State-Sponsored Terrorism

Nobel laureates urge end to Syria hospital attacks

"'Systematic assaults on medical professionals, facilities and patients are breaking Syria’s health-care system and making it nearly impossible for civilians to receive essential medical services,' they said in an open letter. The letter described the attacks as 'deliberate and systematic…. (and) an unconscionable betrayal of the principle of medical neutrality.' 'We call on the Syrian government and all armed parties to refrain from attacking hospitals, ambulances, medical facilities and supplies, health professionals and patients; allow access to treatment for any patient; and hold perpetrators of such violations accountable according to internationally recognised legal standards,' it said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNobel laureates urge end to Syria hospital attacks

Arming Terrorists and Disarming Americans

"The Obama administration’s plan to provide small arms to the Syrian Rebels was approved by Congress. Good luck finding the transcripts of these committee meetings though… they were classified. When asked about the Senate Intelligence Committee’s vote to arm the rebels, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), the committee chair, responded 'It’s classified.' (Which is a polite way of saying ‘it’s none of your business’) That’s right. Dianne Feinstein — the author of the 'Assault Weapons' Ban – doesn’t believe that the American people have a right to know who the government is giving small arms to. That oversight requirement apparently only should apply to American citizens." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingArming Terrorists and Disarming Americans

Report: Half of Syrian rebels are hardline jihadists or Al-Qaeda operatives

"Of the rebel forces, IHS Jane’s estimates that around 10,000 are jihadists fighting for groups linked to Al-Qaeda and another 30,000 to 35,000 are hardline Islamists, who differ from jihadists in that they are concentrated only on the Syrian conflict, and not on the global Islamist fight. 'The insurgency is now dominated by groups which have at least an Islamist viewpoint on the conflict,' Charles Lister, author of the analysis, told the British newspaper. 'The idea that it is mostly secular groups leading the opposition is just not borne out. [..] If the West looks as though it is not interested in removing Assad, moderate Islamists are also likely to be pushed further towards extremists,' he warned." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingReport: Half of Syrian rebels are hardline jihadists or Al-Qaeda operatives

Syria rebel chief rejects U.S.-Russia chemical weapons deal

"Syria’s rebel Free Syrian Army chief rejected Saturday a US-Russian deal to eliminate Syria’s chemical weapons by mid-2014. 'We cannot accept any part of this initiative,' General Selim Idriss told reporters in Istanbul. He preceded that by saying: 'We in the Free Syrian Army are unconcerned by the implementation of any part of the initiative… I and my brothers in arms will continue to fight until the regime falls.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSyria rebel chief rejects U.S.-Russia chemical weapons deal

Recruited by Al-Qaeda: Foreign fighters in a Damascus jail tell their stories

"Raouchan Gazakov brought his family to Syria, taught his 5-year-old son to make bombs and bade farewell to his relative, a suicide bomber. RT’s Maria Finoshina talked to him in a Damascus prison and asked him why he came to fight for Al-Qaeda. In the Damascus prison, there are many stories of men recruited from faraway lands to come fight for jihad in Syria. In January, a leaked memo provided an inside look at how Saudi officials commuted the sentences of 1,200 death row inmates on the condition they join the rebels and fight against Assad in Syria, the Assyrian International News Agency reported." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRecruited by Al-Qaeda: Foreign fighters in a Damascus jail tell their stories

Syrian President Bashar al Assad Charlie Rose Interview (full)

"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 (full)

UN finds Syria war crimes ‘on both sides’

"It was clear that 'the majority of casualties result from unlawful attacks using conventional weapons,' the Commission of Inquiry on Syria said in a statement. Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad's regime 'have continued to conduct widespread attacks on the civilian population, committing murder, torture, rape and enforced disappearance as crimes against humanity,' according to the report, which covers the period from May 15th to July 15th. It also charged that anti-government groups had 'committed war crimes,' including murder, torture and hostage-taking. The report does not address the period which includes the August 21st suspected chemical attack." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUN finds Syria war crimes ‘on both sides’

Syrian jihadist rebels attack, kill 12 Alawite civilians

"Twelve civilians from Syria’s Alawite minority, to which President Bashar al-Assad belongs, have been killed by jihadist fighters in the central province of Homs, a Syrian NGO said Wednesday. Fighters from the Al-Nusra Front and another rebel group attacked three Alawite villages near the city of Homs Tuesday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The rebels entered the village of Maksar al-Hissan and 'shot 12 Alawites to death before leaving the area.' Troops retook the village on Tuesday night, after clashes in which they lost two men and killed several members of Al-Nusra, he added." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSyrian jihadist rebels attack, kill 12 Alawite civilians

O’Donnell: Napalm is America’s ‘cheapest weapon of mass destruction’

"He begins with its invention at Harvard in 1942 and documenting its usage in World War II and Vietnam, before moving on to the more significant issue: the 'inhumane' ways in which napalm can kill. 'Napalm attaches to human flesh in a way that’s impossible to remove,' he said. But 'it kills in other ways too. You can be untouched by [a 100 pound napalm bomb] and be killed by a heat stroke. You can be killed by suffocation. You can be killed by breathing in carbon monoxide poisoning. You can be killed by dehydration.' 'Napalm was an ‘instant hit’ in World War II,' he continued. 'It was our cheapest weapon of mass destruction. Each bomb was made of plastic, held 100 gallons of napalm and cost $40.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingO’Donnell: Napalm is America’s ‘cheapest weapon of mass destruction’

Spare us the hypocrisy over chemical weapons, America.

"Napalm is 'a mixture of naphthenic and aliphatic carboxylic acid'. I don’t know about you, but 'a mixture of naphthenic and aliphatic carboxylic acid' sounds awfully 'chemical' to me, and yet this weapon has been liberally used by the US army to incinerate soldiers (and luckless civilians) in many recent wars, including Gulf War 1. So maybe the 'global red line against chemical weapons' has a strange footnote which exempts chemical weapons that are devised in America? That makes sense, because the greatest anomaly, when it comes to Kerry’s global red line, is Agent Orange." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSpare us the hypocrisy over chemical weapons, America.