“Exclusive: Secret Assad Emails Lift Lid on Life of Leader’s Inner Circle,” in Guardian

Posted by Joshua on Wednesday, March 14th, 2012

The Assad emails
Exclusive: secret Assad emails lift lid on life of leader’s inner circle
BY Robert Booth, Mona Mahmood and Luke Harding – Guardian

• Messages show Bashar al-Assad took advice from Iran
• Leader made light of promised reforms
• Wife spent thousands on jewellery and furniture

Assad emails: ‘If we are strong together …’

Date: 28 December 2011
A simple supportive message from Asma al-Assad to her husband.

If we are strong together, we will overcome this together…I love you…

 

Bashar al-Assad took advice from Iran on how to handle the uprising against his rule, according to a cache of what appear to be several thousand emails received and sent by the Syrian leader and his wife.

The Syrian leader was also briefed in detail about the presence of western journalists in the Baba Amr district of Homs and urged to “tighten the security grip” on the opposition-held city in November.

The revelations are contained in more than 3,000 documents that activists say are emails downloaded from private accounts belonging to Assad and his wife, Asma.

The messages, which have been obtained by the Guardian, are said to have been intercepted by members of the opposition Supreme Council of the Revolution group between June and early February.

The documents, which emerge on the first anniversary of the rebellion that has seen more than 8,000 Syrians killed, paint a portrait of a first family remarkably insulated from the mounting crisis and continuing to enjoy a luxurious lifestyle.

They appear to show the president’s wife spending thousands of dollars over the internet for designer goods while he swaps entertaining internet links on his iPad and downloads music from iTunes.

As the world watched in horror at the brutal suppression of protests across the country and many Syrians faced food shortages and other hardships, Mrs Assad spent more than £10,000 on candlesticks, tables and chandeliers from Paris and instructed an aide to order a fondue set from Amazon.

The Guardian has made extensive efforts to authenticate the emails by checking their contents against established facts and contacting 10 individuals whose correspondence appears in the cache. These checks suggest the messages are genuine, but it has not been possible to verify every one.

The emails also appear to show that:

• Assad established a network of trusted aides who reported directly to him through his “private” email account – bypassing both his powerful clan and the country’s security apparatus.

• Assad made light of reforms he had promised in an attempt to defuse the crisis, referring to “rubbish laws of parties, elections, media”.

• A daughter of the emir of Qatar, Hamid bin Khalifa al-Thani, this year advised Mr and Mrs Assad to leave Syria and suggested Doha may offer them exile.

• Assad sidestepped extensive US sanctions against him by using a third party with a US address to make purchases of music and apps from Apple’s iTunes.

• A Dubai-based company, al-Shahba, with a registered office in London is used as a key conduit for Syrian government business and private purchases by the Syrian first lady.

Activists say they were passed username and password details believed to have been used by the couple by a mole in the president’s inner circle. The email addresses used the domain name alshahba.com, a conglomerate of companies used by the regime. They say the details allowed uninterrupted access to the two inboxes until the leak was discovered in February.

The emails appear to show how Assad assembled a team of aides to advise him on media strategy and how to position himself in the face of increasing international criticism of his regime’s attempts to crush the uprising, which is now thought to have claimed more than 10,000 lives.

Activists say they were able to monitor the inboxes of Assad and his wife in real time for several months. In several cases they claim to have used fresh information to warn colleagues in Damascus of imminent regime moves against them.

The access continued until 7 February when a threatening email arrived in the inbox thought to be used by Assad after the account’s existence was revealed when the Anonymous group separately hacked into a number of Syrian government email addresses. All correspondence to and from the two addresses ceased on the same day.

The emails appear to show that Assad received advice from Iran or its proxies on several occasions during the crisis. Ahead of a speech in December his media consultant prepared a long list of themes, reporting that the advice was based on “consultations with a good number of people in addition to the media and political adviser for the Iranian ambassador”.

The memo advised the president to use “powerful and violent” language and to show appreciation for support from “friendly states”. It also advised that the regime should “leak more information related to our military capability” to convince the public that it could withstand a military challenge.

The president also received advice from Hussein Mortada, an influential Lebanese businessman with strong connections to Iran. In December, Mortada urged Assad to stop blaming al-Qaida for an apparent twin car bombing in Damascus, which took place the day before an Arab League observer mission arrived in the country. He said he had been in contact with Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon who shared the same view.

“It is not out of our interest to say that al-Qaida organisation is behind the operation because this claim will [indemnify] the US administration and Syrian opposition,” Mortada wrote not long after the blasts. “I have received contacts from Iran and Hezbollah in my role as director of many Iranian-Lebanese channels and they directed me to not mention that al-Qaida is behind the operation. It is a blatant tactical media mistake.”

In another email Mortada advised the president that the regime needed to take control of public squares between 3pm and 9pm to deny opposition groups the opportunity to gather there.

Iran and Hezbollah have been accused throughout the year-long uprising of providing on-the-ground support to the regime crackdown, including sending soldiers to fight alongside regime forces and technical experts to help identify activists using the internet. Iran and Hezbollah both deny offering anything more than moral support.

Among others who communicated with the president’s account were Khaled al-Ahmed, who it is believed was tasked with providing advice about Homs and Idlib. In November Ahmed wrote to Assad urging him to “tighten the security grip to start [the] operation to restore state control and authority in Idlib and Hama countryside”.

He also told Assad he had been told that European reporters had “entered the area by crossing the Lebanese borders illegally”. In another mail he warned the president that “a tested source who met with leaders of groups in Baba Amr today said that a big shipment of weapons is coming from Libya will arrive to the seashores of one of the neighbouring states within three days to be smuggled to Syria.”

Link to this videoThe emails offer a rare window on the state of mind of the isolated Syrian leader, apparently lurching between self-pity, defiance and flippancy as he swapped links to amusing video footage with his aides and wife. On one occasion he forwards to an aide a link to YouTube footage of a crude re-enactment of the siege of Homs using toys and biscuits.

Throughout 2011, his wife appears to have kept up regular correspondence with the Qatar emir’s daughter, Mayassa al-Thani. But relations appear to have chilled early this year when Thani directly suggested that the Syrian leader step down.

“My father regards President Bashar as a friend, despite the current tensions – he always gave him genuine advice,” she wrote on 11 December. “The opportunity for real change and development was lost a long time ago. Nevertheless, one opportunity closes, others open up – and I hope its not too late for reflection and coming out of the state of denial.”

A second email on 30 January was even more forthright and including a tacit offer of exile. “Just been following the latest developments in Syria … in all honesty – looking at the tide of history and the escalation of recent events – we’ve seen two results – leaders stepping down and getting political asylum or leaders being brutally attacked. I honestly think this is a good opportunity to leave and re-start a normal life.

“I only pray that you will convince the president to take this an opportunity to exit without having to face charges. The region needs to stabilise, but not more than you need peace of mind. I am sure you have many places to turn to, including Doha.”

The direct line of reporting to Assad, independent of the police state’s military and intelligence agencies, was a trait of his father, Hafez al-Assad, who ruled Syria for three decades until his death in 2000 ushered the then 36-year-old scion into the presidency.

Assad Sr was renowned for establishing multiple reporting lines from security chiefs and trusted aides in the belief that it would deny the opportunity for any one agency to become powerful enough to pose a threat to him.

His son has reputedly shown the same instincts through his decade of rule. The year-long uprising against his decade of rule appeared to be faltering this week as forces loyal to Assad retook the key northern city of Idlib.

Much of Assad’s media advice comes from two young US-educated Syrian women, Sheherazad Jaafari and Hadeel al-Al. Both regularly stress to Assad, who uses the address sam@alshahba, the importance of social media, and particularly the importance of intervening in online discussions. At one point, Jaafari boasts that CNN has fallen for a nom-de-guerre that she set up to post pro-regime remarks. The emails also reveal that the media team has convinced Twitter to close accounts that purport to represent the Syrian regime.

Several weeks after the sam@alshahba.com email was compromised in February, a new Syrian state television channel broadcast two segments denying that the email address had been used by Assad.

Opposition activists claim that this was a pre-emptive move to discredit any future leaking of the emails.

The US president, Barack Obama, signed an executive order last May imposing sanctions against Assad and other Syrian government officials.

In addition to freezing their US assets, the order prohibited “US persons” from engaging in transactions with them. The EU adopted similar measures against Assad last year. They include an EU-wide travel ban for the Syrian president and an embargo on military exports to Syria.

Syrian National Council is an “Illusion”

(AP) — “Two prominent Syrian dissidents said Wednesday they have quit the main opposition group that emerged from the year-old uprising against the regime in Damascus, predicting more would soon abandon what one of the men described as an “autocratic” organization.

The resignations from the Syrian National Council dealt another blow to the opposition, which has been hobbled by disorganization and infighting …. One of the dissidents who resigned, Kamal al-Labwani, accused the leadership of the Syrian National Council of controlling the body’s work while sidelining most of its 270 members.
“There is no council, it’s an illusion,” said al-Labwani, who worked for years against the Assad family regime before being jailed in 2005. He joined the council soon after being released in November.

He accused council chief Burhan Ghalioun and a few others of running the organization autocratically, even comparing it to Assad’s ruling Baath party….
He said that another council member, Catherine al-Talli, has also quit and said he expected many more to quit soon to pressure the council leadership. Al-Labwani called for an international conference in Turkey to give the council a new charter and make it more democratic.

Another dissident, 80 year-old lawyer Haitham al-Maleh, said he too had quit the council, but did not say why. He has accused the group in the past of being out of touch and not consulting those long opposed to the regime…. “

The Rafiq Hariri brigade demonstrates in this video how many soldiers they killed and captured prior to the military assault of Idlib. It also shows the tanks they captured.

By Sharmine Narwani – Tue, 2012-03-13 15:12- The Sandbox – Al-Akhbar
Last October I was asked to write an article on the direction of the crisis in Syria – a month later, I had still not made it beyond an introductory paragraph. Syria was confusing. The public discourse about events in the country appeared to be more hyperbole than fact. But even behind the scene, sources strained to provide informed analyses, and it was fairly evident that a lot of guesswork was being employed.
By December, it occurred to me that a big part of the problem was the external-based opposition and their disproportionately loud voices. If you were actually in the business of digging for “verified” information on Syria last year, you would have also quickly copped on to the fact that this wing of the Syrian opposition lies – and lies big.
This discovery coincided with a new report by US intelligence analyst Stratfor that claimed: “most of the opposition’s more serious claims have turned out to be grossly exaggerated or simply untrue, thereby revealing more about the opposition’s weaknesses than the level of instability inside the Syrian regime.”
I had another niggling feeling that just wouldn’t quit: given the amount of regime-initiated violence and widespread popular dissent being reported in the mainstream media, why was the Syrian death toll so low after 10 months of alleged brutality?
Because, if the regime was not engaging in the kind of reckless slaughter suggested by activists, it would appear that they were, in fact, exercising considerable restraint.
Stratfor said that too. The risk analysis group argues that allegations of massacres against civilians were unlikely because the “regime has calibrated its crackdowns to avoid just such a scenario. Regime forces,” Stratfor argues, “have been careful to avoid the high casualty numbers that could lead to an intervention based on humanitarian grounds.”
For me, the events in Homs in February confirmed rather than contradicted this view. The general media narrative was very certain: there was a widescale civilian massacre in Baba Amr caused by relentless, indiscriminate shelling by government forces that pounded the neighborhood for weeks.
The videos pouring out of the besieged city were incriminating in the extreme. Black smoke plumes from shelling choked the city, piled up bodies spoke of brutal slaughter; the sound of mass wailing was only interrupted by explosions, gunfire and cries of “Allahu Akbar.”
But when it was over, we learned a few things. Contrary to reports during the “siege,” there were only a few thousand civilians in Baba Amr at the time – all others had already evacuated the area. The International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) and its local partner, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC), had been administering assistance at nine separate points in Homs for the duration. They would not enter the neighborhoods of Baba Amr and Insha’at because of continuing violence on “both sides.”
The armed opposition fighters holed up in Homs during that month were, therefore, unlikely to be there in a purely “protective” capacity. As American journalist Nir Rosen points out, what happened in Homs on February 3 was a government response to direct and repeated “provocation:”
“Yesterday opposition fighters defeated the regime checkpoint at the Qahira roundabout and they seized a tank or armored personnel carrier. This followed similar successes against the Bab Dreib checkpoint and the Bustan al Diwan checkpoint. In response to this last provocation yesterday the regime started shelling with mortars from the Qalaa on the high ground and the State Security headquarters in Ghota.”
This account contrasts starkly with the oft-repeated notion that armed opposition groups act primarily to protect “peaceful demonstrators” and civilians.
Homs also marks the point in the Syrian crisis when I noticed a quiet cynicism developing in the professional media about sources and information from Syria. Cracks are bound to appear in a story this widely broadcast, especially when there is little actual verifiable information in this highly competitive industry.
Cue the now infamous video by Syrian activist Danny Abdul Dayem – dubbed by the Washington Post as “the voice of Homs” – where he dazzles CNN’s Anderson Cooper with little more than bad 1950s-style sound effects, blurry scenes of fires and a breathless rendition of “facts.” Of all the media-fraud videos Syrian TV broadcast two weeks ago, none were as compelling as Danny’s – his credibility stock plummeting almost as fast as his meteoric rise to media “darling.”
It reminds me of August 2011 news reports of warships shelling the coastal city of Latakia. Three separate sources – two opposition figures from the city and an independent western journalist – later insisted there were no signs of shelling. It was also the first time I learned from Syrians that you can burn rubber tires on rooftops to simulate the after-effects of exploded shells.
Question: Why would activists have to resort to stage-crafting scenesand sound effects of violence if the regime was already “pounding Homs” to bits?
What have we actually seen in Homs? Explosions. Fires. Dead bodies. Injured civilians. Men with weapons. The government has openly admitted to shelling, so we know that is a fact. But how much shelling, and is it indiscriminate? Observers afterward have said Baba Amr resembles a destroyed ghost town. How much of this was done by the regime? And how much was done by the opposition?
Turkish publication Today’s Zaman reported on Sunday: “Last week, a Pentagon report stated that IED usage by the opposition has more than doubled since December.” How are these Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) – used mainly in unconventional warfare – being employed? As roadside bombs, targeting security forces, inside towns and cities?
On Sunday I was included in a private messaging thread with seven Syrians who I have communicated with over the course of some months. Most are known to me either directly or with one degree of separation. This was not a usual thread on Syria – the initiating participant, who I will call Ziad, was informing the others privately about what was taking place in Idlib as government forces moved into the area.
Ziad’s family is from Idlib, and although I wasn’t a participant in the conversation, it appears that he had spent much of the weekend making phone calls to family members who were reporting the following. I have changed the names of participants to protect their identities. Two things strike me about this chat – the first is the information that armed groups are rigging the town with IEDs before the army arrives, either to target security forces or to create material damage to buildings. The second is that there is a malaise among the message participants about this information. As in, so what? Who is going to believe this? Who is going to do anything about this?
Ziad:
Today the Army went into the city of Idleb (the city itself not the province).
There was no random shelling, they were slowly moving into neighborhoods, starting from the east and southern.
The militants had seeded IEDs (improvised explosive devices, basically remote detonated landmines) across the city, one of them was under my uncles balcony , who now lost half his home, his living room got bigger and has a panoramic view.
They had set up machine gun nests on a few mosques and communication towers.
Around 200 militants were gathered near my grandmother’s house and took refuge in the building right next to them. The neighborhood is a Christian neighborhood (cant confirm or deny it’s a coincidence).
The battle lasted all day, my family is safe but both my grandmother’s house and my uncle’s house got damaged. The first by the IED and the second by exchange of fire, largely done by the militants and the army was returning fire.
The army was moving in slowly and checked Idleb neighborhood by neighborhood. They searched most houses but there were no mass random arrests. Mainly they asked adult men out before searching and they were released after. I assume at this point they have a list of who to arrest so there was no surprise there.
The rumors of electricity and water cuts are not true. The entire country is suffering from electricity cuts, so Idleb will not be an exception. There is no cell phone coverage but landlines are working, though there is heavy pressure and you have to attempt several times for the call to go through.Ziad:
The plan will probably be pushing them into what is called “the northern quarter” an area already emptied from civilians and largely a militant stronghold. Once they corner them in the northern area the army will take them out decisively. Most people expect this to end within the next two days.

Outside the city there was a clash on the Turkish border with militants attempting to come from turkey to Idleb to reinforce the militants.
Ziad:
Just to make it clear the Army did not finish sweeping the entire city
Joumana:
I don’t know what to say Ziad. Should I be happy or sad? I feel sorry for the people caught in the middle, but this has to be done! So is the city clean?
Ziad:
No its not clean. Operation started yesterday from 5 am till around 6. The same thing today but today the army went in deeper. They are doing it progressively and trying to avoid the most damages.
Most damages are caused by the IEDs (some up to 50kgs of explosives) and random firing by militants (using PKT/PKC and DUSHKA/DShk machine guns), with the army returning fire when attacked, but no excessive use of force i.e no artillery barrages as reported by al Jazeera and other channels)
Ziad:
Also, contrary to what is being reported, the town of Benech (بنش ) was not shelled today and was not even attacked.
Oh and since the morning the army was asking people to go down to the shelters and take refuge using speakers across the city.
I just heard on Aljazeera that the army dragged over 20 civilians and executed them in “Dabbit neighborhood”(ضبيط ), that is not true because I have family there too and that did not happen.
Hanan:
Ziad, they are using the propaganda of the 80’s. Want to lead people’s brains to the Hama massacre. To make it look believable
Joumana:
The MB are insisting on getting their revenge. Linking the events to what happened in Hama. Many people will believe.
Ziad:
Just to give you a perspective on the scale of irresponsibility and damage by the militants. Just under my uncles house there were 4 IEDs, one of them exploded damaging a BMP (and the building) as the army was approaching and the army stopped there and pulled back to reassemble for another try. In that single spot there was over 60 kgs of explosives. Once large one was planted in a 2×2 hole. Right now the army reached their neighborhood and is still there.
These militants don’t even live there and are just making those neighborhoods their front using civilians as shields. Once they are pushed back into the open fields the army will mow them down like grass.
I’m optimistic this will be over in the coming two days.
Jouwana:
But Ziad, why isn’t there anyone reporting this to the media?
Mohammad:
if they report it no one (outside Syria) will believe it …
Ziad:
I think by now we can all agree the pro Syrian media has limited clout and the anti Syria media just doesn’t do any fact checking and research and is resorting to sectarian tone and hysteria.
The government I think it focusing its energy and resources on finishing the security element of the crisis while juggling the economy and foreign diplomacy. They realize they cannot win the media war and might as well focus on what they are good at and what is more important. Syria never was “popular” and it certainly won’t be done during this crisis.
Ziad is not a reporter, he relies entirely on his family’s accounts and estimates in Idlib, and his claims cannot be verified at this point. But these are important testimonies – the anecdotal evidence that provides the basis for further investigation. We used to hear many more of these accounts from all sides in the first few months of the Syrian crisis, before the pressure of the dominant narratives intimidated even the best bloggers into toeing a hyper-cautious line.
Conjecture and hysteria aside, there is plenty of indication that the Syrian government is pursuing a policy of eliminating armed groups in a slow, measured sweep of the country, particularly focusing on towns and neighborhoods where they have allowed these elements to swell in recent months.
There are many who would find this offensive enough to continue raging against the Syrian regime – it is unnecessary to concoct daily stories of civilian slaughters to keep Syria in the headlines.
There is also increasing evidence that armed opposition groups are targeting civilians, security forces and property with violence in ever greater numbers. Is there absolute evidence of this? Not yet. Is there absolute evidence for the allegations against the regime? Not yet. I doubt that there has been a recent conflict with this much finger-pointing, and this little established fact.
Today, reporting from inside Idlib, Al Jazeera’s Anita McNaught described the bombing as “earth-shaking and relentless.” Bombing caused by who?
“Hollywood” in Syria? Oh yes. Scene-setting the likes of which we have not yet seen outside of celluloid fiction. Delivering lines to a rapt audience that seems incapable of questioning the plot. Some of what transpires in Syria in the future will depend on this: Do people want to go behind the velvet curtain and see the strings – or are they content to be simply led by the entertainment.
Sharmine Narwani is a commentary writer and political analyst covering the Middle East. You can follow Sharmine on twitter @snarwani.

A journey into Syria’s nightmare

Reuters By Zohra Bensemra | Reuters

Zohra Bensemra is a news photographer for Reuters. Based in Algiers, she traveled on assignment to Syria in February. This is her account of that journey:

…. Smoke was still rising from some buildings as we entered through back roads. Local people kept approaching us: “Come and see my father, he was killed!” one would say; “Come down this road, there are two bodies!”; “Come and see my house that was destroyed.”

The shelling seemed to have been indiscriminate. Houses in different parts of town had been hit. It was as if a blind man had been firing the guns and could not see or did not care where the shells fell.

Local people took us to a house where they said a woman of 70 had died. A shell had hit it. The mirror in her bedroom was spattered in blood, and flesh. It was as if she had exploded…..

Monastery in Sednayya attacked

Syrian Kurds get cold reception from Iraqi Kurds
By LARA JAKES and YAHYA BARZANJI | Associated Press

QAMISHLI, Iraq (AP) — Kurdish Syrians fleeing their nation’s bloody uprising are all but prisoners in northern Iraqi refugee camps, though they seek shelter in a region that was created specifically as a safe haven for ethnic Kurds.

Local Kurdish officials in the Iraqi province of Dahuk, which borders Syria, voted Wednesday to open a second refugee camp for the growing number of Syrian Kurds who are arriving every day. But they are not allowed to leave the first, spartan camp at Qamishli, and have been told they must apply for residency before they may live freely in the region widely referred to as, simply, Kurdistan.

It’s a twofold irony: Kurds are Syria’s largest ethnic minority but long have been considered illegal immigrants there. Moreover, Iraqis used Syria as a safe haven during the worst of the sectarian violence that nearly plunged their nation in civil war just a few years ago.

“We can’t move or work freely, and our family can’t send us money,” Qamishli refugee Radhwan Nadhum al-Ali said in an interview this week. He compared the small camp to “living in a big prison cell.”

“I’m mulling whether to go back and face death rather than staying here,” al-Ali said.

Iraqi Kurdish soldiers guard the camp at Qamishli, about 60 kilometers (30 miles) from the border. Dahuk provincial immigration director Mohammed Abdullah Hammo said its Syrian Kurdish residents “are not allowed to leave the camps.”

“They need security approval and residency permission to be in Kurdistan, just like anyone else,” he said Wednesday. He estimated that process would take a month. (…)

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Comments (856)


Tara said:

Asma and Bashar should be paraded and put to shame all over the world.  This is sick.  Utterly sick.  Children are being cleansed in Syria while Asma is lusting over a Loboutini shoes or Chelsea piece of furniture.  Sending friends “lots of kisses” and reassuring them “we are fine” while systematic torture is taking place.  This is truly sickening.  Asma, her parents and supportive family members forgot a basic tenet in their belief system.      الله يمهل ولا يهمل

The end of this murderous gang is approaching.   

March 14th, 2012, 4:15 pm

 

Syrialover said:

How sweet it is. The dirty information gives us the clean truth about what the world is dealing with in the Syrian “first family”.

Human rubbish, idiocy and waste of space. All exposed in their own words.

March 14th, 2012, 4:26 pm

 

Uzair8 said:

It’s gone oh so quiet.

Have the regime supporters (Syrian Electronic Army) been called in for an emergency briefing?

There were loads of thumbs up and down earlier. I guess it takes a little time to respond to such news.

March 14th, 2012, 4:26 pm

 

Syrialover said:

Repeating comments from the previous thread.

1.Remember the Guardian were key players in the Wikileaks exposure. They know what they are doing and wouldn’t touch it if they thought it risked being a hoax.

It’s going to be hard for the distraction faction and block of red thumbs voters here to live this one down.

2. Asma Assad, now finally exposed as a Leila Ben Ali in training.
I always expected that as more years passed she will look and act more like the hated Tunisian dictator’s wife.

More humiliation and insults for Syrians who have have been forced to eat the personality propaganda and fake images about family man Assad and his wonderful wife.

March 14th, 2012, 4:30 pm

 

873 said:

zzzzzzzzzzzz MSM doing what they do best: garbage. CIA Wiki fakes were about as real as this nonsense. These MSM hogwash bins are becoming increasingly irrelevant. NYT has dropped another 43M USD last year and every year the decline gets bigger. WaPo is a standing joke. Glad we have SC- beats them all.

Asma is a typical female and the ruling family is spendthrift? Ooooooooooohhh!!! Thats breaking alright. WOW!!! Try the Obamas- Ms O has spent almost 50 M USD (some estimates) on VACATIONS ALONE, with 30+ personal staff, they order a plane to fly pizzas in from St Louis and on and on and on…. So they are like every other ruling family? If thats ground for deposing, I nominate we arrest all Goldman Sacks wives and throw away the keys. Only ones who are NOT in that category (as far as we know) are Kate & Wills. Whoever is handling her (wearing stuff several times, buying off the rack dresses for cheap etc) is a genius. Puts that “Peoples’ Princess” image in top shape, esp as the recession is raging.

March 14th, 2012, 4:36 pm

 

Syrialover said:

#3. Uzair8

What can they say?

The propaganda bosses and others in the Assad circle were asked to comment before the Guardian went public and they didn’t deny, only refused to comment. This is too big even for professional liars to shout down.

March 14th, 2012, 4:40 pm

 

Uzair8 said:

Forgive me for repeating a comment from previous thread. I was initially altering and editing it and ran out of ‘editing time’. I can do so now:

This is amazing! They are being exposed in every way imaginable and from unexpected sources. Who would have thought it? In a water-tight police state.

It’s game over for them. What were we talking about yesterday? Incrimination? Well it seems the sentence has been passed. They were preparing to celebrate and consolidate the ‘victory’ in Idlib and hoping to push the ‘advantage’ home only for this bad news to pop up and a put a dampener on things. Not just bad news but probably disasterous.

What an embarrassment. Who’d want to be a regime supporter? The impossible job got even more impossible.

March 14th, 2012, 4:45 pm

 

Syrialover said:

#5. “873”

Come on, please do better than that. (I think of re-posting your extreme conspiracy theories from earlier, but I think you demonstrate some of them here).

March 14th, 2012, 4:46 pm

 

Amir in Tel Aviv said:

The shoes fetish of Imelda Assad
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/1173911.stm
.

March 14th, 2012, 4:48 pm

 

873 said:

8. Syrialover said:
#5. “873″
Come on, please do better than that. (I think of re-posting your extreme conspiracy theories from earlier, but I think you demonstrate some of them here).

Repost to your hearts delight. I’m waiting.

BTW: ‘Coat Conspiracy’: Carla Bruni spends millions on outerwear its claimed. Where is the Guardian on Queen Rania? Its said she is the most outrageous, profligate spender of all.

March 14th, 2012, 4:51 pm

 

Uzair8 said:

@6 Syria Lover.

I hope you are right. I hope this sticks and turns out be the blow to the regime that many have been hoping and praying for.

It’s been a difficult couple of months for the Syrians, the revolution and the supporters. I can speak only for myself that one doesn’t wish to hurt or unnecessarily annoy the pro-regime. This reaction is genuine and is an expression of elation I am feeling. I’m sure the same goes for others on here.

March 14th, 2012, 4:54 pm

 

Tara said:

Guys

We need to think of a name for this coming Friday to reflect Imelda Assad\’s shoes, jewelry and furniture fetish. Any suggestion?

March 14th, 2012, 4:59 pm

 

bronco said:

I wonder if any of you would like to have his private emails exposed to the world, what your of husband bought, their private chat with their friends and maybe special friends.

I find this just repulsive and a cheap way to further demonize Bashar and his wife, when one year of bashing has lead to no result.

I am surprised that some of you rejoice and I am disappointed that Joshua Landis makes this the subject of a post.
Is SC becoming a cheap tabloid?

March 14th, 2012, 4:59 pm

 

873 said:

Maybe if the Daily Mail manufactures some Asma centerfolds- that just may do it. Or just leak a photo shop version onto the internet ala Paris Hilton.
C’mon folks- that slagheap the Guardian is REALLY reaching. This is one step up from their Gay Girl in Damascus Series peddled by some middle-aged weirdo working for another fake NGO.

March 14th, 2012, 5:00 pm

 

zoo said:

Syrian Kurds get cold reception from Iraqi Kurds
By LARA JAKES and YAHYA BARZANJI | Associated Press – 34 mins ago
http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-kurds-cold-reception-iraqi-kurds-202627548.html
QAMISHLI, Iraq (AP) — Kurdish Syrians fleeing their nation’s bloody uprising are all but prisoners in northern Iraqi refugee camps, though they seek shelter in a region that was created specifically as a safe haven for ethnic Kurds.

Local Kurdish officials in the Iraqi province of Dahuk, which borders Syria, voted Wednesday to open a second refugee camp for the growing number of Syrian Kurds who are arriving every day. But they are not allowed to leave the first, spartan camp at Qamishli, and have been told they must apply for residency before they may live freely in the region widely referred to as, simply, Kurdistan.

It’s a twofold irony: Kurds are Syria’s largest ethnic minority but long have been considered illegal immigrants there. Moreover, Iraqis used Syria as a safe haven during the worst of the sectarian violence that nearly plunged their nation in civil war just a few years ago.

“We can’t move or work freely, and our family can’t send us money,” Qamishli refugee Radhwan Nadhum al-Ali said in an interview this week. He compared the small camp to “living in a big prison cell.”

“I’m mulling whether to go back and face death rather than staying here,” al-Ali said.

Iraqi Kurdish soldiers guard the camp at Qamishli, about 60 kilometers (30 miles) from the border. Dahuk provincial immigration director Mohammed Abdullah Hammo said its Syrian Kurdish residents “are not allowed to leave the camps.”

“They need security approval and residency permission to be in Kurdistan, just like anyone else,” he said Wednesday. He estimated that process would take a month.
(…)

March 14th, 2012, 5:02 pm

 

zoo said:

FSA begging: send money to buy weapons or we will collapse.
What are Qatar, KSA and rich expats waiting for?

Syrian rebels lack guns, money after key defeats
By ELIZABETH A. KENNEDY | Associated Press – 2 hrs 48 mins ago
http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-rebels-lack-guns-money-key-defeats-175952483.html

BEIRUT (AP) — Two significant defeats at the hands of Syrian government troops have exposed the limitations of the country’s rebel forces: They are low on cash, running out of weapons and facing a fiercely loyal military that will fight to the death.

Insisting that their drive to oust President Bashar Assad by force remains strong, the Free Syrian Army says the arms shortage is the main obstacle.

“Send us money, we’re desperate. Send us weapons,” Ahmad Kassem, who coordinates military operations for the FSA, told The Associated Press in an interview. “We don’t need fighters. We have excess men who can fight, but we need weapons to protect our land and honor.”
(..)

March 14th, 2012, 5:06 pm

 

Alan said:

Obama and Cameron: No intervention in Syria, pullout in Afghanistan
http://rt.com/news/obama-cameron-syria-afghanistan-591/
Cameron and Obommer seems to have decided that the GGC, NATO, Turks covert mercenaries will have to do their Syrian job against Asad. They have concluded that Russian and China will not sit back and allow a repition of Libya and also the stakes in this adventure is much too high. Should the US, NATO and allies succede here in Syria and Iran, The Persian Gulf Petroleum resources will be under Total Weatern control. Why should China and Russia sit back and allow that to happen. The UK and US have gotton the signals it will not be an easy run this time.
The Beak .

March 14th, 2012, 5:08 pm

 

Uzair8 said:

#13 BRONCO

I’m minded to back off here and leave Syrians to comment or reply but I just want to make one small comment.

You seem to make a valid point. I understand where you’re coming from.

However now that the news is out. Don’t you think some of the revelations are in the public interest? He is a public figure. Bashar said to be ‘mocking’ reforms. His insensitivity regarding the Bab Amr situation.

March 14th, 2012, 5:10 pm

 

zoo said:

More predictions, less results…

Assad deserves worse fate than Kadhafi’s: rebel chieftain
By Antonio Pampliega | AFP – 3 hrs ago

http://news.yahoo.com/assad-deserves-worse-fate-kadhafis-rebel-chieftain-164946414.html

“Assad has killed so many people that he deserves a fate worse than Kadhafi’s,” spits Ammar al-Wawi, a one-time Syrian officer now second-in-command of the rebel Free Syrian Army.

And despite the fact that the FSA, “armed only with Kalashnikovs and pistols,” is at an overwhelming disadvantage against the tanks and artillery of Bashar al-Assad’s army, Wawi says he is convinced the president will fall.
(..)

March 14th, 2012, 5:10 pm

 

873 said:

“Assad sidestepped extensive US sanctions against him by using a third party with a US address to make purchases of music and apps from Apple’s iTunes.”

Wow. This rutherless hardcore criminal needs be indicted under copyright laws. Maybe that is the way to launch Syrian coup d etat? Or trademark infringement?

Guardian needs to be put in the same category as Rupert Murdoch for hacking into target’s stolen personal property- emails. Where is the force of intl law on this? It serves TPTB’s goals so that little detail will be overlooked because afterall, he is the next SADDAM!!!

March 14th, 2012, 5:12 pm

 

irritated said:

The Friends of Syria are kindly invited to the funerals of the SNC in Istambul

March 14th, 2012, 5:16 pm

 

Syrialover said:

Uzair8

They are back, jumping to the usual frantic hype beat.

From main post above: “Much of Assad’s media advice comes from two young US-educated Syrian women, Sheherazad Jaafari and Hadeel al-Al. Both regularly stress to Assad, who uses the address sam@alshahba, the importance of social media, and particularly the importance of intervening in online discussions”

… particularly the importance of intervening in online discussions.

That’s not news to THIS forum. Hi there, Sheherazad living the high life in the west while beavering away at the destruction of Syria. Wonder which alias here is yours.

March 14th, 2012, 5:18 pm

 

Observer said:

I went on and read the Guardian report and the links to the verification process they used and the authentication of the e mails with some prominent correspondents of the first family.

It is clearly a thorough job and they continue to say that there are no verifications with absolute certainty of the material they possess.

It is clear that if Fredo thinks that he is immune from being snooped at he is sorely mistaken.

There is no such thing as privacy on the internet and I am certain that the identity of those of us who post on this blog is known to those that are determined to find out.

Now Bronco is lamenting the lack of privacy, well I agree go ahead then and apply the new constitution to the security services in Syria and bring those snoopers to justice and send all of the responsible people to the gallows for committing crimes against humanity.
Talking about privacy in the ever so modern and advanced and civilized Somaria Fredo ALassad is an insult to our intelligence and to the memory of all those tortured and executed without trial and due process of law.

This post is sickening in its revelation of the nature of this dictator. One has to remember the Romanian dictator that used to call his people insects and cockroaches.

It also shows that there is no one iota of good faith in bringing the crisis to an end. Fredo wants to turn the clock back.
I thought Annan tried to show him it cannot happen.

As for those that compare Bruni and Michelle Obama to Asma the major difference and the most important one is that the first two do not use public funds and they have a legislative and a free press and a justice department and free citizens to bring people to justice. The system is not perfect but the mechanisms for correction and accountability are in place.

Any defense of the indefensible is simply moronic

March 14th, 2012, 5:18 pm

 

bronco said:

#18 Uzair8

“Don’t you think some of the revelations are in the public interest?”

Intrusion to the private of people is for tabloid readers and is a cheap way of demeaning people and ignoring all their good deeds to focus on futilities. For me , it is as unacceptable as lynching.
Sorry, I am not one of these and if SC goes further in this direction, I am out.

March 14th, 2012, 5:22 pm

 

Mina said:

What’s up? Asma is from a rich London family and she knows how to spend money? Unlike her friends in the Gulf, which are given as a model for the new Islamic umma and its future, super efficient caliphate?

Good they have a bone to chew for the first year birthday. Obviously the sofa revolutionaries were unhappy that Karm al Zaytun was doubted enough by the media that they kept suprisingly quiet (and the video posted here by someone about a guy who would have survived it was ridiculous; yes the guy had been shot in the back, but nothing else would help say he was a witness in Karm al Zaytun).

When you find out how the Salafis of the SNC and the seculars and rich kids who launched the first Damascus demo from Facebook and got only Mrs Atassi and 20 people who already knew each other can agree on any state project, give a call to Obama, Sarkozy and Cameron.

March 14th, 2012, 5:24 pm

 

jad said:

As 873 wrote ‘zzzzzzz’…didn’t Ayman Abd Alnour ‘aaa’ alkazab post similar ‘hit’ couple months ago? It’s getting more ridiculous by the day.
So what! Even if Asma bought stuff in $10000, from what I know, she was already filthy rich even before marrying Bashar.
She didn’t make golden shoes like Rania of Jordan, or stole gold worth billions from Syria like Layla of Tunisia did, or spent $50000 on underwear like Michelle Obama…

I also share Bronco disappointment of JL going from writing some meaningful political analysis to some kind of a cheap tabloid similar to All4syra in the most difficult times of Syrian history.

I guess nobody cares about the news of the US and UK plans in progress to destroy Syria and support a full scale civil war to change Syrian into Afghanistan where the stani ‘zuhair’ can promote his sheikhs’ hallucinations. Or that every day for months now we read about some family being slaughtered. Instead everybody should forget the real news and care of what Asma’s underwear colour is today!?
Pathetic!

March 14th, 2012, 5:30 pm

 

Alan said:

somthing funny !
Burger time for Obama and Medvedev

March 14th, 2012, 5:31 pm

 

Tara said:

Bronco

Please tell me you are kidding. Is this a kind of a spell that you are under? Can you please wake up. I appeal on the God in you to tell me you are kidding. Children are cleansed, People are tortured. Starvation is looming on large section of the population in Syria and you are appalled by the Guardian exposing them of what human beings they are.

For God sake bronco, is spending 10,000$ a piece on a shoes or fine jewelry in Syria during these circumstances or even normal circumstances not demon enough for you? If not, then what is?

March 14th, 2012, 5:34 pm

 

Uzair8 said:

One more thing.

Earlier today I posted (#227) regarding the upcoming one year mark of the revolution and how it will be a time for the silent/uncommitted block to reassess their situation/position.

https://www.joshualandis.com/blog/?p=13964&cp=5#comment-301109

What is this breaking story going to do to the ‘silent’ block?

How are they going to react?

Can the opposition spread awareness of this story within Syria and maximize its potential to influence or pursuade pro-regime or ‘on the fence’ to change their positions?

Assad succeeded in reassuring Mufti Hassoun and kept his support. Where does this leave Mufti Hassoun? Do these revelations match the promises Assad may have made to him? Does Mufti Hassoun still think Assad is serious about reforms etc?

@22 Syria Lover

I noticed that.
Isn’t she (Jaafari) the daughter of the Syrian Ambassador to the UN? The same one who advised Assad on the Barbara Walters interview?

March 14th, 2012, 5:37 pm

 

873 said:

24. bronco said:
“Intrusion to the private of people is for tabloid readers and is a cheap way of demeaning people and ignoring all their good deeds to focus on futilities. For me , it is as unacceptable as lynching.”

Its character assassination, MSM specialty. Vogue model Asma demonized to strip her of sympathetic image as modern, western-educated, working wife with British training.

Now if it was PUBLIC behavior… like when Pres Bush joked, laughed and wisecracked about “the missing WMDs”- with hundreds of thousands Iraqi dead and maimed- at a PARTY FOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS- who also laughed right along? Then we’d have a story (which didnt get a Guardian centerfold that I recall?).

Cheap shots from a loser publication. Not to mention that we have NO certainty that ANY of it is genuine. Aluminum tubes anyone? Uranium from Niger?? How quickly we ‘forget’ what doesnt suit the narrative.

March 14th, 2012, 5:38 pm

 

Alan said:

[Russia Today:] ‘Western intervention in Syria already under way’

The Assad government has scheduled Parliamentary elections for the seventh of May. Russia is praising the move, but says change and reforms are long overdue. On the ground, Syrian troops have overrun another flashpoint city – Idlib, pushing back armed rebels. Opposition activists claim the area’s now become the scene of a crackdown, while the government’s hailing victory against what it calls foreign-funded terrorism. Rebel political leaders have confirmed they’ve been promised more weapons from abroad. Meanwhile, the international community is still unable to reach consensus on how to act. London-based political analyst Chris Bambery comments.

March 14th, 2012, 5:39 pm

 

irritated said:

#25 Mina and 813

In my view resorting to such cheap bashing of Bashar and his family by the West, so keen about “protection of the privacy”, is a clear sign of despair by the media in view of the failure of all their predictions.

One year after Bashar was supposed to leave “in a matter of weeks, not months” Bashar Al Assad stands cool and assured while the SNC is rotting from inside,the FSA is begging for weapons from stingy and unreliable Qatar and KSA, not to protect the civilians anymore but to help the armed gangs of wild wolfs they have attracted in their ranks and who are on rampage.

The media will bark a lot but the reality is that the whole cardboard that the media has built about Syria is crumbling just in front of our eyes.

Hoping that a bunch of emails will change anything is to use Observer’s expression, just “moronic’

March 14th, 2012, 5:40 pm

 

Syrialover said:

For those trying to smokescreen and distract with huff and puff here about invading private emails and it being the same as Murdochs papers hacking emails of ordinary citizens.

Grow up and stop the silliness! This is NOT the same. Nothing like it. This is head of a Government. This is massive issues of public interest and security. This is happening in the context of a war, with Syrians being attacked as if under an occupying army.

If they leaked private emails of a western leader you would be squealing with glee and excitement. And guess what, that leader would have to probably step down because of failure of character and judgement it exposed.

This is much, much, bigger than that. It’s about Assad’s relations with Iran, scorn for reform process, childish tactics, indifference to norms etc now being exposed and proven. The feather-head Asma’s extravagance with state funds and indifference to humanity is a side circus but reveals the true character of what Syrians are dealing with, and which would be important in a normal political process.

Face an uncomfortable reality.

PS #20 “873” said: “Where is the force of intl law on this?”

Yes, where indeed is the force of international law in the Assad’s world ? I think you will see how the machine of international law will be assisted by the Guardian.

March 14th, 2012, 5:43 pm

 

873 said:

26. jad said:

Demonization & Distraction is their tactic. The stakes are far higher than just Syria here. Syria is the proxy for the West’s fight vis a vis Hezb -Iran, of course, but even more so onto the final takedown of Russia. (But maybe that is another Brookings ‘conspiracy theory’?) Syria last backstop on the road to Iran, and of course The Road to Moscow is through Tehran.

March 14th, 2012, 5:46 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Jad,

The news is not that she spent the money, it is the fact she spent it while her family’s city was getting pummelled, and Syrians are starving.

Also her email exchanges with Qatari Princess shows that the Qatari were not ‘conspiring’ against Assad, and that this revolution is an organic one created by the missteps and deadly actions that Bashar has undertaken from day one.

It as well sheds light on the fact Bashar thinks nothing of his own “reform” packages, and is preoccupied playing real racing 2 on his iPad than dealing in the mess he put our country in.

Add to that his refusal to accept Kofi Annan’s proposals shows you all he is interested in is trying to ‘save’ his image, not his country.

March 14th, 2012, 5:47 pm

 

irritated said:

33# SL

“If they leaked private emails of a western leader you would be squealing with glee and excitement.”

Speak for yourself.

March 14th, 2012, 5:49 pm

 

Syrialover@gmail.com said:

I am thinking about which one could be Sheherazad Jaafari or her offsiders, here with us now.

March 14th, 2012, 5:50 pm

 

Amir in Tel Aviv said:

The Friday of Imelda Assad buying designer shoes with the money of the Syrian people.
.

March 14th, 2012, 5:56 pm

 

irritated said:

#35 SOD

Who of these rich Syrians expats in the USA, and rich Syrians in Syria have stopped buying anything valuable in the last year and send money to “starving” syrians instead?

Didn’t we read some SC commenter outside Syria talking about going go to the latest fashion shows to buy brand shoes, between two tears for the killed Syrians?

It is easy to give moral lessons to other…

March 14th, 2012, 5:56 pm

 

873 said:

33,

A publication, that has consistently, and REPEATEDLY issued the most outrageous lies and twists of the truth? Because you want the Assads out- you jump on the belief that this same publication which already has lost its credibility is telling the truth?

A look at the countries featured in their smut- right there is a BIG hint of who might also be involved in this smear..?

“A daughter of the emir of Qatar, Hamid bin Khalifa al-Thani, this year advised Mr and Mrs Assad to leave Syria and suggested Doha may offer them exile.

• A Dubai-based company, al-Shahba,”

All joking above aside, shouldnt we first determine if these arent just more fakes?

March 14th, 2012, 5:59 pm

 

Tara said:

Asma ‘s family is not filthy rich as some like to tell us. I will not share privileged information but they were not filthy rich or even rich before her marriage.

March 14th, 2012, 6:01 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Irritated,

Are any of them married to the President?

Don’t you think that the President and his wife should be occupied with the crises that their family has put Syria in rather than shop for jewellery, furniture, games, and music?

Or is buying LMFO’s I’m Too Sexy And You Know It part of Bashar’s plan to save Syria?

March 14th, 2012, 6:03 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Tara,

Soon you will hear that these were “gifts” and that they did not “buy” these things.

I wonder what Bashar felt reading Steve Job’s Biography, do you think he realized that if Steve was born, raised, and attempted to build Apple in Syria he would have never accomplished what he did?

March 14th, 2012, 6:08 pm

 

Ales said:

I think Assads have good shopping taste.
No mention of corruption, threats, killings, scandals, crimes, etc. Mails show normal private communications, and seems real, but you never know. We should probably expect some fakes added into too.

It’s an interesting read. The Guardian explanation for publishing them is rubbish, though. This is about same case as New World newspaper scandal and content shown so far is about same celebrity level, but Guardian are giving them more space than Wikileaks diplomatic cables and Stratfor leaks.

March 14th, 2012, 6:09 pm

 

jad said:

Son of Damascus,

I’m sorry to inform you that none of us on here stopped any of our daily life activities because of what’s happening in Syria, did you?

So to say that she bought something while people are killed is like telling someone stop eating because Somalia is starving..I personally find this argument a bit odd.

Besides, the ‘peaceful’ ‘poor’ ‘unemployed’ militiaman in Syria is spending 1300$ on K49 and about $300 worth of bullets for his ‘holy’ mission to kill other Syrians isn’t that ugly and expensive to question?

Maybe not, maybe it’s O.K. and should be supported to spend money on killing Syrians.

For me this whole story is waste of time, I’ll join Bronco and stop discussing this useless story…

March 14th, 2012, 6:10 pm

 

873 said:

No more jokes now.

Tara,

There is also documentation of a certain Turkish national in the US that has approached most of the US and UK MSM, with photos etc of Turks training rebels in Hatay. THAT is news. This same former alphabet agency employee said NO MSM would cover the story when she approached them- even while they acknowledged the information was true.

None of them would publish? Pretty selective ‘democracy’ if you ask me.

That kind of thing is more newsworthy than Israel’s back door trojan horse installed on Asma’s PC and her inappropriate and insensitive shopping habits.

What is Qatar role in this article? behind the scenes?

March 14th, 2012, 6:12 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Jad,

How about his reform package that he called a joke, or that the Qataris are advising him and were not ‘conspiring’ against him, or that he knew of western journalist in Homs and he called for better measures to intercept them?

None of those things are important to you?

The smoke screen to this story is not that they spent the money, the real story is their disdain and complete irrationality towards the very people they are supposed to protect and care for.

March 14th, 2012, 6:25 pm

 

Alan said:

Military intervention would destabilize Syria – Brzezinski
http://rt.com/news/syria-intervention-destabilize-libya-587/

March 14th, 2012, 6:29 pm

 

873 said:

We dont even know if these are real. Bottom line.

March 14th, 2012, 6:33 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

48. 873

Right, I agree with you. The only thing we know by now is that the president is a criminal, his family a ruling mafia, the regime is corrupt in decay, thousand of syrians have been killed just to keep this tamerlanji in power and a regime implosion is coming next.

March 14th, 2012, 6:41 pm

 

Tara said:

873

Thank you for your acknowledgement of Asma’s “inappropriate” behavior (to say the least)

873, I will never deny “selectivity” of the international  press.  This is very true but irrelevant in this case. 

The point 873 is,  while Syrians across the globe, even those who are not physically inflicted during this crisis are in severe emotional pain..  Pro and anti alike, Asma is shopping 10k bags, fine jewelry, and candlelights  The sorrow and sadness in the writings of Kandi, Tara, Syrialover, SOD, True, Norman, Revlon, and others are unmistakable even to the inexperienced eyes.  We are all beaten, sad, angry,…some of us, lost weight, lost sleep, have nightmares, withdrew from work, family and friends while our first lady is sending kisses and shopping luxury items when people are dying..on both sides.  

Can you please imagine how many Syrian children can be fed by her shoes.  I mean for humanity sake, support Bashar as much as you want to, but when trying to create a “moral” noise to cover up this indecency,  It ain’t right.           

March 14th, 2012, 6:46 pm

 

jad said:

Son of Damascus

“None of those things are important to you?”

Not really, because these information doesn’t change anything of the reality of the international political plans surrounding Syria and Syrians, that will lead to a more worse situation than the one we are seeing today and with much worse consequences than some silly email.

In our region we’ve been in this media game for too long to take anything we read seriously and build our decision upon, there is always something behind every line written and I’m keeping my attention these days toward Obama-Cameron ‘meeting’ and the ‘enemy of Syria’ preparation in the Ottomans’ land, those are the real deal and they will have a major affect on Syria.

On a personal note, I think that we are different in the way we look at things, you seems to be interested in the details while I’m interested in the bigger picture and I doubt every line I read and I question every information comes my direction, so if it’s ok with you, I’m out of discussing this ’email’ subject at the moment.

Thank you

P.S.
$10000 can arm 6.25 terrorist head to kill as much as 1875 Syrian.

I wonder how can a ‘poor’ ‘unemployed’ man with ‘hungry’ children afford $1600 K49+100Bullets? Or, how many kids this $1600 killing machine can feed ?

Think about it!

March 14th, 2012, 6:51 pm

 

Uzair8 said:

This story seems to be what I was hoping the Fawaz Akhras ‘story’ from previous weeks to be. That obviously turned out to be a non-story (?)

Moving on. What does this revelation do to Assad’s future Presidential Election Campaign? Is it in tatters? Will he pull out of the race? Will Asma show up to support him on stage during campaigning?

Will opposition parties be allowed to use this issue in their electioneering campaigns?

March 14th, 2012, 6:52 pm

 

Muhammad said:

The testimony from Edleb is loads of bollocks. Random and wide arrests did happen. The army tanks would go down the streets and fire randomly. The water supply is cut and has been so for days (restored in some areas today). Houses searched had men arrested and if they were empty they were ransacked. One of my relatives said the water reservoir got targeted. Tanks randomly smashed cars in some neighbourhoods. All these are eye witness testimonies given directly to me and I have no reason to doubt it. His relatives stories about what did not -rather than did- happen is loads of bollocks since most people are holed up in their houses and cannot really tell what is going on outside. If you saw something you could say it did happen but to rule something out is just blatant lying.

The sight of Syrian troops declaring “victory” over Edleb was particularly sickening. It is like someone celebrating after beating his mother.

I know exiled Syrian opposition lies and exaggerate, but to compare them with the regime would still make them beacons of truth. IMHO these lies could serve as a prophylactic measure and are justified in this context. We all know what this regime is capable of.

March 14th, 2012, 6:59 pm

 

Mohamed Kanj said:

[ Mohamed, Professor Landis may not always have time to read each item of commentary. If you wish to make sure that your remarks are heard, or if you hope for a response, best write directly to his email address: landis@ou.edu]

Joshua Landis – i like many others who used to visit and comment on this blog have stopped due to ur posting of articles based on gossip and rumours. What ever happened to factual information. Your syria comment has become just like cnn,bbc and aljazeera (we cannot verify or confirm the authenticity). Wouldnt it have been more appropriate to put an article on the syrian army taking control of idlib city (which is factual and has been confirmed by all media outlets); Mustafa Tlas denial on tv that he hasnt defected along with his sons. How can u use the gaurdian news outlet and leaked emails which are near impossible to b verified of their source as a reliable source of information, it just doesnt make sense. You have lost all credibility

March 14th, 2012, 7:12 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Jad,

“$1600 K49+100Bullets? Or, how many kids this $1600 killing machine can feed ?”

It is not the opposition denying humanitarian aid to Syrians, it is Bashar and his cronies, think about that!

6 days before the ICRC was allowed to enter Baba Amr, and even then restricting them to 45 minutes.

March 14th, 2012, 7:17 pm

 

Stephen Starr said:

The Guardian Assad emails, if true, display no signs of Assad’s involvement in organising/heading military operations or crackdowns. I believe he is just a face. I think he fully supports the crackdown but I doubt he called for tanks and the shooting of protesters in Deraa in March last year, which obviously set off the revolt.

There are numerous errors and contradictions in the Guardian article that are evident to all and not worth mentioning here.

I’m quite sure I know one of the media advisers mentioned in the article in a personal capacity. She has failed to answer my last few emails and her Facebook page has vanished today (She last posted a picture on Facebook holding a hand gun, early this morning, I think). She is a very bright girl. IF the Guardian Assad emails are true, the person mentioned (I think may be) is Alawite, about 28, won a scholarship 2 study at the Uni of Montana (scroll down) http://www.montana.edu/international/isss/alumni_middle_east.htm

If it is her, she also tried (and largely failed) to teach me Arabic a couple of years back.

March 14th, 2012, 7:18 pm

 

Tara said:

Bashar and Asma can’t deny it. The transactions are easily traceable. There is no privileged information that can not be legally exposed when you buy shoes, jewelry, or fine furnitures. Purchases, shipping routes, final destination can’t be covered up. We will not hear any denials from the regime.

This Friday should be simply called “your shoes can feed our children”.

March 14th, 2012, 7:23 pm

 

873 said:

56. Tara
as to the emails: I myself have had email account hacked, others ‘sending’ emails out from it under my name, as others have also. when computer itself hacked the mess was even bigger. so the emails authenticity is a personal bone with me.

If the Syrian monastery was attacked, Where are all the American Christian Zionists? Rarely hear a peep out of them for the Christians in the Holy Land.

March 14th, 2012, 7:29 pm

 

abbas said:

Thank you for posting Hollywood in Homs and Idlib, I always wondered why they are not using the air force like our neighbors the southwest, I do think a great care was taken to minimize civilian casualties ( not sure if it’s from kindness of their hearts or to eliminate an excuse for foreign intervention ).

March 14th, 2012, 7:38 pm

 
 

Shabbi7 said:

Honestly, I gave this story a chance. I really did. Even though none of it adds up or makes sense, I still tried to read through it. But I just had to stop at “Hussein Mortada, an influential Lebanese businessman with strong connections to Iran.”

Husein Murtada is not an influential personality and is not a businessman. These guys are retarded, they can’t even get their stories straight. They talk about “extensive efforts to authenticate the emails” by trying to contact 10 people who appear in *SOME* of the emails? That’s extensive? That’s called fundamental. How are we supposed to believe their “extensive” authentication efforts when they label a journalist as “an influential Lebanese businessman with strong connections to Iran”?

Then this great almighty “influential businessman” contacting someone he already knows, has to insert lines in his emails such as “I have even received contacts from Iran and Hezbollah – me being the head of many Iranian and Lebanese media channels – and they directed me….” BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH.

What a joke! What a farce! They’re completely bankrupt. They still think they can get 23 million people, who chose not to “protest” against the president the whole year of “uprising”, to suddenly rise up and “protest” now. What actually intrigues me is the existence of Syrians that believe in this garbage.

March 14th, 2012, 8:01 pm

 

bronco said:

Jad

The rebuff of the Syrians Kurds by the Iraqi Kurds is a bitter reality check at it must be for the ‘guests’ in Turkey prison-camp.

There is no report of their state of mind after on year. Hopes? Loss of illusions? resignation?

The Turks do not allow interviews.

March 14th, 2012, 8:07 pm

 

873 said:

Here we go. Echo chamber has begun to ring. Telegraph carrying youtube of toy tank:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/

BTW: Coup in USA too?!?

An uproar in some US military quarters concerning Panetta’s testimony that USAF attack on Syria/Iran would bypass Congressional approval, instead getting just that of UN. Before Panetta spoke to the Marines, they had to be disarmed first?! I wonder if this is related:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4194498/Suicide-attack-bid-on-US-Defence-Secretary.html

March 14th, 2012, 8:24 pm

 

Syrialover said:

I see a lot of confused thinking, excusing and double and treble standards on display here.

If 5% of any of those emails appeared with a western leader they would be out of a job and struggling to ever find another. That’s the point. The lies, the jokes and distraction instead of caring about what matters, the chaotic way of operating. Gone suddenly is respect, credibity, trust and role in public office.

And here we have someone doing big international deals for the life of a whole country, who is in an unchecked and unelected office with total control, apparently exposed to be game playing, indifferent to the human and every other cost, feeling no accountability or responsibility, and not even really interested. It’s what we would have expected of an inherited dictatorship, and it gets to the heart of how the atrocities and massive destruction of a country can happen through having the wrong people in power, and brought there by the wrong means.

If we want Syrians to ever have a normal life in a normal country it needs normal thinking, not this game of allowing (even insisting on) this different rules and standards and skewed moral compasss to determine their lives.

The rural poor who demonstrated against the regime are sacrificing their lives in a struggle to get this. They have a clearer, more authentic sense of how things should be than many “sophisticated” comments here.

I suspect it would be life changing for some to get out of the armchairs and go and meet these real Syrians living the real thing.

But maybe not, living comfortably outside Syria with access to all the options and experience and thinking in the world has apparently been completely wasted on them.

They love to describe the western world as an evil, dysfunctional disaster zone and infer that Syrians are some sort of different species that should accept the nightmare of loss and limitations of the past 40 years and not want to live like others do.

March 14th, 2012, 8:46 pm

 

Ghufran said:

The leaked emails, which btw look genuine at least those with verifiable sources, are not going to help alassad’s image, but that image is already damaged and I could not see any new data or newly incriminating info in those emails. We all knew that politicians have money and love luxury and power, we also understand, at least I did, that Bashar and Asma are the most two visible faces of the regime but not the whole regime. I actually believe the theory that he, Bashar, was not, and never was, leading the regime’s armed movements and missions. That may give his supporters a talking point but it does not excuse him from the legal and political responsibility as the head of state and the commandor of armed forces, on paper at least.

Enough of Bashar and his wife’s shoes, all women love shoes,the focus should be on changing the regime with the least amount of blood shed and the inclusion of all political forces in Syria, that is what matters.

Joshua should have focused on more important issues, this is not People’s magazine.

March 14th, 2012, 9:14 pm

 
 

Mick said:

You think the Al Asad’s image is suffering…how about western media in our free democracy?

http://telegraphindia.com/1120314/jsp/opinion/story_15244649.jsp

Typical of this experiment is what one diplomat in Damascus showed me. These television images which he recorded show fire in buildings, but strangely enough, these buildings withstand the huge flames and smoke unlike the World Trade Centre in New York which collapsed after becoming a fireball on September 11, 2001.

In Syria, as recorded images from Arabic news channels convinced me, one trick to get the upper hand in an information war using the new media has been to place big truck tyres on top of buildings, douse them liberally with gasoline and then set the tyres on fire. With a sleight of hand in filming the fire, it is possible to make it appear that the entire property is ablaze.

In reality, however, the buildings are intact and are being used like a traditional film set. Yet when such clips are posted on social media websites, they acquire a kind of credibility that was once associated with genuine news pictures from a war or a disaster, natural or otherwise.

March 14th, 2012, 9:27 pm

 

omen said:

alan, you cited webster tarpley as a source? the man traffics in conspiracy theories. he’s a global warming denialist and a lyndon larouche follower. this is credible to you? the man lacks credentials as a mena expert.

March 14th, 2012, 9:31 pm

 

zoo said:

Would this please Qatar and KSA?
Gül: Religious-based politics harm faith
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/gul-religious-based-politics-harm-faith.aspx?pageID=238&nID=16043&NewsCatID=338

Turkish President Abdullah Gül has warned Muslim countries against seeking religious-based politics, saying parties that promise such rule would ultimately harm the faith.

If a political party that comes out in the name of Islam fails, it will defame and humiliate the religion itself, Gül told a Tunisian television channel. “If one comes forward, saying one is ‘religious’ and then fails, what will be harmed? Thus, one has more responsibility [to be wise]. Furthermore, policy should not be conducted based on religion,” he said. “If religion directly becomes a tool for politics, that would hurt religion a lot,” he said.

“Because of this, Turkey does not have religious parties,” Anatolia news agency quoted him as saying. Still, Gül said the rise of Islamist parties reflected “the flow of the people to their own channel.”

The statements echo previous comments from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who advised Egyptians last September to not fear secularism. “I suggest that Egypt should have a secular constitution, because secularity is not an enemy of religion,” Erdoğan said in Cairo. “Do not fear secularity. I hope the new regime in Egypt will be a secular one.”

Gül also advised Muslim countries to adopt democracy, accountability and transparency, saying democracy and Islam did not contradict each other.

(…)

March 14th, 2012, 9:34 pm

 
 

omen said:

873, you faulted me citing nir rosen’s assertion that salafism isn’t important in syria. you called him a mossad agent.

first of all, it’s not in israel’s interest to foster support for arab democracies. israel prefers to deal with dictators. they’re still mourning the loss of mubarak.

but taking you at your word that nir is mossad (you don’t offer proof) how does it serve israel’s interest to characterize the opposition as less extremist than what you believe them to be?

March 14th, 2012, 9:39 pm

 

omen said:

[ Link added to Amnesty International report]

mjabali, in the amnesty international report released documenting torture committed by the regime, it includes accounts where male prisoners were raped by male security officers.

how does islam regard that? what kind of judgement/treatment would assad render for that?

March 14th, 2012, 9:40 pm

 
 

omen said:

excerpt from the MB piece above:

He is overseeing revisions of the Brotherhood’s internal teaching materials to reflect a more tolerant stance toward Israel as the group’s political arm comes to terms with the Camp David treaty.

March 14th, 2012, 10:03 pm

 

Anwar said:

[ Welcome to posting at Syria Comment, Anwar. Please read the forum Rules and Regulations, as comments are monitored. Intolerable here are personal attacks/provocations and hateful or discriminatory language. Please take care not to direct veiled insults or direct accusations against other commentators. With a conversation starter like “Assad clowns,” reaction may get heated. ‘Wealthy alawite family kids‘ edges close to a contemptuous sect-based language and argument that is discouraged. Fellow commentators are the best guide to self-moderation.

SCModeration@mail.com]

What a joke the Assad family is. I have to say all those Assad clowns who post here trying to distract and divert attention..Good job. You are obviously trained in the art of political warfare, you attack everyone else and blow smoke over every relevant topic. Divert and deflect. You have been taught well, now let’s wait until those accounts hacked so we can trace who is really behind those posts. My bet: wealthy alawite family kids typing from their fancy home in canada. Your half-truths dont fool anyone but really admire the effort you put into this, but be careful…you might start believing your own lies.

March 14th, 2012, 10:04 pm

 

Tara said:

[ Link added]

Date: 28 December 2011
A simple supportive message from Asma al-Assad to her husband.

If we are strong together, we will overcome this together…I love you…

———
This makes me laugh. I do not believe these people know what love is. She only loves herself through him. She loves the fortune and power he brings her. Bushbush is just Not lovable.

Nevertheless, they both should receive fair trail and if she was found guilty of squandering money that belongs to the people of Syria. I advocate having her in the same cell with him. Solitary confinement is harsh. We, the revolutionists, have tender heart…We truly do. It is a curse, I know. Will have the maternal grandma raises the three children in the interim until Asma serves her term. And if that happens soon enough, I will send her “Fifty Shade of Grey” to kill the time. No promises though. The book is a difficult fine.

March 14th, 2012, 10:22 pm

 

Tara said:

Sad day for me today…

I really wanted to believe that Asma was forced into the situation and she meant well. That she was scared for her life and that she could not risk not being with her children. Now that we have damning evidence to the contrary, It saddens me. Greed and power blind the soul and make people commit the unthinkable. Is this a human trait? Would any other woman in her shoes ( funny expression, isn’t it) have done the same thing? Standing by the man in power to maintain a throne built on top of the dead? I wonder. Would have I done the same?

March 14th, 2012, 10:42 pm

 

mjabali said:

Omen:

As for raping prisoners I think the Islamic rule would be the Haraba حكم الحرابة Rule if we used Qiyas قياس to this Fatwa.

http://islamqa.info/ar/ref/158282

If you can not read Arabic let me know.

In a country that applies “Islamic” law like Saudi Arabia the rule is clear: Death.

Here is a link to a piece of news from Saudi Arabia where the men who raped another man were killed (beheaded of course)

http://arb3.maktoob.com/vb/arb239436/

As for al-Assad, I did not get what you want. Are you asking about the ones who did the actual rape or those who ordered it and what is the Islamic Rule for them?

Also, since you opened this topic with me: could you please tell me why you are interested in the topic of Rape because I am not really interested in it? I know they kill people in prison in Syria sometimes, so why bypass that issue and ask me about rape?

You owe me an answer because you asked and I replied although I have no clue who you are and why you singled me out to ask me this question? I care more now about knowing what is going on in Syria; can you help in that matter please?

March 14th, 2012, 10:43 pm

 

Ghufran said:

هديل الكوكي

This is FYI,it is premature for me to have a position on her and how credible she is.

I read comments accusing her of being a double agent, others see her as a hero and a huge addition to the opposition PR campaign. I am cautious for now for a number of reasons but I do not doubt that torture and random arrests are still routinely practiced in Syrian prisons, do not just watch the video, look her up on the Internet, something does not add up, or it is just me:

March 14th, 2012, 10:46 pm

 

Tara said:

William Scott Scherk

Want to tell you. Your last post was soothing. I read it before I went to sleep the other night and made me feel good. It was like a story you are read before bedtime. It balances out some dark forces. I like to believe that there is good as much as there is evil and the line between them is not murky. Thank you for responding to my request.

March 14th, 2012, 10:53 pm

 

Jerusalem said:

In comment 70. omen said:

first of all, it’s not in israel’s interest to foster support for arab democracies. israel prefers to deal with dictators. they’re still mourning the loss of mubarak.

In comment 73. omen said:
excerpt from the MB piece above:

He is overseeing revisions of the Brotherhood’s internal teaching materials to reflect a more tolerant stance toward Israel as the group’s political arm comes to terms with the Camp David treaty.

——–
No one is mourning, au contraire, THEY managed to impose on MB to change their schooling material to please Mrs. Killary which Nasser & Mubarak couldn’t. No need for mourning, in fact, high ranking official in Israel is supporting the uprising in Syria on you tube.

March 14th, 2012, 11:00 pm

 

Ghufran said:

If wofowitz is advocating arming the opposition,rest assured that this will not be good for Syria,thanks,Wolf,but no thanks:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203986604577257201200177274.html

March 14th, 2012, 11:05 pm

 

Observer said:

So let us assume the emails are genuine, would there be a suit in British courts against invasion of his privacy?

If they are faked and hacked will there be a suit against the paper for character defamation?

British laws allow for the defendant to demand justice if there has been a case of defamation.

Is this a relevant post or not? Well it seems to be coming from a left leaning newspaper that has been a good source of information about abuse of power by many members of all the political spectrum from GWB to David Cameron passing by Bibi and Blair.

I think it is most relevant for behind the story are the following questions
1. Is Fredo in charge?
2. Is he just a prop up?
3. Is he detached from reality?
4. Is he mentally stable?
As for his wife, the question pertains to whether the world that they constructed is one of a vicious cycle of narcissism that goes back and forth just as it does on this forum with Adoring News Network and Just Adoring Dude that we read daily.

Fredo Causcescu want a fondue tonight.
Cheers.

March 14th, 2012, 11:25 pm

 
 

Jerusalem said:

51. Tara
Just FYI

If you watch Syrian State TV and you compare Bashar and Assma looks before the uprising and after, they have indeed both lost a lot of weight. Last August Bashar was extremely thin. Now, he gained a bit. And btw from reading divers Arabic news and reading commentators notes few said that they saw her entering Asrieh for the fallen of the official Syrian Army.
But when it comes to spending no one beats Royal Highness
Jordan’s Queen Orders Solid Gold Shoes as King Pushes Two-State Solution

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/jordans-queen-orders-solid-gold-shoes-as-king-pushes-two-state-solution/2012/01/22/

The Rania Experience Private Island – All Inclusive in Maldives

http://www.agoda.com/asia/maldives/maldives/the_rania_experience_private_island_all_inclusive.html?type=1&site_id=1430286&url=http://www.agoda.com/asia/maldives/maldives/the_rania_experience_private_island_all_inclusive.html&tag=6c06d93a-724b-4f9d-81b2-dd9a0b0c92e5&gclid=CJL53ev9564CFeMbQgody2yCWQ

March 14th, 2012, 11:46 pm

 

jad said:

So after forcing kids not to go to school, step two according to ‘taymiyeh’ is to kidnap the female teachers who doesn’t wear hijab and enslave them. Ya salaaam, what an education loving ‘revolucion’

فتاوى بن تيمية في زمن جيش الثورة ” القاعدة” سابقا: السافرات جواري للمجاهدين

مرح ماشي- عربي برس

يبدو أت عيد المعلّم السوري الذي سيمرّ في الخميس الثالث من آذار كمناسبة حامية الوطيس لهذا العام فهو يتزامن مع ذكرى انطلاقة “الثورة السورية” في 15 آذار، وتبدأ المنافسة في الاستعدادات بين السوريين، إذ أن كلّ منهم يغني على ليلاه، فهيئة التنسيق الوطنية المعارضة تدعو إلى مظاهرة بهدف إحياء سلمية الثورة، والمؤيدون للنظام يدعون إلى مسيرة عالمية تأييداً للسّلطة الحالية والعلَم السوري بنجمتَيه، بينما يحتفل سوريون آخرون بهدوء في عيد “بُناة الأجيال” في بلاد لم يعد فيها قيمة للأجيال.. ولا لبُناتها.
هي مهنة التعليم في سوريا تشابه النحت في الصخر في ظل صعوبة التنقل للوصول إلى المناطق الساخنة.
في عرف عناصر ميليشيا الجيش الحر فإن معلّمات الساحل في المناطق الشرقية من سورية هن جواري لدى المجاهدين، مسيحيات وعلويات وسنّة من العائلات الموالية للنظام، بحسب إحدى فتاوى الترفيه عن “المجاهدين” المستندة إلى تعاليم الشيخ ابن تيمية، والتي تنادي بجواز السبي للنساء “السافرات أكنّ سنّة من السافرات أو العلويات أو النصرانيات” وحذّر مسلحوا الجيش الحر (القاعدة سابقا) العائلات “المضيافة” في المنطقة الشرقية وريف حلب ودرعا من تأجير وإيواء هؤلاء المعلمات تحت طائلة الاقتصاص من تلك العائلات.
{…}
http://arabi-press.com/?page=article&id=27439

March 15th, 2012, 12:03 am

 

zoo said:

Another attempt to salvage the crumbling SNC before the Istanbul ‘Friends of Syria” meeting?

Syria: SNC, FSA join forces
14/03/2012
By Tha’ir Abbas
http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=28857

Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat – As splits within the Syrian National Council [SNC] emerge, a senior source within the Syrian opposition informed Asharq Al-Awsat that the SNC and the Free Syrian Army [FSA] had signed a “comprehensive” agreement uniting the military and political ranks of the Syrian opposition. This agreement was negotiated by Turkey, and aims to “unify the efforts being exerted to overthrow the Syrian regime.” This comes as three prominent Syrian opposition figures, Catherine el-Telli, Haitham el-Maleh and Kamal al-Labwani, announced their resignation from the SNC, citing “disagreements”, although it is unclear at this time whether these resignations were related to the SNC – FSA agreement.

The Syrian opposition source refused to divulge the precise manner in which this agreement was made, but revealed that a “coordination office” had been established between the SNC and FSA, and its mission is to support the FSA politically within the region.

The source also told Asharq Al-Awsat that several countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey, have expressed their readiness to do whatever is needed to arm the FSA. He stressed that this “comprehensive” agreement should remove all reservations about arming the Syrian revolution.

March 15th, 2012, 12:17 am

 

zoo said:

UAE: It was (one more) media lie, Syrians are welcome in the UAE.
He added “the Syrians are our people and nobody can deny our love for them.”

No Syrians expelled from UAE – Dubai police chief
14/03/2012
By Mohamed Nassar
http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=28853
Dubai, Asharq Al-Awsat – Dubai police chief, Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan, denied that the United Arab Emirates [UAE] has deported any Syrian nationals from the country against the backdrop of the Syrian revolution. He comprehensively denied claims that hundreds of Syrian nationals have had their visas revoked and been deported to Syria for demonstrating in solidarity with the Syrian revolution outside of the Syrian embassy in Dubai, stressing that 8 people did have their UAE residency visas revoked but this had nothing to do with the demonstrations.
(…)

March 15th, 2012, 12:22 am

 

zoo said:

Annan’s mission ‘may bring peace’ in Syria
Phil Sands
Mar 15, 2012
http://www.thenational.ae/news/world/middle-east/annans-mission-may-bring-peace-in-syria

DAMASCUS // Mediation efforts by Kofi Annan, the United Nations special envoy to Syria, have failed to halt the spiralling violence, but they may yet help solve the year-long crisis, say some opposition activists.

The former UN secretary general received replies to his peace proposals from the Syrian president, Bashar Al Assad, late on Tuesday.

No details about the proposals or what the reply was have been made public, although Mr Annan is believed to have called for a ceasefire and talks between the regime and opposition.

The Joint Special Envoy [JSE] for Syria, Kofi Annan, has now received a response from the Syrian authorities.

“The JSE has questions and is seeking answers,” said his spokesman in a statement yesterday, stressing that the “crisis cannot be allowed to drag on”.

Media reports suggest the Syrian authorities asked for clarifications about Mr Annan’s plan, a step likely to open a lengthy process of diplomatic to-and-fro.
..
The scale of the task facing the joint United Nations-Arab League envoy was confirmed by an influential member of Syria’s ruling Baath party. Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said the authorities were open to diplomatic efforts but that armed rebel groups would have to unconditionally lay down their weapons in advance of any negotiations.

“There can only be dialogue if the terrorists and foreign fighters are withdrawn, the weapons smuggling stops and the media campaign against Syria is ended,” he said.

“Then we can sit and talk and have a political solution but, if the opposition prefers to fight, then let it. They will lose.”
(..)

March 15th, 2012, 12:26 am

 

Real Syrian said:

Peaceful Wahabists in Idlib

March 15th, 2012, 1:31 am

 

Syrialover said:

#84 OBSERVER

“a left leaning newspaper that has been a good source of information about abuse of power by many members of all the political spectrum ”

Useful information for those who are so hysterical against the Guardian but clearly know nothing about it.

This is the most credible paper in the west that could have exposed these emails. Just as they did the contents of Wikileaks and the behaviour of the Murdoch press journalists. They have been ahead of other media and proved right many, many times.

Those dismissing the emails should understand its importance for those making decisions affecting Syria. This is a useful lifting the lid into the dark machine that is out of control and butally destroying thousands of innocent Syrians and trashing a whole country. And exposing the Assads to public outrage and scorn around the world. They will be a harder act for their supporters in Russia to sell.

And REAL SYRIAN #91

” meaningless cheap media while Syrians are being killed by radicals Wahabists”

Read the emails and see Bashar’s advisers say better to stop the al quaeda claims.

“…and brutal plans to invade Syria”

Many parts of Syria HAVE been invaded and are under occupation by hostile forces, the people now desperate refugees. Let’s focus on what is real here and now.

“…is it academic to publish[these emails]”

Read the academic journals and history books a decade from now and you will see they will still be quoted as an important source of information.

March 15th, 2012, 1:44 am

 

son of Damascus said:

If Annan decides to walk out on the Syrian Mission, who would care?

By Sami Moubayed

The five-point programme agreed upon in Cairo on March 10 between the Arab League and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov indicates that Moscow is re-thinking its position, very slowly, vis-a-vis Syria. High hopes are being pinned on former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan who landed in Damascus on Saturday, mandated by all sides to hammer out a solution for Syria. By no means is it a breakthrough nor is it yet a U-turn. While many in the Arab world hailed it as bringing the Syrian crisis one step closer to conclusion, the Cairo meeting, and Annan’s diplomacy, are nothing more than an illusion that the international community is holding onto.

[…]

http://www.mideastviews.com/print.php?art=568

March 15th, 2012, 1:47 am

 

Juergen said:

I guess we will never see the museum science city the Assads wanted to build in central damacus. I would suggest that Syrians in a postrevolutionary Syria get advise on how they builded the Imelda Marcos shoe museum. That would be an worthwile addition to the damascene culture.

If people arent dying i would find the excuses of some amusing, like he did not write anything about killing or using tanks blablabla. Some better face it that he is a monster as the whole family is one for Syria.( i think the name was good, why did Senior change it?) I think people throughout times always defended the one leading the disaster, i am sick of such excuses. Its time to wake up!

March 15th, 2012, 2:07 am

 

Alan said:

kill the country and go on its funeral !

March 15th, 2012, 3:01 am

 

ann said:

SC is echoing The Guardians cheap propaganda war on Syria!

As if there’s a shortage of real news to cover about Syria.

What next?!

Where does the president of Syria and his family sleep? Do they eat breakfast? What do they eat for breakfast? etc.? etc.? etc.?

In the previous piece. The subject was a RUMOR!

A womanizing marginalized retired general (a civilian for god sake!) is rumored to defect. Defect from what?! From old age? From chasing 18 year old girls? From a life of luxury in Syria?

The US Dollar is fetching 100 Syrian pounds. AAH the humanity!

Mean while the Canadian Dollar is trading higher than the US Dollar, and our trading partners in the Americas are ridiculing the weakness of the US Dollar by calling it the US Peso.

So what?!

March 15th, 2012, 3:04 am

 

annie said:

Asma’s shoes are a secondary issue to me; she is a Syrian Marie Antoinette.

The thing that shocked me most was. “Leader made light of promised reforms”. That absolute contempt for the people is sickening.

But we knew all this all the time. The announced reforms are just delaying tactics.
The sanctions are hurting the lower classes most. The ruling family will never miss a meal or live in the cold.
As to the exchange of messages (in : Hollywood in Homs and Idlib?) I simply think they are planted.

March 15th, 2012, 3:06 am

 

ann said:

Syrian conflict turning into ‘war of attrition’ – 15 March, 2012

http://rt.com/news/syria-idlib-elections-bambery-601/

Bambery also says there will be an intervention and that a covert one is already underway.

“I think there is going to be an intervention,” he said. “We are already seeing this group ‘Friends of Syria’ meeting in Tunisia. There all these military advisors being sent to the Free Syrian Army, arms are coming in, we know that arms have been running across the border from Iraq. Saudi Arabia has been involved in stoking up sectarian tensions itself.”

But he also noted that the West would prefer to arm armed groups outside the country, as it would be easier for them to control them.

“They look at Libya, and there they intervened into a process that was already underway and really having supported those militias, they weren’t able to establish militias, they weren’t able to control them,” Bambery explained. “It’s easier to control them if they’re out with Syria or on the border areas.” He compared the West’s arming strategy to the way the US and its allies ran the Contras during the 1980s civil war in Nicaragua.

[…]

March 15th, 2012, 3:26 am

 

oab said:

Just a thought… Why are they releasing this now? Supposedly the email account stopped being used in early Feb and now after 6 weeks they trot this out?

It couldn’t have taken more than few days to check with the other people on the email list…. Like the daughter of the Emir of Qatar?

The more interesting question is who is the mole who would have known the password for the account? And after these revelations why have we heard about their imprisonment or defection? More likely that this was email being hacked/monitored by some western intelligence agency and they gave the access to the SNC because the data is clearly of no strategic or tactical use.

March 15th, 2012, 3:34 am

 

SYRIAN HAMSTER said:

War of Attrition?
Anyone cares to guess which set did Asma order while her husband was busy spilling the blood of Syrians and while members of their fan club were busy painting them as the “resistance” family and hurting their throats, and our ears as they decry how sanctions affect the lives of average Syrians.

While to their credit, Iranians work very hard to bypass sanctions in order to improve their technology, and to purchase necessities, the Athads are busy bypassing sanctions to buy candlesticks, chandeliers, tables, and fondue sets and to download music from I-Tune. How befitting of the laughing boy king and his thorn of the desert.


Both I-Tune and Amazon also sell books. But that has escaped the low class ignorant worst-family of Syria.

March 15th, 2012, 4:46 am

 

Mina said:

I love this video: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/14/assad-video-arab-league-tanks

Mr Guardian (of the Gulf “princes” harem and of some CEOs interests and their Marie-Antoinettes), could you explain me how a tank takes down a 4-story building? Please have a look at the video and think hard, for once.

Apart from that, a lot of it looks like hoaxes. Can someone explain what “that u told me where will you be,” in this one? http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/14/bashar-al-assad-syria8

As for Asma and her shoes, could the teenagers who show support for Qatar and other Gulf monarchies explain me how they intend in their future, succesful life, to be friends with the daughter of the Emir of Qatar and not have expensive shoes to go at her parties? I am really curious, frankly… Even for an exile in Dubai you need a pretty good wardrobe… But the level of the cyber revolutionaries has been that since day one.

March 15th, 2012, 5:04 am

 

SYRIAN HAMSTER said:

Suggestion

May be athma And her boy-king should order This item next time while browsing amazon for luxuries. Don’t know whether it is available in epub format for his Ipad2, but I can show the fool how to convert it from kindle to epub. Not difficult,… oops, forgot, he can not download software from CNET.

Now since Amazon offers super savers if one orders multiple items, my suggestion is to also order This item. I guess the 21st century edition will start with boy-king at the helm and the current edition may now be updated with more details about daddy athad deeds now that the barrier of fear from this thuggish clan has been demolished to no return.

PS. The combined price of both items is cheaper than a fondue set

March 15th, 2012, 5:13 am

 

Mina said:

The title of this one is misleading, as one first thinks that B. al Asad is the author. Then we read it is an advisor named Khaled.
And more surprisingly even for the advocates of the “butchery conspiracy” (versus the Syrian Falluja), we see that the author genuinely wants the Arab League plan to succeed, but that the hardcore extremists entrenched in some areas declared almost “independent” and certainly “cleaned” from Christians, Alawis etc as seen in Homs and elsewhere, are the ones endangering the AL plan.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/14/bashar-al-assad-syria14

March 15th, 2012, 5:13 am

 

Mina said:

“The reforms he calls jokes”… (#47)
When you look at Egypt, you can see why. You have to deal with mentalities:
– how do you achieve democracy when one of the religious group involved think his version of Islam is superior to the other versions, and to other religions;
– how do you achieve an election when strict Sunni Shafi’i and Sunni Hanbali women would not go out without a male-relative to accompany them, and only with the green light of their husband;
– how do you achieve democracy when some groups (let’s say, mainly the Beduins) would move to the poll station only if some agreement is reached between the leaders on who one should vote for, and usually this will imply some money, part of it will also pass from the men to the women of one tribe;
– how do you achieve media freedom when, just as in Lebanon, no modernity can get you out sectarianism?
– how do you achieve freedom when the rich consider they should have maids who are deprived of any rights simply because they are “foreign”.

March 15th, 2012, 5:32 am

 

SYRIAN HAMSTER said:

Party Attire
@100 asked

As for Asma and her shoes, could the teenagers who show support for Qatar and other Gulf monarchies explain me how they intend in their future, succesful life, to be friends with the daughter of the Emir of Qatar and not have expensive shoes to go at her parties? I am really curious, frankly… Even for an exile in Dubai you need a pretty good wardrobe… But the level of the cyber revolutionaries has been that since day one.

Until you are in front of a mirror, you’l have to settle for the rat’s answer. How about following the example of Athadth’ betht friend and supporter, whom I personally and sincerely consider as one of the cleanest heads of state in the region.

BTW, ignore the first image, it is a likely hoax, but the others, in a formal reception are not.

March 15th, 2012, 5:38 am

 

Juergen said:

Mina

funny you talk about maids, you may want to distract to the Gulf, but you know its a fashion among the haute volee of Damascus to show off their filipino maids… Ever asked how they live under the Assad elites?

March 15th, 2012, 5:42 am

 

Antoine said:

A very important announcement –

Syrian Christians for Democracy
Assad is killing Christians and the Catholic News Service covers up for him
الأسد يقتل المسيحيين وخدمة الأنباء الكاثوليكية تغطي جرائمه

For Immediate Release

Contact information for press members:
George Stifo +1 508 667 6599 George@syrian-christian.org
Ayman Abdelnour +1 514 317 2744 ayman@syrian-christian.org
Washington DC, 03/14/2012

Syrian Christians for Democracy is appalled by the ongoing massacres in the city of Homs where dozens of women and children were violently murdered last week. We present our sincere condolences to the families of the martyrs and we hope that their death will not go in vain.

In this sad occasion, we denounce the Syrian Christian journalists hired by the regime to spin the facts and propagate fear mongering rumors to alienate the Syrian Christians from supporting the revolution and align them behind Assad’s rule.

Recently, we witnessed a growing number of fake accounts and false accusations picturing the opposition forces as perpetuators of crimes against the Christian community in Homs, while the real source of danger on the Christian families was kept in the dark. We regret the hasty work of media outlets to disseminate rumors and reports of incidents in the absence of a balanced effort to substantiate the claims.

We are referring in particular to The Catholic News Service’s latest story published on the 8th of March 2012. The article cites a Vatican source in Jerusalem claiming that Christians in the Hamidiya neighborhood of Homs were stopped from leaving the city by anti-government forces and were forced into the mosque, where they were then used as human shields by rebel forces against the advancing tanks of the government forces.

This is inaccurate because:

1) The Syrian government forces are indiscriminate of religion in their continuous shelling against civilians and are in no way deterred by the use of human shields, a fact all Syrians know only too well.
2) It was in fact the government thugs who attacked several Christian families and forcefully appropriated a large number of their homes and buildings in the Christian neighborhood of “Al Motraniyye”, effectively driving the Christian residents out of that area completely.
3) The regime forces are moving the displaced families from the destroyed “Bab Amr” and “Bab Sbaa” neighborhoods of Homs to the appropriated and abandoned Christian homes in order to create a conflict between Homs residents and escalate the sectarian crimes in the city.
4) The vast majority of the Christians in Homs have lost family members, neighbors and friends in the protests for Freedom and Democracy. They have no sympathy for a regime killing them daily.

Therefore, we caution all foreign press agencies against false sources of information pertaining to Christians in Syria. Such sources often promote fictitious accounts of violence and persecution against Christians for the sole purpose of winning sympathy and financial support from the regime. Such untruthful accounts and opinions are the real threat to Christianity in Syria because of the animosity and division it cultivates between Christians and their fellow Syrian Muslim citizens. This division benefits solely the Assad regime that continues to commit heinous crimes to incite sectarian strife.

We at Syrian Christians for Democracy welcome all inquiries and are able to verify any accounts or claims pertaining to Christians throughout Syria. We are continuously monitoring the hot zones in Syria and we rely on a secure network of activists and priests whose only concern is to safeguard their community. We will gladly cooperate with and supply necessary information to any organization contacting us for further details.

Finally, we call on the Syrian Christian families still in Homs not to leave their homes and resist all attempts to drive them out of the city. Our organization supports their heroic sacrifices and we are ready to provide them with all the means necessary to protect and defend their historical presence in Syria.

FYI Mr. George Steifo is a very prominent Assyrian activist from Qamishli.

March 15th, 2012, 5:44 am

 

Mina said:

Jürgen
I doubt they have filipino maids; usually elite rich, when they are educated, have either a very British or a very French or Swiss one, to have their kids learn a language and learn manners.
I also believe that the maids of the regime figures are best treated that those that live with the upper middle class. Just check Angry Arab of the three last days for an Ethiopian maid beaten in the street by her employer and caught on video, who ended up comiting suicide 2 days ago in the hospital where she had been brought. This is the daily life of maids in Lebanon, Syria, and the Gulf.
My experience of it and the reason I brought the topic is that I was really shocked the first time I heard a Syrian family asking their maid “What is the name of her Master?”, to ask about in what family another girl who was a friend of their Ethiopian maid was working. After that day they fell from my eye…

March 15th, 2012, 6:00 am

 

Juergen said:

Nice proof how this regime deals with critics:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/14/syria-bashar-al-assad3

but i assume every country traits its “traitors” with the utmost consideration right?

March 15th, 2012, 6:02 am

 

Alan said:

US, Russian positions on Syria gradually converge, Department of State says

http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c32/366469.html

WASHINGTON, March 15 (Itar-Tass) — The U.S. administration believes that the American and Russian positions on Syria are gradually converging, thus increasing international pressure on the Bashar al-Assad government.

“They begin to close some of the gaps. So are we there yet? No, we’re not there yet, but we are continuing to work on this. But we have seen an increasing convergence,” State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland said.

She believes that the five-point settlement plan for Syria approved by Russia and the League of Arab States is “an improvement over where we had been previously in some of the Russian positions”.

“You’re now seeing public statements both from Russia and from China that are quite clearly saying that they are not interested in protecting Assad, that they are not interested in anything but something that ends the violence,” Nuland said.

“I think it’s clear that the trip that Foreign Minister Lavrov made, his consultations with the Arab League ministers, his consultations in New York, including with the Secretary, have had an impact on his public message that Russia doesn’t want to be seen as aiding and abetting this violence. I think we continue to have tactical differences about how to bring an end to it, but we’re seeking to narrow those,” she said.

Nuland stressed that the United States “wants to see an end to the violence and we want to see a political discussion begin.”
She is confident that Assad “is going to go down” as a result of growing protests inside the country, economic sanctions imposed by the West and mounting international pressure on the ruling regime in Damascus.

Earlier this week, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed hope that Russia will support the American draft U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said.

[…]

March 15th, 2012, 6:08 am

 

873 said:

#23 Observer

“As for those that compare Bruni and Michelle Obama to Asma the major difference and the most important one is that the first two do not use public funds and they have a legislative and a free press and a justice department and free citizens to bring people to justice. The system is not perfect but the mechanisms for correction and accountability are in place.
Any defense of the indefensible is simply moronic. ”

Even your basic facts are WRONG. The rest of your ‘argument’ sounds like brainwashed propaganda.

Ms Obama’s 50M USD vacation fund is COMPLETELY TAXPAYER money, and her exorbitant staff (which even Hillary Clinton didnt ’employ’) is paid for by TAXES- while US troops have been dying foreign wars for a decade, hundreds of thousands are being kicked out of their homes, unemployment- (real, not doctored stats) is over the top…

“The mechanisms are in place”. Sure, but are they enforced? Read the business pages and ask how many mechanisms have been enforced against the Wall St banksters?

The latest ‘mechanism’ passed is NDAA- which allows the Pres to assassinate American citizens on US soil, no trial, no jury just targeted killing on ‘enemies’.

Your arguments are platitudes and little else. Please join The Guardian.

BTW: 14,000 US troops just deployed to Libya. How’s that Freedom occupation thing workin out for ya?

March 15th, 2012, 6:14 am

 

Juergen said:

another example why we all should have fake names on facebook…

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/14/bashar-al-assad-syria17

March 15th, 2012, 7:20 am

 

Mina said:

The Afghan model in Morocco, or “marry you rapist”:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-17379721

Jürgen,
Fake names or not, FB and Twitter sell all private informations (and it’s legal!), including personal messages, the telephones and names included therein etc.

March 15th, 2012, 7:27 am

 

Syrialover said:

# 101. SYRIAN HAMSTER

Excellent book suggestions, thanks.

It would be fascinating to ask certain comentators here to review them. They’d identify al qaeda/NATO/Qatar/Mossad/Guardian etc as being behind them straight away, without even reading a word!

110. “873”

Hey, you’re wasting this stuff here. You need to be revealing these shocking truths about America in America to Americans. They’ll stay ignorant if you just post it on SC. Be fair and share this information against “brainwashed propaganda” with those who are being misled and tricked in their own country.

March 15th, 2012, 7:30 am

 

873 said:

Syria Lover,
This IS an American site, dunce.

VERY interesting that this Guardian piece allegedly originated with Syrian Ambassador to UN’s daughter (if true). There was a Moon of Alabama commenter questioned about Syria’s US Ambassador being ‘flipped’ several weeks back. IF this story is true, he and his daughter should be fired, recalled and indicted IMMEDIATELY. BIG betrayal, no matter how innocous or inflammatory the content. Explains the Barbara Walters intv which was (predictably) a hit job on Assad. Syria needs more forceful representation there anyway, Jafaari is too weak. Lots of things now make sense.

March 15th, 2012, 7:36 am

 

Syrialover said:

# 107. Mina

Of course they have filipina maids! They are a status symbol. Check with any Syrian. The Philippines government knows of at least 5,000 desperate to flee the trouble but can’t because they are undocumented and their employers are refusing to hand over their passports. They estimate there are around 17,000 workers from the Philippines in that situation in Syria.

http://www.pinoy-ofw.com/news/18905-filipino-maids-syria-wont-home.html

March 15th, 2012, 7:45 am

 

Mina said:

I am sorry but I fail to understand. What is the difference between Syria and let’s say, China and Russia? Just that it is smaller?
We all know how independentist movements get crushed in these places (as in many others). Does it mean the US and German businessmen are going to stop making millions in these countries, while letting all the Western protected economies fall to poverty rates it has not reached since the 19th century?

As long as Syria was torturing for Bush’s CIA and the war on terror, it was all fine, but now it’s not? And could anyone prove that Syria’s neighbours and former Arab League mates are not torturing, for their own or on behalf of Western countries?

March 15th, 2012, 7:52 am

 

omen said:

RE: Hollywood in Homs and Idlib?
By Sharmine Narwani (cite above)

i run across her online. i’ve had an exchange with her.

sharmine tweeted:

Same people boasting about #Hamas abandoning #Syria are now accusing it of working to deflect media attention away from Syria 🙂 #Gaza

objecting to her tone, i wrote to her:

there is nothing to smile about here.

sharmine wrote back:

@omen_99 I beg to differ – the filthy opportunism, lies and media spin in the Mideast today is ripe for humor.

she has a lot of anger and bitterness. for whom and what, i am uncertain, but it makes me question her objectivity.

March 15th, 2012, 7:54 am

 

Syrialover said:

#114. “873”

“Lots of things now make sense.”

Well, they will to the Assad regime now you have warned them about Jafaari and his daughter’s two-faced betrayal.

Personally I’m sorry you’ve tipped them off.

And on your other point, this might be an American-based site, but I worry that not enough Americans are reading it to benefit from your information about the dangers of their home country.

March 15th, 2012, 7:56 am

 

Juergen said:

just found an interesting comment on the comment section of DER SPIEGEL:

“The very banality of the emails shows:
You can be a human butcher and simultaneously lead a normal life. That is more frightening than if he were a madman who writes funny emails.

Because if you think about how we destroy our planet or how dictators come to power, there are still people frequently occurring to be very serious persons.
I consider these people more dangerous because they are able to recruit others for their cause. “…”

In short: A madman shoots maybe 20 people, a man like Assad can bring 1,000 people to shoot 20 people each.”

March 15th, 2012, 7:59 am

 

Hans said:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/gallery/2012/mar/14/bashar-asma-assad-shopping-pictures?intcmp=239#/?picture=387235605&index=0

if this is true!! this is pathetic, because all these items are worthless for ahead of state, the taste of the jordanian king or the GCC pics are way more lavish.
one jet ski is more expensive than all this.
or for that matter or an escort for one of the GCC pigs cost lots more. one of charcoalizy wife Brunni item is more expensive than all the stuff in Assad home.
it is clear that assad has no expensive taste by anymeans.
I am not sure about the fuss.

Anyone knows for sure what is the fate of the french officers in syria.

March 15th, 2012, 8:02 am

 

DAWOUD said:

To me these emails confirm what I, and millions of Syrians, already have known for a very long time: This is a dictatorial, corrupt, deceptive, and delusional regime!

We, the anti-Bashar commenters here are vindicated. Bashar is a lying corrupt dictator! Anybody here is still willing to defend him and his murders?

Can anybody here blame me for writing critically about Iran and Hizballah? Don’t these emails confirm the complicity of the two in Bashar al-Assad’s war crimes and propaganda?

Free Syria, Free Palestine!

March 15th, 2012, 8:06 am

 

DAWOUD said:

Now, Arabs-through the network of the free, Aljazeera-are aware of Bashar al-Assad’s email!
Note: Mr. Moderator, this post is less than half of the full article. Please don’t edit it and don’t ban me!!!!!! From now on, I will be checking other commenters’ articles to see how many paragraphs they copy and paste from the pro-dictator media!

http://aljazeera.net/news/pages/91410b3c-4725-4e88-853f-ff621a9a0e19?GoogleStatID=1
الأسد تلقى نصائح من جهات حليفة لمواجهة الانتفاضة
تسريب رسائل من بريد الأسد الإلكتروني

ناشطون سربوا آلاف الرسائل من بريد الأسد وزوجته أسماء (الفرنسية)
كشفت مجموعة من الرسائل الإلكترونية التي يعتقد بأنها تخص الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد وحصلت عليها صحيفة ذي غارديان البريطانية أنه تلقى خلال الثورة السورية نصائح وتوجيهات من إيران وجهات حليفة عن سبل مواجهة الانتفاضة الشعبية الواسعة التي تطالب برحيله عن السلطة.

وقبل كلمة الأسد -التي ألقاها عبر التلفزيون في ديسمبر/كانون الأول الماضي- تظهر الرسائل أنه تلقى مذكرة تحمل لائحة طويلة من الاقتراحات من مستشاره الإعلامي، الذي أوضح بأنه استشار بدوره “عددا لا بأس به من الشخصيات بالإضافة إلى المستشار السياسي للسفير الإيراني في دمشق”.

”
قام الأسد بتشكيل حلقة من المساعدين الثقاة الذين يرفعون تقاريرهم إليه شخصيا متخطيا بذلك الأجهزة الأمنية وأعضاء طائفته العلوية المتنفذة، الأمر الذي يعتبر تطورا هاما في طريقة عمل النظام السوري
”
وقد تضمنت المذكرة نصيحة للأسد باستخدام لغة “قوية وعنيفة” في خطابه وأن يحرص على إظهار امتنانه من الدعم الذي تبديه “الدول الصديقة”. كما نصحت المذكرة بأن يقوم الأسد بإظهار مدى القوة العسكرية التي تتمتع بها سوريا وأنها قادرة على مواجهة تحد عسكري.

كما كشفت الرسائل التي تم تنزيلها من قبل ناشطين سوريين من حسابات بريد إلكتروني خاصة بالأسد وزوجته السيدة أسماء، أن الأسد تلقى تقارير عن وجود صحفيين أجانب في حي بابا عمرو في حمص، وأصدر توجيهات بناء على ذلك في نوفمبر/تشرين الثاني الماضي تقضي بـ”تشديد القبضة الأمنية” على المدينة وبابا عمرو بالذات.

وتبين الرسائل أن الأسد خلال الانتفاضة السورية، قد قام بتشكيل حلقة من المساعدين الثقاة الذين يرفعون تقاريرهم إليه شخصيا متخطيا بذلك الأجهزة الأمنية وأعضاء طائفته العلوية المتنفذة، الأمر الذي يعتبر تطورا هاما في طريقة عمل النظام السوري، ومؤشرا على شعوره بالخطر الداهم
[…]

March 15th, 2012, 8:14 am

 

Juergen said:

Hans

if it would be true we would have seen the biggest Bashar show of all, its like the Syrian alqaida , good and true for the regime for two days, after that silence…

March 15th, 2012, 8:15 am

 

omen said:

RE: Hollywood in Homs and Idlib?
By Sharmine Narwani (cited above)

dialogue excerpted:

Most damages are caused by the IEDs (some up to 50kgs of explosives) and random firing by militants (using PKT/PKC and DUSHKA/DShk machine guns), with the army returning fire when attacked, but no excessive use of force i.e no artillery barrages as reported by al Jazeera and other channels)

the man sarbine is quoting insisting the assad army is not launching artillery barrages. look at this photo. does this wreckage look like damage was inflicted by IEDs or small arms fires to you?

http://twitpic.com/8w8ttk

somebody ask sharmine narwani if assad has nothing to hide, why is he blocking reporters from entering the country?

March 15th, 2012, 8:28 am

 

Tara said:

Another sleepless night.

Having mastered avoidance behavior all my life, I can not stop my self from wondering what business Tara have, being here?  Inside the lion’s den, among the killers and the cheerers, where the line between good and bad becomes intentionally murky and noises, noises, and more noises are deliberately and carefully created to blur the truth…  I don’t belong..

Not even a single statement of condemnation did I hear in regard to the scandal yesterday from the regime supporters.  Bashar contempt of a nation “taking the reforms lightly”.  Asma  contempt of a nation busying herself with jewelry from that little Paris shop while children in Syria master begging on the street, deserved no reaction …but accusation of a Tabloid transformation.

And naive Tara believed people when they talk to her about humility, forgiveness, generosity as opposed to arrogance, hate, greed, and the “evil” west, the lack of family values, and its consumer mentality…but when all above hit home,  the values are suddenly lost to become rhetoric, a part of a cliche circulated among the faithfuls in defense of the one man.  

I don’t know why I have continued to have some expectations.  It all appear to be only a construct in my mind as all evidence are to the contrary..  Please do not lecture me morality anymore.      

March 15th, 2012, 8:29 am

 

Mina said:

Hans
Amazon does not ship to Syria, so anyone with an address in Lebanon or England usually shops for all his friends. Just as the i-phone downloads are not necessarily for yourself but for your kids or nieces…
After the Gay Girl of Damascus, the Guardian reaches new galaxys every day.

March 15th, 2012, 8:30 am

 

DAWOUD said:

This is from al-Quds al-Arabi (http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=latest/data/2012-03-15-06-15-45.htm). The daughter of the Qatari Emir called Asma al-Assad to offer her and the dictator asylum in Qatar. Why didn’t the dictator agree! Qatar is much better and more pleasant than Iran, where he may end up-unless he chooses to move in with Hasan Nasrallah!!!!!!!!!!!

[…]
وقالت الصحيفة إن رسالة قيل إن ابنة امير قطر أرسلتها إلى أسماء تشير إلى أن الدوحة يمكن أن تكون مكانا للزعيم السوري لطلب اللجوء هو وعائلته.
[…]

March 15th, 2012, 8:30 am

 

DAWOUD said:

When we free Syria, do you think that Asma’s and Bashar’s purchases should be sold in an auction? Is this the best way for the Syrian people to recover their looted fortunes?
Is anybody listening? IS Bashar, the murderous dictator, listening? Or, is he listening to i-Tunes?

Is Apple’s iTunes Store not banned in Syria? Why not? 🙂

March 15th, 2012, 8:42 am

 

ann said:

Syria Puts On Mass Rally in Support of Assad – March 15, 2012

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/16/world/middleeast/syria-mass-damascus-rally-for-assad.html

The government has appeared to gain confidence in recent days, driving rebels from strongholds in the north and sweeping through Dara’a as international efforts to stop the violence appeared to stall and public strife erupted among exile opposition leaders.

The large rally organized in support of the government came a day after the main Syrian exile opposition group suffered a serious fracture as several prominent members resigned, calling the group autocratic, dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood and powerless to help Syrian rebels as government forces, having flushed insurgent strongholds in the north, swept into the rebellious southern city of Dara’a.

The government’s near-complete takeover of the cities of Homs and Idlib fueled frustration with the exile group, the Syrian National Council, said one activist who had resigned, Kamal al-Labwani, a respected dissident released from Syrian prison last year halfway through a 12-year sentence.

The council, he added, was in danger of causing splits in Syrian society by failing to create a single rebel military command under its control, leaving individual militias to seek their own sources of help. He accused Muslim Brotherhood members within the exile opposition of “monopolizing funding and military support.”

The 270-member council has been plagued by internal disagreements. A member of its executive committee, Samir Nachar, played down the latest frictions, saying the members had not submitted formal resignations. One, he said, was simply frustrated at his exclusion from a meeting with the United Nations special envoy, Kofi Annan. Mr. Nachar said Mr. Labwani had attended few meetings.

Mr. Nachar acknowledged the council needed to improve but said disagreements were inevitable, noting that many members had never met before the uprising and had widely varying backgrounds and opinions.

But this time the departing members include some well-known figures with deep credibility among Syrians both inside and outside the country, including Mr. Labwani and Haitham Maleh, an executive committee member and lawyer in his 80s who served many years in prison after defending Syrian dissidents, including Muslim Brotherhood members.

Mr. Maleh could not be reached for comment, but told Al Jazeera that he had resigned because of chaos within the group and doubt over what it could accomplish, adding, “We have not gotten very far in working to arm the rebels.”
[…]

March 15th, 2012, 8:44 am

 

DAWOUD said:

Sister Tara:

Do you think that the dictatorial “king of reform,” Bashar the war criminal, is now downloading songs from the iTunes store while his men are committing war crimes and killing Syrian children?

March 15th, 2012, 8:46 am

 

Hans said:

http://www.syria-news.com/news.php?id=22923

The $ in Syria dropped to 59 Syrian pound, the lowest in months, it took only $10 millions to drop it down, that says a lot, that it is all fear and the CB still has the liquidity to influence the market.
This indicate that people still have lots of confidence in Syrian pounds in spite of all the BS the western media spreading about Syria.
It is obvious the regime will not fall into the 2013, especially we are inching up to both French and American election.
beside the events in Afghanistan and Iraq and other countries will help the Syrian regime to control more on the ground.

March 15th, 2012, 8:51 am

 

omen said:

look at this photo. (scroll down to read the english caption.)

http://twitpic.com/8w8sc7

look at the size of this shell.

this is what sharmine narwani considers “no excessive use of force.”

March 15th, 2012, 8:51 am

 

873 said:

128. DAWOUD said: When we free Syria, do you think that Asma’s and Bashar’s purchases should be sold in an auction? Is this the best way for the Syrian people to recover their looted fortunes?

When the US overthrew Iraq and Libya and Egypt, the people saw none of that cash (Mubarak alone worth 40billion was it?) Dont expect the Syrians will be much different. You are seeking redress from the same colonialists looting the intl economy, that are backing these serial regime changes. Good luck, best wishes.

Back in the Clinton days, werent these types of Guardian revelations called “The Politics of Personal Destruction?” Now they’re called headline news.

March 15th, 2012, 8:53 am

 

Syrialover said:

# 107. Mina

The well to do in Damascus and Aleppo have filipina maids. Ask any Syrian. They are a status symbol. The Philippines government says that 5,000 are desperate to flee Syria but can’t because they are unregistered and their employers are refusing to give them their passports. It is estimated there are around 17,000 filipino workers in Syria trapped because they don’t have the right papers.

http://www.pinoy-ofw.com/news/18905-filipino-maids-syria-wont-home.html

March 15th, 2012, 9:11 am

 

Mina said:

As’ad Abu Khalil thinks the e-mails are hoax
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2012/03/asads-emails-hoax.html

March 15th, 2012, 9:23 am

 

Juergen said:

Dawoud

when i grew up in the GDR we always imagined how our president lives. There was a total secrecy about it. We all thought of fream houses with jacuzzis and large halls. At the end of the regime they led the press enter. Our regime had builded their own small town, every minister had to live there. The houses were small and shabby looking, when my mother saw the chique of the presidents living room she said, well we live nicer than they did. But we discovered funny things after the collapse, fe. the large porn movie collection of the late President suggested not a very happy relationship with his wife.

If one stands on Mt Quassioun you can spot the home of the Assads, it far from being what some of the press made it into( the eaglenest on top of Damascus,the evil fortress ect), i think it looks very modest and more a mixture of essential socialist buildings and a familyhome. I know someone who was inside during the times of Hafez and he told me its far from being a palace, the only glamourous thing he spotted was a crystal table. I think nearby Latakia youll find the palaces, Slunfeh palace looks more like a presidential palace to me.

March 15th, 2012, 9:28 am

 
 

DAWOUD said:

134. JUERGEN

I can’t agree with you more!

132. 873
No, WE will free Syria. The devil is more merciful than Bashar and his corrupt/murderous regime!

My wife just asked me to post the following story from Alarabiya show you that Syrian Christians also suffer on the hand of Bashar’s murderous regim:
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/03/14/200601.html

مسيحية تروي معاناتها في سجن الأسد
كل السوريات في معتقلات النظام تعرضن للاغتصاب
العربية.نت
قدمت المسيحية السورية هديل الكوكي شهادتها أمام مجلس حقوق الإنسان في جنيف عن فترة اعتقالها في سجن حلب.

وفندت ادعاءات النظام السوري عن مواجهاته لعصابات من السلفيين والقاعدة، مؤكدة أن جميع السوريين- بمن فيهم المسيحيون والعلويون- يتعرضون لممارسات النظام البشعة.

وفي لقاء خاص مع مراسل “العربية” نور الدين الفريضي، تحدثت الشابة المسيحية التي تنتمي إلى منطقة الحسكة السورية، عن كافة أعمال التعذيب والاغتصاب التي تتعرض لها النساء في السجون السورية.

ترتبك قليلاً هديل، تلك الشابة الجامعية عند سؤالها عن تعرضها لأي أعمال مخلة بحرمتها كامرأة، فتؤكد أن جميع النساء اللواتي اعتقلن تعرضن للاغتصاب، إلا أن أحداً لم يعلن ذلك على الملأ. وتضيف حرفياً “لا توجد حتى الآن بنت خرجت من سوريا، وقالت إنها تعرضت للاغتصاب، لكن جميعهن تعرضن لذلك”.
تقنيات التعذيب
أ
[…]

March 15th, 2012, 10:39 am

 

Alan said:

Pro-Assad rally in Damascus decries ‘one-year conspiracy’ (VIDEO)
http://rt.com/news/syria-pro-assad-rally-damascus-643/

March 15th, 2012, 10:49 am

 

Shami said:

In the past ,we saw that a number of christians who mostly live in the district next to Sahet saadallah al jabri taking part in the masquarade,today few dared to show support :it’s mostly shabeeha-security -mukhabarat forces- and more astonishing , school pupils and civil servants seem resisting the compulsory call up.

March 15th, 2012, 11:04 am

 

jad said:

Israel white Santa with bigger hat along a Pakistani weird sheikh and some lovely group supporting the Syrian mighty ‘revolution’ and listening to a Syrian ‘activists’ speech…so cute!

وقفة للعدو الصهيوني لدعم الثورة السورية من تل ابيب
http://youtu.be/QQDi_ClLcss

“وقفة للعدو الصهيوني لدعم الثورة السورية من تل ابيب

الى كل المستعربين والاغبياء… الى كل من يدعي الحرية ..حرية التآمر والخيانة على الوطن ..الى كل من حاول تشويه صورة الوطن ..الى كل حاول تكذيبنا …بأن العدو الاسرائيلي يدعم سورية قيادة …بالفيديو شاهد الحقيقة ..تظاهر عدد من الصهاينة في تل ابيب اما السفارة الروسية لانقاذ الشعب السوري “على اساس كتير قلبن مع الشعب السوري “وهناك اتصالات “

March 15th, 2012, 11:05 am

 

873 said:

[ Edited]

117,

Why dont you come up with some real arguments in lieu of insults? Screech away as you want, but the quality of your debate has been nil, with zero real substance.

If your so hot for the opposition? Take up arms and fight in it, but you dont have the guts. Or take your insults to a Syrian, not American, site. They’re wasted here.

March 15th, 2012, 11:05 am

 

873 said:

[ 873, please try to avoid personal attacks on other commentators.]

So my posts have been censored again? Due to a complaint by Syria Lover this time? These people want free speech and operate with the totalitarian attitudes of the regime they’re kicking out.

I hope they get the Banana Republic II that they wish for!

March 15th, 2012, 11:07 am

 

Observer said:

873
Wow, now Athma has descended in her crass shopping spree to the level of Michelle and Karla. That must be a real hard comparison to make the wonderful first lady compare to those evil money grabbing witches of the White House and the Elysees.

Tara
Do not despair, as a matter of fact the posts here are truly a great window to the mind of the regime and its supporters: we are in charge and there is nothing wrong with that or with Syria and no one else can be in charge and we run the place as we please. Those that do not agree can be killed tortured exiled imprisoned degraded humiliated confiscated denied.

Remember about how he said reforms in one hand and iron fist in the other; or reality on the ground will triumph over the satellite falsehood.

I actually enjoy the readings, the attempts at distraction, the posts about how terrible Egypt or Lybia or Tunis are and how bad the fundamentalists are while they point to the shard in my eye they forget the beams in their nostrils.

Cheer up the rats and germs are in multiplying.

Fredo Caucescu will join the dustbin of history

March 15th, 2012, 11:15 am

 

Mina said:

A perfect world, full transparency of international institutions:

http://www.innercitypress.com/un1kfIIban031512.html
UNITED NATIONS, March 15 — During the killing of tens of thousands of civilians by the Sri Lankan government in 2009, the UN withheld its own count of casualties, withdrew its international staff and even played a role in luring to surrender people who were then summarily executed. The UN Secretariat never called for a ceasefire, and the UN Security Council never had a formal meeting on the mass killings. Now one of the military leaders of the campaign, Brigadier General Shavendra Silva, has been made a part of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s Senior Advisory Group on Peacekeeping Operations, and Ban has had nothing to say beyond “it’s up to member states.” Silva appears in UK Channel 4’s “Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields: War Crimes Unpunished,” which premiered last night on television in the UK, and re-appeared overnight on YouTube. (…)

http://www.innercitypress.com/syria8kofi031412.html
Annan’s team for the Syria trip

http://www.innercitypress.com/yemen1rights031412.html
Yemen: no comment “Finally at 5:48 pm she addressed the “amnesty law,” calling it difficult but “we opted for the immunity versus the transitional justice. We gave immunity at the same time that we had to go for a frank dialogue between the parties concerned… to keep in the national memory of our nation.” (…) “As for extrajudiary killings,” Hooriah Mashour continued,, “we do not have enough information on this issue. We tackled with the USA regarding the unmanned vehicles, there were certain manuevers in the Arab Sea and the Gulf. However there was not enough transparency. How come civilians who had nothing to do with terrorism… like in Majala… this is bothering us, especially that the victims are civilians.”

Question: is it Haytham Manna here on the picture on the left?
http://www.innercitypress.com/un2ngoalgeria012509.html

March 15th, 2012, 11:22 am

 

Majed97 said:

I’ve been having hard time distinguishing SC from aljazeera lately. Whoever is in charge of SC nowadays seems to be mostly interest in stories that undermine the regime credibility, including this silly (likely fabricated) story about the Asaad family. Is it really that hard to find meaningful stories about events in Syria? Luckily, many posters, on both sides, seem very resourceful in finding such stories…

Hypothetically speaking, if someone relies solely on SC for his/her information on events in Syria, what conclusion would he/she come up with after reading some of the recent stories on SC? Here are samples of recent headlines:

“Exclusive: Secret Assad Emails Lift Lid on Life of Leader’s Inner Circle,” in Guardian

Defection Rumors Rife; Annan Diplomacy Founders

Syrian Pound at 90 per Dollar as Government Intervenes

Sunni Deputy Minister Defects; Panetta Pushes back against US Involvement

“Syria’s Currency Plunges, Raising Fears of Economic Chaos and Poverty,” by Joshua Landis

Is Aleppo Slipping out of Government Control?

March 15th, 2012, 11:23 am

 

jad said:

Obama, Cameron offer united front on Afghanistan, Syria
{…}
“On Syria, the two leaders pointed out that the situation is more complicated than the one in Libya, in which NATO air power helped subdue government forces fighting an uprising that eventually toppled longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi.

Asked if planning was under way for possible implementation of a no-fly zone, as occurred in Libya, Cameron said the focus for now was on “trying to achieve transition, not trying to foment revolution.”

“We think that the fastest way to end the killing, which is what we all want to see, is for (Syrian President Bashar al-Assad) to go,” Cameron said. “So the way we should try to help bring that about is through diplomatic pressure, sanctions pressure, political pressure, the pressure that (U.N.-Arab League envoy) Kofi Annan can bring to bear. That is where our focus is.”

He and Obama both acknowledged other options were under study as part of general contingency planning but indicated no imminent move toward military action.

“Our military plans for everything. That’s part of what they do,” Obama said, adding that a concern is not to make the situation in Syria worse through unintended consequences.

“When we see what’s happening on television, you know, our natural instinct is to act,” Obama said. “One of the things that I think both of us have learned in every one of these crises, including in Libya, is that it’s very important for us to make sure that we have thought through all of our actions before we take those steps.”

Ultimately, he said, the goal is a “more peaceful transition” in Syria rather than civil war, adding that those most affected by such decisions “are the people in Syria itself.”
{…}
http://articles.cnn.com/2012-03-14/us/us_uk-cameron-visit_1_afghan-forces-security-forces-nato-forces?_s=PM:US

March 15th, 2012, 11:23 am

 

irritated said:

Annie #97

“The sanctions are hurting the lower classes most.”

That was the intent of the sanctions according to that stupid western logic: Starve the people and they will rise against their governemnt.

Actually in the Middle east it works in the opposite direction. The more there are sanctions, the more the people rally around their strong leader. As the only leader in Syria is Bashar Al Assad( who else?), they are gradually rallying around him and cursing the opposition that drove them to become refugees with less dignity and food than they had before.

The next election will show the reality on the ground that most western media, in a effort to face the failure of their expectations, are desperately trying to hide by reporting hollywoodian heroism, tabloid or horror stories.

March 15th, 2012, 11:25 am

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

The mother of the next president of Syria Assad III celebrates the first anniversary of the Great Repression with some shopping:

Parisian jewelry: “1 turquoise with yellow gold diamonds and a small pave on side” as well as a cornaline, “full black onyx” and “amethyst with white gold diamonds” of similar design. “I am absolutely clueless when it comes to fine jewellery!” Asma added in a later email. Aw, “clueless” — how cute.

£2,650 ming vase: But no big deal, because it was on sale from Harrods!

Crystal-encrusted Louboutins: Which Asma tried to share with her friends, but the jealous bitches weren’t even grateful. “I don’t think they’re going 2 b useful any time soon unfortunately.” one friend wrote after seeing a photo of £3,795 shoes that “were not made for the general public.” She did say that Asma was “always thinking of us,” though.

£10,000 worth of candlesticks, tables and chandeliers: to be shipped from a Paris designer through a state company in Dubai. Girl’s gotta have her fancy French furniture!

Art: She emailed a London art dealer asking about a number of works costing between £5,000 and £35,000 each.

Handcrafted bedside tables from Chelsea: But, much to her dismay, they had “different finishes and they have different colour draws!?”. The horror!

BulletBlocker armored clothing: Near the end of 2011, Asma got a little more practical, and sent her husband options for armored vests.

Harry Potter Deathly Hallows Part 2: Can you blame her? She was probably super bored, cooped up in the presidential palace because it was too dangerous to go outside.

Chocolate fondue sets: Mmmm.

March 15th, 2012, 11:31 am

 

irritated said:

#132 Hans

“The $ in Syria dropped to 59 Syrian pound, the lowest in months, it took only $10 millions to drop it down, that says a lot, that it is all fear and the CB still has the liquidity to influence the market.”

That’s an amazing achievement by the Central bank. Obviously there are very smart guys there.
It is also due to the turn of the situation after the successive falls of armed men strongholds and the condoning attitude of Annan on these operations, showing that the UN is in agreement with the Syrian government that armed rebellions it outlawed and should be dealt with strength.

March 15th, 2012, 11:41 am

 

873 said:

[ Link added]

145: “I actually enjoy the readings, the attempts at distraction, the posts about how terrible Egypt or Lybia or Tunis are and how bad the fundamentalists are while they point to the shard in my eye they forget the beams in their nostrils. ”

Glad you feel that way, because Syria’s regime change after-effects will be the same as Tunis, Libya, Egypt, Iraq and Afghanistan, sponsored by the same western ‘democratizers’ for the same reasons in the same way. Banana Republic II is on its way.

Sad.

More peacenik action:

Syrian Free Army launch rocket attack on plane

Amateur video posted by the Syrian Free Army (SFA) purportedly shows the rebels firing a rocket at a Syrian government plane at Idlib military airport.

By Alasatir Good, Journalist telegraph 14 Mar 2012

March 15th, 2012, 11:43 am

 

jad said:

The demonstrations “For Syria” today look bigger than what I though, and it did cover many cities:

افتتاح المسيرة العالمية من أجل سورية ج1 15 آذار 2012
http://youtu.be/XPVoxmS5WTc

http://youtu.be/7F7zwuksONI

March 15th, 2012, 11:47 am

 

Mina said:

French Le Monde journalists see drones in the sky of Homs (or rather, they know someone who has heard the characteristic sound of a drone when he was there..) and mention videos purporting that claim but… are unable to provide a link to the video (but they know someone who has seen the video, that is, probably, etc.)
http://www.lemonde.fr/proche-orient/article/2012/03/15/l-armee-syrienne-utilise-des-drones-contre-les-insurges_1669628_3218.html

March 15th, 2012, 11:48 am

 

omen said:

79. mjabali said:

are you still here? the previous post before mine you raised the issue of whether assad was an infidel or not.

March 15th, 2012, 11:49 am

 

irritated said:

#125 Omen

“why is he blocking reporters from entering the country?”

Because they may be killed and the Syrian government would be blamed, remember Gilles Jacquier.
Even for the illegally entered journalist’s death, the Syrian government is blamed.

It would be blamed anyway so what’s the point of allowing reporters who want to be ‘free’ to report and refuse to be accompanied then their governemnt blames Syria for not to protecting them.

By the the way the Ministry of Interior said they gave 365 accreditations to journalists in 2011.

March 15th, 2012, 11:50 am

 

Son of Damascus said:

Irritated,

“showing that the UN is in agreement with the Syrian government that armed rebellions it outlawed and should be dealt with strength.”

Care to provide us with a link on that statement.

March 15th, 2012, 12:00 pm

 

Mina said:

Real news are in Asia (but the Guardian likes to pamper its readers)
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/NC16Ak01.html
Obama hangs tough on Syria
By M K Bhadrakumar

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/israel-iran-jordan-and-turkey-join-forces-for-multimillion-dollar-science-project-1.418731
“In an extraordinary act of regional cooperation, Israel, Iran, Jordan and Turkey are to jointly provide funds for a particle accelerator as part of their commitment to a UNESCO-sponsored scientific project, it was announced on Wednesday. Each of the four countries has pledged $5 million toward the SESAME facility, which is being built near Amman.”

How many Arab children could you feed?

March 15th, 2012, 12:07 pm

 

Mawal95 said:

Here’s some aerial footage of today’s pro-regime rally in Damascus accompanied by the popular song “Souria bikhair” = “Syria is fine”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=yoQLxiKBX14#t=284s .

The following three videos have up-close footage of women at today’s pro-regime rally in Damascus. These women are the modern and educated Syrians:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=uQRGZMsv91Y#t=24s

By contrast, the following is some footage of women at an anti-regime rally also today 15 Mar in Daraa province, in the town of Al-Hirak. These anti-regime women are segregated from the men, are barely literate, and may be said to be a century behind the times in a sense living in the 1910s not the 2010s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzydLVMhZNk .

Similarly the following is footage showing that women are segregated from men at an anti-regime rally a month ago in Hama province in the town of Al-Halfaya: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzydLVMhZNk

March 15th, 2012, 12:42 pm

 

omen said:

alan @ 6:08

look at this:

President Barack Obama’s administration will not support any human rights or democracy legislation in exchange for Congress repealing the 1974 Jackson-Vanik law, which is preventing Russia from getting top trade status with the United States, the U.S. envoy to Moscow said today.

do you think obama agreed to repeal the law in exchange for russia cooperating with the US on syria?

March 15th, 2012, 12:54 pm

 

irritated said:

#157 SOD

The absence of a specific and strong statement by Kofi Annan on what was going on in Edlib when he was on Syria is significative.

March 15th, 2012, 12:55 pm

 

Henry said:

Does anyone else find it interesting that Assad and his regime cronies write in English to one another? It appears that they are better able to write in English than in Arabic. If so, it further shows that the regime does not reflect the make-up of Syria society, as Syrians generally are more comfortable with their native tongue, which is Arabic for the majority of the population.

How ironic that the leadership of a Baathist regime uses English to communicate with one another.

March 15th, 2012, 12:57 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Mawal95,

“These women are the modern and educated Syrians”

What makes them modern and educated, yelling Bashar ou Bass or that they keep saying Souria bi Kheir?

March 15th, 2012, 12:59 pm

 

omen said:

irritated @ 11:50

heh, that’s a good one.

March 15th, 2012, 1:00 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Irritated,

How about you wait and hear what Annan has to say at the UN, or is this another brilliant prediction by none other than Irritated?

March 15th, 2012, 1:01 pm

 

Mina said:

Henry #162

Do you really believe that, as would the Guardian wants people to think?

It simply means that this Lebanese email is used for non important topics, and that important topics are not dealt with in emails (it is a piece of cake to hack the whole Syrian network, for any of their neighbour).

Do you think otherwise that he has nothing serious to discuss with his “advisers” (actually for those mentioned here, rather family friends) and will never mention the US, the UK, France and Turkey?? The Guardian has probably expurgated a lot of emails with the help of the MI6 before being allowed to produce them… that is, if they are genuine.

March 15th, 2012, 1:08 pm

 

zoo said:

Syria’s rebels will have to deal with Assad

By Julien Barnes-Dacey ( Financial Times)
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/92c7187e-6d00-11e1-a7c7-00144feab49a.html#axzz1pCqXiqJ7
No one wants to deal with dictators. But one year after the Syrian uprising began, the harsh truth is that Bashar al-Assad maintains the upper hand and the opposition – with its international backers – may have little choice but to cut a deal with him if they want to ease the Syrian people’s suffering.
(..)

Failed opposition
March 15, 2012 01:34 AM
The Daily Star

The desertions of the Syrian opposition by several members this week are the best news for President Bashar Assad and his regime since this uprising started.

The regime’s perseverance is in fact proving much more solid than the diffuse elements of the opposition, who are each singing a different tune.

They lack harmony, political maturity and have proved they are not fully attuned to the events or the needs of those on the ground.

There is no united front coming from the Syrian opposition. They have conflicting ideas about what kind of a nation Syria should be, about whether there should be a political or a military solution to the current crisis, or whether they approve or disapprove of outside military intervention.

Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Editorial/2012/Mar-15/166714-failed-opposition.ashx#ixzz1pCqtqPSl
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)

March 15th, 2012, 1:10 pm

 

omen said:

gaddafi was able to fill the square too, right before tripoli fell.

mawal, your criterion in deciding who to support is dependent upon which side has the hottest babes?

March 15th, 2012, 1:10 pm

 

Tara said:

Sandro

Asma, Candlestick, crystal-encrusted Loboutini shoes , chocolate fondue, under a Parisian chandelier, and….. Bashar. My wild imagination..Yuk!

All with the background of the light taken away from those innocent little eyes of cleansed small children.
——
Loved the sense of humor.

March 15th, 2012, 1:11 pm

 

ann said:

Millions of Syrians Stress Support to Reform Program, Adherence to Syrian Leadership – Mar 15, 2012

http://www.sana.sy/eng/21/2012/03/15/406315.htm
.
.
.
162. Henry

Here’s the Arabic version:

http://www.sana.sy/ara/2/2012/03/15/406290.htm

March 15th, 2012, 1:14 pm

 

omen said:

mawal @ 12:42

nir rosen reported there are conservative muslims who support assad.

there are photos of women in full hijab coming out to support assad.

(was it somebody here who pointed this out?)

March 15th, 2012, 1:16 pm

 

873 said:

Guardian standing by the story. Seems the most important thing is – was the UN Ambassador for Syria’s daughter and friend involved in the leaks? If so, what else are they leaking? That is what I would worry about if I was Assad. If so- they all need to go. Yikes, nasty.

March 15th, 2012, 1:21 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

873,

Is it more important to know who the leak is, rather than the contents of the leak?

March 15th, 2012, 1:26 pm

 

irritated said:

#164 SOD

Contrary to you and many Bashar opponents on SC, I make no predictions as the situation evolves constantly.

Like most people, except some on SC, I do not know how it will all end but I observe what is going on right now.

And what I see now is the crumbling SNC and the desperate efforts by Turkey, Qatar and KSA to rescue it by promising more money and weapons, the take over of the important strongholds of the armed militias, the massive demonstrations of support to the army, the impotence of the international community in denying the legitimacy of the Syrians regime. The UN seems to concentrate on the humanitarian side of the crisis and are waiting to see what Annan will be able to do.

While the US and the UK are determined to remove Bashar Al Assad, they just don’t know how and when.

So the near future is unknown.

March 15th, 2012, 1:28 pm

 

Alan said:

160. OMEN said:

alan @ 6:08 Just 1 hour ! i am busy !

March 15th, 2012, 1:29 pm

 

Alan said:

Calls for Syria Regime Change Fuel Conflict – Moscow
http://theuglytruth.wordpress.com/2012/03/15/calls-for-syria-regime-change-fuel-conflict-moscow/

Russia on Monday lashed out at the demands for regime change in Syria, support for the opposition, and calls for outside intervention, which only intensify the conflict, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at the UN on Monday.

“The ill-considered demands for regime change, unilateral sanctions designed to cause economic difficulties and social tension in the country, pushing the opposition toward confrontation with the government… and even calls for military intervention – all of these are risky recipes that can only lead to the escalation of the conflict,” he said.

He also warned against any attempts to manipulate the UN Security Council in the context of the “Arab Spring.”

“No goals – whatever they are – may be achieved by misleading the world community, manipulating the decisions of the UN Security Council,” he said.

That applies to NATO, he continued, which undertook to ensure a no-fly regime over Libya “but in fact resorted to massive airstrikes.”

Russia is ready to endorse a UN resolution on Syria only on the basis of the five principles agreed with the Arab League, he said.

[…]

March 15th, 2012, 1:34 pm

 

Mawal95 said:

As quoted on this board yesterday, a college professor based at Kings College London says: “The Assad regime is the State. If it falls the State falls.” The way I’ve said it before is the Assad government represents and acts on behalf of the society’s Establishment, a thing which is bigger than the State. If the regime were to collapse, the Establishment would largely (though not totally) collapse with it, and would need many many years to be rebuilt. The Establishment knows this.

The Assad government is the Establishment’s leadership, and there is no prospect of emergence of an alternative leadership for the Establishment. The Establishment is firmly unified around this leadership in opposition to uprising.

On 6 mar 2012 and again on 13 Mar 2012 UK prime minister David Cameron said: “The shortest way of ending the violence is a transition where Assad goes, rather than a revolution from the bottom. Transition at the top rather than revolution at the bottom.” …and… “Those who are giving succour to President Assad, who think that somehow clinging to him ensures stability in Syria, are absolutely wrong. They may run out of time, when actually the revolution from the bottom may help to unseat him rather than transition at the top.” http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/breaking-news/2012/03/06/pm-no-putin-shift-on-syrian-regime-55578-30473841/ .

Cameron is absolutely wrong if he thinks the Establishment is going to abandon its leadership (and equally wrong if he thinks an anti-Establishment uprising may succeed). A “transition at the top” is not in the cards in Syria, because the broad social Establishment will stay unified around its one and only leadership as long as the uprising is not thoroughly over.

March 15th, 2012, 1:35 pm

 

Observer said:

I read the e mails and I think that there several posted on Alarabia that speak volumes about the state of mind of the ruling class when it comes to dissent. They are talking about the revolution in terms where there is no room for any consideration or dialogue or concern for their demands. The only thread is that they need to be crushed and countered and media bashed and the shopping spree and the downloads are an added icing on the cake of the indifference and crassiness of the clan.

The e mails of the father in law are also an eye opener on the role of power corrupting the soul as he is advising the regime on ways to survive and to counter the sanctions.

It boggles the mind to think that the veneer is so incredibly thin and beneath it lurks a barbaric monster of ruthless cruelty and extreme egotism.

I cannot fathom though how the supporters living in the West can continue to stomach such medieval garbage.

March 15th, 2012, 1:37 pm

 

873 said:

172. Son of Damascus said:
873,
Is it more important to know who the leak is, rather than the contents of the leak?

Both. But when the content is as lightweight as these most would think ‘who cares’? But the act of president’s own email leaked by high level assistants/Envoy is a major national security breach for Syria- any govt would consider it a betrayal, esp while the nation under attack. Of course all contingent on if true or not.

March 15th, 2012, 1:38 pm

 

omen said:

just remembered a past blog posting from the angry arab. back when nato intervened in libya, he faulted the US lack of attention to syria where protesters had suffered more deaths than libya.

he has a damn if you do/damn if you don’t standard.

March 15th, 2012, 1:40 pm

 

873 said:

Enough of National Enquirer.
Spain on the ropes and Greece already requesting a new bailout, beyond the most recent bailout. Who will pay for all these wars??

This is very interesting, last time the tally was out it was 191 resignations:
http://americankabuki.blogspot.com/p/131-resignations-from-world-banks.html

March 15th, 2012, 1:45 pm

 

Alan said:

160. OMEN
No I so don’t think so ! Syria isn’t a subject defining character of bilaterial relations between the USA and Russia!

March 15th, 2012, 1:47 pm

 

ann said:

TERRORISTS Become journalists 8)

Missing Turkish journalists under custody of Syrian intelligence: report – 2012-03-15

The journalists, Adem Ozkose and Hamit Coskun, with the “Gercek Hayat” news magazine was handed over to Syrian intelligence officials on Thursday by government supporters near Syria’s northwestern city of Idlib, where the two were reportedly arrived six days ago to cover the Syrian crisis, Anatolia quoted sources as saying.

The Syrian intelligence teams entered al-Fua village of Idlib and escorted the Turkish journalists out of the village by tanks, the sources said, adding that Hamit Coskun, a cameraman, was wounded and both journalists might have been tortured.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/15/c_122840039.htm

[…]

March 15th, 2012, 1:48 pm

 

Mawal95 said:

The following, up until time 1:42, is footage from today’s pro-regime rally in Hama city as broadcast by Syrian State TV. It doesn’t let you see the full extent of the crowd. But it’s reasonable to suppose that if the crowd size were substantially bigger than what’s seen, then Syrian State TV would’ve opted to let you see it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obVJeLIj6-Q&feature=player_detailpage#t=24s

Turnout at today’s pro-regime rally in Daraa City was rather meager. It was considerably smaller than the turnout in Hasaka city, a city with about the same population size. Also smaller than in Suweida city. You can find snippets of the footage from Daraa in the same video I just linked to for Hama.

March 15th, 2012, 1:59 pm

 

omen said:

jerusalem @ 11:pm

in fact, high ranking official in Israel is supporting the uprising in Syria on you tube.

obama had a lot of pretty words, too, on the campaign trail. it’s not words that count but action.

March 15th, 2012, 2:11 pm

 

Mina said:

“There is a parliament but only the ruling military council has power”… expect more with the same models.
http://rt.com/news/egypt-israel-enemy-gaza-485/
“The vote is seen as largely symbolic as only the ruling Military Council, the country’s current government, can make such decisions.”
They can play democracy, like others play UN in university classes.

March 15th, 2012, 2:12 pm

 

Mawal95 said:

Better quality video of young educated women at the rally in Damascus today expressing their support for Assad. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=_eKHBaGVFfs#t=14s

More young educated women interviewed at today’s pro-regime rally in Damascus: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=3xBfHmmyI_E#t=103s

More young educated women in the crowd at today’s pro-regime rally in Damascus. I already linked to these at #159:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=uQRGZMsv91Y#t=24s

March 15th, 2012, 2:14 pm

 

omen said:

alan @ 1:47

No I so don’t think so ! Syria isn’t a subject defining character of bilaterial relations between the USA and Russia!

but alan, it’s starting to get complicated:

A bipartisan group of senators is calling on the Pentagon to stop doing business with a Russian arms exporter that is providing weapons to Syria.

In a letter to Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Monday, the 17 Republicans and Democrats cited reports that the company, Rosoboronexport, has shipped weapons to Syria and recently signed a deal for 36 combat jets with President Bashar Assad’s government.

Separately, the Defense Department is buying 21 helicopters for the Afghan military from Rosoboronexport. The lawmakers said this no-bid contract is worth $375 million.

The senators complained that U.S. tax dollars should not be “indirectly subsidizing the mass murder of Syrian civilians.”

March 15th, 2012, 2:22 pm

 

omen said:

why a fondue set?

March 15th, 2012, 2:30 pm

 

Antoine said:

MAWAL, those women may or may not be educated, even if they are that doesn’t make them better than the average Syrian woman, the average Syrian woman is moderately educated. Just because those women dress fashionably doesn;t mean a dman thing, most Iraqi or Egyptian women also dress fashionably,that doesn’t mean they have any voice how the country is run.

March 15th, 2012, 2:35 pm

 

omen said:

mawal95:

These women are the modern and educated Syrians:
[…]
By contrast, the following is some footage of women at an anti-regime rally also today 15 Mar in Daraa province, in the town of Al-Hirak. These anti-regime women are segregated from the men, are barely literate, and may be said to be a century behind the times in a sense living in the 1910s not the 2010s

mawal, this attempt at image rehab, trying to paint assad in a positive light (smart, modern, sophisticated) while painting the opposition as illiterate and backwards — are belied by the amnesty international report that came out detailing 31 brutal, medieval techniques of torture the regime practices. including rape.

there is nothing smart, modern or sophisticated about torture!

March 15th, 2012, 2:47 pm

 

zoo said:

[Link added: http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE82E09320120315 ]

“Door of dialogue” with Syria still open: Annan aide
By Stephanie Nebehay | Reuters – 1 hr 11 mins ago

GENEVA (Reuters) – Kofi Annan, the joint U.N.-Arab League special envoy for Syria, remains in close contact with senior Syrian authorities, Russia and other powers over his proposals to end the fighting, his spokesman Ahmad Fawzi said on Thursday.

Annan spoke by telephone with Syrian foreign minister Walid al-Moualem, and with officials from states “with influence”, said Fawzi, declining to give details.

“The door of dialogue is still open. We are still engaged with Syrian authorities over Mr. Annan’s proposals,” Fawzi said in Geneva. “He’s been in telephone contact with the Syrian foreign minister during the course of the day … as well as with international actors, member states with influence.”

The former U.N. secretary-general held talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus last weekend on defusing the year-old revolt against his rule. Annan said on Wednesday he had received the president’s reply but was seeking answers to outstanding questions.

Annan’s plan outlined steps that urgently needed to be taken, including a halt to fighting, humanitarian access to civilians trapped by fighting and the start of a political dialogue with the Syrian opposition.

Syria said on Wednesday it had given a “positive” response to Annan’s approach. A Middle Eastern diplomat characterized the reply from Damascus as “not a ‘No'”. But a senior Western diplomat in the region said Damascus spurned Annan’s ideas.

Russia’s foreign ministry said Annan had called Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, whose country is one of the few to retain close relations with Damascus and possible leverage with Assad, to discuss his mediation.

Annan “informed (Lavrov) about the work he has done with all sides to work out universally acceptable modalities of a political settlement of the situation in Syria”, the Russian ministry said in a statement.

Lavrov reiterated Russian support for Annan’s mission and said Moscow will “continue to lend him active assistance”.

Annan, whose office is based in Geneva, will brief the United Nations Security Council by video conference from the Swiss city on Friday.
(…)

March 15th, 2012, 2:49 pm

 

Mawal95 said:

Here’s video of the pro-regime rally today in Daraa city, showing what I say is a pretty meagre crowd size: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=10qpwJPNoCE#t=523s . Another segment of the same video has the pro-regime rally in Latakia city and shows the crowd size in Latakia city was big and large today.

The following is an anti-regime rally today in the town of Al-Hirak (population: 20,000) in Daraa province, in which the thing to be noticed is the segregation of the sexes. I mentioned this video earlier but I gave the wrong Youtube link earlier. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QZodNhKANg

March 15th, 2012, 2:57 pm

 

Alan said:

188. OMEN said:
alan @ 1:47
There were very much difficult relations and on much more serious than this trifle! Kursk a submarine in muddy water
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=985zeVQLnDc
For today the question an overload of relations has faced ABM system! It is the defining factor of development of relations!

March 15th, 2012, 3:04 pm

 

Alan said:

Why such silence?

March 15th, 2012, 3:16 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Meet the Cynical Western Companies Helping the Syrian Regime

Nick Robins-Early March 15, 2012 | 12:00 am

Late last year, as the regime of Bashar Assad was continuing its murderous rampage against the people of Syria, the governments of Iran and Russia offered their diplomatic support. But Bashar also received significant practical assistance from a much more unlikely ally: an Italian surveillance firm by the name of Area SpA. Throughout all of 2011, employees of that company were being flown to Damascus to direct Syrian intelligence officers in the installation of a computer system that would allow the Syrian government to scan and catalog virtually every e-mail that flows through the country. As the violence escalated, so did the regime’s insistence that the project be completed. It was a “race against time to set up monitoring centers,” says Trevor Timm, of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, who recently provided a report to the EU parliament on the subject—a race that Area SpA showed few qualms about participating in.

[…]

http://www.tnr.com/article/world/101732/syria-spyware-surveillance-revolution-assad-activists-human-rights

March 15th, 2012, 3:18 pm

 

So Lonely said:

Bashar apparently downloaded this tune tonight …

Sweet dreams are made of these
Who am I to disagree?
I Travel the world and the seven seas
Everybody’s looking for something

Some of them want to use you
Some of them want to get used by you
Some of them want to abuse you
Some of them want to be abused

March 15th, 2012, 3:20 pm

 

zoo said:

The Assault on Turkish Journalists Continues
* March 15, 2012 | 12:00 am

http://www.tnr.com/article/world/101720/turkey-dissident-journalists-crackdown-erdogan

Last year, Reporters Without Borders ranked Turkey 148th in the world on its press freedom index, just a couple spots above Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq. Almost 100 journalists are currently in jail. (Here is a list of their names.) This past week brought some rare good news: Four long-imprisoned journalists were let go. As one Turkish journalist posted on Facebook, “Four journalists released, only 96 more to go.”

March 15th, 2012, 3:37 pm

 

zoo said:

Top Hamas official visits Tehran
15/03/2012
http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=28861
TEHRAN, (AFP) — A senior Hamas figure in Gaza, Mahmud Zahar, is visiting Tehran for meetings with top Iranian officials, media here reported on Thursday.

Zahar’s trip was taking place shortly after Gaza militants and Israel agreed a fragile truce that ended four days of deadly cross-border violence.

Zahar, who serves as Hamas’s foreign minister, met the head of Iran’s supreme national security council, Saeed Jalili, and the leader of Iran’s parliament, Ali Larijani, late on Wednesday, the official IRNA news agency reported.

Jalili reiterated Iran’s unwavering support for the Palestinian cause, and cautioned Zahar against “plots” seeking to divide the Palestinian resistance, the report said.

Zahar was quoted as saying that “the principles and strategy of the Palestinian Islamic resistance will not change.”

March 15th, 2012, 3:43 pm

 

Mina said:

+1 for As’ad Abu Khalil:
“Did the formation of the Free Syrian Army wound up helping the Syrian regime? Could the Syrian regime’s intelligence apparatus have infiltrated the Army? Was the capture of its previous commander, Harmush, an indication? Yes, yes, and yes.”
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2012/03/free-syrian-army.html

March 15th, 2012, 3:50 pm

 

zoo said:

Make room for non-state actors
Thursday,March 15 2012,
NİHAT ALİ ÖZCAN

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/make-room-for-non-state-actors-.aspx?pageID=449&nID=16048&NewsCatID=419
…
OK, one may say the regime is about to die, even if it is difficult to indicate the date clearly. However, the basic question in minds is this: What kind of a political environment is awaiting the country, following the collapse of the regime, and how long will it take to fix a new order?
…
Once again, a collapse of central authority would lead to the reality that scores of explosives and arms in the hands of the Syrian Army will be possessed by non-state actors and spread into the whole region. It won’t be surprising to experience a period just like the era when AK-47s were sold for $10 after the demise of Saddam’s army. The name of the game is what will happen to the chemical weapons currently in the hands of the Syrian army.

Many non-state actors, which are in search of allies, would bring a new dynamism and dimension to the region’s international relations. We will be following how a couple of central states remained standing in the region, and emerging non-state actors would organize their relations. The spread of these problems to the wider region won’t be surprising. While those states with the ability to adapt will adapt to a new ecosystem in a short time, others will enter into a crisis spiral. The best example for the price of such a relationship and its results is Turkey’s 30-year PKK adventure. Seemingly, we will be witnessing a new adaptation process over the next 30 years. Those who successfully adapt will survive in the region.

March/15/2012

March 15th, 2012, 3:52 pm

 

Syrialover said:

144. “873” said: “So my posts have been censored again? Due to a complaint by Syria Lover this time? These people want free speech and operate with the totalitarian attitudes of the regime they’re kicking out”

No I certainly didn’t complain. I think you’re funny.

I see your writings as deliberate satire.

March 15th, 2012, 3:53 pm

 

Syrian Nationalist Party said:

169. ANNSAID:
Millions of Syrians Stress Support to Reform Program, Adherence to Syrian……..
__________________________________________________________________

They would not be if they read what is said in so many emails, something to this effect: • Assad made light of reforms he had promised in an attempt to defuse the crisis, referring to “rubbish laws of parties, elections, media”.

March 15th, 2012, 3:53 pm

 

ann said:

Along Syrian Border, Turks Torn By Divided Loyalties –

The people who live here for the most part are related to the Alawites in Syria. There are bonds of history and friendship. And since Hatay is a province that has to a large degree turned its face toward Syria, it creates problems on an emotional scale.

http://www.npr.org/2012/03/15/148677100/along-syrian-border-turks-torn-by-divided-loyalties

Last month in Hatay province, a large demonstration featured the classic pro-Assad chant: “Allah, Syria, Bashar, that’s all.”

The moment highlighted the deep ambivalence among Turkey’s own Alawite minority about the international pressure to topple Assad, a fellow Alawite.

Yes, now we feel the tension rising. The Alawites here are supporting the Assad regime without condition, and have even demonstrated for him. They see the situation primarily through the lens of their sectarian identity,” Urlu says.

Analyst Cem Dogan at Mustafa Kemal University in Antakya says the relatively sizable Alawite population in Hatay sharpens fears of sectarian conflict.

“The people who live here for the most part are related to the Alawites in Syria. There are bonds of history and friendship,” Dogan says. “And since Hatay is a province that has to a large degree turned its face toward Syria, it creates problems on an emotional scale.”

Hatay’s complicated history has much to do with the intensity of feelings about Syria in the area.

When the Ottoman Empire collapsed after World War I, Hatay was ceded to Syria, which angered the new Turkish leader, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. By 1938, the nominally independent “Republic of Hatay” was declared, under a voting process that critics said gave short shrift to minority rights. Several months later, Hatay became part of modern Turkey.

Hatay’s complicated loyalties are also giving rise to a bumper crop of rumors about local spies assisting Syrian intelligence, helping them track Free Syrian Army leaders and other wanted men

[…]

March 15th, 2012, 3:56 pm

 

Juergen said:

@Omen

the last time i ate at Elisar restaurant i had an fondue, you know after three weeks of the nicest mazzah youll enjoy some change, and as it looked on the other tables, fondue is a very popular thing among the damascenes, so i bet Asmaa wanted to show off a bit at the next lady tea hour…

March 15th, 2012, 4:08 pm

 

Syrialover said:

Iran is now in for an extremely rough ride with the new bank transfer restrictions, described by analysts everywhere as devastating.

This is going to prove devastating to Iran’s allies too.

The Iranians have started desperately stockpiling wheat, ironically buying from America.

Sanctions tighten vice on Iran over nuclear dispute
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/15/us-nuclear-iran-idUSBRE82E15M20120315

Sanctions choke off Iran oil output
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/50079b60-6df7-11e1-b98d-00144feab49a.html#ixzz1pDY5e1ju

March 15th, 2012, 4:14 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Protest in Shalaan, right next to Sibke Park in Damascus.

March 15th, 2012, 4:18 pm

 

Alan said:

Iceland has to go to war with Denmark!
what is really hapening in Europe ?
Europian Syrian comment pls !

March 15th, 2012, 4:20 pm

 

Tara said:

Don’t Talk Just Kiss, Bizarre Love Triangle, We Can’t go Wrong, Hurt,  Look at Me Now, and finally Sexy and I know It are a some of the songs Besho ordered recently.  

ياولّو شو هل ذوق هيدا
  
Just before Christmas Assad underlined his leftfield tastes when he ordered Don’t Talk Just Kiss by Right Said Fred, a band that shot to fame with the hit I’m Too Sexy. Days earlier he highlighted his interest in UK pop music, this time with a slightly more credible choice, purchasing Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order. In the same month he ordered We Can’t Go Wrong by The Cover Girls, a New-York-based “urban girl group” of the 1980s and early 1990s. […] As the conflict in Syria intensified Assad continued to add to his eclectic playlist, ordering Hurt by Leona Lewis, Look at Me Now by Chris Brown featuring Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes and – on New Year’s Eve – A Tribute to Cliff Richard by 21st Century Christmas.

In January he bought a number of songs by the popular US dance group LMFAO including their hit Sexy and I Know It.

http://gawker.com/5893346/lmfao-chris-brown-and-other-crappy-music-syrias-brutal-dictator-bought-last-year-a-spotify-playlist

March 15th, 2012, 7:01 pm

 

Tara said:

80 killed in Syria by Criminal The Second Syria today. Alfaiha upon their souls.

March 15th, 2012, 8:06 pm

 

ann said:

To Syria, Annan’s Team Included Doss, Michel, Fawzi , Dann, McCoy, Shehadeh – but not al-Kidwa: UN Stonewalling

http://www.innercitypress.com/syria8kofi031412.html

UNITED NATIONS, March 14 — The day after Inner City Press exclusively reported that the Arab League’s appointed deputy to Syria envoy Kofi Annan did not in fact travel to Damascus, the UN refused to confirm his absence, nor provide the list of those who went, which Inner City Press has now four times requested.

But well placed sources have provided Inner City Press with the list the Secretariat provided to Syria’s Mission to the UN: beyond Kofi Annan, Ahmad Fawzi , Alan Doss, Nicolas Michel, Robert Dann, Ruth McCoy, Rami Shehadeh.

Inner City Press on March 14 at noon asked Ban Ki-moon’s spokesman Martin Nesirky for this list, and even waited until eight hours later the transcript of the UN’s noon briefing was posted to see if it was included. But it was not, consistent with total stonewalling by Ban’s UN.

Alan Doss was a UN official who employed nepotism in Liberia and then the Congo, and finally at UNDP in New York, telling them to break their rules and give a job to his daughter, then retiring while the damning Office of Internal Oversight Services report languished in Ban’s desk without action.

Nicolas Michel was Kofi Annan’s chief legal officer, who illegally accepted housing subsidy from the Swiss government while ostensibly working for the UN, in violation of UN Charter Article 100.

Ahmad Fawzi worked at the UN Department of Political Affairs under Kofi Annan. In full disclosure, he defended the UN when it was charged with asking, initially successfully, to have Inner City Press removed from Google News: that is, censorship.

Robert Dann was a former aide to Alvaro De Soto; Ruth McCoy is the “Executive Director” of the Kofi Annan Foundation; Rami Shehadeh worked for UNSCOL — was he al-Kidwa’s doppelganger?

And what is the relation between the UN’s move to Syria and this Kofi Annan Foundation? Where does the Kofi Annan Foundation raises it funds? These questions proliferate, because of Ban Ki-moon’s UN’s stonewalling. From the UN’s March 14 transcript:

[…]

March 15th, 2012, 8:13 pm

 

Tara said:

“The emails we have published this week show the supposedly reluctant dictator taking a personal interest in the Homs assault, briefed in detail about the presence of European reporters in Baba Amr, and when to tighten the “security grip”. Lurching between self-pity, defiance and flippancy, Assad reveals himself to be no fool. He has independent lines of communication, keeping each part of his police-state security at arm’s length. He takes a tokenist view of reform and then mocks it in an email to his wife, referring to them as “rubbish laws of parties, elections, media”. In short, Bashar has learned his authoritarian ropes. Unlike the lyrics of the song, he knows exactly who he really is – his father’s son.”

The Assads at war: killing and shopping

The emails we have published this week show the supposedly reluctant dictator taking a personal interest in the Homs assault

Thursday 15 March 2012 17.50 EDT
…..

If Hafez al-Assad put down the Sunni Islamic uprising in Hama in 1982 with such brutality that it went down in history as the deadliest act of an Arab government against its own people, then Bashar is proving he can do the same in the internet age. He has grown in confidence as the uprising marks its first anniversary, and sending his forces into Daraa a year to the day after the uprising began there is no accident. Bashar has divided the UN. He has seen off a steady stream of international heavyweights, the latest being the special envoy Kofi Annan, without making a substantive concession. More than 8,000 people are estimated dead, unknown numbers have been tortured, and nearly a quarter of a million have fled their homes. Bashar can take stock: his family is still in power, his army has held firm, and the opposition is in disarray, unable even to make a show of unity. As he surveys the scene, what is to stop him thinking that he is prevailing?
….

Western diplomacy fares little better. The US and British security establishments are so haunted by Iraq that there is no consensus about life after Assad – particularly as al-Qaida has emerged on the scene in support of the uprising. This may be the reason why even the French have stopped talking about arming the opposition. If dismantling the old regime sparked a civil war in Iraq, there is little appetite for repeating the same experience in Syria. Nobody has a plan to rescue this situation, and in the meantime, the Assads feel empowered to kill – and shop – at will.
…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/mar/15/assads-at-war-killing-shopping

March 15th, 2012, 8:22 pm

 

Syrialover said:

#217 Alan

I’m unsure why you bring up Iceland here.

But it’s maybe relevant as the first country to put its Prime Minister on trial for negligence that wrecked the economy.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/13c2552a-6eb3-11e1-acf0-00144feab49a.html#ixzz1pDj0yzPv

Assad and co in the dock for economic crimes?

March 15th, 2012, 8:24 pm

 

Tara said:

Living with monsters.

Assad emails: father-in-law gave advice from UK during crackdown
… .
Dr Fawas Akhras, who is the father of Assad’s wife, Asma, used a private email channel to the Syrian leader to offer advice on how the regime should spin its suppression of the uprising, including how best to rebut graphic video footage appearing to show the torture of children by Syrian forces.

The 66-year-old …Is co-chair of the British Syrian Society, which has said it is “saddened and appalled at the violence and loss of life in Syria”, where more than 8,000 people are believed to have been killed since the uprising against Assad’s rule began a year ago.
… .

The string of emails between Akhras and Assad over a nine-month period appear to show that the doctor was particularly concerned about how better to present the regime’s actions internationally…

Late last December, Akhras advised Assad to respond to a Channel 4 film showing video evidence of civilians, including children, being tortured in Syria, by suggesting it could be dismissed as British propaganda aimed at triggering a Syrian genocide. In a direct email to the president he attached an article suggesting as much and said it “might be of some help towards drafting the embassy’s response to [the] Channel Four video”.

Earlier that month he had sent the president and the first lady a 13-point rebuttal of criticisms of the regime, which he said he had drafted to help him in “directing the argument or the discussion toward the other side”.

He also recommended highlighting difficulties faced by the “revolutionary democracies” that emerged from the Arab spring: “They are unable to agree on naming a Minister of Interior
..
Akhras also wrote to Assad and his wife in December questioning the wisdom of the regime throwing a New Year’s Eve party in Damascus’s Omayyad Square: “Is it the right time?”
..
In an email about the visit of the Arab League delegation to Syria, he wrote to Assad: “It would be very good if the number of each delegate from the arab countries is calculated as a percentage based on the population of each country! This would be a big blow to some!” It appears to be a dig at the influence of Qatar, which called for Arab military intervention in Syria to stop the bloodshed.

The Guardian asked Akhras if he wanted to comment on the emails and his apparent role giving strategic advice to his son-in-law. Akhras said he was busy with a patient. The allegations were then sent to him via text message and passed on to his lawyer.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/15/assad-emails-father-in-law-crackdown
{…………}

March 15th, 2012, 8:36 pm

 

irritated said:

#206 SOD
Shaalan demonstration pro or anti-regime?

Besides the “dubbed” soundtrack and the poster hastily shown to the camera, nothing indicates what is the demonstration is all about.

It might have been one of the numerous pro-regime demonstrations in Damascus that was transformed into an anti-regime by someone filming a poster and dubbing the sound…

Soundtracks pro and anti regime are abundance on Youtube.

March 15th, 2012, 8:47 pm

 

Tara said:

Syria: ‘The children can escape the country, but they can’t escape the conflict and fear’

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-the-children-can-escape-the-country-but-they-cant-escape-the-conflict-and-fear-7574584.html

Mona flinches each time she hears a bang in the chaotic refuge in the Lebanese mountains that has been her home for a week. The five-year-old wears several layers of baggy, boys’ clothes and clutches a ragged, blue bear. “I always get scared. My father is in Syria so I worry a lot about him,” she says. Bed-wetting and terrorised wails are nightly features of the lives of the 30 children who fled Homs and Qusayr, a nearby village, with their five mothers in two convoys last week.

….
Ala’s older brother, 14-year-old Mohammed, sits sullenly disengaged in the corner. He only looks up when the homeowner says he is unsure how long he can host them. It is clear he feels the burden of responsibility for his sprawling family, catapulted into this position by the grim turn of events. When questioned Mohammed gives curt, often untrue, answers. Asked if he joined the demonstrations, he says he did not. But his mother, 42-year-old Tfaha, says: “He did, he went every day – I encouraged him.”
…..

March 15th, 2012, 8:54 pm

 

ann said:

Syria is in big troubles now 😀

Bahrain shuts down embassy in Damascus – 2012-03-16

“Bahrain has decided to shut down its embassy in Damascus and withdraw all its diplomatic staff due to the worsening security condition”, the ministry announced.

[…]

March 15th, 2012, 8:57 pm

 

zoo said:

Are the mines put to prevent the passage of refugees or rather to prevent the passage of armed men and weapons smugglers as well as preventing any attempt to create a buffer zone?

Gov’t readies for Syria buffer zone amid flow
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/govt-readies-for-syria-buffer-zone-amid-flow.aspx?pageID=238&nID=16146&NewsCatID=338

ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News
Amid a new wave of refugees from Syria, Turkey is mulling whether to set up a buffer zone on its southern border to handle the influx.

The Turkish government is making preparations for a further exodus from Syria, as the number of people fleeing to Turkey rises sharply due to Syrian army rampages in the restive neighborhood of Baba Amr in Homs and in the rebel stronghold Idlib. The number of Syrians currently staying in Turkey rose to 14,700 yesterday.

According to the course of developments, the establishment of a buffer zone at the border could be considered, Deputy Prime Minister Beşir Atalay said in a televised interview yesterday.

Asked if Turkey was considering a corridor or buffer zone at the Turkish-Syrian border, Atalay said the issue was a common problem across the region, recalling that there had also been an influx of Syrian refugees into Lebanon.

Considering the efforts of the international community, including the Arab League, Turkey was studying its strategy with all dimensions, Atalay said, adding that the Syrian army was militarily interfering in any attempt by the Syrian people trying to flee the unrest.

“The Syrian administration has been planting mines, taking measures not to allow refugees to flee to the other side of the border,” he said.

(..)

March 15th, 2012, 9:03 pm

 

zoo said:

Syrie, médias et mensonges
mercredi 14 mars 2012, par Alain Gresh

http://blog.mondediplo.net/2012-03-14-Syrie-medias-et-mensonges

La Radio suisse romande a consacré son émission « Babylone » du mercredi 14 mars à « Syrie : ce qu’on en sait, et comment ? ». J’y ai participé aux côtés de Gaëtan Vannay, chef de la rubrique internationale de la RTS-Info (radio) et auteur de reportages en Syrie, Pierre Piccinin, historien, politologue, auteur de reportages en Syrie, et Nadia Boehlen, porte-parole d’Amnesty International section Suisse.

March 15th, 2012, 9:06 pm

 

zoo said:

Al Jazeera’s Identity Crisis

http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/al-jazeera%E2%80%99s-identity-crisis
…
It is hard, nowadays, to encounter any professional journalist who is prepared to defend Al Jazeera’s behavior, not just in Syria, but in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, and Bahrain too. Some of the highest-profile Arab journalists, for whom appearances on Al Jazeera used to really matter, now turn down the channel’s invitations. They realize that they have been used as tools in a dirty game. Has anyone, for example, wondered why Al Jazeera has ceased cooperating with Mohamed Hassanein Heikal?
..

March 15th, 2012, 9:09 pm

 

Tara said:

Observer@ 145

😉

March 15th, 2012, 9:09 pm

 

Haytham Khoury said:

[ الرسائل الرئاسية المسربة – الجزء الأول ]

March 15th, 2012, 9:14 pm

 

zoo said:

Western medias grudgingly reported ‘tens of thousands’

Syrian government survives year-long crisis
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/16/c_122840138.htm

DAMASCUS, March 15 (Xinhua) — A year has passed since Syria saw the eruption of domestic unrest inspired by the regional unrests that have toppled some Arab regimes. President Bashar al- Assad apparently still stands strong after a year of mounting pressure, which is manifested by the millions of peoples filling the country’s major squares on Thursday in a show of support to the leader
..
FRACTURED OPPOSITION FAILS TO UNITE AGAINST ASSAD

In August, opposition figures in exile tried to group their forces under the Syrian National Council (SNC) to form a united force against the government. However, this council was marred with wrangling and differences among its members.

Two prominent opposition leaders said on Wednesday that they have quit the SNC. More are likely to abandon the council which some of the members described as “autocratic.”

The resignations dealt a heavy blow to the opposition, which has somewhat reinforced the government’s stature in the Arab and international arena due to their failure to unite ranks.

In such climate of variables, attention has been shifted to the option of political solution to the crisis.

Luai Hussain, the head of the opposition group “Building Syria State,” said that it’s about time to achieve a political settlement that is satisfactory to all parties.

Hussain told Xinhua that intellectual elites should take a leading role in steering the country into democracy.

A recent visit to Syria by UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan unveiled that President Assad is determined to eradicate insurgents as well to commence dialogue.

…

March 15th, 2012, 9:19 pm

 

Tara said:

http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/15/world/meast/syria-unrest/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

(CNN) — The six countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council will close their Syrian embassies, the council said Thursday, calling on the international community “to stop what is going on in Syria.”

Council members include the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait.

Nations including the United States and France previously have closed their embassies in Damascus, while Italy, Britain and Spain are among countries that have suspended embassy activities.
{…}

March 15th, 2012, 9:21 pm

 

Syrialover said:

#213

So Asma’s father is an active player in the regime. Bad enough, but his darkest inner core has now been revealed by what he wanted to help cover up.

That channel 4 documentary, if it’s the one I think it is, could not have been more damning and indefensible. It was horribly, deeply disturbing and shocking, and what’s in it would have been impossible to fake.

It showed cruelty, torture, humiliation and systematic torment of harmless and helpless people by soldiers and mukhrarabat (and filmed by those doing it as trophies) that normal humans could not even imagine possible.

It has distressed everyone I know who has seen it to the point of tears.

If Dr Akhras can view even 5 minutes of what is shown on that documentary without being sickened and alarmed – and yes, ashamed -he has a serious war criminal mentality, and it’s great that he’s been exposed.

He fully deserves to have his colleagues, patients, neighbours and fellow expat Syrians now treat him like one.

March 15th, 2012, 9:24 pm

 

Syrialover said:

Oh my God! The silly-faced arrogant fantasist Akhras saw himself in a position to help decide wider policies in Syria!!!!

And, wait for it, I am laughing aloud, his defence now to the media is the British government should have sent its troops in like Syria to crush the British riots.

What a primitive, what a fool. He fancies himself from his doctor’s rooms in London having the power to interfere in a country he chooses not to live in. Look at his weak face here, it says it all.

A lot of people are going to feel deceived now they know the truth about the meek and mild doctor.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9146750/Syria-Assads-father-in-law-compares-Syrian-uprising-to-London-riots.html

March 15th, 2012, 9:39 pm

 

anwar said:

[ Edited: This comment was held for moderation by a word from the list. Anwar, please read the Rules and Regulations; do NOT assign a religious identification to fellow commentators. ]

Great to see you are impressed by those gov’t organized demonstrations. I remember when Hafez died they made all the teachers, students and workers go to show the world their “sadness”. This is no different. A demonstration should be free and coming from the people themself. Not this perfectly choreographed gov’t supervised bullsh–….bunch of actors and ppl paid to show their love for this torturing raping regime.

I refuse to believe that actual syrians are this naive when it comes to the deceits of this regime. If you have lived more than one day in any syrian city then you would know the kind of serpents we are dealing with. But it is just a bunch of Alawites drones posting here…

March 15th, 2012, 9:40 pm

 

zoo said:

Syria: Regime Reclaiming the Initiative
By: Elie Chalhoub
Published Thursday, March 15, 2012
http://english.al-akhbar.com/print/5223

Insiders say the Syrian regime is confident it is getting a grip on the crisis, but expects no early end to unrest.

It took us more than one hour to pass through the Masnaa border crossing from Lebanon into Syria because of heavy traffic. “Spring” is returning to Syria, as a senior official puts it, while noting that he uses the term literally. “People are tired. There is a great yearning for normal life,” he adds.

Last Saturday, residents of Damascus were out and about in green spaces and on sidewalks.
(…)

March 15th, 2012, 10:13 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Irritated,

“Besides the “dubbed” soundtrack and the poster hastily shown to the camera, nothing indicates what is the demonstration is all about.”

The whole using of burning tires to slowdown the shabiha so the protesters can actually have a chance to escape their bullets and batons is not an indication to you, have not seen one pro-regime rally use that tactic yet (since they have never been fired upon by the shabiha).

Keep believing what you want, denying everything you choose to deny.
?كلشي بخير او خلصت موهيك

March 15th, 2012, 10:14 pm

 

ann said:

News Analysis: Syrian government survives year-long crisis – 2012-03-16

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/16/c_122840138.htm

ONE YEAR OF PRESSURE, ISOLATION, UNRELENTING SANCTIONS

Over a year, Syria has been subject to intolerable pressure from Arab and western countries. A squeezing isolation has been imposed on the country coupled with unrelenting sanctions that targeted all vital sectors in the country.

The West and the Arab League (AL) have worked to shake Syria economically to break up the close connection between the commercial sector and the government, undermine its Arab legitimacy by halting Syria’s AL membership, and ensure all-out support for broad-based opposition.

The sanctions and isolation have to some extent worsened the people’s hardship as prices of most commodities have skyrocketed, businesses halted, and the Syrian pound sharply deceased in value. However, the government, likely after receiving funds from its close ally Iran, has readjusted and succeeded in the past few days in maintaining the currency value.

The exchange rate for U.S. dollar reached 100 pounds last week, but it declined to 79 pounds a couple of days ago. All in all, the pound has lost over 50 percent in value against the dollar in the past few months.

FRACTURED OPPOSITION FAILS TO UNITE AGAINST ASSAD

In August, opposition figures in exile tried to group their forces under the Syrian National Council (SNC) to form a united force against the government. However, this council was marred with wrangling and differences among its members.

Two prominent opposition leaders said on Wednesday that they have quit the SNC. More are likely to abandon the council which some of the members described as “autocratic.”

The resignations dealt a heavy blow to the opposition, which has somewhat reinforced the government’s stature in the Arab and international arena due to their failure to unite ranks.

In such climate of variables, attention has been shifted to the option of political solution to the crisis.

Luai Hussain, the head of the opposition group “Building Syria State,” said that it’s about time to achieve a political settlement that is satisfactory to all parties.

Hussain told Xinhua that intellectual elites should take a leading role in steering the country into democracy.

[…]

March 15th, 2012, 10:17 pm

 

Tara said:

The Real-Me (the notion that, no matter what I do or how I behave, my inner goodness, my original virtue, remains intact).  Do you suffer from the “Real me”?   

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9145957/The-sweet-and-deadly-sides-of-President-Assad.html

Some men are born evil, some achieve evil, and some have evil thrust upon them. Bashar al-Assad of Syria falls into the third category; but from the point of view of his victims, it hardly matters. For them, evil is evil and death is death. The psychological origins of a man’s crimes don’t make them less real or horrible to those who suffer from them.
……
The science of physiognomy, that of detecting character in the face, is by no means an exact one, but we all instinctively resort to it when judging others; and when you look at pictures of Assad you see a weak man, whom you would expect to be a pettifogger rather than a brute. But push a pettifogger to the wall and he is capable of the greatest obduracy, which is the strength of the weak. A cornered rat, that normally resides incognito, is a ferocious and dangerous beast, even if he remains in essence weak and highly vulnerable.

Bashar al-Assad was never intended for the dictatorship. That role was reserved for his far more extrovert, flashy and outwardly vicious brother who, however, was killed in a car accident caused by his typically intemperate driving. A man who knows from an early age that he will inherit supreme power is inclined to believe that even the laws of physics will bend to his will, and that he can therefore drive like a lunatic with impunity

But once he returned home, the logic of the situation was all against him. His father was a brutal, vicious mass murderer, the leader of a brutal, vicious, mass-murdering political movement. If Bashar had been a strong and brave man, he would have refused the poisoned chalice; but, having accepted it, he had to drain it to the dregs. Latin American gangsters give people a choice: plata o plomo, silver or lead, money or the bullet; for Bashar al-Assad, it was power or total extinction, not only for himself, but for his entire group.
…
At the same time, however, an apprehension that all is not well cannot be altogether avoided, however strong the forces of self-deception. So when I read that Assad had sent his wife the lyrics of a saccharine and sentimentally self-pitying country and western song, Blake Shelton’s God Gave Me You, I was not surprised: it rang entirely true to his psychology and his situation:

I’ve been a walking heartache,
I’ve made a mess of me,
The person that I’ve been lately
Ain’t who I wanna be.
Another of his favourites, apparently, is We Can’t Go Wrong by the Cover Girls, a song with the following lines:
There was a time when things were better than the way they are today,
But we forgot the vows we made and love got lost along the way.
…
This is all very sick, but it is not the pathology of the Middle East alone. It is what happens when the contemporary psychology of the Real-Me (the notion that, no matter what I do or how I behave, my inner goodness, my original virtue, remains intact)
…
In short, dictators and their consorts behave, at least from the point of view of interior decoration and the other trappings of success, like footballers’ wives who have been elevated into a position in which the availability of money exerts no constraint on their fantasy of the good life. If you want to bathe in an ivory bath with platinum taps, then you just send out for one, even if it has to be to the uttermost ends of the earth (in practice, usually Paris or Harrods). And such is the wickedness of the human mind, that extreme luxury is the more enjoyable in proportion to the hardships of everyone else. Who wants to be a billionaire if everyone else is a billionaire?
…
Dictators often hoard for their own consumption what they deny to everyone else. Stalin, Hitler, Ceausescu, Kim Jong-Il, and others, loved the trashiest output of Hollywood, but only in the privacy of their own kitschy retreats. For Kim there was no greater luxury, or pleasure, than drinking a 1947 vintage while two million of his people were starving. No doubt his tastes became ever more rarefied as the condition of his country deteriorated.
{…}

March 15th, 2012, 10:27 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

CNN’s Nic Robertson looks back at the beginning of protests in Syria and the government’s ruthless response.

http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2012/03/15/robertson-syria-1-yr-of-violence.cnn?iref=allsearch

March 15th, 2012, 10:28 pm

 

Tara said:

A friend of mine told me that SAMS (Syrian American Medical Association) is looking for women physicians of any specialty to volunteer in a mission to help the Syrian refugees in Turkey. If you know of any interested woman doctor, have her contact SAMS for info.

March 15th, 2012, 10:37 pm

 

Ghufran said:

Dubai police chief keeps on his mission to attack the MB

http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today%5C15z496.htm&arc=data%5C2012%5C03%5C03-15%5C15z496.htm

Tara, SAMS is now politicized, I was told by one of its founders that it lost the majority of its non Sunni members, a real depressing development, that friend forwarded an email she received that makes SAMS more like SNC with a medical degree.

The email leak was probably an inside job and not another hacking scandal, if that is true,those leaks carry a lot of political significance, the content of the leaks was not as telling as the fact that an insider was probably behind it.

March 15th, 2012, 11:01 pm

 

Ghufran said:

Israeli press is predicting that Assad will leave but the regime will not.

Bashar is now a perfect scape goat, his departure will open the door for a political settlement and give the opposition a symbolic victory it needs. I have not yet heard who may be getting groomed to replace him,the only believable story is a proposal to empower the office of PM and allow key figures from the Assad camp to maintain a level of control over certain posts. Only Russia has the power to ignite this engine, others however have to approve to keep it running. I that the armed rebels are interested in such a compromise, they may continue to kill and get killed, and the regime may be more interested in doing what it does best: divide and conquer, expect selective conciliatory measures towards the opposition soon.

March 15th, 2012, 11:21 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Shabiha kill women and their children with shots to the head in Bab Sbaa, Homs.

Allah Yer7amon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKOighAP6tU

(graphic content)

March 15th, 2012, 11:23 pm

 

Ghufran said:

A counter view on the virtue of leaking Assad’s emails:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/mar/15/assad-emails-more-human

March 15th, 2012, 11:34 pm

 

Ghufran said:

Can anybody with real knowledge of Syria respond to the following rumors circulated by Lebanese and Egyptian press?
1. The attack on BA was led by two commandors,one from Al-Swaida,a Druz,and the other one from Reef Hama,a Sunni
2. Drones were used in Idleb
3. Rebels in Ideb were heavily infiltrated by regime informers
4. Reef Halab is the regime’s next target
From the first look,these rumors appear to be part of a psychological warfare against the rebels.

March 15th, 2012, 11:58 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Dear Ghufran,

I can answer perhaps 2 of the 4 questions:

2. Drones: they were used in Baba Amr, so it would not be a surprise if they did use it in Idlib.

http://board-temporary.blogspot.com/2012/02/weapons-used-on-homs.html

4. Reef Halab: Aleppo it self has seen a lot of protest lately, today the security attacked Ummayad Mosque in Aleppo and trapped the protesters in the mosque itself. And lately Aleppo University has been called Thawra University considering the amount of protest coming out of there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_4lctQshBw&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5k-ZogPVQE&feature=player_embedded

March 16th, 2012, 12:25 am

 

Real Syrian said:

MAJED97 said:
I’ve been having hard time distinguishing SC from aljazeera lately. Whoever is in charge of SC nowadays seems to be mostly interest in stories that undermine the regime credibility, including this silly (likely fabricated) story about the Asaad family.
My Dear I totally agree with you ,I feel that Syria comment loses the series readers …..

March 16th, 2012, 2:04 am

 

Juergen said:

Tara

I love this: The Assads at war: killing and shopping… i wonder if the wonderful syrian tv series producers will come up with a series on the Assads, there is a lot to cover, kind of like the BBC series on Saddam ( house of Saddam).

I have a question, did you see the new Labaki movie Where do we go now
? I am desperatly looking for an english version of it, the arabic version i found already on the net.

March 16th, 2012, 2:04 am

 
 

omen said:

did something happen to the site earlier? couldn’t log on. how long was it down?

March 16th, 2012, 3:49 am

 

Alan said:

243. OMEN
yes ! the same thing has happened !

March 16th, 2012, 4:03 am

 

Juergen said:

I would say someone screwed up big time or some smart one in Damascus does not want that Syrians read that blog…

It is down since last night european time.

March 16th, 2012, 4:40 am

 

omen said:

wow, landis hacked by assad regime. what a badge of honor. that’d be amazing if true.

weird thing is i ran into somebody who complained this was a pro assad site!

March 16th, 2012, 4:58 am

 

omen said:

i don’t understand why people get a thumbsdown for the most innocuous, neutral comments. who is the bitter person doing that?

March 16th, 2012, 5:02 am

 

Juergen said:

Omen

this regime does not make any distinction, some big time regime supporters got arrested too. wonder if Joshua can make a clue out of what happened to the site, usually one can easily find out if someone messed around the settings of the site.

March 16th, 2012, 5:17 am

 

omen said:

Juergen @ 4:08

thanks for answering my question. drew a charming portrait. plus made me hungry!

March 16th, 2012, 5:22 am

 

omen said:

one of these things are not like the other.

re: assad’s father-in-law:

THE FATHER-IN-LAW of President Bashar al-Assad has sought to defend the Syrian leader’s brutal crackdown on protesters by comparing the pro-democracy uprising in Syria to last summer’s London riots.

According to the Guardian’s latest report, Dr Akhras offered advice “on how the regime should spin its suppression of the uprising, including how best to rebut graphic video footage appearing to show the torture of children by Syrian forces”.

but earlier he told the media this:

Dr. Fawaz Akhras, the father-in-law of President Bashar Assad, told Express.co.uk on Monday that he is “horrified” by the brutal suppression of opposition forces that had reportedly claimed the lives of over 7,000 Syrians.

March 16th, 2012, 6:16 am

 

VOLK said:

“MOSCOW, March 16 (Itar-Tass) —— Russia does not intend to participate in a next meeting of the group of friends of Syria, Russian presidential envoy for the Middle East and Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov told a press briefing here on Friday.
“We did not participate in the previous meeting. We do not intend to participate in this meeting as well,” Bogdanov said. “The group of friends looks like the contact group for Libya,” the deputy foreign minister added.
Bogdanov noted that the group of friends is negotiating only with the Syrian opposition.
“It is unacceptable for us,” Bogdanov underlined.”
http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c154/367725.html

March 16th, 2012, 7:15 am

 

VOLK said:

“MOSCOW – Russia will not allow a military scenario to be implemented in Syria, taking the Libyan experience into account.
“We will never give the go-ahead to legitimatizing such moves while forging a decision in the UN Security Council,” said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov.
Calls for Bashar al-Assad’s resignation are unacceptable, since the Syrian people alone can decide who will run the country, he said.”
http://www.kievpost.net/news/world/detail/124380/

March 16th, 2012, 7:18 am

 

Valerya said:

252
i want to add that Russia can support own opinion to the end of syrian situation 🙂 !

March 16th, 2012, 7:44 am

 

Tara said:

The Assadist occupying army is too weak to lift a finger should Erdogan proceed with establishing a buffer zone.  It is spread too thin killing civilians and children across Syrian towns.  An army like that can’t fight a real war.  It will drop it’s weapon and surrender, Baghdad-style.  

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/middle-east-live/2012/mar/16/syria-kofi-annan-to-brief-un-security-council-live#block-10

Turkey is considering setting up a “security” or “buffer zone” along its border with Syria and may withdraw its ambassador to Damascus after Turkish citizens inside the neighbouring country return home, Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday, Reuters reports.

The Turkish foreign ministry has called on all Turkish citizens inside Syria to return to Turkey as soon as possible and said it was closing the consular section of its Damascus embassy next week.

The move comes as Syrians continue to flee across the border into Turkey. There are an estimated 14,700 refugees in Turkey, with 1,000 having arrived in one day this week.

It is not the first time Turkey has been reported to be considering a buffer zone.

March 16th, 2012, 7:46 am

 

Mina said:

… the Libyan experience… the Iraqi experience… the Algerian experience…

March 16th, 2012, 7:46 am

 

zoo said:

237. ref Ghufran

Failed propaganda?

The Assad emails only make him seem more human
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/mar/15/assad-emails-more-human
Syria’s opposition may yet regret releasing documents portraying the torturer-in-chief as an iPad user who listens to New Order
…
If the opposition had hoped to make Bashar al-Assad seem more monstrous, then they have failed. Instead, the emails they have leaked have made a man responsible for terrible crimes seem less distant and oddly more human if not less culpable.

For that reason, it is entirely possible that the Syrian opposition – so keen to push out these emails even as their military campaign on the ground has faltered and their political alliance become ever more split and fractious – may come to regret the way in which this material has been released.

It has shown the torturer-in-chief playing with his iPad and listening to New Order, put flesh on the bones of a man who – until now – was nothing but a caricature. The dynamic of conflict, and the propaganda effort that inevitably supports it, requires not more, but less detail and dimension.

March 16th, 2012, 8:03 am

 

Tara said:

Zoo

In your eyes only…

March 16th, 2012, 8:06 am

 

zoo said:

Freedom of speech: Egyptian clerics express their view on Jews on TV

http://news.yahoo.com/egyptian-clerics-revisionist-history-ben-franklin-anti-semite-035445951.html

Earlier in the month Al-Rahma Arabic language TV featured Egyptian clerics discussing the Jewish people. After revisiting age-old anti-Semitic slurs likening Jews to “donkeys, apes and pigs,” the clerics went so far as to say that indoctrinating children to “loathe Jews” is, to them, among the highest forms of “Allah-worship.” These are of course not such shocking revelations, however, given their prevalence across the Islamic world.
…
“US President Benjamin Franklin said: “A great danger threatens the United States of America. That danger is the Jewish danger. In whichever land the Jews have settled, they have corrupted the morals, and lowered the level of commercial honesty. […]

If Palestine were given back to them, not all of them would go there, because they are parasites and cannot live at the expense of their own kind. They must live among the Christians or others not of their race.”
…

March 16th, 2012, 8:08 am

 

Omi Omy said:

@ANNIE “The thing that shocked me most was. “Leader made light of promised reforms”. That absolute contempt for the people is sickening.”

—

He did not make light of it. The Guardian is lying about the very Emails it published. Please read the Email here:
http://gu.com/p/3657p

This is what Bashar wrote: “This is the best reform any country can have that u told me where will you be, we are going to adopt it instead of the rubbish laws of parties, elections, media…….”

March 16th, 2012, 8:12 am

 

zoo said:

#257 Tara

and Peter Beaumont from the Guardian…

March 16th, 2012, 8:13 am

 

zoo said:

Press TV has conducted an interview with Omar Nashabi from Al Akhbar, a daily Arabic language newspaper published in the Lebanese capital Beirut, to ask his opinions on the issue of the Western- and Arab-backed armed rebellion inside the country.

The program also offers the opinions of two additional guests: Lawrence Davidson, a professor at West Chester University of Pennsylvania, and Jiwad Rashad from Syrian Social Club.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/231962.html

March 16th, 2012, 8:17 am

 

Mina said:

It looks like the Grand Mufti has had too many of the famous aljazeera pills. Is he jealous of Zawahiri? When Bin Laden was giving the same statements, he quickly ended up on a target list.
http://rt.com/news/peninsula-saudi-grand-mufti-701/

March 16th, 2012, 8:28 am

 

Juergen said:

Zoo

it may be because its easier to think Assad and his clan are monsters. One may actually channel the hate and project onto such an image. Since Hannah Arendt we know of the banality of evil. The children of many top Nazi criminals stresses almost doubtlessly that their father or mother was a caring, and loving person. Hitler lost once one of his dogs, and one of his servants said that he was utterly sorry for the loss and could hardly be cheered up. No,this is not a failed piece of propaganda it shows perfectly how dull and how shallow this life is for an despote.We get an insight that this “leader” shares the same opinion about his “reforms” as most opposition members would agree on his outcry: This is the best reform any country can have that u told me where will you be, we are going to adopt it instead of the rubbish laws of parties, elections, media …”

I suppose the proudness of the Assadfollowers has some cracks on it now. The perfectly orchestrated picture that the Assads live the same life as ordinary Syrians is now exposed as it always was a big pr campaign and a lie. I am personally quite shocked how unprofessionel this administration around the President works, some folks suggested to me earlier that the only smooth hrdworking administration this country has is the presidential one, what a bluff.

March 16th, 2012, 8:36 am

 

Tara said:

Zoo

Yes it can happen.

There are also women who fall madly in love with serial killers…

March 16th, 2012, 8:39 am

 

Syrialover said:

OMEN

Answer to your question in #247 where you said: “i don’t understand why people get a thumbsdown for the most innocuous, neutral comments. who is the bitter person doing that?”

I’ve pointed out a few times that this forum currently appears to have voting in an automatic “bloc” pattern.

Go back over a couple of earlier threads and you will quickly see the clear pattern of around 14 red thumbs down for posts criticizing Assad and a corresponding number of green thumbs up for the opposite, particularly for some frequent posters regardless of what they write or cut-paste. Sometimes the pattern is 20+. These votes accumulate quickly around the same time.

I think you will also find Syrian Hamster’s comment here interesting: https://www.joshualandis.com/blog/?p=13748&cp=all#comment-299405

March 16th, 2012, 8:44 am

 

omen said:

the rwanda, congo, darfur, uganda experience.

March 16th, 2012, 8:47 am

 

omen said:

tara, the “assad is misunderstood” people slay me.

March 16th, 2012, 8:51 am

 

Mina said:

For the folks above who were too young, refresh your memory about Algeria. Free election. Victory of the Islamists. All the other parties take to the street to criticize what was seen as a manipulation of political Islam in the first place and condemn the legalization of such a party based on religious ground while this is not allowed in the constitution. What followed: 10 years of civil war between the army and the Islamists. In many case, some army massacres were attributed to the Islamists, but no one can deny that thousands were flown from the Afghan front (they were called “the Afghans” and were international djiahdis) and that they slaughtered women and babies in the name of Allah. The conflict resulted into 200,000 dead.

So again, when Asad tortures for the US as the others allies in KSA, Yemen, Jordan, etc, it is ok, but when the same people still torture without a written order of the CIA, it is not?
Everyone can have nuclear but not Iran?
You can work for a company which makes money with the Gulf, China or anywhere with a zero record in human rights but you are not responsible? You can kill innocents with drones on a daily basis with clean hands and that’s different? Pay taxes to keep Guantanamo open?

Fine. When all the former republics in the Arab world will have turned back to prehistory, they will have a (free) choice betwen siding with the EU or with the Gulf. How cool and democratic.

The pro-revo have still nothing to answer about the fake numbers, the fabricated videos, and the slaughtering and massacres of kidnapped people found handcuffs and in pieces?? The ghosts is the only answer? But fabricated videos do not show ghosts, they show real people. These people and their disgusting PR have betrayed the Syrian people from day one (when their stupidity has failed both Bahrein and Yemen -i. e. KSA ‘private domains’- , where cameras had been at the time).

March 16th, 2012, 9:08 am

 

Syrialover said:

#262. Juergen

You are so right. Did you see those photos of a smiling, relaxed Gaddafi playing and being silly to entertain his grandchildren? Similar images of Saddam Hussein in private can be found.

Stalin’s daughter who defected to the west also painted a picture of a warm jovial man at home.

With Assadgate, a very damning thing revealed was the amateurish nature of the advice gathering and other “matters of state”. Plus the poor security around their communications, despite the huge high tech electronic surveillance system the regime operates against ordinary Syrians.

March 16th, 2012, 9:17 am

 
 

irritated said:

#268 SL

“the huge high tech electronic surveillance system the regime operates against ordinary Syrians.”

One wonders if this were not myth and paranoia too…

March 16th, 2012, 9:24 am

 

Amir in Tel Aviv said:

What is the name of this Friday ?
.

March 16th, 2012, 9:26 am

 

Juergen said:

Mina

a friend of mine established this site almost 20 years back. She lives in France and if you check her page you will find many indications and proof that the Algerian state was involved deeply in the massacres. by the way, she is not a friend of the islamists, nor does she wear a hijab…

http://www.algeria-watch.org/

March 16th, 2012, 9:28 am

 
 

irritated said:

#272 Juergen

“by the way, she is not a friend of the islamists, nor does she wear a hijab…”

Of course, she is one of your numerous Arab ‘decent’ friend.

March 16th, 2012, 9:38 am

 

Juergen said:

Amir

Asmaa run, we want your shoes! or Louboutins for all 🙂

Have you heard in the israeli press about the statements of a german political partyhead during his visit in israel? It started quite an debate here.

March 16th, 2012, 9:39 am

 

Mina said:

Jürgen
It has been fairly documented that the Algerian government was implied in many massacres, but you try to deny there was any djihadists on the ground, no Afghan connection, no emirs in the forests. Good for you.

March 16th, 2012, 9:39 am

 

Juergen said:

Irritated

she was my neighbor here in Berlin for quite some time, and yes she is a very decent lady and poltical activist for the algerian cause…

March 16th, 2012, 9:43 am

 

irritated said:

Juergen #277

This is exactly what I meant…

March 16th, 2012, 9:46 am

 

irritated said:

#271 A T A

“We want Loubountin” and the accompanying music is New Order.

March 16th, 2012, 9:48 am

 

Tara said:

Jeurgen

“Loboutini for All”. Love it!!

The biggest slap on Asma’s face would be if the famous shoes maker expressed disgust with Asma buying his shoes while she continues to cleanse and disinfect Syrian children.

March 16th, 2012, 9:55 am

 

zoo said:

Russia urging Syria to support Annan mission: Lavrov
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/36881/World/Region/Russia-urging-Syria-to-support-Annan-mission-Lavro.aspx
Russia said Friday it was using its contacts with the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad to urge Damascus to fully cooperate with the mission of UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan.

Speaking ahead of a video conference Annan was to hold with the UN in New York later Friday on his mission to find a settlement to the crisis, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also said all the UN Security Council members had a duty to support his efforts.

“We are working with Kofi Annan on a day-to-day basis and are sending relevant signals to Damascus to ensure full cooperation with his mission by the Syrian leadership,” Lavrov told a televised news conference.

He added: “We are expecting all members of the Security Council to support his efforts.”

“This means that not only China and us should send Damascus a signal to fully cooperate with Kofi Annan’s mission, but other Security Council members should also do their job and demand the opposition not provoke an escalation of the situation.”

The UN Security Council should also urge the Syrian opposition to “fully cooperate with Kofi Annan and constructively respond to the proposals which it (his mission) puts forward,” he added.

March 16th, 2012, 9:56 am

 

Michel said:

Addunia exposes the conspiracy of moving map in football games, thank you addunia!

March 16th, 2012, 9:56 am

 

Ghufran said:

Syrian government will allow UN observers according to a UN source.

March 16th, 2012, 10:01 am

 

Syrialover said:

# 267. Mina

That’s an interpretation of Algeria which doesn’t quite match what I remember very well at the time: the military intervention and state terror campaign in response to the results of a free election. The result was a civil war as you say. But a very unequal and manipulated one. On SC only recently somebody posted links to a series of interesting documents on Algeria, one of which revealed how alleged massacres by “bearded Islamists” were later linked to fake beards found scattered around military camps.

But back to basics.

In Syria, the rural poor staging peaceful economic protests were
mown down by live ammunition, rounded up and tortured en masse.

Beginning, middle and end of story.

March 16th, 2012, 10:03 am

 

Juergen said:

Mina
i dont rule that out but you and others stress that the massacres were carried out by the islamists alone. There are many reports of Amnesty and by Algeria Watch that security personal of the army, police and the secret service were involved, there is even the account of one survivor of such an massacre Nesroulah Yous, in his book Qui a tue a Bentalha?( Who killed at Bentalh) he blames the military totally for the massacre on 400 villagers.
Here is an interview with him:

http://www.algeria-watch.org/en/articles/1997_2000/yous_interview.htm

March 16th, 2012, 10:04 am

 

Mina said:

No, I stress out that there was a demonstration of all the political parties to condemn the legalization of the FIS while it was in contradiction with the constitution, just like the dirty trick played in Egypt recently by the army.
But obviously I didn’t ring a bell.

March 16th, 2012, 10:09 am

 

Syrialover said:

# 270. irritated

Unfortunately the electronic surveillance by the Syrian state is not a myth to those living inside Syria, Syrians and foreigners alike, who have always had to be guarded and careful in what they say on the phone and by email. But if you were there I guess every conversation you had would be friendly music to the ears of those eavesdropping.

March 16th, 2012, 10:17 am

 

Amir in Tel Aviv said:

Juergen,

No I haven’t. Also I wasn’t aware of a German official’s visit here. Who is the official, and what was the statement about?
.

March 16th, 2012, 10:18 am

 

Amir in Tel Aviv said:

The Friday of Footwear Fetish.
.

March 16th, 2012, 10:19 am

 

Mina said:

Could we play politic fiction? I fail to understand how the witch hunt and the focus on Asma, Bashar, and Asma’s father, may help to avoid a long civil war in Syria.
So since a lot of the SC pro revo commentators ask for Bashar’s head everyday, could you explain me how you see “day 2” ?
So let’s say that day 1, Bashar and his close family, including Maher, leave the country.
You are left with Hafez’s old guard of governors, and the mafious establishment.
Then what? The Republican guards and some security services pledge allegiance to the revolution. But do you expect them to give their weapons? Do you expect them to let the city hall start to be ruled by a former “Amr ibn al As militia”?
Please explain me how you see day 2 and day 3.

March 16th, 2012, 10:20 am

 

irritated said:

282. Ghufran said:

“Syrian government will allow UN observers according to a UN source.”

If it is true, after the imminent collapse of the SNC and the fall of their strongholds, that’s one more bad news for the armed opposition and a good one for the civilians.

March 16th, 2012, 10:22 am

 

Juergen said:

Aljazeera wrote on their Syrian updates that fridays crowd of millions on Omayad square were not more than 136,000 people.

“Our estimate? Around 136,000 people could have attended Thursday’s demonstration, assuming the whole area of the crowd – around 340,000 square feet – was elbow-to-elbow.”

If you see SANA pictures of the event elbow to elbow sounds not so real.

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/liveblog/Syria

March 16th, 2012, 10:25 am

 

irritated said:

SL #286

“Syrians and foreigners alike, who have always had to be guarded and careful in what they say on the phone and by email:

You mean the millions of tourists and millions of emails and phone calls were being watched and screened?
I wonder where they recruited Syrians speaking and reading so many languages.

March 16th, 2012, 10:31 am

 

irritated said:

#291 Juergen

“Aljazeera wrote on their Syrian updates that fridays crowd of millions on Omayad square were not more than 136,000 people.”

To be more precise ; 136,052
Al Jazeera transform hundreds to hundred of thousands ONLY when it is the opposition

March 16th, 2012, 10:33 am

 

Juergen said:

Amir

Sigmar Gabriel, he was once minister for environment, now he is the opposition leader( SPD) and may be the next chancellor. He was in Hebron and posted the statement on facebook: “I was just in Hebron. This is a legal vacuum for Palestinians. This is an apartheid regime, for which there is no justification.”

March 16th, 2012, 10:33 am

 

Juergen said:

Irritated

come on stop being naive.This regime is in control not because everyone loves Bashar so much, without the repression put out by the muhabarat system and thousands of employees and much more working secretly for the muhabarat we would have seen an end to this long time before.

March 16th, 2012, 10:46 am

 

Syrialover said:

# 250. OMEN

That report a couple of weeks ago of Assad’s father in law criticizing the regime was apparently not true, according to follow up at the time.

What we have now learnt from Assadgate of his activities supports this.

March 16th, 2012, 10:49 am

 

Tara said:

Mina

“could we play..?”

Sorry. We don’t play or smile. I personally stopped doing that last Thursday.

—–

Zoo, if i can’t get you to smile, I won’t either. Meany Tara from now on.

March 16th, 2012, 10:52 am

 

Syrialover said:

# 292. Irritated

Neat editing by you to twist the facts.

I said “those LIVING inside Syria, Syrians and foreigners alike” are aware they could be under electronic surveillance.

March 16th, 2012, 11:04 am

 

Son of Damascus said:

SyriaLover,

DBOX is streaming the Syrian documentaries for free online until the 18th.

http://dafilms.com/event/61/

March 16th, 2012, 11:21 am

 

Jad said:

Mina
As Ann wrote before, it has nothing to do with politics, it’s gay men hatred toward women.

March 16th, 2012, 11:33 am

 
 

Syrialover said:

Bashar’s best friend will have his backside set ablaze on 17 March when the international banks cut their ties with Iran at 4pm London time.

The Iranian regime is being spun into crisis mode by these unprecedented financial sanctions. They will bite far worse than anything previously.

The resulting economic fallout is expected to affect Iran’s domestic stability. The mullahs won’t have time or resources to play in little brother Bashar’s team.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-15/swift-will-halt-financial-messaging-for-sanctioned-iranian-banks.html

March 16th, 2012, 11:39 am

 

irritated said:

#297 Juergen

I am not surprised you share the same naive views as the West that are suddenly surprised and shocked that the replacement of a secular authoritian regime is another authoritarian religious regime as in Iran, Libya, Tunisia and Egypt, Yemen etc…

“the muhabarat we would have seen an end to this long time before.”
…and replaced by a tolerant Sunni islamist regime friendly to the West and to the minorities.

The weakening of the surveillance is the last few years is what has allowed all kind of underground movements to shape up.
Unfortunately not all are for the good of the country.

March 16th, 2012, 11:55 am

 

jad said:

I linked this news before, but today I can confirm it, it’s official all of the Syrian Christians of Alhamidiyeh were forced by the terrorists armed militias to leave and those armed men took over those people’s apartments to use it as bases for armed attacks so the army retaliate and to accuse it of attacking the religious minorities as they did before in front of that neighbourhood’s church:

مسلحو ” كتيبة الفاروق” أنهوا تهجير معظم مسيحيي أحياء حمص واستولوا على منازلهم بقوة السلاح
آخر المهجرين بقوة السلاح أستاذ جامعي وشقيقه من آل “غريبه”، والمسلحون داروا على المنازل بيتا بيتا وأبلغوا أصحابها : غادروا قبل أن نقتلكم ونبلغ”الجزيرة” بأن النظام قتلكم

حمص ، الحقيقة (خاص): علمت “الحقيقة” من مصادر كنسية في حمص بأن المدينة أصبحت شاغرة بنسبة 90 بالمئة تقريبا من المسيحيين ، ومن المتوقع أن يجري “تطهيرها” بالكامل من أبناء الطائفة المسيحية في غضون أيام أو أسابيع قليلة على أبعد تحديد على أيدي مسلحي “كتيبة الفاروق” الوهابيين. وقال مصدر في المطرانية الأرثوذوكسية لـ”الحقيقة” إن مسلحي “كتيبة الفاروق” داروا على بيوت المسيحيين بيتا بيتا في حيي”الحميدية” و” بستان الديوان”، وأبلغوهم بأن عليهم مغادرة بيوتهم ومدينة حمص فورا. وكشف المصدر أن آخر دفعة ممن شملتهم عملية التهجير بقوة السلاح كانت يوم أمس ، وشملت الدكتور طالب مشهور غريبة ، وهو أستاذ رياضيات في جامعة” البعث” بحمص ، وشقيقه الموسيقي مروان مشهور غريبة ( موسيقي في فرقة الفنان صباح فخري) ، القاطنين في حي “الحميدية” ، وشقيقتهما ماري مشهور غريبة التي تقيم في حي ” بستان الديوان”، وكذلك والدهم وزوجته المدرسة مها حبو ، اللذين يقيمان في مساكن حي “الوعر” الجديد. وشملت دفعة التهجير أيضا سكان بناية في حي “الحميدية” مؤلفة من ستة طوابق تقيم فيها 18 عائلة جميعها تقريبا من قرية “عيون الوادي”.

وقال المصدر الكنسي إن المسلحين أبلغوا أصحاب المنازل قبل مغادرتهم بأنهم وفي حال عدم المغادرة فورا سيطلقون عليهم النار ويصورون جثثهم ويرسلونها إلى “الجزيرة” على اعتبار أن “السلطة هي التي قتلتهم”! وأكد المصدر أن جميع من جرى تهجيرهم “لم يسمح لهم بأخذ أي شيء من ممتلكاتهم ، حتى ملابسهم الاحتياطية ، وفور خروجهم من المنازل جرى احتلالها من قبل المسلحين باعتبارها غنائم حرب من النصارى”!

يشار إلى أن عصابات ” كتيبة الفاروق” التي يسيطر عليها مسلحو “القاعدة” والوهابيون بمختلف ولاءاتهم التنظيمية ، ومرتزقة ليبيون وعراقيون وأفغان ، أقدمت الشسهر الماضي على استهداف كنيستين بالقذائف الصاروخية ، ما أدى إلى احتراق إحداهما وتضرر الأخرى.
http://www.syriatruth.org/news/tabid/93/Article/6923/Default.aspx

March 16th, 2012, 11:59 am

 

Syrialover said:

305. # Irritated

“The weakening of the surveillance is the last few years is what has allowed all kind of underground movements to shape up.
Unfortunately not all are for the good of the country.”

Ah, so you are saying the regime took their eyes off Syria’s rural poor.

Not any more.

March 16th, 2012, 12:07 pm

 

jad said:

The terrorists formed another armed gang, they call it ‘Rafik Al7ariri’ and immediately the Future movement of Lebanon denied any link..how sad!
Worth noting that those terrorists are now having a tank on top of their rpgs and big guns so we may see the ‘results’ on TV through another massacre with the criminals claiming that someone else did it…as usual for these days!

سرية الشهيد رفيق الحريري
http://youtu.be/MdAvXSd6T5s

Future Movement denies link to ‘Rafik Hariri Brigade’
BEIRUT: Future Movement spokesperson Ayman Jezzini denied Friday any links to the “Martyr Rafik Hariri Brigade,” a group that recently announced its formation on YouTube and claims to be made up of Syrian army defectors based in Idlib province.

“We have nothing to do with the [Syrian] revolution,” Jezzini told The Daily Star.

“We support human rights, the right of expression and free speech and we have nothing to do with that,”

Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Politics/2012/Mar-16/166899-future-movement-denies-link-to-rafik-hariri-brigade.ashx#ixzz1pIRv5LdG
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)

March 16th, 2012, 12:10 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

Assad is a stupid person. That is very obvious. He is basically a death body. But he is not responsible for the mess at the end. Those who should be politically responsible for what has happened in Syria are the memebrs of parliament who elected this silly and mentally unabled person as the president of a whole state. I remember the day Assad died. Street were deserted and all people looking at Syrian Tv. When the president of the parliamnet said ¨Bil ijmaa¨ then we knew that a great mistake was being done. Although we never imagined to what degree the fear apparatus would be able to avoid any reforms.

History will see Assad as a stupid politician who destroyed his father heritage.

March 16th, 2012, 12:11 pm

 

jad said:

Regarding the new star ‘Hadeel’ announcement on BBC, Razan Ghazawai a famous Syrian blogger reply:
“Your words about raping the detainee is a lie”:

رزان غزاوي ترد على هديل كوكي: كلامك عن اغتصاب المعتقلات “اتهام باطل”

انتقدت رزان غزاوي، الناشطة السورية في المركز السوري لحرية الإعلام والتعبير، تصريحات الناشطة السورية المسيحية “هديل كوكي” في الأمم المتحدة والتي قالت فيها إن “جميع النساء المعتقلات تعرضن للإغتصاب” خلال مداخلة لها في الأمم المتحدة.

وقالت رزان غزاوي على صفحتها على الفيسبوك: “هديل كوكي تقول أن جميع النساء المعتقلات في الأفرع الأمنية للنظام تمّ اغتصابهنّ. تعميمعها خطير وباطل ولا يجب تحت أي ذريعة استدراج أي تنديد دولي وحقوقي بناء على اتهامات باطلة ضد النظام. فلدينا ما يكفي من توثيق جرائم ضد الانسانية ارتكبها النظام ويرتكبها يوميا بحق المدنيين العزل. لا أدري من أعطى كوكي الحق بالتحدث باسمي وباسم جميع المعتقلات ونشر هكذا أقوال. مما يثير في داخلي شكوك بصحة روايتها آسفة”.

وعلى صعيد متصل، قال أحد رجال الدين المسيحيين في سوريا لموقع “سيريا بوليتيك” حول كلام هديل كوكي عن وجود “اضطهاد رسمي للمسيحيين في سوريا” بالقول إن “النظام لم يعتقل هديل لأنها مسيحية ولم يعتقل فلان الفلاني لأنه مسلم أو مهما كان، فالنظام يعتقل من يصدر قرار باعتقاله لقيامه بنشاط ما بصرف النظر عن دينه، ولكن هناك جهات أخرى تستهدف المسيحيين لأنهم مسيحيون وقم تم تهجير آلاف العائلات المسيحية من أماكن سكنها في مناطق عديدة في سوريا على يد جماعات قادمة من خارج سوريا، والإتحاد الأوربي والفاتيكان ورجال الدين المسيحيين في الشرق الأوسط لديهم التفاصيل والأرقام الكاملة، والجهات الغربية تخشى التنديد العلني بما تعرض المسيحيون خشية أن يعطي تنديدها هذا نقطة إيجابية لصالح النظام”.

وأضاف رجل الدين المسيحي “نتعاطف مع أي سوري يدخل السجون ويتعرض لمعاملة سيئة بصرف النظر عن دينه ومذهبه، ولكن يجب أن نكون أكثر دقة عندما نتكلم كأشخاص باسم دين أو باسم جميع الناس، وليتحدث كل شخص عن نفسه فقط”.

http://www.syria-politic.com/ar/Default.aspx?subject=464#.T2NnGMWPVyI

March 16th, 2012, 12:18 pm

 

jad said:

Adonis: “The Islamists and the Americans are the only winners of the Arab Spring”

أدونيس: لم يجن ثمار الربيع العربي غير الإسلاميين والأميركيين
وكالات – عربي برس

أكد الشاعر السوري أدونيس أن ثورات “الربيع العربي”، تعد المرة الأولى التي لا يقلد العرب فيها الغرب، ولذلك فإنها الاستثناء، موضحا أن هذه الثورات كانت السبب في وصول الإسلاميين إلى الحكم في تونس ومصر، ولجوء المعارضة المتصدرة للمشهد السياسي في ليبيا وسورية إلى الاستنجاد بدعم الغرب لإسقاط الأنظمة القائمة في بلدانها.
وبرر أدونيس في حواره مع برنامج “مع زينة يازجي من باريس” على شاشة تليفزيون دبي، تراجع إعجابه بثورات الربيع العربي بالقول: لم يجن ثمار هذه اللحظة الثورية غير الإسلاميين والتجار والأميركيين.
وفيما يتعلق بموقفه من الأزمة السورية، قال أدونيس إنه لن يدعم أبداً ثورة تنطلق من الجامع، مشدداً على أن الثورة الحقيقية، ، يجب أن تخرج من الجامعة وليس من الجامع

http://arabi-press.com/?page=article&id=27722

March 16th, 2012, 12:26 pm

 

zoo said:

Assad’s Frustrated Foreign Enemies
By: Ibrahim al-Amin
Published Wednesday, March 14, 2012
http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/assad%E2%80%99s-frustrated-foreign-enemies

Various parties have been assessing the outlook for the crisis in Syria based on the evidence on the ground. The domestic scene is set to remain polarized for a long time. National understandings that can restore the country’s political unity and a cohesive national identity cannot be expected any time soon. The external scene has meanwhile become more complicated in light of the intensifying battle between the two camps over who will take hold of Syria, or who will wield the most influence in it.

On the domestic front, sources recently in Damascus say the political split is as sharp as ever. The pro-regime camp is holding together and its members have become more politically hard-line in their intolerance of all moves made by any opposition group. They deem the battle to be one against groups that have been armed – not just militarily but also in the political, propaganda, and economic senses – to target Syria, and not just its regime. They see President Bashar Assad as a symbol, and they want him to make no concessions at present. This loyalty has been accompanied by mobilization which has a minority, sectarian, and confessional dimension, though this is not fully reflected in the big cities.

On the other side, opposition groups loudly trumpet their rejection of any kind of dialogue with the regime. Indeed, they have moved on to refusing to deal with the regime’s institutions, conflating the state with the regime. They have thus started justifying attacks by gunmen on policemen and police stations or public institutions, or the bombing of vital infrastructure, as well as seeking to maximize pressure on the Syrian pound. They have also become increasingly virulent in their verbal attacks on people in the regime, and also on sects and denominations, betraying their need to keep tensions high.

A third group, which grows in size by the day, fears for Syria. This includes people who refuse to be asked where they stand. They are no longer prepared to get into a debate about who is right and who is wrong. Their concern is for the country’s unity and stability, and that priority overrides all others – even while they concur that this view ultimately works to the advantage of the regime at present.
(..)

March 16th, 2012, 12:37 pm

 

jad said:

Syria accepted most of the UNCHR suggestions, stopping torture and illegal raids on citizens’ houses:

ضمنها وقف التعذيب ومداهمة المنازل .. سورية تعلن موافقتها على مجمل توصيات مجلس حقوق الإنسان

(دي برس)
أعلنت سوريا الخميس 15-3-2012 أمام مجلس حقوق الإنسان في جنيف الموافقة والعمل على تنفيذ توصيات المجلس، ودمج التعريفات القضائية الواردة في معاهدات حقوق الإنسان على نحو فعال في التشريعات الوطنية، وحظر التعذيب والتوقيف الأمني ومداهمة المنازل والتي قدمتها بعض الدول في إطار الاستعراض الدوري الشامل لملفها.
{…}
المصدر: http://www.dp-news.com/pages/detail.aspx?articleid=114662#ixzz1pIaV2jyq

March 16th, 2012, 12:44 pm

 

jad said:

The same old lie of WMD, how convenient! The Brits and the Americans already have all the old materials to reuses:

Warning over Syrian WMD capability

A new warning has been given about the difficulties facing the international community in Syria about weapons of mass destruction.
Bruce Riedel, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington and a former CIA official, told the Today programme’s Justin Webb that Syria has been developing chemical weapons since the 1980s and has the “most sophisticated chemical and biological weapons arsenal in the Arab world” and “the means to deliver them”.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_9705000/9705865.stm

March 16th, 2012, 12:48 pm

 

jad said:

LOLOLOLOL
For this sectarian cook, Shia and Jewish food are ‘HARAM’ to coock…
عندالوهابية الطبخ الايراني غير جائز كي لاينتشر التشيع
http://youtu.be/S1L1ndymUHw

March 16th, 2012, 12:54 pm

 

bronco said:

Jad

Turkey is seeing with apprehension 500,000 Syrians re-occupying peacefully the province of Antakya that they stole to Syria.
Would they ever be able to send the back to Syria?

In Turkey, these people are considered “guests” as the Turkish law recognize the status of “refugees” only to Europeans fleeing war.

The UNHCR has no juridiction over the Syrians in Turkish camps as they are not ‘refugees’. A headache for the Turks.

March 16th, 2012, 1:11 pm

 

jad said:

Bronco,
That would be a great idea, it means that Syrians will regain Iskandaron without any fight.
The Ottomans of Ankara must be frustrated of the mess they stuck themselves in.
—————

After ‘Alhariri’ new terrorist gang, another one came out, this time with a saudi flag:

مجموعة بني خالد الارهابية السعودية في حمص
http://youtu.be/1Ssn_n5o9mc

March 16th, 2012, 1:25 pm

 

irritated said:

#318 Jad

Waiting for the Geagea brigade…

March 16th, 2012, 1:35 pm

 

Alan said:

No opposition group can bid for monopoly to speak from Syria people

http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c154/367760.html

MOSCOW, March 16 (Itar-Tass) —— No opposition group can claim for the monopoly right to speak on behalf of the Syrian people, Russian presidential representative for the Middle East and Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said on Friday.

“We believe that the top priority is to stop violence no matter from where it comes,” the Russian high-ranking diplomat said. “Weapon supplies to illegal armed groups should be averted, because Al Qaeda militants are known to join their ranks,” he said. “We oppose strongly a foreign interference with the use of military force,” he noted.

“The mechanism of monitoring should be developed to declare the ceasefire so that no one will seek to take advantage of the current situation,” Bogdanov pointed out. “In this respect, we consider the end to the LAS observer mission as a mistake,” he remarked.
“The second task is to make relief supplies to people affected in the combat actions,” the deputy foreign minister went on to say, adding that “the UN should play the leading role in this issue.” In this respect, Bogdanov recalled that Russia already began to settle this problem. “Russian emergency airplanes have brought about 78 tonnes of relief supplies, which were passed to the Syrian Red Crescent Society,” the deputy foreign minister said. The Russian government already decided to make a donor contribution of one million Swiss francs to the International Red Cross Committee.

“Our third task is the soonest launch of Syrian domestic dialogue between the government and all opposition groups without any preconditions and any hasty results,” Bogdanov remarked. “The national dialogue should be maintained simultaneously with the reforms, which the Syrian government announced,” he said.

The high-ranking diplomat noted that the Syrian referendum on a new constitution is an important step, “which Russia encouraged Damascus to take for a long time.” “The results of the referendum in Syria showed that the incumbent authorities enjoy a real support among people,” he said. “Therefore, no opposition group can claim for the monopoly right to speak on behalf of the Syrian people, moreover, to be their legitimate representative,” he underlined.

“We are keeping contacts with all representatives of Syrian opposition, there are many of them. I do not mention notorious extremists and terrorists, who are numerous in Syria,” he indicated. “This is beyond the scope of our contacts. I hope that our partners will also adhere to this,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Russian deputy foreign minister stated that Russian assessments on Syria are taken with understanding recently in the world.

March 16th, 2012, 1:37 pm

 

Alan said:

Russia considers dialogue only with Syrian opposition unacceptable

http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c154/367725.html

MOSCOW, March 16 (Itar-Tass) —— Russia does not intend to participate in a next meeting of the group of friends of Syria, Russian presidential envoy for the Middle East and Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov told a press briefing here on Friday.

“We did not participate in the previous meeting. We do not intend to participate in this meeting as well,” Bogdanov said. “The group of friends looks like the contact group for Libya,” the deputy foreign minister added.

Bogdanov noted that the group of friends is negotiating only with the Syrian opposition.

“It is unacceptable for us,” Bogdanov underlined.

March 16th, 2012, 1:39 pm

 

bronco said:

Jad

The Syrians have put mines in the area that Turkey was planning to occupy and to declare it a free zone. Turks intentions were to send back all the refugees as they cost them money since the UN will not support them. The law in Turkey does not recognize them as ‘refugees’ but as guests therefore not under the juridiction of the UNHCR. In addition these ‘guests’ may want to stay in a land that Syria owned and reclaim it peacefully. This is why the Turkish camps are like prisons where ‘guests’ are not allowed to move around freely or to talk to the press.

The Syrian army have disrupted this plan and, furious, Turkey is accusing the Syrian army of ‘preventing’ the refugees to leave by putting mines. Legal borders are open, why would the Syrians government prevent frightened women and childen to go to a safe place? In the contrary, without the civilians used as humans shields, dealing with the armed militias is much easier for the Syrian army.

March 16th, 2012, 1:49 pm

 

Alan said:

http://ecfr.eu/blog/entry/russias_syrian_dilemma/print

Russia’s Syrian dilemma

Dramatic developments in and increasingly active diplomacy around Syria over recent weeks have given rise, internationally, to several strings of heated debate. The projection of this debate on Russia, and Russia’s contribution into it, has taken vivid forms because of the ongoing presidential campaign and Moscow’s official decision to adopt a distinct position on Syria.

Within Russia, the ‘Arab Spring’ debate has focused on the internal, regional and global sources and security implications of sudden regime changes across the Arab world. The vast majority of Russian experts and officials have shared the widespread view that the revolutions in North Africa and Yemen opened the door to the forces of chaos and presented extremists of all stripes with new opportunities. Pointing to the victory of Islamist parties in Egypt’selections and continuing political uncertainty in Libya, these observers proudly claim to have warned, from the outset, that “it wasn’t going to get better anyway”. On these grounds, they strongly condemn foreign intervention in Libya as allegedly driven by the parochial interests of both Western powers and their Middle Eastern allies.

The second school of thought has emphasised the inevitability of the fall of Ben Ali, Mubarak, Qaddafi and Saleh. Its proponents have argued that the revolutionary nations had no other choice but to remove their stale dictators. This line of argument suggests they will become pluralist democracies in the distant but visible future, even if that road first takes them through a period of Islamist rule.

Both groups of Russian observers, as well as their like-minded international counterparts, are engaged in a search for convenient facts and arguments to claim moral victory. Yet neither school of thought is likely to emerge as a winner because they both succumb to an inadequate deterministic view of reality. What they miss is the highly contingent nature of both international and domestic politics – a clear reflection of the probabilistic and uncertain nature of the world.

Across both the Middle East and beyond, the turbulence is so strong that any turn of events has become possible even in the short term, to say nothing about the more distant future. According to known Chinese observers, who could boast unrivalled strategic vision, two centuries are too early to call the results of a revolution. In such a context, to predict, for example, that the ultimate beneficiaries of the Arab revolts will be different from the social strata that implemented the change of regimes looks naively deterministic.

Given to uncritical determinism, both schools of thought fail to see the important role of risky gambles with unpredictable outcomes (as opposed to implementation of pre-meditated strategies) and limited-choice situations (as opposed to the intentional application of ‘double standards’) in world politics. It may be more exciting to discuss why France and the UK recognised the Libyan rebel government so early in the conflict when even its stakeholders (to say nothing of the outcome) were totally unclear. What drove President Sarkozy and Prime Minister Cameron to gamble so hard when Gaddafi’s troops were closing in on Benghazi, with the Obama administration still undecided about the usefulness of an intervention? And even if such intervention was likely to happen at that point, no one could have predicted its result – as the actual course of events later demonstrated.

The second – ethical – question that escapes many Russian and international observers is whether the international community (including Russia) was left with a wide array of options after Colonel Gaddafi openly threatened to eviscerate a substantial part of the civilian population of Benghazi as his troops were bracing to enter the town. Posing this question appears similar to asking whether Soviet President Gorbachev had many decent choices available in 1990-91 when he was negotiating German reunification and the Soviet Union was unraveling on his watch. At the level of everyday life, one may ask himself whether he would feel deterred from punching a hooligan who has just insulted his female companion because the impending fight could “trigger instability” across the neighborhood or even the whole town (such things happened more than once in the world history). If he refrains from fighting, it would be for totally different reasons.

Assessment of the ‘Arab Spring’ has arguably informed the Russian approach to Syria. So far, Moscow’s official line has been to avoid placing the blame for the hostilities exclusively on President Assad, and preventing any form of outside intervention in Syria.

[…]

March 16th, 2012, 1:55 pm

 

son of Damascus said:

Massive protest in Al-Raqqa today.

March 16th, 2012, 1:55 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Bronco,

“why would the Syrians government prevent frightened women and childen to go to a safe place?”

So that they can butcher and rape them, hence why none of the refugees in Lebanon, Turkey, or Jordan used legal border crossing to get to safety.

March 16th, 2012, 1:59 pm

 

Alan said:

Syria: Towards a Political Solution

http://ecfr.eu/content/entry/syria_towards_a_political_solution

As the situation in Syria continues to deteriorate, the urgency of finding a political solution is increasing. Kofi Annan has launched this process, but more effort will be needed to unify the international community to exert pressure on Bashar al-Assad.

In this ECFR policy memo Julien Barnes-Dacey proposes a political strategy that gives Moscow the lead role in formulating a ceasefire, and accedes to its demand that negotiations with the regime not be preconditioned on Assad’s demise:

It is also increasingly apparent that a political resolution for the crisis in Syria is, at minimum, dependent on Russian acquiescence. Without pressure from Moscow, the regime will neither relent in its use of violence nor enter into a political process. Thus engaging with Russia may be the only way of halting the bloodshed and stopping Syria from falling into a deep and prolonged civil war.
The newly appointed UN-Arab League representative to Syria, Kofi Annan, should therefore begin a political process that gives Russia a lead role and includes direct negotiations with the regime despite the horrific nature of its crimes.

An international contact group that includes representatives of Russia, the regime and the opposition, as well Syria’s neighbours, should meet in order to set out the parameters for a ceasefire.

The international response should now be based on three strategic aims: Establishing an international consensus to end the violence, delinking the crisis from broader strategic aims and empowering the political opposition in Syria.

The intended aim of these different measures is to stop the violence and lay the groundwork for a subsequent political transition process.

March 16th, 2012, 1:59 pm

 

zoo said:

Turkey in escalating internal problems.

Fearing militant attacks, Turks arrest Kurdish activists
Thomas Seibert
Mar 17, 2012
http://www.thenational.ae/news/world/fearing-militant-attacks-turks-arrest-kurdish-activists
…
“People here are wondering whether a new war is about to start,” said Devrim Baris Baran, a lawyer in Diyarbakir, Turkey’s biggest Kurdish city.

In another sign of mounting tensions, police this week evacuated a group of 25 Kurdish construction workers from a building site in the western Turkish province of Kutahya. The evacuation came after a crowd of about 500 Turks tried to lynch the workers following a brawl between Kurds and Turks, news reports said. Officers smuggled the Kurds out of the danger zone by dressing them up in police uniforms.

The escalation came as Kurds in several cities gathered for the first rallies of the annual Newroz spring festival. Called Nowruz in Iran and Central Asia, the festival is celebrated on and around March 21.

In some cities of Turkey’s Kurdish region, traditional Newroz bonfires were lit this week, news reports said. Mass rallies are scheduled in Istanbul, home to hundreds of thousands of Kurds, and the main Kurdish city of Diyarbakir tomorrow.

The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a rebel group fighting for Kurdish self-rule and against the Turkish state since 1984, has called for a mass turnout during this year’s festival.

“Newroz is a festival of resistance, unity and freedom,” Murat Karayilan, the acting PKK leader, said this week. He said the rallies in Istanbul and in Diyarbakir were of special significance.
(..)

March 16th, 2012, 2:00 pm

 

Alan said:

Annan urges UN to unite for Syria peace
http://rt.com/news/annan-address-un-syria-769/
==============================================
Valerya 307
Federal Reserve Bank Scam and
Monetary System Videos
http://www.bushstole04.com/monetarysystem/fed_embed_video.htm

March 16th, 2012, 2:07 pm

 

Alan said:

Genocidal Turkish Government Eyes Syria
http://www.activistpost.com/2012/03/genocidal-turkish-government-eyes-syria.html

Shoot In The Foot: Iran oil ban to recoil on EU

March 16th, 2012, 2:13 pm

 

Alan said:

[ Fixed broken link]

Peacing Together: How long till West intervenes in Syria?

US admits Israel is arming and training terrorist groups to create terrorism

So much for this War on Terror! It is actually War OF Terror. This is proof THEY are creating terror directly and indirectly. This was shown live on US television !!

Deadly attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists are being carried out by an Iranian dissident group that is financed, trained and armed by Israel’s secret service, U.S. officials tell NBC News, confirming charges leveled by Iran’s leaders.

The group, the People’s Mujahedin of Iran, has long been designated as a terrorist group by the United States, accused of killing American servicemen and contractors in the 1970s and supporting the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran before breaking with the Iranian mullahs in 1980.

The attacks, which have killed five Iranian nuclear scientists since 2007 and may have destroyed a missile research and development site, have been carried out in dramatic fashion, with motorcycle-borne assailants often attaching small magnetic bombs to the exterior of the victims’ cars.

U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Obama administration is aware of the assassination campaign but has no direct involvement.

March 16th, 2012, 2:19 pm

 

Juergen said:

SOD

thanks for sharing the news about the films, now i have a plan for the eveing!

March 16th, 2012, 2:21 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

This is how the regime responds to peaceful protest in Al Raqqa.

March 16th, 2012, 2:23 pm

 

Atheist Syrian Salafist Against Dictatorships said:

قال أدونيس إنه لن يدعم أبداً ثورة تنطلق من الجامع، مشدداً على أن الثورة الحقيقية، ، يجب أن تخرج من الجامعة وليس من الجامع

And look what they have done to the revolution that came out of the university, of Aleppo in this case, look how they arrested and beat and tortured and murdered the students who tried to protest peacefully. Has Adonis been speaking out FOR them, supporting them? But they don’t need his support and they continue to try to demonstrate despite the horrendous brutality of the Assadist Mafiosi and Associates.

March 16th, 2012, 2:24 pm

 

irritated said:

#332 SOD

I don’t see any protesters… Where are they?
BTW, I am muting soundtracks, as I have no prof of their authenticity

March 16th, 2012, 2:32 pm

 

SOn of Damascus said:

Juergen,

My pleasure, but the original thanks should be to SyriaLover as he pointed out that these movies are playing in various cities across the globe, from the website he linked I found that they are streaming free online as well.

By the way my apologies for mistyping your name, I keep missing the first E.

March 16th, 2012, 2:32 pm

 

son of Damascus said:

Irritated,

“I don’t see any protesters… Where are they?”

I guess you missed the first post about Al Raqqa.

https://www.joshualandis.com/blog/?p=13992&cp=7#comment-301484

I will mention to you when a CSI team has gone over the videos so that they can authenticate the sounds for you.

March 16th, 2012, 2:34 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

The monster is awaken and everyone around him is in danger. For 40 years all neighbours stayed in silence watching the syrian monster sleeping comfortably. From time to time the monster wake up and was given some human lifes in order to calm him and fall asleep once again. But this time the monster has been waken up from its own sons and is very furious. The beast is ready to kill through PKK and Alawi terrorists in Turkey, to kill christians, sunnis and druzes and destroy in Lebanon through the men of the Old of the Mountain, to introduce tons and tons of explosive devices to be activated in Iraki markets. If someone wishes to survive in this Middle East show be wise enough to exterminate the Beast as soon as possible before it gets too late.

Is may be much easier than it seems. Just making Bashar, Maher and Assef disapear all the rest could be easier than anyone ever imagined.

March 16th, 2012, 2:36 pm

 

irritated said:

#325 SOD

Ah I see, that’s the pastime of the 300,000 sunnis, alawites, druze, christans army conscripts, raping and butchering. I thought they were busy ‘bombing’ and destroying cities to dislodge the armed gangs who are butchering and raping.

And that’s the army that will rule after Bashar is removed? Sounds promising.

March 16th, 2012, 2:40 pm

 

Tara said:

ASSAD

Thank you. Eloquently put.

What a hypocrite Adonis. Noises noises noises to blur the truth.

Will be victorious with or without those hypocrites.

March 16th, 2012, 2:41 pm

 

irritated said:

#337 SL

“Just making Bashar, Maher and Assef disapear all the rest could be easier than anyone ever imagined.

Why wait, go for it! Oh, maybe you forgot your magic wand!

March 16th, 2012, 2:42 pm

 

irritated said:

#336 SOD

Maybe they should have been merged during the editing. Like this they make no sense at all as they seem to have been taken in a different location, maybe they have been actually.

March 16th, 2012, 2:46 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Irritated,

I never blamed the entire Syrian Army, or the army for that matter. I blamed the regime, and continue to blame the regime for everything that has happened.

I know that not the entire Syrian Army has not been used, and that is why to this day I don’t support any military intervention against the regime because I would like to see our country be able to defend itself (However the 4th Brigade, Republican Guard and any paramilitary units including the Moukhabarat to be dissolved).

If you really care about my opinion regarding this subject please see what I wrote on 7ee6an the other day.

https://7ee6an.wordpress.com/2012/02/28/no-title/#comment-6965

March 16th, 2012, 2:48 pm

 

irritated said:

#325 SOD said:

“none of the refugees in Lebanon, Turkey, or Jordan used legal border crossing to get to safety.”

It seems that the refugees are passing legally through the Turkish borders

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/syrians-flee-to-turkey-as-syria-plants-mines-on-border.aspx?PageID=238&NID=16075&NewsCatID=338

The number of Syrians arriving at the Turkish border is increasing daily as Turkish officials ready themselves for every scenario involving the mass arrival of people mostly women, children and youngsters. “We are getting ready for any scenario, there is the expectation that the numbers will rise,” said the foreign ministry spokesman Unal.

In Sanliurfa province, near the halfway point of Turkey’s 910-kilometre (560-mile) border with Syria, Turkey has already started building a massive camp site that can house up to 20,000 people, Anatolia news agency reported Wednesday.

Jordan legal border:

Jordanian officials have estimated that there are 80,000 Syrian refugees who have legally entered the country from Syria across Jordan’s northern border. Ankara says 10,000 Syrians have trickled into Turkey.

Lebanon legal border

In Lebanon, the U.N. High Commission for Refugees and the Higher Relief Council in the north estimates some 7,000 Syrian refugees, registered with the agency, have crossed into Lebanon since the uprising in neighboring Syria began in mid-March of 2011.

Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Politics/2012/Mar-15/166768-riyadh-to-provide-relief-for-syrian-refugees-in-lebanon-turkey-jordan.ashx#ixzz1pJA9pDdh

March 16th, 2012, 2:59 pm

 

irritated said:

#342 SOD

Sorry, your analysis cannot be taken seriously if you keep using animal names to depict people. I have no interests in the Jungle Book.

March 16th, 2012, 3:10 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Irritated,

Desperate Syrians dodge bullets in border dash
Ruth Pollard, Ramtha
March 17, 2012

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/desperate-syrians-dodge-bullets-in-border-dash-20120316-1vas8.html#ixzz1pJBnbc8O

Syrian refugees pour across border into Lebanon

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1140993–syrian-refugees-pour-across-border-into-lebanon

And this one is from UNHCR

http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/topic,4565c22514,4565c25f1eb,4ddb87232,0,,,.html

March 16th, 2012, 3:13 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Irritaed,

“Sorry, your analysis cannot be taken seriously if you keep using animal names to depict people. I have no interests in the Jungle Book.”

Then you better find a new hero, Assad is arabic for Lion. I much rather his old family name Wahesh.

March 16th, 2012, 3:14 pm

 
 

irritated said:

#345 SOD

Lots of dramatic inventions that blurs the reality, Sorry, but the story of the truck driver sounds totally invented.

After shooting at him and killing more than 10 persons ( who were they?, why would the Syrian military give him back his truck and let him pass the border!! It sounds absurd.

“He managed to reclaim his truck from the military compound and drove the painful eight kilometres across the Turkish border,”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/desperate-syrians-dodge-bullets-in-border-dash-20120316-1vas8.html#ixzz1pJG6lWev

March 16th, 2012, 3:31 pm

 

ann said:

Talks with Syria continue, decisions to be made by Syrian people: Annan – 2012-03-17

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/17/c_122845808.htm

“I was encouraged by the very strong support and the determination of the coucil to work together and I hope pretty soon you’ll be hearing one voice from the council,” he told reporters after a close-door briefing to the security council by video about his mission to Syria.

“As long as you believe the discussions and talks you are having are meaningful, I think you should continue; if you come to the conclusion or make the judgement that it’s waste of time or one side is playing for time, you draw the consequences and take appropriate action,” he said.

“We need to handle the situation in Syria very very carefully. Any miscalculation that leads to major escalation will have impact in the region which will be extremely difficult to manage,” he warned.

He again emphasized that decisions should be made by the Syrian people.

[…]

March 16th, 2012, 4:27 pm

 

zoo said:

The Neocon view

Advantages of a Syrian War
Morton Abramowitz
March 16, 2012
http://nationalinterest.org/commentary/considering-syrian-war-6646?page=1
…
A military attack on Syria would need the whole-hearted political and material support of Turkey and Arab states. That is by no means assured.
…
The politically besieged Turkish military is averse to invading an Arab country and concerned that a Syrian Kurdish entity might emerge from Syria’s internal disorder.

Arab support, particularly the Saudis, who talk much about supplying arms to the opposition but apparently do little, is also politically indispensable.
…
To have this effect on Iran, President Obama must first send an unmistakable message to Assad: unless he is prepared to give up power, his government will be destroyed. Such a military effort cannot win UN approval and requires a coalition of the willing.
…

How Iran would respond is obviously uncertain. But the United States should consider the opportunity to change the regional dynamics in a way that might end or put off the nuclear issue and create domestic upheaval in Iran. One cannot preclude that an U.S. attack on Syria would harden Iran’s dedication to developing nuclear weapons. But though it would be hard to propose and defend, the United States would be starting a war in Syria in part to prevent a far bigger war with uncertain but immense consequences. There seems little doubt that it would result in two desirable outcomes for U.S. strategy: hastening the end of the Syrian conflict and creating a new climate for negotiating the stalemate with Iran.
…

March 16th, 2012, 4:59 pm

 

jad said:

Bronco,

Check this out, more trouble ahead to the MBs council, the Neo-ottomans threatening the SNC not to let them in the second episode of ‘enemies of Syria’ charade:

خاص – تركيا تهدد المعارضة السورية بإستبعادها عن مؤتمر اسطنبول

مدحت أبو هادي – مصر
في العام الأول على إنطلاقتها، تقف قيادات الثورة السورية على مفترق طرق خطير يحدد وحدة ما تبقى منها، فبعد تباهي قادة المجلس الوطني السوري المعارض حتى الأمس القريب بأنهم يمثلون الشارع السوري دون غيرهم، وبان السوريين المعارضين في اعطوا رأيهم في هيئات التنسيق الوطنية بفرعيها الداخلي والمهجر، وقالوا كلمتهم في هيثم المناع ولؤي حسين وحسن عبد العظيم وميشال كيلو، إنتقلت الخلافات إلى البيت الداخلي للمجلس الوطني وخاصة بين أركان المكتب التنفيذي الذي يعتبر مركز القرار في هذا المجلس.
معارض سوري مقيم في مصر اشار لعربي برس إلى “أن الخلافات بين اركان المعارضة آخذة في التفاقم على نحو أوسع ما قد يهدد مشاركة المجلس والهيئات المنشقة عنه في مؤتمر اصدقاء سورية المزمع عقده في إسطنبول”مضيفاً” وصلت رسائل تركية حازمة غلى المعارضين تهددهم بإمكانية إستبعادهم عن المؤتمر إذا ما استمروا ينسجون على منوال الخلافات بين بعضهم البعض، ووصل التهديد التركي إلى حد إمكانية إلغاء المؤتمر وفضح المعارضين أمام الشعب السوري والعالم لأنه لم يعد مطاقاً ما يفعلونه، فالمطالب إنخفضت من إسقاط النظام السوري ورحيله إلى إنتزاع شرعية من يمثل المعارضة ومن ينتزع كرسيها في مؤتمر اسطنبول”.
{…}
http://arabi-press.com/?page=article&id=27772

March 16th, 2012, 5:12 pm

 

zoo said:

Turkey seems obliged to consider a military confrontation with Syria as Syria will surely refuse to create buffer zones on its territory. Enough one Iskenderun.
Otherwise Hatay refugees and militants camps may become the new “Ashraf” camp.
Turkey is in a quagmire.

http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-forces-press-offensive-idlib-45-killed-003820365.html

Turkey said on Friday it might set up a “buffer zone” inside Syria to protect refugees fleeing President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, raising the prospect of foreign intervention in the year-long revolt.
…
At a refugee camp near the village of Boynu Yogun,, Syrians celebrated with songs and chants against Assad when they heard Erdogan’s comments broadcast on live television.

“This is what we wanted from the beginning. We want all the civilians in this area protected,” said Walid Hassan, one of the refugees, who fled Syria nine months ago.

Turkey has become a hub of the anti-Assad movement, hosting the main opposition umbrella alliance and the rebel Free Syrian Army. As such it has a unique insight into the growing division among the groups that could complicate any establishment of a new administration in Damascus.

….

March 16th, 2012, 5:12 pm

 

Mawal95 said:

A report in the daily newspaper “The Telegraph” of Calcutta, India, dated 14 mar 2012: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120314/jsp/opinion/story_15244649.jsp :

One day during my stay in Damascus two weeks ago, I watched Al Jazeera announce the “breaking news” of demonstrations against the Syrian government in Duma on the outskirts of the capital. I jumped into a taxi and persuaded the reluctant driver to take me there. To my initial puzzlement and subsequent revulsion, I found that Duma was as peaceful and bustling as Calcutta’s Park Street on a normal day, its residents going about their business as usual. To be sure, I asked around, but no one knew anything about any protests in their midst that day although many had heard about it on Al Jazeera. There had been demonstrations against the government in Duma, but the last time its residents protested was almost two months ago, in the third week of January, according to residents there. [MAWAL95 comment from info at Youtube: There have been some small protests since January in Duma but they’ve been far smaller than what they were during the first three weeks of January].

I sympathized with a European diplomat in Damascus who confessed to having seriously bungled and learned a lesson that he will not easily forget for the rest of his career. This diplomat recently sent a cable to his headquarters in good faith that the Opposition “Free Syrian Army” had destroyed a two-storey building that housed an important defence establishment, a significant advance for the so-far motley crew of rebels. The matter would have rested there. But a few days after the telegram was sent, another diplomat from the same embassy passed by the building that was supposed to have been destroyed and reported to his colleague what he saw. The building was still standing and intact. It turned out that the embassy’s original information had come from another employee at the embassy who had only heard about the destruction of the building on Al Jazeera: she had not gone to the site to check the report for its veracity.

Another European diplomat had a bizarre experience. He was watching disturbingly violent and graphic images from Syria on an Arabic news channel. One clipping showed a burning building in Homs. Accompanying these images was the voice of a young girl who was wailing that her house had been set on fire by Assad’s thugs. This diplomat happened to know the country much better than most of his European contemporaries and, as is the norm now in Damascus, he was recording this news footage. He played it again and again later only to realize that the burning property in question in Homs was actually the ruling Ba’ath Party‘s headquarters there, a building he knew well. It was nobody’s home as the newscast alleged. It is reasonable to assume that the building was set ablaze by the Opposition and then filmed for use as suitable propaganda.

I got the link to the above report from the following page, a blog for news about Syria in English that has new content at least hourly, 24 hours a day, seven days a week : http://www.facebook.com/lists/247693938657345

March 16th, 2012, 5:12 pm

 

Aldendeshe said:

“…History will see Assad as a stupid politician who destroyed his father heritage…”

His father left no heritage other than 40,000 dead in Hama and a destitute Syria, a notch above Somalia , run by a puppet face for a corrupt, murderous mafia regime.

March 16th, 2012, 5:15 pm

 

Aldendeshe said:

Can’t write that good in Arabic, could not express my though and opinion in an articulate way in that language. But I found this on Al Hakika website that is pretty much all what I wanted to say in Arabic and could not. This expresses it all, except, it left the thoughts about the backers and incompetence of the plotters:

[ Link added: http://www.syriatruth.org/news/tabid/93/Article/6935/Default.aspx ]

دمشق ، الحقيقة ( خاص + رويترز + أ ف ب): جردة حساب أولى يمكن الخلاص إليها بعد مرور عام على اندلاع الانتفاضة السورية : “نصر للسلطة في الجولة الأولى بالنقاط”! ولم يكن هذا ـ بطبيعة الحال ـ بفضل قوة السلطة العسكرية والأمنية ، ولا بفضل قوتها السياسية والأخلاقية والاقتصادية ، ولكن بفضل الانحطاط السياسي والأخلاقي الذي طبع القوى السياسية التي اغتصبت النطق باسم الشارع ، داخلا وخارجا، وهيمنة الظاهرة”العرعورية” بطيفها الواسع عليه منذ وقت مبكر وبعد أشهر إن لم يكن أسابيع قليلة على الانتفاضة ، وانحدار تلك القوى إلى مستوى من الإسفاف والكذب والخداع والجبن الأخلاقي والارتماء في أحضان قوى خارجية أقل ما يقال فيها إنها العدو التاريخي المزمن لمصالح الشعب السوري الحقيقية، بما في ذلك إسرائيل نفسها ، التي أصبحت محجا لعدد غير قليل من رموز تلك القوى!

March 16th, 2012, 5:24 pm

 

ann said:

Russia warns attacks on Syrian president counterproductive – 2012-03-16

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/16/c_122845683.htm

MOSCOW, March 16 (Xinhua) — All Western claims that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was illegitimate were “counterproductive,” Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Mikhail Bogdanov, said Friday.

“We believe that option is absolutely unacceptable and will result in grave consequences for the Syrians and for stability and security in the region as a whole,” he said.

The diplomat said the West’s position sent a false message to the opposition that there was no sense starting a dialogue, and they should rely on Western and NATO support as happened in Libya.

Earlier Friday, Bogdanov warned against foreign interference in Syria, saying Russia would not support such actions at the U.N. Security Council.

He said that Moscow would not allow a repeat in Syria of the the Libyan scenario, when the U.N. Security Council decisions were implemented “in the wrong way.”

[…]

March 16th, 2012, 5:26 pm

 

bronco said:

351. jad said:

Erdogan is overwhelmed with internal problems. The SNC is becoming a real burden and the Syrians ‘refugees’ a long term threat.
His only chance is Kofi Annan so he might as well support him and force his ‘guests’ to do the same.

March 16th, 2012, 5:26 pm

 

zoo said:

Majority of Americans oppose intervening in Syria, new poll finds
By Laura Rozen | The Envoy – Thu, Mar 15, 2012

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/envoy/majority-americans-oppose-intervening-syria-poll-finds-182203574.html

Almost two-thirds of Americans oppose any form of U.S. military intervention in Syria, according to a new poll released Thursday by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.
…

March 16th, 2012, 5:30 pm

 

ann said:

[ Edited ]

As Annan Briefs UN SC, Syria’s Six Point Response Put Online by ICP: Discussion in Damascus Sunday

http://www.innercitypress.com/syria9kofiICP031612.html

UNITED NATIONS, March 16, updated — Syria asked Kofi Annan as Joint Special Envoy of the UN and Arab League to get guarantees from neighboring states not to arm the opposition, accoring to a translation of Syria’s answer obtained by Inner City Press. Only after that could there be monitoring.

Inner City Press obtained a copy of the “unofficial translation” of the “non-paper answer of the Syrian government,” which ICP is now exclusively putting online here.

Update: Inner City Press asked Syrian Ambassador Ja’afari about the “non-paper.” He said that this “Syrian answer” is in the nature of an “aide memoire,” informal, and will all be discussed as a “comprehensive political process,” not as preconditions, “on the technical level” beginning Sunday in Damascus. He did not answer if Arab League selected Deputy Nasser al Kidwa can go. Video here, from Minute 3:10.

In Point 2 Syria stated:

“it is requested from the Special Envoy to provide guarantees to the Syrian government that the armed groups will cease all armed aggressions and give up their weapons to the dedicated authorities in exchange for a full pardon.

“It is also demanded from the Special Envoy that the neighboring countries take necessary measures to control the traffic of armaments through their borders.

[…]

Sources told Inner City Press that Annan had not directly conveyed to Council members Assad’s first answer, but rather asked Russia to help with persuading Assad. Inner City Press obtained a copy of the “unofficial translation” of the “non-paper answer of the Syrian governemnt,” which ICP is now exclusively putting online here.

There are six points, beginning with cooperation with Annan, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Syria asks Annan to get guarantees from neighboring states not to arm the opposition — only after that could there be monitoring.

[…]

March 16th, 2012, 5:35 pm

 

Mawal95 said:

Arab and Western governments have stated that they wish the Syrian security forces to withdraw from enforcing security on Syria’s streets first, and then the rebels to stop their violence second. Ban Ki-moon on 13 Mar 2012 said Syria’s security forces should be first to halt the violence: “It is Syrian national security forces… which started [the violence] so they must stop first. Once it is done we will have a means to ensure that opposition will stop the violence,” Ban Ki-moon said.

http://turtlebay.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/03/13/ban_presses_security_council_to_adopt_another_watered_down_syria_resolution

Looking at the sentence in bold italics, I cannot believe Ban Ki-moon could be as stupendously stupid as to believe it in good faith, so I must believe it’s not being said in good faith.

March 16th, 2012, 5:40 pm

 
 

Tara said:

Zoo@352

Turkey next step appears to be the hottest item nowadays.

I think it is quite the opposite. Turkey creating the buffer zone to accommodate the influx of Syrian refugees might be indeed the straw that will bring Bashar down. His army is stretched too thin. The republic guards and the forth brigade are used to subdue Syrian towns. If they are to be used fighting with The Turkish military, the FSA will take over all the hot area as all Sunnis conscripts will defect and join the resistance. If he to use the Sunni conscripts to fight the Turks, they will also defect toTurkey. Bushbush will not be able to sustain a war with Turkey and a war against the Syrian people at the same time.

Unfortunately, I bet he is smart enough to realize that. He will not open a front with Turkey. He has no meat with them. His first goal is to kill dissident and stay on top of that chair. Syrian lands will mean nothing to him.

March 16th, 2012, 5:50 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Irritated,

“Lots of dramatic inventions that blurs the reality, Sorry, but the story of the truck driver sounds totally invented.”

No need to apologies to me, you can choose what ever you like, nobody is holding a gun to your head. Unfortunately people in Syria don’t have that right, and have not been able to for over 40 years.

How about the report by the UN, does that sound like an invention to you?

By the way I apologize for comparing those ‘People’ that choose to maim, rape, and torture Syrians for the sake of Assad to animals, Animals deserve better!

March 16th, 2012, 5:52 pm

 

ann said:

Released: March 15, 2012

Little Support for U.S. Intervention in Syrian Conflict

http://www.people-press.org/2012/03/15/little-support-for-u-s-intervention-in-syrian-conflict/

http://www.people-press.org/2012/03/15/little-support-for-u-s-intervention-in-syrian-conflict/3-15-12-fp-1/

http://www.people-press.org/2012/03/15/little-support-for-u-s-intervention-in-syrian-conflict/3-15-12-fp-2/

http://www.people-press.org/2012/03/15/little-support-for-u-s-intervention-in-syrian-conflict/3-15-12-fp-6/

A year ago, 63% said the U.S. did not have a responsibility to do something about fighting in Libya; a nearly identical percentage (64%) now says the U.S. does not have a responsibility to act in Syria. In the current survey, 68% of Republicans and 63% of Democrats say the U.S. does not have a responsibility in this area.

[…]

March 16th, 2012, 5:56 pm

 

Alan said:

[ Links added]

Lavrov: Russia urges West and Syria to support Annan’s mission
The Russian foreign minister calls on Damascus and Western countries to support the mission of UN-Arab League Special Envoy to Syria Kofi Annan. [video] DURATION: 7:18

Syrians must decide own future – Russian dep. foreign minister March 16 16:14 (upd. March 16 18:10)
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov says any foreign involvement can adversely affect the situation in Syria. [video] DURATION: 4:17

March 16th, 2012, 5:56 pm

 

Mawal95 said:

The Syrian ministry of foreign affairs on 16 Mar 2012 requests “the Special Envoy [Kofi Annan] to provide guarantees to the Syrian government that the armed groups will cease all armed aggressions and give up their weapons to the dedicated authorities in exchange for a full pardon.” http://www.innercitypress.com/syria1answerICP031612.html

If Kofi runs into troubles providing guaranteeable guarantees about that, he can get assurity from his boss Ban Ki-moon who says (#360 above) “we will have a means to ensure that the opposition will stop the violence”. Ha ha ha ha.

March 16th, 2012, 6:05 pm

 

ann said:

‘US wants to redraw Middle East map’ – 17 March, 2012

“The Pentagon map [of a new Middle East] is showing that Syria, under the proposed changes, would simply have no access any longer to the Mediterranean – which is rich with oil and gas, as recent discoveries have confirmed.”

http://rt.com/news/syria-us-middle-east-map-775/

The map the Pentagon wants to see in the Middle East would leave Syria without access to the oil-rich Mediterranean Sea, and with the goal of redirecting oil flows to China and Europe, researcher William F. Engdahl told RT.

­Engdahl says the Arab Spring in general is a well-planned, long-term project aimed at regime change in the Islamic world. And looking at the aftermath of the Arab Spring revolutions, it is anarchy instead of democracy that was successfully achieved.

“We can look at the record that the Arab Spring has brought in terms of so-called democracy, and it’s a catastrophe as was predicted at the outbreak. Because if you go to Egypt, if you go to Libya, you have armed bands. The [Libyan] National Council – they are shooting each other; total anarchy and chaos.”

Engdahl says that “the so-called opposition inside Syria has been financed, weaponized by Saudi Arabia, the Emirates and Qatar.”

“Propaganda coming out of Al-Jazeera and Qatari-owned outlets are very one-sided, it makes it appear to be a black and white situation – which it’s not at all,” he says.

He claims that the goal of the external forces, such as the National Endowment for Democracy, the US State Department and the Pentagon, is “redrawing the map of the Middle East and militarization of the Middle East to control the oil flows to countries like China, to the European Union and so on.”

[…]

March 16th, 2012, 6:11 pm

 

Tara said:

Omen@267

“Bashar is misunderstood”

And so is Asma… The expensive candellights she bought from Chelsea were meant to go to Homs to lighten up BabaAmr.

March 16th, 2012, 6:13 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

Hezbollah ¨solidarity¨ with the arab people. We can see how HA that was the last defender of the Arab lands has taken the role of Lebanese Falangists when palestinians were seeking refuge in Lebanon during in the period 1.970-1.975.

Hezbollah against building Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon

March 12: “Hezbollah’s No. 2 Sheikh Naim Qassem rejected Saturday the idea of establishing refugee camps for Syrians fleeing violence in their country, saying these would ultimately pose a threat to Lebanon and its neighbor.

“‘We cannot accept refugee camps for Syrians in Lebanon because any camp … will become a military pocket that will be used as a launchpad against Syria and then against Lebanon,’ the Hezbollah deputy secretary-general said during a political conference in Ghobeiri in the southern suburbs of Beirut.”

“’These sorts of groups pass into continents and countries and have no loyalty to any one country. They move holding several nationalities from one place to the next. What would Lebanon stand to gain by allowing some to turn it into a place to harm Syria and Lebanon at the same time?’ the Hezbollah official asked.”

“Qassem’s comments came a day after Lebanon pledged to prevent any attacks from its territory against its neighbor. Syria’s ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdul Karim Ali has repeatedly demanded that Lebanon tighten security and prevent arms smuggling across the poorly demarcated, porous border.” Source – The Daily Star

Thanks HA, you will be thrown to the garbage bin of history like Assad too.

March 16th, 2012, 6:14 pm

 

Alan said:

‘West must keep dirty fingers off Syria’
[RT video] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3TmoeQ_M9k
in Syria, the first anniversary of widespread protests and unrest against the Assad regime is being marked with more demonstrations across the country. We discuss the latest developments with political analyst Christoph Horstel, who’s just arrived in Damascus.

March 16th, 2012, 6:25 pm

 

Tara said:

[ Edited]

LCC should focus on Aleppo.  If Aleppo to rise, then Turkey has no choice other than creating safe haven which will end Bahar’s reign.  I had not bought into the idea that Aleppo is boiling until recently.  The target killing of Shabeehas, the demonstration yesterday in the Umayad mosque I believe, the lawyers demonstration, the agitation apparent among the students in the University of Aleppo are all signs that Aleppo may be finally waking up from it’s deep coma.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/buffer-zone-for-syria-not-on-agenda-of-turkey.aspx?pageID=238&nID=16234&NewsCatID=338

Buffer zone for Syria not on agenda of Turkey
ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News

Turkey suspends its consular services in Damascus and ‘strongly’ recommends nationals to leave Syria due to the security risks, while hundreds of refugees cross hills into Turkey, to be taken into camps there

Turkey does not plan to establish a buffer zone for refugees on the Syrian side of its border with the Arab republic unless there is a United Nations initiative to do so, senior officials told the Hürriyet Daily News March 16.

The news came after Deputy Prime Minister Beşir Atalay announced that Turkey was preparing to establish a buffer zone in order to host refugees fleeing clashes in Syria. The head of the Turkish Red Crescent also said Ankara was laying plans to host upward of 500,000 possible refugees.

[…]

Turkey has suspended consular services in Damascus and “strongly” urged Turkish nationals to return home, with the Turkish Prime Minister saying that the withdrawal of the ambassador and the creation of a “buffer zone” are among measures that Ankara is considering in the crisis.

[…]

“Developments in Syria pose serious security risks for our nationals. Therefore, we strongly recommend our nationals residing in Syria return home,” the Foreign Ministry said in a written statement. Consular services in Damascus would be halted as of 17:00 on March 22, the ministry said, adding that its consulate in Aleppo would “carry on its services in current circumstances.”

Suspending the consulate in Damascus was not a political reaction to the Syrian regime, but a security measure, a Turkish official told the Daily News.

Turkey was also considering recalling its ambassador in Damascus and establishing a buffer or safe zone inside Syria, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told reporters yesterday. 

…

Meanwhile, there was still no formal confirmation from the Syrian authorities on the missing Turkish journalists, Turkish officials told the Hürriyet Daily News. 

….

March 16th, 2012, 6:30 pm

 

Alan said:

52. 5 Reasons Why American Riots Will Be The Worst In The World

March 16th, 2012, 6:34 pm

 

zoo said:

Tara #362

It is not Syria who would open a front, it is Turkey if they plan to invade Syria to create their buffer zone. If they do that, it is a declaration of war and Syria will deploy its full scale weapons. It will not allow one more inch of Syria to be occupied by Turks. Be sure that all Syrians conscripts will not accept that either and will fight hard against an invader.

Also Turkey AKP is not in good terms with its army and the army is busy fighting the Kurds in Iraq and the Kurds in their northern areas.

The Turkish public opinion is already criticizing the war against the Kurds that is escalating. The Turkish army just lost 12 high level soldiers in Afghanistan. War is not popular in Turkey. The public opinion will be even more against a war on Syria that they don’t see justified as it is an attack on a sovereign and neighboring country and an interference in its internal affairs.

In addition, besides Qatar and KSA, no other countries seem keen to have any boots in Syria. The UK and some willing countries may need to use air strikes on cities and towns that will cause huge casualties on civilians. I doubt their public opinion will agree.

Therefore the Turkish government yells a lot but is freaking out about going to war alone against Syria over a refugee crisis.
This is why I think Turkey is looking for a pretext to make a U-Turn. They are in a dilemma. They are now repeatedly saying that they favor a diplomatic solution and will go along with whatever plans Kofi Annan will follow as long as they don’t have to involve their army.

The Arab League meeting in Baghdad will show how united the Arabs have remained in their anti-regime stances and then the Friends of Syria meeting a few days later will show if the SNC will survive or will be force to make tough decisions.

March 16th, 2012, 6:35 pm

 

Tara said:

Sandro Loewe

HA is a terror militia with declared allegiance to Iran. What is more repulsive is that they expressed their allegiance to the bearded guy in Iran on the open. How can you live in a country and pledge allegiance to another one. If this is not treachery, what is?

March 16th, 2012, 6:38 pm

 

zoo said:

As expected Turkey backing off their appeal for a buffer zone in Syria. The buffer zones are ….. in Turkey.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/buffer-zone-in-syria-is-off-turkish-agenda-.aspx?pageID=449&nID=16242&NewsCatID=409

…setting up a zone in Syrian territory protected by Turkish troops without Syrian approval was assessed to be “a clear violation of international law.”
….
“So when Atalay mentioned the buffer zone, we can be almost sure that he was not talking about a zone in Syria, protected by Turkish troops; he is simply talking about refugee camps in Turkish territory close to the Syrian border. “The final decision would be Erdoğan’s,” one source said, “But we have no plans for military involvement, unless there is a UN initiative”. “

March 16th, 2012, 6:48 pm

 

zoo said:

Children arrested in Turkey for throwing stones at police.

Diyarbakır Mayor advises kids to avoid rallies amid Nevruz debate

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/diyarbakir-mayor-advises-kids-to-avoid-rallies-amid-nevruz-debate.aspx?pageID=238&nID=16224&NewsCatID=338

Protest meetings are not where children should play, and throwing stones at police tanks is no game for children.”

“Noting that many children are currently under arrest for throwing stones at police, Mayor Baydemir said the local authorities and government must cooperate to find a solution to the issue.”
(..)

March 16th, 2012, 6:52 pm

 

Tara said:

Zoo

“Be sure that all Syrians conscripts will not accept that either and will fight hard against an invader.”

I think you are making a false assumption right there. Erdogan will be hailed as the god-sent savior of the Syrian people traumatized by the brutal oppression and the massacre against women and children in Karm al Zaitoun and no conscript will fight him.

Bashar has only the republic guard and the forth brigade loyal to him. They are already stretched too thin. Is he going to use them to oppress the people, or to fight Turkey, or both? It is just undoable. Unless he get the manpower from HA and /or Iran, Turkey can easily create safe heaven for Syrians on Syrian lands. KSA and Qatar will foot the bill and perhaps sent some troops too. Bashar is likely to do nothing.

March 16th, 2012, 6:53 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

An interesting link to recall how Syria sieged and destroyed Zahle, the only christian city in the Middle East, by spring 1.981.

The same strategy followed in Hama and Homs, but this time against christians too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMogi-qi-0g&feature=related

Same images of local inhabitants swearing on Assad that can be seen in Homs today were already seen in Zahle 30 years ago, one year before Hama destruction. Muslims or christians, it doesn´t bother.

March 16th, 2012, 6:59 pm

 

jad said:

Son of Damascus
“By the way I apologize for comparing those ‘People’ that choose to maim, rape, and torture Syrians for the sake of Assad to animals, Animals deserve better!”

So in the same spirit, what are you going to call the armed militia thugs that for the sake of the oppositions are committing massacres, torture, attacking innocent people inside their homes, occupying their houses, and go for sectarian cleansing as well as spreading sectarian values, committing rape crimes, steeling, destroying properties and shooting RPG toward everything and killing anybody who oppose them? What you say for those?

March 16th, 2012, 7:02 pm

 

zoo said:

#378 Tara

“Turkey can easily create safe heaven for Syrians on Syrian lands”

Well, Turkey doesn’t seem to agree with you, they have just withdrawn their calls for a buffer zone in Syria and now say they meant the buffer zones be in Turkey. How humiliating.

You said it yourself, Erdogan is hot air, just yells and threatens.

It is not zero problem Turkey got, it zero credibility.

March 16th, 2012, 7:03 pm

 

Syrialover said:

Bashar’s opportunistic little “babe brigade” advisers in the US now exposed by Assadgate.

Read about smarmy little smartass Hadeel al-Ali, giddy with the power at helping Assad spin lies.

TARA, nausea alert. She flirts with Bashar, calls him the Dude and cute, and pays him intimate compliments on how he looks. His poor old male advisers can’t compete when a woman stoops to that.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/16/assad-emails-adviser-hadeel-ali

So hi there Hadeel, and hi there to your colleague-buddy Sheherazad Jaafari, the one you holiday in Iran with.

I have a feeling you are likely to be here in the SC forum with us.

Enjoy your time living it up in the west, Hadeel, Iran will be more than a holiday destination soon.

March 16th, 2012, 7:08 pm

 

Tara said:

Zoo@381

“You said it yourself, Erdogan is hot air, just yells and threatens”

That I must agree with you. The have been all along hot air. A paper man…not my kind of guy.

March 16th, 2012, 7:12 pm

 
 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

Erdogan is afraid of Syria. The ¨Turkish Empire¨ is afraid of the Assad Asasiin mafia. The english word assassin derives from the word asasiin that was given to the islam heresy that inhabited Ansaiyah Range Mountains since S.X-XI. Although some may say asasiin were just ismailis, the fact is that ismailis and alawis were almost the same people living in the same area one thousand years ago. They were ready to sacrifice their life by executing orders from the Old of the Mountain in Persia. Specially during Crusades SXII-XIII, when many princes, emirs and other high ranks were killed by asasiin spies.

There are lots of mercenaries inside Turkey boundaries and are just waiting for an order to act against turkish personalities and interests. PKK is just the fake peak of the iceberg.

March 16th, 2012, 7:28 pm

 

jad said:

It seems that ‘Danny’ and his group have something to do with this new scandal.
Daraa ‘rebels’ have an israeli journalist as their VIP guest he got their with the help of the ‘reporters’ of Homs. How patriotic and ‘clean’ this ‘uprising’ has become:

المراسل العسكري للقناة الإسرائيلية الثانية في ضيافة عاصمة الثورة السورية وثوارها… درعا!؟

إيتاي أنجل دخل إلى درعا وضواحيها عن طريق الأردن بمساعدة مصور “الجزيرة” في حمص رامي السيد و”كتيبة العمري” و وأعضاء في “الهيئة العامة للثورة السورية”!؟

تل أبيب ، الحقيقة (خاص من : ليا أبراموفيتش + مكتب التحرير): بثت القناة الإسرائيلية الثانية مساء يوم الثلاثاء الماضي ، عقب نشرة الأخبار، شريطا مطولا (منشورا جانبا) يظهر مراسلها العسكري ، إيتاي إنجل، وهو يلتقي مواطنين سوريين في عدد من مناطق شمال الأردن ، لاسيما السوق المركزي في “الرمثا” ( سوق الحسبة) ، قبل أن يتوجه إلى منازلهم التي اسـتأجروها في البلدة ومحيطها بعد لجوئهم إلى الأردن نتيجة حملات القمع التي شنتها السلطة في المحافظة!
إيتاي أنجل، الذي سبق له أن غطى “ثورات” مصر وليبيا ، وقبلهما الغزو الأميركي للعراق وأفغانستان، يتوجه بعد أن يلقي نظرة من داخل الأراضي الأردنية على سهول حوران إلى داخل الأراضي السورية حيث يلتقي الأهالي في أكثر من منطقة، مستعيدا معهم البدايات الأولى للانتفاضة السورية والممارسات المهينة التي تلقوها على أيدي أجهزة الأمن ، وعمليات القتل والتعذيب التي تعرضوا لها ، بدءا من قصة ” الفتية السبعة” التي أشعلت فتيل الانتفاضة السورية.
كيف رتب إنجل لقاءاته وتسلله إلى سوريا ؟ هذا ما لم يقل عنه شيئا بطبيعة الحال .. سوى أن مصورا من حمص ساعده على ذلك بعد أن تعرفا على بعضهما البعض قبل نحو عام خلال تغطية إنجل للانتفاضة المصرية في “ساحة التحرير” بالقاهرة. هذا المصور ليس في الواقع ـ ولا تتفاجأوا ـ سوى رامي أحمد السيد ، مصور”الجزيرة” في مدينة حمص وشريك “خالد أبو صلاح” في المركز الإعلامي الذي أنشأته ومولته قناة “الجزيرة” في حي “باباعمرو”. أي ، وبتعبير آخر، “مصور الثورة” كما تسميه “التنسيقيات” السورية، الذي قتل في 21 من الشهر الماضي خلال عملية تحرير “بابا عمرو” من أيدي عصابات ” كتيبة الفاروق” الإجرامية ومسلحيها التكفيريين الذين كان يقودهم عناصر من الاستخبارات الفرنسية!
إيتاي ، وكما يكشف عن الأمر في النص المكتوب الذي وضعه كمقدمة لشريطه على موقع “القناة الثانية، كان تعرف على رامي السيد في مصر خلال تغطيته وقائع ما يسمى “الثورة المصرية”. وهو إذ يكتفي بهذه المعلومة المقتضبة، يعرب عن أسفه لمقتل السيد ، الذي يصفه بأنه”صديقه” قبل أن يؤكد أن موته ” مأساة شخصية” بالنسبة له!
ما لم يذكره إيتاي في تقديمه لتقريره ، تكشفه مصادر إعلامية إسرائيلية لمراسلة”الحقيقة” في تل أبيب ليا أبراموفيتش، التي تابعت القصة في كواليس القناة الإسرائيلية الثانية وأماكن أخرى كانت على علم بتحركات إيتاي إنجل واتصالاته مع رامي السيد على مدار السنة الماضية وحتى مقتل هذا الأخير في “باباعمرو”.
{…}
http://www.syriatruth.org/news/tabid/93/Article/6943/Default.aspx

March 16th, 2012, 7:30 pm

 
 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

386. JAD

After the pathetic lesson of international failures given by King Assad II, I think most Syrians have learned that there are many people outside Syria that are much better in human values, mutual interests and solidarity that the Assad Mafia fakers.

Syrians will finally mature when they learn to interact as a nation with other neighbours in terms of equality and peacefull relations. Assad First taught Syrians not to trust in any country, while keeping violent and force relationships, and Assad II still tries to beneffit from the same old fashioned methods. We are in the good way. When freed from Assad, Syrians will be able to show the world their value.

March 16th, 2012, 7:47 pm

 

Tara said:

Dear Syrialover

Nausea alert indeed. Intimate compliment!!!. The mere thought of .. makes me want to vomit. My imagination…. Yuk!!

It looks that he likes to get advice from women. Doesn’t that sound like a self esteem problem? She definitely looks “hotter” than Astma though. But Asma doesn’t care… As long as she gets the fine jewelry she wants. Who cares? It wouldn’t matter. Shahrazad is size 12 and above. No competition there AT ALL. I heard if Bashar Jaafari has an advise to Bushbush, he will pass it to his daughter to send it to Bashar…

Anyhow, a great link…. This is the type of stories I like… (sorry Bronco, girls like these kind of stories.. I can’t help it. It is in my genes)

March 16th, 2012, 7:51 pm

 

jad said:

Ghawar
It’s getting really ridiculous.
Isn’t it strange that Ayman Abd Alnour is the source of all these emails yet nobody mention his name anywhere?

SL
Move to israel our ‘humane’ neighbour, it’s not that difficult, ‘prince’ will help you.

March 16th, 2012, 7:58 pm

 
 
 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

390. JAD,

Yes, I must accept it, even if it is a taboo for your repressed minds, most israelis are much better than the criminals in Assad Mafia.

How many syrian citizens has Assads killed in 40 years… At least 40.000 SYRIANS. How many israelis has Assad killed, 100 maximun…

How many syrians has Israel killed during last 40 years… Can you answer… Sure much less that have the Assads reached. Really sad. Only a blind or silly could deny facts.

March 16th, 2012, 8:28 pm

 

Ghufran said:

It looks like the regime allowed Homs, and other areas,to deteriorate to the point where regime supporters, fence sitters and even some anti regime people found themselves unable to do anything but to take cover, hide their kids and beg greedy merchants to give them a chance to buy daily necessities without selling their shirts. This environment made the intervention by the army more palatable and, combined with evidence of foreign terrorist infiltration of those safe havens, allowed the regime a free hand in subduing rebel strongholds with minimal damage to the regime. The only missing piece now is how Russia will deal with an unpopular president and a pariah regime that is boycotted by most western countries and almost all Arab governments. Finding a face-saving exit to this unbearable situation will be very difficult if Russia et al if Bashar clings to his seat.

It is beyond cynical that the departure of Bashar, not the regime as a whole, may be now more needed by regime friends than the regime foes, if this man,Bashar,is removed in a way or the other, Putin will finally be in a position to formulate a deal that gives everybody a bone while Russia enjoys the beef. The email leaks was a deliberate attempt to corner the man, and I have no doubt that more “leaks” and tricks are coming.

March 16th, 2012, 8:28 pm

 

jad said:

While alkhalayjeh waste their money on exporting terrorism to Syria and worldwide the Iranians are using their own technology, their own engineers and their own hands to build bridges and go to the moon, all that under sanctions….go figure!

افتتاح اكبر جسر معلق في الشرق الاوسط
http://www.alalam.ir/news/1031444

March 16th, 2012, 8:30 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

Massive demonstrations in Raqqa, Hassake, Salamiya, Bansh, and almost all villages and towns around Syria. The Syrian people is alive, the revolution is alive.

If Syrian army is not able to kill Assad will pass to history as one of the most corrupted and decaying armies in human history.

March 16th, 2012, 8:31 pm

 

jad said:

Nice to see you back Haytham, how have you been?
I read your last article.

March 16th, 2012, 8:42 pm

 

Tara said:

SNC should reach out to all Kurds and try to win them over.  They should enjoy complete civil rights in The new Syria if they to support the revolution. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world/latin_america/

Syria’s Kurds undecided over future

Syria’s Kurds appear divided and unsure whether to join the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad as they marked the anniversary of bloody clashes between the Kurdish minority and security forces in 2004.

For decades the authorities have discriminated against the Kurds for fear that they might seek self-determination. Many were denied citizenship under a controversial law in the early 1960s.

Frustration at this treatment boiled over in March 2004 in the town of Qamishli, when Kurds rioted before security forces moved in.

Qamishli riots

The Syrian football teams Al-Fatwa, which is largely supported by Arabs, and Al-Jihad, favoured by the Kurds, played in Qamishli on 12 March 2004.

Riot police moved into the stadium not long after play began, and a slanging match turned violent. Six supporters were killed and another three died in a stampede to escape the stands.

The next day anger amongst Kurds erupted when security forces fired on the funerals of the supporters, and unrest spread to neighbouring towns and villages.

Kurds demonstrated in the streets of Qamishli, chanting anti-government slogans and even toppling a statue of the former president, Hafez Assad.

In a now familiar development, Syrian security forces moved swiftly to crush the unrest, and many Kurds fled to Iraqi Kurdistan.
…..

The 2004 riots showed that the Kurds have little love for the government in the main, and many have been ready to take part in protests in the current uprising.

But many of the Kurdish political parties, which have been operating secretly in Syria for decades, have yet to join the Syrian National Council (SNC), an umbrella body trying to unite opposition groups.

Some community leaders feel the SNC has not done enough to ensure Kurdish rights, which has led them to withhold full support. The SNC has more recently tried to reach out to minorities in Syria, including Kurds.

There are also tensions between some Kurdish groups due to long-standing political differences.

Some Kurdish anti-Assad activists in Syria have accused members of the Democratic Union Party of Kurdistan (PYD) of supporting the government.

The PYD, a party that operates clandestinely in Syria, has denied the allegations, but the episode shows the minority is far from united.
…
The priority for Syria’s Kurds is to secure their civil rights rather than to ally themselves with any particular opposition group. Whatever their decision, it is certain that Kurds will play an important role in the outcome of the Syrian uprising.
…..

March 16th, 2012, 9:09 pm

 

Haytham Khoury said:

Thank you Jad.

I am around writing mainly in Arabic.

We established a new forum with Michel Kilo, Fayez Sara and Hazem Nahar.
We are very disappointed of SNC. I won’t speak of the regime. You know my opinion

http://haytham-khoury2.blogspot.ca/2012/03/syrian-democratic-forum-press-release.html
http://haytham-khoury2.blogspot.ca/2012/03/syrian-democratic-forum-identity.html
http://haytham-khoury2.blogspot.ca/2012/03/syrian-democratic-forum-statement-of_28.html

March 16th, 2012, 9:10 pm

 

newfolder said:

awesome video, what were the Assad (Batta) supporters (Min7bakjeieh) celebrating? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMncbe1t5oU

March 16th, 2012, 9:12 pm

 

Aldendeshe said:

@TARA

“She definitely looks “hotter” than Astma though. But Asma..”

I commend you. Your taste in women is as good as the puppet taste in music. Although we share liking for New Order, this may explain his choosing “Bizarre Love Triangle” for the group favorite song to download, mine is “I used to think that day will never come” for when Syria is free of Baathists sectarian clutches, and he can have this bizarre love triangle with the oooooogleeeee.

March 16th, 2012, 9:13 pm

 
 

Tara said:

Syrialover

Did you open Hadyl’s link? If not, here you go:

This is so laughable.. 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/16/syria-middleeast1

March 16th, 2012, 9:20 pm

 

zoo said:

Jad

Photos of the amazing bridge, a pure and esthetic iranian creation.
I guess the UAE will grind their teeth in jealousy.

Middle East’s biggest cable bridge inaugurated in Ahvaz

http://www.payvand.com/news/12/mar/1149.html

March 16th, 2012, 9:21 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Jad,

What defines a freedom fighter in your eyes?

Why is it so bad for you for Syrians to arm themselves to fight a State intent on killing them. You reserve a lot of hate and anger at those “terrorist” but yet are willing to give the regime the benefit of the doubt at every chance, as if they are infallible when in reality they are the very definition of the exact opposite.

Jad the regime is committing mass murder and genocide all for the sake of one man, a man that has never walked a meter let alone a mile in any of “his” peoples shoes. This man does not care what shape or state Syria is in, as long as he can call us our momentary master he is willing to destroy our country.

I too Jad am scared of the Islamist, they don’t teach tolerance or even know the meaning of the word.

But let us be honest what you described is not the FSA but the bloody Shabiha that are willing to kill, maim, rape, woman, man and child all for the sake of the boy-king.

March 16th, 2012, 9:23 pm

 
 

Tara said:

Zoo @402

What is the secret of your mesmerization with Iran. I am too jealous. How is the pictures you posted are different from every day in Damascus or in Cairo? Sorry for the honest and direct question. I am usually very direct on Fridays.

March 16th, 2012, 9:30 pm

 

bronco said:

#394 Ghufran

Russia will probably push for anticipated presidential elections under the pretext of the new Constitution. AL and UN observers will be present to validate the elections.
If Bashar is re-elected than his popularity in the west is irrelevant, as it would be a democratic election.
I think that other candidates should start their campaign right now, otherwise Bashar would have many chances to be reelected.

March 16th, 2012, 9:30 pm

 

zoo said:

$407 Tara

Simple, they have many excellent photographers and they know how to catch interesting angles, light and colors.

Unfortunately I wish I could see equivalent quality photos coming from other Arab countries photographers.

March 16th, 2012, 9:34 pm

 

zoo said:

Montreal police violence against students demonstrating peacefully about tuition hikes
12 March 2012

March 16th, 2012, 9:44 pm

 

Tara said:

Zoo

What is up with the Dollar sign?

واللهِ ياعيني I was asking an honest and sincere question. It is a profound love affair forged somehow. What led to it? You are dodging the question. Try another answer. Not the photographers, the angles, color, and lights.

May be the Zaafaran then?

March 16th, 2012, 9:45 pm

 

zoo said:

#407

None of the above. the dollar was a mistype
I enjoy good photography of the Middle East when I find it.
Besides Syria and Egypt’s amazing cities , I am sorry if I fail to be mesmerized by Dubai or Ryadh’s towers and shopping malls.
I think Damascus and Cairo have an extraordinary potential for photography but where are the good Syrian or Egyptian photographers?

March 16th, 2012, 9:48 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 404. Zoo

That bridge could look bad if it becomes derelict as Iran sinks under the new bank sanctions. No petrol even for cars to drive across it.

It’s interesting the mullahs didn’t choose to invest the funds in the country’s tatty oil industry infrastructure – it produces way under capacity because of their ineptitude.

And now they have brought a fresh economic nightmare on their population with all transactions for everyday imports and exports cut off. There will be domestic anger at resources wasted now on Syria, like the protests over Iran’s projects in Lebanon in 2006 while Iranians went without.

The Iranian people can only take so much.

March 16th, 2012, 9:51 pm

 

zoo said:

#411 Syria Lover

“The Iranian people can only take so much.”

We’ve been hearing this predictions of doom for the last 25 years.
Believe them, I don’t.

March 16th, 2012, 10:02 pm

 

zoo said:

Syrian Opposition Concedes Idlib (Dispatch) | Stratfor on Blip

http://blip.tv/stratfor/syrian-opposition-concedes-idlib-dispatch-6023241

Syrian Opposition Leaders Break Up, No Chance of Make-Up
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2012/03/syrian-opposition-leaders-break-up-no-chance-of-make-up.html
Breaking up may be hard to do, but the folks who run the Syrian National Council appear to be getting better with practice.

For the second time this month, the same group of top opposition leaders is walking out on the fraught political group to start their own organization. This time, they say it’s for good.

The Syrian National Council formed after the 2011 uprising and is the largest political opposition to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

In statements, the splinter group’s founders called the SNC leadership “autocratic” and complained that most of the council’s members were beholden to the Muslim Brotherhood.

March 16th, 2012, 10:10 pm

 

Syrialover said:

Zoo,

Greece too built a mega suspension bridge. A bad omen for Iran? http://www.theodora.com/wfb/photos/greece/greece_photos_20.html

And your comments on Arab photographers are a bit much, Zoo. Are you mysteriously well-informed on all the work of good photographers from Syria and Egypt? I am sure your reading and awareness has limitations like everybody else. They could be showcased in galleries and publications you never see.

March 16th, 2012, 10:12 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Friendship soured: how Assads “laughed” at ally

[…]

“Emails to his wife, sometimes tenderly personal, also reveal a disdain for “rubbish” political reforms he has offered.

One four-letter joke from American comedienne Bette Midler, which he forwards to his wife marked “rude but so true!!!!!”, plays on the words “elections” and “erections” to suggest that both are potentially harmful – “either way we’re fucked”.”

[…]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/16/syria-assads-email-idUSL5E8EG3NZ20120316

March 16th, 2012, 10:14 pm

 

ann said:

OIC chief rejects foreign military intervention in Syria – 16 March 2012

http://www.sundayszaman.com/sunday/newsDetail_getNewsById.action?newsId=274562

“Everyone is against a military intervention and there are important reasons for that objection. Such an option will bring more destruction and we are against it,” Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu, Secretary General of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) told a news conference on Friday at the United Nations ahead of his meeting with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

İhsanoglu said a political negotiation process could only begin if a ceasefire was secured and the bloodshed ended, adding that the way of the Syria crisis was only possible through “a comprehensive solution.”

[…]

March 16th, 2012, 10:17 pm

 
 

Tara said:

SOD

I find it a bit weird that Besho and Emma communicate via email. No? They live in the same house..why can’t he call her, text her, or tell her directly or at least via text. Is he shy?

March 16th, 2012, 10:21 pm

 

zoo said:

#414 SL

Yes of course my awareness has limitations and I am hoping I would be directed to good syrians, egyptians, jordanians, lebanese or any arab photographers that publish online or in newspapers and magazines. I was hoping that the availability of Internet , facebook and others would encourage arab photographers to publish their works. Unfortunately they are a rarity.
If you happen to know some websites of arab photographers, I would appreciate.

Have a look at this and compare with the photos I have posted from the iranian website.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/arab_photographers/

March 16th, 2012, 10:22 pm

 

jad said:

Son of Damascus,

I asked you a simple question and you went around to give the terrorist cover.

That doesn’t fit the care you claim you have for Syrian lives when you are ok for those terrorists to do whatever criminal activity they want because it happens that they are on the side you support.

This techniques never worked before on many Syrians and will never work, your stand is giving the criminal terrorists the cover they need to go even further in their atrocities, self defense is not to go out and to start killing your neighbours and whoever doesn’t agree with your views, that is criminal regardless of your political stand.

March 16th, 2012, 10:25 pm

 

Tara said:

Zoo

How about the photos posted by Camille on Creative Syria? Does not measure up?

I find them breathtaking.

March 16th, 2012, 10:27 pm

 

jad said:

This email charade is getting more stupid and useless by the day, I wonder if they are going to publish the ‘Viagra’ and the ‘Enlargement’ spam email Bashar got any time soon 🙂
Keep your fingers crossed!

March 16th, 2012, 10:30 pm

 

jad said:

Zoo
It seems the ‘Majoos’ engineering work annoyed lots of people!
Those bad ‘Majoos’, how dare they build a bridge by themselves…damn them!
I’m not going to cook any ‘Majoosi’ dishes any more…
http://youtu.be/S1L1ndymUHw

March 16th, 2012, 10:36 pm

 

ann said:

This angel is the leader of the muslim brotherhood he wants to destroy Syria with the help of turkey!

Of course he’s immune to war crimes since he’s got god on his side
.
.
Muslim Brotherhood: Only Turkey should lead a solution on Syria – 16 March 2012

http://www.sundayszaman.com/sunday/newsDetail_getNewsById.action?newsId=274543

Mohammad Riad Shakfa, leader of the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood, has said he would give priority to any initiative led by Turkey, a country that he described as the region’s most powerful player, in finding a way out of the “chaos” in Syria.

Regarding the idea of a regionally initiated military intervention in Syria, Shakfa said such an intervention should only be led by Turkey, in an exclusive interview with Today’s Zaman on Friday.

[…]

March 16th, 2012, 10:38 pm

 

zoo said:

#420 Tara

I must admit that photos of landscape and touristic locations or artifacts are not my cup of tea. I prefer photos of people.

Some on Camille’s site are very beautiful but the really good ones of people are made by foreigners.

I am sure there are many potentially good photographers in the Arab world. I am just waiting to be amazed by any and I haven’t been yet.

Maybe for Iranians, it’s like their carpet weaving, they have it in their genes.

March 16th, 2012, 10:39 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Tara,

I email my wife, especially links and forwarding emails that might pertain to her or she might find amusing.

Btw he is far from shy, self absorbed. A shy dictator is an oxymoron, his damned face is plastered on everything.

March 16th, 2012, 10:40 pm

 

jad said:

Haytham,
I’m glad that you made a new forum with respected people that share your value.
Have you tried to contact the NCB? They deserve your support.

Michel Kilo latest article

ادعاء حماية المدنيين بالسلاح ولغة التخوين

ميشيل كيلو
لعب قوم محدد بعواطف الناس وبالمسألة السياسية السورية باسم حماية المدنيين. ثم، فجأة قُسم هؤلاء السوريون إلى فريقين: واحد يريد حماية المدنيين، وآخر ضد حمايتهم. أما الفريق الأول، محب السوريين والمطالب بحمايتهم، فالغريب أنه لا يجد له دورا في حمايتهم غير مطالبة الخارج بإنجاز هذه المهمة، لذلك يطالب بتدخل عسكري دولي يحقق هذا الغرض النبيل. بينما يعارض التيار الثاني، الخائن بطبيعة الحال، التدخل الدولي لسبب وحيد هو أنه لا يريد حماية السوريين، بل يريد موتهم على يد النظام.
هل هذا الطرح صحيح وهذا التصنيف حقيقي؟
{…}
تسليح الحراك

هناك إذاً سلاح وسلاح، حماية للمدنيين واستباحة لحياتهم وللبلاد باسم حمايتهم. أنصار السلاح يعادون السلمية ويعلنون إفلاسها ويقولون باستحالة تحقيق الانتصار على النظام بغير السلاح والعنف الذي يظنون أنه المعادل الوحيد للقوة. وعندما يذكرهم أحد أن جميع إنجازات الحراك تحققت بالسلمية، ينكرون ذلك، أو يقولون إنها كانت مفيدة في الماضي، لكنها لم تعد اليوم كذلك. يرفض هؤلاء سلمية الحراك كي يرفضوا أمرين متلازمين: الحرية كهدف جامع له، والوحدة الوطنية كحامل جمعي لا يتحقق هذه الهدف إلا بواسطته. فهم يحبون السلاح من اجل أمرين مغايرين تماما لقيم الحراك الأصلية، هما: الطائفية وتاليا إقصاء المختلف. إنهم يفتقرون إلى برنامج سياسي خاص يخاطبون الشعب من خلاله، وليس لديهم غير ما يقوله الآخرون، لذلك يعتقدون أن أفضل طريقة لكسب الشعب هي إدارة خطاب مذهبي لا يحتاجون معه إلى شروح وتفسيرات، يمشي عوام المجتمع الأهلي وراءه كالأغنام، وينفذون بحماسة كل ما ينتظر أو يطلب منهم تنفيذه.
{…}
الحل السياسي

ليس هناك ما هو أسوأ من الحل السياسي، لأنه ينقذ النظام. هذا ما ردده عقل معارض طيلة أشهر كثيرة. بل إن جماعة إعلان دمشق وصلوا في هذا المسار إلى درجة اعتبروا معها توحيد المعارضة جهدا يستهدف إنقاذ النظام، لأن أطرافا منها تقول بالحوار والحل السياسي سبيلا إلى تغيير النظام، بينما تقول هي بإسقاطه، دون أن تزيد على هذا الشعار كلمة سياسية أو «ثورية» واحدة تخبرنا كيف ستفعل ذلك: بأية خطط وقوى ومراحل ونتائج، بل وما معنى إسقاط النظام أصلا؟

منذ تلك اللحظة، انقسمت الساحة إلى داعين لإسقاط النظام، هم جماعة الغفور الرحيم، ودعاة حوار معه هم أتباع الشيطان الرجيم. ومثل جميع الانقسامات المفتعلة، ترتب على هذا الانقسام جو طافح بالمهاترات والأكاذيب والسخافات، يشبه أجواء الخلاف المفتعل حول مسألة ملفقة هي التدخل الدولي، الذي ليس فيه أي شيء ملموس غير الخلاف حوله، وما ترتب عليه من ضرر جسيم نزل بالجميع. لو كان النظام قادرا على رسم سياسة صحيحة، لكان الجهة الوحيدة التي أفادت منه. بمرور الوقت، رجحت كفة جماعة الإسقاط رجوحا ظاهرا وقويا على كفة من لم يجعلوه هدفهم المباشر والوحيد، حتى أن شبهة خيانة التصقت بكل من لم يقل بالإسقاط الفوري، أو أراد إدخاله في سياق سياسي يجعله ممكنا بالفعل. كان الإسقاط مسألة غير سياسية، لأنه كان يستبعد حتى مبدأ الحوار، ويجعل القول بالحل السياسي أو بالسياسة خيانة للشعب ولحريته. هذا ما استقرت عليه الحال، وآلت إليه المواقف، التي انقسمت انقساما يوميا ومتزايدا وخلافيا بين القائلين بإسقاط يطاول جميع رموز النظام وأركانه، والذين احتالوا على هذا الشعار بكلمات من جنسه تقول بإسقاط النظام الاستبدادي / الأمني، الذي فهمه دعاة الإسقاط التام والفوري كإسقاط جزئي أو احتيالي، الغرض منه إنقاذ النظام.

هنا أيضا، لعب الخلاف الكلامي دورا فائق الخطورة في مجريات الواقع الملموسة، وألحق ضررا فادحا بوحدة العمل الوطني والمعارض، حتى بدا كأن المعارضة والشعب ينشطران إلى كتلتين: واحدة كبيرة جدا تمسك بيدها المنجل الذي ستجتث به جذور النظام، وأخرى صغيرة تمسك غصن الزيتون وهي تحاول إنقاذ النظام بأساليب لم يستخدمها هو نفسه لإنقاذ نفسه!
{…}
http://www.assafir.com/article.aspx?EditionId=2103&ChannelId=50147&ArticleId=1734

March 16th, 2012, 10:42 pm

 

Tara said:

#424

I will accept that.

March 16th, 2012, 10:43 pm

 

zoo said:

#422 Jad

I think that sectarian cook prefers to cook one of the huge variety of Saudi or Qatari dishes.

March 16th, 2012, 10:45 pm

 

Tara said:

SOD

I know him as a shy guy always shadowed by Basel who was better in everything including the physical appearance. He has changed. Agree describing him as shy now is an oxymoron. I was being sarcastic.

March 16th, 2012, 10:49 pm

 

jad said:

Son of Damascus,
What to do he is ‘photogenic’ 😉

Zoo,
Qatari Cuisine is so famous worldwide, and the variety of dishes they have those ‘lovely’ ‘beauty holder’ ‘Qa6aQee6’ is outstanding!

March 16th, 2012, 10:57 pm

 

zoo said:

Syria accepts in writing “the road of national dialogue to solve the problems it faces through the participation of all Syrian opposition parties and independents”

It says it has caught the perpetrators of the massacre in Homs province.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/17/c_122845918.htm

DAMASCUS, March 16 (Xinhua) — Syria’s Foreign Ministry said Friday that Damascus would strive to find a political solution to the year-long crisis with the cooperation of the UN-Arab League (AL) joint envoy Kofi Annan, who said the Syrian situation should be handled carefully to avoid any “miscalculation” that could impact the entire region.

The ministry sent Friday two letters to the UN Security Council ‘s chief and the head of the UN Human Rights Council, in which it stressed that Syria has chosen the road of national dialogue to solve the problems it faces through the participation of all Syrian opposition parties and independents, according to state-run SANA news agency.

It said that Syria hopes that all UN member states would help it get out of the crisis “through ending violence, halting foreign financing of terrorism and restoring security and stability to the country.”

The ministry urged all countries and international organizations that combat terrorism to live up to their responsibilities and practice pressures on the “well-known” parties to stop supporting terrorism and help end the bloodshed in Syria.

It stressed that the Syrian government would go on with its task to protect its citizens, disarm terrorists and hold accountable the perpetrators of terrorist acts.

In the letters, the ministry said that terrorist groups committed on Mar. 12 an “appalling” crime in the central Homs province, leaving 45 residents killed, in addition to other atrocities committed by those groups in other Syrian areas.

It added that those groups used to commit such massacres and accuse the government shortly ahead of the convening of UN sessions to discuss the situation in the Middle East or in Syria, “in order to harm Syria and use this tragedy” for media purposes.

The terrorists have murdered and slaughtered innocent people, took photos for them and sent them to some TV channels that participate in the misleading campaign and in straining the conditions, the ministry said, adding the authorities have arrested a number of those terrorists and got their confessions.

It also said the edicts issued by some clergymen in some Arab countries were to be directly blamed for those massacres.
(..)

March 16th, 2012, 11:09 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Jad,

What you just described is what I am standing against, the regime is doing the majority of those crimes, not the opposition.

It is just when those crimes are exposed the regime is blaming the opposition for them, when in reality 99% of those crimes are a direct result of regime thugs. And is a testament of what they have ALWAYS done.

You are just choosing to believe the regime narrative that they are ‘armed gangs terrorizing’ the inhabitants, when in reality they are the inhabitants defending themselves.

Have there been crimes, and made up stories or exaggerations from the opposition yes on all accounts, and all of that is deplorable and is an abomination of the very essence of what is being achieved, but they don’t over shadow not in any way the crimes and brutality of the regime and it should not deny the Syrians the very sacred right to be Free, that right that Assad and his gang has not only been denied to us for 40 years, but has been trampled and made a mockery of.

March 16th, 2012, 11:12 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 422. JAD

I am more concerned for the Iranian people than for the grandiose bridge project. They are being seriously shortchanged by their “leaders”.

The world is wondering why the mullahs have not invested in bringing Iran’s oil production up to capacity.

And they have been unbelievably slack in getting their domestic refining capacity to where it should be. And this will now stall because of the sanctions stopping imports.

Increased oil production = vastly increased national income

More domestic oil refining = big boost to economic activity

Hard maths for mullahs.

March 16th, 2012, 11:12 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 418. ZOO

Thanks for that link to the Arab photographers. I saw some excellent creative work and top quality there. Sad they have so few opportunities to earn money for their talents and display their work compared with their counterparts in other parts of the world.

And on #428. Syrian cooking is the world’s best for me. Do you know it?

March 16th, 2012, 11:28 pm

 

Steven G. Erickson said:

I would like to talk to an independent journalist in Syria. I would like to help tell the truth. I believe in peace. I believe international corporations and bankers are the ones who lie and push for wars. If someone wants to talk for an audio interview to be posted on my blog and/or my blog, please email me. stevengerickson At yahoo.com

March 16th, 2012, 11:29 pm

 

Son of Damascus said:

Tara,

Sorry I misunderstood you. Sarcasm does not translate well in writing sometimes.

Bashar inherited a trait Basel never had, patience. It brought Basel’s life to an abrupt end, and ironically will bring Bashar’s rule to an abrupt end.

On a different note something that might irritate further one of our esteemed commentators is the introduction of a new animal to the Syrian Jungle Book, Batta. I wonder what brought on that nickname for besho. I have never heard of duck being used as a word of affection not in Arabic neither in English or French. Have you?

March 16th, 2012, 11:34 pm

 

zoo said:

Despite Bold Talk on Syria, Turkey Sees Limits of Its Power

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/17/world/europe/despite-bold-talk-on-syria-turkey-sees-limits-of-its-power.html

ISTANBUL — As the lethal crackdown by the Syrian government intensifies, Turkey has been struggling in the face of a spiraling crisis on its doorstep that is exposing the limits of its leadership in the region.

In the year since the conflict in Syria began, the Turkish government has sought to play a leading role in stemming the crisis, engaging in aggressive diplomacy at the Arab League and, more recently, calling for the establishment of humanitarian corridors in Syria to help protect civilians. Turkey’s foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, has likened President Bashar al-Assad of Syria to Slobodan Milosevic, the Serbian strongman who plunged his country into an ethnically driven civil war.

But for all of its bluster and stated resolve, Turkey has been stymied in its ability to follow through with anything concrete. Officials and analysts say Turkey is extremely wary of engaging in any unilateral military action, mindful of the perils of igniting a sectarian conflict on its own border, alienating public opinion in the Arab world or, worse, inadvertently instigating regional war.

The conflict in Syria has presented Turkey with an opportunity, both perilous and promising.

“The stakes are very high for Turkey in Syria,” said Soli Ozel, a columnist for Haberturk, a leading Turkish newspaper. “If Turkey proves to be ineffectual in resolving the Syrian conflict, then all of the claims of its regional prowess will take a big hit.”

(…)

March 16th, 2012, 11:35 pm

 

Ghufran said:

Bin Laden leaks
Only urologists and plumbers make money from leaks
http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=latest%5Cdata%5C2012-03-16-18-24-32.htm

March 16th, 2012, 11:38 pm

 

zoo said:

#434 SL said

“And on #428. Syrian cooking is the world’s best for me. Do you know it?”

I agree without hesitation, especially the Aleppo cooking.

March 16th, 2012, 11:38 pm

 

jad said:

Son of Damascus

I’m in contact with 5 different families who were FORCED at gun point to leave their houses in Alhamedieh by the TERRORISTS of Homs, and one of them lost their 10 years old kid because the father said no, so please do not use this 99% on me it won’t work.

The amount of weapons, attacks and killing coming from the armed gangs in Syria as early as April are all over the net, so excuse me if I don’t believe and support those criminals.

The regime is responsible for many crimes and for violence but I refuse to let the terrorist crimes to go unchallenged just because I disagree with the regime, that would be suicidal for the future of Syria.

There are no ‘Angels’ in Syria anymore and the politicians on both sides must know by now that the only way out is by sitting down and negotiate, not by calling every devil in this world to come and occupy and kill Syrians and definitely not by supporting this barbaric actions and massacres that the terrorist are doing to take picture and sell it to the media.

Sending weapons and militarizing the civilians to start a deadly civil war is what many shortsighted warmongers are calling for and if you care for Syria and Syrians you need to reject that and stand against it anywhere you see it, not to support such suicidal plan, because after they kill our neighbours in the name of ‘freedom’ they are coming toward you and me, nobody will be saved.

March 16th, 2012, 11:45 pm

 

Ghufran said:

[ Link added: http://www.alarabiya.net/mob/ar/201091.html ~ http://english.alarabiya.net/mob/en/201104.html ]

أكدت قناة “العربية” أنها تعمدت عدم بث أو نشر رسائل شخصية جداً للرئيس السوري بشار الأسد وزوجته أسماء الأخرس، وصفتها بأنها خاصة، وجدت في صندوقي بريديهما الإلكترونيين ضمن مراسلات مع آخرين.

وقالت إن بين آلاف الرسائل التي سربها ناشطون سوريون، وحصلت “العربية” على نسخ منها، رسائل شخصية ومرفقات قررت عدم نشرها على مواقعها أو شاشتها.

وأكدت “العربية” أن جميع الرسائل التي تنشرها مرتبطة بالحدث السوري، أو تقدم صورة عن طبيعة الوضع داخل القصر الرئاسي والشبكة المرتبطة بالرئيس وكيفية إدارته للازمة.

أما الرسائل والصور التي قررت عدم بثها فإنها شخصية ولا تمت بصلة للحدث، مؤكدة القناة على التزامها بقواعد العمل المهني.

The last sentence about alarabiya self congratulatory declaration almost caused me to have a “leak”.

March 16th, 2012, 11:46 pm

 

jad said:

Where is SC Moderator? I miss him.
Thank you SCM for all your hard work, you’ve been a great addition to Syria Comment and I do respect and like you.

March 16th, 2012, 11:52 pm

 

Alwaf said:

[ Edited for discriminatory language. Alwaf, please avoid ‘typical alawite‘ or one-size-fits-all slurs. Feel free to discuss Alawis/Alawite issues and the president – but not by crude stereotype. See our rules and regulations for details on Syria Comment’s purpose and standards. Thank you for helping us maintain civility and openness at Syria Comment ]

“i’m not worry about this, and i have no doubt”

someone need to teach bashar some proper english…guess all those years in England didn’t help much. Must have been too busy with prostitutes and strippers…typical alawite womaniser

March 16th, 2012, 11:59 pm

 

jad said:

Why did Almale7 defect from the SNC:

تمويل عربي مشروط أخرج المالح من المجلس الوطني

أسباب كثيرة دفعت المعارض السوري البارز هيثم المالح إلى الاستقالة قبل أيام من المجلس الوطني السوري، في مقدمتها اعتراضه على استجابة المجلس المجانية لشروط خليجية فُرضت عليه لتمويله
ناصر شرارة
{…}
لكن السؤال هو لماذا الآن فقد المالح صبره، وقرر الخروج من المجلس الوطني؟ سببان رئيسيان يحكمان هذا التوجه، الأول هو سعي رئيس المجلس برهان غليون إلى وضع رؤية لمستقبل القوى التي ستحكم سوريا بعد سقوط الرئيس بشار الأسد، تقوم على تحالف ينشأ بين قوى ليبرالية منقادة له، ومؤسسة الجيش التي سيقودها غداً ضباط الجيش الحر بالاشتراك مع الإخوان المسلمين. وعلى هذا الأساس فان إلحاق الجيش الحر بهيكلية المجلس الوطني، يمثّل من وجهة نظر غليون تجسيداً مبكراً لنظريته حول هندسة مستقبل نظام الغد، لكن مشكلة غليون أنه أتى لرئاسة المجلس بأصوات الإخوان المسلمين، الذين فعلوا ذلك، ليس كرمى لعيونه، بل لتطمين القوى اليسارية والليبرالية فيه.
والإخوان يفضلون غليون على المالح. فالأول من وجهة نظرهم عديم الخبرة السياسية، حتى لو توهّم بأنه يصوغ في الخفاء ومن وراء ظهورهم «الكتلة التاريخية» التي ستضعفهم في مرحلة قطاف السلطة، كما أن للإخوان ثأراً آخر على المالح، فحواه أنه خلال الشهور الأخيرة نجح في استقطاب عدد معتبر من أعضاء كتلة الـ 74 المؤلفة من رأسماليين سنّة في الغالب، التي دخلت إلى المجلس في بداية تشكيله ككتلة متراصة. وهؤلاء جميعهم هم أشخاص هجروا تنظيم الإخوان، لكن ظلوا على صله به. ولطالما استخدم الإخوان هذه الكتلة كاحتياطي استراتيجي لمناوراتهم للبقاء بيضة القبان داخل المجلس الوطني. ضمن هذه التعقيدات، وجد المالح أن بقاءه في المجلس الوطني لم يعد يخدم إلا شيئاً واحداً، وهو «التفرج» على لعبة التكاذب بين الإخوان وغليون. السبب الثاني يتصل بأن المجلس الوطني بعد تعاظم ظاهرة تبدل الاصطفافات السياسية داخله، لأسباب مصلحية لا سياسية، باتت حاله أشبه ما يكون بوضع سوريا قبل أيام الرئيس حافظ الأسد، فصار أعضاؤه ينامون على اصطفاف أغلبية داخله، ويستيقظون على اصطفاف أغلبية مغايرة، وذلك بمعدل مرة في الأسبوع. وصار واضحاً أنّ من أهم أسباب تبدل هذه الاصطفافات هو التدخلات الإقليمية في شؤونه، وصراعاتها فوق ساحته، سواءٌ منها التدخلات الناطقة، مثل الصراع بين أنقرة والرياض، أو الصامتة، مثل الصراع بين قطر والسعودية أحياناً. وثمة أعضاء سبقوا المالح إلى الخروج من المجلس، يقولون إن الأخير دُفع كي يستقيل لأن دولاً خليجية أخذت قبل أيام قراراً سرياً ببدء عملية تمويل سياسي مشروط للمجلس. وأول هذه الشروط يتمثل في عدم قبوله أيّ وساطة دولية تتضمن الحوار مع الرئيس بشار الأسد. وكاستجابة مجانية لهذه الشروط بدأ الإخوان وغليون، بهيكلة المجلس سياسياً على نحو يتكيف مع هذه المطالب. وأدى ذلك إلى بدء عملية «غربلة» لأعضائه وفق معايير «المنخل» الخليجي المموِّل، ووفق معيار أساسي يقول: إن من لا يستطيع الانسجام سياسياً مع دفتر شروط التمويل العربي، فليخرج.
{…}
http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/45778

March 17th, 2012, 12:02 am

 

Son of Damascus said:

Dear Jad,

I think you have me mistaken with another Son of Damascus, for this particular Son never called for NATO, or any foreign intervention.

Jad I don’t believe in the death penalty let alone segregations and revenge killings, and I am well aware that negotiations are the only way for Syria to be saved, but not with the boy-king perched on his throne.

I don’t believe that further bloodshed will solve this issue, and I don’t entrust my freedom to anyones gun.

The blood letting must end, but it can’t be entrusted with this leadership for they are the main cause of it.

I am genuinely sorry that you have lost trust and heart in the general goodness of Syrians, and I hope that not only you but others like you reignite your trust for our country and see we are at a moment in history where you the individual have a say and ability to shape our nation to the better, or else we damn it to the hands of Assadist and extremists.

You can’t really love anything in this life if you don’t really trust it, and I know your love for Syria is unquestionable, my advise to you don’t lose trust, you can question it, but never lose trust for love comes next.

March 17th, 2012, 12:11 am

 

Son of Damascus said:

Dear Mod,

I second Jad’s sentiments, and would only add to that the fact I like your new badge, much better than the flame.

March 17th, 2012, 12:20 am

 

jad said:

Dear Son of Damascus,

I know your views and stands, I wasn’t talking about you I meant the opposition politicians who are calling for military intervention day in day out, so I apologize if I mislead you to think that I was referring to you in my reply, I wasn’t.

My love to Syria is not related in anyway to the trust you are talking about.
Trust who?
The armed criminals running the streets of Syria spreading death and destruction every where they go with the support of every radical this world ever seen? I will never ever trust those to bring us any bright future.
I trust and support what the majority of the Syrians want and from what I see, people are not supporting neither trusting the opposition who are nothing but puppets for whoever pay them more.

This movement had the potential to become a great achievement, however, by now, it’s already hijaked by too many powers that today it has nothing to offer but destruction, hatred, blood, poverty, sectarianism and a very bleak future, the good people already left.

March 17th, 2012, 12:27 am

 
 

Equus said:

MONTREAL – Protesters lobbed objects at Montreal police and authorities responded by firing off chemical irritants in a bid to disperse a crowd of about 1,000 people in the downtown core Thursday evening.
several stores have been vandalized,” Montreal police announced
“A police car has been vandalized and projectiles are being thrown at police.”

“The route of the demonstration has not been provided and there exists no provision that obliges anyone to ask for a permit to demonstrate,” the collective said in a statement.
—
When Syrian government asks for the itinerary of the protesters. People and foreign countries laugh…It’s a standard procedure. “Peaceful protestors” per Mrs. Killary cannot wander the city and destroy it without consequences.
http://www.globalmontreal.com/montreal+police+use+chemical+irritants+to+disperse+demonstrators/6442601954/story.html

After declaring the march illegal just before 9 pm, police officers fired off stun grenades and tear gas to disperse protesters.
* 7 policer officers were injured (in Syria on average 20 official soldiers are perishing daily on the hand of peaceful protestors….)
* 2 citizens were injured
* 226 people were arrested
* 4 people are still being detained
* 7 different locations were vandalized

http://www.globalmontreal.com/montreal+police+defend+reaction+to+violence+during+anti-police+brutality+riots/6442602256/story.html

March 17th, 2012, 12:36 am

 
 

ann said:

ANGELS and NINJAS 😀

TIP OF THE ICEBERG: Effects of Muslim immigration & Muslim population increase in the UK

March 17th, 2012, 12:39 am

 

jad said:

Haytham
I just noticed that you have Samir in your team, he is an excellent cool-head respected man, you have a great core for politician there, are you doing any marketing for the forum?
My honest opinion:
You may need to change slightly your approach to attract Syrians in the forum, instead of starting with the somehow empty slogan of ‘let’s get rid of the regime first and then’ start with ‘then’ have plans, put up some effort to show that your core team is capable of solving the problem Syrians are suffering from, and presented as whitepaper that will add to your knowledge and be ready to use when needed, be more practical, more understanding of Syrians’ fear and dreams, try to avoid this strategy of talking to Syrians as if they are all ignorant of reality, believe me, being honest and using logic and smart argument with Syrians is the only way that will gain you support.
Don’t fall into the same mistakes almost all the positions are doing, be unique and reflect the intelligence you and every member of your forum hold.
Syrians deserve better than bunch of criminals, opportunists and puppets.

http://haytham-khoury2.blogspot.ca/

March 17th, 2012, 12:52 am

 

Son of Damascus said:

Jad,

No Jad the good people have been imprisoned, tortured and killed. Don’t forget that, last time Gaiyth Mattar was seen he was smiling giving flowers to the very men that dragged him to his death.

Our silence and fear is what is allowing this movement to fall into the wrong hands, our ignorance to believe the unbelievable and question the truth is what is giving the criminals the upper hand.

We should never forget what Syrians are demanding and dying for, those activist risking their lives protesting day in day out, coming up with new ways to circumvent the authorities. Every day our nation is seeing protest, even Tartous the heart of Alawite country had a small demonstration today, Al Raqqa a city of 200,000 came out in huge numbers, Aleppo university see’s daily protest, a Lawyers union protested the other day as well. These people have not given up hope, and they are living the daily horrors, how can we give up who are living in our relative comforts?

The protest in Shalaan gave me goose bumps, I don’t live very far away from there, I spent my childhood playing at Sibki and Jahez parks, that protest was in the literal sense hitting home for me. How can I give that up to the Assadist or the extremist?

March 17th, 2012, 12:55 am

 

jad said:

Bronco, Zoo,
This article is about the Turkish failed strategy with Syria, it’s worth reading:

هكـذا خسـرت تركيـا حربهـا مـع سوريـا
محمد نور الدين
{…}
إن ما يفسر هذا الإصرار هو أن تركيا لعبت لعبة «يا كل شيء أو لا شيء». لقد بات هناك إجماع على ما قلناه منذ الأيام الأولى للأزمة في سورية، من أن تركيا أحرقت المراكب ورفعت السقف عالياً. هي تدرك ذلك، ولذا لن تعدم وسيلة في هذا الاتجاه. ولا اعتقد أن الدبلوماسية الناجحة تدخل في مثل هذا الخطأ الاستراتيجي في أن تراهن على شيء من دون حساب لهامش الخطأ التي تحسب حتى في استطلاعات الرأي المتواضعة. لم تُبق أنقرة حتى هامشاً بسيطاً في رهانها، حتى إذا فشل الرهان خسرت كل شيء.
اليوم بعد عام من انفجار الأزمة في سورية، ومن انفجار العلاقات التركية – السورية، لا يبدو أن اللوحة التي ترسم لنتائج السياسة التركية تجاه سورية وردية، ولا في أي من عناصرها.
– فقدت تركيا عامل الثقة، الأهم في العلاقات الدولية، وهو الذي بنيت عليه العلاقات التركية مع سورية وإيران والعراق وروسيا ولبنان.
– فقدت تركيا دعم كتلة واسعة من المجتمعات الإسلامية، ولا سيما الشيعية منها، عندما بدا أن السلوك التركي بالتعاون مع العرب الآخرين يستهدف ايضاً حضور الشيعة في المنطقة وقوتهم والإخلال بالتوازنات التاريخية. أليس دخول قوات درع الجزيرة لقمع ثورة البحرين هو لمنع حدوث خلل في الستاتيكو هناك؟ فلماذا يسمح بالحفاظ على الستاتيكو في الخليج، فيما يُراد له أن ينفجر ويتغير في «بلاد الشام والرافدين» وصولاً إلى بلاد فارس؟
إن السعي لإحداث خلل في التوازنات التاريخية والمذهبية، وربما الدينية، في المنطقة انطلاقاً من سورية هو من أكبر الأخطاء التي ارتكبتها تركيا في المنطقة الاسلامية والمجاورة جغرافياً لها. ومواقف زعيم الشيعة في تركيا نفسها صلاح الدين اوز غوندوز نموذج على ما أصاب صورة انقرة من ندوب عميقة في هذا البعد.
– ولا شك في أن هذه السياسات التركية قد قرعت جرس الإنذار في عواصم بعيدة، ولا سيما في موسكو. اذ ان سعي انقرة لإسقاط النظام في سورية هو بمثابة هجوم استطلاعي على روسيا سياسياً وعسكرياً واقتصادياً، وتحجيم سعيها لاستعادة دورها العالمي. ولعل هذا السعي لشطب روسيا من الشرق الأوسط كان وراء الموقف المتشدد لموسكو من الوضع في سورية وحماية النظام، وكذلك حماية الصين له، وهي التي طُردت من ليبيا وجنوب السودان ويراد لها أن تطرد من سورية والشرق الأوسط، وان تنضم إلى روسيا في التعرّض لتهديد التيارات الدينية من الشيشان إلى الأويغور الأتراك. وهو الذي حوّل سورية من خاصرة ضعيفة إلى نقطة الارتكاز الأقوى في ظهور نظام عالمي جديد أكثر توازناً.
– إن خروج تركيا عن سياسة الحياد الإيجابي واصطفافها طرفاً في الصراعات الداخلية في سورية والمنطقة والعالم أخرجها من إمكانية القيام بأدوار وساطة، كان يمكن أن تعاظم من نفوذها. لكن الرهان على أن تكون اللاعب الأوحد، من خلال إسقاط النظام السوري والتفرد بالتالي في حكم المنطقة، أفقدها العقلانية في التعامل مع الامتحان السوري الذي أخفقت فيه تركيا أيما إخفاق. فمن استعجل الشيء عوقب بحرمانه منه.
– واليوم تنظر تركيا إلى جنى مساعيها فلا ترى سوى الخيبة: النظام يشدد سيطرته على الأرض، الطبقة التجارية السنّية وفئات سنّية أخرى تدعم النظام وكذلك المسيحيون والعلويون والدروز. الجيش متماسك وكذلك السلك الدبلوماسي. إن استعجال تفكك أوصال الدولة والمجتمع السوريين لا يمكن أن يُعزى إلا لقراءات خاطئة لطبيعة الواقع السوري، نتيجة ابتعاد تركيا عن المنطقة تسعة عقود، بحيث لن تكون كافية ثماني سنوات من حكم حزب العدالة والتنمية لمعرفة توازناتها وحقائقها. المشكلة هنا معرفية بامتياز.
وتنظر تركيا فترى فشل السيناريو الليبي وفشل التدخل العسكري الخارجي عبر مجلس الأمن أو التدخل منفردة، وترى كذلك فشل إقامة مناطق عازلة. وتنظر تركيا فترى أيضاً أن «قرّتي عينها» تكادان تصبحان من الماضي، فالمجلس الوطني السوري الذي عملت أنقرة لإنشائه على مدى شهور باتت تنخره الانقسامات والخلافات، وهو في الأساس لم تكن له قاعدة صلبة على أرض الواقع. ولذا يمكن التساؤل عن معنى انعقاد مؤتمر «أصدقاء سورية» الثاني في اسطنبول. وقرة عين تركيا الأخرى، أي «الجيش السوري الحر»، يفقد آخر مرتكزاته بعد سقوط حمص وإدلب وهروب عناصره إلى تركيا ولبنان.
ولم تنأى تركيا من التأثيرات السلبية لسياساتها تجاه سورية والمنطقة على وضعها الداخلي، حيث تعرض المجتمع التركي لاهتزازات إضافية على الصعيد المذهبي واحتقانات إضافية على الصعيد الاتني. لقد أفلتت أنقرة من يديها فرصة تاريخية لتعزيز نفوذها في سورية والمنطقة، لكن المحظور حصل ولن يصلح الدهر ما أفسده حزب العدالة والتنمية بالذات.
http://assafir.com/Article.aspx?ArticleId=1795&EditionId=2103&ChannelId=50140#.T2QUmql4qtJ.facebook

March 17th, 2012, 1:07 am

 

Son of Damascus said:

Equus,

If you fail to see the difference between protesting in Montreal, Canada and protesting anywhere in Syria let me point it out to you:

Montreal

– No one disappeared
– No one was killed or shot at
– only 4 people are still being detained
– People that were injured were not abused at the hospitals
– No torture occurred
– Everyone arrested will face an unbiased judge and will be afforded a competent defence even if they can’t afford it.

Syria

– Daily disappearances
– Daily deaths inflicted by the regime, and use of heavy weapon is a daily occurrence against protesters
– over 40 000 are currently detained
– People are abused and tortured daily in Syrian State hospitals
– torture and abuse is widespread among the security service
– Syrian justice system is a joke, if you are ever granted the chance to see a judge.

March 17th, 2012, 1:07 am

 

Juergen said:

SOD

dont worry about the name, i am used to that people outside Germany can not pronounce or write it the way we do. In the US they called me Junior in Syria usually i use George( Juergen its just an german version of George). The film about the taxi drivers in Damascus was hilarious, i must admit all of the portrayed characters youll find easily in Damascus, may God save their humor and their way of counting.Do you know if they showed all of the movies in Syria? I know they showed this black stone movie in a festival in Damascus.

Zoo

I was in Ahwaz and if this bridge is build now, good for the people there, they have suffered alot during the war and the fact that the majority of the people belong to the arab minority does not bring much modernization nor investments.I was able to see still ruins of the 1988 ended Iraq war. Such signs were not visible to me in Tehran or elsewhere.( i know that Ahwaz was almost destroyed) I think i never met more unemployed young people in Iran than there. It seems that many Iranians are united in their disgust for Arabs. I had a memorable moment in the bazar -e- borg in Isfahan. I wanted to buy a beautiful taulat game with paintings on it in the theme laila wa madschnun. The bazari could not speek english so an nearby shopowner translated. He wanted a big sum for the game, so i started to bargain. He told me that they dont bargain as the dirty arabs do. I was utterly shocked and asked him if he thinks Muhammad and Ali were dirty arabs too. After that he send me out of his shop with millions of bad persian words…

March 17th, 2012, 1:14 am

 

Equus said:

Now the full picture is clearer, why Homs was the center of attention
————
La Route Terrestre De L’Or Noir Moyen Oriental Passe Par Homs Sans Assad A Damas

Les puissances coloniales occidentales veulent contrôler toutes les voies d’acheminement du pétrole moyen oriental en réduisant l’utilisation des voies maritimes – Détroit d’Hormuz, Canal de Suez – au profit de pipelines terrestres jugés plus facilement contrôlables. La Syrie offre une ouverture stratégique sur la Méditerranée/UE la ville d’ Homs pourrait ainsi devenir un important nœud pétrolier. Renverser le régime d’Assad pour installer comme en Libye des Islamistes/Frères Musulmans /Al Qaeda reconvertis à l’idéologie des pétro dollars est donc devenu une priorité.

http://www.planetenonviolence.org/La-Route-Terrestre-De-L-Or-Noir-Moyen-Oriental-Passe-Par-Homs-Sans-Assad-A-Damas_a2562.html

March 17th, 2012, 1:29 am

 

Juergen said:

Whoever bets for the syrian oil is a fool, Syria can hardly sustain their own demand of cheap oil, the revenue of syrian oil is needed but the amount of oil is not an lasting option as it is in Iraq and Libya.During Saddam times the Syrians happily accepted free oil shipments by Iraq, and only when that ended the Syrians intensified their oil production and their relation to oil rich nations like Iran and Venezuela.I think the only product Syria has enough is phosphate, but are wars fought over phosphates?

March 17th, 2012, 1:50 am

 
 

jad said:

Make them 3 terrorist attacks and more Syrians killed, is that what people are supporting? Terrorism!

شآم
عاجل … عاجل

=============================

3 انفجارات في دمشق بواسطة سيارات مفخخة الأول في ساحة الجمارك بمنطقة البرامكة أمام إدارة الأمن الجنائي والثاني في الطريق الواصل بين القصاع وساحة التحرير بالقرب من أحد الأفرع الأمنية .
والثالث في شارع الثلاثين بدمشق لإستهداف أحد باصات المبيت التابعة لجيش التحرير الفلسطيني بالقرب من أحد الأفرع الأمنية .

https://www.facebook.com/chaam.syria3/posts/252425691515885

March 17th, 2012, 2:32 am

 

jad said:

SYRIA 24
دمشق ||3 انفجارات في دمشق بواسطة سيارات مفخخة الأول في ساحة الجمارك بمنطقة البرامكة أمام إدارة الأمن الجنائي والثاني في الطريق الواصل بين القصاع وساحة التحرير بالقرب من أحد الأفرع الأمنية .
والثالث في شارع الثلاثين بدمشق لإستهداف أحد باصات المبيت التابعة لجيش التحرير الفلسطيني بالقرب من أحد الأفرع الأمنية .
https://www.facebook.com/Syria24.News/posts/194131824022959

SYRIA 24
استشهاد عدد من المدنيين وعناصر حفظ النظام من جراء التفجيرين اللذين استهدفا دمشق
https://www.facebook.com/Syria24.News/posts/194132604022881

March 17th, 2012, 2:40 am

 

jad said:

الدخان عقب الانفجار قرب ساحة التحرير بدمشق 17-3-2012
http://youtu.be/FfP0TuHUiBw

March 17th, 2012, 2:55 am

 

Syrialover said:

Brilliant political idea from Iranian regime! You can see why Bashar laps up their advice.

Scroll down to see the full wonderful set of pictures.

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/02/iran-reenacts-history-with-a-giant-cardboard-cut-out-ayatollah/252349/#slide11

I agree ZOO, some great photography happening in Iran.

March 17th, 2012, 4:17 am

 

jad said:

The results pf the terrorist attack are unbelievable.
It’s like an earthquake. the whole residential neighborhood is gone…nothing left…

March 17th, 2012, 4:25 am

 

jad said:

Speechless:
التفجير الارهابي في المنطقة بين شارع بغداد و القصاع
http://youtu.be/VGKvESjnClI

March 17th, 2012, 4:39 am

 

Juergen said:

Syrialover

i love this Khomeni picture. Iranians love pictures, in Tehran basically everywhere youll find big portraits of martyrs, some quite dull others from an artistic perspective appealing. At least in this sense they differ greatly from the big wahabi kingdom.

March 17th, 2012, 4:45 am

 

jad said:

Some injured as the result of the terrorist attack in Damascus:
مصابين التفجير الارهابي في عدة مناطق – دمشق 17\3\2012
http://youtu.be/obH05RgPpGU

March 17th, 2012, 4:58 am

 

Juergen said:

Second blast near Bab Touma, whats this message? We come after you?

March 17th, 2012, 5:02 am

 
 

Mina said:

Autonomy… Civil war… Bombings…
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-17411134
once Iraq, now Libya, Syria.

March 17th, 2012, 6:20 am

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

470. JAD

Congratulations to the Great President of Syria Bashar II. This is the result of all stupid mistakes he has been repeating. If he is no directly behind the attacks, at the end he is the responsible due to its crimes against it own people.

March 17th, 2012, 7:56 am

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

Many many people I know (almost everyone) desired during his life that this explosion in the Air Security Headquarters took place not outside but inside underground where they have the hardware of the state control. They know perfectly that a bomb outside in the street makes nothing.

March 17th, 2012, 7:59 am

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

Maybe has been The Mossad who planted the bombs or maybe Adolf Hitler who is still alive? Or maybe the supidity of Assad The King? Assad, you are destroying the country, go to Hell. You are the sionist.

March 17th, 2012, 8:06 am

 

omen said:

weird chatter on twitter. ppl are saying nir rosen was an agent for assad. that’s why he was able to travel around syria so freely.

they’re pointing to this piece:

in arabic

in english

can somebody please explain & deconstruct? is this unsupported speculation? not knowing the references, i can’t judge the veracity.

March 17th, 2012, 8:33 am

 

Hans said:

The today explosions in Damascus, showed clearly the bogus claims of protecting Civilians in Syria, it seems to me this events killing most of the civilians by the terrorists supported by the radicals, Wahabi financed KSA, GCC and the approval of the west lead by the USA and UK.

it is clear that all this civilians who died today, never requested the protection of any of this terrorists.
Obama administration is responsible for this civilians who died in Syria today.

KSA and GCC are in full action.

March 17th, 2012, 8:53 am

 

omen said:

somebody here was fearing uprisings in egypt and syria would be replaced by an iranian style theocratic autocracy.

this academic, who has specialized in studying the past history of revolutions, says this is not the desire of the people calling for regime change.

that makes sense. who would want to replace one dictatorship for another one?

jack goldstone analysis of the arab spring.

he argues because of proliferation of aljazeera and other media, people aspire for the freedom they see the rest of the world enjoying.

zbig brzezinski has made similar comments about a global awakening that is unprecedented in history. more people now than ever before are politically aware.

March 17th, 2012, 8:58 am

 

Syrialover said:

“Several commentators on state television [on the Damascus bombings] blamed Qatar and Saudi Arabia, the fiercest Arab critics of President Bashar al-Assad over his regime’s deadly crackdown on dissent since last March.

They had “political, judicial and religious responsibility,” one said.” (AFP news report)

Interesting words. They neatly capture Assad & Co’s role in the destruction of Syria.

# 474. SANDRO LOEWE You wish Bashar to hell. Be assured he’s there already, for what’s left of his life. All exit doors just lead him deeper into it.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2012/Mar-17/166996-damascus-explosions-hit-two-security-complexes.ashx#axzz1pNSFvZwZ

March 17th, 2012, 9:04 am

 

omen said:

hans @ 8:53

if only we had independent journalists in syria who could examine these events more closely. oh yeah, assad refuses to let them in. now why is that? does he have something to hide? why is he allergic to transparency?

March 17th, 2012, 9:05 am

 

omen said:

now they’re saying nir rosen will respond to the allegation i pointed to earlier:

#NirRosen should react, as he said he will do in next 24 hours.

March 17th, 2012, 9:32 am

 

Syrialover said:

#476 HANS

“The today explosions in Damascus, showed clearly the bogus claims of protecting Civilians in Syria”

Bogus claims by Bashar Assad!

March 17th, 2012, 9:34 am

 

Syrialover said:

Typo in my post above responding to Hans.

It should have read “Bogus claims by Bashar Assad”

(though “bogus blames” is still right).

March 17th, 2012, 9:40 am

 

AIG said:

The terror attacks are awful and should be deplored.

But let’s not forget who for years funded Hamas to blow up Israeli civilians in buses, restaurants, pubs and hotels. And let’s not forget who sent terrorists to Iraq to kill thousands of Iraqis. The Syrian people are paying for Assad’s crimes.

It is interesting to see all the hypocrites that supported Assad’s policies complaining now when the same policies are targeted at them.

March 17th, 2012, 9:51 am

 

Tara said:

Juergen

“He told me that they dont bargain as the dirty arabs do. I was utterly shocked and asked him if he thinks Muhammad and Ali were dirty arabs too. After that he send me out of his shop with millions of bad persian words…”

Wow! The Iranians I met in the US from the high class society seemed go be particularly interested in reaching out to me and establishing a relationship with my family. I did not know average Iranians have hidden hatred towards Arab. Why then they kept Islam and adopted our alphabets. Not to give racist dimensions, but there is a clear unequivocal verse in Quran, describing Arabs at some point as one of the best nations in term of morality. Do they believe in only selective verse of Quraan?

March 17th, 2012, 10:04 am

 

bronco said:

Jad

After this cowardly attack on civilians not only the crackdown will be more ferocious but the alleged 60% Syrians that were hesitant will now support the regime at 100%.

All the West denegations that terrorists are behind the ‘peaceful’ opposition have blown up. The West will have to admit now that without any doubts terrorists cells have infiltrated the opposition. Therefore the foreign lead opposition is irremediably polluted and discredited without repair. If it does not join the government to fight against such terrorist groups, they’d become accomplices and will bear the whole responsibility of this and future attacks.

This is real turning point. From now on, as the Syrians officials said it at the UN, the whole international community has the duty to cooperate with Syria to eradicate terrorism first.

The foreign lead opposition that was calling for weapons is now out of the picture. The SNC lives its last days. The only opposition left is the local Syrian opposition as a partner in the dialog with the government. I wish they listen to Annan and start now without pre-conditions.

March 17th, 2012, 10:25 am

 

Uzair8 said:

I listened to the following BBC World Service programme a couple of nights ago at 2 AM. Didn’t get a chance to post it.

Features cartoonist Ali Ferzat. When Assad met Ali Ferzat.

Assignment: Syrian Stories

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00pfhq8

March 17th, 2012, 10:26 am

 

Uzair8 said:

Just caught part way thru a Robert Fisk interview live on on BBC News (TV). Hope they put it online quick. I’ll post it if and when, unless someone else does so.

March 17th, 2012, 10:29 am

 

zoo said:

#457 Juergen

“It seems that many Iranians are united in their disgust for Arabs.”

You met one shopkeeper who dislike Arabs and now all Iranians hate all Arabs.

Maybe they hate Germans who try to speak Arabic, or rather all Iranians are united in their disgust for Germans tourists.

Anyway your sympathy for Iranians is really obvious, don’t rub it in.

March 17th, 2012, 10:34 am

 

Tara said:

SOD

In regard to your question pertaining to the jungle book:

Absolutely, Bhatta is a word of affection in the Syrian culture and I believe to Egyptians too. Funny… isn’t it?

What was the context though, did our “stud” call Asma bhatta?

March 17th, 2012, 10:44 am

 

zoo said:

Reactions from Qasaa, a mainly christian quarter in Damascus where the explosion took place.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/18/world/middleeast/damascus-syria-two-large-explosions-reported.html

“It’s terrorism, terrorism,” another man said. “Who does something like this? Does anybody kill his family ?”

One resident speaking to Addounia blamed a foreign conspiracy, referring to the United States, Saudi Arabia and the Syrian National Council, the main exile opposition group that meets in Turkey. “This is the humanitarian aid,” he said. “These are the Istanbul meetings.”

But Ms. Khuri, the opposition lawyer, suspected a different conspiracy, on the part of the government.

“It’s a security chess game, moving the stones the way they want,” she said in a telephone interview. “It’s a trick.”

She said she feared that the many prisoners held in security officers could be injured in such bombings.

She said the Qassaa neighborhood, where a security office stands among residential buildings, is mostly Christian with some Sunni and Shiite Muslims and few members of Mr. Assad’s Alawite sect. A doctor in the Red Crescent hospital told Addounia that most of the victims he had treated were women and children.

March 17th, 2012, 10:48 am

 

zoo said:

How low can this newspaper go?

Syria: Bashar al-Assad email reveals mystery near-naked woman
Mystery surrounds a photograph of an near-naked woman posing provocatively that was sent to Bashar al-Assad’s personal email account.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9149596/Syria-Bashar-al-Assad-email-reveals-mystery-near-naked-woman.html

March 17th, 2012, 10:51 am

 

zoo said:

Updated prediction of Rami Khoury: sometime this year

…
The stalemate in Syria continues, while the costs are increasing all around, in terms of dead and injured, refugee and displaced persons flows, economic and diplomatic stress, and regime isolation. We are likely to witness this trend for some months more, until one of the weak points in this equation snaps, which is inevitable sometime this year.

Rami G. Khouri is published twice weekly by THE DAILY STAR.

Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Columnist/2012/Mar-17/166957-a-year-on-the-syrian-paradox-persists.ashx#ixzz1pNzUXbxC

March 17th, 2012, 10:53 am

 

Anton said:

Dear Jad and all other Syrian Patriots

My whole family members live in the same place ( Kassaa Cartier ) where the explosion took place I am trying to contact them all no response so far.

Those are just enjoying the events and blaming the government are the people how either paid propagandist or protect the perpetrators …

I am very convinced that those doing such terrible things are even NOT Syrians

I am praying the whole day for my family and all Syrian people … I hope I am there at this moment to help those people in needs.

Please pray with me

God bless Syria the Syrian people , the Syrian army and the Syrian President

March 17th, 2012, 10:54 am

 

AIG said:

Bronco,

You must be joking. Assad cannot fight terrorism, he can only fight against civilians. How is Syria going to be more a police state than it was before? He will just lash out against innocents leading to more terrorism.

Maybe you now will understand what a despicable thing it is to support terrorist organizations as Syria has done for so long. It is a pity you reach this understanding only after terror hits you. Assad’s failed foreign policy is costing Syrians dearly. But keep venerating him.

March 17th, 2012, 11:05 am

 

Tara said:

Unless and until, the regime call for internationals help to investigate the bombing, then it most likely that It ordered the bombing in Damascus to blur the truth.

Bashar has sent Qaida terrorists to Iraq and could very well order them to bomb its own establishments.

If this was the work of independent Qaeda group, why didn’t they bomb the neighborhood where Assad lives?

If Assad has nothing to fear, let’s bring international Qaeda expert to investigate.

March 17th, 2012, 11:06 am

 

Mina said:

Zoo
In sexism, the Europeans can go pretty far. Look at this article in The Guardian…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/mar/16/assad-emails-adviser-hadeel-ali

“bypassed his male aides”: no comment

March 17th, 2012, 11:07 am

 

zoo said:

تقرير حسين مرتضى من مكان التفجير 17-03-2012 .

March 17th, 2012, 11:14 am

 

zoo said:

#495 Mina

Western medias are desperate for readers, so they use the lowest way to get them: violence, horror and titillating sex stories.

March 17th, 2012, 11:18 am

 

omen said:

zoo, is assad an eunuch?

March 17th, 2012, 11:25 am

 

Tara said:

Zoo@490

She sent him a Hi. Shortly, he replies: Hi and half. Then she sent him her provocative picture… We don\’t know how he replied….

I would like to know. What happened after?

I am just hoping and praying that we won\’t find out later on that he sent her his own provocative picture posing similarly..

Yuk! But yet I can’t stop laughing.

March 17th, 2012, 11:25 am

 

zoo said:

499. Tara

I think you should scrutinize your husband’s email, you could be really surprised.

March 17th, 2012, 11:27 am

 

zoo said:

#498 Omen

Eunuchs were used in Turkish harems, ask Erdogan, he was a friend of Bashar, he would know better.

March 17th, 2012, 11:31 am

 

omen said:

mina, 11:07

how is western sexism? to point out that assad relied on the advice of female aides?

March 17th, 2012, 11:41 am

 

Dawoud said:

In the post below, Luna al-Shabi-who used to work for the Aljazeera (the network of the free) and now works as a propagandist for the murderous regime of Bashar al-Assad- is claiming that her propagandists and the regime’s supporters are flooding Websites with pro-regime comments. I wonder how many of MS. Luna al-Shibl’s folks are posting here on “Syria Comment!” 🙂

http://watan.com/news/focus/2012-03-16/5555
الإعلامية لونا الشبل للأسد: فاروق الشرع رجل مهزوم واتباعي يغرقون المواقع بالتعليقات

تصنيف الخبر: تحت الضوء تاريخ النشر: 2012/03/16 – 07:00 PM المصدر: وطن
في رسالة، في الثاني والعشرين من يناير الماضي، وصفت لونا الشبل نائب الرئيس السوري فاروق الشرع بالشخص المهزوم، كان ذلك إثر ما صدر عن الجامعة العربية حينها، والتي دعت الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد إلى تفويض صلاحياته إلى نائبه، تمهيداً إلى إجراء انتخابات برلمانية ورئاسية تحت إشراف عربي ودولي.

طالبت المستشارة الشبل الرئيس الأسد أن يأمر الشرع بإصدار بيان متلفز أو مكتوب لرفض اقتراح الجامعة العربية، وحينها وصفت نائب الأسد بالمهزوم، كلام الشبل هذا جاء بعد ساعات من صدور المبادرة العربية بتاريخ الثاني والعشرين من يناير.
تطمينات الشبل للأسد بخصوص مواقع الإنترنت
وفي السابع من ديسمبر من العام الماضي، كانت قضية مقابلة الرئيس السوري مع قناة “أيه بي سي” ما زالت تتفاعل بعد اتهام النظام للقناة باجتزاء المقابلة.

وتتلقى لونا الشبل من شهرزاد الجعفري الموظفة في الرئاسة رسالة تشير إلى تعليقات مؤيدي نظام الأسد على المقابلة على الفيس بوك، فتحول الشبل رسالة شهرزاد إلى الرئيس، وتعلق للرئيس موضحة أن مجموعات تابعة لها هي التي أغرقت مواقع الإنترنت بالتعليقات على الخبر بشأن هيئة التنسيق.

وفي رسالة تالية تخبر الشبل الرئيس الأسد أن الشباب الموالي يشن هجوما بالتعلقيات على صفحة المذيعة الأمريكية باربرا والترز على الفيس بوك، بعد المقابلة التي أجرتها مع الرئيس السوري.
الشبل توجه الرئيس بخصوص خطابه
في العاشر من يناير الماضي، وهو اليوم الذي سبق توجيه الأسد لخطابه من ساحة الأمويين أرسلت الشبل رسالة إلى الأسد، تقترح عليه فيها نقاطاً عديدة، وطالبته بالتركيز عليها في الخطاب، ومن أبرزها ضرورة أن يظهر وخلفه جمهور، حتى يعطي الانطباع أنه محاط بمريديه، وآمن كما يفعل الرئيس الأمريكي أوباما.

الأسد التزم باقتراح الشبل هذا، ونفذه بظهوره على طريقة الرئيس الأمريكي باراك أوباما، الذي تعود إلقاء خطاباته وسط عدد من مؤيديه، كما استعان باقتراحات الشبل.
اقتراح بضرورة خطف الرئيس راية الإسلام من المعارضة

رسالة تحتوي على خطاب لأوباما
الاسم الآخر الذي كان له نشاط في الجانب الإعلامي هو السيدة هديل، وهي على ما يبدو من الرسائل المسربة شخصية الظل، التي تتابع لأجل الرئيس تفاصيل إعلامية وشؤوناً متعلقة بحزب البعث الحاكم.
[…]

March 17th, 2012, 11:42 am

 

omen said:

how will assad’s wife react to these revelations? maybe she’ll do us all a favor and render payback.

March 17th, 2012, 11:45 am

 

Dawoud said:

P.S., I used to have a couple of friends who now live in Lebanon. As soon as I found out that they support the murdrous regime of Bashar and post his favorable propaganda on their blogs, I stopped talking to them. It is a great dishonor to have friendship with poeople who support serial killers!!!!!!!!!

A couple of days ago, the souther Dahyia propagandist, Hasan Nasrallah, delieved one of his cult of personality speeches. Does anybody here have a Website or blog address that posts the English translation of this propgandist speeches 🙂

Free Syria, Free Palestine!

March 17th, 2012, 11:52 am

 

Tara said:

Zoo @501

My husband is better looking than Brad Pitt and I really am not joking. Most women (and even men) comment on that in my presence and behind my back….Doesn’t bother me a bit. I actually enjoy it. He has no inner need to feel (i ‘m sexy and I know it). We both like to have intellectual and spiritual relationships with other sexes and it is in the open. I just know what I have and that is enough. No need to break into his email account.

March 17th, 2012, 11:53 am

 

omen said:

assad emailed back his photo.

March 17th, 2012, 11:59 am

 

Dawoud said:

Tara:

Do you think that Asma would be jealous now and try to bring down the regime after realizing the other women in Bashar’s life: Luna and Hadeel?! Or, is she busy shopping online with money looted and embezzled from the Syrian people’s treasury? 🙂

P.S., does it supriese you that Bashar and his corrupt family are so obssessed with Apple’s products. One email from Bashar (Murdrous Dictator) father-in-law lists that it was “sent from iphone!”

Did it surprise you that Luna al-Shibl is bragging that the pro-regime propagandists are FLOODING Websites with pro-regime COMMENTS. Don’t you, like me, wonder how many of them are commenting here? I am sure that Hasan Narallah’s admirers from Lebanon are posting!

March 17th, 2012, 12:02 pm

 

Dawoud said:

A short time before the Arab League’s monitors were going to visit Syria, the regime fabricated and carried out a terrorist attack in Damascus!!!! Now, a short time before the Kofi Anan’s rep. is visting Syria and expecting a reply from the Syrian dictator, the regime again fabricates and carries out a terrorist attack in a mostly Christian neighborhood of Damascus! Who said that Syria Christians are not suffering from Bashar’s corrupt regime because the are?

March 17th, 2012, 12:10 pm

 

ann said:

ANGELS Practicing Their peaceful Religion

At least 27 killed as twin bombings strike Damascus security structures (VIDEO, PHOTOS) – 17 March, 2012

http://rt.com/news/blasts-damascus-strike-bomb-799/

Twin explosions have shaken the Syrian capital, killing at least 27 people and injuring up to 100, Syrian TV says, quoting the country’s health minister. Syrian media has dubbed the blasts “terrorist attacks.”

Both civilians and security forces are reportedly among the victims.

Initial reports say that car bombs struck the aviation intelligence department and the criminal security department at about 7:30 AM local time.

The explosions come two days after the one-year anniversary of the uprisings against President Assad’s regime that have killed over 8,000 people according to UN estimations.

The last major bombing occurred in the city of Aleppo on February 10, killing 26 people.

The Syrian government has blamed terrorist groups attempting to destabilize the country for the attacks.

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 12:17 pm

 

Tara said:

Dawoud

“Do you think that Asma would be jealous now and try to bring down the regime after realizing the other women in Bashar’s life”

Not at all. I mean look at the guy. It is impossible to feel jealous over him. Her only affection is to the crystal encrusted shoes and fine jewelry.

March 17th, 2012, 12:27 pm

 

jad said:

Dear Anton,

I’m sorry that you couldn’t contact your family back home, God willing they are fine and safe.

The footage of this barbaric attack in the middle of a residential neighborhood is the evil itself.

My thoughts and sympathy are with every Syrian today, God protect Syria and Syrians and send the evil away from them.

Dear Bronco
“This is real turning point”

I agree this criminal cowardly horrific attack is a turning point, it’s the worst terrorism attack Damascus ever seen and it’ll have a major consequences as you wrote.

رح ننتف شورابك يا حمد
http://youtu.be/7-0jbLOx12I

March 17th, 2012, 12:37 pm

 

jad said:

بهمة الشباب رح نرجع الامان
http://youtu.be/MDiqyDE0TKA

فجروا بمناطق المدارس وأخافوا الاولاد
http://youtu.be/pb4cmo7rr2o

March 17th, 2012, 12:45 pm

 

jad said:

Until now 30 Syrian dead mostly civilians and more than 100 injured many of them in critical condition:

At least 27 killed as twin bombings strike Damascus security structures
http://rt.com/news/blasts-damascus-strike-bomb-799/

March 17th, 2012, 12:56 pm

 

ann said:

Syria stresses resolution to deal “decisively” with saboteurs – 2012-03-17

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/17/c_122847533.htm

DAMASCUS, March 17 (Xinhua) — Syria’s interior ministry warned Saturday that it won’t waver in dealing “decisively” with anyone who would compromise the security and stability of the country.

In a statement aired on the state TV, the ministry stressed its resolution to combat saboteurs, citing the twin bombings that hit two security departments earlier in the day, leaving at least 27 people killed and 140 others wounded.

The first blast went off at 7:20 a.m. local time (0520 GMT) at al-Jamarek roundabout and the second blast went off a few minutes later at al-Tahrir square, causing big damages to residential buildings and cars parked at the two sites.

The specialized authorities have gathered evidences and sent them to special laboratories to identify the “terrorist perpetrators” and the kind of explosives used in the two bombings, it added.

The ministry stressed that “those terrorist acts” are integral part of the campaign targeting the Syrian people’s security and stability, adding that the terrorist bombings came at a time when some regional and international powers are calling explicitly for sending in arms to Syria.

The ministry called on the international community to live up to its responsibilities to stand by the Syrian people and work to halt all attempts that aim to destabilize the country.

It also called on the citizens to continue cooperation with the competent authorities and report any suspicious moves.

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 12:59 pm

 

ann said:

Russia supports Syrians’ decision on leadership: FM – 2012-03-17

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/17/c_122847535.htm

MOSCOW, March 17 (Xinhua) — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov voiced support for the Syrian people’s decision on their leadership and again urged a ceasefire and political talks in the violence-wracked country.

Russia believed the Syrians could make decisions on the country’s future, he told a TV news program to be broadcast Saturday evening.

“Russia will support any agreement based on outcomes of a general political dialogue between the government and all opposition groups,” he said.

Lavrov also said his proposal to end all violence in Syria was not only for President Bashar al-Assad but also for the “more militarized” rebel groups.

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 1:09 pm

 

Juergen said:

Hans 476

How can you forget the Zionist empires hand on the events. Bloody mistake i guess…

Tara 484

I found both actually coexist. Iran is full of surprises and Zoo is totally wrong, I love Iran and plans are made to visit Iran soon again. Iranians love foreigners, especially Europeans.I was walking in Tehrans bazar-e-borg and a young guy with his mother stopped in front of me and asked me in german if i am german and his second question was which fassbender movie i like. They invited me to their home and an 3 week odysee to get good food ended, i got finally the food i dreamed the country of Hafis and Saidi would offer, but all you get is bad food in the restaurants. There is like in Israel two societies living apart from each other, there was Alis family who invited me, we had wine and i ended dancing with the mother under their Degas copy of naked nymphs. In the same country you can talk hours with an ulema in his schoolyard, and you can feel like centuries ago, all in their kaftans and turbans following the speech of their ulema. I asked Ali once after spotting one ulema on the street how you can define the rank by the outfit they wear. His answer: Do you think i care for those dogs for a second? Tara one thing one should see in Iran are their parcs, i am sorry but i never saw more beautiful arranged parcs than there. Probably the most beautiful one in Shiraz, the garden sourrounding the grave of Hafiz,where all the love couples meet up.

Surely you will find uneducated folks and the other shopowner who translated so kindly for me told me later as an excuse, we dont have many tourists here and all who have better education leave the country.

Zoo

I dont make my conclusion by just one encounter and i did not write that every Iranian hate Arabs. In general i think that for some the fact that an bedoui culture became the world order for so much time is the main reason they feel that way. If you visit in Yazd the temple of the Zhorastrians you will feel that this nation, this culture has many resons to be proud of.

March 17th, 2012, 1:10 pm

 

Tara said:

Has any one wondered why al Qaeda is not bombing in Qurdaha?

Simple question with simple answer. All these bombing are the regime doing. The regime from now on will target Christian neighborhoods trying to gain international resentment against the revolution. The regime however will never stage similar act in Qurdaha, not because they care about their fellow Alawis but because their fellow Alawis knwow what the regime is all about.

March 17th, 2012, 1:13 pm

 

Tara said:

Tara @529

Add “not” before the first ” because”. Can’t edit from my iPad.

March 17th, 2012, 1:17 pm

 

Juergen said:

Todays demonstration in Berlin was marked with heavy police presence, now i know why, the Pro Assads went out to demonstrate themselves.
Here is their video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=XfECGotbR40#!

As it looks like a whole section in the ministry of interiour must dedicate their work nowadays to reverse the revolutionary chanting.

March 17th, 2012, 1:21 pm

 

omen said:

marwan bishara (al jazeera analyst) on cspan2, discussing his book the invisible arab: the promise and peril of the arab revolution.

March 17th, 2012, 1:26 pm

 

Tara said:

Jeurgen @521

Can’t they come up with non-peasant slogans and non-squeaky voice? Is vulgarity their trademark in and outsize Syria. I’ve saide many time, their PR officer need to be fired. No style whatsoever…

March 17th, 2012, 1:41 pm

 

ann said:

Al-Qaeda terrorists attempt to fuel Syria unrest – Saturday Mar 17, 2012

At least 27 people, including civilians, have been killed and more than 97 others injured in two car bomb attacks in Al-Qasaa and Duwar al- Jamarek areas in the Syrian capital, health minister says.

http://presstv.com/detail/232172.html

One bomb planted in a car went off outside the Syrian Air Force Intelligence Headquarters and another explosion hit a security police building in Damascus, according to the Syrian state TV.

“Terrorists” have been blamed by the Syrian state TV for the blasts, but no further details have been released yet.

This is not the first time that the Syrian cities have been targeted by bomb attacks. Bombings in Damascus and other cities in the past few months have left scores of people dead.

Press TV has conducted an interview with Hisham Jaber, director of Center for Middle East Studies, to share his opinion on this issue.

The following is a transcript of the interview:

What is the target of this and what is the objective of those operations? I think it is to create an atmosphere of non-security in Syria and specially as everybody knows that for one year all plans against the Syrian regime did not succeed, creating a buffer zone between Turkey and Syria did not succeed and between Lebanon and Syria.

Second, sanctions against the Syrian regime did not succeed because the neighborhood countries did not accept such sanctions like Iraq and Lebanon and Jordan because those sanctions will be sanction on their interest and they have daily contact with Syria.

Third, when they tried to bring or to have a resolution for international intervention, military intervention against Syria, it did not succeed and last week they were talking about providing weapons to the insurgents also there is diversions towards this idea even inside the Western bloc.

And now I think this is a kind of war, a guerrilla warfare and terrorism against the Syrian regime. The target is to create as we said an atmosphere of non-security inside Syria.

But killing civilians and targeting a populated area there is no doubt that this operation is a terrorism operation without any discussion.

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 1:45 pm

 

jad said:

Bassam AlKadi

رسالة سريعة الى اصدقائي وصديقاتي من المتظاهرين تحت شعار: مستمرون حتى رحيل النظام:
خسرتم الكثير بعدم تسميتكم المجرمين القتلة باسمائهم (من مجلس الخونة حتى الجيش الحر والاصوليين، ومن منظريهم وحماتهم “الفكريين” حتى حاضنيهم ومبرريهم في الشارع) خلا الفترة الماضية، ولم يعد هناك الكثير قبل ان تخسروا حتى احترامكم/ن لانفسكم..
لا تتردوا اليوم بتسمية الاشياء باسمائها..
لا تسقطوا في مستنقع القذارة وتبرير القتل بحجة “لا نعرف من ارتكبها”، لا تكونوا مجرمين قتلة بغبائكم/ وجبنكم/ن، لا تتحولوا الى مسوخ مركوبة..

كونوا سوريين/ات على مستوى الحرية التي تتحدثون بها..

https://www.facebook.com/alkadi.bassam/posts/411760925507866

March 17th, 2012, 1:52 pm

 

jad said:

Very true, it describes thugs who are pretending to be Syrians:

Bassam AlKadi- بسام القاضي

بقايا إقياءات التفاهة، بعض حملة الجنسية السورية (وغالبا هم/ن حملة شهادات جامعية أيضا) ممن اختبؤوا اليوم كالأفاعي لكي لا يعبروا عن موقف واضح من جرائم اليوم،
والذين يفحون مواربة، كالأفاعي أيضا، عن أن القاتل هو النظام،
والذين يبصقون غباءهم المدقع في وهم أنهم أذكياء بطرحهم اليوم تساؤلات عمن قتل “أطفال المظاهرات”،
والذين يهربون إلى الجمل العامة التافهة عن “الآلام” و”التعاطف” و”الدم” و… جبناء عن تسمية الجريمة والمجرم بأسمائهما الحقيقية التي لا يجهلها أحد..

أنتم/ن لستم نقيض النظام الديكتاتوري،
ولا أنداده،
ولا حتى معارضة له..
بل أنتم، ببساطة الموت، بعضا من تفسخه الذاتي.. البعض الأشد رائحة قذرة.. إلى الدرجة التي بات فيها الخونة العملاء من الشقفة إلى غليون، ومن صبرا إلى البيانوني، ومن المالح إلى الأسعد، مرورا بكل الأمعات الآخرين الذين هجروا سورية ليتاجروا بها وهم في أحضان أسيادهم من قطر إلى أمريكا..
المجرمين القتلة الوهابيين والأصوليين والأخوان المجرمين وعملاء المخابرات الغربية،
باتوا مقدساتكم التي لا تجرؤون حتى على التفكير بأنكم صرتم بغالا لمسيرتهم نحو تدمير سورية..

وتحاولون الضحك على أنفسكم بأن الشارع لأحد سواهم..
وبأن أوهامكم عن المدنية والديمقراطية قد باتت شيئا آخر سوى الطريق إلى القتل الجماعي..

اليوم عرفت فعلا أي “حاجز خوف” قد كسرتموه.. اليوم تأكدت نهائيا أن من “نام” دهرا لن يفيق إلا “مسخا”..

لم يبق عاقل لم يدن الجرائم التي ارتكبها النظام، مسميا الفاعل باسمه..
أما أنتم/ة، فمرة تلو أخرى، تثبتون أن “حاجز الخوف” الذي كسرتموه إنما هو “حاجز الحياء” الذي لم يعد لديكم منه مثقال ذرة.. “حاجز الإنسانية” الذي سقطتم منه إلى هاوية الإجرام.. “حاجز العقل” الذي خلفتموه وراءكم في مضيكم نحو البهيمية..

فهنيئا لكم/ن حريتكم، وإنسانيتكم.. هنيئا لكم/ن سعة أفقكم، وعمقكم.. هنيئا لكم/ن مستنقعكم/ن…

وهنيئا لكم/ن، ألف تهئنة، أن تحصدوا اليوم أو غدا ما تزرعوه! أو: يحصدكم/ن…

https://www.facebook.com/alkadi.bassam/posts/412009302149695

March 17th, 2012, 1:55 pm

 

ann said:

Saudi Arabia arming Syrian rebels

­Saudi Arabia is sending military equipment to Syrian rebels, a top Saudi diplomat said Saturday. “Saudi military equipment is on its way to Jordan to arm the Free Syrian Army,” he was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse. According to the diplomat, this is “a Saudi initiative to stop the massacres in Syria.”

[…]

http://rt.com/news/line/2012-03-17/#id28111

March 17th, 2012, 1:55 pm

 

omen said:

have you noticed how all the press critical of a free syria comes out of iran & russia?

iran who wages state sponsored terrorism defends fellow terrorist assad. the brotherhood of dictators stand united against freedom.

March 17th, 2012, 1:56 pm

 

zoo said:

507. Tara

Your couple sounds just like Bashar and Asma. Maybe the difference is that Bashar is far from looking like Brad Pitt and you may or may not look like Angelina Jolie. In any case, I respect that you don’t sneak into his email and he in yours.

March 17th, 2012, 1:56 pm

 

jad said:

تفجير بين القصاع وشارع بغداد- خاص الاخبارية ج1
http://youtu.be/GWuDuRtwBXk

تفجير بين القصاع وشارع بغداد-خاص الاخبارية ج2.
http://youtu.be/wXT4VxLzXek

تفجير بين القصاع وشارع بغداد – خاص الاخبارية 3.
http://youtu.be/6BTINmtwUcA

صور تفجير الجمارك الاولى ج1
http://youtu.be/s-WTkvU9OrE

March 17th, 2012, 2:07 pm

 

irritated said:

#510 Dawood

Sorry I don’t follow your logic. You have already accused the Christians to be the supporters of the regime, why would the regime put a bomb in their area and in front of their own security centers? To punish who? What’s the message?

With this attack, it is clearer than crystal that it is an act of double revenge from the humiliated armed gangs: against the Christians because of their support to Bashar and against the government in retaliation to the defeat of Bab Amr and Edlib.

You interpretation is as twisted as it can be and has no credibility whatsoever.

March 17th, 2012, 2:08 pm

 

jad said:

Irritated,
What’s more embarrassing and showing their true self is that nobody of those who keep talking about ‘morals’ or their ‘love’ and ‘care’ for Syrians wrote a word of sympathy or condemnation, how pathetic!

March 17th, 2012, 2:24 pm

 

Anton said:

Dear Jad…

Yes, we will build it piece per piece, not only in Damascus but all around Syria..

Yes, Its a turning point for Syria

We will win, and we will teach the world , what Syia is

God Bless Syria

PS; finaly , I have been able to contact my family.. I will come back later with more news, thanks

March 17th, 2012, 2:34 pm

 

omen said:

irritated @ 2:08

i’m starting to see reports about christians breaking away from the regime. with all the images of children being slain, who can blame them? what christian is going to ally with bashar, the baby killer? in turn, assad renders punishment for disloyalty.

March 17th, 2012, 2:40 pm

 

omen said:

irritated @ 2:15

why are you blaming the reformers for the assad family’s excesses?

your attempt at jujutsu is transparent.

March 17th, 2012, 2:47 pm

 

ann said:

Syria says opposition must give up arms first – March 17, 2012

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2012/03/17/syria_says_opposition_must_give_up_arms_first/

UNITED NATIONS—Syria has told international envoy Kofi Annan in a letter obtained Saturday by The Associated Press that it is “keen to end violence” but insists that armed opposition groups give up their weapons first.

The Syrian response falls far short of U.S. and European demands that Syrian forces stop fighting first — and even Russia’s insistence that both sides lay down their arms simultaneously.

But it does leave the door open for talks, and Annan is sending a team to Damascus on Sunday to continue discussions on implementing his proposal to end the yearlong conflict. Annan said Friday that if the team makes sufficient progress he will consider returning to Damascus, where he held two rounds of talks last weekend with President Bashar Assad.

The Syrian letter asks Annan, the joint U.N.-Arab League envoy, “to provide guarantees to the Syrian government that the armed groups will cease all armed aggressions and give up their weapons to the dedicated authorities in exchange of a full pardon.”

The Syrians said they want the “guarantees” because of “the lessons” they learned dealing with Arab League monitors.

The Syrians said that when the Arab monitors were in the country and they withdrew all their forces from cities and other urban areas “the armed groups used their weapons and attacked the population as well as the public order police and destroyed (the) Syrian economy.”

When Annan provides all these guarantees, “the Syrian government can discuss with him the idea of putting in place a neutral monitoring system,” the letter said.

In response to Annan’s request for unhindered media access, the government said “we agree to allow the entry for the media with freedom of movement according to the Syrian laws and regulations.”

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 2:59 pm

 

Anton said:

Dear @ 537

Be assure that, no one is breaking away from the president .. it’s the contrary , he is consolidating his Power

He has our blessing to defend the Syrian People regardless their faith

March 17th, 2012, 3:00 pm

 

omen said:

thank you, ann, for shifting away from russia/iran sources.

March 17th, 2012, 3:15 pm

 

ann said:

Saudi sends military kit to Syria rebels – 2012-03-17

http://www.news24.com/World/News/Saudi-sends-military-kit-to-Syria-rebels-20120317

Dubai – Saudi Arabia is delivering military equipment to Syrian rebels in an effort to stop bloodshed by President Bashar Assad’s regime, a top Arab diplomat said on Saturday.

“Saudi military equipment is on its way to Jordan to arm the Free Syrian Army,” the diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“This is a Saudi initiative to stop the massacres in Syria,” he added saying further “details will follow at a later time”.

Last week, Syrian Information Minister Adnan Mahmoud told AFP Saudi Arabia and Qatar were backing “armed terrorist gangs” operating in the country and are therefore responsible for the resulting bloodshed.

“Some of the countries backing armed terrorist gangs, such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, are accomplices to the terrorism targeting the Syrian people… and bear responsibility for the blood letting,” he said.

Those charges were renewed on Syrian state television on Saturday after two huge bomb blasts killed at least 27 people and wounded almost 100 in central Damascus.

“Saudi Arabia is sending us terrorists,” a resident of the devastated areas said on television.

“These are the friends… of the Istanbul council,” said another, referring to the opposition Syrian National Council set up in the Turkish city last August.

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 3:15 pm

 

bronco said:

These are the final days of the SNC, finally the local Syrian opposition has a voice.

Five Syrian opposition groups unite as single coalition

The new Syrian opposition force is made up of the liberal National Movement for Change, the Islamist Movement for the Fatherland, the Bloc for Liberation and Development, the Turkmen National Bloc, and the Kurdish Movement for a New Life. The group would act independently from Syrian National Council, but says it was “not set up in opposition to anyone other than Assad’s regime, but rather to unite the opposition outside the SNC.”

http://rt.com/news/line/2012-03-17/#id28115

March 17th, 2012, 3:37 pm

 

zoo said:

11 march 2012
Al Shark al Awsat

http://www.aawsat.com/details.asp?section=4&article=667471&issueno=12157

العقيد رياض الأسعد لـ «الشرق الأوسط»: العمليات التي ستنفذ في الساعات القادمة ستكون نوعية ومفاجئة للنظام

March 17th, 2012, 3:44 pm

 

Ghufran said:

Anti regime forces are losing support while Syrians are increasingly becoming tired of watching the finger pointing campaign launched by fighting parties, the end result is the gradual death of ordinary Syrians and the Syrian state in the absence of any vigorous political process that is supposed to stop the violence and reduce blood shed.

The theory that the regime is spreading death by car bombs that explode in front of security and government buildings is finding little support inside and outside Syria.

May be it is time to try to extinguish fire instead of pouring gas on a flammable situation especially that foreign governments have failed to do anything to help Syria and may eventually leave Syrians alone to finish whatever is left of civil peace and normal life.

Reports claiming that random violence is speeding the end of the regime are not supported by facts on the ground. I find it nauseating that hawkish elements from both sides still think that they can win by throwing accusations and verbal bombs at the other side while Syrians are getting killed and those power-hungry thugs continue to refuse to give Syrians the chance to live and let live.

March 17th, 2012, 3:47 pm

 

zoo said:

UN team to leave for Syria Monday
AFP – 3 hrs ago
http://news.yahoo.com/un-team-leave-syria-monday-155743094.html

A UN team mandated by international envoy Kofi Annan will leave for Damascus on Monday, the former UN secretary general’s spokesman said.

UN-Arab League envoy Annan said Friday the team would discuss setting up an international monitoring mission for Syria.

“I hope they will have all the access that is necessary,” he added at a press conference in Geneva after a video briefing of the UN Security Council.

He told a closed meeting of the council that he was sending the team even though he has had a “disappointing response” so far to his proposals to President Bashar al-Assad.
(…)

March 17th, 2012, 3:51 pm

 

ann said:

Syria investments face uncertain future – March 18, 2012

http://gulfnews.com/business/opinion/syria-investments-face-uncertain-future-1.995927

For their part, Qataris have been the primary GCC investor in Syria’s financial services sector. Only in 2010 did Qatar National Bank-Syria raise its capital to $300 million. Not surprisingly, Qatar stands to bear the biggest losses of all GCC states as a result of the US and EU restrictions on transactions with the Central Bank of Syria as well as transfers of funds into and from Syria.

GCC investments in Syria are without a doubt in the worst possible state. This is compounded by a drop in the number of visitors, adversely affecting the viability of the vital tourism sector.

Another adverse factor relates to a drop in the value of the Syrian currency and hence returns on investment. The currency’s value has dropped from 47 pounds to the US dollar at the start of the uprising in March last year to 58 pounds to the greenback early this year. The currency recently traded as low as 70 pounds to the dollar in the black market.

Clearly, a great many GCC investments in Syria are hampered by frozen funds whilst alternative use of the funds is denied. However, the extraordinary development is bound to open debate in chambers of commerce and other pertinent circles concerning implications for private investments in relation to choices made by public sector authorities.

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 3:53 pm

 

ann said:

Did anyone hear condemnations of this cowardly act from Victory Nuland?

Iran condemns terrorist blasts in Damascus

Tehran, March 17, IRNA – Foreign Ministry spokesman condemned blasts in Damascus on Saturday and said that Iran considers such acts as a cause for instability and insecurity in the region.

http://www.irna.ir/News/Politic/Iran-condemns-terrorist-blasts-in-Damascus/80044468

According to the report of Foreign Ministry Media Department on Saturday evening, Ramin Mihman-parast, by rejecting such terrorist acts, said that responsibility of such incidents is on the shoulder of those who arm and provoke armed groups.

He underlined that Iran thinks that the terrorist acts in the capital of Syria are the price given by Syrian nation for their support for their government.

He expressed sympathy with Syrian people and government.

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 4:08 pm

 

bronco said:

#546 Gufran

In any war each side tries to get the maximum of advantages so it stands stronger in negotiations.
The demise of the SNC that, I hope, will be confirmed soon will open the door to a new round. The only oppositions that still have a credibility are the FSA on the military level and the local Syrian opposition on the political level. If these two find a way to enter into a coalition, they would be well placed for a future dialog.

As they are about to be excluded, the SNC and their hardline allies ( Qatar and KSA) want to sabotage such coalition Therefore they are using all kind of methods to discredit the FSA. Each attack on civilian is now pinned on the FSA. The FSA will have to do a serious cleanup in their ranks and fight the armed gangs that are using them as cover for criminal acts against civilians.

It seems that the FSA and the regular army will be fighting against the same enemy soon and that may create a rapprochement that could be beneficial when the time for dialog comes.

The SNC is crumbling and the Local opposition is uniting. This could be a better alternative for an official opposition that the West could recognize.

That would be a first step, even though Qatar and KSA would do all they can to keep the SNC as the opposition representative as they have invested a lot in it. In my view Turkey, who is pragmatic and want to avoid military intervention and spill over on their territory of violence, is the one who would start distancing itself from the SNC and recognize the local opposition as the legitimate representative of the opposition.

In addition, I think Annan will give his support to a coalition made of local opposition and FSA representative to enter into a dialog with the government.

All this will play down at the AL meeting in Baghdad and confirmed in Istanbul.

March 17th, 2012, 4:12 pm

 

Tara said:

Bronco

It is time for the SNC as we know it now to disintegrate. Time for more effective, hawkish, and unifying opposition to rise up and avoid the previous mistakes. They should come up with a draft constitution guaranteeing the rights of women and minorities, opening the presidency to any religion, and restricting the presidency to two four years terms to be applied retrospectively. The new draft should guaranteed an acceptable solution to the kurds and acceptable level of representation of the MBs. They should define a road map where elections happen under international supervision to guarantee its authenticity. By writing a draft constitution including all above, the world can no longer criticize the opposition of not reaching out to minorities and not being inclusive. They will gain the needed support to be recognized as the only legit rep of the Syrian people. In the interim, they should try to organize all the armed resistance under one leadership. Once that achieved, they should lobby for arming the FSA to fight its fight to topple Bashar.

March 17th, 2012, 4:15 pm

 

Dawoud said:

These emails reveal beyond the shadow of the doubt that both Iran and its Lebanese puppet Hizballah, which is led by the guy with the self-inflated ego and cult of personality Hasan Nasr somthing, have Syrian blood on their hand. Killing Syrians is not a sign of “resistance,” but rather a sign of criminality and hypocrisy. WE, Syrians, will liberate Syria and then move to arrest Hasan Nasr!

P.S., any blog that posts the English translation of Nasrallah’s cult of personality speeches! Please help!

Free Syria! Free Palestine!

http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/03/17/201292.html
يوميات الأسد وزوجته أثناء ثورة الشعب السوري
بشار يقتني لعبة مستوحاة من سلسلة “هاري بوتر” وأسماء مغرمة بشراء الأثاث المنزلي
العربية.نت
في آخر حلقات الرسائل الرئاسية المسربة، شق كبير يعكس خيارات شخصية واهتمامات استهلاكية لافتة للرئيس السد وزوجته أسماء، لا سيما في فترة الثورة التي تعيشها البلاد، حيث أكدت شهرزاد الجعفري في إحدى الرسائل أن الرئيس يمارس نشاطاته الرياضية اليومية بشكل معتاد، وتمنت له الفوز في مباراة التنس بعد أن أطرته مدحاً، واعتبرته محترفاً في التنس، وصدرت تلك الرسالة يوم الجمعة 16 ديسمبر الماضي، والذى وافق الجمعة التي أطلق عليها المحتجون اسم “الجامعة العربية تقتلنا”.

كما تضمن بريد الأسد والذي تبث حلقته السادسة “العربية الحدث” الليلة، رسالة وصلت في الثاني والعشرين من نوفمبر، من أحد الموظفين في رئاسة الجمهورية مرفق معها ملف، عبارة عن ملخص لكتاب اسمه “فن الحرب الفرنسي” للمؤلف ألكسي جيني، وهو كتاب صادر العام الماضي يتحدث عن تاريخ فرنسا منذ الحرب العالمية الثانية.
تداول النكات مع الأصدقاء
وليست تلك الرسالة هي الوحيدة بخصوص موافاه الأسد بملخصات لبعض الكتب، إذ توجد رسالة أخرى تحتوي في مرفقاتها كتاباً آخر بعنوان “الحروب الهمجية” للمؤلف ستيفن سالايتا، يتحدث عن العنف العربي وكيفية وصفه بالإرهاب في الغرب.

إلى ذلك يكشف مضمون بعض الرسائل، عن تداول الرئيس للنكات مع حلقة ضيقة من الأصدقاء المقربين، تماماً كما يحصل الأمر في حياة العديد من الناس العاديين.

كما تظهر في البريد الرئاسي المسرب، رسائل يتحدث بعضها عن تعامل الإعلام مع أخبار السوريين، كرسالة تذكر على سبيل المثال، بنكتة سوري وقع من ميكروباص أي سيارة نقل الركاب بالأجرة، فتتوالى تصريحات متخيلة لشتى الجهات تضخم ما جرى، من بينها وزير الداخلية وشخصيات المعارضة والقنوات الإخبارية العربية والسورية.

تلك الطرفة ليست الوحيدة من نوعها، فالصندوق الوارد للرئيس بشار الأسد استقبل عدداً كبيراً من النكات، منها ما يتعلق بالأزمة، ومنها ما يتعلق بالحياة اليومية للمواطن العربي، حتى أن الرئيس شارك بطرفة حول إجابات غريبة على أسئلة امتحان، ثم أعادت السيدة الأولى إرسالها، معلقة أن الإجابات هي لطالب حمصي ذكي.
[…]

March 17th, 2012, 4:23 pm

 

Dawoud said:

Anybody commenting here personally knows Luna al-Shibl, who is Bashar’s propagandist bragging that her regime supporters are “FLOODING” Websites with pro-dictator comments? 🙂

No, Syrian Christians are also victims of this thuggish murderous regime. Their future in a free Syria will be prosperous! They should not worry that their fate would be similar to Iraqi Christians. Just today, Bashar orchestrated a terrorist attack in a predominantly Christian neighborhood.

One Syrian Christian lawyer is quoted as saying the following in the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/18/world/middleeast/damascus-syria-two-large-explosions-reported.html?_r=1&ref=world
[…]
But Ms. Khuri, the lawyer, suspected a different conspiracy, on the part of the government.

“It’s a security chess game, moving the stones the way they want,” she said in a telephone interview. “It’s a trick.”

She said she feared that the many prisoners held in security offices could be wounded in such bombings.

She said the neighborhood of Al Qassaa, where a security office stands among residential buildings, is mostly Christian with some Sunni and Shiite Muslims and few members of Mr. Assad’s Alawite sect. A doctor in the Red Crescent hospital told Addounia that most of the victims he had treated were women and children.

March 17th, 2012, 4:38 pm

 

bronco said:

#551 Tara

Hawkish..armed opposition…. You know very well that the opposition cannot win, unless, like the Libyans, they get the help of NATO or an organized forces. There isn’t any country who is ready to do that and to rescue them. The more there are weapons, the more there will be civilians victims. It’s high time to lay down the weapons and talk without pre-conditions, now that the UN is seriously involved.

March 17th, 2012, 5:18 pm

 

ann said:

News Analysis: Deadly blasts aim to thwart Annan’s efforts to solve Syrian crisis – 2012-03-18

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/18/c_122847575.htm

George Gabbour, a political analyst, said that what happened today is “an entire criminality” that aims only to thwart the efforts of Kofi Annan in finding a solution to the yearlong crisis.

“Annan had informed the UN Security Council about the Syrian government’s cooperation with his mission,” Gabbour said, noting that “the blasts aim to deliver a message that the language of violence will dominate now.”

Annan, the special envoy of the UN and Arab League on the Syrian issue, told the UN Security Council Friday that “we need to handle the situation in Syria very carefully. Any miscalculation that leads to major escalation will have impact in the region which will be extremely difficult to manage.”

Meanwhile, Hamdi Abdullah, another analyst, agreed with Jabbour, suggesting that foiling Annan’s efforts is one of the main goals behind the explosions “because Annan called on resolving the Syrian crisis on the dialogue table,” which the opposition had refused.

Singling out the United States, Qatar and Saudi for criticism, Abdullah said those countries “do not want a political settlement to Syria’s crisis. Rather they want to impose humanitarian corridors in order to arm the rebels inside Syria.”

[…]

March 17th, 2012, 5:19 pm

 

Ghufran said:

The FSA is as vague and heterogeneous as anything else in Syria, and their slogan that they are protecting civilians by killing soldiers and attacking security check points make them a natural enemy for anybody who still wants to preserve whatever is left of the Syrian state.

Another problem with the FSA is that it is a wide umbrella that covers elements that are incapable of negotiating a political solution to the crisis, thus, thinking that the FSA is willing or able to sit down and help fighting parties reach a political deal with the regime is more of a wish than a doable plan. The same can be said about the SNC, the LCC and most opposition parties, I see no chance of a unified opposition that can speak with one voice,not now and not in the future, that leaves the door open to political parties that may have support among armed rebels but not dominated by those rebels or the GCC, the demand that the opposition unite before a political settlement is negotiated means that there will not be any such settlement.

Let each party that is willing to use dialogue join a process monitored by the UN and forget about forming one front to represent all opposition forces, that unity “thing” was a trap and it helped the regime and advocates of chaos and Libya-ization of Syria.

We will be better off including the MB in the process than inviting armed rebels who are only interested in using guns but lack any political vision for a diverse country like Syria.

March 17th, 2012, 5:32 pm

 
 

Juergen said:

Tara

Der Spiegel writes that rumors spread since years that Assads marriage isnt happy anymore.

Have you heard of that before?

About the pro Assad demonstration, I asked some folks and they said the outcome is much lesser now than back in October. It seems to me that the pro Assad supporters have a hard time to find enough people running around with President posters. I saw a London video today, and the regime supporters also gathered in front of their embassy. There is a weird demonstration from last summer here in Berlin when they marched through one of our main boulevards, as the painter Liebermann said it, i cant eat as much as i would like to puke.

March 17th, 2012, 6:00 pm

 

Juergen said:

I dont like to quote an total opposer of freedom and human rights in Germany, but there is some truth in what he said:

“People never lie so much as during a war, before an election or after a hunt.”

“Never believe anything in politics until it has been officially denied.”

Otto Graf von Bismarck
Prussian Prime Minister, Founder and Chancellor of the German Empire, 1815-1898

March 17th, 2012, 6:18 pm

 

Tara said:

Jeurgen@558

Very much not true as far vas I know. They are happily married. The summer before last, he insisted that her whole family, parents, and two brothers accompany them when he visited in South Ameica (probably to the dismay of his sister). Had they not been happily married, he would’ve wanted to distance himself from her family.

March 17th, 2012, 6:38 pm

 

Alan said:

528. OMEN said:

have you noticed how all the press critical of a free syria comes out of iran & russia?

iran who wages state sponsored terrorism defends fellow terrorist assad. the brotherhood of dictators stand united against freedom.

You have noticed as freedom and values leave the conveyor military-industrially a complex of the USA in the form of rockets cruise and a tomahawk and extend in on many countries of the world? You don’t wish to hear opinion of the different people of a planet on their opinion to your western freedom?

March 17th, 2012, 6:44 pm

 

Juergen said:

Thanks Tara

I thought so too. I miss Revlon here. Will he come back?

March 17th, 2012, 6:47 pm

 

jad said:

دم السوريين سوف بلاحقكم إلى قصوركم
http://youtu.be/hFCWOlVO5hI

March 17th, 2012, 6:48 pm

 

Alan said:

http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c32/368452.html

Russia waiting for new group of Syrian opposition

PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY, March 17 (Itar-Tass) — Russia is waiting for another group of the Syrian opposition in the near future, said on Saturday Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov live on the programme “News on Saturday” (Russia 1 channel).

“Russia called on the political opposition, during meetings with the self-same Burhan Ghalioun and other opposition leaders (incidentally, we are waiting for another group of the Syrian opposition in Moscow in the near future) to disassociate itself from those who try to lend the conflict a military dimension as well as from armed gangs, engineering provocations, to which the government responds very often disproportionately,” the minister said. “But militarization of opposition activities is now taking place to a definite extent.”

“At least, the Syrian National Council headed by Ghalioun, announced that it forms “a military wing” that will engage in collecting donations to purchase arms to continue struggle with the regime,” the minister noted.

“Sure, if events develop according to this scenario, it is difficult to count that any of our calls on the government will be received positively as far as a ceasefire is concerned,” Lavrov concluded.

March 17th, 2012, 6:49 pm

 

jad said:

استنكار شعبي لتفجيري دمشق الارهابيين 17-3-2012
http://youtu.be/eym9TGKrROE

March 17th, 2012, 6:49 pm

 

Alan said:

Damascus prepared for talks with unarmed opposition
http://english.ruvr.ru/2012_03_17/68772123/
Damascus is prepared for talks with the opposition that will refrain from using force, Syria’s representative at the UN Bashar al-Jafaari said in an interview with the Russian Arabic-language TV channel Rusiya Al-Yaum.

He said that the world community should differentiate between the peaceful political opposition and armed gangs which carry out subversive activities and commit crimes. It is their criminal activities that have made them outlaws. As for the law-abiding political opposition, the government is prepared to discuss the country’s future with it.

Al-Jafaari criticised Turkey’s intention to set up a buffer strip along the Syrian border. In his opinion, this is a provocation against Syria’s sovereignty and the UN Charter. Syria will not tolerate any buffer strips along its borders.

March 17th, 2012, 6:53 pm

 

Alan said:

Pro Assad Syrian Demo London March 17
http://youtu.be/NJK34FDnUVU?t=2m19s
Two Syrian Doctors explain to us the situation, and there is some footage of the demo and just one of its speakers

Syria – Israeli-made Weapons seized in Homs 16-03-2012
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BY1CCHbJu6I
The competent authorities on Thursday seized a car loaded with a big quantity of different weapons, some of them of an Israeli-made, on Homs international highway.

SANA reporter in Homs quoted a source as saying that the weapons included four RPGs, five Israeli-made mortars, three anti-tank missiles, snipers and rifles.

March 17th, 2012, 7:00 pm

 

jad said:

Montreal, preparation for a demonstration for Syria:
المسيرة العالمية لأجل سورية – مونتريال 17 3 2012 ج1
http://youtu.be/ViWYT2i8vBs

March 17th, 2012, 7:06 pm

 

Ghufran said:

انصار الاسد
http://www.bbc.co.uk/arabic/middleeast/2012/03/120311_syria_assad_backers.shtml

I personally believe that those who support the regime are either misinformed or beneficiaries of the regime in a way or the other including those who have relatives in the army or security forces.

My opinion or your’s about who and why may not matter much because those “minhebaks” do exist and they are not all shabeehas, so trying to exclude those from a future government will only lead to further chaos,division and violence.

The big question is whether those supporters are willing to scarify Bashar to save the country, I think they should, Bashar should have never been appointed president and he must put his ego in the back seat by choice instead of staying a course that will lead to his forced departure and the destruction of the country, he is a liability to his own supporters and a major hindrance to any political settlement.

March 17th, 2012, 7:09 pm

 

Juergen said:

“Syria has made progress in easing its heavy foreign debt burden through bilateral rescheduling deals with virtually all of its key creditors in Europe.”In December 2004, Syria and Poland reached an agreement by which Syria would pay $27 million out of the total $261.7 million debt. In January 2005, Russia and Syria signed a deal that wrote off nearly 80% of Syria’s debt to Russia, approximately €10.5 billion ($13 billion). The agreement left Syria with less than €3 billion (just over $3.6 billion) owed to Moscow. Half of it would be repaid over the next 10 years, while the rest would be paid into Russian accounts in Syrian banks and could be used for Russian investment projects in Syria and for buying Syrian products. This agreement was part of a weapons deal between Russia and Syria. ” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Syria

So i think the doctor is wrong when he claims Syria has no debts. The cause of Russias support may be better understood now, who would be ineteressted to loose an good customer…

March 17th, 2012, 7:12 pm

 

Alan said:

The western methods of distribution of democracy and value!
At least 27 killed as twin bombings strike Damascus security structures (VIDEO, PHOTOS)
http://rt.com/news/blasts-damascus-strike-bomb-799/

March 17th, 2012, 7:12 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

Assad is using inside Syria the same terrorist tactics he used in the past in Lebanon, Iraq, Palestine and Turkey for its mafia regime´s political beneffits. Now that he has lost control over foreign affairs he is obliged to use terrorism inside Syria to try to keep Damascus and Aleppo population on his side. Of course no terrorist attack is going to take place in Raqqa, Deir, Idlib, Daraa, Hama or Homs, since everything is lost for the regime there.

But in today´s Assad terrorist attacks there are some signs that show the regime intended to keep christians afraid of the revolution aspirations. The car in Tahrir Sq. was allegedly a suicide terrorist. But why a suicide terrorist would blown himself in the opposite side of the street, where many inhabited christian buildings are located, instead of blowing himself up just in the right side of the street where the Air Inteligence HQ is located?

March 17th, 2012, 7:19 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

571. ALAN

Your propaganda is so childish. You do not know what is happening inside Syria. You just read news and SC comments. And worse of all you do not know what has been happening in Syria for the last 40 to 50 years. If you had lived just 24 hours in the same conditions syrians live you would avoid a lot of suffering to us. And probably you would benefit the Syrian people future.

March 17th, 2012, 7:22 pm

 

Dawoud said:

In about 35 minutes, you can watch this special CNN on Syria. Arwa Damon is a very experienced M.E. correspondent. She also speaks Arabic. I hope that everybody, including Bashar’s apologists, watch it.

http://cnnpresents.blogs.cnn.com/

CNN Presents: 72 Hours Under Fire
It’s likely among one of the most dangerous places a team of journalists has ever traveled for CNN. The random and indiscriminate killing of citizens in Homs, Syria made this a story the world had to see.
[…]
on’t miss CNN Presents: 72 Hours Under Fire this Sunday at 8:00 pm ET, reairing at 11:00 pm and 2:00 am ET.

March 17th, 2012, 7:28 pm

 

Alan said:

P573. SANDRO LOEWE
Put 2 pictures Syria till March 2011 and Syria today and judge by results!!! I count on your objective analysis all-round!

March 17th, 2012, 7:30 pm

 

Dawoud said:

560. TARA

Thanks sister Tara for keeping a voice of sanity and humanity audible while I am away and unable to comment. You and I are not working on anybody’s behalf! We neither know nor admire Luna al-Shibl, Hadeel al-Ali, Hasan Nasr something, et al.

Keep the voice of humanity audible!

March 17th, 2012, 7:31 pm

 

Juergen said:

Sandro

if for a minute one would believe that terrorists were behind the bombings, Assad would not only feel the fear, he would leave his residence with his family immediately. Anyone capable of attacking this location can bomb the presidents house in ruins.

March 17th, 2012, 7:35 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

569. Ghufran

Sadly the question is not so easy. Those who support the regime, are indeed as you said, are basically beneficiaries from the regime. But why do they keep on supporting the regime? There are many explanations that we could try to bring to explain the question.

The only thing we can assert is that many of them would lose their privileges if the regime fell. Some of them could even lose freedom (if there is any) and even their lives. Many could lose their social status since they are ¨respected¨ by many syrians they live with because these minhebaks can offer solutions and connections to solve plain people problems and difficulties with permissions, legal problems, etc, through their high level contacts whith the Intelligence, the Army and the Baath Party.

Also we should study the fact that those who have been living with good connections inside the regime are enjoying a level of live and freedoms in many democratic countries could never reach. Psychologically they consider they owe all they have to the regime. Changing positions against the regime would be not only a denial of themselves but also a great danger for their lives and properties. The regime would consider this bertrayal against the regime the worse thing a NO ONE that has made his whole life on behind of the regime’s favours can do.

March 17th, 2012, 7:35 pm

 

zoo said:

“We see the SNC as a temporary structure which will disappear with time ”

Syrian opposition coalition formed without the SNC
Published Saturday, March 17, 2012
http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/rival-syrian-opposition-coalition-formed-without-snc

Five Syrian opposition groups on Saturday announced the formation of a new coalition, a sign of growing opposition to the Western-backed Syrian National Council (SNC) a year after the start of the protest movement.

The five groups said their yet unnamed coalition would act independently from the SNC, the main opposition coalition which was set up in August.

The new group is made up of the liberal National Movement for Change, the Islamist Movement for the Fatherland, the Bloc for Liberation and Development, the Turkmen National Bloc, and the Kurdish Movement for a New Life.

Asked about relations between the new coalition and the SNC, Ammar al-Qurabi, leader of the National Movement for Change, told AFP his “coalition was not set up in opposition to anyone, other than Assad’s regime, but rather to unite the opposition outside the SNC.”

“We see the SNC as a temporary structure which will disappear with time, while our own coalition is a more long-term entity that will be there after liberation” in Syria, according to Imamuddin al-Rashid, head of the Movement for the Fatherland.

The SNC has emerged as one of the main voices of the opposition, but is often criticized by activists inside Syria who say the mostly exiled leadership has little connection to protesters on the ground.

The SNC was dealt a blow earlier this week when three prominent members resigned in frustration.

“There is a small group that wants to monopolize the SNC and all the decision-making,” Kamal al-Labwani, one of those who quit, told AFP. “They are doing nothing for the opposition.

“Some are in it for personal gain and the Muslim Brotherhood is trying to monopolize aid and weapons to gain popular influence on the ground.”

March 17th, 2012, 7:45 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

579. JAD

The regime is not bombarding itself but the people of Syria, be in opposition cities like Homs or Hama or in Qasaa and Kafr Susseh districts of Damascus, as today did. The people that died today are plain Syrians. No member of the Mafia or high rank from the Intelligence have been killed.

I think you missed Machiavelli´s ¨The Prince¨. One of the most important lessons to be learnt by a Prince like Assad is that the regime in power must be able to create a faken armed opposition. You can cheat a child but not people who have experience and knowledge about politics and terrorism issues.

March 17th, 2012, 7:50 pm

 

Tara said:

رسالة من بشار الأثد إلى أثماء..يشرح فيها موقفه من “هدولة
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUZB_G1qS1k

above is a letter from Bashar to Asma explaining his relationship with Hadyla al Ali

March 17th, 2012, 7:51 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

575. ALAN,

Please put a picture of Nazi Germany in 1.938 and another picture of the same country in 1.944. Does it mean that Hitler was good and the British and US army where bad?

First, the question is not so simple as to try to believe that where there is bad necessarily there is good. Although in today´s Syria the desire for dignity and freedom is the best could happen.

Second, the picture of today´s Syria is the result of an old Syria that has been 40 years under constant make up and plastic surgery. This is what you find at the end…

March 17th, 2012, 7:56 pm

 

d said:

582. TARA

I just watched the YouTube video. It’s funny. For those who don’t know Arabic, including the brainwashed Americans in Hasan Nasr something basement, Bashar does not know how to spell the Arabic letter “seen!” That’s why Asma becomes “athma” 🙂

P.S., Hasan Nasr something, leader of the Iranian puppet Hizb-something, also has the same spelling problem. They both should learn Persian because they would likely need to flee the Arab World.

Free Syria, Free Palestine!

March 17th, 2012, 7:58 pm

 

Tara said:

It turns out that Batta (duck in Arabic) was used by a woman to express affection towards Bashar. A new FB was created to comemorate Bashar al Batta. Enjoy:

http://www.facebook.com/KlnaBtt

March 17th, 2012, 7:59 pm

 

jad said:

Syria haters enjoy your crimes in this Black Saturday:
انفجار يستهدف عاصمة الياسمين
http://youtu.be/QtuZX4zTP4Q

March 17th, 2012, 8:00 pm

 

Dawoud said:

Bashar spells the Arabic letter “seen” as “theen.” Asma becomes “athma” 🙂

March 17th, 2012, 8:00 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

585. JAD

I can observe you are very hitten by Black Saturday, because 27 syrians got killed in Damascus. Just let me remind you that 25 syrians more killed all around Syria (most in Raqqa and Idleb).

What I do not understand is why you are not affected by black mondays, tuesdays, wednesdays, thursdays, fridays and sundays of the last 52 weeks when every day tens or hundreds of syrians lost their lifes. Your double standards are shocking.

March 17th, 2012, 8:06 pm

 

jad said:

سورية تواجه الإرهاب
http://youtu.be/Kq62oNK6dWg

March 17th, 2012, 8:09 pm

 

jad said:

Because people hey! like you have no shame supporting the terrorists in killing more Syrians.

Learn from this brave Syrian kid, apparently he has more wisdom than many adults, even in his saddest and weakest moments he is calling for the prosperity of Syria, what a ‘shocking’ difference listening to that kid and reading your words:
http://youtu.be/zSQ9JPIZ-hA

March 17th, 2012, 8:41 pm

 

Tara said:

Watch the “Road to Damascus”  an hour long or skip to minute 14 – 17 to understand the judicial system in Syria.

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dz5JrHzctPuY&v=z5JrHzctPuY&gl=US

March 17th, 2012, 8:49 pm

 

873 said:

http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/13/syrias-losing-battle-to-control-the-news/

Paul Conroy was accused by “conspiracy theorists” who were claiming he supports the terrorists transported from Libya into Syria:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-17416705

March 17th, 2012, 8:56 pm

 

jad said:

The first anniversary:

في سنوية الثورة الإسلامية في سوريا
رائد شما

“لا حرية لأعداء الحرية”
للحرية والديموقراطية حدود، وإلا لكان يحق لثلثي الشعب “الأغلبية” التصويت بنعم لإبادة الثلث الباقي “الأقلية” بشكل ديمقراطي وحر.
{…}
عندما تحمل أغنام “الحرية” بندقية
هل يحق للأغنام حمل السلاح وقتل وتصفية من يعارضها وينتقدها بدون أي ضوابط أو قواعد أو وجود قيادة واضحة تتحمل المسؤولية وتحاسب في المستقبل. هل إلصاق تهمة شبيح أو ربما “جزار” أصبح مبرراً كافياً للأغنام لتقتل وتنفذ “شرع الله” بمن تشاء.
{…}
احترموا غباءنا لنرحم عهركم
ولدت الثورة الإسلامية المباركة كما يحب أصدقاؤنا من أهل حوران القول في درعا وبسبب أطفالها الذين اقتلع عاطف نجيب “بحسب روايتهم” أظافرهم وأكلها. وفي درعا أيضاً بدأت قصة السلاح أي أن قضية أن الثورة بدأت سلمية تحتاج إلى مراجعة دقيقة وموضوعية بعيدة عن الهيجان المتبع من كل الأطراف المتصارعة. السلاح موجود منذ بداية الثورة “السلمية” الإسلامية المظفرة، والكذب والتحريض الطائفي ابتدأ منذ الأيام الأولى للثورة مع قصة دخول مقاتلين من حزب الله وتدنيس المساجد وكتابة عبارات “فارسية” فيها!!!
{…}
كوكي ….كيف اغتصبوكي؟!!!!
البطلة “المغتصبة” هديل الكوكي أدلت بشهادتها القيمة أمام لجنة حقوق الانسان في جنيف بعد ثلاثة أسابيع من الحادث الأليم الذي تعرضت له في القاهرة من قبل شبيحة النظام الأمر الذي ألزم دخولها إلى المستشفى نتيجة الكدمات “الشديدة” التي شوهت جمالها. اختفت الكدمات بسرعة مذهلة بعون الآب والابن والروح القدس، لتظهر الكوكي بكامل قوتها وعنفوانها وتشهد أنها تعرضت كباقي المعتقلات للضرب والتعذيب والاغتصاب.
{…}
من أطفأ الغليون؟!
نحن رشحناه ليكون واجهة لأنه وجه مقبول بالغرب ومقبول بالداخل …. نحن نتحرك كمجلس وطني وليس كإخوان مسلمين … نحن اخترناه…الرجل علماني وشيوعي “سابق”….( والعياذ بالله). هذا ملخص ما قاله صدر الدين البيانوني الحبر الأعظم السابق للإخوان المسلمين في سوريا والرجل الأقوى في التنظيم، لطمأنة شبيبة الإسلاميين في المهجر بأن اختيار غليون كان فقط لإرضاء الغرب ولتنفيذ مؤامرة الإخوان في الإستيلاء على السلطة…. لا داعي للخوف أحبتي، فالغليون ليس سوى “طرطور” مدفوع الأجر لتنفيذ المهمة.
{…}
الخلفان يصفع الإخوان
قائد شرطة دبي الفريق ضاحي الخلفان هو الرجل الوحيد في بلاد الخليج الذي تجرأ أخيراً على التحذير من خطر الإخوان المسلمين على دول الخليج وعلى البلاد العربية عامةً. وهو الوحيد الذي صفع القرضاوي ولجم وقاحته التي لا تعرف الحدود.
{…}
الثورة ليست طائفية أو دينية إطلاقاً
من آمن بالثورة الإسلامية وإن مات فسيجد الحور العين بانتظاره… هذا ما حصل فعلاً عندما أسلم “نصراني” على يد ثوار حمص قبل أن يموت بثواني. اللهم أعز الإسلام والمسلمين…. هي قصة حقيقية سمعتها في إحدى

الفيديوهات التي بثها “الثوار” في حمص ويظهر فيها “الناشط الإسلامي” التلاوي مع أحد المسلحين الذي يدلي بشهادته على وحشية النظام السوري. يقول المتحدث مشيراً إلى أحد الأبنية المقصوفة “هنا منزل الشهيد حسام مرة “نصراني” لكنه محسوب على أمة محمد لأنه نطق الشهادة وهو يلفظ أنفاسه الأخيرة … يجيب البطل التلاوي الله أكبر.
{…}
المجاهد

القتل هو الحل الوحيد لكل الأطراف….
المباراة في سوريا لا تقبل التعادل كنتيجة ….
الروح الرياضية معدومة فيها!……
لا بد من منتصر ولا بد من مهزوم…..
http://www.ahewar.org/debat/show.art.asp?aid=299492

March 17th, 2012, 9:02 pm

 

Dawoud said:

I just finished watching the “CNN Present” that I mentioned above. Very horrible! Free Syria, Free Palestine!

I am beginning to get more thumbs down. It looks like wake up time in Syria and Lebanon for Luna al-Shibl’s and Hasan’s propagandists 🙂 Yes, Luna who told the dictator in one of the leaked emails that Bashar’s supporter are flooding blogs and Websites with favorable comments! Their thumbs down are my badge of honor 🙂

March 17th, 2012, 9:07 pm

 

Dawoud said:

I think that Bashar’s and Athma’s (Asma’s) leaked emails are much more important than WikiLeak’s U.S. diplomatic cables. Here, we have the dictator, Bashar and his family/propagandists, telling us exactly how they think and plot. This is the real thing! When the regime falls, which is a matter of time, historians and political scientists will not be able to teach about the Syrian Revolution without talking/writing about these leaked emails.

The regime knows that these leaked emails are the real thing, and that their effects are HUGE! Isn’t this one of the reason that Bashar M.D. (Murderous Dictator) tried to deflect attention from these leaked emails by fabricating and carrying out 2 terrorist bombing in Damascus today?!

Free Syria, Free Palestine!

March 17th, 2012, 9:38 pm

 

Tara said:

Bronco

I was told today that Basma Qudmani is Ghalioun’s sister in law.

March 17th, 2012, 9:48 pm

 

Dawoud said:

Tara:

It’s now almost 10PM in N.Y. Is it 5 or 6 PM in Syria and Lebanon? Wake up time for Ms. al-Shabil’s and Hasan’s folks! More thumbs down for you and I 🙂

March 17th, 2012, 9:54 pm

 

Dawoud said:

5 or 6 AM

March 17th, 2012, 9:55 pm

 
 

Dawoud said:

Iran is already sending transport planes full of arms to Bashar’s murderous regime. Why is it wrong for Saudi Arabia to arm the free Syrian Army that is trying to protect Syrians from the massacres that Homs’ residents faced? I think that Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, and Tunisia should send an army of 1 million to free Syria from Bashar and Lebanon from Hasan Nasr something.
Free Syria, Free Palestine!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/us-wants-iraq-to-shut-airspace-to-any-iranian-flights-ferrying-arms-to-assad-regime-in-syria/2012/03/16/gIQAS7VsGS_story.html
US wants Iraq to shut airspace to any Iranian flights ferrying arms to Assad regime in Syria

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration expressed concern Friday that Iranian planes may be ferrying weapons over Iraq to Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime, and asked Baghdad to cut off its airspace to any such flights.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Iranian arms exports are banned by a U.N. Security Council resolution. She said Iranian cargo flights are crossing Iraq and that the U.S. is worried about possible weapons shipments.
[…]

March 17th, 2012, 10:17 pm

 

jad said:

873

-Hopefully Syria will be the grave yard of those Libyan terrorists the moment they touch the noble Syrian soil.

-So the snipers’ stories were not a lie after all, those criminals where there from the beginning.

March 17th, 2012, 10:19 pm

 
 

jad said:

For Iran to help the Syrian State Authorities to defend it’s land and it’s people is HARAM but for the khalayjeh to send weapons and terrorists to kill Syrians is HALAL and very KOSHER…

Saudi sends military gear to Syria rebels: diplomat

DUBAI — Saudi Arabia is delivering military equipment to Syrian rebels in an effort to stop bloodshed by President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, a top Arab diplomat said on Saturday.

“Saudi military equipment is on its way to Jordan to arm the Free Syrian Army,” the diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.
“This is a Saudi initiative to stop the massacres in Syria,” he added, saying that further “details will follow at a later time.”
The announcement came two days after the conservative Sunni-ruled kingdom said it had shut down its embassy in Syria and withdrawn all its staff.

It also followed a brief meeting on the Syrian crisis last week between Jordan’s King Abdullah II and the Saudi monarch King Abdullah in Riyadh.

There was no official reaction to the statement from the Saudi capital, but Jordan flatly rejected the report.
“Jordan categorically denies the report,” government spokesman and information minister Rakan Majali told AFP.
“This is completely baseless. Jordan has not discussed this issue with any parties or brought it up at all,” he said without elaborating, while adding that an official statement would be issued later on Saturday.

Amman had called for a diplomatic solution to the Syrian crisis earlier this month, arguing that the kingdom was among the worst affected by its repercussions.
{…}
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hMANTrvFn8RxQm71YvT4cVTTkS0w?docId=CNG.317408e1a1ef32c6b68bb1a68c883be2.701

URGENT – Syria: Foreign fighters amassing on Turkish and Jordanian borders

DDamascus, 5:50 p.m. – Several hundred Libyan Al-Qaeda fighters (former Libyan Islamic Fighting Group) have arrived in recent weeks at various hotels in Amman (Jordan). They suddenly moved out on Friday, 16 March 2012 to relocate to an unknown destination.

Simultaneously, a coming and going of buses, throughout the days of Friday the 16th and Saturday the 17th of March, transported at least 2,000 combatants to a “refugee” camp in Hatay (Turkey). This ferrying continues, and is managed by the Turkish Army.
Colonel Riyadh Al Asaad, who had been temporarily assigned to house arrest following the Syrian-Turkish agreement of 7 February, is again in full command of the Free “Syrian” Army from Turkey.

It is estimated that the forces already assembled are constituted by 500 to 1000 Takfirists at the Jordanian border and between 2000 and 3000 at the Turkish border. No significant jihadi group has been reported at the Lebanese border, the Lebanese Army having dismantled in recent weeks an assembly area and a communications base.
{…}
http://www.voltairenet.org/URGENT-Syria-Foreign-fighters

March 17th, 2012, 10:44 pm

 

Dawoud said:

Wake up time in Beirut, Lebanon. I expect more pro-Bashar/Hasan to begin posting!

March 17th, 2012, 10:54 pm

 

jad said:

Dear Bronco
It seems that the attack on SNC and the calls to dissolve it is lead by this ‘enlightened’ and ‘wise’ 6ar6our or SarSour…same thing:

العرعور يهاجم بشراسة مجلس أسطنبول و غليون (السكران)
http://youtu.be/TxbMihJ74SM

March 17th, 2012, 10:58 pm

 
 

Tara said:

To “my friend”: Doesn’t give you a pause when a foreign journalist who witnessed with his own eyes what has happened in Homs calls for the regime to stand in The Hague and answer for the crime it has committed?  Is this journalist an Islamist? a CIA? or A Zionist?  Or just an average man with a conscious?     

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-17416705

17 March 2012

Sunday Times reporter Paul Conroy, 47, from Totnes in Devon, was badly injured and his reporter colleague Marie Colvin was killed in shelling in Homs.

He was smuggled out by rebels after the bombing on 22 February.

Struggling on a crutch and being pushed in a wheelchair, Mr Conroy was embraced by supporters.

Mr Conroy, originally from Anfield, Liverpool, told the crowd of more than 1,000 demonstrators that Britain should sever ties with the Syrian regime and expel its embassy representatives, who he said should “stand in The Hague and answer for the crimes they have committed”.

Looking frail but determined, he said his focus was now on helping the movement and continuing in Ms Colvin’s name.

He said: “Essentially I am using my brief 15 minutes of fame to really push, push, push on behalf of the Syrian people and on behalf of the people who got me out alive and the people I owe my life to essentially.

“Condolences go to every man, woman and child killed in Syria and everyone in the Free Syrian Army who died getting me out of the place and also a message to the regime that really they shouldn’t be tolerated any more and any dialogue with them should be ceased.

“They shouldn’t have an embassy in a country like the UK at the moment.”

March 17th, 2012, 11:13 pm

 

Dawoud said:

600. TARA

Of course, they are journalists and NOT Islamists. You read the leaked emails and they clearly reveal the strategy and talking points of Bashar’s regime: Blame Islamists, al-Qa’ida, “Salafists,” etc. whenever the regime commits a terrorist bombing and massacres in Homs, Derah, etc.
The regime supporters here are singing the same talking points! No surprise!

I just watched the experienced/talented Arwa Damon on CNN. Is she a “Salafist,” “Islamist?” Of course Not!

March 17th, 2012, 11:19 pm

 

Dawoud said:

I am going to sleep. Good night to you all. You will not miss me. Very soon Xinhuanet, Press TV, and RT will wake up and begin posting pro-dictator propaganda from Beirut, Lebanon 🙂

Good Night! Log off!

March 17th, 2012, 11:31 pm

 

irritated said:

Jad

This has become of a gossip blog about the married life of Bashar, the shoes of his wife and their shopping.

I am really sorry that Joshua Landis has started the witch hunt with his “exclusive” post.

I hope that this is only an interlude, otherwise between the reiterated list of insults to the regime and the little titillating stories of der Spiegel, I think the FBI will stop taking that Blog seriously. I too.

March 18th, 2012, 12:10 am

 

Jad said:

Irritated

Sadly I agree with you about this post, many of us pointed out this point.

My disappointment is more about how JL failed to post at least one line about the worst terrorist attack in Damascus today while being so quick in cut&paste the email story.

I also agree regarding the silly shoes conversation and the know it all story teller’s endless ‘adventures’ and the preaching superior attitude toward Syrians.
————————–

بدء وصول المساعدات السعودية والقطرية لسوريا 17 3 2012

March 18th, 2012, 12:28 am

 

Ghufran said:

This is a must see video from a republican senator on the issue of military intervention in Syria:
[green arrow http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8iEOvgVBqg

Rep. Dan Burton – America is not the World’s Policeman]

March 18th, 2012, 1:41 am

 

ann said:

Five opposition groups split from SNC – 2012-03-18

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/18/c_122847582.htm

The new coalition comprises the liberal National Movement for Change, the Islamist Movement for the Fatherland, the Bloc for Liberation and Development, the Turkmen National Bloc and the Kurdish Movement for a New Life.

The five groups declared that the new coalition would act independently from the SNC.

Imamduddin al-Rashid, the head of the Islamist Movement for the Fatherland, said the SNC is a temporary structure which will dissolve over time, while their new coalition is a long-term entity that will be there even after the “liberation in Syria.”

Haitham al-Maleh, a former judge and long-time dissident against four decades of the Assad family rule, was joined by opposition leader Kamal al-Labwani and human rights lawyer Catherine al-Talli in announcing the resignation.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 2:17 am

 

ann said:

Violence persists as UN team visits Syria – 2012-03-18

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/18/c_131474061.htm

DAMASCUS, March 18 (Xinhua) — Soon after two deadly bombings killed dozens of people here Saturday, another car bomb exploded in Damascus ahead of the expected arrival of UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan’s monitoring team.

Two “terrorists” were killed when their bomb-laden car exploded at the Palestinian camp of Yarmouk area south of the capital, Syrian state TV said, without giving further details.

Meanwhile, the Doha-based pan-Arab al-Jazeera TV quoted sources as saying that the blast targeted a brigadier of the Syrian army, who was killed along with three Palestinians.

The incident came shortly after two bombings hit the Syrian capital in swift succession, killing at least 27 people and injuring 140 others. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the deadly attacks and called for “all violence to cease immediately.”

Following the twin blasts, the Syrian interior ministry warned that authorities would not waver in dealing “decisively” with anyone who would compromise the security and stability of the country.

“Those terrorist acts” were an integral part of the campaign targeting the Syrian people’s security and stability, the ministry said, adding that the bombings came at a time when some regional and international powers were calling explicitly for sending in arms to Syria.

It called on the international community to live up to its responsibilities to stand by the Syrian people and work to halt all attempts that aim to destabilize the country.

In Russia, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov voiced support for the Syrian people’s decision on their leadership and again urged a ceasefire and political talks in the violence-wracked country.

“Russia will support any agreement based on outcomes of a general political dialogue between the government and all opposition groups,” he said.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 2:25 am

 

ann said:

Saudi Arabia arms Syrian rebels via Jordan – report – 18 March, 2012

http://rt.com/news/rebels-jordan-syria-arab-833/

Saudi Arabia has reportedly sent military equipment to the Free Syrian Army in an attempt “to stop bloodshed by President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime” via Jordan, with the latter officially denying the delivery.

­Information that the military aid was sent came from an unnamed high-level Arab diplomat speaking to Agence France-Presse.

However, the Jordanian government has rejected Saturday reports that it allowed Saudi weapons for Syria to transit its territory. Government spokesman Rakan al-Majali told United Press International that the reports were baseless, according to the Jordan News Agency. Jordan borders Syria in the north, with over 65 per cent of its trade transits coming across that border. Around 80,000 Syrians have fled to Jordan since March 2011, according to estimates by local officials.

Earlier this week Adnan Hassan Mahmoud, Syria’s Minister of Information, said that some countries such as Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which support Syrian “terrorist” groups and provide them with weapons and money, are accomplices in the “terrorism” targeting the Syrian people, and that it is these countries that are responsible for the shedding of Syrian blood.

“We’ve grown accustomed to the bloody escalation of these terrorist groups in committing massacres, murdering citizens and attacking public and private establishments which proceeds international meetings,” Hassan Mahmoud said.

The accusations were reiterated on Syrian state TV following two powerful bomb blasts that killed at least 27 and wounded dozens more in Damascus. Programs showed the injured being taken to hospital, with one victim asking if this was “the assistance promised by Qatar and Saudi Arabia.” “Saudi Arabia is sending us terrorists,” another resident said on TV.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal claimed earlier this month that the Syrian opposition has the right to arm itself to protect itself. “Weapons used to target homes are used in wars with enemies,” he noted.

A number of Arab countries, Quatar and Kuwait among them, have already put forward the intention to deliver arms to the Syrian rebels, but if the arms deliveries via Jordan are confirmed, Saudi Arabia would be the first to put words into actions.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 2:29 am

 

Juergen said:

Sorry for this interruption of the Ann show, there will be more of Xihua RT and Sana shortly.

Berlin Anti Assad demonstration of yesterday, the marchingroute covered the most famous shopping street of Berlin.

March 18th, 2012, 3:47 am

 

Syrialover said:

#605. Irritated and #606. Jad

Time for some empathy and shoulder patting.

You two are so sorrowful and disappointed that SyriaComment could run the story about the leaked emails. Your comments show you flat and downcast, sadly shaking your heads that Dr Joshua Landis could do that.

Well, I join you in sorrow and sad mood because I feel EXACTLY the same about SC giving so much unrestricted space to such a poor quality piece as “Hollywood in Homs and Idlib?” By Sharmine Narwani.

It is badly written, shrill in tone and sloppy, offering no new information or thinking. I was really stunned that SC ran it, let alone gave it such prominence and space.

But what can we do, except give each other sympathy for our disappointments. Dr Landis always posts what he decides, whatever we say.

March 18th, 2012, 4:02 am

 

Syrialover said:

I am in ongoing shock and despair over the Damascus bombings. This is now really war, where city people are also expendable.

Like others I dismiss the crude propaganda about al qaeda, because the style and target of the attacks don’t fit.

The nightmare spreads. The people of Damascus must now be realising that they too are behind enemy lines. That they are increasingly trapped in a “war” which is being defined, escalated and controlled by the authorities.

Many there would realise the authorities offer no protection to citizens, only threats, paranoia and scare stories. And there is no talk of solutions to the accelerating economic crisis.

It is going to get worse. The regime will not change its trajectory or tactics no matter what the cost. More Syrians dead, more buildings destroyed is no loss to them.

March 18th, 2012, 5:12 am

 

Badr said:

The tyrant regime supporters,

If you are disappointed with this post, perhaps these comments by professor Landis will cheer you up: 😉

Syria opposition struggling to unite

The opposition has to develop an insurgency and a leadership.

If they cooperate together, the regime is toast but if they don’t the regime has a fighting chance.

The revolution in Syria has failed to get a Tahrir Square moment.

In order to get together an effective opposition that can coordinate attacks from different parts of the country, they are going to have to develop a national leadership which they do not have today.

If they don’t get it together, they are no better than the Assads

Landis said that until the opposition overcomes its divisions and shortcomings, Washington and its allies will steer clear of being drawn into a potential quagmire.

March 18th, 2012, 5:24 am

 

Alan said:

578. SANDRO LOEWE
are you support the armed oppositionists? this Q for all !

March 18th, 2012, 6:05 am

 

Alan said:

Syria arrests terrorists responsible for Homs massacre

I’m assuming western media will not give this a fair hearing. So lets spread this far and wide.

The Syrian army has reportedly arrested a number of terrorists responsible for the massacre of civilians in the restive city of Homs, Press TV reports.

At least 15 civilians, among them a woman with her four children, were killed after armed gangs stormed the Karm al-Louz neighborhood of Homs on Tuesday. This was the second civilian massacre in Homs in recent days.

At least 45 people, including women and children, were tortured and killed in Karm el-Zaytoun on Sunday night.

Syria’s Information Minister Adnan Mahmoud has said that terrorist groups carried out the massacre in the Karm el-Zaytoun neighborhood to tarnish the image of the Syrian government.

Meanwhile, Syrian troops have pulled out the bodies of several army soldiers from the sewage system in the Ashireh neighborhood of Homs, who were killed by terrorist groups earlier.

Heavy clashes have also been reported in the southern city of Dara’a.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March and many people, including security forces, have lost their lives in the violence.

The West and the Syrian opposition accuse the government of killing the protesters. But Damascus blames ”outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups” for the unrest, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/231728.html

March 18th, 2012, 6:10 am

 

omen said:

badr,

If they don’t get it together, they are no better than the Assads

how don’t know how one can compare disorganization to the butchery of the regime.

that is like saying somebody prefers mussolini (or hitler) because he made the trains run on time.

March 18th, 2012, 6:41 am

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

613 SYRIALOVER

I like your sentence very much. It defines today´s Syria in little words.

¨Many there would realise the authorities offer no protection to citizens, only threats, paranoia and scare stories. And there is no talk of solutions to the accelerating economic crisis.¨

March 18th, 2012, 6:43 am

 

omen said:

supposedly, the mussolini/train quote is apocryphal but it is still illustrative.

March 18th, 2012, 6:43 am

 

omen said:

just like the FSA is said to be infiltrated by moles, it seems likely that the SNC also harbors moles who are sowing disunity.

March 18th, 2012, 6:47 am

 

omen said:

via badr’s link @ 2:54:

But Alia Mansour, a member of the SNC, said Western demands for the opposition to unite were simply “a pretext for the international community to do nothing” to resolve the Syrian crisis.

bingo.

March 18th, 2012, 6:51 am

 

Juergen said:

Schenuda III patriarch of the koptic church died yesterday at the age of 89, he headed the church since 1971.

interesting farewell ceremony for him

March 18th, 2012, 7:14 am

 

Alan said:

We see explosions in the cities! The country suffers from these explosions! The regime doesn’t suffer from them!Unless is it in interest of the people? don’t you want us to please with that explosions became a part of ordinary life of the population!

March 18th, 2012, 7:56 am

 

omen said:

what does israel fear more? a free arabic country under popular rule?

or is israel more interested in seeing assad go, thus further weakening and isolating iran?

March 18th, 2012, 8:05 am

 

omen said:

nir rosen responds to accusations of being a spy.

March 18th, 2012, 8:21 am

 

Alan said:

Even to the fool it is clear that is started low intensity war for achievement of the maximum easing! But it is necessary note that there can be a country with enormous experience and forces!

March 18th, 2012, 8:28 am

 

Alan said:

UN technical mission to visit Syria for consultations on settling crisis
http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c32/368756.html

March 18th, 2012, 8:35 am

 

873 said:

625
“Some critics believe that it indicts him as a spy for the regime.”

WHICH regime? Mossad?
Rosen was not suspected of being a spy for Syrian regime. Rosen’s ‘reporting’ without disclosing his prior status as a Staff Sargeant for the Israel Defence Forces doing military intel work was the issue that has rattled some. If Rosen discovered some incredible Syrian military data or vulnerability while reporting in Israel country’s enemy, Syria- is he saying he would NOT debrief the IDF on return?? History doesnt support that he wouldnt.

March 18th, 2012, 8:40 am

 

Alan said:

what is this ?
Obama Takes Control of ALL of the US in Prep For WWIII (done late on a Friday afternoon, of course!)

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/03/16/executive-order-national-defense-resources-preparedness
Sec. 103,(a)and(b)
As dry and obfuscated as this is, you probably need to read it all the way through. Much of this is a rehash of claims to authorities made by previous Presidents under a series of Executive Orders collectively called the FEMO E.O.s.

So, has the President taken over the country? Technically, no. What this order states is that the President will be prepared to take over the nation in the event of a National Emergency, but again, this is not a new concept as it already occurs in prior E.O.s.

Part II assigns direct control over the nation’s assets to various cabinet positions under that national emergency, but again this is merely a clarification of earlier power-grabs.

So, why now, and for what reason?

Although couched in terms of National Defense, I take special note of Part III, which sets forth several fiscal authorities not previously mentioned in the earlier Presidential E.O.s. The authorities set forth include direct purchase by the government of assets, loans and loan guarantees, subsidy payments, and so forth. These are normally authorities which would originate in legislation in the House, as they involve spending. The end result of this E.O. is that Obama is usurping the spending authority of the U.S. House of Representatives. So, while presented as a proactive plan to deal with the coming invasion of Iran, Part III suggests that the real purpose of this E.O. is to prepare for the coming collapse of Greece and the E.U. by transferring spending authority to the White House ahead of the collapse of the dollar.

March 18th, 2012, 8:42 am

 
 

Tara said:

I would like to express my condolences for the death of the patriarch of the Orthodox Coptic Church Schenuda III.  The few Copts I have come across in the US from Alexandria carried no bad bone towards Muslims and were very patriotic and passionate towards Egypt and the Arabs causes.  If this was a reflection of their pope’s teaching, then Alfatiha upon his soul.  

March 18th, 2012, 9:11 am

 

873 said:

Real Girl from Damascus

March 18th, 2012, 9:19 am

 

Alan said:

Hour ago the mined car before an input in school of Frames back has blown up. in Telefon Hawai area in Aleppo ,2 explosions too have thundered in Al-Sahur and Bestan Al-Basha zone

March 18th, 2012, 9:29 am

 

Alan said:

http://rt.com/news/aleppo-syria-car-bomb-849/

Deadly car bomb blast shakes Aleppo – Syrian media

A car bomb has exploded in a residential area of the Syrian city of Aleppo report Syrian state media, describing the blast as a “terrorist attack.” Activists say three people have died in the blast and 25 more have been wounded.

The figures come from the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which cites an opposition network in Syria. The observatory also speaks of a car bomb.

Various unofficial sources claim the blast hit an area close to a local security office, but according to the SANA news agency, the car packed with explosives was parked between two residential buildings in the al-Suleimaniya district of Aleppo, behind a post office.
“It was a strong explosion. It shook parts of the city,” Mohammed Saeed, an Aleppo resident, told the Associated Press. “White smoke was billowing from the area.”

Saeed says the attack targeted a quarter which is usually crowded with people on Sunday, being the first day of Syria’s workweek. He adds the neighborhood has a large Christian population.

The blast comes just a day after twin car bombs hit Syria’s capital Damascus, claiming 27 lives. Sunday’s attack is the fourth car bomb to rock a major city in Syria, and the second in Aleppo, since a popular uprising against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime began a year ago. The opposition and government have traded blame for previous blasts

March 18th, 2012, 9:59 am

 

Alan said:

Saudi Arabia arms Syrian rebels via Jordan – report

http://rt.com/news/rebels-jordan-syria-arab-833/

Saudi Arabia has reportedly sent military equipment to the Free Syrian Army in an attempt “to stop bloodshed by President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime” via Jordan, with the latter officially denying the delivery.

Information that the military aid was sent came from an unnamed high-level Arab diplomat speaking to Agence France-Presse.
However, the Jordanian government has rejected Saturday reports that it allowed Saudi weapons for Syria to transit its territory. Government spokesman Rakan al-Majali told United Press International that the reports were baseless, according to the Jordan News Agency. Jordan borders Syria in the north, with over 65 per cent of its trade transits coming across that border. Around 80,000 Syrians have fled to Jordan since March 2011, according to estimates by local officials.

Earlier this week Adnan Hassan Mahmoud, Syria’s Minister of Information, said that some countries such as Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which support Syrian “terrorist” groups and provide them with weapons and money, are accomplices in the “terrorism” targeting the Syrian people, and that it is these countries that are responsible for the shedding of Syrian blood.

“We’ve grown accustomed to the bloody escalation of these terrorist groups in committing massacres, murdering citizens and attacking public and private establishments which proceeds international meetings,” Hassan Mahmoud said.

The accusations were reiterated on Syrian state TV following two powerful bomb blasts that killed at least 27 and wounded dozens more in Damascus. Programs showed the injured being taken to hospital, with one victim asking if this was “the assistance promised by Qatar and Saudi Arabia.” “Saudi Arabia is sending us terrorists,” another resident said on TV.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal claimed earlier this month that the Syrian opposition has the right to arm itself to protect itself. “Weapons used to target homes are used in wars with enemies,” he noted.

A number of Arab countries, Quatar and Kuwait among them, have already put forward the intention to deliver arms to the Syrian rebels, but if the arms deliveries via Jordan are confirmed, Saudi Arabia would be the first to put words into actions.

On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia and other members of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (CCASG) – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and United Arab Emirates – closed its embassy in Damascus and recalled all of its diplomats.

Syrian Rebels are Foreign-backed Terrorists
http://endthelie.com/2012/03/17/syrian-rebels-are-foreign-backed-terrorists/#axzz1pTh8nzeb

U.S. Navy sending even more high-tech military hardware to the Persian Gulf
http://endthelie.com/2012/03/17/u-s-navy-sending-even-more-high-tech-military-hardware-to-the-persian-gulf/#axzz1pIVzWoL0

Leon Panetta confirms U.S. will ‘take action’ if Israel strikes Iran

http://endthelie.com/2012/03/18/leon-panetta-confirms-u-s-will-take-action-if-israel-strikes-iran/#axzz1pTh8nzeb

March 18th, 2012, 10:22 am

 

873 said:

635. omen,

who is Carl Prine? a fellow IDF alum?
ask Carl what was Nir’s specialty when he served with the IDF? What is classification “other”?

google cache of carl prine brings up this:
http://74.6.238.254/search/srpcache?ei=UTF-8&p=%2B%22carl+prine%22+and+IDF&fr=b2ie7&u=http://cc.bingj.com/cache.aspx?q=%2b%22carl+prine%22+and+IDF&d=4968929744718994&mkt=en-US&setlang=en-US&w=e35d187b,43f406f5&icp=1&.intl=us&sig=ldVBBYmYko7umUvfuTXUHQ–

March 18th, 2012, 10:33 am

 
 

mjabali said:

People on this blog were talking for days about these fake e mails while Syria marked one year of bloodshed with battles in Idleb, demos in al-Raqqa, explosions in Damascus, blowing bridges in Daraa, and many ambushes.

March 18th, 2012, 11:05 am

 

ann said:

“Terrorists” blast bridge between Damascus, Daraa province: media – 2012-03-18

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/18/c_131474419.htm

DAMASCUS, March 18 (Xinhua) — Armed “terrorist” groups blast Sunday a bridge on the road between the Syrian capital Damascus and southern Daraa province, Syria’s official SANA news agency reported.

The armed groups blasted the bridge at the Khirbet Ghazaleh village with 1,000 kg explosives, said SANA.

The private Ekhbaria TV said the bridge was fully destroyed.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 11:09 am

 

Jad said:

To all Syria haters and morally bankrupt guys writing nonsense on SC:
You have no shame whatsoever.

Yesterday Damascus residential neighbourhood terrorist attack, today exactly the same in Aleppo and the only thing you write is stupid comments that reflects your fake care and sympathy toward Syria, from now on all your false claim about your ‘care’ for Syria and Syrians is meaningless and as fake as you.
Yalli ista7o mato!

March 18th, 2012, 11:18 am

 

Dawoud said:

There are good and decent Alawis. This defecting Alawi Syrian air force commander tells Aljazeera about his role in the arrest of Hamza al-Khateeb and the massacres of the regime.

http://www.aljazeera.net/news/pages/b59f56da-9384-4730-aae4-b5e67e7c2de0?GoogleStatID=1
خطط مسبقا لمجزرة بدرعا واعتقل الطفل حمزة الخطيب

منشق يروي تفاصيل قمع الثورة السورية

محمد النجار-عمان

كشف آفاق محمد أحمد مدير مكتب رئيس قسم العمليات الخاصة بإدارة المخابرات الجوية السورية العقيد سهيل الحسن تفاصيل دور هذا الجهاز في قمع الثورة السورية.

وتحدث آفاق -وهو من أبناء الطائفة العلوية- للجزيرة والجزيرة نت في مقابلة عبر سكايب من مكان لم يحدده حرصا على سلامته الشخصية عن دور هذا الجهاز وتخطيطه مسبقا لمجزرة مساكن صيدا في درعا والتي راح ضحيتها 120 من سكان القرى السورية، كما روى مشاهدته لاعتقال الطفل حمزة الخطيب، وكشف أسماء محققين كان لهم الدور الأبرز في التحقيق مع معتقلي الثورة.

وقال إن مهمة قسم العمليات الخاصة بالمخابرات الجوية “تنفيذ التعليمات التي تصدر أوامرها عن القيادة العليا والتي تكون لها خصوصيتها من حيث توقيتها وأهدافها السياسية والأمنية والعسكرية”.

ولفت إلى أن أبرز ما قام به هذا القسم تنفيذ الضربة الأولى لدرعا بالتعاون مع الأمن السياسي في درعا بقيادة عاطف نجيب -مدير الأمن السياسي السابق بدرعا وابن خالة الرئيس بشار الأسد.

وأضاف “عندما سقط شهداء بدرعا لأول مرة انتفضت حوران عن بكرة أبيها، وعلى الفور تم تشكيل مجموعة ضخمة بقيادة العقيد قصي مهيوب نائب رئيس فرع المنطقة الجنوبية في حرستا، وجهز مجموعة ضخمة وتوجه إلى درعا على الفور، وتم اقتحام الجامع العمري من قبل عناصر النخبة في المخابرات الجوية”.

مجزرة مساكن صيدا
وعن تفاصيل “مجزرة” مساكن صيدا بدرعا قال آفاق “بتاريخ 29/4/2011 وكان يوم الجمعة حوالي الساعة 10 صباحا جاء عبر مكالمة من أحد المخبرين للمساعد فواز قبيع، وهو من العناصر الرئيسية عند العقيد سهيل الحسن وكنت حاضرا في المكتب، أن هناك عشرات الآلاف تنوي الخروج بعد صلاة الجمعة والتوجه لدرعا لفك الحصار عنها بعد أن وقعت هذه المحافظة في حصار من قبل النظام لأيام وتعرضت لحالة حرمان من الاتصالات والكهرباء والمياه والدواء وغيرها من الضرورات”.

الجيش الحكومي واصل عملياته بالمناطق السكنية (الفرنسية-ارشيف)
وتابع آفاق “قرر أهالي القرى وحوران بشكل عام التوجه لدرعا لفك الحصار عنها، وكون المساعد فواز قبيع من سكان مخيم درعا طلب منه العقيد سهيل الحسن أن يعطيه تصورا لكيفية التعامل مع الأمر ومنع هذه الجموع من الوصول إلى درعا”.

وقال أيضا “المساعد فواز قبيع قال إن الحل الوحيد أن نقوم بنصب كمين لهم عند مساكن صيدا العسكرية ويتم تنفيذ مجزرة بهم وهناك مبررات إعلامية يمكن أن تغطي عليها، أولها يمكن القول إن هذه الجموع قادمة للمساكن العسكرية لقتل الضباط وأخذ النساء سبايا والاعتداء على النساء والأطفال العلويين في المساكن، ونكسب بالتالي مكسبين الأول إقحام الجيش في المعركة واعتباره مستهدفا كما النظام والمخابرات مستهدفة، والهدف الثاني هو جر الطائفة العلوية لهذا النزاع عبر القول إن جماعات سلفية طائفية تريد الاعتداء على العلويين وأخذ نسائهم سبايا”.

وقال المساعد المنشق إن العقيد سهيل الحسن اتصل فورا باللواء جميل الحسن وأخبره عن فحوى هذه الخطة فوافق على الفور، وجهزت عناصر النخبة من قسم العمليات الخاصة وتوجهت لمحافظة درعا.

وأشار إلى أنه لا يعرف ماذا جرى بالميدان كونه عنصرا غير ميداني، وأضاف “أنا لم أكن عنصرا ميدانيا لكنني شاهدت التجهيزات قبل الانطلاق وعندما عادت القوة آخر الليل حيث كان معهم حوالي عشر باصات محملة بموقوفين وبعض عوائل الضباط إضافة لجثث كانوا يضعونها بأماكن التخزين بالباصات، وأنا رأيتهم وهم يخرجونها ويضعوها بسيارة الشحن العسكري ليتم نقلها إلى مستشفى تشرين العسكري”.
مدير مكتب رئيس العمليات الخاصة بالمخابرات الجوية السورية:
طائرة بشار الأسد لن تحمل معها ثلاثة ملايين علوي وهو يورطكم يوميا أكثر فأكثر بدماء وبحرب ليست حربنا
”

حرمة الموتى
وقال آفاق “طريقة التعامل مع الجثث لم تكن إنسانية، وكانت تتعرض للضرب والإهانات أثناء تنزيلها وتحميلها، واستغربت هذا الموقف وكنت أول مرة أشاهده خاصة وأنني عنصر مكتبي ولا أشاهد مثل هذه الأمور”.

ولفت إلى أنه راجع العقيد سهيل الحسن بما رأى لكنه “زجرني وقال لي هذه ليست مهمتك، وطلب مني أن أذهب لتفقد عدد الموقوفين في فرع التحقيق البعيد عن مكتبي حوالي مائتي متر”.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 11:20 am

 

Jad said:

Enjoy and celebrate:

التفجير الارهابي بحي السليمانية في حلب 18/3/2012

March 18th, 2012, 11:22 am

 
 

Dawoud said:

Why do you folks think that Bashar and his murderous thugs carried out the terrorist attacks in Damascus yesterday and Aleppo today? I already said that they did so to divert the attention of any possible UN monitors in Syria. They did the same thing before the AL monitors were trying to enter Syria.

Alfatiha on the souls of all the victims of Bashar’s terrorist bombings, and his terror in general!

Why should Syrians continue to die so that Athma (Asma) and Bathar (Bashar) continue to shop online and buy Harry Potter books, iTune music, iPhone, etc.
They seem to favor Apple products and discriminate against the Android OS!
Do you think that the online shopping habits of Asma and Bashar from American companies like Apple is helping the U.S. economy recover from recession. The latest U.S. Department of Labor statistics is showing declining unemployment rate. Should Washington thank Bashar, the murderous dictator, and his compulsive online shopper wife, Athma (Asma)? 🙂

March 18th, 2012, 11:30 am

 
 

ann said:

Deadly car bomb blast shakes Syria’s Aleppo (VIDEO, PHOTOS) – 18 March, 2012

http://rt.com/news/aleppo-syria-car-bomb-849/

A car bomb has exploded in a residential area of the Syrian city of Aleppo report Syrian state media, describing the blast as a “terrorist attack.” Activists say three people have died in the blast and 25 more have been wounded.

The figures come from the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which cites an opposition network in Syria. The observatory also speaks of a car bomb.

Various unofficial sources claim the blast hit an area close to a local security office, but according to the SANA news agency, the car packed with explosives was parked between two residential buildings in the al-Suleimaniya district of Aleppo, behind a post office.

“It was a strong explosion. It shook parts of the city,” Mohammed Saeed, an Aleppo resident, told the Associated Press. “White smoke was billowing from the area.”

Saeed says the attack targeted a quarter which is usually crowded with people on Sunday, being the first day of Syria’s workweek. He adds the neighborhood has a large Christian population.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 11:35 am

 

Jad said:

كلمة الشعب السوري المشارك في المسير والصلاة 18/3/2012

March 18th, 2012, 11:37 am

 

Dawoud said:

Although I am not a Marxist, I have to agree with what Karl Marx said about the power of money. He said that money changes reality. If I am an ugly old man and very rich rich, I can date and marry many young and beautiful women. According to Marx, the power of, money makes me neither old nor ugly. I am handsome young man despite the fact that I am 99 years old and very ugly (“I am falling and can’t get up!).

Now, Having seen the ugly Bathar (Bashar), who can’t pronounce the Arabic letter “seen” and say it “theen,” I wonder why Luna al-Shibl and Hadeel al-Ali (who are young and very attractive) are trying to win Bathar’s (Bashar’s) love and affection! Isn’t what Karl Marx said about the power of money. Power and money can easily corrupt the human soul. With an access to Bashar’s heart, Hadeel and Luna can sign up for online iTunes and Amazon accounts and begin shopping, just like Athma (Asma) does!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🙂

March 18th, 2012, 11:43 am

 

Jad said:

الارهاب يضرب حلب.. التفاصيل الكاملة لأحداث المدينة حتى بعد الظهر
بعد يوم واحد من تفجيرات دمشق الارهابية، ضرب الارهاب مدينة حلب اليوم، عن طريق سلسلة حوادث متزامنة، أولها إنفجار سيارة مفخخة بين مبنيين سكنيين، خلف فرع الأمن السياسي، واشتباكات مسلحة في المكان ، وهجوم مسلح على مفرزة أمنية في حي الجميلية , وانفجار عبوة ناسفة في حي ” بستان الباشا ” ، واسطوانة غاز بالقرب من دوار الصاخور .
و تسبب التفجير الإرهابي في حي السليمانية باستشهاد ثلاثة أشخاص، وإصابة 30 آخرين على الأقل، حسبما أفاد مصدر طبي لـ عكس السير.
وقال مصدر مطلع لـ عكس السير أن سيارة من نوع جيلي، كانت مركونة خلف فرع الأمن السياسي أثارت الشبهة، حيث حضر عناصر من المرور وقاموا بوضع السيارة على الرافعة لنقلها.
وبين المصدر أنه واثناء ذلك انفجرت السيارة، مسببة سقوط شهداء وجرحى.
وبين مصدر طبي لـ عكس السير أن الاحصاءات الأولية للتفجير تشير إلى سقوط ثلاثة شهداء، وإصابة نحو 30 آخرين.
وأدى الانفجار إلى انهيار واجهات مبان سكنية محيطة كما تسبب بأضرار مادية على مسافة 200 متر.
وبينت مصادر متقاطعة أن السيارة كانت تحتوي على نحو 200 كغ من المواد شديدة الانفجار منها (نترات الألمنيوم).
وعقب الانفجار سمع صوت إطلاق نار غزير في المنطقة، كما قام مسلحون يستقلون سيارة بفتح النار قرب جسر 16 تشرين، ولا معلومات عن إصابات.
وتزامن الانفجار، مع هجوم مسلح على مفرزة أمنية في حي الجميلية ( فرع المعلومات التابع للأمن السياسي) ، حيث وقعت اشتباكات عنيفة، سمع خلالها إطلاق نار غزير، دون أن ترد أنباء مؤكدة عن إصابات.
وتم خلال الاشتباك، قطع بعض الطرق المحورية في مدينة حلب، كما شهدت شبكات الاتصالات الخليوية انقطاعات جزئية، وصعوبة في الاتصال.
وفي حي “بستان الباشا” انفجرت عبوة ناسفة استهدفت ” كشك” يحمل اسم “كشك الساحل” بالقرب من مدرسة ” محمود خطاب”، ما تسبب بإصلابة ثلاثة مواطنين بجروح.
كما تزامن الانفجار مع انفجار اسطوانة غاز داخل محل موبايلات عند دوار الصاخور في حلب ظهر اليوم الأحد، الأمر الذي اثار لغطاً في الشارع الحلبي.
وفي جامعة حلب ، خرجت مظاهرة كبيرة من كلية الاداب ، بالتزامن مع الأحداث الدامية التي تشهدها المدينة .
وتأتي هذه الأحداث بعد يوم واحد فقط من انفجارات دمشق الدامية ، والتي تسببت باستشهاد 27 شخصاً، وإصابة 140 آخرين.
عكس السير
http://www.aksalser.com/index.php?page=view_articles&id=a515ab797b94065f44b30c2de606f043&ar=847188541

March 18th, 2012, 11:44 am

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

It is clear that the Mafia Regime is needed to act in Aleppo in order to stop the uprising it is taking place even there. Last friday there were some deads and the only way to try to stop the spreading view against the corrupted regime is faked terrorism.

Constitution should be amended defining the President as a life service like in the monarchy. We need this president at least for 50 years more if we really want to come back to the paleolithic era. Assad, we love ya.

March 18th, 2012, 11:47 am

 

Jad said:

تفجير سيارة مفخخة من قبل ارهابيين في حلب 18 3 2012

March 18th, 2012, 11:57 am

 

Jad said:

Mjabali
Izra3a bida2ni hal marra.

March 18th, 2012, 11:59 am

 

Dawoud said:

Wanted!

Picture of the terrorist who planned and ordered the terrorist attacks in Damascus yesterday and Aleppo today.
If you know the terrorist shown in the picture on the Website link below, please call the police:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bashar_al-Assad

His picture will be shown on a new program called “Syria’s Most Wanted!”

March 18th, 2012, 12:00 pm

 

Jad said:

The funeral of yesterday victims in Damascus

تشييع شهداء تفجيري دمشق الإرهابيين 18/3/2012

March 18th, 2012, 12:04 pm

 

Jad said:

رد الشعب السوري على التفجير الارهابي – يارا صالح

March 18th, 2012, 12:13 pm

 

ann said:

Obama’s Muslim Adviser on Assad’s ‘Resistance to Israel’ – 3/18/2012

A Muslim adviser to the Obama White House tweeted last week that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad can’t deliver ‘resistance to Israel.’

A Muslim adviser to U.S. President Barack Obama warned in a post on the Twitter social networking site last week that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad can’t deliver ‘resistance to Israel.’ The adviser, Egyptian-born Dalia Mohaded, is employed in the Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, at the White House.

The tweet, posted on March 10 and picked up by the media watchdog Jihadwatch, read as follows: “To those siding w/Assad: he cannot deliver stability, protection of minorities, or resistance to Israel. He is a killer w/o legitimacy.”

The issue of Mogahed’s questionable priorities has also been raised by the Family Security Matters (FSM) organization, who noted that Mogahed serves on the U.S. Homeland Security Council, and is an executive at the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies and its polling center.

“Mogahed has been a tenacious defender of groups like the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), both of which are tied to the Muslim Brotherhood,” points out FSM in a post on the organization’s website.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 12:15 pm

 

Dawoud said:

Everyday is a Cyber Monday for Asma Bashar al-Assad:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyber_Monday

March 18th, 2012, 12:17 pm

 

mjabali said:

[ Mjabali, there are 9 posts held back at this moment. Most will be put back up without comment. Some will be deleted to trash.

Moderating comments has a few techical limitations. If we need to add a note, correct typos, improve readability, or add answers to comments, those comments are suspended from the web page while review and editing is done. Sometimes this is seconds, sometimes this is, to my regret, hours.

Deleted are items that go against Dr Landis’s Rules and Regulations, most usually for discriminatory, derogatory, accusatory or otherwise hateful or needlessly provocative language.

My job is to apply the rules and to keep discussion relatively civil, and open to the widest possible range of opinion. I strive to be fair and consistent in doing this service. I do appreciate corrections and criticisms.

If you have complaints or suggestions or questions, please write directly. Thank you for the opportunity to explain that sometimes posts are briefly held back for review or answer, as with this one.

SCModeration@mail.com]

The moderator of this blog again put my ideas and words in his jail instead of bringing us some quality information about what is going on in Syria. This moderator is responsible for to migration of many good people off this blog. I think i will be the next and say goodbye to this place that is reminding me more and more of Syria where no one could say a word without fear of “moderation.”

Moderation in this blog is pure censorship. Come on put my words again on moderation and make them disappear. Shame on you.

March 18th, 2012, 12:18 pm

 

873 said:

[ 873, there are 8 posts held back at this moment. Most will be put back up without comment. Some will be deleted to trash. See the note to Mjabali above.

Re: Nir Rosen, within the last week, one commentator urged that one of his comments mentioning Nir Rosen be removed. The commentator noted to me that his comments needed to be removed, because they had been noted by Rosen’s professional colleagues, and that they could be used to compromise his personal security. I will not repeat the content of those comments.

This is a sensitive issue, 873, and forgive me if I am too alert to the implications of some charges and accusations against Rosen. The proper place for discussion of Rosen, his alleged collusion with the Syrian government, his alleged participation in Israeli secret services, etc. – is at the link provided, where the men in question – including Carl Prine – are in discussion.

Please be mindful of the risk that journalists may encounter presently. It is a time of death in Syria. Nir Rosen lives in Beirut.

Thank you for the opportunity to explain. I will send you a private note with further details.]

OMEN,

Suddenly BOTH the Nir Rosen comments now ‘under consideration”.
Just answer the question Nir, or Carl for him- what was your job in IDF and why not include it openly in your bio?

March 18th, 2012, 12:19 pm

 

Dawoud said:

[ Dawoud, please avoid further language singling out a national group as below.]

As I said in my earlier comment 604. DAWOUD, RT and Xinhuantet (whatever) woke in Beirut, Lebanon and began to post pro-Dictator propaganda!

First, although I am not a fan of any absolute monarchies, I would like to thank Saudi Arabia and Jordan for providing military assistance to the FSA and the Syrians who are trying to protect themselves from Bathar (Bashar) and his T72 tanks and helicopters. Syrians need anti-tank 72 missiles in order to destroy Bashar’s T72 tanks that are hitting civilian houses, mosques, and churches in Homs, Idlib, Dera’ah, etc.

Syria is an Arab country and I hope that our Jordanian and Saudi brothers also send military advisors, primarily to defeat Bashar and his non-Arab Persian Iranians. Isn’t al-Quds forces and Hasan Nasr something Shabiha already helping the dictator kill our people in Syria.

It is very sad that Bashar is killing our people in the latest terrorist bombings in Damascus and Aleppo in order to distract the UN monitors, who are requesting entry into Syria. Didn’t he do the same thing when AL monitors were about to begin their mission?!

March 18th, 2012, 12:20 pm

 
 

Dawoud said:

I don’t think that Israel has anything to worry about from the person whom they describe as the “paper tiger” (Bathar or Bashar)!
بثار الاثد 🙂

March 18th, 2012, 12:26 pm

 

Alan said:

659. MINA
Happy news for Juergen.

March 18th, 2012, 12:27 pm

 

ann said:

FM: No plans to swap Turkish journalists for Syrian generals – 18 March 2012

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-274693-fm-no-plans-to-swap-turkish-journalists-for-syrian-generals.html

A story by the Hürriyet daily last week reported that the government is pondering swapping six defecting brigadier-generals who recently crossed the border into Turkey for the journalists, the Foreign Ministry told Today’s Zaman on Sunday this is false. Instead, diplomatic sources within the ministry told Today’s Zaman that ministry officials and their Syrian counterparts are discussing the matter but have not come to an agreement.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 12:31 pm

 

Dawoud said:

http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/03/18/201485.html

مراسلات بشار مع شهرزاد ولونا الشبل ووالد زوجته
فواز الأخرس اقترح أن تستضيف قناة دنيا أو قناة سوريا معارضين من الخليج

العربية.نت
كشفت مراسلات البريد الإلكتروني المسربة للرئيس السوري بشار الأسد، التي حصلت عليها قناة “العربية”، عن وجود أكثر من شخصية تنصحه في مجال الإعلام والتواصل، أبرزهم شهرزاد جعفري، ابنة بشار جعفري سفير سوريا لدى الأمم المتحدة، والإعلامية لونا شبل وفواز الأخرس والد أسماء الأسد.

ويبدو أن شهرزاد الجعفري هي المستشارة الإعلامية للعلاقات الخارجية لبشار الأسد. وفي رسالة بعثتها إلى بشار الأسد في 20 يونيو/تموز 2011 رشحت صحافية قناة “إن بي سي” الأمريكية آن كوري للقيام بحوار مع بشار إن كان يرغب هو بذلك، مؤكدة أن كوري لها “مقاربة حسنة” لما يحدث في سوريا.
شهرزاد الجعفري تنصح الأسد قبل مقابلة “أي بي سي”
وقبل مقابلة بشار الأسد مع مذيعة قناة “أي بي سي” بربارة والترز يبدو أن جعفري بعثت رسالة إلى الأسد بتاريخ 19 نوفمبر/تشرين الثاني 2012 تفصل له فيها أولويات المقابلة.

وعلى سبيل المثال نصحته بتذكر أنه ليس هناك “زعماء للمعارضة” السورية بل فقط “شخصيات معارضة” غير موحدة أيديولوجياً.

كما نصحته بالقيام بعرض موجز للإصلاحات التي تمت في سوريا من دون التطرق إلى التفاصيل، مضيفةً أن “الأمريكيين أغبياء جداً في فهم التفاصيل”.

ثم طلبت جعفري من الأسد خلال المقابلة توضيح أنه في بدء الأزمة كانت سوريا تسمح بدخول المراسلين الأجانب إليها، لكن تم منعهم عندما لوحظ أنهم يحاولون تضخيم الأمور وتصويرها بطريقة تصلح لفيلم هوليوودي.

كما قالت للأسد إنه يجدر الإشارة إلى كيف أن الإعلام مدح كثيراً وانتقد كثيراً شخصية الأسد في العقد الذي مضى، شارحة أنه “في وقت ما كان ينظر إليك كبطل، وفي أوقات أخرى كنت (الشخص السيئ)، الأمريكيون يعشقون هذه الأشياء ويقتنعون بها”.
[…]

March 18th, 2012, 12:38 pm

 

ss said:

Those who support the regime I have this to say:

1. Are you surprised by the terrorist attacks in Damascus yesterday and in Allepo today?

I hope you realize we are in it for the long run. The regime is facing muslim brotherhood and al Qaeda both united. This is not going to be easy and I expect many terror attacks in the future. This is the only language these terrorist islamic based organizations understands.

2. Why should I blame SC for not reporting the terrorist attacks, at the end this website should not go againts the mainstream media in the US. I think we are asking a lot. BBC, CNN, FOX, Aljazeera are attacking the regime in Syria and labeling with many names, they are lable the attacks as made by the regime, on top of that you want from SC to jump and report the incidence as a terrorist attack. Well I think we would be asking too much.

For those who support terrorist and United MB+Qaeda organization:

1. You are facing the Syrian people, your job is going to be hell hard.

2. Your language of explosions and mass killings will not help your cause. You have no freinds amonst the free Syrian people.

3. I am shocked how some here send their condolences to a patriarch of the Orthodox Coptic Church Schenuda III, which is noble thing to do but at the same time failed to express their sorrow for many christians who were killed in Qasa3 yesterday.

4. Do you think by exploding cars and bringing terror to the Syrian people you will be able to topple the regime?? Do you think that the Syrian people will trust you???

March 18th, 2012, 12:42 pm

 

Dawoud said:

662. DAWOUD

Dear Moderator:
I think that you misinterpreted what I said. I was stating facts, not opinions: Saudi Arabi and Jordan are Arab countries, and Iran is a non-Arab Persian country. That’s all!

S.Arabia and Jordan are member of the Arab League, Iran isn’t.

Sincerely,
Dawoud

March 18th, 2012, 12:45 pm

 

Alan said:

The Obama Doctrine
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/02/27/the_obama_doctrine
…(….)…
Crises the administration deems indirect threats to the United States — such as the uprisings in Libya and Syria — are “threats to global security,” Rhodes argued, and will be responded to multilaterally and not necessarily by force. The drawdown of U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as the creation of a smaller, more agile U.S. military spread across Asia, the Pacific, and the Middle East, are also part of the doctrine. So is the discreet backing of protesters in Egypt, Iran, and Syria.

The emerging strategy — which Rhodes touted as “a far more focused approach to our adversaries” — is a welcome shift from the martial policies and bellicose rhetoric of both the Bush administration and today’s Republican presidential candidates. But Obama has granted the CIA far too much leeway in carrying out drone strikes in Pakistan and Yemen. In both countries, the strikes often appear to be backfiring.

March 18th, 2012, 12:56 pm

 

Mina said:

SS
Don’t even ask them to reflect on the Algerian or the Iraqi experience; to condemn the mad Gulf clerics and their sectarian provocations; to have the slightest idea of how they see “day 2” or “day 3”. It is none of their business. Just click-and-pay.

March 18th, 2012, 1:02 pm

 
 
 

jad said:

Blackening Assad, whitening Cameron and Obama
{…}
Do Nick Robinson, Mark Mardell and their BBC associates even deserve the basic entitlement ‘journalists’? What they say and convey is so routinely, so obediently, pro-establishment, so removed from any semblance of analytical integrity, it might reasonably shame Pravda.

From illegal invasions to proxy coups, here are two countries directly responsible for the worst warmongering catastrophes on the planet, two super-imperialist entities with not the slightest right to claim ‘moral intervention’.

But, why might the ‘BBC’s finest’, flying on the PM’s plane, drag up such awkward, core realities when there’s so many more ‘diplomatic’ things to say on the ‘cool chemistry’ between the Camerons and Obamas?
{…}
On the issue of Syria, the mainstream media is awash with atrocities committed by Assad. All fair reporting of regime-directed killing, one might reasonably say, particularly given the accompanying appeals from Amnesty and Human Rights Watch.

Yet, they, along with the Western mainstream media, have amplified a convenient headline narrative, failing to report the complexities of the conflict, the multi-competing forces, the manoeuvring of favoured regimes like Saudi Arabia and, above all, the West’s own pernicious agenda.

Where amongst all the damning columns on the Assad regime is the key story of Nato’s dark ‘interventionist’ intent? As Wikileaks-released emails from the Pentagon-linked Stratfor agency confirm, US/Nato forces have been operating inside Syria all along seeking to destabilise Assad.

Which begs related questions of a media with so much nuanced information at its disposal. Why isn’t the conflict reported as an effective civil war? Who is arming the opposition? Who, beyond the Free Syrian Army, are the opposition? Why are the media only citing selective opposition ‘sources’? What responsibility does the FSA bear for the killing and casualties? Do the majority of Syrians, even those not supporting Assad, really want regime change?

Fair presentation of those questions would be in the public interest, but it wouldn’t suit the Manichean, black-and-white view the West wants promoted.

Also, what’s the true reason for vilifying Russia and China? For all their own vested interests, both are still rightly resisting any Security Council mandate that facilitates Western force.

Only rare, yet still marginal, voices within the liberal media like Jonathan Steele are helping to separate fact from stylised fiction.
{…}
Only the Assads and other Western enemies, it seems, are capable of living lavishly, indifferent to their war crimes, while ‘our’ criminality, in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Palestine and elsewhere is treated as ‘intervention’ and ‘conflict management’, the state executives of those high crimes, from Blair to Cameron, deferred to as political celebrities.
{…}
As Sharmine Narwani asks:

““Hollywood” in Syria? Oh yes. Scene-setting the likes of which we have not yet seen outside of celluloid fiction. Delivering lines to a rapt audience that seems incapable of questioning the plot. Some of what transpires in Syria in the future will depend on this: Do people want to go behind the velvet curtain and see the strings – or are they content to be simply led by the entertainment.”

But that again would require proper media insight and courage, the depressing vacuousness of which is pressed home in Narwani’s scathing letter Dear Western journalist.

Assad’s repressions should be fairly reported and condemned, those personal indulgences noted. But his crimes and abuses are minuscule – and calculatingly exaggerated – compared with those committed by the US/UK.

Instead of sycophantic spin on the ‘special relationship’ and US/UK plans for ‘ethical assistance’, any serious reporting of Syria, Afghanistan, Iran and other sites of imperialist interest would relate, as standard truth, the reminder that Obama and Cameron are themselves proven warmongers, that their states are responsible for mass crimes against humanity and that the ‘moral concerns’ they gushingly express from the White House lawn should be treated by the media and public alike as warnings of further subterfuge, war and illicit killing to come.

http://johnhilley.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/blackening-assad-whitening-cameron-and.html

March 18th, 2012, 1:15 pm

 

jad said:

Syrians are helping each-others in the aftermath of the criminal terrorist attacks:

“السوريون يساعدون الجهات المختصة برفع الأنقاض ومساعدة المتضررين في القصاع – احتشد مئات السوريين اليوم الأحد أمام مقر المخابرات الجوية في المنطقة الواصلة بين شارع بغداد والقصاع، حيث تشاركوا مع الجهات المختصة برفع الأنقاض ومساعدة الأهالي المتضررين. وكان تفجيران إرهابيان هزا صباح أمس السبت مدينة دمشق، استهدف أحدها فرع المخابرات الجوية قرب ساحة التحرير، في حين استهدف الآخر إدارة الأمن الجنائي بمنطقة الجمارك بدمشق، مأدى لاستشهاد 30 وإصابة 140 من المدنيين والعسكريين إثر التفجيرات الإرهابية. المؤشرات الأولية أشارت إلى أن التفجيرين نفذا باستخدام سيارات مفخخة، في حين اكدت مصادر خاصة بشوكوماكو ان أضرار مادية كبيرة لحقت بالمنازل المجاورة لفرع المخابرات الجوية نتيجة التفجير.”
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.371834882836577.86060.279535285399871&type=1

March 18th, 2012, 1:22 pm

 

ann said:

Syrian Rebels are Foreign-backed Terrorists – March 18, 2012

Latest terrorist attack in Damascus illustrates illegitimacy of both Syria’s rebels the UN/NATO backing them.

by Tony Cartalucci

http://endthelie.com/2012/03/17/syrian-rebels-are-foreign-backed-terrorists/#axzz1pTh8nzeb

March 18, 2012 – A twin terrorist bombing in the Syrian capital of Damascus, allegedly targeting government buildings, ripped through a Christian neighborhood killing an estimated 27, mostly civilians. A third bomb exploded, killing only the driver of the car it was placed in, in what was apparently an attempted triple suicide bombing. CBS News reports (1) that after other similar attacks, U.S. officials suggest Al Qaeda terrorists “may be” amongst the Syrian rebels. However, while the West attempts to portray this as an unexpected development, we shall see that it not only was likely, but in fact the premeditated modus operandi of Western-backed destabilization efforts directed at upturning not only Syria, but the entire Arab World.

Pentagon’s Premeditated Arab World Blitzkrieg.

From the beginning the United States has been directly behind the unrest in Syria. In fact, America’s involvement in destabilizing Syria began years before the admittedly US-engineered Arab Spring (2) even unfolded in a premeditated plot to upturn the entire Arab World and reorder it according to their own corporate-financier and hegemonic geopolitical interests.

The overthrow of Syria’s government is a premeditated US plot.

A concerted campaign to isolate, destabilize and overthrow the government of Syria began in 2002, a year after Clark was informed of the Pentagon’s plan to blitzkrieg through the Middle East. It was then that Secretary of State John Bolton added Syria to the growing “Axis of Evil (11).” It would be later revealed that Bolton’s threats against Syria manifested themselves as covert funding and support for opposition groups inside of Syria spanning both the Bush and Obama administrations.

In an April 2011 CNN article (12), acting State Department spokesman Mark Toner stated, “We’re not working to undermine that [Syrian] government. What we are trying to do in Syria, through our civil society support, is to build the kind of democratic institutions, frankly, that we’re trying to do in countries around the globe. What’s different, I think, in this situation is that the Syrian government perceives this kind of assistance as a threat to its control over the Syrian people.”

Toner’s remarks came after the Washington Post released cables (13) indicating the US has been funding Syrian opposition groups since at least 2005 and continued until today.

In an April 2011 AFP report (14), Michael Posner, the assistant US Secretary of State for Human Rights and Labor, stated that the “US government has budgeted $50 million in the last two years to develop new technologies to help activists protect themselves from arrest and prosecution by authoritarian governments.”

The report went on to explain that the US “organized training sessions for 5,000 activists in different parts of the world. A session held in the Middle East about six weeks ago gathered activists from Tunisia, Egypt, Syria and Lebanon who returned to their countries with the aim of training their colleagues there,” (emphasis added). Posner would add, “They went back and there’s a ripple effect.” That ripple effect of course is the “Arab Spring,” and in Syria’s case, the impetus for the current unrest threatening to unhinge the nation and invite in foreign intervention.”

More recently, revelations that Syrian militants are in fact being armed, trained, funded, and even joined on the battlefield by Libya’s Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), a US State Department-listed foreign terrorist organization (listed as #27) (15) only further highlights the necessity of Syria’s government under President Assad to attempt to restore order at all costs. The Telegraph would report in November 2011 (16) that LIFG leader, Abdul Belhaj met with senior leaders of the “Free Syrian Army” on the Turkish-Syrian border. It was reported that Belhaj was pledging weapons and money (both of which he receives from NATO) as well as sending LIFG fighters to train and fight alongside Syrian militants.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 1:46 pm

 

Badr said:

Syrian surgeon: Why I’m risking my life to treat protesters

“The only people who can get treated are those who support of the government. It’s inhumane.

It is very dangerous. In the beginning we were afraid to work. But we need to know inside ourselves, in our hearts, that we are human. Our role, as doctors, is to treat the injured, whoever they are.

What motivates me? My honour, my duty as a doctor.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17398886

March 18th, 2012, 1:52 pm

 

ann said:

Red Cross heading to Moscow for Syria talks

The president of the International Committee of the Red Cross will meet Russia’s Foreign Minister in Moscow to discuss the humanitarian situation in Syria, the ICRC said on Sunday. Jakob Kellenberger and Sergey Lavrov will review the ICRC and the Syrian Red Crescent’s aid efforts in the country and coordinate further steps. The Red Cross is especially worried over the situations in Homs, Idlib, Hama and Daraa provinces. “A daily ceasefire of at least two hours is imperative to allow the evacuation of the wounded,” Kellenberger said in the statement. He urged “an unambiguous commitment by all parties concerned … to end the fighting” so that aid workers “can help people who are cruelly in need.”

[…]

http://rt.com/news/line/2012-03-18/#id28157
.

March 18th, 2012, 2:09 pm

 

Haytham Khoury said:

March 18th, 2012, 2:21 pm

 

Alan said:

Saudi sends military gear to Syria rebels: diplomat

ed note–if the Saudis indeed want to ‘stop the bloodshed’ then they need to STOP sending more guns. There was no ‘bloodshed’ until the US, Israel, and other powers fomented this ‘revolution’ in Syria, which is just war by other means in bringing about Israel’s long term foreign policy objectives in the region.

AFP

Saudi Arabia is delivering military equipment to Syrian rebels in an effort to stop bloodshed by President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, a top Arab diplomat said on Saturday.

“Saudi military equipment is on its way to Jordan to arm the Free Syrian Army,” the diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“This is a Saudi initiative to stop the massacres in Syria,” he added, saying that further “details will follow at a later time.”

The announcement came two days after the conservative Sunni-ruled kingdom said it had shut down its embassy in Syria and withdrawn all its staff.

It also followed a brief meeting on the Syrian crisis last week between Jordan’s King Abdullah II and the Saudi monarch King Abdullah in Riyadh.

There was no official reaction to the statement from the Saudi capital, but Jordan flatly rejected the report.

“Jordan categorically denies the report,” government spokesman and information minister Rakan Majali told AFP.

“This is completely baseless. Jordan has not discussed this issue with any parties or brought it up at all,” he said without elaborating, while adding that an official statement would be issued later on Saturday.

Amman had called for a diplomatic solution to the Syrian crisis earlier this month, arguing that the kingdom was among the worst affected by its repercussions.

Jordan shares its northern border with Syria, through which more than 65 percent of its trade transits. According to local officials, some 80,000 Syrians are estimated to have fled to the kingdom since March 2011.

[truncated …]

March 18th, 2012, 2:23 pm

 

omen said:

873 @ 12:19

what’s the harm in asking? who knows, maybe even nir rosen will answer.

here, here is his address on twitter: @nirrosen

ask him directly. him or carl, i would love to see how either of them would answer.

if you are so confident about your theory, 873, i don’t understand why you would be reluctant to pose the question.

March 18th, 2012, 2:28 pm

 

Amir in Tel Aviv said:

I like Nir Rosen very much, and I think that Nir Rosen is doing a great journalistic job.

Haha … not really. Nothing can be more damaging for Nir Rosen , than a Zionist, praising him.

Even the most anti-Zionist Jew will always remain a source of suspicion in the eyes of the Arabs. Sad.
.

March 18th, 2012, 2:40 pm

 

Alan said:

החוק השלישי של ניוטון

March 18th, 2012, 3:01 pm

 

omen said:

628. Alan said:

what is this ?
Obama Takes Control of ALL of the US in Prep For WWIII (done late on a Friday afternoon, of course!)

i don’t know. could be routine safety drill? or could it signal the US is going to attack iran?

[recovers from hyperventilating]

oh, it could be a saber rattling, pressure tactic, trying to scare iran.

March 18th, 2012, 3:03 pm

 

omen said:

345. Son of Damascus said:

Then you better find a new hero, Assad is arabic for Lion. I much rather his old family name Wahesh.

does wahesh mean something?

March 18th, 2012, 3:09 pm

 

omen said:

Ghufran @ 9:14

Enough of Bashar and his wife’s shoes, all women love shoes

not true. this is a stereotype marketers spread to get women to buy more shoes!

March 18th, 2012, 3:15 pm

 

Alan said:

againe what is this ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myPENDAJdE0
Alert! Obama Declares Peacetime MARTIAL LAW – Executive Order Explained

March 18th, 2012, 3:23 pm

 
 

Syrialover said:

639. Jad said:

“To all Syria haters and morally bankrupt guys writing nonsense on SC: You have no shame whatsoever.”

I know, I’ve been saying the same. And getting the collective block of automated red thumbs down every time

Hi there Luna, hi there Hadeel, hi there Sheherezade and your team.

March 18th, 2012, 3:28 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

FCBarcelona football team sharing in the conspiracy against Syria Democratic Assad Regime.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfpHdWCIx0U&feature=player_embedded

Levels of paranoia are unlimited and eternal like Assad.

March 18th, 2012, 3:29 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

681. OMEN

Wahesh which seems to be the original name of the family means Beast. It seems to be a totally probed fact. But there are some stories that go further back in time telling that before Beast they were Jahsh family (Donkey).

March 18th, 2012, 3:33 pm

 

Alan said:

Western Psikhushka Killed Demjanjuk
http://www.roytov.com/articles/demjanjuk.htm
Yesterday, March 17, 2012, John Demjanjuk died in a retirement home in southern Germany. On May 12, 2011, he had been found guilty by a German court in Munich of helping to murder around twenty-eight thousand Jews at Sobibor in World War II. The court sentenced him to five years in jail but then decided to release him, pending an appeal, due to his advanced age. Looking at the facts of the case, it is difficult not to conclude that this was a case of political torture aimed at advancing Israel’s political agenda.

March 18th, 2012, 3:41 pm

 

omen said:

601. 873 said:

Where is the democracy movement for Saudi Arabia??

when they run out of oil? it’s going to happen eventually. hope i’m alive when the s**t hits the fan. which will go first? china or saudi arabia?

yet, there are signs:

The western media, where they notice the ferment in Arabia at all, focus on the Shia revolt and the position of women. It is true that the Shia are very active in protest – their demonstrations are massive. However, they are a minority and the regime links them with Iran, so their protests remain isolated and self-contained. The regime has so far successfully used these protests in its favour, by persuading the Sunni majority of a threat of a Shia “takeover” of the Eastern province.

…

Two weeks ago, a tribe in Taif, near Mecca, prevented the security forces enforcing a royal order confiscating their land. They forced the authorities to cancel the confiscation order by physical protest. Across the country, people are asking: if one small tribe can regain its land through peaceful protest, why shouldn’t the entire nation reclaim its rights in a similar way?

March 18th, 2012, 3:51 pm

 

Syrialover said:

It is hard not to think more than one person is using the name “873” in this forum.

The recent posts by “873” on Nir Rosen are interestingly very different in tone and style from the “873” spitting out hysterical conspiracy theories about the Saudis being behind the demonstrations in Syria and telling us what a corrupt, evil, inhumane disaster zone America is for Americans.

Something to ponder for those doing academic content analysis of what’s here.

March 18th, 2012, 3:54 pm

 

Uzair8 said:

A bit right now but later I’m gonna have a look back at the archives (around december 7th) to see pro-Assad activity. I wonder if users here are instructed by to Luna al-Chabel?

“On December 7, 2011, Assad’s interview with ABC was stirring much controversy as opposition accused him of editing it and slammed state media for misleading the people. On that day, Chabel sent Assad an email telling him that she instructed large numbers of Syrians to flood social networking websites with praise for Assad’s stance in the interview in which he insisted on denying all reports of violence against civilian protestors.”

http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/03/18/201393.html

March 18th, 2012, 3:57 pm

 

omen said:

SANDRO LOEWE @ 3:33

that is amazing. the man lives up to his name.

March 18th, 2012, 3:58 pm

 

omen said:

assad is the ron paul of the internets. there is more “support” for him online than in real life.

March 18th, 2012, 4:02 pm

 

Alan said:

Jad Your favourite of KGB !
Interesting on what democracy have closed access of viewing of this video? It is literally an hour 20 minutes ago?

March 18th, 2012, 4:17 pm

 
 

Syrialover said:

Alan,

You keep posting links to videos that are not available to use (maybe can only be seen by you).

Instead just tell us what they show.

March 18th, 2012, 4:42 pm

 

Alan said:

681. OMEN

Just in case there’s anyone who thinks you don’t live in a police state, take a look at this Executive Order signed on March 16. The Government can now empty your pantries, confiscate your cars, trucks, tractors, etc., take your sons and daughters into “service”, and pretty much do whatever they want. I don’t know what to call this “new” nation you live in but it isn’t the one you where born into:
http://farmwars.info/?p=8052

New Executive Order Seizes Total Control over Civilian Activities

Translation
Barbara H. Peterson

Farm Wars

A new Executive Order signed on March 16, 2012, gives Obama the power to seize all forms of transportation, food, and any other civilian services including health care, for national defense, as well as to conscript necessary persons for a National Defense Executive Reserve. This is an all-inclusive E.O. that executes total control over everything from home gardens to any form of transportation, to forcing people to work for the collective. Read it and weep.

For those who think this new Executive Order will not affect you because you think we are not in a “national emergency,” understand that WE ARE, with Iran as the excuse. Obama signed a “Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to Iran” on March 13, just three days before the following E.O.

March 18th, 2012, 4:44 pm

 

omen said:

[greenlight Omen, I updated your 10:01 comment, adding a link to Carl Prine’s answer to 873.

Line of Departure: A defense of Nir Rosen \#comment-8391]

873 [+ at 8:40 am]

post that on the comment thread of the article. carl prine has been responding to charges. let’s see what he says.

March 18th, 2012, 4:45 pm

 

jad said:

Signs that Alqaeda has a hand in the attacks using fsa as a tool for its dirty work:

معلومات جديدة لدى”الحقيقة” تؤكد السابقة : منفذو تفجيرات دمشق ينتمون لـ”كتيبة الفرقان” في “القاعدة”!؟

السيارة التي انفجرت في “مخيم اليرموك” جاءت من ” الحجر الأسود” ومحيطها ، و واحد على الأقل من الإرهابيين المنفذين أو المخططين من آل الدسوقي وينتمي لـ”كتيبة الفرقان”!؟

دمشق ، عواصم ـ الحقيقة (خاص): تأكد أن انفجارا إرهابيا ثالثا وقع صباح أمس في “شارع الثلاثين” في مخيم اليرموك جنوبي دمشق في وقت متقارب جدا مع التفجيرين اللذين استهدفها مقر إدارة المخابرات الجوية و إدارة الأمن الجنائي . إلا أن صغر حجمه ، إذ إنه لم يسفر سوى عن مقتل اثنين من ركاب السيارة المفخخة وإصابة الأبنية المجاورة بأضرار متفاوتة ، والملابسات التي أحاطت به ، جعله يضيع في زحمة الأخبار المتعلقة بالتفجيرين الآخرين. ويقع الشارع المذكور في المنطقة الفاصلة بين مخيمي اليرموك وفلسطين من جهة ، و”حي التقدم” من جهة ، ولا يبعد عن “الحجر الأسود” سوى أقل من 1 كم . علما بأن المنطقة يغلب عليها اللاجئون الفلسطينيون والنازحون السوريون من الجولان المحتل. وكانت “الحقيقة” نشرت يوم أمس معلومات حصرية تشير إلى أن الذين خططوا و / أو نفذوا التفجيرات هم من مناطق النازحين / اللاجئين في “الحجر الأسود” و ” البويضة” القريبة منها.

وبالعودة إلى انفجار ” شارع الثلاثين” ، يبدو أن انفجار أو تفجير السيارة حصل بسبب “خطأ فني” ما ، أو لسبب آخر، إذ إن السيارة ـ وطبقا للمعلومات المتوفرة ـ كانت متوجهة من منطقة ” الحجر الأسود” أو بلدة ” ببيلا” و ” يلدا” المجاورتين ، والتابعتين لغوطة دمشق الشرقية، إلى مكان ما في قلب العاصمة السورية ليس معلوما بعد. ويبدو أن هذا “الخطأ” الذي تسبب بالانفجار في مكان غير المكان المخطط له ، سيكون المفتاح الذي سيقود إلى الجهة التي تقف وراء التفجيرات . فقد علمت “الحقيقة” أن أحد القتيلين في السيارة التي انفجرت في “شارع الثلاثين” ينتمي لعائلة الدسوقي المقيمة في “شارع العروبة” في “حي التقدم” ، وهو عضو في “كتيبة الفرقان” التي شكلتها “جبهة النصرة لبلاد الشام” في غوطة دمشق الشرقية مؤخرا، علما بأن “جبهة النصرة” هي ممثل “القاعدة” في سوريا ، وكانت أعلنت في شريط رسمي مسؤوليتها عن تفجير “حي الميدان ” بدمشق مطلع العام الجاري. وقالت معلومات حصرية لـ”الحقيقة” مصدرها متطرفون إسلاميون ينشطون في غرف “البالتوك”إن أجهزة الأمن السورية تمكنت من الإمساك بخيوط قوية يمكن أن تقود إلى رؤوس كبيرة في التنظيم الإرهابي المذكور. وكشفت هذه المعلومات أن الأجهزة المعنية، تمكنت من التعرف على أحد الانتحاريين ، وعملت على اعتقال زوجته وبعض أقاربه المقيمين في “حي التقدم” يوم أمس بأمل أن يساعد ذلك على تفكيك وحلحلة عدد من الخيوط المتداخلة التي تؤدي إلى شبكة الفاعلين.

وكانت “جبهة النصرة” ، أو تنظيم “القاعدة” في بلاد الشام، شكلت سبع مجموعات مسلحة في ريف دمشق تنشط كلها تحت اسم “الجيش السوري الحر” في ريف دمشق ، ولكنها تتبع عمليا لها. ومن أبرز هذه المجموعات وأكبرها مجموعة ” كتيبة الفرقان” و ” كتيبة أبو عبيدة الجراح” . ويمثل هذه الأخيرة في ” الهيئة العامة للثورة السورية” المدعو أحمد الخطيب . وهو دليل على أن ما يسمى “الهيئة العامة للثورة السورية” المنخرطة في ” المجلس الوطني السوري” تعمل كغطاء للمنظمات الإرهابية والتكفيرية ، وأن “الجيش السوري الحر” وكما قلنا منذ أشهر ليس سوى اسم تضليلي لإخفاء أنشطة المنظمات الأصولية وراءه. وهو ما أكده “معهد دراسات الحرب” الأميركي الذي ترجمنا له تقريره الأخير منذ يومين.
{…}
http://www.syriatruth.org/news/tabid/93/Article/6956/Default.aspx

March 18th, 2012, 5:05 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 698. Alan

I am not worrying too deeply for Americans being pushed into sinister dictator-style system.

They have their elections, free media and big debates, rule of law, people in public office and bureaucracy are accountable and so on, and also do not fear danger of being shot dead, tortured and disappeared if they protest peacefully.

If you try to compare Syria to other countries, none in the west will do. Maybe North Korea and Iran.

March 18th, 2012, 5:09 pm

 

jad said:

شهيدان و ثلاثون جريحا بانفجار سيارة مفخخة في حلب
http://youtu.be/KZmixBj1uPE

March 18th, 2012, 5:11 pm

 

Alan said:

Aourtkm appear more clearly from the viewpoint of Russia

March 18th, 2012, 5:25 pm

 

jad said:

Terrorists are not satisfied of killing Syrians, they continue attacking the Syria infrastructure, so after train tracks, gas pipelines, trucks, refineries, schools, universities..today they are targeting bridges:

مجموعة ارهابية تستهدف جسرعلى الطريق الدولي في درعا
http://youtu.be/s_hn3BZChvk

March 18th, 2012, 5:27 pm

 

Juergen said:

UN Observer team in Homs

March 18th, 2012, 5:34 pm

 

Alan said:

rule of law !!! mmmm good idea to arming Syrians oppositioneers !!!!!!

March 18th, 2012, 5:35 pm

 

Juergen said:

72 hours under fire
CNN report of Homs

March 18th, 2012, 5:41 pm

 

Juergen said:

We should use the real name of the Assad family, Wahesh fits better. I heard this story from Damascus, in the Zoo the management was afraid to name the lions in the Zoo as what they are: lions. They put up a sign stating: Boss of the animals. Regimes are pathetic.

March 18th, 2012, 5:44 pm

 

omen said:

271. irritated said:

#268 SL said: “the huge high tech electronic surveillance system the regime operates against ordinary Syrians.”

One wonders if this were not myth and paranoia too…

paranoia? myth? why do apologists hold up assad as an innocent? a saint without sin?

article from 2010:

WASHINGTON—The State Department has dispatched a high-level diplomatic and trade mission to Syria, according to senior U.S. officials, marking the latest bid by the Obama administration to woo President Bashar al-Assad away from his strategic alliance with Iran.

The U.S. delegation comprises senior executives from some of America’s top technology companies, including Microsoft Corp., Dell Inc., Cisco Systems Inc. and Symantec Corp., according to the U.S. officials. All these companies’ businesses in Syria are constrained by U.S. sanctions.

…

Some Syrian activists also voiced concern that Damascus’s repression of political opponents could grow if the government develops more sophisticated technologies.

“I think the administration is fooling itself it believes that this type of engagement will bring about a more democratic Syria,” said Ammar Abdulhamid, a Syrian dissident based in Washington. “Assad has shown absolutely no signs of loosening his grip on society, and in many ways he’s gotten worse.”

Mrs. Clinton has made the spread of information technology a cornerstone of her foreign-policy mandate, arguing it can aid the global development of democracy and civil society.

In recent months, the Obama administration has taken steps to ease exports of certain types of telecommunications equipment and antifiltering software that were previously banned from entering countries such as Iran, China and Sudan out of concern they would be used as tools of government oppression.

mrs. clinton should be made to answer for this.

March 18th, 2012, 6:03 pm

 

Syrialover said:

Some families I know in Damascus and Aleppo struggle to keep their sons and daughters from protests and joining the anger about the regime. And some outside Syria have to stop sons with the desire to go to fight against Assad. I think this would be common.

Multiply that by the hundreds of thousands, probably now reaching millions, of Syrians with family, friends, neighbours and colleagues they know who are suffering for no reason except to enable those in power to keep their control. They are now afraid of the authorities and blame the “leaders” for not stopping the chaos and problems with the economy.

Bashar & Co have woken up a generation that won’t go back to sleep.

March 18th, 2012, 6:04 pm

 

Juergen said:

Today Germany have elected an new President, an former priest who resisted against the communist regime.He organized protest and secured those wanted by the regime forces. After the collapse he headed the ministry for the reconcilation and truth finding about the crimes committed by the secret service in my country.Since that time every citizen can obtain a copy of the folder the secret service wrote about them, to many a heartbraking experience, many find collegues, friends family members who spied and reported on them. Some understand after reading why they have were not approved for university, why they never got promoted, who brought them into the hands of the secret police and later to prisons. In some cases the wife found out that the husband reported on her and actually was choosen by the secret service to get a hand on the women. In his first speech our new president said that on 18 March 1990 he was 50 years old and for the first time in his life he was able to elect freely. He made then to himself an vow, never ever will i not go to vote again in my life. 22 years later he is now President. I just wish that such a man is among the Syrians already, that soon Syrians have a chance to cleanse their memories from the crimes of the Assads and a new democratic Syria will emerge which will give every citizen not only a voice but also an vote which counts.

March 18th, 2012, 6:19 pm

 

Alan said:

708. JUERGEN
Wahesh fits better.
You are intelligent person . I do not think that if I will use your unintelligent lexicon about your nation president it shall be nice to hear !
Moderator attention please !

March 18th, 2012, 6:21 pm

 

omen said:

4:45 Omen, I updated your 10:01 comment, adding a link to Carl Prine’s answer to 873.

thank you, moderator, for pointing to the exchange!

gee, that was gracious of you. not surefooted enough about the grounds of the allegation, i was too nervous to ask.

March 18th, 2012, 6:23 pm

 

jad said:

شادي علي – كرمال اللي راحو

كـرمـال اللي راحـو … لَ غيرُن يرتاحو
الـبـلـد عـم بـيـنــادي … لَ نداويلو جراحو
بـلـدنـا مـوجـــــــوع … بـيـكـفّـيـه دمـــوع
ضوّي لَ شُــهَـداه شــمــوع … و ردّلـو صـبـاحـو
..
كرمال اللي راحو
http://soundcloud.com/shadi-ali/kermal

March 18th, 2012, 6:29 pm

 

Syrialover said:

#709 OMEN

Assad’s surveillance terror network is well serviced, and Syrians know it.

If you go back over SyriaComment you will find information about the Iranians and commercial firms from various countries supplying Syria with electronic surveillance systems.

I myself posted this chilling article a few months ago about the systems uncovered in little Libya. Do you think these Chinese and South African firms are not doing even bigger business with Iran and Syria?

Firms aided Libyan spies: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904199404576538721260166388.html

March 18th, 2012, 6:29 pm

 

Tara said:

Syrian regime staged deadly attacks in Damascus, rebel captain says
March 18, 2012 — Updated 1212 GMT (2012 HKT)

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/03/18/world/meast/syria-unrest/

 A Syrian rebel leader vehemently refuted the government’s claim that so-called “terrorists” — not the regime itself — launched a series of explosions in Damascus that killed dozens.

“This is the regime’s game. This is how they play their dirty tricks. They carry out these types of explosions from time to time to get more international support and compassion,” Capt. Ammar al-Wawi of the rebel Syrian Free Army said Sunday. “They are desperately trying to prove to the world that they are fighting against armed gangs, but the reality is they are the ones who are doing all the killings.”

Two explosions rocked parts of Damascus on Saturday, including Syrian government facilities, state-run media reported.

Al-Wawi said the Free Syrian Army “had nothing to do with these explosions, which caused heavy casualties among civilians, because that’s not our mission. We are fighting against the regime brutality, not against our people.”

(…}

March 18th, 2012, 6:37 pm

 

Juergen said:

Alan

I dont call anyone with names but for dictators and despotes i do make exceptions. I believe that such persons who disgrace their nation and with the full awareness decide the faith of thousands, the least we can all do is to say the truth and call them what they are.

Our elected ( not selected) President and the chancellor have never overseen systematic torture of ordered the usage of the army to crackdown on civil unrests. But i assume torture does not exist, and nothing is civil about terrorists right?

March 18th, 2012, 6:37 pm

 

Alan said:

I myself posted this chilling article a few months ago about the systems uncovered in little Libya. Do you think these Chinese and South African firms are not doing even bigger business with Iran and Syria?

would be complete the picture we esle with the same effort would provide the equivalent information from the archives of the pentagon,CIA or M16 , etc.

March 18th, 2012, 6:41 pm

 

Alan said:

We must be tolerant to respect the feelings of the people! You do not speak clearly! Not all people can agree with your assessment! respect the people to respect yourself!

March 18th, 2012, 6:47 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

Fresh news about the killing of Assef Shawkat´s nephew, a prominent figure air moukhabaraat in Deir Al Zawr.

http://youkal.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=45732%3A2012-03-18-15-36-06&catid=54%3A2011-04-29-12-25-44&Itemid=126

March 18th, 2012, 6:48 pm

 

Tara said:

http://www.net-a-porter.com/am/viewfullsizeimage.nap?productID=189062&currentImage=189062_in

This is the crytal-encrusted Loboutini shoes that Asma was buying. The price tage of Homsi children.

March 18th, 2012, 7:01 pm

 

jad said:

The terrorists of fsa deserve the noble prize for their ‘humane’ work, I’m sure they will deny it later as they always do, bye2to alateel w byemsho bijnazo.
Bunch of cowards!

ميليشيا “الجيش الحر” تفجر جسر خربة غزالة في درعا
http://youtu.be/pO-vgEzdtoI

إرهابيو ومخربو “المجلس الوطني السوري” يدمرون الجسر الرئيسي بين درعا ودمشق ، ويتباهون بعملهم الإجرامي

دمشق ، درعا ـ الحقيقة ( خاص) : تبنى إرهابيو ومخربو “المجلس الوطني السوري ” ، الذين ينشطون تحت اسم “الجيش السوري الحر”، عملية تدمير الجسر الواقع في منطقة خربة غزالة على الأتوتستراد الواصل بين درعا ودمشق التي حصلت أمس. وأعلنت ما تسمى بـ ” كتائب المعتز بالله”، التي تعمل في إطار “الجيش” المذكور الذي تديره أجهزة المخابرات الأجنبية ، مسؤوليتها عن عملية التفجير في شريط بثه “المركز السوري للتوثيق”. ويلاحظ أن جزءا من الجسر قد تهدم ، بينما بقي جزؤه الآخر سليما. وهذه هي المحاولة الثانية التي يقوم بها الإرهابيون لنسف الجسر المذكور. فقد سبق لهم أن وضعوا عبوة ناسفة عند الجسر قبل نحو شهرين ، إلا أن أحد الضباط المهندسين تمكن من تفكيكها جزئيا ، ما أدى إلى استشهاده ، إنما حال دون حصول الانفجار كاملا .
http://www.syriatruth.org/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D8%AE%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1/%D8%A3%D8%AE%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%88%D8%AA%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A3%D8%AE%D8%B1%D9%89/tabid/94/Article/6957/Default.aspx

March 18th, 2012, 7:03 pm

 

Alan said:

Cave Story blood in the Mount forty Damascus.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRVAZGyVSuA
I’m surprised! death of some people in the comments field

March 18th, 2012, 7:03 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 718. Alan

I actually think who supplies the technology is a side issue compared with the issue of how it is USED against ordinary citizens by the Libyan, Syrian and Iranian regimes.

If you are going to quote me direct, have the courtesy to state the source. I don’t know why you want people thinking my words criticizing the Syrian regime are yours.

But then again, let it be. Suits me.

March 18th, 2012, 7:06 pm

 

Observer said:

No new readings; my observations are as follows:

1. The regime has shown no flexibility whatsoever in dealing with the crisis. It adopted a single script and used all the moves to continue to stick by the same narrative and strategy. It is clearly not working and there are ever more signs of increased isolation and of increased strain on the economy and increasing strain on the armed forces.

2. The support of the regime is weakening with China essentially silent lately on the developments and Russia beginning to distance itself from the regime figures per se.

3. AL members are now lined up to help the rebels and to supply them. The rift in the SNC is actually a good sign and will force action on this front.

Here are my take on the e mails in a new-old light:

1. The regime supporters are doing their utmost to deflect from the story and we see this on this and other blogs
2. The explosions in Damascus and Aleppo are also part and parcel of this distraction
3. The mind set of the regime highest figures is exactly that of a mafia family without regard to any criteria except survival at all cost and a view of the situation as one in which the end justifies the means.
4. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely and therefore I am actually quite surprised at the attitude and thought process of the father in law and the wife as they have grown up in Britain with a very long tradition of freedom and participatory rule. When the father in law compares the action of the regime to the quelling of the riots I find that most shocking and appalling as he clearly knows the difference.

Now the most important element of the news lately is the continued demonstrations and protests and defections and incredible courage that the Syrian people are showing.

In contrast to the regime they are now convinced that they are going to have a long struggle whereas the regime thinks it can continue to repress for a few more weeks and then all will be back to normal. The very fact that after the massacres in BA and in Idlib we see ever more demonstrations is a great tribute to this wonderful people and nation in the making.

I hope the Arab Spring reaches Lebanon where the current confessional leaders seem archaic and dictatorial, Bahrain where the ruling class needs to become responsive to the people, and finally most importantly the KSA where it is time for the people to have a say in running their affairs, and last but not least the Algerian regime that has brutalized its people with more than 200 000 dead trying to cling to power.

Lest we forget, I hope that the opposition in Iran will find courage to assert its role in continued building of this wonderful country and people and that the barriers that separate the people put forth by power hungry rulers disappear from the face of the earth and announce the end of the occupation of Palestine and Chechnya and Tibet.

This is the century of Germs and Rats and Worms and Insects.

Cheers

March 18th, 2012, 7:15 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 721. Tara

I checked the ugly military-looking studded stilettos with ankle spikes bought by Asma.

Probably she is getting chic defense footwear for when the citizens’ struggle reaches the palace.

But also possibly for when she confronts the other woman humiliating her who is flirting by email with Bashar and sending him sexy photos.

March 18th, 2012, 7:21 pm

 

Ales said:

Believing claims that Syrian government is constantly bombing their own buildings is a sign of self delusion.

March 18th, 2012, 7:23 pm

 

Ghufran said:

Efforts to convince NATO to attack Syria led to nothing but more frustration among proponents of such a move,the focus now is destroying Syria from the inside which can take a long time and may not achieve its goal of toppling the regime.
Here is a western analysis of the why a NATO attack is not coming any time soon despite what you hear from both sides of the conflict:
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2109372,00.html

March 18th, 2012, 7:25 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 725. Observer

Good observations. Again you have written a post I will circulate.

March 18th, 2012, 7:29 pm

 

Tara said:

Syrialover@726

Yes. The shoes has multiple uses.

This isn’t my style either.

March 18th, 2012, 7:30 pm

 

zoo said:

727. Ales said:

“Believing claims that Syrian government is constantly bombing their own buildings is a sign of self delusion.”

That’s what left to the hardline opposition: the illusion of power when they are humiliated and about to loose their war despite the help they got from ‘friendly’ neighbors and international media.

The trouble is that they are so desperate that they are hanging on just any story, Bashar’s emails, the government self inflicting terror attacks, gory massacres on Youtube with the hope that it will trigger NATO or any foreign country to intervene.

When would they understand that they are alone and the road they are insisting on taking is a dead end with lots of death.

March 18th, 2012, 7:34 pm

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

727. ALES:

Not believing signs that Syrian government is constantly bombing their own buildings is a sign of self delusion

March 18th, 2012, 7:39 pm

 

Tara said:

I just can’t imagine the last moment of a child watching his family being slaughtered and knowing that his turn is coming…

——–
Children were brutally killed in cold-blood…and then there were the images!

Some of these children died with their eyes open; the terror and murder did not allow them even a final respite. It was clear that these children knew they were facing death; that there was no form of deception.

As human beings, the images from the Homs massacre are beyond our ability to understand. As journalists, the bloody scenes of the children and all the other victims of this massacre are nothing more than the latest black mark condemning our profession. This exposes the extent to which we have surrendered to the desires of the Bashar al-Assad regime, which is preventing us from covering the explosive events in Syria first-hand.
(….)
Syria: The forbidden truth
By DIANA MUKKALED 

Sunday, 18 March 2012
http://english.alarabiya.net/views/2012/03/18/201405.html

March 18th, 2012, 7:42 pm

 

jad said:

Ales,
“self delusion”
You’ve been too kind.

Check out the damage done today by the terrorists coward attack in Aleppo, God be with Syria and Syrians:

Aleppo Suicide Car Bomb Caused big Damages in the Neighborhood
http://youtu.be/vLz6S6l8ORg

March 18th, 2012, 7:45 pm

 

Tara said:

Sandro Loewe@ 732

It is not self-delusion… It is intentional and deliberate deception of others.

March 18th, 2012, 7:56 pm

 

Dawoud said:

Wanted!

Please pay close attention to the picture and report the terrorist in this picture to the police!

Picture of the terrorist who planned and ordered the terrorist attacks in Damascus yesterday and Aleppo today.
If you know the terrorist shown in the picture on the Website link below, please call the police:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bashar_al-Assad

His picture will be shown on a new program called “Syria’s Most Wanted!”

March 18th, 2012, 8:14 pm

 

Tara said:

I changed my mind.  I was quick to express an opinion based on one picture.  Seeing all available pictures of Hadoul,  Asma is prettier and class-ier.  I hope that Hadoul is not American citizen and is asked to leave.  I wouldn’t like to see any of those being in the US or Montreal.  

Syria: media aide to Assad studied under US-funded programme

A close aide to Bashar al-Assad, who advised him on how to present his brutal crackdown to the media in a positive light, studied in the US under a programme sponsored by the American government.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9151494/Syria-media-aide-to-Assad-studied-under-US-funded-programme.html
….

March 18th, 2012, 8:20 pm

 

Dawoud said:

Dear Sister Tara # 737:

I hate to express any misogynistic views, but seeing the many women around Bashar (Hadeel al-Ali, Luna al-Shibl, Buthayna Sha’aban-the match-maker who arranged the marriage of Bashar’s sister to Asef-et al.) makes wonder what attracts some women to mass murderers and serial killers! I did read an article on Hadeel al-Ali’s emails to Bathar (Bashar) in The Guardian yesterday. This led me to post the following earlier comment on this blog:
648. DAWOUD said:

Although I am not a Marxist, I have to agree with what Karl Marx said about the power of money. He said that money changes reality. If I am an ugly old man and very rich rich, I can date and marry many young and beautiful women. According to Marx, the power of, money makes me neither old nor ugly. I am handsome young man despite the fact that I am 99 years old and very ugly (“I am falling and can’t get up!).

Now, Having seen the ugly Bathar (Bashar), who can’t pronounce the Arabic letter “seen” and say it “theen,” I wonder why Luna al-Shibl and Hadeel al-Ali (who are young and very attractive) are trying to win Bathar’s (Bashar’s) love and affection! Isn’t what Karl Marx said about the power of money. Power and money can easily corrupt the human soul. With an access to Bashar’s heart, Hadeel and Luna can sign up for online iTunes and Amazon accounts and begin shopping, just like Athma (Asma) does!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

March 18th, 2012, 8:31 pm

 

Hans said:

How much of this is true!!!

http://www.shukumaku.com/Content.php?id=43548

anyone can imagine if this is true then we know the reason for all these explosions in the christian area. To start a sectarian civil war against the christian given the desperation the oppositions are falling in.
It seems the can of warm has been opened upside down, it is firing back at its makers.
It is clear that there is no smoke without fire.

March 18th, 2012, 8:34 pm

 

Syrialover said:

I hate the threat of civil war in Syria. I feel sickened and desperate at every death and suffering on both sides. Like others here I miss sleep and normal life and cannot relax with the knot in my stomach about the worsening situation and what is being done to Syrian people.

Someone said about the Middle East to think that the USA and Britain and Europe had terrible civil wars in the past to win what is best for people. This does not make me feel more accepting and resigned to what is happening in Syria. But maybe I understand from this what will happen in human history when the system is wrong. People will believe and fight to their deaths to change it.

Modern America, the British government system, modern France and a Hitler-free Europe did not come from polite negotiation. The details of English civil war in the 1600s and the American and French civil wars in the 1800s are very shocking and sad to read about, but they appear to be fair fights with armies on both sides.

I wish in 2012 we can use the outcomes of these civil wars (today’s western democratic systems)to find a non-violent way for the people of Syria to get what is right for human beings. But probably I am naively dreaming and the fight with armies on both sides will happen in Syria like those other places if a rotten, failed system is to be destroyed.

March 18th, 2012, 8:42 pm

 

Dawoud said:

P.S., the emails make it clear that Hadeel al-Ali is assisting Bashar with advice regarding his ongoing repression. If she returns her the United States, I think that she should face war crimes charges.

It would be a little gossipy story if Bathar (Bashar) the murderous dictator dumps the “Sunni” compulsive shopper, Athma (Asma) with the Alawi Hadeel al-Ali!

March 18th, 2012, 8:47 pm

 

Tara said:

Dawoud@738

Yes, I agree. They don’t love him. There is really nothing to love. Look at him, his actions, and his intellect. He looks goofey. He is crude and non-refined. He giggles retardedly. And the worst of all, he is his father’s son. Nothings charming about him except the status, power, and money; qualities many women (not all) would kill for. This kind of “love” is not worth a penny in my views.

There is no misogynism in your views.

March 18th, 2012, 8:51 pm

 

Dawoud said:

742. TARA

Shukran!

I don’t have daughters, and I don’t believe in arranged marriages. But if I had a daughter and she came to me to introduce me to a man she wanted to marry and he was looking/talking like Bashar, in addition to being a serial killer, I would first call the police and then have a massive heart attack!

Free Syria! Free Palestine!

March 18th, 2012, 8:58 pm

 

jad said:

SL,
You don’t have to go as far as the US, England or France to discover the hurtful reality, Lebanon and Iraq are closer, both had their bloody civil wars and both, today, enjoy the most beautiful systems in the world, they are comparable to Switzerland and Norway.
Wake me up when Syria becomes Sweden to join its advanced ‘hood’ systems.
With beautiful ‘angels’ holding ‘flowers’ and running the Syrian streets planting ‘love’ and ‘candies’ Syria is not that far of, La7shet 7ajar!

March 18th, 2012, 9:05 pm

 

873 said:

Joshua, the Telegraph is reading your site and stealing material!?!? At thread’s start we JOKED (and it was only a joke, in keeping with the absurd ‘joke’ Guardian article presented by SC for discussion) about an “Asma centerfold” as being the thing to take down Assad.

14. 873 said:
Maybe if the Daily Mail manufactures some Asma centerfolds- that just may do it. Or just leak a photo shop version onto the internet ala Paris Hilton.
C’mon folks- that slagheap the Guardian is REALLY reaching. This is one step up from their Gay Girl in Damascus Series peddled by some middle-aged weirdo working for another fake NGO.
March 14th, 2012, 5:00 pm
Now look:

Telegraph “aha! porn finding” among Bashar’s emails proves the whole mess is a lie. This latest low-down cheap trick by the tabloid Brits is THE classic character assassination tech used by the West. It smacks of western smear campaign almost as bad as Gay Girl. Why hasnt Landis changed the subject here? This sordid smear diversion is NOT working. Politics of personal destruction really is a major waste of energy.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9149596/Syria-Bashar-al-Assad-email-reveals-mystery-near-naked-woman.html

Omen,
Nir Rosen was a Staff Sargeant for IDF doing military intel. Lets see the Israelis let a Hezbollah commander run all over Israel as a ‘journalist’.

March 18th, 2012, 9:05 pm

 

Hans said:

Who know which airlines continue to fly to Damascus?
any Idea!

March 18th, 2012, 9:12 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 737. TARA

I share your disgust and anger at Hadeel al-Ali, studying in the US on an American Government scholarship while working against the Syrian people.

A cheap, spoilt over-privileged little smartass who feels very entitled to what she can grab from the world, and ha, ha and up yours to everyone else, because they are just stupid (and not born into a special clan like her).

And she wiggles her body and flips her hair to get where she feels like going. Including “advising” Bashar, the family friend and boss of Syria.

Smug Hadeel would feel very superior to Syrians outside her circle and consider them a waste of space. She probably had no intention of ever returning to live there as she admits she enjoys America too much.

I wait for her childish hypocritical boasts about shaking Obama’s hand and infiltrating the UNHCR to get her on an even faster exit list from the USA. Stand by, Iran.

Hi there Hadeed’s friends, please pass this on.

March 18th, 2012, 9:13 pm

 

ann said:

746. Hans said:

Who know which airlines continue to fly to Damascus?
any Idea!

Syrian Air from London

March 18th, 2012, 9:15 pm

 

873 said:

747. Syrialover,

Hadeels abroad. So are most of your Ahmed Chalabi “opposition” chiefs.
Based in Paris, London and Libya and Qatar?
Didnt see many of them stick it out in Sham either.

March 18th, 2012, 9:19 pm

 

jad said:

Hans
As far as I know:
Syrian Airlines for sure, BMI, Austrian Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Russian, Polish and all the Arab countries’ airlines including the Qatari and couple of private airlines.

March 18th, 2012, 9:21 pm

 

Tara said:

Syrialover,

Yes. Moreover, Shaking someone’s hand is not exactly a “boast-able” material in my views. This is rather an overt inferiority..

March 18th, 2012, 9:24 pm

 

Tara said:

Syria blocks rallies to mark year of uprising
By BEN HUBBARD | Associated Press – 2 hrs 4 mins ago

http://news.yahoo.com/syria-blocks-rallies-mark-uprising-114740334.html

BEIRUT (AP) — Syria’s scattered opposition faced a harsh security crackdown Sunday aimed at preventing rallies marking one year since the first nationwide demonstrations of the country’s uprising.

Activists said security forces and pro-government thugs swiftly dispersed an anti-regime rally in the capital Damascus and arrested opposition leaders.

They said the deployment of government snipers and tanks, as well as clashes between rebels and regime forces, deterred major demonstrations in some other parts of the country.
..
The spotty turnout shows how armed confrontation has largely eclipsed the mass popular demonstrations that originally drove the uprising.
…
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on an activist network in Syria, said the Syrian army and pro-government thugs fired guns and arrested leaders while breaking up a rally of hundreds of marchers in Damascus.

The Local Coordination Committees said the rally took place in the central Fahameh Square and that rights activist Fayiz Sara was arrested along with at least one other leader, Mohammed Sayid. Neither group reported injuries.
….
Tight security, including army checkpoints on main roads and snipers on government buildings, restricted plans in the southern city of Daraa, considered the birthplace of the uprising.

Nearby activist Adel al-Omari said at the uprising’s start, people from the surrounding regions flooded in to participate in protests. Now many fear leaving their villages.

“They have a hard time because there are many more checkpoints in and around the city,” he said. “They can’t have a big protests, only small quick ones that are spread out. If they get too big or last too long, the army will come and crack down.”
…..

March 18th, 2012, 9:28 pm

 

ann said:

Turkish opposition leader against military intervention in Syria – 2012-03-19

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/19/c_131474446.htm

ISTANBUL, March 18 (Xinhua) — Turkish main opposition party leader said on Sunday that he is against getting militarily involved in Syria and called the unrest-hit country a “brother.”

Republican People’s Party Chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu said in the central Anatolian province of Nigde that some world powers appear to be pressing Turkey to intervene in Syria while they themselves choose to stay away from the trouble.

Today’s Zaman quoted him as saying that “some countries avoid entering Syria but try to talk Turkey into doing it,” noting that the United States, Britain and France all seem determined to avoid militarily involvement in Syria.

“Why should we go into Syria? Syria is our neighbor, brother. Why should Muslim nations fire at each other?” questioned Kilicdaroglu, who is also skeptical of Turkish military presence in Afghanistan after 12 military personnel got killed in a helicopter crash in Kabul last week.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 9:28 pm

 

Syrialover said:

# 749. “873”

If you don’t get what’s especially wrong about Hadeel al-Ali, I must assume you share her particular universe.

By the way, I worry she is letting your side down by her excitement and love of living in America indicated by her online postings.

She would have been too busy wearing her cowboy boots, showing off her kid-level PR ideas and flirting with Bashar to notice all those terrible things you have been revealing about her preferred place of residence.

Syria has had too much of the Hadeel al-Alis. Their lives are built from birth to sneer at and deprive others.

March 18th, 2012, 9:47 pm

 

Syrian Nationalist Party said:

On March 7-2012, A waitress in Texas when asked how is her day, said that she was really not that cheerful about the fact that her sister, in the U.S. military, had just received her orders to report to Syria and that her sister would be shipping out very soon.

March 18th, 2012, 9:51 pm

 

jad said:

Norway of the Middle East:
الذكرى التاسعة لبدء الغزو الأميركي للعراق(2)
العراقيون و«دمارهم الشامل»… بالأرقام
{…}
شهدت مرحلة ما بعد الغزو تفكيك الدولة العراقية وحل الجيش واستبداله بالميليشيات التي تأسست وفق إيديولوجيات وأجندات متناقضة. واختلط المشهد السياسي وتدافع مع الأمني، وتهشمت واجهة العراق كدولة لتحل محله الفدراليات، وبلغ عدد الجماعات المسلحة المتناحرة مع بعضها البعض في العراق وبعضها الآخر مع الاحتلال الـ48 ميليشيا وفصيلا مسلحا.
من جهة ثانية، بلغ عدد ضحايا العنف من القتلى المدنيين، بحسب إحصائيات وزارة الصحة العراقية، ما يقارب الـ200 ألف قتيل، بينما قالت منظمة «إيراك بادي كاونت» البريطانية التي تضع قاعدة بيانات بكل الشهداء في العراق بالمنطقة والاســم والمهـــنة وغيرها من البيانات، في آخر تحديث لها بداية العام 2012 ان 162 ألف شهيد سقطوا في العراق منذ الغزو، 79 في المئة منهم من المدنيين.
إلى ذلك نتج عن التجربة الدموية التي عاشها العراق أن انقلب على مدنيته مغلّباً عليها الطائفية التي نمت تحت ضغوط الإفرازات المذهبية والعرقية والاثنية التي قسمت العراق إلى مثلثات ومربعات، شيعية وسنية. في تلك الفترة، كانت فرق الموت تعمل وفق آلية وتخطيط ممنهجين، حيث الاغتيالات بكواتم الصوت، غير تلك التي تتم بالعبوات اللاصقة وغير التي تزرع في الطرقات أو المفخخات في السيارات، كما أنها غير الأحزمة الناسفة والانتحاريين ذكورا أم إناثا، عربا وأجانب أم عراقيين، علماً بأن العراقيين كانوا قلّة إذا ما قورنوا بالليبيين والسعوديين والسودانيين واليمنيين والأفغانيين والسوريين والأردنيين والتونسيين وجنسيات أخرى.
كواتم الصوت «الغادرة» استهدفت بشكل خاص الكفاءات العلمية، حيث «اقتناص» الأدمغة والعقول في العراق كان ممنهجا، يشير علانية إلى إصبع استخباري قام بالبحث والتحري والتخطيط والتنفيذ، لاغتيال كبار علماء الطاقة والنفط كما الأطباء وكبار ضباط الجيش من الطيارين وأساتذة الجامعات والفنانين والقانونيين والأكاديميين، حتى فاق عدد أصحاب الكــفاءات الذيــن طالتهم يد الموت الهمجي الـ 1400 ضحية.
وبما أن كشف هذا الواقع يكون بفضل الإعلاميين والصحافيين، كانت حصيلة الشهداء من هؤلاء الأكبر عالميا في العراق، حتى فاق عددهم منذ بداية الغزو 150 صحافيا، منهم 128عراقيا وآخرون من جنسيات أخرى.
ويبلغ عدد الأيتام، بحسب وزارة العمل والشؤون الاجتماعية، 4,5 ملايين يتيم، وما يزيد على 500 ألف منهم يعيشون في الشوارع من دون أي حماية أو بيت يؤويهم، علما بأن في جميع انحاء العراق لا يوجد سوى 18 دارا للايتام بحسب الوزارة نفسها.
يعكف على خدمة هؤلاء الأيتام عدد مخيف من النساء الارامل، اللواتي لا يعرفن طريقا لكسب العيش سوى التسول أو الهروب إلى خارج العراق. وبحسب الإحصائيات الرسمية والصادرة عن وزارة شؤون المرأة العراقية والصليب الأحمر الدولي وجهاز الإحصاء المركزي في العراق، فان عدد الارامل في العراق بلغ المليون امرأة، في كافة الحروب التي شهدتها البلاد، فقدن معيلي أسرهن.
{…}

March 18th, 2012, 9:54 pm

 

ann said:

Heavy firefight breaks out in Syrian capital – March 18, 2012

http://www.wqad.com/news/nationworld/sns-rt-us-syria-damascusbre82i010-20120318,0,5107087.story

AMMAN (Reuters) – A heavy firefight broke out on Monday between Free Syrian Army rebels and forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad in a main district of the capital Damascus, witnesses said.

The sound of heavy machineguns and rocket-propelled grenades echoed through the night from the western neighborhood of al-Mezze, one of the most heavily guarded areas of the capital and home to several security installations, residents told Reuters by telephone.

“There is fighting near Hamada supermarket and the sound of explosions there and elsewhere in the neighborhood. Security police have blocked several side streets and the street lighting has been cut off,” a housewife who lives in the area said.

Extra troops have been patrolling in Mezze, located on the Damascus-Beirut road, after thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in the neighborhood last month to denounce Assad following the killing of several protesters.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 9:57 pm

 

jad said:

«نعوّل على أنان.. والحسم العسكري غير ممكن.. وموقف الحكومة اللبنانية متوازن»
زاسبكين لـ«السفير»: الوضع السوري سيتدهور إذا فشلت جهود التسوية «الأحادية الأميركية كُسرت ونتقدم نحو عالم متعدد المراكز.. ونرفض استهداف إيران
مارلين خليفة

لا تزال روسيا متمسكة بموقفها الرافض لأي تدخل عسكري في سوريا، وإذا بلغ أي مشروع قرار ينص على التدخل عتبة مجلس الأمن، لن يقابل الا بـ«الفيتو» من جانب روسيا.
يقول سفير الاتحاد الروسي في بيروت ألكسندر زاسبكين في حوار مع «السفير» إن بلاده تعتبر أن الأزمة السورية شأن داخلي سوري، ويؤكد أن النظام السوري «طرف أساسي في البلاد ولا يمكن تجاهل رأي الجماهير التي تؤيده، أما المراهنة على الحسم العسكري من خصوم النظام، فلا نراه أمرا محتملا»، يضيف «لا يمكن لأي طرف أن يحسم عسكريا، وفي كل الأحوال، لا بد من الحوار وهو الطريق الى الحل السياسي»، ويحذر من أنه «إذا لم تنجح الجهود السلمية، سيتدهور الوضع أكثر، لذا من الضروري التوصل الى اتفاق لوقف العنف وتنظيم الحوار الوطني الشامل»، ويشدد على تعويل روسيا على الجهود التي يبذلها المبعوث الأممي كوفي أنان، ويدعو المعارضة السورية الى الحوار «من دون شروط مسبقة».
منذ بداية مهمته في بيروت، يحرص زاسبكين على التواصل مع الاعلام. المهمة صارت مضاعفة مع الأزمة السورية والدور الروسي المحوري في قلب هذه الأزمة. لا يتردد السفير الروسي في نعي مرحلة الأحادية القطبية، أي النظام العالمي الجديد الذي ساد بعد انهيار الاتحاد السوفياتي السابق. ثمة نظام دولي جديد متعدد الأقطاب والمراكز يولد. وهذا الواقع يقتضي التشبيك وليس الاستفراد بالقرارات.
{…}

March 18th, 2012, 9:59 pm

 

Ghufran said:

Al-sharaa is supposed to visit Russia to meet with opposition leaders including members of the FSA,the SNC was not mentioned in the report probably due to the fact that it is expected to survive much longer.
I will try to get more info on this matter.

March 18th, 2012, 10:02 pm

 

jad said:

Dear SNP
Any link for the news you wrote about?
Thank you.

March 18th, 2012, 10:04 pm

 

Syrialover said:

#745 “873”

You really are keen to share the exposure in Bashar’s leaked emails of his apparent affair with another woman.

This report with a clear transcript of their exchanges and the sexy picture she emailed him has been posted here several times before, yet you have posted it again.

So here, I will help you in case anyone missed it:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9149596/Syria-Bashar-al-Assad-email-reveals-mystery-near-naked-woman.html

March 18th, 2012, 10:05 pm

 

jad said:

نصيحة نصر الله لبشار الأسد: حتى لا تدمّر الفتنة المنطقة جميعاً

طلال سلمان

لم يعد ما تشهده سوريا من أهوال بين تعبيراتها الدموية المباشرة جرائم القتل الجماعي الوحشية في أحياء سكنية أو قرب دور العبادة والمدارس، صداماً بين نظام حديدي لا يقبل الاعتراض ومعارضة «تقاتل» من أجل الحرية والديموقراطية والتعددية السياسية.

ولم تعد الوقائع اليومية المفجعة في دمشق وحلب وغيرهما مجرد تعبير بالسلاح عبر قتل أكبر عدد من الناس، نساءً وأطفالاً وعابري سبيل ومكافحين خرجوا في طلب اللقمة، عن تعاظم حركة الاعتراض على الإصلاح الذي تعهّد النظام تنفيذه وباشره عبر خطوات بطيئة وقاصرة عمّا يطمح إليه الشعب في سوريا ممّا يعتبره حقوقه الطبيعية في وطنه.

لقد تدهور «الوضع الميداني» عبر لجوء «قوى مجهولة» إلى التفجيرات التي تتسبب بمذابح جماعية يذهب ضحيتها العشرات من المواطنين الأبرياء، وتنشر الذعر في كل مكان.. والأخطر أنها تلغي «السياسة» وتخرج القوى «المجهولة» التي تنفذها من خانة الاعتراض لتصنفها في خانة «السفاحين» ممّن يتقصدون تدمير سوريا جميعاً، بدولتها وشعبها ومراكز الإنتاج فيها، وبمعزل عن المواقف السياسية لهيئاته وتنظيماته المعارضة إلى حد المطالبة بإسقاط النظام.

وترتكب المعارضة، لا سيما الخارجية منها، بأشتاتها وفرقها المتنازعة على مشروع «سلطة المستقبل»، خطأً سياسياً قائلاً بتبني هذه العمليات الوحشية وتوهم الإفادة منها عبر الصمت عن طبيعتها الإجرامية، لاغية السياسة، والهادفة إلى ضرب أي مشروع أو أية محاولة لتوفير حل سياسي لهذه الأزمة السياسية الخطيرة التي تعصف بسوريا ويفتح تأخير حسمها أبواب الحرب الأهلية على مصراعيها.

لقد أسقطت مواجهة النظام معارضاته الداخلية بالسلاح الكثير من فرص الحل السياسي لهذه الأزمة الدموية الخطيرة التي تتهدد وحدة الشعب ودولته، من دون أن تلغي احتمال ابتداع مثل ذلك الحل المطلوب، الذي تتولى روسيا حالياً (معها الصين) صدارة الجهد المبذول من أجل إنجازه.

صار النظام أكثر وعياً بأن الحل الأمني يأخذ إلى تفتيت سوريا، خصوصاً في ظل «الجهد الأخوي» الذي يبذله أهل النفط أساساً لتعقيد الأزمة ودفعها إلى ذروة الخطر، بتعطيل دور الجامعة العربية، بل وباستخدام هذه المؤسسة العريقة والتي كانت سوريا من مؤسسيها لشرعنة «التدخل الدولي» عبر نقل المسألة إلى مجلس الأمن… ولقد وفر الفيتو الروسي ـ الصيني الفرصة لإفشال هذه الخطة بشرط تسريع الإصلاح وتعميق ركائزه العتيدة وعدم الاكتفاء بعمليات تجميل المظهر، مع إبقاء الطبيعة القمعية للنظام على حالها من القسوة التي بين عناوينها اتهام أي معارض بالعمالة للأجنبي.

وبدافع الحرص على سوريا، دولة وشعباً، انتقلت قيادة «حزب الله» من مرحلة تقديم النصح إلى النظام ورئيسه سراً ومن دون إعلان، إلى إطلاق الدعوة علناً وبلسان أمينه العام السيد حسن نصر الله.

يوم الخميس الماضي توجه «السيد» علناً ومباشرة إلى الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد وإلى المعارضة أيضاً داعياً إلى اعتماد الحل السياسي، مؤكداً أن ليس هناك إلا الحل السياسي للخروج من المأزق الدموي التي حوصرت فيه سوريا…
{…}
لقد دخل «الإرهاب» الذي تتقنه جماعات أصولية وافدة أو كانت كامنة في بعض أنحاء سوريا، في توقيت مفضوح القصد ومزدوج الغاية: إذ أنه قد يدفع النظام إلى مزيد من التورط في الدم، بما يقفل الباب على أي حل سياسي، أو يلغي وجود المعارضة السياسية أو يكشف عجزها، وفي الحالين فإن ذلك كله قد يلغي دور «السياسة» في توفير الحل الضروري لإخراج سوريا، بشعبها ودولتها من الدوامة الدموية التي تطحن حاضرها وتهدد مستقبلها.

إن النظام الذي استعرض قوته بما يكفي، والذي عجز ـ برغم ذلك ـ عن حسم الأزمة، وتوفير المناخ اللازم للتسوية السياسية، مطالب الآن وأكثر من أي وقت مضى بوقف آلة القتل، والتصدي للمهمة الصعبة التي تتطلب قوة الإيمان بالوطن وشعبه، أكثر مما بقوته العسكرية، وهي: المبادرة إلى الدخول في حوار جدي وفوري مع المعارضة الوطنية التي يعرف رموزها الذين بقوا في الداخل برغم كل الإغراءات التي قدمت إليهم، ويعرف ـ ويعرف السوريون ـ أولئك المعارضين الذين شاءت لهم مقاديرهم أن يكونوا في الخارج أو أن يبقوا فيه، إما بدافع الخوف من التصفية، أو نتيجة فقدان الأمل في أن يتصرف النظام بعقله لا بمدافعه.

March 18th, 2012, 10:12 pm

 

ann said:

Syrian Unrest And The Dilemma Of Circassian Repatriation – Analysis – March 19, 2012

As Syria’s conflict escalates, questions abound over the fate of the Baathist country’s multiethnic constituents. For Syria’s small but significant Circassian minority, they want to go home.

http://www.eurasiareview.com/19032012-syrian-unrest-and-the-dilemma-of-circassian-repatriation-analysis/

One hundred and fifty years after their expulsion from the North Caucasu, one community of the Circassian diaspora is trying to come back to their ancestral homeland. At least a thousand of the more than 100,000 ethnic Circassians living in Syria have expressed a tentative commitment to repatriating to Russia if — but more ideally when – the opportunity arises. It is likely that even more are hoping to leave Syria but fear publically expressing their desire for repatriation. Circassian NGOs in Russia and throughout Europe are coming together to galvanize federal support for the quick repatriation of Syrian Circassians before the conflict in Syria worsens. After months of meetings, committees, attempted rallies and failed appeals, it looks as though the possibility of repatriation is now starting to materialize.When the Syrian Circassians first appealed for help seven months ago, the Russian government responded that the situation in Syria did not call for Russian intervention (in all matters relating to Syria, Russia has been opposed to outside intervention, to say the least). However, the political and economic life of Syrian Circassians has been increasingly destabilized and Moscow now seems to be warming up to talks of repatriation. On December 25th, 115 Circassians living in Syria sent an appeal to Medvedev for assistance as the Syrian situation worsened. Three days later, another 57 Syrian Circassians addressed Russian federal and regional leaders with specific requests for resettlement to the historically Circassian areas of the North Caucasus (namely, the republics of Kabardino-Balkaria, Adygea, and Karachay–Cherkessia).

At the same time, the coalition of Circassian NGOs created a commission specifically dedicated to the project of repatriating Syrian Circassians. Despite hitting dead ends in their repeated appeals to the leader of Adygea, the commission has succeeded in facilitating discussions with Moscow and other regional leaders. In particular, a delegation of Circassian representatives from Syria — unidentified for security reasons — met with Medvedev in person on January 31st in another sign of accelerating prospects for repatriation. Meanwhile, leaders in the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic (where the majority of Russian Circassians live) have met with the Syrian delegation and spoken optimistically of imminent repatriation. On Feburary 11, over a thousand activists met in Maikop in the Russian Republic of Adygea to discuss the problem of their Circassion brethren in Syria. Six days later, in light of the momentum the cause has finally achieved, the Russian government told the news agency RBK its most promising statement yet: that it “is carefully examining the address by the republic of Adygea to the Federal Assembly about assisting the Syrian Circassians to return to their historical homeland.” So even if Moscow has not yet said yes, they still haven’t said no either.

The Circassians of Syria primarily reside in Damscus, Aleppo, and Homs, all areas seriously affected by the current troubles in Syria. The Circassians (who call themselves the Adyghe) see themselves as one of the oldest indigenous cultures in the North Caucasus and, while they never formed a coherent unified nation state or kingdom in the way that Georgia or Armenia have, they maintained their linguistic, ethnic, and cultural identity through centuries of invasion, migration, and occupation. The Russian-Circassian war of the 1860s is largely the reason for the current population’s residence in the Levant, as the Russian campaign aimed to push out any surviving Circassians into the Ottoman Empire after their violent defeat. Most of them settled in Turkey or the Balkans, with some traveling as far as Syria and Jordan. However, as the Ottoman Empire lost control of the Balkans, Circassians increasingly migrated to the Levant, especially after in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878. Conflicts throughout the region steadily pushed Circassians into Syria, with immigration leveling off after the First World War, when the last major wave of Circassians from Turkey settled in Syria. Overall, much of the Circassian diaspora community has called Syria home for the better part of a century and must now decide whether a notional homeland in the Russian Federation is better than a more familiar but endangered one in Syria.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 10:16 pm

 

jad said:

هل تستعيد المعارضة السوريّة استقلاليّتها؟
ابراهيم الأمين
{…}
مرّت سنة على الأزمة السورية، وقلة من الناشطين الميدانيين أجروا مراجعة يمكن القول إنها واقعية إلى حدود بعيدة لجهة قراءة ما يجري على الأرض (راجع مقالة الزميل في «الأخبار» أرنست خوري السبت الماضي)، إذ بمعزل عن التقديرات والتوقعات والأفكار التي يضعها ناشطون كمهمات للمرحلة المقبلة، إلا أن قراءتهم لما حصل خلال سنة، تعكس، قبل كل شيء، أنهم يعيشون في قلب المشهد. وهم لا يحتاجون إلى أي نوع من التزوير، لأن ذلك لا يفيدهم أبداً. أما إذا كانوا غير قادرين على رؤية المشهد بكامل عناصره، فهذا عائد على الأرجح إلى تجربتهم الجنينية في السياسة، وإلى قصور في مواءمة بين الحافزية على تحقيق هدف ما، وبين القدرة على الوصول إليه.
{…}
، لأن الخصم المفترض هو نفسه، أي النظام، ولأن أداة الحراك هي نفسها، أي الشعب. وفي هذه الحالة، يمكن القيام بمراجعة هادئة تقود إلى الآتي:
ـــ تصوّر كثيرون أن النظام في سوريا يشبه أنظمة الحكم في مصر وتونس واليمن وليبيا. واعتقد كثيرون، من سوريين وعرب إلى قوى وشعوب من العالم، بأن هذا النظام لن يصمد أكثر من أسابيع وسيسقط كما حصل مع غيره، واستند أصحاب هذا الرأي إلى اعتقاد أصرّوا على اعتباره حقيقة، وهو أن غالبية ساحقة من الشعب السوري تريد التخلص من النظام، وأن من معه ليسوا سوى أقلية ستنهار تباعاً. وظل الأمر كذلك حتى استفاق الجميع بعد عام على مشهد مغاير، فلا النظام هو على صورة الآخرين، ولا المواجهة تدور بهذه السهولة.
ـــ اعتقد كثيرون، من داخل سوريا ومن خارجها، بأن التعقيدات الطائفية والمذهبية والعرقية في سوريا إنما هي فزّاعات يقف النظام خلفها، حتى استفاقوا بعد عام على انقسام أهلي وطائفي ومذهبي وصل إلى قلب تجمعات المعارضة نفسها.
ـــ تصرّف كثيرون على أساس أن لعبة الإعلام المفتوح على تداخل الحقيقة بالكذب من شأنه قلب المشهد الشعبي، وأن الضغوط القائمة من جانب الرأي العام كافية لهزّ الأرض من تحت النظام أو سحب البساط من تحت رجالاته ومؤسساته. وجرى الإيغال في لعبة الفبركة والمبالغة والتضخيم إلى حدّ فقد معه هذا الإعلام دوره وفعاليته، قبل أن يستيقظ الجميع على مشهد مختلف، يقوم على أن النظام لا يزال متماسكاً، وأن أجهزة الأمن في دول العالم القوية تبحث عن موظف أو دبلوماسي سوري تعرض عليه الانشقاق مقابل مغريات تكفي لإنماء قرية في ريف حمص.
ـــ تجاهل كثيرون حقيقة التوازنات الإقليمية والدولية المحيطة بالمشهد السوري. وقلّلوا من أهمية وقوف جهات مثل حزب الله في لبنان وإيران والعراق وروسيا والصين إلى جانب النظام السوري. وبالغ الخصوم في استخفافهم بأهمية هذا العنصر، وصاروا يكثرون من الكلام العام ويعرضون الصفقات، من دون إدراك حقيقة أن تشابك المصالح الإقليمية والدولية يجعل هذه الدول الجهات صاحبة مصلحة في منع سقوط النظام. حتى استفاق هؤلاء على عطب في الماكينة الدولية (الأمم المتحدة)، وعلى عطل في الماكينة العسكرية (التدخل الخارجي)، وعلى تعثّر في الآلة الاقتصادية (العقوبات وغيرها).
ـــ تورّط كثيرون، خصوصاً من جانب معارضي الخارج، وحتى بعض الداخل، في لعبة السقوف المرتفعة. فصاروا أسرى شعارات تدفعهم إلى مزيد من الخسائر، من رفض فكرة التغيير التدريجي، إلى رفض مبدأ الحوار، إلى منع التواصل مع وسطاء مع النظام، وصولاً إلى تحريم الحديث عن مرحلة انتقالية. وكان هؤلاء يعتقدون أنهم كلما رفعوا الصوت أو سقف المطالب، حشروا النظام أكثر. لكن حقيقة الأمر أنهم كانوا يمارسون الضغط على الناس، ويدفعون المجموعات السورية المشاركة في الحراك إلى خطوات كبيرة تفوق قدراتها وطاقاتها، حتى وصل الأمر بقسم كبير منهم إلى حمل السلاح، بحجة أنه لم يعد ممكناً مواجهة جيش النظام بالصدر العاري. فكانت النتيجة أن مسرحية الجيش الحر انتهت عند مئات أو ألوف من المواطنين الذين حملوا السلاح، واكتشفوا أنهم يحتاجون إلى لغة متطرفة للتعبئة وبناء عصبية. ثم ما لبث أن انهار كل شيء خلال أيام.
ـــ أصرّ كثيرون على اعتبار أن النظام لا يتمتع بشعبية حقيقية، ثم وقعوا في فخ المغالطات نفسها. من جهة تحدثوا عن النار والحديد اللذين تواجه بهما تظاهرات صغيرة في الأرياف، بينما يرفضون تفسير سبب عدم انخراط المدن الكبرى في الحراك، ثم يكتفون بالإشارة إلى أسباب أمنية. وكأن السوري في المدن هو غيره في الريف، أو أن النظام في المدن أكثر قساوة من الأمن في الريف. هذا لا يعني أن كل من بقي في منزله هو من المؤيّدين للنظام. لكن التوترات وانتقال العنف من مرحلة المشادات إلى المعارك والسيارات المفخخة، تعني أن من يخرج مؤيّداً للنظام ليس مرغماً كما يقول هؤلاء.
{…}
والخطوة إلى الخلف، اليوم، تعني التعامل بواقعية مع المشهد، والحفاظ على وحدة سوريا ومنع التقسيم، والعمل على الحدّ من التعبئة الطائفية والمذهبية، وضمان منع استخدام سوريا في المواجهات الإقليمية والدولية، ومنع سقوط المزيد من الأبرياء من مدنيين أو عسكريين في حفلة الجنون العبثية. أما عن كيفية حصول ذلك، فأقلّه هو استعادة المعارضة هويتها الوطنية من خلال استقلالية عن خارج متآمر، واستعادة صلتها بالناس عن طريق خطاب يلامس حقائق الهوية الوطنية لسوريا، وليس فقط هوية الحكم فيها. وكل ما هو خلاف ذلك، يبقى، على ما يقول السوريون، «علاك بعلاك»!.
http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/45881

March 18th, 2012, 10:17 pm

 
 

jad said:

عشرات القتلى والجرحى في تفجيرات عشيّة وصول بعثة الأمم المتّحدة
الإرهاب يضرب دمشق وحلب من جديد

سقط عشرات القتلى والجرحى يومي السبت والأحد في انفجارات وقعت قرب مراكز أمنية في دمشق وحلب، فيما شهدت أنحاء عدة من سوريا عمليات عسكرية واشتباكات مع منشقّين، عشيّة توجّه البعثة الأممية المفوضة من المبعوث الدولي، كوفي أنان، لإجراء مباحثات مع القيادة السورية حول وقف العنف
{…}
(The stupidity of the Syrian security dealing with people in the streets is astonishing. I wonder how long it will take to train the police and the security guys to properly and respectively deal with demonstrators, I think Lebanon can help in that)
وفي دمشق، «اعتدى عناصر من الأمن على القيادي المعارض محمد سيد رصاص واعتقلوه مع مجموعة» من الناشطين في هيئة التنسيق الوطني للتغيير الديموقراطي، أثناء تظاهرة «ضمت المئات وطالبت بإسقاط النظام». وتعدّ هيئة التنسيق الوطنية لقوى التغيير الديموقراطي أبرز تكتل لسياسيين معارضين داخل سوريا.
http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/45851

March 18th, 2012, 10:25 pm

 

ann said:

The Merchants Of Death

Black market for weapons nearly depleted, smugglers to Syria say – March 18, 2012

Donors have given money to aid the Syria rebels, but the needed arms are getting harder to find, merchants in Lebanon say.

http://www.dailyamerican.com/la-fg-syria-weapons-20120318,0,4879321.story

The weapons shortage has serious implications for the uprising, even as Syrian expatriate money increasingly flows to the rebels and international support appears to be growing for arming the opposition. On Monday, the opposition umbrella group the Syrian National Council announced that it would help arm the Free Syrian Army with the help of foreign governments, which it declined to name.

But little of that seems to affect the situation as rebels find fewer weapons sources and have a harder time getting the arms into Syria.

In the face of a much better-armed Syrian army, the rebels will find it difficult, if not impossible, to sustain their insurgency if a surge of weapons doesn’t come soon.

Some weapons have also come in from Turkey, Iraq and Jordan, but rebels report that it has been easier to get arms from Lebanon. Even that route — the one also used by fleeing families, journalists and humanitarian aid — is dangerous, and many rebel smugglers have been killed along the way.

Despite talk from countries such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar of arming the rebels, no money has come from other nations, they say. Instead, much of it has come from expatriates. Until recently, many of them were supporting nonviolent aspects of the uprising, but now they have diverted much of the money for weapons, said Amr Al-Azm, an opposition activist who is involved with the Syrian National Council.

“They believe that by putting money into arms it will somehow accelerate the downfall of the regime,” he said. “I speak to activists who complain they are no longer able to buy the tools they need, like laptops or phones.”

The conflict in Syria isn’t the only thing depleting the weapons black market. Underscoring international fear that the unrest in regionally strategic Syria will spill over its borders, Lebanese who support Assad and those backing the opposition are also buying up weapons, Abu Ismail said.

But not always. Some of the ammunition and grenades have been manipulated — filled with TNT — to explode inside the weapons, killing the rebels, he and others have said. Other times the weapons are just duds.

[…]

March 18th, 2012, 10:58 pm

 
 

Ghufran said:

Darryl,

Good luck with your work and family, I understand your position.at this rate,Syria will be like Iraq, I am about to get rid of any property in Syria limit my involvement to charity and occasional visits after I am comfortable, if ever, that security is at an acceptable level, most Syrian expats will do the same including those who are lecturing us about freedom and democracy.

A close friend who signed off is still receiving emails, once you do it, you are stuck, I hope Joshua can fix this problem, I am sure SC data base is as hackable as any other similar site, I suspect that many current and previous members would have done things differently if they knew then what they know now.

March 18th, 2012, 11:28 pm

 

ann said:

Three saudi ANGELS were apprehended in relation to the bombings in Damascus two more are still at large

March 18th, 2012, 11:28 pm

 

jad said:

Ghufran, Darryl, Norman, SNK, Mjabali and and and…

What gain Syria, our homeland, where our ancestors lived and died for, where they create us our roots, where our memories, our happy times, bad times, tears and joy, our schools, our first love and first kiss and first step, what are you giving Syria if you and every other rational Syrian leave and gave up to voice his or her cry in defend the soul of Syria from being stolen away from us all? NO, Syria never needed us as it did today, Syria never let us down, the land didn’t ask for anything from us in return of its eternal love and leaving it now when it needed us the most is a treason not only to the homeland but a treason to every man and woman, kid and senior living in Syria today and dealing with pure evil attacking them day and night.

Syria is our homeland, we must defend it, and the least we can do is to speak up on behalf of every member of our families and reflect their hopes, fears and dreams.

You people need to wake up and stop this giving up useless trend, it’s embarrassing, do the minimum to your homeland speak out if not for yourselves, speak for others, speak for the living and for the dead, speak and shout and kick and do anything you could not to let it go easy.

Yousef Alazmeh knew that he is going to die but he didn’t give up, he believed in Syria, and so every one of us should do the same. Just believe and defend as much as your could so the next generation can enjoy a ‘homeland’ call Syria.

مو مشان شي بس كرمال يلي راحوا ما يكونو راحوا ببلاش

For those who left (died)…to others to rest (to live a better life)
The homeland is calling….to heal its wounds
Our homeland is in pain…..enough tears (It had enough sadness)
lit candles to its martyrs….and give it back its morning glory

كـرمـال اللي راحـو … لَ غيرُن يرتاحو
الـبـلـد عـم بـيـنــادي … لَ نداويلو جراحو
بـلـدنـا مـوجـــــــوع … بـيـكـفّـيـه دمـــوع
ضوّي لَ شُــهَـداه شــمــوع … و ردّلـو صـبـاحـو
..
كرمال اللي راحو

http://soundcloud.com/shadi-ali/kermal

March 19th, 2012, 12:22 am

 

Syrialover said:

# 770. Ghufran

I know it is your own personal reasons and choice, but I feel sadness and despair when I read of people moving to distance themselves from Syria.

Syrians disinvesting in Syria, separating themselves out already.

I think of the Syrians who do not have that choice. They lose one thing after another.

Good luck with a buyer and price. Somebody keeping belief in the regime is your hope and will have some way to pay you in foreign currency.

You say casually, “At this rate, Syria will be like Iraq”.

Interesting. Well, here is a very cynical and depressing true story that could make some Syrians selling up now wonder about their timing.

Several years ago an Iraqi I know was stunned and did not know what to do after he found out how much he could get for his land back home in Iraq. The price had soared to some unbelievable height because the Saudis and Iranians then were competing to buy up land in his area to help firm their positions in Iraq.

He did not sell in the end. He decided his emotion and attachment to Iraq was stronger than financial need.

March 19th, 2012, 12:29 am

 

ann said:

Police Push Occupy Wall Street Out of Zuccotti Park Again – American Spring?

Who ordered this crackdown, several in the crowd asked. There was some ugly back and forth. Buzz went through the crowd of more arrests, further north, and a march set off. American Spring?

http://www.innercitypress.com/ows1stpat031712.html

UNITED NATIONS, March 17 — When Occupy Wall Street rallied Saturday night in Zuccotti Park, police began to assemble on Broadway and Liberty Street. In the part, a small green tent went up, no more than a tarp hung on a line between two trees.

There was chants about an “American Spring,” and against banks: “hit the road, banks, and don’t ya come back no more.” Then the police moved in.

First they surged in from Broadway, pushing the crowd back. Some were arrested and pulled up to Broadway where a paddy wagon was filled.

To the south of the park, a march arrived with a band playing Irish music on bagpipes, on this St. Patrick’s Day. The police shut that down too. An MTA bus showed up, “Not in Service,” to be filled with other arrestees. From inside an arrested tweeted there were 16 others; it was Bus Number 6694.

A woman flopped on the sidewalk; people said she had a seizure. Photos on http://www.twitter.com/innercitypress; video here and below.

While the crowd was focused on that, police and security from Brookfield Properties, the owner of the prviate public public, rushed in with metal barricades to close off the park again. Meanwhile more NYPD vehicles showed up.

As Inner City Press sought information about the woman with the seizure, a three wheel police scooter drove up fast and did not stop. It was Vehicle Number 3530, in from the 78th Precinct.

Soon a wall of police was pushing the crowd south on Broadway to Thames Street. The police pushed, and some people fell down. But the police kept pushing foward.

[…]

March 19th, 2012, 12:33 am

 

jad said:

SYRIA: Media Accuses Syrian Government of Collaborating with Al Qaeda.

The latest terrorist attack in Damascus is described by the media as yet another government sponsored initiative geared towards killing Syrian civilians.

The CTV-AP report of this tragic event resulting in 27 deaths and some 140 wounded is riddled with contradictions. First it acknowledges that the target of the attacks was government buildings including Air Force Intelligence and National Security buildings in Damascus:

Two explosions rocked the Syrian capital of Damascus Saturday … The twin suicide car bombs were aimed at intelligence and security buildings in the capital. (CTV, March 17, 2012, emphasis added)

Obviously, it follows, says the report, that the Syrian regime is responsible for targeting its own government buildings.

Now why on earth would it do that? The answer: “The attacks occurred in areas where government security is typically high, raising opposition suspicions that the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was responsible.” (Ibid, emphasis added)

The attacks have the fingerprints of a carefully planned intelligence operation. The Syrian government pointed to the responsibility of Al Qaeda-linked terrorists supported by foreign powers, including Qatar and Saudi Arabia:

The explosions were carried out with devastating precision outside police and military intelligence headquarters in the capital, Damascus, in the early hours, Saturday. The devices comprised two vehicles packed with explosives, according to Syrian state media reports. Local residents described how the bombs were detonated within minutes of each other, causing horrific scenes of carnage.

Many ordinary Syrians are convinced that the latest atrocity – as with previous deadly blasts in the capital and other cities across the country – is the work of terrorist groups that are being trained and supplied by foreign states in a bid to destabilize the government of Bashar Al Assad.

Certainly, the lethal attack appears to be well beyond the capability of “rag-tag rebels”, as the so-called anti-government opposition is often portrayed in the Western mainstream media. Its sophisticated execution suggests the involvement of special forces. The presence of British, French, Saudi and Qatari special forces involved in training and directing Syrian oppositionists in has been reported previously by Global Research and other alternative media. But the mainstream media appear blind to the earth-shattering implications of such a connection. (Finian Cunningham, Saudi Arabia Is Arming Syrian “Opposition” As Twin Car Bombs Kill 27 In Damascus, Global Research, March 17, 2012)

How the Media Views the March 17th Attacks

At this point the media hype becomes even more embroiled and confused. The latest reports on the Damascus March 17 attacks seem to have abandoned their usual blanket statement that the killing of civilians had been ordered by Bashar Al Assad and was carried out by covert government operatives and militia.
What the Western media is now saying is that Al Qaeda was behind the attacks, which, ironically, on the surface concurs with the official position of the Al Assad government.
{…}
http://www.infowars.com/syria-media-accuses-syrian-government-of-collaborating-with-al-qaeda/

March 19th, 2012, 12:40 am

 

Ghufran said:

The time for moderates to give ends when guns take over, I fault the regime and all violent elements in the opposition for the state of despair that controls syria today,of course I expect some to cry that I can not equate the brutality of the regime with that of the opposition, I have personally observed many Syrians going from bad to worse as this crisis reaches its first anniversary. oil money and hunger for power drive most parties today, and vindictive attitudes and the urge to kill dominate the thinking of many Syrians especially the born again Islamists and the thugs who are used to do what they want since the 1970s.

Rich expats who gave very little to charity are now giving generously to buy guns to “liberate” Syria and are boycotting anything that does not have the approval stamp of their sheikhs and “thought” leaders.

Syria has no future if violence does not stop in one way or the other, and the failure of both parties to win led to more blood shed instead of leading to a negotiated settlement.

You will hear from us when the guns stop talking, for now, take care of your family and pay to feed the hungry and help the poor in the motherland.

The memories jad is talking about are like precious metals that we can not use or sell, it is too painful to even look at.

سلام

March 19th, 2012, 12:46 am

 

Equus said:

721. Tara said:

http://www.net-a-porter.com/am/viewfullsizeimage.nap?productID=189062&currentImage=189062_in
This is the crytal-encrusted Loboutini shoes that Asma was buying. The price tage of Homsi children.
———-
From this post and previous comments, I sense major jealousy of Mrs. Assma. Was Assad dating you then dumped you? Therefore you harbor so much loath. It’s common for women to love shoes including yourself as you wrote in previous comment; you were looking at Spring shoes 2012. With photo match of posted pictures of Mrs Assad, she never wore these shoes you have linked (unless someone quickly do a photoshop and post it). Either the emails are phony or she simply offered them as gift to someone else, obviously not you.

Lady Di had over 2,500 pair of shoes.She supported morally many many charity organizations but she never donated one 1$ herself. Everything, is relative in life. You went with your children to watch the Lorax you could’ve donated this money to the children of Homs.

March 19th, 2012, 12:46 am

 

Equus said:

Police arrested over 120 protesters at another large Newroz gathering just outside the capital Istanbul.

http://www.euronews.com/2012/03/18/turkey-police-arrest-protesters-marking-kurdish-new-year/

Alevi in Germany protest against Turkey’s Erdogan

http://www.euronews.com/2012/03/18/alevi-in-germany-protest-against-turkey-s-erdogan

Needless to state the obvious, he is not practicing what he has been preaching for a year….

March 19th, 2012, 12:53 am

 

Jerusalem said:

عرب تايمز – خاص

حتى لو صحت الاخبار المفبركة عن ايميلات الرئيس السوري بشار الاسد والتي بثتها محطة الاميرة الجوهرة ( العربية ) ومحطة الشيخة موزة ( الجزيرة ) .. فان المأخذ على بشار او زوجته او ربما ابنه انه اشترى من موقع اي تون اسطوانة غنائية … واتخن اسطوانة غنائية في امريكا لا يزيد سعرها عن عشرين دولارا

محطة العربية اعتبرت هذا تبذيرا ودليلا على ان بشار وزوجته يعيشان عيشة بذخ وترف وانفاق غير محدود

هذا الفديو لامير سعودي في ملهى ليلي ( نايت كلوب ) … عم هذا الرجل هو الملك عبدالله ملك السعودية وخادم الحرمين … والاميرة الجوهرة صاحبة محطة العربية هي ارملة عم هذا الرجل … اذا كنت ضعيف القلب وتنتزع القرش من انياب السبع لاطعام اطفالك لا تشاهد هذا الفديو … حتى لا تموت بالسكتة القلبية

طبعا هذا الفديو لن تعرضه محطة موزة ولا محطة العربية ولن يكنب طارق الحميد افتتاحية عنه في جريدة الشرق الاوسط … ولن يصدر مفتي الناتو يوسف القرضاوي فتوى بهذا الامير

انقر … وشوف

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2_5OdK9Sww&feature=youtube_gdata_player

http://www.arabtimes.com/portal/news_display.cfm?Action=&Preview=No&nid=10814

March 19th, 2012, 1:05 am

 

Jerusalem said:

عرب تايمز – الافتتاحية

بسبب عقدة ( الخواجا ) نعتقد نحن العرب ان كلام الصحف الامريكية او البريطانية قرانا منزلا … وكثيرا ما نعتمد ما تنشره او تقوله هذه الصحف ونعيد نشره وكأنه حقيقة علمية مع ان فضائح جرائد مردوخ مثلا تكفي لاثبات ان اهمل واصغر جريدة عربية في الصومال قد تكون ملتزمة باداب العمل الصحفي واخلاقياته اكثر من … الغارديان

والغارديان – هذه الايام – حديث العرب لانها نشرت ما تزعم انها مراسلات وايميلات بشار الاسد وزوجته … وسرعان ما طبلت محطة العربية ومحطة الجزيرة والصحف الاردنية لما تقوله الغارديان في محاولة لاقناعنا وافهامنها ان بشار الاسد وزوجته اللذين يعيشان في غرفة نوم واحدة مع اطفالهما في دمشق يتواصلان .. بالايميل … وان ايميلاتهما تؤكد – وفقا للغارديان ومن بعدها محطة العربية – ان بشار واسماء يعيشان عيشة رغد فاخرة وهنية في دمشق

هلق صارت اسماء هي التي تعيش عيشة رغد وتنفق الملاييين .. يا محطة العربية

وماذا عن كلاسين زوجة ولي العهد السعودي التي كانت موضوعا لاكثر من خبر وبرنامج تلفزيوني في فرنسا بعد ان هربت من باريس دون ان تدفع اثمانها بعد ان تبين ان زوجة سموه تشتري كلاسين بكذا مليون يورو

وماذا عن فضائح الاميرة الجوهرة صاحبة محطة العربية التي تتنقل ما بين منتجعات فرنسا وجنيف مع ابنها الامير عزوزي وحاشية من الف شخص بخيمة مكيفة تنصبها على رؤوس الجبال المثلجة في بذخ هو اليوم حديث الفرنسيين والسويسريين

ولا تنسوا موزة … التي تعلق في غرفة نومها لوحة اشتراها حاكم قطر بربع مليار دولار

هلق صارت اسماء الاسد – ياصحافة ملك الاردن – هي التي تبذح .. وملكة الاردن لم تترك عرض ازياء عالمي يعتب عليها واصبحت مضرب الصحافة العالمية في التبذير والبذح وحفلة عيد ميلادها في جنوب الاردن حديث القاصي والداني … حتى في طبربور

هلق اسماء التي لم نقرا يوما في اية صحيفة عربية او اجنبية انها طارت للاستجمام في اوروبا وامريكا والمرة الوحيدة التي زارت فيها فرنسا كانت بصحبة زوجها وبدعوة رسمية من سركوزي … وكل ما انفقته مع زوجها فنجان نسكافيه في احدى مقاهي الشانزيلازيه .. هلق اسماء هي التي يشار اليها بالبنان عندما يتم الحديث عن عهر نسوان الحكام العرب …. وبذخهم

والله عيب

ولكم استحوا … واحترموا ذكاء القاريء العربي

http://www.arabtimes.com/portal/news_display.cfm?Action=&Preview=No&nid=10801

March 19th, 2012, 1:12 am

 

Juergen said:

Hans Jad

Austrian Airlines has suspended all flights until further notice, originally they planned on flying again in late April, but i think they just decided to wait. Usually their planes were filled with businessmen in their business class and lots of tourists who liked their good flight schedules, but without the tourists, its not a good business anymore.

Hans
From the christians i know i heard since December that they predicted an direct attack on them, they arent surprised and most know that they represent an big asset to the regime.

March 19th, 2012, 1:39 am

 

Atheist Syrian Salafist Against Dictatorships said:

#766
“The stupidity of the Syrian security dealing with people in the streets is astonishing. I wonder how long it will take to train the police and the security guys to properly and respectively deal with demonstrators, I think Lebanon can help in that”

Oh, so now the “Syrian security” (sic) is stupid…why, I wonder? Because they are arresting and beating Jad’s favorite opposition members, but were doing the right thing sniping other peaceful demonstrators throughout the whole previous year?

The hypocrisy is absolutely sickening!

Or was it being (cynically) suggested that the Assadist Mafia thugs should have shot and killed Mr Rassas and the other NCB/NCC activists instead of just beating and arresting them, just like they murdered thousands of other demonstrators?

When will the Assadist Mafiosi and Associates (ASMAA) realize that their “iron fist” approach has utterly failed? When will they withdraw their thugs and allow the people to demonstrate and voice their wishes freely, like they did in Hama in July and in Homs before that and all over reef dimashq and Kafar Souseh, Mazzeh, Midan, etc, etc.

It is now clear and beyond doubt that all the ASMAA care about is their continued control over the private prison-farm called Syria, and would rather burn it to a cinder than surrender it to its people, its real owners. They are in a mad rush to re-plant fear and terror into the hearts and minds of the people, but it will not work; the people have broken the chains and are no longer afraid of their jailers, no matter how brutal the response.

FREEDOM JUSTICE and DIGNITY are ours.

حرية عدالة كرامة
بالرغم عن أنف كل سفاح أسدي حقير

March 19th, 2012, 1:43 am

 

Syrialover said:

#776 Ghufran, you say:

“You will hear from us when the guns stop talking, for now, take care of your family and pay to feed the hungry and help the poor in the motherland.”

I’m unsure what you intended, but to me this reads like ‘don’t wake us until it’s over’.

And you say: “The memories jad is talking about are like precious metals that we can not use or sell,it is too painful to even look at”

Those precious metals are fuel in Syrians’ veins and brains that keep them caring and grappling with reality even through the worst. They are not in anyone else’s veins.

Jad in #772 couldn’t have given a stronger message to expatriate Syrians, no matter which side of the dispute they are on.

Syria is there for Syrians, but it there will be nothing there for anybody if pessimism, defeatism and negativity are the drink of choice and the attitude is, ‘it’s too scary and difficult, and the bad guys are just being too terrible, especially foreigners. I have decided to switch off until it is all fixed again to my liking. Meanwhile, I’m OK cause I’m far away.’

March 19th, 2012, 1:52 am

 

Mina said:

Anna 767 “I speak to activists who complain they are no longer able to buy the tools they need, like laptops or phones.”

You mean, when the journalists of al Jazeera and other networks and their bags of cash are not around anymore? Even recently the Mundo journalist who got out of Baba Amro was boasting about the thousands dollars in his bag that he had to leave behind!

Even if the Tahrir demonstrations in Egypt started from a genuine massive protest (and long delta workers strikes) where one could see every kind of citizen in the demos, old and young, poor and rich, it was by then annoyable to see some guys reporting from the square all day with phones that obviously had had to have been given by the station’s reporters…

March 19th, 2012, 2:17 am

 

Syrialover said:

Assad: faithful student of ruthlessness

By Roula Khalaf , Financial Times, March 18

Excerpt:

Experts who have studied the trove of Assad emails say the Syrian leader is not a conventional dictator. James Fallon, an American neuroscientist who has written on the mind of dictators, says Mr Assad shares some of the characteristics of other tyrants – lack of empathy and need for flattery (he surrounds himself with young female aides who seem to be in awe of him). But he finds him “an incomplete dictator” who appears to lack a personal sadistic streak. “He comes across as a pathetic adolescent little tyrant. a weak leader … a sorry character,” says Prof Fallon.
…………
One government loyalist says no one should be surprised by the behaviour of the Assad regime. “It’s the only way the regime knows how to act, it’s just the way things are done.”

Though he might not look the part, Mr Assad has proved to be a faithful student of his father’s ruthless strategies. What has made him potentially more menacing, however, is that he lacks Hafez Assad’s character strength, his experience and self-confidence.

Back in 1982, Assad bombed the city of Hama to put down a rebellion by the Muslim Brotherhood, killing as many as 20,000 people. The tragedy of Hama is now happening in slow motion across Syria. Except that today, while the activists send the world images of the suffering and the destruction, the young Assad apparently surfs the net for amusement.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e0ce4102-710e-11e1-a7f1-00144feab49a.html#ixzz1pWrHG8AF

March 19th, 2012, 2:28 am

 

Mina said:

To be a mainstream journalist nowadays, you have to be ready to go far in submission (no matter on what side you are)

From the Angry Arab:

Répression en Syrie

Watch this debate on French France24 TV. Several points come to mind. The viewpoints expressed by Joe Bahout and Haytham Manna` (and both are opponents of the regime for sure), are not permitted to be expressed on US and UK (and of course Saudi-funded and Qatari-funded) media. 2) What Joe Bahout expressed is a point of view that has been validated by recent events, regarding the regime gaining the upper hand. 3) It was quite typical that the anchorwoman cut off Joe Bahout but tried (without success) to interrupt his flow. 4) It is ironic that she in disagreement with Bahout and Manna` would bring up the fact that they dont reside in Syria when the Syrian National Council (comprised almost exclusively of Syrian living abroad) is permitted to speak without question or doubt on behalf of all Syrians. 5) The White Man has been amusing me these days. The White Man has fallen in love with armed struggle in the Middle East, having annoyed our years for decades in his preachments against armed struggle in Palestine.

http://angryarab.blogspot.de/2012/03/repression-en-syrie.html

(which he commented again later with: “In the news show on Franc24 linked below, Haytham Manna` makes a good point. He asks: who are the ones who declare Jihad? Are they the secular democrats? “)

March 19th, 2012, 3:21 am

 

Mina said:

In pictures: what Qatar possesses in Europe.
http://www.challenges.fr/galeries-photos/monde/20120214.CHA2189/ce-que-le-qatar-possede-en-europe.html

Rejoice Jürgen, we are the new Egyptian colony for the Gulf!

To say that KSA is arming the rebels, is it just to be silent about Qatar and its piles of cash?

Look at it cynically: arm the belligerents and watch them kill each other. When you want the game to stop, have an incident involving Iran or Israel, and enter the party.

March 19th, 2012, 3:26 am

 

Amir in Tel Aviv said:

Last night, Bashar and Imelda heard the people knocking on their window with live rounds. Bashar and Imelda were busy with polishing (her) designer shoes, and downloading (his) songs from iTunes, when bullets started to fly real close.

I always thought that the two corrupted families, Ma7louf and Assad, will be forced to quit power only when the revolution knocks on their private doors.
.

March 19th, 2012, 5:11 am

 

Juergen said:

Amir

In the US they say: the chickens come home to roost. Good Abu Hafez and Imelda wannabe Marcos had a bad night sleep. If for a second I would believe that the bombs were orchestrated by the islamists then why not targetting the master of this desaster?

May be the IDF air force should make a short visit to the house as they did in 2006, i was in Damascus during the Lebanon war, and the baath loyalists were then outraged by the Chuzpe of the Israelis.

March 19th, 2012, 6:12 am

 

SANDRO LOEWE said:

I hope the burning of a mosque in Belgium last week (which seemed to have some relations with Syria) and the killing of three jewish boys in a school in France today be not warning signals of intimidation from Assad Mafia to France.

March 19th, 2012, 7:03 am

 

Valerya said:

788-
what level of ethics have you man ? i am admired.

March 19th, 2012, 7:12 am

 

Juergen said:

Sandro

I have a feeling that the european right wing will be found responsible for the events. The killing of the jewish children is related to other killings of soldiers some weeks earlier. The killed have all in common that they were of foreign decent so an xenophobe killer seems obvious. One could blame despots like Assad for instrumentalizing political islamism and therefore nurture the rise of xenophob, islamophobe parties and organizations throughout Europe.

March 19th, 2012, 7:44 am

 

Juergen said:

Valerya

spare me from your admiration, i think you have a hardtime sharing admiration other than for your saviour Assad. You should worry about the level of ethics shown by Assad when he thinks children are terrorists.

March 19th, 2012, 7:49 am

 

zoo said:

The FSA is being infiltrated by pro-regime generals, ready for the next step of negotiations” (FSA + Local Opposition) vs (Farouk Sharaa and Regular army)

Two more Syrian generals defect: Turkish diplomat
AFP – 8 mins ago
http://news.yahoo.com/two-more-syrian-generals-defect-turkish-diplomat-114034174.html

Two more generals have fled Syria and linked up with rebels trying to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Damascus, a Turkish diplomat said on Monday.

March 19th, 2012, 7:52 am

 

zoo said:

NATO must probe, pay for errors in Libya: Amnesty
AFP – 3 hrs ago
http://news.yahoo.com/nato-must-probe-pay-errors-libya-amnesty-080556119.html

NATO must investigate the killing of dozens of civilians during its air campaign in Libya last year and provide reparations to the people affected, Amnesty International said on Monday.

“Adequate investigations must be carried out and full reparation provided to victims and their families,” said the rights group in a statement released one year after the first strike sorties were carried out by the alliance in Libya.
(..)

March 19th, 2012, 7:54 am

 

zoo said:

Is Bashar Al Assad about to re-establish control over the country, if there is no military option soon?

What Are Our Military Options in Syria?
Michael O’Hanlon
March 19, 2012 | 12:00 am
http://www.tnr.com/article/world/101792/hanlon-syria-intervention
…
But the alternatives are not pretty. Alas, perhaps the most likely outcome is that Assad will brutally reestablish control over the country, in a way that might end the war, or at least prevent it from becoming an all-out conflagration. But it is also quite possible that things will continue to get more chaotic on the battlefield. Meanwhile, some Sunni Arab states are probably considering arming the opposition themselves—this would likely not be enough to overturn Assad, but just enough to stoke the conflict further.

As the death toll from the year-old conflict rapidly approaches 10,000, it may not be too early to raise these types of military possibilities in public—if for no other reason than to signal the murderous Syrian regime that we do have options besides just hoping that Assad will fall of his own weight. Ideally, down the line the credible possibility of their implementation will persuade Assad’s cronies to demand that he go into exile. Perhaps it could even convince them to form a new power-sharing government with the opposition. That may not be a utopian solution, but, under the current circumstances, it may be the best we can hope for—even if it requires uncomfortable talk of military intervention.

March 19th, 2012, 7:58 am

 

zoo said:

Hussein Mortada: “What the Guardian is publishing has not been verified..

“They are liars and I will take them to court, and if they have any evidence let them bring it to the court where we will bring them to trial in their own country”

“Now we are a year into the Syrian crisis and they cannot impair the unity of the Syrian people, they cannot impair the Syrian youth, and they cannot achieve any of their goals.”

http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=28905
…
As for the accusations that he traded e-mails with Bashar al-Assad, Mortada told Asharq Al-Awsat “this is a ridiculous accusation and its objective is clear to all the Syrians, whether opposition or loyalists, I warn against anybody believing such exaggerations where the objective is to portray President al-Assad in an unrealistic and incorrect manner. Those who are promoting this idea have forgotten that the President they are talking about is the same man who shrewdly fought the Bush administration, and emerged victorious against them the following day after the Iraqi invasion. He is the one who fought an international battle in defense of Syria and the resistance during the July War [2006 Lebanon war] and the Gaza war. He is the president who in his wisdom is leading Syria through this crisis to safety, away from civil war and chaos…therefore the core of the issue is not true, and whoever has evidence let them bring it forward. I would personally be honored to carry out correspondence with any Syrian figure, but this did not happen, even on a professional level, we did not even get an interview with President Bashar al-Assad.”
…
As for why his name appears in the leaked e-mail case, and whether Western media outlets have tried to get in contact with him, he said “they have not called me at all, if they had called me then they would be professionals, so are they [professional]? They are liars and I will take them to court, and if they have any evidence let them bring it to the court where we will bring them to trial in their own country. What the Guardian is publishing has not been verified.
…
This was a cheap opportunity seized upon by the hostile media to implicate the names of Iran and Hezbollah. With regards to those who pay half a billion in Lebanon to tarnish Hezbollah’s reputation, according to Jeffrey Feltman himself, how much will they pay to tarnish the image of Iran, Hezbollah and Syria all together?
From here, Mortada continued: “they inserted my name because I am Lebanese and I work as the head of Iranian television channels in Damascus, so is there anyone more suitable for their lies than me?”
…
Now we are a year into the Syrian crisis and they cannot impair the unity of the Syrian people, they cannot impair the Syrian youth, and they cannot achieve any of their goals.
….

March 19th, 2012, 8:10 am

 

Dawoud said:

# 773.

Although I support the Occupy Wall Street Movement (I do NOT support Israeli occupation/colonization/war crimes), the courageous activists in Zuccotti Park are lucky that they are only facing police pepper spray, rubber bullets, and batons!!!!!!!!! Had they were in Syria Bashar’s murderous forces would have fired T72 tank shells on bombed them from helicopters. Women would have been arrested, raped, tortured, killed, and dumped on the streets!!

I find it one of the greatest puzzles of the century that an American highly educated person would validly complain about NYC police brutality while AT THE SAME TIME defending a murderous Syrian regime and propagating on its behalf!!!

Supporting the resistance and opposing Israeli aggression in Palestine and Lebanon should never ever make a principled intellectual, or an average human being, support the murderous hereditary Syrian dictatorship!

March 19th, 2012, 8:12 am

 

Valerya said:

792
are you europian ?
your comments show clearly not.
for whom are you working ?

March 19th, 2012, 8:16 am

 

zoo said:

Anyone knows who are the five members of the UN team?

March 19th, 2012, 8:21 am

 

irritated said:

#789 SANDRO LOEWE

Yes, the Syrian regime has long arms, what about the killing of two monks in Tibet? or the cold blood killing of the Afghan family in Afghanistan: Syrian operators?

March 19th, 2012, 8:25 am

 

Dawoud said:

A day or two before an AL or UN visits to Syria, Bashar the Murderous Dictator plots and executes terrorist bombings in Damascus and Aleppo. He does so to distract attention and blame the opposition by saying that he can’t negotiate with “terrorists.”

Residents of Syria’s two largest cities are aware of Bashar’s sleazy murderous tactics, and they should begin to seek shelter before any U.N. or Arab League visits to Syria!

March 19th, 2012, 8:29 am

 

zoo said:

Turkey ever confused: No invitation sent yet for the Friends of Syria meeting in Istanbul and Atalay calls again for a “buffer zone” after it was denied several times last week.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/govt-readies-for-syria-buffer-zone-amid-flow.aspx?pageID=238&nID=16146&NewsCatID=338

According to the course of developments, the establishment of a buffer zone at the border could be considered, Deputy Prime Minister Beşir Atalay said in a televised interview yesterday.
…
Turkey has not yet sent the invitations for the “Friends of Syria” group meeting that will take place in İstanbul, Ünal said, adding that an invitation for France was still being considered.

March 19th, 2012, 8:35 am

 

Juergen said:

Valerya

I am German. I work for an airline.

March 19th, 2012, 8:37 am

 

Tara said:

Equus

You asked “I sense major jealousy of Mrs. Assma. Was Assad dating you then dumped you? Therefore you harbor so much loath. ”

No.  I don’t like his looks.  Only Brad Pitt or Dr. Rouque.  Non-others!

March 19th, 2012, 8:44 am

 

zoo said:

Russia is displaying openly its pressure on Syria to get the international community to pressure the opposition.

Russia urges Syria to support envoy Annan’s efforts
By Steve Gutterman | Reuters – Sat, Mar 17, 2012
http://news.yahoo.com/russia-urges-syria-support-envoy-annans-efforts-193654864.html

“We believe the Syrian government should quickly, without delay, support (Annan’s) approaches,” Lavrov said. “We will expect the same from the armed and political opposition.”
..
“Only by receiving agreement in principle with what (Annan) is promoting in his contacts with the Syrians can the process of a truce begin – and after that the start of a Syrian dialogue.”
….

Russia says government forces and armed opponents must cease fire simultaneously, the United States, Gulf Arabs and Europeans have demanded that Assad and his much stronger forces must make the first move.

Russia also says a Syrian political dialogue must have no preconditions or predetermined outcome, opposing calls by the West for Assad to cede power and criticizing opposition groups that say they will not negotiate with him.

Russia and China have said they believe Western and Gulf Arab countries are seeking Libya-style regime change in Syria.

March 19th, 2012, 8:45 am

 

Juergen said:

Interfax reports that in Tartus an anti terror unit of the russian army has arrived to protect russian citizens in cases they want to flee the country.

March 19th, 2012, 8:52 am

 

Dawoud said:

806. JUERGEN

Russia and Iran are both foreign and non-Arab. What happened to Bashar’s and Hasan’s claim that they oppose any foreign intervention in Syria.

On the other hand, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, etc. are ARAB countries and they should intervene to stop Bashar’s bloody massacres.

During 1958-61 Egypt and Syria were ONE country: The United Arab Republic.
The Syria Ba’athist regimes slogans are:

1) Hurriah or Freedom: We know that Syria has no freedom and those who dare to express their opinion face Hamza al-Khateeb’s fate!

2) Wihda or Unity. We know that the Ba’athist regime has divided Arabs, instead of uniting them. Hafez supported Iran against Iraq, the Arab. He only supported Kuwait in 1991 in order for the United States to allow to control Lebanon and stop investigating Syria/Iran in the PAN AM 103 terrorist bombing!

3) Socialism or Ishtirakiyah. Well, with Bashar’s cousin, the thief Rami Makhlouf-Mr.10 or 15 %-and Asma’s online shopping with looted/embezzled money, we know that Syria has no socialism. “All people are equal, but some are more equal than others.” 🙂

March 19th, 2012, 9:03 am

 

zoo said:

Black market for weapons nearly depleted, smugglers to Syria say

Donors have given money to aid the Syria rebels, but the needed arms are getting harder to find, merchants in Lebanon say.
By Los Angeles Times Staff
March 18, 2012
Reporting from Tripoli, Lebanon—
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-syria-weapons-20120318,0,3517241.story

At a small table in a hotel restaurant where elderly men drank coffee and played speed chess, Abu Ismail’s phone rang.

He picked it up and squinted at the caller ID.

“Allo,” he said. “A 16? How many? $2,000? If it’s clean, bring it, yes.”

With that, Abu Ismail bought one M-16 assault rifle for the Syrian rebellion.

For months, arms merchants such as Abu Ismail have been buying black-market weapons in Lebanon for the insurgency against Syrian President Bashar Assad. But the arms supply has slowed to a trickle, he says.

“When attacks on protesters began, an RPG cost $300; now it’s $800 and there aren’t any more to be found,” said Abu Ismail, who is from the embattled city of Homs and asked to be identified by a family nickname for security reasons. “The Lebanese weapons market has dried up completely.”
(..)

March 19th, 2012, 9:08 am

 

Juergen said:

Dawoud

I totally agree, this matter should be an arab matter and solved through arab intervention.

I find it noteworthy that the russian regime finds it necessary to prepare measures for the safe return of their russian citizens. I hope that this is not an coverup for an chetchyn style intervention in Syria. I would trust Putin as much as Assad.

March 19th, 2012, 9:08 am

 

Alan said:

Moscow notes more realism in West’s attitude towards Syria

http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c32/369570.html

MOSCOW, March 19 (Itar-Tass) — Moscow notes more realism in Russia’s Western partners’ attitude towards Syria, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported on Monday.

“In these latter days Moscow notes certain changes in our Western partners’ attitude towards Syria. But it is insufficient to overcome the deadlock,” the ministry said.

“Russia continues to strive for the peaceful settlement of the conflict in Syria. We demand an immediate end to any violence. It is necessary to meet humanitarian needs of peaceful civilians. We are exerting energetic diplomatic effort by strengthening contacts with the League of Arab States and the United Nations Organisation, as well as bilateral cooperation,” the ministry said.

March 19th, 2012, 9:13 am

 

Juergen said:

The Stockholm International Peace Reasearch Institute (SIPRI) has published their report on arms sales. Their section of the arms sales to Syria is worthy to be considered:

“Syria’s imports of major weapons increased by 580 per cent between
2002–2006 and 2007–11. Russia supplied 78 per cent of Syrian imports in 2007–11, followed by Belarus (17 per cent) and Iran (5 per cent). Russia’s arms

supplies included an estimated 36 Pantsir-S1 and 2 Buk-M2E SAM systems and 2 Bastion-P coastal defence missile systems. Russia has opposed a proposal for a UN arms embargo on Syria and plans further deliveries, including 24 MiG-29M2 combat aircraft and 36 Yak-130 trainer/combat aircraft.”

http://www.sipri.org/publications/SIPRIFS1203.pdf

March 19th, 2012, 9:18 am

 

Alan said:

800. IRRITATED
Our Noble Warriors
http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/?p=45279

March 19th, 2012, 9:20 am

 

bronco said:

A new face on the French presidential election: Jean-Luc Melenchon.

Contrary to Hollande and Sarkozy who are both Jews from their mother, Melenchon is catholic but deeply secular, opposed to the intrusion of religion in politics and social life.

He seems discreet about Israel and has taken often anti-Israel positions. He has been accused by some Jewish leaders and media of being ‘antisemite’

He is a leftist with liberal views on immigration and on social issues.

March 19th, 2012, 9:22 am

 

Alan said:

German weapons in the context of the “Arab Spring”: expert opinions
http://www.centrasia.ru/newsA.php?st=1309841820

March 19th, 2012, 9:26 am

 

Juergen said:

Bronco

You blame sectarian movements wíthin the opposition and claim the importance of french presidential candidates being jewish by birth. What makes it relevant to Syria if one is jewish and one is not? I think hardtime baathists should understand that the nazi ideology that the jews are the problemmakers of the world is nothing more than pure hate and racism.

March 19th, 2012, 9:29 am

 

Juergen said:

Alan

sorry my school russian isnt good enough to read it all.

Спасибо товарищу!

March 19th, 2012, 9:33 am

 

bronco said:

815. Juergen

How many Jews do you have in the German government?

Unfortunately Many Jews are suspected to have a double allegeance that makes them partials in their attitude toward Israel

“In an interview Nicolas Sarkozy gave in 2004, he expressed an extraordinary understanding of the plight of the Jewish people for a home: “Should I remind you the visceral attachment of every Jew to Israel, as a second mother homeland? There is nothing outrageous about it. Every Jew carries within him a fear passed down through generations, and he knows that if one day he will not feel safe in his country, there will always be a place that would welcome him. And this is Israel.” (From the book “La République, les religions, l’espérance”, interviews with Thibaud Collin and Philippe Verdin.) ”
http://www.ejpress.org/article/france_election/16491

March 19th, 2012, 9:36 am

 

Alan said:

where is your translation facilities teacher ?
In Zusammenhang mit der Situation, die die Nutzung der deutschen Waffen in den Ländern betrifft “des arabischen Frühlings”, kommen die Experten der BRD zu den folgenden Schlussfolgerungen.

Die Schlussfolgerungen

Erster. Die Besorgtheit der führenden Politiker der BRD von der angegebenen Tendenz trägt den widersprüchlichen Charakter. Einerseits, sie fassen selbst eben die Lösung über den Verkauf der Waffen, die einer der Moderatorinnen in der Exportsituation des Landes ist und gewährleistet ihr den dritten Platz im weltweiten Export. Es ist die Frage nicht nur des Handels, sondern auch der Beschäftigung Zehntausende Fachkräfte. Es ist bekannt, dass in 2009 von der föderalen Regierung von niemandem nicht der aufgehobene Plan vom Export der Ausrüstungen in die Staaten Nahen Ostens auf die Summe neben 1 Mrd. Euro behauptet ist. Andererseits, in die letzten Monate fielen in die internationalen Organisationen die Berichte aus den Ländern “des arabischen Frühlings”, in die es angewiesen wird: im Verlauf der Protestbewegung Tausend Menschen haben im Kampf für die Freiheit und die Demokratie das Leben und die Gesundheit verloren. Sie sind einschließlich mit Hilfe der deutschen Waffen zerstört.

Zweiter. Karl Justen, den Vorsitzenden der Vereinigten Konferenz der Kirche und der Entwicklung (GKKE), bezweifelt, dass man bei der deutschen Lieferung der so großen Umfänge der Ausrüstungen auf Nahen Osten die Verzögerung des Tempos раскручивания der regionalen Militärspirale erreichen kann.

Dritter. In der BRD ist der Mechanismus nicht geschaffen, der den Parlamentariern teilzunehmen an der Kontrolle über dem Verkauf der Ausrüstungen zulässt. Bis die Praxis der Vorbereitung des jährlichen Berichtes der Regierung über den Export der Waffen von den Kräften des Ministeriums der Wirtschaft existiert, nach der entschlossenen Wendung in der Durchsichtigkeit dieser ertragreichen Sphäre zu streben es ist unmöglich.

Vierter. Die Lieferungen der deutschen Ausrüstung in die Länder gehen stichprobenartig “des arabischen Frühlings”. Während in die Reihe der Staaten der Region der Export der Ausrüstungen schon während vier Monate gesperrt ist, sind zu Saudi-Arabien und Katar in die letzten Wochen die Panzer gestellt. Die Experten erklären es von der Abwesenheit der deutlichen Konzeption nach der Sicherheit in der Region und der Unfähigkeit des föderalen Ministerkabinetts, die Position dem Bundestag, der Gesellschaft insgesamt zu erklären.

Fünfter. Der Schritt des föderalen Ministerkabinetts nach der Erweiterung der Geschäfte mit den Regimes der Region Nordafrikas und Nahen Ostens – das klare Signal den deutschen Produzenten Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, Heckler und Koch und Rheinmetall darüber, dass die Interessen der Konzerne nach der Produktion der Panzertechnik, der Schützenwaffe und der Landmittel der Gefechtsführung bei beliebigen Versicherungen in der Richtigkeit der Sache der Demokratie in den Ländern “des arabischen Frühlings” beachtet sein werden.

Es sind die Daten der Webseiten des Bundestags, Hamburger Abendblatt, Handelsblatt, Augsburger Allgemeine, Das Parlament verwendet.

March 19th, 2012, 9:40 am

 

bronco said:

Juergen

There a 483,500 jews in France, 0.77% of the total french population. Isn’t strange that the two presidential candidates are both Jewish and pro-israel

March 19th, 2012, 9:43 am

 

Juergen said:

Bronco

since the Nazi era we Germans (at least the majority) dont distinguish between Jewish and nonjewish, its just nonrelevant.
You know even the biggest supporters of the palestinian cause were disgusted when the PLO with the help of the RAF made selections in the hijacking of an Air France flight in Entebbe. The hijackers seperated the jews from the nonjewish just 21 years after the holocaust. The german terrorists helped to find out by their knowledge of “jewish names”, to me and many others after Auschwitz an unthinkable crossing of the Rubikon.

And I am sorry, its an rascistic approach, nothing less.

March 19th, 2012, 9:45 am

 

Uzair8 said:

Al Jazeera obtains secret Syrian files.

‘Papers prepared for President Assad by intelligence and security chiefs throw light on his strategy to quell protests.’

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/03/20123191073517388.html

March 19th, 2012, 9:45 am

 

bronco said:

820. Juergen

Why do you avoid giving me the names of Jews in the German government? You owe them that at least.
I guess they are almost none I doubt Germans will ever accept a jewish or a moslem prime minister despite all the claims of being non-racist. It’s just a facade. We just have to see how they treat Roms, Arabs, blacks and Turks

My attitude is not racist, it is a political reaction to what many Jews say about their close uncritical relation with Israel.

March 19th, 2012, 9:55 am

 

Uzair8 said:

Some people trying to question the authenticity of the leaked private emails.

I don’t think Asma al Assad will dismiss them so easily.

March 19th, 2012, 9:58 am

 

Amir in Tel Aviv said:

Bronco,

“…Isn’t strange that the two presidential candidates are both Jewish”. No. I’m not surprised at all. I always knew that the Jews (we), are extremely talented people, who have unique skills, who are leaders, who are innovators and in general, are very gifted kind of people. I’m very proud of them (us), and their (our) achievements.

Juergen,

I’m always delighted to hear that Baathists are outraged. No matter the reason.
.

March 19th, 2012, 10:01 am

 

bronco said:

Juergen

Read Amir’s message. That’s what I mean of being racist

March 19th, 2012, 10:10 am

 

Juergen said:

Bronco

I dont know ´if we have any jew in our government, and it does not matter to me. I dont make that destinction between people. We have now two protestant heads of state, the president is not even divorced with his exwife, and enjoys an 13 year long relatuionship with our new First Lady, do i care? No not at all, just some conservatives in our TEXAS-Bavaria tried to make that an issue, but failed as the majority just dont care.

And sorry i just dont see any connection that jews have a clear standing towards Israel. I assume among jews the views towards Israel differ greatly.

March 19th, 2012, 10:12 am

 

Tara said:

Jeurgen

Bronco’s comment is not racist. Most Jews support Israel.. This is a fact. Isn’t it?

March 19th, 2012, 10:27 am

 

Juergen said:

Uzair

Thank you for sharing. I am sure not even Abu Hafez has the right picture, he is not informed about the facts on the ground. Its obvious that he knows that his surroundings keep informations from him, and may be thats one motivation for him to seek advise by young “unprofessionals” apart from his own presidential administration.

March 19th, 2012, 10:27 am

 

Jad said:

‘Germans not racist’

That is a good joke especially coming from an east German.

Germany has its own approach toward immigrants which is total ‘Segregation’ from the German population in everything and the Germans like that.

Bronco,

Just two years ago the German Jewish Rabi start rebuilding their spiritual establishments.

March 19th, 2012, 10:38 am

 

Jad said:

The results of Almazzeh clashes:
حسين مرتضى – اثار الاشتباكات في المزة 19-03-2012

March 19th, 2012, 10:47 am

 

Juergen said:

Tara

I would not be sure that most jews support Israel. Its like saying that most muslim will follow the saudi way of interpretation of Islam.

I find it a racist view to define people only by their religion and therefore assume their support/unsupport for Israel. Tara you may have made the same experience that Americans will assume you will rather follow the sharia than the constitution if you could choose. This simplification poisens societies, and i dont see any good in it. One should always ask politicians on their stand and their proposed policies. To evilise ones origin is mischievous.

March 19th, 2012, 10:53 am

 

Tara said:

Jeurgen

I don’t believe Germans are racist. 5 German girls have been living in my house for the last 5 years just before Yara was born and are all very very tolerant. They learned much from the Nazi experience.

March 19th, 2012, 10:55 am

 

omen said:

721. Tara said:

This is the crytal-encrusted Loboutini shoes that Asma was buying. The price tage of Homsi children.

you know what these shoes say? that assad likes to play a simpering little man whose been a very bad boy and needs to be spanked by a dominatrix.

makes you wonder if assad the deviant gets off watching his own people be tortured too.

March 19th, 2012, 10:59 am

 

omen said:

jad,

tariq ali the writer noted in a speech that germany is offering jewish victims of the nazi era a right to return and compensation for property lost.

said israel should learn a lesson from that and extend the same policy for palestinians.

March 19th, 2012, 11:10 am

 

jad said:

Heavy firefights erupt in Damascus

Syrian security forces have raided a den of armed terrorists in a house in western Damascus, state media reports. The fighting lasted for two hours with grenade blasts and machine gun fire being heard from the district of al-Mezzeh, witnesses say.
Local civilians had been evacuated to safety before the raid, state news agency SANA reported. Two insurgents have been killed while another one captured as government security forces stormed the building. According to the independent Al Ekhbariya tv channel, three terrorists were killed in the operation.
The clash resulted in at least one death of a law enforcement officer, while three more were injured in a shoot-out, reports say.
{…}
http://rt.com/news/damascus-firefight-regime-opposition-873/

مصادر أمنية سورية: قوات الأمن تداهم وكرا لمسلحين في وسط دمشق

قالت مراسلة قناة “روسيا اليوم” في دمشق إن قوات الأمن السورية داهمت فجر يوم الاثنين 19 مارس/آذار، وكرا لمسلحين في مبنى سكني في منطقة المزة بدمشق، مضيفة ان العملية أسفرت عن مقتل 3 مسلحين وعنصرين من الأمن.

وفي وقت سابق أعلن “الجيش السوري الحر” أنه شن هجوما على عناصر الامن والجيش في المزة ليلة الاحد على الاثنين.

وأوضحت مراسلة قناة “روسيا اليوم” ان تبادلا لإطلاق النار نشب في المزة بعد اكتشاف خلية مسلحة في شقة بأحد المباني في المنطقة. واوضحت ان صاحب الشقة اكشتف الموضوع عندما عاد الى البيت بعد فترة غياب. وعندما حاول عناصر الأمن دخول الشقة، أطلق المسلحون النار عليهم، ما أسفر عن مقتل عنصرين. وبعد إجلاء وتأمين سكان المبنى أجرت قوات الأمن عملية خاصة، أدت الى تصفية 3 مسلحين واعتقال مسلحين آخرين.
{…}
http://arabic.rt.com/news_all_news/news/581101/

مشاهد من المبنى بعد الاشتباكات في حي المزة بدمشق
http://youtu.be/EBcogoeboAo

March 19th, 2012, 11:15 am

 

AIG said:

Being proud of the accomplishments of one’s nation is not racist and that is what Amir is doing. What Bronco is doing is pointing out the success of some group of people and saying they succeed because of nefarious reasons. That is racist. If Jews succeed they do so because of their personal abilities, not because of anything else. But some people see conspiracies wherever they look and are therefore racists.

March 19th, 2012, 11:16 am

 

Juergen said:

JAD

Racism is not unique to one country, it does not differ between the people, even many intelligent folks suffer from it. JAD you should ask yourself how many prejudices you carry, by implying that East Germans are more or less all rascists.

Sure there is rascism in germany, as everywhere in this world. You are wrong that we segregate foreigners, or your claim that “Just two years ago the German Jewish Rabi start rebuilding their spiritual establishments.” Jews rebuilded their synagogues
from 1945 onwards, and jews came back in growing numbers since then.

Tara

I never thought that you have such an view on Germans.

March 19th, 2012, 11:30 am

 

jad said:

تحقيق للتلفزيون الهولندي يكشف عن جرائم “الجيش الحر” في قتل وتهجير العائلات الحمصية
عشرات المواطنين من أهالي حمص الأصليين هربوا بعد أن قتل مسلحو “كتيبة الفاروق” أقرباءهم ونكلوا بجثثهم أو خطفوهم لمجرد رفضهم المشاركة في التظاهرات!؟
{…}
التحقيق الذي أجري مطلع هذا الأسبوع ( منشور جانبا) يتناول قصصا لخمس عشرة عائلة يبلغ تعداد أفرادها أكثر من مئة فرد فروا من الأحياء التي يقيمون فيها إلى مناطق أخرى حيث يقيمون في الفنادق بمساعدة مؤسسات الدولة ، بعد أن هربوا من أحيائهم نتيجة للممارسات الإجرامية التي أقدم مسلحو “كتيبة الفاروق” على ارتكابها بحقهم ، بما في ذلك قتل وخطف بعض أبنائهم لعدم مشاركتهم في المظاهرات!

http://youtu.be/rkBxWu2IDwY

ويظهر أحد أفراد العائلة ( أو من أصدقائها) صورا ملتقطة بالموبايل داخل أحد المشافي لما فعله مجرمو ” كتيبة الفاروق” بحقهم من قتل وتمثيل بالجثث . ويقول هذا الشخص إن الصور التي رآها لأفعالهم جعله “يكره هؤلاء الثوريين إذا كانت تصح عليهم هذه التسمية ، فهم مجرمون” ، مضيفا القول” إن هؤلاء لا يقاتلون من أجل الحرية ، فمن يقاتل من أجل الحرية لا يقطّع الجثث ويرميها في الأنهار والشوارع”.

الزيارة الثانية التي قام بها موفد التلفزيون الهولندي كانت لأفراد عائلة ” سمير الحسين”، وهم من حي ” البياضة” . وهي عائلة قتل مسلحو ” الجيش السوري الحر” أحد أبنائها ، وهو سائق سيارة تكسي، بالسواطير!

اللافت ، كما يقول موفد القناة ، أن هؤلاء الذين تعرضوا للتنكيل بهم من قبل مجرمي ” كتيبة الفاروق”، هم من أبناء حمص الأصليين في الحارات والأحياء القديمة ، أو بتعبير آخر من المسلمين السنة الذي يفترض هؤلاء المجرمون أنهم ينطقون باسمهم، فهم يعتقدون أن الانتفاضة في سوريا هي ” ثورة سنة ضد النظام العلوي”، وأعجز ـ بسبب الأفكار الحيوانية التي يختزنونها في أدمغتهم ـ عن فهم الأمور إلا على هذا النحو!

http://www.syriatruth.org/news/tabid/93/Article/6962/Default.aspx

March 19th, 2012, 11:34 am

 

Aldendeshe said:

Don’t know… very much liked the crystal incrusted shoes but can’t imagine them on hum drum housewife looking woman that pays big bux for glossy magazines to promote herself as sophisticated and elegant international jet setting icon. My fashion oriented 11 y.o. said “hideously ugly” and 32 y.o. fashionable Russian wife thought they should come with a whip having leather strips incrusted with these same pointy crystals as well, who knows, it maybe does come with it.

It is not that I am into Goth and whips, tend to look at music and designs from an artistic freedom and point of view and appreciate creativity. It is not easy to come up with unique designs, on limited space, on object that need functionality as well. When I was in the socks and ties business it was very hard to use that little space to create something new, although did manage over 500 men sock designs and 7000 necktie patterns on small 4 inch space. I do keep one of each for me, so keep boxes of the stuff that my wife thinks should be throw away to make room for real clothing!!!

Moderator: take it easy will ya, we talking shoes here.

March 19th, 2012, 11:38 am

 

jad said:

What prejudice in telling the truth?

East Germans are the ones running the racist gangs in Germany attacking foreigner, why to hide reality and Jews in Germany didn’t come back until mid 90s.

“After German reunification in the 1990s, neo-Nazi groups gained more followers, mostly among disaffected teenagers in the former East Germany. These gangs were formed under the Communist regime which was founded after World War II and which collapsed in 1989. They have expressed an aversion to people from Slavic countries (especially Poland) and people of other national backgrounds who moved from the former West Germany into the former East Germany after Germany was reunited. Much of their ideology was similar to Strasserism.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-Nazism#Germany

About the Jews in Germany, here you go, learn your history:

“An important step for the renaissance of Jewish life in Germany occurred when, on January 27, 2003, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder signed the first-ever agreement on a federal level with the Central Council, so that Judaism was granted the same elevated, semi-established legal status in Germany as the Roman Catholic and Evangelical Church in Germany, at least since the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany of 1949.”

“A flagship moment for the burgeoning Jewish community in modern Germany occurred on November 9, 2006 (the 68th anniversary of Kristallnacht), when the newly constructed Ohel Jakob synagogue was dedicated in Munich, Germany.[38][39] This is particularly crucial given the fact that Munich was once at the ideological heart of Nazi Germany.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Germany#Jews_in_the_reunited_Germany_.28post-1990.29

“In 1993 a Jewish high school in Berlin was reopened for the first time since World War II.”

http://www.eurojewcong.org/ejc/news.php?id_article=81

March 19th, 2012, 11:49 am

 

jad said:

I just remember that you also wrote a very misleading information that Germany has no Constitution..How wrong is that???????

The German Constitution is the Grundgesetz.

Please don`t mislead others about Germany.

Germany is a great country with great people and is a model in its political and judicial system that should be look at and appreciate and love, but as any other country in the world it has its issue and pointing them out is very well understood.

Thank you!

March 19th, 2012, 11:55 am

 

zoo said:

Think tank: US intervention in Syria could require 300K troops, cost $300 billion
By Jeremy Herb – 03/19/12 11:54 AM ET

http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/policy-and-strategy/216683-think-tank-us-intervention-in-syria-could-take-300k-troops-300-billion
A think tank report says that U.S. intervention in Syria involving on-the-ground forces could require between 200,000 and 300,000 troops and cost up to $300 billion per year to be executed properly.

While no one is advocating a strategy involving an invasion, the report from the Brookings Institution’s Saban Center for Middle East Policy highlights the difficulties of accomplishing the Obama administration’s goal of removing Syrian President Bashar Assad from power.

The report lays out six ways that Assad’s ouster could occur, but it doesn’t any of the options. They range from a diplomatic solution — which the Obama administration supports — to a “Libya-like air campaign that’s backed by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), to a full-on invasion that would require significant troop numbers.”

“At the end of the day, however, removing Assad may not be doable at a price the United States is willing to pay,” the report states. “Although the Obama administration has for months called for Assad to go, every policy option to remove him is flawed, and some could even make the situation worse — seemingly a recipe for inaction.”
(..)

March 19th, 2012, 1:38 pm

 

Juergen said:

Bronco, everyone is having stereotypes and i am the last not to admit that. I dont know by what you distinguish that my country and its inhabitants think of themselves as being superior to anyone. Please point out to me by which action of our government since 1945 you’ll find evidence for that.

I am sorry, but your allegations about an israeli lobby group which includes all jews in the USA is not true nor does it fit an intelligent man like you to believe such things.

March 19th, 2012, 1:39 pm

 

zoo said:

More cards in the hands of Syria intelligence and more headache for Turkey. There is no mention if they entered legally or not.

Missing reporters’ location unknown: Turkish foreign minister
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/missing-reporters-location-unknown-turkish-foreign-minister.aspx?pageID=238&nID=16349&NewsCatID=338
ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News

There were no confirmed information on the whereabouts of two Turkish journalists who went missing in Syria, Turkey’s foreign minister has said today.
..
There were claims that the duo was captured by pro-regime militia and delivered to the Syrian intelligence.

March/19/2012

March 19th, 2012, 1:47 pm

 

bronco said:

#832 Juergen

First I never said all american Jews, I said most Jews. Just check how Finklestein and other anti-Israel Jews are treated by the american jewish lobby like AIPAC.

Superior race? Why becoming German has been so difficult? Just look at you naturalization law until 2000, unique in Europe. Was it xenophobia or the hidden intention that being ‘german’ is different than being italian or french?:

“German citizenship is based primarily on the principle of jus sanguinis. In other words one usually acquires German citizenship if a parent is a German citizen, irrespective of place of birth.

Under previous German law, children born to foreigners in Germany were not entitled to German citizenship by birth. This was modified in 1991.[100] In 2000, legislation was passed which conferred German citizenship on the German-born children of foreigners (born after 1990)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_nationality_law

March 19th, 2012, 2:07 pm

 

Akbar Palace said:

First I never said all american Jews, I said most Jews. Just check how Finklestein and other anti-Israel Jews are treated by the american jewish lobby like AIPAC.

Bronco,

Most Jews are pro-Israel, and most Arabs are pro-Palestinian.

Is that supposed to surprise us?

Jews, Palestinians, Arabs and Israelis will negotiate and make peace sooner or later.

The only thing that prevents that are those that continue to negate one side or the other. Hint: Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas and Syria (before she turned on her own people).

Germans and Israelis are not killing thousands of people. Germans and Israelis provide freedom for their respective citizens.

BTW – Finkelstein is very quiet about Assad’s killing spree. I hope this doesn’t surprise you either.

March 19th, 2012, 2:22 pm

 

Syrialover said:

My comment: A smoking gun in Bashar’s hand? Stand by for the rush of scorn and outrage from the anti-Aljazeera brigade. But we’ll see. These will have been under the microscope of international intelligence experts well before this report.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/03/20123191073517388.html

Papers prepared for President Assad by intelligence and security chiefs throw light on his strategy to quell protests.

Excerpts

The files provide an insight into President Bashar al-Assad’s strategy to suppress anti-government protests, including the lengths the government went to for protecting its strongholds.

….

One leaked paper spelled out clear orders to top officials to give financial and moral support to Assad’s supporters in Aleppo, the second major city.

The documents were passed on to Al Jazeera by Abdel Majid Barakat, who until recently was one of the government’s most trusted officials.

The former Baath party member, who was in charge of collating information from across Syria at the secret joint crisis management cell in Damascus, has fled to Turkey.

“For months, the opposition had a mole at the heart of Assad’s security apparatus working in this joint co-ordination cell that co-ordinates the work of all the intelligence agencies across the country,“ Al Jazeera’s James Bays, reporting from Turkey, said.

“This man was leaking information to the opposition. Finally he was compromised and realised that he had to get out of Syria to save his own life. As he left the country he took with him some of Syria’s most secret documents.”

…

Every evening at 7:00 pm Damascus time, there is a meeting of all the intelligence and security chiefs looking back at what happened across the country during the day, making their plans, making their orders for the next day,” our correspondent said.

“These orders then go to the office of the president the next morning and he himself signs all the orders, the final go ahead,“ he added.

March 19th, 2012, 2:30 pm

 
 

jad said:

[green arrow Thank you, Jad, for being alert to fairness. The issue for a moderator is targeting individuals for crimes or actions of a collective – be it a nation, a national government, religion, sect, or ethnic/linguistic/cultural group.

No one should be singled out for special attention and queries by virtue of group membership. Some commentators choose not to reveal their own national/ethnic/religious/professional allegiances and identities (me, Mina, Irritated, Ann, Ghufran, yourself). I respect the choice to retain the utmost anonymity.

It strikes me as unfair that anonymous commentators harry and at times badger a person (in this case Juergen) to speak for and answer for the nation (in this case, Germany). Would it be fair to demand of me or Irritated or Mina or anyone else who preserves anonymity that we must answer for the national history of our own (unknown) nations?

That is the question for me, Jad. Thanks for the opportunity to explain.

SCModeration@mail.com]

Moderator

Please do not delete any facts I post, especially when some people spread misleading information.

You can edit the part that you may disagree with but when facts are written you have to stay out of it.

There is a Constitution in Germany, The Jewish German community didn’t start building up until the 90s and my brother was attacked by East German racist group in a one of West Germany train station.

Those are FACTS and deleting them wont change reality.

Thank you

March 19th, 2012, 2:37 pm

 

jad said:

SC Moderator
Thank you for taking the time to explain.

I totally agree with your noble intention, and I know how difficult it is to moderate a tough crowd like us where every person is more stubborn than the other and I also agree that talking in general about other nations that we don’t really know is unfair, unjust and unethical some times, and we have no right whatsoever to write about them, unfortunately, Syria become an international subject that every person in the world now have the right to talk about and discuss, my stand is that when some of the people of the world start ‘preaching’ us about our own bleeding country, I find it very hard not to comments in the same spirit they do, especially when I know more details about the country of that person who is putting us down.

I honestly appreciate what you are doing and I’m thankful for having a balanced, fair and rational person like yourself taking over the moderator job.

I apologize if I make your work hard and I apologize if the ‘fact’ I put forward hurt some people’s feelings but at the same time, my country is the subject and foreign commentators need to know that we all, oppositions and loyalists, love our homeland and care about it more than anybody else and they need to be aware that any comment they write may be taken the wrong way and make some of us to reply not in the courtesy we suppose to, especially in times when we, Syrians, are seeing our homeland attacked and destroyed.

Thank you again.

March 19th, 2012, 3:01 pm

 

bronco said:

#848 AP

“Most Jews are pro-Israel, and most Arabs are pro-Palestinian.”

No, it does not surprise me. Israel has been using for years the propaganda that all Jews have no other choice than to support Israel otherwise they are self-hating Jews.

While half the Jews of the world live outside Israel, Israel has hijacked Jewishness because they need their financial and political support to ‘protect’ themselves by stealing Arab lands and then fighting to keep them.

Yet, it seems to surprise Juergen.

March 19th, 2012, 3:52 pm

 

Akbar Palace said:

No, it does not surprise me. Israel has been using for years the propaganda that all Jews have no other choice than to support Israel otherwise they are self-hating Jews.

Bronco,

Please show us a link showing that the GOI has stated that “Jews have no other choice than to support Israel otherwise they are self-hating Jews”. That’s a silly assertion. Both Jews and Arabs in Israel (and in the USA) are free to support whomever they want. No one gets thrown in jail for their opinions, except perhaps in Syria.

And what about Joseph Farah, Wafa Sultan, and Anwar Malek? Are they self-hating arabs?

I think everyone has the right to their opinions. Therefore, it is no surprise that most arabs and Jews support Palestine and Israel, respectively. Is it more complicated than that?

While half the Jews of the world live outside Israel, Israel has hijacked Jewishness because they need their financial and political support to ‘protect’ themselves by stealing Arab lands and then fighting to keep them.

How has Israel “hijacked” anyone? Apparently Israel hasn’t “hijacked” Norman Finkelstein. How is that? Does Norman Finkelstein have some sort of special anti-Zionist x-ray beam that prevents him from being a Zionist? Arabs and Jews are free to support whomever they want both in Israel and in the US. Tell us, what has AIPAC done to prevent you from supporting the Palestinians.

Yet, it seems to surprise Juergen.

What exactly surprises Juergen. I must have missed something.

March 19th, 2012, 4:50 pm

 

Mina said:

Bronco,

F. Hollande would have a jewish mother? That’s the craziest thing i’ve heard lately. This is the common rumour spread out by people before an election when they don’t want the French to vote for someone (and give a chance to Sarkozy, by voting for a small candidate). Indeed, Melenchon is an amazing orator, but he is a one-man-party. No one knows who he would have for ministers etc.

F. Hollande’s father was a member of an extreme right-wing party, and his mother had the Frenchiest name you can imagine (Nicole Frédérique Marguerite Triber)

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fran%C3%A7ois_Hollande

The source of this information is either a strong Sarkozy supporter of someone who got stuck with the Strauss-Kahn candidacy and did not hear that the Socialists had a new candidate.

March 19th, 2012, 5:09 pm

 

Leo Syriacus said:

Very interesting debate involving Juergen and Bronco regarding Germans and Jews, I would like to add the following to what has been said:
* Germans,Israelis,Americans,Syrians..etc are like all other humans many of them are enlightened and educated and consider other people as INDIVIDUALS and treat them well and some are racist and hold ignorant prejudice and unprovoked hatred against others..this is seen in every society and every community
* The states in most democracies are secular and non-prejudiced despite the claims of discrimination from many communities ( Jews,Africans, Asians, Latinos, Arabs, and Muslims )..even when individuals may be racist, the law is not and the state is not
* The success of the Jewish community in Europe and North America is due to the individual abilities of many of its members and their good connections in the establishment..if anything you can notice that in the US and Canada people from Oriental background are largely successful in academia, professions, and business and they have surpassed the Jews ..so those who scream “Jewish Conspiracy” should put away Mein Kampf and come back to reality

There are thugs everywhere, racists everywhere and violent people everywhere but there are many more decent people..and decent people deserve,elect, and maintain decent govenments

March 21st, 2012, 1:09 pm

 

Leo Syriacus said:

Sarkozy is half-Jewish, Obama is part-Muslim, India had at one time a Muslim president and a Sikh prime minister, Obama and Sarkozy are sons of immigrants, Angela Merkel and Margaret Thatcher are women…in democracies able and competent people from both genders and any background can lead parties that are institutions that operate according to democratic and secular ideals and serve their people

March 21st, 2012, 1:17 pm

 

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