Malicious Syria Bashing: Part I
One of the images contained in the report, purportedly show-
ing ligature marks across the neck of a prisoner. (Guardian)
It's longstanding. It began long before Obama's war erupted. It was nearly three years ago. Releasing a new report on Syria was strategically timed. It's out two days before sham peace talks begin in Montreux, Switzerland.
It's filled with spurious accusations. London's Guardian discussed them. "Syrian regime document trove shows evidence of 'industrial scale' killing of detainees," it headlined. Syrian officials face potential war crimes charges, it said. A so-called "huge cache of 'evidence' (was) smuggled out of the country." "It show(ed) the 'systematic killing' of about 11,000 detainees."
Three former prosecutors for the Yugoslavia and Sierra Leone criminal tribunals examined so-called evidence. They're state-sponsored ones. They lack credibility. They include Desmond de Silva, Geoffrey Nice and David M. Crane. The report was prepared for London solicitors Carter-Ruck and Co.
It's marked "CONFIDENTIAL." It's available online. Confidentiality is shared with anyone wanting the report's full text. Manufactured evidence shows "emaciated, bloodstained," mutilated corpses. They could be from anywhere. They could be US-supported death squad atrocities. Blaming Syria for their crimes is standard practice.
So-called independent prosecutors and human rights groups have no credibility. London's Guardian lost credibility suggesting otherwise. So-called documented abuses are fake. They have nothing to do with Syria's government.
Claiming otherwise makes the Guardian complicit in crimes of war and against humanity. Expect no editorial explanation. Expect no apology for willful misinformation. Claiming an opposition defector supplied credible evidence doesn't wash. So-called "evidence" is easily faked. Amateurs can do it. Professionals do better.
Demonizing Assad ahead of Geneva II wasn't accidental. It was malicious. It was planned in advance. The entire Guardian account is based on fabricated evidence.
London solicitors acted on behalf of Qatar. It's a police state. Its government actively supports extremist anti-Assad forces. It wants Assad ousted. It wants new governance replacing him most Syrians oppose. The so-called defector's identity isn't revealed. He's called "Caesar" to conceal it. He said his job was "taking pictures of (alleged) killed detainees." He witnessed nothing firsthand. His so-called evidence doesn't pass the smell test.
It's aroma reeks of willful deception. It has no credibility whatever. Why the Guardian suggested otherwise, it must explain. According to the report available online:
The procedure was that when detainees were killed at their places of detention, their bodies would be taken to a military hospital to which he would be sent with a doctor and a member of the judiciary, Caesar's function being to photograph the corpses. There could be as many as 50 bodies a day to photograph which require 15 to 30 minutes of work per corpse.
The reason for photographing executed persons was twofold. First to permit a death certificate to be produced without families requiring to see the body, thereby avoiding the authorities having to give a truthful account of their deaths; second to confirm that orders to execute individuals had been carried out.
No credible evidence explains where corpses came from. Nor who they are. Nothing is independently verified. Nothing other than willful misinformation. So-called "experienced forensic science experts examined and authenticated samples of 55,000 digital images." They're from an alleged 11,000 victims. Images have no IDs. Corpses could be anyone. They could be from anywhere.
So-called "inquiry teams" were cited. They claimed
clear evidence, capable of being believed by a tribunal of fact in a court of law, of systematic torture and killing of detained persons by the agents of the Syrian government. It would support findings of crimes against humanity and could also support findings of war crimes against the current Syrian regime.
De Silva said evidence "documented industrial-scale killing. This is a smoking gun of a kind we didn't have before. It makes a very strong case indeed." He lied saying so. He, Nice and Crane are state-sponsored agents. They're well compensated to lie.
Nothing links alleged evidence to Assad. None to others in his government or military. Claiming otherwise doesn't wash. Irrefutable evidence alone does. None whatever exists. London's Guardian didn't explain. An unnamed Obama official was quoted at length. Comments in part said:
We stand with the rest of the world in horror at these images which have come to light. We condemn in the strongest possible terms the actions of the regime and call on it to adhere to international obligations with respect to the treatment of prisoners. We have long spoken out about mistreatment and deteriorating prison conditions in Syria. These latest reports, and the photographs that support them, demonstrate just how far the regime is willing to go to not only deny freedom and dignity to the Syrian people, but to inflict significant emotional and physical pain in the process. To be sure, these reports suggest widespread and apparently systematic violations of international humanitarian law.
America by far is the world's leading human rights abuser. It's responsible for generations of horrific crimes of war, against humanity and genocide. State terror is official policy. So are all forms of torture and ill-treatment. No country belongs in the dock more than America. War criminals make policy.
Previous articles said Syria is Obama's war. He bears full responsibility for tens of thousands of deaths, many others injured, and millions internally and externally displaced refugees. Blaming victims is longstanding US policy. Rogue states operate this way. America is by far the worst. It's entire history is blood-drenched. London's Guardian pointed fingers the wrong way. Its editors have much explaining to do.
On January 21, a follow-up report headlined "Can evidence of mass killings in Syria end the inertia? Only with Putin's help." "It takes something very grave and shocking to end (months of) torpor," it said. Throughout nearly three years of conflict, numerous gruesome atrocities were committed. Nearly every time, Assad was wrongfully blamed. He's victim, not perpetrator. Hard evidence proved it repeatedly.
Not according to the Guardian. It called so-called new evidence "hard to fault." It's "too overwhelming," it said. It can't be "dismissed as Qatari propaganda."
US media, BBC and Qatar-controlled Al Jazeera air fake videos often. They falsify events on the ground. During Obama's war on Libya, Al Jazeera aired fabricated Tripoli liberation scenes. They were produced in Doha. It was done weeks in advance. It was on a Hollywood-style sound stage. It replicated Tripoli's Green Square and Gaddafi's compound. It was theater. It was fake. It was willful deception. It was presented as real.
Alleged Syrian evidence is no different. Its willful propaganda. Its release was strategically timed. It bears no relation to reality. It won't affect Geneva discussions. It won't determine its outcome. Assad isn't stupid. Nor are most Syrians. Don't expect Putin to be fooled. Directing global outrage the right way is essential. Blame perpetrators, not victims. Don't expect London's Guardian to explain. Its editors remain unapologetic.
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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He has devoted his time and efforts to progressive causes and organizations, all involved in working for a more humane and just world for all people everywhere, but especially for the most needy, disadvantaged and oppressed. His 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. He also co-hosts The Global Research News Hour, gives occasional public talks, and appears frequently on radio and at times television. He is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization. Also visit his blog 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. His new book "How Wall Street Fleeces America: Privatized Banking, Government Collusion and Class War" can be ordered HERE. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
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URL: http://www.a-w-i-p.com/index.php/2014/01/22/malicious-syria-bashing
