The Syrian foreign minister while visiting Iran Sunday said the Syrian rebels are part of an Israeli plot, but in northern Syria, people support the opposition to the current regime. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
Updated at 5:30p.m. ET: Saudi Arabia said Syrians should be enabled to protect themselves against government attacks but declined direct comment on a report that it had helped set up a secret liaison center in Turkey to aid a rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad.
Assad on Sunday claimed victory in a hard-fought battle for Syria's capital, Damascus, and pounded rebels who control of parts of its largest city, Aleppo.
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said on Sunday that the attacks on Aleppo are putting the nail in the coffin of Assad's government.
Gulf sources told Reuters on Friday that Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar had established a center in Adana, southeastern Turkey, to help the rebel Free Syrian Army with communications and weaponry as it battles in major cities against forces loyal to Assad.

Zohra Bensemra / Reuters
A Free Syrian Army member walks past the body of an alleged member of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's shabiha militia at Aleppo's disctrict of al-Sukkari.
"The very well-known position of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia is to extend to the Syrian people financial and humanitarian assistance, as well as calling upon the international community to enable them to protect themselves at the very least if the international community is not able to do so," a foreign ministry spokesman said by text message on Saturday, answering a Reuters query about the base.
Related: 'Heavy skirmishing' reported in Syria's biggest city
"The Syrian regime is importing and using all kinds of weapons to fight and oppress its own people in a fierce war as if it's launched toward a foreign enemy -- not against its disarmed population", the spokesman added.
The Gulf sources had also said the Adana center, which is near the Syrian border and a U.S. Air Force base at Incirlik, was set up at the suggestion of Saudi Deputy Foreign Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah during a trip to Turkey.
Rebel fighters and government forces are still fighting in Syria's commercial hub of Aleppo. NBC's Richard Engel reports.
However, the foreign ministry spokesman said Prince Abdulaziz, who was promoted to deputy foreign minister last year, and is a son of King Abdullah, had not visited Turkey.
Assad forces declare capital victory
Assad's forces have struggled as never before to maintain their grip on the country over the past two weeks after a major rebel advance into the two largest cities and an explosion that killed four top security officials.
Government forces have succeeded in reimposing their grip the capital after a punishing battle, but rebels are still in control of sections of Aleppo, clashing with reinforced army troops for several days.
"Today I tell you, Syria is stronger... In less than a week they were defeated (in Damascus) and the battle failed," Foreign Minister Walid Moualem said on a visit to Iran, Assad's main ally in a region where other neighbors have forsaken him.
"So they moved on to Aleppo and I assure you, their plots will fail."
Rebel fighters, patrolling opposition districts in flat-bed trucks flying green-white-and-black "independence" flags, said they were holding off Assad's forces in the south-western Aleppo district of Salaheddine, where clashes have gone on for days.
Opposition activists also reported fighting in other rebel-held districts of Aleppo, in what could herald the start of a decisive phase in the battle for Syria's commercial hub, after the army sent tank columns and troop reinforcements last week.
Helicopter gunships hovered over the city shortly after dawn and the thud of artillery boomed across neighborhoods. Syrian state television said soldiers was repelling "terrorists" in Salaheddine and had captured several of their leaders.
Rebels in Aleppo shoot at Syrian government helicopters during an intense battle on Saturday.
Panetta heading to Middle East
Panetta, speaking at the start of a weeklong trip to the Middle East and North Africa, did not offer any new steps the United States might take even as he renewed calls for a united international effort "to bring the Assad regime down."
"If they continue this kind of tragic attack on their own people in Aleppo, I think it ultimately will be a nail in Assad's own coffin," Panetta said, speaking to reporters shortly before landing in Tunis.
"What Assad has been doing to his own people and what he continues to do to his own people makes clear that his regime is coming to an end. It's lost all legitimacy," he said, adding, "It's no longer a question of whether he's coming to an end, it's when."
Panetta mentioned the need to "provide assistance to the opposition," but did not appear to signal any new support.
The United States has said it is stepping up assistance to Syria's fractured opposition, although it remains limited to non-lethal supplies such as communications gear and medical equipment.
Reuters has learned that the White House has crafted a presidential directive, called a "finding," that would authorize greater covert assistance for the rebels, but stop short of arming them.
More world stories from NBC News:
- Military drafted in to fill empty seats at London Olympics
- Mitt Romney would 'respect' Israel strike on Iran, aide says
- 2 US climbers found dead on Peruvian peak
- Elephants slaughtered, orphan found in latest Africa poaching
- 'Heavy skirmishing' reported in Syria's biggest city
- Chinese pollution protesters turn violent in clash with police
- Syria regime 'reeling, armed to the teeth'with chemical weapons
News on NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook
Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

The Sunni Arabs are the root of all the troubles in the ME, but they are good friends of the bankers so they get a free pass. Do not forget that the Saudis were the root cause of the 9/11 attacks.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey are all in the Rothschild club. Syria, Iran are not. This is why Iranian central bank is isolated. Nukes are an excuse. Western intention is to cause the non-compliant economies to fail so that the debt based monetary system can be imposed upon the populations of Syria and Iran, making them borrow money that is created out of nothing and make them pay interest for it. Turkish central bank is a copy of the FED, that is why we are allies. Saudi's want Iranian influence to diminish, so they want Assad out. Turks want to carry on exporting their stuff and they bet on the rebels during Arab spring. now they need Asad out, because Syria sits on their trade routes to Middle East. But Turks don't want to break Syria and create a Kurdish state on northern part like Iraq. Russia has their last naval base there and they want to keep it. It is a complicated game.
The Saudi's are just hedging their bets on this war in case the rebels win. They only think of themselves and could not defend their own country in todays world. They stay on the sidelines and let others do the killing but will offer up a bandaid for "goodwill".
Hello folks, Syria is not Libya. Waging an all-out war against Syria is a further step towards WWIII. People who support a UN or NATO intervention in Syria are by extension in favor of World War III. Saudi Arabia is another proxy for the U.S.
Currently, Washington has wars underway, or occupations, or is violating the sovereignty of countries with drones and/or troops in seven Muslim countries, and is arming rebels in Syria. All of this is being done without the constitutionally-required authorization by Congress, allegedly the people’s representatives.
We are broke, our allies are broke but yet we can somehow come up with the taxpayer funding to invade another country? Now why is that? Middle class and the poor get the bill for the war and the rich get richer for funding and supplying all the materials used in war. Not only do they (Halliburton, Bechtel, GE, Northrop Grumman, etc.) benefit from the armaments but from the rebuilding of the cities and buildings they bomb. It’s a “win win” situation for the purveyors of war and everybody else loses and yet you have the sheeple buying into the propaganda they use to incite support for war.
In the past year, Syria has seen a massive infusion of arms and terrorists from outside its borders. At the same time, the U.S. has attempted to manipulate world public opinion and exploit the chaos it unleashed in Syria.
The U.S., NATO, Saudi Arabia, and Israel continue to stir up trouble in Syria to get a larger war going in the region. The U.S. and their allies have openly admitted to funding the rebels. They are not only supplying armaments they are supplying U.S. paid mercenaries.
Reports of another “false flag” are surfacing that opposition rebels are planning to use chemical weapons and then blame the atrocity on Assad’s regime. Rebels attempted to stage a similar ‘false flag’ recently when British Channel 4 reporter Alex Thomson was purposefully led by rebels into a trap whereby it was hoped he would be killed by government troops and his death used as a propaganda stunt.
Washington’s goal is to build up an international consensus to carry out a larger military operation against the Assad government under the cover of a “humanitarian intervention.” So far, that consensus has been lacking because the case for a military solution is based on total lies and U.S.-Israeli war propaganda, much of which has been repudiated by evidence gathered by independent journalists and eye witnesses on the ground in Syria.
According to Veterans Today:
“There is no question this is a Washington-orchestrated war. It is a low-level war to the extent that NATO has not gotten directly involved. But it is exactly what happened in Libya last year. An insurgency began; Washington orchestrated it; insurgents were recruited; they were funded; they were armed; they were US special forces, British special forces, CIA, MI6, Qatari special forces. They are in Syria now; they are directing these massacres, these killings. They are funding, they are training; they are picking targets; they are leading these dead squad games to places like Houla [and] Takiba. They are picking up who to slaughter. They go after pro-Assad loyalists.
You always have to ask, when terrible incidents occur, whether it is car bombings, whether it is massacres of civilians, cui bono, who benefits? Assad gets nothing from this. Only the opposition gains. Assad is the victim. The victim is being blamed for the perpetrator’s crimes. But again make no mistake. The nexus of this struggle emanates from Washington, doesn’t matter whether it is Obama, [former US President] George Bush or anybody else. Syria, and other regional countries, have been targeted for regime change for years, at least a decade. It was only the question when each one would come up. Syria’s turn came up and violence has been raging since early last year.”
Folks this has been pre-planned for a while, Syria has been on the list for a long time and now their time has come up. Do you really want another unnecessary war? Do you want your children fighting for another corporate war? I keep adding General Clark’s admonition of America’s plan to take over the Middle East because it is playing itself out right in front of the world! This isn’t a necessary war!
General Wesley Clark: "America will take out 7 countries in 5 years"
According to Former NATO supreme allied commander, former presidential candidate and 4 star US General Wesley Clark that they had received a memo that America is going to take out 7 countries in the Middle East starting with Iraq, Libya, Syria Lebanon Sudan, Somalia, and finally Iran. It is amazing that even if it is taking longer than originally planned, how these things that were planned years ago are being achieved in front of our eyes.
Folks, haven’t we spread enough blood shed and death around the world? This isn’t a necessary war!
Mike - The Saudi's were not the root cause of the 9/11 attacks. Many of the key operatives were from Saudi Arabia, which is not the same thing.
It is the same thing. Saudi + Terrorist = 911. Get it?
IXLR & Mike Christian... Your logic would dictate that Austria was bombing Europe during WW11 and not Germany, because this is where Hitler was born... and what an asinine opinion. The planning and ideology came from the Taliban that were being housed and protected in Afghanistan; trying to draw a link to Saudi because of your personal hatreds is juvenile, just because some of the suicidal bombers were born there does does not make their birthplace accountable. Terrorists don't care where they are born, they move freely for their cause, not for graphical reasons, but for radical theological ones. FYI- the facts you are quoting were made public by a sarcastic cartoon character, and it was done in a way to make him look stupid, and you fell for it!
Saudi's also did 911 and haven't paid for it. Hapless Iraqis and Aghans paid for 911 although they didn't take part in it.
One wonders why? What connections/influence and interests Saudi's have that Iraqis and Afghanis obviously didn't have.
There are innocent women and children being tortured and murdered by that brutal tyrant Assad.......... the world must act now!
TV, please take a "vacation" to Syria and see how the residents love living under Assad. How many Syrians have you actually known living in this country? I have known several, and they have talked about the evil regime of the father and now this current western educated evil SOB. TV, you are a brainwashed dope.
Mike - The Saudi's were not the root cause of the 9/11 attacks. Many of the key operatives were from Saudi Arabia, which is not the same thing.
Please go to the library and read a book some time. Osama Bin Ladin was a member of the Saudi Royal family (he may have been cast out, but he had no problem getting his hands on the family fortune). Every 9/11 participant was from Saudi Arabia and members of the Wahhabi Sect.
The major difference between Sunni and Wahhabi is the beliefs and rituals. Sunnis are in majority and almost 90% percent of Muslims around the world belong to Sunni sect whereas the members of Wahhabi movement are located in Saudi Arabia. There are a few main and major as well as many secondary differences between the Sunni and Wahhabi Muslims which caused these sects to be cut off from each other and emerge independently.
The major difference between them is that Wahhabi believe that Prophet Muhammad should be praised only as a human being whereas Sunnis show extra special care and respect towards the Prophet of Islam.
www.differencebetween.net/language/difference-between-sunni-and-wahabi/
"Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar had established a center in Adana, southeastern Turkey, to help the rebel Free Syrian Army with communications and weaponry as it battles in major cities against forces loyal to Assad."
Sunni barbaric, autocratic and bigoted Saudis and co proxies like al-Qaida, MB and other Sunni Islamic militants are backing the Syrian rebels.
If the Sunni Saudis can't tolerate Shiite Assad, one of the compartively best ME Muslim rulers, they should not support the and withdraw they forces from Bahrain.
In Bahrain, an autocratic and bigoted Sunni ruler is ruling a Shiite majority nation.
Since the US and NATO forces fell into the traps of Saudis, oil companies and their lobbyists on Iraqi wars, these Saudis have been trying to impose one-way traffic all over the world.
See the intolerant Sunni Saudis, Kuwaiti and others funding their extremist Salaffi and Wahhabi mosques, hate preaching and killer training centers, all over the world.
Why don't the barbaric and beastly Saudi ruler permit Bibles and Churches and other non-Muslim religious places in his Saudi Arabia?
Sunni are the cause of all the troubles? Sorry but your either ignorant or more likely lying. Iran and Iraq are Shiite and they are doing their part in spreading death through out the region. Frankly all Muslims in the middle east see hell bent for war and killing. I know you will respond with they are a few among the peaceful masses. I have been watching for almost two decades and have not seen any peaceful Muslims assert themselves in any way. Are they out there? I have not seen them.
So why do borrow from China when our buddies that we protect in Saudi Arabia sit on top of tens of trillions of US petro dollars . I guess there not much love for America in the Royal house or maybe it worth alot to rent sand in a desert . Must be location
So the Saudi's don't want to blabber everything they're doing to the press, so the enemy will know everything they're doing.
Boo, hoo for the press who are used to the morons in our government that have the need to blab everything they know to demonstrate how 'in' they are to stroke their own egos.
""The very well-known position of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia is to extend to the Syrian people financial and humanitarian assistance, as well as calling upon the international community to enable them to protect themselves at the very least if the international community is not able to do so""
These barbaric Sunni Saudi and Paki religious Nazis are not bothered about "international community" when they do genocides of non-Muslims and other Muslim sects like Shiites, Sufis and others.
Followers of Islamic cult, especially Sunni Saudi inspired Islamic radicals and militants (al-Qaida, Salaffi, Wahhabi, MB 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.
Time has come for "international community" to wake up and wipe out Saudi Arabia and Pakistan from world map for solving 80 percent of world problems.
Anyhow British invented them and the US is keeping them alive on the map!
Good for the Saudi's. A repressed people deserve some assistance. Where's Egypt on this? Are they staying out of it?
Yeah, I can picture the scene inside Saudi Intelligence..."Hey, Abdul bring me that file on Syria, please". "Sure Boss, by the way...do you think we should alert the international press to the covert operation supporting the Syrian resistance?". "No, let's keep that secret a little bit longer, I'm sure somebody will discover it at some point, but let's see if we can live up to the Intelligence part of our title, just for a little while...".
I can just picture the headlines "Saudi Intelligence keeps a secret from the press...".
Yep, that's the ticket.
I agree! Look at how they are managing which can never be conceived in the 21st century!
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.
Twice are too much to tolerate.
The United States needs to reassess its foreign policy totally and at once. Looks like the Saudi's want the "international community" to pump money into their created cause for the poor rebels, hell they're all rebels over there. It looks like a "military push" by the Saudi's disguised behind marionette's fronted as "poor rebels fighting a dictorial regime for democracy". BS. The whole middle east is twisted and not one American dollar should be given to support this collosal inbred confusion. Turkey?...hmmmmmm.
Turkey is a big hoax.
Under the fundamenalist Erdogan, Turkey is fast marching backwards to seventh century tribal days.
Did Turks take permissions while the did genocides of Aramenians and now doing them on Kurds?
Did Turks bother about anyone when the marched their armies into Cyprus?
Egypt will be soon following Turkey in their backward marches.
These rebels are my heroes for standing up to what supposedly our ancestors stood up for hundreds of years ago. This is a modern revolution for human dignity, and I believe still demand for everyone to keep praying to God... and the real God because if there is a God in heaven even these Russians will understand with their style of philosophy... that Assad is wrongly playing by pulling the tail of the horrondous devil and should not be surprised to get a hefty pile of stink in return on his face.. because the United Nations should have already stockpiled a million pages of cases where he has murdered innocent people who only want the respect to elect their own representatives, because such is how a fair system of government naturaly operates to guarantee equality and fairness for all.
DOWN WITH BABYKILLER OB... DOWN WITH BABYKILLER ASSAD!
I'm sure he wants to bonk them in the head as they are being born so they more easily are brainwashed to see him as god. DEVIL!
Are you a moron ! Syria was a Christian nation until the Arabs invaded with Islam in the 7th C. Now Assad, Alawi, and Christians are fighting these evil Muslim thugs from Saudi Arabia ! Does 9-11 mean anything to you ? These are your heroes-terrorists and anti Christian baby killers ?
Tony ppl dont know what they talk about or less u give them the information
The Saudis I am sure would support Iran giving AId to Bahrain I am sure the Saudis would agree giving Aid to Rebles is always a good thing. Oppressed people being held down by a corrupt goverment.
Yes! .. and next is Israel, they need to be given aid too so they can have a more secured election next time as well.
This is an act of war on Syria by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey ! If I was Syria I would bomb Adana with any weapons that I have and maybe Greece will attack as well to regain Cyprus from the bastard Turks ! Syria and Russia will need more Christian nations to help against the nato baby killers !
How ignorant. Another one that can't stick to the subject matter and spews crap that has nothing to do do with anything. Read the topic above and re-read your nonsense. No connection.
Looks like the truth hurts !
Tony is right.
There are many who are used to seventh century desert tribal days one-way traffic thinking!
They can't come out of their shells nor come to two-way streets.
Bush Family, Saudi Royal Family, & Republicans (McCain) all support Al Qaeda/Syrian Rebels. Started when Bush Sr administration funded, trained, & supplied weapons to Osama bin Laden to fight the USSR in Afghanistan.
Hindsight is always 20/20 isn't it bobs?
Stick to the subject. Have anything credible to add here? It's sad that the want to be Preachers come here to preach crap that has nothing to do with the subject matter. Get with the program and off the drugs.
You are right. And look to the damages they have done all over the world.
Mike Aziz: Are you a moderator here? Just mind your business instead of bothering about others.
Okay everybody it's time to stop worrying bobs ur uncle has got it all figured out. You can all go back to whatever it was you were doing before you were distracted by all this. Bobs ur uncle has it all under control so stop worrying about it ! Okay ? Thanks bob, we all feel better now.
Thanks, your paycheck is in the mail. Does Denver still have the pot smoke haze hovering over the city limits?
The Saudis are smart to stay out of the civil war in Syria. Turkey is next door and getting refugees so they are involved like it or not.
Noise making bombs are fired harmlessly into the empty lots of Aleppo; they are to let the rabble know that Assad is still in power. But meanwhile the Damascus elite are gathering its gold bullion and shipping it to Tartus, Russian warships will transport the Syrian wealth to Siberia; its small towns will become the new home of Assad and his defeated followers. The Alawite poor will thumb a ride to Latakia where they will setup barricades in an attempt to repulse the armies of a vengeful God.
Is there anything in your rhetoric that's related to the Saudis staying mum on aid center in Turkey??????????? Maybe too many drugs.
Please note how long and well Romney spoke from his heart AND NO TELEPROMPTER WITH SOMEONES ELSE'S WORDS ON IT !!! He makes me proud that we have a chance to elect someone who is TRULY intelligent, honest, and moral.
Romney is rich trash and no match for our well spoken President. Getting back to the subject here........ It's distasteful for a journalist to even write an article about Saudi being mum on aid centers in Turkey. The Arab League which Saudi Arabia is part has been to Syria and continues to be discussing the situation. Unlike knee jerk reactions from inexperienced want to be Presidents, they're allowing the Arab League to do their job. Unfortunately, time is of the essence and caring neighboring countries are allowing the refugees into their countries. Terrorists from Saudi Arabia have nothing to do with the Saudi government. We are "allies" and we helped each other during the Gulf War and continue to do so. Do not mix politics with the bad elements of the world. Timothy McVeigh and James Holmes as well as many of our own home grown nut jobs shouldn't taint the rest of good Americans. Leave the judging up to judges or God.
It is interesting that there are so many public statement of assistance to the rebels - those that are losing always make declarative statements --- the Iraqis, the Iranians, the Lebanese (Hez) and the Russians are quietly helping. Russia is sending arms by the ship load and the government has chemical weapons, air power, and the home field advantage. Assad will stay. Lesson? Have regional allies, which Syria has in Lebanon, Iraq and Iran- have a powerful allies (preferably that are in the security council) which Syria has with China and Russia and have nuclear weapons to keep everyone at bay, can't get those? Have a catastrophic amount of chemical weapons that will scare the crap out of your neighbors, which Syria has. A few of those missile landing in Ankara, Amman or Tel Aviv would be a disaster, and they know that.
if we americans took up arms agianst our goverment, syria would look like a family reunion . Our goverment would wipe us out in a day. It would be 10 fold whats happening over there. And nobody would send us nothing even shovels to bury our dead butt
It's really very simple:Arab Nations such a Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Quatar, need to get THIER act together and supply the Free Syrian Rebels with little things like a ton of Surface to Air Missles ((SAMS) and perhaps some anti-tank devices although SAMS can nail a tank just easily. Light- weight and a child could use one. Now if the Saudis really want to get real they could deploy their very own hel-fire drones (Do you really think they don't already have the same kind of drones as the US uses?
But, unfortunatelt Aeab nations as a whole would rather ring their hands and cry out about Isreal and America being mean, heartless people. SO sad. Thank God I'm not a Syrian (or Egyptian or Lybian or Yemmen, etc...)
The Saudis have opened another terrorist camp and this is supposed to be news? Didn't they train the 9/11 bombers?
So the Saudis opened another terrorist camp. What else is new? They trained the 9/11 bombers.
It is unfortunate that UN could not get that Arms Treaty
passed. If it was passed, the Syrian government could mow down these evil
rebels that want freedom and peace.
Only "legit" government should be allowed to keep firearms to prevent
this kind of terrorism. My prayers go out to these dictators and their family
in killing the innocent citizens and disarming them as quickly as possible so
no future uprising can occur by the people demanding stuff for the people.
I have never seen so much drivel and stupidity in my entire life. But it is good entertainment.
It all depends on which group of terrorists to support.
The regime’s reliance on Alawite militiamen, known as the Shabiha, to help suppress the 10-month uprising is mirrored by elements of the armed rebel forces rallying around their Sunni identity through religious and sectarian motifs and language. The minority Alawite sect draws upon some Shiite traditions and is considered heretical by conservative Sunnis.
With the Assad regime showing no sign of caving to domestic and international pressure, the confrontation risks becoming defined less as a popular uprising against a secular autocracy and more as an armed sectarian conflict pitting Sunnis against Alawites and their Shiite allies: Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah
“I think there’s more and more evidence of that and it’s almost unavoidable given how things have developed around the entire region,” says Rami Khouri, director of the Issam Fares Institute of Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut. “Iran, Hezbollah, and the Syrian regime have been rolled into one” as an enemy of the mainly Sunni Syrian opposition.
www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/0129/Syria-uprising-Religion-overshadowing-the-democratic-push
Bush and Cheney made a lot of this possible by winning the Iraq/Iran war for Iran. Iran could never do this by itself (they fought a 10-year war) so the Bush Administration did it for them. They turned the Shiites into a viable alternative to the Sunni.
That will Bush's legacy forever both here and in the Shiite nation.
We should keep away from centuries of Sunni vs Shiites battles.
Whoever goes near them gets burnt. That will be the fate of Russia and China if they get too close.
Shiites are real cowards. Iraqi Shiites should side with Kurds and stop oil supplies to Turkey.
What is that Hezbollah doing? Can't they do some suicide bombings in Mecca and Medina?
In the end, all the Shiites should join hands and march on the fountainhead of Shiites and non-Muslims problems, Saudi Arabia.
We should have permitted Saddam to rule over the Sunni Saudis, Kuwaiti, UAE other bigoted and ungrateful backstabbers.
At least we would not have had so many Sunni extremist Salaffi and Wahhabi mosques all over the world.
So why did the Saudis allow 2 Iranian navy ships anchorage over the week end . Playing eveyone for a CHUMP , aaaa you hossers
With all the BAD THINGS I have to say about the Saudis, their repressive and backwards contol of society fueled by religion, which I say MOST relgion causes more pain and destruction than good, I am 100% behind SOMEONE helping the rebels who are trying to take out this Arab Version of Attilla the Hun. If they get some anti tank and anti aircraft weapons, along with guns, ammo, food, and trucks,. they can keep Assad out of most of the country side. He can have the cities, and they will keep the rest, until Assad's regime implodes.