Posted on June 24, 2013 by Alexandra Valiente
Orient Tendencies
Monday June 24, 2013
no 137
Weekly information and analysis bulletin specialized in Arab Middle Eastern affairs prepared by neworientnews.com
Editor in chief Wassim Raad
wassimraad73@gmail.com
New Orient Center for Strategic policies
The Lebanese Army decides to end
Ahmad al-Assir’s militia
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By Pierre Khalaf
After predicting that Lebanon was heading towards desolation and threatened to attack the Lebanese Army, the fundamentalist Sheikh Ahmad al-Asir went from words to action Sunday. His militia, armed, trained and funded by Qatar and the Future Movement of Saad Hariri, attacked the Lebanese Army, killing two officers and five soldiers, in Abra, east of Saida. This attack is part of a series of aggressions against the army led by Syrian and Lebanese extremist groups supported by the Gulf states. Already between Thursday and Saturday, several positions of the Lebanese regular troops were under fire and attacks in various parts of the country. In recent months, several officers and soldiers had been killed by extremists in the town of Ersal and in Tripoli. The aim of these attacks is to neutralize the army, push her to withdraw, in order to transform these areas in havens for Syrian extremists and their Lebanese accomplices.
These groups could not prosper without the coverage of the Future Movement, which materially supports them in the intention to use them in a plan to encircle the Lebanese resistance, and without the irresponsibility of senior officials, who were reluctant to act decisively against these unhealthy phenomena threatening national unity with their sectarian discourse.
This time, the army decided to put everybody in front of their responsibility. In a severe statement, the military noted that the army tried to protect Lebanon from Syrian events and neglect the political appeals to the suppression of group belonging to Sheikh Ahmad al-Asir in Saida in order to avoid the discord. “But what happened in Saida today exceeds all expectations. Army was targeted with a cold-blooded and premeditated manner in order to inflame the situation in Saida like what happened in 1975. ”
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The military has rejected the double standard of the political class and put politicians in Sidon to the following choice:“Either you are with the military, or you are with the armed groups and, therefore, with the chaos and discord. ”“A group loyal to Sheikh Ahmed el-Asir attacked without reason, a military barrage in Abra,” says the text. “Two officers and a soldier were killed and several others were injured, while several military vehicles were damaged,” the military statement.
The military has rejected the double standard of the political class and put politicians in Sidon to the following choice:“Either you are with the military, or you are with the armed groups and, therefore, with the chaos and discord. ”“A group loyal to Sheikh Ahmed el-Asir attacked without reason, a military barrage in Abra,” says the text. “Two officers and a soldier were killed and several others were injured, while several military vehicles were damaged,” the military statement.In a video sent to the mobile phones of his followers, al-Asir called “supporters throughout Lebanon to come” lend a hand to his men and “defend our religion and women.” He appealed to sedition, asking “the noble Sunni leave the Lebanese Army that attacks us.”
As usual, the head of the Future Movement bloc, the former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, held an ambiguous speech. He tried to drag the name of Hezbollah in the incidents of Sunday as the resistance has nothing to do in these events. Saying he was opposed to any attack against the army, he called for a cease-fire. Thus, he puts the army and militiamen on an equal footing. Nowhere does he demand the murderers of the three soldiers to be delivered.
But the army seems determined. Reinforcements and special troops were sent and launched a major offensive against the security perimeter of the Bilal Bin Rabah Mosque, Abra, transformed into a stronghold by al-Asir militia. After fierce fighting, the soldiers surrounded the area and chased the militiamen who tried to cut roads of the city through snipers posted on rooftops.
The resistance of Syria, a puzzle
with no solution for the West
By Ghaled Kandil
The universal war waged by Barack Obama against Syria is entering a new phase after a remobilization of resources under the auspices of Saudi Arabia and France. The division of roles took place in Doha.
The crumbling and rotting fronts of aggression against Syria, called “opposition”, have always been an endemic headache for the international coalition hostile to Syria. Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Heads of Western and Arab intelligence services openly recognized these facts. In meetings held in Istanbul, Doha and Paris, “opponents” leaders were appointed and new names were invented to prepare every time a new stage of the attack. The West does not understand that the balance of power has changed because the popular mood is not the same. The pseudo-opposition no longer has any support in the population, that supports at 70% the president-resistant Bashar al-Assad, as Western intelligence agencies admit.
Again, the imperialists and their agents shout “We found,” in the manner of Newton when the apple fell on his head. The scientist spoke, of course, about the Gravity, while they talk about Salim Idriss. This deserter officer is presented as the man who will make miracles to achieve the illusion of Obama and Francois Hollande, to “rectify the situation on the ground by making a disconnection between the Free Syrian Army” (FSA) and al-Nosra Front.
Just seeing that the plan coordination was given to the founder of Al-Qaeda and takfirist terrorism, Bandar bin Sultan, shows how the Western speech is full of lies.Geniuses, how can you change the realities on the ground? Could the additional quantities of weapons turn robbers into freedom fighters? and murderers and other headhunters in tolerant and enlightened groups that protect churches, convents, religious Christians and Muslims men placed on the lists of people to be killed by the Saudi and Qatari fatwas issued by Takfirist sheikhs? Would Your Salim Idriss dare to take any action against these groups of bloodthirsty mercenaries?
Salim Idriss is just another mercenary working for Western, Saudi and Qatari intelligence services, not a popular leader capable of performing miracles that would remove these Takfirist groups. He will only exacerbate the divisions between the armies of opportunists as Michel Kilo, who spoke of a revolution in the revolution, and the real leaders of al-Nosra Front, Riad Chakfa and Farouk Tayfour, the leaders of the bloody military wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, in the 80s, that all Syrian know … and hate.Bandar took command of the new plan of attack, which resulted in an upsurge in suicide attacks in recent weeks. He put on a spurt his mercenary groups across Jordan in the province of Daraa, to change the balance on the ground in a desperate attempt to postpone of Aleppo’s liberation battle. But the enthusiasm of the Syrians to return to the bosom of their state, the determination of the Syrian Arab army and the loyalty of the allies of Syria, will defeat the plan.
Additional sacrifices will be necessary, but the outcome of the war is no doubt the victory of Syria and defeat its enemies.
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Statements
Vladimir Putin, Russia’s President
«Where will those weapons end up. If the United States and the State Department recognize that one of the key opposition organizations al-Nusra is a terrorist organization officially recognized as terrorist which is linked to al Qaeda, how can they give weapons to that part of the opposition. There are no answers to those questions… so it is not as simple as some people would suggest. We believe that our position is well founded … we believe only the Syrian people themselves can guarantee a long-term solution. There is indeed a certain difference of view between us and, let’s say, the U.S. We should encourage the sides, the parties to the conflict to engage in dialogue and achieve positive results. This discussion was among interested parties among partners and there were differing opinions during that debate… despite the depth and complexity of the problems, we were looking for a way to compromise.»
Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Minister
«The Jabhat al-Nosra group is the most effective structure for the armed opposition. Most of armaments supplied at present and in the future Syria will be distributed through this structure. This small group is better coordinated and disciplined. Our colleagues realize it.»
Michel Sleiman, Lebanon’s President
«Hezbollah is a resistance and resistance has a national holiday, and it is present in the Ministerial Declaration through the expression ‘army, people and resistance’. If he takes part in the Battle of Aleppo and he wipes new casualties, the tensions will be back. This must stop to Qusayr and Hezbollah should retreat to Lebanon.I have not betrayed. From the beginning, I informed him that I could not accept such behavior. I told him that it would expose and Lebanon, in front of the Israeli enemy. I have said that I will protect the resistance, but I want to protect it from itself as well. When I see that Hezbollah misbehave, I would speak openly.
When President Barack Obama recently contacted me and expressed concern about the involvement of Hezbollah in Syria, I immediately replied to him that we were concerned, we also, because of the involvement of all Lebanese parties in Syria, and we agreed unanimously on the declaration of Baabda to prevent any intervention but the various parties have not met.» Hassan Fadlallah, Hezbollah MP
«Hezbollah wants PM-designate Tammam Salam to be successful in forming the government and his success depends on his ability to form a government of real unity. March 14’s precondition to exclude Hezbollah from the government is unachievable. There are attempts to spread security tension in the country by firing rockets and blocking roads and sectarian incitement which will only lead to endangering citizen’s safety and compromising the state’s security pillars.»
John Kerry, US secretary of State
«The supporters of the Syrian opposition will step up military and other aid in a bid to end an imbalance on the ground in Bashar al-Assad’s favor. The United States supported the original Geneva Communiqué as it sets up a process by which a transitional government would be put in place to end the conflict, that transitional government being chosen by mutual consent of both the Assad regime as well as the opposition. The rebels need more support for the purpose of being able to get to Geneva and to be able to address the imbalance on the ground. The United States and other countries here — in their various ways, each choosing its own approach — will increase the scope and scale of assistance to the political and military opposition. Reliable civilian governance and a stronger and more effective armed opposition will better enable the opposition to be able to provide the counterweight to the initiative of Assad.»
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Events
- Along US with missiles and fighter jets, about 700 US troops will remain in Jordan after training exercises which ended this week, US President Barack Obama said in his letter to the Congress. The troops and military equipment took part in the Eager Lion exercises in Jordan. “This detachment that participated in the exercise and remained in Jordan includes Patriot missile systems, fighter aircraft, and related support, command, control, and communications personnel and systems,” Obama said in a letter to House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner. “The deployment of this detachment has been directed in furtherance of U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, including the important national interests in supporting the security of Jordan and promoting regional stability, pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct U.S. foreign relations,” the US president said in his letter.
- Spanish security forces on Friday broke up an Al-Qaeda-linked network in north Africa suspected of sending fighters to Syria, arresting eight people in early morning raids. Police launched operations against the network in Ceuta, a Spanish territory in north Africa. “We have broken up a network responsible for sending combatants to Al-Qaeda-linked terrorist groups operating in Syria,” the Spanish interior ministry said in a statement. The network, operating in Ceuta and the neighbouring Moroccan town of Fnideq, sent dozens of Islamist militants — some minors — to Syria, the ministry said. “Some of them would have carried out suicide attacks while others would have been incorporated into training camps prior to carrying out armed action,” the government said. “This network, based in Ceuta and Fnideq, carried out fundraising, indoctrination, and organising and financing travel, in contact with other terrorists and following the guidelines of the Al-Qaeda terrorist organization.” Security forces confirmed that several “jihadists” were waiting to travel from Spain to Syria, it said.
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Press review
As Safir (Lebanese daily, Arab nationalist, June 21, 2013)
The security breach observed in the country is dangerous. Various incidents and road blocks in several regions are a premeditated plan to open all fronts against Hezbollah and its allies, with the aim of forcing the party to withdraw its fighters from Syria and to defend itself on its own soil instead of fighting alongside regime. However, Hezbollah has sent several clear messages on the first day of his involvement in the Battle of Qusyr, that he put all his units on alert all along the border with Palestine, to say that if he is confronted to a triangular confrontation, he will not hesitate to take an existential battle in its own way and according to its timing. Faced with this premeditated plan, the leadership of Hezbollah and Amal have decided to call their supporters to exercise restraint to avoid being drawn into clashes.
The commander Jean Kahwaji said that the army will not show any leniency when it comes to public safety and stability in the country. He added that the current situation is extremely difficult and delicate and requires that all parties are aware of the possible implications.
As Safir (June 19, 2013)
Qassem Qassir
The Secretary General of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, has sent a message of congratulations to Sheikh Hassan Rohani as soon as he was elected to the presidency in Iran. According to Islamic sources, the command of Hezbollah wanted and cut short any bet on a possible change in the relationship between Hezbollah and Iran under the mandate of the new president. The same sources indicate that the relationship between Hezbollah and Iran are not defined by the President but by the Supreme Leader. However, Iranian sources says that President will have a range of new options to implement the policy of moderation, openness and balance he advocated. The sources agree that the relationship between Iran and Hezbollah are not exclusively defined by the Presidency, however, they state that a real change has occurred. The Iranian elite realized today that it is now impossible to limit Iran’s relations with the countries of Latin America, Hezbollah and the Syrian regime, and it will be open to others, taking the interests of the Iranian people.
Al Hayat (Lebanese daily financed by Saudi Arabia, June 21 2013)
Raed Jabr, correspondent in Moscow
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, who is also the special envoy of President Vladimir Putin in the Middle East, said that his country was opposed to the involvement of all parties in the Syrian conflict. He said: “I met in Lebanon Hezbollah Secretary General who said that he had no intention of intervene in Syria. The Syrian crisis began two years ago and the party is involved only very recently (…) He told me that the intervention occurred when Syrian rebels arrived at the gates of Damascus. Thousands of fighters, well armed, with foreign jihadists in their ranks. Hezbollah has studied the situation and found that there is a real danger that Damascus falls. So he decided to go into battle to help his friends and allies. “
Mr. Bogdanov and continued: “I explained to Mr. Nasrallah that President Michel Sleiman had come to Moscow at the beginning of the year, to defend the statement of Baabda and the policy of distancing, supported by all parties Lebanese. Nasrallah said, ‘Hezbollah is committed to the declaration of Baabda but when he saw what was happening on the ground, where fighters go from Lebanon to Syria, we realized that the statement was something and the reality on the ground an other thing.In addition, the rebels were preparing to celebrate their victory in Damascus. So the intervention of our fighters had become necessary. ‘”
Al Akhbar (Lebanese Daily close to the Lebanese Resistance, June 20, 2013)
At least 18 Lebanese citizens have been expelled from Qatar, a government source in Beirut told AFP Thursday, after the Gulf Cooperation Council pledged to act against members of Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement.
“Eighteen Lebanese have been expelled from Qatar, in the wake of the GCC decision,” the source said on condition of anonymity, saying it was not clear if they were Hezbollah members.
On June 10, the GCC, to which Qatar belongs, said it would implement measures affecting the “residency permits and financial and commercial transactions of Hezbollah” in response to the group’s involvement in the conflict in Syria.
The GCC statement urged the Lebanese government to “assume its responsibilities towards the behavior of Hezbollah and its illegal and inhumane practices in Syria and the region.”
The bloc, which backs the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
The decision stirred fears among the many Lebanese who work in the Gulf of being sanctioned by their host countries.
Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Lebanon, Ali Awwad Assiri, was asked on Thursday if his country would move to expel Lebanese citizens, but said only that the GCC decision “affects those who support Hezbollah.”
“Hezbollah has erred against itself, its sect and its country. This decision affects those who have been deceived (by Hezbollah),” he told Lebanon’s Future TV.
While the GCC has condemned Hezbollah’s involvement in the Syrian conflict, Gulf countries have provided substantial funding and ammunition to Syrian rebels. A memo leaked in January revealed that Saudi Arabia was also sending death row inmates to fight jihad in Syria.
Al Akhbar (June 21, 2013)
Qassem Qassem
Recent rumors depict the Hezbollah-Hamas partnership as deteriorating under the weight of the war in Syria. One rumor even claimed that Hezbollah gave Hamas a 48-hour ultimatum to leave Lebanon. Though the relationship is lukewarm, there is ongoing coordination between the two sides.
A delegation from the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing, recently visited Beirut. There, the guests were received by Hezbollah, with the party taking care of security details and accommodations. Beirut was just a stop along the way to Iran, where the military wings of various Palestinian factions go to train.
Despite political differences between Hamas and Hezbollah, nothing has changed when it comes to the military relationship between the two sides. For its part, Iran remains committed to training and arming Qassam fighters, a “red line that has not been breached so far,” according to sources in both resistance movements.
Recent reports claimed that Hamas militants were fighting alongside the armed opposition in Syria. Hamas leaders have denied this categorically, maintaining that officials have opted to leave the Syrian capital so as not to take any sides.
On the other hand, sources close to Hezbollah and the Syrian regime claim that Hamas had a role to play in the battles of Qusayr. The sources say that the tunnels discovered in the strategic Syrian town had been dug using small Iranian devices that Hezbollah had transferred to Hamas.
The sources said, “What delayed the military operation was the explosives planted by the militants everywhere, from windows to television sets and even teapots, in addition to using motion-sensitive explosives – all methods that the resistance fighters use against the enemy.” Some of the explosives, they added, were found to contain electronic chips that Hamas had acquired from Iran and Hezbollah.
When asked whether it was possible that some of the militants who fought in Afghanistan and Iraq had shared their expertise with the Syrian opposition, sources close to Hezbollah said, “Some of the tunnels we found were primitive, and did not have ventilation holes to blow off the pressure from the rockets that might fall on them. But there were also tunnels nearly six meters underground, similar to the ones we usually dig.”
The sources then said, “Let’s say that digging the tunnels does not need a lot of know-how, but their booby-trapping methods are the same as ours.”
Hamas’ Qusayr Denial
Hamas denied these reports. Ali Baraka, a Hamas official in Lebanon, said, “We sat down with Hezbollah and asked them about rumors alleging the capture of Hamas fighters in Qusayr and about explosives we had received from the Resistance before, but Hezbollah leaders denied all this.”
Baraka then asked, “How can we keep explosives we received in 2008 and not send them to Gaza? All weapons we receive are sent directly to Palestine. Those who can bring Fajr rockets in will not keep small explosive devices.”
Hamas leaders deny such disputes and stress that the military wing is committed to the decisions of the politburo. This was confirmed by its military spokesperson Abu Obeida at a Gaza press conference. Nevertheless, a different story unfolds on the ground.
According to sources close to Hamas, Iran was the only country to support Hamas directly with both money and arms. But Iran has taken notice of Hamas’ exit from Syria, and the angry exchange that reportedly took place between Jabari and the Qatar Emir Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, during the latter’s visit to Gaza.
Jabari, who withdrew from that meeting with Hamad, was killed less than a month later. Today, there is talk of a long-term truce between Hamas and Israel.
On a different note, Tehran and the Resistance in Lebanon have reportedly received reassurances from Qassam, which has said it refuses to see Hezbollah as a Shia party at odds with Sunnis. The above notwithstanding, sources in Hamas confirmed that Iranian military support has declined, while Iran has stepped up its training and backing of the Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades of the Popular Front and the Islamic Jihad.After Hezbollah’s participation in the battle of Qusayr, sectarian divisions have grown in the Palestinian refugee camps. For some, Hezbollah has transformed from a resistance movement against Israel to a Shia party fighting the Sunnis in Syria.
Hamas has picked up on this, and found itself compelled to prevent tarnishing the image of the Lebanese resistance group, especially in Saida’s Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp, where some set fire to Hezbollah aid packages. Hamas took measures to ensure this does not happen again, arguing that no matter what Hezbollah does, it remains an Islamic faction that must not be declared an apostate.
Al Akhbar (June 20, 2013)
Amal Khalil
It was approximately a year ago when Salafi Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir and his followers blocked a main road leading to southern Lebanon for a month and half. This was but one step in his larger plan to build a militia to face down Hezbollah in the south.The sheikh began his militarization campaign by recruiting young Lebanese using anti-Shia slogans. Since then, he has attracted a hodgepodge of local Lebanese, Palestinian refugees, and Syrians to his cause.
Once established in southern Lebanon, he visited other spots in Lebanon like Ersal and Tripoli, hoping to build a national profile for his movement and to establish a network of like-minded allies.
Throughout this period, he benefitted from Gulf funding – by way of born-again singer Fadl Shaker – in addition to some local sources. The money was used to buy weapons from Saida’s Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp. Some sources even claim that he received arms from March 14.
Fighter training took place in a number of areas near Saidi, as well as the North, until Assir established a security compound centered around his mosque in the Saida district of Abra.
Close followers of the sheikh’s activities say that he has received training and logistical support from official quarters, allowing them to move freely in the city. Through these official connections, Assir is also privy to detailed information about the residential areas adjacent to his mosque.
More mainstream Sunni political forces like the Future Movement and al-Jamaa al-Islamiya (Lebanon’s Muslim Brotherhood) also provided the radical cleric with the necessary political cover to conduct his armed forays in the city.
Saida security sources say that Assir’s armed operation in the city on Tuesday, in which he deployed around 300 fighters, was an attempt to display his growing military prowess. The move was also intended as a launching point for a new phase of activity that promises to be bolder than last year’s.
Assir’s goal was to paralyze areas beyond the immediate surroundings of his mosque. As his snipers took positions on top of a number of buildings across the Shia district of Haret Saida, groups of his followers tried to shut down the two main arteries leading south.
The local security source says that the operation would not have been as successful had it not been for the involvement of other forces in the operation, including al-Jamaa al-Islamiyya and Future. However, fears that he would be joined by radical Islamists from Ain al-Hilweh did not materialize, otherwise the situation could have taken a more serious turn. But what about Assir’s opponents such as Hezbollah, Amal, and the local Resistance Brigades – how did they respond? Aside from deploying fighters in the Shia neighborhoods adjacent to the sheikh’s mosque, they were largely restrained, a sign that they do not yet have the green light from their leadership to take aggressive countermeasures.
Hezbollah and its allies limited their actions to pinprick operations on both Fadl Shaker’s house and Future Party leader Bahia Hariri’s compound, prompting both to appeal to the commander of the armed forces to deploy the army, which – after three hours of mayhem – finally managed to take control of the situation.
Al Akhbar (June 18, 2013)
Ibrahim Al-Amine
The Future Movement’s incitement against Hezbollah would not have been anything out of the ordinary if it had not decided to turn it into a sectarian conflict. After the Syrian army regained control of Qusayr, Saad Hariri realized that more is required of him than simply building on Najib Mikati’s resignation.
March 14 – along with the Syrian opposition’s regional and international backers – seem to be in a sudden rush to draw Lebanon into the conflict raging next door by characterizing it as a Sunni-Shia conflict that transcends borders.
After having failed to ignite a sectarian war in Tripoli and the North – in addition to a reluctance to stir up trouble in Beirut and Saida – Future and its allies have turned to the northern Bekaa, which shares a long border with Syria, and where large numbers of opposition fighters are concentrated.
And despite the bloody events of the past week, the only reason the situation remains relatively quiet is due to Hezbollah preventing, and even suppressing, any possible reaction from among its supporters.
The other side pushes forward with its campaign of incitement, believing that Hezbollah will continue to exercise restraint. In addition, they can always lay blame for any incident on the Syrian militants that operate in the border area. That is not to say, however, that the Lebanese security forces do not know in detail the groups involved and who is funding and supporting them.
Given the political crisis in Lebanon, with both government and parliament in a state of paralysis, the only authorities left to keep the peace are President Michel Suleiman and Commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces Jean Kahwaji. Therefore, it is necessary to say the following:
First, the president is directly responsible for the deteriorating situation in the Bekaa. As long as he insists on siding with March 14, then he has relinquished any responsibility for the country as a whole. If he continues to delay the deployment of the army to fulfill its duties in that area, then he is nothing but a partner in the crimes being committed there.
Second, the leadership of the armed forces knows well it does not need political cover to take control of the troubled areas along the border. The army has already paid dearly with its soldiers’ lives in that region. It must take immediate practical steps to deploy in the northern Bekaa or risk losing the confidence of a large part of the Lebanese population.
There is no room for excuses here. Suleiman and Kahwaji know that they are directly responsible. As long as they delay taking any action to contain the situation, then more and more people will be convinced that there is no longer any need for their services!
FAZ (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, German Daily, June 17, 2013)
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad reiterated that Syria’s main priority now is fighting terrorism, and stresses upon being open to political solutions to solve the crisis away from extremism and bloodshed. ”We are confident that we can successfully fight terrorism in Syria, but the bigger issue is the ensuing damage and its cost. The crisis has already had a heavy toll but our biggest challenges will come once the crisis is over,” Assad said. “It may take a long time, but with our determination, our strength and our solidarity, we can rebuild the country,” the President stressed, adding, “It will not be easy to eliminate the social effects of the crisis, especially extremist ideologies. Real reconstruction is about developing minds, ideologies and values.”
Asked whether he considered Syria a secular state, he answered: “Many people understand secularism as synonymous with communism in the past, in that it is against religion. For us in Syria secularism is about the freedom of confession including Christianity, Islam and Judaism. Secularism is crucial to our national unity and sense of belonging.” “We are a secular state that essentially treats its citizens equally, irrespective of religion, sect or ethnicity. All our citizens enjoy equal opportunities regardless of religious belief,” he remarked.
As to the file of possible intervention, President Bashar Assad said, “We can see clearly that what is happening in Iraq now, and in Lebanon previously, are repercussions of the situation in Syria, and this will only extend further and further. We are seeing these ramifications and the intervention is still indirect, so imagine the consequences of military intervention?”
Regarding Syria’s relationship with Russia and the latter’s indefinite support, he said, “Our relationship with Russia, Iran and other countries that support Syria are cooperative relations certified under international law.”
As for countries that are willing and arm the rebels in Syria, he said: “The countries have adopted policies that meddle in Syria’s internal affairs, which is a flagrant violation of international law and our national sovereignty.”
Regarding al-Nusra Front, the President said, “Al-Nusra Front claim to be applying Sharia Law and the Islamic Religion; however, in reality their actions are a complete distortion of the real religion of Islam.”
Moreover, when asked about the hesitation of the EU in arming the rebels, President Assad viewed, “They are aware that weapons sent to the region will end up in the hands of terrorists, which will have two consequences. First, Europe’s back garden will become a hub for terrorism and chaos, which leads to deprivation and poverty. Second, terrorism will not stop here – it will spread to your countries.”
“Any individual or group excluding the army and police who carries arms, kills people, threatens and intimidates public safety are by definition terrorists,” he added.
Regarding to Hizbullah and defending its borders from terrorist groups, the Syrian President commented, “The aim of this frenzy is to reflect an image of Hizbullah as the main fighting force and to provoke Western and International public opinion against Hizbullah.”
“The Syrian Army is a large army capable of accomplishing its missions across Syria, with the support of the local communities. Damascus is certainly more important than the town of al-Qusayr [retrieved by the Syrian Army],” he added.
As to the alleged use of chemical weapons, Assad said, “It is counterintuitive to use chemical weapons to create a death toll that you could potentially reach by using conventional weapons,” adding, “Had they obtained a single strand of evidence that we had used chemical weapons, do you not think they would have made a song and dance about it to the whole world? then where is the chain of custody that led them to a such result?”
Regarding reforms, the President viewed, “We started the reforms and issued a number of new legislations, lifted the emergency law and even changed the constitution through a referendum. Yet what the West refuses to see is that from the first weeks of the protests we had policemen killed. Could the chants of protesters actually kill a policeman?”
As to dialogue, Assad said, “From day one we have extended a hand to all those who believe in dialogue. Opposition is a political act, and so when we refer to the opposition, we mean the politicians to whom we are always committed to dialogue, regardless of what happened in Al-Qusayr.”
Los Angeles Times (American daily, June 21, 2013)
David S. Cloud & Raja Abdulrahim
CIA operatives and U.S. special operations troops have been secretly training Syrian rebels with anti-tank and antiaircraft weapons since late last year, months before President Obama approved plans to begin directly arming them, according to U.S. officials and rebel commanders.
The covert U.S. training at bases in Jordan and Turkey, along with Obama’s decision this month to supply arms and ammunition to the rebels, has raised hope among the beleaguered Syrian opposition that Washington ultimately will provide heavier weapons as well. So far, the rebels say they lack the weapons they need to regain the offensive in the country’s bitter civil war.
The tightly constrained U.S. effort reflects Obama’s continuing doubts about being drawn into a conflict that has already killed more than 100,000 people and his administration’s fear that Islamic militants now leading the war against President Bashar Assad could gain control of advanced U.S. weaponry.
The training has involved fighters from the Free Syrian Army, a loose confederation of rebel groups that the Obama administration has promised to back with expanded military assistance, said a U.S. official, who discussed the effort anonymously because he was not authorized to disclose details.
The number of rebels given U.S. instruction in Jordan and Turkey could not be determined, but in Jordan, the training involves 20 to 45 insurgents at a time, a rebel commander said.
U.S. special operations teams selected the trainees over the last year when the US military set up regional supply lines to provide the rebels with nonlethal assistance, including uniforms, radios and medical aid.
The two-week courses include training with Russian-designed 14.5-millimeter antitank rifles, anti-tank missiles and 23-millimeter antiaircraft weapons, according to a rebel commander in the Syrian province of Dara who helps oversee weapons acquisitions and who asked that his name not be used because the program is secret.
The training began in November at a new American base in the desert in southwestern Jordan, he said. So far, about 100 rebels from Dara have attended four courses, and rebels from Damascus, the Syrian capital, have attended three, he said.
“Those from the CIA, we would sit and talk with them during breaks from training, and afterward they would try to get information on the situation” in Syria, he said.
The rebels were promised enough armor-piercing anti-tank weapons and other arms to gain a military advantage over Assad’s better-equipped army and security forces, the Dara commander said. But arms shipments from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries, provided with assent from the Americans, took months to arrive and included less than the rebels had expected.
Since last year, the weapons sent through the Dara rebel military council have included four or five Russian-made heavy Concourse antitank missiles, 18 14.5-millimeter guns mounted on the backs of pickup trucks and 30 82-millimeter recoil-less rifles. The weapons are all Soviet or Russian models but manufactured in other countries, the commander said. Such weapons allow the rebels to easily use captured munitions from the Syrian army, which has a large arsenal of Russian and Soviet arms.
“I’m telling you, this amount of weapons, once they are spread across the province [of Dara], is considered nothing,” the commander said. “We need more than this to tip the balance or for there to even be a balance of power.”
U.S. officials said the Obama administration and its allies might supply anti-tank weapons to help the rebels destroy armored vehicles used by Assad’s forces. They are less likely to provide portable antiaircraft missiles, which the rebels say they need to fight back against Assad’s helicopters and warplanes. U.S. officials fear those missiles would fall into the hands of the largest of the Islamist militias in the rebel coalition, Al Nusra Front, which the U.S. regards as an Al Qaeda ally.
Asked Friday about the CIA training, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said the U.S. had increased its aid to the rebels in the Free Syrian Army, but he refused to provide details. “We have stepped up our assistance, but I cannot inventory for you all the elements of that assistance,” Carney said,. “We have provided and will continue to provide substantial assistance to the Syrian opposition, as well as the Supreme Military Council.”
The council is the military arm of an umbrella group that represents more moderate rebel factions, including the Free Syrian Army.
CIA officials declined to comment on the secret training programs, which was being done covertly in part because of U.S. legal concerns about publicly arming the rebels, which would constitute an act of war against the Assad government. Other U.S. officials confirmed the training, but disputed some of the details provided by rebel commanders.
Brig. Gen. Yahya Bittar, who defected as a fighter pilot from Assad’s air force last year and is head of intelligence for the Free Syrian Army, said training for the last month or so had taken place in Jordan.
The training, conducted by American, Jordanian and French operatives, involves rockets and anti-tank and antiaircraft weaponry, he said.
Between 80 and 100 rebels from all over Syria have gone through the courses in the last month, he said, and training is continuing. Graduates are sent back across the border to rejoin the battle.
Bittar said sufficient weapons had yet to arrive for the rebel forces and that the Americans had not yet told them when they could expect to receive additional arms. “Just promises, just promises,” he said.
AFP (France-Press Agency, June 22, 2013)
Turkish police used water cannon on Saturday to disperse thousands of demonstrators who had gathered anew in Istanbul’s Taksim Square, calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Hundreds of riot police backed up by water cannon trucks moved in on several thousand protesters chanting for Erdogan’s dismissal. “This is but a start, the battle continues!” the protesters yelled, throwing red carnations. “It is by resisting that we will prevail!”
The protesters had gathered a week after police evicted thousands of people from the adjacent Gezi Park, the epicentre of nationwide demonstrations that had shaken Turkey for much of June and presented Erdogan and his Islamic-rooted government with the biggest challenge of their decade-long rule.
Following the eviction, the protests that had infuriated Erdogan and earned Turkey harsh criticism from the West had fizzled out as the premier claimed victory over “traitors.”
“The people and the AKP [ruling Justice and Development Party] government have foiled the plot… hatched by traitors and their foreign accomplices,” Erdogan said on Tuesday.
The violence sparked widespread anger and snowballed into mass demonstrations against Erdogan, seen as increasingly authoritarian, before culminating in another crackdown on Gezi Park. Four people have been killed and nearly 8,000 injured in the turmoil, according to the Turkish Medical Association. Hundreds have also been arrested across the country in connection with the demonstrations and at least 46 people have been charged, most of them accused of belonging to “terrorist” groups and destruction of property, according to lawyers groups.
Separately on Saturday, some 80,000 people rallied against Erdogan’s government in the German city of Cologne.