• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

In Honor of the Syrian Rebels.....[W:90]

MMC

Banned
DP Veteran
Joined
Feb 26, 2012
Messages
56,981
Reaction score
27,029
Location
Chicago Illinois
Gender
Male
Political Leaning
Private
Al-Qaida-linked Syria rebels hit Christian village
Associated Press – 1 hr 46 mins ago

38055bd9d36a6f1d3c0f6a706700a9c9.jpg


Al-Qaida-linked rebels launched an assault Wednesday on a regime-held Christian village in the densely populated west of Syria and new clashes erupted near the capital, Damascus — part of a brutal battle of attrition each side believes it can win despite more than two years of deadlock.

As the world focused on possible U.S. military action against Syria, rebels commandeered a mountaintop hotel in the village of Maaloula and shelled the community below, said a nun, speaking by phone from a convent in the village. She spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

The attack came hours before a Senate panel voted to give President Barack Obama authority to use military force against Syria — the first time lawmakers have voted to allow military action since the October 2002 votes authorizing the invasion of Iraq.

During a visit to Sweden on Wednesday, Obama said a red line had been drawn by countries around the world that have backed a long-standing ban on chemical weapons. "I didn't set a red line, the world set a red line," he said.

The civil war in Syria hit a stalemate almost from the start. The rebels control much of the countryside in the north, east and south, but the regime is hanging on to most urban centers in the west, where the majority of Syrians live.

The dawn assault on the predominantly Christian village of Maaloula was carried out by rebels from the al-Qaida-linked Jabhat al-Nusra group, according to a Syrian government official and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an anti-regime group.

At the start of the attack, an al-Nusra fighter blew himself up at a regime checkpoint at the entrance to the village, said the Observatory, which collects information from a network of anti-regime activists.

The nun said the rebels took over the Safir hotel atop a mountain overlooking the village and fired shells at it from there. "It's a war. It has been going from 6 a.m. in the morning," she said.....snip~

Al-Qaida-linked Syria rebels hit Christian village


Here the tuff guys Al Nusra bombed some innocent and Unarmed Christians.....even after they killed Assad's troops and took out 2 tanks that were protecting the town. Aren't they just grand and good like?
 
I got an idea:

Let's attack the Al Nusar Front too.

I know it's radical, but just bear with me on this one.
 
I had to read again: "I didn't set a red line, the world set a red line. :shock:
:mrgreen:
 
I had to read again: "I didn't set a red line, the world set a red line. :shock:
:mrgreen:

Heya Coin.....anything ya Catch these Terrorists doing some good deeds throw it up in here. This we we can keep track of how they are playing at good guys.
 
I got an idea:

Let's attack the Al Nusar Front too.

I know it's radical, but just bear with me on this one.



I figure since we are supplying them.....we might as well as get them their Hats.

BaileySpur4XAngoraBlendFurFetlCowboyHatWhite.jpg
 
Did we get anymore rewards from the Rebels? Seems they got their Tuff Guy Award here.

Activists: Syrian rebels take Christian village
Associated Press – 1 hr 21 mins ago

Rebels including al-Qaida-linked fighters gained control of a Christian village northeast of the capital Damascus, Syrian activists said Sunday. Government media provided a dramatically different account of the battle suggesting regime forces were winning.

It was impossible to independently verify the reports from Maaloula, a scenic mountain community known for being one of the few places in the world where residents still speak the ancient Middle Eastern language of Aramaic. The village is on a UNESCO list of tentative world heritage sites.

The rebel advance into the area this week was spearheaded by the Jabhat al-Nusra, or Nusra Front, exacerbating fears among Syrians and religious minorities about the role played by Islamic extremists within the rebel ranks.

It was not immediately clear why the army couldn't sufficiently reinforce its troops to prevent the rebel advance in the area only 43 kilometers (26 miles) from Damascus. Some activists say that Assad's forces are stretched thin, fighting in other areas in the north and south of the country.

Rami Abdurrahman of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Nusra Front backed by another group, the Qalamon Liberation Front, moved into the village after heavy clashes with the army late Saturday.

"They shot and killed people. I heard gunshots and then I saw three bodies lying in the middle of a street in the old quarters of the village," said the resident, reached by telephone from neighboring Jordan. "So many people fled the village for safety."

Now, Maaloula "is a ghost town. Where is President Obama to see what befallen on us?" asked the man.

He said one of the churches, called Demyanos, had been torched and that gunmen stormed into two other churches and robbed them.

Most of the gunmen are foreigners, he said, adding that he heard different dialects, mainly of Tunisians, Libyans, Moroccans and Chechens.

Another resident, a Christian man, said he saw militants forcing some Christian residents to convert to Islam. "I saw the militants grabbing five villagers Wednesday and threatening them (saying): 'Either you convert to Islam, or you will be beheaded,'" he said.....snip~

Activists: Syrian rebels take Christian village
 
I got an idea:

Let's attack the Al Nusar Front too.

I know it's radical, but just bear with me on this one.

Sure we can do all of this (and much more?) remotely, by simply using joy sticks (no boots on the ground?), since we have confidence in the ability of those "good guys" thus far unable to stop the "bad guys" from doing those "bad things".
 
I had to read again: "I didn't set a red line, the world set a red line. :shock:
:mrgreen:

Then how about we sit this one out and simply cheer on "the world's" good guys as they take care of business. Obama seems to like that level of "help" from his friends in "the world". ;)
 
Many countries have used gas violating their signatures on the agreement against the use of gas. (Geneva Protocol of 1928)

What we are considering now is, IS THE USA THE WORLD"S POLICEMAN OR NOT?



I suggest it's past the time that the USA took on that role. After all, there WILL NOT BE any Western friends in the aftermath of the sectarian/civil war in any Arab/Muslim country given the political make up and agenda/role of Islam.
 
Tens of thousands of Syrian Kurds swarmed across a bridge into neighboring Iraq's northern self-ruled Kurdish region over the past few days in one of the biggest waves of refugees since the rebellion against President Bashar Assad began, U.N. officials said Monday.

0fde5648e46dec1b3a0f6a706700acd9.jpg


The U.N. said the reason for this flow, which began five days ago and continued unabated Monday, is unclear. But Kurdish areas in northeastern Syria have been engulfed by fighting in recent months between Kurdish militias and Islamic extremist rebel factions with links to al-Qaida. Dozens have been killed.

Following the assassination of a prominent Kurdish leader late last month, a powerful Kurdish militia said it was mobilizing to expel Islamic extremists.

On Monday, activists said fighters from al-Qaida-linked jihadi groups shelled areas in the predominantly Kurdish town of Ras al-Ayn with mortars and artillery, coinciding with clashes in the area between Kurdish gunmen and jihadi fighters.....snip~

Thousands of Syrians flee to Iraq; crisis feared

Now just because the UN was a bit unclear as to why thousands of Kurds fled Syria.....and those that were being Killed by the rebels. Is no reaon to not give the Rebels/ Terrorists their Brownies points.
 
Syrian Rebels Accused of Decapitations by Rights Group
Jun 27, 2013

Militants fighting alongside Syrian rebel forces have beheaded two civilians with knives in front of onlookers including children, a pro-opposition group said.

The Syrian civilians were accused of collaborating with President Bashar al-Assad’s government, the Coventry, U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on its Facebook page. The rebels, who spoke in classical Arabic with an accent, may have been Chechen, the Observatory said.

Separately, a suicide bomber killed four and injured an unspecified number of people in the Christian neighborhood of Bab Touma close to Mariamiyah Cathedral in Damascus, Syrian State TV said today. Opposition groups said the explosion was caused by a mortar round, Al Arabiya Television reported.

Meanwhile, 12 of Assad’s troops who were captured by rebels in Deir Ezzor are pleading with the government to agree to a prisoner exchange, according to a video posted on YouTube. The men are all from Assad’s Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam. The insurgents are mostly Sunni Muslims.

Providing arms to either side in the Syrian conflict “is not the right thing to do,” the United Nations special envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, said this week.....snip~

Syrian Rebels Accused of Decapitations by Rights Group - Bloomberg

Just some more of the so called good guys actions and words. ;)
 
This was from the NY Times April 27 2013.....giving us some detailed information on the Syrian Rebels/ Terrorists. Which now we will have the FSA and their SNC/STNC. The SLA, Al-Nusra, and what makes up the Syrian Opposition.

Islamist Rebels Create Dilemma on Syria Policy

In Syria’s largest city, Aleppo, rebels aligned with Al Qaeda control the power plant, run the bakeries and head a court that applies Islamic law. Elsewhere, they have seized government oil fields, put employees back to work and now profit from the crude they produce.

Across Syria, rebel-held areas are dotted with Islamic courts staffed by lawyers and clerics, and by fighting brigades led by extremists. Even the Supreme Military Council, the umbrella rebel organization whose formation the West had hoped would sideline radical groups, is stocked with commanders who want to infuse Islamic law into a future Syrian government.

Nowhere in rebel-controlled Syria is there a secular fighting force to speak of.

More than two years of violence have radicalized the armed opposition fighting the government of President Bashar al-Assad, leaving few groups that both share the political vision of the United States and have the military might to push it forward.

Among the most extreme groups is the notorious Al Nusra Front, the Qaeda-aligned force declared a terrorist organization by the United States, but other groups share aspects of its Islamist ideology in varying degrees.

The Islamist character of the opposition reflects the main constituency of the rebellion, which has been led since its start by Syria’s Sunni Muslim majority, mostly in conservative, marginalized areas. The descent into brutal civil war has hardened sectarian differences, and the failure of more mainstream rebel groups to secure regular arms supplies has allowed Islamists to fill the void and win supporters.

The religious agenda of the combatants sets them apart from many civilian activists, protesters and aid workers who had hoped the uprising would create a civil, democratic Syria.

When the armed rebellion began, defectors from the government’s staunchly secular army formed the vanguard. The rebel movement has since grown to include fighters with a wide range of views, including Qaeda-aligned jihadis seeking to establish an Islamic emirate, political Islamists inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood and others who want an Islamic-influenced legal code like that found in many Arab states.

Another prominent group, Ahrar al-Sham, shares much of Nusra’s extremist ideology but is made up mostly of Syrians.....snip~

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/28/w...reate-dilemma-for-us.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
 
part 2.....

As extremists rose in the rebel ranks, the United States sought to limit their influence, first by designating Nusra a terrorist organization, and later by pushing for the formation of the Supreme Military Council, which is linked to the exile opposition group, the Syrian National Coalition.

Although led by an army defector, Gen. Salim Idris, the council has taken in the leaders of many overtly Islamist battalions. One called the Syrian Liberation Front has been integrated nearly wholesale into the council; many of its members coordinate closely with the Syrian Islamic Front, a group that includes the extremist Ahrar al-Sham, according to a recent report by Ms. O’Bagy, of the Institute for the Study of War.

In the past, United States officials saw the Islamist groups’ abundant resources as the main draw for recruits, said Steven Heydemann, a senior adviser at the United States Institute of Peace, which works with the State Department.

The strategy is based on the current assessment that popular appeal of these groups is transactional, not ideological, and that opportunities exist to peel people away by providing alternative support and resources,” he said.

Mr. Heydemann acknowledged, however, that the current momentum toward radicalism could be hard to reverse.

We all want an Islamic state and we want Shariah to be applied,” said Maawiya Hassan Agha, a rebel activist reached by Skype in the northern village of Sarmeen. He said a country’s laws should flow from its people’s beliefs and compared Syrians calling for Islamic law with the French banning Muslim women from wearing face veils.....snip~
 
President Bashar al-Assad


Today's Chicago Tribune cartoons included Assad waiving a white flag with the words "Chemical Weapons Convention" and the word "Syria" signed at the bottom.
 
Here is what makes up the FSA and SNC/STNC.....that we know of and from just Basic Wiki. Which wouldn't have anything that's has taken place recently.


Opposition groups in Syria took a new turn in 2011 during the Syrian civil war as they united to form the Syrian National Council (SNC), which has received significant international support and recognition as a partner for dialogue. The Syrian National Council has been recognised or supported in some capacity by at least 17 member states of the United Nations, with three of those (France, United Kingdom and the United States) being permanent members of the Security Council.

A new opposition umbrella group — the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces was formed in November 2012 and has gained recognition as the "legitimate representative of the Syrian people" by the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (CCASG) and as a "representative of aspirations of Syrian people" by the Arab League.

The National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces is a coalition of opposition groups in the Syrian civil war. It formed on 11 November 2012 at a conference of opposition groups held in Doha, Qatar. It includes organisations such as the SNC. Islamic preacher Moaz al-Khatib serves as the president of the coalition, Riad Seif and Suheir Atassi were elected vice presidents. Mustafa Sabbagh is the coalition's secretary-general.

The Syrian National Council, a coalition of Syrian opposition groups based in Istanbul, formed in 2011 during the Syrian civil war. Key people include chairman as of 2013 George Sabra, and former chairmen Burhan Ghalioun and Abdulbaset Sieda.

Muslim Brotherhood: Islamist party founded in 1930. The brotherhood was behind the Islamic uprising in Syria between 1976 until 1982. The party is banned in Syria and membership became a capital offence in 1980. The régime of Bashar al Assad, and others[who?], have accused the Muslim Brotherhood of being key players in the Syrian uprising that escalated into a civil war. Other sources have described the group as having "risen from the ashes", "resurrected itself" to be a dominant force in the uprising. Current leader is Ali Sadreddine Al-Bayanouni.

Coalition of Secular and Democratic Syrians: nucleus of a Syrian secular and democratic opposition that appeared during the Syrian civil war. It came about through the union of a dozen Muslim and Christian, Arab and Kurd parties, who called the minorities of Syria to support the fight against the regime of Bashar al-Assad. The Coalition has also called for military intervention in Syria, under the form of a no-fly zone similar to that of Kosovo, with a safe zone and cities. The president of the coalition, who is also a member of the SNC, is Randa Kassis.

Damascus Declaration: Opposition bloc from 2005. Twelve members were sentenced to 2.5 years in prison in 2008. Syrian journalist and activist Michel Kilo launched the declaration, after the Syrian writer and thinker Abdulrazak Eid had written its first draft. Riad Seif, another democracy activist, became the first signatory. The "five small opposition groups" signing the declaration were the Arab nationalist National Democratic Rally.

the Kurdish Democratic Alliance
the Committees of Civil Society
the Kurdish Democratic Front


The Movement of the Future. The Movement for Justice and Development in Syria (MJD) also subscribes to the Damascus Declaration. In a series of splits 2007-2009, most members left the Damascus Declaration, leaving the MJD and SDPP (see below) as the only remaining factions of any consequence, along with a number of independents.

Syrian Democratic People's Party: A socialist party which played a "key role" in the creation of the SNC. The party's leader George Sabra (a secularist born to a Christian family) is the official spokesman of the SNC, and also ran for chairman.

Supreme Council of the Syrian Revolution: Syrian opposition group supporting the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad's government. It grants local opposition groups representation in its national organization.

Assyrian Democratic Organization: A party representing Assyrians in Syria and long repressed by the Assad regime, it has been a participant in opposition structures since the beginning of the conflict. Abdul-Ahad Astepho is a member of the SNC.

Syrian Turkmen Assembly: A recently formed assembly of Syrian Turkmens which constitutes a coalition of Turkmen parties and groups in Syria. It is against the partition of Syria after the collapse of Baath regime. The common decision of Syrian Turkmen Assembly is: "Regardless of any ethnic or religious identity, a future in which everybody can be able to live commonly under the identity of Syrian is targeted in the future of Syria."

Syrian Democratic Turkmen Movement: An opposition party of Syrian Turkmens, which was constituted in Istanbul on 21 March 2012. The leader of Syrian Democratic Turkmen Movement is Ziyad Hasan.

Syrian Turkmen National Bloc: An opposition party of Syrian Turkmens, which was founded in February 2012. The chairman of the political party is Yusuf Molla.

Local Coordination Committees of Syria: Network of local protest groups that organise and report on protests as part of the Syrian civil war, founded in 2011. As of August 2011, the network supported civil disobedience and opposed local armed resistance and international military intervention as methods of opposing the Syrian government. Key people are activists Razan Zaitouneh and Suhair al-Atassi.

Free Syrian Army & Higher Military Council: Paramilitary that has been active during the Syrian civil war. Composed mainly of defected Syrian Armed Forces personnel, its formation was announced on 29 July 2011 in a video released on the Internet by a uniformed group of deserters from the Syrian military who called upon members of the Syrian army to defect and join them. The leader of the group, who identified himself as Colonel Riad al-Asaad, announced that the Free Syrian Army would work with demonstrators to bring down the system, and declared that all security forces attacking civilians are justified targets. It has also been reported that many former Syrian Consulates are trying to band together a Free Syrian Navy from fishermen and defectors to secure the coast.

Al-Tawhid Brigade: an armed group of the Free Syrian Army active in the Battle of Aleppo.

Liwaa al-Umma: a paramilitary group fighting against the Syrian government in the Syrian civil war. The group was previously led by Mahdi Al-Harati, an Irish-Libyan who led Libyan rebel Tripoli Brigade during the Battle of Tripoli. In September 2012 it came under command of the Free Syrian Army.

Syrian Turkmen Brigades: An armed opposition structure of Syrian Turkmens fighting against Syrian Armed Forces. It is also the military wing of Syrian Turkmen Assembly. It is led by Colonel Muhammad Awad and Ali Basher.

Syrian opposition - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
The Syrian Rebels/ Terrorists decided to elect a Prime Minister today.....despite not having a government nor a country to even hold a position. He says he will move to the North where Al Nusra and AQ are running things. That they will look to control areas that are not under Assad. Moreover they did this despite us being against it.


Syrian opposition elects moderate Islamist as prime minister

The opposition Syrian National Coalition elected a moderate Islamist as provisional prime minister on Saturday, hoping to avoid being sidelined as world powers renew diplomatic efforts to end the civil war.

Coalition sources said the decision to proceed with naming a provisional government went ahead despite opposition from the United States, which hopes to convene, along with Russia, a peace conference in Geneva that could come up with a transitional administration.

That follows a deal between Russia and the United States over President Bashar al-Assad's chemical weapons arsenal that could lead to efforts towards a wider settlement of the two-and-a-half year conflict.

Tumeh said his priority would be restoring order to areas of Syria no longer controlled by Assad.

Tumeh addressed coalition members as "comrades on the path to freedom," and indicated that the SNC would not compromise on a deal that could keep Assad in power.

In a closed door briefing, Tumeh told the coalition that the provisional government would operate from northern Syria, members present told Reuters.

It will be a task fraught with risk, with al Qaeda-linked militants, with a significant presence in the north, ideologically opposed to moderates such as Tumeh, who has preached tolerance and democratic change during a long political career.

Tumeh was imprisoned from 2007 to 2010 along with 11 opposition members who had demanded that Assad embark on democratic change in a country ruled by his family since 1970.....snip~

Syrian opposition elects moderate Islamist as prime minister
Reuters – 4 hrs ago
 
Only 15-25% of rebels are Islamic extremists.
 
And their always going to punch well above the numbers, fact.

Paul

No, they're not. The reason they're popular at the moment is because the world is standing aside while civilians are slaughtered. Those civilians, currently, have no one else to turn to. Thus, the longer we wait, the stronger the terrorists get. Once Assad is overthrown, the terrorists will lose their main impetus.

Your absolute betrays a weakly reasoned and emotional argument.
 
No, they're not. The reason they're popular at the moment is because the world is standing aside while civilians are slaughtered. Those civilians, currently, have no one else to turn to. Thus, the longer we wait, the stronger the terrorists get. Once Assad is overthrown, the terrorists will lose their main impetus.

Your absolute betrays a weakly reasoned and emotional argument.

What I meant was in terms of action on the battlefield. They're not in theatre, in some passive role. But the point you raise is a substansive issue, and where many differ. But arguing over who will fill the power vacuum, is for the Syrians to decide.

Paul
 
What I meant was in terms of action of the battlefield. They're not in theatre, in some passive role. But the point use raise is a substansive issue, and where many differ. But arguing over who will fill the power vacuum, is for the Syrians to decide.

Paul


It's for the UN to decide, via funding the moderates. The terrorists are merely providing security during the slaughter, they do not have the funds to compete with the UN post Assad. Islamist extremists will not be allowed to take over Syria, just as they were no allowed to take over Afghan, Iraq or Libya.

Sovereignty ends where terrorism begins.
 
Only 15-25% of rebels are Islamic extremists.

Looks like those links from the NY Times, AP, and Reuters say otherwise.....got a link to validate what you are saying? That only 15-25% are Islamic Extremists?
 
It's for the UN to decide, via funding the moderates
.

Moderates? I wonder what they look like...There is still no real discernible opposition, or at least one of note.

The terrorists are merely providing security during the slaughter, they do not have the funds to compete with the UN post Assad. Islamist extremists will not be allowed to take over Syria, just as they were no allowed to take over Afghan, Iraq or Libya.

There has to be an element of population cooperation, for any force to be successful during a civil war. If the beheading of government forces is a way to provide security, what does that say about those providing it and 'those' that are supporting them? I say leave them to it. It doesn't matter who comes out on top, in this conflict, none will be inclined to feel any regard for the West.

"Arendt's essay, "On Violence", distinguishes between violence and power. She maintains that, although theorists of both the Left and Right regard violence as an extreme manifestation of power, the two concepts are, in fact, antithetical. Power comes from the collective will and does not need violence to achieve any of its goals, since voluntary compliance takes its place"

Hannah Arendt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In addition, I would argue (as I suggested above) violence in the extreme is only possible with the support of the wider public. For me, the aftermath of such a conflict is paramount, that you hold Iraq/ Afghanistan as some kind of beacon does very little to convince me. Sectarian violence in Iraq is still at an alarmingly high number, with Sunni minorities constantly protesting their lack of representation. In Afghanistan, the Taliban are waiting in the wings to re-enter the political spectrum, so hell knows what the future will bring. So please don't talk of ME success stories, better let the local populations sort their own issues, for 'themselves'.

Paul




Sovereignty ends where terrorism begins.
 
Moderates? I wonder what they look like...There is still no real discernible opposition, or at least one of note.

Only 15-25% of the rebels are Islamic extremists.
 
Looks like those links from the NY Times, AP, and Reuters say otherwise.....got a link to validate what you are saying? That only 15-25% are Islamic Extremists?

Google: John Kerry Syria
 
Back
Top Bottom