West Asia News and Discussions

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 25 Aug 2013 21:42

CNN: On a mission: Maryam Alkhawaja wants to tell you about oppression in Bahrain

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 25 Aug 2013 21:52

CNN: Syria to allow inspectors to site of suspected chemical weapons attack

Damascus, Syria (CNN) -- Syria will allow U.N. inspectors full access to any site of a purported chemical weapons attack, a top Syrian official told CNN on Sunday.

The agreement is effective immediately, Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al Mekdad said.And inspectors hope to begin their probe Monday at the suspected chemical attack site, the U.N. secretary-general's office said.

But a senior U.S. official called it too little, too late.

"If the Syrian government had nothing to hide and wanted to prove to the world that it had not used chemical weapons in this incident, it would have ceased its attacks on the area and granted immediate access to the UN -- five days ago," a senior official in the Obama administration said Sunday.

"At this juncture, the belated decision by the regime to grant access to the UN team is too late to be credible, including because the evidence available has been significantly corrupted as a result of the regime's persistent shelling and other intentional actions over the last five days," the official, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said in a statement. "Based on the reported number of victims, reported symptoms of those who were killed or injured, witness accounts, and other facts gathered by open sources, the U.S. intelligence community, and international partners, there is very little doubt at this point that a chemical weapon was used by the Syrian regime against civilians in this incident."

Rebel forces and the Syrian regime point the finger at each other for Wednesday's reported attack. Gruesome video of the aftermath showed numerous bodies, including women and children.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 26 Aug 2013 00:51

Israelis have intercepted regime comms showing the CW order came from the top: http://t.co/cjFTa0SNar

harbans · Post by **harbans** » 26 Aug 2013 01:24

Chellany feels the rebels have done it. Why would Assad do that, knowing it is a tipping point. One really cannot be sure in this kind of scenario. It's also possible that Generals who control stocks of nerve agents in fits of rage have used it, or Generals within the ruling setup to get back at Assad have done so. The intrigue is the only thing left apart from the dead in such scenarios.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 26 Aug 2013 04:51

Media reports military strikes within 2 weeks.

--- people don't understand that these strikes will not be regime decapitating strikes. It's just to ensure the units responsible pay a price and ensure CW are not used again. CW seizure. Will be a surprise to all.

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 26 Aug 2013 05:04

If it was a "rogue general",then he is probably a quisling,acting surreptitiously for the west.We know that several Syrian top mil. and politicos defected,were bribed to do so.This could be a similar situ.Knowing that the west was looking for an excuse to intervene militarily,it would be absurd for Assad,no suckling babe in statecraft,to have ordered a massive chem attack.Cui Bono?

An attack is definitely on the cards.It now remains to be seen what the Russians and Iranians will do.For Russia,already duped in the Libyan conflict,to have its only major ally in the Middle East savaged by the West would be too much for the Kremlin to ignore.It also cannot afford any further loss of face.So what would a Russian reaction be to a West-led attack on Syria? The extreme option would be to counter the US at sea.That would be a global catastrophe and the N-clock's hands would be back near Midnight.What is perhaps more likely is massive military support for Assad with Russian tech. advisors on the ground,short of a similar situ where the Soviets intervened in Afghanistan ,where there too a covert op to replace the govt. of the day was being carried out by the CIA,Brit intel and the Pakis.History is repeating itself in Syria,but this time,the Syrians and Russians have strong military help on the ground in the form of the Hiz and massive Shiite support from Iran.A twin Russian beefing up of both Syria and Iran would checkmate US/Western plans fro regime change in these two countries.The country that would suffer the most from an attack on Syria sadly would be Israel.What the M-East desperately needs is a cooling down of the impending conflagration.In this the UN led by a "bunkum" pimp for the Yanquis is going to be used like a condom for another outrageous assault on a nation's sovereignty.

Moral of the story....for India? Get Agni 5 and 6 operational asap.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/a ... als-jordan
Syria: west weighs up military options at meeting of top generals in Jordan
With substantial hardware already in region, analysts say first move likely to be show of force without engaging Syria's military

Syria: west weighs up military options at meeting of top generals in Jordan
With substantial hardware already in region, analysts say first move likely to be show of force without engaging Syria's military

Robert Booth and Richard Norton-Taylor
The Guardian, Sunday 25 August 2013 18.19 BST

Any western intervention in Syria would have to contend with its considerable air defences, including Russian Buk-M2E missile systems. Photograph: Mikhail Metzel/AP

The increasingly bellicose statements on Syria coming from London and Washington will sharpen the focus of Monday's meeting of top US, British, French and other generals in the Jordanian capital of Amman.

The summit will be led by General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, and his Jordanian counterpart, and attended by General Sir Nicholas Houghton, the British armed forces chief. It will take place little more than 100 miles from Damascus, where an apparent chemical weapons attack killed hundreds of civilians last week.

Top generals from Germany, Canada, Italy, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are also expected to attend a meeting which will coincide with UN weapons experts visiting the site of the attack in an attempt to determine what happened and who was behind it.

The key players in any possible strike against Syria, widely considered to be the US, Britain and France, already have substantial military muscle in the area. Britain has four warships, the Navy's flagship HMS Bulwark, a helicopter carrier and two frigates off Albania. The US has a group of three destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean, which it has bolstered with a fourth, the USS Mahan. France has Rafale and Mirage jets based in the United Arab Emirates which could potentially reach Syria, though the US airbases at Incirlik and Izmir in Turkey and the RAF base at Akrotiri in Cyprus are more likely launch points for any offensive.

The Ministry of Defence is drawing up attack plans that one well-placed official described as a "Libyan suite of options", a reference to the naval, air and land strategies that were considered in the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. A key difference is the strength of Syria's air defences.
Syria - US/British military assets Syria - US/British military assets

In recent years, Russia is reported to have supplied Damascus with 36 Pantsir mobile surface to air missile systems and at least eight Buk-M2E mobile surface to air missile batteries. The Pantsirs, considered particularly effective against attacking aircraft, feature a combination of 30mm cannon paired with a radar and anti-aircraft missiles all on the same vehicle.

Western options include strikes by Tornado jets equipped with £500,000-a-shot Storm Shadow long-range cruise missiles which can be fired 150 miles from the target, allowing pilots to avoid the need to come within range of Syrian air defences. The US warships in the region are carrying Tomahawk cruise missiles and Washington has F-16 fighter jets and Patriot missile batteries in Jordan.

"President Obama has asked the defence department to prepare options for all contingencies," the US defence secretary, Chuck Hagel, said over the weekend. "We have done that and we are prepared to exercise whatever option, if he decides to employ one of those options."

The question is how to wield western military might against a regime with relatively strong air defences, chemical weapons capabilities and a powerfully ally in Russia. "There are not going to be ground troops, that's for sure," said one British defence official, sounding a widely-held note of caution. Imposing a no-fly zone would need a UN mandate, he added. Such a tactic would anyway be tough to maintain without casualties because Syria's air defences have been recently bolstered by the Russians.

So the first move is likely to be an increased show of force, said Charles Heyman, editor of Armed Forces of the United Kingdom. The allies are already openly moving naval forces closer to Syria, and Heyman said overflying the country with bombers out of reach of surface to air missiles could be next. If Bashar al-Assad is proved to be behind the chemical attack, Heyman believes such sabre rattling would not upset the Russians.

Air surveillance of Assad's troops, conventional artillery and chemical weapons units will already have given a clear picture of the situation on the ground.

"Every spook in the world is listening in to the Syrian units and the people who might be involved in moving chemical weapons around," said Heyman. He added that while the allies are likely to be ready to strike, the best use of military force remains as a deterrent.

Treasuries in London and Washington will also be worried about the cost of war. "The defence secretary, Philip Hammond, will be asking the chancellor for £500m for this operation," he said. The Pentagon is facing a $52bn budget cut in the next financial year.

If strikes were ordered, they would not be against chemical facilities as they are too mobile and present a risk of widespread contamination. Air defences would be hit first, perhaps initially those close to the Turkish border, as a warning shot. Long-range weapons would be used to avoid western casualties.

"If that doesn't work they will start hammering away at the wider Syrian air defences," said Heyman. "That won't be as easy as Libya, but Nato aircraft would be able to take them out in seven days, I believe."

Singha · Post by **Singha** » 26 Aug 2013 07:13

in long civil wars like this, it is artillery and ammo that wins it. Rus could release some of its vast stocks of artillery and shells to syrian army in response.....to pound the rebels with. they could also train up syrian airborne units and helicopters to launch strikes into the rear areas of the rebels targeting the main leaders and arms stockpiles.

habal · Post by **habal** » 26 Aug 2013 07:45

shyamd wrote:Israelis have intercepted regime comms showing the CW order came from the top: http://t.co/cjFTa0SNar

Iranians have intercepted comms showing the CW orders came from the top (of Mossad).http://t.co/cjFTaOSNarbibididit

Manish_Sharma · Post by **Manish_Sharma** » 26 Aug 2013 07:49

Everytime I visit this thread, I see a kind of sympathy for syria & assad. Wasn't syria providing porkis with squadrons of fighters against us in 65' and 71' wars?

Good if US goes and destroys syrian army, pounds their infra. Later it becomes another chaotic place like iraq etc. fanatics killed by more-fanaticals. What do we care? Another tsp supporter country disintegrating.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 26 Aug 2013 07:52

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad gave an interview to the newspaper "Izvestia"

On relations with Russia all signed contracts executed

Russia carries out all contracts with Syria, signed between the two countries, said Bashar al-Assad. "The political support of Russia, as well as the precise execution of military contracts, despite U.S. pressure significantly trimmed our economic situation," - said the president of Syria.

In June, Vladimir Putin said that the contract for the supply of S-300 to Syria is not implemented . However, in July, Deputy Prime Minister SAR Qadri Jamil said that all arrangements for the supply of these weapons remain in force .

Assad added that he would be happy to visit Russia or invite Vladimir Putin to Damascus, when the situation in the SAR is normalized. He also did not rule out that the Syrian leadership can turn to Russia for a loan .

On chemical weapons: Charges West - abuse of common sense

Bashar al-Assad rejects accusations by the rebels, and some Western leaders in the application of the Syrian government of chemical weapons in the area where the concentrated force of militants.

"The statements made by politicians in the U.S., the West and in other countries - and an insult to common sense and disregard the public opinion of their people - said Assad . - This is nonsense: first indicted, and only then collect evidence. And this has been the mightiest country - United States. "

Not the people's revolution, and terrorism

Bashar al-Assad believes that the leadership of Western countries will not agree to a military operation in Syria. "The obstacle to military invasion," according to the head of the Syrian state is, in part, "understood by all that is happening in Syria - it is not the people's revolution and demand reforms. This is terrorism." If the United States is still dare to strike on Syria or even the invasion of the country, their "waiting for a failure, as in all previous wars waged by them, from Vietnam to the present day."

"America has participated in many wars, but has never been able to achieve their political objectives for which these wars started - said Bashar al-Assad .

Syria will not become a "puppet of the West"

The president accused the U.S., Israel and Saudi Arabia in support of terrorists . He said: "Terrorism - this is not a trump card in his pocket, which you can take out and use whenever you want, and then put back. Terrorism, like a scorpion sting at any time. Accordingly, we can not be for terrorism in Syria, and against him in Mali . can not support terrorism in Chechnya and the fight against it in Afghanistan. "

"If someone wants to turn Syria into a puppet of the West, then this will not happen," - said the president.

On the "Geneva 2"

Syrian leadership to expect from the conference, "the Geneva-2" to put pressure on those countries that support terrorist activities in this country. "There are a number of states that supported terrorists in Syria in the open, it's Qatar and Turkey," - said Assad.

Earlier, the media reported that the Syrian opposition from abroad received "tons of weapons" . According to the commander of the Syrian Free Army / SSA / Salim Idris, his deliveries were carried out from the territory of Turkey. At the UN, this information can not be checked .

brihaspati · Post by **brihaspati** » 26 Aug 2013 08:07

No followup on the Islamists caught in Turkey with "chemicals"? But of course, we are stupid not to understand the holy oracle's declaration that the "decapitation" is meant for Assad's chem-warfare units onlee ! Nothing on targeting the anti-Assad chemical warfare units? Is that because the chemical line in actuality possibly runs all the way through to Saudis?

Lets get on with the simple inside scoops on action-to-be-taken. We can do without the elaborate justifications to save Saudi and allied image.

Santosh · Post by **Santosh** » 26 Aug 2013 08:10

Dhananjay wrote:Everytime I visit this thread, I see a kind of sympathy for syria & assad. Wasn't syria providing porkis with squadrons of fighters against us in 65' and 71' wars?

A lot has changed since 65 and 71. Arab world is more fragmented, more violent and more fundamentalist than ever. India's interest is in suppressing the rise of radical jihad, where ever it may be in the world. And that is exactly what Assad is doing today. The only consistent "policy" in the middle east today seems to be that of the US - which is to bring democracy. The fact that is has failed miserably is a different story. Everyone else is contradicting themselves in one part of the Arab world or the other.

brihaspati · Post by **brihaspati** » 26 Aug 2013 08:18

Santosh wrote:
Dhananjay wrote:Everytime I visit this thread, I see a kind of sympathy for syria & assad. Wasn't syria providing porkis with squadrons of fighters against us in 65' and 71' wars?
A lot has changed since 65 and 71. Arab world is more fragmented, more violent and more fundamentalist than ever. India's interest is in suppressing the rise of radical jihad, where ever it may be in the world. And that is exactly what Assad is doing today. The only consistent "policy" in the middle east today seems to be that of the US - which is to bring democracy. The fact that is has failed miserably is a different story. Everyone else is contradicting themselves in one part of the Arab world or the other.

US consistently trying to "bring democracy" in ME? So interesting. Can you please lay out why you think so?

brihaspati · Post by **brihaspati** » 26 Aug 2013 08:22

Dhananjay wrote:Everytime I visit this thread, I see a kind of sympathy for syria & assad. Wasn't syria providing porkis with squadrons of fighters against us in 65' and 71' wars?

Good if US goes and destroys syrian army, pounds their infra. Later it becomes another chaotic place like iraq etc. fanatics killed by more-fanaticals. What do we care? Another tsp supporter country disintegrating.

Syrians also supported Carlos the "jackal" and the Palestinians against Israeli "oppression". For "India" this must have compensated for any help given to Pakis?

habal · Post by **habal** » 26 Aug 2013 09:20

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-575 ... nerve-gas/

And then, after speaking too about Iran and the challenges of intelligence work in the age of the Arab Spring, he dropped his bombshell: “To the best of our professional understanding, the regime has used lethal chemical weapons,” he said of President Bashar Assad’s Syria, noting that the IDF believed the toxic element was Sarin, a nerve agent far more deadly than cyanide, and that it had been used on more than one occasion, including in a specific attack on March 19.

http://www.timesofisrael.com/why-did-th ... bombshell/

http://t.co/cjFTaOSNarMossaddidit

habal · Post by **habal** » 26 Aug 2013 09:34

UN Syria team will fabricate evidence
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/08/25 ... -evidence/

The UN investigation team has been entirely compromised. They will be presenting evidence to indict the Assad regime. They will be fabricating that evidence. We’re aware of that.

Recent investigations by journalists operating in the state of Georgia have found the facility that has produced the weapons. That facility was turned by the Georgian government over to the US. The facility’s named after Senator Jack Kemp. It is producing both sarin and VX gas. The weapons have been traced back there. There’s been an attempt to make this public.
This is very much an act of desperation. It’s driven by the Israeli lobby in the United States. The UN will be working with it and it is quite possible that the Obama administration will administer what we will say is some sort of perfunctory attack against Syria in a haphazard manner in order to silence critics and move on. It would be a shame if that were to happen. It would be duplicitous, cowardly and stupid. Frankly, it’s also likely.

..

There’s no room for the United States to be involved in any political solution. Assad is clearly winning the war. This act of desperation on the part of al-Qaeda working with representatives working high in the US government - Senator McCain, Senator Graham, Senator Rand Paul - who are working close with al-Nusra, al-Qaeda and with rogue elements within Israeli intelligence are totally responsible for these chemical attacks. We know it. The proof is being garnered and there is no responsible authority to send it to.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 26 Aug 2013 13:36

A must read. This man is one of the smartest diplomats and strategists in the game.

A Veteran Saudi Power Player Works To Build Support to Topple Assad

Article

Saudi Arabia's Prince Bandar bin Sultan al-Saud maneuvers behind the scenes to defeat the Syrian regime and its Iranian and Hezbollah allies.

Officials inside the Central Intelligence Agency knew that Saudi Arabia was serious about toppling Syrian President Bashar al-Assad when the Saudi king named Prince Bandar bin Sultan al-Saud to lead the effort.

They believed that Prince Bandar, a veteran of the diplomatic intrigues of Washington and the Arab world, could deliver what the CIA couldn't: planeloads of money and arms, and, as one U.S. diplomat put it, wasta, Arabic for under-the-table clout.

Prince Bandar—for two decades one of the most influential deal makers in Washington as Saudi ambassador but who had largely disappeared from public view—is now reprising his role as a geopolitical operator. This time it is to advance the Saudi kingdom's top foreign-policy goal, defeating Syrian President Assad and his Iranian and Hezbollah allies.

Prince Bandar has been jetting from covert command centers near the Syrian front lines to the Élysée Palace in Paris and the Kremlin in Moscow, seeking to undermine the Assad regime, according to Arab, American and European officials.

Meanwhile, an influential protégé, current Saudi Ambassador to Washington Adel al-Jubeir, is leading a parallel campaign to coax Congress and a reluctant Obama administration to expand the U.S. role in Syria.

The conflict there has become a proxy war for Middle East factions, and Saudi Arabia's efforts in Syria are just one sign of its broader effort to expand its regional influence. The Saudis also have been outspoken supporters of the Egyptian military in its drive to squelch the Muslim Brotherhood, backing that up with big chunks of cash.

The Saudi lobbying is part of the calculus as the U.S. weighs its options in the wake of a suspected chemical attack last week. Damascus suburbs allegedly targeted are at the heart of what the Saudis now call their "southern strategy" for strengthening rebels in towns east and south of the capital.

As part of that, intelligence agents from Saudi Arabia, the U.S., Jordan and other allied states are working at a secret joint operations center in Jordan to train and arm handpicked Syrian rebels, according to current and former U.S. and Middle Eastern officials.

The CIA has put unspecified limits on its arming efforts. But the agency has been helping train rebels to better fight. Earlier this year it also began making salary payments to members of the Western-backed Free Syrian Army, U.S. and Arab officials said. There are now more CIA personnel at the Jordan base than Saudi personnel, according to Arab diplomats.

[image]
Associated Press
Adel al-Jubeir, standing, with Saudi King Abdullah and President Obama.

Jordan denied any training or arming of Syrian rebels was taking place in the country, something Minister of State for Media Affairs Mohammad Momani said would be contrary to Jordan's national interest and policy "to remain neutral" on Syria.

"There are no military bases in Jordan for the Syrian opposition…There are no bases of any sort. This is inconsistent with the Jordanian position that calls for a political solution to the Syrian crisis," Mr. Momani said. He added that Jordanian King Abdullah has said firmly "Jordan will never be a base of training to anyone and will never be the launching base of any military action against Syria."

For decades, wasta has been Prince Bandar's calling card. The prince also wins U.S. officials' trust in part because his background is, in its own way, so American. Though his father was a Saudi crown prince, his mother was a commoner, and he rose through the crowded royal ranks by force of will.

He attended U.S. Air Force officer training in Alabama, did graduate studies at Johns Hopkins University and worked his way into the good graces of several U.S. presidents. He has painted his personal airplane in Dallas Cowboy colors, and his son attended the pro-football draft this year at the table of owner Jerry Jones. Prince Bandar declined to be interviewed for this article.

Not everyone in the Obama administration is comfortable with the new U.S. partnership with the Saudis on Syria. Some officials said they fear it carries the same risk of spinning out of control as an earlier project in which Prince Bandar was involved—the 1980s CIA program of secretly financing the Contras in Nicaragua against a leftist government. The covert program led to criminal convictions for U.S. operatives and international rebukes.

"This has the potential to go badly," one former official said, citing the risk weapons will end up in the hands of violent anti-Western Islamists.

Many top U.S. intelligence analysts also think the Syrian rebels are hopelessly outgunned by Assad allies Iran and Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite group, according to congressional officials and diplomats.

Prince Bandar and Mr. Jubeir have told the U.S. they don't necessarily expect a victory by the Syrian rebels anytime soon, but they want to gradually tilt the battlefield in their favor, according to American officials who have met with them.

The Saudi plan is to steadily strengthen carefully selected groups of rebel fighters not in the radical Islamist camp, with the goal of someday seeing them in control in Damascus. Difficult as such an effort is proving to be, the Saudi thinking goes, not trying would risk a future in which Syria was dominated either by extremist Muslims from among the rebels or by Iran, Riyadh's arch rival in the quest for regional dominance.

In Jordan, officials said they couldn't yet tell whether the joint operation has reaped success in sifting moderate Syrian rebels from the extremists. Some said they couldn't rule out the possibility some Saudi funds and arms were being funneled to radicals on the side, simply to counter the influence of rival Islamists backed by Qatar. U.S. officials said they couldn't rule out that mistakes would be made.

Saudi King Abdullah, whose mother and two of whose wives hail from a cross-border tribe influential in Syria, tried for a decade to woo Mr. Assad away from Iran's sway. He failed. The king's attitude hardened in 2011 after the Assad regime, rebuffing the king's personal advice on how to ease tension, cracked down brutally on political opponents and did so during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The king then decided to do whatever was needed to bring down Mr. Assad, American and Arab diplomats said.

Qatar also wanted the autocratic Assad regime out. While the Saudi princes initially were divided about how to proceed, some worrying that armed insurgents in Syria could later threaten Saudi stability, Qatar intervened quickly and gained influence with the rebels, according to Arab and American officials.

The Saudis stepped up rebel support in early 2012, at first by joining forces with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to fund what was then the main opposition group, the Syrian National Council. Saudi Arabia quickly soured on the effort because the Council wasn't buying arms with the money, diplomats said, and began to push for directly arming the insurgents. It also began to work with Qatar through a command center in Turkey to buy and distribute arms.

But tensions grew over which rebels to supply. Both Saudi and American officials worried Qatar and Turkey were directing weapons to the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood. Qatari and Turkish officials denied they favored certain rebel groups.

The Saudi king also was uncomfortable at sharing control with Qatar, a Persian Gulf rival. At a meeting to coordinate arms shipments last summer, Prince Bandar took a swipe at Qatar, a tiny nation with one of the region's largest broadcasters.

Qatar is "nothing but 300 people…and a TV channel," the Saudi prince yelled into a phone, according to a person familiar with the exchange. "That doesn't make a country." Saudi officials declined to comment on the exchange.

It marked the start of a new, more aggressive drive by Prince Bandar, and a Saudi shift to operate out of Jordan instead of Turkey. In July 2012, the Saudi king—his uncle—doubled the prince's duties; already head of the national-security office, Prince Bandar took over the Saudi General Intelligence Agency as well.

"His appointment to head intelligence marked a new phase in Saudi politics," said Nohad Machnouk, a Lebanese legislator with close ties to the Saudi leadership.

Some critics of Prince Bandar within the kingdom and in Washington described him as inclined to be impulsive and overoptimistic about what he can achieve. Defenders said his enthusiasm and drive were what made him the king's go-to problem solver.

The Saudi ambassador, Mr. Jubeir, has long been courting members of Congress who could pressure the administration to get more involved in Syria. He found early support from Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.

He also reached out to centrists, helping set up a rare one-on-one meeting for one of them, then-Sen. Ben Nelson (D., Neb.), with King Abdullah in Riyadh. Mr. Nelson said he told the king that if regional powers pulled together with a common strategy, it would be easier for the U.S. to become a partner.

Mr. Jubeir used his access to policy makers, including the president, to push the message that U.S. inaction would lead to greater Middle East instability down the road, American officials said.

A senior U.S. intelligence official called the Saudis "indispensable partners on Syria" and said their efforts influenced American thinking. "No one wants to do anything alone," the official said in explaining why the partnership expanded.

The Saudi goal was to get the U.S. to back a program to arm and train rebels out of a planned base in Jordan. Then-CIA chief David Petraeus was an early backer of the idea, said Arab and U.S. officials, and helped clinch Jordanian military support for the base. Gen. Petraeus declined to comment.

Prince Bandar met with the uneasy Jordanians about such a base. His meetings in Amman with Jordan's King Abdullah sometimes ran to eight hours in a single sitting. "The king would joke: 'Oh, Bandar's coming again? Let's clear two days for the meeting,' " said a person familiar with the meetings.

Jordan's financial dependence on Saudi Arabia gave the Saudis strong leverage, officials in the region and the U.S. said. They said that with the blessing of the Jordanian king, an operations center in Jordan started going online in the summer of 2012, including an airstrip and warehouses for arms. Saudi-procured AK-47s and ammunition then started arriving, Arab officials said.

Prince Bandar sent his younger half-brother and then-deputy national-security adviser, Salman bin Sultan, to oversee the operation in Jordan. Some regional officials took to calling him "mini-Bandar." Earlier this summer, Prince Salman was elevated to deputy defense minister.

Mr. Petraeus in mid-2012 won White House approval to provide intelligence and limited training to Syrian rebels at the base, including in the use of arms provided by others. Saudi and Jordanian agents began vetting the fighters to be trained, said Arab diplomats and a former U.S. military official.

Prince Bandar has largely stayed out of Washington but held meetings with U.S. officials in the region. One was in September 2012. Sens. McCain and Graham, who were in Istanbul, met him in an opulent hotel suite on the banks of the Bosporus.

Mr. McCain said he made the case to Prince Bandar that the rebels weren't getting the kinds of weapons they needed, and the prince, in turn, described the kingdom's plans. The senator said that in succeeding months he saw "a dramatic increase in Saudi involvement, hands-on, by Bandar."

In September and October, the Saudis approached Croatia to procure more Soviet-era weapons. The Saudis got started distributing these in December and soon saw momentum shift toward the rebels in some areas, said U.S. officials, Arab diplomats and U.S. lawmakers briefed on the operation. Officials in Croatia denied it was involved in weapons sales.

That winter, the Saudis also started trying to convince Western governments that Mr. Assad had crossed what President Barack Obama a year ago called a "red line": the use of chemical weapons. Arab diplomats say Saudi agents flew an injured Syrian to Britain, where tests showed sarin gas exposure. Prince Bandar's spy service, which concluded in February that Mr. Assad was using chemical weapons, relayed evidence to the U.S., which reached a similar conclusion four months later. The Assad regime denies using such weapons.

After Mr. Petraeus's November resignation over an affair, his job was handled by his deputy, Michael Morell, who privately voiced skepticism the agency could make sure any arms supplied by the U.S. wouldn't end up with hard-line Islamists, said congressional officials.

Ultimately, the new CIA chief was John Brennan, whose closest Saudi confidant when he was White House counterterrorism adviser was also focused on the risk of inadvertently strengthening al Qaeda. Since moving to the CIA, Mr. Brennan has been in periodic contact by phone with Prince Bandar, officials said.

Despite its caution, the CIA expanded its role at the base in Jordan early this year. At that point, though, the U.S. still wasn't sending weapons.

In early April, said U.S. officials, the Saudi king sent a strongly worded message to Mr. Obama: America's credibility was on the line if it let Mr. Assad and Iran prevail. The king warned of dire consequences of abdicating U.S. leadership and creating a vacuum, said U.S. officials briefed on the message.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal, who was the first Saudi official to publicly back arming the rebels, followed with a similar message during a meeting with Mr. Obama later that month, the officials said.

By late spring, U.S. intelligence agencies saw worrisome signs that Iran, Hezbollah and Russia, in response to the influx of Saudi arms, were ramping up support to Mr. Assad. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee backed arming the rebels, and Mr. Jubeir and Prince Bandar turned their attention to skeptics on the House and Senate intelligence committees.

They arranged a trip for committee leaders to Riyadh, where Prince Bandar laid out the Saudi strategy. It was a reunion of sorts, officials said, with Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D., Calif.) warmly scolding Prince Bandar about his smoking.

Mr. Obama in June authorized the CIA to provide arms at the Jordanian base, in limited quantity and firepower, on the understanding the U.S. could reverse course if there weren't sufficient controls on who got them, congressional officials said.

Prince Bandar flew to Paris soon after for talks with French officials. In July he was in Moscow to meet with one of Mr. Assad's prime supporters, President Vladimir Putin.

A generation ago, Prince Bandar, in a role foreshadowing his current one on behalf of Syrian opposition, helped the CIA arm the Afghan rebels who were resisting occupation by Soviet troops.

Arab diplomats said that in meeting with Russian officials this summer, the prince delivered the same message he gave the Soviets 25 years ago: that the kingdom had plenty of money and was committed to using it to prevail.

This past weekend, as the White House weighed possible military attacks against Mr. Assad, Saudi Arabia and its allies pressed Mr. Obama to take forceful action in response to the chemical-weapons reports, according to a U.S. official. The Arab message, according to another official, was: "You can't as president draw a line and then not respect it."

Mahendra · Post by **Mahendra** » 26 Aug 2013 13:50

Very smart terrorist bandar indeed

habal · Post by **habal** » 26 Aug 2013 14:44

must read, international bandar

A terrorist network, animated by Bandar bin Sultan, plans to destroy Lebanon

By Ghaleb Kandil

The plan of the head of Saudi intelligence, Bandar bin Sultan, to cause a general conflagration in Lebanon, is revealed. The commander of the Lebanese Army, General Jean Kahwaji and Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn, reported the existence of cells that project to put car bombs in all Lebanese regions. Facts have proved them right after the explosions in the southern suburbs of Beirut (27 dead and 330 wounded) and Tripoli (45 dead and over 600 injured). What happened in North Lebanon capital has shed light on the political and media entanglement of the terrorist network led by Bandar and his determination to plunge the country into a sectarian discord.
Most reactions after the bombings of Tripoli warned against discord. Senior political personalities of 8 and 14-March coalitions have expressed unequivocally support the Lebanese Army and security services in the fight against terrorist groups. They called to intensify their efforts to dismantle the networks that place car bombs.
At this stage, the investigation proved the existence of Takfirist cells responsible for firing rockets, explosions on the Beirut-Damascus road and in the Bekaa region, and car bombings. These extremist groups are funded by some Gulf countries and enjoy a political and security coverage provided by the Future Movement, under the pretext of mobilizing in support of Syrian rebels.
It is necessary to show that these cells, composed of nationals of the Gulf (especially Saudi), Syrians, Lebanese and Palestinians, working to cause sectarian conflagration in Lebanon. Continue to ensure their coverage from the Future Movement, will cause severe losses to Lebanon. Saad Hariri’s party must announce clearly and openly his withdrawal of coverage to these extremists and should not provide them with protection for sectarian considerations.
The attacks in Tripoli, however, revealed the existence of a strong coordination on political and media levels to complement the work of the terrorist network led by Bandar. MP’s like Khaked Daher and Mouïn Merhebi and sheikhs close to al-Qaeda, as Bilal Baroudi, Dai al-Islam al- Chahhal and Omar Fostok, commented on the car bombings in terms that could cause sectarian strife and bloodshed. They accused, sometimes directly, Shiites of being behind the attacks against two Sunni mosques in Tripoli.
Audiovisual media, which offered generous forums for these extremist individuals, are also responsible for the spread of sectarian and confessional speeches.
The Lebanese authorities are challenged to act and react according to the state logic. They must take immediate measures to put an end to this media chaos that curb sectarian speech and dismantle the networks funded and led by Bandar bin Sultan, threatening the unity and existence of Lebanon. It is not allowed that the Army, the Resistance and some wise persons remain alone on the battlefield to defend Lebanon.

Statements

Jean Kahwaji, Lebanese army chief
«The Lebanese army is fighting a total war against terrorism whose aim is to provoke sectarian strife. We are faced today with one of the biggest dangers, which Arab and Western countries are already confronting, and that is terrorism, which strikes out whenever it has the chance. I announce today that the army is engaged in a total war against terrorism. The military has been chasing for months a terrorist cell that prepares car bombs and sends them to residential neighborhoods. The gravity, according to our intelligence, lies in the fact that this cell is not targeting any one region or community in particular, but that it aims to provoke sectarian strife by targeting different regions.»

eklavya · Post by **eklavya** » 26 Aug 2013 16:59

shyamd wrote:A must read. This man is one of the smartest diplomats and strategists in the game.

No. He is a stupid fat corrupt ugly useless fool.

member_27444 · Post by **member_27444** » 26 Aug 2013 18:13

If MB succeeds in Egypt
If Hamas succeeds in West Bank
If Syria remains secular
As it is Iraq has a semblance of democracy limping
Iran has elections so democracy
Lebanon has its own democracy

In this scenario the KSA ruling elite days at numberd so
All this tamasha by bandar

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 26 Aug 2013 18:22

Steve Rosenberg ‏@BBCSteveR 18m
Lavrov: Russia is "not planning to go to war with anyone" over Syria

Sanku · Post by **Sanku** » 26 Aug 2013 18:30

Now why did he need to say that? Funny isnt it. No one was expecting them to go on a war with anyone over anyone at this point of time. Perhaps Russia also understands how to make the enemy pay a price without "going to war".

Just a random thought.

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 26 Aug 2013 18:36

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/a ... cal-attack

Syria: UN inspectors' vehicle hit by sniper fire
UN says team visiting site where alleged chemical weapon attack took place 'deliberately shot at' in Damascus

A vehicle belonging to a team of UN inspectors investigating the Syrian regime's alleged use of chemical weapons has been "deliberately shot at multiple times" by unidentified snipers in Damascus.

A spokesman for the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, said the shooting occurred in the buffer zone area between rebel and government-controlled territory. He said the team would return to the area after replacing the vehicle.

The team plans to visit the site in the suburbs of Damascus where an alleged chemical weapon attack occurred last week, reportedly killing hundreds.

The attack came shortly after Ban said there could be "no impunity" for the use of chemical weapons, saying the international community owed it to the families of the victims to take action in Syria.

Speaking in Seoul, Ban said UN inspectors should begin their investigation of the site of Wednesday's attack "in a matter of hours".

"Every hour counts. We cannot afford any more delays. We have all seen the horrifying images on our television screens and through social media. Clearly this was a major and terrible incident," he said. "We owe it to the families of the victims to act."

Britain and the US are inching towards a military attack against the regime of Bashar al-Assad after the UK foreign secretary, William Hague, said all other options have failed over the past year.

David Cameron is cutting short his holiday in Cornwall to deal with the crisis. The prime minister, who has held a series of telephone conversations with world leaders from Cornwall, will be back at work in Downing Street by Tuesday and will chair a meeting of the National Security Council on Wednesday.

Ban faces mounting challenges maintaining the credibility and authority of the UN over the Syria conflict, as Russia appears determined to withhold support for any punitive measures against the Assad regime, while the UK and US have both signalled that they are prepared to act without a UN mandate in the face of a Russian and Chinese veto.

However, Ban was outspoken over the necessity to act if his inspectors find evidence of chemical weapons use. "If proven, any use of chemical weapons by anyone under any circumstances is a serious violation of international law and an outrageous crime. We cannot allow impunity in what appears to be a grave crime against humanity," Ban said.

Under the terms of its mandate negotiated in the security council, the UN inspection team under Swedish scientist, Ake Sellstrom, can determine whether chemical agents have been used, not who has used them.

Hague, who insisted Britain shared a common position with the US and France, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We have tried those other methods – the diplomatic methods – and we will continue to try those. But they have failed so far."

The foreign secretary admitted that Britain effectively faced a stark choice – between inaction or a military strike – as UN weapons inspectors embarked on a visit to the area east of Damascus that was struck by a chemical weapons attack last week.

General Sir Nick Houghton, the chief of the defence staff, is to discuss military options with his US counterpart, General Martin Dempsey, and other allied military chiefs at a summit in the Jordanian capital Amman.

Russia and China are likely to veto any UN security council resolution authorising military action. But Hague said a military strike could still be legal under international law without the approval of the UN.

He told Today: "It is possible to take action based on great humanitarian need and humanitarian distress. It is possible to do that under many different scenarios. But anything we propose to do – the strong response we have talked about, whatever form that takes – will be subject to legal advice, must be in accordance international law."

The foreign secretary indicated that Britain's patience was wearing thin after all other forms of pressure on Syria had failed over the past year.

He said: "Of course we want the maximum pressure from world opinion, from diplomatic work, on the Syrian regime not to do these things again. It has to be pointed out that such pressure does not appear to have worked."

Hague dismissed Assad's claims that his regime was not responsible for the chemicals weapons attack. He said: "The Assad regime did this. The use of chemical weapons in the 21st century, on a large scale like this, cannot go unaddressed, cannot be ignored. Our position is the same as France and the US."

Hague's comments came after Assad denied using chemical weapons. He told the pro-Kremlin newspaper Izvestia: "Would any state use chemical or any other weapons of mass destruction in a place where its own forces are concentrated? That would go against elementary logic."

Assad added that military action would fail. In remarks reported by Reuters in Moscow, he said: "Failure awaits the United States as in all previous wars it has unleashed, starting with Vietnam and up to the present day".

PS:I think that Russia and China are waiting for the US/West to attack without UN sanctions so that a precedent is set for them to retaliate elsewhere.The nation which is going to be crushed in the nutcracker of conflict is poor Lebanon,whose territory will be a proxy battlefield. Bandar must also watch his backside.He has exposed himself and has made many enemies.

http://www.examiner.com/article/possibl ... task-force

Possible naval showdown: U.S. 6th Fleet vs. Russian Mediterranean Task Force

Timothy WhitemanWilmington Conservative Examiner
August 25, 2013

With the possibility of chemical weapons being used in the ongoing Syrian Civil War, the Obama Administration has upped the ante by ordering a fourth ballistic missile armed warship into the Eastern Mediterranean area, as reported by both the news portal IsraelHayom.com and the Associated Press via ABC News on Aug. 25, 2013.

The USS Mahan has joined her sister ships, the USS Gravely, the USS Barry and the USS Rampage, in the waters off Syria if Barack Obama orders a cruise missile strike against presumably the forces of Syrian President Bashar Hafez al-Assad due to accusations by Hezbollah, Muslim Brotherhood and al-Qaeda-allied rebels against Assad of allegedly using chemical weapons against 1,000 Syrian civilians.

For his part, Assad denies the accusations and blames the rebel forces of fabricating the claim in hopes of garnering Western military support.

To date, there has been no independent or objective verification if any chemical attack by either side has been launched and/or civilians have been killed or wounded.

The End Of U.S. Sovereignty?

Obama hedged his bets on direct deadly force against Assad when he stated last Friday that the United States of America can only act if given permission by the United Nations:

If the U.S. goes in and attacks another country without a U.N. mandate and without clear evidence that can be presented, then there are questions in terms of whether international law supports it — do we have the coalition to make it work?

Those are considerations that we have to take into account.

The Strange Relationship Between Barack Obama And Vladimir Putin…

The diplomatic workings between the two world leaders have been tenuous at best.

It's widely believed in diplomatic circles that it couldn't have been lost on the American leader that Assad's greatest ally on the world stage and greatest supplier of military equipment has been Putin's Russia.

Russian Build Up Greatest In Decades…

On May 16, 2013, the news portal Russia Today reported that Moscow is establishing a permanent and powerful naval presence in the Eastern Mediterranean for the first time since the days of the Soviet Union.

The group includes destroyer the RFS (Russian Federation Ship) Admiral Panteleyev, two amphibious warfare ships the RFS Peresvet and the RFS Admiral Nevelskoi, complete with approximately 2,000 Russian Marines, as well as a oil tanker and an ocean going tug.

Slated to join the Russian Mediterranean Squadron include an anti-submarine destroyer, a frigate and a yet a third amphibious assault ship.

The Russians have also made it clear they "possibly" may add both diesel and nuclear submarines to it's growing naval presence in the area.

For decades the sole Russian naval installation was the maintenance facility in the Syrian city of Tartus, which has since been quickly evacuated and all but shut-down.

But there has been increasing movement with the Russian Navy opening up shop in the Cyprus port city of Limassol as well as possibly headquartering a forward deployed air power component at the Cypriot Air Force base at the Andreas Papandreou Air Base at Paphos.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world ... 84440.html

Syria: Moscow warning as Obama weighs strike options
Any military action would have a devastating affect on an explosive situation, says Russia

President Obama just a few days ago made clear his preference for winning support for any military intervention from the UN Security Council first. That, however, would assume the backing of both Russia and China, which each have veto power. Hardly encouraging therefore was a statement issued by the Russian foreign ministry that sought to remind the US of events 10 years ago when it began its invasion of Iraq without a UN resolution.

“We once again decisively urge [the United States] not to repeat the mistakes of the past and not to allow actions that go against international law,” the statement said. “Any unilateral military action bypassing the United Nations will... lead to further escalation [in Syria] and will affect the already explosive situation in the Middle East in the most devastating way.”

abhik · Post by **abhik** » 26 Aug 2013 18:58

Dhananjay wrote:Everytime I visit this thread, I see a kind of sympathy for syria & assad. Wasn't syria providing porkis with squadrons of fighters against us in 65' and 71' wars?

Good if US goes and destroys syrian army, pounds their infra. Later it becomes another chaotic place like iraq etc. fanatics killed by more-fanaticals. What do we care? Another tsp supporter country disintegrating.

That's a rather simplistic view. The Arab countries(Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain essential sunni arab monarchies) that are going gun ho against Syria are the principle supporters of Pakistan TODAY. They are also funding the Jihads in India and harbouring our most wanted. Although we have cordial relationships with all of them, it is these countries that are more hostile to our interests than Syria, Iran etc. And the bigger point is the when two of your enemies are fighting, you always support the weaker one. IMO destabilising these oil rich Arab countries should be one of our top priorities.

member_27444 · Post by **member_27444** » 26 Aug 2013 19:12

It is not sympathy
It's intl law that us being thrown to fustbin

habal · Post by **habal** » 26 Aug 2013 19:19

most importantly in '65 and '71 there were no Wahabbis. All this bad blood had not solidified then.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 26 Aug 2013 19:36

Germany says it will join coalition against Syrian regime forces - pretty interesting considering their position on libya.

------------------
Syrian Deputy Minister of Info Khalaf Al Muftah says Israel will be first victim if anyone "dare" attack Assad.
---------------
Journalists quoting diplomatic sources after the meeting with Joint Chief of Staff meeting in Amman:
COALITION WILL UNLEASH CAMPAIGN AGAINST ASAD REGIME BETWEEN EARLY FRIDAY AND MONDAY.

30 countries will be part of coalition - 3 will are taking combat role - UK, France and the US. 2 logistics - Turkey and Jordan

Admins - is there a new thread that can be created?

Surya · Post by **Surya** » 26 Aug 2013 20:30

so all the Turkish red lines and GCC super duper special forces (for last 2 years) not withstanding - its the khan that gets dragged in.
witness the excitement

Cannot wait for the unintended consequences of this ##%#%# khujli.

Lilo · Post by **Lilo** » 26 Aug 2013 20:50

So apparently West doesnt mind if their intervention ultimately precipitates use of chemical weapons on a massive scale - which is what Assad will be forced to do in his last stand knowing the fate which befell Gaddafi .

Syria which could have been stabilized through UN mandated talks or some thing will now be thoroughly ravaged by a brutal Invasion by the West.

This is what confidence that they cant be held accountable allows to those possessing undeserving power.

member_20317 · Post by **member_20317** » 26 Aug 2013 21:13

New thread for what. For LOLs?

eklavya · Post by **eklavya** » 26 Aug 2013 21:24

All the talk is of a one-off missile strike launched by naval vessels in the Mediterranean. If Assad has indeed used chemical weapons on civilians, this is remarkably light punishment.

member_20317 · Post by **member_20317** » 26 Aug 2013 21:30

Why, do want to kill him twice over?

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 26 Aug 2013 21:35

eklavya wrote:All the talk is of a one-off missile strike launched by naval vessels in the Mediterranean. If Assad has indeed used chemical weapons on civilians, this is remarkably light punishment.

They don't want to tilt the balance, as Asad getting taken out isn't gonna resolve the conflict (Obama's words not mine). This is likely not regime decapitation - it is to ensure CW don't fall in wrong hands and Asad doesn't use it again. Asad will take a few punches to the face just for political show - yeah we punished him - unlikely they'll take him out.

--------------------------

My sources are telling me: RAF have asked their AWACS aircraft to be ready for immediate deployment

D Cameron on phone with Putin at the moment. Rus media reporting Putin walked out of meeting to attend call.

abhik · Post by **abhik** » 26 Aug 2013 22:15

ravi_g wrote:Why, do want to kill him twice over?

Multi threaded is faster than single thread, no?

All this talk of Ameriks, UK attacking again shows that the GCC militaries and their toys are just for parades and paying back the west for their support.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 26 Aug 2013 22:19

High level IDF and Israeli Nat sec team just arrived in Washington DC for coordination talks with US NSC, Pentagon and state dept.

Military intel wallah, IDF planners part of the team. This preparing for fall out of the strikes and preparing for various scenarios. IDF will not be part of operations. Intel assessments of retaiation against israel is low.

-----------------------
I recall many challenged me (one just a few days ago) when I said Russia is weak and can't do much if US enters the fray - See for yourselves from the horses mouth:

As world prepares to act on Syria, Russia scrambles to apply brake

Russia urged Western officials to wait for the facts about last week's chemical weapons attack in Syria, but made clear it would not defend the regime with force.

Russia feels blindsided by what it perceives as a senseless Western rush to take military action against Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told an "emergency" press conference in Moscow today.

Officials should not act before the facts about last week's alleged nerve gas attack near Damascus have been verified, he said, warning that if Western "hysteria" leads to military intervention, it will produce wider destabilization in the Middle East, and intensify the bloodshed in Syria.

Lavrov made clear, as he has in the past, that Russia has neither the capability nor the desire to take any direct action to help Mr. Assad, even if the Kremlin does sincerely doubt that the Syrian regime is responsible for the attack.

But the foreign minister did suggest that there could be dire consequences for the already-troubled US-Russia relationship.

"We have no plans to go to war [over this], but we hope that others will think carefully about their own long-term interests," he said.

Although Lavrov said nothing new, there was a discernibly fresh tone of diplomatic desperation that suggests Moscow has lost hope that a US-led military intervention in Syria can be forestalled, and is now preparing for a changed world in which there will no longer be even a semblance of US-Russian cooperation on Middle Eastern issues like the jointly brokered Geneva peace conference to bring together both sides in the Syrian conflict.

On Monday the Moscow air was thick with suspicion and recrimination, topped off with passionate warnings that the West may ignore lessons of recent history at its peril.

"The message is that if the US launches a military intervention into Syria's civil war, Russia will be as negative as possible," says Fyodor Lukyanov, editor of Russia in Global Affairs, a leading Moscow-based foreign policy journal. "Russia won't try to stop it, but will do nothing to help legitimize it," he says.

That differs from previous episodes, such as the 1999 Kosovo war, which is now being cited as a possible precedent for US action against Syria. Russia opposed the 78-day war against its ally Serbia, but eventually played a key diplomatic role in convincing Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic to capitulate.

It also suggests the West will face a very different Moscow than it did during NATO's intervention in Libya two years ago, where Russia abstained on a United Nations Security Council resolution authorizing the use of force to protect civilian lives.

"There is a general perception here that any Western-led action in Syria will turn into another long-running mess, and there will be no turning to Moscow for diplomatic help in solving it this time," says Mr. Lukyanov.

"Indeed, this might have the effect of drawing Russia closer to Iran. Moscow may find ways, through different channels, to support Iran, knowing that Iran will never stop helping Assad," he adds.

Lavrov argued that the growing conviction in the US that Assad is guilty of using chemical weapons is regarded in Moscow as a rush-to-judgement that smacks of the same sort of folly that led to disastrous US-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in the past decade, and the more recent NATO intervention in Libya.

"Look at what's happening in Libya today. The central government does not control vast areas of the country, while the militants have taken their weapons and spread unrest around the region, to places such as Mali, where they have fortunately been rebuffed," Lavrov said.

"Look what's happening in Iraq. Hundreds are killed every day by terrorist attacks. Nothing has been solved there," he said.

Lavrov added that he told US counterpart John Kerry in a telephone conversation yesterday that Moscow continues to see no alternative to the Geneva-2 peace conference being prepared by the US and Russia – which would bring representatives of the Assad regime and the rebels face-to-face to hammer out a settlement – and reiterated his belief that the fresh reports of nerve gas use in Syria might be a "prepared provocation" aimed at derailing the planned negotiations.

"Official Washington, London and Paris say they have incontrovertible evidence that the Syrian government is behind the chemical attack in Damascus, but they have not yet presented this evidence. Yet, they keep saying that the ‘red line’ has been crossed," Lavrov said.

"It only works to undermine the Geneva peace process. Now, although there is no proof at all [of Assad's guilt], we see this powerful force being assembled near Syria's borders. They [the West] are readying their ships and planes for an attack…. This is a huge mistake. It will not lead to peace but just to an increase in bloodshed," he said.

Lavrov added that if the US chooses to go to war without an enabling resolution from the UN Security Council – as it did in Kosovo and Iraq – it will be an illegal action that can only stoke the forces of anarchy that are already tearing the Middle East apart.

"To us, it looks as though [George W.] Bush, [Dick] Cheney and [Donald] Rumsfeld never left the White House," says Alexei Pushkov, chair of the State Duma's international affairs committee.

"It's basically the same policy, as if US leaders had learned nothing and forgotten nothing in the past decade. They want to topple foreign leaders they regard as adversaries, without even making the most basic calculations of the consequences. An intervention in Syria will only enlarge the area of instability in the Middle East and expand the scope of terrorist activity. I am at a complete loss to understand what the US thinks it is doing," he says.

---------------
Kerry about to speak - speculation that Kerry will give Asad 48 hours to leave or face mil action

member_27444 · Post by **member_27444** » 27 Aug 2013 01:48

At last something big is happening now
after this happening
eeryday something big will happen in Syria Lebonon Iraq and finally in Iran

Russia is a spent force no matter Putin rides bare chested on a Horse but no Horse power behind Russian essertions.

Chalo time for Mithai

abhishek_sharma · Post by **abhishek_sharma** » 27 Aug 2013 03:04

On the Destruction of Egyptian Revolution

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 27 Aug 2013 04:23

http://www.theguardian.com/uk
US signals intent to take action against Assad regime John Kerry

John Kerry says it is 'undeniable' that government was behind 'obscene' chemical weapon attack .

But will an attack by the US also be another "obscene" attack that send international protocols on waging war into the dustbin? Those gleeful pro-US apologists should think carefully as such a precedent could one day similarly be used against an Indian govt.,calling it a "right-wing fundamentalist" entity,"persecuting the minorities",threatening "poor Pakistan",indulging in "genocide in Kashmir","torturing Tamils",,blah,blah! There will be any number of Indian "freedom fighters","rebels",who will be willing to take up the cause of "liberating" India and re-establishing "democracy and secularism". We already have them waging war against the Indian state,they're called Naxalites of Maoists,bum-chums of celebrated authors,hailed by the West as the conscience of India like one A.Roy. Just watch how a "chem attack" in J&K supposedly by Indian forces but actually perpetrated by the Pakis will see India roundly condemned by global vested interests.The neo-colonialists and their quislings like Jai Chands and according to some,Nehru too,will have already drawn up their wish lists and reward schemes.More's the pity.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 27 Aug 2013 05:58

Syrian Kurdish leader says Assad not to blame for attack

BERLIN (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would not be "so stupid" as to use chemical weapons close to Damascus, the leader of the country's largest Kurdish group said.

Saleh Muslim, head of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), said he doubted the Syrian president would resort to using such weapons when he felt he had the upper hand in the country's civil war.

He suggested last Wednesday's attack, which the opposition says was carried out by government forces and killed hundreds of people, was aimed at framing Assad and provoking an international reaction. Assad has denied his forces used chemical weapons.

"The regime in Syria ... has chemical weapons, but they wouldn't use them around Damascus, 5 km from the (U.N.) committee which is investigating chemical weapons. Of course they are not so stupid as to do so," Muslim told Reuters.

At the time of the incident, U.N. experts were already in Syria to investigate three previous alleged chemical attacks dating from months ago.

Muslim's PYD, which has well-armed and effective militias, has clashed with Assad's forces as well as rebels, but has allowed both to move through its territories during the war.

Some rebels and rival Kurdish groups accuse it of having been close to the state, a position Muslim disputes. He said Kurdish areas the PYD controlled were under attack from al Qaeda-linked rebels.

Muslim suggested "some other sides who want to blame the Syrian regime, who want to show them as guilty and then see action" lay behind the chemical attack, which has led to speculation that Western countries will order a military response.

He said that if the U.N. inspectors found evidence Assad was not behind the gassing and the rebels were, "everybody would forget it"."Who is the side who would be punished? Are they are going to punish the Emir of Qatar or the King of Saudi Arabia, or Mr. Erdogan of Turkey?" Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia have all strongly condemned Assad and backed the rebels.

Kurdish militias have sought to consolidate their grip in northern Syria after exploiting the chaos of the civil war over the past year by seizing control of districts as Assad's forces focused elsewhere.

The PYD said in July it aimed to set up a transitional council and their emerging self-rule is starting to echo the autonomy of Kurds in neighboring northern Iraq.

Muslim said he reassured officials during talks last month with Turkey's intelligence agency that the council was not a move to divide Syria - which would alarm Ankara, which is wary of deepening sectarian violence on its border.

Nonetheless, it highlights Syria's slow fragmentation into a Kurdish northeast, mainly government-held areas around Damascus, Homs and the Mediterranean, and a rebel swathe leading from Aleppo along the Euphrates Valley to Iraq.