Syria

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US ready to accept thousands of Syrian refugees

Published time: August 09, 2013 20:27 Get short URL


A Syrian refugee woman speaks to media at a camp in Terbol in the Bekaa Valley (Reuters)

Obama opens the gates to Syrians

Posted by Ann Corcoran on August 8, 2013

Here they come—the first 2,000 Syrian refugees (some of the most difficult refugees in the world!) will be processed into the US in the coming months.


Yippee! We are coming to America!
Thank you President Obama!

For more, our complete Syrian refugee archive is here.


Thursday, August 08, 2013
Importing Jihad: US will allow thousands of Syrian Refugees into the United States

More resettlement jihad. U.S. Will Now Let in Thousands of Syrian Refugees

The Obama administration is making a major policy shift by agreeing for the first time to allow thousands of new Syrian refugees into the United States. And it will be a lot more than a couple of thousand, as the UN is working on Syrian immigration into the US as well, under "refugee resettlement."

The State Department helps resettle refugees from war-torn countries like Somalia in the United States. The resettlement project is one part of a taxpayer-funded refugee aid program with a billion dollar budget. Immigrants are chosen from UN refugee camps.....the U.S. takes in more refugees than any other nation--with a cap of about 80,000 this year...(more)

We know how well these resettlement programs from jihad-plagued countries, i.e. Somalia, have worked out. The fact is that Obama should be resettling religious minorities here. Christians from Egypt, Syria, Nigeria should be brought over under a "Religious Persecution Act" or the "Sharia Free Act."

Importing jihadists brings ..... jihad.
UNHCR Guterres looking to resettle tens of thousands of Syrians …. by Ann Corcoran, Refuggee Resettlement Watch

UNHCR Socialist Antonio Guterres just licking his chops to pressure US into starting the Syrian migration to America.
Antonio Guterres also told The Guardian that he expected the resettlement to be as large as the one they undertook with Iraqis. (hat tip: Mike)

Guterres compared the Syrian refugee issue to that of Iraqis during the last decade, when more than 100,000 were resettled away from the region. “If things go on for a prolonged period of time then resettlement will become a central part of our strategy,” he said. “We would like when the time comes … to be able to launch a resettlement programme as massive as the one for Iraqis.”

From 2007 to this spring, the US resettled 84,902 of the Iraqis resettled anywhere in the world, so expect the UN to put the screws to the US State Department to lead the way again. Surely that is on-going at this very moment with the resettlement contractors busy lobbying behind-the-scenes for the State Department to bring them some Syrians to add to their diversity stew. Incidentally, that 84,000 figure doesn’t include the earlier waves of Iraqis who came to the US as refugees, like the guy who bombed a federal building in Arizona, here.

Here is more from The Guardian:

Western countries including the US and Britain may be asked to accept tens of thousands of Syrian refugees because the exodus from the civil war is overwhelming countries in the region, the UN’s refugee chief has warned.

With no end to the war in sight, the flight of nearly 2 million people from Syria over the past two years is showing every sign of becoming a permanent population shift, like the Palestinian crises of 1948 and 1967, with grave implications for countries such as Lebanon and Jordan, UN and other humanitarian aid officials say.

[....]

In an interview with the Guardian, António Guterres, the United Nations high commissioner for refugees, said the situation was already far more than just a humanitarian crisis. If a resolution to the conflict was not found within months, the UN will look to resettle tens of thousands of Syrian refugees in countries better able to afford to host them, including Britain. Germany has already offered to take 5,000, but other offers have been limited, Guterres said.

I’m beginning to think these Muslim conflicts in the Middle East are about getting Muslim migrants spread around the Western world, or at least that is the side-benefit for Socialists like Antonio Guterres.

Reminds me to mention the Palin Doctrine—-when both sides in a conflict are shouting ‘Allahu akbar‘ and killing each other, let Allah sort it out!

Let your Senators and Members of Congress know how you feel about Syrian immigration to America during their August recess. They will be amazed that you are on top of the news (because they likely are not!). And, tell them that the Iraqis that came before them are heavily dependent on welfare and are suffering from high unemployment rates.

‘It’s Brutal’: Refugee crisis mounts as Obama administration weighs Syria options

By Barnini Chakraborty
Published July 23, 2013 FoxNews.com

• 
• Syrian refugees pose for a photograph after their tents flooded from the rain, at a temporary refugee camp, in the eastern Lebanese town of Al-Faour near the border with Syria.AP

More than a month after President Obama called for arming the Syrian opposition, a key committee has given a tentative green light to the effort. But the Capitol Hill victory surely will be tempered by the reality on the ground -- not only is the Assad regime seen to be gaining, but the stream of refugees from the war-torn country is at crisis level.

"It's brutal," Daryl Grisgraber, a senior advocate at Refugees International who has visited refugee camps in the countries surrounding Syria, told FoxNews.com. "It doesn't appear that there are people starving to death, but they have just about every other problem you can imagine."

Last week, the United Nations said Syria's civil war has led to the worst refugee crisis since the Rwandan genocide two decades ago. Close to 2 million Syrians have been forced to flee their own country and relocate in makeshift refugee camps at the border.

During the Iraq war nearly 2million displaced Iraqis fled to Syria for refuge.

The Democrats were largely responsible for bringing massive Muslim refugee populations. They brought in 30.000 Iraqis to Dearborn Michigan once they took control of the House and Senate back in 2007, making America like this...

This video has been out for nearly a year but shows where we are headed here at home with increasing Muslim refugee populations...


Muslims Attacking and Persecuting Christians in America! Where are the Police?

Tuesday, May 7, 2013 12:27

Commentary By Gordon King

Video: American Muslims Stoning Christians in Dearborn, MI (Original edit)



What is happening to our society?

Where are the morals and values?

The video that I have posted below shows the changing values of our government and police force.

The intrusion of Muslim and Islamic values into our once great country.

The persecution of Christians which is now happening in America.

This small group of Christian men are shown peacefully sharing the word of God. Hundreds if not thousands of Muslims surround them, cursing, throwing objects at them (cement, stones, bottles, crates, whatever they can find).

Police come by several times to speak to the Christians.

Yet, they offer them no help, and actually accuse the Christians of instigating violence and disruptive behavior. Unbelievable! You do not see any of the police stopping the Muslims or even speaking to them.

This is what’s happening to America. It is being overrun with Muslims.

Peaceful Muslims, just like the ones in this video. This is the truth. They speak lies and tell you they are peaceful. Yet in the video they are cursing, harassing, threatening and attacking the Christians.

Whatever happened to the right of free speech? Why aren’t the police protecting our rights?

This is the world we now live in. What was once “Good” is now “Bad” and what was once “Bad” is now “Good”! The world has turned inside out. Evil is increasing by the day. Demonic forces are hard at work.

This is a must see video. I know that it is long, but, you must see the truth of what is happening to America! God Bless!

Video courtesy of: J. Mark Campbell



FLASHBACKS:

U.S. Will Speed Entry Of Refugees From Iraq

Network News
By Paul Lewis
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, September 22, 2007

About 12,000 Iraqi refugees will be admitted into the United States over the next year as measures to speed up the process begin to take effect, government officials said yesterday.

The new target represents an increase in the number and pace of Iraqi refugees entering the country and means that 17 percent of the 70,000 refugees expected to be admitted next year will come from Iraq, officials from the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security told reporters.

An estimated 4 million Iraqis have been displaced and about 2.2 million have fled the country, mainly to Syria and Jordan, since the March 2003 U.S. invasion. Tens of thousands of those are believed to have left after they were targeted because of their work for U.S. or coalition authorities.

In February, State Department officials promised to expand their commitment to Iraqi refugees, but long delays in reviewing applications have drawn sharp criticism from lawmakers, refugee groups and senior diplomats.

Officials said that of the 11,000 refugee applicants referred to the United States by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees this fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, only 1,135 have been admitted. More are scheduled to enter before the end of the month, but officials acknowledged that they will probably fall short of the State Department's target of 2,000 arrivals this fiscal year.

The Bush administration announced on Wednesday the appointment of two senior officials who will work to improve the government's response to the Iraqi refugee crisis. Immigration law expert Lori Scialabba was appointed as a senior adviser at the Homeland Security Department, and diplomat James B. Foley will become the State Department's senior coordinator for Iraqi refugee issues.

Yesterday's announcement was received with caution by some lawmakers. They said the administration has an obligation to protect many more Iraqis whose lives have been endangered because of their work for U.S. or coalition authorities.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) said the administration's performance has been "slow and halting," and he promised to press ahead with legislative reforms to U.S. refugee programs.

"America has an obligation to help those who are persecuted, especially those who have the assassin's target on their back because of their association with our government," he said.

But administration officials defended their record at yesterday's briefing, saying that before February there was no program in the region to handle the unexpected flood of Iraqi refugees.

"We had to literally build programs in Syria and Jordan," said Terry Rusch, who directs the office of admissions in the State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration. She added that the refugee program has "accelerated dramatically" now that resources are in place.

Paul Rosenzweig, deputy assistant secretary for policy at Homeland Security, described the government's efforts over the past six months as "heroic."

"You show me another government program that goes from a standing start, ground zero, to full on in six months," he said. Of the 4,300 Iraqi refugees interviewed by his department this fiscal year, he said, 753 have been rejected for reasons including criminal records and inconsistencies in their stories.

The officials conceded continued difficulty in processing cases in Syria, where a number of U.S. officials have been denied entry visas.

"Not only has DHS not been able to get in to do more adjudications, but we have not been able to expand our own processing staff at the pace we would normally have done because of restrictions by the government of Syria," Rusch said.

Syria has absorbed 1.5 million Iraqi refugees -- by far the most of any nation.

But since September 2006, only 208 have been admitted to the United States after being processed in that country.


Large influx of Iraqi refugees continue migrating to metro Detroit

Thursday, 03.28.2013, 11:09pm

According to a report, since the start of the Iraq War in 2003 roughly 30,000 Iraqi refugees have arrived in metro-Detroit. Some of the obstacles the refugees are dealing with include language barriers, driving, poor mental health, and not having the high education levels required to get employed among other serious issues.

In 2012 Michigan estimated 4,600 arrivals. March marked the tenth anniversary of the Iraq war.

Speaking to WDET Madhia Tariq, a project coordinator for the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services said 75 percent of the refugees seeking help from ACCESS are Iraqis. She says many local programs are only available to help Iraqis for a short term, but ACCESS works with refugees for longer terms or as long as necessary.

ACCESS and the Arab and Chaldean Council (ACC) both have programs to assist Iraqis who're victims of torture. A significant portion of Iraqi refugees have migrated to Macomb County, and are shaping its makeup.

Tariq said she doesn't see the large influx of Iraqi refugees decreasing soon, and expects it to continue for a few years she noted that in the future, the group could also see a significant number of Syrian refugees emigrating to southeast Michigan, who will also require assistance. If you know a refugee who's a victim of torture call ACCESS at 313.842.7010 or the ACC, 248.559.1990 to ask about their programs.

Companion Threads:

Obama Admin invites tens of thousands of radical Muslims to relocate inside the U.S.

Attempts to Push Sharia Law on America

As we're preparing for military action we've taken in thousands more Syrian refugees. I can't help but think thousands more will follow after we militarily intervene there taking more responsibility while fragmenting America as a nation.

These Muslim refugees will take decades to assimilate, if ever, they will be bitter while believing we will have ruined their home nation.

The Democrats are all for kicking over as many fire ant mounds in the Middle East while transplanting jihad here inside America promoting home grown terror. Meanwhile their focus is on anything but Islamic terror.

2nd DHS Domestic Extremism report, guess who they define as a terrorist now?

Framing ‘Anti-Government’ Right-Wing Groups for Terror Attack
Homeland Security: You’re All ‘Militia Extremists’ Now

The Muslim Brotherhood has infiltrated both the Clinton and Obama Administrations


Look what the Democrats have done to our inner cities with the socialism over the past 60 years, now they are bringing radical Islam to regions of America.


UN: 7 million Syrians displaced by civil war

By ALBERT AJI, Associated Press

DAMASCUS, Syria — Seven million Syrians, or nearly one-third of the population, have been displaced by the country's civil war, but international aid to them has been a "drop in the sea" of humanitarian need, a top UN official said Monday.
The funding gaps remain wide, with donor countries sending less than one-third the money needed to help those displaced, Tarik Kurdi, the representative of the U.N. refugee agency in Syria, told The Associated Press.

Syria's brutal two-and-a-half-year-old conflict has also claimed more than 100,000 lives, including hundreds who — according to the U.S. — were killed in chemical weapons attacks by the Syrian regime near Damascus on Aug. 21.

Syrian President Bashar Assad's government has denied involvement, instead blaming rebels for the attacks. Neither the U.S. nor the Assad regime has presented proof in public to back up the allegations.

In Washington, President Barack Obama was lobbying Congress to support a military strike to punish the Assad regime for its alleged chemical weapons use. Obama initially seemed poised to launch military action without asking Congress, but over the weekend changed his mind. A vote is expected after Congress returns from summer recess Sept. 7.

On Monday, Obama was to meet with former political rival Sen. John McCain at the White House, hoping the foreign policy hawk will help sell the idea of U.S. military intervention.

On Capitol Hill, senior administration officials briefed lawmakers in private on Sunday to explain why the U.S. was compelled to act against Assad. Further meetings were planned from Monday to Wednesday.

The Arab League, meanwhile, stopped short of endorsing military action. In an emergency meeting in Cairo on Sunday, it called on the United Nations and the international community to take "deterrent" measures under international law to stop the Syrian regime's crimes, but could not agree on whether to back U.S. military strikes.

Two of Assad's most influential foreign backers, China and Russia, lined up against Washington's new attempt to make the case for a military strike.

China is "highly concerned" about possible unilateral military action against Syria and believes the international community must "avoid complicating the Syrian issue and dragging the Middle East down into further disaster," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said in Beijing on Monday.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, meanwhile, dismissed U.S. information given to Moscow on the alleged chemical weapons attack as "absolutely unconvincing."

There was "nothing specific" in the evidence presented by Washington, Lavrov said. "No geographic coordinates, no names, no proof that the tests were carried out by the professionals."

He did not say what tests he was referring to.

Lavrov said U.S. officials told the Russian government they cannot share all the evidence because some of it is classified.

On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the U.S. received new physical evidence in the form of blood and hair samples that show sarin gas was used in the Aug. 21 attack.

Kerry said the U.S. must respond with its credibility on the line.

The Syria conflict erupted in March 2011 as an uprising against Assad that quickly transformed into a civil war.

The fighting has displaced 7 million Syrians, including 5 million who fled their homes but are still in Syria and 2 million who crossed into neighboring countries, said Kurdi, the U.N. official.

Before the outbreak of the conflict, Syria had a population of about 23 million people.

Kurdi said the need for aid is far greater than what the international community has provided so far.

"Whatever efforts we have exerted and whatever the U.N. has provided in humanitarian aid, it is only a drop in the sea of humanitarian needs in Syria," he said. The funding gap "is very, very wide," he added.


Syria unrest: 7 million Syrians displaced; Russia doesn't believe sarin allegation


A protester holds up a poster of Syrian President Bashar Assad near a placard reading "No to war ", right, during a demonstration in Hatay, Turkey, on Sunday. (The Associated Press)

By The Associated Press
Follow on Twitter
on September 02, 2013 at 10:15 AM, updated September 02, 2013 at 12:01 PM

The United States is considering launching a punitive strike against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, blamed by the U.S. and the Syrian opposition for an Aug. 21 alleged chemical weapons attack in a rebel-held suburb of the Syrian capital of Damascus. The U.S. said the attack killed 1,429 people, including at least 426 children. Those numbers are significantly higher than the death toll of 355 provided by the aid group Doctors Without Borders.

President Barack Obama said he has decided that the United States should take military action against Syria but is seeking congressional authorization for the use of force in a vote expected after Congress returns to work Sept. 9.

Here's a look at key Syria developments around the world Monday amid heightened tensions over potential military action:

UNITED STATES:
Obama will host Sen. John McCain at the White House, hoping his opponent in the 2008 presidential election will help sell the idea of a U.S. military intervention in Syria to a nation scarred by more than a decade of war. The Obama administration is trying to rally support for the strike among Americans and their congressman and senators.

RUSSIA:
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said information the U.S. showed Moscow to blame the Syrian regime for the alleged chemical weapons attack was "absolutely unconvincing." He said Monday "there was nothing specific" in the evidence: "no geographic coordinates, no names, no proof that the tests were carried out by the professionals."

He did not say what tests he was referring to.

SYRIA:
The head of the U.N. refugee agency in Syria said 7 million Syrians, or almost one-third of the population, have been displaced by the country's civil war. Tarik Kurdi told The Associated Press that 5 million of the displaced are still in Syria while about 2 million have fled to neighboring countries. Before the conflict's outbreak Syria had a population of about 23 million people.

Also, Al Jazeera provides an interactive look at the political and military positions for and against military intervention in Syria.

FRANCE:
French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault was scheduled to meet with the leaders of Parliament's defense and foreign affairs committees. The prime minister's office said Ayrault will give the lawmakers an update on Syria and show them a declassified report on Syria's chemical weapons to back up France's claim that the Assad regime was responsible for the attack.

CHINA:
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said his country urged the U.S. not to take unilateral action against Syria. He said Washington briefed Beijing about the matter and that China is concerned about chemical weapons use but that the country opposes the U.S. acting alone. Hong didn't address the possibility of the U.S. acting together with France's government, which supports a strike. Beijing would almost certainly be opposed to any strike.

AUSTRALIA:
Australia offered moral support for a military strike in Syria. Patrick Low, Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr's spokesman, said U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry called last week and that Australia supports the U.S. taking action. He said Kerry didn't ask for military assistance and Australia didn't offer it. Australian opposition leader Tony Abbott defended his controversial weekend comments on the Syrian civil war. He had described both sides in the conflict as "baddies versus baddies."

GERMANY:
Chancellor Angela Merkel and her challenger in Germany's upcoming election said late Sunday they wouldn't participate in military action against Syria. Merkel said there must be "a collective answer by the U.N." to the use of chemical weapons in Syria as she faced center-left rival Peer Steinbrueck in a televised debate. Steinbrueck said he wouldn't participate in military action as chancellor and would "greatly regret it" if the U.S. strikes alone without an international mandate.

BELGIUM:
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in Brussels he is convinced the Syrian government used chemical weapons and insisted a strong reaction is needed to show dictators that such weapons cannot be used with impunity. He said Monday that the alliance would defend Turkey if the member state is attacked in retaliation following a strike against Syria. NATO will remain a forum for allies to consult about action but Fogh Rasmussen did not envision any additional NATO role.

-- The Associated Press

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American expert: intervention in Syria, even if correct, would be unlawful

Themes intervention in Syria may be right, but it will be illegal operation, regardless of the creativity of the U.S. administration lawyers - said prof. David Kaye of the School of Law at the University of California, a former lawyer at the State Department.

"The rule of law on the use of force is quite simple : According to the UN Charter , the most important treatise of the modern era , written with the participation of the U.S. and its allies in World War II, the countries do not use force against other countries , unless they are acting in an individual or collective self-defense or as authorized by the UN Security Council " - Kaye wrote in an analysis published in " Foreign Affairs ", publication of the Washington Council on Foreign Relations (CFR ) .

Kaye admits that in the history of post-war action claiming self-defense proved to be the most controversial. " In particular, the United States sought to expand the definition of self-defense " - he explains. In the case of Syria, there is no doubt that you can not rely on self-defense , because no matter how terrible a chemical attack the Syrian regime against its own citizens , " it was not an attack or threat of attack on the United States or its allies to justify individual or collective self-defense " - writes the author of the analysis.

Since the adoption of UN Security Council resolution seems impossible , the U.S. remain strong legal arguments . The expert admits that some countries , NGOs, and researchers have tried in the past, " craft " exceptions to the requirement for the consent of the UN Security Council , usually citing " humanitarian intervention " or the doctrine of the " responsibility to protect" ( Responsability to Protect , or R2P ) .

Both of these exceptions - says expert - are the source of moral belief that the state should take care of its citizens , and when they violate the principle against its citizens committing serious crimes , the mechanism should be used to compel them by force to the stop . " But these exceptions do not have the force of law" - says Kaye . It notes that the U.S. has rejected the " humanitarian intervention " as a legal justification for the war in Kosovo in 1999. " Such a statement been pushing United Kingdom, but has the last few allies, " - adds Kaye .

" R2P has been endorsed by the United Nations , and even the United Nations has decided that it is necessary to consent of the Security Council that any intervention be considered legitimate " - says the lawyer.

Obama , justifying the intervention , also indicates in his pronouncements on the " standard " prohibiting the use of weapons of mass destruction as the Geneva Protocol of 1925 which prohibits the use of chemical weapons , which Syria is a party. But even if the ban is clearly expressed , that " the treaty itself provides no basis for the use of force " - says the expert. The document does not say because of the consequences of violation of the prohibition of use of chemical weapons .

"Therefore , if the UN Security Council does not approve the intervention , the U.S. and its allies have broken international law by using military force against Syria " - says Kaye . " Call it what you want : + illegal + action , if you're honest , or + contrary to international law + if you are a lawyer , or + difficult to defend + , if you are a diplomat . Any international law does not support a U.S. attack on Syria , even in the face of mass killings with the use of banned weapons " - says the expert.

The U.S. administration will therefore , in his view , to look for other reasons. Kaye believes that it will employ a similar approach , as during the war in Kosovo. In 1999, the U.S. and its allies suspect that in the Balkans there is a humanitarian catastrophe in the allegations made ​​by the ethnic cleansing of Serbs on Kosovo Albanians . But Russia , as in the case of Syria , has prevented the UN Security Council authorized the intervention , forcing NATO to consider alternative legal basis.

Then - like an expert - State Department lawyers are afraid , however, to create a legal precedent that other countries could in future use . Instead, they have developed " a set of factors which, in the specific case of Kosovo provide a justification for the use of force ." Among these risk factors was a humanitarian disaster , disruption of regional security and the paralysis of the UN Security Council . Reference was also the non-fulfillment by the former Yugoslavia, the UN Security Council earlier requests - indicates lawyer .

According to Kaye Obama has already used a similar approach , developing in his statements "set of factors " of particular importance in Syria , including the need to comply with international standards prohibiting the use of chemical weapons. "From the point of view of politicians, this approach is attractive because it makes the use of force is justified , even if it does not comply with the law, especially when there is (as a result of these actions ) any legal consequences ," - notes the expert.

But observe that the use of such " tricks" can be dangerous . " In view of the growing power of countries such as China, the United States may regret that helped weaken the legal control of RB on the use of force " - says Kaye . Expresses concern that the unlawful use of force in Syria , the U.S. will not be able to complain when others use force beyond self-defense doctrine , or without the consent of the Security Council.



U.S. military action against Syria was too confident , " a heavy blow "



http://military.china.com/zh_cn/impo.../18027377.html

2013-09-02 11:55:22 Global Times


Chorus of public opinion at home and abroad that the United States Barack Obama , " wink " , showing people unforeseen "hesitation ."

U.S. President Barack Obama on August 31 announced that he deems necessary for the Syrian army to launch "limited military action ," but he also said it would seek the consent of the United States Congress . Chorus of public opinion at home and abroad that the United States Barack Obama , " wink " , showing people unforeseen "hesitation ." Because the U.S. Congress going to resume until September 9 , tight situation in the Middle East, a breathing period , some analysts to explore the possibility of the United States to give up air strikes in Syria .

Obama has not been approved by Congress the power to launch air strikes , he had been asked for this trouble to show " American leaders who for decades had no weakness " ( Bolton , former U.S. Permanent Representative to the UN of the language ) , simply because airstrike decided too reluctantly , even the loyal ally Britain announced its withdrawal , the major Western countries, only France's support for the U.S. domestic opponents a lot. U.S. air strikes if the final , almost "naked " Obama lacks clout, so the ball to Congress .

New century several U.S. first pick of the war, the war in Afghanistan by the United Nations authorized the war in Iraq without UN authorization , the United States organized large-scale volunteer alliance. This time it is to raid Syria, even the coalition of organizations are difficult. This trend is not composed of a series of accidental , it is the U.S. global influence the portrayal of slowly decaying trend also reflects the world increasingly see the war in the Middle East can not solve complex problems .

Putin Syrian army out loudly demanded that the U.S. used chemical weapons evidence , this requirement is much higher than the U.S. force of international law prevarication convincing. Evidence of U.S. war on Iraq deceive the world , but once the United States would be willing to put those false evidence to get the United Nations to show . This time, the U.S. did not dare even that it's called evidence reportedly just a section of the Israeli intelligence agency providing telephone recording , simply Nabuchushou

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SOLDIERS SPEAK OUT ON SYRIA: 'We Are Stretched Thin, Tired, And Broke'

Paul Szoldra Sep. 1, 2013, 2:07 PM

After President Obama said the United States "should" strike Syria during a Saturday speech in the Rose Garden, Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) took to Twitter to dispute that claim with comments from those who would likely carry out that order.

"I've been hearing a lot from members of our Armed Forces," Amash tweeted. "The message I consistently hear: Please vote no on military action against Syria."

Amash has been retweeting those thoughts for more than a day. But as a possible attack on Syria looms, there is much more to share than just what can be said in 140 characters.

I've reached out to my own sources who are either veterans or currently on active duty in the military, and asked them to share their thoughts on whether we should, or should not, intervene in the two-year-old Syrian civil war. Most have responded with a resounding no.

The general theme of most emails bring up personal experiences in Iraq or Afghanistan, the lack of a clear objective or end state in striking Syria, and the very muddled line between anti-government rebels and al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists.

While President Obama has repeatedly said there would be no "boots on the ground," many remain fearful that limited strikes could have consequences that lead to further action.

Here are two emails I received, and I am reprinting them here in full, only lightly edited for clarity.

From an active-duty soldier, rank of Sergeant First Class:

I have to say I am fairly conflicted about Syria. My logic is generally fighting itself and my personal feelings towards taking action.

Part of me says that we need to take a stand against chemical weapons. President Obama announced that using chemicals weapons was the line, and Assad crossed it. The fact that even the French President has called for "proportional and firm action" says something. I'm not sure how the UN can stand by while Syria kills 1300 citizens, including women and children. The line was drawn, and Assad crossed it.

But does the U.S. always have to be the one to deliver consequences? We are stretched thin, tired, and broke. My personal feeling is no. I'm more inclined to be ok with our involvement if we're talking about actions by the Air Force and the Navy. We are too tired to put boots on the ground. But as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal tech, I know what would go into disarmament of chemical weapons. And that's just not a job I want anything to do with. And I don't want my Soldiers doing it. Not only is the process long and exhausting, it's dangerous in different ways than we have been dealing with.

My gut is telling me that we don't need to be World Police. And if we don't have the UN for back up, it's just too much for us to take on. We still haven't finished Afghanistan; I just don't see how we can take on another war, or even military actions that don't affect us. I can't stand to sit by and watch innocent lives be taken in such a horrible manner, but we can't really do this alone.

But if we don't do something, who will? How many more innocent people have to die before anyone else will take action?

From former Cpl. Jack Mandaville, a Marine Corps infantry veteran with 3 deployments to Iraq:

In mid-March of 2003, I was a 19-year-old Private First Class waiting to cross the border into Iraq. I was aware that there was a significant portion of veterans (mostly Vietnam-era) back home who were fundamentally opposed to the invasion of Iraq. Like the majority of my peers and superiors, I didn't really care nor did I give it much thought. We just wanted our war.

A little over 10 years later, the majority of individuals in my generation have recognized the Iraq folly for what it was. I'm still proud of my service, as are my buds, but we understand that Iraq was completely unnecessary and cost way too much money and, more importantly, American lives.

We witnessed our politicians and countrymen send us to war on a surge of emotion and quickly forget about us for nearly a decade. We had the training and capabilities to deal with Iraq, but were set up for failure by timid members of Congress and the Executive branch who futilely attempted to conduct a PC war.

The worst part about this Syria debacle, among many things, is how closely it resembles Iraq. Those Vietnam veterans who warned us about disastrous results in Iraq were doing so based off their experience in a war that, contrary to popular belief, was vastly different from our war and was separated by at least two decades. Many veterans of Iraq are still in their twenties and have a firsthand understanding of Arab political issues. The complicated things we faced with Syria's next door neighbors is freshly ingrained in our memories. How quickly the American people and our political leaders forget.

Our involvement in Syria is so dangerous on so many levels, and the 21st century American vet is more keen to this than anybody. It boggles my mind that we are being ignored. My anger over this issue has actually made me seriously comment on our foreign policy for the first time since 2006 when I was honorably discharged after three stints in Iraq and subsequently watched it continue for nearly another six years. I'm sickened that we're putting ourselves in a position for another prolonged war where the American people will quickly forget about the people fighting it.

SOLDIERS SPEAK OUT ON SYRIA: 'We Are Not A World Police'

Paul Szoldra Sep. 2, 2013, 11:36 AM

With the president poised to strike in Syria and the Congress set to vote on the issue the week of Sept. 9, the debate about U.S. military intervention in the two-year-old civil war is already happening amongst the American public. Some Americans have made their voices known to their representatives, with many saying the U.S. should stay out of the conflict, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.

In the poll, only 20% said the U.S. should take action, although that was up from 9% last week. Even if it's clear the Assad regime used chemical weapons on civilians, only 29% said the U.S. should intervene.

That sentiment appears to be mirrored with veterans and members of the military, who have been tweeting to Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.), as well as personally emailing me their thoughts* after Business Insider published two letters from troops on Saturday.

While President Obama has repeatedly denied there would be "boots on the ground," and the strike would be limited — likely using cruise missiles from ships far away — many were fearful of the possibility of further involvement.

"I'm a U.S. Air Force vet who spent a solid 6 years shuttling between Afghanistan and Iraq, doing everything from combat airdrops to medevacs to hauling flag-draped coffins," wrote one servicemember in an email, who also mentioned travel to 38 countries in that time. "What we do not need is another war, and we certainly do not need any further involvement in a civil war where our objective isn't clear, and our allies aren't really our allies."

Outrage was largely shared by most over chemical weapons usage in the conflict — the Aug. 21 gassing of civilians near Damascus killed more than 1,400, many of them children — but many servicemembers expressed questions over any specific U.S. national security interest.

"The U.S. has stood by idly while many countries have massacred themselves in a civil war. This should not be any different," wrote one active-duty Marine who said he had deployed five times to Iraq or Afghanistan. "The method of their war should not make any difference, killing is killing. As long as the conflict stays within their borders, we do not have any business interfering."

"This country has a fairly recent history of sticking our noses where it doesn't belong," wrote another. "Since Vietnam, America has used other nations' transgressions as a reason to go in and set up shop for our government's own reasons. This sort of behavior needs to end. We are not a world police."

Still, while many who have written to Business Insider have voiced opposition to military action (the tally was roughly 50-2 against), there were some who believed good could be done in the country with a more robust response.

"Dropping a few missiles, without any clear idea of what type of war we're really getting into will put us on the wrong side of a bad and worse dilemma ... " wrote one Marine veteran of the Iraq war. "I'd like to see a broader 'smarter' strategy for dealing with Syria than dropping a few tomahawk missiles with 'no objective' but to punish Assad."

As both lawmakers and the public remain skeptical, it seems the Obama administration has an uphill battle ahead of any vote to authorize the use of military force. That sentiment was echoed by the International Crisis Group, a well-respected organization that released a statement on Sunday that said limited strikes were "largely divorced from the interests of the Syrian people" while calling for a larger political and diplomatic solution.

* Quotes from emails in this article have been edited for clarity.

[BRVoice]

ThaboC ‏@ChiefThabo 1m
#Russian radar has detected two ballistic ``objects'' that were fired by #Israel towards the eastern Mediterranean #Syria

Joshua Mahony ‏@Joshua_AlpariUK 1m
Israel announce that the Russian announcement earlier relates to a joint missile test with the US in the Mediterranean #Syria

Update: Israel says it carried out a joint missile test with the US in the Mediterranean - @Reuters
3 mins ago by editor

Ravi Kant Mittal ‏@ravikantmittal 54s
Israel says carried out joint missile test with US in the Mediterranean;tested an "anchor" target missile used in anti-missile system #Syria

Israel did conduct an anti-missile test in the Mediterranean, gave US advance warning but US Navy was not directly involved - @NBCNews
7 mins ago by editor

[BRVoice]

Russia raises alarm over Israeli missile test in Mediterranean


By Steve Gutterman
MOSCOW | Tue Sep 3, 2013 6:56am EDT

(Reuters) - Russia raised the alarm on Tuesday after detecting the launch of two ballistic "objects" in the Mediterranean Sea but Israel later said it had carried out a joint missile test with the United States.

There were no reports of missile strikes on Syria. Syrian state sources said the missiles had fallen harmlessly into the sea and there were no explosions in the capital Damascus, Russian news agencies reported.

Initial reports of the launch by Russian news agencies had ruffled financial markets because the United States is preparing for a possible military strike on Syria over what it says was a chemical weapons attack by government forces in their conflict with rebels trying to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

But the Israeli Defence Ministry said it had tested a missile used as a target in a U.S.-funded anti-missile system at 9:15 a.m (0615 GMT), about the same time as the Russian radar picked up the launch.

"The trajectory of these objects goes from the central part of the Mediterranean Sea toward the eastern part of the Mediterranean coast,"

Russia's Interfax news agency quoted a Defence Ministry spokesman as saying.

The spokesman said the launch was picked up by an early warning radar station at Armavir, near the Black Sea, which is designed to detect missiles from Europe and Iran.

He did not say who had carried out the launch and whether any impact had been detected, but RIA news agency later quoted a source in Syria's "state structures" as saying the objects had fallen harmlessly into the sea.

The Russian Defence Ministry declined comment to Reuters.

The Russian Embassy in Syria said there were no signs of a missile attack or explosions in Damascus, state-run Itar-Tass reported.

Syria's early warning radar system did not detect any missiles landing on Syrian territory, according to a Syrian security source quoted by Lebanon's al-Manar television.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu informed President Vladimir Putin of the launch but it was not immediately clear how he reacted.

Brent crude oil extended gains to rise by more than $1 per barrel and Dubai's share index fell after Russia said it detected the launches.

Russia opposes any outside military intervention in the Syrian civil war, and a Defence Ministry official had earlier criticized the United States for deploying warships in the Mediterranean close to Syria.

Assad's government denies responsibility for the deaths of hundreds of people in the alleged poison gas attack on August 21.

Russia, Assad's most powerful backer during the more than two-year-old conflict in Syria, says it suspects the attack was staged by rebels to provoke military intervention and is critical of U.S. naval deployments in the Mediterranean.

Five U.S. destroyers and an amphibious ship are in the Mediterranean, poised for possible strikes against Syria with cruise missiles - which are not ballistic. U.S. officials said the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and four other ships in its strike group moved into the Red Sea on Monday.

"The pressure being applied by the United States causes particular concern," Itar-Tass quoted Russian Defence Ministry official Oleg Dogayev as saying.

He said "the dispatch of ships armed with cruise missiles toward Syria's shores has a negative effect on the situation in the region."


(Writing by Steve Gutterman, Editing by Timothy Heritage/Mark Heinrich)

[BRVoice]

Russian Defense Ministry Reports Two Ballistic Missiles Launched In Mediterranean, Israel Says Was "Missile Test"


Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/03/2013 06:34 -0400

Update from RIA:

Two “ballistic targets” detected Tuesday in the Mediterranean by the Russian military were launched by the Israeli military as part of a joint US-Israeli test of its missile defense system, an official in Tel Aviv said.

“The launches we’re talking about were a test of the Anchor target missile that is used for testing our missile defense system,” an Israeli Defense Ministry representative told RIA Novosti.

The launch was part of joint tests with the US military and were successfully tracked by radars in Israel, the official added.

So with the world on the edge, and everyone waiting for the "other side" to take the initiative and send a an immediate triggerhappy response, the US and Israel decided to conduct a cruise missile "test" in a hot zone, without warning Russia or anyone else in advance?

* * *

Moments ago Russian RIA news agency reported that Russia’s Defense Ministry said, citing its ballistic missile early warning system, that the launch of two "ballistic targets" has been detected in the Mediterranean, "The launch was detected at 10:16 Moscow time (06:16 GMT) by a radar in the southern Russian city of Armavir, a Defense Ministry spokesman said.

• RUSSIA SAYS ROCKET LAUNCH DETECTED IN MEDITERRANEAN: RIA
• RUSSIA SAYS MISSILES SEEN HEADED TOWARD EAST MEDITERRANEAN: IFX
• RIA CITES RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY ON MISSILE LAUNCH
• RUSSIA SAYS MISSILES SEEN HEADED TOWARD EAST MEDITERRANEAN: IFX
• RUSSIA SAYS ROCKET LAUNCH DETECTED IN MEDITERRANEAN: RIA
• RUSSIA SAYS LAUNCH OF 2 BALLISTIC MISSILES DETECTED: RIA

The targets’ trajectories ran from the central to the eastern Mediterranean, the spokesman said. A diplomatic source in the Syrian capital, Damascus, told RIA Novosti that the targets fell into the sea. The Russian Embassy in Damascus said it did not have any information about the launch, and the streets and residents of the Syrian capital appeared calm, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported. Russia's Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported the launch to President Vladimir Putin, the spokesman told Russian journalists. The Defense Ministry's press service was not immediately available for further comment."

Immediately conflicting reports about the source of the launch emerged: Reuters initially said that "Israel said on Tuesday it was unaware of any ballistic missile launch being conducted in the eastern Mediterranean. "We are not aware, at this time, of such an event having occurred," a military spokeswoman in Jerusalem said after a Russian news agency reported the launch of two ballistic "objects" from the central part of the sea eastward."

Oddly enough, seconds ago more headlines hit Bloomberg which refuted the Reuters report, and determined that it was indeed Israel which had hit the launch button:

• ISRAEL SAYS ROCKET LAUNCH WAS TEST OF MISSILE DEFENSE: RIA
• ISRAEL SAYS MISSILE LAUNCH WAS TEST, ISRAEL ARMY RADIO SAYS

On the other end, US Navy's 6th Fleet said no US ships have launched missiles in Eastern Mediterranean despite Russia defence ministry reports.

So on the surface, it appears a missile was launched by Israel, which knows full well that with tensions already at an unprecedented levels, this in itself would likely have been the straw that breaks the camel's back and causes retaliation. The irony, as Reuters also reports, is that Syria's early warning radar system did not detect any missiles landing on Syrian territory, according to a Syrian security source quoted by Lebanon's al-Manar television on Tuesday.

In other words, if this was indeed an attempt at provocation, then Israel was testing to see what Russia's response would be, not so much Syria's.

Finally, NATO, as RIA also reports, is now investigating this launch:

NATO has no information about the launch of "ballistic targets" in the Mediterranean and is looking into those reports, an official from the alliance told RIA Novosti Tuesday.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said earlier on Tuesday its early warning system had detected the launch of two "ballistic targets" in the Mediterranean.

The Pentagon, the UK and French Defense Ministries and the Israel Army command have all told RIA Novosti they have no information about such launches.

“The Defense Ministry cannot confirm these media reports. This is all I can say,” a French Defense Ministry spokesman said.

The launch was detected at 10:16 Moscow time (06:16 GMT) by a radar in the southern Russian city of Armavir, a Defense Ministry spokesman said. The targets’ trajectories ran from the central to the eastern Mediterranean, the spokesman said.

And speaking of Russia's official response, stay tuned.

[BRVoice]

Gareth Browne ‏@BrowneGareth 3m
Defection announcement is imminent... and it's a big one #Syria

The 47th‏@THE_47th2m
The Presser will be held in Istanbul, initially, they are trying to make it by 5pm local time. #PT

The 47th‏@THE_47th2m
The head of medical services in Assad's Chem Warfare branch will have more evidence on Assad's latest chemical attack on August 21. #Syria

The 47th‏@THE_47th4m
[EXCLUSIVE] At 5pm this afternoon, Head of Medical Services in Assad's Chemical Warfare will hold a press conf. announcing his defection.

The 47th‏@THE_47th12m
The defection I broke news about last night will be KEY in the Chem Weapons Massacre case against Bashar, brings forth "slam dunk" evidence.

The 47th‏@THE_47th26m
this will be the "slam dunk" the US media has been talking about

The 47th‏@THE_47th27m
Good news...good news....just waiting for the source to give me the green light.

Patience!
The 47th‏@THE_47th41m
Oh boy....I just got the down-low on the defection

The 47th‏@THE_47th3h
Al-Arabiya has landed exclusive on the defection of Top Syrian Military defection to date. the one I was talking about last night. #Syria

The 47th‏@THE_47th46s
Re: Post confusion RT @NuffSilence: @THE_47th I think this is the chief medical examiner of Aleppo with info about Khan Al Asal.

The 47th‏@THE_47th11s
a lot of confusion on Abdeltawwab Shahrour's post: "Head of Med Services in Chemical Warfare Branch of Army" & "Head of Aleppo Forensics"

The 47th‏@THE_47th2m
And yes, to all of you who asked: the gentleman's name is Abdel Tawwab Shahrour.

[BRVoice]

More about the missile test:

Israeli Defense ministry: 'The Israeli Defense ministry conducted today with the US a successful launch of a test Ancor missile. This tested the ability of the Arrow anti missile system. At the command center there were representatives of the Israeli defense ministry along with US department of Defense' - statement via @NBCNews

9 mins ago by editor

[BRVoice]

deltahedge ‏@minefornothing 59s
RUSSIA DISPATCHES AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT SHIP TO MEDITERRANEAN: IFX

[BRVoice]

Israeli Missile Test Update


Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/03/2013 07:52 -0400

More on this morning's unexpected joint Israel-US missile test launch. From Bloomberg:

• Israel missile defense organization, U.S. missile defense agency completed successful flight test of new version of the “sparrow target missile” today, Israeli Defense Ministry says in e-mailed statement.
• Arrow weapon system’s radar successfully detected, tracked target; all elements performed according to configuration
• Main contractor of arrow weapon system is MLM of IAI, in conjunction with Boeing, according to statement
• ISRAEL DEFENSE MINISTER SAYS MISSILE TEST WAS SUCCESSFUL
• ISRAEL'S YA'ALON SAYS NEW DEFENSE TECHNOLOGIES MUST BE TESTED

And some more news on the Sparrow Air-launch target missile from April 2011:


Israel To Develop New Silver Sparrow Air-launch Target Missile

Israel is developing an air-launched target missile to simulate the type of longer-range, evasive ballistic missile threats that its future two-tier Arrow active defense network is designed to intercept.

The two-stage missile, dubbed Silver Sparrow, is a much larger and faster version of the Black Sparrow and Blue Sparrow maneuvering target missiles developed and produced by state-owned Rafael Ltd.

Under a previously unpublicized Ministry of Defense (MoD) contract awarded in recent weeks, Rafael is slated to deliver the first Silver Sparrows by the end of 2012 for testing of Israel’s Arrow-3 upper-tier interceptor now in development.

“We need a new target to simulate as realistically as possible the speeds, ranges and [radar cross-section and infrared] signatures of threats likely to be encountered in the future by Arrow-3,” a senior MoD official said. “We should have that capability at the end of next year with Silver Sparrow, the newest in the family of Rafael target missiles.”

Unlike Israel’s F-15-launched single-stage Black and Blue Sparrows used to test existing Arrow-2 interceptors, the larger Silver Sparrow is planned for launch from C-130 military transport aircraft. But like the 1.2-ton Black Sparrow — designed to mimic Scud-type missiles — and the 1.9-ton Blue Sparrow resembling the Iranian Shahab series of missiles, Silver Sparrow will feature modular warheads to simulate conventional and nonconventionally tipped missiles and will be designed to replicate multiple types of re-entry trajectories.

The MoD official declined to provide estimated program costs or elaborate on performance specifications, which remain classified.

He noted, however, that Silver Sparrow, along with a new command-and-control system; an improved detection and fire control radar; and a new unmanned aerial vehicle-mounted infrared tracking sensor are all essential elements of the Block 5 Arrow Weapon System (AWS) linking existing Arrow-2 and planned Arrow-3 interceptors into a single upper-tier defensive network.

In a recent interview, the senior MoD official said the ministry’s Israel Missile Defense Organization will soon begin delivering Block 4 versions of AWS to the Israeli Air Force after a successful software validation and intercept test conducted Feb. 22 at Point Mugu Sea Range in California.

Block 4 versions of the AWS, as well as hardware and software upgrades slated for Israel’s newest Block 5, are jointly managed by the Israel Missile Defense Organization and the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency and funded under the bilateral Arrow System Improvement Program.

A voluminous February document containing Pentagon budget estimates for the coming fiscal year describes the Arrow System Improvement Program as “enhancing the performance of the AWS to defeat longer-range and more robust ballistic missile threats expected to be introduced to the Middle East in the near future.”

In the U.S. Missile Defense Agency’s mission description for the Arrow System Improvement Program, the agency said the enhanced Block 5 AWS will be capable of dealing with “more stressing regional threats” by increasing total defended area by some 50 percent. Moreover, the Missile Defense Agency noted that the Arrow improvement effort will ensure that AWS will operate with U.S. ballistic missile defense systems such as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense and Aegis via the Joint Tactical Information Data System and Link 16 communication network.

According to the Pentagon’s budget justification book, the current Arrow System Improvement Program agreement with Israel continues through 2016, and likely will be renewed for another follow-on five-year period. Pentagon line-item ledgers show annual requests of some $70 million through 2016 for the program, an amount that Israel is expected to match “in financial and non-financial contributions,” according to the publication.

As for the new Silver Sparrow target missile, Pentagon budget documents show a flyout test slated sometime during the 2012 budget year.

The new target missile is scheduled to go against the Arrow-3 for the first time in an intercept test slated for the following fiscal year.

Uzi Rubin, a former Israel Missile Defense Organization director and international consultant on missile defense, said the new “more evolved” class of threats will require a very flexible and robust target missile. By more evolved, Rubin cited longer-range missiles such as the Iranian Ashura and the North Korean BM-25 — an improved version of the Taepodong now in the Iranian inventory — and their ability to use their longer 2,000-3,500 kilometer ranges to evade tracking radars by adopting unexpected and less optimal flight trajectories.

“As MDA Director [Lt. Gen. Patrick] O’Reilly said in recent congressional testimony, one needs to dance around the threat performance issue because of classification restrictions. So let’s just say that if Arrow-3 is designed to defend against more evolved missiles, then Silver Sparrow will have to have the trajectory flexibility and other attributes needed to emulate such evolved threats,” Rubin said.

[American Patriot]

Well, nukes haven't been thrown yet.

But with the Nimitz moving closer in (it was already in the region anyway by the way, I saw where it was being moved a few days ago) and the Russians moving carriers we're being put in a bad position.

[vector7]

US Shows Its Determination to Start Syria War - Russian MP

Topic: Possible Intervention in Syria


The USS Nimitz
© REUTERS/ Hugh Gentry/Files


02:58 03/09/2013
Tags: USS Nimitz, Bashar al-Assad, United States, Syria
Related News

• NATO Chief Urges Response to Syria’s Alleged Chemical Attacks
• Obama to Use G20 Summit for Justifying Syria Attack – Pushkov
• Syrian Opposition ‘Disappointed’ by Delay in US Intervention
• Obama Seeks OK From Congress for Strike on Syria
• Obama: No Date For Syrian Strike

Multimedia

• Forces Preparing for Possible Strike on Syria

MOSCOW, September 3 (RIA Novosti) – By redeploying its USS Nimitz aircraft carrier and four other ships, the United States shows its determination to start a military campaign in Syria, a senior Russian lawmaker has said.

Reuters reported on Monday, citing unnamed defense officials, that the Nimitz and supporting ships entered the Red Sea at about 10:00 GMT. The task force, however, had not received any orders to move into the Mediterranean, where five U.S. destroyers and an amphibious ship, the USS San Antonio, remain poised for possible cruise missile strikes against Syria.

“By sending the Nimitz nucelear aircraft carrier to Syria’s shores, Obama demonstrates that the military action has been postponed, but not cancelled, and that he is determined to start a war,” said Alexei Pushkov, who heads the international affairs committee in the lower chamber of the Russian parliament, the State Duma.

US President Barack Obama on Saturday formally requested the Congress to approve a military operation in Syria. In a statement from the White House Rose Garden, Obama said he had decided that the United States should take military action against targets in Syria, reiterating US assertions that the government of President Bashar Assad was to blame for the apparent use of chemical weapons in the Syrian civil war.

Syrian President Bashar Assad on Monday compared the situation in Syria to “a barrel of gunpowder, to which a fire is approaching.”

“Nobody knows what would happen [after the US strike]. Everyone will lose control of the situation when this gunpowder barrel explodes. Chaos and extremism will spread, and there is a risk that the whole region will plunge into a war,” he said.


© RIA Novosti.
Forces Preparing for Possible Strike on Syria

Lebanon's Shiite Hezbollah group, a close ally of Assad’s regime said it was mobilizing and redeploying its forces to prepare for a potential US military action, Agence France-Presse said. Citing the Al-Akhbar daily, close to both Hezbollah and the Syrian regime, the agency said the group had "called on all its officers and members to man their positions."

Hezbollah members have long been fighting alongside Syrian troops and against rebels seeking to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

Russia Issues Travel Warning To Its Citizens About United States

Sep 2, 2013 7 Comments Infidel Alie



MOSCOW — Countries often issue travel advisories warning citizens of danger abroad: war, for instance, or a terrorist threat or an outbreak of disease. The Russian Foreign Ministry posted advice of a somewhat different nature on Monday, cautioning people wanted by the United States not to visit nations that have an extradition treaty with it. “Warning for Russian citizens traveling internationally,” the Foreign Ministry bulletin said. “Recently, detentions of Russian citizens in various countries, at the request of American law enforcement, have become more frequent — with the goal of extradition and legal prosecution in the United States.”

Citing examples in Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Latvia and Spain, the Foreign Ministry said, “Experience shows that the judicial proceedings against those who were in fact kidnapped and taken to the U.S. are of a biased character, based on shaky evidence, and clearly tilted toward conviction.”

Extradition has frequently been a contentious issue between Russia and the United States, but the disagreements have been particularly sharp in recent months over the case of Edward J. Snowden, the former intelligence contractor who is wanted on criminal espionage charges but has been granted temporary asylum in Russia.

In response to the demands by the Obama administration for Mr. Snowden’s return, Russian officials have said the United States has routinely ignored extradition requests from Russia. Russia has also complained about the arrests of Russian citizens by the United States or by other countries at the Americans’ request.

In late July, a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, criticized the arrest in the Dominican Republic of Aleksandr Panin, a Russian citizen wanted by the United States on charges related to cybercrimes.

Ms. Zakharova said Russia considered such arrests “a vicious trend, absolutely unacceptable and inadmissible.” She said the Russian government demanded that the United States request the arrest of Russian citizens directly from Moscow, under a 1999 treaty on assistance in criminal matters.

There is no formal extradition treaty between Russia and the United States. Russian officials cited the lack of such an agreement as a main reason they could not forcibly return Mr. Snowden from the transit zone of Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow, where he lived for more than a month until his temporary asylum request was approved.

Russia has often accused the United States of overstepping and potentially violating international law in its treatment of Russian citizens accused of crimes. It bridled over the handling of Viktor Bout, an international arms dealer who was arrested in Thailand in 2008 and was extradited to the United States, convicted in federal court and jailed in a federal prison.

The United States has said that Mr. Bout’s arrest and extradition by the Thai government were legal, and that other cases have also been handled in accordance with international law.

Besides the case of Mr. Panin, the Foreign Ministry’s travel advisory mentioned Maksim Chukharayev, who was arrested in Costa Rica in May in an investigation into a huge money-laundering operation, and Dmitry Ustinov, arrested in April in Latvia and accused of smuggling American-made night-vision goggles to Russia for resale.

The Foreign Ministry said Russian citizens could not expect to be treated fairly in the American justice system. “Russian embassies and consulates general logically give consular and legal help to Russians in trouble,” the Foreign Ministry said.

“However,” it added, “one should not count on a successful outcome in such cases.”

[American Patriot]

The Russians are playing the game well, it appears. lol

[American Patriot]

Russia Detected Missiles Launched in Mediterranean, RIA Says

By Scott Rose - Sep 3, 2013 3:55 AM MT



Russia’s missile tracking system detected the launch of two ballistic rockets in the central Mediterranean, state-run RIA Novosti reported. A second report said they landed in water.


The missile trajectory suggested the rockets were headed toward targets in the eastern Mediterranean, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu was cited as telling President Vladimir Putin today, according to RIA. The missiles fell into water, RIA said, citing an unidentified person in Damascus.


Enlarge image



Russian Defence minister Sergei Shoigu was cited as telling President Vladimir Putin today, according to RIA, that the missile trajectory suggested the rockets were headed toward targets in the eastern Mediterranean. Photographer: Alexei Nikolsky/AFP via Getty Images





European stocks declined after the report before later paring losses. Brent crude climbed after RIA’s report of the missile launch.


No one at the Defense Ministry picked up the phone when Bloomberg called. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s spokeswoman, Natalya Timakova, told reporters near Moscow that Shoigu met Putin to inform him of the missile launch. Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, declined to comment.


The launch was detected by Russia’s radar station in Armavir at 10:16 a.m. Moscow time, according to RIA.


A French military adviser and government official both said they were unaware of a missile launch, declining to be identified because they were not authorized to comment. Israel, the U.K. and Russia’s embassy in Damascus had no information about the launch, according to RIA.


“I have nothing to confirm those reports whatsoever,” Pentagon spokesman Navy Commander William Speaks said by phone.

[BRVoice]

You just need a matchstick to ignite a huge firestorm.

[American Patriot]

Flow of Refugees Out of Syria Passes Two Million
By NICK CUMMING-BRUCE
Published: September 3, 2013



GENEVA — As the United States and its allies struggled for a course of action to punish the use of chemical weapons in Syria, the United Nations said the number of civilians who had fled to neighboring countries had surpassed two million — a new milestone in what it called “the great tragedy of this century, a disgraceful humanitarian calamity.”


Fear of Western airstrikes in the past week was a factor in an exodus that continued to gather momentum, inflicting acute social strain and political tension on receiving countries, António Guterres, the United Nations high commissioner for refugees, said in an interview in Geneva on Monday.

It took two years of conflict in Syria for the refugee figure to reach one million, but only six more months to reach two million, Mr. Guterres noted. In addition, at least 4.5 million people have been driven from their homes inside Syria by the destruction and violence, meaning that close to one-third of the country’s population has been displaced by the civil war, and about half the population has needed humanitarian aid, Mr. Guterres said, putting Syria’s crisis at a level unseen in recent decades.

About 40,000 Syrians fled to Iraq in the last two weeks of August, and 13,000 arrived in Lebanon in the past week. Over all, close to 5,000 Syrians are leaving every day.

“It clearly demonstrates that we are witnessing a conflict in constant escalation,” Mr. Guterres said. “We have to be prepared for things to get much worse before, eventually, they start to get better.”

By the end of August, Lebanon had more than 716,000 Syrians who were registered as refugees with the United Nations and many more who were unregistered, he said, meaning that perhaps one of every four people in the country is a Syrian. About 515,000 Syrians were on the United Nations register in Jordan, 460,000 in Turkey, 168,000 in Iraq and 110,000 in Egypt, with many more likely to be unregistered.

“These countries need massive support from the international community to be able to cope with the challenge,” Mr. Guterres said, emphasizing the acute strain the refugee influx has placed on their economies and social resources. “If that support does not materialize, the risks of instability in the Middle East will dramatically increase.”

Ministers of the four most affected countries will meet in Geneva on Wednesday to work out a common approach on the assistance they need, which will be laid out to donor countries meeting in Geneva at the end of the month.

The international response so far has fallen far short of what is needed, Mr. Guterres warned. Turkey has received financial assistance equivalent to less than 10 percent of what it has spent to support the refugees, he said. Financial backing for Jordan and Lebanon was “totally inadequate,” he added.

The United Nations refugee agency says it has received $548 million, or less than half the $1.1 billion it had sought, to pay for relief for Syrian refugees in 2013. Most came from traditional Western donors, led by the United States, which contributed $228 million, or 40 percent of what the agency has received. European countries, Japan, Canada and Australia have together accounted for about 33 percent. Kuwait has contributed $112 million, or about 20 percent.

By contrast, Russia, the Syrian government’s main ally, has given $10 million. China, which has helped Russia block any authorization of military action against Syria in the United Nations Security Council, has given $1 million.

The scale of need created by the Syrian crisis outstrips any humanitarian relief budget, Mr. Guterres said. “This requires a mobilization of more development-related forms of assistance,” he said, or Syria’s crisis could drain the resources for humanitarian disasters in other parts of the world.

Because the devastation is so far-reaching, he said, it defies “a humanitarian solution.”

“The solution will have to be political,” Mr. Guterres said. “If no political solution is found, this will assume really catastrophic proportions.”

[American Patriot]

Not that *I* care much:

President Gains McCain’s Backing on Syria Attack
Abo Shuja/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

A Syrian rebel fighter and a child attempt to cross a damaged bridge in Deir Ezzor, in northeastern Syria on Monday.
By JACKIE CALMES, MICHAEL R. GORDON and ERIC SCHMITT
Published: September 2, 2013

WASHINGTON — The White House’s aggressive push for Congressional approval of an attack on Syria appeared to have won the tentative support of one of President Obama’s most hawkish critics, Senator John McCain, who said Monday that he would back a limited strike if the president did more to arm the Syrian rebels and the attack was punishing enough to weaken the Syrian military.

In an hourlong meeting at the White House, said Mr. McCain, Republican of Arizona, Mr. Obama gave general support to doing more for the Syrian rebels, although no specifics were agreed upon. Officials said that in the same conversation, which included Senator Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican, Mr. Obama indicated that a covert effort by the United States to arm and train Syrian rebels was beginning to yield results: the first 50-man cell of fighters, who have been trained by the C.I.A., was beginning to sneak into Syria.

There appeared to be broad agreement with the president, Mr. McCain and Mr. Graham said, that any attack on Syria should be to “degrade” the Syrian government’s delivery systems. Such a strike could include aircraft, artillery and the kind of rockets that the Obama administration says the forces of President Bashar al-Assad used to carry out an Aug. 21 sarin attack in the Damascus suburbs that killed more than 1,400 people.

The senators said they planned to meet with Susan E. Rice, Mr. Obama’s national security adviser, to discuss the strategy in greater depth.

“It is all in the details, but I left the meeting feeling better than I felt before about what happens the day after and that the purpose of the attack is going to be a little more robust than I thought,” Mr. Graham said in an interview.

But Mr. McCain said in an interview that Mr. Obama did not say specifically what weapons might be provided to the opposition or discuss in detail what Syrian targets might be attacked.

“There was no concrete agreement, ‘O.K., we got a deal,' ” Mr. McCain said. “Like a lot of things, the devil is in the details.”

In remarks to reporters outside the West Wing, he called the meeting “encouraging,” urged lawmakers to support Mr. Obama in his plan for military action in Syria and said a no vote in Congress would be “catastrophic” for the United States and its credibility in the world. Mr. McCain said he believed after his conversation with the president that any strikes would be “very serious” and not “cosmetic.”

Although the words from Mr. McCain and Mr. Graham were a positive development for Mr. Obama and a critical part of the administration’s lobbying blitz on Syria on Monday, the White House still faces a tough fight in Congress. Many lawmakers entirely oppose a strike, and others favor a resolution that would provide for more limited military action than what is in a draft resolution that the White House has sent to Capitol Hill. The conflict of opinion underscores Mr. Obama’s challenge in winning votes in the House and Senate next week and avoiding personal defeat.

A Labor Day conference call with five of Mr. Obama’s highest-ranking security advisers drew 127 House Democrats, nearly two-thirds their total number, after 83 lawmakers of both parties attended a classified briefing on Sunday. Pertinent committees are returning to Washington early from a Congressional recess for hearings this week, starting Tuesday with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which will hear from Secretary of State John Kerry, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“The debate is shifting away from ‘Did he use chemical weapons?’ to ‘What should be done about it?' ” said Representative Adam B. Schiff, a California Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, in an interview after the Monday conference call.

The push in Washington came as reaction continued around the world to the president’s abrupt decision over the weekend to change course and postpone a military strike to seek authorization from Congress first.

In France, the only nation to offer vigorous support for an American attack, there were rising calls for a parliamentary vote like the one last week in Britain, where lawmakers jolted the White House with a rejection of a British military attack. But the French government, in an effort to bolster its case, released a declassified summary of French intelligence that it said ties Mr. Assad’s government to the use of chemical weapons on Aug. 21.

In Russia, Foreign Minister Sergey V. Lavrov dismissed as unconvincing the evidence presented by Mr. Kerry of chemical weapons use by the Syrian government. “We were shown certain pieces of evidence that did not contain anything concrete, neither geographical locations, nor names, nor evidence that samples had been taken by professionals,” Mr. Lavrov said in a speech at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations.

[American Patriot]

Russians are sending a delegation to the US Congress now....

September 2, 2013, 3:05 PM
Putin plans Russian delegation to sway Congress on Syria strike


MOSCOWPresident Vladimir Putin hopes to send a delegation of Russian lawmakers to the United States to discuss the situation in Syria with members of Congress, the Interfax news agency reported Monday.

Russian legislators Valentina Matvienko and Sergei Naryshkin proposed that to Putin, saying polls have shown little support among Americans for armed intervention in Syria to punish President Bashar Assad's regime for an alleged chemical weapons attack.


The lawmakers said maybe U.S. legislators can be persuaded to take a "balanced stance" on the issue. Putin supported the initiative, which would require formal approval by the Foreign Ministry.

Play Video
Syrian official: "Middle East is already on fire"

In an interview with CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer Monday, Syria's deputy foreign minister Faisal Mekdad called President Barack Obama's request for congressional approval appropriate -- even after a Syrian state-run newspaper Sunday mocked the decision as "the start of the historic American retreat."

"The Middle East is already on fire now," Mekdad said. "And we think any wisdom in the United States -- and we hope the Congress will exercise this wisdom -- will not allow the United States to tarnish its image once again in wars in the Middle East."

Proponents of military action in the United States Congress, though, are warning their colleagues that voting against authorization could have dangerous implications.

Play Video
McCain: Congressional vote on Syria strike "problematic"

"The consequences of the Congress of the United States overriding a decision of the president of the United States of this magnitude are really very, very serious," Republican Sen. John McCain said on CBS's Face the Nation Sunday.

"And already we're sending a bad signal to Iran, to North Korea, to Bashar Assad."

The U.S. said it has proof Assad's regime was behind the Aug. 21 attacks Washington claims killed at least 1,429 people, including more than 400 children in a suburb of the Syrian capital of Damascus. A declassified French intelligence report released Monday echoed the assertion, saying forces loyal to Assad carried out a "massive and coordinated" chemical attack, according to Reuters.

On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov dismissed evidence of the alleged chemical weapons use by the Syrian regime as "absolutely unconvincing."

He said the evidence presented by the U.S. to Moscow showed "there was nothing specific there, no geographic coordinates, no names, no proof that the tests were carried out by the professionals." He did not describe the tests further.

In an interview with the French daily Le Figaro published Monday, Assad also questioned the evidence implicating his regime in chemical attacks, saying President Obama and French President Francois Hollande have been "incapable" of providing "a single piece of proof."

Russia has sent legislators to the U.S. before to try to persuade Congress about pending legislation. But sending a delegation to Washington to discuss Syria's civil war could be seen as a publicity stunt, given the strong positions Moscow already has taken as a key ally of Assad's regime.

Putin said a dialogue between legislators of the two countries was an essential part of reviving Russian-American relations.

In July 2012, a delegation of Russian legislators traveled to Washington in an unsuccessful bid to prevent Congress from passing sanctions against 18 Russians as part of a law named after Sergei Magnitsky. The whistleblowing Russian lawyer was arrested in 2008 for tax evasion after accusing Russian police officials of stealing $230 million in tax rebates.

That visit by legislators from Russia's parliament - which often rubber-stamps Putin's edicts - was later justified as the private initiative of a handful of Russian legislators, not an official government delegation.

[American Patriot]

France stands with us....

Wasn't there a little kids poem that predicted this? Something about the Cheese standing Alone?

LOL

France emerges as key U.S. ally against Syria

Karine G. Barzegar, Special for USA TODAY 5:03 p.m. EDT September 2, 2013

(Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais, AP)

Story Highlights

• France is pushing for military strikes in Syria
• The nation publicly opposed the war in Iraq
• France's Parliament will debate intervention

PARIS — On Feb.14, 2003, French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin told members of the United Nations Security Council that taking part in the Iraq War without absolute proof of weapons of mass destruction and without a U.N. endorsement was not an option for France.


A decade later, France is the only major European ally supporting military strikes against Syria, and French President François Hollande actually seems more eager than President Obama to take action.


A French intelligence estimate released Monday alleges that the Syrian regime launched an attack Aug. 21 involving "massive use of chemical agents" that killed at least 281 people and says Syria could carry out other strikes of a similar nature in the future.


Syria President Bashar Assad was unmoved, telling the French newspaper Le Figaro that the U.S. and France have failed to prove the claims — and warning that potential Western military strikes against Syria could ignite the Middle East "powder keg" and trigger a regional war.



Hollande has backed Obama's call for a military strike against Assad's government since last week.



"The chemical massacre of Damascus cannot and must not remain unpunished," Hollande said in an interview on Friday with the newspaper Le Monde.



"There are few countries that have the capacity to inflict a sanction by the appropriate means. France is one of them. We are ready," he said.


SYRIA: Latest developments
On Monday, the prime minister met top members of Parliament to discuss military intervention ahead of a debate in Parliament on Wednesday. The international community is watching what France will do following the defeat in the British Parliament last week of a motion on military intervention.



"I think France is committed in a way that is worrying — Paris had strongly criticized the American intervention in Iraq in 2003, which proved to be a fiasco, and in Libya, President Sarkozy had made sure he had the U.N. backing," said Denis Bauchard, analyst at the Institut Français des Relations Internationales (IFRI), a think tank in Paris.


"We are the only important Western country taking the U.S. side and that will lead to a certain misunderstanding in Arab opinion, a certain isolation within the European Union, and create tensions at the domestic level," Bauchard said.


Elected president in 2012, Hollande was widely seen as a soft leader, but since then, few have called him dovish.
In January, he launched a successful offensive against Islamist rebels in northern Mali. He is standing firm on military action in Syria, saying he's "determined to punish" Assad's regime.


In France, legislative approval is not required for military action, and Hollande is only obligated to alert lawmakers three days before any intervention expected to last less than four months.


Even so, Hollande is under pressure from his own party to hold a vote on military action in Parliament. Like Obama, Hollande faces legislative opposition to engagement in Syria.



SYRIA: Congress seeks narrower authority for Obama in Syria
A document from French intelligence was leaked to the weekly Journal du Dimanche reporting that the Syrian regime holds "several hundred tons of mustard gas" and "sarin (gas)," the total inventory exceeding 1,000 tons of chemical agents.


Both former prime minister François Fillon and current head of the conservative opposition party UMP, Jean-François Cope, have warned Hollande against "tagging along with the U.S.," while the head of the Parti de gauche, leftist leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon, has accused him of becoming a "back-up soldier" of the U.S.
"Military action would give power to the so-called rebels who are mainly Islamists," said Florian Philippot, deputy leader of the Front National, the far right party. "It would make the situation worse and turn Syria into what we already see in Libya."

President Obama shakes hands with French President Francois Hollande during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Group of 8 summit June 18.(Photo: Bertrand Langlois, AFP/Getty Images)

"France should not get involved — past military experiences in Iraq and Libya were counter-productive, very expensive and they have put Islamists in power," he said.
Hollande faces an uphill battle with the public also.


Almost two-thirds of the French public do not support French military action against the Syrian regime, according to a poll published by newspaper Le Parisien.
"I do not understand this decision — it's completely irresponsible," said teacher Abdel Khelif in Paris. "We're going to engage in a war, God knows for how long, and for what? The region is a powder keg, and this will destabilize it even more with consequences we can't even imagine."

[BRVoice]

US military officials tell @NBCNews there was no direct involvement by US military forces in today's Israeli anti-missile test; official says test was routine

8 mins ago by editor