Heated Anti-Assad Rhetoric Promotes War
America wants Assad replaced with a pro-Western puppet. Israel wants a regional rival removed.
Increasingly war looks likely. Earlier Obama said "the Assad regime must come to an end."
In early June, White House press secretary Jay Carney said "bloody sectarian war will be diminished if Assad removes himself from power or is no longer in power."
"It is essential that the world community come together and unify to pressure Assad and isolate Assad and help precipitate a situation where that political transition can take place."
Hillary Clinton accused Russia of keeping Assad in power. Putin faces heavy pressure to bow to Western demands. Will he yield or hold firm?
Moscow signed a Security Council statement condemning the Houla massacre. Unlike Washington, Western partners, and regional allies, it points fingers both ways.
Along with China and Cuba, it rejected the Human Rights Council's (HRC) decision to condemn Syria for Houla killings. It called doing it "imbalanced and biased." More on that below.
Moscow also repudiates regime change. Putin believes national sovereignty is inviolable. He opposes intervention and war. He rejects Libya 2.0. He supports ending conflict and restoring peace. Succeeding is another matter.
On June 5, Putin arrived in Beijing for an official state visit. Discussions will focus on mutual economic and geopolitical interests and concerns.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said both nations oppose intervention in Syria or plans for regime change by force. They support dialogue for conflict resolution.
On June 4, Assad addressed the People's Assembly. He minced no words for good reason. Since last year, he's been wrongly blamed for Western-instigated violence. It continues daily.
Pro-Assad loyalists, other civilians, and security forces are targeted and killed in cold blood. Houla was the most extreme incident.
An Islamist group called Jabhat al-Nusra (Al-Nusra Front) claimed responsibility for May Damascus bombings. Dozens were killed, many others wounded. The group also said it killed 13 civilians in Deir Ezzor province last week. They were shot at close range in the head. Their hands were tied behind their backs.
Many other incidents claimed smaller tolls. Body counts mount. Syrians are terrorized. Most blame outside forces, not their government.
Washington, key NATO partners, and regional allies bear full responsibility. Out-of-control violence won't stop. They won't let it. Death and destruction continues.
Fabricated reports and lies blame Assad. On June 4, he responded, saying:
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In January, Assad spoke at Damascus University, saying:
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Assad implemented important reforms. More remains to be done. Justifiable criticisms are warranted. Blaming him for Western-instigated violence is unconscionable.
Fingers pointing the right way name Washington. Long-planned regime change plans were implemented. Thousands of Syrians died. Multiple rounds of sanctions harm ordinary people most. Western-generated terror bears full responsibility for crimes of war and against humanity.
On June 1, the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) concluded its special session on Syria. Focus was on Houla killings. Truth and full disclosure were suppressed. Fingers pointed the wrong way. Doing so mocked human rights, justice, and peace.
A final resolution was adopted. Forty-one voted yes. Russia, China and Cuba rejected one-way responsibility. Two nations abstained.
Harsh language blamed Assad. Perhaps Washington speech writers wrote it. Killer gangs weren't mentioned. It condemned the Houla massacre, "ongoing arbitrary detentions, hindered access for the media, and restrictions of the right to peaceful assembly."
It accused Assad of failing "to protect and promote the rights of all Syrians, including through systematic and repeated violations of human rights."
It called for holding those responsible accountable. It ignored foreign mercenaries terrorizing people for months, external funding and heavy weapons they're supplied, and covert Western special forces choosing targets and directing them.
It said nothing about Turkish safe zones. It implied self-defense is criminal. As head of state, Assad is obligated to confront killer gangs responsibly. Leaders everywhere would do the same thing.
It deplored the "deteriorating situation of human rights." It shamelessly assigned blame. It condemned "the wanton killing of civilians...."
It said Houla deaths involved "shooting at close range (and) severe physical abuse by pro-regime elements and a series of Government artillery and tank shellings of a residential neighborhood...."
Independent eye witness and survivor testimonies refuted HRC accusations. Pro-Assad loyalists were targeted. External death squads were responsible. Journalist Marat Musin called them "bandits and mercenaries." He provided credible firsthand information.
He called artillery and tank fire "a bad joke." Evidence was absent. Buildings weren't damaged. Craters weren't found. Assad's forces were miles away.
The Human Rights Council mocked its mandate. It blamed victims, not perpetrators. Conflict resolution remains distant. War looms likely. Nations blaming Assad and HRC officials bear responsibility if it's launched.
A Final Comment
On June 2, DebkaFile (DF) headlined "Turkey ditches Syrian rebels. Will Israel attack Hizballah's Scuds?" saying:
"In an astonishing about face, Turkey has just turned away from its 14-month support for the anti-Assad revolt alongside the West and made common cause with Russia, i.e. Bashar Assad."
DF accuracy is mixed. It's connected to Israel's Mossad. Turkey just indicted four ex-senior Israeli commanders for Mavi Marmara killings.
Maybe DF’s report is retribution. Separating facts from propaganda is challenging. The above headline is astonishing. Credible evidence wasn't presented.
DF also said Hezbollah scuds are being transferred from Syria to Lebanon. At issue is doing it safely, it said.
"One plan is to enlist the Palestinian Jihad Islami in the Gaza Strip and exploit a clash over the Scuds’ transfer as a trigger for an all round military offensive against Israel."
"It would be timed for the moment the Western-Arab intervention in Syria against President Assad crosses the line between covert and overt military action and begins an operation to establish safe zones as bases for rebel operation."
"Washington, London and Paris began rushing forward contingency plans for this eventuality upon discovering that Ankara had secretly notified leaders of the rebel Free Syrian Army Thursday, May 31, that it had withdrawn permission for them to launch operations against the Assad regime from Turkish soil."
DF accused Turkey of "prop(ping up) Assad at the very moment his regime" might be close to buckling.
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was quoted on Turkish NTV, saying:
"We have never advised either the Syrian National Council or the Syrian administration to conduct an armed fight, and we will never do so."
"The Syrian people will be the driving force that eventually topples the Syrian regime. Assad will leave as a result of the people’s will."
"For the time being," said DF, "the pro-Assad Moscow-Tehran front, bolstered now by Ankara, has got the better of Western and Arab polices for Syria."
DF also accused Hezbollah of targeting Israel with scuds. If Obama's reluctant to respond, Assad, Hezbollah and Tehran "will be awarded a winning hand - and not only in Syria."
DF's report promotes war. Britain's Daily Star cited unnamed Whitehall sources saying "SAS troops and MI6 are in the country ready to help rebels if civil war breaks out as expected this weekend."
UK and US special forces, as well as CIA and MI6 operatives have operated covertly in Syria for months. They actively supplied insurgents with weapons, munitions, equipment, funding, training, and direction. Whether something more aggressive is imminent isn't known.
America wants Assad replaced with a pro-Western puppet. Israel wants a regional rival removed. DF is a complicit attack dog. With or without it, war looks likely.
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Stephen Lendman: I was born in 1934 in Boston, MA. Raised in a modest middle class family, attended public schools, received a BA from Harvard University in 1956 and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of PA in 1960 following 2 years of obligatory military service in the US Army. Spent the next 6 years as a marketing research analyst for several large US corporations before becoming part of a new small family business in 1967, remaining there until retiring at the end of 1999. Have since devoted my time and efforts to the progressive causes and organizations I support, all involved in working for a more humane and just world for all people everywhere, but especially for the most needy, disadvantaged and oppressed. My efforts since summer 2005 have included writing on a broad range of vital topics ranging from war and peace; social, economic and political equity for all; and justice for all the oppressed peoples of the world like the long-suffering people of Haiti and the Palestinians. Also co-hosting The Global Research News Hour, occasional public talks, and frequent appearances on radio and at times television. I also am a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization. I live in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. Also visit my blog site sjlendman.blogspot.com and listen to The Lendman News Hour on RepublicBroadcasting.org Monday - Friday at 10AM US Central time for cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on world and national issues. All programs are archived for easy listening. My new book "How Wall Street Fleeces America: Privatized Banking, Government Collusion and Class War" can be ordered HERE.
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