/سينو غلوب/ الصينية تعرض قرضاً على الحكومة السورية قيمته 20 مليار دولار
08/08/2011

عرضت الحكومة الصينية ممثلة بشركة “سينو غلوب” القابضة المحدودة تمويل وتنفيذ مشروعات استراتيجية في سورية وفق قرض مقدم بقيمة /20/ مليار دولار يتضمن تمويل الطرق الدولية وتجديد السكك الحديدية ومترو ومرافئ جافة لتصنيع وتصليح السفن ومشاريع مياه من جميع الأنواع، إضافة لكافة مجالات الاستثمارات بمختلف القطاعات، ويتم تسديد القرض خلال مدة 5-20 سنة، على ان يتم التنفيذ والتمويل تحت سقف الحكومة الصينية، وذلك بهدف دعم سورية شعباً وحكومة، بمحاولة العمل خارج حدود البيروقراطية.

بحسب الذي نقل الخبر أنّه وبموجب كتاب مقدم من قبل الشركة إلى رئيس مجلس الوزراء عادل سفر جاء فيه ” نحن اتحاد حكومي صيني يتألف من/11/شركة إنشاء ومقاولات وتطوير مشاريع، ولدينا شركاء وشراكات استراتيجية مع شركاء من مختلف قطاعات الصين والمدن الكبيرة، بحيث نقوم بتأمين مشاريع إنشائية وتنموية كبيرة في مختلف أرجاء العالم، كما نتطلع إلى علاقات مشتركة مع سورية لتنفيذ مشاريع يخطط لها من قبل المعنيين بسورية وفق برنامج” تشاينا بايرز” للتمويل، والذي سيكون ذو فائدة كبيرة لسورية وخطة تطويره منظمة، بحيث نملك القدرة على إقامة مشاريع استراتيجية، كما لدينا مبدئياً الضوء الأخضر لإقامة مشاريع بالمبلغ المذكور.

كما أعلن رئيس قسم الاستثمارات الأجنبية – قسم التجارة في مقاطعة سيشوان في جمهورية الصين الشعبية بموجب كتاب مقدم لرئيس مجلس الوزراء عن دعم جميع الشركات الصينية كي تقوم بمشاريع في سورية بهدف تعزيز الصداقة بين كلا الشعبين والحكومتين، كما تم الإعلان عن مساعدة الشركاء الصينيين وتمويل كل المشاريع الحكومية.

I am not sure if Dr. Landis agrees with me that the pressure that Arabic countries and the international community have put on the Syrian regime last week is the precursor of a continuously mounting pressure (that we will see till the fall of the regime). These developments indicate Bashar, unlike his father, lacks the sense of the reality, the resilience and the shrewdness. Although I did not agree with Hafez Assad vision for Syria, I admired his charisma. I admired his strong the sense of the reality, the resilience and the shrewdness. When Salah Jedid was irritating Israel by firing artilleries from the Golan Heights onto the Galilee Valley, which is was one of the reasons for 1976 war, Hafez Assad understood that was a stupid strategy. Hafez Assad stopped these immature acts and developed the so- called “the strategic balance with Israel theory followed by peace negotiations” (I won’t discuss herein what went wrong with strategy thereafter). When Turkey put >30000 soldiers on the Syrian border in 1998, Hafez Assad did not move any. He did not panic. However, he understood that he should hand over Oujlan. As you see from both examples, Hafez Assad had strong sense of the reality, the resilience and the shrewdness. Unfortunately, Bashar has no sense of the reality; he does not know his strength and weaknesses; he does not know what provoke other people anger; he does not understand what could be done what could not. Bashar has no resilience: once he takes a line of actions he is too stiff; he is not able to change or retreat in the right moment. His discourse is the always the same; if people do not respond favorably to his words, it means that they are the one who do not understand (not his words are not the right words). Lastly, for all the reasons mentioned above Bashar lacks the social intelligence and the shrewdness; in other words, he does not understand the signs of the times. In brief, if Hafez Assad had Charisma but lacked the right vision for Syria, Bashar lacks both. For all these reason, the Arabic and International pressure will continue mounting on the regime and Bashar will not be able to deal with it appropriately.

Dear Dr. Landis,
Have you ever looked into the fact that a few of the so called supporters of the regime on this blog, sound more like members of the regime than ordinary civilians? I think that there is an effert on the part of the Syrian government to infilterate blogs and disrupt conversations. If you follow some of the posts you can see certain coordination among some posters. There are also vicious attacks like the one that was perpetrated on Tara.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QF6pq1c9iAA
+

Although I agree with Sheila (post#2). However, we can not stop them as long as there is no personal attacks. The Syrians (from both aisles) have not been able to discuss freely for 53 years (1958). I think to let everybody present their own view is important. I does not matter whether these views are partial or impartial or they are ingenuous or disingenuous. The Syrians in general tend to be very opinionated and very emotional when they express their opinions. The discussions taking place in this forum is the best cure for that.

The Gulf States moved when their extended tribal branches in Syria came under attack.

al-Assad, on the other hand, had no other choice but to attack strong knowing the consequences and the realities on the ground. He thinks ,obviously, that the Gulf states are not going to affect things more that what they have been doing since the start of the troubles in march of this year.

Probably the multi-wived kings and Emirs of the Gulf had wives from that part of Syria. The timing of their stance is obvious. They did not move when Dar’a was under attack, or Homs or Hama. They started going strong when the Eastern tribal Part of Syria came into chaos and violence.

Iran is going to come in support of al-Assad. This is guaranteed %100. The confrontation in Syria is the war by proxy between Iran vs Saudia Arabia and the rest of the Persian Gulf/Arabic Gulf Sunni rulers.

The Gulf States, with their Sunni leaders and decision makers, were at war vs. the Alawi al-Assad since the beginning of events in Dar’a in march. The Gulf States hosted the TV stations that aired around the clock anti Assad programs and anti-Alawi ideas. It was obvious that the meddling in Syria had started a long time ago. The Sunni collective is working well before the start of events in Syria.

The interference of the Gulf State meant that Syria will lose all the secular gains it achieved through the past. The Gulf States never produced anything progressive.

Memo To: HAYTHAM KHOURY

RE: “…although I did not agree with Hafez Assad vision for Syria, I admired his charisma. I admired his strong the sense of the reality, the resilience and the shrewdness…”

Shrewd, maybe. But the old man is as much to blame for the current situation as Junior is. And if he were alive today and running Syria, he’d be as clueless as Besho. The main problem is, he regarded Syria not as a country so much as his own private estate. So much so that he saw nothing wrong with “giving” Syria to Bashar on his death. Like there was no one out of 23 million Syrians more qualified to run the country than a London ophthalmologist named Assad.

Hafez Assad was no different from any other dictator in the world. He enriched himself and his family, he set back the growth of his country and he killed any Syrian who opposed him. His death was not mourned and no one thinks of his years at the helm as “the good old days.”

One by one, his statues are being smashed. Which is as it should be…

Syrian troops gradually withdraw from Hama, as normalcy restored: official
Source: XINHUA | 2011-8-8
http://www.shanghaidaily.org/article/article_xinhua.asp?id=8240
DAMASCUS, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) — An official military source said Monday army troops are withdrawing from the central city of Hama after accomplishing their mission in restoring normalcy to the city.

Quoted by the official SANA news agency, the source said the army had conducted a “qualitative” operation in Hama, which helped confront the armed groups that terrorizing people and cut off city streets as well as sabotaging public and private properties.

Army unites arrested a number of the armed men and life is gradually returning to normalcy, the source concluded as saying.

Meanwhile, army troops exhumed the bodies of 14 police personnel and three civilians killed by armed groups, and dumped in Hama’s Orontes River, according to a Xinhua reporter who accompanied Sunday a government-organized trip to the scene.

Syria’s state-run television aired last week an amateur video footage, showing armed men in Hama shooting at government forces and dumping their bodies in the Orontes River.

According to activists, Hama has been under siege since last week and the electricity and phone services have been cut off, while the authorities claimed that the army was confronting armed men, who had intimidated people and sabotaged private and public properties.

The city has a storied history of rebellion against the Syrian leadership and was a stronghold of the banned Muslim Brotherhood, which staged a bloody rebellion in 1982.

Syrian refugees in Turkey drop to 7,292
2011-08-08 21:34:04
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-08/08/c_131036624.htm
ANKARA, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) — The number of Syrian refugees who fled the violence in their country and took shelter in Turkey dropped to 7,292 on Monday, a Turkish official statement said.

A total of 35 Syrians have returned to their country on Aug. 7 and 8, according to the statement released by the Turkish Prime Ministry Disaster and Emergency Management Directorate (AFAD).

A total of 16,286 Syrian citizens have crossed into Turkey so far, but 8,994 of them have returned to their country.

Syrians are staying in six temporary tent-sites set up by Turkish Red Crescent in Altinozu, Yayladagi, Reyhanli towns and Apaydin village of Turkey’s southern province of Hatay.

ومن يبتغ غير الإسلام ديناً فلن يقبل منه!؟ هههههههههه
by LOOKING at the picture above,,,I must conclude that when the photo shoot took place?was either april fools,s day or halaween party!! cuz its An oxymoron to see the beauty and the beast togather……

Dear HAYTHAM

Your post #2 pretty much describes the sentiments many Syrians of the 40-50 years generation felt about Father and Son until very recently.

You are right, Hafez had a good sense of reality, but he also had the ability to make realities. Bashar, on the other hand can not make realities so he resorts to pathetic mouthpieces and propaganda to make-up realities and to believe the sycophants’ chants not recognizing that as Aboud said these chants could have easily been for any of his brothers if it was Dady’s choice. There is a huge difference between making reality and making-up reality. Hafez was a brutal dictator, but he has cultivated a larger than life image greatly helped by mythical stories that are usually told about strong-men who overcome their conditions and rise to the top of the pecking order. His main mistake, which undid his legacy was to insist on being inherited by one of his children. Looking back, It is now obvious that Hafez has misjudged history, despite of his shrewdness, and in his search for Dynasty so that his legacy can be protected and well-managed, has in the end completely obliterated that legacy. Had anyone else, a capable comrade been his successor, Hafez’s legacy would have been that of a brutal dictator, whose brutality would have been justified, at least by some, as needed by the era he operated within and the type of adversaries he confronted. It is too late now, his statues are being demolished with vengeance, his brutality is being revisited by the victims of his son’s who, most likely are the sons of his victims and his place in history is now that of the brutal-dictator and the father of the fool who lost it all.

I know for sure that good and honest advisers have advised him against establishing a dynasty, but his mistrust, his ego, and his pre-occupation with his place in history made it very hard for him to entrust his legacy to the people of Syria. You have captured it rather well, he lacked the right vision for Syria.

They killed Haitham Mana’a brother in Dera’a. Guilt by association.
This is a country run by a bunch of brats, supporting them are a bigger bunch of selfish, shortsighted and fearful citizens.

When will we all come to our senses?

selected paragraphs from mahdi darius nazemroaya re media lies about libya. same also applies to syria.

http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=25637

The mainstream media has been a major force in this war. They have endorsed and fabricated the news, they have justified an illegal and criminal war against an entire population.

Passing through the neighbourhood of Fashloom in Tripoli it is apparent that no jets attacked it as Al Jazeera and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) falsely claimed. Now the same media networks, newspapers, and wires claim on a daily basis that Tripoli is about to fall and that the Transitional Council is making new advances to various cities. Tripoli is nowhere near falling and is relatively peaceful. Foreign journalists have also all been taken to the areas that are being reported to have fallen to the Transitional Council, such as Sabha and its environs.

The mainstream media reporting out of Tripoli have consistently produced false reports. They report about information from “secure internet services” which essentially describes embassy and intelligence communication media. This is also tied to the “shadow internet” networks that the Obama Administration is promoting as part of a fake protest movement directed against governments around the world, including Latin America, Africa and Eurasia.

The foreign press operating out of Libya have deliberately worked to paint a false picture of Libya as a country on the brink of collapse and Colonel Qaddafi as a despot with little support.

Not only are they actively misreporting, but are serving the interests of the military coalition. They are actively working “against Libya.” They and their editors have deliberately fashioned reports and taken pictures and footage which have been used to portray Tripoli as an empty ghost town.

Much of what is being passed on as news by foreign reporters on the ground is a mirror of the US-NATO’s fake humanitarian mandate.

They have helped portray the victim as the aggressor. They use every chance they have to demonize the Libyan government, while upholding the legitimacy of NATO. Essentially many of these so-called journalists are professional propagandists.

Syria Is Hacked By Anonymous, And Pressed By Gulf Allies
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/08/08/139094501/syria-is-hacked-by-anonymous-and-pressed-by-gulf-allies?ft=1&f=1001

Syria’s President Bashar Assad has removed the country’s defense minister and replaced him with the army chief of staff, according to Syria’s state-run news agency. The change, one of several in key government posts, comes during Syria’s “brutal crackdown on a five-month-old uprising” against Assad, the AP reports.

That crackdown is bringing pressure on Syria and Assad from nearly all quarters. As Eyder reported earlier, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have now recalled their ambassadors. Here’s a quick rundown of other developments:

* Turkey’s foreign minister will visit Damascus Tuesday, to give Assad a “decisive message,” says Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan. But Reuters reports that an Assad aide has already warned that the minister “would be given short shrift.”
* The hacker group Anonymous attacked Syria’s Ministry of Defense website, according to The Washington Post’s Faster Forward blog, which said “the logo of the group appeared on the Web site with a message in Arabic” and one in English. The English note, split into two parts, expressed admiration for the Syria’s civilian protesters, and urged the country’s military to protect the Syrian people and defend their nation against Assad. The website has been taken down, but you can see a screengrab of it at the image site imgur.
* The Arab League also spoke out against Assad, with Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby expressing “strong distress over the deteriorating security conditions in Syria due to escalating violence and military operations.”

A new military offensive that was part of the crackdown continued until around noon Monday, according to reports.

Details have been scarce, as Syria has also tightened restrictions on the media. But Al-Jazeera collected some accounts, reporting that in the eastern city of Deir ez-Zor, “the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that security forces had shot dead a mother and her two children fleeing the assault.”

That city was reportedly stormed by soldiers and tanks early Monday morning, just as the call to prayer brought people out into the streets.

“We have just been speaking to activists in Deir ez-Zor,” al-Jazeera’s Nisreen el-Shamayleh said, “and right now as we speak several snipers are controlling the top of buildings in the heart of the city.”

The BBC summarizes the broader situation like this, with an important caveat:

Human rights activists say at least 1,700 civilians have been killed and tens of thousands arrested since the uprising began in mid-March. More than 300 people are believed to have died in the past week alone.

Access to Syria has been severely restricted for international journalists and it is rarely possible to verify accounts by witnesses and activists.

changing the defense minister in the middle of a crisis is not usually done for health reasons as SANA said. A new leadership is needed to prepare the army for the most critical role it played in Syria’s affairs since 1973. events in Syria are narrowing the options for Syrians to end this crisis,I maintain my position that Bashar needs to resign and the army must take over the government,stops bloodshed,and supervise a transitional period that ends with free elections.I do not know what Bashar is waiting for.

Syrians will decide at the end, but the game is being rigged. If Syrians wish to remain secular state, demonstrations will not increase in month or two, no matter other Gulf states proclaim. It’s quite likely this will happen, in my opinion.
The game is rigged, because it’s almost certain that other Gulf states, USA and Europe will push further. They have means to inflict years of unrest and they will. They have influence, money. Just look as Libya. Rebels there are a minority and attacking. That does not stop NATO to are clearly support one side no matter what it does. And Libya was rich, unlike Syria. Btw, Gaddafi has only himself to blame. What was he thinking, trying to pay off West and trusting them, without having a strong army ready?

Strong pray on weak and vultures are gathering now on Syria. It will be sad if I see only real secular state (along with Israel, somewhat) on ME getting destroyed by politics. I fully agree with num. 6 last two sentences.
I wish Syrians will be sensible enough to avert civil war.

I should agree with Dale Andersen this time

I should agree with “OFF THE WALL”, too.

As you can see guys. There is no one opinion that is completely right. For this reason, I happy to have this forum for the Syrians to discuss.

Abughassan,

The new defence minister is a Christian. The constitution will make it hard for him to “take over”.

very few loved saddam hussein when in power. now that he is gone, replaced by america’s gifts of: democracy, freedoms, and infrastructures and wealth, iraqis would kiss saddam’s feet with love.

america’s gifts would gladly and with interest be returned.

the libyans understand and they fight for their leader, the brave and just qadhdhafi, and for their country.

DEBKA merrily admits that hama ‘protestors’ have ‘anti-tank weapons’

Turkey revives military threat as Syrian tanks storm Deir al-Zour
DEBKAfile, Aug 7 2011
http://niqnaq.wordpress.com/2011/08/08/debka-merrily-admits-that-hama-protestors-have-anti-tank-weapons/

After capturing the northern town of Hama in a bloody military assault, on Sunday Aug 7 Assad sent a whole division of 200 tanks and dozens of armored vehicles to blast their way into another rebellious city, Syria’s oil center of Deir el-Zour in the Euphrates Valley, a town of half a million inhabitants. At least 70 people were reported dead in one day. While Hama is a Muslim Brotherhood stronghold, Deir el-Zour is the urban center of some 2.1 million members of assorted nomadic Bedouin tribes. They too are Sunni Muslims though of different sects. The Baqqara tribal federation is the largest, numbering 1.2 million, followed by the Fadan Walad and the Fadan Kharsa of the Euphrates Valley and the al Shammar Karsah of Deir al Zour and its environs. Unlike the protesters of Hama, these tribesmen lack anti-tank weapons for battling Syrian armor and so their town may not hold out against the Syrian onslaught beyond two or three days. The tribesmen have meanwhile run for cover to the dense papyrus groves of the river bank and the narrow wadis of the Iraqi al Anbar province just across the border. From these hiding places, our military sources expect them refugees to organize protracted guerrilla warfare against the Assad regime and Syrian army. These are the very tribes which from 2003 to 2006 joined al Qaeda in bloody warfare on US forces in central Iraq, preventing Anbar and the central Iraqi towns of Falujja and Ramadi ever being completely subdued and constantly convulsed by suicide attacks. It was only when Bush 43 agreed to implement the Awakening Councils plan put forward by Gen Petraeus, which involved substantial monthly payments to the tribal chiefs for warfare against al Qaeda, that Al Anbar was pacified.

Aware of the menace posed by these tribes, Syrian security services last week, ahead of the Deir el-Zour offensive, captured the Baqqara tribal chief Sheikh Nawaf al-Bashir as hostage against the tribes joining the uprising against the regime. Syrian military intelligence will find him a tough nut to crack, even for a heavy bribe. The upshot may well be that although the Syrian army finally subjugates Deir al-Zour and Abu Kemal on the Iraqi border, its forces will be cornered by Sunni tribes which control the road networks around the two eastern towns and prey to their raids. Assad’s offensive against the two towns also places at risk Syria’s small oil fields and pipeline system. Their daily product of $8m-$10m is his primary source of revenue for sustaining his war on the uprising and they will certainly become a prime strategic target for the resistance. Turkish PM Erdogan decided to send foreign minister Davutoglu to Damascus on Tuesday Aug 9, after declaring Saturday:

Our patience is running thin and we cannot remain a bystander to the violence but must do what is necessary. Davutoglu will deliver our message in a more determined way. A new process will take shape according to their response and actions. We do not see Syria as a foreign problem, Syria is our domestic problem because we have a 850 km border with this country, we have historical and cultural ties, we have kinship.

This was the last warning from Ankara, and therefore NATO, that Turkey was about to intervene militarily in Syria, after maintain army units on the Syrian border for weeks. On Friday Aug 5, Russia’s NATO ambassador Dmitry Rogozin accused NATO of planning a military campaign against Syria to help overthrow the Assad regime “with the long-range goal of preparing a beachhead for an attack on Iran.”

Now the US has unleashed all its dogs on Syria and all in synchrony.

Call us whatever you want, Shabihha, Shia kuffar, Alawiyeh, Mindasseen, aish ma biddak ya akhi. Bass we are the people, the Syrian People and we are still the majority.

We are the people, the Syrian People.

The Syrian People want freedom, yes, but not in this way. We want freedom without our country to be another base for the US, like Saudi Arabia (the US’ whore) and others.

I go for the Syrian army to protect our towns and to bring order again. They want to talk lets talk, but don’t rush on the streets and call for the fall of the regime, if the regime falls we will kill each other like dogs.

Syria was our home, a peaceful one at least and Israel was angry about that, we were doing good my friends! I agree, few people had the money, they stole it, they took it from our mouth OK, but hey we were living and mahlana!!! You think America will let us prosper???? do you really think that? Israel being at our door???

Wake up people. Saudi Arabia is at it from the beginning. Arabs against arabs is what they want. hahahahahaaha Saudi Arabia?? hahahahahaha now SA is the nice country that wants Syrians to be free?? hahahahahaaha

We will fight and it will get ugly friends.

signed: SHABIHAHAHA

Dear EHSANI

Think tanks close to intelligence circles in the US have been pushing the names of Generals Habib and Rajha as pro-western generals who could lead an internal coup against the Assad clan, and enjoy some initial, much necessary support among the professional rank and files, especially the very senior and upper tier officers.

By removing Habib and moving Rajha from Chief of Staff (the more influential within officers’ rank) to the ministerial post, it is likely now that Brother in Law, General Asef Shawkat, who is now the Deputy Chief of Staff will be promoted to that very influential post. Rajha’s time window to act, if he ever does, is very short one, and being a Christian does not prevent him from leading a military council. But without the Chief of Staff, any action by the minister of defense can easily be overcome by special loyal units. In all cases, assuming the unlikely scenario that he does act, he would not have to be sworn as president because the presence of Military Council nullify’s that seat by default, even without suspending the flawed constitution.

Dear Off The Wall,

I kept it more cryptic.

Dear EHSANI
I now realize that, facepalm with regret and a big DUH…

Seems that I do deserve one of Aboud’s legendary remarks….

Dear Ehsani,
Facepalm, with regret and big Duh. I should have known better.

anyone confirm the rumour that Ali Habib is dead?

Isn’t General Habib the same guy who commanded the Syrian Division in the First Gulf War under the command of Lt. General Khalid of Saudi Arabia ? Has he died ? We know who killed him.

Abu Ghassan : How can u promise that if the Militart takes over, the blooshed will stop ? How can you promise the people will not be pacified ? How can you promise that people will not stop coming out on the streets, and how can you promise that the Army will not attack them ? Besides, the Republican Guard and 4th Division will launch a counter-coup, many Alawi officers consider the Assad family nothing less than a demigod.

Btw, what is General Mustafa Tlass doing ? Anybody heard anything about that old clown ? Wonder what he would have done in such a situation. Its almost tailor-made for him.

Mjabali

“The interference of the Gulf State meant that Syria will lose all the secular gains it achieved through the past. The Gulf States never produced anything progressive.”

What secular gains ? ever since the Baath came to power in 1963 Syrian society saw nothing but secular LOSSES, the Syrian society in the 60s was way more liberal and open-minded than it is today, and another few decades of Al Baath will surely turn Syria into another Afghanistan.

Can Syria play dirty with the gulf states?
سورية وتثوير شيعة الخليج
عبد الباري عطوان
http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.​asp?fname=today7z999.htm&arc=data\20118​8-077z999.htm
“احد المتحدثين باسم النظام السوري فاجأنا بالامس عندما اماط اللثام وبصورة فجة، عن إمكانية الانزلاق الى هذه الهاوية الطائفية، اثناء لقاء اجرته معه محطة ‘العربية’ الفضائية في برنامجها ‘بانوراما’،عندما قال إن دول الخليج تستضيف مؤتمرات للمعارضة السورية على اراضيها، وتطلق فضائيات تحرّض طائفيا ضد سورية، وحذر، او بالاحرى، هدد، بأن بلاده تستطيع القيام بالشيء نفسه، وتحرك الاقليات، او الجماعات الشيعية في الدول الخليجية ضد انظمتها، ولكنها امتنعت عن ذلك حتى الآن بسبب التزام قيادتها بالمنطلقات القومية والفكر العلماني المناهض للطائفية بأشكالها كافة.
***
التحذير خطير، ورسالة مقصودة، فلا احد يتحدث عبر الفضائيات من الناطقين باسم النظام دون تنسيق مسبق مع مرجعياته في معظم الحالات، ان لم يكن كلها. فالنظام في سورية ما زال متماسكا، وان كان قد انهك من قبل طرقات مطرقة الاحتجاجات الموجعة، فلم نسمع حتى الآن عن اي انشقاقات مهمة في سلكه الدبلوماسي او السياسي، على غرار ما حدث في دول اخرى مثل اليمن وليبيا. ولكن هذا لا يعني انه في الوقت الذي فقد فيه الكثير من شرعيته بفعل اندلاع المظاهرات والاحتجاجات في معظم المدن والبلدات، باستثناء مركزين رئيسيين هما حلب ودمشق، ما زال يملك بعض الاوراق المرعبة والتحالفات التي لا يمكن التقليل من شأنها.
السلطات السورية تشتكي من وجود بعض الجماعات المسلحة التي تطلق النار على قواتها، وهناك ادلة على صحة بعض التقارير في هذا الخصوص، وهذا امر متوقع على اي حال، فعندما تتعرض المدن واهلها لهجمات دموية من قبل قوات الامن والجيش، فمن غير المستغرب ان يلجأ بعض الافراد الى السلاح دفاعا عن النفس، فلكل قاعدة شواذ، ولكن الغالبية الساحقة من الاحتجاجات سلمية الطابع، والغالبية الساحقة من الشهداء هم من المدنيين العزل.
ما نخشاه ان تتطور الاوضاع الى حرب اهلية طائفية، خاصة ان جهات عديدة تدفع باتجاهها وبقوة هذه الايام، داخلية وخارجية، وهذه الحرب لو اندلعت لن تحرق سورية فقط، وانما المنطقة بأسرها. فهل تتعظ السلطات السورية، وتوقف مجازرها لوقف هذا السيناريو المرعب قبل حدوثه.. وتفسح المجال للاصلاحات التي تتحدث عنها دون ان نراها.. نأمل ذلك؟

هذا وطن ………………. بقلم عصام حسن
by Issam Hassan

على دلعونة،وعلى دلعونة، بَيْ، بَيْ،الغربة الوطن حنونا.الأغنية الشهيرة،التي دبكْنا على أنغامها حتى اهترأتْ نعالنا.الأغنية الحزينة،التي بكينا عند سماعها حتى جفّت مآقينا،الأغنية التي خالطتْ كؤوسنا من العرق،فما احتجنا ماءً،ولا ثلجاً،ولا مازا.بَيْ بَيْ الغربة الوطن حنونا.هذه شتيمة يا سادة.انظروا لعظمة أجدادنا جعلوا من الشتيمة أغنية،وأي أغنية.وجاء لاحقاً من يضيف يا طير الطاير قللو مشتاقة… وبدي من زهوري توديلو باقة… يا طير وقللو بكرا منتلاقا… ومش رح ننساكم يلي نسيتونا.أغنية اختزلت وطناً بكل تفاصيله.الحزينة،المفرحة،المتألمة،المتأملة،أغنية قالها الأجداد ببساطة،وإيمان.كما قارئ يجوّد القرآن.وطنكم قرآنكم،وإنجيلكم،وتوراتكم،وما تؤمنون،أولا تؤمنون.قبلّوه قبل أن تلمسوه،رتلوه،وبأجمل الأنغام جوِّدوه،قولوا آآآه بعد كل نسمة هواء،وبعد كل شربة ماء.ثم آآآه و آآآه..لتفتح أزهار اللوز،و السنجريق،وسحر أزهار المشمش الهش،وآآآه من القلب قولوها لرائحة الزعتر الأخضر،وطَّيون الصباح النديّ،ولرائحة ترابه بعد أول الأمطار في الشتاء لا أدري ماذا ستقولون، فقط قفوا تحت حبات المطر،افتحوا صدوركم،وقلوبكم،واستنشقوا حتى الإغماء.وتذكروا،هذا الوطن،هو اللحد،هو المهد،هذا نعيش من أجله،أوقد نموت.

من جعل من وطني هذا مسخرة؟من جعل الوطن الحنونا شيئاً بعيد المنال.من استبدل مواقع الكلمات فصارت تُغنّى بَيْ،بَيْ الوطن الغربة حنونا.أتظنون هذا شيئاً بسيطاً؟هذا كفر لا تنقلوه.شهقتكم الأولى لن تغفر لكم لو فعلتم.ركبكم التي أكلت منها أحجار الرصيف لن تغفر لكم.لن تغفر لكم قضوضات السكر،ولا الحامض حلو،ولا قضبان المعلل.أين ستهربون من بقايا الزبيب في جيوبكم،والكعك المحلَّى بالسكر،والحليب،وجوزة الطيب.اشرحوا لي من فضلكم،ماذا ستصنعون بطعم الزيتون الأخضر تحت أضراسكم؟ أوالمكدوس وما فيه من جوز ولوز وزيت،أي معطّر سيزيل من أفواهكم رائحة ثومه،سوى نعناع حديقتكم تقطفونه،وأنتم جالسون.وأي شاي على شرفات بيوتكم ستشربون؟ أتظنون أن بَيْ،بَيْ الوطن شتيمة تُحْتمل؟جرِّبوا أن تخلطوها بكؤوسكم مع العرق،كما كنتم تفعلون،ها قد فعلتم،أين هذا من ابيضاض الفرح الذي كنتم تنظرون.انظروا ! كأسكم يفيض دماً،لا تقربوه،لا تشربوه،الآن…الآن…حُرِّم عليكم.يا بني أمي،اجتنبوه.

إذا كنتَ مسؤولاً تعيثُ فساداً في مفاصل الدولة،هل سيكون وطنك وطن الشرفاء منّا ؟إذا كنت ثرياً تتباهى بثرائك،هل سيكون وطنك وطن الفقراء منّا؟ إذا كنت سجّاناً،هل سيكون وطنك وطن الأبرياء منّا؟هل يحق لي أن اكره وطني؟هل يحق لوطني أن يلفظني؟هل الوطن كلمة تقال كيفما كان؟ سأخون وطني،هكذا الماغوط قال.هل بهذه الطريقة الأوطان تُخانْ؟هل تنتظرون مني إجابات على ما سبق؟ها أنا على غير عادتي أجيب.وطن الفاسد وطني،قبل فساده.وطن الثري وطني،قبل ثرائه.وطن السجّان وطني قبل سجونه،لا يحق لي أن أكره وطني.وحقي عليه ألّا يلفظني.الوطن ليس كلمة تقال،و الماغوط أعلن انحيازه للوطن،لمن يفهم المقال،وما تبرّأ،وما خان،وما هكذا الأوطانُ تُخانْ.لن أتبرأ من وطني لأجل أحد من هؤلاء.هذا وطنٌ مضى،هذا وطنٌ كانْ.لهم شتيمتهم،ولي شتائمي،لهم دلعونتهم،ولي دلعونتي.ولأولادي،وأحفادي منها ما يشتهون،ستقضي وتحكم بيننا الأيام،سترون..أغمض عينيَّ،أغفو بسلام.أرى وطني يبتسمُ لي،أشرق بدمعي،وابتسم،آه…كمْ يحلو الابتسام.أصحو سعيداً،أجد نفسي أدندن لحناً غريباً أضفت إليه بعض الكلام،أظنه ترجمةً لشيء سمعته من الحمام.اعذروا سوء ترجمتي لم أتقن بعد لغة الحمام.

افردْ ذراعيكَ يا فتى،هذا وطنْ يصبو إليكْ…افردْ ذراعيكَ على المدى،ها قد أتى ينشدْ يديكْ…ضُمَّ الوطنْ،شُمَّ الوطنْ،قبّلْ تراباً،لَمْ تَزَلْ منه أتيتْ…افتحْ مسامكَ للندى خلي الندى يطرح شذا يزهر عليكْ. كل جراحك قد شَدَتْ يحيا الوطنْ،يسمو الوطنْ،طابَ لها شَدْوٌ لك تاقتْ إليه…عفّرْ جبينكَ بالثَرى،هذا تبرْ،أغلى تبرْ انثرْ عليكْ…ماءُ الوطنْ ها قدْ هطلْ افرشْ رداءكَ اتقي دمع عينيكْ…عطّرْ ليالي مَنْ سَهرْ يحمي القمرْ يُلقي إليهِ مِنَ الزهرْ ما قَدْ شَعَرْ يرنو إليه…تلكَ الغيوم لا تزلْ تُهدي إليكَ مِنَ الجبلْ بَرقَ الرعودِ وما حَمَلْ،هذي غِلالٌ مِنْ أَمَلْ،هذي مواسمْ؟قُلْ أَجَلْ.متّعْ خيالكَ،لا تَسَلْ كَيفَ الوطنْ يُزهرْ وطنْ،كيفَ المطرْ يَحملْ مَطرْ،كيفَ الحياةُ لمْ تَزلْ تُعطي الحياةَ بِلا مَللْ،هذا وطن انظر إليه ! ينده عليكْ…افرد ذراعيك يا فتى،ها قد أتيت.

عصام حسن – رسام كاريكاتير سوري – 2011.8.8

Evgenie Primakov, the academician, member of presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences

“The Arabian spring” and the theory of collision of civilizations

2. Dear Haytham Khoury
You said:
“However, he (H Asad) understood that he should hand over Oujlan. As you see from both examples, Hafez Assad had strong sense of the reality, the resilience and the shrewdness”

It was a strike of luck that saved H Asad his ass, not his shrewdness.

It was Husni Mubarak, who mediated the surrender of Ojalan and the sparing of Syria of another territorial compromise.

Husni Mubarak offered mediation and visited Asad first and tried to persuade him to submit to Turky’s demand.

H Asad, as usual, gave a labyrinthene/”shrewed” offer.

In Turkey, Mubarak was shown a thumb down to that offer and was told that Turkish tanks would soon be rolling in.

Mubarak initially gave up and flew back to Egypt.
On the way back and according to his statements, he began to realise the gravity of the situation and decided to pay Assad a last and unscheduled visit. The plane changed course and landed in Damascus.

Having been told of the impending Turkish invasion, H Asad catapulted and gave away Ojalan!

This is the story that was told by H Mubarak then as I remember.

I was aware of the fact that General Rajha is Christian and,frankly-speaking,I could not care less what the current constitution says,most people here do not support that piece of paper anyway.
I am not promoting Rajha to be president,he will be the head of a military council until we have elections. Asad and his relatives need to take a long vacation,enough is enough.

Dear ABUGHASSAN

frankly-speaking,I could not care less what the current constitution says,most people here do not support that piece of paper anyway.

Fully agree, the sad thing is that many of Syria’s best intellectuals have been indicted, tried, convicted, and jailed for long years with the accusation that they want to change this flawed, useless, repressive, regressive, and tyrannical document. It is a document that for every call to respect human rights has 10 articles facilitating their demise. Just ask Anwar Albunni, one of Syria’s foremost constitutional law scholars who spent years in jail. He can enumerate the countless violation of the constitution embedded in the constitution itself.

Please permit me to answer your question #3

maybe they are some of them ? but i believe they are far less than those we can categorize them as intruders or conspirators , but really it dose not matter any more.

I can assure you that, I am not part of both .. I am only Pro Syria, who believe that we need all to stand by together to pull Syria out of this mass

and I can assure you that all of us, we want the change.. but not at any price

Unit Syria and Strong first…. then the rest … unlike some others which I believe their priority are different .. every thing else first and then who knows?

I believe that, moving the president or the government at this moment will lead only to divide Syria into ( I though until yesterday was 2 ) but now I believe into 3

– one will be slaved by Turkey in the north
– one will be slaved by the south ( Al Saud and company )
– and one on the west cost

is that what you want? …. then continue what you are saying/doing here otherwise , you need to join the other camp and later maybe you can find a place in one of the 3 pieces left over

thanks to let me comment

Revlon @33 Your account is 100% correct. Papa didn’t give up Ocalan until the Turkish army was all but ready to roll into Aleppo.

Same story with junior. In 2005, the combined fury of Saudi Arabia and France were enough to send Besho packing from Lebanon after 29 years.

Pressure is the only language the Baathists understand, to their cost.

N.K @ 29 – Good point. I wonder why Syria has seen a rise in “Salafism” while neighbouring Jordan hasn’t.

@ Aboud – What is the situation in Hama ? When will we see 500,000 Syrians in Al Assi square again ?

Do you think its the beginning of the end for Besho ?

@ the Iranian agents on this forum – The Gulf States, along with Sunni-majority countries like Egypt, Turkey and Jordan, are much more liberal and secular than your precious Iran, nuke it.

Off The Wall

“Seems that I do deserve one of Aboud’s legendary remarks…. ”

I have a great deal of respect for you, and always look forward to reading your opinions.

Dear Aboud
I am honored and it is mutual respect. Sorry haven’t been writing much lately. Please be safe. And I look for the day when we can meet and enjoy a stroll in Homs. I have family in your lovely city.

” 51. mjabali said:

Abu Umar comment #22

Abu Umar: again you prove that you are a liar and have problem understanding, لديك مشكلة واضحة: قلة الاستيعاب”

You are the biggest liar of them all and you continue to hold double standards for Ali Ibn Abi Talib because of your Alawi sectarianism, when he is guilty of all the things you accuse other Muslims of, and you refuse to discuss the elephant in the room, the slaughter of tens of thousands of Sunnis by your Alawi regime, so it can stay in power?

“Today there is a battle between the Bedoins of the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Peninsula vs. the Alawi Bashar of Syria and his infidel sect so I do not have so much time to spend on a trivial battle with you that”

Your Alawi regime started this war with its slaughter of tens of thousands of Syrian Sunnis so it can stay in power. Do you expect the regime to kill tens of thousands and the people to smile at them?

” You already lost and withdrew.”

I withdrew because you refused to answer

“So, I will be brief while dismantling your feeble logic.”

You haven’t dismantled anything.

“1- Your Hero and Saint Ibn Taymiyah is a proven war criminal and the whole world have the texts to prove this. So during his trial we have a solid evidence about what he taught you in regards to the hatred and disregard you hold against Christians, Jews, and other Muslim Sects like the Alawis.”

Who cares? Many Muslims scholars were just as violent as Ibn Taymiyyah, including many of your Shi’ite sects. You want to talk about the Qaramitah, the Fatimid khulafa, the Assassins, etc. They were even more violent than Ibn Taymiyyah, yet I don’t see you condemning them and your beloved Alawi regime is full of war criminals like Bashar, Shawkat, Maher. Are you going to call them out too?

“2- I told you many times that I am not pro Assad so you again display your lack of understanding and you resort to lies and slander. This is a reflection of a troubled soul mr. Abu Umar.”

I am not interested in your facetious denials. Do you support the trial of Bashar and his ilk?

“3- As for Ali ibn Abi Taleb, i am still waiting for the texts of his decrees to kill others. You are a liar, plain and simple, and could not produce that text when asked on numerous occasions.”

Open any books on the seerah and you will find Ali in many battles.

“4- AS for your prophet Mohammed and if he is a war criminal or not. I say what do you call a person who ordered the killing of all of the men of the Jewish tribe of Bani Quraydha and took their women and distributed them to himself first (he took the best ones of course) and his men?”

Your attack on the Prophet, shows what a deranged hypocrite you are. Have you condemned Hafez or Bashar as war criminal in a single post of yours. Secondly, you just exposed yourself as Ali led the raid on the Jewish fortess of Khaybar. If you know about the execution of Bani Quraydha, then you surely you must know about Khaybar. Why the double standards except for your Alawi sectarianism.

“Islam produced mostly violent figures and its history was written mostly with violence throughout its history.”

Do you include your Alawi sect and other ghulat Shi’ite sects in this?

Aboud, why is Baniyas, Latakia, tartous, Jableh so silent ? I haven;t seen a good big demonstration there in the last 1 months. What is the situation in the coastal cities ?

Off the Wall, my favorite cafe in Hamra street is Chez Mois. Dunno why the younger generation seem to prefer Troy 🙂

The jaws (not Jews) are closing on this junta. It took more than I thought it will take, but faster than they thought, they could stay in power. Their end is nearing.
.

“The jaws (not Jews) are closing on this junta”

ROFL! Next time I see a menhebak, I’ll hum the ominous Jaws theme.

Khaled,Latakia is hosting massive night time demonstrations. Baniyas is very mixed, split down the middle, but they are also demonstrating.

Tartous was firmly pro regime, but during Ramadan I’ve started seeing small demonstrations even there. If I come across any links I’d be happy to share them.

Syria conflict descends into ‘war of attrition’
AP By ELIZABETH A. KENNEDY – Associated Press | AP – 8 Aug 2011
http://news.yahoo.com/syria-conflict-descends-war-attrition-190704920.html
BEIRUT (AP) — Despite five months of blistering attacks on dissent, the Syrian regime has yet to score a decisive victory against a pro-democracy uprising determined to bring down the country’s brutal dictatorship.

President Bashar Assad still has the military muscle to level pockets of resistance, but the conflict has robbed him of almost all international support.

Even Saudi Arabia this week called for an end to the bloodshed in Syria, the first of several Arab nations to join the growing chorus against Assad.

The Syrian leader is being watched carefully at home and abroad to see how long his iron regime — which is still strong but wobbling — will continue to use tanks, snipers and security forces on hundreds of thousands of fervent, overwhelmingly young protesters who keep coming back for more.

“Syria is not burying the revolution,” said Nabil Bou Monsef, a senior analyst at the Arabic-language An-Nahar newspaper. “Protests are resuming everywhere, even in areas that were subject to crackdowns.”

He added: “It is difficult for one of the sides to win. Syria has entered a war of attrition between the regime and the opposition.”

There is little to stop Assad from calling upon the scorched-earth tactics that have kept his family in power for more than 40 years. A longtime pariah, Syria grew accustomed to shrugging off the world’s reproach long before the regime started shooting unarmed protesters five months ago.

A military intervention has been all but ruled out, given the quagmire in Libya and the lack of any strong opposition leader in Syria to rally behind. The U.S. and other nations have little power to threaten further isolation or economic punishment of Assad’s pro-Iranian regime — unlike in Egypt, where President Barack Obama was able to help usher longtime ally Hosni Mubarak out of power.

International sanctions, some of which target Assad personally, have failed to persuade him to ease his crackdown. There had been hopes, since dashed, that European Union sanctions would prove a humiliating personal blow to Assad, a 45-year-old eye doctor who trained in Britain.

Until the uprising began, Assad had cultivated an image as a modern leader in a region dominated by aging dictators. He was seen around Damascus with his glamorous wife, Asma, who grew up in London and was the subject of a glowing profile in Vogue just before the protests erupted. The couple’s three small children added to their luster as youthful and energetic.

But the relentless military assaults on rebellious towns have only grown more deadly. The latest wave of bloodshed started a week ago, on the eve of the holy month of Ramadan, when tanks and snipers laid siege to Hama, a city in central Syria that had largely freed itself from government control earlier this year.

Residents were left cowering in their homes, too terrified to peek through the windows. The city is haunted by memories of the regime’s tactics: In 1982, Assad’s father and predecessor, Hafez, ordered the military to quell a rebellion by Syrian members of the conservative Muslim Brotherhood movement there, sealing off the city in an assault that killed between 10,000 and 25,000 people.

Since the start of Ramadan, more than 300 people have been killed in cities including Hama and Deir el-Zour, an oil-rich but largely impoverished region known for its well-armed clans and tribes whose ties extend across eastern Syria and into Iraq.

Syria has blocked nearly all outside witnesses to the carnage by banning foreign media and restricting local coverage that strays from the party line, which states the regime is fighting thugs and religious extremists who are acting out a foreign conspiracy.

Besides the secretly recorded videos that leak of Syria every day and accounts by witnesses who whisper down telephone lines, Assad has managed to keep the eyes of the world off his bloodied nation.

But Syria’s troubles do not end at the country’s borders.

Syria is a geographical and political keystone in the heart of the Middle East, bordering five countries with whom it shares religious and ethnic minorities and, in Israel’s case, a fragile truce. Its web of allegiances extends to Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah movement and Iran’s Shiite theocracy.

A destabilized Syria, consequently, could send unsettling ripples through the region.

Syria has a volatile sectarian divide, making civil unrest one of the most dire scenarios. The Assad regime is dominated by the Alawite minority, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, but the country is overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim.

Alawite dominance has bred resentments, which Assad has worked to tamp down by pushing a strictly secular identity. But he now appears to be relying heavily on his Alawite power base, beginning with highly placed relatives, to crush the resistance.

The uprising has brought long-simmering sectarian tensions to the surface.

In the revolt’s early days, it became clear many foreign leaders were loath to see Assad go. While few supported his policies, Assad had managed to keep his country stable and out of war with Israel.

Mindful of this backhanded support, Assad exploits those fears of chaos and sectarian warfare, portraying himself as the only man who can guarantee stability.

But the early, muted response to the bloodshed in Syria is over.

This week, Arab nations have joined the international chorus against Assad for the first time. Saudi Arabia’s king — who does not tolerate dissent in his own country — demanded “an end to the killing machine” and recalled his country’s ambassador to Damascus late Sunday. On Monday, Bahrain and Kuwait followed suit.

A statement posted on a Facebook page used by protesters lauded the Arab governments for recalling their envoys.

“Arab governments stood and faced the butcher Bashar al-Assad, and stood on the side of the great Syrian people,” said a statement on the “We are all Hamza al-Khatib” page, set up in honor of a 13-year-old boy who was killed in the crackdown.

The U.S., the European Union and even longtime ally Russia have issued scathing statements against Assad, imploring him to stop the bloodshed. The U.S. and the EU have imposed sanctions.

Despite his determination to stay in power, Assad’s regime is undoubtedly hurting.

The security forces, which are the backbone of the regime and the driving force behind the culture of fear and paranoia in Syria, are overextended, exhausted and underpaid.

The unrest is eviscerating the economy, threatening to hurt the business community and prosperous merchant classes that are key to propping up the regime. An influential bloc, the business leaders have long traded political freedoms for enriching economic privileges.

It is unlikely, however, that they will abandon the regime entirely without a viable alternative.

“Before they will help overthrow the Assads, they need a safe alternative,” Joshua Landis, director of the University of Oklahoma’s Center for Middle East Studies, wrote in a recent analysis.

“They are not going to embrace — not to mention, fund — a leaderless bunch of young activists who want to smash everything that smells of Baathist privilege, corruption and cronyism,” said Landis, who runs an influential blog called Syria Comment.

But the revolution has tapped into an underlying well of resentment in Syria, a closed society in which people had long been deeply fearful of a pervasive security apparatus. Now that protesters have broken through that wall of fear, many observers see little chance of turning back.

“The regime is now the prisoner of the security solution, and the opposition will also become a prisoner of escalation,” said Bou Monsef, the An-Nahar analyst. “Syria has entered a tunnel, and it’s difficult to know how it will end.”

The pressure is mounting and the scholars of Aleppo have finally spoken and placed the blame where it belongs.

It’s also interesting that “Shaykh Yaqoubi of the Ummayad Mosque” is coming in support of the revolution. This is very significant. My understanding is that he is a Sufi master and a highly regarded scholar. ‘arour won’t be happy.

I did some searching and it seems he’s been criticizing the government for quite some time now. So this is not new. He actually gave an interview in English (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH0Irzb_l6M&feature=player_embedded).

He had given two Friday sermons after the start of the revolution (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTQHumyN5kM&feature=related). He was banned from public speaking and teaching at the Ummayyad mosque after the second sermon. It’ll be interesting to see what was said that caused a government so eager for dialogue to silence his criticism.

Also, it seems that Barada TV is giving him a platform (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25FTg2Vj-V4&feature=youtu.be&a).

Thank you Prof. Landis for the link.

Arab states raise stakes in condemning Syria

Phil Sands
Aug 9, 2011
http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/middle-east/arab-states-raise-stakes-in-condemning-syria

Damascus //Syria’s rapidly deepening international isolation accelerated further yesterday, with Kuwait and Bahrain following Saudi Arabia in recalling their ambassadors and demanding an immediate halt to a violent crackdown on civilian demonstrators.

As a deadly tank-backed military assault on the eastern city of Deir Ezzor continued, the Arab League made its first formal statement on the situation, telling Syria it must launch a “serious dialogue” with protesters seeking sweeping political reforms to the autocratic regime led by President Bashar Al Assad.

Reinforcing the wave of criticism, one of Sunni Islam’s leading clerics, Grand Imam Ahmed Al Tayeb, yesterday called on Damascus to “end the bloodshed”.

“The vast repression, the use of the highest levels of violence, arrests and intimidation represent an unacceptable human tragedy,” the Cairo-based scholar said.

Neighbouring Jordan also called on Mr Al Assad to implement genuine political reforms while the Turkish foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, is due in Damascus today with a message that Ankara’s patience with its former ally has run out.

Indications of dissent reaching into elite Syrian circles appeared yesterday, with 41 well-connected former government ministers and Baath party officials condemning the regime’s handling of the crisis.

Launching the Democratic National Initiative, the group, led by former information minister Mohammad Suleiman, demanded an end to security service violence and said the regime and street protesters should be represented in a transitional government.

“Continuation of the security solution is not a choice and use of the armed forces, arresting thousands of people is not acceptable. It puts sticks in the wheel of political change,” they said. “Military operations block the democratic opening.”

Brushing aside newly unveiled election and political parties laws, they insisted the constitution needed to be rewritten entirely and Syria turned into a genuine parliamentary democracy within a year.

The rapid succession of sharply critical warnings from Arab states – especially regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia – came after months of silence, and appeared to have shocked the Syrian authorities. By yesterday evening there was still no official reaction.

Al Watan, a privately owned Syrian newspaper supportive of the regime, made it clear that Damascus had believed it could count on Riyadh’s continued silence. “Kind Abdullah surprised the Syrians at a very late time with his speech,” the paper reported.

It accused the Saudi monarch of following a US agenda and implied that Saudis were supplying weapons, money and sectarian ideology to “terrorist” groups in Syria.

Damascus, which prides itself on its Arab credentials, insists it is fighting a well-organised extremist Islamic insurgency, not facing a peaceful popular uprising, while also insisting it is pushing through democratic reforms. Both claims have been given short shrift by Syrian demonstrators and much of the international community.

King Abdullah issued his starkly worded caution to Damascus on Sunday evening, before announcing the recall of the Saudi ambassador.

“Syria should think wisely before it’s too late and issue and enact reforms that are not merely promises but actual reforms,” he said. “Either it chooses wisdom on its own or it will be pulled down into the depths of turmoil and loss.”

Those comments followed the powerful Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), United Nation’s chief Ban Ki Moon and Pope Benedict XVI urging an end to Syrian government violence and implementation of reforms.

In a statement yesterday, the US State Department said it was “encouraged, heartened” by a tougher stand taken by Arab countries towards Syria’s crackdown.

On Thursday, Moscow had also issued its first real condemnation of Syria, backing a critical UN Security Council statement it had previously blocked. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said his Syrian counterpart would face a “sad fate” unless genuine reforms were quickly forthcoming.

Syria had previously said it was banking on Russia, an old Cold War ally, to shield in world diplomatic circles.

“In the space of less than a week, the Syrian regime has seen its international position nosedive beyond its worst fears,” said an independent Syrian analyst, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “Damascus has seriously miscalculated with this Ramadan military offensive, which has been so blatant and provocative that even its allies can no longer make excuses for it.”
Western nations have long condemned Syria over its tactics, which according to human right groups, have seen more than 2,000 civilians killed by security services since the March uprising began. But Arab states and Russia had not joined that consensus, until Syrian military forces moved into Hama and Deir Ezzor as Ramadan started last week.

Syria can still count on its closest ally, Iran, however as well as Hizbollah, the militant Lebanese group that both states back. Major world powers like India and China have also refused to join in the growing chorus of criticism, apparently fearing that a collapse of the Assad regime will result in an extremist Islamic state taking its place.

“We still do not have a clear count of the dead in Hama and Deir Ezzor but the numbers will run into hundreds, and many more have been wounded and will not get the medical treatment they need because of the siege,” said a human rights campaigner in Damascus.

Conditions in Hama appeared to have eased slightly yesterday compared to last week when tanks shelled residential areas, activists said. Syrian media described the situation as “returning to normal” and again denied that an artillery bombardment of Deir Ezzor had ever taken place.

Also yesterday, Mr Al Assad yesterday replaced defence minister General Ali Al Habib with General Daood Rajha, a 64-year-old artillery specialist and the army chief of staff. State-media said the step was taken as a result of presidential meetings with citizen delegations but noted that Gen Al Habib was in ill health.

Analysts and opposition activists said the ministerial reshuffle would make no difference to regime policies, which are determined by the president and his close inner circle, rather than government officials.

psands@thenational.ae

‘World’s Policeman’ ramps up pressure on Syria

Iran will not respond so soon. It’s buzzy with gloating the London uprise.
.

“الشيخ احمد الفهد سيغادر بعد قليل الى دمشق مبعوث من الامير الكويتي لايجاد مخرج للازمة في سوريا مع احتمال مبادرة كويتية لاحتواء الازمة….”

Post #3 Sheila:

“Have you ever looked into the fact that a few of the so called supporters of the regime on this blog, sound more like members of the regime than ordinary civilians? I think that there is an effert on the part of the Syrian government to infilterate blogs and disrupt conversations.”

27 thumbs down (huge response). You may have hit a nerve. lol

what was the wisdom of appointing a new Christian defense minister to the killing field !! it’s awfully bad move, why sucking a good Christian general to kill Sunnis!!!

“27 thumbs down (huge response). You may have hit a nerve. lol ”

I’m jealous 🙁

Maher likes to wear pink!

Mr. nk comment #29

You said:

“What secular gains ? ever since the Baath came to power in 1963 Syrian society saw nothing but secular LOSSES, the Syrian society in the 60s was way more liberal and open-minded than it is today, and another few decades of Al Baath will surely turn Syria into another Afghanistan. ”

Mr. Nk. although al-Baath is a failure of a party but it will not turn Syria to another Afghanistan on purpose, the Islamic parties will.

al-Baath is a socialist party that benefited women more than any Islamic party ever. By benefiting women here I mean that al-Baath wanted the women to be a part of the society and go out and do with no restriction. Islamists want to control women’s bodies, al-Baath did not. There is a HUGE difference between these two failed attitudes. Failed because al-Baath has no solid ideological members and the Islamists want to destroy nations and control everyone to achieve their Khilafa state.

al-Baath’ main mistake was to let the Islamic tide enter Syria and lead us to where we are now. Syria today is more religious and conservative than Syria from the beginning of the 20th C. till now. Imagine Syria was more liberal than it is now fifty years ago for example. Syria is moving backward.

This Islamic tide we are talking about started shaping in the 1970’s and 1980’s and with the Wahabi Salafi resurgence all over the Middle East in the 1980’s and with the backing of the Petrodollars, we have a generation of women that lost what their mothers’ generation had gained.

The Middle East as a whole was less conservative till the late 1970s. This is a well known fact. The tide turned and the Baath can do nothing but let the religious influence mushroom in front of its nose while it was suppressing any real progressive alternative.

The Baath in Syria had emptied Syria from any real alternative and the mosque was the only place to congregate and shape political and spiritual identity left by al-Baath, which up to this moment was still sticking to its stance regarding the liberation of women.

al-Baath preached the ideology of liberation for women, while the Islamic tide wants more restriction on women.

al-Baath by letting the Islamists mushroom in Syria proved that it is a failed institution. From my knowledge most of its members are their for the benefits.

AS for the open minded people, I see them disappearing because of the interference of religion. Secularism, democracy and liberalism are the only ways to bring sanity back to Syria and the rest of the Middle East.

I wonder whether NATO ‘s Erdogan will just keep on ‘barking’ or whether he will eventually act .

This will turn this undeclared world war against Syria into an official war. Syria could then mobilize to defend itself much more effectively and efficiently then it is doing now.

as they say: عسى ان تكرهوا شيئاً وهو خير لكم

@56 We have had this discussion before. The Syrian army is hopelessly outmatched, the Syrian Air Force even more so.

If the entire resources of the state cannot subdue an alleged “salafi insurrection” after five months, how the heck do you expect an army whose equipment consists of mostly 1950s and 1960s armaments to take on a NATO power like Turkey?

2 questions.

1. How much longer can the economy take of this situation?

2. I read a comment elsewhere predicting that the Attasi clan (from Homs I think) may play a prominent role in a post Assad Syria. Is this likely?

Seeing the silence of Aleppo I hope Aleppo elite dont get a prominent role. From that point of view the Homs Attasi clan will be preferrable. Its not too late for Aleppo to make the right choice.

Uzair8 @59 I strongly disagree with you about Aleppo. Some of the elite of Aleppo have been very, very vocal and active against the regime. I cannot count the number of doctor sit ins, lawyer strikes, and university student demonstrations have that had to be broken up by the shabiha (the Assad family’s ill disciplined, barbaric private militia).

“From that point of view the Homs Attasi clan will be preferrable”

With that endorsement, I’d be very worried for my safety if I were a Homsi Attasi 🙂

(maybe I am, maybe I’m not heheheheh).

58 Aboud,

I rarely agree with you but this time I agree that the Syrian army is not able to face the powerful NATO, not even the Turkish army. I would expect a quick fall in weeks if not days. Having said that, I think the regime plan would be to attck Israel with rockets. The regime will no that the fall is soon and will throw out what he has as a last chance of survival. The rockets will change the equation. Syria’s strength is by its hundreds of thousands of rockets that will be used to threaten Israel who is considered Syria’s enemy and the strong allie of the US. Israel would ot allow NATO to provoke a war close to its borders. The goal of all the current talk is to creat more pressure hoping that the revolution will bring the regime down. This is not working so far. The NATO war is not realistic. Iran will indirectly attack US interests in the region. Shia uprise in Bahrin, Saudi, Kuwait is a possible scary scenario that king saud will deeply regret.

SQI 57, war might be in the interest of Syria and I do not disagree with you.

India, SAfrica, Brazil envoys head to Syria
By EDITH M. LEDERER
Associated Press
2011-08-09 05:58 AM
http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/etn/news_content.php?id=1674893
Envoys from India, Brazil and South Africa are heading to Syria to appeal for an end to the violent crackdown against civilians and to promote democratic reforms.

India’s U.N. Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri said his country’s representative is scheduled to arrive in Damascus on Tuesday and will join representatives from Brazil and South Africa for a meeting with Syria’s foreign minister to deliver the appeal.

Puri told reporters Monday the three countries will be “calling for restraint, abjuring violence, (and) promoting reform, taking into account the democratic aspirations of the people.”

Separately, Turkey, which borders Syria and until recently was a close Syrian ally and major trade partner, said it is sending its foreign minister to Damascus on Tuesday to deliver a strong message against the crackdown. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country’s patience was running thin and that Turkey could not remain a bystander to the violence.

After months of diplomatic inaction, Syria’s ongoing military assault, using tanks and artillery, spurred condemnation in the past week from the U.N. Security Council and the Arab world.

The 22-member Arab League, which had been silent since the uprising began, said Sunday it is “alarmed” by the situation in Syria and called for the immediate halt of all violence. On Saturday, the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council criticized Syria’s “use of excess force.” Even Saudi Arabia’s king _ whose country lent its military troops to repress anti-government protests in neighboring Bahrain _ harshly criticized the Syrian government and recalled his ambassador in Damascus for consultations.

Last Wednesday, the Security Council issued its first response to the crackdown, condemning “the widespread violations of human rights and the use of force against civilians by the Syrian authorities.” It said the only solution is an inclusive Syrian-led political process that will allow the population to fully exercise fundamental freedoms including freedom of expression and assembly.

The U.N.’s most powerful body was unable to take any action for months because Russia and China threatened to veto a European-initiated resolution condemning the violence, which was backed by the U.S. India, Brazil and South Africa also refused to support the resolution.

In a concession to the five countries, the Europeans and Americans agreed to a presidential statement, which is weaker than a legally binding resolution but still becomes part of the Security Council’s record. The statement calls for Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to report to council members Wednesday on the latest situation.

The U.N. chief, who has been highly critical of the crackdown, called Syrian President Bashar Assad on Saturday to demand an immediate halt to the use of military force and mass arrests. He underscored that this was essential for the government’s announced reform measures “to gain credibility.”

The European Union and the United States have already imposed sanctions on Syria.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague on Monday welcomed the strong condemnation of Syria from countries across the Arab world and from Turkey. He said he was “urgently working with partners on increasing the pressure further on President Assad and those around him,” including German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said Monday that talking with Syria’s leaders was the best solution to ending the bloodshed, saying Brazil is a nation that “believes in the value of dialogue” and that military action “should always be a last resort.”

Paulo Cordeiro, Brazil’s subsecretary for Middle East issues, is already in Syria waiting for his colleagues from India and South Africa and the three envoys are expected to meet with “high-level” Syrians on Wednesday, a Brazilian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said.

The spokeswoman, speaking on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to speak publicly, said the three countries want to see a political solution and implementation of reforms.

South Africa said its deputy minister for international relations and cooperation, Ebrahim Ismail Ebrahim, will take part in the Syria talks.

____

Associated Press Writers Bradley Brooks in Rio de Janiero and Michelle Faul in Johannesburg contributed to this report.

UBAID@60

Im not as knowledgable about Syria as others on here. My thoughts on Aleppo were instinctive mainly regarding the business class. I have read how earlier on some thugs were working on behalf of prominent families to break up demos.

I stand to be corrected.

Aboud and Uzair

Come on now. With all due respect, I am not in this to get any particular clan in. I want to vote for a democratically elected president that preferably does not belong to any clan. Sorry.

Curious Josh: why put a picture of King Abdallah with the Pope? I’m sure there were other free stock photos of King Abdallah that were available.

Mind you, I have nothing against the Pope, it’s just that the picture of the King with such a high profile personality and world leader would suggest that the news round up was related.

Uzair8, in all honesty I don’t know what the Aleppan big fish are doing. My information isn’t that detailed 🙂

But not a week goes by when we don’t hear about Aleppan doctors, lawyers, engineers and university students getting beaten up and arrested for holding sit ins. In every single case, they have been protesting the brutal and heavy handed treatment of one of their own. Up in Aleppo, the regime is its own worst enemy.

Just two days ago, 200 doctors from the Aleppo University Hospital held a sit in to protest the arrest of one of their colleagues. The regime dealt with it in their usual heavy handed and inept way.

Tara @63 That’s the beauty of a democracy. When the time comes to vote, each can vote their own way.

Myself, I’m voting for the Amer of Homs, the Zionist-Salafi who SANA keeps saying escapes in his private helicopter from Baba Amr, to Telkelakh, to Baniyas, to Jisr al Shoghour. He sounds like an ultra cool super villain.

SS @61 “Shia uprise in Bahrin, Saudi, Kuwait is a possible scary scenario that king saud will deeply regret. ”

I doubt it. King Saud has been dead for nearly 41 years. King Abdullah rules now. Long live the king.

“The rockets will change the equation. Syria’s strength is by its hundreds of thousands of rockets that will be used to threaten Israel who is considered Syria’s enemy and the strong allie of the US. ”

The vast majority of those rockets are short range. A small percentage only have the range to reach Tel Aviv. What fraction of Hizbollah rockets fired on Israel in 2006 actually hit anything?

And a deployment of rockets such as you are describing would not go unnoticed by the Israelis. Junior’s air force and missile defenses couldn’t stop the Israelis from bombing whatever the hell it was they bombed a few years back, and I doubt Syrian air defense can stop an all out attack on Syria’s highly visible Scud sites.

“Curious Josh: why put a picture of King Abdallah with the Pope? I’m sure there were other free stock photos of King Abdallah that were available.”

They were related. Both the King and the Pope called for Assad to stop killing civilians.

Turkey will defeat the Syrian army in a about a day. Assad is like a guy who is meek and afraid in front of real men, but goes home and beats his wife and kids.

Its upto the Syrian people to shape their future. Yes I have heard about the efforts of some people in Aleppo. I guess I was a little harsh on Aleppo. The place is saturated with security (along with Damascus). One can get frustrated.

The comment I read regarding the Attasi clan was by an ordinary person. Not an article or anything more prominent.

I pray that Allah SWT protects the Syrian people including the Attasi clan.

I am voting for Muhammed Abdallah if he is interested. I like him. He is cool too.

ATASSI

a christian ? dear me !!!

Alain Juppé (l’homme toujours droit dans ses crottes) would have called that a provocation.

How much worse can it get?

Now the thugs of the Arab world are washing their hands from Master Bashar and his gang. These guys don’t move unless there is a very strong stench. He and his thugs are way past their expiration date.

“Assad is like a guy who is meek and afraid in front of real men”

yet he dared to go and talk to your filthy Abdullah few weeks after Hariri’s murder and stare in the devil’s eye without a wink

yet he dared to speak again face to face with the same filthy Abdullah and Mubarak, eye in the eye, after having called them half-men which i agree is the mere truth

yet he accepted to forgive to Walid Jumblatt after the numerous ugly insults the latter imparted on him

i wish only he were more cruel …

SS @61

I’ve been wondering how determined this regime is to hold on to power. How far it is willing to go.

I wouldnt be surprised if it decides to take everything down with it.

It may even poison the oceans.

OTW @ 23,

I m sorry to say that OTW, but your post is too far from reality. Things in Syria don’t work this way. Neither Habib nor Rajiha can even dream during their sleep of your plans.

In reality these generals don’t have much pulls

cryptic ? Hmmm

let’s see
this is a new domino game

خلو الأزعر السلفي يبهدل الأزعر الوهابي
و الأزعر الوهابي يبهدل الأزعر السعودي
و الأزعر السعودي يبهدل الأزعر الأميركي
و الأزعر الأميركي يبهدل الزعران الصهيونيى
اما نسيتو الأزعر اللبناني و هو الحريري و زلمته
و الأزعر التركي أردوغان السيء و من ماشي معه
و الزعران الفرنسيون و هم سركوزي و جوبي و شرحهم

the trap is wide shut

Just saw anti regime demonstration in Beirut. The average Lebanese also feel humiliated about their government stand in the security council.

Dear Uzair8,
Thank you for backing down from your harsh words for Aleppo and Aboud, thanks for defending us. As Aboud said, the security presence in Aleppo has been unbelievable right from the start. Aleppo was the scariest location for the regime for two reasons:
1- its history in the 80s. Remember that the MBs uprising started in Aleppo by “madrast almadfaiyeh” incident.
2- Its proximity and close relations with Turkey and in light of the Benghazi situation, it seemed a scary scenario for the regime.

It is worth mentioning that even when there were no demonstrations non whatsoever in Aleppo, there were many arrests as preemptive measures by the regime.

I have lots of contacts in the city and I know for a fact that the city is boiling. In my humble opinion, it is just a matter of time before the city erupts to no return.

سورية والصحوة الخليجية المتأخرة
رأي القدس
2011-08-08

انتقال الموقف الخليجي، والسعودي منه بالذات، من حالة الصمت الى الادانة الشديدة للممارسات القمعية التي يرتكبها النظام السوري ضد شعبه يوحي بان عزلة هذا النظام ستتصاعد في الايام او الاسابيع القليلة المقبلة، وان عدد اصدقائه في تناقص متسارع.
الدول الخليجية ظلت طوال الاشهر الخمسة الاخيرة من الازمة السورية تحاول مسك العصا من الوسط، او بالاحرى تتبنى مواقف مزدوجة، ففي الوقت الذي كان المسؤولون الخليجيون من الزوار شبه الدائمين للعاصمة السورية، يلتقون الرئيس بشار الاسد ويؤكدون على دعمهم له واستقرار بلاده، كان الاعلام الخليجي، والسعودي (العربية) والقطري (الجزيرة) يقف بقوة الى جانب الثورة الشعبية السورية، ويفتح شاشاته على مصراعيها امام قيادات المعارضة السورية.
في اليومين الاخيرين انقلبت المعادلة رأسا على عقب، وتطابقت المواقف الرسمية الخليجية مع التوجهات الاعلامية في ادانة اعمال العنف التي ترتكبها قوات النظام العسكرية والامنية تجاه المحتجين في مختلف المدن والقرى السورية، ويسقط من جرائها مئات الشهداء والجرحى بصفة يومية.
بداية هذا الانقلاب جاءت في بيان صدر عن دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي ندد باعمال العنف هذه وطالب بوقفها فورا، تلاه بيان مماثل عن جامعة الدول العربية كرر المواقف نفسها، وطالب الرئيس السوري بشار الاسد بادخال اصلاحات جذرية، مما يوحي بان بيان الجامعة هذا جاء بايعاز من المملكة العربية السعودية على وجه الخصوص، لان امين عام الجامعة العربية الدكتور نبيل العربي زار دمشق والتقى الرئيس الاسد، وادلى بتصريحات مؤيدة للموقف السوري الرسمي في وجه الانتفاضة الشعبية المطالبة بالتغيير الديمقراطي.
الدول الخليجية كانت تقف في خندق الانظمة العربية ضد الثورات الشعبية خوفا من انتقال لهيبها الى طرف ثوبها فتحرقه، ولذلك ايدت الرئيس حسني مبارك ونظامه ضد ثورة ميدان التحرير، بل ومارست ضغوطا شديدة على الولايات المتحدة الامريكية ورئيسها باراك اوباما للتدخل بقوة لانقاذ نظام الرئيس مبارك من الانهيار، والمكالمة الغاضبة بين العاهل السعودي الملك عبدالله بن عبدالعزيز والرئيس الامريكي في هذا الاطار ما زالت ماثلة للاذهان.
صحيح ان بعض الحكومات الخليجية تدخلت لمصلحة الثوار في الازمة الليبية وارسلت طائرات حربية مقاتلة (قطر والامارات) او طائرات تجسس من طراز ايواكس (السعودية) للقتال الى جانب قوات الناتو ضد كتائب الزعيم الليبي معمر القذافي، ولكن الصحيح ايضا انها لم تقدم اي مساعدة مادية للمعارضة السورية، وفعاليات الانتفاضة على الارض، واكتفت بالصمت. حتى ان وزير الخارجية السوري وليد المعلم لخص هذا الموقف بقوله ان الحكومة القطرية معنا ومحطة ‘الجزيرة’ ضدنا بعد استقباله لنظيره القطري الشيخ حمد بن جبر بن جاسم آل ثاني.
الاعلام السوري الذي كان يخص قطر و’جزيرتها’ بالهجوم طوال الاشهر الماضية بدأ يوسع دائرة هجومه اعتبارا من يوم امس، بحيث يضيف السعودية الى قائمة اهدافه بعد الكلمة القوية التي وجهها العاهل السعودي الملك عبدالله بن عبد العزيز مساء امس الاول الى ‘اشقائه’ في سورية، قال فيها ان بلاده لا تقبل ما يجري في سورية من اعمال قتل، وطالب القيادة السورية باصلاحات شاملة، واعلن استدعاء السفير السعودي في دمشق الى الرياض من اجل التشاور.
فهذه هي المرة الاولى ومنذ سنوات يخرج هذا الاعلام عن الخطوط الحمر التي وضعها لنفسه، او وضعتها له قيادته، ويرد بقوة على ما وصفه بالتدخل في الشأن السوري الداخلي، ويصف كلام العاهل السعودي بانه رسالة ‘تهديد امريكية’، ويؤكد ان السعودية اولى بالاصلاحات من سورية، مثلما جاء في مقال لصحيفة ‘الوطن’ المقربة من الحكومة السورية.
وكان ممن الطبيعي ان تعرب الادارة الامريكية من خلال الناطق باسمها عن سعادتها الغامرة بهذا الموقف العربي القوي من النظام السوري، خاصة ان هذا الترحيب تزامن مع ارسال مسؤول الملف السوري في وزارة الخارجية الامريكية الى انقرة لبحث الاوضاع في سورية مع القيادة التركية، وتحميل السيد احمد داوود اوغلو وزير الخارجية التركي الذي سيزور سورية اليوم رسالة شديدة اللهجة الى القيادة السورية.
واضح من خلال كل ما تقدم ان الادارة الامريكية تحشد الحلفاء للتدخل في سورية بطريقة او باخرى، وربما تضطلع تركيا بدور رأس الحربة في هذا الخصوص اذا ما تفاقمت اعمال القتل التي ينفذها النظام السوري ضد شعبه، فلم يكن من قبيل الصدفة ان يهدد رجب طيب اردوغان رئيس وزراء تركياهذا النظام بان صبر تركيا بدأ ينفد، وانها لا تستطيع ان تقف مكتوفة الايدي تجاه ما يحدث في سورية من اعمال قتل.
نتمنى ان تتوقف اعمال القتل التي يمارسها النظام السوري وبطريقة وحشية ضد شعبه لقطع الطريق على اي تدخل خارجي، لان هذا النظام سيتحمل كل النتائج المترتبة عليه، لانه لم يستمع مطلقا الى جميع النصائح والنداءات التي تطالبه بالتعقل والحكمة، والتوقف عن اللجوء الى الحلول الامنية الدموية ضد شعبه.
يقيننا ان النظام لن يحتكم الى صوت العقل، وسيواصل النهج نفسه اي الزج بقوات الامن والجيش في مواجهة المحتجين المطالبين بالعدالة والمساواة والكرامة من ابناء شعبه، وهنا تكمن الكارثة.

Bashar does not understand any language except the language of power. Why didn’t his army and tanks invade Deir al Zor yet? The rabbit of Jolan is scared by the briefing of the security council that is supposed to occur on Wednesday?

A regime change is needed and is coming but be ready for a return to the 1950s and 1960s era when every regional power had installed an extra hand or two inside the Syrian government.the discussion about how weak and backward the Syrian army compared to turkey’s and israel’s made me sick to my stomach despite knowing the truth about the limitation of Syria and its economy.those of you who are cheering for turkey or any other country probably do not deserve to be free..it would be a complete tragedy if we replace a regime of thugs with a regime of clowns.

سئل الشيخ سارية عبد الكريم الرفاعي من قبل أحد المصلين أثناء درسه بعد صلاة التراويح في السادس من رمضان في جامع زيد عن مدى تغير موقفه بشأن التظاهر وإليكم السؤال كما جاء :
أرجو من حضرتكم التطرق لموضوع التظاهر في درسكم الآن ولماذا غيرتم موقفكم فجأة ؟ لأن الكثيرين منتظرين جوابكم .
الجواب :
بدأ الشيخ بالإجابة بشكر السائل قائلاً : ” الله محي الذي سأل فلا حرج فيما إذا رأيتم علي منكراً أن تنكروه ” …. ثم قال :
لقد رأيتم على شاشة الفضائية السورية يقولون :
الشيخ سارية : التظاهر حرام حرام حرام
ثم تابع الشيخ :
نعم أنا قلت هذا ، ثم شبه الشيخ التلفزيون السوري بمن يقول ” ولا تقربوا الصلاة ” ويسكت وأيضا “ويل للمصلين ” ويسكت ولا يكمل الآية .
ثم تابع الشيخ القول بأنه انزعج كثيرا من التلفزيون السوري واحتج عليهم ووعدوه بأن يضعوا له الخطبة كاملة .
ثم تابع الشيخ وذكر السبب وراء الشيء الذي دعاه لهذا القول حين جاءه أحد المتظاهرين يقول ” ماعاد يطاق الأمر أصبح ينبغي أن نتسلح فغضب الشيخ غضباً شديداً ………..ثم قال له إن هذا التسلح يؤدي إلى مجازر لذلك إن كان على هذا الأساس فإن التظاهر حرام حرام حرام ”
ثم تساءل الشيخ مستنكرا على الإعلام السوري :
كيف يضعون شيئاً يناقض ما قاموا هم بإقراره بقانون التظاهر !!
ثم تابع الشيخ يقول :
التظاهر حق من حقوق الشعوب .. فالشعوب كلها تتظاهر .. وكونوا على بينة أنا موقفي لا يتغير إن شاء الله ولا بحال
وأقوله على الملأ وليسمع القصي والداني
وخطبي واضحة وظاهرة
وأسأل الله أن يجعلنا أداة خير لهذا البلد

SS @61:

“war might be in the interest of Syria and I do not disagree with you.”

You mean ‘war might be in the interest of the regime and I do not disagree with you’.

Guy in Damascus,

I read about gun fire that is being heard in different neighborhoods tonight. Any update? Hope you are well and safe!
.

Abughassan, your meaning wasn’t very clear, but I’ll address what I thought you meant

“despite knowing the truth about the limitation of Syria and its economy.”

Jordan’s economy and means are far more limited, but can you deny that the Jordanian soldier has always been the best trained among Arab armies?

“.those of you who are cheering for turkey or any other country probably do not deserve to be free”

I will be very lenient in what I think you mean. Speaking frankly of Syria’s military shortcomings is not treason. Many a dictator lost many a battle because the yes men around him did not have the guts to tell him the uncomfortable truth. Stalin comes to mind.

In fact, those who close their eyes to reality out of some misplaced sense of fanatical nationalism, are the ones who do not deserve freedom.

I’m still holding to August the 10th. Besho is gone on the 10th.

http://grooveshark.com/s/You+re+No+Good/2MwNkP?src=5

Dear ABOUD and ABUGHASSAN

The way i see it, if i may, freedom is a right not a privilege, which means that everyone deserves freedom, but some can keep it, and some can’t, it all depends not on how much one values her/his own freedom, but on how much one also values the freedom of others. And here lies the moral failure of regime defenders, who value their own freedom but have no regards for the freedom of others, including their sisters and brothers in Syria. They stand at the moral opposite pole of the demonstrators, whose sacrifices are building a better future for all Syrians.

Enjoy your creation whatever the new name will be but defiantly not SYRIA!

تفاصيل خطة الناتو لغزو سورية
كشفت مصادر اعلامية روسية تفاصيل خطة حلف الناتو لغزو سورية ووصفتها بانها نسخة عن تلك التي جرى تطبيقها في يوغسلافيا السابقة ، و”الحلف” يبحث في دول الخليج عن تكاليفها البالغة 15 مليار دولار .

ولصحيفة الحقيقة الروسية تحدث موظف عالي المستوى في البعثة الروسية لدى “الحلف الأطلسي” في بروكسل لم تذكر اسمه عن معلومات أكثر تفصيلا بشأن خطة “الحلف…” لغزو سورية ، حيث اشار أن واضعي الخطة أصبحوا في مرحلة البحث عن مصادر لتمويلها في دول الخليج العربي .

وكان رئيس البعثة ، الجنرال ديمتري روغوزين ، كشف في مقابلة مع وكالة أنباء “ريا نوفوستي” الروسية يوم الجمعة عن وجود خطة لدى”الأطلسي” لإطلاق حملة عسكرية على سوريا ” بهدف إسقاط نظام الأسد و إقامة رأس جسر ساحلي يمكن استخدامه لاحقا لمهاجمة إيران”.

و المصدر الدبلوماسي ـ العسكري الروسي أكد لـ”الحقيقة” أن البعثة الروسية لدى “الحلف الأطلسي” حصلت على وثائق ذات صلة توحي بأن الخطة شبيهة إلى حد التطابق بالخطة التي نفذها في يوغسلافيا السابقة وأدت إلى اعتقال الرئيس اليوغسلافي سلوبودان ميلوزفيتش وأركان نظامه واقتيادهم لاحقا إلى “المحكمة الخاصة بيوغسلافيا”؛ أي تنفيذ قصف جوي مركز على مدى بضعة أسابيع يطال مراكز القيادة والسيطرة وينتهي باستسلام أركان النظام السوري وسوقهم كـ “مجرمي حرب” إلى “محكمة خاصة بسورية” يجري إنشاؤها بالتزامن مع تنفيذ الغارات ، إذا تعذرت محاكمتهم ـ لأسباب قانونية و / أو سياسية ـ أمام “محكمة الجنايات الدولية” .

وقال المصدر ، إن المعطيات الموثقة التي حصلنا عليها توحي بأن “الحلف” وضع جميع الخطط التفصيلية اللازمة للعملية ، بما في ذلك تلك المتعلقة بالتفاصيل اللوجستية والغارات التكتيكية و قائمة الأهداف المنوي مهاجمتها ، ولم يتبق سوى “الغطائين القانوني والسياسي” و ” المالي”، وهو ما يقتضي ـ بالنسبة للغطاء الأول ـ قرارا من مجلس الأمن الدولي ، وتأمين تكاليف العملية ، بالنسبة للغطاء الثاني.

وحول النقطة الأولى ، كشف المصدر أن قيادة “الحلف” وضعت خطتين : خطة أساسية ” أ” و خطة بديلة ” ب” ، بحيث يتم اللجوء إلى الثانية في حال استخدمت روسيا والصين ،أو إحداهما، حق الفيتو لإحباط صدور أي قرار من المجلس بهذا الخصوص. وهو ما يعني أن “الحلف” قرر إطلاق عمليته حتى دون غطاء دولي ، مع الأخذ بعين الاعتبار إمكانية الصدام مع الروس والصينيين ، رغم أن هذا لن يتجاوز ـ في حدود تقديراتنا ـ السقف السياسي والديبلوماسي.

لكن الخطة “ب” أخذت بعين الاعتبار إمكانية دخول ” حزب الله” وإيران على خط الأزمة من خلال فتح جبهة مع إسرائيل ، وبالتالي دخول هذين الأخيرين في الحرب وتحول المواجهة إلى “حرب إقليمية مفتوحة”.

أما بشأن ” الغطاء المالي” ، فقال المصدر إن “الحلف” يقدر الوقت اللازم لإتمام العملية بشهرين ، مع تكلفة تصل إلى 15 مليار دولار. ويؤكد المصدر بهذا الخصوص أن اتصالات سرية جرت على أرفع المستويات بين الدول الأساسية في “الحلف” ، وبشكل خاص الولايات المتحدة وبريطانيا وفرنسا وألمانيا وبريطانيا من جهة ، و دول الخليج ، وعلى رأسها السعودية من الجهة الأخرى .
ولفت المصدر الانتباه إلى “وجوب وضع الموقف السعودي الذي اتخذ أمس ، والذي فاجأ الجميع ، في هذا السياق”.

وكان الملك السعودي أصدر أمس بيانا قال فيه إن ما يحصل في سوريا من قمع للمتظاهرين “لا تقبل به السعودية” و ” أكبر من أن تبرره الأسباب” ، مشيرا إلى أن ” كل عاقل يدرك أن سقوط أعداد كبيرة من الشهداء والجرحى، ليس من الدين”. ودعا البيان القيادة السورية إلى “تفعيل الحكمة والقيام بإصلاحات غير مغلفة بالوعود”، مؤكداً أن ما يحدث ” لا يمكن أن تقبل به المملكة”.وقال البيان إن سوريا اليوم “تقف أمام خيارين لا ثالث لهما، إما اختيار الحكمة، أو الانجراف إلى أعماق الفوضى لا سمح الله”. ودعا النظام في سوريا إلى “إيقاف آلة القتل وتحكيم العقل”. وختم بإعلان “استدعاء السفير السعودي في سوريا للتشاور”.

وفي تفسيرها لكلامعبد الله تحدثت مصادر إعلامية سعودية عن تحرك مشترك مع تركيا لاتخاذ موقف من الأحداث في سورية قد يكون تحركا في مجلس الأمن، لاسيما أن واشنطن كانت تحدثت قبل أيام عن الحاجة إلى غطاء عربي شبيه بالغطاء الذي وفرته الجامعة العربية لواشنطن وأوربا للتدخل في ليبيا .

وجاء بيان الملك السعودي بعدما أصدر مجلس التعاون الخليجي بياناً هو الأول من نوعه تجاه الأحداث في سورية، أشار فيه إلى أن الدول الخليجية “تتابع بقلق بالغ وأسف شديد تدهور الأوضاع” في سوريا و”تزايد أعمال العنف والاستخدام المفرط للقوة، ما أدى الى سقوط عدد كبير من القتلى والجرحى”، وذلك بعد أيام من تسريبات صحافية أشارت إلى أن الخليجيين أوصلوا رسالة للسوريين مفادها بأن لديهم “حدوداً لقبول عدد القتلى، يجب على السوريين الانتباه إليه”!؟

وكشف المصدر عن أن قائمة الأهداف السورية التي وضعها “الحلف” على رأس جدول المواقع التي ستتلقى ضرباته الأولى تشمل أكثر من ثلاثين موقعا أبرزها: 1

ـ المرحلة الأولى: ـ محطة الاستطلاع الجوي الأولى في منطقة “شنشار” جنوبي حمص ـ محطة الاستطلاع الجوي الثانية في منطقة ” مرج السلطان ” في غوطة دمشق الشرقية ـ محطة الاستطلاع الجوي الثالثة في منطقة “برج إسلام” شمال اللاذقية و يهدف ضرب هذه المحطات إلى شل قدرتها على التقاط الأهداف المعادية البعيدة ومنعها من إعطاء القوى الجوية والدفاع الجوي إنذارا مبكرا عن هجومات جوية معادية. مع الإشارة إلى أن بعض هذه المحطات يبلغ نصف قطر دائر المسح التي يقوم بها أكثر من 800 كم. ـ بطاريات صواريخ ” أرض ـ جو باتسنر1″ التي تعمل على مستويات منخفضة ، والتي باعتها روسيا إلى سورية قبل عامين من أجل حماية بع المواقع الاستراتيجية الأكثر أهمية ـ بطاريات صواريخ أرض ـ جو بعيدة المدى ، لاسيما ” فولغا” و” أنغارا” ( إس إي 5) و ” غرونبل”(إس 10) و”بوك” ( إس 11) ، لاسيما منها المربضّة حول دمشق. ـ القواعد الجوية التي تضم الطائرات الأحدث ، وبشكل خاص ” الضمير” ، ” الناصرية” ، “الشعيرات” ، ” أبو الضهور”، ” خلخلة”. ـ عقد الاتصالات التابعة للأركان العامة ( التي تستخدم الخطوط الرباعية) وعقد الاتصالات التابعة للفرع 225 في المخابرات العسكرية ، لاسيما في في مقر الفرع في منطقة “الروضة” بدمشق و” مقسم شارع النصر” و “مقسم المهاجرين”. ويعتبر هذا الفرع ” المرجعية الأمنية” لجميع وسائل الاتصال في سورية ، بما في ذلك الإنترنت.

2 ـ المرحلة الثانية ـ قيادة الحرس الجمهوري في منطقة جديدة شيباني و منطقة دمر في سفوح جبل قاسيون الغربية ـ قيادة “الفرقة الرابعة ” في منطقة يعفور غربي دمشق. ـ قيادة المخابرات العسكرية الجديدة في دمشق ( البرامكة / كفر سوسة). ـ قيادة المخابرات العامة في دمشق (كفر سوسة). ـ قيادة المخابرات الجوية في دمشق ( باب توما). ـ قيادة الفرقة الأولى ( قطنا). ـ قيادة الفرقة السابعة ( زاكية). ـ قيادة الفرقة الثالثة ( القطيفة).

يشار أخيرا إلى أن القيادة الروسية ، وطبقا للمصدر ، أبلغت قيادة النظام السوري منذ أكثر من أسبوعين بما يعد له “الحلف الأطلسي” ، أي قبل أن يطلق المندوب الروسي لدى “الحلف” تصريحه يوم الجمعة الماضي.

وبقي ان نقول لشذاذ الآفاق وقاطعي الطرق الذين يعملون على تدمير سورية انظروا الى ماجرى للعراق وليبيا واليمن من ديمقراطية بفضل تدخل الناتو وللدول الخليجية ان سقطتت سورية فانتم ساقطون لامحالة فلتدفعوا اليوم فاتورة القضاء على سورية ولنرى من سيدفع فاتورة القضاء عليكم .

Hmmm…

I’m still holding to August the 10th. Besho is gone on the 10th.

Dale Andersen,

The more difficult (and interesting) question is what will junior do when he is removed from power?

Here are some possibilities:

1.) UN General Secretary

2.) Human Rights Activist for Amnesty International

3.) Director of the Zayed Center for Coordination and Follow-up (Eye-Care Division)

4.) Arab League General Secretary

5.) President of the Islamic Republic of Iran

A lot of good jobs out there, even in this economy…

BTW – Where did the “Besho” nickname come from?

Dale Andersen, Aug 10th, 2011?

I’ll post a picture of me with my hair dyed red if that happens.

OTW, well said 🙂

@ 2. Haytham Khoury, Well written mate although instead of applauding the father for being “realistic” we should denounce the two criminals for killing their own people and stealing the power illegitimately.

@ 3. Sheila, Lol I have to agree with ABDOUL and I’m jealous myself, the highest “dislike” I got was only 19. And for Dr. Landis try to get download “IP tracker” software and might find all the ”Menhebeks” sharing the same IP!!

@ 15. abughassan, I, doubtfully, hope Besho is reading your post and decides to relinquish his power otherwise don’t worry mate it’s just a matter of time and he’ll join us posting on SC from his exile in Iran.

Now appointing a Christian for a Muslim position is another indicative sign of Besho’s lack of management skills and for sure inability to see the big picture. Besho aims, firstly, to buy the Syrian Christians support by assuring them their new piece of his new “reformed” Syria. Secondly, trying to gain the international Christian voice i.e. Vatican (at least to refrain from condemning him). Thirdly, as you mentioned, secure his back from a military coup could have been led by a Muslim minister of defence.

Personally speaking, I’m in favour for appointing a Christian to lead the transitioning period after toppling the regime. This will give our Christian people (and other minorities) a bond of security, encourage the West to deal with us and most importantly is to give a good image of a new secular state.

Who fought and died in 1973 guys? The syrians and the Egyptians ,not the kuwaitis or the Saudis.
Who will keep Syria in one piece? It is not NATO or Erdogan.
What di you call a guy who prefers a foreign army over the national army,even with all of its flaws,?
He is not a patriot to say the least .
Do you have to ridicule or attack the army to prove that you really hate the regime?
I do not know what we will have left as a unifying force if syrians turn their back to their sons in the army.
We need to love Syria more than we hate the regime. Even if the army is evil,and it is not,it is the least evil among many other choices.

أنقرة تلوّح بعزل الأسد «على طريقة صدّام»… وواشنطن تحمّل داوود أوغلو رسالتها
«لقاء أخير» للأتراك والسوريّين اليوم

بدا المشهد سوداوياً عشية اللقاءات السورية لوزير الخارجية
التركية أحمد داوود أوغلو، مع ظهور تنسيق أميركي ــ تركي بشأن رسالة رئيس الدبلوماسية التركية للقيادة السورية، مع تلويح أنقرة بفرض حصار وعزلة على دمشق في الاجتماع الذي قد يكون الأخير

احتلت المواجهة الدبلوماسية الدائرة بين أنقرة ودمشق اهتمامات الإعلام التركي الذي شُغل بمحاولة معرفة فحوى الرسالة التي ينقلها وزير الخارجية أحمد داوود أوغلو، إلى حكام دمشق اليوم، وهو ما بدا أنه يجري بالتنسيق مع الإدارة الأميركية. وعشية الزيارة الموعودة، تكثفت الاتصالات التركية ـــــ الأميركية، مع كشف نائب المتحدث باسم وزارة الخارجية الأميركية مارك تونر، أن وزيرة الخارجية هيلاري كلينتون طلبت من نظيرها التركي أن ينقل إلى المسؤولين السوريين رسالة واضحة مفادها أن على السلطات السورية «إعادة جنودها فوراً إلى ثُكنهم وأن تطلق سراح جميع المعتقلين السوريين»، وذلك خلال مكالمة هاتفية أجرتها مع داوود أوغلو.

وتابع: «لقد طلبت (كلينتون) من وزير الخارجية التركي إيصال هذه الرسائل إلى الحكومة السورية، وأعادت تكرار الدعم الأميركي لعمليّة تحوُّل ديموقراطي في سوريا». وبحسب مصادر دبلوماسية تركية تحدّثت لصحيفة «توداي زمان»، ظلّ الاتصال بين كلينتون وداوود أوغلو متواصلاً حيال الملف السوري طوال الفترة الماضية.
من ناحية ثانية، قال تونر «إن التصريحات القوية الصادرة عن الجامعة العربية ومجلس التعاون الخليجي خلال عطلة نهاية الأسبوع مشجعة للغاية وكانت مصدر ارتياح لنا».
وفي إطار التنسيق الأميركي ـــــ التركي حيال الأزمة السورية، كان لافتاً اللقاء الذي جمع كبير مستشاري أردوغان إبراهيم كالين على عجل بالسفير الأميركي لدى تركيا فرانك ريتشارديوني، وذلك قبل دقائق من الاجتماع الذي رأسه رئيس الوزراء التركي أمس للأمن الخارجي، والذي خُصِّص للتطورات السورية ولتحديد مضمون الرسالة التي ينقلها داوود أوغلو إلى المسؤولين السوريين اليوم.
وفي وقت لاحق أمس، وصل المسؤول عن الملف السوري في وزارة الخارجية الأميركية، فريديريك هوف، إلى أنقرة، حيث يجري سلسلة محادثات مع السلطات التركية حول آخر التطورات في سوريا والمنطقة.
إلى ذلك، نقلت صحيفة «حرييت» عن مصادر دبلوماسية تركية أنّ طبيعة الإجراءات التي لوّح أردوغان باتخاذها بحق سوريا، إن كان رد القيادة السورية سلبياً على الرسالة التي ينقلها داوود أوغلو لدمشق اليوم، تتلخص بانضمام أنقرة إلى العواصم الأجنبية والهيئات الدولية التي تتخذ إجراءات ضد النظام السوري، ما قد يؤدّي إلى «تخلّي أنقرة عن الأسد ونظامه ودراسة اتخاذ إجراءات دولية» بحق نظام حزب البعث، و«فرض حصار على دمشق على طريقة عزلة نظام (الرئيس العراقي المخلوع) صدام حسين» في تسعينيات القرن الماضي.
وعن زيارة داوود أوغلو لدمشق اليوم، قال مسؤول آخر في وزارة الخارجية التركية إن «الأتراك سيجلسون ويتحدثون للمرة الأخيرة مع السوريين، ذلك أن اجتماعات داوود أوغلو اليوم ستكون الأخيرة مع السوريين وستحدد نتيجتها ما إذ كانت العلاقات التركية ـــــ السورية ستُقطَع أو لا، رغم أنه يجب عدم استبعاد خيار الحوار بين الدول حتى خلال الحروب». وعن هذا الموضوع، رأى الدبلوماسي التركي أنّ موقف أنقرة تجاه دمشق «قد يؤثّر على مسار الخطوات الدولية ضد دمشق». وذكّر بأنّ الوضع السوري «يختلف عن ظروف ليبيا؛ لأنه لا أحد يمكنه فعل شيء تجاه سوريا من دون تركيا»، مستبعداً أن نشهد حملة عسكرية على سوريا «لكن المسار المرجَّح هو فرض حصار» على هذا البلد.
وكتب رئيس تحرير صحيفة «حرييت دايلي نيوز» مراد يتكن، تحت عنوان «الأسد يلعب بالنار»، أن جوهر رسالة داوود أوغلو للقيادة السورية يفيد بأنه «إن لم يوقف نظام الأسد فوراً قتل المواطنين، فإنّ تركيا ستنضم إلى المجتمع الدولي في كل ما يتخذه من قرارات عقوبات وعزلة ضد سوريا». بكلام آخر، لن تبقى تركيا «محامي الدفاع عن سوريا»، مشيراً إلى أن ذلك سيترك دمشق «بين أيدي إيران وحدها». وفي السياق، يلفت يتكن إلى أن أردوغان «يحاول القيام بخطوات وقائية لتحييد الدعم اللبناني للأسد»، وهو ما رأى أنه تُرجم مثلاً بمحادثات النائب وليد جنبلاط مع أردوغان في إسطنبول يوم السبت الماضي. وخلص يتكن إلى أن التصعيد التركي الأخير ضد النظام السوري هو ترجمة لانتهاء مهلة «سننتظر لنرى» التي حدّدها الرئيس عبد الله غول بعد خطاب الأسد في 20 حزيران الماضي، كاشفاً عن وجود وزراء داخل الحكومة التركية مقتنعين بأنّ الأسد «ليس أهلاً بالثقة»، وأن هؤلاء واثقون من أن الرئيس السوري عاجز عن فرض نفوذه على «النخبة السورية الحاكمة من ضمن الحرس القديم». ووفق يتكن، فإنّ هؤلاء المسؤولين الأتراك من أصحاب الرأي الذي يفيد بأنه ليس على تركيا إرسال إشارات للأسد يفهم منها أنه «يمكنه اللعب بالوقت»، من دون أن يستبعد رئيس تحرير «حرييت» أن يكون الرئيس السوري نفسه مدركاً أنه «يلعب بالنار»، لكنه «سيكون قد فات الأوان بالنسبة إليه عندما يعترف بهذه الحقيقة».
(الأخبار)

انسحاب من حماه ومسؤولون سابقون يحدّدون خريطة طريق
سُجّل يوم أمس وليل أول من أمس هدوء حذر في عدد من المدن السورية الساخنة، مع إعلان بدء انسحاب الجيش السوري من مدينة حماه، بعد تسعة أيام على اقتحامها، ومع أنباء عن وصول عدد المعتقلين من المدينة إلى 1500، واستمرار أعمال الحملة العسكرية على دير الزور التي سقط فيها 4 قتلى إضافة إلى مقتل ناشط معارض بارز في مدينة درعا الجنوبية. أما اللافت في الحراك السياسي الداخلي، فتجسّد في مؤتمر نظّمه ساسة بعثيون سابقون في دمشق، خرج عنهم بيان تضمّن نقاطاً «إصلاحية» من داخل المؤسسة الحاكمة نفسها.
وصرّح مصدر عسكري أن وحدات الجيش «بدأت بالخروج من مدينة حماه بعد إنجاز مهمة نوعية تجسدت في حماية حياة المواطنين وملاحقة فلول عناصر التنظيمات الإرهابية المسلحة التي عاثت فساداً وتخريباً»، مشيراً إلى أن «الجيش تصدى بدقة ومهنية عالية لأولئك الإرهابيين، وألقى القبض على عدد منهم لتقديمهم إلى العدالة». وأضاف المصدر العسكري أن «الحياة الطبيعية بدأت تعود تدريجاً إلى ربوع المدينة». غير أن «المرصد السوري لحقوق الإنسان» المعارض اتهم سلطات الأمن باعتقال 1500 شخص أول من أمس في حي الجراجمة وحده (في حماه). وفي السياق، أكد المرصد أن دبابات وناقلات جند الجيش دخلت فجر أمس مدينة معرة النعمان في محافظة إدلب، ونفّذت حملة اعتقالات واسعة شملت العشرات.
أما في دير الزور، فقد قُتل أربعة أشخاص هم سيدتان إحداهما مع ابنيها «سقطوا برصاص قوات الأمن» بحسب «المرصد»، الذي نقل عن ناشطين أنّ «سيدة واثنين من أبنائها كانوا يبحثون عن ملاذ آمن فارقوا الحياة عندما أطلقت عليهم دورية أمنية الرصاص الحي صباح الاثنين في حي الحويقة»، إضافة إلى «استشهاد امرأة أخرى في حي الجورة برصاص قوات الأمن». وأوضح سكان المحافظة الشرقية أن دبابات الجيش جددت قصفها لضاحية الحويقة «مع استمرار إقفال المستشفيات الخاصة، في ظل خشية من نقل المصابين إلى المنشآت الحكومية لأنها تعجّ بالشرطة السرية»، لتصل حصيلة قتلى دير الزور منذ فجر السبت إلى 65 شخصاً على الأقل، بحسب المصدر نفسه. غير أن ناشطاً آخر أبلغ موقع «سيريا نيوز» أن «المدينة تعيش حالة من الهدوء الحذر»، مشيراً إلى أن «عدد الشهداء الذين سقطوا منذ بدء الجيش عملية في المدينة وصل إلى 7 شهداء على الأقل، إضافة إلى عشرات الجرحى».
جنوباً، وفي درعا تحديداً، أعلن «المرصد السوري» أن الناشط السوري معن العودات، وهو شقيق المعارض البارز المقيم في باريس هيثم مناع، اغتيل في المدينة برصاص الأجهزة الأمنية السورية، وذلك «خلال مشاركته في تشييع جثمان شهيد سبق أن سقط على أيدي أجهزة الأمن»، بحسب مدير المرصد رامي عبد الرحمن، مشيراً إلى سقوط قتيلين آخرين أثناء التشييع. وكانت تظاهرات ما بعد صلاة التراويح ليل الأحد ــــ الاثنين قد تنقلت بين المدن السورية من دون تسجيل وقوع قتلى بل جرحى، مثلما حصل في حمص، وتدمر والرستن خصوصاً.
في هذا الوقت، دعت مجموعة في سوريا تعمل تحت اسم «المبادرة الوطنية الديموقراطية»، وتضم 41 من المثقفين والساسة السابقين، ومعظمهم من حزب البعث الحاكم، إلى عقد مؤتمر وطني يضمن الانتقال السلمي نحو نظام جديد يمثل كل السوريين، من دون أن تدعو إلى إسقاط الرئيس بشار الأسد. وتحدث باسم المجموعة وزير الإعلام الأسبق محمد سلمان الذي تلا بيان «المبادرة»، مشيراً إلى ضرورة تأليف حكومة وحدة وطنية مؤقتة تضم كافة أطياف المجتمع بقيادة الأسد نفسه. وأشار البيان إلى قراري إلغاء حالة الطوارئ والإفراج عن السجناء السياسيين اللذين اتخذتهما السلطات السورية، لافتاً إلى أن «استمرار الحل الأمني في سوريا خياراً، واستخدام القوات المسلحة واعتقال الآلاف، يضع العصي في عجلة التغيير السياسي المنشود»، مؤكداً «ضرورة أن يبذل الجميع، معارضة وسلطة، الجهود للحيلولة دون وقوع أمرين خطيرين على حاضر الوطن ومستقبله، وهما الحرب الأهلية والاقتتال الطائفي من جهة، والتدخل الأجنبي عموماً من جهة أخرى».
ودعا سلمان الرئيس الأسد إلى ترؤس مؤتمر وطني يضع الحلول الناجعة للخروج من الأزمة الراهنة، منتقداً قيادة حزب البعث الحالية «لأنها منذ عام 2000 سارت على سياسة الإقصاء لمعظم المسؤولين الذين كانوا في الحزب والدولة، وهؤلاء لا يستطيعون أن يقفوا متفرجين»، محذراً من «وقوع أمرين خطيرين على حاضر الوطن ومستقبله، وهما الحرب الأهلية والاقتتال الطائفي من جهة والتدخل الأجنبي عموماً من جهة أخرى».
ورأى سلمان، في مؤتمره الصحافي الذي عقده في دمشق، أنّ «المواقف التركية هي تدخّل علني في شؤون سوريا، وكذلك السعودية، فكله طرح واحد متناغم في ما بينهما وهو مرتبط مع الموقف الدولي». وبشأن حالات التجييش الطائفي، أشار سلمان إلى استحالة «حكم سوريا بطائفة وحدها»، مذكّراً بأن «أحداً لم يسمع أياً من المعارضة الوطنية يتحدث عن الطائفية، كذلك فإن هذه المعارضة لا تمارس العمل الطائفي».
وتهدف المبادرة التي تضم في عضويتها وزراء سابقين وأعضاءً سابقين في القيادة القطرية لحزب البعث الحاكم في سوريا، وأساتذة جامعات ومثقفين، مثلما جاء في برنامجها، «إلى سلامة الوطن ووحدة الشعب واعتبار المقاومة بكافة أشكالها وأساليبها الخيار لتحرير الجولان والأراضي العربية المحتلة، وكذلك الانتقال السلمي في سوريا من نظام الحكم الذي قام على منهج سياسي يعود إلى مرحلة حركة التحرر العربية والحرب الباردة باسم الديموقراطية الشعبية إلى نظام حكم ديموقراطي برلماني، أي الديموقراطية التمثيلية». ومن الأهداف التي وردت أيضاً في البيان «استعادة الحياة السياسية التعددية وما يترتّب عليها من حرية في المجالات الإعلامية والثقافية كافة على أسس عصرية، وصياغة دستور جديد للبلاد بما يتوافق مع الدولة الوطنية المدنية الديموقراطية ونظامها السياسي».
وحدّدت المبادرة آلية تحقيق هذه الأهداف بعقد مؤتمر وطني يكون بمثابة جمعية تأسيسية وفق آلية تتفق عليها السلطة والمعارضة بكل أطيافها، وتكون مهمته إقرار أنجع السبل لانتقال سلمي إلى النظام الجديد، وتأليف حكومة وحدة وطنية مؤقتة تجسّد جميع أطياف النسيج الوطني برئاسة رئيس الجمهورية الحالي، على أن تحدد جدولاً زمنياً لإنجاز دستور جديد وقانون أحزاب وقانون انتخابات، وذلك خلال فترة لا تزيد على عام.
(أ ف ب، رويترز، يو بي آي)

باريس تدعو الى مرحلة «انتقالية»

واصل المجتمع الدولي انتقاداته للنظام السوري، حاثاً اياه على الاستجابة للتطلعات الشعبية، ومحذراً من فرض المزيد من العقوبات. أبرز المواقف صدرت أمس من فرنسا التي دعت إلى مرحلة «انتقالية ديموقراطية» في سوريا، موضحةً أن «زمن تهرب السلطات السورية من العقاب قد ولّى»، وذلك بعد «استمرار الانتهاكات الكثيفة لحقوق الانسان».
وقالت مساعدة الناطق باسم وزارة الخارجية، كريستين فاج، في لقاء مع صحافيين، إنه «لا بد من مرحلة انتقالية ديموقراطية تستجيب لتطلعات الشعب السوري المشروعة». ورأت أن اعلان دمشق أخيراً اجراء انتخابات «مناورة لصرف الانتباه». وبعدما دانت «استمرار القمع على نطاق واسع في سوريا»، أشارت إلى أن اعتقال المعارض وليد البني «يدفع الى عدم الاهتمام باعلانات السلطات السورية بشأن انتخابات حرة وشفافة في المستقبل تبدو وكأنها مناورة جديدة لصرف الانتباه».
من جهته، قال المتحدث باسم الحكومة الألمانية كريستوف شتيجمانز إن الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد سيفقد شرعيته في الحكم إذا لم ينه القمع العسكري للمحتجين المدنيين. وأوضح أنه «إذا استمر الرئيس الأسد في رفض الحوار مع الشعب السوري واستخدام العنف فمن رأي الحكومة الألمانية أنه سيفقد شرعيته في قيادة البلاد في المستقبل»، فيما اعربت وزارة الخارجية الألمانية عن اعتقادها «أن الأسد فقد شرعيته بالفعل في عيون الشعب السوري، وأنه يتسبب في المزيد من المشكلات لنفسه مع المجتمع الدولي».
وفي السياق، دعا رئيس اللجنة البرلمانية الألمانية للشؤون الخارجية، روبريشت بولنتس، إلى مقاطعة دولية لصادرات سوريا من النفط والغاز للضغط على دمشق لنبذ العنف في تعاملها مع المحتجين، مشدداً على أنه «قبل الاقدام على خطوة كهذه ينبغي التأكد أن لا احد سيشتري تلك الموارد المطلوبة، فالصين مرشحة لفعل ذلك لحاجتها الماسة إلى الطاقة». كذلك اقترح انضمام بلدان الاتحاد الاوروبي إلى ايطاليا في استدعاء سفرائها من سوريا «في إشارة سياسية إلى عدم امكان التواصل مع الأسد ونظامه على مستوى السفراء».
أما الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة بان كي مون، فجدد دعوته الحكومة السورية إلى وقف العنف ضد شعبها فوراً، واصفاً ذلك بأنه انتهاك للقانون الدولي.
ونقلت وسائل إعلام يابانية عن بان قوله، إنه تحدّث إلى الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد عبر الهاتف في نهاية الأسبوع ووجه له رسالة من المجتمع الدولي، وأبلغه قلقه من استخدام القوة ضد المتظاهرين.
(أ ف ب، رويترز، يو بي آي)

http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/18652

Abughassan:
على من تقرأ مزاميرك.. يا داوود
!غباء مستفحل

Otw,thank you. My stance on the army does not fit well with some,i have the right to disagree with those who think that a magical kindhearted foreign power will save them from the “evil” Syrian army.
The ban on zualhimmah if true is overdue,but it is not enough,and I am afraid that it may be part of a pending internal power struggle.
Replacing habib is probably done to win the support of some people in the middle but it is too early to pass a judgement on this move. In my opinion,there is no alternative for Bashar’s resignation and a take over by the army ,however, I could be wrong. My point is that we need a transitional body to govern Syria without the use of Turkish tanks or NATO “friendly” assistance.that body as of now has to be the army until we see a credible and acceptable alternative. Calling on the army to step in is supported by many Syrians and major international and regional powers as a way to stop the bloodshed and avoid direct foreign intervention.

UNHCR denies accusing Hezbollah of killing Syria deserters

Beirut – The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Monday repudiated statements that it had produced a report accusing Lebanon’s Hezbollah of involvement in killing Syrian army deserters.
‘The UNHCR categorically denies the information published … quoting French sources and attributing inaccurate statements to UNHCR,’ a statement by the organization said.
Newspapers in Lebanon cited a still-unpublished report supposedly from a UNCHR committee, that said Hezbollah along with members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards had killed Syrian Army defectors.
Hezbollah denied the reports in a statement released to Lebanese media on Monday.
Earlier Monday, Hezbollah called on ‘the United Nations and all its institutions to be credible and accurate with its reports and statements so that they do not become instigators of unrest and strife.’
‘Hezbollah has already issued many statements denying the claims by the Syrian opposition, as well as other parties, of Hezbollah’s interference in the events taking place in Syria,’ the Hezbollah statement said.
‘Hezbollah condemns these false accusations – which are not based on facts and sees in them proof that some international organizations are joining the conspiracy targeting these forces that are against the Zionist-American project in the region,’ it added.
Radio France, which reported on the purported UNHCR document, said the 20-page report would be published in the coming days.
The UNHCR report will, according to Radio France, say Syrian soldiers who refused to shoot protesters were detained by Hezbollah and killed by members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards in Syria.

“Do you have to ridicule or attack the army to prove that you really hate the regime?”

If you are going to get all worked up and throw the “traitor” word every time you read an uncomfortable opinion, then you should rethink what you are doing on forums.

It is not “ridiculing” the Syrian army when someone points out that MiG-21s, MiG-23s, T-55s and Scuds are no match for a modern army. Any military analyst will tell you that, as a modern fighting force, the Syrian army is hopelessly outmatched.

The Baathists didn’t build up an army, they built up the world’s most heavily armed crowd control force.

“Who fought and died in 1973 guys? The syrians and the Egyptians ,not the kuwaitis or the Saudis.”

Kindly review what you think you know of history. The Saudis sent a detachment to the 1973 war.

“I do not know what we will have left as a unifying force if syrians turn their back to their sons in the army.”

The army turned its back on the Syrian people when they invaded so many cities. Do you think I will trust the same officers who so mercilessly kill Hamwis and people in Deir el Zour even as we speak?

this is how the “brave and glorious” Syrian army liberates Syrian cities:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM4Vh3QNqD4

what a disgrace

Mr Landis, Here Mr. Qandil argues (my quick summary) that

“The orchestrated warnings to Damascus from all US allies in the region is ”

just bluff to cover their failure. it has become evident that The Syrian army is swiftly and successfully neutralising the chaos and terror hotspots setup by armed gangs supported and financed by king abdullah himself and other US allies .

The Turkish leaders have to calculate well the costs of their involvement in any military adventures.

The Syrian army and people will stand up under the leadership of president Assad and and protect their sovereignty against any Nato /turkish military adventures .

التهويل بالعدوان بعد فشل خطة التخريب
غالب قنديل
http://www.al-binaa.com/newversion/article.php?articleId=39512

تجمّعت في فضاء المنطقة عناصر حملة صاخبة سياسيا وإعلاميا، تنطوي على التهويل بتحضير عدوان على سورية بذريعة «التدخل الإنساني» التي استخدمها الحلف الاستعماري الغربي في ليبيا أخيرا ومن المؤشرات البارزة كان خطاب الملك السعودي، وتصريح رئيس الوزراء التركي، وبعض التقارير الصحافية عن لقاء تركي ـ سعودي ـ أميركي قريب، لمناقشة الأحداث السورية.
أولا: الموقف السعودي الذي عبّر عنه الملك عبدالله بن عبد العزيز، يمثل انتقالا سافرا في الموقف السعودي نحو المجاهرة بالانخراط في خطة استهداف سورية بعدما كانت السعودية تتدخل لدعم القوى المتورطة، بواسطة جهاز بندر بن سلطان الأمني ومن خلال فريق سعد الحريري اللبناني وعبر احتضان زمرة خدام والشبكة الوهابية التكفيرية المتطرفة، وحيث قدمت السعودية الدعم والمساندة ماليا وإعلاميا لجماعات التكفير، ولتنظيم الأخوان المسلمين، في سورية.
وضعت وسائل الإعلام السعودية، وبصورة خاصة قناة العربية، وجريدتي الشرق الأوسط والحياة، في حال استنفار منذ شهر آذار الماضي، لاستهداف سورية التي يشغل الهجوم عليها المساحة الرئيسية من الموضوعات والتقارير والتعليقات في هذه الوسائل وحيث أفسحت السعودية جميع المنابر التي تملكها أو تمولها للمجموعات السياسية السورية المقيمة في الخارج، والمنخرطة في خطة التخريب وإثارة الاضطرابات، ومن العلامات الفارقة الدالة على تورط السعودية أن المقرات الرئيسية لقناتي التكفير وصال وصفا موجودتان في الرياض وهما مكرستان للتحريض داخل سورية بينما يقيم شيخ التكفير عدنان العرعور في المملكة برفاهية وأمان، وهو يدعو إلى عمليات القتل المنظمة والجماعية، عبر قناته الفضائية من هناك.
ثانيا: كان البعض في المنطقة وفي سورية نفسها يعتقدون أن كل تلك الأنشطة التي تستعمل أدوات سياسية وإعلامية وأمنية وأموالا سعودية لم تكن تحظى برضى الملك السعودي، وربما تجري من دون علمه وانتقال الملك إلى المجاهرة بموقفه العدائي، جاء ضمن خطاب تجاهل كليا وعن عمد، وجود عصابات مسلحة تعتدي على الآمنين وعلى القوى الأمنية وتقتل الناس وتقيم سلطة إرهابية حيث تنتشر وتدفع الأهالي إلى النزوح عن بيوتهم وبدلا من التضامن مع سورية في مكافحة الإرهاب والفوضى، تحرك الملك لنجدة الإرهابيين وميليشياتهم قبل تصفية معاقلهم الأخيرة على الأرض السورية.
لا يمكن لأحد في البلاد العربية أن يصدق أن المملكة السعودية راغبة في نشر الديمقراطية والانتخابات والتعدد السياسي والحزبي في البلاد العربية، والأولى بتلك الصحوة الملكية، هم أهل الجزيرة العربية، بينما يقود الملك نظاما استبداديا ينتمي إلى القرون الوسطى يحميه السيافون والمطوِّعة، وتتحكم المخابرات الأميركية في مفاصله، ولا يمكن لأي عاقل في العالم أن يصدق ذلك الحرص المزعوم على حقن الدماء، في وجه تمرد عسكري ضد الدولة الوطنية من نظام تخصص في إبادة المعترضين والمحتجين وحيث لا مكان لمعارضيه من أبناء الجزيرة العربية سوى المنافي أو السجون، التي هي كناية عن مقابر مضمرة، يمنع التحدث عنها في أي من وسائل الإعلام وحيث يحتل مشايخ التكفير كصالح اللحيدان مواقع قيادية في الدولة، محصنة بأمر ملكي ضد أي انتقاد.

ثالثا: جاء كلام الملك عبدالله مباشرة بعد بيان مجلس التعاون الخليجي، وبعد تصريحات رجب طيب اردوغان العدائية ضد سورية، وذلك كله يجري بالأمر الأميركي الذي بلغ مكتب أمين عام الجامعة العربية نبيل العربي المنضم إلى جوقة التحريض ضد سورية في ندائه الدبلوماسي الذي أصدره في التوقيت نفسه.
الهدف المباشر هو تحضير الأجواء الافتراضية للتدخل في سورية، والإيحاء بذلك لتصعيد الضغوط على الدولة الوطنية السورية، ولحماية فلول العصابات المسلحة التي تندحر وتنهار في معاقلها أمام الجيش الوطني ببساطة، إنه التهديد الذي يهدف الى تعويض الفشل على الأرض.
لقد أفشل الجيش السوري بوحدته وتماسكه وبولائه للرئيس بشار الأسد جميع الرهانات الأجنبية، وهو ما عبرت عنه الخيبة الأميركية والتركية من عدم حدوث انشقاق في المؤسسة العسكرية والأمنية السورية طيلة الأشهر الماضية، وعلى الرغم من أكاذيب المعارضة السورية، وما فبركته من تمثيليات سخيفة حول ضباط وجنود منشقين وهي كناية عن مهزلة يعرف الخبراء بطلانها.
بفضل اليقظة الشعبية داخل البلاد، تمكنت الدولة الوطنية السورية، من إغلاق جميع المنافذ التي توسلتها الميليشيات العميلة، لتأمين رأس جسر للتدخل الأجنبي وقد عبّر الشعب السوري بغالبيته الموصوفة والمشهودة، في الميادين والساحات، عن رفضه للفتنة وإدانته لعصابات الإجرام والقتل.
أظهر الرئيس الأسد تصميما واضحا على مشروعه الإصلاحي وقد باشرت المؤسسات الدستورية السورية العمل على تنفيذ الإصلاحات التي تتخذ ذريعة لإثارة الاضطرابات في البلاد، وذريعة موازية للتدخلات الأجنبية وبالتالي فإن إحدى الغايات التي تحرك مشاريع التدخل، هي قطع الطريق على الإصلاحات.
بات بحكم المؤكد أن العمليات التي ينفذها الجيش العربي السوري في حماه وحمص ودير الزور تطبق على بؤر الإرهاب والتخريب التي أقامتها الميليشيات المسلحة لما تسمى بالمعارضة السورية، وهذا الواجب تؤديه الدولة استجابة لمطالبة شعبية ولنداءات الأهالي في المناطق السورية، التي ذاقت ويل الإرهاب والفوضى على يد ميليشيات العرعور وتنظيم الأخوان وسعد الحريري وخدام وجون ماكين ووليد فارس وسمير جعجع وبندر بن سلطان ورجب أردوغان وغيرهم.
المغامرة بأي تدخل في سورية ستكون وبالا على أصحابها، والحلف الذي تقوده الولايات المتحدة لا يزال غارقا في مأزق مغامرته الليبية، بينما على القيادة التركية أن تجري حسابات صعبة وشائكة لكلفة تورطها في العدوان على سورية، أما السعودية فلها حساب آخر بكلفة مضاعفة.
التدخل في سورية، سيثير موجة واسعة من المقاومة الشعبية، فالسوريون متمسكون بوطنيتهم وبعروبتهم وبسيادتهم على بلادهم، وسيكون الجيش والشعب بقيادة الرئيس الأسد في مجابهة أي عربدة عسكرية تركية أو أطلسية، وما لم يضعه الغرب في حسابه هو شراسة المقاومة التي سيلقاها أي تدخل في سورية، والكلفة الكبيرة التي سوف تلحق بالمعتدين وبالمتدخلين، ولن تنجو منها القاعدة الغربية المعتدية «إسرائيل».
فـ«إسرائيل» هي مربط الحلف الذي يتحرك ضد سورية دوليا وإقليميا، والغاية من كل ما يجري، هي ضرب قوة المقاومة التي تمثلها سورية، والنيل من مناعتها ومن صمودها.

I think I made my point clear and we have the right to disagree on the army.
Btw,when did I call any Syrian here a traitor?
Arabs provided symbolic assistance to Syria in 1973,trying to inflate the scope of that assistance is rewriting history,even the Saudis will not go that far.
I am fully aware of the unacceptable condition of the Syrian army and how the regime misused that army,I was among the first to criticize sending the army to Hama ,read my previous posts if you care.
Give me a roadmap,if you have one,for the period following Bashar’s departure. Sidelining the Syrian army makes me very nervous about what is being cooked for Syria in those dark rooms inside and outside Syria. If some of you want the FSA to be ” The Army” you need a heavy dose of reality. Changing leadership positions in the army is something but starting from scratch is something else.

مسؤول اسرائيلي : تدخل اطلسي في سورية يعني نهاية اسرائيل ونهاية دول الخليج
تستطيع سورية ان تخسر مليون قتيل من شعبها في مواجهة غزو خارجي واطلسي خاصة فهل تستطيع اسرائيل تخسر مليون مواطن ؟؟

وتستطيع ايران ان تخوض حربا ضد اميركا في الخليج وفي العراق ويمكن لايران ان تتدمر ولكن شعبها الحاقد على اميركا تاريخيا لن يستسلم بل سيقاتل حتى آخر رجل فهل يمكن للشعب الاميركي ان يحتمل دفع ملايين من جنوده قتلى في حرب طويلة مع ايران دفاعا اراضي السعودية والبحرين والامارات في مواجهة غزو ايران كاسح ؟؟

تستطيع تركيا ان تضرب سورية ولكن هل تستطيع ان تخوض حربا طويلة ضدها وضد الاكراد وضد ايران في وقت واحد دون ان ينقلب عليها ربع شعبها العلوي ونصف شعبها العلماني وعسكرها المتربص بحزب الاسلام المتصهين المتأمرك ؟؟

كل خيار عسكري اطلسي ضد سورية يعني ردا سوريا ايرانيا حزب اللهيا على اسرائيل
الربح الوحيد لاسرائيل من ازمة سورية يتمثل في انحياز حماس الى الحلف الاسرائيلي الاميركي التركي السعودي ضد الاسد واسلحة الاخوان المسلمين في سورية تصلهم نسبة كبيرة منها عن طريق مسؤولي حماس الذين يتلقون الآن معاملة مفضلة من تركيا وبالتالي من اسرائيل الحليف العسكري الكبير لتركيا والذي لم تنقطع علاقة الجيش والعسكر بينهما حتى في احلك الظروف واصبح خالد مشعل يتنقل الآن بحرية في الطائرات بعد ان تلقى ضمانات اسرائيلية عبر تركيا مكافأة له على موقفه المشجع للاضطرابات في سورية
لكن موقف حماس لا يكفي فلاسقاط الاسد يحتاج الامر إلى معجزة فمن جهة جيشه متماسك ومن جهة اخرى نصف شعبها واكثر لا يزال موال له خاصة في دمشق وحلب التي يحلم اردوغان بالغناء في قلعتها بعد احتلالها بغية تنصيب نفسه سلطانا على العالم الاسلام من حلب الاسلامية ولكن الرد السوري قد لا يجابه تركيا فقط بل قد يختار ان يكون رده فقط على اسرائيل فهو يعرف ان نقطة ضعف العالم المتحضر تكمن في الشعب اليهودي المقيم في اسرائيل وعليه ستنهمر الصواريخ لا على الاراضي التركية التي تكفي سورية منها اشعالها باعواد الحزب الكردي المقاتل هناك
مرسلة بواسطة FILKKA ISRAEL في الثلاثاء, أغسطس 09, 2011

To All,
I have been following the back and forth among Abughassan, Aboud and Off the wall (three of my favorite people on the blog) about the Syrian army. I would like to point out that unfortunately, our Syrian army is beyond pathetic. It is not because of its members, but for sure, because of its leadership.
Many people were and still are wondering why the Egyptian army acted the way it did and our army is still klling its people. I have the answer for you: the Egyptian army officers have been trained in the US for the last 30 years and they have been well trained.
I do not understand this scare that we have from the “outside interference”. Oh please dear God, why?. Yes, the west is not going to care about us and they will be doing what is in their best interst not ours, but guess what? the west’s best interest is to create a market for its products. To create a market, people have to have jobs and enough money to spend. Plus the ocuntry has to be stable. Isn’t this what we are trying to achieve?. How about we surrender our souls to the devil, learn his ways, get out of the hole we have been digging, and then beat the devil at his own game?. Can we learn from what Germany and Japan went through after WWII?. Do you believe that we Syrians are smart, resourceful and creative? we can do this. Why do we need to reinvent the wheel.

PS: I am trying real hard to be the devil’s advocate and beat my old record that now stands at 32 dislikes. Do you think I can achieve this? LOL

“PS: I am trying real hard to be the devil’s advocate and beat my old record that now stands at 32 dislikes”

>_<

Rub it in will ya. I'm still sulking. Nothing I say gets me anywhere near that many dislikes.

Junior sleeps with the lights on!

To Amir in Tel Aviv,
First I have to tell you that I loved your post about going to the demonstration in Tel Aviv and “Alshaab youreed” social justice. If you need any Shabeeha for your Tel Aviv demonstrations, we have a sale in Syria: buy one get one free. They come equiped with guns but lack souls.
I am curious, why do you follow Syria Comment and contribute regularly? Are you an Arab Jew? Do you speak Arabic?

Islam is the problem? What is normal in Syria? nothing…Government is a reflection of its people, thru-out history Islam has been producing bad corrupt governments even at its peak, Islam raises dictators in each house the man of the house is a natural borne dictator he can punish his wife for not obeying his commands and even restrict her from not leaving the house, Islam raises intolerant people of others. One only needs to compare between Christian & Muslim Arabs to understand the negative influence of Islam on people, If you go to the towns and villages of Syria you notice the difference in culture from village to the other depending on religion and sect. if you’re in a Christian village you would notice the cleanness, sense of community and respect of women on the other hand, a Muslim village would be little rough on the eye and if you were accompanied by a woman she will be harassed. With Islam comes polygamy, a recipe for dictatorship, honor killings is another dictatorship mentality. If we look in the US, we have as many Muslims as we do Christians, but look at their accomplishments, while the former’s contributions are well visible in every field, the latter is invisible except for their way of dressing, there intolerance is the main obstacle from assimilating and excelling. Fix Islam you won’t have dictators, Christians and Jews did it and succeeded.

Prof. Ghalioun ups the ante and describes Bashar as the leader of a criminal gang and not a president.

غليون وصف الأسد بأنه زعيم “عصابة” وليس رئيساً
محللون: خطاب العاهل السعودي “نقطة فاصلة” في مسار الأزمة السورية

أكد محللون وخبراء على أن الرسالة التي وجهها العاهل السعودي الملك عبد الله بن عبدالعزيز لسوريا أمس الأحد تعد نقطة فاصلة بين مرحلتين في الأزمة التي تعيشها سوريا في الوقت الحالي، واستبعد بعضهم أن يرد النظام السوري إيجابيا على تلك الرسالة، وتوقعوا أن يواصل سياسة الإنكار التي ينتهجها منذ بداية الأزمة.
الرسالة ليست تهديداً أو تدخلاً

ياسر عبد ربه
وقال الدكتور ياسر عبدربه أمين سر اللجنة التنفيذية لمنظمة التحرير الفلسطينية في مداخلة مع برنامج “بانوراما” بثته العربية مساء الاثنين إنه ليس هناك عاقل لايدرك أهمية الرسالة التي وجهها العاهل السعودي، موضحا أنه قبل الرسالة كان هناك تردد وعدم استجابة للدخول في معالجة الوضع السوري، رغم أن تداعيات الوضع لا يستطيع أحد تجاهلها.

وأشار عبدربه إلى أن الرسالة جاءت قبل انتقال الأزمة السورية لمرحلة أعلى مثل التدويل، وأن الرسالة جاءت للتنبيه بأن هذه نقطة للفصل بين الحكمة والفوضى، وهدفت لإقناع النظام بإصلاحات جادة.

وأوضح عبدربه أن السوريين هم من يقرر هذه الرسالة.

وشدد القيادي الفلسطيني على أنه يتعين أن لا يتم النظر للرسالة السعودية على أنها تهديد أو إنذار أو تدخل، مبينا أنه لا أحد يعرف الفواصل بين ماهو داخلي وماله تداعيات إقليمية.
وقف الصمت

برهان غليون
من جانبه قال الدكتور برهان غليون أستاذ علم الاجتماع السياسي في جامعة السوربون إن موقف السعودية فاجأ النظام السوري الذي استغل الصمت في السابق واعتبر أن هذا الصمت يعتبر موافقة أو غضا للطرف عن الجرائم التي يرتكبها، أما بعد تلك الرسالة فإن النظام يدرك أن قرار الإبادة الكاملة للحركة الاحتجاجية الذي كان قد اتخذه وضعه في مأزق ولن يستطيع الاستمرار فيه لأن العالم بدأ يراقب ما يحدث.

وأعرب غليون عن اعتقادة بأن النظام السوري أقل ذكاء من أن يتعامل إيجابيا مع الرسالة، ولن يعرف كيفية الخروج من المأزق، وسيواصل الإمعان في سياسة الإنكار.

وشدد غليون على أنه لا يجب أن يكون لدى العرب أي أوهام حول المصالحة، مؤكدا أن هذا النظام انتهى بعد سقوط هذا العدد من القتلى والجرحى، ويجب أن يرحل، وبعدها يتم النقاش مع أجهزة الدولة والمؤسسات لمرحلة انتقالية.

واعتبر غليون أن دعوة وزير الإعلام السوري الأسبق للحوار هي مناورة جديدة من النظام، لأن ما يحدث هو حرب على الشعب.

وأضاف أنه لن يقبل أحد من الشعب السوري إعطاء الأسد شرعية جديدة كرئيس، فهو حاليا زعيم عصابة وليس رئيس، والشعب السوري يريد أن يأخذ مصيره بيده.
تفكك بنية النظام

صالح السعيدي
أما صالح السعيدي المحلل السياسي الكويتي، فقال إن النظام السوري عاجز عن الإصلاح لأن الاصلاح الجاد يعني سقوط ورحيل النظام، فهناك حزب واحد يحتكر السلطة والحياة السياسية بالكامل.

وقال السعيدي إن رسالة العاهل السعودي فاصلة بين مرحلتين، مرحلة الصمت، أما بعدها فإن على النظام أن يعي أن كل تصرفاته تحت المراقبة الدولية، والعالم لن يسكت.

واعتبر السعيدي أنه في الظروف الحالية، وفي ظل انشغال دول مثل مصر بشؤونها الداخلية، فإن دول الخليج هي المؤهلة للتحرك عربيا، مبينا أن هذا التحرك جاء استجابة للصمود الأسطوري للشعب السوري، وأوضح أن أحدا لم يتوقع الصمود السوري لهذا الحد، مؤكدا أن هذا الشعب لن يتراجع، وأن النظام لا يمكن إعادة تعويمه مرة أخرى.

وتوقع أن تبدأ بنية النظام في التفكك، تحت الضغط، وعندما يشعر النظام بأن هناك ضغطا دوليا فسوف تتفكك بنيته.

“Can we learn from what Germany and Japan went through after WWII?”
Not another Germany Japan bad joke, the same lie of pre-Iraq war.
 
Funny how after all this years of the ugliest military mission in the man history some are still believe in it.
 
Japan and Germany were already advanced before WW2, they made their own airplanes, submarines and aircraft carriers, their societies are homogeneous without any major issue, unlike ours, they are well organized with the highest nationalism feeling in the world and you compare them to us, try another example, try Somalia, Afghanistan or if you want to be optimistic Iraq, that is your maximum dream limit after the fair and human loving west occupy your homeland.
 
You want to be slaved by the West, it’s your own choice, but, I, like many other Syrians, we refuse your offer, keep it to yourself.

To prove that it is serious about reforms and dialogue, the Syrian security forces assassinated the brother of Haitham Manaa al-Oudat while he was taking part in a funeral.

وقال رامي عبد الرحمن مدير المرصد السوري لحقوق الإنسان إن الأجهزة الأمنية السورية “اغتالت معن العودات الذي كان يشارك في تشييع جثمان شهيد في درعا سقط على أيدي أجهزة الأمن”، موضحا أنه استهدف برصاصة مباشرة أصابته في الرأس.
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/08/08/161425.html

Stop crush on people or face Gadhafi’s fate, says Turkey’s Davutoğlu
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=stop-crush-on-people-or-face-gadhafi8217s-fate-says-turkeys-davutoglu-2011-08-08
Monday, August 8, 2011
ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News
US Mideast envoy arrives in Ankara for a meeting as the Turkish foreign minister prepares to deliver a strong message to Damascus
Both the US and EU wonder whether Turkey’s call on al-Assad will fall on deaf ears or if he will move to end the reported killings.

Military operations against protesters must end if the Syrian regime wants to maintain its legitimacy, and not go the way of Libya’s leadership, Turkey’s top diplomat is set to tell Damascus in a visit Tuesday.

Ending the violence in Syria is an urgent demand not only of Turkey but of the whole international community, official sources told the Hürriyet Daily News late Monday on the eve of Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu’s talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Syria is facing growing international condemnation as the leadership ignores calls to end its deadly crackdown on protesters, putting it at risk of becoming as isolated as Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, who has also been engaged in a bloody battle against opposition forces in his country.

As unrest spreads across Syria, diplomatic visits to the country have become rare, making Davutoğlu’s trip a subject of keen international attention. A senior U.S. diplomat paid a snap visit to Ankara ahead of Davutoğlu’s trip to coordinate the two countries’ policies vis-à-vis Syria

Following a phone conversation with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton late Sunday, the U.S. envoy for the Middle East, Fred Hof, held talks with Turkish officials in Ankara, where he entered the Prime Ministry through the back door, presumably to avoid media attention.

Sources close to the talks said Hof’s visit focused on Davutoğlu’s trip to Damascus and the messages the Turkish foreign minister would convey to al-Assad. Hof also reportedly wanted to know how Turkey would react if Davutoğlu’s talks fail to produce any concrete result.

“The situation in Syria is really complicated. There are some minor positive steps but they are far from satisfying,” Turkish officials told Hof, citing the removal of the state of emergency that had existed in the country for decades.

The topic was also addressed in a security summit held in Ankara on Monday under the leadership of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and with the participation of Chief of General Staff Gen. Necdet Özel as well as senior government officials.

Sources told the Daily News that the first message Davutoğlu was planning to dispatch to Damascus was the urgency in ending the military operations against protesters. A recent operation launched on the same day as the beginning of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan caused widespread fury in the Islamic world. “This [ending operations] is necessary for them to preserve the legitimacy of their regime,” an official said, comparing the situation with that of Libya, another Arab country shaken by protests.

“The Libyan regime lost its legitimacy when it insisted on resorting to violence,” the official said.

Davutoğlu’s second message will be a call for the al-Assad regime to announce a concrete date for free elections in which all political parties that wish to join can run for Parliament. The Syrian regime earlier moved to allow the formation of new political parties but was not clear about when it would hold elections. The move was seen as a positive development but failed to satisfy Turkey and the rest of the international community.

Freeing all political prisoners and taking additional reform steps will also be urged by the Turkish foreign minister in Damascus.

“Al-Assad and his regime know in-depth what they should do to start a meaningful dialogue with their own people. We have offered them assistance in a number of fields,” a source told the Daily News.

All options on the table

The security summit held at the Prime Ministry on Monday reviewed all potential moves Turkey could undertake if the al-Assad regime decides to go its own way and continue imposing violence. Sources said all possible options – economic, political and security-related – were considered. Economic relations have already been affected by the growing instability in Syria and some joint projects have been suspended, sources said, adding that further implications were also discussed at the meeting.

The participation of Chief of General Staff Gen. Özel in the meeting underscored the military dimension of the situation in neighboring Syria. Though the international community was not able to show a concerted reaction to Syria at the United Nations, the growing violence and bloodshed could increase the volume of calls for a military intervention into Syria. Turkish officials said all options, including establishing a buffer zone in the Syrian part of the border, were being discussed at a technical level.

Political relations between Ankara and Damascus would be affected by future developments, as proven by an exchange of harsh statements between the two capitals over the weekend. Bouthina Shaban, a Syrian presidential adviser, urged Davutoğlu not to give a resolute message if he does not want to hear more resolute responses.

Clinton’s statement casts a shadow

Davutoğlu’s upcoming visit to Damascus sparked controversy following the U.S. State Department’s statement on the content of the Davutoğlu-Clinton phone talk late Sunday. Spokesman Mark Toner said Clinton discussed the U.S. position that Syria must immediately return its military to the barracks and release all political prisoners. “She asked the foreign minister to reinforce these messages with the Syrian government. She also discussed American support for a transition to democracy in Syria,” Toner said.

The perceived description of Davutoğlu as Clinton’s messenger was not welcomed by Ankara. “We are perturbed by [the statement]. Minister Davutoğlu’s agenda already contains all the necessary messages,” the Turkish official said.

Bashar’s disgraceful sectarian army destroys and loots homes in Hama and writes “there is no God but Assad” on the walls:

Turkey should stay out of military action in Syria, says CHP chief
Monday, August 8, 2011
ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=turkey-should-stay-out-of-military-action-in-syria-says-chp-chief-2011-08-08
Main opposition party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu called on Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to not push Turkey into a possible military operation against Syria.

“We should take lessons from history. It [Turkey] shouldn’t repeat its mistakes. Let’s take democracy, freedoms to Syria and contribute to Syria to make it a more contemporary country. But we shouldn’t be the pawn of Western sovereign powers,” Kılıçdaroğlu, leader of the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, told the daily Hürriyet in an interview published Monday.

“We shouldn’t get involved in possible military action in Syria,“ he said.

“[Western powers] will force Turkey to actively participate in action toward Syria. If a prime minister [Erdoğan] says that our patience with the situation is running out, the next step is a military operation,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.

more…..

Jad

Just you know, the link you provided yesterday about Samar Yazbek was disgraceful. I was surprised that you linked it.

Today is a sad day. Poor King Abdullah lost Hamah. The keeper of the two holy sites and owner of an IKEA store was angry. He really thought he owned Hamah.

He really thought a few million dollars would buy him a city. And when Prince Bandar greased the Leopard tank deal with Germany, he really thought he had the West in his pocket to attack Syria.

America and England have for decades been whores to Saudi money…but Germany? Seems that when the global economy is down, everyone becomes a whore.

Please don’t tell me that people really give a damn about the average Syrian. Why is there no similar concern about President Deby in Chad? He’s been ‘elected’ President for over 20 years. France is happy he is there because he gives them Uranium. The people live in far more squalor than in Syria.

So please explain the hypocrisy.

And next, I will ask why France and the U.S. have kept Haiti as a shithole that exploits workers…… and why none of you give a damn about that.

Long live the Syrian people!

Memo To: SHIELA

RE: “…the Egyptian army officers have been trained in the US for the last 30 years…”

You noticed, Shiela, that everyone on the board voted “thumbs down” on your post. Typical of them. It’s called denial. They don’t want to hear anything positive about the “evil” West and especially about the USA. All their lives they’ve been told by the Assad Mafia propaganda machine to shun the West, to resist its attractions and temptations, to hold as gospel truth that the Syrian way is best (even when it’s not). And like Pavlov’s dog, they still respond as they were taught.

Got to hand it to him, old Hafez did a hell of a job!

http://grammarwench.wordpress.com/2011/02/05/pavlovs-dogs/

Saudi Arabia’s message to Syria, decoded

It is Iranian influence, not the killing of civilians, that Saudi Arabia is concerned about as it recalls its ambassador in Syria

Brian Whitaker
guardian.co.uk, Monday 8 August 2011 16.41 BST
larger | smaller

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah has announced that he is recalling the kingdom’s ambassador from Syria for ‘consultations’. Photograph: Tannen Maury/EPA

Saudi Arabia has become the first Arab country to take a firm stand against the Syrian regime’s killing of civilians. In a statement issued late on Sunday night, King Abdullah demanded an end to the bloodshed and announced that the kingdom was recalling its ambassador from Damascus.

There are only two options for Syria, the king said: “Either it chooses wisdom willingly, or drifts into the depths of chaos and loss.” He called for “quick and comprehensive reforms” – “reforms that are not entwined with promises, but actually achieved so that our brothers the citizens in Syria can feel them in their lives”.

These are the strongest comments made so far by any Arab leader, and on that basis we should probably welcome them – especially if they encourage other countries in the region to take a stand. But, as one Twitter user noted, the king’s denunciation of the Assad regime does make him sound a bit like Al Capone condemning the Kray twins.

Back home, King Abdullah has shown no inclination towards the “quick and comprehensive reforms” that he is now urging upon Syria; Saudi Arabia has nothing to teach Syria about democracy, and protest demonstrations in the kingdom are totally banned. So the king’s message to Syria betrays more than a little irony.

Perhaps more troubling, though, is the negative role that Saudi Arabia has been playing during the “Arab spring” – a role that now it seems to be extending to include Syria.

The tone was set in February when Saudi Arabia gave refuge to Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, the ousted Tunisian dictator. The Saudi government last week seemed unhappy when Egypt’s former president, Hosni Mubarak, was actually put on trial, with one official describing it as “a humiliating spectacle for everyone”.

The Saudi-dominated Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) has also sought to bolster the status quo in Jordan and Morocco by inviting them into the rich men’s club. Since neither country is a significant oil producer and neither is located anywhere near the Gulf, GCC membership for Jordan and Morocco only makes sense in terms of bringing all the Arab monarchs under a single umbrella for their collective protection.

We saw this monarchical insurance scheme operating at a practical level in March when Saudi troops entered Bahrain (under the auspices of the GCC’s military arm, Peninsula Shield) to save the king from protesters. Considering how much criticism there has been of Nato’s intervention in Libya, Saudi Arabia’s neo-imperialist adventure in Bahrain has attracted remarkably little attention – and it didn’t even have the cover of the UN security council resolution.

Saudi Arabia has long been the hegemonic power in Yemen, too, and its role there since the Yemeni uprising began has been more unhelpful than helpful. While recognising that Ali Abdullah Saleh is no longer a viable option as president, the Saudis are looking for a solution that would keep Yemen’s current political establishment intact – the last thing they want is a revolution of the kind favoured by protesters on the streets.

King Abdullah perhaps deserves some gratitude for detaining Saleh in Riyadh, as a “guest” locked up in luxury, now that he has been discharged from hospital – since his return to Yemen would certainly result in more bloodshed. But no one should have illusions about that: the Saudis are looking after their own perceived interests, not those of the Yemenis who are trying to change the system. The GCC-mediated “transition plan” for Yemen was meant to prevent a genuine revolution, not help to accomplish it.

Which brings us to Syria and the question of Saudi intentions there. King Abdullah’s call for swift reform and an end to the killings is unlikely to be heeded, but perhaps it is not meant to be. Perhaps it’s meant to do nothing more than distance Saudi Arabia from the Assad regime, in preparation for its fall.

Saudi Arabia has no interest in promoting democracy or human rights in Syria; it does have an interest in promoting Sunni Muslim influence and combating Shia influence (as embodied at the international level by Iran). Considering the Assad regime’s ties with Iran, this suggests a motive for Saudi Arabia to become involved now – in the hope of driving a wedge between Iran and a post-Assad Syria.

© Guardian News and Media Limited 2011

To prove beyond any doubt that the Syrian government is beyond serious about reforms and dialogue, Syrian security thugs attacked the parents of Malik Jandali, the Syrian pianist and music composer for playing the piano in an anti-government rally in Washington D.C.

Syrian musician blames security forces for his parents’ beating
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/07/29/syria.homs.musician/

This is a little bit old, but it serves the purpose of highlighting why we need to get rid of this evil regime and Baath party. The day of reckoning is soon approaching God willing. This dark chapter in Syria’s history will come to and end by the help of God.

110 posted by Jad# excellent analysis.

We all know that Iraq stability would not have been done without Iranian and Syrian influence. Attack on Syria means unrest in Iraq. Irans’ loyal group will rise

Attak on Syria by Turkey. Erdogan has to fight Syria, Iran and the Kurds. Can he afford such a war?

HA the strong ally of Iran may get involved

People in the US cant wait to see their army come back home. They do not want more wars. Obama will have to face ellections soon; the economy is his worst enemy, he does not want to drag the nation into a war with more economic downside.

Do not get me wrong, I believe the NATO would love to strike but unfortunately it may find itself paralyzed to take such an action, a costly action. I think it is all about pressure and more pressure, no more, no less. The UN will meet and charge the president. Give me a break, they are charging him on daily basis since he became the president of Syria 11 years ago.

Last, The one thing that I really do not get; Why in the world, the US wants to replace a secular goverement like the current one, with a radical and if not radical “a conservative: what ever conservative means” one?. It does not make sence to allow MBs and radicals to come to power. What about fighting terrorism. Are we fighting terrorism or enabling terrorists to overcome free and secular nations.

Why is it that when louts and murderers are storming the streets of Syria, that Britain and America and their likes, say that they are ‘peace-protesters’, and that they are human rights activists, while when in London, those louts are known as rioters and creating violence? Why is it OK for the police in London to arrest 100 people, while in Syria, the Army and Bashar are known as human rights abusers for imprisoning criminals? Why was it OK for police officers to kill a man, then the media say they did not, while in Syria, if a murderer is shot, then the army and Bashar are themselves, murderers? And the media as a whole, report the violence by the rioters in London, and yet there is no reporting of the violence in Syria, created by the revolutionaries. I find that highly hypocritical, and pathetic. I only hope that Britain goes up in flames, and then America follows.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/8282973/fresh-outbreaks-of-violence-in-london

Al-Assad regime is vital to all minorities and secular people not only in Syria but in the middle east….Many of Iraqi christian people here in the west are feeling anxious about their relatives who are living in Syria and waiting the steps to emigrate to many western countries after the massacres which they had suffered in Iraq…..
If the situation of Iraqi Christian likes this ,lets imagine the situation of the Syrian Christian,Druze,Alawaite, and others ……….All are afraid from the radical Islamic monsters….It is a truth ……
From my side I feel that we are coming to the end of this drama as the war is a hard choice for every body in the middle east…..The bill of this war is difficult to be paid .
Blood ,massive killing and destruction- not only in Syria- but in Israel, Lebanon, Turkey, Iran, and the Persian (Arabs think it is the Arabic)Gulf are the logic consequences which all the area would pay.
Al-Assad is strong and his cards are still in his hands…..Days are coming to prove this fact.

I agree that it is premature to write the regime’s obituary,however, opposition to its rule is growing and long term survival of its head is questionable at best. Without a major political break thru we are likely to witness a prolonged period of low level violent confrontation between two determined sides who are now more inclined to use violence. One exit,an army takeover,may reverse this course. People who attack the army and compare it to the IDF are shooting themselves in the foot and taking an unacceptable risk with syria’s future.

Memo To: REAL SYRIAN

RE: “…Al-Assad is strong and his cards are still in his hands…”

You are a dreamer. Besho is up the creek without a paddle and if you’re in the boat with him, I suggest you jump out real soon because there’s rocks and rapids and white water dead ahead…

to 122 DALE ANDERSEN
Though I do not like to go in discussion with Islamic terrorists , I would tell you that most real Syrian are still in the same ship with Al-Assad.
Our ship is very old , it belongs to the first alphabet , it is older than your disgusting Islamic radical background which had distorted the real face of Syria…..
Days are coming and we will see…..

To SS / Jad, good one!
The irony is that, the previous administration called for the “War on Islamist Terrorist” the new current administration calls for the “War to enable Islamist terrorists to overcome free and secular nations.”
We do not need another Islamist country to send us (Ben Tanakeh) in ten years. Sometime I wonder who give us projections, probably we outsource it to India or China like everything else. Unless they guarantee 100% to American people that such support will not harm any American in future or hurt any American (only) interest. I do not see myself giving a vote to such gamblers.

Dale Anderson is a radical Islamist … LOL

دخيلكون خواصري

People like to references Filkka Israel as an outlet connected with the Israeli intelligence, when the reality is that it is a pathetic attempt by the Syrian intelligence at spreading misinformation. If you want an Israeli source, try http://www.Debka.com.

http://www.debka.com/article/21188/
Assad toughs it out against US-Turkish ultimatum to halt military crackdown

As his tanks and artillery stormed the eastern Syrian town of Deir al-Zour, killing 100 civilians in one day, the US and Turkey Sunday night, Aug. 7 began to turn the screw on President Bashar Assad: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asked Turkey’s foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu to press Syria to “return its military to the barracks,” during his visit to Syria Tuesday.
DEBKAfile: Behind the demand was an ultimatum that if Assad continued on his present bloody path, NATO member Turkey would intervene militarily in the crisis.
However, the Syrian ruler with backing from Tehran spurned the ultimatum even before the Turkish minister reached Damascus. “He will be given an even tougher message to take home,” said one of Assad’s top advisers.
DEBKAfile’s Iranian sources report that in the last few days, Tehran has repeatedly warned Ankara that Iran will not stand aside for a military operation against Syria and would come to the aid of the Assad regime. It was indicated that Turkish attacks on Syrian military targets would bring forth Iranian attacks on the Turkish army and American bases in Turkey.
Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah recalled his ambassador to Damascus Monday, demanding an end to the bloodshed. “What is happening in Syria is not acceptable for Saudi Arabia,” he said in a written statement read out on Al Arabiya satellite television.
Our military sources report that Assad was not deterred from pushing on Monday with his assault on the oil town of Deir al-Zour for the second day. For the first time in the five-month crackdown on protesters, the Syrian military are using self-propelled heavy artillery against rebel targets in a wide radius around the town to prevent the approach of rebel reinforcements.

Filkka Israel for this who don’t know is a pathetic attempt by Syrian intelligence at misinformation. This is not an Israeli website as the Syrian media likes to imply.

If you want an Israeli source, try Debka.

Mass executions in Hama’s main square as Syrian resistance mounts
http://www.debka.com/article/21176/

Samara #119

It probably have to do with the fact that the British police arrested 100 not 15,000 , and killed 1 man and did not murdered 2500 including women and children. Also the fact that the British tanks didn’t roll into their cities and their army didn’t shoot innocent civilians. As for news reporting, maybe the Syrian regime should let the media in, then it can whine about them not reporting the truth.

A website is claiming that General Ali habib was found dead in his house.
It claims that the Syrian TV reported that his death was related to long standing illness!

العثور على وزير الدفاع السوري مقتولا في منزله
http://www.islammemo.cc/hadath-el-saa/elmwagahat-elsoria/2011/08/09/131597.html

Sheila #3,

I suppose the same could be said about the pro revolution commentators here. They must all be either the administrators of Syrian revolution 2011 or leading activists.

Get a grip.

If London was faced with countless armed gang members, or had radicals insurgents targeting their infrastructure, public and private dwellings, criminal radicals committing the most horrific of crimes against the countries security personnel and average citizen, dumping bodies they slaughtered into rivers , conducting public hangings or imposing blockades in order to prevent citizens from leaving or people coming in, if they had terrorists declaring Jihad against their government and security forces or a religious leader preaching sectarian hate and division in their multicultural land, what would the government’s stance be?

Wouldn’t they do everything in their power to regain order and stability? Wouldn’t they declare an immediate police state? Anyone who thinks they will take a laid back approach and invite the terrorists over for a cup of tea is delusional.

Samara

To answer your questions:

The people on the streets of Syria are generally peaceful (with some, maybe increasing, exceptions) and making specific political demands. The people on the street in London etc have made no political demands as far as I can see, and began destroying things without any identifiable goal other than mayhem.

The people that the British police are arresting will have their names recorded,and they will be given access to independent lawyers. If there is evidence, they will be charged with a crime and go into a relatively independent legal system. If there is no evidence against them, they will be released. They will not be killed or tortured, and they probably won’t be beaten too badly.

Those arrested in Syria will be held incomunicado (their families won’t know where they are), they will not get lawyers, they will be beaten and probably tortured. If they ever go before a judge, that judge will simply do what he is told by the authorities. Many hundreds of them will simply never be seen again.

Again, the media in London can show what is happening in London. A French, Japanese or Syrian TV crew can go there and film. In Syria, there is no possibility of fair and free analysis of what is going on. Syrian TV is a joke that not even government supporters can take seriously. The only independent footage is from people with mobile phones. The people being shot at.

There are occasions when police in London get away with murder and corruption, but there are genuine efforts to prevent this, and genuine efforts to provide justice for ordinary people. The Syrian government does not make these efforts, and the poor suffer.

I hope that answers your questions.

النظام استغل العلويين كوقود للوصول للسلطة
الخوف من البطش وراء امتناع طوائف سورية عن المشاركة في الاحتجاجات
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/08/09/161443.html

أرجع ناشطون ومحللون تردد بعض الطوائف السورية عن المشاركة في الاحتجاجات والمظاهرات التي تعيشها سوريا منذ نحو 6 أشهر إلى الخوف من بطش النظام، وليس تأييدا أو دعما له.

وقال وحيد صقر مسؤول العلاقات العامة في إئتلاف شباب الثورة السورية الحرة إن النظام استخدم في البداية الطائفة العلوية كوقود للوصول للسلطة، وبعدها انتقل الحكم من حكم علوي طائفي إلى حكم أسري تعسفي.
وأشار صقر المنتمي للطائفة العلوية، خلال مداخلة من لندن مع برنامج “بانوراما” الذي بثته العربية مساء الاثنين، إلى أنه قبل اندلاع الانتفاضة، تبرأ بعض أبناء الطائفة من النظام، ورد بعمليات تقطيع وتمزيق للقرى والمدن الساحلية التي يتركز فيها أبناء الطائفة.

وقال صقر إن هناك أيضا خطابا طائفيا من بعض الشخصيات الدينية ترك أثرا سلبيا لدى العلويين، موضحا أن بعض المصطلحات التي تدعو للانتقام من العلويين أوجدت تخوفا واضحا لدى أبناء الطائفة.

وحيد صقر
وحول ضمان حقوق الأقليات في سوريا في حال سقوط النظام، قال الدكتور برهان غليون أستاذ الاجتماع السياسي بجامعة السوربون، إن الضمان هو ثقافة الشعب
السوري القائمة على التعدد والتنوع.

وأوضح غليون أن النظام لعب على مسألة التمايز المذهبي، وأقام جيوشا على هذا الأساس، وأن النظام لا يملك قاعدة سياسية، وبالتالي استند لقاعدة طائفية حاول
تعبئة عشائر وطوائف محددة.

وأوضح أن النظام عمل بقصد وتعمد لتهديد الطوائف غير السنية لأن عقوبة النزول للتظاهر لأبناء تلك الطوائف أشد مما يقع من عقاب على السنة، لأن مشاركة ابناء الطوائف الأخرى يعطي شرعية للثورة والنظام يروج لأن المتظاهرين سنة وسلفيون معززون من الخارج.

وأوضح أن الأذى الأكبر لحق بالطائفة العلوية من النظام، حيث جند جزءا كبيرا من أبنائها في أجهزة الأمن، وجعلهم في مواجهة الشعب، بدلا من دمجهم مع بقية المجتمع، وهؤلاء لم يستفيدوا كثيرا من النظام.

وأشار غليون إلى أن نظام البعث قتل الكثير من النخب العلوية خلال حكمه.

ياسر عبد ربه
من جانبه أشار ياسر عبدربه أمين سر اللجنة التنفيذية لمنظمة التحرير الفلسطينية إلى أن الفلسطينيين في سوريا كانوا من بين أكثر الفئات التي عانت من حكم الأسد، وهم الاكثر قلقا من تداعيات الأحداث في سوريا.

ويسعى الناشطون السياسيون السوريون في الداخل والخارج الى التأكيد على أن الحركة الاحتجاجية التي تشهدها سوريا منذ شهر مارس الماضي هي حركة لكل
السوريين وبمشاركة الجميع، وذلك على العكس من النظام الذي سعى في البداية إلى تغذية نيران الفتنة الطائفية من خلال التركيز على أن الهدف منها هو إقامة غمارة إسلامية بسوريا.

ورفعت العديد من الشعارات خلال المظاهرات تأكيدا لهذا المسعي، حيث ردد المتظاهرون “واحد واحد الشعب السوري واحد” او “اسلامية ومسيحية سنة ودروز
وعلوية.. كلهم أخوة سورية””.

ويلخص الشعار الأخير التركيبة الطائفية للسكان في سوريا والذين يشكل السنة غالبيتهم العظمى بما يقدر باكثر من 70 بالمائة، يليهم العلويون والمسيحيون ثم
الدروز والاكراد اضافة الى اقلية من الشيعة.

الا ان ما يميز المجتمع السوري هو انعدام الشعور الطائفي بالمعنى السياسي والذي لم ينجح النظام في تاجيجه في الفترة الاخيرة.

الا ان المتابع للاحداث سيلاحظ تردد الاقليات الدينية في الانخراط في الحركة الاحتجاجية او حتى الخوف منها، والنأي بأنفسهم عنها، مما جعل البعض يفسر موقف هذه الأقليات على أنه وقوف إلى جانب السلطة.

رويترز تعدّل أسلوبها التحريري في ملف سورية وتبدأ بنسب عمليات القتل والقمع الى بشار الأسد شخصيا
الكاتب وطن
الاثنين, 08 أغسطس 2011 21:24

في تطور إعلامي له خلفياته السياسية وتداعياته القانونية ، بدأت وكالة “رويترز” في نسب ما يقوم به الأمن السوري ضد السكان الى الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد شخصيا.

وفي تحقيق لـ”رويترز” ، نشر هذا المساء ورد، في هذا السياق، الآتي:” قال سكان إن الرئيس السوري بشار الاسد واصل اليوم الاثنين قصف مدينة دير الزور في شرق البلاد بالدبابات لليوم الثاني على التوالي في تصعيد لحملة العنف ضد المحتجين مما دفع دولا مجاورة الى
إدانة الرئيس السوري واستدعاء سفرائها من دمشق.

وأصبحت حملة الاسد المستمرة منذ خمسة أشهر على معارضيه واحدة من أشد الاحداث دموية في موجة الاضطرابات التي تجتاح العالم العربي هذا العام. وتفاقم العنف في الايام السبعة الماضية بعد ان أمر الاسد بشن هجوم بالدبابات على مدينتين.”

SYAU

During the 9/11 attacks I don’t remember seeing one tank in the streets of New York, I don’t even remember seeing one checkpoint!

Here’s some numbers for you

United States Crime Rates 2009
Population 307,006,550
Total 10,639,369
Violent 1,318,398
Property 9,320,971
Murder 15,241
Forcible Rape 89,000
Robbery 408,217
Aggravated assault 806,843
Burglary 2,196,971
Larceny-Theft 6,327,320
Vehicle Theft 794,616

As you see, these numbers are almost 100 times greater than the MASSIVELY EXAGGERATED number of crimes allegedly committed by “Syrian terrorists”. The population of the U.S is about 15 times that of Syria. According to your logic the U.S army should occupy every city in the U.S and randomly shoot civilians to “restore order”.

Jad, regarding your story in Arabic at #88 — where did it originate, do you know (I found the text at the blogsite http://shamna.net)? Was the author of this text Ali Haider (علي حيدر)? If so, is this Haider the same Haider who is the head of the SSNP?

Can you please add the HTML link to posts such as these — it is difficult to assess the credibility of any story without examining it closely, for sources, links, author, affiliation . . .

Dale Anderson — your arrogance is astonishing. You will note that even when you post something opposed to Assad’s dictatorship, you get almost zero support here.

This is, I believe, because of the distaste you express for Syrians. Even when I might agree with a small point or observation you make, the tendency to lecture and sneer at everyone here makes your interventions repugnant to me. I won’t credit your arrogance and ugliness to your citizenship, however.

RE the story about the NATO plans to smash Syria, posted by Jad and others . . . based on Russian sources . . . there is not much in the story that is not made up of speculation and partial truths.

Jad, as I understand it, you are outside Syria, in a Western country. Do you have family in Syria now, or folks that you keep in personal contact with? I think I can understand the frustration and impotence you may feel if so, but I wonder why you have written off/given up on so many folks here with whom you had reasonably civil relations, why you bitch at Aboud and Tara and snipe at anyone who does not share your convictions and certainties.

Nk

Why would there be the need for tanks, it was a devastating attack but it ended. It wasn’t followed by numerous terrorists claiming to be peaceful protesters, who murder and mutilate, blow up pipelines, derail trains, attempt insurgencies against police stations, impose blockades and declare Jihad against the government. The revolution in Syria is a terrorist movement that is committing one crime after another. There is a difference.

The Syrian government has every right to protect its citizens against such evil, just as any government would.

Principled Stands

You want to be slaved by the West, it’s your own choice, but, I, like many other Syrians, we refuse your offer, keep it to yourself.

Heck no, we’ll just live there, work 70 hours weeks in the west, and pay taxes in the west cause Syria is heaven on earth and we are undeserving of that heaven.

Secularitarian
A not so rare condition afflicting sectarians. The disease manifests itself by causing unconvincing blabber about secularism. A common factor among all afflicted is a deep fear and hate of the others and the utterance of strongly sectarian comments, especially on Syria Comment, while calling oneself Secular.

Angels and Daemons

A poor commentator on Syria Comment has recently eaten his angel. We were informed that an aroorian nightmare resulted in a major neural malfunction where sectarian nightmares and reality got really bungled up. The poor angel had no chance to fly, it was swallowed in one gulp feet first. No one choked on the wings’ feather, as far as we know.

Doctors say that angel flesh, when swallowed during nightmares about people with red beard, can result in a state of delusional euphoria, making one believe that she/he are cool and smart despite all evidence to the contrary. One other symptom is an obsession for projecting one’s own pathetic fears onto others and confusing dirt with electrical appliances.

Maps, Erasers, and Riots

A Russian academician recently identified that the increasing unrest in Europe can easily be traced to the fact that the continent has not yet recognized its erasure from the map. The academician, a former leader in the former ruling party, also predicted the fall of Canada into the great lakes and the demise of the USA back in the 1970s. His predictions came through many times on the well known Aduhnia TV and in countless posts on Syria Comment and in Syrian Press.

The Russian Academician, who is one of the founders of perpetual relativity theo-postulate, also praised the democratic principles on which the current Syrian regime operates. He singled out the Syrian Parliament for its democratic traditions saying “have you seen a more peaceful parliament where no arguments are ever made. If this is not the ultimate democracy, I fail to see what would it be”. The founder of Perpetual relativity theo-postulate, which is a new field of statistics in which numbers do not matter as long as one believes otherwise, is expected to move soon to Syria where the practice and application of his new science is catching up like hire in haystack among a new religious group known as menhebbakites.

Coming up next: Baath party gets into real-estate

HAZ

I am all for peacefull protests. And i detest any who say otherwise. But what is happening in Syria is far from peacefully demanding reform. Those people can protest all they like, no one will tell them no. They can hate and loath Bashar and protest against him, as long as they do it without violence. They protest their freeking hearts out. But they do not want political, economic or social reform. They dont want any reform. Do you call murdering and torturing people peacefully demanding reform? Do you call mutilating and decapitating people peaceful? Do you call raiding shops and houses and kidnapping people peacefully demanding reform? Do you call getting weapons and drugs peacefull? Because if it is, then there must be no clear definition of peace and no such thing as evil. Here is a hypothetical for you: if i hate my prime minister, is it ok for me to go out and kill people, and police officers and destroy shops and homes, or will my voice be heard better if i demonstrate my desire for reform peacefully?

And no. The outside countries hate Syria and Bashar because Bashar will not conform and be a pawn in their hands. Dont ever make the mistake in believing that those countries give a rats behind about Syria or the Syrian people. All they care about is watching Syria fall. THAT WILL NEVER HAPPEN.

@ Dr.Landis, im glad you find me a positive contributor to this board, and i hope to serve Syria and Academia in the best way possible.
@ Amir : i have heard rumors of protesters attacking shabeeha with guns in Damascus. I can’t verify it, but the turnout in midan yesterday was low, maybe because of the large turnout of shabeeha, nevertheless dissidents are awaiting “laylet al ader” (the night the koran was bought down) to come out in huge numbers.
@ Aboud, i very much appreciate your support. you have humor only the hamasneh have, and it cracks me up. every Syrian knows an Atassi, EVERY ONE!. the Atassi family is the biggest urban family in syria, this family has contributed a lot to Syria.
@ all, the increased diplomatic pressure on the Syrian regime will definitely bolster the protesters and give them encouragement, i really expect Davoutoglo to leave Damascus disappointed and even angered, Buthaina Shaaban has made a aggressive comment on the upcoming meeting, and the regime doesn’t have the umph to scare off the turks. the GCC, EU,USA,Israel will support \ the disposal of Assad but will not support our ultimate goal: a regime that serves its people best . they will aim for another Mubarak for syria….we will aim for our own Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
————————————————————-
only in syria, an army private serves his commander’s wife rather than serving his own commander.

The Syrian coming Atatork(call him syriakork)will put MB leaders,Shiek Artooz,Alssiasna,Alaaroor…in a boat in one way vacation to the mediteranian sea.That is how Atatork cleaned Turkey.

@ samara
“They dont want any reform. Do you call murdering and torturing people peacefully demanding reform? Do you call mutilating and decapitating people peaceful?”
i was protesting in Midan, it was purely peaceful…the protest was so ideal, we even had women distributing water and cola to quench our thirst. the shabeeha response? well first they came out with the tear gas grenades, then came the thugs carrying sticks. they captured whomever they could and dragged them into their buses.
we protestors want judicial,social,political and econimic reforms. things bashar can’t carry out. why? well he’s surrounded by people that directly benefit from the sorry state syria is in( rami, atef,maher…….)

“I am all for peacefull protests. And i detest any who say otherwise”
ok good, then i want you to convince that we are allowed to peacefully protest in syria.
go to any 3 police station in syria and declare the inner circle of the regime is bad. if you make it home safely , bashar has my heart and mind. otherwise you will get beaten and according to what you said , you will detest bashar.
@snk
this is a revolution of the youths of syria, not big men with even bigger beards. i will admit, islamists will attempt to take advantage of this wave, but let me remind you of the last time the mb was in parliament, they didnt exceed 6 seats.
——————————————————————
in Sweden, you break the law.in authoritarian syria: law breaks YOU!

AbuGhassan @ 121

I m sorry to say, but your comments are very repetitive and baseless to say the least. You keep repeating “army take over” when a 2 year old in Syria knows very well that it would never happen. The whole world has been barking this tree and talking about split and coup etcc.. But it is all none sense. It will never happen. think about a new solution and don’t waste your time on this one.

105. Secular Syria said:

Christianity was at some point in the past just as “problematic” as Islam maybe now per your statements, their was medieval europe at one time where Galilio was going to be killed. But Christianity was reformed, Islam is still waiting to have its day.

You may not be aware that in syria many many years, alot of Christians converted to Islam due to the harsh treatment by the priests as a way to free themselves. The priests were quite corrupt and behaved like dictators themselves. also, Christians especially Catholics do have alot of children too, look at South america with its poverty problems.

Islam is not exactly the problem, it is the blind faith demanded by the sheikhs and culture of following orders with no questions asked that is more of the issue. This is where the democracy compatibility issue and dictatorial attitudes comes in.

There is a growing “Quranic Islamic” movement in the US and Europe who are aiming to free themselves from the “blind faith” that the sheikhs advocate. Perhaps one day it will arrive in Saudia Arabia and Syria too.

Some guy in damascus,

“go to any 3 police stations…” i would have if i lived in Syria. And you say that the Shabiha attacked your peaceful protest? Well then, they are idiots and deserve to be beaten. Because i dont believe in attacking innocent and peacegul people. But i also dont belive in the overall malice and complete disregard for human life that the majority of the revolutionaries have. They too, deserve to be beaten and get the same happen to them as they have done to many innocent pro- regime supporters.

SOME GUY IN DAMASCUS,

“Go to any 3 police stations…” i would if i lived in Syria 🙂 And no i will not detest Bashar, because he even said in his speach that he allows peacefull protests. As long as they are just that. PEACEFULL.

And you say that the shabiha attcked at your peaceful protest? Well then they deserve to be beatten up for that. I oppose attacking innocent people, especially protesters. But i also oppose the vile acts of the majority of the revolutionaries. I oppose their malicious behaviour toward the pro-regime people and they even go that far as to kill soldiers. Why dont you see that? Or do you, but you choose not to consider it?

Military Source: Army Units Leaving Hama after Completing Mission of Protecting Citizens, Normal Life Returning Gradually

http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/08/09/362908.htm

DAMASCUS/HAMA, (SANA) – An official military source stated on Monday that army units tasked with restoring security and stability to the city of Hama began leaving it after completing their mission of protecting civilians and tracking down the armed terrorist groups which had been wreaking havoc in Hama, committing acts of vandalizing, dividing the city and disrupting life in it.

The source said that the army units confronted the terrorists, showing high precision and professionalism and arresting a number of them to bring them to justice.

The military source added that normal life began to return gradually to the city.

Maintenance Teams Begin Restoring Life to Hama City Streets

The authorities in Hama Governorate began removing rubble and debris from the city’s streets and restoring the establishments and facilities vandalized by armed terrorist groups.

Governor of Hama Anas Naem said that the authorities are working to restore natural activity in the city, noting that the armed terrorist groups left behind destruction as they destroyed public and private property, burned buildings, terrorized locals and forced a number of them of them to flee to nearby villages and areas, and generally wrought havoc.

He added that the army units managed to restore security and calm to the governorate, noting that the directorates continued its work to provide services to citizens despite the events, particularly in the health sector, electricity and water departments, and bakeries, and that maintenance teams are currently working to restore the telephone lines and cables damaged by the armed groups.

Firearms and Ammo Confiscated from Armed Groups in Hama
A security source in Hama stated that army units confiscated firearms and ammunition from the armed criminal groups and that a number of its members were arrested along with people who instigated vandalism.

H. Sabbagh

who among the kangoo qaradeeh here swallowed the regime’s story on Ali Habib’s removal ?

test
who here amongst the menhebak community swallowed regime’s version on ali habib’s removal ?

Samara,

Why was a sit in by doctors from the Aleppo University Hospital broken up and some of those doctors arrested? Were those doctors saboteurs? Were they burning down police stations? Were they *insert generic menhebak excuse*

142 MNA in regard to comment 121 Aboghassan#

Totally agree. If you read Aboghassan comments it is summed up by:
1. Bashar has to go (exit, step down, leave….)
2. The army protects us, the army are us, the army is our last chance..He forgets that the army is 100% loyal to the current and past Presedent Assad
3. The Alawi has nothing to fear..: I tell you what: the Alawi are sick of what is going on, from day 1 they were with the president, and they will not accept any alternative. Not because they love him but because they were able to sense the sectarian nature of this awful revolution. You tell me the revolution is made up of Syrian brothers and sisters; I tell you the revolution are made of radical “conservative” Sunni. The flags of the women are Hijjab or Niqab and the flages of the men are their nasty beards

Get out of your dreams Mr. Aboghassan and offer some realistic solution. Assad will never exit, you and alikes better enter the door and come to the table.

لندن، إنجلترا
(CNN) — أكد رئيس الوزراء البريطاني، ديفيد كاميرون، أن حكومته ستتعامل بحزم مع أحداث العنف التي تشهدها العاصمة بريطانية، لليوم الرابع على التوالي، وتوسعت لتشمل عددا من المدن البريطانية

He is allowed, we are not!

William Scott Scherk said:

Dale Anderson — your arrogance is astonishing. You will note that even when you post something opposed to Assad’s dictatorship, you get almost zero support here.

WSS,

The “thumbs up” and “thumbs down” indicators do not mean a whole lot and I wouldn’t put a lot of emphasis on it. For example, a simple question was asked in post 27, and a score of 0-11 has been indicated:

27. Syria1 said:

0 11

Bascially, the most racist, conspiratorial, pro-Assad posters automaticallty get support here, because most of the observers and posters are pro-Assad.

Dale Andersen has every reason to be blunt, the Assad regime has done nothing except promote violence inside and outside of Syria all at the expense of the Syrian people.

Let the people decide who will lead them. Electing leaders is a basic human right, and Syria and the region will be better off when he’s out of the picture.

Time has come for the US and Canada to block oil and gas export from Syria. The regime won’t be able to pay shabbiha salaries anymore. They will change sides. The silent crowed will be pushed to the streets. The business elite’ real loyalty will be unraveled. Besho will be toppled. Transitional government will be formed to include the youth and some traditional respected internal opposition members. The world will watch Besho tried at the Hauge….Tara will be on vacation the first week of his trial in the Netherland if the trial was public to bear witness that justice has been served. And we all live happily ever after. The end.

SS

“He is allowed, we are not! ”

Apparently I have to play the role of Captain Obvious.

In London, homes, cars and businesses have been burnt to the ground. And yet how many demonstrators have been killed in London? zero

Cameron’s government is still debating whether to use water canons. The Baathists start firing tank shells if a funeral procession numbers more than a few thousand.

In five months, no demonstration in Syria, whatsoever, anywhere, has been as 1% as destructive as what we are seeing in London over the past three days.

The Baathists could learn from England. Alas, they removed it and the rest of Europe from the map….

@ samara,
ah, so your blaming those certain security operatives rather than bashar, and you also believe there truly is a freedom of speech,opinion and right to assembly in syria.
very well
then it is under bashar’s regime so many violations of the constitution have been allowed to go unaccountable.
as leader of this nation, he must take urgent action to protect his citizen’s rights, regardless of opinion.
so far he has failed miserably
also under bashar’s administration
the government has banned facebook and youtube. huge infractions on my personal freedoms.
as head of all armed forces he must be held accountable.
but honestly, samara do you really think you can walk around syria announcing the inner circle is bad to whomever?
————————————————————–
in authoritarian syria, radio listens to YOU!

Hi Tara,

Where did the nickname “Besho” come from? Does the name have any significance?

Thanks,

AP

#154 Aboud

How many security personnel or innocent civilians have the rioters in London murdered? Zero

If the riots turn into what we have witnessed in Syria, the government in the UK will not “debate whether to use water cannons”.

xxxx

@SYAU
here take a look at this, this is how the British think of responding. look how carefully structured their thoughts are, and how their humanity remains intact.
its better than the thugs wielding sticks in midan
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-14459127

@157 Dozens of London policemen have been assaulted and injured. One even lost his eye. But where, in all the news coming out of London, do we see a dozen London policemen kicking and beating a lone demonstrator?

Apparently SYAU, you did not take a look at the video clip I linked of the funeral in Idlib that was blatantly shot up. You choose to ignore the testimony of the Swiss journalist who was in Hama for ten days before the invasion.

Oh right, Swiss journalists are all bought by the MB. Just like they bought the Pope.

Sad Day for Syria

When I grew up in the US in the mid 70s, the Jewish controlled media painted such a negative image of the middle east and Syria in particular to the point that the nicest word we Syrians at that time heard from Americans was “go back home you F****** camel drivers”. Eventhough we have not seen one, let alone ridden one, but we were lumped with the rest of them as Syrians proudly wore the arabic word on their chest.

And now a day comes along, when the true camel drivers of Saudia Arabia and the Gulf who are dictating terms and threats to Syria when everyone of them does not even know what democracy stands for nor do they have any intention of ever promoting it. The Saudi king bribes his subjects and calls reform, the Emirates throwing freedom advocates in Jail, and Bahraini’s are dying in the streets.

To add insult to injury, the Jews on this forum are making fun of Syria and Syrians when they have a half baked democracy of their own that barely stands on two legs and will collaps the moment there is smell of peace in the air so that they will break into their own quarrels.

Truely I have not thought that such a day will ever come, but I must be brutaly honest and say Syria’s government has really let me down for things to come this sad situation.

Some guy in Damascus,

Have any of the rioters taken up arms in London?

Has any of the countries civilians or security personnel been murdered and mutilated?

Have the rioters imposed a blockade around any suburb in London, let alone in London itself?

Has the UK been on the receiving end of a vicious propaganda war, and has there been piles of fabricated clips made, to pass on to propaganda networks such as Aljazeera?

Have any of the rioters committed insurgencies or derailed a train with 485 passengers onboard?

Have they targeted oil pipelines?

Have they endorsed or taken measures to collapse the British economy?

I could go on, but it’s clear you cant make comparisons here. The London rioters are vigilantes, not terrorists claiming to be peaceful protesters.

Syria’s crackdown
By JPOST EDITORIAL
08/08/2011 23:08
http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Editorials/Article.aspx?id=232985
“Damascus is at one and the same time the fount of modern Arab nationalism and the exhibit of its frustrations,” Henry Kissinger once observed. “Syrian history alternates achievement with catastrophe.”
……..
In so desperately and violently clinging to power, the behavior of the Alawite ruling minority conforms with perfect consistency to fears it has expressed for 75 years of what majority rule would mean for them.
Understanding these fears helps to understand the present crisis.

In 1936, six Alawite notables sent a memorandum to French prime minister Leon Blum. To explain why they refused to be annexed to a Muslim Syria ruled by the Sunni majority who regarded them as infidels, they pointed to the treatment of Jews under Islam: “The condition of the Jews in Palestine is the strongest and most explicit evidence of the militancy of the Islamic issue vis-à-vis those who do not belong to Islam. These good Jews contributed to the Arabs with civilization and peace, scattered gold, and established prosperity in Palestine without harming anyone or taking anything by force, yet the Muslims declare holy war against them and never hesitated in slaughtering their women and children, despite the presence of England in Palestine and France in Syria.

“Therefore, a dark fate awaits the Jews and other minorities in case the Mandate is abolished and Muslim Syria is united with Muslim Palestine… the ultimate goal of the Muslim Arabs.”

One of the signatories of this remarkable appeal was none other than Sulayman Assad, father of Hafez and grandfather of Bashar.

مسلحو حماه يستخدمون “بومبكشن” تركية الصنع .. وسعرها أقل من 10 آلاف ليرة سورية

http://www.shukumaku.com/Content.php?id=30805

Some guy in Damascus, were any pump-action firearms used in the London riots as they have been and, still are being used during the terrorist revolution in Syria?

@161

“Have any of the rioters taken up arms in London?”

Where was the arms at the Idlib funeral that was shot up? Where were the arms at the Aleppo University Hospital doctors sit in?

“Has any of the countries civilians or security personnel been murdered and mutilated?”

Where was the mutilated security man at the Idlib funeral? Who were the mutilators at the Aleppo University Hospital doctors sit in?

“Have the rioters imposed a blockade around any suburb in London, let alone in London itself?”

Where was the blockade at the Idlib funeral? Do you think they used the coffin to blockade the road? And where was the blockade at the Aleppo University Hospital doctors sit in?

“Has the UK been on the receiving end of a vicious propaganda war, and has there been piles of fabricated clips made, to pass on to propaganda networks such as Aljazeera?”

Yes, all the time. It’s called a free press. Each newspaper wages a propaganda war against a politician or faction they don’t like. Unlike Syria, no one gets shot and jailed for expressing free speech.

“Have any of the rioters committed insurgencies or derailed a train with 485 passengers onboard?

Have they targeted oil pipelines?”

And yet your president has done *nothing* to bring to justice the alleged saboteurs. His thugs aren’t sweeping the area of Homs for saboteurs, they are too busy laying waste to Hama and Deir el Zour.

“Have they endorsed or taken measures to collapse the British economy?”

Sorry moderator, but I have to say that is the most idiotic statement I’ve heard in a long time. Endorsed measures? THEY BURNT DOWN BUSINESSES AND HOMES! Ye God almighty.

London police overwhelmed in explosion of violence by futureless youth
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/london-police-overwhelmed-in-explosion-of-violence-by-futureless-youth/article2123444/page1/
…. Police called in hundreds of reinforcements and volunteer police officers— and made a rare decision to deploy armoured vehicles in some of the worst-hit districts — but still struggled to keep pace with the chaos unfolding at flashpoints across London, in the central city of Birmingham, the western city of Bristol and the northwestern city of Liverpool.
… Mr. Cameron said some 16,000 police would be on London’s streets on Tuesday night, up from the 6,000 on duty on Monday, boosted by reinforcements from across the country.

“It is quite clear that we need more, much more, police on our streets and we need even more robust police action,” he said.

“These are sickening scenes … this is criminality, pure and simple, and it has to be confronted and defeated.”

Darryl,

The Saudis and Turks are not pressuring the Syrian government because of the “Jewish Controlled media” (which is a typical racist remark that has been tolerated on this website for years). The Saudis and the Turks are pressuring the Syrian government because the Syrian government is killing too many innocent Syrians and destabilizing the region.

If those being killed were Jewish, you can rest assured, there would be no pressure on anyone.

“The London rioters are vigilantes”

You obviously don’t know what vigilante means.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vigilante

“A vigilante is a private individual who legally or illegally punishes an alleged lawbreaker, or participates in a group which metes out extralegal punishment to an alleged lawbreaker”

See, nothing in there about burning homes, and looting stores. That isn’t vigilantism, that’s rioting.

But if I was to blow off Cro Magnum Maher’s head, then that would make me a vigilante. Thank you for that endorsement.

I dare the menhebaks here, the ones cheering genocide and mass slaughter, to answer this simple question;

Of the 2,000 Syrian civilian who were murdered by your regime, who amongst them were part of armed gangs? What percentage? 50%? 40%? 10%?

The fact is, you don’t know, nor do you care to know.

” 157. syau said:

#154 Aboud

How many security personnel or innocent civilians have the rioters in London murdered? Zero”

How many hundreds, if not thousands of unarmed, Syrian protestors were shot by the security forces. Even if there were “mundaseen”, your thuggish regime started this war.

” 160. Darryl said:

Sad Day for Syria”

The Saudi government is hypocritcal no doubt, but what about the Syrian government which occupied Lebanon for years fomenting mayhem and massacres. Why haven’t the pro-regime types condemned this? Do as I say not as I do?!

“THEY BURNT DOWN BUSINESSES AND HOMES!”

Just as the terrorist ‘peaceful protesters’ did in Syria, in Syria though, they just stepped it up a notch and blew up pipelines and committed insurgencies against police stations, although not all were successful. In Syria, they ransacked and looted private dwellings and businesses in conjuntion to burning them down, along with cars and fire engines.

“Where was the arms at the Idlib funeral that was shot up?”

Where is your proof that it was anyone affiliated with security personnel that allegedly ‘shot up’ a funeral. COUNTERPRODUCTIVE.

Shooting during funerals is the work of the terrorists that call themselves peaceful protesters, not security personnel. It is ignorant to think otherwise. Also ignorant to think such claims stated over and over again would make people believe it’s fact when it’s not.

To SS:
You are wrong and misinformed. I have many contacts in Syria and I am hearing first hand accounts from people I personall know and trust. This might be surprising to you, but I personally know alawiis, Christians, Kurds, Druz and Turkman who are participating in the demonstrations. I also have a close Christian friend who is very active on the Internet against the regime. On the other hand, I have some of my sunni muslim relatives who are still pro-regime. This is an uprising that encompasses all parts of the Syrian society. It is not a sectarian struggle. Just because sunni muslims are the majority in Syria, thus the largest group represented, does not make this uprising a sunni uprising.

Akbar Palace, please lecture someone else who has not lived on two contents for a long time about Jewish control of the media. You guys keep denying this, I understand, I would deny it if I were you also.

Less than a year ago, a jurnalist writing in a leading Australian newspaper had an article about refugees and what not, he went out of his way to claim that boat people were arriving from Syria as refugees which is nonsense. Everyone one knows the refugees are Iraqs’. afghanis and Sri Lankans, but he had to add Syrians to make his masters happy. He had to bad mouth Syria period so that he can score a few “good boy” pats on the back.

Everytime a jurnalist opens his/her mouth or writes, they always bad mouth Israel’s enemies whether relavent or not and if not bad mouthing your enemies, then they must say something positive about Israel. This just happend 4 weeks ago on a program I was watching. Just remember What happened to that white house reported a fwe years ago.

“Where is your proof that it was anyone affiliated with security personnel that allegedly ’shot up’ a funeral. COUNTERPRODUCTIVE.”

No one who watched the video could possibly say what you just did. What about the dozen security men beating up the overweight middle aged bald man at the end of the clip?

Next time, don’t make comments that just show you didn’t even watch the video.

“they just stepped it up a notch and blew up pipelines”

One more time. Who of the 2000 Syrians murdered blew up pipelines or set fire to police stations? Show me one video where a police station was set on fire

(now he’s going to link the Jisr al Shoghour police station, just you wait and see).

And why isn’t junior out looking for the people who supposedly blew up the pipeline. I’ll tell you why, everyone in and around Telkelakh knows who did it, and junior doesn’t want to piss off the families of the shabihas (the Athad family’s ill-disciplined, barbaric private militia) any more than they already are.

Or don’t the regime’s accountants know that you can’t promise someone 5000 liras a day only to give them 2000? LOL!

To Aboud and Some Guy in Damascus,
Please stop wasting your time with the likes of SS, SYAU and Samara. I think SS and SYAU (which stands for Syrian Authorities) are actually some kind of mukhabarat. You just can not be this misinformed as a human being and not be mukhabarat. So do not blame them. They are just doing their job. On the other hand, Samara is someone you feel sorry for. She is trying so hard to understand, but she has been brainwashed for so long and can not see the truth if it hits her in the face. How can these people argue with the two of you, who are actually on the ground in Syria watching events with your own eyes, and tell you that it is otherwise? I just do not get it?. It is absolutely amazing.
To compare what is going on in London to what is happening in Syria is laughable. Really?????????? You need a PHd in ignorance to pull this one on us. ( I did not want to use stupidity and hurt peoples’ feelings).

“167. syau said:

Where is your proof that it was anyone affiliated with security personnel that allegedly ’shot up’ a funeral. COUNTERPRODUCTIVE.”

And, yet they are still doing it?! You truly are a (edited for insult) you better be packing your bag real soon!

Ila mazabalat at-tareekh

I must remind the crowd of Ntrepid Muslim Brothers on SC that
the UK riots started because the UK police KILLED a black taxi driver.

The “free” press and the police are still debating whether the dead man was a good dad or not , he fired first at the police or not , he was armed or not , etc

Dislaimer

Taking disclaimer from ME and making it worse is plagiarism.

#169,

Proof, not fabrications.

Regardless whether or not I or anyone else watched the video, your claim is absolute nonsense.

Any actual shootings in funerals of ‘peaceful protesters’ is the work of none other than the terrorist ‘peaceful protesters’ who would sell their own mother to further their cause.

One fabricated video after another has been the motto of this revolution- runs a close second to terror.

Why would anyone into account anything put forward from a ‘revolution’ infamous for its fabrications and fake eyewitnesses.

Stands for Syrian Authorities, lol,

151. SS
لندن، إنجلترا
(CNN) — أكد رئيس الوزراء البريطاني، ديفيد كاميرون، أن حكومته ستتعامل بحزم مع أحداث العنف التي تشهدها العاصمة بريطانية، لليوم الرابع على التوالي، وتوسعت لتشمل عددا من المدن البريطانية

He is allowed, we are not!
عدد المعتقلين لدى حكومته أصبح 525 شخصا

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plU1_GxW66Y
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXcI-NL3Tro

@172

“Regardless whether or not I or anyone else watched the video,”

So you didn’t watch it. And yet you already know, through some psychic powers that only the menhebaks seem to posses, that it is a fake? Fabrication?

Tell me, is this how Baathists usually discuss things? Claim something is fake without even having seen it?

“who would sell their own mother to further their cause. ”

While the menhebaks would murder their own mother if she demonstrated against junior.

Sheila, I think SYAU stands for something in Australia. It takes a special level of hypocrisy to bash the very freedoms one enjoys living under. You will find that not one menhebak here is even in Syria. They have all admitted as much.

Another subject for discussion.

http://www.debka.com/article/21193/

Forum is acting up again.

Mohamad Al-Abdullah on CNN

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQ_gHhdZ3Qc&feature=player_embedded

@172

“Regardless whether or not I or anyone else watched the video,”

So you didn’t watch it. And yet you already know, through some psychic powers that only the menhebaks seem to posses, that it is a fake? Fabrication?

Tell me, is this how Baathists usually discuss things? Claim something is fake without even having seen it?

“who would sell their own mother to further their cause. ”

While the menhebaks would murder their own mother if she demonstrated against junior.

Sheila, I think SYAU stands for something in Australia. It takes a special level of hypocrisy to bash the very freedoms one enjoys living under. You will find that not one menhebak here is even in Syria. They have all admitted as much.

Syau
what does Syau stands for, can you tell us about you.you seem to have extreme pro regime position, also what do you do?

I ali Habib is truely dead, we will hear verification soon, and if he died from gun shot, his family would reveal this in the future,
I do not think Dawood Rajha will remove Assad.
Ali Hayder is a common name,there are several people with this name in Syria.

Syau

Yes Syau, you are approaching religious convictions with your views about the regime but you seem well educated and you do have a style. I give you the presence of sinister elements that did killings and mutilation. But you never ever acknowledge the legitimacy of the revolution. The vast majority of us are not Mundaseen and ikhwan. Why can’t you see that?

Hi to all,

I am an Israeli reading this forum.
I don’t have much to say about Syria but I do know about the web site debka.com which is quoted here. The site has no reporters and no sources. It invents news that sounds real in order to attract viewers and make money from ads. Please just treat it as the fraud that it is and stop giving any weight to what is published there. Just ignore them.

Thanks to all,
Yossi

“In 1936, six Alawite notables sent a memorandum to French prime minister Leon Blum. To explain why they refused to be annexed to a Muslim Syria ruled by the Sunni majority who regarded them as infidels, they pointed to the treatment of Jews under Islam: “The condition of the Jews in Palestine is the strongest and most explicit evidence of the militancy of the Islamic issue vis-à-vis those who do not belong to Islam. These good Jews contributed to the Arabs with civilization and peace, scattered gold, and established prosperity in Palestine without harming anyone or taking anything by force, yet the Muslims declare holy war against them and never hesitated in slaughtering their women and children, despite the presence of England in Palestine and France in Syria.

“Therefore, a dark fate awaits the Jews and other minorities in case the Mandate is abolished and Muslim Syria is united with Muslim Palestine… the ultimate goal of the Muslim Arabs.”

One of the signatories of this remarkable appeal was none other than Sulayman Assad, father of Hafez and grandfather of Bashar. ”

Where are you MJabali? Why did your despicable Alawi leaders praise the Zionists and blame the Palestinian for refusing to become refugees in their own land? “without harming anyone or taking anything by force”. The same lunatic language of the cyber-shabiha.

“Why would anyone into account anything put forward from a ‘revolution’ infamous for its fabrications and fake eyewitnesses.”

Why would anyone “take” into account anything put forward from a regime infamous for its fabrications and fake eyewitnesses?!

Have you forgotten Hama 82? Have you forgotten Tadmur? Have you forgotten the massacres in Lebanon?

Any supporters of President Assad who do actually live abroad would admit it. It is well known that President Assad has supporters worldwide. They do not claim to live in Syria and to have learned English by watching tv. Especially someone with a high level of English who constantly picks on silly things such as spelling mistakes when he is lost for words. It is ridiculous to think that a claim like that is believable.

It takes a special level of hypocrisy for someone who enjoys living in a country where there are anti terror laws, but thinks it’s ok for terrorists to run a terror campaign in Syria.

Majedkhaldoon,

‘Tell us about yourself’, falls under the personal questions category. I am though a strong supporter of President Assad and a united secular Syria.

برق|سوريا|
كشف الكاتب في صحيفة الوطن فؤاد الهاشم عن تصريح على لسان ماهر الأسد شقيق الرئيس السوري يؤكد فيه عزمه إحراق كل مدينة سورية تقف ضد النظام.
وقال الهاشم في مقالة له اليوم:كتب «ماهر الأسد» – شقيق الرئيس السوري وقائد الفرقة الرابعة في الجيش – على تقرير أرسله إليه سبعة من كبار مساعديه العسكريين قبل يومين – يقولون فيه إنهم بحاجة إلى «هدم وقصف المزيد من المساجد في… كل أنحاء سورية لمنع المتظاهرين من استخدامها كنقطة انطلاق إلى المظاهرات»..
واليكم تعليق هذا الولد.. «ماهر» – حرفيا – على الاقتراح.. «مع الاستغفار للباري عز وجل »:
.. «ان الله لم ينتخبنا لقيادة هذا البلد، والشعب السوري – أيضا – لم يخترنا قادة له عبر صناديق الانتخابات، إن والدي استولى على السلطة والحكم بالقوة، ولا أحد يستطيع أن يسلبنا الحكم حتى ولو كان الخالق ذاته، ولن نتردد في حرق كل مدينة سورية تقف ضدنا»!!

Syrian troops start withdrawing from Hama
By FT reporter in Damascus and agencies

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/198f72c0-c27a-11e0-9ede-00144feabdc0.html#ixzz1UXcfqNcn

The Syrian army has begun to withdraw from Hama after more than a week of military operations in the city as Turkey’s foreign minister ratcheted up the diplomatic pressure on the regime by pressing it to end its violent crackdown on protests.
… Hama activist Abo Ghazi, who is now outside the city, confirmed that tanks had started to leave, but said they had been seen moving on other villages around Hama where anti-regime protests are continuing.

Communications to the city were partially restored on Tuesday morning. They had been down for much of last week, making it difficult to confirm details of events in the city…
more….

Akbar Palace

Hi AP. Besho is a nick name coined by Aboud. We Mamnhebaks use it to show contempt in this case.

Just you know, in Syria as a general rule, we add the letter O or OU to make nick names. For instance, the nick name for Laila is Lou Lou, and the nick name for Joumana is Jou Jou, etc. So we add “ou” to the first letter. Also, one can add the letter O at the end of a name to create a nick name so in the US, the nick name for Steve is stevo, etc. We mostly use nick names with good intention to show that you like the person. Not in Besho’ case.

Syau
You always can say some personal informations without revealing your true identity, what do you do? what is your religion? were you borned and raised in Syria? if you do not want to tell us anything, then we have the right of suspecting you as mukhabarat, and paid by the regime ,you are doing your job so you will not be believable, or your comment would be ignored because you could be fake.

“Especially someone with a high level of English who constantly picks on silly things such as spelling mistakes when he is lost for words.”

Why, I’m flattered that you think my level of English is “high”. It is actually quite average, but out of respect to readers of my comments, I take the time to check my spelling.

As for being lost for words, time and again I have posted reasonable questions and queries. It’s not my fault that the menhebaks run scared from a hard debate. Here are some of my questions yet again.

1) Why is Najati Tayara still in jail?

2) Why was a sit in of doctors from the Aleppo University Hospital brutally broken up?

3) How can a menhebak justify the shooting up of a funeral in Idlib, the video of which has been posted numerous times.

4) Why doesn’t the regime seem concerned with tracking down the so called saboteurs behind the alleged attack on the military academy, the pipeline blast and the trail derailment?

5) Why hasn’t the regime responded by withdrawing its ambassadors from Italy, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar?

Simple questions, but apparently not simple enough for the menhebaks.

Tara,

Thanks for the nickname explaination for Arabic.

“Besho” sounds like some of the funny nicknames I used to hear in the bad parts of Tel Aviv. “Junior” is also a good nickname.

I am glad the Arab states are finally getting involved, and I hope Assad’s downfall is near.

Is that you Yossi ,

Regarding the word Besho, it’s a play on the name Bashar, a term one would use with a child. Like Aboudi for Aboud (Abdullah, Abdulrazaq, Abdulhadi etc). Or Lulu for the name Lelwa.

In this case, as Tara said, we use it as a way of indicating that junior is a child, in way over his head.

Let’s see if I can format the following in a way that professor Landis likes 🙂

Financial Times
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ef7f80d2-c1a8-11e0-acb3-00144feabdc0.html#ixzz1UXgPc6z4

This can only end with the Assads’ fall

By David Gardner

August 8, 2011 6:31 pm

The debris of destruction Bashar al-Assad’s armour and artillery have left across the insurgent cities of Hama and Deir Ezzor in recent days now mixes with the smoke and splinters of the bridges towards his few remaining putative allies – all burnt by a regime whose narrow foundations are crumbling.

It may not look like it, especially to the hundreds of thousands of Syrians confronting the Assads’ “killing machine” with little more than their raw courage, but this regime is entering its twilight. The phrase was used by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, in which he said Riyadh “demands a stop to the killing machine … and calls for an act of wisdom before it is too late”.

But it is – as the king and rulers across the Middle East surely know – already too late. The Assad clan embarked on a road of no return in April, when it first sent the tanks into Deraa in the south, where the rebellion ignited in mid-March.

The clamour for change first heard in Deraa has now been thundering across Syria for five blood-drenched months. Neither tanks nor snipers, shelling or sieges, the vilest torture, mass round-ups and thousands of disappearances have silenced it.

The very savagery of the regime’s response means the rebels cannot stop – better to carry on and brave repression than to risk certain reprisals: death or the dungeon.

The youth-led, plural and, as in other Arab revolutions, initially peaceful movement can now only settle for real change: an end to the police state and the power monopoly of the Ba’ath party; free elections and an independent judiciary under the rule of law; and an end to corruption and the impunity of the business clique clustered around the ruling family, personified above all by Rami Makhlouf, President Assad’s cousin and the tycoon of the clan.

The idea that Bashar, who in 2000 inherited power from his father Hafez al-Assad, master of Damascus for 30 years, could ever meet these demands is delusional. Over the years, leaders such as Tony Blair and Nicolas Sarkozy, and more recently Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and the Emir of Qatar, have discerned in the younger Assad an understanding of the need to lead change or risk being engulfed by it.

That was always a misreading of the dynamics of power in the Arab security state, of which Syria is an exemplar, and the greed of the dynastic dictatorship into which the House of Assad has degenerated.

The crisis with Lebanon that led to the assassination of Rafiq Hariri, its former prime minister, in February 2005, should have ripped away the Assads’ always flimsy veil.

In June 2004 Mr Assad had assured Hariri the succession from Lebanon’s president, Emile Lahoud, one of the instruments of Syrian control in Beirut, would be smooth; there were alternatives Damascus could work with. Yet weeks later he told Hariri that President Lahoud was staying, and he would break Beirut over the premier’s head if he resisted this. What happened in between? The Assad clan as a whole had concluded any change could unravel its rich financial interests in Lebanon. It was just business, nothing personal.

Hariri’s murder, in which Syria is widely considered complicit, opened a rift with Saudi Arabia. Now King Abdullah has broken Arab silence over Syria’s bloodbath, that breach is irreparable. Along with the Saudis, Qatar and Kuwait have withdrawn their ambassadors to Damascus. Turkey, where Mr Erdogan believed he could influence Mr Assad, says it will today give him an ultimatum.

This is not without consequence. It is not just revulsion driving the shift in regional sentiment against the Assad regime, but the hardening conviction that it is finished.

Last month the Assads tried to persuade the Saudis to deposit $1bn in Syria’s central bank, complaining, Arab officials say, that they could no longer meet the public payroll. Just before that, Qatar had offered to fund Syria’s needs provided the regime enacted essentially the same reforms demanded by Turkey. Mr Assad literally showed the emirate’s foreign minister the door.

Syria’s version of diplomacy aside, these are but the latest signs the regime is running out of money. In April Mr Makhlouf had to pay $1bn into the central bank. Capital flight is accelerating. Mr Makhlouf and his circle, whose interests, bankers say, may account for a third of Syria’s economy, are under sanctions siege.

A shareholders’ meeting last month of Cham Holding, his company and Syria’s largest, was, according to an investor present, unable to elect a new board after Nabil al-Kuzbari, the outgoing chairman, was put on the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control blacklist. The business elites are starting to peel away from a toxic regime. Some are now funding its opponents.

The regime’s repressive capacity is looking finite too. Its two praetorian units, the Fourth Armoured Division and Republican Guard, staffed with loyalists from the Assads’ minority Alawite community and led by Maher al-Assad, the president’s volatile younger brother, are overstretched, unable to go in hard at more than three or four locations at once, as dozens of others erupt.

The struggle will still be prolonged and bloody. There will be no Libya-style deus ex machina to help the opposition; nor does it want one. That would enable what the world now recognises is a gangster regime to posture once again as the beating heart of Arabism. Arguably though, international action in Libya has already helped. Had Muammer Gaddafi triumphed there, that would have broken the wave of revolution that days later roared into Syria.

I guess I managed to irritate a lot of people on both sides by “repeating” myself. I use repetition at work when I sense that the person I am speaking to “does not get it”.
keeping things the same in Syria is not an option,I am mazed that some of you are still stuck in the pre March 18th era. Others who think the army is a toy in the hands of the regime or,the opposite,a group of soldiers ready to defect are also wrong.
the army still holds the key to any future change and yes,it is still largely loyal to the regime. emotions shut down the brain when there is bloodshed. do not tell me that the regime is innocent of that blood shed or that we do not have anti regime armed gangs in Syria. I will continue to speak the truth and express my opinion until I am entirely sure that it is becoming a “waste of time”. for now,send a buck to Syria instead of thrwoing sound bombs on the internet..
(Ali Habib was opposed to the incursion in Hama)

نقلاً عن الإذاعة التركية : تحركات عسكرية كثيفة للجيش التركي و استنفار بحالة التأهب القصوى لسلاح المشاة التركي على الحدود الشمالية مع سوريا

—————————————–
حزب العمال الكردستاني ينهي هدنة وقف إطلاق النار مع تركيا.

—————————————–
عمر خشرم (مراسل الجزيرة في تركيا): تكلمت مع أحد أعضاء الوفد التركي المرافق لوزير الخارجية السيد أحمد داوود أوغلو وقال إن التوتر ساد الزيارة منذ بدايتها فقد تم استقبال وزير الخارجية التركي من قبل نائب وزير الخارجية السوري، وهذا خارج عن العادة والبروتكول السياسي

—————————————–
موسكو تدعو المجتمع الدولي للضغط على المعارضة لوقف العنف وبدء حوار شامل في سورية

أعلن وزير الخارجية الروسي سيرغي لافروف أن روسيا تدعو السلطات السورية إلى وقف العنف ومواصلة إجراء إصلاحات سياسية واجتماعية عميقة.

وجاء في بيان صادر عن وزارة الخارجية الروسية عقب لقاء لافروف مع نظيره السوري وليد المعلم في موسكو يوم الثلاثاء 9 أغسطس/آب أن الجانب الروسي أكد على ضرورة إجراء حوار سوري بناء وشامل من أجل تسوية الوضع سلميا من قبل السوريين أنفسهم ودون أي تدخل خارجي.

كما لفت الوزير الروسي انتباه نظيره السوري إلى تصريحات الرئيس مدفيديف في 4 أغسطس/آب التي قال فيها إن موسكو قد تغير موقفها تجاه دمشق في حال فشل الرئيس الأسد في إقامة حوار مع المعارضة.

كما أعربت وزارة الخارجية الروسية في بيانها عن الأمل في أن تستجيب المعارضة السورية لدعوات إقامة الحوار مع الحكومة.

وجاء في بيان الوزارة الروسية أن “المجتمع الدولي يجب أن يؤثر على المعارضة هي الأخرى لكي تستجيب لدعوات السلطات للحوار حول الإصلاحات اللازمة وتبتبعد عن المسلحين والمتطرفين الذين يهدفون إلى تصعيد التوتر وتكرار السيناريو الليبي”.

كما دعت الخارجية الروسية إلى تأمين الانفتاح الإعلامي لكي تتمكن الأسرة الدولية من الاطلاع على كامل صورة ما يجري في سورية.

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البحرين تقطع علاقتها بقطر وتتهمها بالعداء على خلفية قناة الجزيرة

أمضت دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي ليلة مشوبة بمعلومات متضاربة حول صدور مرسوم ملكي بحريني يقضي بقطع العلاقات مع قطر بسبب بث قناة الجزيرة الدولية الناطقة باللغة الانجليزية لبرنامج اتهم السلطات البحرينية بانتهاك حقوق الانسان اثناء إنهائها للاعتصامات والاحتجاجات الشعبية التي واجهتها مؤخرا.

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الخبر برس : الإخبارية اللبنانية

رد المفكر العربي الناصري محمد حسنين هيكل وبحسب صحيفة الأهرام المصرية على خطاب العاهل السعودي بالقول: أرى أن بلداً لا يحترم أدنى الحريات الانسانية لا يحق له الكلام عن سوريا و الذي بيته من زجاج لا يرمي بيوت الناس بالحجارة و السعودية التي تحاول الظهور كحامية للاسلام و تلعب على الوتر الطائفي ادخلت قواتها الى البحرين و قمعت و قتلت في غير اراضيها و لا يحق لها الكلام عن الجيش العربي السوري و اعماله في سوريا.

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جهينة نيوز- خاص:
رجّحت توقعات وتحليلات غداة التصعيد الإعلامي والسياسي والحملة المسعورة على سورية، أن طبول الحرب ستدق خلال أسابيع وربما أيام، مؤكدة أنها ستكون حرباً طاحنة ستمتد تأثيراتها في محيط منطقة الشرق الأوسط برمتها، وصولاً إلى زلزلة عروش وكراسي ظن أصحابها أنهم بمنأى عن تداعيات هذه الحرب.

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رويترز: ضابط في الشرطة البريطانية يقول إن أعمال الشغب في لندن امتدت إلى حد لم يسبق له مثيل، وسقوط أول قتيل في الأحداث مع مقتل شاب في السادسة والعشرين من عمره بطلق ناري داخل سيارة في كرويدن جنوبي لندن.

Hi Haytham,
Very interesting. Did he commit sucide, like Alzou3bi, with two bullets in the head?????? Only in syria can people commit sucide so well.

عبد الله يُصفّي «حساباً معلقاً» مع الأسد من زمن سقوط الـ«سين سين»
هل يُترجم البيان الملكي السعودي «أمر عمليات» في لبنان؟

عماد مرمل
مع دخول الملك السعودي عبدالله بن عبد العزيز بنفسه الى حلبة المواجهة مع سوريا، في أعقاب الموقف «الشديد اللهجة» لمجلس التعاون الخليجي، وبعد اللغة الحازمة التي استخدمها رئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب أردوغان قبل أيام، في موازاة النبرة الاميركية والغربية الحادة.. تكون اللعبة قد انتقلت من تحت الطاولة الى فوقها، وبالتالي تكون أوراق اللاعبين قد أصبحت مكشوفة كليا.
وإذا كان حلفاء الرياض في بيروت يعتبرون ان الرسالة الملكية القاسية للرئيس بشار الاسد «قد تأخرت، ذلك أن قيادة المملكة صبرت وبالغت في إعطاء الوقت والفرصة تلو الاخرى فيما الدم ينزف بغزارة في شوارع المدن السورية»، فان حلفاء دمشق ينظرون الى الموقف السعودي من زاوية مخالفة تماما وهم يرون فيه تعبيرا «عن سقوط الأقنعة وانكشاف حقيقة الهجمة التي تتعرض لها سوريا، بحيث اضطر «الابطال الحقيقيون» الى تصدر واجهة المسرح بعدما فشل الـ«كومبارس» في تأدية الدور المناط بهم لإسقاط نظام الاسد.. من الداخل».
وبرغم ان بيان الملك عبدالله ليس طويلا، إلا انه تضمن بعض المفارقات التي تستحق التوقف عندها، ومنها دعوته القيادة السورية الى تفعيل «إصلاحات شاملة وسريعة»، ما يدفع الى التساؤل عما إذا كان الملك هو الشخص المناسب لتوجيه مثل هذه النصيحة الى دمشق، فيما المرأة السعودية ما تزال تناضل من أجل السماح لها بقيادة سيارة ليس الا!
والملاحظة الثانية ان الملك السعودي وضع سوريا امام خيارين لا ثالث لهما، الحكمة او الفوضى، ما أوحى للبعض في بيروت بأنه اقتبس من الاميركيين «معادلة ريتشارد مورفي» الشهيرة والتي يعرفها اللبنانيون جيدا: «مخايل الضاهر او الفوضى».
وأبعد من هذه المفارقات، يعتبر حلفاء سوريا ان الموقف السعودي جاء تتويجا لحالة من الاحباط أصابت «التحالف الاقليمي والدولي» الذي كان يتوقع ان تشهد بدايات شهر رمضان تصاعدا نوعيا في حركة الاحتجاج على الارض، بما يؤدي الى تضييق الخناق على الاسد تمهيدا لإزاحته عن السلطة، لا بل أن البعض في بيروت وعواصم أخرى راح يضرب مواعيد لسقوط النظام، ولكن ما حصل ان النظام هو الذي استكمل في الاسبوع الاول من هذا الشهر عملية استعادة المبادرة وملاحقة المجموعات المسلحة، وخصوصا في مدينة حماه التي كان يُنظر اليها باعتبارها إحدى أبرز نقاط الإرتكاز لـ«الثورة» المفترضة.
وترى شخصية لبنانية وثيقة الصلة بالقيادة السورية ان عدم تطابق وقائع الداخل السوري مع تمنيات الخارج دفعت الملك عبدالله ودول الخليج الى التدخل المباشر لزيادة جرعات الضغط السياسي والاعلامي على الرئيس الاسد، بغية التعويض عن الاخفاقات الحاصلة على الارض، في اطار توزيع منظم للادوار بين من يتبرع بالمال ويقدم الاعلام ويوزع السلاح وصولا الى تأمين المرجعية العربية والاسلامية «الحاضنة» للجماعات المعادية للنظام، كما فعل الملك السعودي ومن ثم باقي دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي بالاضافة الى الأمين العام لجامعة الدول العربية.
وتشير هذه الشخصية الى ان ما أعلنه الملك عبدالله معطوفا على المواقف الخليجية والتركية والاميركية والاوروبية هو بديل سياسي عن حرب عسكرية غير ممكنة حاليا ضد سوريا، لافتة الانتباه الى ان الهدف مما يجري ليس رأس سوريا فقط بل إضعاف «حماس» و«حزب الله» وإيران، بما يشكله هذا الثلاثي مع دمشق من خطر على المصالح الاسرائيلية والاميركية في المنطقة.
وإذ تشدد الشخصية المذكورة على ان ما فعله خطاب الملك هو انه أماط اللثام عن حقيقة النيات المضمرة والمزمنة حيال دمشق، من دون قفازات او مساحيق، تلفت الانتباه الى ان الموقف السعودي المعلن لا يعكس فقط فشل الرهان على «أحصنة طروادة» لقلب الاوضاع داخل سوريا، بل يندرج ايضا في سياق «مفعول رجعي» يتصل بتصفية «حساب لبناني» معلّق مع الاسد، بعد انهيار معادلة «س. س.» وإقصاء سعد الحريري عن رئاسة الحكومة، مع ما ترتب على ذلك من إضعاف للنفوذ السعودي في لبنان.
وتؤكد الشخصية المقربة من دائرة القرار في دمشق ان سوريا نجحت في احتواء «البؤر» التي كانت تستخدم كقواعد تموضع وانطلاق للجماعات المسلحة، ما يدفع الى توقع المزيد من الضغوط الاقليمية والدولية سعيا الى حماية المعادين للنظام ورفع منسوب الضغط عليه.
ولكن الشخصية نفسها تدعو الى التأمل جيدا في دلالات الرد الحازم للمستشارة في رئاسة الجمهورية السورية بثينة شعبان على كلام رئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب أردوغان، وما يحمله هذا الرد من إشارات واضحة الى إحساس القيادة السورية بالثقة في تجاوز مرحلة الخطر.
وتروي الشخصية اللبنانية انه سبق لها ان قالت للاسد في أحد اللقاءات بينهما خلال مرحلة الانفتاح الخارجي على سوريا- بعد الحصار الذي أعقب اغتيال الرئيس رفيق الحريري- انه سيأتي يوم يشتاق فيه مجددا الى ايام العزلة، لان زمن الازمات يتيح فرز الاتجاهات الداخلية على حقيقتها، وبالتالي الكشف عن الثغرات والخروقات الكامنة، بما يتيح إقفالها ومعالجتها، وصولا الى تحصين الساحة السورية وتفعيل قدرتها على مقاومة الخيارات المضادة والاستهدافات الخارجية، ولو حصل ذلك في أعقاب مخاض عسير وموجع.
لكن أكثر ما يقلق هذه الشخصية ان يتلقف فريق 14آذار، وفي طليعته تيار المستقبل، خطاب الملك عبدالله باعتباره «أمر عمليات»، الامر الذي قد يُترجم تصاعدا لحملة المعارضة على سوريا انطلاقا من لبنان، وبأشكال مختلفة، منبهة الى ان من شأن ذلك ان يؤدي الى تفاقم التوتر الداخلي وزج البلد في تداعيات مشكلة جارته بدلا من ان ينأى بنفسه عنها.

http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=1917&ChannelId=45227&ArticleId=952&Author=%D8%B9%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%AF%20%D9%85%D8%B1%D9%85%D9%84

Hi #186. Yossi from Ramat-Gan,
Thanks for the information about Dabka. I have two questions for you:

1- How do you know that this information is correct. What are your sources.

2- Why do you follow and read this blog?

Akbar Palace and Amir, there is a question that has vexed me endlessly. Kept me up nights in fact. I hope you will be able to answer it, unlike the menhebaks who keep running away.

Why do so many Israeli sports teams have the word Maccabi in their name?

Aboud

As you are getting into posting articles. If you have not posted the whole article and you think it is worth reading it all just add “more…” at the end. Ah… It appears so stylish….

Majedkhaldoon,

I’m really not interested in handing out personal information of any sort. I’m not affiliated with mukhabarat or any other government agency. Whether you believe it or not is your prerogative. I don’t need to prove myself.

Aboud, most probably auto correct or word rather than checking.

Now it’s 1am and I have an early start. Good night.

‎#Syriaعلمت ” الخبر برس ” من مصادر سورية خاصة أن الرد السوري لأوغلو كان شديد اللهجة وجاء فيه ” إذا أتيتم للمساومة فهي مرفوضة و إذا أردتم الحرب فنحن لها وستكون حرباً إقليمية “.

Sheila,
1) From my own research and from objective sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debka.com
2) It is interesting to get unfiltered views from Syria

Advice to the crowd of Ntrepid Muslim Brothers and their 8200’s sparring partners on SC

When you claim to be in Syria , working with an arabic software , knowing the situation on the ground , etc
don’t talk about Sweden , the host of the Muslim Brotherhood responsible for the most popular Revolution
don’t claim to have a Christian friend ( every racist does )
don’t confuse the spelling checker on the edit windows and checking spelling of other posts
don’t recycle old tricks and tales used on Tunisia, Egypt , Libyan “revolution”

Disclaimer

Being multilingual allows me to say more to less people.

Advice to the crowd of Ntrepid Muslim Brothers and their 8200’s sparring partners on SC

When you claim to be in Syria , working with an Arabic software , knowing the situation on the ground , etc
don’t talk about Sweden , the host of the Muslim Brotherhood responsible for the most popular Revolution 2011 Facebook site.
don’t claim to have a Christian friend ( every racist does )
don’t confuse the spelling checker on the edit windows and checking spelling of other posts
don’t recycle old tricks and tales used on Tunisia, Egypt , Libyan “revolution”

Disclaimer

Being multilingual allows me to say more to less people and hide less to more people.

“Aboud, most probably auto correct or word rather than checking.”

And yet not even the best spell checkers can know when you mean to say “ill” instead of “I’ll”, or “Harriri” instead of “Kerriri”. How is it that, when two words have similar spelling, the menhebaks always seem to pick the wrong one.

I mean, just based on the laws of probability, you’d think they’d get *some* right.

” 208. hsyrian said:

Advice to the crowd of Ntrepid Muslim Brothers and their 8200’s sparring partners on SC

When you claim to be in Syria , working with an Arabic software , knowing the situation on the ground , etc
don’t talk about Sweden , the host of the Muslim Brotherhood responsible for the most popular Revolution 2011 Facebook site.
don’t claim to have a Christian friend ( every racist does )
don’t confuse the spelling checker on the edit windows and checking spelling of other posts
don’t recycle old tricks and tales used on Tunisia, Egypt , Libyan “revolution””

You think you’re cute with your pathetic ditties. When your regime slaughters tens of thousands of people egged on by lunatics like yourself, then the people will respond

146. and 190. Dears syau and beaware, Mr Ford is back, and his charm is back on in Hama city.

“Military Source: Army Units Leaving Hama after Completing Mission of Protecting Citizens, Normal Life Returning Gradually”

“Syrian troops start withdrawing from Hama
By FT reporter in Damascus and agencies”

The regime claimed the large demonstrations in Hama prior to the last week crack-down were peaceful.
Their claim that they turned ugly came right after Mr Ford left for DC.
Now that he is back, the regime pulls back his tanks, puts his shabbeeha back on short leash and claims that life in Hama is back to normal!

Utilities are available for second day.
People are still reluctant to venture out to buy necessities!

Hama coutry side has been less fortunate than the city.
Asad forces and Shabbeha are still on the loose.
Nine martyrs plus/including five children have fallen martyrs today in Tayyebt AlIman, Hama Governorate.

AlFati7a upon their souls,
May God bless their families with solace and empower them with patience!

The Syrian Revolution 2011 الثورة السورية ضد بشار الاسد
حماة: طيبة الإمام: أنباء عن وقوع 9 شهداء وعشرات الجرحى حتى اللحظة في مدينة طيبة الإمام على يد عصابات بشار الأسد

استشهاد خمسة أطفال بنيران قناصة في طيبة الإمام قبل قليل

about an hour ago

To 206. Yossi from Ramat-Gan,
Thanks Yossi for answering my questions. I just want to point out that most of us on this blog live outside Syria. I do not know how well this site represents Syrian views.

To all,
I had to share this with you. whether you are with or against the regime, I hope you can see the humor in this:

القذافي يستدعي السفير الليبي في سوريا احتجاجاً على الوحشية في استخدام السلاح ضد الناس العزل
P.S. I am still working on accumulating the highest number of dislikes. Eat your heart out Aboud.

Abu Umar Comment #187

You are a real amateur. I asked you for the document and you bring us a quote.

Do you know what is a historical scientific fact?

You only know fabrications and lies like the ideology that you follow that is based on lies and violence.

Note to the Ntrepid guys and their boss

News 1 : Libya’s great arm Bazaar __________________________

Among the weapons of greatest concern to Western security officials is the SA-7 “Grail” surface-to-air missile, a Soviet-designed, heat-seeking, shoulder-launched missile designed specifically to shoot down low-flying planes.
….
During the past month and a half, we have seen literally hundreds of SA-7s floating around freely in eastern Libya.
….

Part of the good news is that the opposition forces in eastern Libya have now begun to take stronger steps to secure the weapon storage facilities in the areas under their control,…

A lot remains to be done, of course, but the commitment of the rebel authorities to break with the past and build a modern country that respects civil rights seems sincere and consistent with their actions to date.

News 2 Libya’s Great terrorists __________________________
There are plenty of groups in the region, including al Qaeda affiliates and rebel movements, that would love to get their hands on these weapons.”

News 3 Libya’s revolution great feuds ___________________
Libyan Transitional National Council Chairman Mustafa Abdel Jalil has dismissed the rebels’ 14-member executive board .
The death of the rebel government’s military commander, Gen. Abdel Fattah Younis, on July 28 played a role in board members’ ouster Monday.
They were dismissed because of some are directly responsible for how Gen. Younis was arrested,” “There were shortcomings and mishandling of the events that led to his assassination.”

News 4 SEALs’ copter downed by ‘lucky shot,’ __________
The crash of a Chinook helicopter that killed 38 U.S. and Afghan troops was PROBABLY caused by an insurgent firing a rocket-propelled grenade

Disclaimers

These news are absolutely not correlated and pure coincidence and pure academic speculation , ….

Please Mr. Syria No Kandahar we need Abu Umar and the Angel…this one is long due to break this stale arguments about spelling and not real ideas.

بيان حركة الضباط الاحرار رقم 6
للمقدم حسين الهرموش

http://www.facebook.com/lewa2
zobatahrar#!/photo.php?fbid=139330119489368&set=a.139330059489374.36231.116720238417023&type=1&theater

Why do so many Israeli sports teams have the word Maccabi in their name?

Mr. Aboud,

Here is my answer:

Maccabi is the name of a sports “league” that was started in Israel/Palestine over 100 years ago. There is also a league called “Hapoel”, and a few others.

For addtional info, see the links below. The word Maccabi was a nickname used for the Hasmonean family that fought the Greeks over 2 thousand years ago (Hannuka): it means “hammer”. Today the hebrew word “maca” means (n.) hit or strike. “Hapoel” means “the worker” (e.g. Bank Hapoelim means “the workers bank”).

My hebrew isn’t perfect, so I’m sure some Zionists here may want to chime in.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sport_in_Israel

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maccabees

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanukkah

!?
الرئيس الأسد لأوغلو .. سورية لن تتهاون في ملاحقة المجموعات الإرهابية المسلحة

التقى الرئيس بشار الأسد صباح يوم الثلاثاء، وزير الخارجية التركي أحمد داود أوغلو، ووضعه بصورة الأوضاع التي شهدتها بعض المدن السورية، نتيجة قيام المجموعات الإرهابية المسلحة بقتل المدنيين وعناصر حفظ النظام، في حين أكد الوزير التركي أنه لا ينقل أي رسالة من أي أحد وأن تركيا حريصة على أمن واستقرار سورية.

ونقلت وكالة الأنباء الرسمية (سانا) عن الرئيس الأسد قوله إن “سورية لن تتهاون في ملاحقة المجموعات الإرهابية المسلحة من أجل حماية استقرار الوطن وأمن المواطنين، لكنها مصممة أيضا على استكمال خطوات الإصلاح الشامل التي تقوم بها، وهي منفتحة على أي مساعدة تقدمها الدول الشقيقة والصديقة على هذا الصعيد”.

ووضع الرئيس الأسد الوزير داود أوغلو بصورة الأوضاع التي شهدتها بعض المدن السورية نتيجة قيام المجموعات الإرهابية المسلحة بقتل المدنيين وعناصر حفظ النظام وترهيب السكان.

ووصل وزير الخارجية التركي احمد داوود اوغلو صباح اليوم الثلاثاء إلى سورية في زيارة رسمية، لتسليم القيادة السورية رسالة تتعلق بالأحداث التي تشهدها سورية.

بدوره، أكد الوزير التركي أنه “لا ينقل أي رسالة من أي أحد، وأن تركيا حريصة على أمن واستقرار سورية”، مشددا على أن “المراحل التي قطعتها العلاقة الإستراتيجية بين البلدين جعلت قيادتي البلدين تشعران بأن أي أمر يحصل في أي منهما هو بمثابة شأن داخلي لدى الآخر فكما تعتبر تركيا ما يجري في سورية شأنا داخليا تركيا فإن سورية أيضا لديها نفس الاعتبارات في أي حدث تتعرض له تركيا”.

وكان رئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب اردوغان قال يوم السبت الماضي، إن احمد داود اوغلو سيزور سوريا المجاورة يوم الثلاثاء “لتسليم رسالة” من تركيا”, مضيفا ان “رسالتنا ستسلم بحسم”، وذلك بسبب الاحداث التي تشهدها.

وقالت المستشارة السياسية والاعلامية لرئاسة الجمهورية بثينة شعبان إنه سيتم قول كلاما “أكثر حزما” لوزير خارجية تركيا دوواد أوغلو حول موقف بلاده من الأحداث الجارية في سورية، رافضة التدخل بشؤون سورية الداخلية من أي قوى إقليمية أو دولية كانت، وذلك ردا على ما تناقلته وسائل إعلام عن أن أوغلو سينقل رسالة “حازمة” للسلطات خلال زيارته سورية الثلاثاء.

وشدد الوزير داود أوغلو على أن “سورية بقيادة الرئيس الأسد ستصبح نموذجا في العالم العربي بعد استكمال الإصلاحات التي أقرتها القيادة السورية”، مبينا أن “استقرار سورية أساسي لاستقرار المنطقة”.

وكشفت مصادر دبلوماسية تركية أواخر حزيران الماضي، أن وزير الخارجية التركي احمد داود أوغلو يعتزم القيام بجولة تشمل كلا من سورية وإيران والأردن والسعودية، موضحة أن زيارته إلى دمشق تستهدف ترميم العلاقات بين البلدين، كما ستطالب بضرورة الوقف الفوري لأعمال “القمع والعنف” ضد المحتجين, الا ان هذه الزيارة لم تتم في حينها.

واتهمت العديد من التصريحات الرسمية التركية مؤخرا، القيادة السورية بـ “قتل المدنيين والمتظاهرين”، داعية إلى التخلي عن “النهج الأمني” في معالجة ما يجري من أحداث وتطورات في سورية.

وكان وزير الخارجية والمغتربين وليد المعلم قال، في وقت سابق، حول الموقف التركي من الأحداث التي تمر بها سورية، أرجو أن يعيدوا النظر في موقفهم، مضيفا نحن حريصون على أفضل العلاقات مع الجارة تركيا، لدينا حدود مشتركة، يؤثرون علينا ونؤثر عليها، ولا نريد أن نهدم سنوات من الجهد لإقامة علاقات مميزة إستراتيجية.

يشار إلى أن زيارة داوود اوغلو إلى دمشق تأتي في وقت تشهد فيه مدن سورية عدة أحداثا أمنية وتدخل الجيش في بعضها, وذلك بالتزامن مع مظاهرات تخرج في هذه المدن تطالب بالحريات وتنادي بشعارات سياسية مناهضة للنظام.

سيريانيوز

http://syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=136012

On Alarbiya:
وزير الخارجية التركي: الايام المقبلة ستكون حرجة في سوريا

عاجل || أوغلو في المؤتمر الصحفي و في رد على سؤال صحفي لأوغلو هل لاحظ نية لسحب الجيش لدى الأسد ؟؟
كل ما يقال في وسائل الإعلام ليس صحيحاً و نحن بحثنا مع القيادة بكل الأمور التي أتفقنا عليها و بينها هذه المواضيع
و ما بحثناه مع القيادة بسورية أن لا يحدث صدام بين الجيش و الشعب و في الأيام المقبلة ستشهد سورية تطورات هامة
و أقول بكل صراحة نحن أوصلنا رسائل تركية فقط و أستفدنا من وجهة النظر السورية
و الزيارة أخذت في الإعلام جوانب أخرى لا صحة لها

أوغلو : اجتماعي مع الأسد یبعث علی الأمل وأتوقع خطوات مهمة خلال أیام علی طریق الاصلاح

عاجل || أوغلو في المؤتمر الصحفي و في رد على سؤال صحفي لأوغلو هل تم أتهام المدنيين بالإرهابيين ؟
الجواب :
أنا لن أفصح عن ما دار في الإجتماع و لا أنفي أنه تم الحديث على التفرقة بين الإرهابيين و المدنيين
و قد لمست من حديث الأسد أن هناك أرهابيين و عصابات مسلحة و هذا شيء نعرفه سابقاً من حديث القيادة السورية و لكن ما بحثناه هو التفريق بين المدنيين و الإرهابيين

Aglow expects reform in the next few days in Syria,

Revlon is Aljazera of SC
He was the first one to notice that prs Assad had a strok,this was after consultation with his friend
Dr (edited for bad language). Today he discovered the death of Ali Habib,which was pronounced by جارتو ام محمد.
All international news agencies are now going on SC for hit news.it happened that I passed by Revlon neighbor ان محمد she gave me these news :
-Albianoni was on vacation on Yafa’s beach with his girlfriend,she was giving him a massage.mr and mrs BIBI were next to him.BIBI was heard saying:binbin,i hope we all can be on Latakia’s beach next year.
-Mohammad Abdullah was seen in a nude bar in DC.he was trying to convince a dancer to join the
(revolution).
-Ammar Abdulhameed was seen in a barber shop
Cutting his tail,now he has no tail.
-Fida Alssaid after shaving based on Ammar’s recommendation couldn’t find any jeans to fit him,he was advised by dr (edited for bad language) to have gastric bypass surgery.when the surgeons removed his stomach in was filled with newspapers with Assad pictures partially chewed.
-Dr Ghalion will be given the noble price for peace,he found out why Syria will never have civil war:it’s diversity.Iraq and Lebanon had no diversities that is why they had civil war.it is thought that Ghalion is so smart he must be related to Steve job(jandali)or to Aboudi.

More news from ام محمد next time I have a coffee with her.

Aoun: Syrian People are Committing Terrorism, Not the State
by Naharnet Newsdesk
3 hours ago

Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun demanded on Tuesday the Syrian people to return to their senses, calling on them “resort to the ballot boxes instead of resorting to murder and massacres” in dealing with its internal affairs.

He said after the Change and Reform bloc’s weekly meeting: “The terrorism is being committed by the people and not the state or any human rights groups as they are saying.”

He added that Syria is being pressured to sever its ties with Iran, Hizbullah, and Hamas and launch negotiations with Syria and not introduce reform.

“I don’t think Syria has harmed anyone on the Turkish border or any of the Arab forces,” Aoun continued.

“Whoever goes to Syria sees that it is calm, but there are a few problems,” he said.

In addition, the FPM leader stated that all of the wars the United States is waging will not result in the establishment of a pro-American government in the Middle East.

On Lebanon informing the Special Tribunal for Lebanon that it has failed in detaining suspects in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, he said: “The names of the suspects have been known for a year and of course the suspects have fled.”

Assad to Davutoglu: We Won’t Waver in Our Pursuit of Terrorist Groups
http://www.armenianweekly.com/2011/08/09/assad-to-davutoglu-we-wont-waver-in-our-pursuit-of-terrorist-groups/

DAMASCUS, Syria (AFP)—Syrian President Bashar al-Assad promised on Aug. 9 an unceasing battle against the “terrorist groups” that his regime has accused of responsibility for the deadly violence that has wracked Syria since March.

“We will not waver in our pursuit of terrorist groups,” Assad told visiting Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, according to state news agency SANA.

Davutoglu’s visit to Damascus was to pass on Ankara’s message that it “has run out of patience” with the ongoing violence, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier.

He said Turkey “cannot remain a spectator” to current events in the country with which it shares a border as well as historic and cultural links.

“We do not consider the problems in Syria a question of foreign policy but a domestic matter,” Erdogan said.

The prime minister added: “We must listen to the voices coming from over there, listen to them and do what is necessary.”

Assad met Davutoglu in the presence of the Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem, the pro-government Dunia television channel reported.

The mission comes after Saudi Arabia and two other Arab states in the Gulf withdrew their ambassadors from Damascus, in a development that both “encouraged” and “heartened” the United States.

Assad named a new defense minister on Aug. 8 as he faced growing regional isolation and Sunni Islam’s top authority urged an end to the bloodshed.

Ankara, whose ties with Damascus have flourished in recent years, has called on Assad to initiate reforms but has stopped short of calling for his departure.

On their Facebook page, Syrian Revolution 2011, an engine of the uprising, invited Davutoglu to “come and pray” in a Damascus mosque “to find out from close up of the demands of the Syrian people.”

The regime’s repression of Syria’s pro-democracy uprising has left more than 2,050 people dead, including almost 400 members of the security forces, the Syrian Observatory says.

Post 163 is a must read.

Conclusion: Bashar is a traitor, and a grandson of a traitor.

“سورية لن تتهاون في ملاحقة المجموعات الإرهابية المسلحة”

How many of the more than 2000 Syrians murdered by the regime, were involved in “armed insurrection”? That’s the basic question the menhebaks cannot answer, nor do they care to know the answer to that question.

AP, thanks. So the word goes back a long time, it’s part of tradition? I was afraid there was some mega corporation called Maccabi that had put its name to all the teams 🙂

The moderator should be aware that post 222 uses the word “(edited)” ,which means “shit his pants”. If that kind of language is acceptable, then I’ll make a note of it, and (edited for bad language) ala ras besho LOL!

Another episode of laugh with the Menhebakites

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NkpIBRP_MU

The highlights for non-Arabic speakers

1- Because our channels are patriotic they don’t allow anyone to spread fabrications about other nations.
(Our friend totally forgot about the “Qatari revolution” which was exclusively covered -with videos from Bahrain and eye witnesses from the backstage of that same studio- on the same channel.)

2- The anchor mentions Arour, he interrupts “I heard he died, I sure hope so, God willing he’s dead”

3- He’s whining about the environmental damage caused by sabotaging the pipeline.

4- He’s admiring Muallem’s statements about the American ambassador and how they are going to restrain him like one restrains a donkey.

5- Those demonstrating in the streets are clueless, they have nothing to do with what we (the people) want, why are they jumping all over the place, they should play sports if they want to jump.

6- The U.S and Israel are betting on the month of Ramadon, look how they’re handing our Islamic heritage to BRRRR Brrrnar henri leavni (Bernard-Henri Lévy, excuse him it’s the first time he heard this name), who is (get this) a ZIONIST PROPHET.

7- He recites a verse from Qur’an (it’s obvious this was his first encounter with this verse, he couldn’t even recite it right and mispronounced half the words).

8- Everyone wants the MB in charge, Qatar wants this, Turkey wants this, even Israel wants this, even the U.S wants this.

Silly Menhebakites, come on you can do better than this fool, oh wait you can’t!!! /facepalm.

ولقد خرج أوغلوا بعد انتهاء اللقاء مع الدكتور بشار وهو يقول:الله سوريا بشار وبس

The treatment of this Assadism regime and its supporters is akin to the treatment of Zionists and their supporters. With one difference, Assadists are part and parcel of our social fabric, and this is where it hurts, and deeply so.

Collective punishment is the norm.

Indiscriminate killing of men, women and children. Assadist, however, deny any killings, Zionists call it collateral damage. Disregard for human lives is the norm.

Both have a wealth of name calling regarding agents of change. Infiltrators, saboteurs, armed gangs, Islamic affiliations….

Both committed despicable massacres, torture and denied basic human rights and social needs.

Both claim to be supporters and advocates of minority groups. Ask Armenians in Jerusalem, and their counterparts in Syria, how they were treated before the advent of both juntas and now.

Both, Palestinians and Syrians are held hostage by illegitimate entities.

Both have unlimited power, both never hesitate of using it blindly on the masses. They both turned their followers into subhuman, a tool in their hands, void of compassion towards those who do not agree with their ideologies.

In the end, illegitimate entities no matter how brutally they treat us, they will tumble and fall flat on their faces. Fifty…sixty years in that part of the world is like a passing breeze. A land that have witnessed a lot, occupiers that come and go, some, however remained and adopted the culture of the people, some even converted to the religion of the occupied… but never have Syrians ever witnessed, one of their own treating them with such savagery and in plain daylight. An outlier such as junior have no place in our midst, his followers need to wake up.

NK

Wow! His charm is to kill for..

LOL! Thanks NK, that was hilarious 🙂

Loved the part where the trumpet struggled to remember the name of Bernard Henry Levi (what did he call him…Berhenkai…LOL!)

“He’s whining about the environmental damage caused by sabotaging the pipeline.”

Then let him go have a word with the relatives of the shabihas from that area. They blew up the pipeline because they are pissed that Besho promised them 5000 liras a day, but they only got 2000. Baathist accounting practices for you.

Think about it. The area where the pipeline blew up is surrounded by Alawite villages. Telkelakh has been under a heavy security presence for months now, so you know no one was going to be able to blow up a pipeline from there.

Sheila

“P.S. I am still working on accumulating the highest number of dislikes. Eat your heart out Aboud. ”

>_<

Still sulking…..

I was afraid there was some mega corporation called Maccabi that had put its name to all the teams

Aboud,

No corporation that I’m aware of called Maccabi. It is just the name of a sports league that has survived all these years.

Assad won’t stop his fight against “terrorists”.

IOW, don’t speak out against Assad or else. Stupid man.

http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-tanks-enter-town-near-turkey-expand-east-085620490.html

Both, Palestinians and Syrians are held hostage by illegitimate entities.

N.Z. –

But both do not have the right to vote for their leaders and representatives, and both are not demonstrating against the government in power.

All Mamnhebaks who live in The US should write letters and encourage family, freinds, colleagues, and acquaintances to write letters to their representative and to president Obama to urge him to sanction oil and gas export from Syria.

“Assad won’t stop his fight against “terrorists”.

Yeah, I’m not surprised. Besho is like a guy with a grudge against his neighbor, and is determined to drive his neighbor’s car off a cliff…with Besho behind the wheel all the way.

Saddam was similarly delusional on the eve of the Gulf War. He thought that all the diplomatic efforts to get him out of Kuwait meant that the West was too timid to actually go to war with him.

Worst mistake ever, but one junior seems determined to outdo.

If junior won’t listen to the international community, then he’ll have to be bought to his senses once the opposition starts to arm itself. So far, the regime has been fighting a one sided war, but nothing I’ve seen or heard recently indicates that the inevitable armed response won’t come sooner rather than later.

old lies, new lies,lying is what the u.s./euro media do. liars lying spreading lies.

Western media lie about Syria – eyewitness reports

By ¬Nadezhda Kevorkova, Russia Today – 2011-04-29

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=KEV20110809&articleId=25953

A photo released by the Syrian Arab news Agency (SANA) on April 27, 2011, shows one of 6 coffins of a killed member of either the army or security forces being taken from the October Military hospital in Damascus to their towns and villages for burial, following several days of unrest (AFP Photo)
While media reports paint a picture of the situation in Syria as a mass public uprising brutally suppressed by the dictatorial government, the events are viewed in a totally different way by those living there.
¬RT caught up with Anhar Kochneva, director of a Moscow-based tourist firm specializing in the Middle East. She often travels to Syria, and stays in touch with hundreds of people in the region. She shared what her contacts say about the unfolding unrest and who they blame for the spreading violence.

RT: What’s happening in Syria? What have you seen? And that are the Syrians saying?

Anhar Kochneva: Not even once did I come across anyone who would in any way support these riots; and mind you, in the line of my job, I deal with all sorts of people. There are many vehicles with the president’s portraits driving the streets throughout the country – ranging from old, barely moving crankers to brand new Porsches and Hummers. You can’t force people into hanging up portraits. It means that people, irrespective of their status and income, support the president rather than the rebellion. I saw quite a number of young people walking or driving around with Syrian flags. How can you force a young person hanging out with friends to wave flags? I think it’s difficult too. If you understand the mentality of the Syrians you can tell there is a sincere impulse from a forced obligation.

On March 29, I saw a rally in Hama to support the president – indeed, many thousands of men and women, with their children, and entire families went out. The streets were flooded with people. It was quite a shock to see Al-Jazeera presenting rallies in support of the president as if they were protests against him. It was just as surprising to see the Israeli websites post photos and videos of supporters’ rallies with comments saying those were opponents of the regime. There you have people holding portraits of Bashar al-Assad and flags, and we’re told that these people are against him.
RT: The media reports mass anti-government rallies.

AK: There’s a powerful misinformation swell going on. On April 1, the media reported a large anti-governmental rally in Damascus. I was in Damascus on that day. This rally never happened – I didn’t see it, and neither did the locals.
On April 16, Reuters news agency wrote that 50,000 opponents of the regime took to the streets of Damascus, and that they had been dispersed with tear gas and batons. Damascus’ residents realize that such a rally could not take place in the city unnoticed. How many policemen would it take to disperse it? And how come nobody saw it except Reuters? Five hundred people in the streets of Damascus are a large crowd. Reuters broadcast their material around the world, including Russia. One source lies, and then this lie is like a snowball rolling downhill creating a fake reality, and picking up rumor and speculation.

People in Syria watch the footage. What do they see? A picture allegedly from Yemen. A picture allegedly from Egypt. A picture allegedly from Syria. But the pictures all show people dressed in the same fashion. People in Syria can tell their fellow countrymen from their neighbors – both by their faces and their clothes.

There are videos on the internet showing how amateur footage of the so-called riots is made. There’s a parked car and nothing’s going on around. And there’s a man standing next to it throwing rocks. And people around are taking pictures.

There are a lot of staged videos. A Lebanese can tell the difference between footage taken in Lebanon and that taken in Damascus at a glance. And they show footage from Tripoli, or footage taken several years ago in Iraq, and say it is unrest in Syria.

There are many online forums for women in Arab countries. Women share information following TV reports on ‘mass unrests’. Women write – what’s happening outside your window? And they reply: we looked down from the balcony, and didn’t see anything that the TV was talking about.

Presently, a lot of young unarmed policemen get killed. The media propaganda immediately labels them as victims of the regime. I repeat, policemen are unarmed. The Syrian police are not too good with guns, because nothing like this has happened here for a long time. But the killed rookies are reported as either victims among the protestors, or as policemen who refused to shoot at their fellow countrymen, depending on the editors’ preference. Goebbels’ words seem to be true: the bigger the lie, the more easily they believe it.

RT: But why are policemen dying if there are no mass protests?

AK: Policemen die because they get shot by those who know that they are unarmed.

RT: Who shoots policemen?

AK: They talk a lot about it in Syria. Rumor has it that trained commandos came across the border from Iraq. People in Syria are well-aware that after the US occupied Iraq, they formed special squads there. They were killing people, stirring up conflicts between the Shiite and Sunni communities, and between Muslims and Christians; they were blowing up streets, markets, mosques and churches. Those terrorist attacks targeted civilians rather than the occupying regime.

Not long ago, they caught three such commandos in the outskirts of Damascus, when they were randomly shooting at people. They turned out to be Iraqis.

Syrian TV showed footage of somebody shooting at policemen and passers-by from bushes and rooftops. They occasionally get caught, and they either turn out to be Iraqis, or they admit that they were paid for it. Such militants were detained in Deraa and Latakia. They had US-made weapons.

The Lebanese security service intercepted several cars carrying weapons as they were coming into Lebanon. One such car was stopped coming from Iraq. There were American weapons in those cars too. Also there are reports about detained people who had large sums of money with them – with US dollars. These people carried expensive satellite phones that cannot be tapped by the Syrian security service.

In Syria, it is no longer a secret to anyone that the Americans have an unhindered opportunity to recruit and train the commandos in Iraq, and then send them wherever they want.
Hilary Clinton has already stated that if Syria cuts its relations with Iran and withdraws its support for Hamas and Hezbollah, the demonstrations would stop the next day. They don’t even bother to keep secret the hand instilling riots in Syria.

There’s plenty of evidence of foreign interference.

Finally, people say protestors are brought in from afar for the rallies. Those people speak and look differently from the locals. Nobody in the neighborhood knows them. Who rents the buses and finances the delivery of these people? The question stands.

The former Syrian Vice-President Abdel Halim Khaddam had initiated the riots in the coastal regions. He had plundered half of the country. He was involved in corruption schemes and finally fled to the West. It was he who tried to accuse Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of assassinating the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri. The Syrians firmly believe that Sayed Hariri had personally given a villa to Abdel Halim Khaddam for spreading this version of Rafic Hariri’s murder. But when that version fell apart and was not confirmed, the villa was taken away. Today, those who shot at cars in Banias are shouting: “We don’t want Bashar. We want Abdel Halim!”

There are peaceful and cultured opposition members in Banias who have been against al-Assad’s regime for many years. But they are shocked by what’s going on and do not support Khaddam at all. They say: “He’s a thief. He who stole most calls to fight corruption and thievery.”

RT: What role are Syrian emigrants playing in the Syrian destabilization?

AK: It’s an open question. There was a leak claiming that Dan Feldman, Hillary Clinton’s special representative for the Middle East, met representatives of the Syrian opposition in Istanbul in mid-April and suggested the tactics for assassinations of civil and military officials. In less than three days, on April 19, several military officials had been brutally killed in Syria. Not only were they attacked and shot dead, some victims of the attacks, including three teenage children of a Syrian general, who were in a car with him, were cut to pieces with sabres.

Murders committed with a high degree of brutality are aimed at intimidating the population. The news that children had been cut to pieces served that purpose quite well.

RT: Media reports used to say that the riots started after the arrest in the city of Deraa, in southern Syria, of several children writing anti-government slogans? Is it really so?

AK: All the children had been released very quickly. Moreover, the government-owned Syrian newspapers published the release orders.

RT: Have the troops been brought into Deraa?

AK: Yes, troops are there. After an Islamic emirate had been proclaimed in Deraa, the local residents asked the government for help. Troops have been brought in. I’ve just seen the videos. The demonstrators published them on the internet and shortly after erased them. But people made copies. There are soldiers, and people come to them and talk peacefully. Nobody shoots anyone.

RT: Is there a sentiment in Syria that if it gets rid of Hamas support and the Palestinians and strike a peace deal with Israel, all the riots will end immediately?
AK: No, there’s no such sentiment. There’s consolidation of society. The people are sticking together because they see that the enemy is extremely dangerous. For instance, previously I never heard anything except pop music and the recital of the Koran on the radio when I rode in a taxi. Now, patriotic music is coming from all cars. When Bashar al-Assad was speaking on television, the people who were listening to him at the market applauded him. You cannot force people to applaud a president who speaks on television.

RT: What has the public mood been in recent days?

AK: People are afraid of going out. In some regions, people risked their lives to record with a secret camera how unidentified persons sneaked into a car, moved off and started shooting in all directions. This is how they are sowing panic in residential areas.

Bandits blocked a bridge on the road near the coast. Soon, the military pushed them back. One of my Syrian contacts told me: “you don’t need many people to plunge the country into trouble.”
Putting five people on a major road would be enough to paralyze the whole area. People are unable to deliver foodstuffs or reach hospitals. And the whole country is in shock because of a handful of bandits.
Now, Syrian television is making live broadcasts from various parts of Damascus and other cities for people to see how the situation is unfolding and how life is getting back to normal, whatever the Western media show.
It’s noteworthy that bandits intentionally tried to rouse hatred among various communities. Recently, a sheikh was insulting the Druze, particularly women, in an address to the residents of the south. This video is being broadcast by the foreign media and is advertized on the internet. Nothing like that ever happened in Syria before. Provocations failed in Damascus though attempts were made to set religious communities against each other. Provocateurs lack support in rural areas too – the sowing campaign has started there.

The most massive demonstrations in Dera gathered 500 people. But they say 450 people have been killed.

RT: Has the government launched any reforms?

AK: The government has lifted martial law and has allowed the staging of authorized rallies if permission for them is obtained five days ahead. Foreigners have been allowed to buy real estate. The Kurds have been granted citizenship. The Kurdish population didn’t have it before for a number of historical reasons. The government is opening business courses for women in northern Syria. Many provincial governors have been dismissed. Unfortunately, in some cases they were honest people. Like those who refused to free criminals from prison for bribes and had been targeted by smear campaigns in public for it.

RT: Have the number of flights to Syria been cut?

AK: There are no tickets for Syria. We wanted to dispatch a group of tourists to Syria but there were no air tickets to Damascus for April 30. But Russians are not fleeing from Syria. I have full information about it for my job.

Iran chides UK over riots
http://news.yahoo.com/iran-chides-uk-over-riots-171024785.html

TEHRAN (Reuters) – Iran urged Britain Tuesday to avoid using force to suppress riots that have rocked London, mischievously turning the tables on Western critics of its own human rights record.

In other reaction to the wave of looting and rioting sweeping the British capital, France and Austria issued travel advisories to their citizens and a Belgian lawmaker said he feared copycat violence spreading to his own country…
… Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said the British government should “exercise restraint,” avoid using violence and instead “talk to protesters and listen to their requests,” the official IRNA news agency reported.
… A member of Iran’s parliament, Hossein Ebrahimi, told the semi-official Fars news agency that Britain should allow a delegation of human rights monitors to examine the situation.
…An official in Egypt, where unrest earlier this year ousted veteran President Hosni Mubarak, also could not resist making an ironic jab at a Western country that normally prides itself on its respect for the rule of law and for human rights.

“We will send Egyptian NGOs (to London) to check it out,” said the official, in a reference to Westerners who monitored Mubarak’s attempts to quash protests in Cairo’s Tahrir Square.
more…

Syrian hackers retaliate and take down Anonymous social network AnonPlus
http://www.digitaltrends.com/social-media/syrian-hackers-retaliate-and-take-down-anonymous-social-network-anonplus/

Earlier this morning we reported how Anonymous had hacked the website of Syria’s Ministry of Defense, and replaced the official homepage with images of citizen unrest and brutality by authorities. Now AnonPlus, Anonymous’s social network has been hacked by the Syrian Electronic Army, replacing the site with grisly images and the following message:

“In response to your hacking to the website of the Syrian Ministry of Defence, the Syrian people have decided to purify the internet of your pathetic website. Your website has been hacked, and here we leave you these photos showing the scale of terrorism committed by Muslim Brotherhood Organization, whose members have been killing Syrian citizens – civilian and military. You are defending this terrorits [sic] organization and this is our response. here is photos of the Syrian Army Martyrs”

The site availability is changing by the minute but you can click here. Please be aware that the pictures are ghastly.

….

“العماد علي حبيب في كلمة له على الفضائية السورية يهنيء العماد داؤود راجحة ويؤكد أنه لاصحة لما تناقلته وكالات الأنباء عن عزله وأنه استقال نتيجة حالته الصحية وأنه سيظل على وفائه للوطن وقائد الوطن”

SNK,
Aunty Oum Mouhammad news agency was wrong..sorry khalto!

Thank you for the latest episode of ‘The Angel’ series, Tara special, it was fun and I’m sure that our Gucci oil sanction advocate wasn’t too mad since they didn’t banned you for daring to write something about her highness ‘Taro’ 🙂

Kindly note the date on 5 dancing shlomos’s wall of text @236, with the Russian journalist (or travel agent according to Google)

29th April, 2011.

The menhebaks are getting desperate if they have to post an article from so far back and try to pass it off as having any relevance to recent events. I think I’m allowed to *facepalm*

وزير خارجية تركيا: اجتماعي مع الأسد يبعث على الأمل وأتوقع خطوات إصلاح مهمة خلال أيام

أكد أحمد داود أوغلو وزير الخارجية التركي أن اجتماعه مع الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد يبعث على الأمل، متوقعا خطوات مهمة على طريق الإصلاح خلال أيام.

وقال داود أوغلو في مؤتمر صحفي بعد زيارته إلى سورية يوم الثلاثاء 9 أغسطس/آب إن محادثاته استمرت 6 ساعات، مضيفا أن السوريين هم من يحددون مطالبهم.

ودعا الوزير التركي إلى وقف إطلاق النار وعدم إراقة الدماء، مشيرا إلى أنه نقل رسالة خطية إلى الرئيس السوري من رئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب أردوغان وأخرى شفوية من رئيس الجمهورية عبد الله غل.

وأشار وزير الخارجية التركي إلى أن “المهم أن لا يتواجه الشعب مع الجيش السوري وأن لا تحصل أحداث كما حصل في حماة”. وأوضح داود أوغلو أنه “نحن أوصلنا رسائل تركية فقط واستفدنا أيضا من آراء الجانب السوري الذي تحدث عما يجري هناك”.

وقال الوزير التركي إن الأيام المقبلة ستكون حرجة ودقيقة من أجل التوصل إلى تسوية سلمية، مؤكدا أن تأمين السلام الداخلي والأمان هو الذي يحدد مستقبل سورية.

المصدر: وكالات

In the past week both supporters of the regime and the protesters on SC have indicated a willingness to support a negotiated resolution. Although negotiations at present would be very difficult, now is the time to start explorations. The following factors need to be considered.

1. What are the regime’s interests? What do they want? 4 years ago an individual in the regime stated to me any policy of the Assad regime both foreign and domestic will be the preservation of the Assad presidency. Everything can be interpreted in those terms. There is no indication the ruling family thinks otherwise today. The current policy of the regime is restore the status quo using force and imprisonment as frequent as necessary.
Comment: Unless the family had to negotiate terms of abdication they will not entertain a relinquishment of any form of power. Therefore it will take others to force the Assads to negotiate or abdicate. Negotiations with persons in leadership rolls such as generals, capitalists, bankers, etc. may be the only route at this time.

2. Who are the decision makers in the Assad regime and what is Bashar’s roll? For the past 10 years a family council has been making most of the decisions – little of importance passes without the family’s approval. Basher is in the council but grandfather is the moderator. Other family members include two hawks, Bashar’s brother, who commands the elite 4th division and brother in law, who commands the secret police.
Comment: Bashar is not a figurehead. He probably is the most influential and often in the past other council members have deferred to him. But for the present crisis Bashar is deferring to others in the family council.

2. What do the demonstrators want? In diplomatic terms, what are the demonstrators’ interests?
(a) end the secret police and close all torture chambers.
(b) prosecution of those who engaged in torture and murder.
(c) Release of all held in custody
(d) freedom of speech, press and assembly
(e) Dignity and respect
(f) Equal and fair participation in the selection of government officials through free and open elections.
(g) for some, the end of the Assad regime.
Comment: The secret police and its activities, control of speech and press, and control of elections are pillars of the Assay regime. One should anticipate the Assads will not give up any of its pillars. It would appear at this time that there is nothing that can be a the subject of negotiation.

3. The possibility of successful negotiations appear dim at present. It is in these situations that skilled international diplomats are most successful. What is needed is an inquirer, a person who will contact persons of interest. Instead of face to face negotiations between the parties, the inquirer travels first to one, then to the other searching for areas of common agreement. Hence, the inquirer must be trusted by both. This roll is is too dangerous for a Syrian to assume. My suggestion is a skilled professional international diplomat. Norway is a little country so one can never say the parties were forced into agreeing by a powerful nation. It was Norwegian diplomats that put Arafat and Begin together, a feat considered impossible. Norway’s diplomats are very, very skilled.

4. Is there time? Maybe not. Events may overtake the effort of the inquirer, but it is better to try than not to try.

سيادة العماد علي حبيب في كلمة عبر الفضائية السورية يؤكد أن لا صحة لما تناقلته وسائل الاعلام حول وفاته او انشقاقه محيا قواتنا المسلحة وموجها الشكر و التقدير للقائد الاسد
Congratulations
For these people- who are wasting their time in writing false news on this blog- General Habib is still alive and he is supporting Al-Assad
He is a simple and good man…..He doesn’t care if he is a minister or not, all what he cares is serving Syria well……

Junior says Syria won’t stop fight against “terrorists”

Today 37 Syrians killed, 7 of the deceased are children.

Junior brother said, they will not give up what was taken 40 years ago by force.

Between the two murderous figures wreaking havoc and murder, there is only one way to stop them.

Top Israeli archaeologists contest Jewish ties to Jerusalem
Palestine Information Center – 08/08/2011

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM — Top Israeli archaeologist Israel Finkelstein has denied the existence of Jewish roots in the city of Jerusalem, contrary to Israel’s claims that have prompted continued Judaization of the city.

Finkelstein, a professor at Tel Aviv University, said Jewish archaeologists have failed to unearth historic sites to support some of the stories in the Torah. Among those stories are the Jewish Exodus, the forty-year wandering in the Sinai desert, and Joshua’s victory over the Canaanites.

He also said there was no archaeological evidence that concludes that the alleged Temple of Solomon ever existed.

For his part, Professor of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University Raphael Greenberg said that the Israelis should have found something after digging for six weeks in the City of David in East Jerusalem’s Silwan district, but have found nothing in two years of continuous excavations.

Prof. Yoni Mihrazi, an independent archaeologist who has worked with the International Atomic Energy Agency, agreed with Finkelstein’s findings, saying that top settler organization Elad had not stumbled upon even a banner saying “welcome to the city of David”, given that claims were made to have been relying on sacred texts to guide them in their work.

…and

khazars, yids, new yorkers, jerseyites, ashkenazis, sephardics, sundry other fake hebrews/israelites have no claims, connections, ties, roots, to any part of palestine.

the only connection these diseased minds with lies for brain cells have to any part of the middle east is the fiction passed from brainwashed to brainwashed.

“Syrian hackers retaliate and take down Anonymous social network AnonPlus”

That is the extent of their retaliation? A social network for a country’s Ministry of Defense website? That’s like losing a battleship but consoling yourselves that you took out a barge LOL!

242 FIA,

“Basher is in the council but grandfather is the moderator.”

Who is Basher and who is grandfather?

Interesting coincidence, resolution 242 ??????

?!
“عاجل : تصريحات أوغلو و مواقفه و مؤتمره الصحفي يُسبب مفاجئة للجميع و لكل وكالات الأنباء … الزيارة و بحسب مصادر مقربة كانت موفقة جداً و قد ادت إلى تقارب وجهات النظر و اعتراف تركيا بوجود مسلحين و وجوب القضاء عليهم و بحسب مصادر مطلعة فقد انتهى ملف الضباط الأتراك و قد اطلع وزير الخارجية التركي عبر مسؤولين في القصر الجمهوري على وثائق و دلائل و اثباتات تثبت ضلوع مجموعات مسلحة ارهابية بتقل المحتجين و رجال الأمن و اللعب على موضوع الدم …و يبدو أن تركيا ستلعب دوراً وسيطاً في المرحلة القادمة لنقل وجهة النظر الرسمية السورية لجميع المشككين .. و كما أنه اتطلع على خطوات الإصلاح التي تمت حتى الآن و ما سيتم .. حيث تم التحضير لهذه الزيارة بشكل دقيق لإفهام مايحدث على الأرض بسوريا و ليس كما تتناقله وسائل الإعلام ….هذا و يذكر ان زيارة وفد آخر اليوم صباحاً من الدول المؤيدة للتصويت ضد القرار الإدانة على سوريا و هي البرازيل و الهند و جنوب أفريقيا قد اطلعوا بعد زيارة لعدد من المسؤولين السوريين على أدلة مماثلة”

Jad

Can you please stop talking about me and when you have an issue, address it with me directly?

It has been said by some that Muslims have no claim to Jerusalem because Mohamad never stepped foot there.

My contempt for such viewpoints is matched only by my contempt for things like this, posted by a generic menhebak at 245

“khazars, yids, new yorkers, jerseyites, ashkenazis, sephardics, sundry other fake hebrews/israelites have no claims, connections, ties, roots, to any part of palestine.”

Like it or not, Arabs and Israelis will have to share Palestine and Jerusalem if there is ever to be an end to the conflict. Disgracefully de-legitimatizing an entire people will only see 60 more years of war.

But why should that bother the menhebaks living in the West (which they hate so much), or their feeble president who hasn’t dared fire a shot on the Golan.

Deir El Zour surrounded by 30 Syrian tanks, all entrance to the cities are blocked, the mouth piece of this mafia, Syrian TV, insist there are non.

Joshua claims the new minister for defence is a Christian in his religion, but doesn’t cite a primary or reliable source. At SANA.SY today it is stated that the man’s full name is داوود بن عبد الله راجحة (ref) which is to say his middle name is “bin abd allah” which translates as “son of slave of allah”, which doesn’t look at all like a Christian name. I’m told roughly 6% of the Syrian population is Christian. Given that statistic, and given what this man’s middle name is, and given the absence of a primary and reliable source about this man’s religion, and given the infestation of fictions about the regime in the non-Syrian news media, I have to be dubious that he’s a Christian.

Is not time to stop asking about one’s belief, and judge his name by his credential?

To #252. Ya Mara Ghalba,

Against popular belief, quite a few Christians in Syria and elsewhere in the Arab World have names that are Arabic, even though many think that they are Muslim names, like: Abd Allah, Omar, Mahmoud etc…
I would like to remind you that Abd Allah was the name of the father of the prophet Mohammad. That was before there was Islam. This is an Arabic name not a Muslim name and yes, there are Christians named Abd Allah in Syria. I personally know two.

“Is not time to stop asking about one’s belief, and judge his name by his credential? ”

You’d think so, but the sectarian menhebaks have been judging people and giving them government posts based on their sect for years. “Secular” LOL!

Tara, Juju has this habit of insulting people he can’t debate. And he does it indirectly. Poor little Juju 🙂 Did Tara hurt your feelings Juju? (edited for personal attack)

250. Aboud said:
“It has been said by some that Muslims have no claim to Jerusalem because Mohamad never stepped foot there.”

those “some” are you and the propagandists for israel.

muslims outside of palestine never made a claim to jerusalem similar to the jewish claim.

you need to address your comments to the jews. i’m not interested in what a traitor to syria has to say.

@256 “traitor to Syria”

*rolls eyes*

Amazing.
وزير خارجية تركيا: اجتماعي مع الأسد يبعث على الأمل وأتوقع خطوات إصلاح مهمة خلال أيام

أكد أحمد داود أوغلو وزير الخارجية التركي أن اجتماعه مع الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد يبعث على الأمل، متوقعا خطوات مهمة على طريق الإصلاح خلال أيا

From Today Zaman (much more trustworthy Turkish news site)

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said he met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for more than six hours on Tuesday to discuss “concrete steps” Syria should take to stop its violent crackdown on anti-government protesters and added that Turkey would monitor Syria’s actions in the coming days.

“The steps to be taken in the coming days are important,” Davutoğlu told reporters after his return from Damascus. “We hope measures will be taken to stop the bloodshed.”

Davutoğlu, who is now due to report to the government about his talks with Assad, was unwilling to reveal much about what was discussed. “We, in the clearest and most open manner, shared with President Assad the measures that could be taken to prevent confrontations between the army and people and events similar to those in Hama,” Davutoğlu said, describing the marathon talks as frank and friendly.

Can anyone point me to the place where the phrase اجتماعي مع الأسد يبعث على الأمل appeared. It seems i have little or no understanding of English. “We hope” is very different from “the meeting caused me to be hopeful “. is SNK now leading SANA’s translation department. This is not an innocent mistake, it aims to confuse us the Syrian public. Typical stupid regime or regime-friendly propaganda. I hope that someone will prove me wrong and find the full transcript where the phrase published by the propaganda appears. However, i am not hopeful.

Friend in America

Even moderate opposition is not interested in “dialogue” anymore. Besho lost his opportunity. Hama was a turning point. Some “opposition” agreed to pre conditional dialogue in the past as long as he curbs the security apparatus. This is not on the table anymore. Bashar must step down. He won’t. The army will remain loyal. It will be a war of attrition as some put it. People will eventually prevail.

OTW,

it was a news alert on AL Jazeera during the news conference.

If they tampered with Alawites traditions, let alone Syrian history, will they not twist Turkey’s Foreign Affair words?

OTW
Yes I was hired by SANA.I heard you were hired by الوصال.They assigned you to screen the phones coming to Alaaroor,I heard they pay good.
Good willing you and him and Ubo umer will clean this world from all non-Sunnis .
Very soon I will make your buss Alaaroor angel appear to you.stay up.

@ Aboud and Guy in Damascus –

Why don’t the people just kick the Shabbiha’s ass ? Why are you taking it quietly ? Just kick their ass. Also, ever thought about organizing martial arts classes in Mosques ? I think they are a good idea. Try to organize Taekwondo and Jujitsu classes, as these are useful in evading arrest and beating by a group of 10-15 armed Policemen. Takeowndo and other unarmed self defense techniques will give an added advatnage to the protestors in tackling the barbarians as well as giving them a good whooping.

“Joshua claims the new minister for defence is a Christian in his religion, but doesn’t cite a primary or reliable source. At SANA.SY today it is stated that the man’s full name is داوود بن عبد الله راجحة (ref) which is to say his middle name is “bin abd allah” which translates as “son of slave of allah”, which doesn’t look at all like a Christian name.”

Ignorance is not a good argument.

Folks, you know what, I do appreciate and value BEAWARE’s attempt to be fair in bringing news articles and pieces from multiple sources even when they carry critical tone. The balance is positive in my books in that regard.

I hope this will not cause BEAWARE to get many thumbs down by association. I am vouching for dear SHEILA.

Dear N.Z.
Yes, they will twist even Bashar’s own words, but being the old (x)art i am, i have to point out such lies.

Here is another gem from SANA
وشدد الوزير داود أوغلو على أن سورية بقيادة الرئيس الأسد ستصبح نموذجا في العالم العربي بعد استكمال الإصلاحات التي أقرتها القيادة السورية مضيفا أن استقرار سورية أساسي لاستقرار المنطقة.

Notice that it did not say a model of what. Based on past performance, I think that Turkey will be disappointed. Like any addict, Besho will lie and can not be trusted. Six hour meeting marathons are typical for addicts who tell their friends they are quitting.

Dear Norman,

If it is Aljazeera’s own translation, then i tell them they need to fire the translator. I would love for anyone who knows Turkish to find the press conference and prove me wrong, i really do.

Dear SYR.EXPAT
Many of my Iranian friends, and I do have a lot of Iranian friends, express surprise when finding that Christians in Syria do call their boys Arabic names such as Abdallah.

Dear Tara,
If my words hurt your feelings then I’m sorry, I won’t talk to you any more if that what you prefer

مدربة الفتوة العظيمة دودة خانم
‘Tara, Juju has this habit of insulting people he can’t debate. And he does it indirectly.’

-‘Juju’, I actually like this name، my family call me that, better than دودة.
-‘Insulting peopl’ funny that note comming from you. So far you got more ‘edited’ notes than anybody else on SC.
-‘He can’t debate’, sure I don’t know how to debate using you classy style.
-‘he does it indirectly’ I’m indirectly writing to you now.

258. OFF THE WALL

If the government can miraculously reform and spare the country the disastrous consequences of foreign interventions, then by all means.

However, just because the president appeared to be willing to enact reforms, it does mean that this will happen. Many people met the president since the demonstrations began in March to complain about the lack of reforms and the brutality of the security thugs. The president was accommodating and made many promises, but things got worse instead of better. The impression that people got is that the president will let you hear what you want, but will do what he wants. The coming few days will let us know whether it’s empty talk.

“I’m indirectly writing to you now. ”

Um, Juju, that’s called writing *directly* to me. What is it with the menhebaks, they don’t know what vigilante means but use it anyway, and can’t tell the difference between directly and indirectly. *it’s a very very simple word*

“So far you got more ‘edited’ notes than anybody else on SC.”

I don’t keep count, I’m not obsessed with such things, but if that was true, I’d have been banned long ago 🙂

“sure I don’t know how to debate using you classy style.”

“your” classy style. Don’t debate then, just *try* to answer any one of the series of questions I posted.

Of the more than 2000 Syrians murdered by the regime, how many were armed gangs or involved in armed insurrection?

Anyone who pretends to care about Syria would demand an answer to that question. But as I said before, the menhebaks would murder their own mother if she went out to an anti-Besho demonstrations.

#0
LOLOLOLOL you have no clue!

I told you many times before, change your shitty attitude and will be happy to debate with you, but for now I refuse to debate anything with a hysterical person who attack almost everybody on SC and turn the comment section into an ugly place as you do.

258. OFF THE WALL

The Syrian media are experts at lying and misinformation. Just the other day, they reported that one of Damascus scholars said that demonstrating is “haram, haram , haram.” What they didn’t report is the context. The scholar declared the demonstrating unlawful if it means carrying weapons and shooting at the security forces. He was not talking about peaceful demonstrations.

Having said that, if the Syrian regime can miraculously reform and spare the country the disastrous consequences of foreign intervention, then by all means.

However, some of the people who met the president have the impression that the president will tell what you want to hear, but do the exact opposite. We all remember the orders not to shoot at demonstrators.

The coming few days will let us know whether it’s another episode of empty talk.

” 215. mjabali said:

Abu Umar Comment #187

You are a real amateur. I asked you for the document and you bring us a quote.”

The quote was from the article in the New York Times and Landis was the one who mentioned it and Pierre Gemayel mentioned it decades ago. Why did your Alawi leaders praise the Zionists and blame the Palestinians for refusing to become refugees in their own land?

““In 1936, six Alawite notables sent a memorandum to French prime minister Leon Blum. To explain why they refused to be annexed to a Muslim Syria ruled by the Sunni majority who regarded them as infidels, they pointed to the treatment of Jews under Islam: “The condition of the Jews in Palestine is the strongest and most explicit evidence of the militancy of the Islamic issue vis-à-vis those who do not belong to Islam. These good Jews contributed to the Arabs with civilization and peace, scattered gold, and established prosperity in Palestine without harming anyone or taking anything by force, yet the Muslims declare holy war against them and never hesitated in slaughtering their women and children, despite the presence of England in Palestine and France in Syria.

“without harming anyone or taking anything by force”

Now I know where the deranged propaganda of the Syrian regime came from!

“Do you know what is a historical scientific fact?”

I know that someone who knows about Bani Quraydha, knows about Khaybar? Who led the attack on Khaybar? Why are you afraid to respond because of your Alawi sectarianism? Ali Ibn Abi Talib isn’t on your side.

“You only know fabrications and lies like the ideology that you follow that is based on lies and violence.”

Your Alawi regime is just as guilty of this. Every city which has been attacked has mundasseen who kill the protestors who are on their side. One city, two cities, but dozen of cities and towns?! That is the most ridiculous lie of all as if the Syrian regime has no history of killing civilians.

Enjoy your permanent vacation in Iran.

” 229. Real Syrian said:

ولقد خرج أوغلوا بعد انتهاء اللقاء مع الدكتور بشار وهو يقول:الله سوريا بشار وبس ”

The intellectual rigour of the menhebek crowd repeating their ridiculous mantra. Did you bow down to Bashar today?

“262. Syria no kandahar said:

Keep laughing at your stale jokes while your regime kills.

Sheila,

“…I am curious, why do you follow Syria Comment and contribute regularly?”

WOW. My SC personality (one of few) is thanking you dearly. My SC personality has some very serious self-esteem issues here. It never feels it “contributes”. It always feels as a foreign agent, annoyance and infiltrator, who insists upon sticking it’s nose in other peoples’ matters. Some here will not even “dignify” my SC personality with a response. So describing my SC persona as “contributing” gives it a moral boost 🙂

Why am I on SC ? because it’s free. You know the costs of living here in Tel Aviv are real high. Instead of going to the movies, spending 80 Shekels including parking and coke, I tune to SC, and have laughs for free…
.

Khaled

“Why don’t the people just kick the Shabbiha’s ass ? Why are you taking it quietly ? ”

*enigmatic smile*

Dear Jad

I forgive you. I do want to talk with you. Btw, Gucci is for grandmas.

Did the sacked minister of defense decide to commit suicide the Ghazi Kanaan way? Very interesting that he dies one day after being sacked. I guess it’s another coincidence.

العثور على وزير الدفاع السوري المقال مقتولا في منزله
الكاتب وطن
الثلاثاء, 09 أغسطس 2011 18:40

كشفت مصادر مطلعة أنه تم العثور على وزير الدفاع السوري اللواء علي حبيب الذي أقاله الرئيس بشار الأسد من منصبه يوم امس ، مقتولاً في منزله، فيما تحدث التلفزيون السوري عن أن الوفاة طبيعية. وقال التليفزيون السوري إن وزير الدفاع المقال مريض منذ بعض الوقت ووضعه الصحي تدهور مؤخرًا.

وكان الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد قد أصدر يوم الاثنين مرسومًا بتعيين العماد أول داوود راجحة وزيرًا جديدًا للدفاع، بديلاً للعماد علي حبيب الذي كان وزيرا للدفاع منذ العام 2009.

وربط مراقبون مقتل وزير الدفاع السوري علي حبيب أو ما صوره النظام السوري على أنه “وفاة طبيعية” بتقارير ترددت مؤخرا حول وجود انقسام داخل بنية الطائفة العلوية الحاكمة. ويرون الأمر غير بعيد عن القنبلة التي فجرتها صحيفة “نيويورك تايمز” الأمريكية في مطلع أغسطس حول احتمال انقلاب العلويين على نظام الحكم ، خاصة وأن عائلة حبيب تعتبر أكبر من عائلة بشار الأسد داخل الطائفة العلوية.

وكانت الصحيفة قد كشفت في تقرير لها أن العلويين الذين يشكلون 12% فقط من تعداد سكان سوريا قد أيد معظمهم الأسد خوفا من أنه إذا أطيح به فإنهم سيُذبحون ولذا يجب على المعارضة أن تقنع العلويين بأنهم يمكن أن ينقلبوا بأمان على نظام الأسد.

ويواجه نظام الأسد انتفاضة شعبية غير مسبوقة منذ ما يقرب من الخمسة أشهر، لكن النظام لا يقر بحجم الاحتجاج وما زال يتهم “جماعات مسلحة” بزرع الفوضى لتبرير إرسال الجيش إلى مختلف المدن السورية لقمع التظاهرات.

وقد أدى استخدام القوة إلى سقوط أكثر من ألفي قتيل غالبيتهم من المدنيين منذ 15 مارس، بحسب منظمات حقوقية.حيث يدور الحديث مؤخرا عن 170 قتيلا يوميا برصاص الجيش السوري ما ادى الى خروج السعودية عن صمتها المعتاد وانتقاد القمع السوري للشعب في بلاد الشام ، وسحب السفير من دمشق تلتها الكويت التي قامت بسحب سفيرها .

Jad
معلش طول بالك مع عبودي شوي اليوم خلقو طالع. مزعوج لانو كان منتظر انو داود أوغلو يبزق بوش الريس قام باسو وبعص المعارضه .
هلا عبودي الفساد بدو يشرحلو لجشوا معناة بعص

Dear Tara,
Thank you!

The question was too hard Juju?

(hey, he said he likes the name. If he tells me not to call him that, I won’t)

OK, here is one another that should be easier. God knows you people have had forever to prepare for it.

Why is Najati Tayara in jail?

For those who don’t know, Najati Tayara is a well known Homsi human rights activist. He was jailed three months ago, after talking to the BBC about the army’s (ineffectual) invasion of the neighborhood of Baba Amr.

The issue of Najati Tayara and people like him goes to the very heart of why we cannot trust anything Besho says about reforms.

If one is serious about dialogue, one does not jail or kill those among one’s opposition who have the most legitimacy to carry out such a dialogue.

If one is serious about reforms, one does not jail or kill those best qualified to tell one about the kinds of reforms people find important.

Simply put, the fact that Najati Tayara and people like him get jailed, just illustrates the fact that junior cannot be trusted. He is a liar. He lies to foreign dignitaries, he lies to the country. His track record on keeping his word makes him the most untrustworthy president in the region.

How can a man expect people to accept him as president, when they don’t even accept his word as genuine?

Some people are really thick.

I am a secular humanist like the late Edward Said. That is one nice way of saying Atheist or Agnostic who respects all religions unlike dogmatic Atheists who see religion as the source of all evil. And unlike sectarians, who see all religions but theirs, or single out one religion as the source of all evil.

Being biased and emotional, I will spare those I love when I clean the world. Therefore, when I finish cleaning the world of all non-sunnies, it will have exactly the same number of people as when I start the job minus (those who are expected to die naturally, by natural disaster, and/or by bashar’s goons’ bullets and other war mongers) plus (all those who are born during the commencement of the activities and those whose lives my work saves) and I am not a physician.

“Many of my Iranian friends, and I do have a lot of Iranian friends, express surprise when finding that Christians in Syria do call their boys Arabic names such as Abdallah.”

Dear OFF THE WALL,

True, but the writer of the comment, being a non-Syrian, should have first asked whether the name “Abdallah” is used by Christians before wasting his time on a non-issue.

Aboud, how long will it take for the Shabbiha to have their asses kicked ? Also, what do you think about the martial arts classes ? Don’t you think it is a good idea ?

@ others – I was reflecting, that maybe Saddam wasn’t such a bad guy after all. Thugs like him are needed to keep Iranian and Hizbulllah mercenaries in check. I wonder what would have happened if Saddam was still in power in Iraq.

test

@274

“”هلا عبودي الفساد بدو يشرحلو لجشوا معناة بعص

ba3es…what the Hamwis did to Besho tonight. LOL!

From the SNN Facebook page an hour ago.

“شام : حماة : عاجل : الله أكبر و لله الحمد … مظاهرة الآن عند منطقة الصحة

بحي التكية تطالب بإسقاط النظام”

Tell me again how well sending tanks worked out for you?

Syr. Expat,
I guess that you didn’t read this:
العماد علي حبيب في كلمة له على الفضائية السورية يهنيء العماد داؤود راجحة ويؤكد أنه لاصحة لما تناقلته وكالات الأنباء عن عزله وأنه استقال نتيجة حالته الصحية وأنه سيظل على وفائه للوطن وقائد الوطن

SNK
مشانك هالمرة ماني رح رد على دودة
لا تتاخر بقصة المشراني برات الحيط و الملاك و العرعور
Sorry dear OTW, I have to read that one.
One more favor to ask, please SNK write me something too, they all got cool stories except me 🙁

بشار يحشر الأقليات: وزير دفاع مسيحي.. ورامي مخلوف يسلح الدروز السوريين لمواجهة السنة..!
الكاتب وطن
الثلاثاء, 09 أغسطس 2011 18:47

يراهن الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد على “حشر” الأقليات السورية في مربع النظام من خلال زجهم في مواجهة مفترضة مع “الأغلبية” السنية.

وجاء تعيين العماد داود راجحة وزيرا للدفاع، وهو الضابط المسيحي، في مؤشر جديد على أن المراهنة على تخويف الأقليات من تداعيات فقدان الأسد للسلطة بلغت مستوى جديدا.

وشكل تعيين راجحة في ذلك المنصب فرصة للكثير من التحليلات كونه من الطائفة المسيحية، حيث أشارت بعض التقارير إلى أن اختياره في ذلك المنصب جاء في إطار التوازنات بين الأقليات الدينية والأكثرية الإسلامية السنية.

يشار إلى أن راجحة كان بين الشخصيات التي طالتها مؤخراً بعض العقوبات الصادرة عن عواصم غربية، وفي هذا السياق جرى وضعه ضمن قائمة من المسؤولين السوريين الذين قالت كندا إنها “لا ترغب بوجودهم” على أراضيها.

وكان المؤشر الخطير الآخر قد تم تداوله على نطاق واسع بعد أن رشح أن رامي مخلوف ابن خالة الرئيس ورجل الاعمال واسع النفوذ في سوريا قد عمل على تسليح الدروز وتخويفهم من السنة وهو الأمر الذي أثار غضب الزعيم الدرزي اللبناني كمال جنبلاط ودفعه إلى تغيير لهجته.

وقالت مصادر مطلعة أن الزعيم الدرزي اعتبر موقفه المهادن من سوريا وحزب الله هو موقف لتجنب المواجهة وليس حلفا “للأقليات” في مواجهة السنة.

وفي جديد مواقف رئيس “جبهة النضال الوطني” النائب وليد جنبلاط عن الوضع في سوريا، فقد شدد جنبلاط على أنَّ “صورة الرئيس المصري المخلوع حسني مبارك داخل قفص الإتهام تعبر عن حتميّة إنتصار الشعوب في نضالها في سبيل الحرية والكرامة والعدالة والديمقراطيّة، ولو طال هذا النضال أو تأخر أو مر بصعوبات كبيرة وتضحيات، فمطالب الشعوب (…) عاجلاً أم آجلاً تنجح وتحقق أهدافها”.

وفي هذا السياق غمز جنبلاط من قناة الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد فكتب في مقاله الأسبوعي عبر جريدة “الأنباء” أنّ محاكمة مبارك “أكدت أنَّ التاريخ لا يرحم، وأن كثيرين مدعوون لأن يستخلصوا العبر والدروس من هذه التجربة من خلال عدم التغاضي عن المطالب الشعبيّة والقبول بمبدأ عمل المؤسسات والتداول السلمي للسلطة بما يحفظ بلادهم ويحول دون إنزلاقها نحو الفوضى والتشرذم والإنهيار”.

وبعد ساعات على اقالته من منصبه، ذكرت تقارير اخبارية الاربعاء أنه تم العثور على وزير الدفاع السوري السابق اللواء علي حبيب مقتولاً في منزله.

وتحدث التليفزيون السوري عن أن الوفاة طبيعية، وقال إن الوزير المقال مريض منذ بعض الوقت ووضعه الصحي تدهور مؤخرًا.

وكان الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد قد أصدر يوم الإثنين مرسوما بتعيين العماد أول داود راجحة وزيرا جديدا للدفاع، بديلا للعماد علي حبيب، الذي كان وزيرا للدفاع منذ العام 2009.

وربط مراقبون مقتل وزير الدفاع السوري علي حبيب، أو ما صوره النظام السوري على أنه “وفاة طبيعية” بتقارير ترددت مؤخرًا حول وجود انقسام داخل بنية الطائفة العلوية الحاكمة، حيث كشفت صحيفة “نيويورك تايمز” الأميركية في مطلع آب/ أغسطس حول احتمال انقلاب العلويين على نظام الحكم، خاصة أن عائلة حبيب تعتبر أكبر من عائلة بشار الأسد داخل الطائفة العلوية.

وكشفت الصحيفة في تقرير لها أن العلويين الذين يشكلون 12% فقط من تعداد سكان سوريا قد أيد معظمهم الأسد خوفًا من أنه إذا أطيح به فإنهم سيُذبحون ولذا يجب على المعارضة أن تقنع العلويين بأنهم يمكن أن ينقلبوا بأمان على نظام الأسد.

وأضافت الصحيفة “إذا اطمأن قادة العلويين البارزين إلى سلامتهم فإنهم قد يشرعون في سحب تأييدهم من أسرة الأسد ويجربوا حظهم مع -أو على الأقل يساعدون ضمنا- المعارضة وإشارة منهم يمكن أن تقنع قادة الجيش العلويين المتنفذين بالانشقاق وأخذ ضباط آخرين معهم”.

وتابعت الصحيفة الأميركية “العلويون كما هو معلوم سيطروا على سوريا منذ تولي حافظ الأسد السلطة عام 1970، لكن بخلاف أبيه لم يتمكن بشار أبدا من جعل الجهاز الأمني تحت سيطرته الكاملة منذ توليه السلطة عام 2000، وبدلا من ذلك حاول توسيع قاعدة النظام بالتقرب إلى السنة الذين يشكلون أغلبية السكان وتزوج امرأة سنية أسرتها من حمص -معقل الثورة الحالية- وشجع على بناء مساجد سنية ومدارس قرآنية”.

ويفسر المراقبون استغناء الرئيس السوري عن وزير دفاعه في هذه اللحظة الدقيقة، إما أن يكون العماد علي حبيب رفض الخطوات التالية التي تنوي القيادة السورية القيام بها، وإما أنه أصبح خطراً على النظام وعلى وجود الرئيس بشار الأسد في منصبه.

في أي حالٍ، شكّل هذا التغيير مناسبة لتعيين وزير دفاعٍ مسيحي ورئيس الأركان داوود راجحة مكان العلوي علي حبيب.

وفي ذلك رسالة إلى مسيحيي سوريا لتأكيد استقطابهم ولطمأنتهم. لكن المزيد من الاستقطاب بات يعادل المزيد من التوريط. فالوضع العام للنظام لم يعد يطمئن أنصاره بمقدار ما أنه فقد القدرة على مخاطبة مناوئيه ومحاورتهم.

وخلال الأسابيع الأخيرة، تحدثت أوساط دبلوماسية عدة وحتى أوساط في المعارضة عن عوامل ترجّح تفكك النظام من داخله.

في هذا الإطار، أشير إلى العماد حبيب باعتباره المؤهل لقيادة انقلاب داخل النظام، أولاً بصفته صاحب الرتبة الأعلى في الجيش، وأيضاً لأن مصادر كثيرة أكدت أنّ اتصالاتٍ خارجية أجريت معه.

وقد تكون إطاحة علي حبيب خطوة شاءها النظام للردّ على الضغوط المتصاعدة التي يتعرض لها حالياً، وقطع الطريق على أي اختراقٍ للحلقة القيادية الضيقة.

واعتبر وزير الإعلام السوري الأسبق محمد سلمان أن استمرار الحل الأمني في سوريا خيارا واستخدام القوات المسلحة واعتقال الآلاف يضع العصي بعجلة التغيير السياسي المنشود، مؤكدا على “ضرورة أن يبذل الجميع، معارضة وسلطة، الجهود للحيلولة دون وقوع أمرين خطيرين على حاضر الوطن ومستقبله وهما الحرب الأهلية والاقتتال الطائفي من جهة والتدخل الأجنبي عموما من جهة أخرى”.

ودعا سلمان الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد إلى تولي زمام المبادرة، وترؤس مؤتمر وطني يضع الحلول الناجعة للخروج من الأزمة الراهنة.

وقال سلمان بمؤتمر صحافي عقده في دمشق لإطلاق “المبادرة الوطنية الديمقراطية” ان “البلد يمر بأزمة وطنية ويجب على المواطنين المخلصين أن يبادروا لإنقاذ الوطن من أزمته”.

وانتقد قيادة حزب البعث الحالية “لأنها ومنذ عام 2000 سارت على سياسة الإقصاء لمعظم المسؤولين الذين كانوا بالحزب والدولة وهؤلاء لا يستطيعوا أن يقفوا متفرجين”.

واعتبر أن “استمرار الحل الأمني في سوريا خيارا واستخدام القوات المسلحة واعتقال الآلاف يضع العصي بعجلة التغيير السياسي المنشود، مؤكدا على “ضرورة أن يبذل الجميع، معارضة وسلطة، الجهود للحيلولة دون وقوع أمرين خطيرين على حاضر الوطن ومستقبله وهما الحرب الأهلية والاقتتال الطائفي من جهة والتدخل الأجنبي عموما من جهة أخرى”.

ولفت إلى أن المبادرة “تعترف بقوتين السلطة ومعارضة الشارع وتعمل لتوصيل رأيها للشارع وللسلطة التي يترتب عليها تحمل المسؤولية في لم المعارضة”.

وانتقل الرفض الى بعض الحلقات في بغداد بعد ان كانت حكومة رئيس الوزراء نوري المالكي قد “نفذت” بدقة التعليمات الايرانية ودعمت حكومة الرئيس بشار الاسد في قمع الاحتجاجات، فقد دعا رئيس مجلس النواب العراقي اسامة النجيفي الثلاثاء الحكومة السورية الى اتخاذ “موقف جريء لوقف نزيف الدم” في الاحتجاجات المستمرة منذ منتصف اذار/مارس الماضي، مدينا “قمع الحريات” في سوريا.

وقال النجيفي في بيان تلقت وكالة الصحافة الفرنسية نسخة منه ان “ما يحدث في سوريا الشقيقة من احداث دامية انما يحز في النفس ويدعونا من باب الحرص على مصالح الشعب السوري الشقيق الطلب من الحكومة السورية موقفا جريئا وشجاعا لوقف نزيف الدم انطلاقا من مسؤوليتها في الحفاظ على الارواح والممتلكات”.

واضاف “حرصا منا على وحدة الشعب السوري الشقيق، لا يسعنا الا الدعوة لانتهاج سبيل الحكمة وطول النفس السياسي في التعامل مع الدعوات المتعاظمة بين مختلف قطاعات الشعب السوري الشقيق”.

واكد النجيفي “ضرورة الاسراع بادخال اصلاحات سياسية واقتصادية ملموسة على النظام السياسي برمته بما ينسجم وتحقيق تطلعات الشعب السوري من اجل مجتمع تسوده العدالة والحرية في التعبير عن الرأي والمشاركة الحقيقية في حكم البلاد ويحفظ الحقوق المدنية لكل طبقات الشعب السوري”.

كما شدد على “اهمية تعزيز لغة الحوار بين جميع الاطراف والامتناع عن الاستخدام المفرط للقوة وعسكرة المجتمع للحيلولة دون اختراق جهات لا تريد الخير لسوريا ولشعبها الشقيق”.

وختم بيانه بالقول “لا يسعنا الا ان ندعو الى وقف جميع الممارسات غير السلمية”، مؤكدا ان “ما يحدث من قمع للحريات واراقة للدم السوري امر مدان وغير مقبول”.

ويأتي هذا الموقف عقب قيام كل من السعودية والكويت والبحرين باستدعاء سفرائها في سوريا، وغداة اطلاق الجامعة العربية دعوة لانهاء سفك الدماء في سوريا.

Syrian expat ,syrian christians whose name is Abdallah is known.

One of the 4 founders of the aleppine maronite order in the end of the 17th century ( known today as the lebanese maronite order)was the aleppine monk Abdallah Qaraali.

Anyway,the minister is christian and used as a figurative purpose,those who hold the real power are members of the asadian family gang.

Dear Jad
If you enjoy assaulting your own fine taste with SNK writing, be my guest. I understand that because every once in a while I find drinking cheap bad wine an OFF THE WALL experience.

And by the way
Why is Najati Tayara in jail?

COOL RUMOR OF THE WEEK:

“…General Ali Habib, dismissed as Syria’s defense minister Monday, was found dead in his home, websites affiliated with opposition report. Report is yet to be confirmed by authorities

On Monday, Syrian President Bashar Assad appointed army chief Dawood Rajha to replace Habib. The SANA news agency reported Monday that Habib had been suffering from a deterioration in his health. The report of his death has yet to be confirmed by any major Arab news outlet.

Since word of his ouster became public, many rumors surrounding the issue have surfaced. London-based daily al-Sharq al-Awsat reported that Habib was replaced due to his objection to allow military forces into Hama, which has suffered brutal army attacks in the past week…”

So maybe he was dismissed because he argued with Besho. And after he was sacked, maybe Maher handed him a pistol and told him to “do the honorable thing.”

Here’s a scene from “The Godfather” where a traitor, Frankie Pentangeli, is given the opportunity to kill himself and preserve the honor of “the family”

PENTANGELI
Those were great old days. We was
like the Roman Empire. The Corleone
family was like the Romans.

HAGEN
Yeah.

They both puff on their cigars.

HAGEN
The Roman Empire… when a plot
against the Emperor failed, the
plotters were always given a chance
to let their families keep their
fortunes.

PENTANGELI
Yeah, but only the rich guys. The
little guys got knocked off. If
they got arrested and executed, all
their estate went to the Emperor.
If they just went home and killed
themselves, up front, nothing
happened.

HAGEN
Yeah, that was a good break. A
nice deal.

Pentangeli looks at Hagen; he understands.

PENTANGELI
They went home and sat in a hot
bath and opened their veins, and
bled to death. Sometimes they gave
a little party before they did it.

Hagen throws away his cigar. Pentangeli puffs on his.

HAGEN
Don’t worry about anything, Frankie.

PENTANGELI
Thanks, Tom. Thanks.

They shake hands.

Khaled

“Aboud, how long will it take for the Shabbiha to have their asses kicked”

I’m shocked at the suggestion. We are a peaceful revolution. Just ask the guy who tortured and mutilated Hamza Al Khatib.

Oh wait, that’s not possible anymore…..

“Also, what do you think about the martial arts classes ? ”

An excellent idea *enigmatic smile*

Juju “you have no clue!”

Um yes, I don’t have No Klue. Why on Earth would anyone want him? If I find him, I’ll give him to you LOL!

Juju, instead of obsessing over another menhebak’s poorly written stories (spelling mistakes and “grounding machines” and all), why not take five minutes to discuss some of the pressing issues that the country is facing. Such as

Why is Najati Tayara in jail?

Ali Habeeb is not dead:
كلمة العماد علي حبيب وزير الدفاع السوري السابق
http://youtu.be/-wcHiMdQR6Q

Anti-regime demonstration in Kuwait. The chant is telling the Syrian ambassador to leave Kuwait, sung to the same rhythm as the chant made famous by the murdered Hamwi singer, Ibrahim Qashoush

Amir

I asked you the same question that Sheila asked you and you answered me differently. Why?

Ali Mahmood Habib was on Syrian TV refuting all claims of his death and disagreements with the leadership.

To #263. Khalid Tlass:

My dear Khalid. As good as your intentions are, what you are suggesting is not realistic. I am assuming that you are a young and enthusiastic guy. Your idea about martial arts classes in mosques is not new. It was actually attempted by the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria in the late seventies. This does not work for two reasons:

1- It takes years of practice in martial arts to be able to kick anybody’s ass.
2-It creates sitting ducks for the government to arrest. I actually have two cousins who were arrestd in the early 80s because they were enrolled in a martial arts class in a mosque.

There is a reason why people are insisting on peaceful demonstrations. This is not a sign of weakness, rather a sign of maturity. We can not face the army with weapons and beat it. It is impossible. Please stop preaching violence.

Aboud, now that the Tanks have left Hama, do you think we will again see 500,000 people in Al’Assi square on Friday ?

Anyway, when is the FSA going to kick some Menhbek ass ?

Turkey, Syria discuss steps to end violence
Associated Press | Posted: Tuesday, August 9, 2011 11:36 am |
http://trib.com/news/national/europe/article_8cd0acbb-eb04-5aea-81c1-555692829298.html

Turkey’s foreign minister says he and Syrian leader Bashar Assad have discussed “concrete steps” Syria should take to stop the bloodshed there.

But Ahmet Davutoglu did not say what those steps would be and whether Assad had agreed to consider taking them.

Speaking to reporters on his return from Damascus on Tuesday, Davutoglu said Turkey would continue talking with Assad in a bid to halt the violence.

Syria’s army has defied international criticism of the regime’s deadly crackdown on a 5-month-old uprising, and the soldiers continued their raids on restive areas Tuesday.

Davutoglu said: “We discussed ways to prevent confrontation between the army and the people in the most open and clear way.”

Davutoglu said the atmosphere was cordial when he met with Assad for more than six hours in Damascus on Tuesday, including a two-hour tete-a-tete.

#294, Sheila –

Precisley. What I was suggesting was self-defense techniques like taekwondo and Jujitsu, not offensive martial arts like Karate or Judo. these are easier to learn. What I meant was it would train the people especially the young boys to RESIST if 15-20 Policemen or Shabbiha armed with batons and clubs try to arrest them and drag them away. This is very important as a large number of our youth have been arrested and tortured in this way.

In the rural areas and villages, self-defense should be taught particularly to the WOMEN, since they seem to be favourite targets of the Shabbiha for rape and other humiliations.

To my dear Khalid Tlass,
I wrote you a response for your suggestion, but it did not post. Here it is again:

As good as your intentions are, your suggestion will not work. Having martial arts classes in mosques is not a new idea. It was attempted by the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria in the late 70s. This does not work for two reasons:

1- You need years of practice in martial arts to be able to kick anybody’s ass.
2- You create sitting ducks for the regime to arrest. I had two cousins who were arrested in the early 80s because they enrolled in a matial arts class in a mosque.

There is a reason why people are calling on the demonstrations to be peaceful. We can not face an army with weapons. We will most certainly lose. Please stop calling for violence.

Iran’s Irreversible Path in Syria
By: Dr. Ali Bigdeli, University Professor and International Affairs Analyst 08/09/11
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/aug/1082.html
Since the Islamic revolution and especially after the Iran-Iraq war, Iran approached Iraq’s enemy Syria. Syria and Iraq had hostile relations due to their different interpretations of the Baath political philosophy. This relationship led to Iran’s generous assistance, particularly in oil sales, to Syria. During those years Parliament had passed a bill that guaranteed four million dollars of oil be sold to Syria at lower than the global price; we also gave one million tons of oil to Syria for free. The Syrian debt to us was about 5 billion dollars. Therefore, our regional policy during the 8-year war with Iraq was tied to Syria.

Nevertheless, then President Hafiz Al-Assad confronted us opportunistically. I wrote a book at that time on Iraq’s political history and I came upon a document which indicated that Hafiz Al-Assad annually received about 250 thousand dollars from the US.

In addition Al-Assad voted with the Emirates on many occasions over the ownership of the three disputed Persian Gulf islands, after the establishment of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council. In an interview he had said that he could not separate Arabism from his country. This proves that Arabism had priority over Islamism in Syria.

However, since we were at war during Al-Assad’s time, we had no other choice but to expand our relations with Syria. After the Resistance movement in Lebanon this relationship became even closer. Mr. Mousavi, the former Resistance leader, had close relations with Hafiz Al-Assad. This relationship continued until Hafiz passed away and his son Bashar came to power, but the relationship did not change much even then. Mr. Ahmadinejad’s first foreign meeting after his (first) election to the Iranian presidency was with Bashar Al-Assad, who had come to Tehran to congratulate him. With the Gaza issue our relations became even closer and we invested in Syria’s infrastructures.

After the “Arab Spring” developments started to spread to Syria, we preferred to keep quiet and even support Syria on international levels based on our strategic relations and friendship. Our behavior with Syria differed from that of Turkey.

The interesting point is that Turkey had the most investment in Syria. Turkey has the greatest political and economic relations with Syria. But we witnessed how cleverly Mr. Erdogan reacted to Syria’s situation. He used the same policy toward Lebanon and Libya as well. The escape of the Syrian opposition to Turkey gave the upper hand to the Turks. Turkey’s clever policy toward Syria is a sign of its leadership in the Muslim world. It seems that Turkey has snatched that leadership from Saudi Arabia and Egypt’s hands. The share of leadership that we had has been taken away and Turkey now has the full leadership of Arab and non-Arab countries of the region, including India, in its grasp.

Currently, we assume that if Syria faces any insecurity leading to Bashar Al-Assad’s removal, we will lose our link to the most powerful military potential in the region, Hezbollah. Therefore, Iran is putting all its strength into stabilizing the situation in Syria.

The truth is that we have entered an irreversible path. Since the first days of protests we announced our support for Bashar Al-Assad. We censored Syria’s news and supported the government wherever possible. We might not be able to go back from this path since we are already in the middle of it. We cannot change our policy regarding Syria or take away our support from it. We will continue this path until we see what will become of our strategic friend.

Regarding the reforms Bashar has announced, it should be said that in politics reforms are useful when they occur before uprisings take place. When movements start, it means that reforms were unsuccessful. After the killing of more than two thousand people, reform does not make sense. The Syrian people had limited demands in the first days of the protests, but now they demand is that Bashar Al-Assad, his family and all the Alawis should leave power.

In a situation like this reform will not do any good, and the continuation of resistance by Asad’s opponents shows that they have learnt from the experience of other Arab countries. The resistance of people in Arab countries is very interesting. In none of the revolutions worldwide had we witnessed people resisting continuously for months. Protesters are killed every day, but they continue their uprising. We cover the resistance of people in Yemen and Libya, but we say nothing about Syria. However, the future of all three will be the same, since the time for reform has passed in Syria. Therefore we should be skeptical about the continuation of Bashar Al-Assad’s regime.

Hussein Harmoush –

“Speaking to reporters on his return from Damascus on Tuesday, Davutoglu said Turkey would continue talking with Assad in a bid to halt the violence.”

So these were not the final talks as claimed previously.

Former Syrian politicians condemn regime authorities
Phil Sands Aug 10, 2011
http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/middle-east/former-syrian-politicians-condemn-regime-authorities?pageCount=0

Damascus //In a sign that dissent is growing within elite Syrian circles, 41 former government ministers and former senior Baath party officials have called for the regime to stop violence against demonstrators and urgently implement sweeping political reforms.

The group of well-connected public figures, led by Mohammad Suleman, a former minister of information, condemned the authorities’ handling of a five-month-old national uprising and urged a change of course, saying the current policy of violent suppression had put Syria on the road to “catastrophe” and would result either in civil war or foreign intervention.

“Continuation of the security solution is not a choice and use of the armed forces, arresting thousands of people, is not acceptable, it puts a stick in the wheel of political change,” they said. “Military operations block the democratic opening.”
…. Criticism of the regime from inside the country escalated on Monday, in the wealthy Mezzeh Villas neighbourhood of Damascus, when the former officials launched a Democratic National Initiative, detailing a transitional programme to establish a full parliamentary democracy within a year.

Their plan called for the formation of an interim government, including representatives of the regime and protesters, which would oversee the drafting of a new democratic constitution, new election laws and new political parties laws.

As an immediate trust-building measure, the group said all political prisoners should be released, provocation by state-run media halted, compensation paid to the families of all those killed and a serious investigation carried out into all of the uprisings deaths, with those responsible punished.

A two-page document outlining the plan pointedly failed to endorse the regime’s claim to be pursuing a “comprehensive reform agenda” and rejected its “national dialogue” effort because it failed to include the opposition.

The initiative also refused to back the authorities’ insistence they are fighting a widespread, well-organised Islamic insurgency. In spoken comments, Mr Suleman instead characterised the protesters as “peaceful opposition”.

Syria’s rapidly swelling number of international critics have similarly dismissed regime assurances that reforms are under way and claims that protests have been anything other than an overwhelmingly peaceful demand for increased political rights.

“There are some armed groups that are exploiting the situation but the opposition began peacefully and protesters are still calling for peaceful opposition,” Mr Suleman told reporters on Monday.

He said the regime and their opponents were responsible for the crisis but stressed that the onus was on the authorities, as the more powerful side, to take the decisions that would avert a national disaster.

“You cannot solve this crisis by cancelling one site or the other; we have a double crisis of the regime and of the opposition,” he said.

That persons from such strongly pro-regime backgrounds went public in their dissatisfaction was seen as significant by Syrian political analysts, who said the group would have lobbied extensively behind the scenes to make the regime’s policies more moderate. Their decision to openly voice their dissent showed those efforts to work discreetly inside the system had failed, the analysts said.

Although none of the initiatives’ signatories are members of president Al Assad’s close-knit inner circle – and none are Baath party members – they come from the top strata of Syrian society that has benefited most from 40 years of the Al Assad dynasty, first under President Hafez Al Assad then his son and heir, Bashar.

Mr Suleman is renowned as something of a hardliner and hails from the same minority Alawite community as Mr Al Assad, with personal connections to the Assad family. He also has direct family ties to senior intelligence figures.

Others backing the transitional plan include Mahmoud Jeyoush, Ameen Abu Shamat, Wafiq Arnous and Marwan Habbash, all either former government ministers or high ranking Baathist officials.

“To see regime figures talking like this shows its support base is weakening even at a high level, the regime is getting smaller and smaller,” said one independent analyst, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “The crisis is getting closer to the president, each week the fire burns nearer to the palace gates.”

There was no immediate reaction to the initiative from the authorities. Opposition activists rejected the plan, pointing to the group’s continued links to the regime and its proposal that Mr Al Assad personally oversee the transition to democracy at the head of its suggested interim government – although the programme did not stipulate that the president retain his post after leadership elections, due to take place in 2014.

“Whatever deal these well-connected people can make with the regime isn’t relevant anymore, they are symbols of the regime and they do not have connections to the street protesters,” said one pro-democracy campaigner, on condition of anonymity.

“They want President Assad to oversee the transition but the streets have started calling for his head, there is no compromise to be had between those two positions.”

In their manifesto, the former regime officials said the autocratic system of government had been appropriate during the Cold War but that now a “democratic civil nation state” must be built, with a multi-party system guaranteeing media and cultural freedoms.

Mr Suleman said Syria’s “political leadership” had failed to create a fair society.

“We are seeing the farmers living around rural Damascus demonstrating against the Baath party, these are the very people who made the party and who once supported it,” he said. “The leaders of the Baath party do not deserve their positions.”

The group rejected foreign intervention of all kinds, insisting that change must be brought about by Syrians, not under international pressure. It also stressed that any future Syrian government must continue its struggle to regain the occupied Golan Heights from Israel.
more….

Khaled
I fully support SHEILA’s call. I would also like to add that there is a difference between peaceful, passive, and non-violent.

Let us be realistic. The Syrian protest, at the intensity and tenacity it has shown is neither peaceful nor passive. But it is by all measures a non-violent movement. Understanding it in this prism provides the protesters and protest coordinators with a wide array of non-violent actions to respond to the state of war declared by the regime with each side fighting with what it does best. The regime, being as atrophied as it is and as selfish and stuck in its own past, knows only how to conduct wars using violent means which includes arrests, torture, and outright individual and mass murder. The protesters must realize that it is a war, and their only viable weapon in that war is non violent action which will drain the regime’s resources into exhaustion and bankruptcy. Using violence is what the regime wants because it is good at that and it stands much better chance of winning a violent confrontation. Non violent action is beyond their comprehension and they will off course respond with murderous violence as well as vulgar verbal abuse, exactly as we used to see the regime’s supporters do here on this site before a moderator was enlisted to protect the site’s reputation.

an eloquent metaphor circulated a couple of days ago on facebook in which the author presented the regime and its supporters, quite correctly, as a shark. Violence is the shark’s water, and non-violent action (wrongly called peaceful) as the sand beach. I would rather fight the shark on a sand beach than fight in the water. The shark will survive on the sand beach, and it may maim and kill a few, but only for a while. In the water, everyone is dead, and the only survivor would be the Shark.

Who’s Behind The Movement To Ban Shariah Law?
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/31/us/31shariah.html
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/09/139168699/whos-behind-the-movement-to-ban-shariah-law?ft=1&f=13
NASHVILLE — Tennessee’s latest woes include high unemployment, continuing foreclosures and a battle over collective-bargaining rights for teachers. But when a Republican representative took the Statehouse floor during a recent hearing, he warned of a new threat to his constituents’ way of life: Islamic law.
The representative, a former fighter pilot named Rick Womick, said he had been studying the Koran. He declared that Shariah, the Islamic code that guides Muslim beliefs and actions, is not just an expression of faith but a political and legal system that seeks world domination. “Folks,” Mr. Womick, 53, said with a sudden pause, “this is not what I call ‘Do unto others what you’d have them do unto you.’ ”

Similar warnings are being issued across the country as Republican presidential candidates, elected officials and activists mobilize against what they describe as the menace of Islamic law in the United States.

Since last year, more than two dozen states have considered measures to restrict judges from consulting Shariah, or foreign and religious laws more generally. The statutes have been enacted in three states so far.

Voters in Oklahoma overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment last November that bans the use of Islamic law in court. And in June, Tennessee passed an antiterrorism law that, in its original iteration, would have empowered the attorney general to designate Islamic groups suspected of terror activity as “Shariah organizations.”

more….

enjoy

If your Iranian friends are surprised that Christians use the name Abdallah (every christian village in the past had at least a dozen Abdallahs), then they will be astonished to learn that there are Christians in Syria named Mahmoud, I know 3 of them.

Shami, might correct me here, the reason Christians do not use the name Muhammad because as I understand it, it elevates a person to the status of Allah, my knowledge here is not that good.

284. JAD

I wasn’t sure about the news. This is why I used a question mark.
Thank you for the clarification.

Thanks NK, that’s going straight to my iPhone 🙂

The latest person to become a salafist. Marsil Khalifah.

مارسيل خليفة يتضامن مع السوريين باضاءة شمعة فى تظاهرة بلبنان
الكاتب وطن
الثلاثاء, 09 أغسطس 2011 21:46

تجّمع المئات من المثقفين والفنانين والطلاب الجامعيين في ساحة الحرية في بيروت، مطالبين دول العالم والأمم المتحدة إلى التحرك الفوري لوقف القمع والقتل الذي يقوم به نظام بشار الأسد ضد الشعب السوري
وشارك في هذا التجمع بحسب صحيفة ” المستقبل ” الفنان اللبناني المعروف مارسيل خليفة الذي أشعل شمعة
عن روح “الشهداء” في سوريا، قائلا: “جئت إلى هنا كي أقول لا للدكتاتورية العربية”.

Some additional important news and questions about Syria: Is attacking peaceful Lebanese, in Beirut, with knives, a sign of the promised Syrian democracy that will teach Europe real democracy as foreign minister Mualem said earlier? Are Lebanese in Beirut also Salafists and Bandarists? Is threatening neighbors with war a smart move and what does it tell about the Syrian regime? And if the mentioned TV channels are sectarian, why all the silence all these years, and a protest only because they took a stand against the regime, but only because of that? and is threatening to respond with inflaming sectarianism a smart move? details here: http://bit.ly/r4z2hJ

Joshua and Moderator
Are comments by oppositions the only ones that get stuck in moderation or is it an equal opportunity malfunction?

——
The above test confirms that it is not an equal opportunity malfunction only, but also really Random.

today Zaman
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-253275-turkey-to-monitor-syrias-actions-after-marathon-talks-in-damascus.html

Darryl

Not at all, I don’t know why Christians don’t use the name Muhammad but I assure you it doesn’t give a person any special status among other Muslims.
Actually prophet Muhammad himself is not regarded by Muslims as anything more than being a prophet, he has the same status as Jesus, Moses and all the other prophets.

OFF THE WALL

From what I noticed it’s totally random.

298. beaware, This is exactly what needs to be done, thanks for posting.

41 former government ministers and former senior Baath party led by Mohammad Suleman disgnosed the problem and gave the solutions:

“Continuation of the security solution is not a choice and use of the armed forces, arresting thousands of people, is not acceptable,”

1. the formation of an interim government, including representatives of the regime and protesters, which would oversee the drafting of a new democratic constitution, new election laws and new political parties laws.

2.As an immediate trust-building measure

a. all political prisoners should be released,
b. provocation by state-run media halted,
c. compensation paid to the families of all those killed.
d. serious investigation carried out into all of the uprising
deaths, with those responsible punished.

A two-page document outlining the plan pointedly failed to:

1.endorse the regime’s claim to be pursuing a “comprehensive reform agenda” and rejected its “national dialogue” effort because it failed to include the opposition.

2.back the authorities’ insistence they are fighting a widespread, well-organised Islamic insurgency.

“There are some armed groups that are exploiting the situation but the opposition began peacefully and protesters are still calling for peaceful opposition,” Mr Suleman told reporters on Monday.
.. that the onus was on the authorities, as the more powerful side, to take the decisions that would avert a national disaster.

Finally…the question is when will these steps take place?

لو فيغارو: سقوط النظام السوري سيكون ضربة قاضية للهلال الشيعي
2011-08-09

الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد

باريس- (د ب أ): علقت صحيفة (لو فيغارو) الفرنسية على الضغط المتزايد الذي تمارسه السعودية على النظام السوري بسبب استخدامه للعنف ضد المتظاهرين.
وكتبت الصحيفة المحافظة في عددها الصادر الثلاثاء: “السعودية تحولت إلى معسكر خصوم الأسد، ورغم أن الحكام السعوديين يخشون في المعتاد أي مخاطرة، إلا أنه يبدو أنهم يعولون حاليا على تغير النظام في دمشق، فقد انحازوا إلى الأغلبية السنية التي يضطهدها النظام العلوي، وهم يأملون بهذه الطريقة كسر التحالف الإيراني-السوري”.

ورأت الصحيفة أن “سقوط النظام السوري سيكون ضربة قاضية لـ(الهلال الشيعي)، الذي يسبب رعبا كبيرا في الدول السنية”.

كما رأت الصحيفة أن “تدويل الأزمة في سورية من الممكن أن يعزل الرئيس السوري بشار الأشد بشكل أقوى من الإدانات والعقوبات من جانب الغرب”.

Come on OTW, it was a joke and you know that, besides, SNK, have an interesting style in writing that even if you disagree with his views you can appreciate his talent, heck, you associated yourself with the worst character on SC lately, at least SNK if funny.
Back to the serious point of your comment:
You asked me this “Why is Najati Tayara in jail?”
To be honest, I have no clue who this guy is and why they arrest him and where he is about, do you?
It’s disappointing that you ask me this question as if I do support such horrific treatment toward any Syrian. I just want to remind you that I was one of the very few people on SC asking for democratic system, the release of the political prisoners, respect of human rights and freedom of speech years before all this started, I wrote that when very few mentioned a word for the political prisoners. Do you remember?
I’ll be always be calling for ‘Dialogue’ and ‘Collaboration’ even when it sounds ridiculous, for my limited understanding this is the only way out of this bloody mess, I know that it sounds horrific that we have to do this process with murderers but this is the only hope I think we have at the moment, the alternative is long and ugly.
The regime is criminal we all know that and this is the fact of our entire region, if you are weak you doomed. Turkey, Iran, Israel, KSA , Egypt, and Jordan all are run by criminal regimes, it’s a rough neighbourhood and unfortunately, human rights and democracy wont fully flourish in this region.
Can we change that? Personally I don’t think we could, too many powers and too many obstacles that it is almost impossible to get over, but let me be optimistic for a change and write: Maybe. What is the price? Are you willing to pay? Are the outcomes secured?
I believe that the price we need to pay is way too bloody and expensive for not so sure outcome, so for me the coward Juju, I’m not going to encourage people to go in the street knowing that if something tragic happened to them (most likely will happen with non-democratic, non-trained, non-equipped security forces out there sharing the streets with some criminal armed thugs ready to kill) I will have the moral responsibility and I don’t want that, especially when I don’t live there.
Nothing wrong of being realistic, dreaming of a better Syria is every Syrian dream not only today, this dream is thousands of years old, but it never came reality even under the Arab Muslim empire and, unfortunately, it won’t happen any time soon.
Sorry to disappoint you my dearest friend OTW, but I’ll stay in my corner sipping my not so fine wine and trying to make sense in this nonsense world we live in.

OTW,
They have a problem in the system, it’s not only you, almost all of us are facing this issue…I wrote you a reply but it didn’t come through yet.

34 قتيلا على الاقل.. وامنستي تدعو لاجراءات فورية لحل الازمة
الاسد ابلغ تركيا عزمه مواصلة ملاحقة ‘الارهابيين’
اوغلو عبر عن امله بانتقال سلمي للسلطة في سورية
2011-08-09

دمشق ـ وكالات: اكد الرئيس السوري بشار الاسد الثلاثاء خلال لقائه وزير خارجية تركيا احمد داوود اوغلو انه لن يتهاون في ملاحقة ‘المجموعات الارهابية’، حسبما افادت وكالة الانباء الرسمية (سانا).
ونقلت سانا عن الاسد قوله للوزير التركي ‘لن نتهاون في ملاحقة المجموعات الارهابية من اجل حماية استقرار الوطن وامن المواطنين’.
وقال الاسد ان ‘سورية مصممة على استكمال خطوات الاصلاح الشامل التي تقوم بها ومنفتحة على اي مساعدة تقدمها الدول الشقيقة والصديقة’.
وبعد المحادثات توجه أحمد داوود أوغلو إلى مقر السفارة التركية في دمشق ولكنه لم يصدر بيانا.
ولدى عودته الى انقرة قال وزير الخارجية التركي في مؤتمر صحافي امس الثلاثاء ان تركيا طالبت الحكومة السورية بوقف قتل المدنيين. وعبر عن امله في انتقال سلمي للسلطة في سورية يقضي بان يحدد الشعب السوري مستقبله.
وقال داود اوغلو ان حكومته ستراقب الاحداث في سورية على مدى الايام القادمة. ووصف محادثاته مع الرئيس بشار الاسد بانها صريحة وودية قائلا ان حكومته ستظل على اتصال بكل أجزاء المجتمع السوري.
وحث الزعماء الاتراك الاسد بشكل متكرر على وقف العنف واجراء اصلاحات عادلة بعد تفجر احتجاجات شعبية مناهضة لحكمه قبل خمسة اشهر.
وقال داود اوغلو ان تركيا تأمل في ان تشهد سوريا عملية انتقال سلمية تتيح للشعب السوري صياغة مستقبله. ونصحت تركيا الاسد بتطبيق اصلاحات تمهد السبيل لانتقال سوريا الى نظام سياسي تعددي.
وكانت تركيا قد أعلنت في وقت سابق أن داوود أوغلو سيسلم للحكومة السورية ‘رسالة شديدة اللهجة’ بشأن مستوى العنف الذي تشهده المظاهرات المستمرة في سورية منذ أربعة أشهر. وأثارت احداث العنف المتصاعدة في سورية موجة من الاعتراضات الدولية، ودفعت المملكة السعودية والكويت والبحرين إلى سحب سفرائهم.
وكان رئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب اردوغان اعلن السبت ان صبر تركيا ‘نفد’ ازاء مواصلة النظام السوري القمع الدموي للمتظاهرين.
من جهتها، طلبت وزيرة الخارجية الامريكية هيلاري كلينتون من نظيرها التركي ان ينقل الى دمشق رسالة واضحة مفادها ان على السلطات السورية ‘اعادة جنودها فورا الى ثكناتهم’، كما اعلنت وزارة الخارجية الامريكية.
من جهته قال وزير الخارجية المصري محمد عمرو الثلاثاء ان الوضع في سورية ‘يتجه نحو نقطة اللاعودة’، مؤكدا ضرورة التحرك السريع لوقف العنف، حسب ما نقلت وكالة انباء الشرق الاوسط.
وصرح عمرو للصحافيين ان ‘مصر تتابع بقلق شديد التدهور الخطير للاوضاع في سورية’ معربا عن خشيته من ان ‘الوضع في سورية يتجه نحو نقطة اللاعودة’.
ودعا عمرو الى ‘وقف فوري لاطلاق النار’ مضيفا ان ‘الاصلاح المخضب بدماء تراق وشهداء يسقطون بشكل يومي لا يجدي نفعا’.
ودعا عمرو الى ‘تحرك عاجل لاستعادة الثقة المفقودة’ كما دعا الى ‘توفير شروط لاقامة حوار وطني شامل يجمع كل اطياف المجتمع السوري’.
وحث عمرو دمشق الى ‘اجراء الاصلاحات على المستوى الوطني لتجنب مخاطر تدويل لا نريده ولا تحتمله المنطقة’.
واضاف ان ‘مصر تواصل مشاوراتها بشكل مكثف مع الدول الشقيقة انطلاقا من مسؤوليتها التاريخية والتزاماتها .. للمساعدة على ايجاد مخرج يوقف نزيف الدم في سوريا، ويحقق التطلعات المشروعة للشعب السوري الشقيق’.
وفي لندن دعت منظمة العفو الدولية قادة العالم امس الثلاثاء إلى اتخاذ اجراءات فورية ملموسة حول الأزمة في سورية، عشية الجلسة التي سيعقدها مجلس الأمن الدولي ويقوم خلالها الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة بان كي مون بتقديم تقرير عن سورية.
وقال مالكوم سمارت مدير برنامج الشرق الأوسط وشمال افريقيا في منظمة العفو الدولية ‘ينبغي لأي مراجعة صادقة للحقائق المروعة في سورية أن تكون أكثر من كافية لاقناع مجلس الأمن بالتوصل إلى قرار ملزم قانونياً وليس مجرد اصدار بيان خانع’.
وشدد سمارت على ‘أن توجيه مجرد نداء دبلوماسي إلى السلطات السورية لوضع حد لأعمال العنف المستمرة ضد المدنيين، سيقصّر كثيراً تجاه مطالب الوضع القائم’.
وحثّ الأمم المتحدة على ‘فرض حظر كامل على الأسلحة إلى سورية، وتجميد أرصدة الرئيس بشار الأسد وكبار مساعديه في الخارج’، مشيراً إلى ‘أن الجرائم التي ارتكبتها قوات الأمن السورية هي على ما يبدو جزء من هجوم منهجي واسع النطاق ضد السكان المدنيين وترقى لمستوى جرائم ضد الانسانية’.
واضاف ‘يتعين على مجلس الأمن أيضاً احالة الوضع في سورية إلى المدعي العام للمحكمة الجنائية الدولية، كما فعل حيال نظام ليبيا في شباط (فبراير) الماضي في اعقاب القمع العنيف للاحتجاجات السلمية هناك’.
وميدانيا قتل 34 شخصا على الاقل الثلاثاء في سورية برصاص قوات الامن بينهم
17 في محافظة دير الزور، وخمسة في محافظة ادلب، وستة في محافظة حماة، وثلاثة في محافظة حمص، واثنين في ريف دمشق، وواحد في محافظة اللاذقية.
وقال المرصد السوري لحقوق الانسان ان ‘النشطاء في مدينة دير الزور اكدوا مشاهدة 15 جثة ملقاة في الشوارع في الحويقة وجبيلة والقصور والجورة ظهر الثلاثاء اثر العمليات الواسعة التي شنتها القوات العسكرية والامنية السورية في الكثير من احياء المدينة، كما اكدوا وجود اكثر من 50 جريحا جراح بعضهم حرجة’. وكان شخصان آخران قتلا صباح الثلاثاء.
واضاف ان الدبابات ترافقها سيارات امنية ترفع رشاشات ثقيلة تنتشر في الشوارع وفي ساحة الحرية التي شهدت تظاهرات حاشدة في الاسابيع الاخيرة، مشيرا الى ‘اعتقالات واسعة’ في هذه المدينة الواقعة على بعد 430 كلم شمال شرق العاصمة.
وتابع ان ‘اطلاق النار يسمع في اكثر من منطقة والنيران استهدفت مستشفيين’.
واشار المرصد الى انه ‘يتم إسعاف الجرحى في المنازل دون وجود أدوية بسبب اغلاق الصيدليات، كما يعاني السكان من فقدان الخبز’.
واوضح المصدر نقلا عن الشهود ان اكثر من 30 دبابة وناقلة جند مدرعة شوهدت بعد الظهر ‘تسير باتجاه مسجد عثمان بن عفان’.
وفي بنش، في منطقة ادلب، قال ناشطون ان اربعة اشخاص قتلوا بينهم طفل في الثالثة عشرة. وتوجد ادلب شمال غرب البلاد، قريبا من الحدود التركية.
وفي محافظة حماة، شمال دمشق، ‘قتل ستة مدنيين في بلدتي حلفايا وطيبة الامام بينهم ثلاثة اطفال وذلك خلال العمليات الامنية والعسكرية المستمرة منذ صباح الثلاثاء’، وفق المرصد السوري لحقوق الانسان.
وقال ناشط على الارض ان حماة تعاني من ‘نقص حاد في المواد الغذائية الاساسية’. وينفذ الجيش السوري عمليات مداهمة في حماة منذ قرابة عشرة ايام.
ومن جانبهم، اكد نشطاء من سكان طيبة الامام وحلفايا ان ‘عدد الشهداء مرشح للارتفاع بشكل كبير بسبب وجود عدد كبير من الجرحى جراحهم خطرة’.
وفي محافظة حمص، ‘قتل ثلاثة مدنيين من سكان تجمع قرى الحولة برصاص عناصر من الشبيحة اطلقوا عليهم الرصاص ولاذوا بالفرار’، وفق المرصد السوري.
واضاف المرصد ان ‘رجلا يبلغ من العمر 35 عاما قتل تحت التعذيب. كان الرجل اعتقل قبل اسبوع من جوار منزله واليوم (امس) ابلغ ذووه انه فارق الحياة’.

Davutoglu gave Bashar few days to end this crisis,he was not happy with some of the talk, he is very quiet and secretive,bashar face tells it all, there must have been stern warning, and strong words,bashar was not smiling , he was very tense, and he seemed trembling,and lost weight,three and half hour of privatr meeting were long.probably he will not sleep tonjght.

OTW, it’s only the most brilliant and insightful comments that get stuck. The system just can’t handle all that awesomeness all at once.

(seriously though, professor Landis mentioned there was an issue with the spam filter)

Been hearing of a *very very* interesting declaration on Al-Jazeera. Waiting for some other news agency to confirm it.

Majed, the Turkish president is headed to Saudi Arabia on Saturday.

I agree with your analysis of the body language. Gone forever is the giggling junior.

If you have some time to waste, watch Raghda the Syrian actress on a program called “dictatorship” her opinion on Assad and Qaddafi.

One of the terrorist gang members responsible for the terror campaign in Hama and the murders and dumping of security personnels bodies in Assi River, details how the massacre unfolded.

The confession was also aired by Syria tv and the gang member confessing can be clearly seen in the video while they were dumping the bodies in the Assi River. Once that is available I’ll link it.

Here is the report by SANA.

http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/08/10/363189.htm

“DAMASCUS, (SANA) – A member of the armed terrorist groups on Tuesday confessed that he took part in the massacres committed by armed terrorist groups against the army and law-enforcement forces in Hama city and the sabotage acts against private and public properties.

Nader Hassan al-Kattan said in his confession to the Syrian TV that he works in construction and that he took part in protests since they started in Hama.

He added that the aim of setting up roadblocks was controlling the city and carrying out a civil disobedience as well as not allowing the security forces to play their positive role in the city.

He went on saying, “a person called Mohammad Noir saw me more than once and asked me about my opinion on the events in the city”

Al-Kattan added that Noir used to stand at roadblocks and the armed men used to come with some weapons.

He said that Noir asked him to work with him through recruiting some young men to increase the number of protesters and Noir will support them with money.”

The report continues..

NK and JAD
I know, i was just teasing Joshua and the Moderator. Just being a trouble maker.

BEWARE AND N.Z.
According to Crane Brinton’s 1938 seminal work “The Anatomy of Revolution”, transference of loyalty among intellectual and beneficiaries is a key event in the preliminary phases of revolutions. Brinton’s analysis may not fully apply to Syria and it was superseded by two more sophisticated generations of comparative sociology and history scholars, but it still holds sway in describing phases and the oscillation from moderates-radicals-strong man-moderates which accompany the phases of revolutions (based on 4 case studies). According to Brinton’s analysis, the real revolution starts with the replacement of the old regime. And all what has been happening so far is merely the beginning. He even argues that revolutions do not occur because economic/life-quality situations were really bad, but because after they have improved a little (check), expectations rise (check: dignity), government and leader ineptness in addressing the request to meet expectation (100 checks), and failure of violence as an option (also check), the transferance of loyalty, which starts slowly in the beginning among intellectuals and some beneficiaries of the regime (quarter check) lead to the removal of most power bases of the old-regime (getting there) and the installation of a new one (will get there)led by the moderates, who will subsequently be replaced by the radicals (usually on the left) who will drive the country into a puritanical reign of terror (i.e., Robespierre), they will subsequently be removed by the strong man (Napoleon), who will be later succeeded by moderates and return to normalcy.

As I mentioned above, Brinton’s model has been replaced by two subsequent generations. Both Brinton’s and the second generation of models failed to explain why revolutions are as rare events as they are given that many countries face similar conditions of moderate improvement and subsequent unmet expectation. The third generation, however, is considered as most sophisticated and with the highest predictive power. I am reading a few papers on that generation of scholars, and one of them was able to pin-point the causes of the failure of Nasser’s experiment and the Soviet experiments, but the success of the outcome of the Chinese revolution. I will write more about her work in the near future.

Memo To: NK

RE: “…I don’t know why Christians don’t use the name Muhammad…”

Blame Dante. Muhammad is in one of the lowest rungs of hell in Dante’s Inferno:

A cask by losing centre-piece or cant
Was never shattered so, as I saw one
Rent from the chin to where one breaketh wind.

Between his legs were hanging down his entrails;
His heart was visible, and the dismal sack
That maketh excrement of what is eaten.

While I was all absorbed in seeing him,
He looked at me, and opened with his hands
His bosom, saying: “See now how I rend me;

How mutilated, see, is Mahomet;
In front of me doth Ali weeping go,
Cleft in the face from forelock unto chin…

http://campbellmgold.com/archive_esoteric/muhammad_in_hell.pdf

BTW, August the 10th is almost upon us…

Words Without Borders

Najati Tayyara, Still Imprisoned
August 8th 2011

http://wordswithoutborders.org/dispatches/article/najati-tayyara-still-imprisoned/

On May 11, 2011, Al Jazeera conducted a phone interview with my friend the writer and Syrian rights activist Najati Tayyara. In that interview, my friend spoke with complete candor about the brutal, bloody practices of the Syrian regime’s apparatuses against peaceful protestors demanding freedom and democracy.

That evening, I wrote on my Facebook page that the Syrian regime would arrest Najati Tayyara on that day or the next. I added that I was writing that so that perhaps the Syrian regime would delay his arrest just to annoy me or prove me a liar, since it would be an opportunity for the regime to prove that I was an uninformed opposition journalist who hadn’t mastered the art of verifying his stories.

Unfortunately, the regime didn’t disappoint me. Najati Tayyara was arrested the next day, May 12 (Ayar 12), by three elements from the political security branch in the city of Homs, after the investigating judge lodged against him the two accusations now being widely used against any democratic protestor: spreading false reports and weakening national sentiment.

I’ve been expecting Najati’s arrest for years, ever since he became the Vice President of the Syrian Organization for Human Rights in Syria. So in the year 2005, days before I went to Sweden, I asked him to write me a brief biography about himself in Arabic and English.

He asked me the reason for my request, and I told him, “I expect you’ll be arrested at any moment, and I want to have accurate information so that the bureaucracies of concerned international organizations won’t get any detail wrong when it comes to demanding your release.”

Fortunately, International PEN wasn’t bureaucratic, and it released its statement concerning Najati Tayyara five days after his arrest. But after that, “the situation fell asleep,” as they say, although Najati himself is still hardly getting a good sleep.

Soon after his arrest, they transferred him to Homs Central Prison, where they put him in a group cell that includes around 350 criminal—not political—prisoners. Yes, all prisons in Syria are that crowded.

Two weeks after his arrest, three lawyers in the pay of the regime submitted a lawsuit that included additional accusations against Najati Tayyara—accusations that could lead him to the hangman’s noose. On top of that Najati is exposed to the risk of an organized assault in prison: the authorities have turned him over to one of the criminal prisoners, who has given him a violent beating, within sight and sound—and with the tacit approval—of the prison administration. This is a method that the authorities have frequently resorted to with other political prisoners in Adra Prison in Damascus, as a way to attempt to scare political prisoners or take revenge on them.

When the Al Jazeera announcer asked him about the number of protestors in Syria, which are said to be relatively few compared to Tunisia and Egypt, for example, Najati replied: Every Syrian citizen who goes out to demonstrate, amid tanks and a hail of bullets, is equal to a thousand citizens in a country that allows people to go out into the streets peacefully.

I should point out here that the number of victims of the Syrian uprising, four and a half months after it began, is now close to three thousand—that is, around three times the number of victims in the Tunisian and Egyptian uprisings, where we didn’t see military helicopters being deployed, or cannons and tanks making their way through the streets, and smashing residential districts in a number of cities and villages.

I feel pain for my friend Najati Tayyara, and he and I both feel pain for the thousands of martyrs and approximately 14,000 detainees—a quarter of whom are counted among the missing. But I am trying to find consolation for myself in what Najati Tayyara said before his arrest, in his speech before tens of thousands thronging in al-Sa’a al-Jadida Square in Homs: “From now on, it doesn’t matter to me if I am arrested or die a martyr. Young people of the uprising, I thank you, because you have let me taste freedom after sixty years of living.”

Read more: http://wordswithoutborders.org/dispatches/article/najati-tayyara-still-imprisoned/#ixzz1UZzDD700

Gals and Guys,
I know they have problem. Just wanted to stir things around. I lost a good comment addressed to Khaled in support of SHEILA’s call for maintenance of non-violence despite of ss, snk, and syau’s brobaganda. And then a long comment that took a while to compose. I will try re-posting the second one.

Joshua and good moderator.
Thanks for the good work, but please notice that I confirmed that it was random as did others.

Note: no Aboud it is not misspelled. brobaganda is a stupid and silly propaganda. It was discovered a while ago on Syria Comment.

It got stuck. Let’s hope it goes this time.

BEWARE AND N.Z.
According to Crane Brinton’s 1938 seminal work “The Anatomy of Revolution”, transference of loyalty among intellectual and beneficiaries is a key event in the preliminary phases of revolutions. Brinton’s analysis may not fully apply to Syria and it was superseded by two more sophisticated generations of comparative sociology and history scholars, but it still holds sway in describing phases and the oscillation from moderates-radicals-strong man-moderates which accompany the phases of revolutions (based on 4 case studies). According to Brinton’s analysis, the real revolution starts with the replacement of the old regime. And all what has been happening so far is merely the beginning. He even argues that revolutions do not occur because economic/life-quality situations were really bad, but because after they have improved a little (check), expectations rise (check: dignity), government and leader ineptness in addressing the request to meet expectation (100 checks), and failure of violence as an option (also check), the transferance of loyalty, which starts slowly in the beginning among intellectuals and some beneficiaries of the regime (quarter check) lead to the removal of most power bases of the old-regime (getting there) and the installation of a new one (will get there)led by the moderates, who will subsequently be replaced by the radicals (usually on the left) who will drive the country into a puritanical reign of terror (i.e., Robespierre), they will subsequently be removed by the strong man (Napoleon), who will be later succeeded by moderates and return to normalcy.

As I mentioned above, Brinton’s model was later replaced by two subsequent generations. Both Brinton’s and the second generation of models failed to explain why revolutions are as rare events as they are given that many countries face similar conditions of moderate improvement and subsequent unmet expectations. The third generation, however, is considered as most sophisticated and with the highest predictive power. I am reading a few papers on that generation of scholars, and one of them was able to pin-point the causes of the failure of Nasser’s experiment and the Soviet experiments, but the success of the outcome of the Chinese revolution. I will write more about her work in the near future.

‘Murad Qarayilan’ Acting Head of PKK to Firat News:

“It is a great contradiction of Turkey to deem fascist implementations proper for the Kurdish people within its own borders, while displaying an attitude against repressions in foreign countries. Erdogan cannot achieve any results without overcoming this contradiction.

It is clear that Turkey itself needs to be democratic and solve its own problems before giving democracy lessons to others. The policies, which apply violence and repression against the Kurdish people and give advice to others about democracy, do not work.”

Why Turkey’s Alawite Community Thinks Assad Is the Victim

http://www.tnr.com/article/world/93288/turkey-alawites-assad-syria

In a bustling park in the Turkish city of Antakya, Metin, a local merchant, is having a picnic with his family. His hazel eyes fixated on a large, turquoise pool by a grove of pines, he takes a sip from his raki and whispers as if he’s revealing a secret. “It breaks my heart to hear about it in the news,” he says, referring to the brutal government crackdown taking place across the border in Syria’s predominantly Sunni districts. “But, how can an Alawite be cruel like that?”

Like the ruling Assad family in Damascus, Metin is an Alawite of Arab origin. He holds a Turkish passport, yet he has relatives who live in Syria. Torn between devotion to his sect and disgust over what he calls the “alleged reports of violence,” he has a hard time making up his mind about the Assad regime. Indeed, having maintained a strong bond with the Syrian Alawite heartland of Latakia ever since Antakya’s annexation to Turkey in 1939, most Arab Alawites living in Turkey are distrustful of the news coming out of Syria, and they believe that President Assad is falling victim to an international smear campaign.

A sect with ties to Shia Islam, Alawites constitute about 12 percent of Syria’s 22 million people but hold a vastly outsized portion of the high-ranking positions in the government and the military. Due to their syncretic religion that blends Islam with other local traditions, the Alawites have long been considered heretics and were historically persecuted as such by Sunni Muslims. When Syria fell under French rule in the early 20th century, the Alawites were granted their own state, based in the port city of Latakia, and enjoyed relative autonomy until Syria gained its independence in 1946. Many religious minorities, including the Alawites, were split over the issue of union with the newly-established Sunni-dominated country. In the 1930s, a group of activists including Sulayman Al Assad, one of the prominent patriarchs of the country’s ruling clan, appealed the union with Syria to French officials. But the French rejected the Alawites’ demand to maintain their autonomy and, since then, the Assad family has been involved in the Alawite political movement in Syria, gradually assuming a guardianship role for the group and securing their loyal support in return. When Hafez Al Assad seized power in an intra-party coup in 1970, most of the Alawite community lined up behind him.

Since the outbreak of protests earlier this year, Syria’s burgeoning opposition has been striving to win the loyalties of the Alawite community, which constitutes the backbone of the regime in Damascus. Sondos Soleiman, one of the few Alawite opposition members, told me that her people have “also suffered from the suppression of the regime,” and, likewise, also aspire for a “democratic state and freedom of expression.” Last month, anti-regime protestors dedicated a Friday demonstration to Saleh Al Ali, a prominent Syrian Alawite who rose up against the French occupation in Syria in 1918. And the Change in Syria conference, which brought together a diverse group of Syrian dissidents in the Turkish city of Antalya in June, also emphasized that the opposition aimed to embrace all of Syria’s ethnic and religious groups. Molham Al Drobi, a member of the Islamic Brotherhood and an executive committee member at the conference, told me that Alawites “will lose a historic opportunity” if they don’t side with the Syrian revolution.

But in Antakya’s Alawite neighborhoods, I found that most residents were still more likely to take their cues from Syria’s embattled dictator Bashar Al Assad, who in a June televised address blamed the unrest on “saboteurs” and urged his nation to ruminate on the motivations driving the protests. “What is happening to our country, and why?” he asked. “It doesn’t require much analysis, based on what we heard from others and witnessed in the media, to prove that there is indeed a conspiracy.”

Sure enough, such conspiracy theories run rampant throughout Antakya’s Alawite neighborhoods. Metin told me that members of “fundamentalist groups” might be providing incentives for Sunni refugees who have crossed the border into Turkey to draw a grim picture of the situation in Syria. Repeating an oft-heard rumor, he says that “provocateurs pay each [refugee] two hundred dollars to cross to the Turkish side.” Nurettin, a local Alawite retailer who also believes the international media is exaggerating, argued instead that “Western meddlers who want to bring the end of Assad” are manipulating thousands of Syrians refugees—or “lobbyists” as he calls them—to hurt Assad’s reputation. “The refugees in the camps here [in Turkey] are mostly Palestinians who ran away from the camps in Deraa expecting jobs in Turkey” he told me. “I think there’s nothing going on in Syria,” a third local official who refused to give his name told me, implying that the media reports of regime violence are largely fabricated.

With such feelings, hundreds of Alawite Turks turned out in June to voice their opposition to the influx of mostly Sunni refugees from Syria into Samandagi, another Alawite neighborhood in Turkey. With the gap between Syria’s two critical religious groups widening, it seems unlikely in the near future for President Assad to lose support of his fellow Alawite clansmen in the region. Despite his stained record, many continue to see him as the most reliable anchor for their safety, and they ascribe symbolic importance to his leadership. So far, at least, the Alawites in Antakya appear unwilling to think otherwise, even it if means suspending their disbelief.

Afsin Yurdakul writes about Turkish politics. Her work has appeared in Foreign Policy and The Daily Beast, among others.

I would like Dr. Landis to explain the reforms requested by Turkey and other countries. If they mean a handover of power, why don’t they say it clearly?!

now that General Habib have spoken ,
http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/08/09/363176.htm

let’s reread what the twisted minds of DEBKAfile had invented, hilarious !!

Earlier Tuesday, Aug. 9, DEBKAfile reported:

The Assad regime’s internal crisis took another brutal turn Tuesday, Aug. 9 when the former Syrian Defense Minister Ali Habib’s body was found hours after President Bashar Assad sacked him. DEBKAfile’s military sources report exclusively that he died of gunshots from automatic weapons in the hands of Assad’s henchmen. First Syrian reports claimed General Habib died by his own hand after being replaced by the chief of staff, Gen. Daoud Rajha. Our sources report that his death was the result of the internal power struggle raging in the top military command between commanders calling for a coup to remove Bashar Assad, a faction demanding to first end to the savage crackdown on protest, and factions with unclear motives.
Unexplained indications of disputes between the high command in Damascus and division commanders in the field surfaced in the last two days along with the tank onslaught on the eastern town of Deir al-Zour in the last two days.

It now looks as though the generals were busier infighting than subduing the popular uprising. Assad suspected Gen. Ali Habib of conniving with the officers preparing to mutiny against him and therefore had him removed and put to death.

Turkey in the Straw

New Coalition to Box in Assad Takes Shape. Iran’s Response Awaited

Professor Josh,

Are we still waiting for “Iran’s Response”? They’ve been unusually quiet these days…

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=turkey-syria-iran-triangle-is-being-redrawn-2011-06-22

With every post, Dale Andersen proves that the demons that eat away at him will take a loooooong, looooong time to heal. If ever.

@332 Damasguy

“If they mean a handover of power, why don’t they say it clearly?! ”

In diplomacy you have to be subtle and have tact, something the Baathists wouldn’t know about. But the way things are going, junior is going to be lucky if he’s allowed to leave with his underwear LOL!

Dear OFF THE WALL,

To avoid losing your comments, write them in a text doc that you can save. When you’re done, copy and paste into the Comment field.

Homs, Dar al Salam

Brilliant.

34 murdered by the regime today, 11 of them are children….

Why is Iran unusually quite about Syria these days?

It does not look like Turkey got anything from that meeting in Damascus. I can not help repeating myself here ( 🙂 ):
This is a Syrian problem and only syrians inside Syria can solve it.people like me are not qualified to lecture syrians inside Syria about the next step. I can only provide material help to needy syrians and speak out against violence and foreign intervention.Too much is being said about appointing a Christian defense minister, I do not think this appointment means much or changes much. In principle , there is nothing wrong in having a Christian in a leadership position in Syria. Islamists will probably disagree.
Rajha’s appointment will not improve the regime’s image but It can not hurt the regime either .

This is what a friend in Latakia told his kids when they heard the sound of dynamites at night:
Do not worry , kids, this is sheikh ar’our passing gas. Please do not be offended, this is just a joke.
(Latakia for a week has been treated with a routine at night that made many kids really anxious and unable to sleep)..

The Syrian army and the Baath party will not give up under pressure, They saw what happened to the Iraqi Baath party and army after the violent overthrow of the regime in Iraq, they will fight tooth and nail against the opposition ,
I do not see any chance of a rift between the Baath party and the army for the same reason, they understand that any internal conflict will mean the dissemination of the Baath party and the Syrian army, then will see Syria in the same state that Iraq in, and that is something they will not accept even if the have to fight the whole world,

To the Cheap Wine Drinkers:

No need to suffer buying tasteless french wine, seek Australian wines as they should be a fraction of the price of french ones and superb quality look for Shiraz. I heard the Israelis are producing fine Cabernet and full body cool climate Syrah on the Golan, I have not seen it in Australia though, I would like to try it one day.

Memo To: ABUGHASSAN

RE: “…this is a Syrian problem and only syrians inside Syria can solve it…”

Maybe you’re wrong. Maybe there’s something in the Syrian DNA that prevents a solution. Maybe there’s no such thing as Syria the nation state. Maybe “Syria” is a mere geographical expression, having no more significance than, say, Mount Ararat or Sheepshead Bay.

Maybe the solution is to have Syria’s neighbors, Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel, divide it into four pieces and administer it, just as the USA, the UK, the USSR and France administered Germany after WWII.

“and that is something they will not accept even if the have to fight the whole world”

One thing that needs to be added to the equation is that some of the key people in power are highly corrupt and have sold their souls to the devil a long time ago. They can be made to accept almost anything if they’re offered the right price.

As foe them fighting the whole world, we’ve seen how they fled the battlefield in 67. HA fighters may fight until the end, but highly corrupt people won’t because they can be bought.

Many comments are going to the spam filter because of a programming mistake. It is being cleared up. Thanks for your patience.

Best, Joshua

Marcel Khalifeh,one of the finest musicians in the Arab world,took a stand and denounced dictatorships and the killing of innocent civilians. His statement was not as harsh as others but he was right on target. I do not know who of you like his music,but I am a huge fan.

337: “Why is Iran unusually quite about Syria these days?”

Another delusions under cooking. Let us hear the opposition opinion about that and I am sure will have our menue full with assumptions.

Iran will deliver, no need to talk unless there is something on ground that needs intervention. When Syria was under negotiation with Israel in Turkey; every one said that therelation between Iran and Syria is cut. Few months later we saw the three leaders all together in Damascus. No need for assumptions. Iran will support Syria in war and peace. Turkey gained nothing from the talks today and was informed clearly that Syria is ready for a regional war. Meanwhile the army is doing a wonderful job. By the way; I have noticed a shortage of videos from the Syrian revolution. Any news guys. I bet it is a tough time; isnt it?

Abughassan,
I remember having a tape , you remember these, brought with me from Syria in 1980 probably at the beginning of his career, there was a nice song about mothers,

Syrian expat,

If they were as corrupt as you say they would have sold Iran and the Palestinians to save their skins long time ago,

No, they are Arab nationalist and willing to fight for their beleives and protect minority rights,

Seems like Special Ops was the only option available against Syria, and it has obviousely failed.

other options like the USAF have more urgent problems to deal with:

Air Force F-22 Raptor Grounding Enters Fourth Month
http://www.minyanville.com/dailyfeed/2011/08/08/air-force-f-22-raptor/

F-35 grounding explained
http://australianaviation.com.au/2011/08/f-35-grounding-explained/

Why The USAF Is In Trouble
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/blogs/defense/index.jsp?plckController=Blog&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog:27ec4a53-dcc8-42d0-bd3a-01329aef79a7Post:0397378c-b63c-4eb5-be7d-5d622417701b

Prepare for a mass exodus of Alawite criminal regime elements to Israel when this is all over (within 3 months). Not even their Hizbullah/Iranian masters will be able to protect them from the Syrian people.

To syau and company, LLC

I remeber when I lived in Syria, people used to make fun of Syrian TV news that always started with ” Istaqbala al rais …..”. What changed?. I find it amazing that you (supposedly, smart and educated) would quote SANA in your postings. Really????????????
I watched the “thanking God for the rain” caption and almost threw up. It was literally painful to watch. It is استحمار at its best.
Don’t you feel insulted watching it?.

Abu Umar Comment #271

It is obvious that you are a liar. So far you could not produce the document you speak about.

I heave been waiting for the copy of the letter that you Sunnis claim the Alawis send to the French. Where the hell is this elusive document that no one could present?

You are a liar as obvious and can not produce this ONE document. The liar that you are quotes other people: where is this document you crazy liar. Just show it to me.

As for you prophet Mohammed and the killing of the Jews and how he stole their women after he killed the men and children, this story is in your history books you liar. They even taught me this story in school when I was in Syria. You Muslims brag about butchering the Jews during the days of Mohammed. It is written in your books. This says a lot about you and your religion and beliefs.

But, still Mr. abu عو عو I am waiting for that text. Do not run away and tell me so and so mentioned it. This means nothing because up till now none was able to come up with it. I am waiting for the document. I have been waiting for a long time and all I heard from you are excuses and lies but not one single link to a real document. You are nothing but a liar.

I am here still waiting for that text. If you could not present it so far this means you do not have it and relying on some fabrication.

I am waiting for this document. Do not run away this time, I am waiting for your document.

لم تستطع ياأبو عو عو ان تقدم لنا هذه الوثيقة، نحن بالانتظار ياكذاب. ليس لديك سوى الكذب والنفاق والتهديد بالعنف فمعنى هذا انك شخصية بحاجة الي عناية نفسية يابو عو عو.

Hey everybody,
I think #343. Dale Andersen is trying to break my record in dislikes. Please support me and ignore his comment. I am sure it is just a conspiracy against me. He can not be serious.

This today from the “Via Recta” blog:

Today’s visit to Damascus by Turkey’s foreign minister is a watershed in Syria’s modern history.

The visit marks the beginning of foreign intervention in the country to install a new regime and alter the balance of power in the region. Iran will lose its Syrian protege and Russia will keep its naval base in Tartous.

Turkey is a member of NATO but also capable of playing its own game; it can easily intervene militarily (with NATO’s blessing) to help remove Assad while appeasing Russia. Its own prize will be stronger political and economic influence in the region and as a bonus more Kurds will choose to live in Syria rather than Turkey! Israel will cautiously play along if the new regime will be more interested in re-building Syria than recovering the Golan for the next decade or so.

If Assad and his brother are not assassinated in the next few months or El-Qardaha is not flattened by fighter bombers, Turkey will surely want to establish an exclusion zone deep into northern Syria as a first step towards whipping the Assad clan into submission. The regime has some strong ground troops (essentially two loyal and well-equipped Alawite divisions) but no real air cover and the country can also be “invaded” from the sea and from the east.

There is always a heavy price to pay for foreign intervention and no wise and patriotic Syrian wants it. Sadly it is now almost inevitable. Peaceful protesters and the smattering of anti-regime armed groups are simply incapable of putting an end to the regime’s daily murders. Conservative Arab regimes and foreign powers, with their own political agendas, have seen Assad shoot himself in the foot and will now move in for the kill. Perhaps they will be motivated to do it before the economy becomes too much of a liability!

Why can’t Assad do the honourable thing, save the nation and his own skin and just quit?

وساطة مباشرة بين المعارضة والرئيس الأسد عبر تركيا

نقلت صحيفة “الحياة” عن مصادر تركية مطلعة أن الزيارة بدأت بأجواء من العتاب المتبادل حول المواقف والتصريحات الأخيرة، وأخذ الطرف السوري وقتاً في شرح الأدلة التي قال إنها “تؤكد وجود عصابات مسلحة ومؤامرة خارجية تستهدف السلم والاستقرار في سورية وحق الحكومة السورية في اتخاذ ما تراه مناسباً من أجل التصدي لتلك المؤامرة”، فيما عرض داود أوغلو بعض الأدلة على تجاوزات الأمن والجيش السوريين خلال التصدي للتظاهرات، لتستمر أجواء التوتر خلال الساعات الثلاث الأولى من الزيارة والتي تم تخصيصها للقاء الوفدين.

بعد ذلك انتقل داود أوغلو للقاء خاص أنفرد به بالرئيس بشار الأسد لنحو أربع ساعات، وبعد أن كانت الوجوه متجهمة وأجواء القصر الجمهوري يسودها الصمت على حد وصف أحد أعضاء الوفد التركي، بدت الوجوه مبتسمة عند مغادرة الوزير التركي الغرفة في إشارة إلى حصول تقدم ما.

وذكرت مصادر مطلعة لـ “الحياة” إن احد المواضيع التي طرحت كان توسط تركيا بين المعارضة السورية والرئيس الأسد مباشرة من أجل إجراء الإصلاحات والتعديلات المطلوبة وإبلاغه عما يحدث من تجاوزات، لكن في الوقت نفسه بقي الرئيس الأسد مصراً على التصدي لما اسماه “المجموعات المسلحة والارهابية”، وإن لم يتضح بعد ما إذا كانت أساليب التصدي مستقبلا ستكون هي ذاتها التي استخدمت حتى اليوم.

القاهرة تحذر من نقطة اللاعودة … وموسكو تطالب بالضغط على المعارضة السورية
الحوار السوري التركي يتجدّد: الأولوية للاستقرار … والترحيب بأي مساعدة للإصلاح

اكد الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد أمس ان دمشق «لن تتهاون بملاحقة المجموعات الإرهابية المسلحة من أجل حماية استقرار الوطن وامن المواطنين، لكنها مصممة على استكمال خطوات الإصلاح الشامل، وهي منفتحة على أي مساعدة تقدمها الدول الشقيقة والصديقة على هذا الصعيد»، فيما قال وزير الخارجية التركي احمد داود اوغلو ان بلاده «تأمل أن يتم اتخاذ تدابير خلال الأيام المقبلة لوضع حد لإراقة الدماء وان يتم التمهيد للإصلاحات السياسية».
في هذا الوقت، قال نشطاء في المعارضة السورية إن «34 شخصا قتلوا في دير الزور وانحاء تابعة لمحافظتي ادلب وحمص واللاذقية»، فيما أعرب وزير الخارجية المصري محمد عمرو عن «خشيته من أن الوضع في سوريا يتجه نحو نقطة اللاعودة». ودعا وزير الخارجية الروسي المجتمع الدولي إلى الضغط على المعارضة «كي تستجيب لدعوات السلطات للحوار حول الإصلاحات اللازمة وتبتعد عن المسلحين والمتطرفين الذين يهدفون إلى تصعيد التوتر وتكرار السيناريو الليبي». وحذرت واشنطن دمشق من انه لا يمكنها الإبقاء على شراكة مع حكومة «تقتل الأبرياء».
أوغلو في دمشق
وفي دمشق كتب مراسل «السفير» زياد حيدر ان ست ساعات من الحوار السياسي بين الوفدين التركي والسوري ازالت حالة التجهم التي بدأ الطرفان عليها اللقاء، حيث حرصت القيادة السورية، أمام كاميرات التلفزيون،على إظهار انزعاجها الشديد مما سبق زيارة الوزير اوغلو من تصريحات تركية صريحة أو غير صريحة طالت الجانب السوري.
ودخل وزير خارجية تركيا أحمد داود أوغلو قصر الشعب أمس يرافقه وفد من مستشاري الخارجية وموظفيها والسفير التركي في دمشق عمر أونهون، ليجتمع على الفور مع الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد ثلاث مرات، في اجتماع يعيد إلى الأذهان، في طول مدته، اجتماعات الرئيس الراحل حافظ الأسد.
وبدأ الاجتماع موسعا بحضور وزير الخارجية السوري وليد المعلم والمستشارة الرئاسية بثينة شعبان ومعاون وزير الخارجية للشؤون الأوروبية عبد الفتاح عمورة، تلاه بعد أربع ساعات تقريبا اجتماع مغلق بين الأسد وداود أوغلو، ومن ثم اختتمت الاجتماعات بلقاء ثالث موسع ضم أعضاء الوفدين.
وانتهى الاجتماع الأخير بما يسمح من الوقت لداود أوغلو بأن يتناول طعام إفطاره في أنقرة، فيما نقلت مصادر مطلعة لـ«السفير» أن مزاج أعضاء الوفدين بعد اللقاء كان طبيعيا، وأن التجهم الذي كان واضحا للعيان في بداية اللقاء زال في نهايته، وإن لم يظهر الود المعتاد في اللقاءات التركية ـ السورية السابقة.
وكانت مصادر سورية وصفت اللقاء بالإيجابي، فيما نفت أخرى لـ«السفير» أن يكون اللقاء شهد ما نقل عنه من أجواء توتر أو نقل رسائل «شديدة اللهجة»، معتبرة أن الجانب التركي «أبدى حرصا أخويا» على المصالح السورية لا العكس. وهو انطباع عمل بيان وكالة الأنباء السورية (سانا) على ترسيخه أيضا حين نقل أن «العلاقات الاستراتيجية بين البلدين هي التي جعلت قيادتي البلدين تشعران بأن ما يحصل في أي بلد منهما هو بمثابة شأن داخلي لدى الآخر». وشدد الأسد من جهته على أولوية الاستقرار في إدارة الأزمة الراهنة في سوريا.
وغادر داود أوغلو القصر إلى استراحة قصيرة في السفارة التركية في دمشق متوجها بعدها إلى أنقرة. وفيما كان داود أوغلو في طائرته أصدر الجانب السوري بيانا رئاسيا أشار فيه إلى أن الحديث تناول «الأحداث التي تشهدها سوريا، حيث أكد الرئيس الأسد أن سوريا لن تتهاون في ملاحقة المجموعات الإرهابية المسلحة من أجل حماية استقرار الوطن وأمن المواطنين لكنها مصممة أيضا على استكمال خطوات الإصلاح الشامل التي تقوم بها، وهي منفتحة على أي مساعدة تقدمها الدول الشقيقة والصديقة على هذا الصعيد». وأضاف البيان «وضع الأسد الوزير داود أوغلو بصورة الأوضاع التي شهدتها بعض المدن السورية نتيجة قيام
المجموعات الإرهابية المسلحة بقتل المدنيين وعناصر حفظ النظام وترهيب السكان».
بدوره، أكد الوزير التركي وفقا لـ«سانا» أنه «لا ينقل أي رسالة من أي أحد، وأن تركيا حريصة على أمن سوريا واستقرارها، مشددا على أن المراحل التي قطعتها العلاقة الإستراتيجية بين البلدين جعلت قيادتي البلدين تشعران بأن أي أمر يحصل في أي منهما هو بمثابة شأن داخلي لدى الآخر، فكما تعتبر تركيا ما يجري في سوريا شأنا داخليا تركيا فإن سوريا أيضا لديها نفس الاعتبارات في أي حدث تتعرض له تركيا».
ونقل البيان الرئاسي عن داود أوغلو تشديده «على أن سوريا بقيادة الرئيس الأسد ستصبح نموذجا في العالم العربي بعد استكمال الإصلاحات التي أقرتها القيادة السورية»، مضيفا ان «استقرار سوريا أساسي لاستقرار المنطقة».
أوغلو في أنقرة
وأعلن داود اوغلو، في مؤتمر صحافي بعد عودته من دمشق، أن «تركيا طالبت الحكومة السورية بوقف قتل المدنيين». وقال إن حكومته ستراقب الأحداث في سوريا على مدى الأيام المقبلة، واصفا محادثاته مع الأسد بأنها صريحة وودية، مشيرا إلى أن حكومته ستظل على اتصال بكل أجزاء المجتمع السوري.
وأعلن داود اوغلو أن الرسائل التي نقلها إلى الأسد تخص تركيا فقط. وقال «أريد التعبير عن هذا الأمر بوضوح: نقلنا رسائل تركية فقط. كوزير لخارجية تركيا استطيع نقل آراء حكومتي والتحدث ضمن هذا الإطار».
وأضاف «بحثنا طرق منع مواجهة بين الجيش والناس»، مشددا على أن تركيا تأمل في أن تشهد سوريا عملية انتقال سلمية تتيح للشعب السوري صياغة مستقبله. وأعلن انه ناقش مع الأسد خلال لقاء مطول في دمشق سبل وقف إراقة الدماء في سوريا وتطبيق الإصلاحات الديموقراطية. وقال «نأمل أن يتم اتخاذ تدابير خلال الأيام المقبلة لوضع حد لإراقة الدماء وان يتم التمهيد للإصلاحات السياسية».
وأضاف «كانت لدينا الفرصة للحديث بوضوح وصراحة عن التدابير الواجب اتخاذها لوقف المواجهة بين الجيش والشعب، وكي لا تتكرر أحداث مثل تلك التي شهدتها حماه». وأشار إلى انه أجرى مباحثات «مفتوحة استمرت ست ساعات ونصف الساعة مع الرئيس السوري، بينها ثلاث ساعات ونصف الساعة على انفراد».
وأشار داود اوغلو الى انه نقل الى الأسد رسالة مكتوبة من الرئيس التركي عبد الله غول وأخرى شفهية من رئيس الوزراء رجب طيب اردوغان، لكنه رفض الإفصاح عن مضمونيهما. وقال «تشاركنا مع الأشقاء السوريين مرة جديدة في آرائنا حول كل القضايا بشكل صريح. وعبر الرئيس الأسد خلال اللقاء الثنائي عن آرائه الخاصة».
وأضاف «أولويتنا إيجاد طريقة لوقف إراقة الدماء في سوريا. هدفنا الوحيد هو تأمين بيئة حيث يستطيع السوريون، بغض النظر عن اثنيتهم ودينهم، العيش بسلام». وتابع «سنواصل متابعة التطورات في سوريا عن قرب. نأمل أن تبرهن الأيام والأسابيع المقبلة عن الحفاظ على السلام والاستقرار في البلد عبر خطوات إصلاح متينة ستكون حاسمة بالنسبة لتطلعات الشعب السوري».
وأشارت صحيفة «ميللييت» التركية إلى استعدادات تركية عسكرية على الحدود السورية خصوصا مع تسريب أنباء أن مقاتلين من حزب العمال الكردستاني يتسللون إلى الأراضي التركية لناحية غازي عينتاب ولواء الاسكندرون. وقالت إن لواءين عسكريين تركيين يتمركزان قرب الحدود السورية استعدادا لأي أوامر يمكن أن تصدر عن القيادة العسكرية، حيث يتمركز الجيش الثاني المسؤول عن الحدود السورية (تفاصيل ص 14).
وفي سياق مشابه، جددت وزيرة العلاقات الدولية والتعاون في جنوب أفريقيا ميتين كونا ماشاباني دعم بلادها «للإصلاحات الديموقراطية التي تقوم بها سوريا بقيادة الأسد ورفضها للتدخل الخارجي في الشؤون الداخلية السورية»، وفق ما نقلت «سانا» بعد لقاء جمعها بنائب وزير الخارجية السوري فيصل المقداد الذي يقوم بزيارة إلى جنوب إفريقيا حاليا.
وأعلن متحدث باسم وزارة الخارجية البرازيلية أن بعثة من الهند والبرازيل وجنوب أفريقيا ستلتقي الحكومة السورية اليوم في مسعى لإنهاء «القمع» وحضها على الحوار مع المعارضين. وأضاف إن الرسالة التي ستنقلها البعثة إلى الحكومة السورية تركز على «ضرورة الحوار بين الحكومة والشعب وضرورة وضع حد للعنف واحترام حقوق الإنسان». وسيكون هدف البعثة أيضا «الاطلاع على الوضع في سوريا وتقييم استعداد الحكومة للحوار».
من ناحية أخرى، أدى اليمين الدستورية أمام الأسد العماد داود راجحة وزيراً للدفاع، وذلك فيما نفى وزير الدفاع السابق العماد علي حبيب صحة الأخبار التي راجت حول وفاته، مشيرا أنه كان أجرى عملية جراحية منذ أسبوعين، وأن ظروفه الصحية هي ما استدعى خروجه من منصبه. وحيا العماد حبيب الرئيس الأسد وبديله العماد راجحة في تصريح مقتضب للتلفزيون السوري مساء أمس.
ردود فعل عربية ودولية
وقال وزير الخارجية المصري محمد عمرو ان «مصر تتابع بقلق شديد التدهور الخطير للأوضاع في سوريا»، معربا عن «خشيته من أن الوضع في سوريا يتجه نحو نقطة اللاعودة»، مؤكدا «ضرورة التحرك السريع لإنقاذ الموقف».
وأعاد عمرو «التذكير بتصريحاته في بداية شهر رمضان حول ضرورة إجراء الإصلاحات على المستوى الوطني لتجنب مخاطر تدويل لا نريده ولا تحتمله المنطقة»، مؤكدا أن «الإصلاح المخضب بدماء تراق وشهداء يسقطون بشكل يومي لا يجدي نفعا، وأن المطلوب هو وقف فوري لإطلاق النار وتحرك عاجل لاستعادة الثقة المفقودة وتوفير شروط إقامة حوار وطني شامل يجمع كل أطياف المجتمع السوري».
وأضاف ان «مصر تواصل مشاوراتها بشكل مكثف مع الدول الشقيقة انطلاقا من مسؤوليتها التاريخية والتزاماتها في مرحلة ما بعد ثورة 25 يناير للمساعدة على إيجاد مخرج يوقف نزف الدم في سوريا، ويحقق التطلعات المشروعة للشعب السوري الشقيق».
وقال وزير الخارجية الأردني ناصر جودة ان «ما يجري في سوريا أمر مقلق ومؤسف ومحزن وتغليب للغة العنف على لغة الحوار»، مشددا على «أن وحدة سوريا وأمنها واستقرارها خط أحمر بالنسبة للأردن».
وذكرت وزارة الخارجية الروسية، في بيان، بعد اتصال هاتفي بين لافروف والمعلم «أكد الجانب الروسي أن الأولوية هي لوقف أعمال العنف ومواصلة الجهود لتطبيق الإصلاحات السياسية والاقتصادية في سوريا من دون إبطاء».
وأعربت وزارة الخارجية الروسية عن «الأمل في أن تستجيب المعارضة السورية لدعوات إقامة الحوار مع الحكومة». وقالت «على المجتمع الدولي أن يؤثر على المعارضة هي الأخرى كي تستجيب لدعوات السلطات للحوار حول الإصلاحات اللازمة وتبتعد عن المسلحين والمتطرفين الذين يهدفون إلى تصعيد التوتر وتكرار السيناريو الليبي». ودعت إلى «تأمين الانفتاح الإعلامي كي تتمكن الأسرة الدولية من الاطلاع على كامل صورة ما يجري في سوريا».
وفي واشنطن، عبرت المتحدثة باسم وزارة الخارجية الأميركية فيكتوريا نولاند عن اسف بلادها من تعليقات الأسد الجديدة، مشيرة الى ان وزيرة الخارجية هيلاري كلينتون تريد التحدث مع داود اوغلو. وقالت «يبدو ان الرئيس الاسد لا يستمع الى الاصوات العالية للمجتمع الدولي».
واعلنت انه لا يمكن لواشنطن الابقاء على شراكة مع حكومة «تقتل الابرياء». واشارت الى ان الولايات المتحدة تقدمت بالعديد من العروض الى الاسد منذ العام 2009، لكنه رفضها جميعا، معتبرة ان هناك حدودا لما يمكن ان تقوم به واشنطن مع نظام «مصمم على انتهاك الحقوق الاساسية لمواطنيه».
ونقلت وكالة «اسوشييتد برس» عن مسؤولين أميركيين قولهم إن الإدارة الأميركية تستعد للطلب بشكل واضح رحيل الأسد، بالإضافة إلى استهداف النظام السوري بعقوبات جديدة، لكنها أشارت إلى أن هذا الأمر سيكون مرهونا بزيادة «القمع».
وكان الرئيس الأميركي باراك أوباما ورئيس الوزراء الايطالي سيلفيو برلوسكوني شددا على ضرورة تنسيق الجهود بين الأوروبيين وحلف شمال الأطلسي «لزيادة الضغط» على النظام السوري. وقالت الحكومة الايطالية، في بيان، إن أوباما خلال اتصال هاتفي أجراه ببرلوسكوني «اتفقا بالكامل على ضرورة أن يكون هناك تنسيق قوي بين الحلفاء الأوروبيين وحلف شمال الأطلسي لممارسة مزيد من الضغط على دمشق». وذكر البيت الأبيض ان أوباما تحدث إلى زعيمي اسبانيا وايطاليا، وأنهم أدانوا استخدام الأسد «العنف العشوائي ضد الشعب السوري».
إلى ذلك، قال نائب المتحدث باسم الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة فرحان حق ان الأمين العام بان كي مون سيقدم اليوم تقريرا إلى مجلس الأمن الدولي حول الأوضاع في سوريا، وذلك تنفيذا للبيان الرئاسي الذي أصدره المجلس الأسبوع الماضي.
ميدانيات
ونفى وزير الصحة السوري وائل الحلقي الخبر الذي تناقلته مواقع الكترونية عن وفاة أطفال خدج في حواضن أحد المستشفيات في حماه، مشيرا إلى أن «المستشفيات ومنظومة الإسعاف في مدينة حماه وريفها تقدم خدماتها الطبية بشكل مستمر مع توافر مخزون استراتيجي من الأدوية والمواد الطبية في المستشفيات العامة تكفي لإجراء خمسة آلاف عملية جراحية على الأقل وتقديم الخدمات الطبية والعادية دون انقطاع، إضافة إلى المخزون الخاص بحالات الطوارئ في المراكز الصحية». وذكرت «سانا» أن 115 شخصا من سكان جسر الشغور عادوا إلى منازلهم في اليومين الأخيرين.
وأعلن المرصد السوري لحقوق الإنسان «مقتل 34 شخصا على الأقل في سوريا برصاص قوات الأمن بينهم 17 في مدينة دير الزور شرق البلاد». وقال ان «النشطاء في مدينة دير الزور اكدوا مشاهدة 15 جثة ملقاة في الشوارع في الحويقة وجبيلة والقصور والجورة اثر العمليات الواسعة التي شنتها القوات العسكرية والامنية السورية في الكثير من أحياء المدينة، كما اكدوا وجود أكثر من 50 جريحا جراح بعضهم حرجة». وكان المرصد تحدث عن سقوط قتيلين في المدينة.
وفي بنش، في منطقة ادلب، قال ناشطون ان «اربعة اشخاص قتلوا». واعلن المرصد انه «في محافظة حماه قتل ستة مدنيين في بلدتي حلفايا وطيبة الامام بينهم ثلاثة اطفال وذلك خلال العمليات الامنية والعسكرية». وقال ناشط «قتل مدنيان من سكان تجمع قرى الحولة في محافظة حمص». واضاف المرصد ان «رجلا يبلغ من العمر 35 عاما قتل تحت التعذيب. كما قتل شخص في اللاذقية و2 في ريف دمشق».
(«السفير»، ا ف ب، ا ب، رويترز، ا ش ا)
http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=1918&articleId=1149&ChannelId=45250

Tony Gosling: — corrupt govt & their Shabiha (the police) behind London Riots) —

‘Banker puppet goverment + police brutality + betrayed youth = London riots’

A limited intervention of the NATO might be setting up No-fly zone but according to “Lessons from Iraq and Bosnia on the Theory and Practice of No-fly Zones,” (The Journal of Strategic Studies) a successful no-fly zone needs three main elements:

1) A clear, unified command structure is essential (can be established)
2) To avoid a “perpetual patrol problem,” states must know in advance their policy objectives and the exit strategy for no-fly zones.
3) The effectiveness of no-fly zones is highly dependent on regional support.

Giving that Iraq is fully controlled by Persians, the third point is quite problematic for the Syrian scenario. I can see the lack of support from Iraq (Iran) for the no-fly zone which ultimately would constrain the coalition’s ability to effectively enforce it.

listen to this bloke and observe how british elites despise their poor countrymen. they want to crush them.

60’000 police on the ground outnumbered
London needs army to crush thugs – call back Afghan,Iraq troops

348. NORMAN said:

Norman he also had a song about Cuba, Ya refaqi fe Cuba al-abia Cuba al-abia Indy lekum min qalabi taHai. Does this say anything about Marcel?

While on this note, you were starting a call not to re-elect Obama in 2012. Don’t waste your time, he is gone as it was announced during the AIPAC conference last month.

The next US president has already been determined, it is Sarah Palin. She already visited Jerusalem way ahead of everyone else and she got her commission papers, she fits the bill as they say in America. Remember 4 years ago, Obama beat everyone else by heading to Jerusalem first by fooling the other candidate and stopped on his way from Afghanistan before McCain smelled it.

For Syria, Farid AlGhadiry has been there already and received the commission papers. The fool thinks he is getting the Golan back. President H Assad was promised that by G W Bush-1 during Syria’s participation of the Gulf war until Ariel Sharon (who was not even Prime Minister at the time) told Bush no second term for you baby. Bill Clinton thought he could outwit them until he realized that Monica Lewinsky had him by the Balls.

Norman

“If they were as corrupt as you say they would have sold Iran and the Palestinians to save their skins long time ago,

No, they are Arab nationalist and willing to fight for their beleives and protect minority rights,”

Anyone who grew up around Baathists know that they are experts at using empty slogans to keep the people asleep. Anyway, time will tell.

Sources: U.S. is moving toward calling for Syrian leader to step down

Washington (CNN) — The United States is moving toward issuing an explicit call for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down, U.S. government sources told CNN Tuesday.

The move is expected to be announced in coming days after U.S. officials consult with the United Nations Security Council, the sources said.

The question of whether to call for al-Assad to step down has been under discussion over the past few weeks, the sources said.

Officials described the White House as being more eager to make the announcement while the State Department is being more cautious about the ramifications should al-Assad not heed the call.

In addition, the Security Council is expected Wednesday to follow up on last week’s presidential statement, which condemned the Syrian government for violence against peaceful protesters and called for an immediate end to violence by all parties.

But no immediate escalation of that statement is expected, since Russia and China — whose representatives usually feel it is not the Security Council’s role to get involved in what they describe as matters of member countries’ internal affairs — would be unlikely to agree.

Instead, the new package would likely impose new Treasury Department sanctions on family members and business and government officials linked to the regime, said a government official involved in the deliberations who was unable to speak for attribution.

“Treasury is preparing to announce additional sanctions this week targeting major elements of Syria’s financial and commercial infrastructure that are providing critical support to the regime,” the official said.

In addition, there would be new steps taken to further isolate Syria from the international community, the sources said.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/08/09/us.syria/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

DARRYL
I agree on Australian wines. Also for a reasonably priced excellence you may also want to try some South African wines.

AAH! those innocent Saudi islamist jihadist terrorists!

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentID=20110811107151

US to call for Syria’s Assad to go

http://www.theisraelproject.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=hsJPK0PIJpH&b=689705&ct=11128587

Syrian Minorities Live on Knife’s Edge

http://www.theworld.org/2011/08/syrian-minorities-live-on-knifes-edge/

US edges toward demand for ouster of Assad in Syria

http://www.wsws.org/tools/index.php?page=print&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Faug2011%2Fsyri-a12.shtml

Secretary Of State interview on CBS

http://www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2011/08/170436.htm

CBS Talking Head Scott Pelley wants to declare war on Syria 🙂

King Abullah of Saudi Arabia called the actions of the Assad regime “not acceptable” and demanded an end to “the killing machine and bloodshed.” He also called upon the Syrian regime to grant “comprehensive reforms quickly.” At the end of his remarks, the Saudi king announced that he was withdrawing the Saudi ambassador from Damascus. Kuwait and Bahrain quickly followed suit.

How about “comprehensive reforms quickly” in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain?!

How about granting women in Saudi Arabia the right to drive a car your royal highness?!

‘Thank Turks for Syria’

http://www.sundayszaman.com/sunday/columnistDetail_getNewsById.action?newsId=253585

Turkey threatens to join international military action in Syria

http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/turkey-threatens-to-join-international-military-action-in-syria-1.378427

Karat warns govt against ”toeing” US” line on Syria

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/karat-warns-govt-against-toeing-us-line-on-syria/787495.html

Iraq backs Syria

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/13/world/middleeast/13iraq.html