Syria

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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Tue Sep 19, 2017 3:46 pm

Key American base in southern Syria destroyed by retreating US, militant forces
By Andrew Illingworth - 19/09/20173

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BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:15 A.M.) – A key American military base in Syria’s southwestern desert region has been destroyed by withdrawing United States and Coalition-backed Free Syrian Army forces.

The installation in question is the Zakaf Base which was established earlier this year in southeastern Homs near the Iraqi border.

The Zakaf Base served as a secondary Coalition garrison to the more important al-Tanf Base further west of it. Here the Coalition trained Free Syrian Army mercenaries and oversaw their operations in southwestern Syria.


According to reports, neither the United States nor the Free Syrian Army plans to use the Zakaf Base anymore and in the process of abandoning it have also chosen to destroy it in order to prevent the garrison’s utilization by any other armed party.

The official reason for the withdrawal of American and Free Syrian Army forces has not been stated, although it is likely linked to a recent agreement been the US, Russia and Jordan that will eventually see the full withdraw of Coalition troops from southern Syria and, in theory, the surrender of militant-held areas in the region to the Syrian Arab Army.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/ke ... nt-forces/

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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Mon Sep 25, 2017 3:22 pm

Breaking: Satellite images reveal US forces operating freely in ISIS areas
By Leith Fadel - 24/09/20174


BEIRUT, LEBANON (12:40 P.M.) – The Russian Ministry of Defense just released several satellite images of the U.S. military and their allies from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) freely traveling in the Islamic State (ISIS) held areas of the Deir Ezzor Governorate.

“Without resistance from ISIS militants the SDF troops are moving along the left bank of the Euphrates river towards the town of Deir Ezzor,” the statement from the Ministry of Defense read.

“There are not even signs of organization of a battle outpost,” the Russian Ministry of Defense added.

The images below show U.S. armored vehicles and equipment in this ISIS-held part of Deir Ezzor between the dates of September 8-12.

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The Syrian and Russian military commands have accused the US and their allies of land grabbing in the Deir Ezzor Governorate, while not actually fighting the Islamic State forces.

Most recently, the SDF took control of the Taybeh Gas Plant along the eastern bank of the Euphrates; however, recent photos reveal that the site was fully intact, unlike most structures the Islamic State abandons.

The U.S. Coalition has not commented on these accusations by the Russian military.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/br ... sis-areas/
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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Tue Sep 26, 2017 7:59 pm

Breaking video: ISIS fighter admits that ISIS is forbidden to attack Kurdish forces in Deir Ezzor
By Andrew Illingworth - 26/09/201710


BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:50 P.M.) – A video has just been released on social media showing the interview of an ISIS fighter from Deir Ezzor who admits that the terrorist group’s forces in the region are forbidden by their commanders from attacking US-backed, Kurdish-led militias.

The interviewee, Mohammed Moussa al-Shawwakh, says that his group, tasked with defending the area around the Conoco Gas Fields, was ordered to allow Kurdish forces to enter the strategic site. The order, he says, came from a top regional emir (leader) called Abu Zaid.

The ISIS fighter’s confession goes on to mention that Kurdish-led forces were also allowed to enter other gas and oil fields in the region in order to make propaganda videos.

Mohammed finishes the interview by saying that he knows for a fact that the US is attempting to establish an alliance between Kurdish forces and ISIS in Deir Ezzor province in order to undermine government-led military efforts to liberate the region.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/br ... eir-ezzor/
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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Mon Oct 02, 2017 2:12 pm

Sayyed Nasrallah: Our Resonant Call to Remain “At Your Service O Imam Hussein”

2 days ago October 1, 2017

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Sayyed Nasrallah Ashura Sayyed Nasrallah addressing crowds via video link during Ashura ceremony in Beirut's southern suburb (Dahiyeh) (Saturday, September 30)

Marwa Haidar
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah said that the resistance won’t withdraw from battlefields against the Ummah’s enemies, stressing that the resonant call of “At Your Service O Imam Hussein” will last.

During Hezbollah central Ashura ceremony on the tenth eve of the Hijri Month of Muharram in Beirut’s southern suburb, Sayyed Nasrallah warned against secession bid by Kurdistan region in Iraq, saying the move threatens the entire region.

Sayyed Nasrallah said following the defeat of ISIL Takfiri group, the region is before a dangerous scheme of division starting from secession bid by Kurdistan.

His eminence warned that the US administration is plotting for new enmity in the region. In this context, Sayyed Nasrallah warned Saudi Arabia against schemes aimed at inciting local confrontation in Lebanon.

Talking about local issues in Lebanon, Sayyed Nasrallah stressed that the parliamentary elections are to take place on time (May 2018) based on the agreed electoral law.

Hezbollah S.G. meanwhile warned that the issue of Israeli spying devices should be politically solved, or else Hezbollah will deal with this dangerous threat.

On the other hand, Sayyed Nasrallah called on Syrian refugees to return to their country and take part in reconstruction of Syria.

Solution through Dialogue

Sayyed Nasrallah started his speech thanking the resistance crowds for their mass attendance in Ashura ceremonies commemorating martyrdom of Imam Hussein (a.s.) since the start of Muharram Hijri month across Lebanon and especially in Dahiyeh.

The resistance leader stressed that Hezbollah is keen to preserve national security and stability in Lebanon, noting that dealing with local issues “requires dialogue, away from challenge and defiance between rival parties.”

Sayyed Nasrallah said whatever the disputes were; the Lebanese parties can find solutions through dialogue, referring to latest issues of wage scale and electoral law.

Local Confrontation “Failed Adventure”

“We’ve heard that there have been preparations for new alliances in Lebanon. If that is related to elections, we have no problem,” Sayyed Nasrallah said, warning against preparations for local confrontation in Lebanon.

His eminence warned local sides in Lebanon against being engaged in such confrontations, stressing that such call was not out of weakness but based on Hezbollah’s keenness to preserve stability in Lebanon and the region.

“Even the Zionist entity acknowledges that Hezbollah is the second army in the region, so we are not talking out of weakness. I call upon political parties not to be driven through incitement for such adventure because the outcome of such confrontation is well known.”

Sayyed Nasrallah also warned Saudi Arabia against inciting for such confrontation by saying: “We see that this plot is failed adventure.”

Elections on Time

Sayyed Nasrallah ruled out any extension of the Lebanese Parliament term.

“I agree with Speaker Nabih Berri that there will be no extension of the parliament’s term,” Sayyed Nasrallah told crowds in Dahiyeh, adding: “Parliamentary elections to take place on time and based on the agreed electoral law.”

Lebanon Secure

Touching upon security in Lebanon, Sayyed Nasrallah first hailed the achievement of liberating Lebanon’s eastern mountain range. He warned that the security threat still exists but in lower level.

On the other hand, Hezbollah S.G. lashed out at foreign embassies over their warnings of security risk in Lebanon.

“The logistic base of terror is over now, and the ability to carry out terrorist attack in Lebanon has been limited. Despite absurd warnings by some embassies, we have to say that Lebanon is one of the most secure countries across the world. Lebanon is more secure than Washington itself,” said Sayyed Nasrallah.

Sayyed Nasrallah also reiterated call to Lebanese people to refrain from celebratory gunfire, stressing that such behavior is forbidden in Islam because it causes harm.

Syrian Refugees

Hezbollah S.G. on the other hand, called upon Syrian refugees to return to Syria and take part in the reconstruction of their country. His eminence stressed that the interest of the refugees lies in going back to Syria.

Sayyed Nasrallah said that all guarantees regarding this issue could be offered, calling upon Lebanese parties to deal with the Syrian refugees problem based on national interest rather than narrow interests.

His eminence also slammed the stance of some Lebanese parties which have been refusing coordination between Lebanon and Syria, stressing that the Syrian refugees issue cannot be tackled without such coordination.

Israeli Violations

Sayyed Nasrallah meanwhile, threatened that Hezbollah won’t keep mum on the latest Israeli violations represented by spying devices planted across Lebanese territories.

“Israeli spying devices which have been recently uncovered danger threat to Lebanon,” his eminence said, adding: “We will not abandon our country; if this issue is not politically solved then we will deal with.”

ISIL Defeated

Turning into regional issues, Sayyed Nasrallah stressed that the region witnesses now ISIL’s defeat, noting that the terrorist group’s end is just a matter of time.

Sayyed Nasrallah described the latest ISIL attack on Syrian army and Hezbollah in Badiya as normal reaction to the Takfiri organization’s defeat, noting that the attack aimed at exhausting the allied forces of the axis of resistance.

“ISIL is incapable of regaining territory. The group is trying to exhaust the Syrian army in order to delay its end. However, this plan is ineffective because the decision to wipe out ISIL has been taken. Yes there are a lot of sacrifices but this is the nature of the battle.”

Kurdistan Secession Threat to Entire Region

Following the defeat of ISIL, the region is before a dangerous scheme of division, Sayyed Nasrallah said, warning that such scheme is represented in the secession of Kurdistan region in Iraq.

“We say to our beloved Kurds that the issue is not about deciding your fate, but about dividing the region according to sectarian and ethnic belonging.”

The Lebanese resistance leader called on people of the region to confront such scheme which echoes the “New Middle East”, which was plotted by former US president George W. Bush.

“The people of this region bear responsibility of confronting this scheme of division.”

His eminence also called on people of the region to refrain from resorting to ethnic bias.

“There should not be ethnic bias between Arabs, Kurds or Iranians, the problem is not with Kurds, it’s political one.”

Sayyed Nasrallah in this context warned that wars in the region are in favor of ‘Israel’ and US along with the latter’s arms companies.

“At Your Service O Imam Hussein”

Sayyed Nasrallah concluded his speech stressing that the resistance won’t abandon its duties in defending the right and confronting the Ummah’s enemies, saying that Hezbollah will not withdraw from battlefields.

His eminence recalled a quote by Imam Hussein’s companion Sa’d bin Abdullah al-Hanafi who told Imam Hussein (a.s.) a day before Karabal battle: “By Allah, I shall not leave you alone unless they kill me, burn me in fire and reduce me to ashes and blew it in the air. I am ready to meet the same fate seventy times till I diminish in your support.”

Sayyed Nasrallah echoed al-Hanfi’s quote, calling on Imam Hussein’s lovers to take part in Ashura processions on Sunday and chant the resonant call of “At Your Service O Imam Hussein”.

Source: Al-Manar Website

http://english.almanar.com.lb/358943

Sayyed Nasrallah is da bomb, he has a completely lucid view of ME politics.
"There is great chaos under heaven; the situation is excellent."

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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Mon Oct 02, 2017 2:58 pm

How far is the Workers' Party of Kurdistan far from Marxism?

October 2, 16:54

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Not a bad overview of the ideology of the Kurdish Workers Party based on the scraps of the works of Ozhdalan.

How far is the Workers' Party of Kurdistan far from Marxism?

Recruiters of the PKK offer four short articles by Abdullah Ocalan to all sympathizers and supporters as programmatic, to get to know their ideology. These articles are only translated into English. We bring to your attention a certificate with a brief content of these works, compiled in accordance with the structure of the articles, so that it would be possible to draw conclusions about the class nature of the PKK's ideology and its scientific character.

Article One. War and Peace in Kurdistan: Prospects for a Political Solution to the Kurdish Issue

1. Introduction The

Middle East is a complex and conflict region in which the Kurdish issue is the most important, more important than the Arab-Israeli issue, since the Kurdish settlement covers the present territories of the Arabs (Iraqis and Syrians), Persians and Turk.

2. Etymology of the word Kurds and Kurdistan

Kurds - one of the oldest peoples living at the intersection of trade routes (in particular the "Silk Road"), which played an important role in the development of mankind. Ecalogy Ocalan refers to the Sumerian era.

3. Kurdish territory and Kurdish language

The territory of Kurdistan is 450,000 square kilometers and since ancient times it was surrounded by settlements of Persians, Azerbaijanis, Arabs and Anatolian Turks. This territory is one of the most rich in forest and water resources of the Middle East and is famous for its fertile lands. Kurdish language leads the history from the Neolithic revolution and belongs to the Indo-European family of languages.

4. A Brief Review of Ancient Kurdish History

For the first time, the mention of Kurds as an ethnic group is encountered in connection with the Hurrites (3-2 thousand years BC). In the 216 - 652 gg. n. e. in Kurdistan feudalism was formed. The Kurdish dynasty of Ayyubida (1175 - 1250 AD) became one of the most powerful dynasties in the Middle East. The ruling class of Kurds enjoyed great autonomy in the Ottoman Empire. In the XIX century. there were several major Kurdish uprisings in connection with the oppression of the Turks.

5. Struggle for resources, war and state terror in Kurdistan

Kurdistan was constantly attacked by external powers. Terrorist regimes of the Assyrian and Scythian empires between the 13th and 10th centuries. BC. and the campaign of conquest of Alexander the Great are the most famous examples. The Arab conquest was accompanied by the Islamization of Kurdistan. In the XIII-XIV centuries. The Mongols invaded Kurdistan. Until the XIX century. Between the Ottomans and the Kurdish principalities reigned a relative peace based on a common belief - Sunni Islam.

6. European colonialism and the Kurdish dilemma

European colonialism in the 20th century. brought a new form of oppression of the Kurdish people. The essence of European politics boiled down to the principle of "divide and rule", to the policy of ousting the peoples of the Middle East. During the first half of the XX century. Kurds were only pawns in the game of foreign interests.

7. The ideological basis of colonial oppression and the policy of power in Kurdistan

The development of capitalism and the formation of national states in Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria led to the denial of the existence of the Kurdish people. For many Kurds, an open commitment to their origins and culture led to the exclusion of all economic and social relations. For the Arab countries, the Kurdish question did not exist, the problems were solved through forced Islamization. Islam was declared the only "nation". And this nation was Arab.

Compulsory assimilation of Kurds was carried out everywhere.

Instruments of assimilation were: Islam, the prohibition of language and culture, bourgeois nationalism.

Bourgeois nationalism is the most important ideology of nation-states (nation-states). Ocalan compares nationalism with the functions of oppression with religion.

Kurdish identity and Kurdish resistance, the process of identifying Kurds as a nation occurred relatively late - in the second half of the XX century. Only the left-wing student movement of the 1970s (that is, Ocalan himself - from modesty does not die) could make a significant contribution to the realization that there is a Kurdish identity.

8. Workers' Party of Kurdistan (PKK)

In April 1973, a group of six gathered to form an independent Kurdish political organization. It is interesting that in the official pamphlet of the PKK there is a reference and an explanation of the fact that the PKK was a Marxist organization, and in this article Ocalan is not. Just an independent Kurdish political party ... The main goal was supposedly not a socialist revolution, but gaining national independence. Separate points from the first program of the PKK, so that there was an idea of ​​how things really were:

"The establishment of the workers 'and peasants' government as the first step towards the creation of a democratic people's dictatorship." "Creation of an independent economy of the country. For this purpose, the following activities will be carried out: 1. Management of the economy through central planning. 2. Priority development of socialized heavy industry. 3. Use of natural resources, transfer of the transport system, trade, banks and mass media into public property. 4. Conducting land reform and involving the peasants in collective farms with the help and support of the state. 5. A greeting of private initiatives useful for the development of society, as well as their support and state subsidies allocated to them. " "The use of proletarian internationalism in relation to neighboring peoples and to interethnic issues."

That is, roughly speaking, in the 1980s the PKK offered the NEP. And today Ocalan forgot about it ...

On November 27, 1978, the PKK was established in a small village near Diyarbakir. Twenty-two leading members of the national Kurdish movement participated in the first congress and establishment of the party. The PKK has concentrated its work in rural areas of Kurdistan. The PKK pursued the Turkish authorities. Activists often went to the mountains, hiding from the Turkish authorities. On September 12, 1980, the Turkish military overthrew the civil government and seized power. Many of the remaining PKK activists in Turkey were imprisoned by the military junta. After a short period of reorganization, most of the members returned to Kurdistan and took up armed resistance against the fascist junta. Attacks on military facilities in Eruha and Semdili on August 15, 1984 became the official beginning of the armed struggle.

The bloody war between the Kurds and the Turkish government was fruitful in the 90s - the Turks declared the possibility of recognizing the Kurdish people. In 1993, the PKK announced a cease-fire and the beginning of a dialogue. However, because of the supporters of the continuation of the conflict on both sides, the conflict again escalated. In 1998, the RCP again announced a cease-fire, but the Turkish authorities insisted on a military solution to the Kurdish issue. Then in 1998, the Turkish secret services kidnapped Ocalan, who is currently held in a Turkish prison. This event coincides with the proposal of a new approach of the PKK to the struggle.

9. New strategic, philosophical and political approaches to the Kurdish liberation movement

The bottom line is that Ocalan believes that modern bourgeois states are national states and oppress non-titular nations. To them he refers, of course, to Turkey. The PKK proposes to realize its right to national self-determination not by creating a Kurdish nation-state, but by creating a system of democratic self-organization in Kurdistan based on a confederation in which everyone can autonomously self-organize: religious communities and national minorities and everything, everything, everything. The essence is to limit Turkey's sovereignty in the territory of Kurdistan, not getting, in fact, independence. This is something like autonomy, which the Kurds do not want to call autonomy. Ocalan calls this "semi-state of Kurdish autonomy" (semi-state Kurdish autonomy). In general, a compromise solution. And already in this democratic confederation they will have freedom, justice and equality. In short, the idealization of democracy and complete forgetfulness of the class approach and the isolation of politics from the economy.

According to Ocalan, it is impossible to solve the Kurdish issue by force. "The Constitution of the Republic of Turkey recognizes the existence and expression of all its cultures in a democratic way" and on this basis it demands the freedom of language, culture, the rehabilitation of the PKK fighters and the inclusion of Kurds in Turkey's electoral process.

Article two. Democratic nation.

Introduction

Ocalan is a critic of both capitalism and socialism. The works of Ocalan are based on the analysis of the whole history of mankind and offer a development model alternative to capitalism and a way of life. The works of Ocalan are not limited to ideas about the Kurdish nation, but are universal for all peoples and people.

1. Introduction

The PKK armedly proved the right to the existence of the Kurds and became the leader of the liberation movement. In the 1990s, there were changes in the ideology of the PKK related to the destruction of the USSR. They are as follows. The basis of the hegemony of capitalism Ocalan considers the so-called. state-nation (or "national state", if in Russian). The USSR collapsed, as it tried to build an anti-capitalist society according to the patterns of the national state. The main defect of socialism Ocalan sees in centralization. On the experience of the Kurdish movement, he argues that it is possible to build socialism only by means of a "democratic state". The weakest link in modern imperialism is Kurdistan, in which Ojalan founded the Association of Kurdistan Societies (Union of Democratic Communities in Kurdistan).

2. Capitalist Modernity and the Nation

There are different definitions and concepts of the nation, but the main problem of our time arises from the connection of power and the state with the nation. Ocalan defines a democratic nation as a society formed by the free will of free people and communities.

Due to the laws of capitalism, the modern nation seeks to acquire a national state. But this state does not solve social problems, as all the apologists of capitalism assume, but only multiplies them. The state-nation directs the exploitation and suppression of the nation. Capitalist modernity replaced traditional religion and built a deified national state. The phenomenon of a secular state, according to Ocalan, is nothing more than the deification of the state itself. Therefore, the ideological hegemony of capitalism, whose essence - in achieving maximum profit, consists in the sacralization of such concepts as the motherland, the nation and the market. Means of worship include, among other things, the execution of an anthem before sports competitions and the like.

3. Democratic modernity

An alternative to capitalism is a democratic nation. This means: an economy free from monopoly, harmony with the environment, that is, technologies that are friendly to nature and humanity. Ocalan argues that the democratic movement, of which the democratic nation is the embodiment, was in one form or another always, and he only formulates the forms that are able to displace the nation-state-democratic confederalism.

4. Democratic decision

The national state was called upon to solve the problems of nations and their conflicts, but this proved impossible. Socialism of the USSR not only did not become an alternative, but even more confused issue. The right of nations to self-determination also only increases hostility and tensions. The problems of any nation, including the Kurdish one, can be solved within the framework of the democratic process that Ocalan essentially reduces to autonomy and the absence of powerful and cultural centralism. The PKK is the embodiment of this process and demands the recognition of the Kurds' right to self-government and democracy. Ocalan considers the Constitution a compromise between the people's, democratic movement and bourgeois power.

Stalin's definition of the nation Ocalan rejects, believes that it is descriptive and caused the collapse of the USSR.

5. The model of a democratic nation

The definition of a democratic nation that is not bound by rigid political boundaries and a single language, culture, religion and interpretation of history means pluralism and the totality of communities, as well as free and equal citizens who exist together and in solidarity. According to Ocalan, a democratic nation is the opposite of a nation with its national state. Further, Ocalan denounces the nation-state for the woes of capitalism (exploitation, oppression, nationalism, wars, environmental problems, etc.) and praises the democratic nation as a socialist alternative.

The EU states have moved from nation states to legal nations. And if in the democratic nation the main thing is autonomous governance, and in the state-nation - the rule of power, then in the legal nation - the law. According to Ocalan in the United States, Japan and Germany - the economic nations, that is, the main thing in them is the economy. He calls the example of a socialist nation Cubans, however, stipulating that this is the same state-nation, only under state capitalism.

5.1 Formation of the Kurdish Nation

Kurds became a nation thanks to Kurdish thinking and Kurdish culture, including language. A distinctive feature of the Kurdish nation is that people share the thinking of a just, free and equal world based on diversity. The basis of Kurdish identity is freedom of expression and social structure in the form of democratic autonomy.

5.2 Democratic autonomy

Democratic autonomy can be achieved in two ways: by compromising with nation-states and by fighting for state sovereignty. Ocalan cites the example of the EU as a way of compromise.

5.3 The PKK and the formation of the democratic nation of the

PKK in the establishment of a democratic Kurdish nation set the following goals.

1 - freedom of the individual in a small community. Rejecting the liberal understanding of personal freedom, Ocalan insists that individual freedom can be limited to the nearest small collective. The community forms the personality, and the personality is realized only in the communities. Morality is respect and commitment to the community and community life. Under the community, Ocalan, apparently, understands something like a commune, local government and public associations.

2 - moral policy. Moral and political society according to Ocalan is the main fundamental unit of civilization. To put in the basis of politics, morality means to be in harmony with one's own development and existence. The implementation of such a policy is democracy. The basis of democracy is self-government and diversity.

3 - a new way of life. A democratic nation is not tolerant of exploitation, oppression, including women, commodity and real fetishism and the like.

4 - free partnership. The PKK, rejecting male chauvinism, proclaims the emancipation of women as the most important process on the path to the formation of a democratic nation. Ocalan proposes to build relations between men and women on the basis of partnership and respect.

5 - economic autonomy. The society can not be free without control over the means of production and the market. Economic autonomy is not capitalism or state capitalism. It is based on the environmental industry and the communal economy - the form in which democracy is reflected in the economy. Industry, technology, business and property are linked by the principle of environmental friendliness and democracy. Ocalan proposes to minimize the accumulation of capital. He does not reject the market, the variety of products, competition and productivity, but rejects the dominance of profit and capital accumulation. Finance and financial instruments are used only to the extent that they serve productivity and functionality. In short, it is for small-scale economy and collective property, against industry and modern technologies.

6 - a new legal system. Ocalan rejects a unified system of law, offering in return a law based on diversity. In essence, we mean our own autonomous legal system.

7 - a new culture. Contemporary bourgeois culture Ojalan branded as patriarchal and masculine. The culture of a democratic nation is a friendly set of diverse cultures of communities. Variety is wealth, beauty and tolerance. Common values ​​are only equality and freedom.

8 - self-defense. Every democratic nation needs a system of protection and internal control, which are usurped in the nation-states. A woman must serve in dislocation and be thus free. Kurdish autonomy does not exclude the Kurdish army.

9 - new diplomacy. Old diplomacy is the pre-war activity of nation-states: the logic of profit, manipulation and hostility. New diplomacy is the activity of the Democratic National Congress, the essence of which is to achieve peace and solidarity. Instead, the United Nations is proposed by the Global Union of Democratic Nations with the corresponding objectives.

6. Searching for ways to a democratic nation

Building a democratic nation is an ongoing process. Kurds are free from the illusions of the nation-state and do not recognize power over themselves. Other nations must follow the example of the Kurds and fight for a democratic nation. This will be the output of humanity from the crisis of capitalism.

7. Conclusion

It is necessary for all socialist parties and movements not to fight for state power, but to develop the policy of a democratic nation and the corresponding social forms. Democracy can be defined as the self-government of a non-state society - and this should be the goal of all nations. Ocalan defines his ideology as a non-state-oriented democratic socialist theory. And democratic confederalism as a multi-political formation of multiple identity and multiculturalism.

Article three. Democratic confederalism

SECTION I. FOREWORD

For more than 30 years the PKK has been fighting for the legitimate rights of the Kurdish people, this struggle has acquired international significance. In the 1970s, when it was created, the PKK was inspired by the socialist movement. The PKK has always viewed the Kurdish issue not as an ethnic or national issue, but as a project for the liberation of society and its democratization as a whole.

SECTION II. NATIONAL STATE (STATE-NATION)

A. Foundations The

formation of capitalist relations in the Middle East and the birth and strengthening of the nation state go hand in hand. The nation-state destroys the old feudal orders and state formations, replacing the dominion of European empires.

1. The state-nation is the maximum form of power, maximum exploitation, monopoly on power and ideology. One of the main reasons for strengthening the nation-state is that the upper layers of the middle class are increasingly connected with the process of monopolization.

2. In the nation-state, despite the declared secular nature, the power and the title nation are deified. To the cult elements, Ocalan includes a flag, anthem, emblem and the like. Sacralization of the unity of the nation and the steadfastness of its territorial boundaries are sacrificed.

3. The state-nation has a huge military-bureaucratic apparatus through which it subordinates all spheres of society's life to itself.

4. In the cultural and ideological sphere, the state-nation suppresses all diversity, engenders assimilation, which reaches the genocide. The concept of "citizen" is an example of ideological dictates. Homogeneous national society is the most artificial society that has ever existed.

5. The nation-state does not care about the people and is a vassal of the imperialists. All the cities of such a state are subordinated to the capital and serve the process of capitalist exploitation. The nation-state is the enemy of the people.

B. The ideological foundations of the nation-state

1. The main weapon is nationalism. Ocalan considers nationalism a quasi-religious ideology. Nationalism subordinates science and art, thus indirectly influencing the spiritual life of society.

2. An important ideological pillar of the nation-state is positivism. The transformation of science into a set of descriptive methods simplifies the implantation of nationalism and the spiritual enslavement of the people.

3. Another ideological pillar of the nation-state is sexism.

4. The next ideological support of the nation-state Ocalan calls religion, which continues to influence society or its individual strata.

V. Kurds and the National State

The creation of a separate nation-state for the Kurds does not make sense.

SECTION III. DEMOCRATIC CONFEDERALISM

Such a government can be called a democracy without a state. It is a flexible, multicultural, anti-monopoly and consensus-oriented political form. Ecology and feminism are the central links of democratic confederalism. In the framework of such self-government, an alternative economy will be needed that increases the resources of society, rather than exploits them.

A. Diversity of the political landscape

The contradictory composition of society requires the presence of political groups of both vertical and horizontal formations. Thus, it is necessary to balance the central, regional and local groups. Everyone should have the right to make decisions.

B. The legacy of society and the accumulation of historical knowledge

Democratic confederalism is based on the historical experience of society and its collective heritage. This is not an arbitrary modern political system, but, rather, accumulated history and experience. All the trends and forms of centralism Ocalan refers to the negative experience, and the entire struggle and forms of self-organization - to the positive experience of mankind.

B. Ethics

Economic, political, ideological and military monopolies are structures that contradict the nature of society, simply seeking to accumulate surpluses. The correct ethic according to Öcalan is the many diverse ethics of different communities and societies.

D. Political system

Unlike a centralized and bureaucratic understanding of governance and the exercise of power, confederalism is a type of political self-government where all groups of society and all cultural identities can manifest themselves in local assemblies, general conferences and councils. The structures of democracy should be viewed not as hierarchical levels of government of a nation state, but as central instruments of social expression. All decisions are made exclusively at the local level.

D. Self-Defense

Instead of militarizing the nation-state, Ocalan offers self-defense. The composition of the military leadership should be selective on the part of both political institutions and confederal groupings, that is, communities.

E. Democratic Confederalism Against Hegemony

Any kind of hegemony is rejected.

J. Global structure of democratic confederalism

Instead of the UN and against the UN, there is a need for an international organization of democratic confederations.

H. Conclusion

Democratic confederalism can be characterized as a kind of self-government in contrast to state governance. Ocalan does not rule out the peaceful coexistence of the two systems, until the state-nation intervenes in internal affairs. No revolution will bring freedom. In the long term, freedom and justice can only be achieved through a dynamic process of democratic confederation.

SECTION IV. PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRATIC CONFEDERALISM
1. The right to self-determination of a nation includes the right to its own state. However, its national state does not increase the freedom of people.

2. Democratic confederalism is a non-state social paradigm. It is not controlled by the state. At the same time, democratic confederalism is the cultural organizational plan of a democratic nation. He is an alternative to the right to self-determination.

3. Democratic confederalism is based on the broad participation of the masses. All decisions are made by the communities, and the central structures set up over the communities are needed only to coordinate the political will of the communities.

4. The only way out of all problems in the Middle East is democratic confederalism as an alternative to capitalism.

5. Democratic confederalism is an anti-nationalist movement.

SECTION V. PROBLEMS OF THE PEOPLES OF THE MIDDLE EAST The

national question is the key problem of the peoples of the Middle East. It can be solved with the help of democratic confederalism.

1. There are more than twenty Arab states that share the Arab community and inflict damage on wars. The reason is in the nation-states that sow nationalism and Islamism for the sake of competing with each other.

2. The Turks and Turkmens form another influential people, which are suppressed by the nation-state and exploitation.

3. Kurds - the most numerous people in the world without their own state. The resolution of the Kurdish question on the PKK templates will become a guarantee of freedom for all peoples and the entire region of the Middle East.

4. The Iranian people suffer from capitalism and the nation-state. The Iranian society is multi-ethnic and multi-confessional and has a rich culture. This diversity contrasts sharply with the hegemony of theocracy. Azerbaijanis, Kurds, Baluchis, Arabs and Turkmens are interested in the project of the Democratic Confederation of Iran. A special role will be played here by the women's movement and the communal traditions of Iran.

5. The Armenian national question is connected with the history of repression of this Christian people by the Muslim majority. Confederative structures could solve the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict without redistribution of the borders of these states.

6. A democratic confederation could solve the problems of the Assyrians, who, like Armenians, were oppressed by Muslims. Their real salvation can be the separation of their mentality from the capitalist modernity and the adoption of a democratic civilization by updating their rich cultural tradition to recreate the "Aramaic democratic nation".

7. The problems of Israel show the complete failure of the solution of the Jewish question within the framework of capitalism. Jews are taking revenge by the war over centuries of exile, pogroms and genocide. Their transformation into a democratic nation, as well as for Armenians and Aramaeans, will facilitate their participation in the democratic confederation of the Middle East. The project of the "Eastern Aegean Democratic Confederation" is proposed.

8. The destruction of Hellenic culture in Anatolia by ethnic cleansing, organized by the Turkish and Greek nation states, is an irreplaceable loss for humanity.

9. Democratic confederation is also able to solve the problems of Caucasian ethnics living in the Middle East.

https://prorivists.org/pkk_marxism/ - zinc (article about the role of a woman in the Kurdish state did not fit in size, so that it can be read by reference)

PS. The review material on the fighting in Syria will be in the evening.

Google Translator

https://colonelcassad.livejournal.com/3719042.html
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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Sat Oct 07, 2017 5:33 pm

US Staging Fatal Provocations Against Russian Personnel in Syria
Posted by INTERNATIONALIST 360° on OCTOBER 6, 2017

Image
This Saturday, April. 29, 2017 still taken from video, shows an American soldier looking out of an armored vehicle in the northern village of Darbasiyah, Syria
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says that the United States is staging fatal provocations against Russian servicemen in Syria.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The United States is staging fatal provocations against Russian servicemen in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.
“The US-led forces’ activities in Syria cause many questions. In some cases these forces mounts allegedly accidental strikes against the Syrian Armed Forces, after which the Islamic State [Daesh terrorist group] counterattacks, in other cases they inspire other terrorists to attack strategic locations over which official Damascus has restored its legitimate authority, or stage fatal provocations against our military personnel. I would also mention numerous ‘accidental’ strikes against civilian infrastructure that have taken hundreds of civilian lives,” he told the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper.
Earlier, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov stated that the recent death of a Russian Lt. Gen. Valery Asapov, who headed a group of Russian military advisers in Syria during a mortar attack by terrorists, is the price that Russia paid for the duplicity of the United States in actions aimed at resolving the crisis in the region.
Russian Defense Ministry earlier published an aerial survey of the areas where Daesh militants were stationed north of the city of Deir ez-Zor, clearly showing US special forces’ units at strongholds previously fortified by terrorists.
The US State Department said later that claims of that the United States supported Daesh or was complicit in the death of Russian general have “no basis in fact”.

https://syria360.wordpress.com/2017/10/ ... -in-syria/

I hear that Hassan Nasrallah is gonna give a speech definitively linking ISIS to US. Oughta be good, he don't play.

Lavrov lifts his head from blowing Uncle Sam just long enough to provide a sound bite for the six o'clock news. Then he's back at it.
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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Fri Oct 13, 2017 12:42 pm

Families fleeing Syria's Raqqa say air strikes bring heavy toll

John Davison

RAQQA, Syria (Reuters) - Air raids by U.S. coalition warplanes have intensified in recent days as Kurdish and Arab militias seek to drive surrounded Islamic State militants from their last strongholds in Syria’s Raqqa -- but the toll on civilians has been severe.

Civilians who escaped from the Islamic State militants at Raqqa's frontline rest at a mosque in Raqqa, Syria October 12, 2017. REUTERS/Erik De Castro
Hundreds of civilians fled the city on Thursday, many wounded and malnourished after being trapped for months by fighting between Islamic State and the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

Those who fled said the sheer intensity of the bombardment appeared to have made militants shift their positions, retreat or hide underground, giving civilians a window in which to escape.

Abdullah Ali’s burns were still raw from an air strike that brought down his building and killed his entire family a week ago in central Raqqa.

“My wife, mum, dad, all 14 people in my family were killed. Their bodies are trapped under rubble,” the 24-year-old said, sitting outside a mosque on Raqqa’s outskirts.

Ali’s neighbor Abdo Hussein said more than 50 people were in the building when the air strike hit. Just a handful survived and 13 bodies had been pulled out, he said.

The offensive to drive Islamic State out of Raqqa, its de facto Syrian capital which it seized in 2014, has long outlasted initial predictions by SDF officials who said ahead of a final assault in June that it could take just weeks.

The SDF said last week the city could be declared captured in the coming days.

There are still several hundred militants in the city and thousands of residents, the coalition says, many of them believed to be held hostage by IS in a hospital and nearby stadium.


“People had tried to escape before but were shot at by Daesh (Islamic State). I even saw them kill a two-year-old child,” Um Moussa, 38, said, sitting inside the mosque.

”This morning they didn’t seem to be around, or weren’t firing.

“My son saw hordes of people leaving so we decided to go for it. I’d been sleeping fully dressed -- we were ready to flee at the first chance,” she said, wearing black robes and a face veil required under Islamic State’s strict laws.

But weakening the militants with air power has come at a high cost in civilian lives, she and others said.

“Yesterday four entire families were killed in our area. It’s strike after strike.”

SCARED AND SURRENDERING

All those who escaped on Thursday came from a district near the stadium.

They said many buildings had been hit as Islamic State fighters fired from them.

“Each building has dozens of civilians in it, so of course many have died,” said Hussein.

Slideshow (11 Images)(go to link)

Air strikes were precise, often taking out a single building without damaging those next door, but militants often managed to leave before the missiles hit, he said.

The coalition says it takes great pains to avoid causing civilian casualties and investigates all reports that it has done so.

Residents described miserable living conditions and lack of food, water and medical aid with the remaining areas Islamic State controls completely cut off.

“Daesh have clinics but it’s to treat their fighters, not us,” Hussein said.

Umm Mousa said she, her husband and eight children had slept in their cellar by night to hide from the bombardment and the militants, but that Islamic State was now deliberately avoiding interaction with residents.

“They’re suspicious, scared, in case any of the civilian population are informers – they’re keeping their distance a bit now,” she said.

Local Islamic State fighters have been surrendering in recent weeks, the U.S. coalition and residents say.

Outside the mosque, several blindfolded men were brought into an SDF headquarters for questioning.

Islamic State foreign fighters are expected to fight to the death, however.

“The foreigners, those are the hard core,” said one escaped resident, Ahmed Faraj. “They won’t give up.”

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mide ... SKBN1CH280
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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Mon Oct 16, 2017 7:05 pm

Iraq - The End Of The Kurdish Independence Project

Today the Iraqi government took Kirkuk back from occupying Kurdish forces. This marks the end of the Kurdish independence project in Iraq.

in 2014 the Islamic State occupied Mosul. At the same time the regional Kurdish government under Masoud Barzani sent its Peshmerga troops to take the oil rich city of Kirkuk from the collapsing forces of the central Iraqi government. There were plausible allegations and some evidence (vid) that the Kurds had made a deal with ISIS and coordinated the move.

In 2016 and 2017 Iraqi forces defeated ISIS in Mosul. Kurdish groups took the opportunity of the ISIS defeat to occupy further land, even as that did not have a Kurdish majority population and did not belong to their autonomous region.

Image

The red lined area is the autonomous Kurdish region in Iraq as accepted by the Iraqi constitution. The red dotted line is the additional area the Kurds captured and at times controlled.

The Iraqi government insisted that the situation be turned back to the pre-2014 lines. The vast majority of the people in Kirkuk are Turkmen and Arab. Kirkuk produces two-third of all oil in north Iraq. There was not a chance that any central government of Iraq would leave the city and these riches to Kurdish occupiers.

Image

But the Kurdish leaders did neither think nor listen. The leading Barzani clan and his KDP party, long associated with Israel, tried to solidify their resource robbery. On September 25 they held an "independence referendum" in all areas under their control. All countries, except Israel, spoke out against this move.

But Barzani was urged on by the Zionists and international neo-conservatives:

Image
Bernard-Henri Lévy meeting Masoud Barzani - September 30 2017

As I remarked at the time of that meeting:

This is the death sentence for the Kurdish independence project. No cause [Bernard-Henri Lévy] supported has ever had a happy ending.
Egged on, Barzani continued his path. He threatened to proclaim Kurdish independence from the Iraqi state.

The Iraqi Prime Minister Abadi could not condone such an unconstitutional insurrection. He sent his troops to restore the 2014 lines of control, starting with the oil rich areas around Kirkuk. During the last three days the Iraqi army, national police and counter-terrorism units, all hardened by the fight against the Islamic State, were marched onto Kirkuk. An ultimatum was issued for the Kurdish Peshmerga to leave the area. Barzani insisted on staying. He even called in PKK fighters from Turkey to help him keep the city.

Last night the inevitable happened. The Iraqi government forces moved forward and, after a few skirmishes, the Kurdish Peshmerga ran away. It is not clear who, if anyone, ordered them to retreat. Some Peshmerga units arrested other Peshmerga units. No one seemed to be in command.

As of now the Iraqi government is back in control at the Kirkuk airport, the military garrisons and the oil fields and refinery installations. Kirkuk city itself is untouched. There are reports that everyone associated with the Kurdish regional government is moving out.

The U.S., which had provided both sides with weapons and training, had no real idea what was going on and took no side. Without U.S. support the Kurdish forces had no air-support and no chance to win any fight. Kirkuk is lost for them and the other areas they occupied since 2014 will follow.

Barzani has lost his high stake gamble.

The dreams of an independent Kurdistan in Iraq have just been buried again. Masoud Barzani's position has been weakened significantly. This huge blunder might cost him his head. The Iraqi Prime Minister Abadi has gained in standing and is now in position to win next years election.

These events will also have consequences for the Kurdish position in Syria. They demonstrate that they can not hope for continued U.S. support and will have to reconcile with the Syrian government. The idea of some autonomous or even independent Kurdish entity in Syria is, as of today, also dead.

Posted by b on October 16, 2017 at 04:38 AM | Permalink

http://www.moonofalabama.org/2017/10/ir ... oject.html
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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Tue Oct 24, 2017 5:58 pm

On Returning From Syria: More Convinced Than Ever Western Media Narrative Is Bullshit

TOPICS:Brandon TurbevillePropagandaSyria
OCTOBER 24, 2017
By Brandon Turbeville

In early October, 2017, I had the pleasure of visiting Syria on a mission to get a sense of the toll of the war, the mindset of the people, and the general situation on the ground. The goal was to see the country in person, get a sense of what life is like in Syria today, talk to the Syrian people and hear their side of things; i.e. their opinions on the government and the “rebels/terrorists,” their living conditions, Syria before the war versus Syria now, and whatever else they wanted to share. We wanted to see the areas formerly under control of the terrorists and talk to the residents there. We also wanted to visit the areas firmly under government control and speak to the residents living in these areas as well.

Having covered the Syrian crisis for the entire six years of its duration, I had a pretty good sense of the opinions of the Syrian people and the situation they are facing as a result of numerous contacts inside Syria. However, there is no substitute for examining a situation first hand and talking with Syrians themselves with whom one has no prior personal connection as well as random strangers on the street in order to get an unfiltered response to the many questions we wanted to ask.

After having the chance to visit many of the places I had written about during the course of the crisis, everything I have written has now been confirmed first hand. I am now more convinced than ever that the “information” being spread across mainstream media outlets like CNN, MSNBC, FOX, and the rest are, quite simply, complete and total bullshit. There is no wonder Americans are so tragically ignorant of what is happening in Syria and the rest of the world when the constant barrage of media propaganda they are subjected to does nothing but promote claims and statements that are in direct contradiction to the facts.

The itinerary of the trip involved seeing a number of cities – Damascus, Aleppo, Homs, Tartus – and many smaller towns and villages in between.

Upon arriving in Damascus, the first thing that stands out is not the architecture or the traffic or even the fact that life has almost fully returned to the areas liberated by the Syrian military, but the people themselves. Many Americans, constantly tortured by media propaganda telling them that everyone in every foreign country hates them for freedom, religion, and short shorts, might be surprised to know that many of the people are intelligent enough to separate the American people from the American government even if Americans are not always intelligent enough to extend the same courtesy to them.

Regardless of the propaganda peddled to Western audiences, the Syrian people mark as some of the most welcoming, friendly, human beings in the world. From the first moment of entering the country, we were greeted by Syrian soldiers who, at virtually every checkpoint, welcomed us to Syria and then on to Damascus where the Syrian people expressed their famous hospitality. Everywhere we went for the entirety of the visit, we were greeted “Welcome to Syria” by soldiers, strangers, passersby on the street, business owners, and virtually everyone we came in contact with. The welcomes were clearly genuine. Everyone was obviously pleased and felt strangely honored that foreigners were visiting Syria and many expressed happiness that “tourists” were returning to Syria after six years of war. It was a sign that things are slowly returning to normal.

Image

While Americans may remain under the impression that Syrians are obsessed with religion, wary and hateful towards foreigners (particularly Americans due to all our alleged “freedom”), I can say without qualification that this is not true and that never once did I experience any hostility from any Syrian during my entire visit. In fact, we were shown the complete opposite with myself and others being repeatedly invited to homes for dinner, tea, and coffee following a short conversation.

While one may be quick to dismiss the content of this article as mere ramblings of a tourist, it is nonetheless important. After six years of bombing, funding terrorists, and hysterical propaganda on the screens of virtually every American, Americans know as little about Syria as they did in 2010. The average American views Syria and Syrian culture as something similar to Saudi Arabia where all the women are covered from head to toe with no rights whatsoever, where non-Muslims are persecuted, and where Islamic law dictates that such an unlucky soul who might be born there cannot even access alcohol to drown his sorrows.

The landscape of Syria to the average American is nothing but sand dunes as far as the eye can see – no water and no trees. Indeed, Hollywood and corporate media have done an excellent job at convincing middle America that these “normal” people are sand-dwelling savages from the Stone Age. This is no mistake since it is easier to hate and bomb savages than it is to murder human beings with families, jobs, and dreams of their own. American media has earned its money in this regard.

To dispel a few of these myths that should have been dispelled long ago it might be worth mentioning that the traditional depiction of the Middle East (covered women, savagery, and beheadings) is closer to the reality of America’s ally Saudi Arabia than anything in Syria. The country has deserts for sure but it also has mountains, lush green areas, coastal regions, and lakes. Women are able to drive, vote, hold public office and do virtually everything a man can do in Syria if they desire. Women are not covered. Instead, walking the streets of Damascus or any other major city, you will see plenty of uncovered women wearing tight jeans and tank tops. There are no religious police hunting them down, as the government is secular and enforces secularism in terms of law and policy. Religious freedom applies to Muslims, Jews, and Christians alike.

Bars are plentiful in the cities as are liquor stores and the general ability to be as drunk as one needs to be in order to feel like a Westerner is always present.

Religious fetishism plays harder in the minds of Americans themselves than it does in the life of the average Syrian. Muslim, Christian, Jew, and all the other branches of religion have coexisted peacefully for generations and continue to do so today. A walk on the street of any city will reveal this clear as day. No one in Syria is engaged in a religious civil war. Only in the minds of Westerners subjected to daily propaganda is the Syrian crisis related to religion and only on the teleprompters of CNN and MSNBC is the crisis a civil war.

All throughout Syria, even after six years of intense fighting and some of the most brutal atrocities the world has ever seen having been committed by America’s terrorists, the Syrian people are beginning to rebuild. Even in areas formerly controlled by America’s cave-dwelling proxies, life is returning to Syria. Shops are reopening. Homes are being rebuilt and services are being restored. This is a hallmark of Syrians which has helped see the country through; resilience in the face of unimaginable odds.

A walk in the Souk near the Aleppo citadel which, once teeming with life and shops is now reduced to rubble and pockmarked walls, revealed Syrians walking to their old shops with bags and a shovel to begin the process of digging through the dirt, rocks, and rubble and clear out their shop stalls for the eventual remodeling and reopening. Even in the midst of the constant sounds of shelling and bombing and under the hovering threat of suicide bombs, sleeper cell attacks, and counterattacks by America’s terrorists, restaurant owners and shopkeepers are back to work, carrying on with life in the aftermath and the fringe continuation of such incredible amounts of death.

Syrian Determination

It is almost impossible to put to words the determination that the Syrian people have shown in not only preserving their culture through possibly the darkest period of the country or in rebuilding their homes and businesses but also their defiant will to refuse to submit to the attempts by Western imperialists to destroy their country and their culture.

Syria is a special country and most Syrians are conscious of that. It is not an abstraction to the people who live there. Having dinner in a hotel restaurant in Damascus, we met a Syrian couple who expressed their own knowledge that Syria was a special country on every level and how they were themselves tied to that land in a way in which most people would have no understanding. Truly, the blood of the land runs in their veins.

We spoke to a group of art and theatre students and their teachers who remained in Damascus throughout the war. The girls were in their early twenties, having experienced the entirety of their teenage years in the throes of war. When they should have been learning to drive in the Damascus traffic, going on dates, and generally being teenagers, they were watching bombs drop on their city, seeing their friends and family members murdered, and struggling to get enough to eat day by day. Theirs is a youth wasted by America’s terrorists, teenage years that contain memories of the worst kind of atrocities with no room for teenage angst and resistance to the confines of schooling. Instead, bombs took the place of parties and teenage rebellion.

Despite all this, their outlook was surprisingly positive and incredibly life-affirming. “For us,” said one of the girls, “life is about living. We are surrounded by death so, for us, living is enough.”

After the conversation, as we were leaving, one member of our group thanked the women for taking the time to invite us in and to speak with us about their lives and the tragedies they each had to endure on such a beautiful day. To that, a woman responded, “Yes, but all days are beautiful. You only have to be able to recognize the beauty.” That, in a nutshell, is the Syria I experienced over ten days.

Later on, in discussions with a Syrian man, the question was asked how Syrians seem to be able to get back up on their feet and start living again, sending their children to school, working, rebuilding even as the war continues two miles away. The answer was simple: “This is Syria.” When it was suggested that the Western powers do not understand the Syrian connection to their country and their unmatched resolve to continue living and rebuilding what was lost, he agreed. “That’s right,” he said. “They don’t understand us. And that is why they lost.”

Brandon Turbeville – article archive here – is the author of seven books, Codex Alimentarius — The End of Health Freedom, 7 Real Conspiracies, Five Sense Solutions and Dispatches From a Dissident, volume 1 and volume 2, The Road to Damascus: The Anglo-American Assault on Syria, The Difference it Makes: 36 Reasons Why Hillary Clinton Should Never Be President, and Resisting The Empire: The Plan To Destroy Syria And How The Future Of The World Depends On The Outcome. Turbeville has published over 1000 articles on a wide variety of subjects including health, economics, government corruption, and civil liberties. His website is BrandonTurbeville.com He is available for radio and TV interviews. Please contact activistpost (at) gmail.com.

This article may be freely shared in part or in full with author attribution and source link.

https://www.activistpost.com/2017/10/vi ... lshit.html
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Re: Syria

Post by blindpig » Sat Nov 04, 2017 5:41 pm

Lebanon - Hariri's Resignation - The Opening Shot Of The Saudi War On Hizbullah

Four days ago we asked: Is The "Moderate Al-Qaeda" Set To Target Hizbullah?. The implied answer in that piece was "Yes, the war is coming to Lebanon."

Today the Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri resigned with a statement issues from Saudi Arabia on the Saudi Arabian TV station Al Arabia (video). This is the opening shot of the war.

The Saudi-Israeli-U.S. axis will lose this war while Iran and Russia will win from it.

Earlier this week the extremely sectarian Saudi Minister for Gulf Affairs Thamer al-Sabhan had threatened Hizbullah in Lebanon and announced surprises:

Firebrand Saudi State Minister for Gulf Affairs Thamer al-Sabhan on Monday called for “toppling Hizbullah” and promised “astonishing” developments in “the coming days.”
...
Referring to his Sunday tweet about the Lebanese government, the minister said: “I addressed my tweet to the government because the Party of Satan (Hizbullah) is represented in it and it is a terrorist party. The issue is not about toppling the government but rather that Hizbullah should be toppled.”

“The coming developments will definitely be astonishing,” al-Sabhan added.
While the fighting in Syria and Iraq was ongoing, Lebanon was kept at peace. With the wars ending Lebanon is again the place where proxy fights are carried out. In mid October Joseph Bahout predicted this development:

Regionally, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are now seeking ways to compensate for the loss of Syria as a place where they could defy and bleed Iran. A renewed desire to reverse their regional fortunes could lead them to try regaining a foothold in Lebanon. The Gulf states, Israel, and the United States do not want Iran to reap the benefits of a victory in Syria. If ever they seek to rebalance the regional relationship with Tehran in the Levant, the only place to do so would be Lebanon, despite the many risks that would accompany such an effort.
In such an event, and despite its reticence to jeopardize its Lebanese sanctuary, Hezbollah could have no choice but to accept such a challenge, especially if there is an Israeli component to it.

Lebanese politics are regulated by a complicate agreement. The Sunni camp, financed by the Saudis, holds the position of Prime Minister. The position of the President is held by the Christian former general Michel Aoun. The position of Speaker of the Parliament is held by the leader of the Shia Amal movement Nabih Berri. Two month ago Berri had proposed elections to a new parliament before the end of the year. An election would likely diminish the Sunni position.

Saad Al-Hariri was put into the prime minister position after a long quarrel in Lebanon that had reignited when Saad's father Rafic Hariri, the former PM, was assassinated. Hizbullah was accused of that assassination but an Israeli plot seemed more likely.

The Hariri family made its money as owner of Saudi Oger, a construction company in Saudi Arabia. The Hariris have Saudi passports. Business has gone bad under Hariri junior. In July Saudi Oger closed shop and the former billionaire family is rumored to be bankrupt. The Saudi rulers sponsors them.

Hariri had recently assigned a Lebanese ambassador to Syria. Yesterday Hariri was visited in Beirut by Ali Velayati, a top advisor of the supreme leader Khamenei of Iran. The Saudis did not like either. Thamer's plan was set into motion. They sent a private jet and hauled Hariri to Riyadh. There the Saudi clown prince Mohammad bin Salman gave Hariri his resignation statement (written by Thamer?) to be read by him on Saudi TV.

Irony alert: The Lebanese PM (with a Saudi passport) resigns on order of Saudi Arabia, in Saudi Arabia, on Saudi Arabian TV. In his Saudi written resignation statement (excerpts) he accuses Iran of foreign meddling in Lebanese politics.

(Hariri also suddenly claims that there was an assassination planned against him in Lebanon. This is nonsense. He needs an excuse to stay away from Lebanon and from the wrath of his followers. Saudi media are trying to create some fantastic story from that assassination claim. But there is nothing evident to back it up.)

The resignation of Hariri is intended to provoke a constitutional crisis in Lebanon and to prevent new parliament elections. The further Saudi plan is likely to evolve around these elements:

The Trump administration will announce new sanctions against Hizbullah and against Lebanon in general.
The Saudi government will slip some of its al-Qaeda/ISIS proxy fighters from Syria and Iraq into Lebanon (possibly via Turkey by sea). It will finance local Lebanese terror operations.
There will be new assassination attempts, terror attacks and general rioting by Sunni extremist elements against Christians and Shia in Lebanon.
The U.S. will try to press the Lebanese army into a war against Hizbullah.
Israel will try to provoke and divert Hizbullah's attention by new shenanigans at the Lebanese and Syrian border. It will NOT start a war.
The plan is unlikely to succeed:

The Lebanese people as a whole have no interest in a new civil war.
The Lebanese army will not get involved on any specific side but will try to keep everyone calm.
Sanctions against Hizbullah will hit all of Lebanon, including Sunni interests.
A new Sunni prime minister will be found and installed, replacing the resigned Saudi puppet.
Russian and Iranian economic interests will find a new market in Lebanon. Russian companies will engage in Lebanese gas and oil extraction in the Mediterranean and replace U.S. involvement.
The miscalculated Saudi/U.S./Israeli plan against Hizbullah can be understood as a helpless tantrum after their defeat in Syria and Iraq.

Iraqi troops have, against strong U.S. protest, cleared ISIS from border areas with Syria. Some Iraqi militia have crossed the border and are helping Syrian troops to take the last ISIS controlled settlement of Abu Kamal. This will finally open a direct road from Syria to Iraq and beyond. The U.S. had planned to take Abu Kamal with its Kurdish/Arab proxy forces in the area and to block that line of communication. The Syrian government forces are racing against that. For the fourth day in a row Russian Tu-22M3s long range bombers have supported the fight with large raids flown directly from Russia. Hizbullah re-injected thousands of its fighters. This massive force will overwhelm ISIS defenses. Syria will win the race and the fight.

The Saudi sponsored Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has been suffocated and its existence has ended. Some elements of it will continue as a desert terrorist group - nasty but with little overall effect.

Iraq has regained its national sovereignty. It defeated ISIS, the Kurdish encroachment on Arab territory and all attempts to reignite a civil war. The fighting in Syria against al-Qaeda, as well as Turkish, Israeli and U.S. interference, will continue for another year. But it is very likely that the strong alliance of Syria, Iran, Russia and Hizbullah will win this fight. Syria is damaged but will survive as a whole and independent country.

The now launched war on Hizbullah and thereby Lebanon will likely have a similar outcome.

In their manic attempts to push back against perceived Iranian (and Russian) influence the Saudis and the U.S. have enabled Iran (and Russia) to gain better and more secure standing that they could ever have hoped to achieve otherwise. Why the Saudis think that their new adventure in Lebanon will have a different result is beyond me.

Posted by b on November 4, 2017 at 10:35 AM

http://www.moonofalabama.org/2017/11/le ... ullah.html

Well, mebbe, but watch Russia like a hawk, only 'facts on the ground' can disperse their schizoid 'diplomacy', as Syria has proved a number of times.
"There is great chaos under heaven; the situation is excellent."

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