Civil War in Syria
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Author Topic: Civil War in Syria  (Read 206265 times)
ingemann
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« Reply #625 on: September 06, 2014, 02:18:53 AM »

Is peace more important than a decent government that respects human rights?

That's not what America is founded on.

"sign"... out of respect to all Americans, who are not this thick, I will not say what I think USA was founded on.
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politicus
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« Reply #626 on: September 06, 2014, 09:41:54 AM »

In the last edition of Foreign Affairs American Middle East expert and former CIA analyst Kenneth Pollack suggests that the US should build a brand new Syrian army to fight both IS and the Assad regime. He claims that while it would cost over 100 billion dollars it would still be better than the alternativ. Thoughts?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_M._Pollack
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True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)
Ernest
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« Reply #627 on: September 06, 2014, 11:51:58 AM »

In the last edition of Foreign Affairs American Middle East expert and former CIA analyst Kenneth Pollack suggests that the US should build a brand new Syrian army to fight both IS and the Assad regime. He claims that while it would cost over 100 billion dollars it would still be better than the alternative. Thoughts?

Well, the obvious thought is that it would only work if we had the complete cooperation of Turkey.  (Jordan would also be a possibility, but I can't see Jordan being willing to take the risk if this goes badly or the US loses interest before it is done.)
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ingemann
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« Reply #628 on: September 06, 2014, 12:39:17 PM »

In the last edition of Foreign Affairs American Middle East expert and former CIA analyst Kenneth Pollack suggests that the US should build a brand new Syrian army to fight both IS and the Assad regime. He claims that while it would cost over 100 billion dollars it would still be better than the alternativ. Thoughts?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_M._Pollack


I think this may be one of the worst ideas suggested, unless it's because USA plan to inset a brutal military junta in Syria.

1: It's not like USA have been very successful at building armies in the area.
2: This army will lack any democratic oversight.
3: This army will lack any popular support in Syria.
4: This army will lack any base in Syria, and will fundamental be a bunch of mercenaries funded by USA.
5: The recruitment base of these will be exile Syrians and Syrian refugees, the first group seem to lack any connection to the Syrian situation and the second group are in no way representative for the general Syrian population.

In short unless this is a plan for USA to set up their own military dictator, this suggestion seem like a disaster. The only way I could see this being even somewhat useful, is if this force are used in Iraq and used to conquer ISIS territory first in Iraq and later in eastern Syria. Of course the way USA would use such a force would be in southern Syria at the Jordanian border, where they serve to weaken first the less terrible Islamist and later the SAA, resulting in ISIS doing even better.

So in my eyes, he's suggesting using 100 billion dollars to help ISIS taking over most of Syria.
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Simfan34
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« Reply #629 on: September 06, 2014, 12:56:30 PM »

I don't see why we should consider this after what happened when we tried that in Iraq.
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Indy Texas
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« Reply #630 on: September 07, 2014, 10:02:37 PM »

Is peace more important than a decent government that respects human rights?

That's not what America is founded on.

America wasn't founded on forcing other countries to respect human rights.

Go back to your peanut farm, Jimmy Carter.
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Mr. Morden
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« Reply #631 on: September 10, 2014, 03:56:15 AM »

Obama is apparently going to ask Congress for authority for him to send arms to the Free Syrian Army:

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dead0man
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« Reply #632 on: September 11, 2014, 09:49:25 PM »

The Fiji UN force has been released.  In good health.
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All Along The Watchtower
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« Reply #633 on: September 11, 2014, 10:52:21 PM »

The Fiji UN force has been released.  In good health.

Well, that's good news.
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dead0man
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« Reply #634 on: September 11, 2014, 11:13:46 PM »

Yep.  Not sure why their plight wasn't a bigger news story, but I understand some chick in England is pregnant....
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politicus
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« Reply #635 on: September 11, 2014, 11:23:45 PM »

Yep.  Not sure why their plight wasn't a bigger news story, but I understand some chick in England is pregnant....

Fiji is a small, remote and unimportant country.
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dead0man
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« Reply #636 on: September 12, 2014, 12:00:45 AM »

Sure, but they were wearing light blue helmets at the time.
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True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)
Ernest
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« Reply #637 on: September 12, 2014, 12:04:07 AM »

Yep.  Not sure why their plight wasn't a bigger news story, but I understand some chick in England is pregnant....

Fiji is a small, remote and unimportant country.

And they were working for the even less important UN.
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njwes
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« Reply #638 on: September 12, 2014, 12:55:35 PM »

Can't wait for the blowback from Obama's new half-billion $$$ plan to arm the "moderate" Syrians!
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Deus Naturae
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« Reply #639 on: September 21, 2014, 01:12:31 PM »

Syrian rebels sign truce with IS.
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True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)
Ernest
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« Reply #640 on: September 21, 2014, 05:20:49 PM »


Just to be clear, this is one group of rebels, an Islamist group that was both under pressure from IS and unlikely to obtain US assistance.
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Deus Naturae
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« Reply #641 on: September 21, 2014, 06:33:54 PM »


Just to be clear, this is one group of rebels, an Islamist group that was both under pressure from IS and unlikely to obtain US assistance.
Where are you getting that from? Because that's not what the article I linked to says...
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Frodo
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« Reply #642 on: September 21, 2014, 07:00:20 PM »
« Edited: September 21, 2014, 07:01:56 PM by Frodo »

Apparently Syria has more chemical weapons facilities we didn't know about:

Exclusive: Syria reveals more chemical weapons facilities to watchdog - sources

BY ANTHONY DEUTSCH
THE HAGUE Wed Sep 17, 2014 10:35am EDT


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True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)
Ernest
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« Reply #643 on: September 21, 2014, 09:56:18 PM »


Just to be clear, this is one group of rebels, an Islamist group that was both under pressure from IS and unlikely to obtain US assistance.
Where are you getting that from? Because that's not what the article I linked to says...

Yes it does, tho the fractured translation to English from French by AFP does obscure that this is between "the two parties", which means this deal is between the IS and one of the many rebel groups in Syria.  Where it says "moderate and Islamic rebels" the AFP article doesn't mean "moderate rebel groups" and Islamic rebel groups".  As the cited source in that article makes clear, this was an agreement with one group, one it calls "the Islamic battalions" which may refer to the Islamic Front, tho that isn't clear as the IF could only be considered to be moderate in comparison with the IS, and there are also a multitude of small Islamist groups with shifting names in Syria.

I seriously doubt that any group with an openly antidemocratic Islamist agenda will be getting any US support.
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Tender Branson
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« Reply #644 on: November 18, 2014, 12:22:20 PM »

The Assad regime's forces are just one step away from taking the major city of Aleppo back, according to a few Turkish newspapers.

15.000 FSA (Free Syrian Army) rebel fighters have abandoned the city today.

Turkey says about 2-3 million more Syrian refugess could cross borders if Aleppo falls to the Assad regime again.
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Cory
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« Reply #645 on: November 18, 2014, 03:20:14 PM »

The Assad regime's forces are just one step away from taking the major city of Aleppo back, according to a few Turkish newspapers.

Wonderful news!

Also can we all stop pretending to think there is any hope of the "moderate" Syrian rebels becoming a force to reckon with, let alone a serious possibility for victory in the war?

It's Assad or IS/Al-Nusra. I'm sorry but that's just the way it is. It wasn't like that at first, but it is now.
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ingemann
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« Reply #646 on: November 18, 2014, 04:56:07 PM »

The Assad regime's forces are just one step away from taking the major city of Aleppo back, according to a few Turkish newspapers.

15.000 FSA (Free Syrian Army) rebel fighters have abandoned the city today.

Turkey says about 2-3 million more Syrian refugess could cross borders if Aleppo falls to the Assad regime again.

Here's a little article from 2013 whicvh explain some of the trouble the rebels had in Aleppo

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/08/us-syria-crisis-rebels-idUSBRE9070VV20130108
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Frodo
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« Reply #647 on: February 17, 2015, 10:37:20 PM »

Looks like the Hezbollah fighters in Syria are about to get a taste of their own medicine:

Syrian rebel leader vows guerrilla war in south against Hezbollah, govt

BY TOM PERRY
BEIRUT Thu Feb 12, 2015 12:58pm EST


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Frodo
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« Reply #648 on: May 15, 2015, 05:02:46 AM »

The ancient city of Palmyra (a UNESCO world heritage site) is under threat from advancing rebel militants
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Beet
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« Reply #649 on: May 16, 2015, 10:44:21 PM »

Syrian government continues to use chemical weapons despite 2013 deal.
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