United Nations officials, including Navi Pillay, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, have repeatedly voiced concern about the Government”s response to the protests since the uprising began.

michael weiss is a raving NEO-CON

There is no limit to how far the regime is willing to go to please the fat cats at the expense of poor Syrians.
what I read about this regime being sectarian is more about rage and confusion than about substance. Only a fraction of the Alawite community benefited from the regime,the rest are poor foot soldiers, or educated but unattached to the regime ,or average Alawites who are as oppressed and impoverished as everybody else. There are far more Sunnis and Christians who got rich by collaborating with the regime than Alawites did ,especially that Alawites are still not deeply rooted in the commerce and trade business as other Syrians are. poor alawites are used and abused by the regime but yet they will be the first victims of any regime change and they are the ones who are dying today,rich Alawites are largely unaffected. Asad and his clan are Alawites on paper but rich Damascenes in reality. Bashar and most rich alawites who live in Damascus have sunni friends and many of them speak with a Shami accent. It is a class warfare not a religious war but it is hard for some people to get this fact,plus it helps some people’s agenda,the regime included, to inflame sectarian feelings.
I believe Syrians will eventually realize that it is not Sunni versus alawi,it is right versus wrong and corrupt rich versus poor.
read this:
القرارات الحكومية الساعية لإرضاء التجار وكبار المكلفين لا تتوقف عند أي تنازل، حتى ولو خالفوا في سبيل ذلك الدستور، تحت مسميات ومبررات مفضوحة وغير ذات جدوى مع هذه الطبقة من ناهبي الاقتصاد الوطني، وأخر هذه التنازلات، إقرار الحكومة مشروع قانون إعفاء المكلفين من ضريبة دخل الأرباح الحقيقية، وكذلك المكلفين بالضرائب والرسوم المالية المباشرة الأخرى، وإعفاء المكلفين في المنشآت السياحية ومكلفي ضريبة البيوع العقارية من جميع الفوائد والجزاءات والغرامات على اختلاف أنواعها، وإضافاتها العائدة لعام 2011 وما قبل إذا ما سددوا الضريبة أو الرسم حتى 31-12-2011، هذا الإقرار الذي أتى بعد إلغاء قرار تعليق الاستيراد تحت ضغط التجار الساعين لتمرير مصالحهم عبر الحكومة السابقة أو الحالية، فمصالحهم فوق مصلحة الوطن، والتجاوب الحكومي معهم في أحسن أحواله، حتى يخيل لبعض المتابعين أنها حكومة التجار ورجال الأعمال المدافعة عنهم عبر قراراتها وإجراءاتها، وليست حكومة لكل السوريين!..
القرار الحكومي الحالي القاضي بالإعفاء من ضريبة الأرباح يخالف الدستور السوري المعمول به اليوم، فلا يحق لرئيس الحكومة إعفاء المكلفين من ضريبة دخل الأرباح من الغرامات المترتبة عليهم، وإذا أعفاهم رئيس الجمهورية بمرسوم لابد من مصادقة مجلس الشعب عليه، وإذا ما أقرته الحكومة ستخالف في إقرارها وقرارها المتخذ الدستور، هذا من جهة..
ومن جهة أخرى، فإننا لا نجد من حكومتنا إلا تغذية في اتجاه واحد، وهو سعيها الدائم لتقديم الإعفاءات على مختلف الاتجاهات للتجار والمكلفين الكبار، فتخلف المكلفين عن سداد رسومهم يخالف القانون أولاً، وبالتالي يجب أن يعاملوا من الحكومة على قياس مخالفتهم تلك، لا أن يتم إعفاؤهم وتقديم التنازلات واحدة تلو الأخرى لهم، وذلك أملاً في استجابتهم المحدودة التي يعرفها، ولا أمل بسواها حتى أشد المتفائلين على المستوى الحكومي..
هؤلاء المكلفون يخالفون المادة 41 التي تنص على أن «أداء الضرائب والتكاليف العامة واجب وفقا للقانون»، فلماذا التنازل الحكومي للتجار وكبار المكلفين عن أداء واجباتهم التي كفلها الدستور بدلاً من إلزامهم؟! وهل من حقهم كحكومة التراجع عن مكتسبات هي من حق كل السوريين؟!.
إذا ما اعتبر البعض أن هذه الإعفاءات ستشجعهم على السداد، سنقول لهم، إنهم حالمون، فالإعفاءات السابقة، والجناح الخاص بكبار المكلفين في وزارة المالية، فشل في إقناعهم بسداد رسومهم ومستحقاتهم الضريبية، وكذلك عجز تخفيض الرسوم على الأرباح من 66% كما كان في السابق إلى ما يتراوح بيّن 14 – 28% على اختلاف نوع الشركات في إقناعهم بسداد التزاماتهم للخزينة العامة، وهذا يعني أن المشكلة مع هذه الطبقة من الناهبين تتعدى كونها سلوكاً مخالفاً يمكن تبريره بمسوغات مهما كان نوعها، بل القضية ترتقي لمرتبة الثقافة الجمعية التي يمارسها كبار المكلفين، والمتمثلة بتهربهم الضريبي المتستر بحجج لا يمكن تقبلها، وهذه تحتاج لثقافة معارضة لها في الاتجاه ومعادلة لها في القوة تستطيع إجبارهم على أداء التزاماتهم..
كل هذه الإعفاءات لم تأت بثمارها على الحصيلة الضريبية الإجمالية المدفوعة من التجار، فنحن على قناعة بأنهم لن يدفعوا حتى لو باتت ضريبتهم صفراً، بل إنهم عندها سيطالبون بدعمهم من الحكومة على اعتبارهم «معتّرين»، وهم بأمسّ الحاجة لدعمها..
الإعفاءات من الضريبة على الأرباح تخالف مبادئ العدالة الضريبية المفتقدة أساساً في بلدنا، والتي يفضحها رقم التهرب الضريبي المقدر في عام 02010 حسب المصادر الرسمية بـ 200 مليار ليرة، هذه العدالة التي كفلتها المادة 19 من الدستور، والتي تنص على ضرورة «فرض الضرائب على أسس عادلة وتصاعدية تحقق مبادئ المساواة والعدالة الاجتماعية»، وبالتالي فإن هذه الإعفاءات ستساهم في تعزيز فجوة عدم العدالة في سداد الضرائب على المستوى الكلي، وستؤدي لتمركز ثروات غير مشروعة بيّن أيدي قلة من كبار المتهربين على امتداد السنوات، إن لم نقل إنها ساهمت في تكوين ثروات كهذه في الماضي القريب

excerpt from franklyn lamb (link to full article after):

AI(amnesty international) claims this week, without convincing material, probative or relevant evidence that Syrian authorities, including Hospital administrators and staff, have since March 2011 turned Syrian hospital into instruments of repression in order to crush protests and demonstrations. AI’s j report claims that Syrians wounded in protests or incidents related to the current unrest “have been physically assaulted in state-run hospitals by medical staff, and in some cases denied medical care, while others taken to hospital have been detained or have simply disappeared.” AI offers as its proof of these claims the weakest and seemingly most competition-driven support of any Amnesty International report I have read. It reeks of yet another orientalist double standard and ignores similar claims from citizens in western countries of similar actions by their governments.

http://www.almanar.com.lb/english/adetails.php?eid=33216&frid=41&seccatid=101&cid=41&fromval=1

From the same staunch pro-Israeli journalist Michael Weiss, advices to Turkey and its protege, the SNC:

“The SNC’s responsibility now is to shore up international recognition and go the way of the Libyans in presenting a coherent framework for democratic government. Syria’s transition stands to be the most dangerous and crucial for the Middle East — as Turkey plays a greater role with the Syrian opposition, it will have an ever-larger say in the political landscape of post-Assad Syria.”

Turkey’s Hand in the Syrian Opposition
By Michael Weiss
Oct 26 2011, 7:00 AM ET 5
The Turkish government would have every reason to try and steer Syria’s activists, and it looks like they might be succeeding

After seven months of wrangling to form a cohesive opposition movement, Syrian activists finally pulled it off with the formal announcement in Istanbul of the Syrian National Council (SNC), a body that mirrors the Libyan opposition’s National Transitional Council in seeking international recognition. But the opposition group, which formed in Istanbul and is headquartered there, appears to be increasingly influenced by the Turkish government, which has so far played a significant role in helping to usher Syria toward a post-Assad era.

There are some good reasons to have confidence in the SNC. The group began by reaffirming its desire to see a democratic Syria with constitutional guarantees on civil and political rights. It also says it rejects foreign military intervention, arguing that the only way to topple Assad is through “peaceful” and “legal” means. Many of its top officials — such as prominent U.S.-based dissident Radwan Ziadeh, newly appointed the head of the SNC’s foreign affairs bureau, and Paris-based university professor Burhan Ghalioum, a member of the body’s presidential council — are secular, intelligent, and friendly to the West.

In 2007, Ghalioun went on Al Jazeera and said, in Arabic, that the two biggest problems besetting the Arab world were dictatorship and clerical control of the media, adding that these were mutually reinforcing.

Of the SNC’s 230-member General Assembly, 55 seats are designated for grassroots domestic groups. Twenty seats apiece have also gone to selected special interests: Kurds, the Muslim Brotherhood, the “Damascus Declaration” (a group of reformist intellectuals who emerged briefly in 2000 on the mistaken assumption that Assad, newly in power, would be an improvement on his tyrannical father), and independents. Another 20 are saved for any additional stakeholders who may join the SNC at a later date.

The Muslim Brotherhood, which belatedly joined the body en masse, appears to be over-represented. Although they now hold 20 seats in the General Assembly and another 5 seats in the Secretariat, Hafez al-Assad all but destroyed the movement in the 1980s. Syrian oppositionists I’ve interviewed in the past several months say they believe that Islamists represent, at most, 30 percent of the opposition — and that figure, they say, is confined mainly to the ranks of the diaspora.

Nevertheless, the Brotherhood, along with a collection of independent Islamists, have wielded significant influence within the SNC, owing largely to the Obama administration’s “lead from behind” strategy in Syria, which has left Turkey as the main liaison to the opposition.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Islamist Justice and Development Party (AKP) almost certainly prefer a fellow Sunni government in Syria to replace the current Alawite regime. Although previously friendly to Assad, AKP’s Turkey has since taken the lead among Islamic nations in condemning the regime’s violence. Turkey has hosted the majority of Syrian opposition conferences on its soil, from Istanbul to Antalya. Ten thousand Syrian refugees who fled a massacre in the Idleb province last June are currently living in tents on the Turkish border.

Erdogan probably reckons that if he can’t rein in the Syrian regime’s terror, he’d better cultivate the inevitable alternatives. Turkey will wish to salvage its strong commercial relations with its southern neighbor. But it’s more than that: the chance to lure Syria away from Shia Iran and toward fellow a Sunni Muslim power is likely too tantalizing to pass up. If Assad falls, then Iran will lose its only state ally in the Levant, weakening Hezbollah’s position in Lebanon and almost certainly ending the Hamas politburo’s residence in Damascus.

Since the Arab Spring kicked off, Erdogan has attempted to play a larger role in Arab politics, giving a recent speech in Egypt that included, among other things, public advice on how Egyptians shouldn’t be wary of “secular” democracy. When Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, which had rapturously received Erdogan in Cairo, blanched at the use of the term “secular,” Erdogan said that he’d been mistranslated in the national press and that he wasn’t referring to the Western model.

The trouble is, Turkey’s credibility among many Syrian protesters plummeted in recent weeks after it was reported that Turkish intelligence agents may have been involved in the abduction of Lieutenant Colonel Hussain Harmoush, a leading figure in the Free Syrian Army, a contingent of defected soldiers. Harmoush went missing on August 29, after which his brother quickly claimed that he’d been ambushed in a Turkish refugee camp after government security contacts betrayed him, handing him over to Assad’s infamous mukhabarat secret police.

Turkey denies any responsibility and has vowed to conduct a government inquiry. But the damage was done. Erdogan’s convoy in Egypt was surrounded last month by angry Syrians chanting “Erdogan coward” and “Erdogan, where is Harmoush?” Shortly thereafter, Harmoush appeared on Syrian state TV where he made an abject “confession,” almost certainly forced, that blamed every imaginary bugbear for the regime’s troubles except the regime itself. Fellow activists now fear him dead.

Another headache for Ankara will be the SNC’s National Consensus Charter language on Kurdish rights, which are tightly curtailed in Turkey. The charter calls for “constitutional recognition of Kurdish national identity and the creation of a just democratic formula for the Kurdish question within the framework of unity of the homeland.” Though vague (does this allow for a semi-autonomous Kurdish governorate in Syria? formal recognition of the Kurdish language?) it is far more broad-minded than any AKP policy on Turkey’s own restive Kurdish population, which can now point to the Turkish-backed SNC and say, “What about us?” The Assad regime is increasingly aggressive against Syrian Kurds’ participation in this revolution: Syrian forces recently assassinated Kurdish SNC member Mishal Tammo and closed the border with Turkey to prevent more Kurds from coming in to demonstrate.

Syrian security forces have, in the last several weeks, conducted a dragnet of prominent activists as well as rebel soldiers, thought to be as many as 10,000. Rape and organ theft are allegedly new state policies of intimidation and repression. Armed protestors in Homs have lately begun to fight back, and in a sectarian fashion, fueling speculation that Syria is now poised for a full-on civil war — exactly the outcome Assad has long tried to provoke.

The situation is dire and bound to get worse. The SNC’s responsibility now is to shore up international recognition and go the way of the Libyans in presenting a coherent framework for democratic government. Syria’s transition stands to be the most dangerous and crucial for the Middle East — as Turkey plays a greater role with the Syrian opposition, it will have an ever-larger say in the political landscape of post-Assad Syria.

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/10/turkeys-hand-in-the-syrian-opposition/247330/

201. Dear Tara, Thank you for the link.

“At a minimum, then, roughly 117,000 lives have been affected by this revolution and its repression. Now consider all their friends and relatives. What percentage of the total population has been traumatised over eight long months? What percentage would equal failed statehood?”

It is already a human catastrophe!
Humans of the world have more than the right to intervene to protect their brethern in Syria from the savage regime; They have the moral obligation!

The Syrian web room
Ana Maria Luca and Nadine Elali, October 29, 2011     

http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=327357&MID=0&PID=0

The Qussair Revolutionary Council web operations room consists of one laptop, one television set with a satellite connection, two mattresses, and a teapot next to several cups scattered on the floor.
 
The three men in the operations room escaped the Syrian army’s bullets to cross the border into Lebanon in order to ensure there is media coverage of the Syrian uprising. They are all in their late 30s, and they don’t know each other’s names. They agreed to use nicknames, “Friday names,” for their safety. “We know that the regime’s agents are among the protesters, so we decided to keep ourselves safe, and we use fake names,” the man who asked to be called Mohammad and who is in charge of the operations room told NOW Lebanon.
 
From the room Mohammad keeps in contact with his citizen correspondents through chat programs. They send him centralized footage, documents and the names of victims killed by the shabiha militia, the Syrian intelligence services or the Syrian army. Once he has verified the information, the three men post them on a website and send them to human rights groups and media outlets around the Middle East. 

“Here is a statement we sent to Al Jazeera,” Mohammad explains while his chat program beeps continuously, notifying him that he has new messages from a correspondent in Qussair, just over the border.

“We keep in touch like this, all the time. And we carefully verify the information,” Mohammad adds. “If, for example, we find out about a gas station being blown up by the regime’s people in order to blame it on protesters, our man in the neighborhood contacts me and we decide if it’s worth going there and filming it.  We don’t send out information unless we checked that it’s completely true and we have proof or videos. If our man is not back in an hour or so, we know they killed him.”

“We are always in contact with the Revolutionary Council from Homs. There is a revolutionary council in every town where there have been protests,” Mohammad says as the two other men, Ahmad and Youssef, nod in approval while puffing their cigarettes. “The council comes up with the strategy to organize the protests, and they coordinate with us, the web people. In Qussair we have a person in every neighborhood. We only know their nicknames and we are constantly in touch through the internet and a safe phone line.”

“Qussair is completely besieged right now. They surrounded it with 40,000 troops around 10 days ago. They brought a brigade,” says Ahmad. “I just came from Syria this morning. They shot at me on the border. Nobody can get in, nobody can get out. They shoot at anything they see moving. I took the fields and went behind the mountains to be able to cross.”

Qussair is the biggest protester stronghold along to the Lebanese border, but it is not as strong as Homs, the three men say. “The regime really wants Homs to fall, because people there just don’t give up, and they are not intimidated. If the army or the shabiha are guarding the streets during the day, they protest during the night. They go out and sing against the regime,” Mohammad says. “There are strong people in Homs, they have tactics. They put a toy laser and a box on a stray cat and let the animal out on the street. The army thinks it’s a bomb so they run away and take shelter. This gives the people time to organize and protest.”

According to the activists, Homs is the regime’s target for the moment. “Qussair is very important. They managed to break Tal Kalakh because the town was surrounded by Alawite villages. But Qussair is not, and it strengthens Homs.  They are trying to bring the town down in order to weaken Homs,” Mohammad explains as he opens another message on his chat program.

Ahmad makes a phone call to verify the reports from international news agencies that the Syrian army is planting mines along the northern Lebanese border. “Yes, it’s true. They are planting them in the fields in a village next to Qussair, Neim, toward the border so nobody can cross the border anymore,” he says.

“Can they film it?” Mohammad asks. 

“No, the soldiers are too many,” Ahmad answers.

Mohammad plays the latest videos Ahmad brought from Qussair in the morning. One shows the massacre of 14 young men who had fled the town and taken shelter in a house in a nearby village, another shows a two-year-old boy who was shot in the head, and another shows a protester shot in the knee and brought to Lebanon for medical care. 

The massacre video shows the shelled house where the 14 people had been killed, the blood on the floor, the protesters dragging the bodies of the young men from Assi River and the funeral. “This is gruesome,” Mohammad says. “Ask him, he was a witness,” he says, pointing at Youssef, who nods.

“I managed to run away when they started shelling us. We had fled Qussair when they brought the army. We were 27 men hiding in the house. But the shabiha and the intelligence followed our supply boy.  We went back after they left and we filmed everything,” he says.

“There are already seven people dead today. We already centralized the names. There is always coordination between us on the internet. We use certain chat programs that refused to give the Syrian regime access to survey the conversations. We have a human network at the local level, and there is also a network of towns, and the cities have their own network,” Youssef explains.

“We don’t run anything on the website and don’t send anything to the media without having the proper information and double checking. We depend highly on these videos, so we have to make sure they are real. Our legitimacy is very important,” Mohammad concludes. 

contrary to many who believe ai and hrw serve justice, both are a prelude to aggression by the west. they both cover for israeli and western atrocities.

Dear Jad:

I would like to thank you for your post#200.

I feel by writing, I will reach the good target.
I think in order to find a solution to the conflict, the opposition should find a single realistic and reasonable voice. I feel my next struggle will be in that arena. The opposition is still lacking that voice.
The opposition’s responsibility in preventing a civil war is equal to the regime’s responsibility. For this reason, I should concentrate on that.

I will think again about SC. However, I feel bringing the opposition to the reality will be important to solve the problem fast.

Anyway, send me an e-mail. I can share with you more information.

Syria spies on the internet by using 13 of 14 US made, Blue Cot Internet servers sold to the Minsistry of Telecommunications of Iraq.
سوريا تراقب الإنترنت بأجهزة مخصصة للعراق

السبت 2/12/1432 هـ – الموافق 29/10/2011 م (آخر تحديث) الساعة 10:42 (مكة المكرمة)، 7:42 (غرينتش)
http://www.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/BE0BEB8A-6D06-4253-BE66-70CEB4EBF3BF.htm?GoogleStatID=24

أكدت شركة أميركية متخصصة في معدات الرقابة على الإنترنت، أن سوريا تستخدم منتجاتها لمنع النشاط على الشبكة ضمن -ما وصفتها- بحملة قمع الاحتجاجات المناهضة للنظام.
وقالت شركة “بلو كوت سيستمز” ومقرها شمال كاليفورنيا، إن معدات للسيطرة على الإنترنت كانت بيعت لوزارة الاتصالات العراقية باتت تستخدم في سوريا في “ظروف غامضة”، دون التعرف علي كيفية وصولها إلى هناك.
وأوضح مسؤول بالشركة أنهم توصلوا إلى ذلك عبر تحليل سجلات البيانات والأرقام الخاصة بعناوين الكمبيوتر المرسلة من ناشطين سوريين، مؤكدا “أن الأدلة تشير إلى وجودها في سوريا” رغم أن الولايات المتحدة تمنع بيع هذه الأجهزة لسوريا.
وأضاف المسؤول -الذي طلب عدم ذكر اسمه- أن ما لا يقل عن 13 من أصل 14 جهاز رقابة تم شحنها لدبي في طريق تسليمها للحكومة العراقية، وهي كافية لكبح حركة المرور على الإنترنت بشكل فعال، تستخدم حاليا في سوريا.
وقالت الشركة إنها حصلت على مستندات تفيد بأن معدات مراقبة الإنترنت تم تسليمها إلى العراق بالفعل.
جدير بالذكر أن الرسائل التي تتضمن صورا لوقائع الاحتجاجات في سوريا وقمع السلطات لها، التي يقوم ناشطون سوريون بإرسالها عبر الإنترنت، تعتبر من أهم طرق تواصل المحتجين مع العالم الخارجي في ظل منع السلطات هناك من وجود الصحفيين الأجانب منذ بداية الاحتجاجات.

Ghufran@ 204

Yes. It is not Sunni vs Alawis. I think most Sunnis realize that the regime plays on minorities\’ fear to get their support or their silence. I said it before, the regime rubbed Alawis from their Alawithood and used it to sustain its existence as much as he corrupted those Sunnis to buy their support. All to be blamed and one particular sect. There is one villain and many victims.

More about Michael Weiss who writes in Daily Telegrah

“Michael Weiss is the Communications Director of the Henry Jackson Society and the Spokesperson of Just Journalism.” There you have it; Weiss is a representative of two notoriously pro-Israel organisations ”

Just Journalism or just Zionism?
by Dr. Hanan Chehata

http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/articles/europe/2615-just-journalism-or-just-zionism

Bronco said
False media about killings
First it is not false, even the regime admmitted the killing
second Killing is very serious crime.,whoever does it or cover up or support the killing is an evil person.

A Light break!
It might just bring back Haytham from retirment from SC!
Hope it does not weaken the Syrian national council’s sentiment though!

http://www.facebook.com/Youth.Syria.Freedom

حركة سوريا شباب من أجل الحرية Youth Syria For Freedom
يا جماعة سمعت انو فيه عندنا مجلس وطني

حدى منكم شم بيان هيك او هيك

يمكن عم يصدروا بيانات بس بدون صوت !!
49 minutes ago

From the EU/al Qaeda/CIA/Jew/Saudi/Salafist Press

According to Michael Weiss, the Free Syrian Army has about 15,000 men under its command.

Disclaimer: According to Besho Buttlickers Ann & Zoo (and they should know, yes?), Michael Weiss is a vastly prominent JewBoy….

The SNC has finally issued a statement on the Arab Ministerial Committee’s communique!

I am quite satisfied with the tone and substance of their statement.

Here is a personal summary of the SNC statement:
1. SNC condemned the regime’s escalation of violence!
2. SNC commended the committee for their communique
3. SNC addressed the Arab countries and urged them to
– Withdraw their recognition of the regimes’s legitimacy
– Refrain from giving the regime additional time.
– Join the international efforts aimed at isolating the regime.
4. SNC Addressed and urged the international community to:
– Isolate the Regime politically, diplomatically, and economically by withdrawing their recognition of the regime’s legitimacy.
– Take all necessary measures to secure protection for civilians and to prevent Regime’s army and security forces from inflicting further brutaliy.
29/11/2011
http://www.facebook.com/UgaritNEWS

Ugarit News | أوغاريت الإخبارية

أوغاريت || بيان صحفي صادر عن المجلس الوطني السوري حول الحملة الدموية للنظام السوري

اختار نظام بشار الأسد المجرم يوم أمس الجمعة (28 أكتوبر) ليوجه رسالته الأكثر دموية للعالم بأنه لن يكترث لأي تدخل أو مناشدة بوقف أعمال القتل والإبادة، وهي رسالة ينبغي لها أن تطرق مسامع العالم الذي بات عليه الآن واجب التحرك الجدي والفعال لحماية الشعب السوري من عمليات القتل المنظمة والممنهجة.

إن تأكيدنا مرة تلو أخرى أن الطغمة الحاكمة غير معنية سوى بإرهاب المواطنين وإسكاتهم ومنع أي نشاط سلمي منازئ لها باستخدام أقسى حالات القوة، يعبر عنه النظام يومياً من خلال ارتكابه مزيداً من المجازر الوحشية كما حصل الجمعة في مدينتي حمص وحماة البطلتين، الللتين قاومتا ميليشيات الموت بصدور عارية وهتافات شعبية وتحركات سلمية حضارية.

إن المجلس الوطني السوري، إذ يعبر عن إدانته البالغة لما يقوم به النظام الوحشي، يثني على البيان الصادر عن اللجنة الوزارية العربية الذي يعرب عن (الامتعاض) من استمرار عمليات القتل. لكنه في نفس الوقت يتوجه إلى الدول العربية لحثها على نزع الشرعية عن هذا النظام والانخراط في الجهد الدولي الرامي الى محاصرته ومعاقبته، وعدم إعطائه مهلاً إضافية يمارس فيها حرب الإبادة ضد الشعب السوري.

كما يتوجه المجلس إلى دول العالم كافة لعزل النظام سياسياً ودبلوماسياً واقتصادياً من خلال وقف التعامل معه وسحب الاعتراف به، والسعي لاتخاذ جميع التددابير اللازمة لتوفير الحماية للمدنيين في سورية ومنع النظام من استخدام قواته العسكرية والأمنية في الفتك بهم.

المجلس الوطني السوري
الأمانة العامة
29 ت1/ اكتوبر 2011
32 minutes ago

I also want to express my (الامتعاض)from having to watch Bashar and his ugly hair style during his anticipated speech on Monday. I wish he changes his mind and “blesses” us with just an auditory message instead.

From the EU/al Qaeda/CIA/Jew/Saudi/Salafist Press:

Michael Kilo said today that Syrian protesters “do not fight for freedom. They fight because they have become free. They will never return to the prior March-17 conditions…”

Oppressed Turkish Kurds in Turkey retaliate as the death toll grows.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=update-3-suicide-bomber-kills-three-in-se-turkey-2011-10-29
Suicide bomber kills three in southeastern Turkey

Police said the woman had detonated explosives strapped to her body. They also said they were hunting for another suspected bomber, and a cordon had been thrown round the town, 110 km north of Diyarbakır, the region’s main city.

…In Diyarbakır, police used water cannons to disperse stone-throwing youths in a protest as the bodies of 24 militants from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) killed in a military operation more than a week ago were held in a morgue in nearby Malatya town.

The military killed 49 in total after mounting a hunt for PKK militants on the border with northern Iraq, after 24 Turkish soldiers were killed in simultaneous attacks on their posts in Hakkari last month, the most southeasterly province.

{…)

I believe the SNC secretariat’s statement amounts to their first, implicit request for international intervention.

By urging the international community to use all necessary measures (without stating exceptions), that would prevent the regime from using its forces to continue the killing and abuse of civilians, The SNC appears to have widened choices for changing the regime to include other than peaceful means!

You prevent armed forces from endangering civilians by doing two things:
– Establishing a protected zone (No-Fly-Zone)
– Providing fire power to enforce it; Availing on demand air-strikes against illegal air activity, anks, armored vehicles, and artillary should they endanger protected civilians.

Revlon

Any news about the move of the SNC to occupy the Syrian Embassy in Tripoli, since they got the recognition from the Libyan TNC?

That would be a good start as until now they got rebuffed by the AL and Egypt and a tap on the back from western countries.

They must try hard and come up with a political program for Syria, not only with a sterile “toppling” program that has become more confused than ever ( fly zone/no fly zone, NATO/ no NATO, peaceful/ armed). They are obviously totally lost.

Tara’s jihadist friends
استشهد طالب في كلية الطب البشري بجامعة ” البعث” في حمص يوم الخميس.
 
و علم عكس السير انه حوالي الساعة العاشرة والنصف من صباح الخميس، وقع اشتباك مسلح قرب كلية الطب البشري، حيث أصيب الشاب برصاصة واستشهد على الفور.

و ذكرت طالبة في كلية الطب البشري بجامعة البعث لـ عكس السير ان مسلحين هاجموا مركزا للشرطة قرب كلية الطب و الصيدلة ، حيث وقع اشتباك مسلح، فأصيب الطالب برصاصة ” طائشة”، واستشهد على الفور.

Russia does not seem to be impressed with Moualim’s astonishment over the AL’s discontent with killing 44 protesters on Friday. Check this out:

http://en.rian.ru/world/20111029/168252154.html

It seems that the make up dude is on a mission today, he doesn’t read news update.
Alakhbar published an apology and denies the news that Hasan Nasr Allah meet with Bashar Assad.

SNK,
For ‘some’ if the victim is an Alawite or if he or she is killed by the terrofrist it doesn’t count!

Our hope is for more defection in the syrian army,and for guerilla warfare,this will weaken the shabbiha,who will abandon the fight,assassination kidnaping and intimidation of the regime loyalist must be carried out,
AL is powerless, they can begin to recognize SNC one by one,they can expell Syria membership,and refer to UNSC some suggestion, UNSC will not do anything.
Massive arming of the FSA ,increase FSA activities in Homs and Hama area will seperate the Assad base in Qurdaha,from Damascus,and more defection in Idlib will isolate Aleppo.

Mini civil war should start in November.

Memo To: MAJEDKHALDOUN

RE: “…more defection in the syrian army, and for guerrilla warfare, this will weaken the shabbiha…”

Absolutely.

The shabeeha will head for the hills when they start shooting at people who shoot back.

Like Jim Morrison said:

Blood in the streets runs a river of sadness
Blood in the streets it’s up to my thigh
The river runs red down the legs of a city
The women are crying red rivers of weepin’

http://playwrighter.blogspot.com/2011/06/stuck-in-damascus-with-memphis-blues.html

Religion of the Syrian authorities

132. jad said:

Areal,
🙂 No I didn’t scan any ID, besides, the Syrian IDs don’t have any section for ‘sect’ or ‘religion’ in them.

REALITY

Any Syrian knows that there is no mention of the religion ( or sect ) in Syrian ID.
It is why I spoke ( jokingly ) of a special program to extract this information for the ID card .
In #98 I said “extracted the field religion to an Excel sheet using a special program developed by .”

You did not ask what kind of organization could develop such program to differentiate religion , sect from names , birth place , eye color , hair color , job , address , phone number ,…

Just tell me ** .

It is impossible to give a correct answer to such question and this is very fortunate in any DEMOCRATIC state.

Memo To: AREAL

RE: “…information for the ID card…”

Forget IDs! How about if everyone in Syria wore a name tag? It would make the country friendlier, yes?

Iraqi PM says 615 people detained in anti-Baathist security sweep

Saturday, October 29

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/iraqi-pm-says-615-people-detained-in-anti-baathist-security-sweep/2011/10/29/gIQAN97bSM_story.html

Arrests on this scale are likely to alarm Sunni Arabs, who consider use of the term “Baathists” by Iraq’s Shiite-dominated government to be a coded way to refer to Sunni politicians, army officers, and other prominent members of their community.

Sunnis say that Baghdad sometimes uses crackdowns on Baathists as a tool to exert political pressure. The arrests coincide with a recent autonomy push by a mostly-Sunni province in north-central Iraq, the latest bone of contention between Sunni political blocs and the Baghdad government.

11 die in bus ambush as Syrian violence surges
(The usual biased titles of AFP, it should say ’10 security agents ambushed and killed by an outlaw army deserter”

http://news.yahoo.com/syria-bloodletting-spurs-arab-warning-085449105.html

Ten Syrian security agents and an army deserter were killed in a bus ambush on Saturday, activists said, bringing the death toll from the worst surge of violence in six months to more than 60.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the bus was transporting security agents between the villages of Al-Habit and Kafrnabuda in Idlib province, close to the Turkish border, when it was ambushed “by armed men, probably deserters.”

The clash left 10 security agents and a deserter dead, said the Britain-based watchdog, which earlier reported 17 soldiers killed late on Friday in the central city of Homs when gunmen, believed to be army deserters, attacked two checkpoints.

MajedAlkadoon

Hoping for a mini civil war? Are you serious? A civil war can only escalate. Calling for a civil war is sick.

When is Ambassador Robert Ford going back to Syria? I got used to his face book writings. His commands on Syrian slang is admirable.

More Syrian soldiers killed on Saturday.
http://news.yahoo.com/syria-bloodletting-spurs-arab-warning-085449105.html

Twenty Syrian soldiers were killed on Saturday and 53 wounded in clashes with presumed army deserters, while 10 security agents and a deserter were killed in a bus ambush, activists said.

“Twenty soldiers perished on Saturday and 53 were wounded in clashes between the regular army and presumed deserters in the Baba Amro district of Homs,” said a statement from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights received in Nicosia.

The violence, in which loyalist and anti-regime casualties predominated in what is the worst surge of killing in six months, came as 12 civilians died and several were wounded by government gunfire.

Iran says ready for defense cooperation with Egypt, Libya

2011-10-30

http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.asp?id=26804

TEHRAN, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) — Iran’s defense minister said Saturday Iran is ready to initiate defense cooperation with Egypt and Libya, Mehr news agency reported.

Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said “Iran is ready to initiate cooperation, but they (Egypt and Libya) should also call for it.”

He said that Egypt and Libya are currently in transitional period, but there will be no problem for Iran to start cooperation with them in all areas including defense.

Commenting on the U.S. accusations that Iranian government was involved in a plot to assassinate Saudi Arabian ambassador to Washington, Vahidi said it is an old policy which repeatedly takes new shapes trying to put pressure on the Islamic republic.

Vahidi also criticized the European Union(EU) for following U.S. policies towards Iran. The EU’s support and imposition of more sanctions against Iran, is another link in the chain of the West’s actions against Iran, he said.

The United States said on Oct. 11 that Manssor Arbabsayara, a 56-year-old U.S. citizen holding both Iranian and U.S. passports, and Gholam Shakuri, a member of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps( IRGC), were charged with sponsoring and promoting terrorist activities abroad, including a plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States. Arbabsayara was arrested by U.S. authorities, while Shakuri remains in Iran.

The high-profile accusations have brought fresh tensions to relations between the two arch-foes, with Iran fiercely denying such charges.

Irritated
Civil war,it is the regime to blame,the regime is refusing to have real reform.

The pyromaniac firefighter hits again:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8857898/Assad-challenge-Syria-at-your-peril.html

In his first interview with a Western journalist since Syria’s seven-month uprising began, President Assad told The Sunday Telegraph that intervention against his regime could cause “another Afghanistan”.

Western countries “are going to ratchet up the pressure, definitely,” he said. “But Syria is different in every respect from Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen. The history is different. The politics is different.

“Syria is the hub now in this region. It is the fault line, and if you play with the ground you will cause an earthquake … Do you want to see another Afghanistan, or tens of Afghanistans?
.

General Majedkhaldoun:

Your post # 226 confirms my belief that you are insane.

Where did you learn this military planning skill ياعبقري? Is it the same spot where you learned history, because so far you display almost everyday a total failure of an educational system تعليمك فاشل يازعيمنا القبلي? Look at the link you asked me to read today and you could tell how weak وضحل is your perception of life.

Anyone who wishes a civil war and calls for it in his homeland is out of his mind.

REALIST OPPOSITION

Popular Front for Change and Liberation Stresses Rejection of Foreign Interference at Its 1st Conference

Oct 29, 2011

DAMASCUS, (SANA)- The Popular Front for Change and Liberation on Saturday stressed its rejection of all forms of foreign interference in the Syrian internal affairs, the call for external support and the violence, expressing support to national dialogue as the only way out from the crisis Syria is undergoing.

At the conclusion of its first conference held in Damascus, the opposition Front said the only way out of the current crisis is through national agreement between all the forces that stops the shedding of the Syrian blood, consolidate national unity and prevents any form of foreign interference.

The Front, which was established on July 9th, showed its readiness to open up to all the society’s vital forces of parties and national personalities and to boost cooperation with them.

The conference, which included the participation of 250 representatives from the various Syrian provinces, discussed the causes behind the crisis, the dangerous consequences that might result if it continues and the means to get out of it, highlighting two main dangers threatening the unity of the country’s territories and people which are represented in foreign interference and sedition.

The conference approved the Front’s objectives and strategy and its organizational list.
A 50 member central council, a 11 executive office and a 3 member presidency council were elected at the conference.

The presidency council comprises
head of the National Committee for the Unity of the Syrian Communists, Qadri Jamil,
head of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party, Ali Haidar and
Adel Neiseh.

“The convening of the Front’s first conference constitutes an important point in the political life in Syria,” said Qadri Jamil, noting the criticisms facing the Front.

“The slogan of ‘the overthrow of the regime’ is unpractical, unrealistic and useless,” Jamil added, pointing out that the change the Front is seeking to achieve is a change in the structure of the political system that brings about economic and social changes which will in turn ensure changing the pattern of the socio-economic relations, “which can’t be achieved without fighting and eradicating corruption.”

Jamil said this change can only be achieved through dialogue reflecting serious ideas and views in light of which Syria’s future can be drawn on the ground of the prevailing facts.

“Those who refuse dialogue are the ones who want to impose conditions and surrender on the other side,” he added, reaffirming that the call for dialogue requires providing the appropriate atmosphere.

Jamil reiterated the commitment of the Front, being part of the national opposition, with the peaceful popular movement in the efforts to eliminate the forms of armed acts and the gunmen’s siege and to deeply ally with the Syrian Arab Army in order to isolate the armed groups , to reach a safe exit and get to the national dialogue table.

He said the national committee charged with preparing a new constitution for Syria is “a technical committee in the first place, as it is the people who should discuss the constitution and approve it, especially that it will determine Syria’s future for the coming years in a way to guarantee reaching a civil democratic and pluralistic state, preserve the people’s rights and ensure all rights of citizenship for all the citizens regardless of their religion, sect, ethnicity, sex or political affiliation, with keeping and developing the economic and social gains existing in the current constitution.”

For his part, Ali Haidar, head of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party, said “As a front for change we are working on the ground of the victory of the Syrians on the bases of the real sovereignty and real freedom and not dependence on the outside.”

He underscored the importance of a serious and deep dialogue that realizes change in the interest of the homeland and the citizens as the way to get out of the current crisis.

http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/10/29/378687.htm

Anyone who wishes a civil war and calls for it on his homeland is a coward and a traitor.

BBC

بشار الاسد: “تدخل الغرب في سورية سيؤدي الى زلزال يحرق المنطقة”
آخر تحديث: السبت، 29 أكتوبر/ تشرين الأول، 2011، 22:39 GMT

بشار الاسد: سيقع زلزال اذا تدخل الغرب في سورية

قال الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد إن من شأن تدخل الغرب في بلاده ان يحدث زلزالا يحرق منطقة الشرق الاوسط برمتها.

وقال الرئيس السوري في مقابلة اجرتها معه صحيفة ديلي تلغراف اللندنية “إن سورية تعتبر الآن محور المنطقة، انها خط الصدع في الشرق الاوسط، ومن يتلاعب بها سيتسبب في حدوث زلزال. هل تريدون رؤية افغانستان ثانية هنا، او عشرات الافغانستانات؟”

ومضى الرئيس الأسد للقول: “أي مشكلة تقع في سورية ستحرق المنطقة برمتها، واذا كان خطة الغرب تقسيم سورية، فإن ذلك سينسحب على المنطقة كلها.”

وقال الرئيس السوري إن “الدول الغربية ستحاول بلا شك تصعيد الضغوط على سورية.”

ولكنا اضاف ان “سورية تختلف في كافة الأوجه عن مصر وعن تونس واليمن. فتاريخنا مختلف والوضع السياسي مختلف.”

واعترف الرئيس الأسد بأن السلطات السورية ارتكبت “العديد من الأخطاء” في الايام الاولى من الانتفاضة التي تشهدها البلاد، ولكنه اضاف ان الحكومة تداركت الامور وان الوضع الآن “افضل مما كان.”

وقال إن حكومته تعاملت مع ما يسمى بالربيع العربي بطريقة مغايرة للطريقة التي تعامل بها الزعماء العرب المطاح بهم (في تونس ومصر وليبيا)، حيث “اننا لم نسلك درب العناد.”

وقال “لقد اطلقت عملية الاصلاح بعد ستة ايام فقط من اندلاع الاحتجاجات (في مارس / آذار المنصرم). اعتقد كثيرون ان الاصلاحات التي اعلنا عنها كانت مجرد مخدر، ولكن المشاكل بدأت بالانحسار بعد ان الاعلان عن برنامج الاصلاح. كان ذلك ايذانا بتغير التيار، إذ بدأ الناس عندها بدعم الحكومة.”

It looks like a full blown civil war, Thanks to the Arab brothers, I wonder if Syria need to rethink it;s Arab association in the future, Does anybody think that there is a chance of civil war in Lebanon and ethnic cleansing in the Mideast if Syria is not left alone,

——————————————————————————–

مقتل عدد كبير من قوات الأمن والجيش، والمعلم ينتقد اللجنة العربية

إعداد أ ف ب بتاريخ 29/10/2011 – 21:11

أدت المواجهات العسكرية السبت بين قوات الأمن السورية والجيش من جهة، ومسلحين يعتقد أنهم منشقون عن الجيش من جهة أخرى إلى مقتل 30 عنصرا من قوات الأمن والجيش في كل من مدينة حمص ومنطقة إدلب، بعد أن كان 17 من عناصر الأمن والجيش قتلوا ليلة الجمعة السبت في مواجهات مماثلة.

الجيش يزرع ألغاما على الحدود مع لبنان والصين تجدد رفضها للتدخل الخارجي في الأزمة [1]

تصاعدت حدة المواجهات العسكرية السبت بين قوات الامن السورية والجيش من جهة، ومنشقين عن الجيش من جهة اخرى، ما ادى الى مقتل 30 عنصرا من قوات الامن والجيش في كل من مدينة حمص ومنطقة ادلب، اضافة الى منشق، بعد ان كان 17 من عناصر الامن والجيش قتلوا في حمص ليلة الجمعة السبت في مواجهات مماثلة، بحسب ما افاد المرصد السوري لحقوق الانسان.

كما سقط السبت 12 مدنيا برصاص قوات الامن السورية والجيش عشرة منهم في مدينة حمص.

فقد اعلن المرصد السوري لحقوق الانسان ان عشرين جنديا سوريا قتلوا السبت في مواجهات وقعت في مدينة حمص بين الجيش السوري ومنشقين عنه.

وقال المرصد في بيان صدر مساء السبت “خلال اشتباكات اليوم في حي بابا عمرو في حمص بين الجيش النظامي السوري ومسلحين يعتقد انهم منشقون، قتل 20 جنديا من الجيش النظامي السوري واصيب 53 بجروح نقلوا الى المشفى العسكري في حمص الذي لم يعد يتسع لمزيد من الجرحى، فجرى نقلهم الى مشفى جمعية النهضة في حي النزهة” في المدينة.

ونقل المرصد عن شهود عيان ان “آليات ضخمة قطرت خمس مدرعات للجيش محروقة في باب عمرو الى مكان آخر”.

واضاف الشهود انهم شاهدوا “ثلاثين سيارة اسعاف دخلت حي باب عمرو مرتين لنقل المصابين”.

وكان المرصد اشار الى مقتل 17 عنصرا من الجيش وقوى الامن ليلة الجمعة السبت في حمص في اشتباكات مع منشقين.

كما اعلن المرصد ان مسلحين يرجح انهم من المنشقين عن الجيش نصبوا كمينا السبت لقافلة لقوى الامن السورية في محافظة ادلب ما ادى الى مقتل عشرة عناصر من قوى الامن واحد المنشقين.

وقال المرصد في بيان “استشهد 11 شخصا في محافظة ادلب بينهم 10 من عناصر الامن ومنشق وذلك اثر كمين نصب لحافلة كانت تقل عناصر من الامن بين قريتي الهبيط وكفرنبودة من قبل مسلحين يعتقد انهم منشقون”.

واضاف البيان ان “ناشطا من منطقة ادلب ابلغ المرصد السوري لحقوق الانسان ان خمسة من عناصر الامن قتلوا في البداية وبعد الاشتباك قتل خمسة اخرون من الامن كما قتل شخص من المنشقين وهو من سكان قرية كرناز في ريف حماة”.

وتكررت خلال الفترة الاخيرة الاشتباكات بين قوات الامن والجيش من جهة والمنشقين عن الجيش من جهة اخرى، ودعت صفحة الثورة السورية على موقع فيسبوك الناشطين المعارضين السوريين الى التظاهر الجمعة للمطالبة بفرض منطقة حظر جوي على سوريا لحماية المدنيين و”للسماح للجيش السوري الحر بالتحرك بحرية اكثر”.

وكان اعلن في تموز/يوليو الماضي عن انشاء “الجيش السوري الحر” بقيادة العقيد المنشق رياض الاسعد اللاجىء في تركيا.

واضافة الى القتلى من العسكريين والمنشقين سقط 12 قتيلا مدنيا برصاص قوات الامن السورية والجيش في مدينة حمص وريفها.

وقال المرصد “استشهد عشرة مدنيين السبت في حمص خلال قصف بالرشاشات الثقيلة ورصاص قناصة واطلاق رصاص من قبل الامن والجيش في احياء بابا عمر ودير بعلبة وباب الدريب وكرم الزيتون والبياضة”.

واضاف المرصد “كما وردت انباء مؤكدة للمرصد ان هناك شهداء مدنيين قتلوا داخل منازلهم في حي بابا عمرو لم يتمكن المرصد من احصاء اعدادهم”.

كما اعلن المرصد ان “سيدة في الخامسة والاربعين من العمر استشهدت في بلدة تلبيسة في محافظة حمص اثر اصابتها برصاص قناصة كانوا على حاجز الى جانب ملعب المدينة”.

وبحسب المصدر نفسه ايضا “استشهد فتى يبلغ ال15 من العمر واصيب ثلاثة اشخاص اخرين بجروح اثر اطلاق رصاص من قبل قوات الامن السورية في مدينة القصير في محافظة حمص”.

من جهة اخرى، اعتقلت قوات الامن السورية صباح السبت عشرة اشخاص في اطار حملة مداهمات واعتقالات في قرية الدوير بمنطقة حمص بحثا عن مطلوبين للاجهزة الامنية.

سياسيا، وردا على قيام اللجنة الوزارية العربية المكلفة الملف السوري بتوجيه “رسالة عاجلة” مساء الجمعة الى الرئيس السوري اعربت فيها عن “امتعاضها لاستمرار عمليات القتل” وطالبت بفعل “ما يلزم لحماية المدنيين”، انتقد وزير الخارجية السوري وليد المعلم السبت اللجنة ورئيسها وزير الخارجية القطري الشيخ حمد بن جاسم آل ثاني.

ونقل مصدر في الخارجية السورية عن وزير الخارجية السوري قوله أنه كان من المفترض برئيس اللجنة الوزارية العربية الاتصال بوزير الخارجية السوري للاطلاع على الرواية الحكومية للاحداث قبل الاعلان عن موقف للجنة “تروج له قنوات التحريض المغرضة”.

وأعرب المصدر عن استغراب وزارة الخارجية السورية اصدار لجنة الجامعة العربية تلك الرسالة قبل يوم واحد من عقد اجتماع متفق عليه في الدوحة بين الحكومة السورية واللجنة.

وكان الوفد الوزاري العربي المكلف بالوساطة بين القيادة السورية والمعارضة التقى الاربعاء الماضي الرئيس السوري وبحث معه سبل الخروج من الازمة، وتم الاتفاق على عقد اجتماع اخر بين اللجنة العربية والقيادة السورية الاحد.

من جهته، دعا الامين العام للامم المتحدة بان كي مون السبت الى “انهاء العمليات العسكرية ضد المدنيين على الفور” في سوريا.

وقال مارتن نسيركي المتحدث باسم بان ان الاخير طلب ايضا “الافراج عن كل السجناء السياسيين والموقوفين لمشاركتهم في تظاهرات” الاحتجاج مضيفا ان “العنف غير مقبول ويجب وقفه فورا” داعيا السلطات السورية الى اجراء “اصلاحات طموحة” لتلبية مطالب الشعب.

وفي القاهرة دعت لجنة العلاقات العربية في اتحاد كتاب مصر في بيان السبت الى تجميد عضوية سوريا في الجامعة العربية وكذلك تجميد عضوية اتحاد كتاب سوريا في اتحاد الكتاب العرب.

ودعا البيان الى “مسيرة تتجه الى مقر جامعة الدول العربية في +يوم التضامن مع الثورة السورية+ في الثاني من تشرين الثاني/نوفمبر لتعلن خلالها المطالبة بتجميد عضوية سوريا في كل من الجامعة العربية واتحاد الكتاب العرب وذلك للوقوف الى جانب الشعب السوري في ثورته ضد النظام الاستبدادي الذي يستخدم العنف والقتل لقمع الثورة”.

من جهة اخرى، اكدت شركة اميركية متخصصة بوسائل مراقبة الانترنت ان النظام السوري يستخدم هذه الوسائل لتعطيل انشطة المعارضين السوريين عبر الشبكة العنكبوتية.

واوضح مسؤول في شركة “بلو كوت سيستمز” التي مقرها في كاليفورنيا لفرانس برس ان انظمة لمراقبة الانترنت كانت بيعت الى وزارة الاتصالات العراقية يتم استخدامها في سوريا، مؤكدا انه يجهل كيفية وصول هذه المعدات الى النظام السوري.

وقال المسؤول في الشركة “بما اننا لم نبع هذه المعدات (لسوريا)، فاننا لا نعلم التفاصيل”، لافتا الى ان 13 على الاقل من الاجهزة ال14 التي تم بيعها تستخدم في سوريا. ويبدو هذا العدد كافيا للسيطرة على شبكة الانترنت ومراقبتها.

وكانت سوريا شهدت الجمعة واحدا من اسوأ الايام في درجة العنف منذ اسابيع قتل خلاله 36 مدنيا برصاص حي اطلقته قوات الامن لتفريق تظاهرات خصوصا في حمص وحماة (وسط)، كما سقط ليلة الجمعة السبت 17 على الاقل من عناصر الامن والجيش قتلوا في مواجهات مع منشقين في حمص.

وقال رئيس المرصد السوري لحقوق الانسان رامي عبد الرحمن ان اكثر من مئة شخص جرحوا واعتقل 500 آخرون في جميع انحاء سوريا في اطار التظاهرات التي جرت الجمعة في انحاء عدة من سوريا.

وتشهد سوريا منذ منتصف اذار/مارس حركة احتجاجية لا سابق لها اسفر قمعها من جانب السلطات عن مقتل اكثر من ثلاثة آلاف شخص بينهم 187 طفلا على الاقل بحسب الامم المتحدة.

وتتهم دمشق “عصابات ارهابية مسلحة” بزعزعة الامن والاستقرار في البلاد.

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Source URL: http://www.france24.com/ar/20111029-syria-politics-security-agents-army-deserter-killed-ambush-activists-violence-human-rights-unrest

Links:
[1] http://www.france24.com/ar/20111027-syria-lebanon-mines-borders-china-exterior-intervention-refuse

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It is now clear that the number of victims of violence among the army and security forces is rapidly increasing due to the influx of arms into Syria and the defection of soldiers who are not happy with the involvement of the army in this uprising.
A number of you are celebrating the fact that more Syrians are getting killed and they see this as a just reaction to the killing of anti regime protestors,armed and unarmed.
Two questions arise: what is the end game? And what do you think the likely reaction from Syrians,not just the regime,to this armed rebellion?
My sense is that supporters of armed resistance know that they can not win militarily against the army without outside help,namely NATO,they want the number of casualities to increase to the point where resistance to foreign intervention ends and the AL declares that Syrians need protection from their own government,then NATO will start a new military adventure in the Middle East.
It is a race between hawks and doves,and the only way for doves to win is to distract the hawks and push them to run backward. For the time being more Syrians,most are innocent or at least not deserving to die,will lose their lives.
Time will tell if my predictions are right,but I believe that military solution to Syria’s crisis will fail,this is not Libya,guys.

Mjabali
It is you who is INSANE, you are alcoholic drunken person,you dont know history, you never been in the army,you are good for nothing, and you worth nothing.

everyone is saying that Syria is going to be in a state of civil war, even your God, the children killer,the murderer the most criminal person, is saying there will be civil war,if you have one cell in your brain, which I doubt, you would agree that Syria is heading toward civil war, you are waste of human .

Memo To: BESHO

RE: “…Syria is different in every respect from Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen…”

You wish!

Like the man in the movie said, “You’re going to die bloody. And the only choices you have are where and when.”

Ghufran
How do you expect people to defend themselves against Shabbiha, regime gang?Shabbiha and the army now are killing demonstrators, thos demonstrators have the right of self defense,how do you suggest to do that?

Queation of the day…

If Ann could save Besho by sacrificing her life for his, would she?

Ghufran,

I agree,

Dear majed,
I have no doubt that most of us have one thing in common: we want the blood shed to end and we want a better life and better government in Syria.
The regime carries most of the blame for the situation we are in today,and it was the regime who used violence first,and yes people have the right to defend themselves and that is also true for members of the army.
My question remains though,what will an armed rebellion achieves and at what cost?
It is a big gamble to bet on the FSA to bring this crisis to an end and it is totally unacceptable to wait for NATO to save Syrian lives. A sustained non violent resistance may not be emotionally satisfying to many Syrians for good reasons but it is the right thing to do. I am a fierce opponent of Bashar,his family,almoukhabarat and albaath,not because I hate alawites but because Syria suffered so much because of this regime,but the answer is not a blood bath or a campaign to kill as many soldiers as possible. You may or may not know this,but you probably agree that a large number of those being killed from all sides do not deserve to die. I am afraid that a civil war may be taking shape in Syria and it will not spare anybody. The regime,like it or not,still has a lot of support and a huge pile of weapons,and thinking that the FSA and the SNC can forcefully remove this regime is mostly for PR purposes,the real goal is to invite foreign intervention,and that is something I am absolutely against. I hope all of us can disagree without exchanging ugly charges and insults,I have not yet met a Syrian who hates his country.

Dear Norman
I agree that we do not want NATO to destroy Syria, and I am against it,but you asked
“what will an armed rebellion achieves and at what cost?”
Armed rebelion will change the balance of power,now is heavily tilted toward the regime, Shabbiha are free slaughtering civilian, they have to be neutralized, so the people must carry arms to defend themselves against such Shabbiha and security forces who are killing the syrians.
The cost will be heavy, but think about it this way, if everyday we have 20-40 syrian killed by Shabbiha,over a year will lose over 10,000 life at least those who died deserve someone to defend them,it is the regime to blame.
As far as insult it was Mjabali who started the personal attack,and he deserve that back.

People bush others, and so those who are pushed has to push back.

Norman
The goverment must serve the interest of the people, and should fear the people,not to be much stronger than the people,the goverment power should come from people support.

I wonder if the leaving of Iraq by the American forces will accelerate the invasion of Syria to save on transportation, the controlled chaos of the Mideast is becoming more and more uncontrolled.

The Arabs are in trouble, They were responsible for the destruction of Iraq, then Libya, next is Syria ,

When the Mongols invaded the Abbasid Khalifa, the Amir said , they would leave Baghdad for me wouldn’t they, they ended their invasion by killing him and raping his daughters,

That is what is going to happen to the city states and their Khailfas of the Gulf.

My comment # 250 is directed to Ghufran not Norman.,sorry.

Majedalkhakdoon

“Shabbiha and the army now are killing demonstrators, thos demonstrators have the right of self defense,how do you suggest to do that?\”

Simple! They say home and don’t demonstrate for a week.

Syria’s Assad warns of “earthquake” if West intervenes
By Ralph Gowling | Reuters
http://news.yahoo.com/syrias-assad-warns-earthquake-west-intervenes-000302411.html
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Western powers risk causing an “earthquake” across the Middle East if they intervene in Syria, President Bashar al-Assad said, after protesters called for foreign protection from a crackdown in which 3,000 people have been killed.

Assad’s warning came ahead of Syrian government talks on Sunday with the Arab League aimed at starting a dialogue between the government and opposition and ending violence which has escalated across Syria in recent days.

Activists said Syrian forces killed more than 50 civilians in the last 48 hours and one activist group said suspected army deserters killed 30 soldiers in clashes in the city of Homs and in an ambush in the northern province of Idlib on Saturday.

Assad’s suppression of the seven-month uprising has drawn criticism from the United Nations and Arab League. Western governments have called on him to step down and imposed sanctions on Syrian oil exports and state businesses.

Western countries “are going to ratchet up the pressure, definitely,” Assad told Britain’s Sunday Telegraph newspaper.

“But Syria is different in every respect from Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen. The history is different. The politics is different.”

“Syria is the hub now in this region. It is the fault line, and if you play with the ground you will cause an earthquake.”

WESTERN STANCE

NATO military intervention in Libya played a decisive role in toppling Muammar Gaddafi, the third Arab leader to be overthrown after the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt.

Western nations have shown no appetite to repeat their Libyan operation in Syria, but demonstrators are increasingly calling for a “no-fly zone” over their country.

“Do you want to see another Afghanistan, or tens of Afghanistans?” Assad said. “Any problem in Syria will burn the whole region. If the plan is to divide Syria, that is to divide the whole region.”

Since the start of protests in March, Syrian authorities have blamed the violence on foreign-backed gunmen and religious extremists they say have killed 1,100 soldiers and police.

Syria has barred most international media, making it hard to verify accounts from activists and authorities.

But the resilience of the protesters, the determination of authorities to crush dissent and the emerging armed insurgency have combined to make Syria’s turmoil one of the most intractable confrontations of this year’s Arab uprisings.

Assad, whose father put down an armed Muslim Brotherhood uprising in the city of Hama in 1982, killing many thousands, said the latest crisis was part of the same conflict.

“We’ve been fighting the Muslim Brotherhood since the 1950s and we are still fighting with them,” he said.

Authorities had made “many mistakes” in the early part of the uprising, but he said the situation had now improved and that he had started implementing reform within a week of the troubles erupting in mid-March.

“The pace of reform is not too slow. The vision needs to be mature. It would take only 15 seconds to sign a law, but if it doesn’t fit your society, you’ll have division,” he said.

Assad’s opponents say although he lifted emergency law and gave citizenship to thousands of stateless Kurds, his promises of reform ring hollow while security forces kill protesters and arrest thousands of people. They also say protests are driven by a desire for greater freedoms, not by an Islamist agenda.

Friday’s shooting of demonstrators prompted Arab ministers to issue their strongest call yet on Assad to end the killing of civilians.

The Arab League’s committee on the Syrian crisis sent an “urgent message to the Syrian government expressing its severe discontent over the continued killing of Syrian civilians.”

A source at Syria’s Foreign Ministry, quoted by state media, said the Arab League statement was “based on media lies” and urged the committee to “help restore stability in Syria instead of stirring sedition.”

An Arab League ministerial group is due to meet Syrian officials on Sunday in Qatar to press for dialogue between the government and opposition.

Syria, a majority Sunni Muslim nation of 20 million people, is dominated by Assad’s minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam.

Aware of potentially seismic geopolitical implications if Assad were to fall, leaders in the mostly Sunni Arab world have been cautious about criticising the Syrian president as they struggle with domestic challenges to their own rule.

Sunni ascendancy in Syria could affect Israel and shake up regional alliances. Assad strengthened ties with Shi’ite Iran while also upholding his father’s policy of avoiding conflict with Israel on the occupied Golan Heights frontier.

Syria has barred most international media, making it hard to verify accounts from activists and authorities.

Irritated
If the demonstrators stay home it means defeat and the regime won, this is not an acceptable solution,the battle is still raging,and the only outcome as history tells us is that the people usually win.

222. Dear Bronco,

“Any news about the move of the SNC to occupy the Syrian Embassy in Tripoli, since they got the recognition from the Libyan TNC?”

– With the withdrawal of the legitimacy of the regime by a significant chunk of the Syrian public, their representation of have become doubtful at best.
On the other hand, The SNC, although supported by the Revolution, it does not literally represent them; They do not make such a claim. It is merely a an opposisional political block with large support on the ground; they do not claim to represent all of the opposition either.

The Libyan new government’s decision to suspend the regime’s legal ownership to the embassy until the resolution of the ongoing strife has been is a wise one.

“They must try hard and come up with a political program for Syria, not only with a sterile “toppling” program that has become more confused than ever ( fly zone/no fly zone, NATO/ no NATO, peaceful/ armed). They are obviously totally lost.”

– The political agenda of the SNC for post-Asad phase is that of its six forming political blocks; It is quite diverse!
Evey one of them has issued detailed statements on their political vision, and some on their economic plans for post-Asad Syria.

Added, other social forces in the society also met in Cairo two months ago and issued a statement on their vision for a strong harmonious relations between all constituents of the Syrian. nation.

There is no single vision for post-Asad Syria; we are trying to do away with one, not just to replace it with another!
All political forces are going to need time to lobby in a safe environment in order to make their voices heard by those who count, the Syrian people, the voters!

Only then, the relevence and legitimacy of any political and economical plan can be tested and be said to have passed or failed the test!

Cheers!

Zoo
Bashar said there will be earthquake that will burn the whole Middle East,if the west attack Syria
I found this delusional, Does he think that Russia will interfere militarily, or would Iran jump in, or is it that he will attack Israel that will cause the burning, It is what Saddam said, He called it the mother of all battles, it is what Gaddafi said,neither Russia nor Israel did anything,I believe he is miscalculating.

MajedAlkhaldoon

After 7 months, they achieved nothing but death and escalation of violence. Now like the Libyans they are begging the foreign countries for a help they won’t get. I call this a dead end.

Don’t you think it’s time for a ceasefire and negotiation?

Memo To: ZOOEY

RE: “…Syria’s Assad warns of “earthquake” if West intervenes…”

Reminds me of Saddam’s “Mother of all Battles” speech just before the liberation of Baghdad. When the US troops neared Baghdad, all the Iraqi soldiers threw down their rifles and ran away. The Mother of all Battles went poof!

I expect the reality of Besho’s “earthquake” is a slight tremor. Even so, he needn’t worry. No one’s going to invade Syria. Let Besho keep his useless throne and let his own people kill him.

BTW, when Besho does die, it will be at the hand of someone he trusts implicitly. Arabs are very good at betrayal. Besho should be very careful about his food. And he should change houses frequently.

Majedalkhaldoon

If you read the whole article, it does say that the danger of an “earthquake” is not an illusion but a reality Arab leaders fear.

“Aware of potentially seismic geopolitical implications if Assad were to fall, leaders in the mostly Sunni Arab world have been cautious about criticising the Syrian president as they struggle with domestic challenges to their own rule.”

http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/10/30/174397.html

محللون سياسيون: مهمة اللجنة الوزارية كانت لـ “إبراء الذمة”
النظام السوري يعمل على نسف مبادرة الجامعة العربية ومستمر في قتل المدنيين

“أجمع محللون سياسيون على أن النظام السوري يعمل على نسف مبادرة الجامعة العربية لحل الأزمة في سوريا، من خلال لهجته، واستمرار عمليات القتل ضد المدنيين، وأن الوقت قد أوشك على نهاية هذا النظام.

فقد قال جمال زايدة، مدير تحرير جريدة الأهرام للشؤون السياسية، إن النظام السوري لم يعطِ الفرصة للرسائل التي جاءت سواءاً من الجانب الروسي أو الصيني أو من جانب اللجنة العربية المنبثقة من جامعة الدول العربية أو حتى الرسالة التي وجهتها بريطانيا بضرورة تقديم حلول على أرض الواقع فيما يتعلق بوقف العنف ومنع مواجهة المتظاهرين بالقتل والاستماع إلى مطالب الشعب السوري.

وقال زايدة في حديثه لبرنامج “بانوراما” الذي بثته شاشة “العربية إن النظام السوري يهدف إلى نسف مهمة اللجنة العربية من خلال لهجته التحريضية ورفضه للرسالة التي أرسلتها اللجنة العربية إلى دمشق، والادعاء بهذا الكلام الفارغ فيما يتعلق باستخدام قنوات تحريضية، وهذه لغة تلجأ إليها الأنظمة الشمولية في مرحلة ما قبل السقوط.

وأشار زايدة إلى أن الوقت قد أزف، وأوشك على الانتهاء أمام النظام السوري، وأن مهمة اللجنة الوزارية كانت لإبراء ذمة الجامعة العربية إزاء الشعب السوري، وإزاء الشعوب العربية مجتمعة.”

On 29 Oct Tartous had yet another festivity in support of the regime and the regime’s reforms. (SANA). Tartous city has certainly had by far the most pro-regime festivities of any town in Syria this year. (In addition I’ve been told that Tartous province didn’t have any anti-regime demonstration at all this year and is the only Syrian province where that’s true).

Saturday’s Tartous congregation was organized by a group called Clever Woman Society. You know you’d never see an anti-regime demonstration anywhere in Syria organized or supported by any sort of a clever-woman group. Virtually all educated women support the regime and the regime’s reforms, and that includes the educated women who are conservative in their religion.

Vaguely relatedly, a well-known commentator says about Tunisia (I usually can’t agree with this commentator, and I don’t know enough about Tunisia to know if he’s not mistaken again, but I think this time he’s right):

This year’s Tunisian revolution was not a middle class achievement but was, on the contrary, driven forward by young men and women on the margin of society, bitter at their own misery and at the corruption of the former ruling elite. Of all the political parties, the Islamic Arab parties can justly claim to be closest to the common people and the underprivileged. But in most Arab countries, the Islamists will be constrained by the counter-weight of long-established secularists. Tunisia’s large and educated middle class will be a force that Tunisia’s Islamic political party will have to accommodate.

This year’s Syrian protests were not supported by women of any class and were opposed by virtually all of the middle class. See sterotypical photo of people leaving the Umayyad Square pro-regime rally on 26 Oct 2011, scroll to bottom of photo:
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/298519_277460735621580_213648502002804_902236_1098039169_n.jpg

Irritated,

The opposition do not want peaceful solution, they want the destruction of Arab Nationalism that has been a sore in the side of the other Arab states that fear Syria’s nationalistic stand the destruction of the Syrian Arab army and the Baath party, for all these reasons, the chance of negotiation with the opposition is gone , now the time for total win by the government and pushing through the reform and the feel of respect that the Syrian people deserve.

Zoo
The Arab spring,Awakening, will temprarily ends when Bashar is ousted,the sooner this happen,the more relax the kings will feel,in another 5-10 years the Arab spring will reach KSA and other countries.
Bashar now is scared to death,what do you think he will say on monday ? he probably say the conspiracy theory,and tell the syrian the west is planing to attack Syria

MajedAlkhadoon

Bashar is scared? Of what?
He has active and powerful allies. His enemies, the EU and US are paralyzed after having applied all the sanctions they could. The foreign based opposition is divided and is getting little help except from regular media outcries and some timid encouragement from western countries and pro-Israel journalists. The Free Syrian Army is increasingly violent and is giving the best excuse for Bashar to crush it once for all as these killings are very unpopular with common syrian citizens whose sons are in the army.

If the opposition was courageous, they’ll become a political party and fight with the voices they can get. But they know they won’t get much votes, so they persist in sterile demonstrations. Their calls for countrywide strikes was a fiasco.

I think Bahsar’s speech will be like Turkey’s president when 20 Turkish soldiers were killed 2 weeks ago. He will vow tougher actions on the killers of the army soldiers and no mercy for whoever defend their acts. He will also present the plans of reforms in detail.

Somebody said that the man that intend on revenge, should dig two graves, one for his enemy and one for himself .

الجبهه الشعبيه للتحرير و التغيير
http://www.kassioun.org/index.php?mode=article&id=17487
The idea of recruiting secular opposition members must be encouraged.
The SNC is one part of the opposition,it is not THE opposition. We should not assume that the SNC represents all or most anti regime forces.
They have the right to speak and organize,and so do we.

The West is hijacking Arab revolutions to the benefit of Islamists

By RAGHIDA DERGHAM

Sunday, 30 October 2011

http://english.alarabiya.net/views/2011/10/30/174441.html

There are two schools of thought that do not agree with the opinion that there is no escape from accepting the movements of “moderate Islam” because they have been victorious in the revolutions and base themselves on the change brought by the Arab Spring. Those two schools do not agree that the Arab Spring is the spring of Islamists, and they do not agree to the claim that they are the makers of the Arab awakening or spring. These two schools want to stop the Islamists from hijacking the Arab Awakening and climbing to power with the help of the West, whether the latter is naïve or ill-intentioned.

One school says: let the Islamists rule the Arab region, as this is an opportunity to prove their failure at controlling a people that does not want them. Those affiliated with this school point to Hamas and the Palestinian people’s reactions to it, in not accepting it and Islamist rule. They believe that the Arab people will defeat Islamist movements, and that they will fail. Then the modernists will return nearly victorious and welcomed by the people, and things will move forward. This then is an opportunity to prove the sure failure of Islamists, so let them fail.

The other school says: the greatest mistake is for the modernists to dwindle and withdraw from the battle now, because the Islamists reaching power will consolidate their rule for decades, not years. We must therefore immediately demand a transitional phase that would give these movements the opportunity to organize into political parties and enter the elections.

This is while bearing in mind that the only organized party is that of the Islamists, having been the only opposition movement under the former rulers. Those who are of this opinion insist on yielding neither to the cunning of the Islamists nor to the naivety of the West, and on launching an awareness campaign for world public opinion about Islamists and Western governments hijacking the Arab Spring in order to exclude the modernists, young and old equally.

It would be more logical for Western capitals to hear and to listen closely, because their partnership in hijacking the Arab youth’s ambitions of freedom, pluralism, democracy and modernity will come at high cost for them – not just for the path of change that has emerged from the soul of the youths of the Arab Spring.

SNP’s paramilitia is in with the regime’s in the ongoing crackdown on civilian demonstrators and activists!

Syrian Revolution Intelligence System جهاز إستخبارات الثورة
السورية
30/10/2011
http://www.facebook.com/Syria.Revolution.Intelligence
ادلب ليكس Idlib leaks
الى احرار مدينة ادلب احذروا شبيحة ما يسمى الحزب القومي السوري التالية اسماؤهم ولم ننشر هذه الاسماء حتى تأكدنا من الافعال المؤذية التي يقومون بها بحق ثوار مدينة ادلب:
محمد خلوف: يملك سيارة شيفرولية سماوية اللون ويعمل ببيع الادوية وقدم سلمه الامن العسكري بندقية.
شكيب تركماني: يعمل بالديكور وايضاً استلم بندقية وقد شوهد يضع قناعاً ويندس بين المتظاهرين.
محمد سليم معاز: يملك محل العاب قرب البرج وقد شوهد حين هاجم شبيحة آل عثمان المتظاهرين حيث كان معهم ويحمل بندقية كلاشنكوف.
جورج ميشيل جبور: شوهد عدة مرات في سيارة من نوع كيا سيارتو ومعه كلاشنكوف وكان بجانبه شخص ملثم على الارجح هو احد الاشخاص السالفي الذكر.
ملاحظة: هؤلاء بدأت تظهر عليهم مظاهر الترف والاموال حتى ان جورج ومحمد قد اشتروا سيارتيهما بعد حصول الثورة السورية وامتدادها الى مدينة ادلب وان الحزب الذين هم اعضاء فيه شوهدت اعلامه في المسييرات المؤيدة بحلب ودمشق واللاذقية وهو يشبه اشارة النازية.
وهم يتعاملون مساعد اول بالامن العسكري يدعى ابو حبيب وهو من مدينة بانياس

8 hours ago

Denver Police Fire Rubber Bullets On Occupy Denver Protesters

Video of Mortally wounded A7mad martini.
He fell martyr in the courtyard of the mosque by Thug One’s mob forces who were trying to smother the civilian crowd’s chants even inside the mosque!

AlFati7a upon his soul,
May God bless his family with solace and empower them with patience.

Abderra7man Ibn 3of Mosque, AlQusoor, Hama city
Fridy of the No-Fly-Zone
28/10/2011

حماه الشهيد أحمد مارتيني داخل مسجد عبد الرحمن بن عوف – سوريا – أموي

Defiant Baba 3amr
A video contrasting the powerful impact of Graffiti of peaceful activists with counterpart of armed Thug One’s forces on the walls of a public School!
Indeed Syria is a hostage to terrorist gangs; Thug One is their boss!

Baba 3mar suburb, Homs
29/10/2011

باباعمرو قصف مدرسة عائشة أم المؤمنين حتى المدرسة لم تسلم من إرهابيين بشار الأسد 29 10 2011 – سوريا – أموي

So “activists of الجبهه الشعبيه للتحرير و التغيير
were able to move across Syria and hold an unauthorised antiregime meeting in Damascus!

Well, the poor young men in the video linked to hereunder could not make it past the Mosques’gate without being rounded up by Thug One’s army; their crime was making antiregime chants!

One more thing that this video highlights is the infiltration of praying crowds by informants with beards, and wearing traditional outfits of pious Muslems (Frames at 8 and 58 seconds).

28 10 2011هجوم الامن على مصلين واعتقال عدد منهم وضربهم حمص حي الملعب مدخل جامع عمر بن الخطاب – سوريا – أموي
Omar Ibn AlKha66ab’s Monsque
AlMal3am neighbourhood, Homs
Friday of the No-Fly-Zone.

A video showing the impact of artillery/tank shelling on a house.
Talbeeseh town, Homs Governorate.

29 9 2011 Talbeseh Homs أوغاريت تلبيسة حمص اصابة بيت بأكثر من قذيفة أثر القصف الشديد

Mother mourning her son, Ma7mood Junaid.
May God avenge my son’s death….
May God avenge my son’s death…

Baba 3amr suburb of Homs

29 10 2011Homs أوغاريت حمص , باباعمرو الشهيد محمود جنيد وامه تبكيه مقطع مؤثر

A little boy, the son of Jasem Azza3noofeh, Sheikh of Bani-Khaled’s tribe mourns the death of his father at the hands of Thug One’s forces!

Deir B3albi, Homs

29 10 2011 Homs أوغاريت حمص , دير بعلبة , الشهيد جاسم الزعنوفة ووداع ابنه له

الشاعرة بيان حوى
On Zeinab’s plight!
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=267919109912711&set=a.236523519718937.52736.236519286386027&type=1

“” قضية زينب “” و افتراءات الشبيحة

أقزامك يا باغي كذبوا ………. قد وهموا الزمن بنيسانِ

من أخبر عن زينب خبراً ؟ …….. أنّ الجثة عند الجاني ؟

من أضنى الأمّ بفلذتها ………. ماتت عاشت بعد ثواني

من أخرج أمراً بوفاةٍ ؟………… من أمر بدفن الجثمانِ ؟

إن كان الفاعل مجهولاً ………… و الأمن يهيم كسكرانِ

فالسحق لثلةٍ زعران ………….. حكمت والثمن بجولان

مِن صَفْع ِ الأعداء نعامه … و على الشعب كما الشجعان

و قرابته الخائن رامي…………… قد قَرن الأمن بإعلان:

أنّ الأمن باسرائيل ٍ ……………. هو للدولة حصن أمانِ

أ سْرائيلٌ أمنها فرضٌ ؟!! … في عنق الأمن الخوّانِ ؟؟!!

فالمقتول بعرفك جاني …………… و الجاني نبعٌ لحنانِ

أفٍّ من قسمتك الحمقى ……….. ياعبداً عند السّجان

حسناً يافلتة أزماني …….. ليس لزينب ذا الجثمان !!!!

أو أن الزّينب قد بُعثت !؟!………. فالحاكم كإلهٍ ثاني !!!

عذراً فهو الربّ الأول ……………. و أخوه هو ربٌّ ثاني

قد حنّ على زينب لحظة …………. فأعاد الروح لاركانِ

لكنّي قد حرت كثيراً ………….. فالجثة هزّت وجداني

إن كانت زينب أو أخرى ….. أفليس الجسد لإنسانِ؟؟!!

أم أنّها بنتٌ فائضةٌ …………. عن بعض قطيع الخرفان

و جعلت الجثّة كالدّمية !! .. هل تبدو مثل الملكانِ ؟؟!!

ما أقبح عقل المخبول ………… يتخبط بالحمق يعاني

جعل الجثة مثل كمين ٍ ………. نصبت لجموع الإعلانِ

Assad: challenge Syria at your peril
Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, has warned that Western action against his country would cause an “earthquake” that would “burn the whole region”. – http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8857898/Assad-challenge-Syria-at-your-peril.html

OBSERVATION: This is his threat against Syrians, warning them what he has in store for them.

The whole place can go up in flames and Syrians die in their tens of thousands, that’s what he’ll make happen if anyone tries to stop him doing another Hama (or two or three).

Please tell us, Assad apologists, how many other countries in history have had their citizens killed and threatened en masse in this way by their “leader” so he can keep personal power? Not many.

The protests were dying in Syria, the West decided to eliminate Qaddafi and bet it would incite more, with the little help of satellite channels.
The Syrian opposition was in total confusion and internal fights, the West comes with a so-called interview (3 sentences, the rest is written by the journalist). Today all radios in Europe have something to speak about instead of the job cuts: “Bashar’s threats,” as they put it. Of course, nothing about the actual geopolitics of the conflict, that is that indeed, if you attack Hamas and Hizbollah, you risk a strong reaction. When this was true for Israel, they would say it, but when it is about Syria, no comment.

I still don’t see the full interview although there are two articles!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/8857883/Syrias-President-Assad-I-live-a-normal-life-its-why-Im-popular.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8857898/Assad-challenge-Syria-at-your-peril.html

In an economic crisis, journalists are also scared for their jobs. It is just very obvious. Didn’t Assange call them ‘criminals’ recently when he appeared at the London “Indignés” protest?

TECHTONIC WEAPONS

Seems that after inventing the global continent eraser, and later ANN, the SYRIA-IRAN labs have finally up with the geo techtonic weapons.

@ SYRIALOVER

Please tell us, Assad apologists, how many other countries in history have had their citizens killed and threatened en masse in this way by their “leader” so he can keep personal power? Not many.

They will not answer because the answer foretells Mr. Al-Assad’s inevitable future, but I’ll chance it.

LIBYA

Zoo,
“Bashar is scared? Of what?”
Israel

The US, proudly defending gerontocracies and theocracies whatever it will cost them!

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/world/middleeast/united-states-plans-post-iraq-troop-increase-in-persian-gulf.html

The Obama administration plans to bolster the American military presence in the Persian Gulf after it withdraws the remaining troops from Iraq this year, according to officials and diplomats. That repositioning could include new combat forces in Kuwait able to respond to a collapse of security in Iraq or a military confrontation with Iran.

The plans, under discussion for months, gained new urgency after President Obama’s announcement this month that the last American soldiers would be brought home from Iraq by the end of December. Ending the eight-year war was a central pledge of his presidential campaign, but American military officers and diplomats, as well as officials of several countries in the region, worry that the withdrawal could leave instability or worse in its wake.

After unsuccessfully pressing both the Obama administration and the Iraqi government to permit as many as 20,000 American troops to remain in Iraq beyond 2011, the Pentagon is now drawing up an alternative.

In addition to negotiations over maintaining a ground combat presence in Kuwait, the United States is considering sending more naval warships through international waters in the region.

With an eye on the threat of a belligerent Iran, the administration is also seeking to expand military ties with the six nations in the Gulf Cooperation Council — Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman. While the United States has close bilateral military relationships with each, the administration and the military are trying to foster a new “security architecture” for the Persian Gulf that would integrate air and naval patrols and missile defense.

The size of the standby American combat force to be based in Kuwait remains the subject of negotiations, with an answer expected in coming days. Officers at the Central Command headquarters here declined to discuss specifics of the proposals, but it was clear that successful deployment plans from past decades could be incorporated into plans for a post-Iraq footprint in the region.
(…)

Watch this video. Freedom loving syrian women demanding their rights and democracy. I apologise for the few women who forgot to wear the black hand gloves and dared to show their hands in public. These syrian women represent Haythams christian minority wish for democracy in syria. WHAT A JOKE

Fighting wrong wars, they’ll never learn as long as it makes good money for weapon merchants and bankers:
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/MJ29Df02.html

The west knows all about dictators and civil wars and massacres – they experienced WWII, which some describe as a European civil war.

That’s where they got their silly ideas about rescuing civilians from vicious dictators, rebuilding destroyed and impoverished nations and advocating and supporting democratic systems.

And it’s why anything modern western nations do today is exhaustively debated, transparently decided, voted on and publicly financed. The outcome might not match the intentions, but the process remains intact.

Interesting that some Syrians living in the west who comment on this forum clearly think that’s a stupid and immoral way to operate – they prefer the Assad and Gaddafi systems.

Maybe they would like to see a WWII type of experience for the Middle East – providing of course they can sit it out safely in the west.

Zoo said
“Bashar is scared? Of what?”
Bashar is afraid of loosing his ,and his family power.,he is afraid to end up like Gaddafi.he is deeply comcerned that he could not end this revolution.
You say the opposition is not courageous, you are wrong , there is no more courage than to demonstrate risking their lives.
There are more sanctions that can be applied on Bashar.

Norman #269
this is right.revenge will lead to both dying.

Mjabali does not think that we are in mini civil war,you are wrong it is increasingly obvious we are in mini civil war,you said we are not Arab and not Syrian, that was most stupid statement anyone can say.

http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/10/30/174402.html

Assad is a children killer. He killed his own people. He should not be given any international platform to express his views. Giving him a platform is respecting him. The Telegraph made a mistake. The only platform he should be given is SANA…SANA is what he deserves.

an advice to Tunisia’s new leaders
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/10/30/174473.html

Syrialover@ 288

Well written post!

more from Tunisia
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/10/29/174366.html

After Rami Makhlouf’s Mother Theresa choice,the hypocrit Bashar al jahesh persists to present himself as an alike of a mahatma,it seems that the narcissistic rage is a familly disease:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/8857883/Syrias-President-Assad-I-live-a-normal-life-its-why-Im-popular.html

Majed @290

Thanks for the link. The Iranian-British journalist is pretty elegant. I would love for my daughter to become an investigative journalist. I spent great chunk of my weekends in Madaya and Bloudan living in Syria. I always thought of Madayans as very “macho” but never thought then that they have that much heroism. I pity those who watch the clip and still think this is a western conspiracy not an authentic home-grown uprising. I wonder if their feeling is just an unconscious attempt to cover their prejudice…

A rare video proof of heavy tank artillary shelling of residential neighbourhoods.
Partial destruction of the front of a house in Baba Amr, Homs as a result of a salvo of three shells.

حمص المحتلة- المقطع الذي سيكسر ظهر الاسد2011 29-10

Austria Money-Printers Expensed Viagra, Bribed Syria: Standard
By Boris Groendahl
Oct 29, 2011 12:09 AM GMT+0800 .
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-28/austria-money-printers-expensed-viagra-bribed-syria-standard.html

Managers of Austrian money-printer Oesterreichische Banknoten- und Sicherheitsdruck GmbH may have paid bribes to get orders from Syria and and may have expensed items including Viagra, newspaper Der Standard reported, citing an internal review of the Austrian central bank, OeBS’s owner.

The auditors found “unusual” expenses of as much as 600,000 euros, which included charges claimed for furniture in a Romanian apartment as well as for Pfizer Inc. (PFE)’s impotence drug, the Vienna-based daily said. They also found payments of as much as 14 million euros ($20 million) made to win contracts to print Syrian bank notes, the paper reported.

The newspaper didn’t identify the managers who were fired over the accusations, adding that they declined to comment.

To contact the reporter on this story: Boris Groendahl in Vienna at bgroendahl@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Zoe Schneeweiss at zschneeweiss@bloomberg.net

Who were the Syrian managers?

265. Ya Mara Ghalba said:

Vaguely related, a well-known commentator says about Tunisia:

” But in most Arab countries, the Islamists will be constrained by the counter-weight of long-established secularists. Tunisia’s large and educated middle class will be a force that Tunisia’s Islamic political party will have to accommodate. ”

REALITY

From a Human Resources manager in a large Euro company :
” I have never seen a Tunisian CV before .
For the first time in my career, this week , I received unsolicited job applications by highly educated and experienced Tunisian people still having a ( highly paid IT ) job in Tunisia.”

It says all on their hopes in the future of Tunisia under MB rule.

Asad mines borders in anticipation of of a multilateral invasion
Muhammad Na3eem
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/34086
2011/10/30

زادت قراراته الارتجالية بعد اغتيال القذافي : الأسد يحيط سوريا بحقل ألغام لمنع ضباط جيشه من الهروب
2011/10/30نشر فى: مقالات وتحليلات

محمد نعيم: ايلاف

اصدر بشار الاسد قراراً بتلغيم كافة الحدود السورية، في محاولة لمنع تهريب وسائل قتالية الى بلاده، والحيلولة دون هروب ضباط وجنود جيشه الى تركيا، وعلقت مصادر خاصة لـ “إيلاف” على ذلك، مشيرة إلى أن الاسد يدرك منذ فترة إمكانية مشاركة قوات عربية في عمل مسلح ضد سوريا.

——————————————————————
اصابت الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد حالة من الهلع، إثر تلقي اجهزته الأمنية معلومات بحسب تسريبات إسرائيلية تفيد باعتزام قوات عربية المشاركة في عمل مسلح ضد النظام السوري، ربما تقوده قوات حلف شمال الاطلسي الـ “ناتو” خلال الايام القليلة المقبلة، ووفقاً لتسريبات وصفت نفسها بالاستخباراتية ونشرتها وسائل الإعلام العبرية، عقد رأس النظام السوري اجتماعاً طارئاً ضم العديد من الدوائر الأمنية في دمشق، لدراسة إمكانية صد الهجوم المرتقب على بلاده، والوقوف على صحة مشاركة قوات عربية فيه.

وتشير التسريبات إلى أن الاجتماع الذي يدور الحديث عنه تمخض عن عدة قرارات استراتيجية، جاء في طليعتها إحاطة الاراضي السورية بسياج من الالغام، للحيلولة دون دخول أية قوات إلى الاراضي السورية والعمل ضد نظام بشار الاسد، بالاضافة إلى اهداف أخرى تتقدمها منع عمليات تهريب الأسلحة للثوار السوريين، والحيلولة دون هروب ضباط وجنود الجيش السوري خارج البلاد، فضلاً عن منع تسلل عناصر مسلحة من دول الجوار السوري، خاصة من الاردن وتركيا.

الضفة الشمالية لنهر اليرموك

انطلاقاً من تلك المعطيات، بدأ سلاح الهندسة السوري في خلال الأيام القليلة الماضية في تلغيم الحدود السورية مع الاردن وتركيا ولبنان، واستندت التسريبات عينها إلى دوائر عسكرية في تل ابيب، اكدت أنها رصدت جنوداً سوريين، وهم يضعون الغاماً على طول الضفة الشمالية لنهر اليرموك، الذي يمر عبر الشريط الحدودي الفاصل بين حدود سوريا والأردن، كما وضع السوريون الالغام في نقاط ملتقى الحدود السورية مع نظيرتها الأردنية والاسرائيلية، ليتصل شريط الالغام السوري الجديد بنظيره القديم، الذي نشرته سوريا في وقت سابق على حدود هضبة الجولان.

كما لغّم السوريون المناطق الشمالية الحدودية مع لبنان، خاصة القرى اللبنانية التي تعتبر حقل الألغام السوري الجديد، وعلى الحدود التركية وضع السوريون الغاماً في مناطق إدلب وجبل الزاوية، إذ تعمل في تلك المنطقتين قوات كبيرة يسميها النظام السوري بقوات المتمردين، ويتكونون في معظمهم من ضباط وجنود هربوا من الخدمة في الجيش السوري.

ووفقاً لما نقلته صحيفة معاريف العبرية عن مراقبين عسكريين في تل أبيب، تعمقت تركيا بشكل مباشر خلال الآونة الاخيرة فيما يجري في سوريا، فبالاضافة الى نقل المناطق المركزية للقوات العسكرية السورية المتمردة إلى الاراضي التركية، تسمح انقرة في الوقت الراهن لتلك القوات باستقطاب عناصر جديدة هاربة من الجيش السوري للانقلاب على نظام بشار الاسد، كما يعكف الجيش التركي على توفير الآليات اللازمة لتلك القوات لخوض تدريبات عسكرية مكثفة تمهيداً للانقضاض على الاسد في عمق دمشق، وتسمح تركيا الى جانب ذلك بايفاد عناصر الجيش السوري المتمردة الى سوريا، للمشاركة المسلحة في كبح جماح أجهزة الأسد الأمنية.

ووفقاً للتسريبات الإسرائيلية، تزود تركيا القوات السورية بالعتاد العسكري اللازم للقيام بتلك المهام، ومن الاسلحة التي يحصل عليها المتمردون السوريون قذائف (آر بي جي)، ومدافع مضادة للمدرعات، واسلحة اوتوماتيكية وقنابل يدوية، ويحاول النظام السوري وقف هذه التحركات من خلال تلغيم الحدود السورية مع تركيا.

الصمت السوري إزاء مقتل القذافي

وتشير المعطيات ذاتها إلى أن تلغيم الحدود السورية، وحالة الصمت السوري إزاء أحداث مقتل الرئيس الليبي معمر القذافي، تؤكد مخاوف رأس النظام السوري من أن تمهد عمليات تهريب الأسلحة عبر الحدود السورية من تركيا والأردن ولبنان إلى ضلوع عربي مسلح بتأييد من قوات حلف الـ “ناتو” في دعم الثورة السورية، وهو السيناريو الذي حدث في ليبيا، واستشهدت التسريبات الإسرائيلية على ذلك بالتصريحات التي ادلى بها للمرة الاولى في السابع والعشرين من شهر تشرين الاول/ اكتوبر الجاري قائد اركان الجيش القطري حمد بن علي العطية، والتي أكد فيها أن الاف من الجنود القطريين لا يزالون في ليبيا، وانهم حاربوا الى جانب الثوار الليبيين لاسقاط نظام معمر القذافي، الا ان المسؤول القطري – بحسب التسريبات – لم يذكر في تصريحاته كيف وصلت قواته الى ليبيا ومن نقلهم الى هذا البلد.

على الرغم من ذلك لم يستبعد معدو التقارير الإسرائيلية أن تكون الطائرات العسكرية الاميركية التابعة لقوات الـ “ناتو” قد شاركت في نقل الجنود القطريين الى ليبيا، وربما يكون قائد الأركان القطري قد نصب على الإراضي الليبية قاعدة لإدارة المعارك المناوئة لنظام القذافي، وكشفت التسريبات العبرية النقاب للمرة الأولى عن أنه شارك القوات القطرية في العمل ضد القذافي قوات أردنية، الأمر الذي لم تكشف عنه حتى الآن مصادر رسمية في عمّان.

وفي تعليق على تلك المعطيات، اشار الخبير الاستراتيجي احمد عز الدين في تصريح خاص لـ “إيلاف” إلى أن هواجس النظام السوري من مشاركة قوات عربية أو على الأقل دعم قوات الـ “ناتو” في توجيه عمل مسلح ضد سوريا ليس جديداً، إذ أن اصف شوكت صهر بشار الاسد قام قبل أيام بزيارة سرية إلى الاردن، هدد خلالها الاردنيين بأنه حال مشاركة الاردن في اي عمل وصفه بـ “الجنوني” ضد دمشق سينجم عن ذلك عواقب وخيمة، ربما تصل إلى توجيه الصواريخ السورية صوب كافة المدن الاردنية.

وتؤكد هذه المعلومات بحسب الخبير احمد عز أن نظام بشار الأسد بات مدركاً أنه قاب قوسين أو ادنى من السقوط، إن لم يكن على ايدي الثورة السورية، فعلى ايدي قوات الـ “ناتو” والمشاركة قوات من دول عربية في إطار هذه القوات، خاصة أن الممارسات القمعية من قبل النظام السوري ضد شعبه قد تضاعفت الى حد يحول دون بقاء الأسد على مقعده.

منع تهريب الوسائل القتالية

اما الدكتور طارق فهمي، استاذ العلوم السياسية في جامعة القاهرة، فلم يستبعد قيام الجيش السوري بنشر الغام على طول حدوده مع دول الجوار، إلا أنه اعتبر في حديث خاص لـ “إيلاف” أن عمليات التلغيم لن تحول دون دخول قوات عربية الأراضي السورية للمشاركة في عمل مسلح ضد نظامها، خاصة أن القوات القطرية التي تحدثت عنها التقارير العبرية، دخلت الاراضي الليبية محمولة جواً، الامر الذي يؤكد أن نشر الالغام الذي يدور الحديث عنه يستهدف منع تهريب وسائل قتالية إلى داخل الاراضي السورية، ومنع عناصر الجيش السوري الهاربة من الخدمة من التسلل خارج الاراضي السورية والاستقواء بالجيش التركي ونظام رجب طيب اردوغان ثم العودة الى سوريا لخوض معارك مسلحة ضد نظام الاسد.

وأضاف الدكتور فهمي في حديثه لـ “إيلاف”: “لاشك أن الصورة الدراماتيكية التي انهت حياة الرئيس الليبي معمر القذافي، اصابت رأس النظام السوري بحالة من فقدان السيطرة، وعدم القدرة على اتخاذ قرارات سياسية واضحة المعالم، إذ أنه لا يعتمد حالياً سوى القرارات العسكرية، معتقداً انها الوحيدة التي يمكن عن طريقها اسقاط نظامه من السقوط، ويرفض الأسد انطلاقاً من هذا المنظور تبني مبادرات سياسية لامتصاص ردود افعال الجماهير السورية الثائرة، كما تكتفي الدوائر المحيطة به بترديد مفردات لغوية لا تنقذ نظاماً مثل المؤامرة والاجندات الخارجية وغيرها، وربما تزيد هذه الاستراتيجية من زيادة ارتباك بشار الاسد، وتجبره على اتخاذ قرارات تضاعف من اصطدامه بالشباك المعقدة.

Participation of Russia in Boinga-787 “Drimlajner on 30 %

http://rt.com/news/bulava-missile-launched-963/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRfsgTkJncc
Russia: Bulava Ballistic Missile Tests Successful
MOSCOW — Russia’s navy on Friday successfully test-fired an advanced intercontinental ballistic missile, the weapon the government hopes will become a key part of the nation’s nuclear arsenals, the Defense Ministry said.

The Bulava missile was launched from the Yuri Dolgoruky submarine underwater in the White Sea, and the missile’s warheads reached the Kura testing range on the Pacific Kamchatka Peninsula, some 5,500 kilometers (3,500 miles) away, ministry spokesman Col. Igor Konashenkov said in televised remarks.

The test was Bulava’s third successful launch in a row after a string of failures that raised questions about the future of Russia’s most expensive post-Soviet military project.

The Bulava is a three-stage missile that can carry up to 10 individually targeted warheads at a range of 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles). Russian officials have boasted of its ability to dodge any potential missile defenses.

Friday’s test was the third launched from the Yuri Dolgoruky, a new Borei-class nuclear submarine specifically designed to carry 12 Bulava missiles. The submarine’s construction started in 1996 and dragged on due to poor financing.

Several other Borei-class nuclear submarines are under construction, and Russia plans to complete a total of eight subs by 2015. They will gradually replace aging Soviet-built submarines.

The UglyTruth
by Raja Mujtaba,

Armageddon (commonly known as the battle against the anti-Christ) according to the Bible, is the site of a battle during the end times, variously interpreted as either a literal or symbolic location. The term is also used in a generic sense to refer to any end-of-the-world scenario.

According to some Muslim and Christian interpretations, the Messiah will return to earth and defeat the Antichrist, Satan the Devil, in the battle of Armageddon. According to the Muslim belief, it would be Imam Mehdi who would precede Prophet Jesus who would fight the one eyed beast called Dajjal (Anti Christ). Then Satan will be put into the “bottomless pit” or abyss for 1,000 years, known as the Millennial Age. After being released from the abyss, Satan will gather Gog and Magog (peoples of two specific nations) from the four corners of the earth. They will encamp surrounding the “holy ones” and the “beloved city” (this refers to Jerusalem). Fire will come down from God, out of heaven and devour Gog and Magog after the Millennium.

According to the Muslim belief, the forces to battle the one eyed beast would rise from the area of Khurasan that comprises of portion of Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and part of Central Asia. If the anti-Christ forces have assembled in Afghanistan, it’s not a coincidence but well thought out Zionist strategy to take on Pakistan, the nuclear power of the Muslim world so its free to advance other Muslim territories without any fear.

Most historians and scholars believe that the present stretching of the US and NATO Forces far and beyond their legitimate areas of interests, is a sign of final showdown. The placement of US forces in Afghanistan is seen as the final buildup to attack the Muslim lands. This could well become the graveyard of the US troops from where they may never escape death. Presently, the grouping of pro and anti Christ Forces is seen to be taking place. The US and NATO clearly appear to be on the side of the Anti-Christ and siding with the Zionists the real anti-Christ Forces. Zionists are known to be Satan worshipers in their secret hideouts therefore are working to create a godless world and control the entire resources.

Sensing these developments, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin prior to his departure for China, cautioned his generals to prepare for Armageddon. A similar message was also delivered to the Chinese leadership that has the Chinese Forces also on high alert. Apparently in the same context, Putin has resolved all differences with China to forge a clear unity for times ahead.
Sino-Russian alliance is very timely, seeing the hard threatening statements of Hillary Clinton that she fired at Pakistan from Kabul before flying to Islamabad is very alarming. Pakistan has some hard decisions to make.

Commander William Guy Carr, in his book ‘Pawns In The Game’ probably written in 1948 stated that third revolution and third world war are in the offing for which the grouping is taking place. He also stated categorically that the third world war would be against Islam.

Plans for this “Total Global War” or the war against Islam the Americans are preparing to launch were first revealed to China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) by a former Blackwater agent Bryan Underwood who has been apprehended by the US authorities for spying.

If one observes the way the US and NATO are waging their wars in Muslim countries proves William Carr to be correct.

Blackwater, the global contractor for CIA is operating in almost all the target countries, arrest of Raymond Davis in Pakistan did expose the US designs; had he been retained and grilled for some indefinite time, much more would have been revealed. Pakistan is infested with Blackwater, they have made inroads in ethnic political parties more so in Karachi, the port city of Pakistan. Balochistan has also become a hotbed where secessionists forces are being patronized by CIA, MI6, Mossad and RAW. As believed now, the US has also launched biological warfare in Pakistan where dengue is killing people on daily basis.

On reading the situation of the coming US plans for Total Global War, Putin spelt out an alliance to integrate the former Soviet Republics into closer cooperation. He scheduled an emergency trip to China to meet with Hu, and ordered the FSB (Russian Agency) to notify China’s MSS of the arrest and detention of their spy Tun Sheniyun who was captured last year for attempting to steal sensitive information on Russia’s most powerful anti-aircraft system.

Today Libya has fallen, how the Libyans would benefit from it only time would tell but one thing is sure that US and her allies have formed a bridgehead in Africa. Further deployment of the US troops in Africa are taking place, its China encirclement there where China has friends in the Muslim countries. Sudan has been split, and Obama plans to occupy some other countries like Uganda, Somalia, Morocco etc. In Africa, says Obama, the “humanitarian mission” is to assist the government of Uganda defeat the Lord’s resistance Army (LRA), which “has murdered, raped and kidnapped tens of thousands of men, women and children in central Africa”. Incidentally, Africa also happens to be the Chinese success story therefore by taking over Africa, China would also be chocked. Libya was one of the major oil suppliers to China now that hangs in air. Gaddafi was trying to dump dollar for gold that instigated the US to attack her through a cleverly manipulated and orchestrated moves.

After having been deceived in Libya where the US assured both Russia and China that it will not attack but did quite contrary to what was promised. Sensing that US plans to attack Syria, Russia and China were quick to veto the American resolution in the security council that infuriated the US Ambassador Susan Rice who left the session in rage.

Dick Cheney pointed out in his 1990s “defence strategy” plan, America simply wishes to rule the world so that’s forging ahead following the Nixonian doctrine, ‘seize the moment.’
Reported by the EU Times, the “New Great Game” moves being planned by the Americans is to strike fear into both Russia and China that includes:

1.) The deliberate implosion of both the US and EU economies in order to destroy the Global Financial System that has been in place since the ending of World War II
2.) The launching of a massive conventional war by the US and EU on the North American, African and Asian Continents to include the Middle East
3.) During this all-out war the deliberate releasing of bio-warfare agents meant to kill off millions, if not billions, of innocent civilians
4.) At the height of this war the US and its allies will sue for peace and call for a new global order to be established in order to prevent the total destruction of our planet.
Confirming the fears, an unidentified source within the US Department of Defense (DOD) warned that the Obama regime was preparing for a massive “tank-on-tank” war and that US military forces are “expecting something conventional, and big, coming down the pipe relatively soon.”

To how close this war may be the FSB in their report states that it will be “much sooner than later” as the Americans have pre-positioned in Iraq nearly 2,000 of their M1 Abrams main battle tanks, have pre-positioned another 2,000 of them in Afghanistan, and between the Middle East and Asia have, likewise, put into these war theaters tens-of-thousands of other typed armored vehicles. This should be a grave cause of concern for Pakistan.

Being at war, the US can also effect “Full Mobilization” of over 1.5 million American reserve forces which can occur at “at a moment’s notice” for which US needs no Congressional approval to expand their areas of operation is also being examined when America is fully poised to advance in Asia and Middle East.
Now that Hillary Clinton is on her Pakistan visit accompanied by the new CIA Chief, David Petraeus, Chairman US Joint Staff, General Martin Dempsey and Marc Grossman. Keeping the armoured buildup in the region and having an Armour Officer as the new Chairman of Joint Staff, could one say it a coincidence or a planned strategy?

Hillary, as expected that I mentioned in my CNBC News analysis on 19th October, has arrived with a tough warning for Pakistan, saying, “We will do it with or without you.” This has certainly placed Pakistan in a very trying situation. Pakistan has other options to join the third force that is in formation led by Russia and China to counter the US moves in the region. If Pakistan, Iran, Syria and other Muslim states including Saudi Arabia join this alliance, that would certainly deter the US and her allies, if not then every Muslim country would fall one after the other without exception and their assets would be frozen.

Important to note about the American plan for global domination through massive warfare is that it is not really a secret, and as (curiously) revealed on the tenth anniversary of the 11 September attacks upon the United States when the US National Security Archive released a memo written by former US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in September 2001 wherein he warned “If the war does not significantly change the world’s political map, the US will not achieve its aim.”

To what the “aim” of the United States is as their war against the world has now entered its 10th year, the FSB says, is to prevent “at all costs” the implosion of the US Dollar as the main reserve currency of the present global economic system before the West’s envisioned “New World Order” can be established.

The first threat to the Americans “master plan” for global hegemony came in November 2000 when the former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein quit accepting US Dollars for oil and, instead, stated his country would only accept Euros. In less than 10 months an attack on the US was engineered and used that as an excuse to topple Hussein and reestablish the US Dollar as the world’s main reserve currency.

Interesting to note is the failure of Libya’s former leader Gaddafi’s plan to introduce the gold dinar, a single African currency that would serve as an alternative to the US Dollar and allow African nations to share the wealth, but which like Iraq’s Saddam Hussein “plan” brought a swift and brutal invasion by the Americans and their Western allies to keep it from happening.

The only nation that has successfully abandoned the US Dollar is Iran, who since February 2009 abandoned all American currency opting instead to value their oil and gas in Euros. Iran, however, and unlike oil rich Iraq and Libya, has not been attacked due to the Iranians having acquired from Ukraine between 6-10 nuclear armed X-55 missiles (range of 3,000km [2,000 miles]) in 2005. Although the former Ukraine President Viktor Yushchenko denies that the missiles contain their nuclear tips, a statement disputed by the FSB who states they were armed and “ready to fire.”

As a preemption, to counter the planned American blitzkrieg into Central Asia and Pakistan from Afghanistan, Indian Army Chief General VK Singh warned yesterday that thousands of Chinese military forces have now moved into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir joining an estimated 11,000 more of them believed to have entered that region in the past year.

Before the US ventures into other Muslim lands, the US would want a submissive or a broken and denuclearized Pakistan. In both the scenarios it would mean Pakistan’s death. In such a scenario, Pakistan maybe compelled to go for non conventional weapons; if such a development takes place, India, Israel and the US installations in the region would not be safe. Can the US risk such a situation would only depend on the arrogance and sanity level of the US leadership.

Interview with The Telegraph

Syria’s President Assad: ‘I live a normal life – it’s why I’m popular’
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/8857883/Syrias-President-Assad-I-live-a-normal-life-its-why-Im-popular.html

Three thousand demonstrators have died fighting his rule, but – in an exclusive interview – Bashar al-Assad, president of Syria, tells Andrew Gilligan he will not go the way of Gaddafi

When you go to see an Arab ruler, you expect vast, over-the-top palaces, battalions of guards, ring after ring of security checks and massive, deadening protocol. You expect to wait hours in return for a few stilted minutes in a gilded reception room, surrounded by officials, flunkies and state TV cameras. You expect a monologue, not a conversation. Bashar al-Assad, the president of Syria, was quite different.

The young woman who arranged the meeting picked me up in her own car. We drove for 10 minutes, then turned along what looked like a little-used side road through the bushes. There was no visible security, not even a gate, just a man dressed like a janitor, standing by a hut. We drove straight up to a single-storey building the size of a largeish suburban bungalow. The president was waiting in the hall to meet us.

We sat, just the three of us, on leather sofas in Assad’s small study. The president was wearing jeans. It was Friday, the main protest day in Syria: the first Friday since the death of Colonel Gaddafi had sunk in. But the man at the centre of it all, the man they wanted to destroy, looked pretty relaxed.

He thought the protests were diminishing. After they started, in March, “we didn’t go down the road of stubborn government. Six days after [the protests began] I commenced reform. People were sceptical that the reforms were an opiate for the people, but when we started announcing the reforms, the problems started decreasing… This is when the tide started to turn. This is when people started supporting the government… [but] being in the middle is very difficult when you have this strong polarisation.”

The problems were not mainly political, he thought. “It’s about the whole of society, the development of society. Different problems have erupted as one crisis. We adopted liberal economics. To open your economy without preparing yourself, you open up gaps between the social strata. If you do not get the right economic model, you cannot get past the problem.”
urgent message’ to Assad
For Assad’s critics – who have expanded steadily over the last seven months to include not just the protesters, but Britain, France, the US, the United Nations and now the Arab League – these statements are simply delusional. “He has been talking about reform ever since he came to office [in 2000], and nothing serious ever happens,” said one of the protest leaders from the key opposition city of Homs. “Killing people is not an act of reform. We aren’t calling for economic or even political reform under Assad, but for the departure of this bloodstained president and free elections.”

The opposition appears, after a dip, to have been energised by Gaddafi’s demise. The death toll on Friday, they say, of 40, was the highest since April. Three thousand demonstrators have been killed by Assad’s security forces since March, according to the UN, a figure that includes 187 children. Yesterday, it was reported, the Syrian army was shelling civilian areas of Homs.

Yet Assad still has a number of cards that Libya’s recently-deceased colonel never possessed. Unlike Libya, the country is neither religiously nor ethnically homogeneous. For the moment, the regime appears still to be persuading many of Syria’s Christian and Alawite minority – together with some in the Sunni majority – that it is their best choice.

On Thursday night, the beginning of the Muslim weekend, Damascus’s Old City was heaving with people having a good time. Men and women were mixing freely. Alcohol was widely available. A pair of Christian Orthodox priests, in their long cassocks, walked through the crowded alleys, and small Christian shrines were tucked away in the corners. The regime is successfully pushing the message that all this is at risk. “I don’t like Assad, but I am worried that what follows could be worse,” said one of the partygoers. On Wednesday, Damascus witnessed a large pro-Assad demonstration: Western journalists who observed it say that the participants did not appear to have been coerced.

Assad himself could not be further from a ranting, Gaddafi-like Arab dictator. His English is perfect — he lived for two years in London, where he met his wife. In conversation he was open, even at times frank. “Many mistakes,” he admitted, had been made by the security forces – though no one, it seems, has been brought to book for them. He could both make, and take, a joke. A former president of the Syrian Computer Society, he sometimes explained things in computer terms.

Comparing Syria’s leadership with that of a Western country, he said, was like comparing a Mac with a PC. “Both computers do the same job, but they don’t understand each other,” he said. “You need to translate. If you want to analyse me as the East, you cannot analyse me through the Western operating system, or culture. You have to translate according to my operating system, or culture.” That’s the inner nerd in you speaking, I said, and he laughed out loud. I can’t imagine too many other Arab leaders you could get away with calling a nerd.

Assad lives in a relatively small house in a normal – albeit guarded – street. He believes that his modest lifestyle is another component of his appeal. “There is a legitimacy according to elections and there is popular legitimacy,” he said. “If you do not have popular legitimacy, whether you are elected or not you will be removed – look at all the coups we had.

“The first component of popular legitimacy is your personal life. It is very important how you live. I live a normal life. I drive my own car, we have neighbours, I take my kids to school. That’s why I am popular. It is very important to live this way – that is the Syrian style.”

That might not amount to much against the pile of corpses in Homs, Hama, and elsewhere, but from conversations with residents in Damascus at least, it does in fact seem to make Assad somewhat better esteemed by his own people than many other Arab rulers.

Where is Syria going now? Homs, at least, may be heading out of the regime’s control. “Unlike any other large city, Homs is in complete revolt,” says Malik al-Abdeh, a leading London-based opposition figure who keeps in close touch with the city. “It’s been proving very difficult for the regime to control it.”

But elsewhere the regime appears to retain greater control. “Overall the regime has been quite cohesive,” says Mr al-Abdeh. “The military hasn’t deserted in large numbers.”

Kadri Jamil, an opposition figure in Damascus, says: “After seven months, we see that the government cannot stop the popular movement, but the popular movement cannot stop the government.”

There is disagreement about what to do next. Dr Jamil, and some of those who operate openly inside Syria, say the answer is genuine dialogue with, and reform from, the regime. “The problem is that the dialogue [offered so far] is shallow and just a tool to gain time,” says Jamil. “The government is not acting fast enough. They have one to two months before passing the point of no return.”

Malik al-Abdeh and others involved in the street protests dismiss any thought of talking to the government and say its killings have put it beyond the point of no return already. The first people to apply under a new law supposedly permitting demonstrations were arrested, they point out. For all the talk of new parties, regime sources say that Article 8 of the Syrian constitution, which says that Assad’s Ba’ath party must lead, is unlikely to be changed in substantial form.

Increasingly, therefore, the protest wing of the opposition are talking about something they previously resisted: foreign intervention. “They are more willing to entertain the idea,” said Mr al-Abdeh. “People want at the very least some kind of no-fly zone that legitimises an armed uprising against Bashar, or maybe some other kind of intervention that will encourage people in the regime to jump ship.”

Last Friday’s demonstrations called for such a no-fly zone.

Last week, after the success of military intervention in Libya, the former Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, became the first mainstream US figure to canvass the idea. One suggestion is that foreign air power could enforce some sort of enclave inside Syria which would become the country’s “Benghazi,” a base for operations against the government.

The regime’s response to this new danger appears two-fold. Last week, some Damascus-based opposition groups were allowed to hold a press conference in the capital. They criticised the government, calling for the release of political prisoners and the end of security force violence — but also, crucially, attacked any form of foreign intervention and demanded only an “internal solution” to the crisis.

Kadri Jamil and others are fiercely critical of the Syrian National Council, the new Turkey-based opposition umbrella group.

Malik al-Abdeh and other people allied to the SNC, which represents, they say, “80 per cent” of the Syrian opposition, decry figures like Jamil as regime stooges. “People like that are very useful for Bashar at this stage,” al-Abdeh says. “I don’t think they enjoy popular support.”

The regime’s other tactic is to issue dire warnings to the West about the perils of involvement in a place this complicated. As President Assad told The Sunday Telegraph: “Syria is the hub now in this region. It is the faultline, and if you play with the ground you will cause an earthquake…. Do you want to see another Afghanistan, or tens of Afghanistans?”

Such fears are real, which may explain why there has been so little Western enthusiasm, so far, for the military option, or for the SNC – which has only been recognised by one country, Libya, to date.

The practical difficulties are also formidable. Libyan regime forces were comparatively weak. To move between towns, they needed to cross empty desert in which they could be relatively easily attacked from the air.

Syria’s forces are much stronger, and the population centres clustered much more closely together.

Yet there is growing concern that the violence of the regime, and the increasing counter-violence of some of the opposition, could lead to a sort of “earthquake” anyway: civil or sectarian war across at least some of the country. There seems, from Damascus at least, still to be limited space for real reform and change to be made. But it needs to be done quickly.

300. Revlon said:

Asad mines borders in anticipation of of a multilateral invasion
Syria’s Assad takes mine field to prevent the escape of his army officers

REALITY

Syrian Army takes mine field to prevent the smuggling of more arms to the MB terrorists in Homs.

http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/10/20/376523.htm

Authorities in Homs on Wednesday arrested terrorists Adnan Buteh, Yaseen Qaddour and the so-called group “Abu Cham”, responsible for kidnapping, killing and torturing citizens, in addition to firing RPGs on residential areas.

An official source in Homs told SANA correspondent that the authorities also captured an armed group in a gray Kia car with a fake license plate at al-Ghouteh neighborhood in Homs.

The authorities seized two RPG launchers, Kalashnikovs, sniper rifle, night vision binoculars, ammunition and military uniforms for committing crimes and accusing the army of doing them.

The source added that authorities also arrested armed men with three machine guns equipped with advanced night vision binoculars, two bombs and three RPGs in a white Datsun car near Dawar Tadmour.

In the same context, the authorities pursued an armed terrorist group responsible for shooting a military bus on al-Siteen road, with the operation resulting in the death of three terrorists and the arrest of the others. Six people were injured by the terrorist attack on the bus.

The authorities also raided an apartment in al-Ghouteh neighborhood where they found firearms, torture equipment, video cameras, documents and ID cards.

On Wednesday afternoon, the authorities managed to free engineer Suha al-Naem who was abducted by an armed terrorist group on the Deir Fuul-Homs road while on an official mission for the Homs Technical Utilities Directorate along with her colleague Majd Sleibi. Majd had managed to evade capture and informed the authorities of the incident.

Majedkhaldoun:

You are not only INSANE مصروع, but, you are also a liar. I hate to say these harsh words, but this is the truth and you forced me to use this type of language, which as you can tell, I do not like or resort to normally.

I, along with a number of concerned Syrians have been telling you (and a number of zealots like you) from day one that we are having a civil war in Syria. It was a civil war from Dar’a and only the smart people were able to see this. Zealots are blind of course and can NOT see reality.

You always refused this argument and slandered me calling me names because I did not buy your logic (I really doubt you have any logic for real, but for the sake of this discussion I would assume that you have one).

You can go back to everything I have written on this blog and see how I said that WE ARE IN A CIVIL WAR.

I, along with others, been telling hell raisers like you that there IS violence and we need to stop it AT ANY COST. An idiot like you calls for more violence and for violent measures to solve this stalemate and bloodshed we have here.

You ended your ludicrous post # 228 with this statement: ” Mini civil war should start in November.”

This means: that you do not know or comprehend that there is a civil war NOW (look at Homs today and tell me if we are waiting till November for a civil war ya ajdab).

فياكذاب لماذ لاتراجع ماذا تكتب ؟

When an idiot with no brain like you calls for a civil war and say it “SHOULD” happen in November how do you expect me to respond?

As for Arabs: They invaded Syria and they are not Syrians at the end of the day.

The Arabs NEVER consider themselves Syrians.

Being a Syrian is different from being an Arab.

I am Syrian and not an Arab. I come from the heartland of Syria that was invaded by the Arabs and their product: the Muslims.

Tell me Majedkhaldoun how many Syrians ruled Syria from the days of the Arab/Muslim invasion till now?

You are arguing with me about the origin of the people who live in the cities of Syria: don’t you think that 1400 years of foreign occupation would not bring foreign elements to the Syrian cities especially with blood thirsty Muslims at the helm?

We Syrians have a different language and history that you Arabs took away from us and forced us to adapt to your language and FAKE version of history. Look at the history books your people produced and tell me how many lies are in it?

As for you and Your family: You were living in a TENT herding sheep and goats on your best day (If you are from an Arab Tribe as you claim) till the Turks allowed you to come and live in the city with the rest of them invaders of SYRIA.

ملاحظة ثقافتك ضعيفة جدا والدليل هو التهريف الذي تكتبه

# 288 Syrialover

“The west knows all about dictators”

Oh yes, they licked their ass and begged them for oil contracts (Saddam, Ghaddafi…) Since WWII, the West has been encouraging and courting dictators as long as their country was rich and NOT in Europe. (Middle East, Africa, South America)

Yes, they know well how to exploit them and dump them and fight them when they become weak. Western great powers has only one great moral principle: MONEY

video showing security forces taking large amounts of cash from the central bank in Homs and loading them into the trunks of cars:

Good meeting with Haykal on Aljazeera, he starts talking about Syria, it starts at 30m
He is saying that the middle class of Syria are out of the uprising and Aljazeera is responsible of exaggerating the Syrian news.
http://youtu.be/m1rjn1aiyCw?t=30m00s

Areal

“Asad mines borders in anticipation of of a multilateral invasion
Syria’s Assad takes mine field to prevent the escape of his army officers”

Why not?
It was high time the long borders are better protected!!
Any country threatened by neighbors would do the same.
Then Turkish and Al Qaida jihadists will be prevented to cross easily from Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon and they’ll stop smuggle weapons.
Very good move, indeed.

Bronco,
I agree with you, it’s a good move, they should’ve done that from day one.
Until now I don’t understand why they don’t impose curfew over Homs? isn’t it weird that with all these crimes and kidnapping no curfew was imposed on any city.

الشبكة السورية لحقوق الانسان تنشر قائمة من أسماء معارضة الخارج الممولين خارجياً
================================================
نشرت الشبكة السورية لحقوق الانسان تقريرها الثاني لبعض من أسماء معارضة الخارج الذين تم تمويلهم من بعض الجهات الخارجية ويعملون على خراب ودمار الوطن بدلاً من العمل على بنائه مؤكدة أن تقريرها هو عبارة عن أسماء لشخصيات امتطت السياسة وحقوق الانسان كسبيل لكسب الأموال بحجة مشروعات عمل سياسية أو أنشطة ومشاريع حقوق إنسان وهمية يمكن أن تقوم هنا أو هناك.

وأشارت لجنة الرصد وتقصي الحقائق والمتابعة في الشبكة في بيان لها اليوم تلقت وكالة سانا نسخة منه إلى أن الجهات الخارجية التي تعمل على تمويل هذه الجهات في كثير من الأحيان قبلت بها بالرغم من معرفتها ان هذه المشروعات وهمية لا وجود لها على أرض الواقع ذلك من أجل استخدام هذه الشخصيات القائمة عليها في مهام وأهداف محددة يمكن أن تعمل على تنفيذها في الزمان والمكان المحددين ما أدى إلى ابتعاد هذه الشخصيات عن الهدف والغاية الحقيقية لنشاطها الحقوقي أو السياسي متحولة إلى أجندة للخارج تعمل على خراب ودمار الوطن.

وأوضحت الشبكة في بيانها أن هذه الشخصيات هي:
سليم عدي
وخلدون الخجا
ومحمد اسكاف
وسالم حسن
وسليم منعم
وعبد الحميد الأتاسي
وفارس الشوفي
وعبيدة الفارس
وعمار قربي
ومحمد فتوح
ونجيب الغضبان
وحسام الديري
وعبد الكريم ريحاوي
وجورج صبره
ودياب سروجي
وسمير نشار
وعبد اللطيف المنير
ورامي عبد الرحمن
ومحمد الخوام
وبهية مارديني
وزهير سالم
ومازن درويش
وكاترين التلي
وجريس التلي
وبرهان غليون
وحسين العودات
ورجاء الناصر
وشعبان عبود
وجمال البني

مشيرة إلى أن الشبكة لم تغلق هذا الملف لأن هناك دراسة لقائمة طويلة من الاسماء ستنشر حال التحقق من حيثياتها.

وأكدت الشبكة على امتلاكها كل الوثائق والمستندات التي تدين كل هؤلاء الاشخاص ما أدى إلى اعطائها مصداقية دفعت شبكة سي ان ان الامريكية للاتصال بها والاستفسار بالتفصيل عن كل اسم نشرته الشبكة في تقريرها الأول لأنها تعتبر ركناً قانونياً ومادياً تسبب في مقتل المئات من أبناء سورية تطوله ولاية المحكمة الجنائية الدولية كونه ينضوي تحت البند الثالث من المادة 25 من نظام روما الاساسي والمادة 20 من العهد الدولي الخاص بالحقوق المدنية والسياسية ذلك كون هؤلاء الذين يقبضون الأموال من الخارج تم استخدامهم في التحريض واثارة الفتنة ودعم التدخل الخارجي ما ادى ميدانيا إلى زيادة العنف المسلح وحالات الخطف التي تقوم بها الجماعات الارهابية المسلحة وبالتالي زيادة عدد الشهداء من جيش وامن ومدنيين يتحملون هم مسؤوليتهم وكل نقطة دم نزفت من جراحهم وجراح الوطن.

مصادر عربية : الرئيس الأسد رفض إجراء حوار سوري ـ سوري خارج دمشق .. و الوفد العربي يطالب بـ”خارطة طريق” للإصلاح.. أو تدخّل أجنبي

المصادر : تحركات على مستوى عالٍ في مجلس الأمن تحسباً لفشل جهود الوساطة العربية..

الكويت ..
كشفت مصادر عربية واسعة الاطلاع تفاصيل اللقاء الذي جمع الرئيس بشار الأسد بوفد اللجنة العربية، برئاسة رئيس الوزراء القطري الشيخ حمد بن جاسم، وقالت المصادر “إن اللقاء كان ودياً وهادئاً، لكن الأفكار والحلول التي طرحها كلا الطرفين كانت متباعدة إلى درجة التناقض”.
وقالت المصادر لصحيفة “القبس” الكويتية إن اللجنة العربية طالبت القيادة السورية بعدة أمور، أبرزها:
أولاً: تزويد الجامعة العربية بخارطة طريق واضحة للإصلاحات التي يعتزم النظام السوري القيام بها، مع التأكيد على ضرورة أن تتضمن هذه الخارطة مواعيد محددة لهذه الإصلاحات.
ثانياً: أن يكون الحوار بين النظام السوري والمعارضة خارج سوريا، وقد كان الوفد صريحاً إلى درجة مخاطبة الرئيس الأسد بالقول: “إن المعارضة لا تجرؤ على الجلوس على طاولة واحدة في سوريا”.
ثالثاً: شدد الوفد العربي على ضرورة وقف العنف بشكل سريع لإفساح المجال أمام جهود الوساطة لتحقيق الغاية المنشودة، وهي وقف نزيف الدم السوري.
رابعاً: أكد الوفد على ضرورة الاستجابة للجهود العربية قبل أن تتحوّل القضية إلى خارج البيت العربي، بما يُجنب المنطقة إجراءات عقابية دولية.
وتقول المصادر العربية إن الرئيس الأسد ردّ على ما نقله الوفد العربي بالتركيز على عدة نقاط أيضاً، أبرزها:
أولاً: رفضه بشكل قاطع، في بداية حديثه، إجراء حوار سوري ـ سوري خارج بلاده، لكن الرئيس الأسد عاد وأعرب في ختام اللقاء عن إمكان إجراء محادثات مع المعنيين بالمؤسسات السورية، لبتّ موضوع إجراء الحوار خارج سوريا.
ثانياً: استنكر الرئيس الأسد وبشدة آلية تعاطي الإعلام العربي مع الأحداث في بلاده، واتهم قناتين فضائيتين كبيرتين بتأجيج الأوضاع ونقل أحداث بصورة غير دقيقة، وطالب بضرورة اتخاذ إجراءات بحق هذا الإعلام العربي المؤجج.
ثالثاً: استعرض الرئيس الأسد أمام اللجنة تطورات الأزمة، وقال “إن الإصلاحات شبه مستحيلة في ظل أجواء التصعيد وأعمال العنف، وأكد للوفد من وجود جماعات مسلّحة، وصفها بالإرهابية، تواصل عملياتها ضد الجيش والقوى الأمنية، وكشف عن وجود أعداد ضخمة من الضحايا في صفوف القوات السورية، وأشار إلى أن ما يُنقل في وسائل الإعلام يُظهر أن القوات السورية هي التي تطلق النار، والصحيح أن بعض المناطق تشهد قتالاً حقيقياً، ونفى أن مثل هذه الأعمال العسكرية من قبل المعارضين يُمكن وصفها بالعمل السّلمي.
وكرر الرئيس السوري مراراً أن المجموعات المسلحة هي التي تُبادر بإطلاق النار.
وأكدت المصادر العربية “إن الوفد العربي كان صريحاً وواضحاً في لقائه مع القيادة السورية، وحذر من أن خروج آلية الحل من الميدان العربي يعني تدويل الأزمة، وهذا يعني أن سوريا عليها أن تتوقع تدخلاً أجنبياً وحصاراً دولياً مؤلماً على الاقتصاد والحياة المعيشية بشكل عام”.
وأشارت المصادر إلى أن اجتماعاً سيُعقد في الدوحة اليوم (الأحد) بين وفد اللجنة العربية وكبار المسؤولين في الحكومة السورية، ويتوقع أن يحمل الوفد السوري أجوبة عن أسئلة ومطالب اللجنة العربية.
وفي المقابل تجري تحركات على مستوى عالٍ في مجلس الأمن، تحسباً لفشل جهود الوساطة العربية، وتوقعت المصادر “إجراءات عقابية ضد سوريا في حال فشلت المبادرة، وأعربت عن قلقها من تطور الأمور نحو تدخل أجنبي في ظل الحراك الدولي للاعتراف بالمجلس الوطني السوري”.

شام برس

Alex
what response you have for Mjabali comment # 306
I need answer soon.

Jad
Thanks for the Heikal interview; oddly al ahram has not pubished a French or an English translation of the interview in al Ahram arabic which you posted once. What a shame.
It needs to be translated I would say, as it was quite strong.

Mjabali

You said you are Syrian and not Arab. Interesting! What do you consider your ethnicity?

304. zoo said:

Interview with The Telegraph

Syria’s President Assad: ‘I live a normal life – it’s why I’m popular’
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/8857883/Syrias-President-Assad-I-live-a-normal-life-its-why-Im-popular.html

REALITY OF THE INTERVIEW

The young woman who arranged the meeting picked me up in her own car. We drove for 10 minutes, then turned along what looked like a little-used side road through the bushes. There was no visible security, not even a gate, just a man dressed like a janitor, standing by a hut. We drove straight up to a single-storey building the size of a largeish suburban bungalow. The president was waiting in the hall to meet us.

We sat, just the three of us, on leather sofas in Assad’s small study. The president was wearing jeans.
He looked pretty relaxed.
He thought the protests were diminishing.
After they started, in March, “we didn’t go down the road of stubborn government. Six days after [the protests began] I commenced reform. People were sceptical that the reforms were an opiate for the people, but when we started announcing the reforms, the problems started decreasing… This is when the tide started to turn. This is when people started supporting the government… [but] being in the middle is very difficult when you have this strong polarisation.”

Assad English is perfect — he lived for two years in London, where he met his wife. In conversation he was open, even at times frank. “Many mistakes,” he admitted, had been made by the security forces – though no one, it seems, has been brought to book for them. He could both make, and take, a joke.
A former president of the Syrian Computer Society, he sometimes explained things in computer terms.

Comparing Syria’s leadership with that of a Western country, he said, was like comparing a Mac with a PC. “Both computers do the same job, but they don’t understand each other,” he said. “You need to translate. If you want to analyse me as the East, you cannot analyse me through the Western operating system, or culture. You have to translate according to my operating system, or culture.”
That’s the inner nerd in you speaking, I said, and he laughed out loud. I can’t imagine too many other Arab leaders you could get away with calling a nerd.

Assad lives in a relatively small house in a normal – albeit guarded – street. He believes that his modest lifestyle is another component of his appeal. “There is a legitimacy according to elections and there is popular legitimacy,” he said. “If you do not have popular legitimacy, whether you are elected or not you will be removed – look at all the coups we had.

“The first component of popular legitimacy is your personal life. It is very important how you live. I live a normal life. I drive my own car, we have neighbours, I take my kids to school. That’s why I am popular. It is very important to live this way – that is the Syrian style.”

President Assad told The Sunday Telegraph: “Syria is the hub now in this region. It is the faultline, and if you play with the ground you will cause an earthquake…. Do you want to see another Afghanistan, or tens of Afghanistans?”

MY NOTE:

Not much is left when you remove the verbosity .

Interesting article about the Syrian Kurds, claiming that who killed Mishaal Tammo are some Kurds for political gain:

أشك بأن ” النظام” قتل مشعل التمو.
الكاتب: حسان محمد محمود
———————————————–
لدي كل المبررات للشك بمقولة “النظام هو من قتل الشهيد مشعل التمو”. ولماذا علي التسليم بهذه المقولة، بعدما شهدته الساحة الكردية مؤخراً من ردود فعلٍ مبالغٍ فيها على تصريحات الدكتور برهان غليون، ومن ثم تعالي أصوات المنادين بـ ” الفيديرالية ” في سوريا، وتهديدات البعض بالانسحاب من المجلس الوطني، وأخيراً ما جاء في الفقرة (ب) من البيان الختامي لما يسمى “المؤتمر الوطني الكردي” الذي أنهى أعماله بتاريخ 28/10/2011.

سينبري الآن بعض الموتورين قومياً، من أصحاب و أتباع النظرية الشبيحية التي تقول: “لا صوت يعلو فوق صوت التحريض على النظام…إلخ، وإن كان لديك شكوك فلا تبح بها الآن، لأنك بذلك تساعد النظام سياسياً و إعلامياً…إلخ، و أنت هكذا تعمد إلى إثارة البلبلة و التشويش للتأثير على وحدة صف الثورة ـ وهي وحدةٌ لم أجد ما يؤكد تحققها على فرض أهميتها!! و قد لا يضير هؤلاء أن تبنى وحدتــ”هم” فوق تلال من الأكاذيب وعدم الشفافية والزجر و النهر ومنع الإفصاح عن الأفكار…و الأهم: الشكوك بهوية قاتل مشعل التمو ومبرراتها ـ….إلخ، وسوف يفهم من كلامك أنك تبرئ النظام …إلخ “. وإلى هؤلاء أقول سلفاً:
أنتم هكذا تقتدون بـ “بسام أبو عبد الله” عندما اتهم قناة الجزيرة بالتحريض لأنها عرضت فيديو استشهاد طفل، فاستدعى “منطقه” هذا أن ترد عليه المذيعة غادة عويس “قل لحكومتك أن لا تقتل!!”، فاللوم ههنا واقعٌ على من تسببت تصرفاته وتصريحاته بإثارة شكوكي، ومن يرمي بمكنونات عتهه السياسي وضموره الأخلاقي على عقلي المسكين الذي تجرأ وباح بما يمور في ثناياه؛ عليه أن يفكر بكلام غادة عويس ويتأمله جيداً.

إزاء غياب إمكانات إثبات هوية قاتل الشهيد مشعل التمو بالأدلة الجنائية القاطعة ـ أنا شخصياً ـ مضطرٌ لسلوك سبيل الاستدلال على قاعدة: “ابحث عن المستفيد من الجريمة”، وجملة المواقف و التصريحات الأخيرة لبعض الشخصيات الكردية تظهر أن ثمة مستفيدين آخرين ـ غير النظام ـ من غياب مشعل التمو، هم بالضبط أولئك الساعين لاستثمار الفراغ الناشئ عن غيابه بمحاولات ملئه على هواهم، وحسبما تشاء إراداتهم و طروحاتهم السياسية.
وعلى فرض صحة الفرضية القائلة بأن السياسيين هم مجموعة من الأنبياء و القديسين، المبدأيين، شاتمين الميكيافيلية صباح مساء؛ فإن هذا لا ينفي وجود استثناءات عن الطهرانية السياسية هذه في صفوف الحركة الكردية، استثناءاتٌ لها أدواتها المستعدة للقيام بكل شيء من أجل مصلحتها وتحقق رؤيتها.
و لكي أدحض يقين ” هل يقتل كرديٌّ كردياً؟ ” أجدني مضطراً للتذكير بواقعٍ وتاريخٍ يؤشران أن علاقة مفهوم “الشرذمة” وما ينجم عنه من ارتجال و عشوائية لصيق بالحركة السياسية الكردية التصاق المطر بالغيم، و لايــبز تصفيات الأكراد لبعضهم إلا ما قام به الفلسطينيون على امتداد تاريخ الثورة الفلسطينية.
في البداية ـ لسذاجتي ربما ـ جنحت إلى تفسير قيام بعض الكرد باشتراط تغيير الاسم الرسمي للدولة وحذف كلمة “العربية” منه بأن دوافعه لن تخرج عن إطار ضعف الخبرة و اضمحلال الحنكة، خصوصاً أن توقيت ذلك كان مضحكاً و الجهة التي طالبوها بإقرار “طموحهم” هذا ليست ذات صلاحية، لكن فيما بعد، وإثر علو نبرة المطالبين بالفيديرالية في سوريا و المبالغة في ردود الفعل على تصريحات الدكتور برهان غليون، وتحول “الطموحات” إلى شروط، اتضح ـ لي على الأقل ـ أن الابتزاز هو ما ترتكز عليه مواقف هؤلاء، ابتزاز الحاجة للوحدة و التآزر بأسرع ما يمكن، واستغلال غياب مشعل التمو، لتثبيت رؤاهم، بغض النظر عن تأثير هذه “الشروط” ومفاعيلها السياسية على الثورة التي يدعون انتماءهم لها، فيما هي لا تشكل لهم إلا فرصةً لتجسيد أحلامهم بتفتيت سوريا.
قتل الشهيد مشعل التمو لا تتعدد الجهات المستفيدة منه فحسب، بل طرقه و وسائله، و إن كانت شكوكي السالف ذكرها في غير محلها، وكان بعض الكرد أبرياء من الشكل الجسدي للقتل؛ فلا أعتقد أنهم كذلك سياسياً ومعنوياً…وهذا رأيي.

هوامش ذات صلة:
نصت الفقرة (ب) من البيان الختامي لما يسمى ” المؤتمر الوطني الكردي” على ما يلي:
ـ في المجال الكردي السوري : رأى المؤتمر أن الشعب الكردي في سوريا هو شعب أصيل ، يعيش على أرضه التاريخية ويشكل جزءا أساسيا من النسيج المجتمعي والوطني والتاريخي لسوريا ، وهذا يتطلب الإقرار الدستوري بوجوده كمكون رئيسي من مكونات الشعب السوري وثاني أكبر قومية فيه ، وإيجاد حل ديمقراطي عادل لقضيته القومية بما يضمن حقه في تقرير مصيره بنفسه ضمن وحدة البلاد ، كما رأى المؤتمر أن حل القضية الكردية يعتبر مدخلا حقيقيا للديمقراطية وامتحانا لقوى المعارضة السورية التي تسعى لتحقيق غد أفضل لسوريا على قاعدة أن سوريا لكل السوريين .
لنلاحظ عبارة: ” وإيجاد حل ديمقراطي عادل لقضيته القومية بما يضمن حقه في تقرير مصيره بنفسه ضمن وحدة البلاد ، كما رأى المؤتمر أن حل القضية الكردية يعتبر مدخلا حقيقيا للديمقراطية وامتحانا لقوى المعارضة السورية التي تسعى لتحقيق غد أفضل لسوريا على قاعدة أن سوريا لكل السوريين .”.
ناقصنا امتحانات!!!! لماذا لا تعترض الأغلبية العربية على اسم سوريا برغم أن ” السريان ” أقلية في سوريا؟؟ أعتقد بأن هذا الواقع ومدلولاته الديمقراطية سيتجاهله دعاة امتحان الديمقراطية المرتجاة في سوريا باستخدام وسيلة الامتحان الجديدة ” حق تقرير المصير ” للشعب الكردي.
تعليقات نشرتها على صفحتي في الفيسبوك:
تعليق (1):
أيها السوريون: انتبهوا!!! هناك من يستخدم الديمقراطية كحصان طروادة ليحقق أوهامه في الفيديرالية، وهؤلاء الذين يتبعون الآن أساليب الابتزاز الرخيصة مستغلين عطشكم للديمقراطية؛ لن يتورعوا غداً عن خلق أوضاع شبيهة بالأوضاع في السودان، و التي قادت إلى تفككه.
تعليق (2):
في الدفاع عن توصيف “الفديراليين” بالمرضى النفسيين:
:عندما يقول السوريون النازفون “عرباً وكرداً …إلخ” بأن بديل الدولة الأمنية الذي يطمحون إليه هو (الدولة المدنية ـ الديمقراطية) القائمة على أساس المواطنة المتساوية للجميع بغض النظر عن خلفياتهم الطائفية و الإثنية، ثم يأتيك موتورون قومياً يدخلون هذا المشروع من ثقب إبرة تعديل الاسم الرسمي للدولة وحذف كلمة ” العربية ” منه، أو حين يشترطون “الفيديرالية” مدخلاً لانتمائهم للمشروع الأهم و الأعم ( الدولة المدنية ـ الديمقراطية) بماذا يمكن وصف هؤلاء؟
من لا يرى (العام) (الكل) (الأشمل) إلا من نظارات نرجسيته الفردية أو القومية أو الطائفية أليس مريضاً نفسياً؟
من يفرمل تقدم الكل لأهدافه الخاصة ورؤيته الخاصة ماذا يدعى؟
تعليق (3):
الأساطير المؤسسة لـ ” الفيديرالية ” في سوريا:
هي تشبه ـ من حيث منطقها الداخلي ـ الأساطير المؤسسة لدولة العصابات الإرهابية الأصولية التوراتية القابعة في فلسطين، و تتماهى معها، وتعتبرها تجربةً ومرجعيةً منهجيةً لها، وتقوم على أسس منها:
1ـ نرجسيةٌ قوميةٌ، تتغذى وتتقنع بقناعٍ من اضطهاد تاريخي، يتم تسويقه على أنه (هولوكوستهم) متجاهلين ثراء الدولة المدنية ـ الديمقراطية وقدرتها على إزالة هذا الاضطهاد.
2ـ أوهامٌ سياسيةٌ، جعلت دعاة الفيديرالية و المرجين لها ـ كما الصهيونية ـ أشبه بالمرتزقة الذين يؤجرون أنفسهم ومواقفهم لأي قوة دولية يتخيلون أنهم يستخدمونها لتحقيق هذه الأوهام، بينما في الواقع ما يحصل هو العكس.
3ـ تغليب المشترك الإثني على المشترك الوطني، و اعتبار المناداة بالفيديرالية رأياً مجرد إقدامك على تفنيده ودحضه مدعاةً لاتهامك بمعاداة قيم الديمقراطية و المساواة وحق تقرير المصير، كما تتهم الصهيونية خصومها بمعاداة السامية. ” هذا التعليق كتبته قبل صدور بيان المؤتمر الوطني الكردي الذي تحدث عن حق تقرير المصير بيوم واحد”.
تعليق (4):
” الفيديراليون” يريدون ” لبننة” و ” عرقنة” سوريا، بينما الديمقراطيون يريدون (سورنة) العراق ولبنان سورنةً ديمقراطيةً فوق طائفيةٍ أو إثنية.
حسان محمد محمود.

Bashar is starting to realize he is an abnormal being and a children killer. His attempt to be emphatic about “living a normal life” is the first sign of self-recognition that he is not and will never be.

Hi Mina,
I agree with you, his interview was ignored, even his latest interview on Alkhanzeera I linked was’t mentioned much, it seems that they wanted to give him another chance to change his views and it’s obvious in the interview from the way of the questions but Haykal is too smart to be manipulated so he dodge almost all the questions back in the most diplomatic way and repeat the same stand of his previews interviews.

Only in Homs:
5 bodies of people killed and thrown in the street, the signature of the terrorists.
Firing toward the national hospital of Homs by the terrorists
Kidnapping of 5 women on their way back from work again by the terrorists
Burning a mid size bus used by the security forces

HNN شبكة أخبار حمص
آخر الاحداث
تم العثور صباحا على خمس جثث اربع منها مجهولة الهوية كما تم العثور لاحقا على جثتين احدهما للمواطن علي خضر حمادى منكل بها والثانية مجهولة الهوية بالقرب من مفرق الاشرفية ….
اطلاق ناري على المشفى الوطني ادى لاضرار مادية فقط …
تم اختطاف خمس فتيات قرب دوار الفاخورة اثناء عودتهن من معمل للابسة الجاهزة …
احتراق حافلة متوسطة عائدة لقوى الامن على جسر باب عمرو صباح اليوم دون وقوع اصابات

308. newfolder said:

video showing security forces taking large amounts of cash from the central bank in Homs and loading them into the trunks of cars:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DE97Gc-H_EI

REALITY
A normal armored transportation service of cash protected by a vehicle from the Syrian army.
A large amount of 1000 SP bills ( waiting for the 5000 bills from Austrian printer )

More interesting on this video is the normal life in Homs , shops are open , non veiled woman are walking in the streets , cyclists are driving roundabouts the wrong way , …

Bashar is going to lose the Chinese veto soon.  

China:  “the situation is dangerous and the blood shed could not continue”

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/china-middle-east-envoy-urges-syria-speed-reforms-144552175.html

China Middle East envoy urges Syria to speed reforms
By Shaimaa Fayed | Reuters – 3 hours ago

CAIRO (Reuters) – China’s Middle East envoy called on the Syrian government on Sunday to speed up the reforms it has promised in response to popular demands, saying the situation was dangerous and the bloodshed could not continue.
Foreign pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government to end a bloody, seven-month crackdown on protesters demanding political reforms has so far had no apparent effect.
The United States blames China and Russia for failing to throw their weight behind its efforts to isolate Assad’s government diplomatically and toughen economic sanctions.
Speaking in Cairo after a visit to Syria, Chinese envoy Wu Sike told reporters that Assad’s government must take “palpable steps” to end the bloodshed.
“The Syrian government has to speed up implementing its promises of reform,” said Wu. “There must be respect and response to the aspirations … of the Syrian people.”
He said he had met Syria’s deputy president and foreign minister and members of the opposition movement while in the Syrian capital Damascus, and insisted that China was neutral in the conflict.
“I emphasised to top officials the danger of the situation in Syria and that the situation cannot continue,” he said.
Wu was speaking at the Arab League headquarters in the Egyptian capital, where some 150 demonstrators had gathered to condemn what they saw as a timid response from the regional body to crackdowns on pro-democracy movements in Syria and Yemen.
The protesters held up banners reading: “Your silence is killing us, League”.

#321

The bodies trail is “made in Syria”. Just like Shabeehas Inc, and rent-a-crowd Inc. It is an authentic Besho’s trademark! Remember Izraa.

الاسد يناشد روسيا مواصلة دعمها له والصين تحذره

قال الرئيس السوري بشار الاسد للتلفزيون الروسي الاحد انه يتوقع من موسكو مواصلة دعمها مع تعرض نظامه لادانات متزايدة لحملته على المعارضة.
 
وقال الاسد للقناة الاولى بالتلفزيون الروسي “اولا وقبل كل شيء نعتمد على روسيا كبلد تربطنا به صلات وثيقة في هذا المنعطف التاريخي”.
 
وتابع الاسد في مقتطف من مقابلة ستبث بالكامل الساعة 17,00 ت غ “ان الدور الروسي شديد الاهمية”.

واضاف “منذ الايام الاولى للازمة ابقينا الاتصال بشكل دائم مع الحكومة الروسية، ونحن نطلع اصدقاءنا الروس بالتفصيل على مستجدات الاوضاع”.

وجاءت دعوة الاسد بعد اقل من شهر من قول الرئيس الروسي ديمتري مدفيديف للزعيم السوري للمرة الاولى ان عليه اما ان يقبل باصلاحات سياسية او ينحني للمطالبات بتنحيه.
 
غير ان روسيا تواصل دعم سوريا في مجلس الامن وقد حالت في الماضي دون صدور قرارات تدعو لعقوبات اشد على الحليف التقليدي لموسكو.
 
الموفد الصيني: “الوضع الخطير” في سوريا لا يمكن ان يستمر
 
اكد الموفد الصيني الى الشرق الاوسط وو سيكه انه حذر السلطات السورية خلال زيارة اخيرة لدمشق من ان قمع التظاهرات “لا يمكن ان يستمر”.
 
وقال الموفد الصيني انه “اكد لمسؤولين رفيعي المستوى في سوريا خطورة الوضع وانه لا يمكن ان يستمر” مضيفا ان الرئيس السوري بشار الاسد يجب ان “يحترم ويستجيب للتطلعات والمطالب المشروعة للشعب السوري”. 

وكان الموفد الصيني قال خلال زيارة لسوريا الخميس انه “يجب احترام ارادة الشعب ومطالبه المشروعة وهناك توافق واسع النطاق بشان المشاركة الواسعة وسلمية الاصلاح”.

واوضح سيكه “نعتقد انه يمكن تحقيق مطالب الشعب السوري من خلال مشاركته ودفع عملية الاصلاح” داعيا الى “وقف كافة اعمال العنف حقنا للدماء واجراء اصلاحات من خلال الحوار وغيره من الطرق السلمية” ومضيفا “يجب احترام خيار الشعب”.
 
واعرب المبعوث الصيني “عن الامل بان تسرع الحكومة السورية في تنفيذ التعهدات في الاصلاح واطلاق عملية سياسية شاملة ذات مشاركة واسعة من الاطراف المعنية باسرع وقت ممكن وذلك بالاستجابة لتطلعات الشعب السوري ومطالبه المحقة”.

واعتبر “ان الاولوية الاولى حاليا هي ان على الاطراف المعنية في سوريا تغليب مصالح الوطن والشعب ووقف كافة اعمال العنف واتخاذ اجراءات ملموسة لوقف الاشتباكات الدموية وسقوط ضحايا”.

وتشهد سوريا منذ منتصف اذار/مارس حركة احتجاجية لا سابق لها سقط خلالها اكثر من ثلاثة آلاف قتيل بينهم 187 طفلا على الاقل منذ 15 اذار/مارس بحسب الامم المتحدة التي حذرت من مخاطر وقوع “حرب اهلية”.

وكانت روسيا والصين، وهما من الدول الدائمة العضوية في مجلس الامن الدولي، اثارتا استياء الغرب عبر استخدام حق النقض ضد مشروع قرار يدين نظام الاسد. وهدد مشروع القرار النظام السوري ب”تدابير محددة” على قمعه الدامي للمتظاهرين.

وقالت بكين ان مثل هذا القرار “لن يحسن” الوضع في سوريا.

Syria: Bashar al-Assad accused of ‘scare mongering’
Opposition groups and activists on Sunday accused Syrian President Bashar Assad of ‘scare mongering’ to dissuade Western action against the regime.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8858475/Syria-Bashar-al-Assad-accused-of-scare-mongering.html

In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Telegraph, President Assad had warned that foreign intervention in his country would cause an “earthquake” that would “burn the whole region”.
“He is trying to make the uprising seem threatening to the West and the Middle East,” said Walat Afimeh, a member of the Sawa (Together) Youth opposition movement.
“After eight months of uprisings, why do you think this will suddenly descend to civil and then regional war?” said Nasser Ahme, a Kurdish activist member of Sawa Youth speaking from a hiding place in Turkey.
Activists renewed the call for a Nato imposed ‘no fly zone’, and the equipping of the ‘Syrian Free Army’ (SFA) – an opposition military group composed of defecting soldiers.
Syria’s social patchwork of ethnic diversities is makes the country sensitive to civil war acquiesced activists. But intervention will only help prevent civil war.
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“If no one protects those diverse groups of civilians who are being attacked while making peaceful protests, they will arm themselves. Then we will have civil war”, an activist with close links to the SFA and the Syrian National Council, a broad front bringing together opposition figures inside and outside of the country.
“We need to help the SFA become the regular army of the opposition, under the auspices of the Syrian National Council,” said the activist who could not be named for his own safety. At the moment they operate in disconnected pockets inside Syrian towns, he said. A ‘no fly zone’ would remove the regime’s eyes in the sky, it would create a safe zone that allowed them to get organised.” Political intervention is equally vital said opposition figures. “We need to strengthen the Syrian National Council, to empower them to stand up to the regime, and to create free democratic elections. But for this to happen it needs international backing,” said the activist.
Opposition movements dismissed President Assad’s claim that intervention could cause “another Afghanistan”; that it would become country stricken by a crippling civil war that would spread to surrounding countries.
Members of the ‘Kurdish Future Party’, a group seeking to incite popular protest inside Syria’s Kurdish areas, said the “struggle” against the regime was serving to “unify” the country.
“The regime has long played on sectarian tensions in the country. For decades Kurds and Arabs have fought over land in north-eastern Syria,” said a spokesperson. “But since the uprisings began, people are uniting in the struggle against the regime. Thousands of members from different ethnic groups and religions have joined the party since March.”
Uncertain of the agenda of Arab opposition movements, and fearful that life under Islamist parties, should they come to power, would be worse than under the regime, Syrian Kurds have thus far had a small part in the uprisings.
But support for the Kurdish Future party, one of three Kurdish parties calling for the overthrow of Assad, was boosted after the assassination of its leader earlier this month Mashaal Tammo. The opposition immediately blamed the Syrian authorities for carrying out the hit.
“The international community has to understand that by starting this revolution inside Syria we are facing our fears. Trying to end our nightmare — the Syrian regime,” said the exiled spokesman of the Kurdish Future Party. Wheelchair bound, he participated in numerous protests in security forces beat him to the point of bleeding profusely he said.
In continuing violence, it was reported that 40 anti-Assad protestors in Syria were killed on Friday. “We want this to be peaceful, but it has been eight months. Something has to be done,” said Afimeh.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/syrian-president-in-russian-tv-interview-thanks-moscow-for-vetoing-un-resolution/2011/10/30/gIQAWFZOVM_story.html

Syrian president, in Russian TV interview, thanks Moscow for vetoing UN resolution
By Associated Press, Updated: Sunday, October 30, 8:03 AM

MOSCOW — Syrian President Bashar Assad has thanked Russia for shielding his nation from international sanctions over a crackdown on protests.

Assad, speaking to Russia’s state Channel One television in an interview broadcast Sunday, hailed the Russian veto of a European-backed U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria. He added that Syria will count on continued support from Moscow.
 
(Hussein Malla, file/Associated Press) – FILE – In this Oct. 21, 2010 file photo, Syrian President Bashar Assad smiles as he shakes hands with Venesuela’s President Hugo Chafez, not seen, at the Syrian presidential palace, in Damascus, Syria. Syrian President Bashar Assad has warned that a western intervention in Syria will lead to an “earthquake” that “would burn the whole region.” In an interview with Britain’s Sunday Telegraph, Assad said that such an intervention against his regime will cause “another Afghanistan.”

“We are relying on Russia as a country with which we have strong historic ties,” Assad said.

The measure vetoed by Russia and China earlier this month would have been the first legally binding resolution against Syria since Assad’s forces began attacking civilian protesters in mid-March. The U.N. estimates the crackdown has killed at least 3,000 people.

The U.S. and European countries have strongly criticized the veto. Russia defended its stance by saying the Western-backed resolution would have opened the door to possible military action.

President Dmitry Medvedev and other Russian leaders have strongly warned the West against emulating Libya’s experience in Syria. Medvedev said Russia backs international demands that the Syrian government end violence against civilians, but also believes that the opposition must disavow “extremists.”

“Since the first days of the crisis we have been in constant contact with the Russian government,” Assad said in the interview. “We were telling our Russian friends in detail about how the situation was developing. Russia was aware of the danger of military or political intervention into Syria’s domestic affairs, so it played an important role on the international stage, including the use of a veto at the U.N. Security Council.”

5. Tarasaid: Ambassador Robert Ford’s profile in courage

Tara, a courageous man would have resigned from the US State Department when Bush invaded and decimated Iraq, killing in the order of hundreds of thousands. Instead Ford served at a high level in Iraq in furtherance of the American occupation. He’s got blood on his hands.

#307 IRRITATED

I know, I know, the west is just so evil, a massive disaster for mankind. The world would have been so much better off without their absurd political and social systems and economic development.

You’d never lower your standards to go and live there, I’m sure.

JNA

What can I say? I can’t disagree with your logic. A courageous man indeed should have resigned in protest of the killings in Iraq and the torture in Abu ghraib.

May be he has undergone reforms?

JNA, can killers reform?

President Assad and the Syrian government need to take these cards from the opposition and give strength to the Chinese and the Russian stand by setting a time table to the election and announcing that the president according to the Syrian constitution does not permit him to run for a third term and that he intend to adhere to the constitution and protect all Syrians while he is in office, by doing that , everybody will be forced to side by him and the opposition when they do not accept will be seen as they should be, power hungry individuals who are ready to sell their county for the sake of thier chairs,

After that any militery opposition will be considered as it should be a terrorist campaign against the country that Syria needs to fight, the question is , will the Syrian government be smart enough to do what said, I sure hope so, we do not want Syria to end up like Iraq or Algeria .

“We are relying on Russia as a country with which we have strong historic ties,” Assad said.(from report in #32).

See IRRITATED, there are the good guys! That’s the place to praise and go and live! Those Russians never support dictators or control and exploit other people.

Tara,

People who defend themselves are not killers,

After what happened in the second war war, and recently in Vietnam with all the crimes that were commited including using Agent Orange, the US is a great friend of Japan and Vietnam, so crimes has to be forgiven if any country wants to move forward, duelling on the past kills the duellers, and destroy thier country.

Norman

Come on Norman. Forgiveness should only come after crimes being acknowledged. Bashar is a children killer. 187 children were killed and this is Bashar’s responsibility.

Bronco

You won!

Aljazeera said they agreed on road map.

We, the revolutionists, are all alone.

Keep up the fight…f**K the Arab League and all Arab countries rulers, f**k EU and UN, and f**k international media, we indeed are all alone, as was Prophet and Sahaba in Badr and Uhud, we will fight tioll the death, we will keep on fighting, everybody from BBC ,m Guardian and Telegraph have gone against the revolution, you will have to kill us all if you want to stop this. KHAYBAY KHAYBAR YA KAFER.

#324
“It is an authentic Besho’s trademark!”
I guess that you didn’t see the latest clips of your terrorist comrades beheading people in Hama or your terrorist comrades showing the cutted heads of the army in Jisr Ashghour..in anyway, again and again you prove that you are not pro-democracy or pro-freedom, you are simply pro-terrorist, which is your own choice as long as you keep them close to your neighbourhood not to impose them on Syrians.

I’m realy really worried for Homs, it seems Tanks are shelling buildings and the FSA is being almost finished, Al Jazeera and all international news in IGNORING the news from Homs, exceopt BBC World News reported that Army is on full offensive and they had vidoes of about 150 Tanks incessantly shelling buildings, I’m really worried about Aboud, he has not posted on OTW’s blog for almost 12 hours now, International media are not reporting detais about Homs, but it seems about 100 Tanks and special forces brigades are cinducting full onslaught, situation seems very bleak, almost like Hama 1982 and it seems the FSA is cornered, outgunned and on the verge of defeat, if homs is defeated then the revolution will face uncertain days.

I also have some sources who are suggesting that Qatari, Saudi, Turkish and Egyptian regimes telephoned Bashar and personally gave them the go-ahaed to start a Hama 1982 style military action against Homs and have promised that all Arab news agencies will keep quiet and black out the info, in fact Egypt regime even made Sarkozy and Clinton agree to Hama 1982 style assault on Homs and in return have promised that Besho will implement reforms and everything will be normal, Hezbollah will secretly agree to never attack territory of Israel unilaterally. Also Turkey will secretly agree to declare Riyad al Asad as a terrorist and hand him over to Syrian authorities. It seems we have been checkmated by cunning diplomacy, I feel very ANGRY, Tara pls pray for the revolution. At this moment about 20,000 soldiers are taking part in the assault on Homs, including special forces and airborne paratrooper divisions, all this with the full endorsement of Arab League, Turkey, EU, UN, BRICS, they all bssically agreed to crush the military aspect of the revolution.

Syria’s government confident, but country polarized

337

I am pro all people. You are pro your sect. You try to hide it. It is obvious. You are insulting your own intelligence as usual.

#335

Aljazeera changed its statement. It is now saying that they delivered a working paper to the Syrian delegate and the regime will decide on it tomorrow. So tomorrow it is.

#340
Nobrainer like you have no clue of what my sect is, actually when you see people as sects the way you always do you shows your obvious sectarian views, so please save your disgusting ugly sectarian breath for someone similar to your level.

Angry Arab has news of the SNC in Istanbul (why can’t these people use videoconference?) It reminds of some of the characters we saw interviewed by Joshua Landis in the early months of the remote controled “uprising”.

http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/10/my-source-in-istanbul-meets-cicero-of.html

My source in Istanbul meets the Cicero of the Syrian opposition
So this is what my source sent me (I cite with his/her permission) about Cicero of the Syrian opposition: “As’ad if you use this just say ‘from a source in Istanbul’ and nothing else)
if Abraham Lincoln had this guy’s voice and charisma then blacks would still be slaves in america
he says that all the SNC supports foreign military intervention against Syria, except for Burhan Ghalyun. he seemed to be upset that Burhan is against foreign militaries attacking syria
he calls it a no fly zone but he basically admitted that this is a code word for military attacks on syria and said that this has to be explained to the syrian people on TV, and in public, he will not say he supports foreign military intervention, he will just say that he supports sanctions etc but in private he admits they all support foreign military intervention “One of our failures (as the SNC, he means) is we did not make decision calling for supporting foreign intervention” he says He says that the only solution is foreign military intervention but he also admits that the west has no appetite for it he believes that the psychological shock of the west or the UN declaring a no fly zone will convince alawites and syrian senior generals to abandon the regime and support the opposition because they will see that supporting bashar is taking them down and he thinks that as soon as Alawites and senior officers see American ships off the coast of Tartus and Latakia then they will abandon the regime and it will all be over
all this but he admits that the west has no interest in attacking Syria “The whole Alawite community will be massacred if they go to the end,” he says, “so he thinks they will make a rational choice and abandon regime. And he wants a “Taif accord” for syria did you know he is a former dentist? anyway I was struck by how he admitted they basically had no plan, they want foreign military intervention but they realize the US and Europe do not want this I guess there best hope is to provoke a massacre to get the west involved. or predict a fake one like what happened in libya he insists they need a no-fly zone but nobody is using planes against the demonstrators. what a silly imitation of libya he also says that ‘only’ 30 thousand civilians were killed in libya after the NATO intervention and “only” five thousand of those were killed by the rebels. even if that were true thats more than have died in syria so far (official numbers of activists less than 4 thousand) and at first he insisted that NO libyan civilians were killed by NATO

one other interesting point. how stupid are these people? he said he wants the international criminal court to press charges against Bashar and other senior Syrian government officials, but at the same time he admits that the best solution is a Taif accords for Syria like the one they had in Lebanon. so do you want to put Bashar in jail and negotiate with him at the same time? but I was surprised that he admitted they are still willing to negotiate and pursue a Taif accords sort of agreement”

Khaled

Please have faith in the outcome. I do. I do not have the slightest doubt. It is a war of attrition and we are determined people. It is a Marathon and our resilience is unbreakable. You know why? Because we have the moral high ground. There is a price for it and the Syrian are paying this high price. It is sad and painful but we will live through it.

FICTION

297. Revlon said:

A rare video proof of heavy tank artillary shelling of residential neighbourhoods.
Partial destruction of the front of a house in Baba Amr, Homs as a result of a salvo of three shells.

حمص المحتلة- المقطع الذي سيكسر ظهر الاسد2011 29-10
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBsPVcsGpkU&feature=player_embedded

REALITY
Look at 35s sequence of the video
the light flashes

and then look at

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=255890447794334

the slow motion shows explosion in a building resulted from explosives planted in the building, not from bombing by outside shelling

حجة تارا:

Why don’t you understand from my words what I am/or could be ethnically instead of asking your typical passive aggressive boring questions?

I thought a professional like you should have a deeper perception into life, and a better knowledge of history, or Majedkhaldoun contaminated your logic?

I could tell from your words and attitude that you are from what is left from the Ottoman days. You said this and gave references on many occasions, so if we look deep enough we could find that even you who claim to be Syrian may not have roots in the country 200 years ago. This explains your attitude for real.

Majedkhaldoun:

You cursed at me on numerous occasions. You slander me all the time. You cursed at my family. You bad mouth a huge section of the Syrian population thinking I may be one of them. You call me names. You connect me to killers and assassins. You did not leave anything bad and did not throw it at me.

So what do you expect the result of your behavior?

Mjabali

You volunteered an information that you are Syrian but not Arab. I then asked you a simple question about your ethnicity. You then answered volunteering to tell me your prediction about my own ethnicity. This was not my question and you got it wrong. I am an Arab. I think, eat, talk, aspire and feel Arab. What is yours? Did my question hurt you so you decided to resort to insults?

Terrorist act continue, kidnapping and killing Alkarama (Homs) Handball team coach and player Adnan Alqbaji:

بحببببك يا حمص
مجموعه مسلحه تغتال مدرب و لاعب الكرامة لكرة اليد عدنان القبجي بعد اخراجه من منزله و هذه المجموعه هي من نفس حي الشهيد من حي الخضر

@ 306 MJABALI

So Syrians cannot be Arabs or Muslims

I’m utterly speechless. I mean really … what a gem of a statement.

You have just declared yourself as a racist idiot my friend. Many congratulations. Enjoy being irrelevant.

I like MJABALI’s logic:

“…I am Syrian and not an Arab. I come from the heartland of Syria that was invaded by the Arabs and their product: the Muslims.

Tell me Majedkhaldoun how many Syrians ruled Syria from the days of the Arab/Muslim invasion till now?”.
=====

So let me rephrase it:

I’m Jewish and not Arab. How many Palestinians ruled the HolyLand from the day of the Arab / Muslim invasion?

==============
Mjabali is clearly a Phoenician. A terrestrial Phoenician.
.

حجة تارا:

You may be an Arab by “culture” but ethnically you could be from some other race. There is nothing wrong with that. We all need to respect our differences and know them and discuss issues related to them with no taboos.

Your family could have adopted the Arabic language not that long ago. Remember many of the ruling families in the Middle East did not speak Arabic, and did not want to speak Arabic for almost a 1000 years (King Fuad of Egypt as an example, Husni al-Zaim from Syria is an example for you.

The Turks were not that big on pro Arabness. Count the ruling families, their armies and their Ulama (religious class) for the last 1000 years and you have the people of the cities of the Middle East, where most of them were the result of migration of a sort.

As for my ethnicity: I am Syrian, like the Syrian Christians, and Druze, Ismailis, Shia and Sunnis from the country side. I came from the country side.

We could have mixed with many others because of all of the invasions that came through but our language, music and culture tell who we are. For sure, we are Syrians and for sure we differ form Arabs from the Arabian Peninsula who invaded us and did not treat us well. This is the truth.

Our language carries the traces of the languages of the Syrian people (Aramis, Kan3anis, Assuris) that existed before the invasion of the Arabs and the gradual introduction of the Arabic languages and norms.

Today and with the influx of the many different ethnic groups, the word Syrian does not mean you are an Arab as many always wanted us to believe. There are Syrians who are Armenians, Turkmen, Kurds, Arabs…etc

Only a modern and secular law will make sure that all of these different ethnic groups are respected and recognized.

The murderous nerd who wore jeans while slaughtering 3000 of his people.

Any idea of why this foreign press PR flood now? Why now?
.

Amir

Thanks for your previous link about “Bought-Love Inc”. Another Syrian trademark.

I hope people who claimed that millions are in support of Assad have watched how these girls in Lattakia were herded To demonstrate their love.

Hey Tara,

I might have missed it, but did we apologize for Hiroshima and Nagasaki, i believe that hundreds of thousands died there, i might be wrong, now the US and Japan are the best of friends.

By the way, these bombs saved many American lives that would have been lost in an Island to Island liberation

That was the smart solution for the war, kept the emperor to satisfy the Japanese and ended the war, Thank GOD we were not stubborn and insisted on putting the Emperor on trial for the crimes of the second war by the Japanese in Korea and China,

Mr. Muhammad comment #350

I said Syrians are different from Arabs. This does not mean that some Arabs can not claim themselves to be Syrians in these days.

The word Syrian in these days includes people from different ethnic groups, and among all of those are those who consider themselves Syrians. This word did not come from nothing. It came from people and language. If they are Semitic like the Arabs that need to be proven by science. So far, I have not seen any evidence to let me think that Syria is not an identity and it is Arabic beyond doubt.

The word Syria came from before the days of the Arabs and has its own languages, people, and borders.

I will not say a bad word regarding your bad choice of words. I am not a racist, I have my own theory, so why don’t you prove me wrong with logic, words and historical facts instead of calling me names?

Dear Norman

My moral compass are not dedicated by what the US did or did not do. So reviewing the US history in Japan is irrelevant and I do not approve it.

Norman, if we the people do not value our own life, no one would. Killing few demonstrators in any country outside the ME is enough reason for a prime minister to resign. Why can’t we value our own lives the same way Westerner valued theirs.

Also not that I agree with Heroshima bombing but that was America in Japan not America in Americ. Bashar is killing his own people. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?

MJABALI,

You said that all people who live in Syria are Syrians but not all of them are Arabs and they are Syrians even if they are Armenians Assyrians, Druz, so why can’t all people that live in the Arab world be considered Arabs like the American from different ethnic groups are considered American because they live in America, after all the world consider us Arabs no matter where we come from in the Arab world .

Just a thought?.

Press Freedom in “democratic” countries by Al Jazeera

A model for Syria

REALITY

Israeli ex-soldier faces prison over leaks
Anat Kamm sentenced to more than four years in jail for leaking documents linked to the killing of Palestinian fighters.

Kamm copied more than 2,000 military documents from army computers between 2005 and 2007 [Reuters]

An Israeli court has sentenced a former soldier to four and a half years in prison for leaking classified military documents to a newspaper, which later reported allegations of a policy to assassinate Palestinian fighters.

A three-judge panel handed Anat Kamm a 54-month sentence and an additional 18-month suspended term on Sunday, with judges writing in the court document that they had found “the motive behind taking the documents was mainly ideological”.

Kamm, 24, copied more than 2,000 military documents from army computers between 2005 and 2007, when she served as a junior clerk in the office of the Israeli commander responsible for the illegally occupied West Bank. About 700 were classified.

Avigdor Feldman, one of Kamm’s lawyers, said at the time she was convicted that she had “believed she stumbled onto [evidence of] war crimes.”

She later passed some of the information, including operational plans, personnel lists and lists of targets to Uri Blau, a correspondent for Israel’s Haaretz daily.

The newspaper subsequently reported in 2008 that senior army officers had authorised the assassination of Palestinian fighters, in a possible violation of Israeli law.

Press freedom questioned

All of Blau’s stories were approved by Israel’s military censor before they were published, but the information contained within them led to a search for his source.

Kamm was arrested in December 2009, though her detention was made public only four months later. She has remained under house arrest throughout the proceedings against her.

Kamm was convicted in February of possessing and distributing secret information, after striking a plea bargain
with Tel Aviv District Court, where judges agreed in exchange to drop more serious charges of harming state security.

Her case has sparked debate in Israel on the limits of press freedom in a nation where most men and women are subject to compulsory military conscription at 18, and go on to serve in the reserves, and many become privy to classified information.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Dimi Reider, a +972mag.com contributing editor, said that the sentence is a blow to freedom of information and freedom of press.

“Sources will now think very carefully before approaching journalists; journalists will think very carefully before publishing documents; and soldiers stumbling onto what they suspect are war crimes will probably not approach anybody at all.”

In summing up Kamm’s sentence, the judges appeared to point at her case as a lesson to other soldiers.

“The military establishment is built on the service of young, motivated people who fill complicated and secret roles,” they wrote.

“If the army cannot trust the soldiers serving in various units and exposed to sensitive issues, then it cannot function as a regular army.”

Reider said: “The message that this sends to young soldiers is that if you see something illegal keep your mouth shut and do as you are told because if you talk about it your commanders will suffer no repercussions and you will go to jail.”

Israel has justified its assassination practice as necessary to combat and deter potential attackers, while saying it has refined its methods to kill its targets more precisely.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/10/20111030113048320412.html

Tara,

At your service!
.

@353. @ 357 The whole world knows who this murderer is

Her name is Marie Jana Korbelova a Jewess from Czechoslovakia who became Madeleine Albright US. Secretary of State and stated on television her views on the need to kill over 500,000 Iraqi children to accomplish regime change.

Stated on CBS’s 60 Minutes (May 12, 1996) in reply to Lesley Stahl’s question “We have heard that half a million children have died. I mean, that’s more children than died in Hiroshima. And, you know, is the price worth it?” Albright was U.S. ambassador to the United Nations at the time.

Ms. Albright’s answer was an emphatic YES.

For special people it seems to be acceptable to kill “others” including innocent children as long as they are others.

In #309 above a commenter living in Egypt (Haykal) says “the middle class of Syria are out of the uprising”. It is far more accurate to say “the middle class of Syria were never in the uprising”. The uprising started with the uneducated poor people in Deraa in March and moved to the uneducated poor in Homs and Hama in April and May. The uneducated poor of Aleppo and Damascus were never in the uprising except in a certain few satellite towns of Damascus.

Most of the uneducated poor people in Deraa, Hama, and Homs are now out of the uprising, on the evidence of the turnout size at Friday protests in September and October.

Throughout the year, when violence by anti-regime young men broke out on a serious scale in any given town, or in any neighborhood of a city, it decimated the later turnout size at the demonstrations in that locality — I know of no exceptions to that pattern. I hold it as a certainty that the anti-regime organizers’ pretense of ignoring the serious violence exercised by some of their supporters was a big factor in discouraging turnout. The violence made the protests disreputable. The anti-regime organizers weren’t vigourous enough in their call for “peaceful, peaceful”. The organizers of the uprising in Egypt were always far more conscious of the importance of that factor, and did a much better job in that regard, including frisking their own people coming into Tahrir Square.

Tara,

More than a hundred people died in the Rodney king uprising, and apparently you forgot WACO , Texas,

Just a reminder for you,

(( From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Waco siege

The Mount Carmel Center in flames during the assault on April 19, 1993

Date

February 28 – April 19, 1993

Mount Carmel Center

Location within Texas

The Waco siege began on February 28, 1993, and ended violently 50 days later on April 19.[1] The siege began when the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) attempted to execute a search warrant at the Branch Davidian ranch at Mount Carmel, a property located 9 miles (14 km) east-northeast of Waco, Texas. On February 28, shortly after the attempt to serve the warrant, an intense gun battle erupted, lasting nearly 2 hours. In this armed exchange, four agents and six Branch Davidians were killed. Upon the ATF’s failure to execute the search warrant, a siege was initiated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The siege ended 50 days later when a second assault on the compound was made and a fire destroyed the compound. 76 people (24 of them British nationals)[2] died in the fire, including more than 20 children, two pregnant women, and the sect leader David Koresh.

Please note the number and how many children,

It is rare for western country to have their own people carry arms against the government, they call them terrorists and eliminate them.

To all Phoenicians and Jews,

We are proud of all the Arab invasions, we are proud of the Ottoman regime, and I say, LETS REPEAT THEM, we would do those things again whenever we have the chance.

All those ancient glories and victories starting with Badr, Tabuk, Khaybar and endning with Damscus, Cairo and Al Qadisiyah, all the imperial glories of the Arab Muslim arnies of the Umayyads , the great war heroes like Caliphs Omar bin al Khattab, Khalid ibn al Walid, Saad ibn Abi Waqqas and Amr ibn Aas bring back great feelings, AMIR and MJABALAI. I despise your identities, you should get back to being al Mawaliyeh.

ARREAL #317 says the Daily Telegraph article copied at #304 has “not much left when you remove the verbosity.” Agreed. But I want to mention that besides worthless verbosity the article has false info. The article says “regime sources say that Article 8 of the Syrian constitution, which says that Assad’s Ba’ath party must lead, is unlikely to be changed in substantial form.” Ask any pro-regimer on the planet today, and he’ll confidently tell you that he believes the Assad’s party will win any election in Syria for the foreseeable future. From that it follows, from our pro-regime point of view, that total deletion of Article 8 is harmless to us. Total deletion of Article 8 will also immediately make the regime more popular in the short term. (E.g., that crank, Michel Kilo, says that he will vote for Bashar for president in 2014 if Bashar deletes Article 8 and brings in real democracy in the current program of reforms).

Another reason why it’s beneficial to delete Article 8 is that, in the long term, if Article 8 continued to be in place in the Constitution, it would hinder the long-term evolution potential options of Syria’s political system. What we pro-regimers want, not just now but far into Syria’s future, is evolution and progress from what we have today, from the foundation of the 40 years of the Assad regime. We don’t want any conceivable future that discards that foundation. To uphold the Assad foundation for the long horizon, we must give it built-in flexibility for the long horizon (because if it doesn’t have built-in flexibility, it could potentially get discarded in a revolt). Now is a good safe time for the regime to delete Article 8 for that purpose. Bashar in his speech in 20 June essentially said Article 8 will be deleted, though it’s still true that neither he nor anyone else in the regime has said so with crystal clear definitiveness.

You can’t cite me a single senior regime source on record who is suggesting that Article 8 might still be kept in the new Constitution.

Tlass,

The HolyLand will always be Zion.
Even if one of your ibn al’s one day occupy our Jewish land (again), then future Zionists will organize and reclaim Zion (again). This was is and always be a Jewish land. In practice or potentially.
Now go and sit on your favorite Khazook.
.

Ya Mara Ghalba ,

The reason that article 8 should be canceled is because the Baath party did not need that to reach power, there is no other party that has the vision that the Baath party has without personal association with the party, it is party that anybody can join and serve, the problem with article 8 that it destroyed the Baath party by encouraging opportunists to join for personal gains while the people who believe in the principles of the Baath party stayed on the side line so they will not be accused of being opportunists.

I called for a free and fair opportunity to all before some people here were born and that is during the last crises in 1979,
Syria needs to move forward and the Baath party need to win the love and the approval of the people for it’s deeds and policies on Palestine, the Economy, education and health care, other wise others should try to make Syria better, we need to learn that others who do not agree with us could love and want the best for Syria, we all should learn how to accept defeat with grace,

Syrian Delegation’s Meeting with Arab Ministerial Committee Concluded

Oct 30, 2011

http://www.sana.sy/eng/22/2011/10/30/378887.htm

DOHA, (SANA) – The Syrian delegation’s meeting with the Arab Ministerial Committee which took place in Doha was concluded on Sunday evening, with honest dialogue prevailing while some points are left to be studied by the two sides and other points were agreed upon.

The Syrian delegation is headed by Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem and consists of Presidential Political and Media Advisor Dr. Bouthaina Shaaban, Deputy Foreign and Expatriates Minister Dr. Fayssal Mikdad, and Syria’s Permanent Envoy to the Arab League Yousef Ahmad.

Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabr Al Thani, said that the meeting was serious and honest, and that the two sides formulated a work document dealing with all issues and the Syrian delegation asked to respond to the document on Monday.

Hamad said that a meeting will be held on Wednesday at the Arab League whether an agreement is reached over the document or not, hoping to receive an answer on Monday and to reach an agreement.

UNDER WESTERN EYES – Monday, October 31, 2011

Interests of energy security should drive India’s foreign policy

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1111031/jsp/opinion/story_14670418.jsp

We made a mistake in not opposing the Western invasion of hydrocarbon-rich Libya by North Atlantic Treaty Organization forces supported by the US and the subsequent murder of Muammar Gaddafi. The opposition to Syria is not so much about eliminating an oppressive dictatorship as about curbing any threat to Israel. American policy is not about eliminating dictators or preventing the exploitation of the people and the denial of their human rights. If that were the case, Saudi Arabia, the most autocratic and repressive of all these countries, and an exporter of Wahabi fundamentalist Islam and terrorism, should have been the first to see change at the barrel of European and American guns. But the Americans own Saudi Arabia and have no interest in changing its rulers.

Iraq and Libya were the most liberal Muslim countries, with considerable freedom for women, education and social services. (In the Shah Bano case, Iraq was appreciatively quoted in our court for its attitude to women.) So is Syria a modern country in social policy. Iran is a theocratic state and has had problems with its neighbours. But Iran is also our gateway to Afghanistan, now that the die has been cast and India is keen to exercise influence there and get a share of its reportedly vast mineral resources.

The Americans would like to destabilize Syria because Syria is a threat to Israel and also controls Lebanon through the Hezbollah. Syria is also an advanced Islamic country with more human development and rights than, say, Saudi Arabia. India appears at last to have recognized that the US’s interests are not congruent to ours and has not supported the American attempt to destabilize Syria.

We must not be mere followers of Western policies, primarily the US, and Western media propaganda. Our vital interest is to improve future oil and gas supplies from countries in our neighbourhood. Since many of the nations are Muslim with a history of anti-Israel feeling, we must ensure that our relations with Israel are not overly publicized. We do not have to join the West in condemning rulers of Islamic countries for being undemocratic, whether or not such is the situation. We have made a beginning recently by not voting for the resolution condemning Syria. We should have done the same with Libya and prevented Gadaffi’s murder. A Libyan government that is overly dependent on European countries and the US may not be in our economic interest.

The West seems to be taking president Assad warning seriously, there is no intention to interfere in Syria, i wonder how long will it take the opposition to declare victory and join the reform. I hope not long for the sake of Syria.

Response to Khalid

Dear SC readers, I am posting this as a response to Khalid’s posts, if you are not interested, just ignore it when you see “Response to Khalid”

Dear Khalid, Firstly, I did not ignore you as we had the weekend and I try not read internet on weekends, hence my late response.

Having said that, I am seeing a glimpse of the real Khalid who is a more peaceful person hiding behind a hard shell. You remind me of my youngest son who appears tough on the outside but he is very soft inside but always like to show his hard side.

92. KHALID TLASS said:

“Darryl, I did have a choice. I did make a choice to be a Muslim, it wasn’t until I was 21 that I fully understood the religion I was born into and became a practising Muslim. I did make a choice, Islam is all oabot Al Tawheed, i.e monotheism.”

Khalid, I congratulate you on this discovery and the fact you are a proud Muslim, however, there are many many millions of Muslims who cannot make a choice to leave Islam openly. Let us look at some numbers:

A. In Egypt, it has been estimated that about 7 Million Muslims have left Islam.
B. In Algeria, Tunis and Morocco, there are a significant number of Muslims who left Islam and practicing Christianity underground.
C. KSA has about 100K converts, and there are many in Kuwait, UAE, Oman etc who do not wish to be Muslims and became Christians.
D. There are many Syrian, Lebanese, Iraq and Iranian Muslims who left Islam and have become Christians living in the west or inside. Turkey has a large number of converts also.
E. In the west, many Muslims have left Islam.

Many many more will leave if they had a choice.

I am not counting the ones who simply stopped practicing or became agnostics. Unfortunately many of these people cannot openly claim they have left for obvious reasons. Allah in the Qur’an tells the Messenger, that he had his religion and they have theirs. So Allah, said that Muslims can choose a religion other than Islam, yet they will be killed and disowned by their families by listening to Allah. Who is right here?

“All human beings are born MUSLIM, becayuse Tawheed is fitrah , i.e human nature, we are MISLEAD BY OUR PARENTS into becoming Christians, Jews, Secular, Communist, Hindus, Shia, Alawi, Sufis,”

Dear Khalid, we are born as Humans period. Allah who created every thing also created variety. Look at how many different apple varieties, how many different breeds of animals, how many different species of plants and bugs there are in the same family.

Khalid look at light, it is pure white but after a rainy day in the UK, you can see the colors in the rainbow. It it is He who created it, he did not have to have a spectrum, but it is there.

But Allah goes further Khalid, in the Qur’an Allah says the following:

A. ” Do not argue with people of the book (Christians and Jews) except with respect and kindness and tell them we believe in what was revealed to you and us (Muslims) and our God and your God is one.”
B. Allah in verse 5:48, tells the Messenger that He (Allah) has no intention that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are to be made into one religion, Allah wanted a variety of ways for worship.

What we see above, it Allah did not tell the Messenger that Islam is the only religion of Allah, and tells Muslims to respect the Christian and Jewish religion along side. But let us take it further, by looking at some of the AHadeeth also:

A. The Caliph Omar was very fond of reading the Gospel and Torah and got into trouble with a few times the Messenger for bring it it up and saying the Bible has many good virtues and sayings.

B. It has been recorded that one of the closest companions to the Messenger, Amro ibn Abd-Allah ibn Al-AAs, one day came to the Messenger and told him that he has this dream licking one finger dipped in butter and the other finger dipped in honey and licking them both. The Messenger told him that his dream was of the Gospel and Torah that represented the butter and honey, becasue Amro was very fond of reading the Gospel and Torah.

Please do not tell me that we are referring to a different Gospel and Torah, because the Qur’an never claimed the Bible was corrupted and the Messenger could have told Amro in the above Hadeeth that the Bible is corrupt and the Messenger himself never said the Bible was corrupted or there was a different one available. At least Muslims should have saved a copy of this other Bible if it has existed, after all it is the word of Allah and should be guarded.

This is why I say many Muslims get their Islam from the Sheikhs. Now you being a Salafi should agree with me as I am only using the Qur’an and AHadeeth.

Please see the following link to see how Islam was viewed by Syrian Christians in the early period.

http://syrcom.cua.edu/Hugoye/Vol3No1/HV3N1Griffith.html

“etc. I do not get my Islam from sheikhs or apologists, us Salafis study Islam at its source, i.e Qur’an and authentic Ahadith, ( Sahih Bukhari, Sahih Muslim and Sahih al Tirmidhi). Btw, have you heard about Abdul Raheem Green ?”

I have not heard of this person, but then many people change religions and that is fine with me.

“And you are not religious ? I have yet to see Syrian Christians who are not religious 9 except Communists), and am sure you’re not a Commie. Are you sure ur not religious ? Don’t you visit the Church of Holy Sepulchre in occupied Al Quds ?”

I am not religious means that I am not a regular Church goer and I am open minded about religion. Religion plays a big role in the middle east and hence people do not have the same attitude in the west. Lastly, no I have not visited Al- Quds and not many Syrians will be doing that in the near future unless there is some peace and Palestinians get their land and dignity back.

So dear Khalid, keep things in perspective, we are Humans first and we must never forget that.

Arabs put ball in Assad’s court

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Oct-31/152665-arabs-put-ball-in-assads-court.ashx#axzz1cJN1XcJj

DOHA/DAMASCUS/AMMAN: An Arab League committee tasked with finding a solution to Syria’s eight-month crisis presented the Syrian delegation with a “serious” plan to end the violence in the country, essentially extending a previously set deadline for talks between the Syrian government and opposition groups.

The plan’s details remained undisclosed late Sunday and Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid Moallem is expected to officially respond to the Arab proposal Monday after holding talks with the Syrian leadership.

An Arab ministerial team “agreed on a serious proposal to stop the killing and all forms of violence in Syria,” Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani told reporters after a three-hour meeting in Doha Sunday.

“The Syrian delegation has said they would respond tomorrow,” Sheikh Hamad added.

Responding to a warning from Syrian President Bashar Assad that any Western intervention in Syria would inflame the region, Sheikh Hamad said the region was at risk if Syria continued “cunning and maneuvering” and failed to take “concrete steps” to stop the violence.

“The entire region is at risk of a massive storm,” he said after the Doha meeting between a group of Arab foreign ministers and a Syrian team led by Moallem.

“What is required of Syria … is concrete steps that could avoid what happened to other countries,” he added, in apparent reference to the conflict in Libya.

The Syrian delegation will stay on in the Qatari capital to deliver Assad’s response, he said, adding that the ministerial team would reconvene Wednesday in Cairo where the Arab League has its headquarters.

Meanwhile, Assad showed new flexibility when he told Russian Television Sunday that he was willing to cooperate with the country’s opposition.

“We will cooperate with all political powers, both those who had existed before the crisis, and those who arose during it. We believe interacting with these powers is extremely important,” he said, only a day after he warned that Western intervention in Syria would cause an “earthquake” across the region in an interview with Britain’s Sunday Telegraph newspaper.

After almost 100 people were killed in one of the bloodiest two days of the uprising against his rule, Assad warned during his interview with the Telegraph of “another Afghanistan” if foreign forces intervened in Syria as they had in Libya.

“Syria is the hub now in this region,” the newspaper quoted Assad as telling its journalist in Damascus.

“It is the fault line, and if you play with the ground you will cause an earthquake – do you want to see another Afghanistan, or tens of Afghanistans?” he asked.

“Any problem in Syria will burn the whole region. If the plan is to divide Syria, that is to divide the whole region,” he added.

During talks in Damascus last week, the Arab ministers warned Assad to stop the bloodshed and start meaningful reforms or face international intervention, the Kuwaiti daily Al-Qabas reported Sunday.

Citing well-informed Arab sources, the Kuwaiti paper said the delegation told Assad Wednesday that failure to resolve the crisis within the Arab fold would mean “internationalizing” the unrest.

“This would mean Syria should expect foreign intervention and a painful international blockade on the economy and other aspects,” the daily said.

Meanwhile, China threw its weight behind the Arab mediation effort, with its Middle East envoy Wu Sike saying he had told Assad in Damascus Thursday that his regime’s deadly crackdown on dissent “cannot continue.”

Wu said China supported the Arab League’s proposal for Assad’s regime to hold talks with dissidents, some of whom he met during his visit to the Syrian capital.

“Syria has to show some flexibility in that regard in order to help the Arab League implement its proposal,” the Mideast envoy said.

Wu said Assad’s government must “respect and respond to the aspirations and rightful demands of the Syrian people,” and abandon the crackdown that has killed more than 3,000 people since mid-March, according to U.N. figures.

China, along with Russia, vetoed a Western-drafted resolution at the U.N. Security Council on Oct. 4 that would have threatened Assad’s regime with targeted sanctions if it continued its campaign against protesters.

Assad told Russian television Sunday he expected continued support from Moscow, less than month after President Dmitry Medvedev told the Syrian strongman for the first time to either accept political reform or bow to calls for his resignation.

“First and foremost, we are relying on Russia as a country with which we are bound by strong ties, in the historic perspective,” Assad told Moscow’s Channel One television.

“Since the first days of the crisis we have been in constant contact with the Russian government,” Assad said in the interview. “We were telling our Russian friends in detail about how the situation was developing.”

The Syrian Foreign Ministry accused the Arab ministerial delegation of stoking dissent, having been influenced by “lies spread by television channels.”

It said that in Sunday’s talks in Doha, Moallem would inform the delegation of the “true situation in Syria,” the official SANA news agency reported.

Meanwhile, the opposition Local Coordination Committees reported that a further 11 people were killed Sunday in Homs, Deraa, Hama, Idlib and Damascus suburbs.

Earlier in the day, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP that at least two people were killed in fresh violence Sunday, both by snipers in the flashpoint central province of Homs.

Gunfire from a security checkpoint in the Deir Balaa neighborhood of Homs city wounded another 10 people, some of them critically, the rights group said.

On Saturday in Homs, 20 Syrian soldiers were reportedly killed and 53 wounded in clashes with suspected army deserters, while 10 security agents and a deserter were killed in a bus ambush, the Britain-based watchdog added.

It said that at least 12 civilians also died from sniper or machinegun fire in the province.

Funerals were held Sunday for eight of the security force personnel killed the previous day, the state news agency, SANA, said.

Meanwhile, thousands of pro-government Syrians rallied in the southern Druze stronghold of Suweyda in support of Assad’s reform program, SANA reported.

Losing Backers

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Editorial/2011/Oct-31/152635-losing-backers.ashx#axzz1cJN1XcJj

It is testament to the Arab League’s butterfingered way that when it proposed Syria’s government and opposition hold discussions in Cairo the suggestion was unpalatable to both sides.

The administration of President Bashar Assad swiftly rejected the idea out of hand – as if Syria’s leader would deign to speak with those groups calling for his head. The opposition, for their part, said that the time for dialogue had long past, that the only talking it had to do involved the words “power transfer.”

Sunday’s meeting of Arab ministers in Doha may not have made much headway, but it could form a turning point in Syria’s seven-month long tale of unrest.

Damascus has ranged from contemptuous to dismissive of recommendations by the Arab League, partly because it knows it can get away with doing so. That is, it knew that it could. Not anymore.

If the prevarication from the administration drags on, it is entirely conceivable that calls to suspend Syria’s Arab League membership could fall on accommodating ears within the organization. Such a move would be the strongest rebuke yet of President Assad’s brutal and sustained crackdown against peaceful protesters. It would also leave the leader as regionally isolated as he has ever been.

But the fate of Syria might not be down to decisions taken in the Arab world at all.

As the crisis has worn on, it has been power holders in New York, at the United Nations, that have had the most bearing on its course. The security forces of Assad have been able to continue importune killing safe in the knowledge that supportive Russia and China would move to nix any potential U.N. action against Syria.

Support from the two nations is now wavering. As China’s Middle East envoy warned that the situation “cannot continue” in the vein of the last few months, it appears that even Syria’s staunchest international backers are wobbling. Couple that with the proclamation by Russian President Dimitri Medvedev that President Assad must either implement reform or step aside and the safety net enveloping the administration in Damascus begins to tear.

The international community has so far eschewed – apart from a few select examples – open rumination upon military intervention within Syria. With the cost and damage of Libya’s conflict still ringing in leaders’ ears, this is understandable.

But the options left on the table continue to be dwindled by the ongoing bloodshed. Arab League ostracism would further diminish the choices; withdrawal of Russian and Chinese support would pull the entire rug from underneath Syria’s ruler.

President Assad and his associates have so far given the Arab League short shrift, as Russia and China have stood alongside him. But this is beginning to change. Syria’s leader must realize that a regime that defies its backers is not worth supporting at all.

Arab leaders rule out Syria intervention – 31 October 2011

http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/qatar/171151-arab-leaders-rule-out-syria-intervention-.html

DOHA: Arab League delegates attending a key meeting here yesterday have ruled out the possibility of international intervention in Syria but agreed unanimously on the need to see an end to the Syrian crisis at the earliest.

Concerned over developments in Syria, the foreign ministers from Arab League member-states drafted a proposal to be forwarded to Damascus that understandably seeks to suggest ways to end the crisis.

Details of the proposal were not divulged to the media, but it is understood that it is about how the Arab League, of which Libya is a member, wants to see the Syrian imbroglio being amicably resolved.

The proposal is likely to be sent through the Syrian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Walid Al Muallem, who attended yesterday’s Arab Ministerial Committee Meeting.

The contents of the proposal are to be made public only after it is accepted or rejected by the Syrian regime.

This was disclosed by Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, H E Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabor Al Thani who heads the Ministerial Committee of the Arab Peace Initiative.

The meeting which was originally convened to discuss the Palestinian issue began at around 4pm at the Four Seasons Hotel and concluded at about 6pm having deliberated on the above subject.

However, deliberations on Syria took the Arab Ministerial Committee more than three hours to conclude as it ended a little before 10pm.

Emerging from the marathon discussions, the Qatari Premier told waiting reporters that the Committee was of the view that violence in Syria must end as soon as possible.

Asked what the Committee would do if Damascus rejects the proposal, the Premier said the Arab League would meet and take up Syria’s response for a threadbare debate and take a decision.

The Qatari Premier said that all the members of the Committee had agreed to the proposal that was being forwarded to the Syrian regime.

The Prime Minister said he didn’t agree to a suggestion from a reporter that there was a storm blowing across the Arab world and said there must be an understanding between the rulers and the ruled on reforms, whether social or economic.
Meanwhile, international wire agencies reported Syrian President Bashar Al Assad as saying in an interview with London’s Telegraph yesterday that Western powers would cause an ‘earthquake’ in the Middle East if they intervened in Syria.
The Peninsula

في انتظار رد دمشق الاثنين
العرب يعرضون خطة لوقف العنف في سوريا.. والشيخ حمد يحذر من “اللف والدوران”

اكد رئيس الوزراء القطري الشيخ حمد بن جاسم ال ثاني في ختام اجتماع اللجنة الوزارية العربية حول الملف السوري الاحد ان اللجنة طرحت ورقة لوقف العنف في سوريا، فيما طلبت دمشق مهلة حتى غد الاثنين للرد.

كما حذر الشيخ حمد الرئيس السوري بشار الاسد ضمنا من “اللف والدوران” داعيا الى خطوات ملموسة بسرعة في سوريا لتجنب “عاصفة كبيرة” في المنطقة.

وقال الشيخ حمد الذي يرئس اللجنة للصحافيين في ختام الاجتماع الذي حضره وزير الخارجية السوري وليد المعلم ان الاجتماع “كان جديا وصريحا … وتوصلنا الى ورقة تتعامل مع كل القضايا، وطلب الوفد السوري ان يرد على هذه الورقة غدا” الاثنين.

واوضح رئيس الوزراء الذي يشغل ايضا منصب وزير خارجية بلاده ان الورقة “جدية لوقف كل اعمال العنف والقتل في سوريا”.

وذكر ان هناك اجتماعا للجامعة العربية يوم الاربعاء في القاهرة “سواء اتفقنا او لا” مشددا “الاهم من الجواب هو العمل السريع والفوري والعمل بالاتفاق وتنفيذه”.

واوضح الشيخ حمد ان الوفد السوري الذي خرج من الاجتماع للتشاور ثم التحق به مجددا، “سيبقى الليلة في الدوحة واذا تم الاتفاق على الورقة نقدمها الى الجامعة الاربعاء” مشددا مرة اخرى “اهم شيء التنفيذ”.

وحذر المسؤول القطري من “عاصفة كبيرة” في المنطقة.

وردا على سؤال عن تحذير الرئيس الاسد من زلزال في المنطقة في حال حصول تدخل اجنبي، قال الشيخ حمد ان “المنطقة كلها معرضة لعاصفة كبيرة والمهم ان يعرف القادة كيف يتعاملون، ليس باللف والدوران والاحتيال”.

واضاف “المطلوب هو القيام بخطوات سريعة تجنبنا ما حصل في بعض الدول” في اشارة على ما يبدو الى ليبيا.

وخلص الى القول “نامل الا يكون هناك تدخل عسكري”.

وكان الرئيس السوري حذر قبيل الاجتماع من ان اي تدخل غربي ضد دمشق سيؤدي الى “زلزال” من شأنه ان “يحرق المنطقة بأسرها”.

…

http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/10/30/174532.html

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=467407&version=1&template_id=36&parent_id=16

Moscow opposes use of force in Syria: envoy
Russian ambassador to Qatar Dr Vladimir Titorenko has charged that a lot of misleading information is being carried in a section of the local media, in particular in an English newspaper, about his country’s position on issues related to the ongoing developments in Syria.
While explaining his country’s stand on the turbulence in Syria, the envoy asserted that Russia has not supported police or military action on the protesters at any stage and would not support in future either, any brutal action on the agitators.
“However, a section of the local media has made several baseless charges against Russia’s position on the whole issue, without any clear understanding of the subject,” he said.
The ambassador claimed that even the Western media has clearly presented the Russian position on the Syrian developments, without twisting the facts.
Dr Titorenko said the ruling regime in Syria had promised to introduce a series of reforms for its people. 
“However, it has been too slow in happening,” he said. The ambassador said the EU countries, including Russia, have told the Syrian government to introduce political reforms without any further delay.
The ambassador said the rebels in Syria are also using weapons in violation of the UN Article 120, which prohibits the use of weapons by any section. The article, he said, has clearly termed those taking arms as terrorists, said Dr Titorenko.
The envoy said Russia is against both  military action and counter attacks, mostly bloody battles by agitators. “There has been clear evidence of the agitators massacring more than 120 soldiers on the Turkish border and we cannot approve of any such actions either,” he said.
Dr Titorenko said Qatar Prime Minister HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani and other region’s administrators have a clear understanding of the happenings in Syria after their recent visit of that country. Qatar, he said, is very much with the Russian position on the issue and there is absolutely no room for any confusion.   
However, he expressed hope that the latest initiatives being taken by countries including Qatar would help find a long-lasting solution to the Syrian crisis.

October 31, 2011
Turkey Turns on Assad
A new chance for the U.S. to support regime change in Damascus.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203554104577004133322461016.html

President Obama has been reluctant to call for regime change in Syria, but now he’s getting another chance to lead from behind. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has gone from an ally of Bashar Assad’s regime to a leading adversary, and the U.S. should support the change of heart.

Mr. Erdogan was initially cautious to support the uprising against the Syrian leader, whom he considered a friend. Instead the Turkish leader called for reform, but Mr. Assad merely humored that request and then turned his guns on his own people. More than 3,000 Syrians have been killed since the popular uprising began in mid-March, and thousands of others have sought political refuge across the Turkish border.

Now the Turks are helping the Syrian opposition. The Syrian National Council, an umbrella opposition group modelled after the Libyan rebel government, was formed in Istanbul last month. Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkey’s foreign minister, recently held the first formal talks by any foreign official with the opposition group, and Turkey plans to impose fresh sanctions on Damascus.

The Turks haven’t formally recognized the opposition as the legitimate rulers of Syria, and Ankara so far isn’t arming them. Mr. Davutoglu says Turkey still wants to see Syria turn democratic “in a peaceful manner.” But its new intentions are hard to miss. Media reports say that Turkey is hosting and protecting the leadership of the Free Syrian Army on its territory. By some estimates, the Free Syrian Army has 15,000 men under its command and has attacked Mr. Assad’s forces.

Turkey’s change on Syria could be as important as the Arab League’s call this spring for a military intervention in Libya. That prompted the U.S. to drop its reservations and back a U.N. Security Council resolution, which created a NATO-enforced no-fly zone over Libya and eventually toppled Moammar Gadhafi. Mr. Erdogan is one of the Muslim world’s most prominent leaders, and Turkey is a member of NATO and has one of the most capable militaries in the region.

As late as the summer, the Obama Administration imagined that Mr. Assad would have a democratic epiphany. As recently as a month ago, it said the opposition was too small and fractured to take seriously. Instead, the U.S. wasted political energy trying to get a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Damascus’s crackdown without any sanctions. Russia and China vetoed the measure, which has only reinforced Mr. Assad’s bloody determination.

Last week the State Department felt obliged to call U.S. ambassador Robert Ford home from Damascus after receiving what it called “credible threats against his personal safety.” This is the same regime that Nancy Pelosi, John Kerry and so many others claimed was hostile to the U.S. only because George W. Bush didn’t do enough to court it.

The Turkish turn gives the U.S. another chance to organize a coalition for regime change in Damascus, outside of the U.N. The U.S. can give the Syrian National Council and the Free Syrian Army immediate diplomatic and nonmilitary support (intelligence, communications technology), and arms shouldn’t be ruled out. The U.S. has nothing to lose by seizing the opportunity to help the Turks oust Iran’s terrorist-supporting ally in Damascus.

President al-Assad to Rossiya 1 TV: Any Consideration of Aggression Against

Syria Will Be More Costly than the World Could Afford

Oct 31, 2011

http://www.imra.org.il/story.php3?id=54311

DAMASCUS, (SANA) – In an interview with Russia’s Rossiya 1 TV channel on
Sunday, President Bashar al-Assad discussed developments in Syria and the
region, Syria’s efforts to emerge from the crisis, the dangers and
repercussions of any aggression against Syria or interference in its
internal affairs, relations with Russia, and western sanctions.

Regarding the likelihood of the west waging an aggression against Syria and
the idea that western military action against Syria is preplanned, President
al-Assad said that the claims regarding the possibility of a western
aggression against Syria is heard from time to time, particularly during
crises between Syria and western countries within the past few decades, and
that these claims aim at pressuring Syria to change its political stances.

President al-Assad said that Syria takes all possibilities into
consideration even if this issue isn’t discussed in the media through leaks,
noting that when the homeland is threatened in a military or security
fashion, then the balance of power – who is stronger and who is weaker – has
no value, adding “if you as a country represent a small and weak country and
the enemy is big and strong, it’s natural to defend the homeland regardless
of balance.”

He pointed out that others’ considerations regarding the scenario of
aggression against Syria aren’t easy, and that Syria has a unique position
in geographic, geopolitical, historic and other terms, as Syria is the
meeting place of all or most the cultural, religious, sectarian and ethnic
components of the Middle East.

President al-Assad elaborated by saying that Syria is the meeting place of
two “tectonic plates” and that any attempt to destabilize these plates will
lead to a massive earthquake that damages the entire region and affects the
whole world, adding that any mention of such a scenario would be more costly
than the world could afford, which is why it seems that the trend is moving
towards political, political and economic pressure.

His Excellency said that there is no doubt that that Syria is counting on
Russia, primarily because of the historic relations between the two
countries and because Syria is a superpower and a permanent Security Council
member, pointing out that Syria played an important role since the first
days of the crisis and that the two governments were communicating directly,
with the Syrian government explaining to Russia the details of the situation
based on Syria’s importance and influence in terms of the situation in the
Middle East and the region.

“Russia knew the dangers of the attempts at foreign interference in Syria,
thus Russia played an important role in the international arena, with the
most recent action in this regard being the Russian veto at the Security
Council,” he said, adding that Syria is counting on the Russian stance and
continuing support not just in defense of Syria, but also in defense of
worldwide stability.

In response to a question on a Communist opposition figure thanking Russia
for its veto while others burned Russian flags in Syrian cities, President
al-Assad said regarding the first point that any Syrian citizen would have
the same response as anyone with the least amount of patriotism would be
grateful for Russia’s stance at the Security Council, adding that being in
the opposition or a loyalist or somewhere in between doesn’t mean differing
in political issues, as there is no difference in opinion with the
opposition regarding Syria’s sovereignty and rejection of foreign
interference and confronting terrorism; the differences lie in internal
issues and political, economic, cultural and other issues.

“Regarding the burning of flags, I don’t believe we can put that in the
frame of political work as it doesn’t represent opposition or anything else.
It often represents individual cases that may be spurred from abroad to
complete the media image of the big lie being promoted about Syria in
foreign media, showing Russia as if it supports a state against the people…
this is the supposed media game behind this action,” President al-Assad
pointed out.

On the subject of who is represented by the opposition, President al-Assad
said that such an issue would be more accurate after elections and the
emergence of new parties, which would decide which sections of the society
the opposition represents.

“We’re dealing with everyone; with all the forces on the Syrian arena
because we believe that communication with these forces is very important,
without specifying who has a popular base and who doesn’t,” President
al-Assad said, stressing that a more accurate answer can be given after the
elections which should take place in February 2012.

Answering a question on national dialogue, organizing elections and the
establishment of a council in Istanbul by the opposition with their
unwillingness to hold negotiations with the authorities, and whether there
is a way to reach a peaceful agreement with them, President al-Assad said
“The first thing is that in order to hold a dialogue you need more than one
side, the other side should be able to hold dialogue… The other thing is
that in order to hold political or formal dialogue with a side, there must
be bases from which to start.”

President al-Assad asked “Are the forces we are willing to hold dialogue
with accepted by the Syrian people? Are they manufactured abroad? Do they
call for or accept foreign interference? Do they support terrorism? When we
define all these bases, we can decide whether we hold dialogue or not.”

His Excellency stressed that the Syrian people reject foreign interference
and oppose anything which come from outside the country, be it a political
issue or stance.

“About the council that was formed in Istanbul, I don’t know a lot about it,
but I can say that the accurate answer of this question comes from the
Syrian people. When the Syrian people accept a council or a particular
political structure, we as a state should hold dialogue with it,” President
al-Assad indicated.

“As for the principle of accepting or rejecting dialogue or heading toward
violence, I think the proper principle is adopting dialogue because it leads
to solutions that stabilize any country. That is why we don’t comment a lot
on that council, because the Syrian people didn’t care about it… When the
Syrians consider a thing, the Syrian government will, subsequently, take it
into consideration,” President al-Assad added.

On whether Syria will remain strong in the face of the economic sanctions
imposed by the west and the US and regarding the Russian aid in this matter,
President al-Assad pointed out that this siege, and particularly the
economic and technical blockade, on Syria is decades old and isn’t new,
saying “I don’t recall any period in which there weren’t under some sort of
western blockade on Syria, but this blockade intensifies during crises,
which is why we decided six years ago – in 2005 – to head towards the east.”

President al-Assad pointed out that the western sanctions and blockade
primarily harm the Syrian people, not the state, but they will not smother
Syria which relies on its own products and exports. “Syria has food and
industrial production in addition to many other domains. As for the other
materials that are not produced in Syria, we have neighboring countries. We
are capable of overcoming this blockade by adjusting to the new status,
which we’d already adjusted to in previous circumstances,” he elaborated.

About heading eastwards, President al-Assad said that Syria had always has
relations with the west during recent decades despite the fact that the
west, particularly France and the UK, was occupying a part of the east.

“Syria, Russia, India and China are east. There are many countries that have
good relations with Syria whether in the east, in Latin America or in Asia.
There are rising powers In Asia, such as, India, China and Russia which are
playing an important worldwide role in the political, economic and technical
fields. The west is not the only choice we have, and we must take advantage
of our relations with these countries. Syrian-Russian relations, for
example, were improved in rapid paces after 2005 when we decided to head
eastwards. I think this crisis will further boost these relations,
especially in the economic domain. We count on our relation with Russia and
the Russian aid in the political aspects and the Russian-Syrian economic
cooperation.”

On the attempt of Syria’s enemies to repeat the Libyan scenario in Syria and
the Syrian plan to prevent that, President al-Assad said that Syria is
different geographically, demographically, politically and historically from
Libya, adding that such a scenario will be unviable and of exorbitant cost.

“First, a media was used to forge an external state against Syria,
especially in the Security Council. At that time, we were focusing on the
internal aspect because it was not easy to show that there was an external
plot, even to some Syrians. It was not easy to show that there were armed
operations perpetrated against the state. Now, we have hundreds of army
soldiers, policemen and security personnel killed,” President al-Assad said.

President al-Assad asked “Were they killed through peaceful protests? Were
they killed by the shouting during the protests? Or were they killed by
weapons? So, we’re are dealing with armed people, now the matter is clear
and the Syrian people are now aware of the reality of the events in Syria.

“In the last two months, we’ve begun to focus on the external media, we’ve
invited a large number of mass media establishments to come to Syria and
inspect the reality of the events. The western media channels are biased in
general not only during crises; they have a wrong preconceived notions and
sometimes they express political agendas concerning the region,” President
al-Assad said.

President al-Assad pointed out that “We are now trying to bring western
media to inspect the reality but we are focusing on the friendly media to
enable them to inspect and convey the image to their public in order for
their governments to be able to take supportive stances regarding Syria. I
think the basic direction now is towards media; we have to unmask the
external plot against Syria and, and at the same time help these countries
in aiding the local media.”

On whether there are sides assisting Syria’s enemies and the amount and
sources of weapons at the disposal of these enemies, President al-Assad
pointed out that during the first few months and particularly the first
month of the crisis, it was difficult to find out the reality of what was
happening and where the money or weapons was coming from, or even if there
were actually money and weapons.

“After more than seven months since the crisis in Syria began, we gathered
clean but incomplete information, but through recent investigations with
terrorist it became irrefutably clear that weapons were being smuggled
across the Syrian borders from neighboring countries and funds are being
sent from people abroad… We have information about people leading these
operations outside Syria and in several countries.

“We don’t have precise information about these people’s relations to
countries, but it’s perfectly clear from the quality and scale of weapons
and the amounts of money that the funding isn’t personal funding; rather
there are countries behind this funding,” President al-Assad said, adding
that specifying the countries responsible for this funding requires clearer
information, at which point Syria’s won’t hesitate to uncover the facts.

Regarding the source of weapons and ammunition, particularly Israeli
explosives, President al-Assad said that there are weapons from various
countries including weapons of Israeli manufacture, but it’s impossible to
pinpoint if their source is Israel or another country that possesses such
weapons.

“There are bombs and mines placed in areas with civilians and may target
civilians sometimes and they may target security forces or the police or the
army… there are also-anti-tank weapons which is new and serious… so all
things point to the fact that there are countries responsible for armament
and not individuals who may actually be fronts for these countries.

“Where do the weapons come from… from neighboring countries… despite that
fact we cannot accuse them of being involved in the smuggling as it’s
difficult to control borders with surrounding countries, which applies in
most countries around the world,” President al-Assad explained.

His Excellency concluded by thanking the Russian channel, saying that he
believes that this program will play an important role in relaying the
reality to the Russian viewer about what is happening in the world and the
Middle East, and specifically what is happening in Syria.

Bashar al-Assad: I won’t waste my time with Syrian opposition

Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, has said he will not “waste his time” talking about the body leading the opposition against him, as senior members of the group accused him of scaremongering to protect his embattled regime.

…

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8858667/Bashar-al-Assad-I-wont-waste-my-time-with-Syrian-opposition.html

Talk about contradiction in one day about the same subject in the media, one is saying that Bashar is ‘flexible’ and ‘willing’ to cooperate with the oppositions the second wrote ‘I won’t waste my time’ apparently one of the two is lying my guess is the telegraph since the RT is quoted directly out of his mouth on TV the other one is ‘written’ and it can be easily manipulated or be quoted out of the context of the conversation…yet we are asked to believe the media!

[Meanwhile, Assad showed new flexibility when he told Russian Television Sunday that he was willing to cooperate with the country’s opposition.

“We will cooperate with all political powers, both those who had existed before the crisis, and those who arose during it. We believe interacting with these powers is extremely important,” he said, only a day after he warned that Western intervention in Syria would cause an “earthquake” across the region in an interview with Britain’s Sunday Telegraph newspaper.]

[Bashar al-Assad: I won’t waste my time with Syrian opposition

Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, has said he will not “waste his time” talking about the body leading the opposition against him, as senior members of the group accused him of scaremongering to protect his embattled regime.]

Syrian Activists Say Assad Gains Advantage – OCTOBER 31, 2011

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203707504577007713122423768.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Syrian opposition leaders said President Bashar al-Assad’s forces appear to have gained the upper hand in the eight-month revolt, after a weekend of one of the harshest crackdowns on protesters served another blow to a movement struggling to overcome divisions within its ranks.

352. MJABALI said:

MJABALI, and you forgot to mention because of the previous mixes, Syrians and Lebanese are the most attractive looking people among the Arabic speaking people. Where else do you find many beautiful accents, blue, green, black and hazelnut eyes. Where else you find dark to white complexion all in the same spectrum, where else do you find blondes, red heads, brunette and black hair. How about the food, the Music the dance. Why do they want to destroy it by calling Arabic?

أزمة الثمانينات

روى وزير الاقتصاد السوري الأسبق محمد العمادي ما حدث في الثمانينات من أزمة خانقة على سوريا وصلت إلى لقمة عيش المواطن السوري ، دفعت الحكومة لخلط القمح و الشعير .

و كشف العمادي ، الذي يعد من أكفأ الاقتصاديين في سوريا ، و الذي كان رئيسا لصندوق النقد العربي للانماء الاقتصادي و الاجتماعي أن اتصالا ورده من الرئيس الراحل حافظ الأسد في الثامن من نيسان عام 1985 طلب منه العودة إلى سوريا .

و قال العمادي أنه عندما أدى اليمين أمام الأسد الأب ، بعد تكليفه مجددا بمنصب وزير الاقتصاد قال له الرئيس الراحل ” نحن في ضائقة علينا أن نعتمد على أنفسنا وأصدقائنا للخروج منها، ولا بد من زيادة رواتب العاملين في الدولة شريطة أن تموّل الزيادة من مصادر لا تؤدي إلى نتائج غير مرغوبة. نحن الآن نعمل على تطوير مواردنا من النفط والغاز، وخلال سنوات يمكننا الاعتماد على أنفسنا وتأمين حاجاتنا، يجب أن نستفيد من الصناديق العربية في تمويل المزيد من مشاريعنا “.

و يروي الوزير السابق عن أزمة الثمانينات بالقول ” كان الوضع الاقتصادي في غاية الصعوبة، فبصرف النظر عن العقوبات التي كانت تفرضها بعض الدول، كان الاقتصاد يعاني صعوبة وديون ثقيلة، لدرجة أننا سددنا بعض ديوننا بالفوسفات وبالغنم وبالخضار والفواكه “.

و يتابع ” في تموز 1985 على سبيل المثال نشرت اليونايتد بوس في تقرير خاص لها من واشنطن أن الاقتصاد السوري في حالة خطرة تهدد الاستقرار السياسي. كما كانت هناك مقالات مختلفة تصف ضعف الإنتاج الزراعي والصناعي، وفقدان المواد الأولية لتشغيل المعامل والحرفيين وندرة السلع الاستهلاكية في الأسواق وطوابير المنتظرين للحصول على دورهم في شراء مقومات الحياة الغذائية مع تزايد التهريب وانخفاض أسعار العملة، وتعدّد أسعار القطع واتساع اقتصاد الظل وارتفاع معدّلات التضخم “.

و يقول أن ” الرئيس الأسد ذكر ذلك بكل صراحة سيادة الرئيس في كلمته التوجيهية في مجلس الشعب في 27/2/1986، حين قال ( إننا نعاني بعض الصعوبات الاقتصادية نلمسها جميعاً ولا بد أن نعرف أن لها أسباباً موضوعية تتركز في عدم التوازن بين الموارد والنفقات، وبين الحاجات والإنتاج، وانعكاسات الأزمة الاقتصادية العالمية على بلدان العالم الثالث ونحن منه ) “.

ولكن ، يستطرد الاقتصادي السوري ، ” لهذه المصاعب أسبابها الذاتية المتعلقة بنا، وفي طليعتها عدم التقيد بالتخطيط الشامل، وضعف المتابعة، وتضاؤل الشعور بالمسؤولية، وعلى ذلك عدم توظيف مجمل الإمكانات المتوفرة في البلاد بصورة صحيحة “.

أزمة الخبز .. لا يوجد مخزون سوى لعدة أيام

و قال الوزير الأسبق أن ” الازمة وصلت إلى لقمة الخز في اواخر عام 1987 ، لافتا إلى أن اتصالا ورده في منتصف الليل من وزير التموين يقول له إن المخزون من الطحين و القمح غير كاف إلا لعدة أيام ، و انه تداول مع رئيس مجلس الوزراء فأحاله إلي “.

و تابع ” كان حظي كبيراً أن عملي في الصندوق العربي مكّنني من توثيق علاقاتي مع كثير من المصارف والمؤسسات التي تتعامل مع الصندوق العربي، إضافة إلى أحد الإخوة الذي كان يساعدنا منذ البداية في تأمين كميات من الأقماح “.

لم تأخذ الاتصالات وقتاً طويلاً ، يقول العمادي ، حتى وفّقنا الله سبحانه وتعالى إلى تحويل باخرة محمّلة بالأقماح، متجهة إلى أحد بلدان البحر الأبيض المتوسط، إلى الموانئ السورية. وكان هذا المواطن الذي ساعدنا يؤكد طيبة شعبنا وأصالته ، طبعاً أتفهم أن يعمل الإنسان من أجل تحقيق مصالحه، إلا أنه إذا كان يخدم بلده في الوقت نفسه .

و تابع روايته بالقول ” في اليوم التالي عقد اجتماع لدى رئيس اللجنة الاقتصادية مع المسؤولين عن الأقماح والطحين في وزارة التموين. فاقترحت أن نخلط القمح بنسبة عشرين بالمئة شعيراً، وكانت لدينا كميات لا بأس بها من الشعير. فتم الاعتراض على ذلك، وكنت أتفهم أسباب الاعتراض. إلا أنني قلت يومئذ للحاضرين أنا أكبركم سناً، وأذكر أن خبز (الوثيقة) الذي كنا نأكله أيام الحرب العالمية الثانية كان بني اللون، لأنه كان يخلط لا بالشعير فقط وإنما بكل الحبوب الأخرى المتوفرة آنذاك، وكنا نأكله ونشكر الله عليه”.

” أجابني المدير العام المسؤول عن الموضوع أنه لا يتحمل مسؤولية اتخاذ مثل هذا القرار، فقلت له أنا أتحمل هذه المسؤولية، إذ إن الحل الوحيد القاتل هو ألاّ نوفر الخبز للناس، لأن الباخرة لن تصل إلا بعد أيام، ولا يمكن أن نبقي الناس دون خبز ، و اُتخذ القرار وتم تنفيذه ” ، يقول العمادي .

و ذكر العمادي أن بعض من سفاراتنا بالخارج كانت مهددة بقطع الكهرباء و الهاتف أو حتى اخراجها من المقر المستأجر بسبب قلة التمويل من قبل الحكومة السورية .

Interview: Syria switches to new markets to salvage tourism: minister

2011-10-31

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-10/31/c_131220691.htm

DAMASCUS, Oct. 30 (Xinhua) — Switching to new markets was the most important strategy Syria has lately taken to salvage tourism, the country’s second largest source of foreign currency, from inevitable breakdown, a senior Syrian official said.

Lamia Assi, Syrian tourism minister, told Xinhua in an interview that the tourism sector has been enormously hit by the flare-up of unrest in the country in mid March.

In September, the European Union slapped Syria with sanctions that hit six Syrian companies, including Syriatel and its largest private company, Cham Holding, to intensify pressure on President Bashar al-Assad, who has come under withering international criticism for his regime’s months-long crackdown on protests.

The sanctions also banned investment in Syria’s oil sector, deemed to be Syria’s artery for hard currency.

“Of course, the sanctions have negatively and fundamentally impinged on the tourism sector even from the very start of the crisis given the unwarranted measures taken by Western countries, mainly banning their nationals from travelling to Syria and asking those in Syria to leave immediately,” Assi said.

“All this has led to a tangible slump in arrivals to Syria, especially from western Europe,” she complained.

Following the EU sanctions, Syria has said it would shift to the East for new markets, mainly friendly countries like Russia and China that had vetoed a UN Security Council resolution condemning the Syrian regime for alleged excessive use of violence against protesters.

Assi said the Syrian government is working to make up for the economic recession by shifting to new markets “that haven’t espoused any anti-Syria political stance and don’t have political agendas.”

She said Syria has managed to bring in delegations from friendly countries to get familiar with what is actually happening on ground “away from the media exaggeration made by some TV channels that depict events in the country as if there were a battlefield.”

“This shift to new markets is the most important measure that has been lately taken by the Syrian Ministry of Tourism,” she said.

She said Syria is bracing itself to host a delegation from China comprised of academics, researchers and journalists.

Assi said tourists who used to come to Syria to visit religious shrines are still coming, stressing the religious tourism has not been affected by the sanctions.

Despite the minister’s placations, coupled with other confirmations by senior Syrian officials, including Syrian Prime Minister Adel Safar who had said Sunday that unrest is on the wane, tourism in Syria is still at almost the zero scale and Syrians have started feeling the heat of the economic sluggish.

“It’s not getting better at all,” said Marwan, a worker at a five-star hotel in Syria, adding: “only a handful of rooms in the hotel that was used to be completely packed with guests, are being booked now.”

The Tourism Ministry’s statistics show that 8.545 million tourists visited Syria in 2010, including 440,311 European tourists. Most of the tourists came from Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, with Gulf tourists a close second, followed by Americans and Britons.

Tourism in Syria has become an important source of hard currency in the last few years due to new measures taken by Syrian authorities to encourage this sector of Syria’s economy.

A considerable number of private sector tourist companies were set up in the last few years to contribute in promoting tourism in Syria by establishing active tourist relations with international tourist offices and companies.

These companies were given all necessary facilities by the ministry of tourism to bring in foreign tourists.

The most important factor which encourages tourists to come to Syria is the availability of historically valuable sites that are scattered in almost all parts of the Syrian territory.

The country also attracts highly educated European and Asian tourists to visit the country for study purposes.

Syria has introduced a package of reformist measures to quell nationwide protests. The committee that has been recently formed by Assad to write a new constitution for the country will convene Monday in Damascus in line with the process of reforms. Amending the constitution was still a major request by most Syrians.

Also, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem headed Sunday for Doha, Qatar to meet the Arab League ministerial committee in charge with overseeing the situation in Syria, to discuss the best available ways to bring the crisis to a close and embark on dialogue including all spectrums of Syrian society, including the opposition.

Assi believes that economic dialogue is fundamental and is considered the second in importance after the political dialogue.

“We urgently need economic dialogue to settle many controversial issues, such as the government subsidy, labor laws and the issue of dealing with investments,” she said, adding: “we need dialogue at least to come up with an economic vision and new, in common, orientations.”

Arab leaders rule out Syria intervention Monday, 31 October 2011 02:20
http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/qatar/171151-arab-leaders-rule-out-syria-intervention-.html
DOHA: Arab League delegates attending a key meeting here yesterday have ruled out the possibility of international intervention in Syria but agreed unanimously on the need to see an end to the Syrian crisis at the earliest.

Concerned over developments in Syria, the foreign ministers from Arab League member-states drafted a proposal to be forwarded to Damascus that understandably seeks to suggest ways to end the crisis.

Details of the proposal were not divulged to the media, but it is understood that it is about how the Arab League, of which Libya is a member, wants to see the Syrian imbroglio being amicably resolved.

The proposal is likely to be sent through the Syrian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Walid Al Muallem, who attended yesterday’s Arab Ministerial Committee Meeting.

The contents of the proposal are to be made public only after it is accepted or rejected by the Syrian regime.

This was disclosed by Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, H E Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabor Al Thani who heads the Ministerial Committee of the Arab Peace Initiative.

The meeting which was originally convened to discuss the Palestinian issue began at around 4pm at the Four Seasons Hotel and concluded at about 6pm having deliberated on the above subject.

However, deliberations on Syria took the Arab Ministerial Committee more than three hours to conclude as it ended a little before 10pm.

Emerging from the marathon discussions, the Qatari Premier told waiting reporters that the Committee was of the view that violence in Syria must end as soon as possible.

Asked what the Committee would do if Damascus rejects the proposal, the Premier said the Arab League would meet and take up Syria’s response for a threadbare debate and take a decision.

The Qatari Premier said that all the members of the Committee had agreed to the proposal that was being forwarded to the Syrian regime.

The Prime Minister said he didn’t agree to a suggestion from a reporter that there was a storm blowing across the Arab world and said there must be an understanding between the rulers and the ruled on reforms, whether social or economic.
Meanwhile, international wire agencies reported Syrian President Bashar Al Assad as saying in an interview with London’s Telegraph yesterday that Western powers would cause an ‘earthquake’ in the Middle East if they intervened in Syria.

Mr. Darryl:

Agree with you. I always hope that there is going to be a day when the REAL civilizations of Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq will be given due respect and taught to the children of those countries instead of the fake history we had for a thousand years.

Russia no advocate of Syrian govt, says ambassador Monday, 31 October 2011 02:15

http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/qatar/171145-russia-no-advocate-of-syrian-govt-says-ambassador.html

…He, however, said that the protests in Syria could no more be called peaceful since the demonstrators had started using weapons against the army. Some outside elements are arming the demonstrators, he alleged.

Addressing a press conference yesterday, the ambassador said Russia was in contact with the Syrian government as well as the opposition groups to find a peaceful solution to the crisis.

…President Bashar Al Assad should implement the reforms as quickly as possible. He is late with the reforms,” said the ambassador.

The ambassador hailed the Qatari initiative, led by the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister H E Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabor Al Thani to find a solution to the Syrian crisis through peaceful negotiations.

He said there was no unity among the Syrian opposition groups and some of them were refusing to negotiate with the government.

“This is a problem. While the government is ready for dialogue, the opposition is not. Responsibility will then lie on those who are refusing to negotiate,” said Titorenko.
….
The ambassador criticized The Peninsula for publishing an article by the Qatari columnist Khalid Al Jaber recently in which the author, he alleged, “had called for terrorist attacks and demonstrations against the Russians all over the world.”

He said the Russian embassy had sent a rejoinder to The Peninsula but the daily was not ready to publish the article in full.

“The paper published only a small part of our reply but instead put it on their website. If it had been the American ambassador they would have published the whole article. We are expecting an apology from the editor,” said Titorenko.

He distributed a copy of the rejoinder to all the newspapers attending the press conference requesting them to publish it in full.
….
The meeting will explore possibilities of Russian participation in major regional projects such as the GCC railway net work, the integrated electricity system and nuclear power projects.

The meeting will also discuss the major political issues in the region, especially the Syrian crisis.

The Peninsula

Syria to respond Monday to Arab League plan to end unrest
31 October 2011, 04:56 (GMT+04:00)

http://en.trend.az/regions/met/arabicr/1951504.html

Syria is to respond Monday to a plan presented by an Arab League committee on ending the unrest in the country, said Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim, dpa reported.

The plan was presented at a meeting of Arab foreign ministers held Sunday in Qatari capital Doha that was attended by Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem.

“The meeting was serious and straightforward,” Jassim, who headed the meeting, told reporters.

“We reached a working paper tackling all issues. The Syrian delegation asked to give a reply tomorrow (Monday) after discussing the paper with the Syrian leadership,” said Jassim, who is also Qatar’s foreign minister.

The committee, headed by Qatar, comprises the foreign ministers of Algeria, Egypt, Oman and Sudan.

Jassim said the plan was serious about “ending all acts of violence and killings” in Syria, but declined to disclose the content of the plan.

“They (the Syrian government) knows there is a crisis and have to address it seriously and swiftly,” he added.

The Arab League is to hold a meeting on Syria in Cairo on Wednesday, according to the Qatari official.

More than 3,000 people, including at least 187 children, have been killed in a Syrian government clampdown since pro-democracy protests began in mid-March, according to the United Nations.

Norman comment #358

You have a point Dr. But, if the world makes a mistake and consider them all as Arabs, should we live in that lie especially when we have ethnic tensions and hatred all over the area?

If the world was smart, they would recognize the differences from the people who are coming from the Middle East and would know who is the Arab and who are the rest?

Can you sell your agenda of Arab identity to the Copts of Egypt? They tried it and what they reaped so far is Second Class Status as citizens. They are Egyptians and not Arabs.

What is called the Arab World is a mistaken identity. It should be called the union of some newly created countries that will be called Arabic because of the Arabic language and Islam (Morocco has more Amazigh than Arabs for example.) That is how they did it. The word Arabic countries was born out of the British and the French and was not an organic movement that came to achieve the goal of unifying the “Arab World” from the “Gulf to the Ocean.” These ideas came in the 20th C. The Arab Awakening is not that deep into history.

Funny how the enemies of Bashar al-Assad are for al-Baath pan Arabist nationalistic ideology.

Look at North Africa, for example, this policy you are calling for means that the Amazigh should forget about their language and culture and assimilate with a race that considers itself superior, why?

If we are going to live together, why not have a modern civil law equals all like the one America has?

The Syria Imperative: Military Intervention to Promote Israeli Interests?

The Syria imperative is Israel’s gain paid for with the blood of the Syrian people.

October 30, 2011

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=27367

The Assad regime in Syria is facing increased scrutiny for its handling of demonstrators. The Syrian opposition has asked for arms and NATO intervention similar to what was witnessed in Libya. Washington Hawks such as former presidential candidate and U.S. Senator John McCain have called for military intervention in Syria to “protect civilians.” The call for the use of military force to “protect”.

Given the demonstrated lack of regard for human life and the aversion to justice (Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc.), what lies behind the imperative to intervene in Syria?

The protest movements in Syria started in Daraa — dubbed the epicenter of the anti-Assad protests. Daraa, traditionally supportive of Syria’s ruling Baath Party, suffered from reduced water supply triggering massive protests against the local administration and the regime for failing to deal with the acute water scarcity in the region. Water.

Therein lies the crucial motivation behind the support, agitation, and arming of Syrians against their government by those who endorse ‘humanitarian wars’. It would be naïve to believe that the ‘humanitarian’ interest in Syria comes on the heels of the uprisings in the region given that water has been and continues to be a critical determinant of state security and foreign policy between Israel and Syria (as well as Lebanon) dating back decades.

It was the 1967 war which resulted in the exponential expansion of Israeli water sources including the control of the Golan Heights (also referred to as the Syrian Golan). For decades, Syrian Golan and the return of its control to Syria has posed a major obstacle to the Israeli-Syrian peace negotiations. Israel’s water demands make it virtually impossible to accommodate this process. In fact, even with full control of the Golan, Israel’s water crisis in 2000 were so acute that it prompted Israel to turn to Turkey for water purchase.

In addition, Syria’s presence in Lebanon since the outbreak of the Lebanese civil war in 1975 played a crucial role in hindering Israel’s never-ending water demands. Although the 1955 Johnston Plan (under the auspices of the Eisenhower administration) proposed diverting water from Lebanon’s Litani River into Lake Kinneret, it was not officially formulated, though it remained an attractive prospect. In 1982, Israeli forces established the frontline of their security zone in Lebanon along the Litani. Numerous reports alleged that Israel was diverting large quantities of Litani water.

Syria’s presence in Lebanon and the 1991 Lebanese-Syrian Treaty of Brotherhood, Cooperation and Coordination, was a challenge to Israel and its diversion of water. When Syria replaced Israel as the dominant power in southern Lebanon in May 2000, Israeli fears grew that Syrian success in controlling the Golan and by extension, Lake Kinneret, would have a devastating effect on Israel.

Perhaps this helps explain the fact that on September 13, 2001, while the United States was recovering from the shock of 9/11, the influential and powerful JINSA (Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs) had a statement available as to how the U.S. should proceed. As part of its recommendations, it pointed the finger at not only at Afghanistan and Iraq, but also presented Iran, Pakistan, Syria, Sudan, the Palestinian Authority, Libya, Algeria (and eventually Saudi Arabia and Egypt) as danger spots. Shortly thereafter, in May 2002, the “Axis of Evil” was expanded to include Syria.

The next logical step was for the United States to pass and implement the Syrian Accountability Act and the Lebanon Sovereignty Restoration Act which in addition to sanctions, called for the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon. The troops remained until April 2005. They were forced to leave a few short months after the assassination of Prime Minsiter, Rafik Hariri when Syria was accused of involvement in the murder. Clearly, Syria was not the beneficiary of the assassination.

Without a Syrian presence, Lebanon was made more vulnerable, facilitating the 2006 Israeli attack and invasion of water-rich Southern Lebanon.

While Israel lost the public opinion war in Lebanon and Syria remained intact amidst the accusations and chaos, it became necessary to once again put Syria in the spotlight. In 2007, Syria stood accused of having a nuclear bomb program. As a member of the NPT, rather than reporting such suspicions (unfounded) to the IAEA, Israel, with a green light from the United States, bombed a factory which it alleged was involved in nuclear weapons activities.

Israel’s attack on Syria on 6 September 2007, remained secret until it was revealed by the former prime minister (1996-1999) and the then opposition leader, Binyamin Netanyahu — the current Prime Minister of Israel.

Netanyahu took office in March 2009. In April 2009, a U.S. funded London-based satellite channel, Barada TV, started broadcasting anti-regime propaganda into Syria. Barada TV’s chief editor, Malik al-Abdeh, is a cofounder of the Syrian exile group Movement for Justice and Development headed by Anas al-Abdah. It is crucial to note that the pro-Israel Dennis Ross, a former fellow at the AIPAC created Washington Institute for Near East Affairs, who is currently a senior advisor to Barack Obama, was present in a 2008 meeting with Anas al-Abdah (see here). Although the meeting took place in early 2008, the theme of the meeting was: “Syria in-transition”.

Prophecy or planning, doubtless, there are many Syrians who do have grievances against their government and demand more rights. In this sense, their cause is no different than the many protests we witness on a daily basis around the world – including the United States. What is tragic about the Syrian situation, is that the imperative for intervention in Syria is not based on a genuine desire to help the people. The peoples’ grievances is being used as a means to arm them, have them killed, and create the need for an intervention in order to promote Israeli interests.

The Syria imperative is Israel’s gain paid for with the blood of the Syrian people.

Mjabeli,

I am not saying that people should forget their language and culture but that should be celebrated and acknowledged, as in the US there are Mexican, Cuban, African American, orientals, Italians, Irish, they are all with different cultures but all Americans with equal rights and yes , we should have civil laws that treat all as equals ,

You said this ,
(( Funny how the enemies of Bashar al-Assad are for al-Baath pan Arabist nationalistic ideology. ))

I do not understand what you mean,

Arab Nationalism is what liberated the Arabs from the control of the Turks,

About the Copts of Egypt,
The feeling of the Christians in Syria is different from the copts of Egypt , Arab nationalism started with the Christian Arab of Syria, all of Syria.

Norman

“Arab” is commonly used as a generic term used like “anglo-saxon” or ‘francophone”, “latino” that cover countries or groups of people whose majority shares the same language.
“Arab” is often associated with Islam because the majority of Arabophones are moslems.
Arabophones are not necessarily ethnical arabs. (Druzes, Tcherkess, Kurds, Assyrians, Christians, Copts, Turcomans, Sudanese, Berbers etc.. are of a totally different ethnicity)

The real “ethnical” arabs originally lived in Arabia and propagated during the Moslem Civilization ( that was arabophone but not exclusively created by “ethnical arabs”) where the Arab language propagated outside Arabia.

The concept of Arabism was a way to unite all these different ethnicity and religions under the same umbrella for political reasons and because the majority spoke the same language.

They should have found another name then ‘Arab’ because this one implies that all arabophones have the ‘arab’ ethnicity which is not the reality.

Reports: Prosecutions going up for war zone crime – October 30, 2011

http://www.heralddemocrat.com/hd/News/National/A5010-BC-US-RebuildingWarZone-3rdLd-Writethru-10-30-1463

WASHINGTON — A Marine in Iraq sent home $43,000 in stolen cash by hiding it in a footlocker among American flags. A soldier shipped thousands more concealed in a toy stuffed animal. An embassy employee tricked the State Department into wiring $240,000 into his foreign bank account.

As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan wind down, the number of people indicted and convicted by the U.S. for bribery, theft and other reconstruction-related crimes in both countries is rapidly rising, according to two government reports released Sunday.

“This is a boom industry for us,” Stuart Bowen, the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, said in an interview.

“Investigators and auditors had a productive quarter,” said a report on the theft of Afghanistan aid by Steven Trent, who holds the same job for Afghanistan. His report covered August through October.

In the past 13 months U.S. investigators in Iraq secured the indictments of 22 people for alleged aid-related offenses, bringing to 69 the total since the SIGIR office was created in 2004. Convictions stand at 57. Several hundred more suspects are under scrutiny in 102 open investigations and those numbers are expected to climb.

The rise in caseloads derives partly from spinoff investigations, where suspects facing prosecution lead investigators to other suspects, said Jon Novak, SIGIR’s assistant inspector general for investigations.

“More and more people are ratting out their associates,” he said, turning in conspirators who helped launder money after it was stolen, others who were aware of it and others implicated in the crimes.

As investigators gain experience, they’re received better information from a growing network of sources in Iraq, said Dan Willkens, Novak’s deputy. Development of an automated data-mining system for investigations has helped, he said, as did a decision two years ago to speed prosecutions by hiring three former assistant U.S. attorneys and detailing them to the Department of Justice.

At the inspector general’s office for Afghan reconstruction, created in 2008, officials report only nine indictments and seven convictions so far. They say they’re trying to ramp up after years of upheaval and charges the office was mismanaged. Trent was named acting inspector general after his predecessor left in August and is the third person to hold the job.

Still, Trent reported that during the last quarter, an investigation initiated by his office netted the largest bribery case in Afghanistan’s 10-year war. A former Army Reserve captain, Sidharth “Tony” Handa of Charlotte, N.C., was convicted, sentenced to prison and fined for soliciting $1.3 million in bribes from contractors working on reconstruction projects.

Most crimes uncovered by U.S. investigators in the two war zones include bribery, kickbacks and theft, inspired in part by the deep and pervasive cultures of corruption indigenous to the countries themselves.

Among some of the cases listed in the reports were those of:

Gunnery Sgt. Eric Hamilton, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy in what prosecutors say was a scheme to help Iraqi contractors steal 70 generators that were meant to supply electricity for fellow Marines. He sent some of their payments home in a footlocker and had other money wired, the report said.

Several U.S. government employees, who received kickbacks for steering contracts to local conspirators and providing inside information to people competing for contracts. A former army sergeant, who was not identified, is charged with pocketing more than $12,000 in cash that a contractor never picked up after the money was allegedly stolen by another army sergeant and mailed to California inside a stuffed animal.

Jordanian national and U.S. Embassy employee Osama Esam Saleem Ayesh, who was convicted in April for stealing nearly $240,000 intended to cover shipping and customs charges the State Department incurs when it moves household goods of its employees. The money wound up in Ayesh’s bank in Jordan.

Money stolen from reconstruction projects also has been shipped off of U.S. battlefields tucked into letters home and stuffed in a military vest. Tens of thousands of dollars were once sewn into a Santa Claus suit.

Prosecutors have retrieved some of the money. More than $83 million will be returned to the U.S. from Iraq cases completed in the budget year that ended Sept. 30, bringing the total recovered over the last seven years to nearly $155 million, Bowen’s office said.

As well as stolen cash, the total includes court-ordered restitution, fines and proceeds from the sale of merchandise seized from those convicted, including Rolex watches, luxury cars, plasma TVs and houses.

Prosecutions by Trent’s office recovered $51 million over the past year, his report said.

But the amount recovered is believed to be a tiny fraction of what’s been stolen in the two war zones, a figure that will probably never be known for certain. Far more money is believed to have been lost through waste and abuse that resulted from poor management and the often-questioned U.S. strategy of trying to rebuild nations that are still at war.

The U.S. has committed $62 billion to rebuilding Iraq and $72 billion for the reconstruction of Afghanistan.

The independent Commission on Wartime Contracting estimated in August that at least $31 billion has been lost to waste and fraud in Iraq and Afghanistan, adding that the total could be as high as $60 billion. It studied not just reconstruction spending, but $206 billion for the logistical support of coalition forces and the performance of security functions.

The commission found that from 10 to 20 percent of the $206 billion in spending was wasted, while fraud accounted for the loss of another 5 to 9 percent.

Bowen called the cost of fraud “egregious.”

“This is open crime occurring in a war zone,” he said. “And the purpose of a lot of these expenditures is to win hearts and minds. Obviously we lose hearts and minds” when local populations see foreigners steal money meant to help rebuild their country.

The inspectors general are only two of the U.S. government offices looking into fraud, waste and abuse. Others include State Department inspectors and Army criminal investigators.

October 27, 2011 Edition 31
Iran, the Arab intifada and the end of the ‘Middle East’
Arshin Adib-Moghaddam
http://www.bitterlemons-international.org/inside.php?id=1450
Once upon a time there was a United States naval officer who invented a region he called the “Middle East”. His name was Alfred Thayer Mayhan (1840-1914) and he lived during a period when this “Middle East” was subjugated and colonized, when it was turned into a geopolitical “region” that could be defined by the office of a naval strategist whose penchant for US imperialism made him famous.

Articles in this edition
• Syria spoils the Iranian victory – Sadegh Zibakalam
• Ready for new Erdogans in the Middle East? – Yuksel Taskin
• Turkey: rising tensions and loss of direction – Ersin Kalaycioglu
• Iran, the Arab intifada and the end of the ‘Middle East’ – Arshin Adib-Moghaddam

Since then, there exists a place the “West” imagines as the “Middle East” as if it has an existence of its own. Yet this “Middle East” is not merely a jolly good imperial fantasy. The Euro-Americo-centric designation buttresses the West’s claim to hegemony, re-inscribing dependency into the very consciousness of the peoples and governments acting in that area. It is also distortive because it suggests that the “West” can control events there. It is indicative of this illusion that the “Middle East” is the only “region” that is still officially defined from the perspective of Europe and America.

But the old (post-) “colonial” “Middle East” is withering away, at least since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. The ensuing mayhem, the immense loss of life and the horrific images of torture and death that accompanied that devastating war put psychological and material boundaries on US foreign policies. The “Vietnam syndrome” has turned into an “Iraq pathology”, exactly because political elites in the US were forced to accept that there are no military solutions to the conflicts in the region and that a military victory does not necessarily yield a strategic advantage. There seems to be an emerging understanding that events cannot be controlled by the barrel of the gun, that the area we have called the “Middle East” can’t be defined from here anymore, that there is both reciprocity (them affecting us) and autonomy (them doing what they want beyond our control).

As such, the Iraq war was a major step towards a post-American order in the area exactly because it revealed the impotence of military might in the contemporary international system. It also signaled the demise of the “Middle East” as a region defined in terms of dependency on us. Today, when we look at the map we don’t see an abstraction anymore, but concrete events, memories–Abu Ghraib, Saddam Hussein, Gadaffi–and Tahrir square, civil society, democracy, calls for liberty, empowerment, revolution!

It is within this context of a non-colonial future that the Arab intifada can be interpreted. If the revolution in Iran of 1979 uprooted a pro-western dictatorship from the country, the Arab uprisings have created their own possibility for independence. After all, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and Hosni Mubarak were quite comparable to the shah; kings of kings who were dependent on the United States and skeptical of democratic accountability. “King of kings” was also a preferred title of Muammar Gaddafi, who lost the last residues of ideological support from his people when he turned himself over to the Bush administration and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair during their inglorious “war on terror”. Add Turkey’s increasing distance from the US and its confrontation with Israel to the mix and what emerges is a region that has ceased to function in a colonial mode.

What we are witnessing, then, is the second coming of independence, which promises a non-colonial order. It signals the end of the “Middle East”, which would translate into the end of dependency on the “West”. This is salutary for Europe and the United States, as well, if we finally accept and appreciate that non-western societies are writing their own history. They don’t need us to dictate words to them and to pester them with our patronizing wisdom. This is what the Iraq war and the uprisings should have taught us.

And then there is Iran, of course, which in 1979, much like Castro’s Cuba two decades before, instituted a revolutionary narrative advocating radical independence for the country, the region and the “global south”. The revolutionary emphasis on independence is one of the main reasons why Iran refers to the Arab uprisings as “awakenings”. In the jargon of the revolutionaries of 1979, including Ayatollah Khomeini, being “awake” (or “bidar” in Persian) signified the prelude to revolutionary action: a society that was ready to struggle for its independence.

Of course, there are also many in Tehran who are delusional enough to assume that the Arab revolts are modeled after the Islamic revolution of 1979. Those Persian fantasies need to be ignored. But by and large the emerging post-American order is viewed with immense optimism in Iran and a good dash of anxiety, too. Optimism, because Iranian strategists assume (rightly so in my opinion) that governments that are more responsive to the preferences of their societies will yield foreign policies that are more friendly to the Palestinian cause and Iran itself, and by implication less acquiescent to the United States and Israel.

Below the surface, however, there is anxiety too, especially among the right wing, which is subduing the demands of Iran’s powerful civil society. They are aware that Iranians have been plotting their own intifada to reform the state for quite some time now and that today democracy and human rights, not only independence, are the measure of successful governance in the Arab and Islamic worlds. In the middle-to-long term, the Iranian state, which perceives itself a major player in this area, can’t be oblivious to that brave new world and its anti-authoritarian norms.-Published 27/10/2011 © bitterlemons-international.org

Arshin Adib-Moghaddam teaches at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London and is author of “A Metahistory of the Clash of Civilizations” (Hurst & Columbia U. Press).

*** TWO STEPS AWAY FROM STATEHOOD ***

Palestine statehood fight goes to UNESCO – October 30, 2011

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b5a9428a-030c-11e1-b7be-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=rss

The Palestinian battle to win international recognition for an independent state has moved to Unesco, where members will be asked to vote as early as Monday on a Palestinian application to join the body as a full member state.

The looming vote has sparked an intense diplomatic struggle, with both US and European officials appealing to Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, to call off or postpone the vote. Officials and diplomats predict an overwhelming majority in favour of Palestinian membership provided Mr Abbas does not pull back at the last minute. An initial vote on the Unesco executive board earlier this month went 40-4 in the Palestinians’ favour, with 14 abstentions.

Under current US legislation, a decision to admit Palestine as a member of Unesco, the UN organisation for education, science and culture, would force an immediate cut-off in American funding for the Paris-based body. The US ranks as the biggest contributor to the organisation, which depends on Washington for 22 per cent of its budget. The UN body receives a budget of $643m every two years.

“I am very much worried about the future of this organisation,” Irina Bokova, the Unesco director-general, told the Financial Times. She warned against US “disengagement” from the body, arguing that Unesco was supporting “core US interests”, for example by managing and funding large-scale education projects in Iraq and Afghanistan.

European diplomats, meanwhile, are worried that a vote on Palestinian membership will once again reveal the deep divisions among European Union member states on the issue of Palestinian statehood.

Palestinian officials, however, insist they are entitled to join Unesco as well as other UN organisations. Should the application be successful, Palestinian officials say they will call on Unesco to recognise key monuments in the occupied Palestinian territories as world heritage sites. Top of the list is the famous Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, which is built over the site where Jesus is believed to have been born.

“It is the right of the Palestinians to become members of Unesco. Palestine has its own heritage and its own culture that need to be protected,” said Omar Awadallah, the Palestinian official who heads the foreign ministry’s section dealing with UN bodies. He added that the Palestinian leadership would also seek to gain membership of a range of other international bodies, such as the World Health Organisation and the World Trade Organisation.

The Unesco bid is the first since Mr Abbas submitted the Palestinian application to become a full member of the United Nations last month. That application is still under review by the UN Security Council, though the US has already made clear it will use its veto power to block the request.

Washington cannot, however, veto Palestinian membership at separate UN organisations such as Unesco. Although the Obama administration has been trying to find ways to avoid cutting off funding to Unesco, officials admit there will be little other option should the members of the UN agency vote in favour of admitting the Palestinians.

“There are consequences if Unesco votes in this direction,” Victoria Nuland, spokeswoman for the state department said last week.

Hillary Clinton, secretary of state, has told Congress that the administration needs more flexibility to be able to decide whether to cut off funding to other UN agencies that might admit the Palestinians. “There are significant problems if this begins to cascade. What happens with the International Atomic Energy Agency? What happens with the World Health Organisation? What happens with the Food and Agriculture Organisation?” she asked earlier this month.

However, the administration will find it hard to win support for this position in Congress. Earlier this month the House foreign affairs committee approved a bill that would reinforce the ban on funding any UN agency that recognises Palestine before any peace deal is signed with Israel. Although the bill is considered unlikely to make it into law, it underlines the strong opposition in Congress to the Palestinian effort to use the UN to push for statehood.

Palestinian membership of Unesco would shine a fresh light on the vexed issue of who should control some of the most famous – and most deeply revered – monuments in the world. The Old City in Arab East Jerusalem, for example, is home to the Temple Mount, or Haram al-Sharif, a site of crucial importance to Jews, Muslims and Christians alike. It also contains the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built over the site where Jesus is believed to have been crucified.

East Jerusalem is under Israeli occupation, but the Palestinians claim it as the capital of their future state.

Alex
There was no response from you concerning the personal insults from Mjabali, I take it that it is ok to engage in personal attack.

Mjabali is a stupid person who distort History,he claim that Arab are not syrian, did he forget Zennobia, her name was Zabba2 she was arabic and a daughter of Amr Amlaqi, she came from Arabic family and was a queen of Palmyra, she was long before Islam, did he ignore the fact that AlGhassasineh were arabic,and they lived in Syria, did he forget that what is called Alawite,that he belong to came from northern Iran, and they are not originaly from Syria.
He is not syrian, he is not Arabic, we are.enough of his distortion of history.

Majedlkhaldoon

“did he forget that what is called Alawite,that he belong to came from northern Iran, and they are not originaly from Syria.”

Please could let me know where you found this information? I never read it nowhere.

In any case during the Moslem civilization there was a lot of movements of population, and a lot of mix ( persians to arabs, arabs to indian, arabs to spanish etc…) so the ‘pure’ arab ethnicity exists now maybe only in few places like Saudi Arabia.

“Arab” is a confusing appellation as it is at the same time an ethnicity and a common name for people speaking Arabic and living in the middle east.

It is clear that Syria is heading back to a normal life, it is clear that with all the money the gulf countries wasted to topple the regime has not worked…
All the lies on the gulf and western media, all the doctorination of videos and the fabricated images from Lebanon, Iraq and other places are all lies….
even the mutilated bodies reported are lies… except the ones by the criminal of the MB who are well known for such acts in Syria and Iraq…
all the above is not the problem….
The real problem that the opposition by heart is flawed and full of hate to everyone who is not Islamists, Sunni or MB… that’s is the real problem, because if the revolution didn’t turn to be a MB against the Alawitte then the opposition could have a hope of a civil Syria based on equality for everyone, but because the MB and the gulf countries want an Islamic state and throw everyone else off the bus.. the revolution wanted initially a better life less force, corruption, the cause is legit but the end is flawed… Russia and china are not interested in another Islamic radical country in the middle east especially after the are seeing the other countries being hijacked by the birberic radicals, even the Americans supported it at the beginning but obviously didn’t bother to recognize the opposition especially 19 out of 24 of the members are well known radicals.
It is unfortunate that the radicals have hijacked a pure legit revolution may have ended with improvement and progress for Syria and replaced it with a bloody killer mobs who are killing innocent Syrians ( that’s very clear and the world started believing it is the case after the regime showed them the proofs of the MB killing innocent everywhere) although the pigs of the gulf countries continue to try topple the Assad regime for a radical one but no western intervention is coming to Syria the result may be that the innocent Syrians ( from all sects) died because of the criminal radical Islamists narrow vision which works well in KSA not in Syria. Although many will claim that the regime has killed many children but obviously these children were killed by their parents who took them out to a dangerous protestation as the coward bin laden used his wife as a human shield..

Between both the regime brutal and inhumane treatment of peaceful protesters, peaceful activists and peaceful bloggers, and the terrorist militia violence and their barbaric beheading acts against the army and some innocent people, Syria is the biggest looser.

I wonder what kind of generation that have been objected to watch this amount of barbaric violence will bring to Syria in the near future, this is a real crime against our society.
Isn’t there any ending for the brutal behaviors of those two radicals so Syrians can have some rest and start building their own future. What’s the end of this horrible bloody and depressing situation? It’s really unbearable even for me who doesn’t live there. I wonder how horrific the life is for those who live in the middle of this tragedy every day for the last 7 months and counting. What dreams or hopes the youth have there, how can they get out of this prison without being subjected to either the regime’s or the military gangs’ brutality.

There must be a solution other than asking for more violence, destruction, civil war or for Syria to be occupied by foreigners. The nonviolence movements succeed in many societies, many cultures and many countries and it should work is Syria as well. It’s even proven that nonviolence movement built a democratic free society and it has 80% chance to win while the military movement has only 20-25% chance to win and even if it succeed it doesn’t build a democratic system afterward.

Here what’s done without any need of violence in the last couple weeks in Damascus, yes it’s not much but it’s working more and better than blood:
روزنامة الحرية | ملخص الأسبوعين الثالث و الرابع
http://youtu.be/U1dtgxdNYow

Memo To: HANS

RE: “…it is clear that Syria is heading back to normal life…”

A recent photo of Hans >>> http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b299/aaronmcintire/dumbass.jpg

As I wrote before, nothing good can come out from Jordan and Turkey meeting last week:

عمان مستعدة لسيناريو ‘المنطقة العازلة’ جنوب سورية وأوغلو بحث معها التعاون الإنساني في ملف اللاجئين السوريين إذا حصلت طوارىء

“عمان ـ ‘القدس العربي’ لا يمكن قراءة التصريح الأخير لوزير الخارجية الأردني ناصر جودة بخصوص الإستعداد للمساعدة في حالة نزوح المزيد من المهاجرين السوريين جنوبا إلا بإعتباره موافقة مبدئية من عمان على إقامة منطقة عازلة مخصصة لإستقبال موجات بشرية سورية إذا ما دخل سيناريو الإضطراب إلى الدولة الجارة الأهم للأردنيين.
وفي الواقع لم تقل عمان رسميا وبوضوح أنها مستعدة لذلك لكن تصريحات جودة بالخصوص لم تكن مفصلة فقط على مستوى زيارة أحمد أوغلو وزير الخارجية التركي الذي زار العاصمة الأردنية مؤخرا لتفقد موقفها وفي الطريق الإطمئنان على المصالح التركية الإقتصادية والسياسية في الجانب الأردني.
وبعد توقف أوغلو في المحطة الأردنية وإطلاقه منها تصريحات محذرة وبحثه التعاون مستقبلا في حالة الطوارىء على صعيد اللاجئين يمكن رصد السيناريو العربي الذي تقترحه المجموعة الناشطة في الجامعة العربية بمشاركة الأردن على القيادة السورية وهو سيناريو يضع الرئيس بشار الأسد بين خيارين لا ثالث لهما خارطة طريق للإصلاح الداخلي في بلاده أو التدخل الأجنبي.”

“وهذا ما تفعله عمان الرسمية فعلا فهي لوجستيا وضعت خطة كاملة لإستيعاب الأحوال الطارئة على حدودها الشمالية مع سورية وخصوصا في حال تدفق لاجئين بعشرات الالاف من محافظة درعا ومحيطها ومن الواضح أنه ثمة أموال جاهزة لهذا الأمر عبر مؤسسات دولية وإقليمية وثمة ‘خطة أمنية’ داخلية تقلب الخيارات فيما يختص بسورية.
وعلى هذا الأساس يمكن القول بأن المنطقة العازلة تحت العنوان الإنساني أصبحت تحصيل حاصل لكن توصيات القصر الملكي لجميع المسؤولين التنفيذيين تفيد بوضوح بألمراقبة والحذر الشديد وتجنب التورط بأي إجراء حدودي حكومي أو أمني يمكن ان يثير إرتياب الحكومة السورية، فيما إعتبرت دوائر عمان خطوة زرع الألغام بالقرب من الحدود الأردنية مبالغا فيها وعدائية قليلا وتأسس على نوايا سيئة في الأردن فالمسألة التي تبدو عمان أكثر حرصا عليها هي عدم التورط بأي برنامج تصعيدي ضد النظام السوري أو عدم التدخل قدر الإمكان.”

http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today%5C30qpt961.htm&arc=data%5C2011%5C10%5C10-30%5C30qpt961.htm

@ 399, Dale Anderson.
I don’t want to respond to your post!
obviously, you are not worth the time.

فلاش سوري كتير الحلقة السابعة -اتفاق
http://www.bostah.com/camera/series/viewvideo/594/%D9%81%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%B4-%D8%B3%D9%88%D8%B1%D9%8A-%D9%83%D8%AA%D9%8A%D8%B1/%D9%81%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%B4-%D8%B3%D9%88%D8%B1%D9%8A-%D9%83%D8%AA%D9%8A%D8%B1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D9%84%D9%82%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%B9%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%81%D8%A7%D9%82

Although I was never a fan of the retard but sometime you get wisdom from the idiot’s mouth.

I can’t wait to see KSA blown up and the King and the rest of the princes are slaughtered like Algadaffi end.

Memo To: HANS

RE: “…I don’t want to respond to you…you are not worth the time…”

But you did respond, Hans, so I must be worth it. And it’s Andersen, not Anderson. Someone who calls himself Hans should know that. yes?

I heard the following on BBC World service a couple of hours ago.

Assignment: One day in Syria.

For Assignment, Bill Law paints a portrait of a single day in Syria, talking via the internet and phone to people across the country.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00kxdwk#synopsis

339. majedkhaldoun said:

Ultimatum SUNDAY

125. majedkhaldoun said:

They are saying that Bashar will not send anyone to Qatar,and there will not be any response to AL initiative, instead his message will be that he will make an important speach on Monday afternoon.

your predictions are all coming true 😀

you’re killing me 😀

hehehehehe