Posts
US
Says Assad Has Approved Gas Attack In Idlib, Setting Stage For Major
Military Conflict
9
September, 2018
At
this point there's not even so much as feigning surprise or suspense
in the now sadly all-too-familiar Syria script out of Washington.
The Wall
Street Journal has
just published a bombshell on Sunday evening as Russian and Syrian
warplanes continue bombing raids over al-Qaeda held Idlib,
citing unnamed
US officials who claim "President
Bashar al-Assad of Syria has approved the use of chlorine gas in an
offensive against the country’s last major rebel stronghold."
And perhaps more alarming
is that the report details that Trump
is undecided over whether new retaliatory strikes could
entail expanding the attack to hit Assad allies Russia and
Iran this
time around.
That's
right, unnamed US officials are now claiming to be in possession of
intelligence which they say shows Assad
has already given the order in
an absolutely unprecedented
level of "pre-crime" telegraphing of events on the
battlefield.
And supposedly these
officials have even
identified the type of chemical weapon to be used: chlorine
gas.
The anonymous officials
told the WSJ of "new
U.S. intelligence" in what appears an eerily familiar repeat of
precisely how the 2003 invasion of Iraq was sold to the American
public (namely,
"anonymous officials" and vague assurances of unseen
intelligence) — albeit
posturing over Idlib is now unfolding at an
intensely more rapid pace:
Fears of a massacre have been fueled by new U.S. intelligence indicating Mr. Assad has cleared the way for the military to use chlorine gas in any offensive, U.S. officials said. It wasn’t clear from the latest intelligence if Mr. Assad also had given the military permission to use sarin gas, the deadly nerve agent used several times in previous regime attacks on rebel-held areas. It is banned under international law.
It appears Washington is
now saying an
American attack on Syrian government forces and locations is all but
inevitable.
And
according to the report, President Trump may actually give the order
to attack even if there's no claim of a chemical attack, per the WSJ:
In a recent discussion about Syria, people familiar with the exchange said, President Trump threatened to conduct a massive attack against Mr. Assad if he carries out a massacre in Idlib, the northwestern province that has become the last refuge for more than three million people and as many as 70,000 opposition fighters that the regime considers to be terrorists.
The Pentagon is crafting military options, but Mr. Trump hasn’t decided what exactly would trigger a military response or whether the U.S. would target Russian or Iranian military forces aiding Mr. Assad in Syria, U.S. officials said.
Crucially, this is the
first such indication of the possibility that White House and defense
officials are mulling over hitting "Russian or Iranian military
forces" in what would be a
monumental escalation that would take the world to the brink of World
War 3.
The
WSJ report cites White House discussions of a third strike — in
reference to US attacks on Syria during the last two Aprils after
chemical allegations were made against Damascus — while
indicating it would "likely would be more
expansive than the first two" and could include targeting Russia
and Iran.
During the debate this year over how to respond to the second attack, Mr. Trump’s national-security team weighed the idea of hitting Russian or Iranian targets in Syria, people familiar with the discussions said. But the Pentagon pushed for a more measured response, U.S. officials said, and the idea was eventually rejected as too risky.
A third U.S. strike likely would be more expansive than the first two, and Mr. Trump would again have to consider whether or not to hit targets like Russian air defensesin an effort to deliver a more punishing blow to Mr. Assad’s military.
Last week the French
ambassador, whose country also vowed to strike Syria if what it deems
credible chemical allegations emerge, said during a U.N.
Security Council meeting on Idlib: “Syria is once again at the
edge of an abyss.”
With
Russia and Iran now in the West's cross hairs over Idlib, indeed the
entire world is again at the edge of the abyss.
developing...
Pentagon Sends "Strong Message" To Russia With Live-Fire Assault Drills In Syria
The
Pentagon responded to the highly unusual and unique Russian
amphibious landing drills staged Saturday
on the Mediterranean Sea along the Syrian coast,
involving both its Navy and Air Force. Russia released footage of the
large-scale exercise amidst threats issued from leaders in
Washington, Paris, and London over the Russian-Syrian allied assault
on al-Qaeda held Idlib Province
The
Pentagon has publicized its own military exercise that took
place just prior to the Russian drills. US officials related to
reporters that over
100 Marines flown to southeast Syria for what have been described as
"snap live-fire excercises" in order to send a "strong
message" to Russia after
earlier this week Moscow warned its forces could attack in the area
near US-occupied At Tanf.
In
a statement a spokesman for the U.S. military’s Central
Command said the air-assault drill was an
effort to“demonstrate
the capability to deploy rapidly, assault a target with integrated
air and ground forces, and conduct a rapid exfiltration anywhere in
the Operation Inherent Resolve combined joint operations area.”
The
spokesman, Navy Capt. Bill Urban, explained further that “Exercises
like this bolster our defeat-ISIS capabilities and ensure we are
ready to respond to any threat to our forces.” However, with ISIS
essentially now wiped out and driven almost completely
underground, the
threat appears more immediately aimed at Moscow.
It
reportedly involved a company-sized unit and took place near or
outside of the American garrison at Tanf, and the deployment of
heavy artillery. Marines were deployed at the start of the exercise
via assault helicopters.
Fox
News details
the real reasons behind the US show of force in southeast
Syria during
the live-fire drill:
The rare show of force in Syria comes months after U.S. aircraft — including AC-130 gunships, jets and bombers — killed roughly 300 Russian mercenaries near Deir al-Zor in eastern Syria after American special operations forces came under attack.
“The Russians agreed to a [34 mile] ‘deconfliction zone’ around the At Tanf garrison to avoid accidental conflict between our forces, and to remain professionally engaged through de-confliction channels. We expect the Russians to abide by this agreement,” Urban said.
Urban
still urged that the US “does not seek to fight the
Russians, the government of Syria or any groups that may be
providing support to Syria.”
Meanwhile
on Saturday the footage released by Russia’s Defense Ministry
showed marine special forces equipped with the latest Russian gear
landing on the shores of the Syrian Latakia province. As part of the
staged invasion, the Russian Marines used helicopters, fast attack
craft and armored vehicles while landing from major amphibious ships
under cover of dozens of Russian combat aircraft.
Both
the American and Russian drills come amid heightened tensions
in the region (read "Everything
you need to know about the looming battle for Idlib")
as Moscow warns that the US is deploying additional military assets
towards Syria for a potential missile attack against Syrian
government forces. As previously reported, the missile destroyer USS
Ross was deployed to the Mediterranean, carrying 28 Tomahawk cruise
missiles; at roughly the same time the USS The Sullivans was
deployed to the Persian Gulf and a B-1B Lancer strategic bomber was
relocated to an air base in Qatar.
The
Russian ministry said the preparations are “the
latest evidence of the US intention” to strike after what it says
will be a false flag chemical attack in Syria.
The
Pentagon also announced that it has already compiled a list of
preliminary targets in Syria, which the US military are planning to
hit in case of a “chemical weapons attack.” And, It has also
“routinely” briefed
the White House on
“military options” in case of such incident.
The
Russian Defense Ministry has repeatedly warned that the militants in
Idlib have been preparing a false flag attack using chemical weapons
to justify the US strike against the forces loyal to the Syrian
government. On Saturday, the ministry’s spokesman, Major General
Igor Konashenkov, said that these
preparations entered their “final stage."
This
month, the US Navy is conducting exercises it claims will guarantee
freedom of movement through Persian Gulf and Red Sea waterways, as
Iran threatens to obstruct shopping through key maritime positions.
US
5th Fleet Theater Counter Mine and Maritime Security Exercise
Commander Scott A. Stearney recently told reporters in Manama that
the exercises, which involve both regional and global allies,
"illustrate that the US and our partners stand ready to ensure
the freedom of navigation and free flow of commerce wherever
international law allows," Bloomberg reported Sunday.
According
to Stearney, US allies need to be ready to "address anything
that threatens our interest or our [US] ships," adding that
Iran's activities in the Persian Gulf and Red Sea areas are
"promoting instability."
One
of the US Navy exercises is occuring in Djibouti, a known choke point
for global shipping at the southern end of the Red Sea.
In
early July, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) held
large-scale military drills in the Persian Gulf. The IRGC said at the
time that they were ready to disrupt other countries' oil shipments
through the strait if Iran's own exports were impeded.
Iran
has full control of the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, according
to IRGC navy chief Alireza Tangsiri.
British
Royal Navy’s New Aircraft Carrier Sets Sail for US to Train With
F-35Bs
Iranian
officials earlier threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, cutting
off a primary oil shipping route, in retaliation for any hostile
action from the US.
In
June, the US Department of State urged oil companies to stop
exporting oil from Iran by November to avoid US sanctions, after
President Donald Trump said in May that the United States would leave
the nuclear agreement with Iran. The deal stated that Tehran
guarantees the peaceful nature of its nuclear program in exchange for
the gradual lifting of sanctions.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.