Middle East

Mother Agnes Mariam: ‘Footage of Syria Chemical Attack is a Fraud’

"Mother Agnes Mariam el-Salib, mother superior of St. James Monastery in Qara, Syria, told RT today that she has evidence that the video footage currently being shopped around by Sen. Feinstein and the Obama administration as proof that the Syrian president used gas on his own people is a fraud. Part of the problem with the videos is that they were all taken nearly at the same time as the alleged attack itself. How to gather all the bodies in one place and begin videotaping in some cases before the attack had even taken place?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMother Agnes Mariam: ‘Footage of Syria Chemical Attack is a Fraud’

Obama: Our ideals and principles, national security at stake in Syria

"Obama repeated his pledge that a prospective U.S. attack on his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad’s forces would not draw American troops into a ground-based conflict. 'The United States military doesn’t do pinpricks,' Obama said. 'Even a limited strike will send a message to Assad that no other nation can deliver.' 'To my friends on the right, I ask you to reconcile your commitment to America’s military might with a failure to act when a cause is so plainly just,' Obama urged. 'To my friends on the left, I ask you to reconcile your belief in freedom and dignity for all people with those images of children writhing in pain and going still on a cold hospital floor.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama: Our ideals and principles, national security at stake in Syria

Syria tentatively accepts surrender of alleged chemical weapons arsenal

"Obama warned Monday he had not taken military strikes off the table but, in agreeing to consider the Russian initiative, he effectively pushed back the timetable for possible action. 'I think what we’re seeing is that a credible threat of a military strike from the United States, supported potentially by a number of other countries around the world, has given them pause and makes them consider whether or not they would make this move,' he told NBC television. 'And if they do, then this could potentially be a significant breakthrough. But we have to be skeptical because this is not how we’ve seen them operate over the last couple of years.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSyria tentatively accepts surrender of alleged chemical weapons arsenal

Russia urges Syria hand over chemical weapons to int’l control

"Russia has urged Syria to put its chemical weapons under international control for subsequent destruction to avert a possible military strike. The Foreign Minister’s statement comes shortly after US Secretary of State John Kerry’s comment that the Syrian President 'could turn over every single bit of his chemical weapons to the international community' to avoid a military strike on the country. 'Sure, he could turn over every single bit of his chemical weapons to the international community in the next week - turn it over, all of it without delay and allow the full and total accounting [of it[, but he isn't about to do it and it can't be done,' Kerry said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRussia urges Syria hand over chemical weapons to int’l control

Assad did not order Syria chemical weapons attack, says German press

"President Bashar al-Assad did not personally order last month's chemical weapons attack near Damascus that has triggered calls for US military intervention, and blocked numerous requests from his military commanders to use chemical weapons against regime opponents in recent months, a German newspaper has reported, citing unidentified, high-level national security sources. The intelligence findings were based on phone calls intercepted by a German surveillance ship operated by the BND, the German intelligence service, and deployed off the Syrian coast, Bild am Sonntag said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAssad did not order Syria chemical weapons attack, says German press

Patrick Buchanan: America Says ‘No!’ to a Beltway War

"How many Syrians should we kill to restore the credibility of Barack Obama? How many Syrians should we kill to impress upon Iran how resolute we are? How many Syrians should we kill to reassure nervous allies that Uncle Sam will forever come fight their wars for them? In America, before we put a man to death, we prove him guilty of murder 'beyond a reasonable doubt.' Should we not set as high a standard of proof before we kill a thousand Syrians and plunge the United States into another war?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPatrick Buchanan: America Says ‘No!’ to a Beltway War

How To Lose a War Before Even Starting It

"Events in Syria are of marginal importance to us, and on the edge of our ability to influence. Since the civil war in Syria is a major focus of the world-wide, longstanding struggle between Islam’s Sunni and Shia factions, what will happen there will be determined by Syrians and their neighbors regardless of what the US government does or does not do. The Syrian civil war’s importance to us, however, may well be that it is reminding us of how we should deal with matters of war and peace, namely: concretely, logically, un-emotionally, jealously matching the ends we seek with the means we are willing to use. American statesmen have not done that consistently for a century." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHow To Lose a War Before Even Starting It

Syrian President Bashar al Assad – Charlie Rose Interview 9/9/2013

"PBS' Charlie Rose interviews Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Monday, September 9, at 9 p.m. in a special presentation of CHARLIE ROSE. In this global television exclusive, Assad gives his only television interview since President Barack Obama asked Congress to approve the use of force against the Syrian regime for alleged use of chemical weapons against the Syrian people." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSyrian President Bashar al Assad – Charlie Rose Interview 9/9/2013