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Subscribe to RSSUpdated 9:55 a.m. ET: The U.S. does not want to "militarize the situation" in Syria, but fears this may be unavoidable, according to a report citing an un-named State Department official.
The White House is seeking a diplomatic solution but the debate in Washington has shifted toward more robust action following the deadlock over a United Nations resolution, according to the report in Britain's Daily Telegraph.
With diplomacy stalled, the bloodletting in the Syrian city of Homs continues. ITN's John Ray reports.
The report said the Pentagon’s Central Command has begun a preliminary review of U.S. military capabilities in the region, which one senior official called a “scoping exercise” that would provide options for Barack Obama if necessary.
“The decision-makers have not determined we are at a point of no return,” the senior official was quoted as saying. “There is still a window, it is just that that window is closing," the official said, adding that "nothing is off the table."
“We definitely don’t want to militarize the situation. If it’s avoidable, we are going to avoid it. But increasingly it looks like it may not be avoidable,” the official if reported to have said.
President Assad's British-born wife, Asma, has sent an email in support of her husband. ITN's Daisy McAndrew reports.
Observers agree that outright Western military intervention in Syria is unlikely as such a mission would be more difficult and risky than last year's operation in Libya. Its complex geography and ethnic mix make the removal of President Bashar Assad's regime difficult, and one option could be to arm rebel groups such as the Free Syrian Army.
While the West and Arab allies discuss options, the humanitarian crisis inside Syria has worsened, with hundreds of rebels killed in recent days in the city of Homs. Assad's army fired mortars and rockets Thursday, the latest salvo in a weeklong bombardment aimed at crushing pockets of dissent.
Mood of 'despair' as Syria bombards city of Homs for 5th day
The United Nations chief on Thursday condemned the ferocity of the government assault on Homs. "I fear that the appalling brutality we are witnessing in Homs, with heavy weapons firing into civilian neighborhoods, is a grim harbinger of things to come," U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said after briefing the Security Council in New York.
Activists and residents report hundreds of people killed over the last week as Assad's forces try stamp out opposition in Homs and as Thursday dawned, rocket and mortar fire rained down again on Baba Amro, Khalidiya and other districts. Armored government reinforcements also poured into the eastern city.
The Syrian Revolution Coordinating Commission said at least 30 civilians in Homs were killed in bombardments on Thursday morning on mainly Sunni Muslim neighborhoods that have been the focus of attacks by the government forces led largely by members of Assad's Alawite religious minority.
Such sectarian divisions have been coming to the surface as killings have increased on either side of the conflict.
The main street in Baba Amro was strewn with rubble and at least one house was destroyed, according to YouTube footage broadcast by activists from the district who said troops had used anti-aircraft cannon to demolish the building.
The video showed a youth putting two bodies wrapped in blankets in a truck. What appeared to be body parts were shown inside the house.
Hussein Nader, an activist in Baba Amro, told Reuters: "Silence reigns for four to five minutes, then another barrage of tank fire or rockets or mortar rounds comes in."
"Whole houses have come down and we do not know how many more have been killed. They are not advancing and it seems that they are content by continuing to shell Baba Amro until every inhabitant is killed."
The U.N. estimates that 5,400 people have been killed in Syria since the uprising agains Assad began in March 2011. But that figure is from January, when the U.N. stopped counting because deteriorating security prevented verification of the figures.
The White House said it was talking to allies about holding a “Friends of Syria” meeting in the near future and was considering delivering humanitarian aid to affected areas in the country.
“We are, of course, looking at humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people, and we have for some time. We’re consulting with our international partners, and we anticipate this being one of the focuses of the discussions that we’ll have,” Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, said, according to the Telegraph.
Influential figures in Washington have recommended setting up a “humanitarian corridor” or safe haven, while others, such as Senator John McCain, have said it was time to consider arming the rebels of the Free Syrian Army.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Wednesday the Arab League chief told him he intends to revive an Arab League monitoring mission in Syria, which has collapsed amid continuing violence there.
Hillary Clinton lambastes 'travesty' of UN veto on Syria
The U.N. chief provided no specifics, but the idea appears aimed at giving the regional group a boost after the league's earlier mission was pulled out of the country because of security concerns.
"In the coming days we will further consult with the council before fleshing out details," Ban said. "We stand ready to assist in any way that will contribute toward improvement on the ground."
Ban also reiterated his "deep regret" over the council's inability to speak in one voice to stop the bloodshed. Russia and China used their veto powers on Saturday to block a Security Council resolution backing an Arab League peace plan that calls for Assad to step aside.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton expessed fury after Saturday's veto by Russia and China at the United Nations blocking action against the continuing violence in Syria, describing it as "a travesty."
Libya has given Syria's charge d'affaires and his staff in Tripoli 72 hours to leave the country, the foreign ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) officially recognised the Syrian opposition council in October as the legitimate authority in Syria after months of unrest against President Bashar al Assad.
Germany said on Thursday it is expelling four Syrian diplomats following the arrest earlier this week of two men accused of spying on Syrian opposition groups in Germany.
The Associated Press and msnbc.com staff contributed to this report.
More from msnbc.com and NBC News:
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This is nonsense and of course it is avoidable this is a civil war in which both sides are heavily armed we need to mind our own damn business and to focus on restoring our economy to it's former vibrant state!''But increasingly it looks like it may not be avoidable,” I believe that our govt. is out of control and is in direct defiance of the American people that are fed up with these endless Islamic wars HELL NO!
Let's just mind our own damn business! I don't care if they are killing each other in Syria. It's not our problem. We are not the World Police.
Don't you guys just love the headline- "US May Be FORCED to MILITARIZE the SYRIA Crisis"??????
As if we are forced to do jack squat about a civil war in some sandbox seven thousand miles away. As if our meddling would do anything positive towards the outcome.
Now Syria wants our twenty year old men and women - with BILLIONS of our dollars.
Not so fast, jack. Where the f*ck are YOUR billions of dollars and twenty year old men????
These people are NOT worth one American dollar OR life. Period.
Knowledge is Power - The Internet has made it possible, even in junta-land societies, for people to learn of freedoms march around the world. Faith has two elements: 1) being convinced of the truth, being certain of reality, having evidence of unseen things, and 2) believing, hoping in, embracing, seizing the truth.
I see a lack of Liberal commentary on this thread. Looks like the Obama administration is overstepping its bounds again in an effort to pursue foreign policy.
Would be nice if we just left Syria alone and quit concerning ourselves with them. Seems to me, our government is like that old lady down the road who stands at her door and constantly peeks out her mini-blinds to see what YOU are doing. Whatever happened to privacy? Or did we expand that, as a nation, to include a more global aspect? Foreign policies are great in some instances, but damn, there's got to be a line drawn in the sand (conveniently enough, there's plenty of sand over there), that we just do not cross.
When I say our Govt. is out of control that is a nonpartisan statement as with very few exceptions both democrat and republican seem hellbent on this scenario of endless wars! We the people need to contact our representatives write "letters to the editor'' and generally speak out that this is enough of this damn nonsense! All this press lately seems eerily similar to the stories in the media that led up to the Iraq war debacle,we are being prepped and groomed for more and more war!
Let's not get sidetracked with buzz words. This is not about freedom and liberty. The stark reality is that this is simply a continuation of an ongoing struggle for power that has always afflicted mankind. This is tribal warfare in the TV age, perfectly suited for handheld phones and tweeting.
We see the killing, the mayhem, and the ugliness, but it is no different now from what it was in the past. We cannot help. We cannot change the culture.
Xaziol:
Since there is a dearth of liberal commentary here, why don't you do us all a favor and let us know what a liberal would say?
One day, they will become civilized, just like us. They will learn that you can control government by buying it.
Did you learn nothing from World War 2? Wars have a way of spreading very quickly if not contained. Just think if we had taken action against Hitler in 1939 instead of 1942.. how many more people could have been saved?.. including Germans! But no, people like you allowed him to grow stronger over 3 years.. history has shown that NOT OUR WAR has a way of becoming YOUR WAR whether you like it or not!
Oh, and this precious economy that you put before human life was created by the deaths of an estimated 50-70 million people and the near total destruction of 2 continents by the end of WW2. The rest of the world was rebuilding and we were completely geared for manufacturing.. so the wealth of the world came to this country. And you're more worried about your money than people's lives.. DISGUSTING!
I'm no lefty :p I just had to take my shot as it seemed necessary. Every time I read a politically related item on MSNBC the left wing nut jobs jump at the chance to get on their knees for Obama. This article makes Obama sound like a righty to me haha. I found it humorous, though the content behind the title was... pathetic.
Feel free to hop on the next plane to Damascus and go straighten everything out over there. Please. You don't need OUR permission. And take YOUR kid with you to the front lines, too. Go ahead. Give Assad a piece of your mind. Seriously. But me? I will NOT sacrifice my son's life or ANYONE else's for a bunch of primitives who hate us anyway, will turn around and elect an even MORE brutal dictator than the one they have now, and can't settle their own problems themselves.
This is a tribal CIVIL WAR which we have NO BUSINESS being in. Period.
Peace Prize Barry is going in whether u like it or not.
@Xdollz - First, you're talking about a country who can barely keep themselves from being classified as a fourth world country as opposed to a third world country. Secondly, the only legit way of a world war coming out of the Middle East, is if Iran decides to blow a gasket. Syria isn't the Middle East issue.
I'd say staying the hell out of Syria is stating a concern for individual's lives. Hotticket said it best, Not worth our money or lives.
Im a liberal and I absolutely HATE this.
This is another example of Obama not allowing republicans to have a reason to call him "WEAK" Militarily. It makes me absolutely sick, because in these hyper-political times - Obama HAS to be this way or risk being propagandized right out of office by rapid republicans who would otherwise be saying "look at Obama doing nothing as the world is spinning into chaos, creating safe havens for al qaeda to grow stronger and attack us"...
and whats pathetic is that most republicans refuse to accept reality for what it is.
And reality is this - Obama is being ADVISED by the Military and those who profit heavily from war.
I seriously doubt THOSE PEOPLE are liberals...what about you?
THE BEST PART?
It's caused republicans like you guys to suddenly get ticked off at american's sticking their noses in other peoples business.
Too bad you all didnt have these same moral (or fiscal, or whatever) beliefs back when Dubya was ginning up the Iraq war.
But, guess better late than never that your side woke up.
Hey, who knows...maybe this was Obama's plan all along, to cause the hypocrites to HAVE to switch sides and push america away from colonialism and war profiteering.
On that note...perhaps Obama just proved again what a genius he really is?
Who am I kidding, if a repubulican gets elected in 2012, you'll all be clamoring for invasions of Syria, Iran, North Korea and anywhere else you feel like occupying.
Another liberal twist of the truth there Jessica. You may want to spell check before posting in the future.
No, I want us to stay here and grow OUR economy and fix OUR problems. Who cares if the Syrians are killing themselves. There is nothing to be gained there.
There have been civil wars all over the world for centuries. Most fought with no outside help. Why risk American or NATO lives? Nobody has offered a good reason thus far.
Just another step on the path to socialism.
Hey Jessica......SHUT UP YOU DUMM-MASS! Your attempt to some how blame this on the right is beyond pathetic. "But....but.....the Republicans made me do it." Your hero is giving in to the military advisers??? Jesus.....get a brain! Is that why, against every recommendation from those same advisers, He Who Almost Walks on Water is pulling the needed troops out of Afghanistan two years early?
I'm not for either of these conflicts, nor was I for Iraq, but when people like you try to rationalize yet another blunder by this over-his-head Chicago thug it's beyond laughable. Make sure you wipe your mouth when you're finished Monica.
And just like a liberal, you start off whining.
As a republican, I disagree. I view this as a matter of foreign policy. What military is getting involved? Militarily, he hasn't done crap except carry on Bush's nonsense in the Middle East. Credit where it's due, Osama is gone, so are many other leaders in the terror world. I'll give Obama that credit, but as to your comments concerning him playing "soft" concerning other countries, he has been. Understandable as it may be. He has not been a hardliner. He needs to stick to the issues here at home though, which is much the reason he will likely not get another term. That and the fact that he feels he deserves another term as opposed to earned another term. The public will decide that.
Let's not be too biased. Reality is, republicans and democrats refuse to accept the reality. Problem is, which you started off with, is the general bias to the perspectives from either side of the table. There has to be a level of compromise and this is why absolutely NOTHING has been accomplished through Congress and the Senate in the past 4 years. You have two sides bickering like children refusing to compromise, just like our public does!!
And those individuals have a commander in chief that if they don't respect and educate on foreign matters, they will be discharged from military service. Or did you not know that? And no, they're not liberals. What's your point?
I'm not gonna even get into the second half of your tangent. You flipped to an insane liberal who can't be spoken too. So much for you being a realist.
It says FORCED because if Obama chooses to commit troops, then he can say he had no choice.
Personally I'm conflicted on this. Yes, we should try to mind our own business.
But I have problems sitting by passively while a dictator murders his people in cold blood.
We need to completely stay out of this. No more wars.
I'm not going shed any tears when Assad gets the Mussolini treatment (frankly, he'd deserve it, if just for his support of Ba'athist and al Qaeda insurgents during the Iraq War), and I'm certainly not going to start quoting Chomsky or start ranting about how the Jews are behind it all (which is kinda funny to hear coming out of the mouths of ostensible "progressives").
At the same time, the US should keep its military out of this. If Russia wants to get militarily involved, fine. Better their military being tied down for a decade than ours. And better radical Muslims killing other radical Muslims than killing our best and brightest.
Just an economic question. When we militarize any country do we get paid back. It is after all my taxes and I don't want my taxes being given away freely. Just thinking. If we do get paid back then aren't we allowed to know the conditions of such payback. If such information is already available then can someone please send me a link. I sure as heck could not find any..
We need to stay out of this. Muslims killing Muslims is a good thing, we can use more of this. I see nothing but good in these people killing each other off, the only thing better would be the Iranians killing each other off. Maybe we could get the Russians and the Chinese over there wasting their money, and I don't even care which side they are on.
Jessica, right on target.
No matter which action Obama would take the GOP hate crowd would be screaming about it.
.
Obama is commander in chief, or at least he's supposed to be. Jessica is dead wrong. He doesn't have to accept any advice if he chooses not to. He's empire building and he's doing it willingly.
Guess who's going to have to fight the next war he's starting? The people who just came home from Iraq! How many times are we going to allow him to send our troops into another civil war, to die? Kennedy turned VietNam into a war and we lost 50,000 Americans. At least Bush said he was sending us into a war, but still no excuse for staying there as long as we did. We should have left when Kuwait was free and not gone back.
Liberals have gotten real comfortable with risking the lives of our men and women in the Armed Forces, but hey they're not your family, huh?
It isn't all Republicans who favor war, just the ones who are Liberals with an elephant logo. I'm no Ron Paul advocate, but he wants us out of the middle East and so do I! When are you liberals going to grow a spine and tell your President to stop this?
I'm not a democrat or republican, i hate every aspect of our current government. No such thing as bi-partisan, thats a blanket covering your eyes. Reality is the rich rule, from both sides of the political spectrum.
BUT, if one thing holds true, it is that Republicans are very good at switching their stances on subjects when it benefits them, they are the biggest hypocrits i have ever seen.
Case and point, it was Republicans who wanted the invasion of afghanistan and iraq, but now they accuse liberals of war-mongering? Kinda funny.
And i am very against socialism, but republicans tend to cry socialism if someones views dont align with their own, it shows a real lack of intelligence.
And btw, it isn't liberals who want the war, and probably not the republicans either, its the rich. There is money in war, its not right but it is our reality in this day and age......unfortunate.
No, we are not the world police. We can just let China and Russia take ocver. No need for us to be involved in anything beyond our borders. /sarcasm
Great... The possibility of another wildly unpopular war, paid for with money we don't have, to achieve a tenuous peace in the most war torn part of the entire world. *(^&@!!
Here we go again.
As Mr. Obama stated over and over: "There will be no troops on the ground in Libya." Well, why did he send in 12,000 troops recently (NOT reported by MSNBC).
Now, Mr. Obama is "going to be forced to militarize Syria." Yeah, right. The Commander in Chief makes the decisions.....not some "expert" educator or some senior military commander. The decision to "militarize" is strictly in the lap of Mr. Obama and I can hardly wait to hear what his On The Job Training decision will be.
Expect to see the CIA and drones in the area, that is, if they are not already there. Or maybe Mr. Obama will again go to the U.N., NATO, or Arab League "requesting" their unilateral support and if that fails, use that as an excuse to "save" Syria.
Question: Where is the money going to come from ?
all of you liberals are screaming for blood...
Liberals, liberals, liberals. Liberal media, liberal spin, libtards, lib lib lib...
Someone please fix that broken record, and tell that group over there to stop beating that horse! I think its dead already.
i feel, it's time for Russia & China to react, and end the Brutality there.. then maybe; the World Arena can see them as; Peace Keepers also..give some else a Chance to be the; Front-Runner of Peace....
Any politician supporting this dribble should be hanged.... Stay the F out of other countries business unless they're our allies. Syria belongs to China, Russia and others who continue trade with them.
I believe you just stated the liberal view quite well with your own commentary so no need to say NO MORE WAR! to the McCains of the industrial mililtary complex looking to shore up their bottomline.
Are those 12000 in camo gear, no one seems to see them. Is this a NATO action? And I'm not a believer in NATO. Or just a chain letter sent out by the fox believers. Can you document this as fact. And we're going to militarize Syria. It's just more spinning out of control, by the right. The same right that wants to take our eye off the positives that Obama has accomplished, like the second high level al qaida operative just dusted in Pakistan in the last month. And all the Rep. hopefuls except Paul want to invade Iran. Do you see any Republican's sons and daughters in the military? They seem to be of age. You are spinners.
I would point out that 99% of politicians are hypocrits. I would further point out that this would not be exclusive to the Republican party. I would even further point out that President Obama has been one of the biggest in this area.
During the 2008 campaign, Senator Obama stated that the United States President should not "unilaterally go to war" with a country. He was referring to President Bush going to war without the UN authorization, even though President Bush did get Congressional approval for that military action. Since becoming President, President Obama went to war with Libya last March. He did so without Congressional approval, but did get UN approval with UN resolution 1973. Now he is contemplating going to war with Syria, even though the UN has rejected the proposal. Will he even get Congressional approval for going to war with Syria is anyone guess, but just looking at his past speeches and actions in such area one can guess that he will do what he wants "regardless of what Congress says for the good of the American people."
BTW, going to war with Syria is a bigger issue than going to war with that one country, or even with that one country and Iran. The Russian administration has already made a public statement several weeks ago warning the US not to do this with Syria and Iran. So going to war with Syria may mean going to war with Russia. Talk about MAD (mutually assured destruction).
You're certainly taking my words well out of context. I am not against war if there is a means to an end. The fact that our president would like to step into a civil war and use it as propaganda for the upcoming election, that is where I have an issue. Secondly, it's not our war, it's not our concern, and there isn't one damned thing that we owe Syria or its people.
Let me ask you something... Iran is steadily threatening war on the US, constantly pushing the envelope to engage us militarily, yet Syria, whom we have no qualms with whatsoever, is fighting internally, and that's suddenly an American issue??? W-T-F... All I have to say.
The Anti-Lib, come on. You're a week off suspension. Quit namecalling. You can do better.
You're suspended for a week for violating #1 of the Code of Honor.
What, are we not hated enough already?
Peter Jacobs at #1.19 you ask if we get our money back. Well we the taxpayers don't get our money back, but it does come back to the billionaires that finance and sell products and services to the war effort. You should know by now that war is about profit, not human rights or idealogies, profit pure and simple. Follow the money trail and you will see that it comes right back to the uber rich who sold the war to us in the first place.
Nailed it. To the wall. This is political posturing, nothing more. Well said.
I agree...with everyone who says"stay out of it" We need to educate people in the US. We need to let war come here...... to our streets to our towns and fight them here with your children, (me and my children have already fought our wars. its your turn) Then you will know what happens when you ignore things on this small planet, which is getting smaller every day. If you can try to remember how you felt on 9/11 even the progressive/liberals were up in arms (for a short while). To be honest there is no good way for Mr Obama to spin this..... His progressive base will scream if he gets involved and the republicans will let him run with that, or fight his war. And this will be his war.
jeeesus
If Russia and/or China get involved, they will be on Assad's side as they are against regime change in Syria.
THE U.S. SHOULD NOT BE INVOLVED WITH THE "CIVIL WAR" IN SYRIA!!!!! O'Bama needs to get the U.S. involved to deflect criticism from his total failure as President and the trashing of the U.S. Economy. O'Bama believes that American citizens will focus all their attention on Syria and not his total lack of leadership & ability. If O'Bama unilaterally involves the U.S., in any way shape of form in Syria, he should be impeached. The Rebels started this Civil War and they need to compromise, surrender or die. When the Rebels use civilian areas for their attacks, those areas become legal targets.
No, we should let Syria rot, just like when we left Afghanistan after the Soviets were pushed out. Leave it alone and it will never bother us.
I'm sure a lot of people will start moaning about how we shouldn't get involved, play world cop, etc..., but they should remember that all this article is saying is that all the White House, DoD and so forth are doing is looking at alternatives. That's only fair. It would be irresponsible not to have a thorough analysis of the situation and to evaluate options and make plans. It is much better than being surprised by a turn of events and not being prepared to respond accordingly.
Even if the third Asian land war has already brought us to our knees. The ink is not deven dry on the article where Rovert Gates swore he would never ever get involved in the Middle East again.
Thursday, September 01, 2011
Thomas Jeferson and the founding fathers warned us against foriegn entanglements because they had seen what it did to the Roman Empire and others.
Haliburton, the Military Ind. Complex and the neoconservatives need more jobs folks. If Obama puts our good kids in there a pox on him.
Leave it to MSNBC to state nonsense like this then:
Report: US may be forced to 'militarize' Syria crisis
Even after reading through the article there isn't much claim behind the title. And I don't understand how exactly we would be "forced". Who gives a rat's @$$ about Syria and its current situation? Thousands of years of evolution didn't do a damn thing for the Middle East, so why start caring now?
The President has already shown his willingness to intervene.
Has he really? You mean by following Europe into Libya?
I like that style better than invading two nations and cutting taxes to pay for it... then turn around and scream about the debt and claim it's a spending problem so you can cut government jobs faster than the private sector adds them... and THEN, blame the President for the stagnant recovery.
All the Middle East wars are only about making money. Only very stupid people believe it's about, "they just want democracy" or " he's killing his own people." Now the focus is Asia, where Hillary is very busy trying to pit Asian countries against each other, then "we will sell weapons to you so you can defend your country." The two troublemakers in Asia are USA & Japan; they benefit the most from frightening others. The Philippine government is falling for this trick. The USA giving them "free", three worn out old Coast Guard ships to defend themselves from non-existant enemies.
nwo
Israel is sitting back enjoying popcorn & soda watching the slow unraveling of it's nearest foe
Which "foe" are you referring to? Everything we've done in the Middle East has been for Israel's benefit. The tail has been wagging the dog for a long time now.
Anyone who thinks that Israel didn't know exactly what the situation was in Iraq before Bush II attacked is a fool. Israel knew from day one that they had to watch their back and, smartly, fanned out spies throughout the Middle East that are still functioning and providing specific intelligence on what is happening all around them.
Remember the bombing of the Syrian reactor under construction? Israel knew exactly how close the Syrians were to starting up their nuclear program, the day that there would be the fewest workers on site, exactly where to pinpoint their strike, etc. and it all came from their spies on the ground there.
To say there were weapons of mass destruction at a level that the U.S. should enter a war with Iraq is ludicrous. Richard Clark, an important cog in the Bush administration said as much in congressional testimony, "Flawed Intelligence from Israel regarding the status of those weapons." They told the British, the British told us (as you will recall) and we attacked. Now a decade+ later, after 4000+ dead, ten times that wounded and incalculable dollars it's devolving back to worse than the cesspool it was......meanwhile Israel was made that much safer at no cost to themselves.
The liberal media and the politicians that gorge themselves with Israel's lobbyists' money (top three in D.C.) will never report this. Wake up America......Israel is NOT our friend.
And just think for a mere $3B in direct aid we have Israel to do all the dirty heavy lifting for the U.S. in the mideast and then have them take the heat and wrath from the rest of the entire world and UN for doing so. That's a dirt cheap, or should I say a cheap sand price to pay for them to risk their national security on our behalf. This is not the tail wagging the dog no matter how you cut it.
The only threats to Israel are Iran & Egypt. Mubarak of Egypt was an ally of Israel until Hillary & Obama decided he should step down. The other Middle Eastern countries could not care less about Israel..
Seems to me I recall a few people in Egypt taking a stand against Mubarek... What exactly did the US do to remove him from power, again? I don't seem to recall.
STAY.THE.F*OOK.OUT!!!!!!!!!!!
All nations of the planet should have convened at the UN to allow foreign intervention in Syria. Syria is for the Syrian people to live in peace and with dignity! But now, they are being slaughtered like pigs and the international community should not allow it! For God´s sake, we live in the 21st century.
Russia and China have demonstrated that they too want to have a free hand in their countries to maim, assassinate and jail their nationals, at will.
Why doesn´t the International Penal Court seek to investigate and prosecute Assad´s animal behavior, ASP?
Nice, huh, after 40 years of his family being in power, this stupid animal named Bashar Assad -- all he knows is killing his own people with his country´s army. He has reached the point of no return and should be killed, alongside his family. Lest, of course, in the case of Assad, countries like the UK, where his bitchy wife is from, try to give him asylum. At this point, any type of sectarian violence is better than outright killings by this demented moron and his brother Maher. The Sunni Muslims will in the end prevail, while the Alawite, related to Shiite Islam, will probably be massacred in Syria.
The Royal Saudis, and other blue blooded Arabs, including Assad, and other (assassins) “presidents” of the region´s economies, are not reforming anything in the political arena, like redefining their rules for economic growth in democracy, western-type. They´ll all be kicked out eventually! And, when the population realizes that the West did not help, they´ll surely turn to more fanatic means, engulfing both politics and religion, as in Iran!! Eventually, to protect oil sources the West might have to set up a NO-FLY ZONE all over the Middle East, case by case.
Bashar Al Assad is a despot, demented moron, and murderer – an international shame for the 21st century -- and should be executed quickly by Syria´s (shabiha in rebellion), or foreign, armed forces even for the sake of saving their skins if not solely to save Arab lives, while at the same time taking over and installing a temporary military government,, that over a period of 2 years could bring things back to normal. Needless to say, in the process, the armed forces there should be purged of any of Assad´s cronies so that these freedom fights continue for the benefit of the Syrian population.
The only political system that will last forever, so to speak, will be a western style-type democracy. Apparently this truth has been realized by a whole new generation of Syrians educated within and outside of that country. The internet has helped bridge the technological gap and to come to full realization that their young lives were meaningless and had no future with corrupt animals like Assad, in power.
However, Syrians will not have freedom and dignity for a long time. They have to work at it, together with their armed forces that must see their role as only temporary -- 2 years -- until the country´s new institutional basis is set up so that political parties can prosper in peace and without fear. Once this is achieved, elections must be convened so that regional-party political representatives can be elected nationwide with a view to integrating a National Assembly to draft a new Constitution for the country. This would be the beginning of a new future for the Syrian population.
Meanwhile, if captured alive, the military government should prosecute Assad so that the death penalty can be brought to bear on this god forsaken animal, and his family. Their own and family assets, in general, should be confiscated in Syria as well as outside of the country. Those monies belong to the people of Syria.
But more than anything, the world must congratulate the Syrian population for acting with great courage, with their hearts and minds, to try to topple a ruthless and corrupt regime from the face of the earth.
Needless to say many more countries will follow, not only in the Middle East – mainly, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Iran, etc. -- but also in Latin America, especially in the case of those with presidential lunatics trying to emulate the Cuban political system which under the noses of the USA and the rest of the Americas has failed miserably, i.e., Venezuela and his gorilla Chavez.
In general, the combination of authoritarian rule, high unemployment, poor opportunities for social advancement, demographic youth bulges, low public investment in education and health and other public services, and anger at high levels of corruption, and outright thievery, in the Middle East and North Africa, and in Latin America, will prompt public uprisings that will topple their leaders. Chavez, Assad are definitely in this list after their close friend Gadhafi has moved on to better pastures, in hell! Needless to say, the Cuban government also needs to be overthrown!
Instead, Presidents from these poor, backward economies, that have not even approached the take-off stage in economic development should instead concentrate their public administration efforts in fighting corruption, reducing the size of their inefficient and corrupt public sectors, and increasing public/private investments with the help of the multilateral financial community -- including in the strategic social sectors; i.e., education, health, and basic services – to increase employment.
The UN Security Council should give the OK for NATO to intervene also in Syria, so that these people are not slaughtered like animals by their own army. The intervention at this stage should be humanitarian aid, drones, and light weapons with plenty of ammunition so that these peoples can defend themselves. The United States and other highly civilized, highly industrialized, societies should lead this effort to save the Syrians from their executioner Bashar.
In the final analysis given the severity of the situation, the UN/NATO should propose that Syria, a sovereign country, transfer its right to national self-determination to an overseer. The UN should argue that given the failure and the criminality of the Syrian state, UN and NATO members have the power and moral right to suspend the principle of national self-determination. In other words, Syria should be taken over by the rest of the world to stop the mass assassinations being conducted there by Bashar Assad.
More than TEN THOUSAND SYRIANS HAVE ALREADY DIED in their fight for LIBERTY!
The Syrian people would have slit our throats given a chance. Now we will go marching in w/o an invitation and it will make Iraq look like Disneyland.
The Syrian army Russians and Chinese cannot believe their good luck concerning Baby Huey swinging his limp **** coming in for the slaughter.
They will just go back to killing eachother after killing us and setting the world against America.
I smell sewer here.Who paid you to write this trash ? CNN ? REUTERS ?
"French military aid was also a decisive factor in the American victory. French land and sea forces fought on the side of the American colonists against the British. At the same time, British and French (and to a lesser extent, Dutch and Spanish) forces fought for colonial wealth and empire around the world. From 1778 through 1783 -- two years after the defeat of Cornwallis at Yorktown...." (http://people.csail.mit.edu/sfelshin/saintonge/frhist.html)
America should stay out of Syria and the French should have stayed out of America. No justification for the French not minding their own business.
Those pesky French. If not for them, we could be saying God Save The Queen, instead of God Bless America.
(You can wish things were black and white all you want. But wishing will not make it so.)
German
Your lengthy comments are Right and Just.
The issue here as I see it is "America may have to militarize"
I really think the UN should get in there and stop the killing...in a joint co-op effort. If the world needs saved the world must save it together. Don't do it in the name of anything, except humanity. Then let the people of Syria and their would be futuristic politicians decide how to run it.
Afterwards the world will need patience to wait and let things fall into place, as in Egypt. You would have to be crazy to expect things to be all fantastic at once. It takes time but it's better than rule by fear and dictatorship.
If you think dictatorship works and people are sometimes better off under the strong arm of government then you only need to see what happens the first time you oppose the dictator. Murder in the streets...(there's a free mans society for you).
I would rather have the struggle of forming a new and free society. Who knows how long it could take but you have to realize things just aren't always going to happen in your lifetime.
Will Russia and China step in to support Assad? Has the US thought about that? This has all the markings of a foreign policy fiasco.
Has the US thought about that? Seriously? You should shoot them an email in case they didn't. Hell, you should get a job on the cabinet with that kind of 'out of the box' thinking.
China and Russia sell Syria arms and have account recievables, so.......
Anyone else see a third world war coming?
Yes, John. Unless we elect Ron Paul there is not a glimmer of hope to chage direction.
That's fine as long as it doesn't mess my regularly scheduled programming...
Somehow, I have a sad feeling it will go down long before the election.
Stay or be voted out!
Here we go again....
While it sure looks like a horrible mess and even a crises for those involved, but I fail to see how this becomes our problem.
Why? Under Obama, we have already lost two "wars".
If your referring to Iraq, we "lost" that war the second we started it without an exit plan, with a "made up" mission statement, and for the only purpose of perpetuating the privatising of Cheney's military. If your referring to Afghanistan/Pakistan, again our only mission there should have been to kill Bin Laden and other terrorist leaders, that is done and on going now, there is no "Win" to be had there because we are fighting inside a sovereign country trying to defeat and internal organization that is still supported by the host country. Libya? Obama sat on his hands and let the Arab League and Europeans step up and take the lead in protecting their own interest. I think it was a brilliant foreign policy move. Last night they interviewed a professor who teaches foreign policy. He is 65 and has worked for or around 5 administrations. He said quite blankly that the problem with Americans today is they no longer take the time to really understand another country or a situation before the form their opinion, and the problem there is they have the power to vote. That of all civilized nations we are the most ignorant about other people cultures and even the decisions that are made by our own government. After reading your post I would have to say I agree. Its is good to be frustrated about the fact that we lost men and invaded two countries with no good reason, but to say "Obama lost them" and to not acknowledge that they were started for economic reasons and forced down our throats, just provides a path for it to happen again.
WE lost that war? Tell us MMC just how you can make that claim? Is Saddam Hussein in power? Have the Iraqi people not formed their own government? If t was for oil then why are we not still there? Why has the majority of the oil contracts gone to France and Russia if it was for oil.
With all respect and deference to the men of the Silent Service... yo can't see everything through a periscope.
Five thousand lives and trillions of dollars later and we have NOTHING to show for it while other countries get Iraq's oil. We won nothing.
Hotticket - there is something to show. When Arabs saw Saddam Hussein hanged and Iraqi democracy created they understood that they did not have to live any longer under the boot of despots - and finally they rose against them. And this is a great and wonderful thing, THE thing George W. Bush really wanted from this war. It will still take time before democracy is well installed in Arab world, but the first steps were already made - and the more there is democracy in the world, the safer we, the Westerners, are in our countries.
So the sacrifice of almost 5 thousand brave American soldiers was not in vain - and the war in Iraq was won. By George W. Bush, in 2007, when he ordered the "surge" and managed to turn Iraqi Sunnis against the jihadists.
The problem with going in is that there is nothing to win but some degree of goodwill at the ending of brutal slaughter (at least for awhile until the Sunnis and Shia have at each other). The problem with not going in is that countless thousands of human beings are being slaughtered and will continue to be slaughtered.
And for the isolationist foreign policy mavens on this thread, how do you feel about France intervening in our revolution? If France hadn't intervened, you would most definitely be singing "God Save the Queen" and having tea at 4, there would be no Constitution or Bill of Rights, and you would probably be living on a continent fragmented into Spanish control, French control, British control and maybe even Russian control (given they claimed Alaska, even though they didn't have title to those lands).
We can never influence the final outcome of a geopolitical game we do not play. Ignoring the game does not make it go away. I'm against war in all its forms, but last I heard, that doesn't matter to those who love the money and power that the war racket offers.
America hasn't won anything since WWII, and that was an assisted win with the help of the allies. Looks like they'll be adding a few more to the loss category. What a loserly country.
Really? How about Korea? Communists invaded South Korea to conquer it - and were beaten back. That's victory in my book...
First Gulf War 1990-91. Koweit was liberated and Saddam Hussein defeated. That is victory in my book...
How about Granada, Panama, Bosnia and Kosovo? How about both Libya interventions (1986 and 2011)?
Iraq is a democracy today. There is nothing more to do - mission was accomplished. True, it took longer than expected - but the war was won.
And Afghanistan is not a defeat yet - if a pro-Western government remains in power after allied retreat, that will be a victory too.
Korea was a war over legitimacy by north and south. For at least u had to face the russian and chinese fire power, reason for the truce. thus the creation of the two koreas.
So in Koweit destroying a retreating army is a victory. Anyway I'm still waiting for one.
Don't even mention Panana and bosnia.
I think Libya was more of an Assasination. Killing Thousands of innocent Civilians just to eliminate a Leader.
So u call that democracy, With flawed elections every now and then. And bombs still resonating.
The world is still waiting for a war were The US will emerge victorious.
I wonder why u didn't mention Vietnam. or u forgot...... Any way one sees ur victories there only in HOLLYWOO STYLE MOVIES
Iraq a victory. I call bs. We ran it on a credit card, and we just kicked out one religious sect for another to rule that country. Guess what, same fanatics that rule Iran. We just took out a force that helped stabilize the area. Remember the Iraq Iran war? I hate 4000 of us died for that, our forces are heroes, that follow orders. Shame on us for invading. Iraq is a Democracy, run for it's people. Really. It's run by religion factions.
Dodger, what planet are you living on?
A slaugter of innocents is taking place under our eyes - West (USA + UE + Canada and Australia and a couple of smaller states) is still the n° 1 power on this planet - and even more importantly, the ONLY power which actually gives dickens about human rights.
If Syrian regime doesn't stop its campaign of mass murder, something will have to be done - at the very least arming the insurgents, so they have a sporting chance in the fight. Quite interestingly, most Arab countries as well as Turkey are in this case on ours (Western) side. It would be of course nice to have also China and Russia on board - but if they are not willing, they can go to hell!
West already let at least two genocides happen without reacting with enough strength - the Holocaust of Jews and the extermination of Tutsis in Rwanda. We shall not be forgiven for letting it happen a third time...
You forgot , Maciej , the extermination of Poles by the Jews 1939-Katyn, Siberia -1945-1956 by Jewish butchers sent by Stalin ( married to a Jewess) under the direction of Jakub Berman. Others with bloody hands Morel, Swiatlo, Rozanski. I guess you know little of Polish history, Maciej . Powinienes sie wstydzic zeby pisac takie glupoty.
Joe, I find it amazing that somebody can attribute the responsability of crimes of Stalin to the Jews. Stalin (a Georgian) had many underlings who made his bidding, which mostly consisted in murdering for him. The worst of all was Beria (a Georgian), but there were also many others like Yezhov, Molotov, Zhukov, Voroshilov, Budionny (all Russians), Malenkov (Russian of Macedonian origin), Mikoyan (Armenian), Rokossovski (Russian of Polish origin) and yes, there were also at least two Jews in his first circle, Kaganovitch and Yagoda. But once again, pretending that Poles were "exterminated by Jews" at Katyn is pure madness - Polish officers were murdred by Soviets! And if you insist on ethnic qualification, well, considering that the person in charge of NKVD in this time was Beria and the order was given by Stalin, it would be technically more justified to say that Georgians killed them - which is as absurd as saying it was the Jews...
Antisemitic obsession is a form of mental disease - I suggest looking for professional help
Perfect. Actually somebody who knows something about world history. I congratulate u.
maciej - Realize that even after the US forced democracy on Iraq, most Iraqi's still hate Americans. That's the reality. Is that what you call justification to go to war?
It may be true that most Iraqis hate America - but now they live in a democracy and it is in itself a good thing and a blessing. Also a cruel despot and a barbarian regime were eliminated - and it is a good thing and a blessing.
And also please remember that United States were never attacked by another democratic country - and so as long as the Iraqis are allowed to decide about the foreign policy of their own country it is highly unlikely that Iraq will be a threat to the security of USA.
George W. Bush did not attack Iraq to make Iraqis love USA (and he certainly did not start this war to get oil) - he decided that because of lack of any real perspective of democratisation in Arab countries, the first Arab democracy must be created by force, to jumpstart the installation of democracy in the whole region. He wanted the democratization of Middle East for two reasons - first, because it was the right thing to do, and second, because it served the interests of national security of USA. And all the events since January 2011 ultimately proved him right in his assumptions.
And finally let's not forget that Assad's regime in Syria is not only murderous but it is also - together with Iran - the last in the Middle East to be hostile to USA and support anti-American terrorists organisations, like Hezbollah...
maciej, I agree with you and I would only add Democracy is happening in the Middle East wheher
some like it or not.
Slaughter as seen by The American Government. With all its Propaganda machinery. are we not in some kind of Hollywood movie here?
The same America who Vetoed the sending of additional troops to Rwanda despite the Plea of the then UN Secretary general. we Know what followed after. Where was their concern then.
Today, with Stories being cooked up here and there on Syria, they want to prevent a Genocide only them are seeing. Sorry, the world is not dube. The same intervention in LIBYA for so call "GENOCIDE" reduced SYIRTE to Rubble. Killed far more Civillians. Black Libyans who constitute 1/3 of the population are being massacred. Once more America is silence.
Give us a break!!! I think the world would be a better place without America's agitations and Hysteria..
We have enough battles to fight right here in the US. Democracy dosen't work here in the US so why try to force others into it. Let us mind our own business and try not to get more of our children (military) killed over others concerns. Uprisings against goverments can not be tolerated. Can you imagine if it happened here?
Actually, it did. France intervened in our revolution and made all the difference in the world. Now, unfortunately, our own government, regardless of who's in the WH, would brutally repress any movement that challenged it. Ask Amy Goodwin if genteel democracy ruled when she was severely roughed up trying to report on Bush, Cheney, et. al......
Madness.
Bullsh*t! WE DO NOT NEED TO DO ANYTHING! Russia is the main player in this LET THEM take care of business. We don't need to get into it with Russia! They may not be the powerhouse they once were, but take a lesson from WW11. Germany underestimation them and paid for it big time.
WE have NO RIGHT to send in even ONE American solder to be killed for something that a group of rebels who decided that they don't like the present government started.
This is a civil war, and we have NO right to put American life's on the line for them.
The present regime did not INVADE ANYONE OR START THE CIVIL WAR. It is up to the REBELS who started it to either FINISH it to their satisfaction or QUIT.
Our economy is so far in the hole, THAT is what our Congress people should be focused on. THIS COUNTRY AND IT'S PEOPLE and NO one else, period!
The leaders of Syria's military are Allawites. 2/3 of the population is Sunni. The Allawites are a threatened minority. The war is in reality a clash of religions more than a quest for democracy. This story is more ancient than the majority of the news media tells us about. For America to militarize the situation is get America once more into a quagmire of religious hatred. Americans should just stay home and send some smart bombs.
uh well uh bless my soul, another war in the middle east. Wake up people and elect Ron Paul for President.
Sniper? for the looks of it someones trying to get reasons to cause something
Wow, Iran and now Syria. Cool. A big war. Profits.
Maybe the Iraqis can help them.. LOL
I mean, gotta help your Muslim brothers, right? haha
This again is all about oil. Take the oil away and all countries would just look the other way.
Syria has no oil.
Syria produces over 400.000 barrels of oil per day.
OPEC produces 30 million barrels a day, 400,000 is just not that much, they are a bit player in OPEC and after domestic needs are subtracted thier exports at far less than 400K.
mark - get off the oil teetie, that gets old
People just don't get it .. we were "minding our own damn business" on December 7th & September 11th... that doesn't always work out so well...
Gotta love this first lady of Syria.. "Hey, my husband is a mass murderer"...
Que Michael Buffer's voice "Ladies and Gentlemen, LET'S GET READY TO WASTE A FEW MORE BILLION DOLLARS!"
Peace Prize Barry is going in whether u libertarians, leftists and isolationists like it or not. One good push and Iran's only ally in the Middle east will topple. When opportunity knocks only yellow fools hesitate.
I wish I could keep track of all the haters and their predictions for all the things obama was going to do..but didn't. I'm going to add this to the list. Syria isn't propping up iran or anything silly like that, there is no strategic value to "going in" to syria to get to iran.
Syria is Iran's lone Arab ally. Weapons, men and material move thru Syria from Iran to Iranian puppets Hezbollah in lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. Toppling Assad and the Alawites in Syria reduces the Iranian threat to Israel by half and the ability of Iran to retaliate against Israel in the event of an Israeli preventive strike on iranian nuclear sites substantially. See the strategic value now.
Vermont guy..."I wish I could keep track of all the haters and their predictions for all the things obama was going to do"
Why do I get the feeling you are not keeping a list of all the things Obama said he was going to do, but has not?