Posts
US planes begin bombing ISIS in Syria from bases in Turkey
Six
F-16 strike fighters were deployed to Incirlik Airbase near Adana in
southeastern Turkey earlier this week. The US forces stationed there
have already been conducting drone operations against Islamic State
(IS, also known as ISIS/ISIL), but Wednesday’s strikes were the
first manned missions staged from Turkey under an
arrangement reached with
the government of President Erdogan in July.
“The
United States and Turkey, as members of the 60-plus nation coalition,
are committed to the fight against ISIL in the pursuit of peace and
stability in the region,” said
a statement from the US mission to NATO announcing the
fighters’ deployment on August 9.
US training of Syrian rebels falters as Kurds prove combat superiority – reporthttp://t.co/IF9FM4WjqRpic.twitter.com/cej51SBIDi
— RT America (@RT_America) August 12, 2015
No
Turkish fighter jets were involved in the strikes, security sources
told Reuters. Ankara has been reluctant to take part in the campaign
against Islamic State militants, citing “fears
of backlash.”
Western
critics have slammed Ankara’s stance, considering that Turkish
planes are currently flying bombing sorties against the Kurdish
militias based in Syria and Iraq, but not against IS militants on the
same territory. Ankara considers the Kurds to be a threat to Turkey’s
integrity, labeling them as terrorists. However, they have been the
only ground force in the region to have any success fighting Islamic
State.
Covering rebel offensive on Assad?
Meanwhile
in Damascus, at least five people have been killed and dozens wounded
in the latest shelling by rebel militants. Noting that this is the
second such incident in less than a week since 9 people died in a
similar attack on Sunday, RT’s Middle East correspondent Paula
Slier reports that the timing of the latest attacks coincides with a
US promise of air cover for the so-called “moderate” rebels
it is training and supporting.
Damascus shelled with mortars, rockets, 5 civilians dead, 55 injured – reportshttp://t.co/wzh5S3t6Ljpic.twitter.com/FzSGbRkjbJ
— RT (@RT_com) August 12, 2015
For
the first time in months, the Syrian government admitted Tuesday that
its troops were on the defensive and retreating from various parts of
the country, Slier noted, adding that the rebels had not shown this
kind of offensive capability since at least June.
The
developments come amid a new wave of statements by US officials
pinning all the blame for the situation in Syria on President Bashar
Assad.
US Secretary of State John Kerry said during an August 3 briefing that “we believe that Assad regime long ago lost legitimacy,” while the State Department issued a statement claiming that “the Assad regime frankly is the root of all evil here … and has been instrumental in creating the kind of lawless area to the north where ISIL has been able to get purchase and extend its roots.”
READ MORE: Ousting Assad militarily would enable ISIS to seize Syria – Lavrov
But while the US-supported rebels aim to topple Assad, the reality today is that the only force that would replace the Syrian government in such an event is Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pointed out on Tuesday after talks with his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir.“I would not want any powerful state involved in attempts to solve the Syrian crisis to believe that Assad issue may be solved militarily, because the only way of such a military solution is the seizure of power [in Syria] by Islamic State and other terrorists,” Lavrov said, adding: “I don’t think anybody wants that.”
Despite the Assad government’s seemingly calm reaction for now, people in the Syrian capital are becoming increasingly concerned over the launch of US airstrikes from a Turkish air base. Local journalist Alaa Ibrahim told RT that US warplanes are authorized to target anyone threatening Pentagon-trained rebels, including Syrian state troops.
US Secretary of State John Kerry said during an August 3 briefing that “we believe that Assad regime long ago lost legitimacy,” while the State Department issued a statement claiming that “the Assad regime frankly is the root of all evil here … and has been instrumental in creating the kind of lawless area to the north where ISIL has been able to get purchase and extend its roots.”
READ MORE: Ousting Assad militarily would enable ISIS to seize Syria – Lavrov
But while the US-supported rebels aim to topple Assad, the reality today is that the only force that would replace the Syrian government in such an event is Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pointed out on Tuesday after talks with his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir.“I would not want any powerful state involved in attempts to solve the Syrian crisis to believe that Assad issue may be solved militarily, because the only way of such a military solution is the seizure of power [in Syria] by Islamic State and other terrorists,” Lavrov said, adding: “I don’t think anybody wants that.”
Despite the Assad government’s seemingly calm reaction for now, people in the Syrian capital are becoming increasingly concerned over the launch of US airstrikes from a Turkish air base. Local journalist Alaa Ibrahim told RT that US warplanes are authorized to target anyone threatening Pentagon-trained rebels, including Syrian state troops.
‘Moderate’ rebel training fail
The
latest reports suggest that US plans to recruit and train purportedly
moderate Syrian rebels are failing. Anonymous officials talking to
the Daily Beast described the program as a “disaster.” While
sharing their frustration with the results, they also admitted that
the Kurdish militia known as the YPG has actually proven to be “the
most effective fighting force in Syria” opposing
Islamic State –superior to the rebels the Pentagon has been
training by far.
READ MORE: ‘Complete disaster:’ US training of Syrian rebels falters as Kurds prove combat superiority – report
The problem is reportedly the failure of the US to find enough suitable rebel candidates to form a sufficient New Syrian Force. Congress has already set aside $500 million to build this “moderate Syrian opposition,” but the US has only been able to train 54 individuals in total so far – a far cry from the 15,000-strong force it initially wanted.
According to Ibrahim, the very notion of a ‘moderate rebel force’ is “out of context” given the situation on the ground in Syria, where Islamist groups have proven to be far better at attracting rebel fighters.“The factions with an Islamist ideology are the factions capable of recruiting… of having better organizational and combat skills, and as a result, they will attract the new fighters and they’ll be able to gather more fighters with them. And no matter how much you train fighters abroad and send them in… they will eventually join these factions,” the Syrian journalist explained.
READ MORE: ‘Complete disaster:’ US training of Syrian rebels falters as Kurds prove combat superiority – report
The problem is reportedly the failure of the US to find enough suitable rebel candidates to form a sufficient New Syrian Force. Congress has already set aside $500 million to build this “moderate Syrian opposition,” but the US has only been able to train 54 individuals in total so far – a far cry from the 15,000-strong force it initially wanted.
According to Ibrahim, the very notion of a ‘moderate rebel force’ is “out of context” given the situation on the ground in Syria, where Islamist groups have proven to be far better at attracting rebel fighters.“The factions with an Islamist ideology are the factions capable of recruiting… of having better organizational and combat skills, and as a result, they will attract the new fighters and they’ll be able to gather more fighters with them. And no matter how much you train fighters abroad and send them in… they will eventually join these factions,” the Syrian journalist explained.
So who helped IS rise?
The
US’ commitment to fighting Islamic State has come into question
after recent revelations that Washington chose not to interfere with
the rise of anti-government jihadist groups in Syria that eventually
ended up turning into IS fighters.
The former head of America’s Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), retired Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, made the claims during an interview given to Al Jazeera’s Mehdi Hasan. He cited a secret 2012 memo, which predicted the rise of extremist groups and the threat of a “Salafist principality” forming in eastern Syria, to support his statement.
The former head of America’s Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), retired Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, made the claims during an interview given to Al Jazeera’s Mehdi Hasan. He cited a secret 2012 memo, which predicted the rise of extremist groups and the threat of a “Salafist principality” forming in eastern Syria, to support his statement.
US ex-intelligence chief on #ISIS rise: It was 'a willful Washington decision'http://t.co/T6vYllaUmJpic.twitter.com/L6VCTMK0xC
— RT America (@RT_America) August 10, 2015
The
DIA report stated “the
Salafist, the Muslim Brotherhood, and AQI [Al-Qaeda in Iraq] are the
major forces driving the insurgency in Syria” supported
by “the
West, Gulf countries and Turkey.”
Flynn argued that the US government intentionally ignored his agency’s warnings. “I think it was a decision. I think it was a willful decision,” he said.
Flynn argued that the US government intentionally ignored his agency’s warnings. “I think it was a decision. I think it was a willful decision,” he said.
Meanwhile
State Department spokesperson John Kirby told RT’s Gayane
Chichakyan that they consider the “Assad regime’s lack of
legitimacy to govern effectively its own people and its own
territory” responsible for the rise of IS. Kirby refused to comment
on Flynn’s claims.
Washington Bureau Chief for Al-Quds, Said Arikat, told RT that Washington’s approach to Syria, which exclusively presents Syria’s president as a leader who has ‘lost’ legitimacy, only serves to further destabilize the situation.“To continue to adhere to the stubborn line that Assad has lost his legitimacy is basically agitating for more of these groups to emerge. Today we have ISIS, tomorrow we might have something else,” Arikat said.
Washington Bureau Chief for Al-Quds, Said Arikat, told RT that Washington’s approach to Syria, which exclusively presents Syria’s president as a leader who has ‘lost’ legitimacy, only serves to further destabilize the situation.“To continue to adhere to the stubborn line that Assad has lost his legitimacy is basically agitating for more of these groups to emerge. Today we have ISIS, tomorrow we might have something else,” Arikat said.
Lavrov: Ousting Assad militarily equals ISIS taking over Syria
State Dept denies US, Turkey reached agreement on ‘safe zones’ in north Syria
US
Attack On Syria Violates International Law
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.