Category: 08 Wild Cards

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Owl: More on Origins of False Flag Syrian Gas Attack Conspiracy

03 Environmental Degradation, 04 Inter-State Conflict, 05 Civil War, 07 Other Atrocities, 08 Proliferation, 08 Wild Cards, Government, Idiocy, IO Deeds of War, Military, Officers Call
Who? Who?
Who? Who?

More on Origins of False Flag Syrian Gas Attack Conspiracy

This Yahoo item originally came out in January 2013 in a UK newspaper, The Daily Mail:

“London, Jan 30, 2013 (ANI): The Obama administration gave green signal to a chemical weapons attack plan in Syria that could be blamed on President Bashar al Assad's regime and in turn, spur international military action in the devastated country, leaked documents have shown. A new report, that contains an email exchange between two senior officials at British-based contractor Britam Defence, showed a scheme ‘approved by Washington'. As per the scheme ‘Qatar would fund rebel forces in Syria to use chemical weapons,' the Daily Mail reports.”
More:
US ‘backed plan to launch chemical weapon attack on Syria, blame it on Assad govt': Report
http://in.news.yahoo.com/us-backed-plan-launch-chemical-weapon-attack-syria-045648224.html

In this article, Syria's Foreign Minister refers to the US/European plot to start gas attacks and blame it on Assad (see article above), a tactic, he says, to be repeated soon in Europe, after Syria is bombed by the US and its allies, and likely providing an even better pretext to justify attacking Syria:
Syria says ‘terrorists' will strike Europe with chemical weapons
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/28/us-syria-crisis-europe-idUSBRE97R0N220130828

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NIGHTWATCH: Pakistan Speaks for Taliban, Leaves Karzai to Hang

04 Inter-State Conflict, 05 Civil War, 08 Wild Cards, 09 Terrorism

Pakistan-Afghanistan: The Chinese news service Xinhua published a report on the outcome of talks between Afghan President Karzai and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Excerpts follow.

“Pakistan said Tuesday that Afghan Taliban insurgents are unwilling to talk to Karzai government and its peace negotiators at least for now.“

“The statement came hours after Afghan President Hamid Karzai concluded a two-day visit to Pakistan that was focused on efforts to encourage Taliban to come to the negotiating table.“

“Karzai's spokesman, Aimal Faizi, said in Islamabad that Karzai had pressed for Islamabad's help to bring Taliban leaders to the negotiating table.“

“Afghan government claims that leaders of Taliban are living in Pakistan and that Islamabad should use influence on them and facilitate direct talks between Taliban and Afghan High Peace Council.“

“Pakistan's Advisor to the Prime Minister on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said that Taliban are not willing to talk to Afghan government or Afghan High Peace Council.“

“However Pakistan will try its best to persuade them to hold dialogue so as to avert outbreak of civil war in post-conflict Afghanistan, Aziz told state radio.“

Comment: The message behind the message is twofold. First is that the Taliban expect to return to power which explains their disinterest in peace negotiations with Karzai. Second, Pakistani national security interests require stability in post-Karzai Afghanistan. Thus, Pakistan will act to avoid another outbreak of civil war after US and NATO forces leave and the Taliban returns to power. That is the meaning of the last sentence quoted above. Pakistan will not act to help save Karzai.

The simple bluntness of the statements attributed by Sartaj Aziz confirms that senior Pakistani officials are in communication with the Afghan Taliban leaders in Quetta sufficiently to speak for them.

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Owl: Syrian False-Flag Gas Attacks Evidence Crucifies Saudi Arabia

03 Environmental Degradation, 04 Inter-State Conflict, 05 Civil War, 07 Other Atrocities, 08 Proliferation, 08 Wild Cards, Corruption, Government, Idiocy, IO Deeds of War, Officers Call, Peace Intelligence
Who? Who?
Who? Who?

Syrian False-Flag Gas Attacks Evidence

This page from the Alex Jones site is a must-see, offering a remarkable compilation of 7 separate videos from Arabic sources showing evidence of non-Syrian government entities involved on the gas attack of Syrian civilians.

“With the assistance of former PLO member and native Arabic-speaker Walid Shoebat, WND has assembled evidence from various Middle Eastern sources that cast doubt on Obama administration claims the Assad government is responsible for last week’s attack.”

“On Aug. 23, LiveLeak.com hosted an audio recording of a phone call broadcast on Syrian TV between a terrorist affiliated with the rebel civilian militia “Shuhada al-Bayada Battalion” in Homs, Syria, and his Saudi Arabian boss, identified as “Abulbasit.” The phone call indicates rebel-affiliated terrorists in Syria, not the Assad government, launched the chemical weapons attack in Deir Ballba in the Homs, Syria, countryside.

The terrorist said his group, which comprises 200 terrorists escaped from al-Bayadah to al-Daar al-Kabera through a tunnel, needed to buy weapons to attack Homs.

The Saudi financier, who was in Cairo, asked the Syrian terrorists to give details about his group and how it will receive the money. The Saudi admitted his support to terrorists in Daraa and the Damascus countryside. The Syrian terrorist told him that one of the achievements of his “battalion” was the use of chemical weapons in Deir Ballba.

The recorded phone call disclosed the cooperation between two terrorist groups in Syria to bring two bottles of Sarin Gas from the Barzeh neighborhood in Damascus.

Russian media sources have consistently reported Syrian military have discovered rebel warehouses containing chemical weapons agents and have documented rebel chemical weapons attacks on the Syrian civilians the military.”

Evidence: Syria gas attack work of U.S. allies

http://www.prisonplanet.com/evidence-syria-gas-attack-work-of-u-s-allies.html

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Bruce Reidel: Pakistan Beats USA 12 Years In a Row

04 Inter-State Conflict, 08 Wild Cards, Officers Call
Bruce Reidel
Bruce Reidel

Pakistan, Taliban and the Afghan Quagmire

By: Bruce Riedel

With American and NATO combat troops scheduled to depart Afghanistan next year, the relationship between the Afghan Taliban and Pakistan has become more important than ever. It is a complex and complicated nexus. Without doubt, Pakistan and its intelligence service, the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate of the army (ISI), have more influence over the Taliban than any other country or intelligence service. It provides critical safe haven and sanctuary to the groups’ leadership, advice on military and diplomatic issues, and assistance with fund raising. But its influence is not complete, and whether it could persuade the Taliban to settle for a political settlement in Afghanistan, is unclear at best.

Pakistan’s Support for Survival and Revival of the Taliban

Continue reading “Bruce Reidel: Pakistan Beats USA 12 Years In a Row”

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Chuck Spinney: Kosovo as Precedent for Syria — Obama Administration Disconnected from Reality and Well Over the Line

04 Inter-State Conflict, 07 Other Atrocities, 08 Wild Cards, Government, Idiocy, Peace Intelligence
Chuck Spinney
Chuck Spinney

The Kosovo Precedent

Syria in the Crosshair

by FRANKLIN C. SPINNEY, Counterpunch, 27 August 2013

http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/08/27/syria-in-the-crosshair/

I found it truly scary to read that some high officials in the Obama Administration are so disconnected from reality that they consider the 1999 war in Kosovo to be a precedent for justifying limited cruise missile strikes in Syria.

The inestimable Diana Johnstone ably dissected the illegalities and subterfuges of the Kosovo adventure in numerous articles over the years — her latest being “US Uses Past Crimes to Legalize Future Ones” on 26 August in Counterpunch.

Today, I want to address the stupidity of the Kosovo precedent from a somewhat different angle.

Not only was the Kosovo adventure  illegal, it was also a case study in the failure of US precision strike doctrine.  One would think the Obama White House would be sensitive to this, because the reasons for the failure are again evident in the metastasizing targets lists governing the conduct of the drone wars in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia.

Continue reading “Chuck Spinney: Kosovo as Precedent for Syria — Obama Administration Disconnected from Reality and Well Over the Line”

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Chuck Spinney: Blindly Against Syria, Another War

03 Environmental Degradation, 04 Inter-State Conflict, 05 Civil War, 07 Other Atrocities, 08 Proliferation, 08 Wild Cards, Idiocy, Peace Intelligence
Chuck Spinney
Chuck Spinney

The “humanitarian” drumbeat for launching yet another Middle Eastern war against the Assad regime in Syria is increasing.  Here are three reports that may help you think about the war question:

Attachment I, Syria crisis: US signals intent to take action against Assad regime (Guardian 26 August) lays out the case for attacking Syria as enunciated by Secretary of State John Kerry.

In Attachment II, US Set to Launch ‘Iraq, The Sequel', in Syria (Ron Paul Institute, 24 August), my friend Daniel McAdams lays out an argument against intervention.

Think about the points made in these opposing views. Decide which you agree most with.

Now read Attachment III, Gangs of Latakia: The Militiafication of the Assad Regime (Syria Comment Blog, 24 July).

Aron Lund describes the situation in Syria, with special attention to the evolving decentralization of Assad regime into a loose confederation of pro-regime militias, with overlapping but sometimes competing agendas.  While most readers are probably familiar with the confused nature of the competing rebel militias, the militiaization of the Assad regime and what it means for his ability to control events (like the employment of chemical weapons)is not well understood and almost never discussed in the mainstream media.

Although I lean toward McAdams argument, I submit that it does not really matter, because if Lund’s analysis is half-way close to being correct, the rational case against intervention wins hands down, for one simple reason: Questions of war or peace should not be determined by the arrogance of ignorance.

Continue reading “Chuck Spinney: Blindly Against Syria, Another War”