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Subscribe to RSSDozens are reported dead in Syria where opposition forces are fighting to maintain control of Syria's commercial capital and biggest city. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
News Analysis
NORTHERN SYRIA – The rebels call this Free Syria.
I am writing from a village that was occupied by Syrian soldiers four hours ago – the tracks of retreating tanks are freshly pressed into the pavement.
Grape vines hang in the small garden of the two-room stone house I’m in. There’s no electricity, but there is fresh water from rural wells. Bullet holes – some as small as grapes, others big as oranges – pierce the house’s walls.
Still, the people in this village are celebrating.
“Free Syrian army! God protect them!” they shout, index and middle fingers splayed into a “v” for victory.
The 200 Syrian troops who’d been shelling this village of 8,000 olive and walnut farmers withdrew under fire Wednesday night. Women and children who had been hiding in other villages within walking distance stream in, loaded with vegetables and yogurt.
The defense minister, his deputy and a vice president were all killed in the blast but it is unclear if Syrian president Bashar al-Assad was nearby. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
The returning families sift through the debris of their homes. The villagers find that many houses were burned by Syrian troops. The Syrian army appears to have carried out a deliberate scorched-earth campaign here.
The troops burned every home with a son, son-in-law or even cousin among the rebels, residents tell us. There can be little doubt that this is government policy (and what appears to be a war crime) because the same thing has happening in every village we’ve visited.
A man who returned to this village had a leg cut off under torture by Syrian forces. He’s 74 years old.
Another man who escaped Damascus five days ago says the fighting in the capital is now so bad that President Bashar Assad isn’t sending ground forces into rebel neighborhoods anymore and is only shelling them from afar. He doesn’t want to send foot patrols out of fear the troops will defect, people say.
The regime is on the ropes.
Total war: Syria sends armored column to Aleppo
The Assad goverment is concentrating its firepower on big cities like Damascus and Aleppo. Government troops left this village last night to join the attack on Aleppo. But the rebels, and Syria, need urgent help to prevent huge losses of life, both among fighters and civilians – Sunni, Allawite and Christian.
Many myths circulate in Washington and in the media about the Syrian opposition and the fighting in this country. From what I’ve seen traveling with the rebels, many of the commonly accepted ‘truths’ seem to be incorrect. After all, the first casualty of war is the truth.
After months of protests and violent crackdowns, a look back at the violence that has overtaken the country.
Myth: The rebels are getting weapons and money from abroad and will soon finish off Bashar’s army on their own.
View from the ground: The rebels are fighting with almost nothing. I was with a rebel commander yesterday who has 48 men. Only 15 of his fighters have any weapons. He has almost no ammunition. He has one anti-aircraft gun, but not a single bullet for it.
The rebels don’t have enough gasoline to put in their vehicles. The gas they can find costs the equivalent of $8 a gallon. Food is plentiful, and so is water. But weapons and ammunition are in desperately short supply. Another unit I have seen is armed with homemade bombs that they try to fire from cardboard tubes.
The rebels are now starting to get Motorola radios. They are new and coming from Turkey. Washington has recently said it will help private non-lethal aid, including communications equipment. But the radios are of little use. Communications have never been the rebels’ main problem. In fact, the rebels coordinate and communicate effectively already. They use both the new Motorola radios and local Syrian cellphones. The cellphones can be monitored by Syrian intelligence, but the rebels’ strategy has been to overwhelm the Syrian government’s ability to listen.
Syrian villagers are hoping to their normal lives after what looks like Syrian government policy to collectively punish the rebels and their families by making them homeless. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
Because the rebels – commanders and foot soldiers – all use cellphones and landlines, there are tens or thousands of conversations going on at any one time. The rebels speak vaguely and in primitive codes. It seems unlikely that Syrian forces are able to keep track of such a high volume of calls and effectively act on them. The rebels do appreciate the radios and use them, but they are a secondary priority.
Syria: What you need to know about the crisis from the CFR.org
What the rebels say they truly need are arms that can pierce Syrian armored vehicles. They need 12.7 anti-aircraft ammunition. They say they need 14.5 ‘doshka’ rounds. They need armor penetrating RPGS. They need 60mm and 120mm mortars. They need 7.62 rounds. These are what commanders ask for whenever I meet them. These are what every rebel wants.
Myth: The rebels are disorganized, have no leaders and are rife with infighting.
View from the ground: The rebels have no central leadership. They do not have a single commander. The rebels generally do not recognize the leaders of the Syrian opposition in exile in Turkey and Europe. But on the ground here in Syria the rebels are well organized. Their structure is more organic than hierarchical, less like a pyramid than a bungle of grapes, with individual cells joined together by a common cause. The rebel cells coordinate well with each other. Since weapons are in such short supply, all rebel military operations are collective efforts. In the town where I am, there are no fewer than five different rebel commands. They respect each other. They trade weapons and fighters. Some units are more Islamic in their politics, others are secular. The differences in politics do not prevent their coordination.
Photo Blog: Who are the Syrian rebels?
Myth: The rebels are al-Qaida or at least infiltrated by al-Qaida.
View from the ground: We have not seen evidence of a large al-Qaida presence. This is not an al-Qaida fight. In the last 24 hours we have met three rebel commanders. One was an air-conditioner repairman before the war. Another was a tomato and zucchini farmer. The third grew grain and lentils. One of the commanders considers himself an Islamist. The other two are more secular.
Machine guns operated by motorcycle brakes? Get a glimpse at the rebels fighting against Assad's forces in Syria's mountainous Jabal al-Zawiya area.
In total, the three commanders control about 1,500 men. Not one of the commanders supports al-Qaida, nor have any of the dozens rebels have we have met. There were reports that al-Qaida fighters had recently taken over the Baab al-Howa border crossing between Syria and Turkey. There was a video that showed rebels carrying a suspicious-looking all black flag, similar to ones favored by al-Qaida. We spoke with the rebel leader who carried the flag. He said he has nothing to do with al-Qaida and the flag was an Islamic one.
Syrian forces launch air attacks on largest city
Al-Qaida’s presence may grow, however, without a quick end to this conflict. The rebels need help. Their men are dying. Their homes are being burned. As time goes on, the temptation to welcome help – even if offered from al-Qaida –will grow. We have heard reports of foreign fighters coming to Syrian from Algeria and Saudi Arabia. We have heard reports that al-Qaida is offering some rebel commanders money. The longer this drags on, the more dangerous it will get.
Myth: The rebels want a NATO intervention
View from the ground: The rebels do not want American or European soldiers in Syria. Many rebels do not specifically even want a no-fly-zone, although I suspect many would welcome it. Mostly, they just want access to weapons.
Myth: After Assad is toppled there will be ethnic cleansing of Allawite (a secretive Shiite sect) civilians by the Sunni majority.
View from the ground: Syrians don’t want ethnic violence, but some may happen. It’s already happening. There have already been ethnically motivated massacres. The longer the war continues the worse this will become. Syria is not, however, Iraq.
There are no U.S. troops in Syria trying to organize elections. The U.S. presence and American missteps made ethnic violence in Iraq far worse than it would have been otherwise after Saddam Saddam Hussein's fall. The Syrians are better suited to sort out their internal divisions than anyone else.
A first? Helicopter gunships bombard Syrian capital
Allawites comprise about 10 percent of Syria’s 23 million people. They are the government’s favored sect. The Assad family is Allawite. If Assad falls, there may be vendetta killings of some Allawites. More than 17,000 Syrians have already been killed, which means 17,000 angry families. It will be difficult to contain all that rage. The longer the conflict continues, however, the more vengeance there will be. If there are more large-scale massacres – if Aleppo is reduced to a smoldering pile like Homs – the aftermath could be much worse.
The latest massacre began with a military bombardment of the village of Tremsi. After the heavy artillery and shelling, villagers said pro-government militia men swept in to kill at close range. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
But Syrians I have spoken to say they do not want a civil war. They do not want to drive Allawites from the country. Mostly, they want justice. The rebels know exactly who they are looking for. They have the names of Syrian government officers and militiamen responsible for massacres and torture. They want to bring them to justice, but not to perpetrate more atrocities. Syria needs help organizing a justice system to deal with the popular demands for retribution after the regime collapses.
The conflict in Syria seems to be in its final stages, but how long this stage will last depends largely on what happens in the coming days and weeks and the amount of support the rebels receive.
All indications are that Assad is going to fall. But how many more Syrians need to go with him?
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Leave a Comment:
Myth: The US media always tells the truth.
Truth: The US media can be manipulated just like the media of any other country.
This article is either intentionally bias or being written by a very naive reporter. There have been reports from several sources of some "rebel" commanders refusing to help others because they do not agree on a religious level. It is well established that support is coming into the country from the Muslim Brotherhood and that this support is denied to "rebel" groups that do not share the Islamist agenda of the MB. Just because this reporter did not come across many of these Islamists does not mean they are not there or that they are not a significant portion of the "rebel" fighters. The US and the rest of the west need to stay out of Syria and should not provide any military assistance to them of any kind, particularly not any weapons or ammunition.
This is BY FAR one of the most biased reports that I have ever seen, if we are to believe this report, the rebels are nice guys. Please, these guys have committed their own massacres, the CIA is all over them, and we would be fools to believe that Al Quaeda is not part of them. In addition, it makes no sense that they are keeping such resistance (fire fights in high intensity) with suck POORLY armed terrorists - and anyone that would employ the use of a suicide bomber is a terrorist. And he talks about war crimes in their scorched earth policy, what does he label the Israeli policy to bulldoze the family homes of suicide bombers? I doubt he would even use the word.
This guy reminds me of the imbedded reports in Iraq when they kept reporting roses being thrown at the soldiers. Sometimes I wonder that if we had state media in the US, how different would it be than this? NEVER a critical moment - ALWAYS the government line--- Bharain? Yemen? Not even on the news, not a target of the US government, Syria? Yes, terrorist are now freedom fighters that WOULD NEVER do ethnic cleansing and are not Islamic extremist. OH YES--- this guy Engel is a total joke. He drives around with these guys massage them as if they are hero's - this is ONLY his myopic view point ---- it has been reported (foreign media, BBC, Le Figaro, etc) of mobs chanting in celebration that "Christians should leave to Lebanon and @!$%#tes should be wiped out of Syria" THAT Is hardly ever reported....this type of "reporting" is disgusting- reminds me of the poor critical reporting during the run up to Iraq.
We sit on our hands and let Al-Qaida and the MB take advantage of the situation in Syria to grow their power. Good one. We should have done something about this a long time ago. The man was massacring civilians in droves. A definite war crime, what did the UN do, have more meetings. What did the US do, turned a blind eye. Well MB and Al-Qaida won't. They see a great opportunity to expand their power.
unbelievable the ignorance displayed by many of the commenters here....many if not most of whom have never left this country and are so afraid of anyone who might be a Muslim that they seek to disparage a reporter who has spent his working life living and working in the middle east. He speaks their languages, he understands their religious and cultural differences and all you monday morning quarterbacks can spout is the garbage you hear from the likes of Michele Bachman, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and the other racist idiots on Fox News.
How do any of you know that the Muslim Brotherhood, which has very little authority in Egypt is supporting only those that vow allegiance to an "Islamist agenda? You're just repeating what you hear from your sources, you have no direct knowledge of that or anything else happening on the ground in Syria. And your other sources are probably not on the ground in Syria because they don't have the courage to go out with the rebels.
How do you know the rebels have committed atrocities? Again you weren't there and your sources probably weren't either. You can disagree with the US foreign policy as it relates to the rebellion in Syria, but you cannot state with any certainty that this reporter is more biased than the one you're willing to believe.
Snarkqueen1,
Regardless of what these guys are saying we as Americans cannot and should not help the rebels. This is their issue to solve one way or another, but we should not provide arms for these people. You cannot take a side for which both already hate you.
Snarkqueen,
If it is truly a civil war, the west has no interest in it. Let the rebels fight their own fight in that case.
The fact that there is a clear western interest in helping the rebels indicates that it is not a civil war in Syria--it is a proxy fight between western interests and the interests of Russia, China, Iran, etc.
Smarten up. Don't be a fool.
At no time did I advocate for this country to provide arms. I'm a big fan of leaving others to fight their own battles. However, that said, how would the American revolutionaries fared had it not been for the support of the French? Why did the French help us? Because they hated England.
So all wars have some measure or reason as to why another country would aid one side or the other. All are proxies for some other cause. No one on this planet cares one whit about his fellow man, we care only about our interests, so yeah Russia has their agenda, we have ours. So do you propose we take no sides and allow Russia, China and Iran to push their agendas?
Snarkqueen,
In this case, Russia, China, and Iran are not arming mercenaries and provoking conflicts in foreign lands. The west is doing this, however, seemingly every year. When will it stop? When the general public stops falling for humanitarian intervention ploys, and stops believing the lies of reporters like richard Engels.
Sounds like an article written with a gun held to someones head.
I respect the writer of this article, Richard Engel, but I think he is mistakenly projecting what he is experiencing on a very localized level, to what is happening elsewhere. He even admits that the fighters he is encountering are a rag-tag lot. Fighters like that, no matter how eager they are to contribute, are NOT the ones threatening the regime. Obviously there are much more hardened, experienced rebel fighters elsewhere. He does touch on one such example of the border post that was overrun and captured:
So the guy says that he has nothing to do with al-Qaida, fine, but he's waving the black flag of jihad (holy war) and that is the connection he is making to Islam; JIHAD. So he's al-Qaida in spirit if not by letter, what's the difference? Those are the rebels who Richard Engel needs to get a better read on before writing an article like this. They are the ones who are threatening the regime and they will be the ones who will shape how things shake out afterward. The peanut farmer, the shopkeeper, and the school teacher will return to civilian life when the fighting stops. The professional jihadists will keep fighting until Syria too is a nation ruled by inflexible and often brutal Islamic Sharia Law, for that is the goal of Islamic jihad in the first place.
So not acting in Syria IS a betrayal of who we are? I wonder WHO decides WHICH muslims we help and which we dont.
Obama: Not acting in Libya 'would have been a betrayal of who we are'
http://articles.cnn.com/2011-03-28/politics/us.libya_1_libya-mission-libya-policy-libyan-leader-moammar-gadhafi?_s=PM:POLITICS
Myth vs Truth as delivered by Richard Engel - rabid zionist.
A rabid zionist living in Jerusalem clearing up "myth" for Americans living in America with "truth" - zionist truth...
aaaaaand....delivered by propaganda services, NBC !
HA!
"After all, the first casualty of war is the truth."
Well, Richard Engel has no problem with that - helps it along. Your reporting sir, smells of bias, stinks of propaganda. This is not reporting, it's an attempt to aid and abet.
Where are the interviews with the christian population, who have overwhelmingly supported the current government? We won't hear that from you. How about the Kurds - you don't report on them. Nothing from the Druze. Only the poor, downtrodden 'freedom fighters'. All they want is freedom (and plenty of ammo).
Mr. Engel, you may be fooling some. But not all. The largest myth of all is non-biased reporting from Richard Engle. Obviously a man with a motive.
'Fool me once, shame on, shame on you. Fool me -- you can't get fooled again.' ~ George Bush, September 17, 2002
John Doe-2241225
We should have done something about this a long time ago
So John, two wars that have drained our military and finances aren't enough for you. Well friend, grab a gun and go help these "friendly" rebels. I for one have had enough of the Middle East carnage.
BTW---something tells me that you were one of the loudest screamers against the action President Obama under took in Libya. I guess since he hasn't gotten us entangled in Syria you are taking the opposite side now. Stop playing politics with American service members lives.
Funny how ever1 compared the Syrians to American Revoluntarionaries but never once mentioned how pissed off we got when Europe supported and built ships for the Confederacy during our civil war. In fact, after we won the civil war, we made Europe pay us as a fine for supporting the confederacy.
Before Iraqi wars media did extensive propaganda against Saddam.
Sunni Saudis, Kuwaitis, UAE, oil companies and their lobbyists manipulated media blatantly.
Of course, in these Jewish lobby plays its part.
If Clintons, Liebermanns dance then you can bet that Jewish lobby is busy!
Just examine how much of them were true?
They imagine that they can twist truths as they like!
Even repeating similar old stories and dances now in Syria does not shame these cheap media people!
If media owners are Murdochs anything is possible in this world.
Richard Engel is a real reporter. He's always in the hot zones.
Have some respect. None of you know what its like out there. Someone who knows is trying to tell you and you sit here a say hes wrong.
What a bunch of morons
So, how come the CIA is not up to its neck in this one? They are the biggest gun runners in the world. I say give 'em all the guns and ammo they need. Let the Syrians kill each other until no one is left standing. Dubbya would have been far more successful bringing peace and democracy to the Middle East if he had invaded Syria instead of Iraq. Send in the Reapers to take out the Syrian helicopters and tanks. W-o-o-h-o-o! Fighting war by proxy--gotta love it!
Before Iraqi wars, we witnessed similar partisan propaganda against Saddam. Many were proved false.
Why are they not looking into the conditions of Iraqis now?
You are making quite a number of counter assertions. We know what the author's sources are, the rebels themselves. Of course they will be skewed in support of the rebels (only a fool wouldn't assume that). Your comments would seem quite pro-Assad. Since we have no idea what your sources are, would you mind listing them?
I'm also curious as to why it seems the more conservative posters seem to consistently side with repressive regimes, rather than the common people of a country. Is it the whole "devil you know" thing or is it fear of change that would make one side with a minority committing atrocities against a majority to stay in power. Just an observation but it seems to by universal, at least where the middle east is concerned.
Wow Jonathan, don't happen to have a brown shirt hanging in your closet just waiting for the day, do you?
1. A little over 200 years ago our ancestors were rebels. We begged for military and financial aid from the French. All our ancestors wanted was freedom (and plenty of ammo).
2. As to your comment about the christian population, are they now the majority? Popular revolutions are always conducted by the majority. If you have a contrary example, please cite it. What does their religion have to do with anything? Do you actually believe your God, or anyone's God gives a tinker's damn about what happens in the lives of men? So unless you are trying to include some kind of religious fervor as an element in this story (which by the way, Christians have historically been more that willing to slaughter in the name of their God), I see no validity in your question.
Myth: The Syrian conflict is in it's final stages.
Truth: Not until Russia/Putin says it is.
Is that what the Romney campaign told you?
There have been reports last week that some mosques in the city have announced from the minarets: "Christians must leave Qusayr within six days, which expires this Friday."
Two Catholic priests who fled Qusayr confirmed to the news agency that they heard the ultimatum "with their own ears" repeated from the minarets.
"The situation is unsustainable in the area and exposed to total lawlessness," Fides sources on the ground say. They also fear that the fate of Christians in Qusayr could soon affect the 10,000 believers who live in other villages in the area.
The areas controlled by the opposition are witnessing the rise of radical forms of Sunni Islam with the extremists not willing to live in peace with the Christians.
Richard Engel had his microphone off that day.
NICOSIA — Syria’s Kurdish community, more than 15 months into the
Sunni revolt, has refused to join the campaign to oust President Bashar
Assad.
Western diplomatic sources said the Kurdish community of more than two
million have chosen to stay on the sidelines in the revolt against Assad.
The sources said that despite generous cash offers only a small percentage of young Kurds have joined the Sunni rebels.
"View from the ground: We have not seen evidence of a large al-Qaida presence. This is not an al-Qaida fight."
Truth: The most bigoted barbaric and beastly Sunni al-Qaida, MB and others are not going to announce that they have infilterated and are fighting along with another bunch of bigoted Sunni Syrian rebels.
Followers of Islamic cult, especially Sunni Saudi inspired Islamic radicals and militants (al-Qaida, Salaffi, Wahhabi, MB, Taliban and other label ones), are fast marching backwards to their seventh century desert tribal days.
They are indulging in rapings, lootings, killings and genocides of non-Muslims (Darfur, S. Sudan, Nigeria and spreading like wild fire in many regions and Muslims (Mali, Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, Afghanistan and other places.
Sunni Saudi backed Salaffi and MB new chapters are opening up in Egypt. Just watch the fate of Christians, women and Israel as the time goes by.
We see Muslims inventing problems in most of the non-Muslim nations.
Jonathan-1982062 - Sorry Jonathan, you don't get another crusade. I doubt most of us have any intention of sewing a cross to our shirts and killing Muslims in the name of your God. You attacked Jews in an earlier post, is there anyone you don't hate besides White, Anglo-Saxon, Protestants? By the way, your Anglo-Saxon ancestors killed Christians too.
Pretty useless article.....rebels are using Motorola radios....guess now is the time to get some Motorola stock? Syria is not Iraq? Hmmm...what does that mean? We only have one a-hole country on our hands instead of two? Syrians don't want ethnic cleansing, but it's already happening. WTF is that supposed to mean? Look , either they get their sh*t together, win this thing, and build a decent country for themselves, or they don't. I'm not losing any sleep over it which ever way they go....Looking at the middle east is like looking into a toilet.....
Then support the people trying to change it by casting off dictators, rather than always supporting the people who promise the contracts.
Syria is not Iraq mostly because we were smart enough to stay out of it. We wasted thousands of young American lives and more than a TRILLION dollars to turn Iraq from an enemy of Iran to soon to be its closest ally.
Guy - The final tally of the costs of the Iraq war have been predicted by experts to be between 3.5 and 4.5 trillion dollars. We will be paying medical costs for 10s of thousands of wounded soldiers for the next 50 years. We will also be paying interest on the money borrowed to China for the next 20 to 50 years.
We have to replace an incredidble amount of equipment, which wore out in the desert sands.
Our next problem will be the war in Iran, which the Zionists, the military industrial complex and the banks have been pushing. The banks make money, no matter who wins, by lending to all sides. If Congress has it's way, we will soon be training the Israelis for the war.
The Senate (Including Rand Paul) Vote to Extend $9 Billion in Loan
Guarantees for the Benefit of Israel
Have you heard about the the "United States-Israel Enhanced Security
Cooperation Act of 2012"? It was introduced by Senator Barbara Boxer on
3/6/12 with 71 Cosponsors.
The House passed their version [H.R.4133] on May 9, pledging unlimited loyalty
and riches to our "special friend" Israel, with only two congressman
dissenting- Ron Paul and Democrat John Dingell of Michigan.
The U.S. Senate passed their version on Friday June 29, 2012. Known in the
Senate as S.2165, the measure guaranteed an astonishing $9 billion dollars in
loans to Israel (plus all fees and interest!) in addition to giving
"military assistance- stockpiles of defense articles" valued at $200
million for 2013 and $200 million for 2014.
Boxer praised passage of the bill, stating "I am so pleased that the
Senate moved quickly to pass this important bill, which reaffirms the important
bond between the United States and Israel and helps ensure that Israel has the
necessary tools to defend itself in this time of dynamic change in the Middle
East."
Initially seeking documentation of which way turncoat Rand Paul voted on this
treasonous bill, I tried to find the roll call votes. But as Harry Reid pointed
out during the session, "THE NEXT ROLL CALL VOTE WILL BE AT NOON ON
TUESDAY, JULY 10". The Senators passed this bill anonymously, in a
so-called "voice vote"!...
After tracking down the actual video of this travesty, which was no easy task-
(they seem to make these things hard to find on purpose)- it was like watching
something straight out of the twilight zone. Two old guys in suits mumbling
under their breath in a strange monotone fashion, with the entire U.S. Senate
taking literally less than six seconds total to squander 9 BILLION DOLLARS from
the American people. A true outrage. They did not even call out each Senators
name so that their constituents can hear whether they voted yea or nay.
The bill will soon be sent to Obama for his signature. By going to http://thomas.loc.gov and typing the term United
States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act of 2012 in the search box,
one can read full details on both the house and senate versions of this bill.
The Senate version summary states that
"it is U.S. policy to: (1)
reaffirm the commitment to Israel's security as a Jewish state, (2) provide
Israel with the military capabilities to defend itself and help preserve its
qualitative military edge, (3) expand military and civilian cooperation, (4)
assist in a negotiated settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that
results in two states living side by side in peace and security, and (5)
encourage Israel's neighbors to recognize Israel's right to exist as a Jewish
state.
Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should take specified
actions to assist in Israel's defense.
Amends the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2005 to extend authority
to transfer certain obsolete or surplus Department of Defense (DOD) items to
Israel.
Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to extend authority to make additions
to foreign-based defense stockpiles.
Amends the Emergency Wartime Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2003 to extend
specified loan guarantee authority to Israel.
The law required that a Senate report
be done on the bill. The law required that a
Senate report be done on the bill. On June 27, two days before the voice vote,
Skull and bones member John Kerry presented the obligatory "written report No. 112-179"...
The report states "That the interest rate for loans guaranteed under
this heading may include a reasonable fee to cover the costs and fees incurred
by the borrower in connection with this program", but then goes on to
state "That funds made available for assistance to Israel under chapter
4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended, may be utilized
by the Government of Israel to pay such fees to the United States
Government"!
So we can charge them interest and fees on the $9 billion dollars, but then let
them use our money to pay the fees!
This is an example of Jews working hard for Israel on America's dime. Where are we going to get the money? We have already given Israel this year alone approximately 4 billion dollars. This will bring this years total to 13 billion dollars. That is over 2000 dollars for each man woman and child in Israel. WOW!
"need urgent help to prevent huge losses of life, both among fighters and civilians – Sunni, Allawite and Christian."
Can the reporter and the "secular" bigoted Sunni Syrian rebels give us a comparison of numbers and conditions of Christians before Saddam and now?
In Bahrain, Shiites are ruled by the minority autocratic, despotic and corrupt Sunni leader. It is opposite of Syria.
To put down the Shiites peaceful protests in Bahrain, the brave Saudis, UAE and other Sunni Arab League members marched their armies into Bahrain.
After the Bahrain conquest, the same of Sunni Saudi, Kuwaiti, UAE and other Sunni Arab League bigoted barbarians and beasts, got interested in "human rights" in Syria.
So Saudis and co sent a human rights team to Syria.
Only barbaric and bigoted Sunni Saudis can do: the Arab League human rights group was headed by a Sudanese Gen responsible for the genocides of 300000 Christians in Darfur!
The brave Saudis and co could not do more of their seventh century desert tribal dances with their seventh century robes!
They outsourced their Syrian dirty jobs to another backward marching Islamic fundamentalist Ergodan of Turkey.
He and Turkey did their dances. Still not much have been working.
Now these very ungrateful and backstabbing Syrian rebels, al-Qaida, MB want Amerikan and European arms!
Of course, Syrian refugees will scream: where is Amerika, humantarian aid, and so on?
See the big terms used by these Sunni bigoted beasts like "justice", "secular" and others.
This is a civil war. Winner takes all. Can you imagine if the left or right wanted to overthrow our government, the same thing would happen. Look how many Americans were killed in our civil war not tens of thousands but millions both civilians and soldiers. Lets keep our noses out of any new foreign wars and get rid of this war monger we have in office now. Ralph Nader for President . Kindest Regards Zulu2
Nader? pfftt I'll pass
It is interesting that the bastion of Freedom - radical Sunni Islam style - is Saudi Arabia. That is the country that gave birth to every one of the 9/11 terrorists. That is the country where women are forced to be veiled, cannot drive, etc. That is the country that is against any other form of Islam other than Sunni. That is the country that is pushing for Assad to be dethroned, and backing the 'freedom fighters' Mr. Engel admires so much.
Saudi Arabia allows Christians to enter the country as foreign workers for temporary work, but does not allow them to practice their faith openly. Because of that Christians generally only worship in secret within private homes. Items and articles belonging to religions other than Islam are prohibited. These include Bibles, crucifixes, statues, carvings, items with religious symbols, and others.
Myth: There are people over there worth saving.
Spoken like a true right wing psychopath.
All people are worth saving. I blame public education for producing you.
All people are not worth saving. In fact except for my Son and I, I can't think of one. Now dogs are a different story.
FACT: NO ONE in America really cares what happens to the Syrians, so as long as we stay out of that mess.
WoodShed:
I can say that I am embarrassed to be associated with you as an American. Let me guess: You are also a "Christian", right?
Your ignorance is overwhelming! The fact that your simple thought is to lump all people of Middle Eastern descent into a group shows you barely worthy of a response. We on the "other side" of thought believe there ARE those worth saving.
By the way, we really didn't need to see a picture of your house next to your moniker.
Do us all a favor and don't reproduce.
I am an Atheist, I grew up in an area with the highest population of Middle Easterners in North America, it also had one of the highest populations of Jewish people in North America, as well as every race and color, and religion.
I had Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Christian (Catholic, and Protestant, Coptic, Greek Orthodox, and Chaldean) and those who had little belief in anything for friends, neighbors. classmates, and workmates as a youth.
I have even had both Jewish, Buddhist, Chaldean, and Muslim girlfriends (Muslims were on the low-low). The girls who were Muslim, and Chaldean both warned me that their families would kill me if they ever found out.
The Muslim, and Chaldean young men would always be in packs of 15-25. Anyone who had a problem with any one of them had a problem with about 30 of them, and they would ambush individuals and beat them within an inch of their life using weapons like brass knuckles, cutting rings that spanned 3 fingers, and num-chucks.
I had confrontations with them as well and knew how to deal with them, they were chicken if you showed no fear and got in the toughest ones face swearing that he would be my only target no matter what else happened to me. If he chickened out, the rest would too. I stayed away from racial slurs as part of my strategy.
I can say that no other racial, or ideological groups did this. I did have actual friends of every "catagory" of people imaginable. This does not even include the rest of my adulthood, where I have been working with all races etc. We used to have a world map on the wall that people could put a pin where on Earth they came from.
What I do have to say is that the Middle Easterners as a whole, even here in America are dangerous to the rest of us, and I think we would all benefit if they returned to where they came from as they bring their violent ways here with them.
Robert, when you say I have "ignorance" in limping them all in one group, I say that is B.S. and I have much more knowledge from exposure and have lived among them enough to know what worthless trash they are.
By the way Robert, my wife is due in December. As for the "house" comment; your true level of maturity is showing. You are a true idiot.
Realities and truth:
Just check all languages of the media, UN, human rights groups and others!
If atrocities and barbarism on girls, children and women are the criteria, then the most despotic, autocratic and bigoted Sunni Saudi ruler with his 5000 princes and princesses, Kuwaiti, UAE and other Arab League Sunni rulers and their rich sheiks are the biggest culprits in the history.
Through the Muslim immoral trafficking gangs, these barbarians have assembled all varieties of poor and helpless girls and women from all over the world in their harems and brothels.
In killing of opponents again, these people have established world records.
If the US, Britain and others support such Sunni barbarians and beasts who treat girls and women as cheap sex slaves, then one can only conclude that Saudis, oil companies and their lobbyists determine what to see, how to lecture and where and when to act.
Rest like “human rights”, “killing of children and women”, “militants”, “terrorists”, “WMDs”, “chemical weapons” and so on are a pure hoax.
Similar hoaxes were played each time before Iraqi wars on directions of Saudi, oil companies and their lobbyists.
Now none of them are looking into Iraq, where at least a million have been killed and devastated.
If bigoted criminals have to be sent to gallows for justice they are Sunni Saudis, UAE, Kuwaiti, Qatar and other Sunni ME rulers and their gang members. They are responsible for inventing 80 percent of world problems due to Sunni Islamic radicals and terrorists.
Woodshed--sounds like you like to live dangerously.
If you wanted exotic tail, you should have done what I did, tap a Japanese-American woman... far less likely to end up dead.
Assad :you are fighting your own people and you are destroying your own country. was this one of your father s dream?what kind of Leader are you? I see why they want you off the face of this earth.
Dont you get it Assad!!! your people dont like you and dont want you to lead them period! why are you forcing yourself on them? you are a sick freak
you are as monster as Hitler was..eventually you gona run out of options.. I hope you pay for all of this!
"Nahas"...an ancient and proud name...has stood for FREEDOM...for the people of Syria and the Middle East (Pasha Nahas).
What U all see is the outburst of that desire..."We hold these truths to be self evident"...the WANT...the HOPE...the NEED...and yes, God willing...the FREEDOM granted by God to each and every man.
To those who think that Syrians or "Arabs" either do not understand, want, or will not/cannot fight for FREEDOM...simply look at the heroic fighters.
To those who speak in a biased hateful way...or state their view: they don't care...may U be forgiven...Engel has reported the TRUTH!
Assad: LEAVE...U are judged by history...U are a monster to your people!
"Syria is none of our business. Don't fall for these lies again." ~ Ron Paul
Truth: Richard Engel is awesome!!
Agreed. It takes being there on the ground to "know" what you are talking about. Engels is doing that, as he always has. Anybody else, posting here or otherwise, who hasn't spent time on the ground, as in being there right now, only "knows" what he/she think they "know". Some of the posts here are proof of that.
Richard Engel just needs to come out of the closet --- hand jobs to "freedom fighters" is NOT good reporting, this entire article is wack off.
Richard Engel pockets 1 mil. a year ( a guesstimate) in wages and will write anything to please the donor(s).
Bias doesn't belong in journalism.
This is way too biased to be taken seriously, Just becuase he did not "see" any Al-Qaeda is a reason to report they are not in the ranks is a joke. Al-Qaeda hide amongst civilians and wear similar attire as well. Honestly do we really need to spend another 3-5 billions, another 10k or more in US lives to "help" their civil war? It is far from the people vs. government, as this reporter leads you to believe. I think a better definition of a war crime would be, us entering another war we cannot afford to be in. Should we step in everytime the world needs policing, No means No!
Russia accused Western powers on Wednesday (07/25) of encouraging terrorism over their refusal to condemn the suicide bombing that killed Syria’s defense minister last week.
“In other words, they are saying: ‘We will continue to support such terrorist acts until the UN Security Council does what we want it to,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told journalists. “This is a chilling position.”
Four top Syrian security officials, including Defense Minister Dawoud Rajha, a Christian, were killed when a rebel suicide bomber managed to infiltrate the government building where they were meeting in the capital, Damascus, on July 18.
The United States envoy to the UN, Susan Rice, said after the bombing that the attack was further proof of the necessity to adopt a Security Council resolution against the regime of embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Richard Engel must be on the payroll.
How can he possibly know these things? What the "rebels" will do IF they win? How organized the rebel commanders are? Where the weapons are coming from? If hew's encamped in a bullet-strewn farm village, how can he possibly have answers for any of these questions?
Unless, of course, he is being fed these answers from above. From U.S. government sources, perhaps? They, after all, would know how organized the "rebels" are, and would know where the weapons are coming from.
Syria is 10% Christian, and are protected by the constitution.
"If the regime goes, you can forget about Christians in Syria," said George, a 37-year-old dentist who, like others interviewed, asked to be identified by either a first name or nickname. "Look what happened to the Christians of Iraq. They had to flee everywhere, while most of the churches were attacked and bombed."
http://tinyurl.com/cwpbw4d
I have been following this on BBC America, and online news agencies (non-US). The US reports are very different than what is being reported in other places. I am not sure why the US media is downplaying this so much.
Because we don't care.
$
Because we don't need another middle-eastern war, enough said.
Because, as you can clearly see from the posts here, America is full of bigots.
America's ignorance of the world will be her people's downfall.
DAMASCUS, Syria -- As the announcement was made Saturday evening that Russia and China had vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning the actions of the Syrian regime, some Christians inside the country celebrated.
One man from the western Syrian town of Qatana called his relatives to say "mabrook," or congratulations, on the result of the vote. A lounge bar in Damascus offered two alcoholic drinks for one in a happy hour offer.
But in Christian homes around the country the prevailing sentiment is one of relief rather than delight -- they link the survival of the Assad regime to their own.
"Thank god for Russia. Without Russia we are doomed," said a Christian woman from Damascus recently.
http://tinyurl.com/73j564x
A few things strike me as odd.
The writer states the rebels have plenty of food and water.
In a typical scorch and burn those resources are done away with as well.
The writer also states the rebels are well organized.
Who is doing the main organizing and if it is being done so well why the problem with getting ammunition?
do you have this many questions when you play
monopoly ?
Money. It's pretty hard for lentil farmers and air conditioner repairman (the leaders actually described in this article) to come up with the collateral needed to get the money they don't have to purchase ammo. As the old saying goes it always comes down to money.
Yes, but they are able to hold of an army with a few hand guns? come on people! they are being supplied and directed by the CIA and regional intel services---- this is not about Syrians, they're just a tool here, a means to a greater regional aim.
Seriously George.....Cheney is no longer running the country. The CIA may have people on the ground in Syria, but not publicly and we are not supplying weapons in any great numbers.
@snark
You're right, we have the Saudis doing that for us.
Do not be FOOLED ....The US got their finger in it somewhere....I love America, we go over blow @!$%# up with money we borrowed from China....Rebuild what we just blew up with the money borrowed from China. wow
In the case of the Christians in Syria, a few facts are in order. At the beginning of the ‘Arab spring’ uprising when it reached Syria, there was a chant amongst the revolutionaries—’Christians to Beirut, Alawites (i.e. the Assad clan) to the coffin’. In other words, the revolution was religious in character to a real degree, and one of its goals was driving Christians right out of the country.
In light of this, and partly because of this we have an explanation for the second fact— Christians in Syria tend to support Assad, and Assad in turn has protected various Christian groups and churches from radical Muslims. Of course, of this fact you hear nothing on the American news. A third fact is important. Christians in Syria know their fate will always be determined by the Muslim majority. But what sort of Muslims do they want in power? Obviously those who are tolerant of Christians and don’t try to drive them into the sea.
Whisky, Guns, & AMMO costzz $$$ david.
We have NO DAMN BUSINESS in this conflict !!! Let these good Muslims kill each other. This County of Syria has never been friendly to the U.S or it's Allies.
Myth: The "reporter" is there on the ground so he can certainly tell that all the information being fed to him is true.
Truth: Just because you're "on the ground" doesn't mean that you know where weapons, fighters, and supplies are coming from. The reporter is naive.
And who's calling the kettle black?
If a reporter is "on hre ground" it means he knows very little. Just like a grunt doesn't know what is happening outside his or her little piece of the action.
Report: Rebels Responsible for Houla Massacre
By John Rosenthal
June 9, 2012 4:00 A.M.
It was, in the words of U.N. special envoy Kofi Annan, the “tipping point” in the Syria conflict: a savage massacre of over 90 people, predominantly women and children, for which the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad was immediately blamed by virtually the entirety of the Western media. Within days of the first reports of the Houla massacre, the U.S., France, Great Britain, Germany, and several other Western countries announced that they were expelling Syria’s ambassadors in protest.
But according to a new report in Germany’s leading daily, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), the Houla massacre was in fact committed by anti-Assad Sunni militants, and the bulk of the victims were member of the Alawi and Shia minorities, which have been largely supportive of Assad. For its account of the massacre, the report cites opponents of Assad, who, however, declined to have their names appear in print out of fear of reprisals from armed opposition groups.
According to the article’s sources, the massacre occurred after rebel forces attacked three army-controlled roadblocks outside of Houla. The roadblocks had been set up to protect nearby Alawi majority villages from attacks by Sunni militias. The rebel attacks provoked a call for reinforcements by the besieged army units. Syrian army and rebel forces are reported to have engaged in battle for some 90 minutes, during which time “dozens of soldiers and rebels” were killed.
“According to eyewitness accounts,” the FAZ report continues,
The FAZ report echoes eyewitness accounts collected from refugees from the Houla region by members of the Monastery of St. James in Qara, Syria. According to monastery sources cited by the Dutch Middle East expert Martin Janssen, armed rebels murdered “entire Alawi families” in the village of Taldo in the Houla region.
Already at the beginning of April, Mother Agnès-Mariam de la Croix of the St. James Monastery warned of rebel atrocities’ being repackaged in both Arab and Western media accounts as regime atrocities. She cited the case of a massacre in the Khalidiya neighborhood in Homs. According to an account published in French on the monastery’s website, rebels gathered Christian and Alawi hostages in a building in Khalidiya and blew up the building with dynamite. They then attributed the crime to the regular Syrian army. “Even though this act has been attributed to regular army forces . . . , the evidence and testimony are irrefutable: It was an operation undertaken by armed groups affiliated with the opposition,” Mother Agnès-Mariam wrote.
I realize the above is a long read for a comments section. It is worthy of your time, maybe. Also, please note, the author is jewish. There is a big difference between being jewish and being zionist. Not all jews are zionist, just as not all americans are imperialists.
Einstein, for example, was totally against zionism, calling it a form of terrorism.
American Imperialism is also a form of terrorism.
Am I less American because I don't support the lies that the American propaganda machine dishes out? I don't think so.
p.s. - as long as I'm on a rant, I learned when I was 18 and joined the military that the U.S. government has no qualms about lying to it's citizens - even at the expense of thousands of lives. Democrats will lie. Republicans will lie. Just having a donkey or an elephant and a flag does not equate with truth.
In fact - if I were a donkey or an elephant - I would be pissed at what the politicians had done to me.
The reporter is lying, or just grossly stupid....ect...
Sure glad they know 100% of whats going on in Syria as to know exactly what is "truth" and exactly what is "myth"....bravo.
Wages go down and food prices go up, science is your friend.
Truth: Gulf of Tonkin incident. Bay of Pigs. WMD in Iraq. "Kinetic military maneuvers" in Libya. All of these and many more with much political spin and propaganda used to entice Americans to use military force against sovereign countries. Military force, not wars - Congress has not declared war since WWII. Oh, that's right, the United Nations and/or NATO have recommended violent attacks! We have seen so much deception for so many years, how are we to know what to believe any more?
"how are we to know what to believe any more"
start thinking for yourself
“If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—for ever.” ― George Orwell
If I recall correctly, and sometimes I do not. There were some WMD's found in Irag, how ever the reports that prompted us to do something were gleened, supposedly, by the british intel, not ours.
The Bay of Tonkin was a deliberat fabrication by a person in our government to get us more involved in the vietnam war, Macnimara if i remember correctly.
I cannot quote the facts verbatum by doing reaserch because I work for a living and my time is limited on this thing, unlike some others on here.
My OPINION
Bull Sh-t! What a propaganda piece. Media playing favorites like in our 2008 election. I don't care about Syria or Assad or the rebels. Allow nature to take its course, let's stayout of this mess!
Syria is none of our (America's) business. Syria's internal war will end quicker if left alone.
Do you just say things because they sound good? It will end quicker if left alone? It would obviously end quicker if the rebels suddenly came up with a large arsenal of weapons. How can you say otherwise unless you're just throwing out a faux-logic string of words because it feels better than saying, "Who cares?"
The only reason the rebels haven't been crushed is because Assad's forces would defect if sent on foot to engage the rebels. The people want him gone and it would most certainly end quicker if they received aid.
Yeah, like the overthrow of countries in North Africa by those who hate us (and their allies) doesn't create safe havens for the like of Al Qaeda. Isn't that why we are in Afghanistan (because the Taliban created a safe haven there)?
I say we drone attack the upper echelons of the Assad regime. We can be with the rebels (and hopefully - yes, hopefully - create a future ally.
Ask "our great friend" (yes, sarcasm) Israel which they would prefer controlling the Golan Heights and the rest of Syria: those appreciative of Assad's overthrow or those pissed we didn't do something as they continued to get slaughtered?
View from the ground:
another bucket of propaganda pushing another country to war.
Just sent them weapons through a 2nd source so it/they are not from us. Let them fight their own battles, they said as much that they don't want the U.S. or the E.U.'s help. Where are the other arab spring winners, why are they not helping their fellow arabs?????
I'd be surprised if the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt isn't somehow aiding them. They're Sunni as well.
What a joke article. One sided and biased and thinking they can be telling us what is True and what it Myth.
Myth, the media is fair and unbiased.
True the Western Media has their own agenda and will lie, over hype, and under report to make those they like look good and those they do not look bad.
Well said Chris4132020 and they have been doing that since the beginning of time....
Syria is friendly to Christians for several years... Rebels kill Christians...How can this article be the TRUTH???
Deciphering the truth about Syria, and anything, is pretty easy once you get the hang of it. Here is the key: whatever you hear from the corporate whore media, the mega corporations, the government, and the banking syndicate, IS A COMPLETE LIE; the real truth will always be the exact opposite. Pretty simple.
Way to abandon any responsibility for critical thought.
My opinion of Richard Engels just suffered a mighty blow. What servile drivel in the service of Western imperialism. There is such a thing as law against outside interference in the domestic affairs of sovereign states. The anti-democratic Saudis are funding the rebels and the CIA are channeling the weapons into Syria. The US and Israel are holding discussions on "the future of Syria", i.e., what sycophant can we get to run the place after we topple Assad. Al Qaeda Sunnis are entering the country from Iraq and carried out massive bombing in Damascus for which they claimed responsibility. All this is documented in the NYTimes, which I guess Engels hasn't recently had a chance to look at as he is so busy supplying propaganda to the imperialists.
Who'd you hear that from... a fellow expert commentator on the last article you read?
One of many views. You have to look at them all and find the kernels of truth. I've seen no credible sources saying the CIA are in Syria handing out weapons.
#articleFull
To all of you deriding the article, are you over in Syria reporting?
Do you have a point? We have seen quite a few "imbedded" reporters in very dangerous countries. Most of them lie, but do it better than this low life
Lyaso: have you spent the last few years in a coma?
The playbook for the Syria offensive is a reproduction of what happened last year in Libya.
Step 1: Create an army of rebels out of mercenaries hungry for western cash and arms.
Step 2: Arm these mercenaries.
Step 3: Have these mercenaries sow chaos in the region.
Step 4: Report on this mercenary-fed chaos as "civil war".
Step 5: Decry any attempt by the government in the region to control or limit the chaos; report on any government killings as if the government is murdering its own civilians.
Step 6: Go to the UN; ask them to stop the senseless violence that was created by the mercenaries on the payroll (code for ousting the government in place).
Step 7a: If the UN agrees that the violence must be stopped, use this agreement as pretext for airstrikes and blockades of western armies. (see Libya)
Step 7b: If the UN does not agree, or if a veto is exercised, rinse and repeat--give more arms to the mercenaries, send over MORE mercenaries to sow MORE bloodshed, and then report on this bloodshed as if it is the government's fault.
Step 8: Go back to the UN with new evidence of what the payroll mercenaries have done, and ask them for help.
Step 9: if the UN still does not do anything, send western forces over there anyway, in contravention of international law.
We are now experiencing step 7b.
I agree Lyaso, not many of the people commenting here have a clue. Seems more like a klan meeting than real observations. Many assumptions are made here that all people in the middle east are Muslim. That's like saying all Americans are Christian. They also say that alqueda must be involved because Muslim's are involved, once again, that's like saying the KKK must be involved since Christians are involved. Gross over simplifications made by people who know nothing about the middle east.
In order to analyze a scenario you need to put yourself in their shoes. If the US government was torturing their people, killing them and destroying their lives because we didn't want them to steal our wealth in order to enrich the leaders lives, what would you do? And if China had the power to stop it but stood by and said it's just a bunch of Christian terrorists killing themselves and who cares? How would we feel about China? You wonder why these people wind up hating America, it's because we show them how little we care about them.
Give them guns, offer them support and see if they hate you still.
And willis,
what about running low on ammo and getting no weapons from the west is confusing you? They are getting ammo by raiding Syrian ammo depots and buying it from black market resources. We are not helping.
FlyingEnergy,
Precisely. This article is an attempt to gin up support for further western support of the "rebels" (mercenaries). Engels reports "They don't have enough weapons!" in the hopes that we will send them some artillery, maybe some attack helicopters. They certainly need these weapons if they are to continue this "civil war" (armed proxy war), since Russia and china are selling weapons to the Syrian government.
Willis, you're right on the money on everything you wrote. You just saved me having to type all that out ;)
So what. Helping people that want freedom is bad?
You say "civil war" as if it's not really a civil war. Do you all think this is a conspiracy or something?
We aren't helping so I don't see why you would say this is a proxy war.
EchoJuliet,
Thanks. It needs to be said. People have short memories.
FlyingEnergy,
You've bought the line that has been fed you. If you want a clearer picture of what's going on, read independent media. You'll never get the truth from reporters on the payroll like Engels.
Fact: tens of thousands of mercenaries, armed to the teeth, entered Syria from Jordan within the last week. The plan no doubt is to provoke an encounter with Assad during the Olympics, and to use that event as a catalyst for foreign intervention. Remember the Georgian insurrection that took place during the 2008 Beijing games? Same deal here.
Independant media? Who is that? The blaze? Fox? Please inform us.
The only news I found was from RT about 10,000 lybians being trained and armed by Jordan to fight for the free lybian army. And I say good for them. At least someone is helping.
Lybian troops for syrian army, sorry.
FlyingEnergy,
Having acknowledged that tens of thousands of LIBYANS are being trained in JORDAN to fight in SYRIA, will you acknowledge that this war is not, as you have previously stated, a "civil war" fought by "freedom fighters"?
(FYI, it's not clear that these mercs are predominantly Libyan. We know that many of them are the same people who fought last year in Libya, but many of those men were shipped in from Iraq and elsewhere).
All I can say is wow. A country that just fought for it's own freedom is trying to help another country fight for it's and that's supposed to make me upset? The french fought for our freedom, we fought for lybians freedom and Iraq's, China fought for Vietnams so there is nothing new here.
What is it that really bothers you about this?
Myth: This reporter is "on the ground" and so he must surely see and know the truth about what is going on there. Like where the fighters are from. If they are al-qaida linked. If they are going to commit ethnic cleansing.
Truth: He only knows what they tell him. Do Arab Muslims EVER lie to naive American reporters?
Richard Engel is the only reporter with stones big enough to get in there and report anything. GOOD JOB RICHARD! I always look forward to your reports.
Yeah GOOD JOB RICHARD, now go back to your cage...