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Why Russia should withdraw from all European organizations

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THE SAKER

Russia stands for freedom!I have just watched another pure propaganda piece by the BBC about the OSCE observers being sent back at a Crimean checkpoint along some footage footage of a journalist being beat up and the sound of some shots which the BBC says were aimed at the tires of car.  I will ignore all of the nonsense reported by this so-called "journalist" whom Alain Soral would most definitely call "une pute", but I want to focus on the core issue of this event: are the Crimeans right or wrong to deny entry to the OSCE "unarmed military observers"?

In my opinion, they are absolutely correct.  Here is why:

Russia has seen these so-called "observers" in Chechnia, in Bosnia, in Kosovo, in South Ossetia and its always the exact same story: these guys are "professionally blind" to what might contradict the official narrative of their professional hierarchy.  For one thing, a good part of them are actually members of their respective military intelligences services (they barely bother to hide it).  So they very much share in the corporate culture of their military.  Can you imagine a Polish or an Estonia "observer" having anything good to say about the Russian military?  Of course not.  I have met these guys personally and I can attest - they are hopeless.

But there is another thing, even more important: the OSCE, like all the rest of the European organizations, is rotten to the core, staffed by career-oriented bureaucrats.  Frankly, I think that Russia should withdraw from the OSCE, close its offices in Russia and simply ignore it.  I will go even further, I think that Russia should withdraw from ALL European organizations, all of them, not only the OSCE.  What did the Council of Europe ever do for Russia?  What about the North Atlantic Cooperation Council: did it ever do anything good for Russia? What about the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, the Partnership for Peace or the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development - did any of these organizations ever do anything good for Russia?

Of course not!

These European organizations have only two purposes: first, to give the appearance that Europe matters and, second, to provide nice and cozy jobs to an army of bureaucrats.  The reality, of course, is that there is only one entity which matters in Europe: the USA and its colonial administration "NATO".  If the Russians need to talk to the boss - they can dial the White House or speak to the US ambassador.  Even about so-called European affairs.  Because, as a political entity - Europe does not exist.  And for those doubting what I say, I have a simple basic question: when did any European organization ever stand up and say "no" to Uncle Sam?  Okay, yes, it did, on trivial matters, and commercial interests.  But on an important international policy issue?

Never.

So all Russia does by participating in these organizations is to give credence to the myth that there is an independent Europe out there, when there really isn't any.

The sad reality is that Europe is the America's bitch, and it will do whatever Uncle Sam says and the EU current flag should be replaced by one showoing a submissive poodle.  So if Russia, or the Crimeans, decided to let some "observers" who are in reality doing Uncle Sam's bidding enter Crimea, they might as well get these observers from the 82nd Airborne or the CIA's Special Activities Division, why bother with these euroclowns from Estonia or Slovenia?  At least the Americans would be real professionals, not pretend-soldiers...

The EU deserves no respect and Russia should stop acting like Europeans matter when they clearly don't.

The Saker


The Truthseeker: NGO documents plan Ukraine war (must watch!)

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The Saker

Daniel Bushell in this latest Truthseeker - simply fantastic!


 Comment: having myself worked for one of the NGOs Daniel mentions in his report and having had privileged access to information about another one he mentions, I can confirm that what Daniel says is 100% correct.  Sorry, I cannot go into more details, but I feel that I should confirm this.

The Saker

In response to the killing of the Jordanian- Palestinian judge Protest in Jordan Demanding Closure of Israeli Embassy, Israel "Regrets"

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Local Editor

A demonstration was held in front of the Zionist embassy in Amman in response to the killing of the Jordanian- Palestinian judge Alaa-Eddine Zeaiter who was shot by Israeli troops at the Allenby crossing between the West Bank and Jordan.

Anti-Israel protestThe large number of security forces deployed in the area prevented the demonstrators from reaching the embassy.

The demonstrators demanded the fall of the government and criticized the political Arab regimes. Activists on social media networks also demanded the annulment of Wadi Araba Treaty with the Zionist entity.

Engineer Khaled Ramadan told Al-Manar reporter that the killing of Zeaiter is not a simple crime, but an insult to the whole Jordanian people and a message of threat against them.

The Jordanian government should close the Zionist embassy in Amman, a demonstrator told Al-Manar reporter. "The popular movement will increase", he added.

One of Zeaiter’s relatives said he was not the first martyr of her family, adding that they will continue their struggle for Palestine independence.

The Jordanian foreign ministry summoned the Israeli ambassador to denounce the killing of Zeaiter and to request a comprehensive report. Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh told the Israeli ambassador that the kingdom expects the Israeli report to include precise details of the incident.

Political circles urged the government to react to this crime by releasing the soldier Ahmad Al-Dakamsa who killed Israeli women in 1997.

Za'eiter, 38, was a Palestinian-born Jordanian citizen who was on his way to meet with family members in the West Bank city of Shechem, when he was shot to death by a Zionist soldier.


Source: Al-Manar Website
11-03-2014 - 14:49 Last updated 11-03-2014

Israel "regrets" killing Palestinian-Jordanian judge


The father of Raed Zeiter, 38, grieves over his son's body during his funeral in the northern West Bank city of Nablus, on March 11, 2014, a day after he was shot dead by the Israeli military. (Photo: AFP - Jaafar Ashtiyeh)
Published Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Israel expressed its regret on Tuesday over the killing of a Palestinian-Jordanian judge, who was shot by Israeli soldiers at a border crossing, and promised Jordan to carry out a joint investigation into his death.
The Israeli military had earlier denounced Judge Raed Zeiter as a "terrorist," saying he was shot dead on Monday after he had attacked soldiers at the Allenby Bridge crossing while making his way to the occupied West Bank.
Striking a more conciliatory tone, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office issued a later statement saying it was committed to its peace treaty with Jordan and would establish an Israeli-Jordanian team to look into what had happened.
"Israel regrets the death of Judge Raed Zeiter yesterday at the King Hussein (Allenby) bridge and expresses its sympathies to the people and government of Jordan," the statement said.
Zeiter, 38, was of Palestinian origins and was buried in the West Bank city of Nablus on Tuesday.
(Reuters)

Palestinian killed after occupation forces open fire on his car


Riot police try to control Jordanians as they protest in front of the Israeli embassy to demand the deportation of the Israeli ambassador, on March 10, 2014, in the capital Amman, following the shooting dead by Israeli troops of Palestinian-Jordanian judge Raed Zeiter at the Allenby Bridge crossing. (Photo: AFP - Khalil Maraawi)
Published Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Updated 11:20 am: A Palestinian died and a second was injured Tuesday after Israeli occupation forces fired on their car near Tulkarem in the northern West Bank, Palestinian security sources said.
The sources told AFP that the car then veered off the road, and it was not clear whether the gunfire or the subsequent crash led to the casualties.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army.
Abdullah Kamil, Tulkarem governor, identified the man who died as Fidaa Muhye Addin Majadlah, and his passenger as Ibrahim Adnan Shukri, both from the Tulkarem village of Attil, according to Palestinian news agency Ma'an.
The latter was reported to have suffered moderate to serious wounds, and is in Israeli custody. Occupation authorities are also holding Majadlah's body, the Ma'an report added
The death comes one day after occupation forces shot dead two Palestinians in separate incidents in the West Bank.
In the first of Monday's killings, a Jordanian-Palestinian judge was shot dead by Israeli troops at the Jordan border, with the Israelis claiming that he tried to snatch a weapon and "strangle" a soldier.
But Palestinian witnesses said the man was shot following an argument over a cigarette in an incident which prompted a furious response from the Palestinian Authority and Amman.
The man was identified as 38-year-old Raed Zeiter who worked as a judge in Amman. Jordan's justice ministry said he worked at a magistrate's court in the capital.
Several hours after Zeiter's death, occupation forces shot dead a 20-year-old Palestinian, identified as Fadi Sayel Darwish, near the West Bank city of Ramallah. The army said he had been throwing stones at soldiers.
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(AFP, Al-Akhbar)

Related Articles

Libya on the brink

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Demonstrators block a main street in the eastern Libyan coastal city of Benghazi during a protest against the extended mandate of the General National Congress, the country's highest political authority, on February 21, 2014. (Photo: AFP-Abdullah Doma)
Published Tuesday, March 11, 2014
The partitioning of Libya is no longer the concern of pessimists alone but a tangible reality. Islamists are imposing their rule by force and the government and parliament are paralyzed. Some talk blatantly about their intention to strip the non-Arab inhabitants of the south of the country of their citizenship. Add to this mess direct Western intervention in Libya’s internal affairs and one can only conclude the partitioning of the country is on the horizon.
New York- The United States, Britain, and France collectively decided on direct and total control of Libya's future, after reducing the role of the United Nations to a minimum. The three countries are not even considering the participation of other countries with former major interests in Libya, such as Italy, which had historical links with Libya during and after the colonial era. The same goes for the countries that contributed to the overthrow of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and the confiscation of his money and provided information, personnel, and military training to the revolutionaries.

In the recent Rome Conference held on March 4, the final statement in paragraph 15 stipulated that "participants agreed to establish an international partnership for Libya to monitor its progress and the implementation of past conventions."Behind the scenes, the international conference was understood to be between the three western states who have veto power in the UN Security Council.This is the new phase of the Libyan crisis, which began with the 2011 revolution with its many patrons and sponsors.
Libyans interviewed by Al-Akhbar revealed their confusion, uncertainty, and fear about the predicament in which they found themselves in after the revolution. Although the Libyan revolution aimed to attain freedom to begin with, they cannot speak freely for fear of retaliation. They said that their country is no longer a state. Even those who are in control are acting as if everything was temporary and that the state is bound to unravel. According to a Libyan source, "Public spending is done outside the regulatory frameworks with no oversight. Theft is rampant on all levels and the National Congress has lost its credibility and seen as an enemy of the people. Everyone is looking for a share of Libya's cadaver."

The Islamists, in particular, do not believe their chances in the democratic process are high, especially after their experience in the past few years. They have gained more power through their current strategy than by using the ballot box. This is why they cling to the security sector through certain figures. Assistant Secretary of Defense Khaled Mohammed al-Sharif, also the commander of the Libyan National Guard, is the number one security official in Libya. Despite the fact that Defense Ministry has changed hands a number of times, he has remained in his post. He has also received training by al-Qaeda.

Similarly, Abdul-Hakim Belhaj, who fought with Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan, is now on the side of the US. Today he controls the Moaitiquia base in the Tajoura neighborhood of Tripoli. The base, originally built by the US, had been the largest American base in North Africa before Gaddafi's revolution and can accommodate more than 10 thousand soldiers. However, the base does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Defense Ministry or any kind of Libyan sovereign control.
This is in addition to al-Hadaba prison, which does not fall under official control either. It is directly under the supervision of Khaled al-Sharif and is where top former regime figures are being held, including the infamous Abdullah al-Sanousi. Security is like the oil sector, which is being sold outside state supervision after armed groups took over the oil fields and ports.

There is also a private airport in Misrata, which operates direct flights to Istanbul, away from the eyes of state supervision. Through this airport, fighters are transported to Syria via Turkey. The US is in control of Libya's security sector and is planning to link the country's security to NATO through a number of measures including the deployment of more drones. Today, the US is more concerned about the war on terror in the region than with oil revenues. They left the oil projects to the British and construction and contracting to Turkey.
Belhaj does not seem to have enough popularity to win seats in the elections. Although he founded al-Watan party, it failed to gain a single seat in the Libyan National Congress. Libyans are agitated and are calling for early general elections, but the Islamists are opposed to the idea because they are aware of the the magnitude of public discontent against them. The Islamists seem to be closer to the British in their policies and do not object to London's orders. This is reflected in London's relationship with Abdul-Rahman al-Sowaihali al-Misrati who claims to be representing Misrata, a representation based on his control of a battalion of gunmen.
Many rumors are being circulated in Libya that these figures, especially Khaled al-Sharif, are obstructing the creation of a national armyand a unified state. They only believe in tribal security and militias, which give them strength and support from abroad. They know that the democratic process will not be in their favor.
Ever since the revolution, Libya has not had a clear leadership and the situation has only grown more complicated. Geographically, Libya is basically split into three distinct regions and ethnically divided between Arabs, Amazigh, Touareg, and Tubu. The UN played a principal role in the declaration of Libya's independence from Italy in 1951, with the help of the Dutch special envoy Adrian Bildt, which included the three regions of Tripoli, Barqa, and Fezzan. Therefore, the Libyans feel that the UN has a clean record based on their past .
Today, these regions seem to be rivals. Non-Arab minorities living in southern Libya face losing their citizenship. The non-Arab minorities - the Amazigh, the Tubu, and the Touareg- make up almost 8 percent of the population, but are spread over a vast geographical area. Without the loyalty of these tribes to the central state, Libya's southern, eastern, and western borders would be wide open. Since Roman times, the borders were only be protected by these tribes through alliances between their leaders and the central government.
Yet there are those who have come to believe that the country could be controlled through drones if the minorities were to boycott the dialogue. Libya will not be able to regain its national conscience without the real participation of all its social components, based on clear, unifying ideals. Islamic fundamentalism is not a unifying factor because the people are divided over the issue. Libya does not have many religious sects, but there are various Islamic ideologies due to divisions in loyalties. On the other hand, Darna, the base of Islamic extremists is boycotting the dialogue. So the question remains, do the countries with the upper hand in Libya want the country to remain united? The Libyans are certainly doubtful.
Based on these growing problems, it is necessary for the UN to keep a relatively independent role in the Libyan crisis to avoid providing an umbrella for the projects of the countries meddling in Libya’s internal affairs. But there is talk about changes in the UN Libyan delegation and bringing in western blood to replace the current representative, Tarek Mitri.
Warshefana: A Painful Libyan Story

The events that took place in the town of Warshefana, between December 19- 29, 2013, are the best example of the tragedy of blind tribal zeal afflicting Libya. Islamist tribal militias stormed the Warshefana area between Tripoli and al-Zawiya, 40 kilometers from the capital, with thousands of men armed with heavy, medium, and light weapons, including guns, tanks, armored vehicles, and rocket launchers. The militias plundered the city, killing 21 people and injuring more than 100. They kidnapped citizens based on their ethnic identity, executing them or torturing them in secret prisons. Three of those who died from torture were found with their hands tied, after their bodies were dumped outside of a school in the Friday Market area and transferred by citizens to the hospital in Abu Salim.
According to eyewitnesses from the area, homes and shops were burned to the ground after being looted. Water and electricity were cut off from the town for several days. Its factories and farms were destroyed and its cars burned. It was bombarded arbitrarily, including its mosques. The attack targeted regular citizens and several officials. The head of the Shura and Hokama Council, Mohammed Mokhtar Tantoush, was kidnapped, as well as the head of the local council of al-Aziziyah al-Kubra, Omar Ali Tantoush.
Prime Minister Ali Zeidan denied knowing anything about the invasion of Warshefana. The same went for Defense Minister Abdullah al-Thani. However, the fighters claimed they were under orders to apprehend 274 suspects. But regardless of the controversy over the names and the number of suspects, the collective punishment of a whole area in this manner is a violation of all human rights and a crime in all senses of the word. In response to the operation, people living in this area said that there are 5,600 wanted individuals in Tripoli and if the same approach is used for their arrest, the capital and all that is in it would be destroyed. They believe the issue to be part of the tribal racism practiced by militias from one tribe against the others.
The residents of Warshefana did not find anyone to complain to about the collective injustice they face in Libya. Security is not under anyone's control. The national army is nonexistent. They could only complain to foreign human rights organizations and the UN delegation in Tripoli.
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.

Ukraine SITREP March 10, 10:19 EST (and some replies to comments)

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The Saker

    Russia stands for freedom!
  • In the city of Lugansk a crowd of demonstrators stormed to local administration building and forced the Kiev-appointed governor to resign.
  • Donetsk: 10'000 people have prevented a pro-nationalist rally featuring Vitalii Klitchko from taking place and have demanded the release of the popularly elected governor (still held in Kiev).
  • The chief of the neo-Fascist organization Right Sector, Dmitri Iarosh, has announced that he will run for President in the upcoming elections.
  • The Crimean authorities have announced that if the "yes" vote wins in the  upcoming referendum (surveys indicate a 80%+ for the "yes") Crimea will have both Russian and Crimean-Tatar as official languages.
  • The Crimean authorities have also announced that Tatars will be offered a Vice-premiership, 2 positions of Minister, and several key positions in the "power ministries" (police, internal affairs, military, security, emergency) and that the budget to re-located Tatars deported by Stalin will be doubled.
  • A Ukrainian survey 22'000 Ukrainians (on a social media website) has shown that 84.5% support the idea of Ukrainian forces conducting an "anti-terrorist" operation in Crimea against the "men in green", possibly with the help of NATO.
 My SITREP of Mach 8th has triggered two good criticisms from "parviziyi" who said that I had characterized two recent demonstrations in Kharkov and Donetsk as "big" whereas in reality, considering the sizes of these cities, they were rather small and most Russian-speakers in these cities had remained silent.  Parvizivi is correct, and I should stick to figures and not qualify them with subjective (and possibly incorrect) characterizations.  He second criticism what that I had implicitly accusing Putin of lying when I said that I believed that the "polite armed men in green" were from Russia and not from the Crimea as claimed by the Kremlin.  This point deserves more detailed answer.

The "polite armed men in green"

Why am I claiming that the "polite armed men in green" are Russian Spetsnaz and not local self-defense militias?  There are many reasons:

These men are carrying weapons which only the Russian military uses (such as the Pecheneg machine gun).  They are using a type of vehicle (Tigr) only used by Russian forces.  They also carry modified special weapons which only Spetsnaz forces do.  Some of their vehicles have military license plates which belong to the Russian Caucasus military region.  But no less relevant is that some of them have basically admitted that they were from Russia and that others have published photos of themselves in the Russian social media which have linked them to Spetsnaz GRU forces.  Russian speakers can check out the following links:

http://news.liga.net/video/politics/995029-spetsnaz_v_krymu_oproverg_slova_putina_my_rossiyskie_soldaty.htm
http://argumentua.com/reportazh/dokazatelstva-chto-tak-nazyvaemaya-samooborona-kryma-eto-spetsvoiska-rossii
http://news.bigmir.net/ukraine/798023-V-Krymu-rabotaet-GRU--Specnazovca-opoznali-po-birke
http://news.bigmir.net/ukraine/798928-Rossijskij-specnaz-hvastaetsja-fotografijami-iz-Kryma

As to the issue of which Spetsnaz units these are, there have been some information leaked about the 3rd Guards Spetsnaz Brigade from Toliatti and the 31st Independent Air-Assault Brigade from Ulianovsk being moved to the Crimea, these leaks were eventually denied by official sources.  Again, Russian speakers can check out these:

http://parkgagarina.info/novosti/11042-samarskie-deputaty-vspoloshilis-po-povodu-tolyattinskogo-spetsnaza.html
http://www.tltnews.ru/tlt_news/16/477766/
http://parkgagarina.info/novosti/11042-samarskie-deputaty-vspoloshilis-po-povodu-tolyattinskogo-spetsnaza.html
http://www.rosbalt.ru/federal/2014/02/25/1237666.html
http://news.progorodsamara.ru/news/view/161762

I think that to identify the actual units involved in interesting but not crucial.  For whatever this is worth, my personal guess is that Spetsnaz teams were first used in recon missions to prepare for the landing of a larger mixed force of Spetsnaz, Air-Assault and Airborne forces and that a rotation is probably currently taking place replacing some of the original Spetsnaz units with dedicated peacekeeping forces.

I would also add that there are real Crimean self-defense forces being organized to defend the peninsula and the contrast between the "polite armed men in green" and the Crimean self-defense forces could not be greater:

The Crimean Volunteer Self Defense Forces (CVSDF) are composed of various age groups.  The "polite armed men in green" (PAMG) are all young men of the same age group.  The weapons of the CVSDF are a mix of weapons while the units used to create the first "official" Crimean military forces have been issued the standard AKM-74.  The PAMG have mostly modified, very expensive advanced weaponry including night-vision gear, sniper weapons and scopes, individual radios and, according to some sources, even individual IFFtransponders.  Neither hte CVSDF or the newly formed official Crimean military seem to have more than cars and trucks as transportation.  The PAMG all have exactly the same advanced all-terrain armored assault vehicles and trucks.  I could go on listing more and more signs which all point to the very same conclusion: these are Russian special operation forces.

Now, am I implying that Putin is lying about that?

Not at all!  I am not implying anything - I am explicitly stating that he is lying about it!  Look, we are all adults here, and we all understand that not only do most politicians lie, some a lot some less, but that any head of state, ANY, simply HAS to lie sometimes for reasons of raison d'état.  Covert operations are, by definition, operations which are not recognized by the state and Russia, like any other state, has that kind of operations.  In this case, for purely legal reasons, the Russians have chosen to deny that they have sent in a protective force from Russia proper.  I personally would have admitted from day 1 that these were Russians forces, but Putin and Lavrov have decided otherwise and I am sure that they have good reasons for that.  Does that fact show that Putin is "a liar" or does that put a smear on his character?  That question is really naive.

First, Putin as an officer of the Soviet external intelligence service (PGU KGB SSSR) had to conceal his real mission while he was in Germany.  For him the fact of lying in defense of the Russian state interest is as natural as dealing with water for a fisherman.  Second, any head of state has to accept that the obligation to sometimes deny the truth comes with the office.  Putin cumulates not one, but THREE functions which all make it impossible for him not to lie: he is a (former) intelligence officer, he is a politician and he is a head of state in charge of a superpower.

Is there really anybody out there so naive as to think that everything Putin says is the truth, all the truth and nothing but the truth?!

Even Hassan Nasrallah, probably the most honest political leader on the planet has, at times, been force to maybe not lie, but be less than totally forthcoming about some facts, at least temporarily, for reasons of security and strategic interest.

So if somebody really believes that every word Putin says is always 100% true - please contact me, I have a bridge to sell you :-)

Stay tuned, kind regards,

The Saker

Israeli Air Strike Kills 4 Palestinians, including 3 Al Quds Fighters

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A relative of Abed al-Shafy Moamar, one of three fighters killed in an Israeli air strike, grieves as his body is brought to the hospital morgue before burial in Khan Yunis, on March 11, 2014. (Photo: AFP - Said Khatib)

Local Editor

Zionist drone F16A Zionist air strike on Tuesday killed three Palestinian fighters of "Al Quds Brigades", the military wing of the Islamic Jihad, in the Gaza Strip, the group said this afternoon.

The group stated the Zionist shelling targeted members of the group in Rafah, a town bordering Egypt, near the Sufa crossing east of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

Al-Manar Website correspondent reported that the Zionist bombing targeted a group of resistance fighters while they were fighting off the occupation forces penetrating in the region.

Palestinian Ministry of Health spokesman spokesman in Gaza, dr. Ashraf al-Qodra, identified the three martyrs as Ismail Abdul-Hamid Abu-Joudeh, 23, Abdul Shafi Saleh Mahmoud Abu Moammar, 33 and Shaher Hamouda Mahmoud Abu Shanab, 24.


Source: Websites
11-03-2014 - 14:06 Last updated 11-03-201

Related

CrossTalk: Crimea's Fait Accompli

Netanyahu Sets Condition for Peace Talks: Right of Return Abolished

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Netanyahu expressed opposition on Sunday to freezing settlement construction on the Palestinian land as a condition for the extension of talks between Tel Aviv and the Palestinian Authority. Today, he Sets Condition for Peace Talks: Right of Return Abolished, and recognizing Israel as a Jewish state

2009

2011
From Yamouk to Palestine


2012


Local Editor



Zionist Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed Tuesday that there will be no peace agreement with the Palestinians without canceling the right of return for Palestinian refugees and recognizing what he called "the Jewish state of Israel."

"I will not bring a deal that doesn't cancel the [refugees'] 'right of return' and doesn't include Palestinian recognition of the Jewish state," Netanyahu's spokesperson Ofir Gendelman said on his official Twitter feed.

From Yarmouk to no where -2012


2013

Netanyahu's remarks were made in an address to the ruling rightwing Likud-Beitenu faction. He touched on one of the most critical aspects of the peace talks with the Palestinian State and one which looks likely to derail US efforts to extend the negotiations beyond a looming April deadline.

The Palestinians have systematically refused Netanyahu's demand that they recognize the so-called 'Israel' as the 'Jewish state', saying it would deny their historical narrative and effectively cancel out the right of their refugees to return to homes that they fled from or were forced out of during the 1948 war which accompanied the creation of the occupation entity.

Source: Websites
11-03-2014 - 16:39 Last updated 11-03-2014

Russian ambassador upbeat over Lebanon and Syria, warns West over Ukraine

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The Russian ambassador to Lebanon, Alexander Zaspikin. (Photo: Marwan Tahtah)
Published Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Russia does not differentiate between the conflict in Ukraine and the battle in Syria. According to the Russian ambassador in Beirut, Alexander Zaspikin, Russia is keen on Ukraine’s unity and the lives of its citizens at the same time. His country is also convinced that no one can change the equation in Syria anymore. And as for Lebanon, Russia is quite optimistic.
The street where the Russian embassy is located in Corniche al-Mazraa is now sealed off with white concrete blocks. Visitors notice that there is something unusual here as security measures are at their highest.
The Russian ambassador in Beirut, Alexander Zaspikin, says with the utmost reassurance: “There are no special threats against the embassy. The security precautions are part of the general atmosphere after the increase in terrorist threats.”


There is no doubt that the emerging crisis in Ukraine takes precedence in Russia. “Ukraine is Russia’s eastern soft underbelly,” it is an extension of it and its strategic exit point at the Black Sea. The Russian-Western confrontation today is nothing but “a dangerous indication of the return of the Cold War.” The ambassador agrees that the Europeans and Americans wanted to “rein in Russia’s attempt to regain its position in the world. They decided a year or so ago to use their influence in Eastern Europe to put pressure on Russia through the situation in Ukraine.”
Zaspikin explains his country’s position regarding the events in Ukraine arguing that “the West instigated the forces affiliated with it inside Ukraine and pushed them to take power. Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych agreed to his part of the agreement on February 21. He started to withdraw the internal security forces from the streets, but extremists quickly attacked the legitimate government.”
Will Russia accept the division of Ukraine? “What is happening in Ukraine is fateful for us,” says Zaspikin. He stresses that “Russia is keen on the unity of Ukrainian territories and institutions. Russia intervened quickly to prevent a civil war that would’ve divided Ukraine in the future because bloodshed erodes national unity.” He continues: “We do not want to divide the country and we are working hard to prevent its division. We will not allow the killing of Ukrainians that are ethnic Russians and other minorities in light of the current chaos and the terrorism perpetrated by gangs. They are the ones who targeted the police force from the beginning and many heroic policemen died.”
The Russian ambassador insists that “the gangs used arms and if the conflict continues they might resort to a large scale use of weapons which would threaten the country’s unity and the presence of minorities.”
For Russia, defining the opposition as perpetrators of a coup against the legitimate authority in Ukraine is a simple feat. Zaspikin says there are “extreme right-wing, nationalist, and ethnic movements and they are the basis of the protest movement against the state. These movements relied on the support of Nazi Germany since the 1930s to destabilize the country and they used to call for a ‘pure Ukraine,’ empty of all the other social groups. Today these groups rely on western support.”
The diplomat addresses “Russia’s Western partners,” saying: “If our partners are objective, they should put pressure on those they are supporting to go back to the February 21 agreement.” He continued: “Europe will regret this in the future. There are dormant extremist movements inside Europe like the ones present in Ukraine. The Ukrainian crisis is going to wake them up and then it will be too late for regrets.”
Will this new cold war lead to confrontations in new flashpoint areas around the world after Ukraine? The ambassador can’t predict but “Who knows?”
Comparisons between Ukrainian President Yanukovych and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are not logical according to the ambassador. 
“The situation in Syria is very different. Assad has a strong regime, army and institutions. Whereas Yanukovych, like previous Ukrainian presidents, sought to amass a fortune and was preoccupied with personal matters. Nevertheless, he is the president now according to the law.”
How will the events in Ukraine affect Russia’s position regarding Syria? Zaspikin answers confidently:
“We are convinced that this is linked to a larger conspiracy. It started in Yugoslavia, then Iraq, Libya, Syria and now Ukraine. All of these conspiracies need to be confronted. What have the Yugoslavians gained? They had a strong state and now they live in weak and small states.”


The Russian ambassador affirms that “the Syrian army is making major progress on the ground and talk of a war from southern Syrian is meant for intimidation but the tide of the war can not be reversed anymore. Toppling the regime by force has failed, the political solution is necessary.” According to Zaspikin, “Russia was able to prevent using the Security Council against Syria and whoever wants to stop the war in Syria must stop supporting terrorist groups and work for the success of Geneva III.”
For Russia, the Geneva III Conference should bring something new, most importantly, “expand the participation of the internal opposition now that the Syrian National Coalition has proved to hold no sway over the militants and doesn’t represent Syrian public opinion. The conference should be logistically prepared to invite the opposition inside Syria, which is now part of the government. If countries want to truly stop the war, they should stop supporting the armed groups and put pressure on them to stop the violence and not just talk about it.”
What about the Saudi role and the recent Saudi decision to classify some armed groups as terrorist organizations? Zaspikin says: “It has been proven that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and al-Nusra Front are terrorist groups but there are other organizations that were not included in the Saudi decree and they are terrorists too, such as the Islamic Front and others. In any case, the Saudi decision is a good one and we hope to build on it in the future to end support for terrorist organizations.”
What about Lebanon?
The Russian diplomat seems optimistic about the situation in Lebanon in the upcoming period. He says “there are good opportunities to implement constitutional deadlines and the Lebanese should not waste these opportunities.” He stresses that “Russia was able to work with its international partners to safeguard security in Lebanon and will continue its support for the country.” He also argued that “it is in no one’s interest to destabilize the Lebanese internal situation and any disturbances in Lebanon won’t benefit anyone and won’t affect the situation on the ground in Syria.” Zaspikin says that “the question of the cabinet statement is not a complicated one. A formula must be reached that pleases everyone so the government can carry out its mission and the country can move forward with its constitutional requirements.”
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.


The Axis of Hope: Beijing to Beirut, Via Moscow, Tehran and Damascus

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Alexandra Valiente / 

The U.S. strategy, devised by Zbigniew Brzezinski, using support for Islamist obscurantism to fight both progressive Muslim policies and against Russia, sparked an alliance to resist it. Now, China, Russia, Iran, Syria and Hezbollah are forced to stick together to survive. Ultimately observed André Charny, the trap has sprung on those who set it.

Muslims Islam against Islam …

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Doku Umarov, the Emir of Al- Qaeda in the North Caucasus, was responsible for crippling Russia during the Olympic Games in Sochi, while NATO changed the regime in Ukraine.
Iran, Syria and Lebanon thanks to Hezbollah and its allies, considered by Westerners for years to be a source of evil because of their support for what they call “terrorism” have not finished being talked about. After individual treatment for each of them according to political divisions in the region, an axis has set itself up that starts at the gates of Russia and China to end at those of Tel Aviv.
This axis is rooted in Western politicies reserved for this region. The United States, followed by major Western countries, have declared how its economic interests must be preserved at all costs. This biased policy has generated tensions over the years, the source of armed conflicts and street fights that incessantly feed the televised news.
This policy, enshrined for some time, was implemented with the support of local stakeholders. However, an acceleration took place after the fall of the Berlin Wall, lived as an historical event, which it obviously was, but that marked the advent of an aggressive and contemptuous strategy toward the Middle East.
The USSR having disappeared, the countries of the region could not hope for anything other than to rely on Western control, notably that of the United States. Instead of taking advantage of this privileged position as arbitrator, the latter and some other Western countries would favor the crash and the domination of the “extended Middle East” through direct interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan, but also in Lebanon, in Yemen and the Maghreb with the declared intention of intervening in Syria and in Iran.
The United States has known, since the seventies, following the oil shock, that they must control the sources of raw materials, especially oil, as well as routes for accessing these resources, because they had the bitter experience of discovering this vital necessity both for their economy and for the comfort of their citizens.
The opinions of experts differ on the assessment of gas reserves and hydrocarbons, but an idea remains constant, that of the finite nature of these treasures that lie in greedy Bedouin hands who have no need of their gold as long as their leisure and fun are funded.
At a time when Samuel Huntington’s “clash of civilizations” has replaced the Cold War, Islam has become for the United States the new useful enemy, an “ally” of sorts, against Europe. Pragmatic and opportunistic, they have seen in the Islamic movement a “groundswell” and chose to play the Muslim card to better control the arteries of black gold. They had sensed the usefulness of this dangerous ally long before the implosion of communism.
Starting also in the 1970s, the United States supported Islamist extremists, from the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood to the Islamist Bosnians and Albanians, from the Taliban to the Egyptian Jamaa Islamyah. There was even talk of their relationship with the FIS (Islamic Salvation Front) which became the violent “GIA” in Algeria. They pampered the Wahhabis at the head of the pro-US Saudi monarchy which finances almost all Islamist networks in the world. They played the sorcerer’s apprentice and fundamentalist movements they believed they could handle sometimes turned against the “Great Satan ” to achieve their own goals.
In contrast, the U.S. has abandoned or wanted to neutralize Muslim countries likely to gain political power and relative autonomy. Consider President Jimmy Carter’s abandoning the Shah, while Iran was becoming master of its oil. To this is added the will to crush any hint of intellectual independence for even secular Arab countries such as Syria, Egypt and Iraq.
Playing with Islamism came to the detriment of secular movements representing an alternative to radical political Islam, the latter representing a safe haven after each failure in this area. However, this “Islamism” is obviously not to be confused with the “Islamic” Republic of Iran which has an unusual genesis. Moreover, several authors of distinction studying Islamist movements sometimes make the mistake of confusing the Islamic Republic of Iran with the Islamists, though they have nothing in common, except the fact they reference Islam and Sharia. The fundamental difference is the very definition of political Islam advocated by one and the other.
Everything separates them fundamentally and if indeed the Americans didn’t do much to save the Shah, this attitude was justified by them for strategic reasons, because Iran for them could in no way be permitted to become a major regional power. Which explains that some time after the fall of the Shah, the U.S. initiated the war waged by Saddam Hussein against his neighbor, which led to the ruin of the only two countries that could have a decisive influence in the Gulf region.
However, the developments in Iran after its war with Iraq allowed the former to become a real regional power, feared by certain Gulf monarchies, who preferred to entrust their security to the West, most particularly to the USA. In exchange, they entrusted their “resources” to Western economies and funded activities and movements designated by Washington’s secret services.
These same monarchies were to turn a blind eye to current events in some regions including Palestine, even though they claimed to support the aspirations of the Palestinian people. They became the first Arab countries to have direct or secret contacts with the State of Israel, which later led to the rapprochement of Palestinian resistance movements with the Iranians.
The latter appear today as the only ones willing to defend the holy places of Islam with the men of Al-Quds, a branch of the Revolutionary Guards, and through their support for Hamas. The US magic has turned against the magician.
The Arab-Muslim world must remain for North America a world rich in oil, exploitable at will, but poor in gray matter and kept in a state of total technological dependence, a market of a billion consumers incapable of political, military and economic independence. The Qur’anic yoke is, according to this view, conducive to intellectual poverty.
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On the night of March 1 to 2, 2014 , while Russia was preparing to intervene in Crimea, an Islamist group attacked passengers at a station in Yunnan (a region where Muslims are very rare), killing at least 29 people and seriously injuring 130. The United States thus sent a message to the Chinese government not to intervene in the conflict. To everyone’s surprise, the Chinese ambassador to the Security Council the next day limited himself to a few general phrases in the debate on the situation in Ukraine.

The Rules of the Game

A Tehran-Beirut axis through Baghdad and Damascus materialized progressively at the expense of Washington’s strategy in the region. It was essential over the years that this axis adopt allies and partners in particular because of sanctions against Iran and Syria.
Moreover, historically, the Damascus-Moscow line has never been suspended despite the disappearance of the Soviet Union, despite the tumultuous period crossed by the Russian Federation. But the arrival of President Vladimir Putin, aspiring to restore Russia ’s role on the international scene and preserve its strategic interests, was not to the liking of the United States.
For its part, Iran would develop its relations with Russia, become its objective ally in negotiations with the West about its nuclear program. China has also strengthened its ties with Tehran, especially following the embargo on the Iranian economy.
These two great powers became by force of circumstances the strategic rear bases of the “Axis of Hope”. It is obvious that everyone is benefiting, but the Russians and the Chinese are not unhappy to have partners who queen the pawns of their historical opponents, while enjoying the Iranian oil and gas and strategic positions offered by Syria’s situation over U.S. forward positions.
In his book, The Grand Chessboard, America and the Rest of the World, published in 1997, Zbigniew Brzezinski, former national security adviser to President Carter and very influential in Clinton’s United States, revealed with cynical frankness the reasons at the root of the Islamic strategy of his country. According to him, the main challenge for the United States is Eurasia, a vast expanse ranging from Western Europe to China via Central Asia : “From the American point of view, Russia seems destined to become the problem … “
The United States is therefore becoming more and more interested in the development of resources in the region and seeks to prevent Russia from having supremacy. “The U.S. policy also aims both the weakening of Russia and the absence of military autonomy of Europe. Hence the NATO expansion to Central and Eastern Europe, in order to sustain the U.S. presence, while the formula for a European defense capable of countering American hegemony on the old continent would involve “an anti-hegemonic Paris-Berlin-Moscow axis.
In fact, through its choices, the US seems to have been mistaken on all fronts that were used as bases to conquer sources of oil and gas, attracting to itself stinging political failures. As for the Western countries, they virtually abandoned all strategy and have entrusted their foreign policy to the United States. Even if they try to save face by some posturing, they know that they are not the ones who run the show. The recent example of François Hollande and Laurent Fabius playing let’s-go-to-war is an illustration : they had to fold quickly, understanding that negotiations between Messieurs Lavrov and Kerry took precedence over their preemptive announcements.

The Response of the Tiger

JPEG - 18.2 kbMay 8 , 2007 in Ternopol (Western Ukraine), Nazis and Islamist factions create a so-called anti-imperialist front to fight against Russia. Organizations from Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine and Russia participate, including Islamist separatists from Crimea, Adygea, Dagestan, Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia, Ossetia and Chechnya. Because of international sanctions, Dokka Umarov can’t be there but has his contribution read. The Front is chaired by Dmytro Yarosh, who became Deputy Secretary of the National Security Council of Ukraine in the coup in Kiev, February 2014.
Noting the failure of their maneuvers, the Americans wanted to raise tension against Russian authorities determined to oppose them, while China remained in ambush to assess the situation, moreover little inclined to trust Washington …
Recall that China is as much interested as Russia in the Middle East : the first sign of interest dates back to 1958 during the Lebanon crisis which led to the U.S. landing on Lebanese shores, to which Beijing strongly objected, long before the USSR.
These US maneuvers are particularly well-established, since the process is relatively simple. First it participates in the creation of NGOs supposed to advocate for human rights. It encourages some “whistleblowers”, and it provides a forum for obscure opponents without great scope to create at a given time a set of conditions for the destabilization of a country.
This is a job that is prepared for years. It has been tried during the Cold War, the most glaring example is that of Chile, and continued to the present day with the famous “color revolutions” and more recently the “Arab Spring.” The same actions are being prepared in other countries that we see in the headlines, especially in Azerbaijan.
It is in this context that “events” broke out in June 2009 in Iran, under the pretext of challenging conditions for the election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The Islamic Republic had to face it for nearly nine months. Hezbollah was also confronted, after the Israeli attack which lasted 33 days, by a new government plot to deprive it of a tool directly related to its security, namely its communication network. Its response was quick and effective on 7 May 2008 which the plotters considered as an affront though it was tit for tat !
There remained in the “Axis of Hope” only Syria, which had been notified by the Americans that if it did not stop its relationship with Iran and Hezbollah, it would suffer the fate of other Arab countries affected by a “spring” supposed to bring the swallows of democracy but which brought only the crows of terror and instability.
It is in this context that the famous “color revolutions” impact Russia through the Ukrainian example. These revolutions have deprived Russia of most of its strategic field. Europe (UEE) was used, which was to host the Ukrainians with a promise of better economic conditions and aid. But in reality, these events have allowed the United States to establish military bases at Moscow’s doorstep. At the time, Russia, weakened by a power that had neither ambition nor scale was not able to respond.
Russia today cannot accept that this example recur throughout Ukraine. This explains its immediate reaction. Its reaction is despite appearances in accordance with the examples in the Middle East, since the idea is to say that democracy is not exercised in the street, but is won at the polls. If the opposition wanted to take power, it should have to go through elections.
Beyond this, Russia, barely out of aggression from the Chechen militias that brought death and terror in its territory with the financial support of some Gulf monarchies, of course defends its interests. This explains the veiled threat made ​​by the Saudis saying : “We could help you avoid the threat of terrorism in Sochi, if you yield on the Syrian issue.” They were obviously turned down.
In any event , this demonstrates both the role of the Gulf monarchies and the use of Islamist movements to covertly promote U.S. policies which, through the destabilization of some states, believe they create conditions which would be more favorable to them in the region.
The Beijing Beirut axis, via Moscow, Tehran and Damascus, will only grow stronger. This is virtually a survival issue for each. According to an Eastern proverb: “Do not back a cat into a corner, at the risk of seeing it transform into a tiger.” But what can happen if we try to back a tiger into a corner? It is certain that nobody wants to know the answer.
Translation
Roger Lagassé

Jordan Threatens ’Israel’ of Releasing Daqasmeh in Response to Killing Zuaiter

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Jordan
Local Editor



Jordan's FM Nasser Judeh denounced the incident of killing the Jordanian judge, Raed Zuaiter, and informed the Israeli embassy in Amman that the government of Jordan expects a clear report about the incident and asked for an immediate investigation, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Slayer of children proclaimed a hero.Jordanian sources pointed out that "Jordan told Israel that it will resort to the release of soldier Ahmed Daqasmeh who killed and wounded several Israeli soldiers on the border between Jordan and Israel."

Meanwhile, dozens of Jordanians gathered “spontaneously” near the Israeli embassy to protest the shooting and demand tough measures by the government.

The protesters, who represented average people, along with political parties, chanted slogans demanding the cancellation of the peace treaty and closing down Israel’s diplomatic mission.

MPs on Monday expressed anger over the killing of Zuaiter, blaming Israel for the “heinous crime”.

The Palestine Committee in the Lower House issued on Monday a statement in which it condemned the incident, demanding the abolishment of the peace treaty with Israel and encouraged the government to expel the Israeli ambassador in Amman and call back the Jordanian envoy in Tel Aviv.

The House Rights and Freedoms Committee chairperson, Rula Hroub, condemned, in a statement carried by Petra, the violent, illegal act targeting a Jordanian civilian. She also expressed her condolences to the Zuaiter family.

Also on Monday, the Reform Bloc at the Lower House led by MP Mejhem Sqour issued a strongly-worded statement, demanding that the prosecutor general move quickly to file a case against the Israeli army.

Veteran MP Khalil Atiyeh described the incident as “very serious” and vowed that lawmakers will exert “maximum pressure on the government to expel the Israeli ambassador from Amman”.

Relatives and friends of Zuaiter said he was a calm person and never harmed anyone.

Judge Muwafaq Obeidat said he worked with Zuaiter for three years and was respected by his colleagues.

“We also went together to university; he is a man with high morals, and did not harm anyone,” Obeidat said, noting that Zuaiter is an only son.

According to his relatives, Zuaiter is a PhD holder in law and has two children; one of them was in hospital the day his father was killed.


Source: Agencies
11-03-2014 - 21:26 Last updated 11-03-2014


Lebanese Concerns over Repercussions of Saudi-Qatari Clash

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Daoud Rammal

The Lebanese people warily watched the Saudi-Qatari clash,. in an attempt to rectify the results that could affect Lebanon negatively, especially in the shade of the continued stalling in the process of drafting the ministerial statement regarding the ‘resistance’ clause.

This clash remarkably coincides with a set of developments that have recently taken place:
-    Egypt’s decision crack down on “Hamas” movement by banning all its activities in Egypt.

-    Saudi Arabia’s decision to designate the “Muslim Brotherhood” as a “terrorist” group in addition to “ISIL”, “Nusra Front”, “Al- Qaeda”, and “Saudi Hezbollah”.

-    Israel’s confiscation of weapons ship allegedly sent by Iran to “Hamas” in Gaza.

In fact, the Lebanese people know that Saudi Arabia has an active role in Lebanon and that Qatar has an influential role therein as well. This implies that Lebanese concerns are related to the fear of expanding the Saudi-Qatari clash that might reach it, as it might also have a direct impact on the events in Syria. Perhaps the release of the Maaloula nuns, thanks to Qatar’s direct intervention, is one of the implications of this clash, though positively. Yet, a question remains: How will Saudi Arabia respond?

Five years ago a Saudi prince sent his personal plane to Beirut to transfer a national prominent national reference to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment. He spent about two weeks and returned back to Beirut. The doctors asked him to return to Riyadh after seven months to complete his treatment. When that period ended, the said reference told the same Saudi Prince that the date to complete treatment has come, but the plane did not reach the airport, and then was the biggest surprise when he was told also that there is no visa for him to Saudi Arabia, protesting against his position that supports the resistance and that rejects some Saudi policies. At that time, that reference criticized the “State that fears a position.”

This was repeated when Saudi Arabia started to intervene directly in the Syrian war, politically, militarily, and financially, and to support the Takfiri groups, not to mention the positions issued by Saudi officials, what prompted that same reference to describe one of these officials as a “Commander of an axis on the battlefronts in Syria.”

Based upon this, an expert diplomat commented on the current Gulf controversy, considering that “the decision of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain to withdraw their ambassadors from Qatar has been made under deep uncertainty. It confirmed beyond any doubt that Saudi Arabia has fallen twice:

First: When it looked as if it is neither the speaker nor the leader of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Therefore, it is one of the six countries, and not all of them support it.

Second: Its inability to influence the smallest country in the world that its population does not exceed the population of any of Riyadh’s neighborhoods, what made it look as if it is feeble.”
The diplomat believed that “Qatar had a well-planned reaction to what has been done by Riyadh. Its announcement that it will not withdraw its ambassadors from Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and Manama, reflects Qatar’s realization of the repercussions of such a step, yet the Saudi leadership, Bahrain and the UAE did not take notice of this.”

The source stressed that “Qatar committed a mistake when it supported the Muslim Brotherhood in the so-called the Arab Spring in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Syria, as it made a mistake in facing Russia in the UN Security Council, what made it change the structure of its ruling system. However, Qatar did not learn from this lesson, where its new emir was expected to take lessons from the mistakes of the previous regime, to stop intentionally supporting the Muslim Brotherhood in the Arab Spring countries, to re-arrange the affairs of Qatar with Egypt and with its military leadership, and to stop the media organizations that are loyal to Qatar from carrying things too far.”

The source added that “this does not absolve on the other hand Saudi Arabia from its mistakes, at a time when it was supposed to be watchful and conscious. Its mistakes are not less dangerous than Qatar’s ones in terms of supporting the Takfiri factions in all of Egypt, Syria, Libya, Tunisia, and even Lebanon. Moreover, the Royal Saudi declaration to imprison everyone fighting outside the territory of Saudi Arabia is not enough and came too late, especially since there are thousands of Saudis who are fighting extremist groups in Afghanistan and Chechnya through Iraq down to Syria.”

The source praised “the wisdom of both Oman and Kuwait for not following the crowd i.e. neither following Saudi Arabia’s footsteps nor that of Qatar, and this gives them both a great opportunity to play an important role in bridging the gap, as what happened previously.”

The source suggested that “Lebanon greatly prefers to keep Kuwait and Oman outside the circle of the Gulf conflict, because the Saudi-Qatari tension should be resolved by a neutral side, so as not to see Gulf skirmishes in Lebanon.”

The source wondered “how the political leadership in the United Arab Emirates supported Saudi Arabia’s decision, even if Dubai accuses Qatar of forming Muslim Brotherhood cells in the United Arab Emirates, because it is well-known that the United Arab Emirates and its officials are wise and shrewd when dealing with the affairs of their country, with the GCC in particular, and with the Arab world in general. As for Bahrain, the political leadership did not deal wisely with its internal affairs, so what it has done was not surprising.”

Translated by: Maysa Hazimeh

Source: Assafir Newspaper
11-03-2014 - 17:32 Last updated 11-03-2014

Syria, Ukraine: One Anti-terrorist Front

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posted on March 11, 2014 by Alexandra Valiente

The February armed coup in Ukraine has repeated the Syrian scenario in the Russia’s brotherly nation. It was a result of the actions planned in advance using both «soft» and «tough» power directed from outside. The very same scenario has been staged by the West in Yugoslavia, Libya. For already three years they have been trying to repeat it Syria. Each time they employ methods of outside interference aimed at toppling the ruling government and moving a country under outside control.
In Kiev the coup was staged by militants trained by the CIA. There were many of them coming from Western Ukraine to join together with mercenaries from Poland and the EU states, Georgia and the Islamists with combat experience received in Syria and Libya. Using snipers hired by the Maidan leaders is also the repetition of Syrian experience… There are a few thousand of militants coming from the North Caucasus filling the ranks of anti-government forces in Syria. They are the ones to follow the call of Ukraine’s deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Dmitry Yarosh addressed to Chechen terrorist Doku Umarov asking him to join efforts in the fight against Russia…As is known, Yarosh has expressed his readiness to run for presidency «to liberate occupied Ukrainian territories» including Belgorod and other Russia’s regions. He also wants to make the armed formations of Pravy Sector join the regime’s armed forces providing them with weapons from regular army stores.
The Pravy Sector armed formations and units of private military companies are trying to take up positions in the Kharkov, Donetsk, Lugansk, Dnepropetrovsk and other areas of south-eastern part of Ukraine. Militants spread terror (for instance, people have been beaten up, killed and kidnapped in Kharkov) against activists of anti-Maidan and pro-Russian organizations. There have been egregious instances of intimidation. For example, the heads of a number of regions located at the Russian border (Kursk, Belgorod, and Bryansk) have received e-mails with threats demanding to stop support of Russian leadership’s policy and come up with the declarations of their desire to join Ukraine. To counter such activities thousands hit the streets of Kharkov and Donetsk to demand referendums on self-determination like it is done in Crimea.
The seizure of powered by ultranationalist and fascist anti-Russian groups had been planned by NATO. Obviously, the next step is joining the alliance; a corresponding bill has already been submitted to the «post-revolutionary» Rada (parliament) for consideration. The NATO Secretary General has made a statement that the alliance membership is open for Ukraine. The Ukraine’s entry will allow NATO to get close to the borders of the Russian Federation providing the capability to hit Russian strategic missiles in flight while reducing the flight time of NATO missiles to Russia’s targets of vital importance. Upon joining NATO, Ukraine will demand to take the Russian naval base away from Sebastopol.
From point of view of economy the coming to power of anti-Russian forces means losing contracts with Russia’s industrial enterprises, including military sector (aviation, shipbuilding, missile components, armor and transport). If the anti-Russian regime stays in power in Kiev, then Ukraine will inevitably become a breeding ground for terrorism. The chances are great that it will be used to dismember the Russian Federation like it happened with the Soviet Union.
At that, the steps being taken by Russian leadership could prevent such a situation creep. First of all, I mean the unambiguous support for Crimea self-determination. The people in the eastern and south-eastern parts of the country also demand the right to decide their own fate.
The events in Ukraine have split the Western block. Europeans understand that turning the country into a breeding ground for Islamic radicals may entail the spread of terrorist campaign into the EU member- states. As terrorists return from Syria, the security situation may seriously aggravate. The support of Russia by China and then majority of Arab states, especially Egypt and Syria, is especially important.
The Ukrainian crisis has become an important stage of Russia-Ukraine relationship evolution. It has put an end to illusions of those who perceived the Western society as an example of democracy, and the Western political elite as a guarantor of human rights with clean sheet. The events in Ukraine prove the West’s irrepressible desire to move eastward will always make it ignore the fundamental human right – the right to life. It’s a serious, sobering lesson which Russia is to learn really well.

President al-Assad inspects situation of displaced people at al-Dweir shelter in Adra

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Mar 12, 2014


Damascus, (SANA) President Bashar al-Assad affirmed Wednesday that the state is going ahead with combating terrorism and the terrorists who have forced citizens out of their houses and perpetrated hideous crimes against them.

The President's affirmation came during inspecting the situation of displaced people at al-Dweir makeshift center in Adra, Damascus Countryside.

President al-Assad toured places where the displaced families are staying and listened to their needs and conditions of their stay.

He stressed that the state continues providing basic requirements of the displaced families until everybody returns home whether those in Adra or in any other place.
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President Assad Tours Shelters for Displaced outside Damascus
Local Editor


Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made on Wednesday a rare trip outside the capital to meet people displaced by the country's three-year-old crisis.

"President Assad is inspecting conditions for the displaced in Damascus province," state television said.

President Assadd (photo from archive)
"President Assad is touring shelters for the displaced... and listening to their needs," it added.

The official SANA news agency said Assad was visiting people in Adra, northeast of the capital.

The town is considered a strategic gateway to Damascus and has seen frequent clashes between the army and the insurgents.

Assad rarely makes public appearances and most of those have been within the confines of the capital.

He was last reported at a public event in January, when he attended prayers at a Damascus mosque.

Assad is expected to seek a new term in a presidential election planned for the middle of the year.

Source: Agencies
12-03-2014 - 10:42 Last updated 12-03-2014

Al-Maliki warns terrorism may spread to all countries of the world

Baghdad, (SANA) (Update) The Baghdad International Counterterrorism Conference began its activities on Wednesday with the participation of delegations from 56 countries...Read more
Former Lebanese FM: Arab League's stance on Syria proved it was not up to level of responsibility

Beirut, (SANA) Former Lebanese Foreign and Expatriates Minister Adnan Mansour stressed that money controls the Arab League (AL) and events in Syria proved that the AL was not up to the level of the pan-Arab responsibility...Read more


Tehran, (SANA) (Update2) Speaker of the Iranian Shura Council Ali Larijani said the West is using the armed terrorist groups as a pressure method to achieve its objectives...Read more


Many Ukrainians afraid of IMF conditions after association with EU - political analyst

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Source

Many Ukrainians afraid of IMF conditions after association with EU - political analyst

One of the consequences of the Ukrainian crisis is the direct confrontation between US and Russia, drawn in the conflict as the main participants. 

Though, in fact, the contradictions among Ukrainian people in respect of their future originate from the disagreement about EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. Only Ukrainians themselves, without any interference, can decide on the country’s internal affairs and resolve the conflict, said Neil MacFarlane, Professor of International Relations at St Anne's College.
"The US has seemingly diverted its strategic attention to East Asia – the Asian pivot, if you will. And, consequently, the US was not paying a great deal of attention to the matters in Ukraine. It was also not paying a great deal of attention to Russian policy towards Ukraine. If you look at the polling data in Ukraine over the past several years, the Ukrainian people have not been very enthusiastic about NATO, but reasonably enthusiastic about the EU." - Professor MacFarlane said.
"If you then look at the data more closely, you find that western Ukraine is more enthusiastic than people in eastern Ukraine, many of whom are of Russian extraction. There is some disagreement among the Ukrainians themselves, however, it is not, to my mind, in the interest of Ukraine if moving closer to Europe causes problems in the relationship with Russia. The other point in terms of interests is that any westward movement on the part of Ukraine would involve substantial economic readjustment. This will hurt many people, probably, particularly in eastern Ukraine in the short term." - Neil MacFarlane added.
"In the long term, probably, integration with Europe is desirable. But I'm not surprised that many people were nervous about the association agreement with the EU.
I’m not surprised that many people were nervous about the consequences of a debt arrangement with the IMF. I think it is best left to the Ukrainians themselves to decide this." - Neil MacFarlane concluded.

Qatar signals strategic shifts as Iranian diplomacy sways EU

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Qatar's Foreign Minister, Chalid al-Atija (L) holds a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif on February 26, 2014 in Tehran. (Photo: AFP-Atta Kenare)
Published Monday, March 10, 2014
When Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders visited Iran on February 22, 2014, the Iranians blatantly told him that the only solution in Syria would be to form a broad-based national unity government comprising of representatives of both the regime and the opposition, but under the leadership of President Bashar al-Assad.
The European official also heard harsh words from the Iranians about the role that Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been playing in sponsoring terrorism. Iranian officials said that two Gulf countries, encouraged by the international community, were destabilizing the region and thwarting all efforts for peace in Syria.
The Iranians also said that funding terrorist groups would backfire on Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and presented information, lists, and documents of their support for terrorists, mentioning that a brother of Prince Bandar bin Sultan was involved in funding them.
On February 26, only four days after the Belgian minister’s visit, Qatari Foreign Minister Khaled bin Mohammed al-Attiyah arrived in Tehran. The minister, who has Syrian relatives, had started out his career as a fighter pilot, before he went into politics, business, and law. Because of his background, he probably understood that going to Tehran was not only mandatory now, but urgent.
How couldn't he have realized that when Doha has been receiving reports for some time that Saudi Arabia was planning to undermine the Qatari role and eliminate the Muslim Brotherhood's remaining bastions?



Tehran did not sever its relations with Qatar throughout the Syrian crisis; Iran advised and warned Qatar repeatedly when weapons and militants began to cross all red lines, but Qatar did not budge: “Assad has to be toppled by force.”
Qatar’s ambitions are justifiable, but its role was delicately drawn on its behalf. Riyadh allowed Doha’s ambitions to run their course. The kingdom encouraged, supported, and suggested that it was right behind Qatar. But as soon as the Qatari role in France suffered a blow due to its funding of terrorism in Mali, Saudi Arabia moved in to take its place. As soon as Qatar’s role in Egypt suffered a setback after the Muslim Brotherhood-led regime there was toppled, Saudi Arabia moved in to shower Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi with money and support.
Doha sent officials to Damascus and Tehran, but its overtures were not well-received. What is required of Qatar is much more than a few publicized visits.
Two more blows came from Saudi Arabia. First, the ambassadors of Saudi, the UAE, and Bahrain were recalled from Doha. Then, the Muslim Brotherhood was designated by the Saudis as a terrorist organization. The media outlets funded by the two countries then proceeded to take part in the worst dispute in the history of their relations.
Qatar’s strategic shift
Iran is waiting, and so is Assad. The first is famous for its diplomacy and patience. The second brings in a military option that has started to turn the tide of the ongoing war.
The Qatari foreign minister went to Iran to offer a comprehensive deal that is currently under consideration. The Qatari position on Assad remains rigid, but everything is now up for discussion.
Qatar’s financial and moral contribution in securing the release of the nuns kidnapped in Syria is significant. The same can be said about other similar developments, even if the details of which have not been fully publicized, including Qatar’s recent move to curtail its support for armed groups. Those details will come to light in the near future.
Iran on the diplomatic track, Assad on the battlefield
On Sunday, Europe's foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, heard from Tehran the same things her Belgian counterpart was told during his visit: the fight against terrorism is a priority, there must be a political solution in Syria based on the premises mentioned earlier, and there must be good faith on the nuclear issue. Everything else can be discussed.
Ashton’s response was more than encouraging to Iran as she said she was carrying a message of goodwill from 28 European countries. Ashton affirmed that by overcoming this stage with Iran will allow them to address more strategic issues down the road.
Tehran is aware of Europe’s need for making compromises. In Iran’s line of thinking, this is acceptable, so let it be the starting point and the bargaining chip that it can use with the Obama administration.
Iran’s warm reception of Ashton, and other European officials, is important and deliberate. It was followed by an equally warm reception that the U.S. extended to Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli premier who is pathologically obsessed with Iran.
Yabrud: By force or by negotiations



The P5+1 negotiations are progressing. The Syrian army, in parallel, is making progress on the ground. Yabroud has all but fallen, whether through negotiations or by force. The decision to retake it was made a while ago, yet without haste. Other strategic regions might fall to the regime as well. Assad does not want July’s presidential elections to take place without first being in control of major cities – including Aleppo.
Washington and Tehran have been trading accusations during the negotiations, but this is to be expected. Obama needs this to silence the Israeli lobby in Congress and reassure Israel. Tehran needs it to ease the hard-liners’ attacks on the negotiators. The decision regarding the “gladiator’s flexibility” made by the Supreme Leader is irreversible, unless it proves to be detrimental to Iranian interests. So far, Tehran has gained much more than it expected in 2005.
The European officials who visited Iran heard the following: “We have the will to reach a final agreement. Iran’s sovereignty and rights as a signatory of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) must be respected when it comes to nuclear enrichment. We are not negotiating from a position of weakness. The sanctions did not kill Iran, but only made it more self-reliant.”
The Europeans told the Obama administration: “Ease your threats if you want to negotiate. Do not embarrass the negotiators.” At the same time, Iranian officials told them unequivocally: “The bomb does not benefit us. It runs against our faith. It even poses a threat to us.”
Iran is testing the West and vice versa. This is what is at heart of the coming shifts in the region. If the negotiations succeed, many things will change.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is worried and justifiably so. The issue has to do with its future role on the international arena. Iran is now a cornerstone in the war on terror. Therefore, it was necessary for Saudi Arabia to make a public volte-face shortly before Obama arrives in Riyadh this month by putting several organizations it once funded on its terrorism list.
The Iranian-European negotiations also include Gaza and the future of Palestine. Western powers realize that Tehran is not negotiating over the principle of resistance and settlements, and the Europeans have begun sounding the alarm over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Ashton spoke about the dangers of the Israeli blockade and the continued closure of the crossings on the Egyptian border. She said that Gaza must be taken into consideration during Palestinian-Israeli talks. The Europeans are preparing to offer what they call an “unprecedented package” for both the Palestinian and Israeli sides. This presupposes an agreement between them.
Do all these things allow Iran and its allies to be optimistic? Not quite.
What if Western negotiators ask Iran to take additional measures not stipulated in the NPT? The “gladiator’s flexibility” will vanish, or turn into a showdown.
What if nuclear inspections end up allowing NATO to spy on Iran’s conventional weapons? This is a possibility.
What will Iran do with the law it passed in 2005, requiring the construction of 20 nuclear reactors for civilian purposes? These will all need uranium enrichment.
What if Saudi Arabia and Western countries decide to transfer more harmful weapons to Syria in an effort to overturn the balance of power and try to take Damascus once again? And what if Israel ventures to undertake military action for the same purpose?



All of these questions are on the table. Yet the European Union is looking for a way out of such predicaments. For instance, European mediators proposed the idea of forming an international group to supply Iran with the nuclear material it needs. They believe that this would meet Iran’s needs while encouraging it to abandon uranium enrichment. Iran has yet to approve and hasn’t suspended production of heavy water in the reactor in Arak. Western powers fear this could help Iran produce plutonium, which can be used to make nuclear weapons.
The tug of war continues.
Iran to Geneva II
The Belgian minister, and then Ashton, proposed to integrate Iran again into the Geneva 2 talks. Tehran had moved negotiations from Geneva to Vienna, to protest the Western position on Iran in Geneva.
Iranian Assistant Foreign Minister Hussein Amir Abdul-Lahian proposed to a European foreign minister to mediate with Syria over humanitarian issues, and to create a joint Iranian-European-Syrian follow-up committee. The Iranians said that they were extending assistance to Syrian refugees, especially in Jordan and Lebanon. The Iranians also spoke about their role and Hezbollah’s in brokering reconciliations in Syria. There were also discussions over possible cooperation between the Syrian Red Crescent and the European Red Cross.
These strategic developments involving Iran and Europe coincided with an increasing Iranian-Turkish rapprochement. Recep Tayyip Erdogan is in need of Tehran, amid his feud with former ally and present enemy, preacher Fethullah Gulen. There were also talks with Russia recently to safeguard the rights of the Tatar minority in Ukraine. Qatari-Turkish-Iranian meetings, even ones involving Russia too, are no longer far-fetched. So how will this be translated on the ground in Syria?
Things are clearer than before. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will hold further meetings with Ashton until July. By then, it would be time for Syrian presidential elections.
Things in Ukraine will be clearer too by then: Either they will deteriorate further inviting more firmness by Vladimir Putin, or there will be de-escalation, bringing about better conditions for broader negotiations. The Europeans told Tehran that they were not enthusiastic about escalation with Putin and were inclined to seek settlements.
Also, the military situation in Syria would have become clearer by then. Everything therefore indicates that the coming months will be crucial, critical, but also full of promising possibilities.
This article is an edited translation from the Arabic Edition.

Western Media is a Propaganda Arm of the State by Finian Cunningham + Pepe Escobar interviewed by Ry Dawson

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by Finian Cunningham
Writer, Dandelion Salad
East Africa
Crossposted from Strategic Culture Foundation
March 9, 2014
I am lying to you.
Image by Bjorn1101 via Flickr

Western news media have long functioned as a propaganda arm of the state, concealing elite corruption at the heart of government: the collusion between corporate, financial and ruling power and the deeply anti-democratic nature of that power. 

Despite the formality of recurring elections and parliamentary style appearance, Western states are in the nuts-and-bolts of working power more accurately described as fascist corporate entities with a patina of popular democracy for window-dressing.
Look at the global financial collapse that was triggered in 2008. From the US to Europe, the crisis can be attributed to the criminal practices of major banks and other financial institutions operating casino capitalism – the last refuge of bankrupt capitalism as an organizing social system. Yet far from being pursued with prosecutions, the financial oligarchy has been bailed out time and again by their bought-and-paid political rulers to the tune of trillions of dollars with public money, while the public is clobbered with swingeing austerity and poverty. How can we describe this arrangement as anything but fascism – the inexorable endpoint of capitalism?
In this audacious, gargantuan expropriation of wealth by the financial oligarchy in cahoots with the political class – all across the Western world – where is the critical, campaigning, investigative functions of the supposed “free press” – the much-vaunted “fourth estate” which conceitedly refers to the media acting as a guardian of public interest and democratic rights? It does not exist. The Western media are an integral part of the fascist plutocracy.
The established media have thus acted as a vital propaganda arm of the fascist state by concealing or diverting from what is a huge systematic crime of corporate theft and public immiseration.
Of much more damning importance is the question of war. The wholesale mass murder of people and destruction of countries – without even a modicum of justification on the principle of self-defense – is the supreme crime. This crime of war of aggression was established at the post-1945 Nuremberg Trials of Nazi German leaders.
The American-led wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, beginning in 2001 and 2003, which together have resulted in more than one million dead and millions more wounded, their livelihoods destroyed, are episodes that clearly conform to the category of “wars of aggression”. The official justifications used by American and British leaders to instigate these wars – eradicating global terrorism and weapons of mass destruction – have transpired to be baseless, or at the very least cry out for proper investigation. More than this, there are serious grounds to support a prosecution case that these wars were based on deliberate fabrication and lies.
Western media stand accused of complicity in the prima facie war crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq, from their systematic promulgation of the official fabrications to invoke these military operations. That complicity of the Western media is an ongoing crime case because even though the initial conspiracy of governments and their military-industrial-financial-corporate complex has been uncovered, or at least made deeply questionable, the Western media refuse to probe into these aggressions. They have been airbrushed from history. There is good reason for this reluctance of Western media because of their own apparent complicity – they are not going to probe their own very possible complicity in the mass murders of Afghan and Iraqi people.
If we include cases of proxy or covert wars, the list of Western and in particular American aggression grows exponentially. Korea (ongoing), Guatemala, Cuba (ongoing), Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Dominican Republic, Chile, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Lebanon (ongoing), Grenada, Panama, Palestine (ongoing), Angola, Mozambique, Democratic Republic of Congo among many others. More recently, the US has instigated wars directly or through proxies in former Yugoslavia, Libya and currently in Syria.
In every case, the official pretext for military intervention can be shown to be baseless or contrived, hiding an ulterior agenda of imperialist aggression – the supreme crime. Millions of deaths have been inflicted by spurious claims – whether fighting communism or defending national interests or latterly “responsibility to protect human rights” as in Libya during 2011.
Yet in this litany of war of aggression – premeditated baseless wars – the Western media have served as the dutiful information ministry to justify and shield from any reasonable contemporary or retrospective investigation. Western governments have been given a carte blanche to commit outrageous war crimes over many decades and into the present – by a dutiful complicit so-called news media.

The present case of Syria is particularly instructive. Here it is incontestable that the US and its Western allies are waging a covert war for regime change. Unlike in Libya, the Western powers have not openly assigned their air and naval forces to the task – under the cynical guise of no-fly zones – but instead are relying on Western-backed terrorist mercenary armies on the ground. All the while, the Western media have peddled a propaganda campaign that the conflict in Syria is a “pro-democracy uprising”. In this function, the Western media are simply regurgitating the political disinformation used by their governments to justify the unjustifiable violation of Syrian sovereignty and gross violation of international law.

Another pertinent case is that of the Western-backed military intervention of the Central African Republic by France. The invasion of that country by French forces on December 2 last year pre-empted a mandate from the United Nations Security Council. French government claims of acting to “protect human rights” and to “prevent genocide” have no basis in fact. The killings in the Central African Republic began days and weeks after French troops arrived because the latter displayed a reckless one-sided policy of disarming Muslim militia while leaving Christian militia armed and emboldened to go on a mass murder spree. This mayhem was triggered by French military invasion, not prevented, as Paris continues to claim. Thousands have since been killed in a bloody campaign of genocide, and an estimated 650,000 people – mainly Muslims – have fled their homes and are facing starvation. French claims about why they entered the Central African Republic can be easily challenged as specious, while the evidence for an ulterior agenda of securing rich natural resources, in particular uranium ore, is begging for investigation.
The Western media and the French media in particular are once again complicit in either complacently disseminating French government claims or actively indulging in a cover-up of the real reasons for this violation in the Central African Republic.
This is the historical context in which we should assess events in Ukraine and the conduct of the Western media in particular.
The US and its European allies have undeniably embarked on a campaign of regime change in the Ukraine, and so far they have succeeded in sacking an elected president and government in Kiev. The installed unelected junta is now paving the way for Western capital to pillage Ukraine and for the basing of NATO missiles in that country – on the border with Russia. The unelected Western-backed regime that forced its way violently into office on February 24 would not have succeeded in its putsch only for the tidal wave of political interference from Western governments over the preceding months – aided and abetted by the Western media.
If the Western media really were an independent information profession why did they not question the flagrant interference of Western politicians in the internal affairs of a supposedly sovereign state? Indeed, why did the Western media give legitimacy to such interference instead of questioning it, as any reasonable law-abiding person would expect? Why were Western politicians able to parade through Kiev whipping up the extremists among the protesters without even a question from the Western media? Why were cadres of overtly neo-Nazis portrayed as legitimate protesters even though they were attacking Ukrainian government buildings and police with firearms and firebombs? Why has the Western media banned the use of the words “neo-Nazi” and “fascist” as accurate descriptions of the cadres that have a brought the new regime in Kiev to power? Why does the Western media not describe members of the junta – comprised of self-declared neo-Nazi Svoboda and Pravy Sektor parties – as “neo-Nazis”?
The US government last week claimed:
“Far-right wing ultranationalist groups, some of which were involved in open clashes with security forces during the EuroMaidan protests, are not represented in the Rada [parliament]. There is no indication that the Ukrainian government would pursue discriminatory policies; on the contrary, they have publicly stated exactly the opposite.”
This is sheer disinformation from Washington that flies in the face of countless videos and speeches by members of the Kiev junta. The self-defined neo-Nazi Svoboda party and its related Pravy Sektor – both of which orchestrated street violence with full approval from Washington and Brussels – are not just represented in the Kiev parliament, they hold the top positions of power in the new regime. And they have openly threatened the safety of ethnic Russians and other perceived political opponents, banning other parties and attacking their personnel and premises.
These self-proclaimed fascist parties hold the offices of police, security and defense, headed up by Andriy Parubiy, Dmitry Yarosh and Ihor Tenyukh – founding figures of Svoboda and Pravy Sektor who acted as the commandants of the violent street protests. The prosecutor general is Svoboda’s Oleg Makhnitsky, who has since issued arrest orders for the ousted president Viktor Yanukovych and his cabinet.
Svoboda, which openly adulates Ukrainian Nazis led by Stepan Bandera, who collaborated with the Nazi extermination during World War II against millions of their fellow countrymen and Russians, also holds key offices in the new Western-backed Kiev regime relating to justice, economy, agriculture and education.
Washington claims that the neo-Nazi junta came to power in Kiev on February 24 because President Yanukovych did not sign up to an accord brokered on February 21 with members of the opposition. “Yanukovych refused to keep his end of the bargain. Instead, he packed up his home and fled,” said the US State Department in a “factsheet” issued last week.
What the US government does not mention is that the possible compromise on February 21 fell through because of the sudden violence that broke out on February 20 when up to 100 protesters and police were killed in gunfire in Kiev’s Maidan Square. It has since emerged that the killings were most probably carried out by snipers working covertly for the organizers of the Western-backed street demonstrations. Aleaked phone call – dated February 25 – between EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Estonia’s foreign minister Urmas Paet tends to confirm that mass murder was orchestrated by the Western-backed coalition that has since grabbed power in Kiev.



Given the proven collusion of the CIA with the Kiev agitators, such an act of mass murder in Kiev must have had foreign state involvement. It would explain why Yanukovych suddenly fled from his office and sought state protection from Russia. It would explain why the new regime swept to power on February 24.
However, this armed seizure of power by neo-Nazis has been censored from the Western mainstream media. One report of the leaked phone call between Ashton and Paet – later confirmed by both as authentic upon its reporting earlier this week by Russia Today – found its ways into the British Guardian, but the style of the Guardian’s reportage cast the sniper killings as a mere “conspiracy theory”. Tellingly, there is no serious follow-up in the Western media of what appears to be a massive crime and indeed a covert act of war.
Instead of dealing with the facts of orchestrated violence and illegal seizure of government in Ukraine, the Western governments and their media have shifted the focus on to alleged Russian “aggression” and “violation” of Ukrainian sovereignty over Moscow’s reasonable moves to secure its national interests, primarily the majority ethnic Russian population in the southern Crimean Peninsula.
The upsurge in Western governments’ offensive rhetoric and sanctions against Russia over recent events in Crimea is motivated by the desire and need to cover up the glaringly obvious facts that it is Washington and its European allies who have violated Ukrainian sovereignty – not Russia. Therefore, all facts, ranging from the Western orchestration of neo-Nazis political elements to the deliberate use of terrorist violence, must be expunged from the public discourse.
And the Western media are following that political agenda with a single-minded commitment that illustrates their complicity in yet another Western covert war of aggression.
The cringing example of CNN’s “star journalist” Christiane Amanpour castigating on air her colleague, Wolf Blitzer, for merely quoting Russian officials describing the “fledgling government” in Kiev as being comprised of “neo-Nazis and fascists” is just one proof of the state-controlled nature of Western media. Similarly, the BBC, France 24, the New York Times and Guardian and so on, do not permit the use of such words, or if they do it is reported in a supercilious way suggesting that it is untrustworthy Russian “propaganda”.
The vicious turn in Western governments’ policy towards Russia over Ukraine is aimed at whitewashing their own grave culpability in a criminal conspiracy – another criminal conspiracy in a long historical list of such aggression.
Western media are likewise ramping up their aggression towards Russia and its President Vladimir Putin. Shamefully, they are piling on the distortion of events in Ukraine by giving credence to Western politicians’ claims that Putin is acting “like Hitler” or some Cold War villain. In doing so, the Western media in their slavish propaganda function are recklessly creating the conditions for possible war. In that way, they are acting as they have always done, creating and justifying the political cover for wars of aggression by the ruling fascist cabal that is the real power holder in Western states.


Why the Western media are operating with particularly vicious propaganda over Ukraine is that this time in history, the Western fascist ruling class and its media are especially exposed in the eyes of the world like never before. The Western media is not just fighting the usual reprehensible war on behalf of their rulers. With their credibility at an all-time low and their complicity at an all-time high of exposure, the media mouthpieces are waging a war for their own survival.
For decades the Western media have traded on false pretences of “independence” and “freedom of speech” – a bastion of democracy – when in reality they have been nothing but the apologists and purveyors of wars of aggression for their ruling plutocracy. Their dwindling numbers of readers and audiences over recent years – and the rise of alternative media at home and abroad, such as Russia Today and Press TV – show that the Western public has finally caught on to the charade. Events in Ukraine expose this propaganda function of the Western media in serving as a ministry of war for the fascist state, and they are fighting back in a desperate rearguard action.

Finian Cunningham, is a columnist at Press TVthe Strategic Culture Foundation and a Writer on Dandelion Salad. He can be reached at cunninghamfinian@gmail.com.
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[DS added the video reports.]
Radical Right Sector leader announces bid for Ukrainian presidency
RT America on Mar 7, 2014
The leader of the Ukrainian radical group Right Sector, Dmitry Yarosh, was a major player the protests in Kiev that toppled the government in February. Now Yarosh has thrown his hat in the ring to be the country’s next elected president. The Right Sector movement, an amalgamation of several far-right groups, was formed in November 2013. After the February 21 agreement between now-ousted President Viktor Yanukovich and opposition leaders was signed, the Right Sector declared they did not recognize it and would continue the armed struggle. But Yarosh is facing opposition from Russia. On Wednesday, Russia put Yarosh on an international wanted list and charged him with inciting terrorism. RT’s Peter Oliver takes a look at the controversial Yarosh.
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Ryan Dawson RT Ukraine and media coverage
Ry Dawson on Mar 9, 2014
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Escobar: Kiev coup is tequila sunrise revolution with neo-Nazi flavor
RT on Mar 10, 2014
A referendum in Crimea will say in a week if the region wants more autonomy from Kiev, or if it sees itself a part of Russia. To discuss the upcoming vote, RT speaks to foreign affairs journalist, Pepe Escobar.
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Pepe Escobar talks Ukraine on ANC report
Ry Dawson on Mar 7, 2014
see



America and the Ukraine Trap

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The Chairman of the US JCS makes some completely irresponsible threats (UPDATED!)

With diplomacy having failed miserably to resolve the Russian annexation of Crimea, and soon East Ukraine (and with John Kerry in charge of it, was there ever any doubt), the US is moving to the heavy artillery. First, moments ago, the US DOE announced in a shocking announcement that it would proceed with the first draw down and sale of crude from the US strategic petroleum reserve, the first since June 2011, in what it said was a "test sale to check the operational capabilities of system infrastructure", but is really just a shot across the bow at Putin for whom high commodity prices are orders of magnitude more important than how the Russian stock market performs. And now, as Bloomberg just reported, the US has escalated even further, citing the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey, who "has claimed that in the case of an escalation of unrest in Crimea, the U.S. Army is ready to back up Ukraine and its allies in Europe with military actions."

So much for those peaceful hour long phone calls between Obama and Putin.

From Bloomberg: 

According to the Web site of the Atlantic Council, Dempsey said that "he's been talking to his military counterparts in Russia, but he's also sending a clear message to Ukraine and members of NATO that the U.S. military will respond militarily if necessary."

"We're trying to tell [Russia] not to escalate this thing further into Eastern Ukraine, and allow the conditions to be set for some kind of resolution in Crimea. We do have treaty obligations with our NATO allies. And I have assured them that if that treaty obligation is triggered [in Europe], we would respond," Dempsey said.

According to the General, the incursion of Russian troops into the Crimea creates risks for all the countries of Europe and NATO allies.

"If Russia is allowed to do this, which is to say move into a sovereign country under the guise of protecting ethnic Russians in Ukraine, it exposes Eastern Europe to some significant risk, because there are ethnic enclaves all over Eastern Europe and the Balkans," Dempsey said.
This from Zero Hedge:
I have to say that I am appalled by the sight of a Chairman of the Joint Chief seriously implying that NATO has treaty obligations towards a country which is not even member of NATO, seriously implying that Russia is a threat to NATO or seriously suggesting that NATO forces could be used against Russia.  Yes, Dempsey did put quite a few "ifs" around this statements, but the general impression is, of course, of a direct military threat to Russia.

How is Russia likely to respond?
There is a Russian popular saying which exactly covers this kind of situation.  It goes like this: "Пугать ежа голой задницей" which can roughly be translated as "to scare a hedgehog with a naked butt". 

If anything, Dempsey's threats will only serve to make the US and NATO look weaker to the Russians.  Culturally, Russians have always looked down on threats which they typically see as a sign of weakness.  If you are strong - why would you need to make threats?  
Did you notice that during the first 10 days of the crisis in the Ukraine Putin did not make a single TV appearance?  And then, he took action before he decided to speak (sending the Polite Armed Men in Green to Crimea).  In the Russian mentality a barking dog is far less dangerous than a quiet one and all that Dempsey will achieve with his latest outburst is to trigger even more contempt for the western elites than before.


The Kremlin already knows that Obama is a clown.  Now they have a confirmation that Dempsey is another clown.  Who does this leave?  Biden?  He is a complete buffoon.  Kerry?  Smart man, but a pathological liar who simply cannot be trusted.  Not Susan Rice - she is a warmongering maniac (see her track record on Syria).  And EU politicians are, frankly, no better.

So, in my opinion, this is one of the biggest dangers the world faces today: the western leader are not only evil and immoral, they are also hopelessly stupid, incompetent and arrogant.  As a result - there is really nobody in the western capitals which Russia can talk to Having put their full political credibility and weight behind a sad and nauseating gang of neo-Fascist insurgents, the western leaders are now stuck with the consequences of their own actions and not a single one of them has the courage or moral probity to admit that they completely FUBARed the situation.  

As I have written recently, the US and NATO have no rational military options in the Ukraine.  But a combination of arrogance stupidity can trigger clearly unwinnable wars as was the case in the 2006 Israeli attack on Hezbollah and in the 2008 Georgian attack on Russia (both of which were 100% backed and even directed from the USA). 

Is there really nobody who can stop these maniacs?

Frankly, this is as sad as it is frightening. 

The Saker 

UPDATE: "S.E."  has just contributed a very interesting comment (thanks!) which I think is important enough to be placed here in-extenso.  He wrote:
Dempsey: this is actually from his interview on friday with PBS Newshour, but with a slight twist from Bloomberg that makes it seem like he threatens military intervention in Crimea. On Sic Semper Tyrannis, which might be well known to some of the readers of this blog, the interview was interpreted at a push AGAINST war fever, see http://turcopolier.typepad.com/sic_semper_tyrannis/2014/03/dempsey-pushes-back-against-war-fever-harper.html#more

I will ignore the fact that Dempsey seems to think that its the Russians which are reneging on the February 21st agreement, and point out the real key sentence here:
"Our role, as the military, is to seek ways to influence this without it being escalatory. And, by the way, I do have this open line with my Russian  counterpart. So, everything that we have done, I tell him, here's what were doing. Here's why were doing it. We disagree fundamentally about your claim of legitimacy, but, as militaries, let's try to avoid escalating this thing."
That is *exactly* what I would hope the top US and Russian military commanders to do.   So it appears that Bloomberg took Dempsey's statements at least out of context and that Zero Hedge and myself should have been far more cautious about this.  Well, all I can say is "kudos to SE!!" for pointing this out to me.  At the very least, this makes me breathe easier :-)

Guys, please make sure to read the post on Sic Semper Tyrannis.  I will to find a video link to the full interview (if you have it - please post it in the comments section).

Thanks and kind regards,

The Saker


أميركا.. والفخ الأوكراني

وكالة أوقات الشام الإخبارية
بقلم نسيب حطيط
أميركا.. والفخ الأوكراني
هل أخطأت الإدارة الأميركية بالتحرّش السياسي بروسيا في أوكرانيا؟ وهل سيبدأ التقسيم والتفتيت للقارة الأوروبية بدءاً من أوكرانيا؟ وهل يبدأ الصراع بين الشرق والغرب في أوكرانيا؟
الإدارة الأميركية بعد فشل مشروعها الشرق أوسطي وعجزها عن حسم المعركة في الساحة السورية اتجهت نحو الاتحاد الروسي، وبدأت بالقصف المباشر على القلعة الروسية، بعد محاولاتها الأولى الفاشلة في الشيشان وجورجيا، وكما في الشرق الأوسط اعتمدت على المتطرفين الإسلاميين لقلب الأنظمة الحاكمة وهدم محور المقاومة، فإنها في أوكرانيا اعتمدت على المتطرفين القوميين “النازيين الجدد” المعروفين بحركة “القطاع الأيمن” بزعامة ديمتري ياروش، الذي سارع إلى مناشدة المتطرفين الشيشان لمساعدته في حربه ضد روسيا.
أميركا وأوروبا استخدمتا أسلوب الحصار الاقتصادي والعزل السياسي لروسيا، وكأنها دولة من دول العالم الثالث، وهددت بطردها من “مجموعة الثمانية”، كما “طردت” سورية من الجامعة العربية، وكانت المراهنة الأميركية بأن روسيا بإدارة بوتين ما زالت طريّة العود ولا تستطيع المواجهة العسكرية، وكذلك ضعيفة عن تحمّل المواجهة الاقتصادية والعقوبات بعد فترة الركود الاقتصادي طوال عقدين من الزمن أعقبت انهيار الاتحاد السوفياتي، لكن البيدر الروسي جاء مغايراً لحسابات الحقل والتخطيط الأميركي، حيث يدير بوتين اللعبة على عُكازين: العكازة القومية، العكازة الدينية.
الهدف الروسي من رفع شعار حماية المواطنين من أصل روسي في أوكرانيا بعنوان قومي سيفتح الطريق أمام الإدارة الروسية لتعميم هذا الشعار في كل جمهوريات الاتحاد السوفياتي السابق، ويجعل لها رأس جسر للتدخل في كل هذه الساحات رداً على التدخل الأميركي من جهة، ونشر “فيروس” القوميات والإثنيات في أوروبا، ما يهدد كل الدول الأوروبية بدون استثناء بهذا الفيروس القاتل، ولن تسلم منه أي دولة، مما يعرّضها إما للتقسيم، أو للحروب الأهلية، يضاف إلى هذا التهديد ما تنتظره أوروبا والغرب عموماً من عودة التكفيريين الذين هاجروا إلى سورية، والذين سيستغلون خبراتهم للثأر من الحكومات التي باعتهم وتركتهم في آتون الصراع ووضعتهم بين خيارين؛ إما القتال حتى الموت في سورية، أو السجن والعقاب إذا فكروا بالعودة إلى بلادهم.
أما العكازة الدينية، فبعد انهيار المنظومة الشيوعية، واستعادة الكنيسة لجزء من دورها الاجتماعي والسياسي، ولأن الحرب في شمال القوقاز شعارها ديني ضد المسيحيين والملحدين الشيوعيين، فإن بوتين يسعى لدعم القومية الروسية بالحافز الديني والمقدس، ما يجعله قادراً على حشد كل الشرائح الشعبية بمواجهة الهجوم الأميركي وأدواته النازية والتكفيرية.
الاستراتيجية الروسية تقوم على أساس القتال عبر خطوط دفاع متعددة وأهداف مترابطة، فخط الدفاع الأول يهدف إلى الحفاظ على وجودها وسيطرتها على أوكرانيا أو غيرها كخيار أول، فإذا لم تستطع ستلجأ إلى تقسيم أوكرانيا وأخذ ما تستطيع وعدم تركها للغرب بشكل كلي، واستنزافها داخلياً بحروب أهلية، دون حاجة إلى التدخل العسكري الروسي المباشر، وقد نجحت روسيا بتجربتها الأولى في جزيرة القرم، وبالطرق الديمقراطية والوسائل السلمية، حيث تم إقرار الانضمام طوعاً إلى الكيان الروسي، على أمل تثبيته في الاستفتاء الشعبي، وبعده ستلجأ روسيا إلى تكرار ذلك مع المناطق الموالية لها والناطقة بالروسية، حيث ستكون اللغة مرتكزاً أساسياً للتقسيم، وبالتالي تحتفظ بأكثرية الجغرافيا الأوكرانية، مع احتفاظها بالرئيس الشرعي بانوكوفيتش، وعدم اعترافها بالسلطة الانقلابية.
التهديد الأوروبي والأميركي بالعقوبات الاقتصادية ضد روسيا هو صراخ في فضاء الوهم والغرور الغربي، حيث إن أوروبا الصناعية بحاجة إلى أسواق استهلاكية عالمية، وهي تخسر الأسواق واحدة تلو الأخرى، فبعد خسارتها السوق الإيرانية نتيجة العقوبات الاقتصادية، وكذلك السوق السورية وسوق دول أميركا اللاتينية.. كيف بإمكانها خسارة السوق الروسية والجمهوريات المتحالفة معها في الوقت الذي تعاني من المنافسة الاقتصادية الصينية، وفي ظل الخوف من إفلاس أربع دول أوروبية (اليونان وإسبانيا وقبرص وإيطاليا)، وعدم قدرتها على تحمّل تبعات انضمام دول أوروبا الشرقية المتخلفة عنها اقتصادياً؟
المحاولة الأميركية بالضغط على روسيا في حدائقها الخلفية لإجبارها على التراجع عن مواقفها بتأييد سورية أو إيران سينقلب على الهيبة الأميركية، لأنها وضعت روسيا أمام خيارين: إما الاستسلام والتبعية، أو الدفاع عن مصالحها وأمنها القومي، ولا تستطيع روسيا إلا اتخاذ القرار الصعب، وهو الهجوم الدفاعي، لأن أي تراجع أو مهادنة أو تنازل يعني بدء السقوط الروسي وبداية تفكك الأمن الروسي، وانهيار روسيا كقوة عظمى، وهذه هي المعركة الأخيرة التي تخوضها أميركا في لعبة قمار سياسي قبل الانسحاب إلى حدودها والانعزال عن العالم.
الثبات

Islamic Jihad fires dozens of rockets onto the Zionist settlements

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Mourners carry the body of Shaher Abu Shanab (C), one of three Palestinian fighters from the Islamic Jihad's armed wing, the Al-Quds Brigades, who were killed in an Israeli air strike, during his funeral in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, on March 11, 2014. (Photo: AFP- Mahmud Hams)
Published Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Dozens of rockets fired from the besieged Gaza Strip struck towns in occupied Palestine on Wednesday, Israeli police said, a day after Israeli forces killed three Palestinian fighters in the enclave. More------

"Al-Quds Brigades" Launches "Silence Breaking" Operation, ’Israel’ Vows Respons


Local Editor

"Al-Quds Brigades" which belongs to the Islam
Palestinian Rocketsic Jihad announced, Palestinian Rockets, in a statement, that it launched onto the Zionist settlements dozens of rockets, in response to the Israeli aggression.

The Zionist enemy declared injuries and extensive material damages as dozens of rockets targeted the Israeli settlements.

"Al-Quds Brigades" asserted that the rocketry attack responds to the recent Israeli aggressions that claimed three of Islamic Jihad fighters.

The statement added that any Israeli aggression against the Palestinians will be faced forcefully.

Israeli media mentioned that the rockets were launched from the entire Gaza strip and that Israeli army ordered the residents of the southern towns and the cities of Beersheba, Ashkelon as well as their to take to the basements.

The Israeli occupation army held emergency meeting to discuss developments in Gaza Strip and decided to respond, considering the rocketry attack as the most serious since two years.

The sirens were launched in the Zionist settlements of "Netivot,""Sderot," and "Shaer Negev" and "Eshkol."

The Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu vowed tough action after the rocket salvo from Gaza.


Source: Agencies
12-03-2014 - 18:35 Last updated 12-03-2014

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Islamic Jihad Warns: Truce with Zionist Enemy Shaky

Local Editor

Palestinian resistance group, Islamic Jihad, warned on Wednesday that the truce with the Zionist entity in Gaza is shaky, after an Israeli drone attack killed three Palestinian in the besieged territory.

In a statement issued by the movement’s military wing, al-Quds Brigades said it will respond to the assassination of its members by the occupation enemy.

Al-Quds Brigades
The resistance group also warned that the fragile truce with Israel in Gaza is in its final stages and is likely to collapse.

The statement was made in response to the killing of three members of the Islamic Jihad near the city of Rafah, situated 30 kilometers (19 miles) south of Gaza City, on Tuesday.
The Israeli occupation military launches frequent attacks on the besieged enclave, claiming the raids are being conducted for ‘defensive purposes.’

However, disproportionate force is always used, in violation of international law, and civilians are often killed or injured.


Source: Websites
12-03-2014 - 12:55 Last updated 12-03-2014 


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Gaza missile seizure, Netanyahu’s latest anti-Iran joke

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File photo shows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking to reporters about rockets allegedly found aboard a ship bound for Gaza.
File photo shows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking to reporters about rockets allegedly found aboard a ship bound for Gaza.

Tue Mar 11, 2014 3:37PM GMT

By Finian Cunningham

Comedians say that the art of telling jokes relies on "timing." Israeli's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the world's top comic politician, seemed to be proving the point with his "timely" claims about seizing Iranian rockets aboard a cargo ship in the Red Sea.

Standing in front of 40 pointed missiles, each carefully displayed on props (you sense the stilted exhibitionism here), the Israeli leader said the seized cache "showed the true face of Iran" in its support for terrorism. Netanyahu lashed out at Western leaders who are "shaking hands with Iran" and preparing to finalize a political settlement to the long-running nuclear dispute.

Iran swiftly denounced the Israeli allegations as orchestrated, indicating that the capture of munitions on a Panamanian-registered vessel was a set-up.

Even some of the Israeli media have grown weary of such "propaganda stunts," as the newspaper Haaretz described Netanyahu's melodramatic display of Iran's alleged clandestine cargo in the port of Eilat at the weekend. Netanyahu's corny sensationalist manner, standing in front of the green-colored rockets, was reminiscent of his previous presentation to the United Nations using a cartoon bomb in which he claimed then that Iran was "only months away from building a nuclear weapon."

Netanyahu's record of failure over the past 20 years in predicting "imminent" Iranian nuclear arms capability makes him a laughing stock. Some people watching the latest televised stunt of displaying "captured" Iranian rockets may have wished that one of the devices could have accidentally fired off during the Israeli premier's speech.

The buffoonish Netanyahu cannot be taken seriously on anything he says. Nevertheless it is worthwhile defusing the latest Israeli propaganda hoax to reveal the mindset of those in Tel Aviv and their backers in Washington and the Western mainstream media who shamefully never fail to lend credibility to such reprehensible smear jobs. "Israeli forces seize rockets 'destined for Gaza' in raid on Iranian ship in Red Sea," read a headline in the British Guardian.

It is amazing how much credence is afforded to baseless Israeli and Western government claims against Iran. In recent years, the Western public has been fed with tall tales of Iranian plots to assassinate diplomats in Washington, and involvement in bombings or attempted bombings in Argentina, Thailand, India, Georgia, Bulgaria and Kenya. Tellingly, none of these stories - always initially reported with ubiquitous fanfare in the Western media - are ever followed up or substantiated.

Yet the same absurd story line, with dramatic plot variations, is peddled over and over again. This systematic regurgitation shows that the Western media is nothing but an instrument of state propaganda.

Of course, Zionist lobby groups, sympathetic Zionist media owners, reporters, pundits are a big part of the charade. So too is the political agenda of Washington government and its European allies who slavishly indulge Israel for geopolitical reasons, and who are only too glad to undermine Iran with regard to their support for Israel and the despotic Arab oil sheikhdoms, as well as in their covert war against Tehran's ally, Syria.

The latest stunt may be also a pretext for the Western governments to procrastinate on the P5+1 settlement - and to subject Iran to further torturous illegal sanctions.

Let's look at some of the claims in the latest smear job against Iran, which has seen US defense secretary Chuck Hagel also weighing into accuse Iran of "destabilizing the region".

The Israelis claim that Syrian-made M-302 rockets, with a firing range of 160km, were first flown by air cargo to Iran. Then Iran moved the ordnance to the port of Bandar Abbas, where it was loaded on to a ship, the KLOS-C. As mentioned, the ship is reportedly registered in Panama with an owner in the Marshall Islands. So what connection Iran has to the vessel is right away tenuous.

Next, the ship is said to have sailed north to the port of Umm Qasr in Iraq, where it was loaded with bags of cement conveniently bearing Iranian trademarks. The KLOS-C made its way out of the Persian Gulf and into the Red Sea, where Israeli Special Forces raided the ship last week off the coast of Sudan.

The Israelis claim - and Western media gave full vent to the claims - that the rockets were to be shipped over land from Sudan via Egypt's Sinai Peninsula and delivered to Hamas in Gaza. Hamas, as well as Tehran, denies any involvement. It was even speculated in some Western media that the shipment of rockets could also have been intended by Iran for al-Qaeda groups based in Sinai.

This circuitous route, involving weeks of transport time over one of the most intensely surveyed sea-lanes in the world, does not bear serious scrutiny. The risk of such a smuggling plot being uncovered is so high as to make it implausible. Put another way, the chances of it being part of a stage-managed set-up are all the more plausible.

The destination aspect of the alleged plot does not hold water either. Egypt, under the military junta led by General Abdel al Sisi, has stepped up its collusion with Israel to seal off the Sinai Peninsula and all land crossings into Gaza. The notion of trucks carrying dozens of medium-sized surface-to-surface missiles driving into Gaza, undetected, is inconceivable to the point of ridicule.

So too is the Israeli-inspired sub-plot that Iran may have been trying to send the weapons to al-Qaeda in Sinai. This group is waging a Western-backed covert terrorist campaign against Syria and against Shia Muslims in particular. The idea that Shia Iran or its ally Syria would supply Syrian-made rockets to such enemies illustrates how moronic the thesis for this Israeli propaganda stunt is.

The Israeli seizure, by the way, was given the ever-so contrived title of "Full Exposure." The give-away to this being a stunt is the timing. It came just as Netanyahu was in Washington trying to tell the world that the failure of Mid-East "peace talks" was all the fault of the Palestinians - not anything to do with the genocidal policies of Israel. In other words, it serves as a handy foil to shield Israel from international opprobrium. As Netanyahu was speaking in the White House, Israeli warplanes killed two Palestinians in air strikes on Gaza.

-The second timed factor is that Iran is scheduled to complete the P5+1 negotiations for a final settlement over the nuclear dispute. EU foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, was in Tehran at the weekend when Netanyahu fired off rhetorical salvos about "Western hypocrisy in the face of Iranian support for international terrorism." Israel is livid at the prospect of any nuclear deal being reached. And no doubt there are political forces in Washington and Europe that would relish an accord being sabotaged.

Netanyahu went on to warn about Iranian "armed nuclear suitcases" being sent to every port in the world.

Who needs imaginary nuclear-armed suitcases when we already have a nuclear-armed nutcase - Netanyahu and his apartheid regime?

Comic Netanyahu may have a dubious skill at timing, but his tedious jokes have by now become just stupidly bad. The latest one about "Full Exposure" of Iranian rockets has backfired.

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