Russia and Syria

[Royal]

U.S. Bolsters Ties to Fighters in Syria
CIA Helping With Logistics but Not Arms, Officials Say
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142 ... lenews_wsj

"As part of the efforts, the Central Intelligence Agency and State Department—working with Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and other allies—are helping the opposition Free Syrian Army develop logistical routes for moving supplies into Syria and providing communications training."

"U.S. officials also are considering sharing intelligence with the Free Syrian Army, or FSA, to allow the rebels to evade pro-Assad forces, which are believed to be getting intelligence, arms ..."

[Pigeon]

Of course the US is in the 'war in Syria'. That's what the US does. Mid East is high stakes. Romney, if president, will be all over that place also.

[Royal]

U.S. military completes planning for Syria
By Barbara Starr

The U.S. military has completed its own planning for how American troops would conduct a variety of operations against Syria, or to assist neighboring countries in the event action was ordered, officials tell CNN.

In recent weeks, the Pentagon has finalized its assessment of what types of units would be needed, how many troops, and even the cost of certain potential operations, officials tell CNN.

The planning comes as the U.S. has become increasingly concerned that the violence in Syria is verging on civil war. Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the recent series of bombings have heightened the worry.

Dempsey said it reminded him of the escalating violence during the Iraq war.

[Royal]

Of course the US is in the 'war in Syria'. That's what the US does. Mid East is high stakes. Romney, if president, will be all over that place also.

Write in "Barrit Obamney" or "Ron Paul".

[Pana]

Fuck that.

Israel (what Israel wants Israel gets) wants Syria out and the real target here for the US is Iran which supports Syria.

There' been civil war raging in Darfur for fucking years, hundreds of thousand dead/tortured/mutilated and millions displaced. When the hell did the US provide planning to help that out?

[Royal]

Fuck that.

Israel (what Israel wants Israel gets) wants Syria out and the real target here for the US is Iran which supports Syria.

There' been civil war raging in Darfur for fucking years, hundreds of thousand dead/tortured/mutilated and millions displaced. When the hell did the US provide planning to help that out?

China sold them weapons. Is it there investment? The world probably left that mess for them to clean up.

[Pigeon]

Might China and Russia feel they are losing their last foot hold in the mid east.

[Royal]

This visualisation tracks senior military officials, members of parliament and diplomats who quit Assad's regime.
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/intera ... 48158.html

Sheikh Tawfiq, commander of the Nur al-Din Zinky brigade based on 15th street in Salaheddin, said the army's formidable weaponry was offset by apparently faltering morale."At the 10th street front line we are face-to-face with the army and can hear them make orders on their radios. We hear their commanders give orders to soldiers to advance and they keep urging them to, but the soldiers don't and are hesitant."
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeas ... 76892.html

[Pigeon]

Sinking ship. No one wants to stick around.

[Royal]

Wondering if the administration regrets making the "red line" remark concerning chemical weapons:

Syrian Blood Tests Positive for Sarin Gas, U.S. Spies Say
BY NOAH SHACHTMAN AND SPENCER ACKERMAN04.25.13

Updated 4:49 p.m.

The U.S. intelligence community has uncovered strong evidence that chemical weapons have been used in Syria. Several blood samples, taken from multiple people, have tested positive for the nerve agent sarin, an American intelligence source tells Danger Room. President Obama has long said that the use of such a weapon by the Assad regime would cross a “red line.” So now the question becomes: What will the White House do in response?

In March, the Assad regime was accused of using chemical weapons during an attack on the city of Aleppo. The blood samples were taken by Syrian opposition groups from alleged victims of that strike. But American analysts can’t be entirely sure where the blood came from or when the precisely exposure took place.

“This is more than one organization representing that they have more than one sample from more than one attack,” the source tells Danger Room. “But we can’t confirm anything because no is really sure what’s going on in country.”

...

According to the Financial Times, one blood sample was analyzed by American analysts, while the other was examined by Britain’s Defence Science Technology Laboratory.

Exactly when the results came back isn’t clear. But only days ago, the Obama administration was throwing cold water on reports from Israeli and British officials of chemical weapon use in Syria. (“We have not come to the conclusion that there has been that use,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Tuesday.) But that changed Thursday morning, when the White House issued a letter (.pdf) to Senators Carl Levin and John McCain confirming the sarin discovery.

“Our intelligence community does assess with varying degrees of confidence that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale in Syria, specially the chemical agent sarin. This assessment is based on physiological samples,” the letter reads. “Our standard of evidence must build on these intelligence assessments as we seek to establish credible and corroborated facts. For example, the chain of custody is not clear, so we cannot confirm how the exposure occurred and under what conditions.”

It’s not at all clear how the Obama administration will now respond. While everyone from the President on down has warned the Assad regime not to use its chemical arms, the White House has been extremely careful not to “pin the administration down on any particular course of action while at the same time not giving Assad any comfort,” Steven Simon, who served as the National Security Council’s director for the Mideast until December, tells Danger Room. “There’s no automaticity to any response.”

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2013/04 ... ted-blood/