Protests in Syria

[mememe]

Rabble in Aleppo 3 days ago




did one of them idiots drop a grenade and everyone run?

 

[mememe]

"The leader of Turkey's Felicity Party, Mustafa Kamalak, has warned that his country is the main target of the campaign against neighboring Syria.


Referring to the current developments in the Middle East, Kamalak also warned about “imperial powers' plots to disintegrate Turkey.”

Ankara has already been under fire for supporting Syrian insurgents and giving them arms.

Turkish lawmaker Mevlut Dudu has accused the Turkish government of using ambulances to smuggle arms and ammunitions into Syria."

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rc...koGADQ&usg=AFQjCNGk9-l_ltyNFOon83HaeocT_zhDig

 

[High_Gravity]

Syria’s Rebel Judges Promise Sharia Justice With Mercy

Imam Mohammed Drbal had just received a call from his wife. She was panicking and wanted him to come home, he explained. With shells beginning to rain down again, Drbal figured the day’s caseload would be a light one. “People didn’t sleep well because of last night’s shelling,” he said. “Because of today’s, they’ll be afraid to leave their homes.” The artillery barrage was coming from a nearby airbase, the only regime stronghold between Aleppo and the Turkish border not to be overrun by the rebel Free Syrian Army. The bombardment was unlikely to reach this part of town, according to Drbal. And if it did, he deadpanned, “We’re all here together, and in this together.” His fellow imams jiggled inside their beige thobes, struggling to contain their laughter.

Drbal and his fellow clerics comprise the tribunal that has replace the Assad regime as the law in Tal Rifaat, 20 miles north of Aleppo. Two months ago, after the authorities fled, a pair of imams who had led the town’s anti-regime protests founded a council to resolve local disputes and fill the growing security vacuum, and set up shop in a local school. “We couldn’t have double standards and competing interpretations of Islamic law,” said Drbal. “So scholars, locally respected people, decided to meet in a single council.”

Drbal and his colleagues made no bones about the fact that the post-Assad justice dispensed by their court was based on Islamic sharia law. “We are ruling on the basis of sharia,” explained Seraj al-Halabi, one of the men. “We have lawyers, judges and former army officers,” said al-Halabi, himself a veterinarian, “but all of us are Islamic scholars.” Everyone has the right to have his or her case heard by the council, he added. “We are ruling in every area of the law.”

Still, claimed al-Halabi, theirs was not an ordinary Islamic tribunal; the imams were focused as much on delivering justice as on promoting political reconciliation. “We are not here to practice Islamic law like in Saudi Arabia, cutting off heads and hands, but to help run the city and to restore order,” he said. “Sharia seeks solving problems, not creating them. And we are trying to figure out the best solution, the solution that will be most moderate and merciful.”

Al-Halabi insisted that the court wouldn’t punish anyone for supporting the regime, unless they had blood on their hands, and that they hadn’t ordered a single execution. “We tell FSA fighters, if you are in battle with Bashar’s forces, better kill them than bring them here,” he said. “Because we will not kill them for you, and might set them free. Even if the regime deals with us by killing and torturing, we will not deal with them likewise.”

The new tribunal certainly seems to be a hit with the locals – at least with those that remain in the town. (Most of Tal Rifaat’s population of 25,000 have taken refuge across the border in Turkey.) “We feel safer now, even with the shelling, than we did for the last forty years,” offered Mahmoud, a shopkeeper. Around him, heads nodded in unison. On the question of dealing with Assad loyalists, the locals seemed in tune with their imams. “Pro-regime people are free to think whatever they want,” one man argued. “They should be punished only if they’ve hurt others.”

Read more: Syria’s Rebel Judges Promise Sharia Justice With Mercy | World | TIME.com

 

[mememe]

Today Clinton discussed with Turks more effective ways of helping "Syrian freedom fighters".

PS
I blame her husband...

 

[High_Gravity]

Syrian rebels call for no-fly zone

ALEPPO, Syria (Reuters) - Syrian rebels fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad need the protection of no-fly zones and safe havens patrolled by foreign forces near the borders with Jordan and Turkey, a Syrian opposition leader said.

Battles raged on Sunday in the northern city of Aleppo, where tanks, artillery and snipers attacked rebels in the Saif al-Dawla district next to the devastated area of Salaheddine.

Syrian civilians desperate to check on their homes pushed into fluid front lines around Salaheddine, even as sniper fire cracked out and rebels warned them to stay away.

Abdelbasset Sida, head of the Syrian National Council, said the United States had realized that the absence of a no-fly zone to counter Assad's air superiority hindered rebel movements.

He was speaking a day after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said her country and Turkey would study a range of possible measures to help Assad's foes, including a no-fly zone, although she indicated no decisions were necessarily imminent.

"It is one thing to talk about all kinds of potential actions, but you cannot make reasoned decisions without doing intense analysis and operational planning," she said after meeting Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Istanbul.

Though any intervention appears to be a distant prospect, her remarks were nevertheless the closest Washington has come to suggesting direct military action in Syria.

"There are areas that are being liberated," Sida told Reuters by telephone from Istanbul. "But the problem is the aircraft, in addition to the artillery bombardment, causing killing, destruction."

He said the establishment of secure areas on the borders with Jordan and Turkey "was an essential thing that would confirm to the regime that its power is diminishing bit by bit".

A no-fly zone imposed by NATO and Arab allies helped Libyan rebels overthrow Muammar Gaddafi last year. The West has shown little appetite for repeating any Libya-style action in Syria, and Russia and China strongly oppose any such intervention.

Insurgents have expanded territory they hold near the Turkish border in the last few weeks since the Syrian army gathered its forces for an offensive to regain control of Aleppo, Syria's biggest city and economic hub.

Syrian rebels call for no-fly zone - Yahoo! News

 

[mememe]

International terrorist gangs (referred to as "Syrian rebels" by the West) can call for a "no-fly zone" or whatever they want. After Syrian army cleared them out of Aleppo for US/"civilised community" to push through UN a "no-fly zone" would raise a serious question: "ON WHAT GROUNDS?"

Besides, an incident with Turkish military plane that was shot down by either Syrians or from a Russian ship (according to Erdogan) or, according to Turkish military -- just fell out of the sky, -- demonstrates that Syria is capable of enforcing its own "no-fly" zone, unlike Gaddafi who allowed NATO to control Libyan sky.

 

[High_Gravity]

Syria Crisis: Rebels Claim They Downed Jet After Pilot Ejects

BEIRUT — A video issued by Syrian rebels purports to show a captured pilot who ejected from a warplane they claim they downed.

The authenticity of the video shown on the pan-Arab network Al-Arabiya could not be independently confirmed. But it comes amid conflicting accounts over the MiG fighter.

Rebels claim they shot down the plane over eastern Syria. The Syrian government says a warplane experienced malfunctions and the pilot was forced to eject.

If the rebel claim proves true, it could mark a significant jump in their ability to combat widening air attacks from President Bashar Assad's forces.

In the video, a man identifies himself as the pilot as he is surrounded by three armed men. He says he has been treated well and urges officers to defect from Assad's military.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

Syrian state-run media said Monday a pilot ejected from a warplane after a technical failure while rebels claimed they shot it down over an eastern province where the opposition has a strong presence.

Earlier Monday, activists released a video which they claimed shows a government Soviet-made MiG warplane catching fire after it apparently was hit by ground fire over Deir el-Zour province. The warplane appears to be spiral into a ball of flames. It was impossible to independently verify the video.

Syria Crisis: Rebels Claim They Downed Jet After Pilot Ejects

 

[ekrem]

International terrorist gangs (referred to as "Syrian rebels" by the West) can call for a "no-fly zone" or whatever they want. After Syrian army cleared them out of Aleppo for US/"civilised community" to push through UN a "no-fly zone" would raise a serious question: "ON WHAT GROUNDS?"

L-39 Albatros (Czech Training-Airplane) used to fire on Aleppo with missiles.
Aleppo is around the size of Houston.

 

[High_Gravity]

Riad Hijab, Former Syria Prime Minister, Says Assad Controls Only 30 Percent Of Country

AMMAN, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Former Syrian prime minister Riyad Hijab said on Tuesday that President Bashar al-Assad's government is falling apart and controls only 30 percent of the country.

In his first public appearance since defecting to the opposition, Hijab told a news conference in Jordan that the government's spirits were low after struggling for 17 months to crush the revolt against Assad's rule.

"I tell you out of my experience and the position I occupied that the regime is collapsing, morally, materially and economically. Militarily it is crumbling as it no longer occupies more than 30 percent of Syrian territory," he said.

Hijab did not elaborate on that assertion, and took no questions from reporters.

It has been hard to independently determine the extent of territory in rebel hands as much of the fighting has occurred in outlying towns and rural areas and media access to Syria is restricted. But Assad has lost swathes of territory along Syria's northern and eastern border and fighting has weakened his hold on larger cities such as Aleppo and Homs.

Hijab added: "Oh devoted revolutionaries, your revolution has become a model of effort and sacrifice for the sake of freedom and dignity."

Hijab, who like much of the opposition comes from Syria's Sunni Muslim majority, was not part of Assad's inner circle. But as prime minister and the most senior civilian official to defect, his departure dealt a symbolic blow to the government, which is dominated by Assad's minority Alawite sect.

His defection along with that of Syria's ambassador to Iraq, both tribal figures from Deir al-Zor, boosted opposition morale but the military reality on the ground has not changed, with aerial and ground bombardment keeping rebels in check.

Hijab urged officers in the military to defect and join the opposition. He also called on rebels to work harder to unify their fractious ranks.

"Oh men of the Free Syrian Army, unify your ranks as all hopes hang on you, you are the best fighters of this world," said Hijab, who took no questions from reporters.

Riad Hijab, Former Syria Prime Minister, Says Assad Controls Only 30 Percent Of Country

 

[mememe]

Riad Hijab, Former Syria Prime Minister, Says Assad Controls Only 30 Percent Of Country



Riad Hijab voices a wet dream of his Western handlers!

 

[High_Gravity]

Riad Hijab, Former Syria Prime Minister, Says Assad Controls Only 30 Percent Of Country



Riad Hijab voices a wet dream of his Western handlers!

 

[mememe]

http://video.yandex.ru/users/news-anna2012/view/80/

Since US/"civilisedcommunity" decided Assad lost his "legitimacy" and Syria must be liberated off its independence, "freedom fighters" committed lots of atrocities, this CHRISTIAN village was attacked for the third time!

I hope, whenever Americans habitually mention the name of CHRISTIAN God they will remember the murder of CHRISTIANS perpetrated with their blessing around the world!

 

[mememe]

Unbridled US hypocrisy


http://www.google.co.uk/url?url=htt...ugust+&usg=AFQjCNFqR0H1m3cLjvcQdF5MghootEFwbg

 

[High_Gravity]

Boo fucking hoo, Assads days are numbered. Deal with it.

 

[logical4u]

Hopefully, for the people of this region, this violence will end soon.

 

[Katzndogz]

When Assad is gone, the violence will rapidly increase. Of course if Assad should win, the violence will rapidly increase. That's just how these people are. When they win, it's time for revenge, reprisals, and purges.

 

[High_Gravity]

When Assad is gone, the violence will rapidly increase. Of course if Assad should win, the violence will rapidly increase. That's just how these people are. When they win, it's time for revenge, reprisals, and purges.

Yeah pretty much, the longer this goes on the slimmer Assads chances are though. With something like this you have to put it down quickly and violently, like Assads pops did back in the 80s and how Saddam did in 1991 when the Kurds and Shites rose up. Once these rebellions start lasting years its only a matter of time until the dictators head gets shoved up his arse.

 

[mememe]

When Assad is gone, the violence will rapidly increase. Of course if Assad should win, the violence will rapidly increase. That's just how these people are.

Not "these people", but governing clans of US, EU and assorted Arab "democracies" -- THEY need to DESTABILISE the region at whatever cost.

Assad is not suppose to win according to US scenario; in fact, he should have lost months ago!

 

[High_Gravity]

Life With Syria’s Rebels in a Cold and Cunning War

TAL RIFAAT, Syria — Abdul Hakim Yasin, the commander of a Syrian antigovernment fighting group, lurched his pickup truck to a stop inside the captured residential compound he uses as his guerrilla base.

His fighters had been waiting for orders for a predawn attack on an army checkpoint at the entrance to Aleppo, Syria’s largest city. The men had been issued ammunition and had said their prayers. Their truck bomb was almost prepared.

Now the commander had a surprise. Minutes earlier, his father, who had been arrested by the army at the same checkpoint in July, had called to say his jailers had released him. He needed a ride out of Aleppo, fast.

“God is great!” the men shouted. They climbed onto trucks, loaded weapons and accelerated away, barreling through darkness on nearly deserted roads toward a city under siege, to reclaim one of their own.

Mr. Yasin was pensive as he drove, worried that the call was a ploy to lure him and his fighters into a trap. “Often the government does this,” he said. “Usually it is an ambush.”

He had sent an empty freight truck ahead, he said, to check the way. But he never slowed down.

During five days last week, Mr. Yasin and his group, the Lions of Tawhid, allowed two journalists from The New York Times to live and travel beside them as they fought their part in the war to unseat President Bashar al-Assad.

This group falls under the command of Al Tawhid Brigade, a relatively new structure in Aleppo Province that has unified several groups and fights under the banner of the Free Syrian Army, the loose coalition of armed rebels.

While broad extrapolations are difficult to glean from one fighting group in a complex society, the activities and personal stories of these men, a mix of civilians who took up arms and dozens of army defectors who joined them, offers a fine-grained look of the uprising, and the momentum and guerrilla energy it has attained.

Mr. Yasin, 37, was a clean-shaven accountant before the war. He lived a quiet life with his wife and two young sons. Now thickly bearded and projecting a stoic calm under fire, he has been hardened by his war in ways he could not have foreseen.

He roams the Aleppo region with dozens of armed men in camouflage, plotting attacks with other commanders, evading airstrikes, meeting with smugglers and bombmakers to gather more weapons, and rotating through front-line duties in a gritty street-by-street urban campaign. He prefers to sleep by day, and fight by night.

His fighters are a cross section of a nation at war with itself. They include a real estate agent, several farmers, construction workers and a nurse who owned a short-order restaurant. These men fight side by side with a cadre of army defectors, who say the government they once served must fall.

The civilians started with stones and firearms bought for hunting. Their first more powerful weapon was a huge slingshot for hurling Molotov cocktails and small homemade bombs. As professional soldiers have joined them, they have gradually acquired assault rifles, machine guns and rocket-propelled and hand grenades. They now control a captured armored vehicle and two tanks.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/21/w...s-coalesce-into-a-fighting-force.html?_r=1&hp

 

[mememe]

"President Barack Obama has warned that the use or movement of chemical weapons by the Syrian government would be a “red line” that could trigger an American intervention." (The Telegraph. 20.08.12)



Translation from politico talk onto human language:

Assad is an absolute bastard! He clearly understands that the White House mulatto, desperate to "rule the world" for another 4 years, can't really start his campaign having under-democratised Syria with still alive "dictator" on his hands! That would mean giving Romney 3, maybe even 4% of votes of those who love a "strong hand", -- and that is unacceptable.

By now, Obama should be humanly bombing Iranians into freedom, instead he is stuck with Syria!

Assad knows it, but what does he do?! He inconsiderately beats up "freedom fighters" (and they are not cheap!) and spreads them thinly over the terrain; he shamelessly prevents mass betrayal in his inner circle; and in a meanest possible way creates such an arrse-ache for Turkey that it can not concentrate on the invasion!

Such antics can not be ignored. Chemical weapons must come out to play -- what other choice did Assad leave for Obama? By the start of November Americans have to be imbued with pride for their brave and reliable leader (much more reliable and brave than Romney!) -- a victorious tamer of dictators!


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

So... shall we start taking bets as to how soon "chemical weapons" will be wheeled out?