Protests in Syria - Discussion Thread

[Camera]

US, Turkey plan for worst-case scenarios in Syria

Assad diplomat to the UN in Geneva reportedly resigns and defects to the opposition


By AP and ILAN BEN ZION

ISTANBUL (AP) — US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Turkey’s foreign minister said Saturday that their countries are creating a formal structure to plan for worst-case scenarios in Syria, including a possible chemical weapons attack on regime opponents.

Clinton and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said their two nations would set up a working group to respond to the crisis in Syria as conditions there deteriorate. They said the group will coordinate military, intelligence and political responses to the potential fallout in the case of a chemical attack, which would result in medical emergencies and a likely rise in the number of refugees fleeing Syria.

(…)

In July, Syria’s foreign ministry spokesman threatened the use of chemical and biological weapons in case of a foreign attack, assuring that government would never use them against its own citizens. It was the first acknowledgement that Syria possesses weapons of mass destruction, something that’s long been suspected.

(…)

Davutoglu hinted at the possibility of setting up a so-called “safe zone” inside Syria if the humanitarian crisis, which has already claimed thousands of lives, triggers a massive flow of refugees who are vulnerable to attack by regime forces. He said 55,000 Syrians have sought refuge in neighboring Turkey, and that 2,000-3,000 were arriving daily. Recent arrivals came from the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo and surrounding villages, while others have come from Idlib and Latakia. Many more have fled to Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq.

http://www.timesofisrael.com/clinton...-turkey-visit/

[Hisroyalhighness]

Syrian Rebels Pushed out of Key Aleppo District - Army

Syria’s pro-government troops have pushed opposition forces out of the Salaheddin district in Aleppo, Lebanon’s Al-Mayadeen TV reported on Friday.
Some observers view the battle for Aleppo as a major watershed in the Syrian conflict which could decide the future of the armed uprising against President Bashar al-Assad.
Aleppo, a city of 2.5 million people, has remained the hotspot of Syria’s civil conflict since last week, when pro-government forces launched a massive assault on the city in a colossal push to regain control of key territories across the country. The media proclaimed the fight for Aleppo "the mother of all battles."
The Salaheddin district in the southwestern part of the city has long remained the opposition’s stronghold in Syria’s economic capital and most populous city.
“The next fight will be for the al-Sukkari district,” the channel said, citing Syrian military sources.
Syria’s state news agency SANA reported that pro-government forces also took control of the al-Asilah and Bab al-Nasr districts.
Wassel Ayub, a rebel commander told AFP by phone the retreat was “tactical.”
“We have staged a tactical withdrawal from Salaheddin,” he said. “The district is completely empty of rebel fighters. Regime forces are now advancing into Salaheddin.”
Syria’s privately owned Al-Watan newspaper said the army controls only the main streets, and there may still be many rebels in the district's houses and side streets.
The paper said forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad are seeking to tighten the noose in the siege of Aleppo to prevent the opposition forces from fleeing the city or getting reinforcements from Turkey.
An Aleppo resident told RIA Novosti by phone that fighting has intensified around a military airfield close to the city’s international airport.
"The international airport is operating as normal, but getting there can be quite dangerous,” he said.
The Syrian conflict has claimed between 14,000 and 20,000 lives since March 2011, according to estimates by various opposition groups and the UN. The West is pushing for Assad’s ouster, while Russia and China are trying to prevent outside interference in the country, claiming the Assad regime and the opposition are both to blame for the bloodshed.

[kalerab]

Syrian rebels claim to have retaken Aleppo neighborhood

BEIRUT -- Fighting and military shelling continued in the Syrian city of Aleppo on Friday as rebels said they had regained control of the strategic Salahuddin neighborhood.

The claim came a day after fighters with the Free Syrian Army said they had withdrawn from the front-line area because they had run low on ammunition and faced continued bombardment from government tanks, warplanes and helicopters. But the rebels said Friday that reinforcements from the suburbs arrived overnight, the insurgents destroyed three tanks and were able to retake several strategic streets.

The government of President Bashar Assad has said previously that it retook the area and purified it of what it calls terrorists.

“They are saying they have occupied the neighborhood, but on the ground they haven’t occupied it,” said Abu Firas, an activist with the Free Syrian Army who requested that he be identified by a nickname for the sake of security.

There were unconfirmed reports also that regime soldiers have begun to make a quick withdrawal from the adjacent Hamdania neighborhood, where troops and tanks have been stationed for weeks, firing on Salahuddin.

The conflicting accounts could not be readily reconciled because the government has severely limited the access of outside media to the conflict zone.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/worl...ghborhood.html

Go figure.

[kalerab]

Syria crisis: US and Turkey consider no-fly zones

Hillary Clinton says US and Turkish intelligence to examine possibility of flying ban as Syrian and Jordanian troops clash

The United States and Turkey are considering imposing no-fly zones and other steps on Syria to help rebel forces, Hillary Clinton has announced.

The US secretary of state said she and the Turkish foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, agreed to examine the possibility of imposing a flying ban, while Turkish media reported that they were also considering creating safe havens within Syria.

"It is one thing to talk about all kinds of potential actions, but you cannot make reasoned decisions without doing intense analysis and operational planning," Clinton said. "Our intelligence services, our military have very important responsibilities and roles to play so we are going to be setting up a working group to do exactly that."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012...y-no-fly-zones

She also met with several rebel commanders from inside the country (not with Riyad al-Asaad as he controls nothing).

[EITAN88]

- Forces loyal to President Bashar Assad clashed with rebels in the heart of the capital Damascus near the Syrian central bank on Saturday, a resident told *******.

An explosion was followed by fighting, said the resident, who asked not to be named for fear of arrest.

"The explosion was huge. There has been fighting for the past half an hour along Pakistan street. I am very close. Can you hear that?" she asked, to the sound of a loud bang.

http://www.jpost.com/Headlines/Article.aspx?id=280862

[BulletForTheBear]

Germany's spy chief said Syria President Bashar al-Assad's government appeared to be in its final phase because its army had been depleted by casualties, deserters and defectors to the opposition.
Gerhard Schindler, head of Germany's BND intelligence agency, said Assad's once 320,000-strong army had lost about 50,000 troops since the uprising against his rule began 17 months ago.
While Assad's grip on the country has been loosened as the uprising has gathered momentum, his forces have overwhelming firepower advantage against lightly armed rebels.However, Schindler said small rebel units were offsetting that by using their speed and maneuverability to strike quickly in ambushes.
"Because of their small size, they're not a good target for Assad's army," he said. "The regular army is being confronted by a variety of flexible fighters. The recipe of their success is their guerrilla tactics. They're breaking the army's back."

http://www.aina.org/news/20120811115355.htm

now that's more like it should be

IMO Assad's forces need a force multiplier or two to overcome improved guerilla tactics since they are quite obviously very unprepared for the level of attrition about to be brought to them

IMO bombing in Damascus was long overdue. rebels in Aleppo need another front like air to alleviate some of that pressure and loosen up the operational environment

[Hisroyalhighness]

Syrian rebels claim to have retaken Aleppo neighborhood



http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/worl...ghborhood.html

Go figure.

Aye, but it's an information war, what can you do?

Syrian Envoy to Mauritania Rejects $1 Mln for Defection

Syrian Ambassador to Mauritania Hamad Seed Albni has dismissed an offer from the Qatari Embassy to Nouakchott to defect from Syria in exchange for permanent residence in Doha and financial guarantees, Iranian Press TV reported on Saturday.
According to the TV channel, Qatari ambassador to Mauritania has allegedly offered Albni one million dollars in cash as well as permanent residence in Doha and $20,000-salary during 20 years.
The Syrian envoy however rejected the proposal, calling it a “blatant interference” in Syria’s affairs, Press TV said.
On Monday, Syrian Prime Minister Riyad Hijab defected to Jordan and joined opposition.
Syrian ambassadors to Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Cyprus have also joined opposition.
The Syrian conflict has claimed between 14,000 and 20,000 lives since March 2011, according to estimates by various opposition groups and the UN. The West is pushing for President Bashar al-Assad’s ouster, while Russia and China are trying to prevent outside interference in the country, saying the Assad regime and the opposition are both to blame for the bloodshed.

U.S. Sanctions Syrian Oil Firm

The United States has imposed sanctions on the Syrian state-run oil company Sytrol for providing gasoline to Iran, a State Department spokesman said.
The new penalties come after the firm delivered $36 million worth of gasoline to Iran in April, department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said in a statement.
Sytrol was first put under U.S. sanctions last year.
Ventrell also criticized Tehran for its continuing support for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Assad has been fighting a 17-month-old uprising, during which activists claim moe than 20,000 people have been killed.
"Though these sanctions are a direct result of Syria's provision of gasoline to Iran, the United States views Iran's broader support for the Assad regime as completely unjustifiable," spokesman Ventrell said on Friday.
"Iran is actively advising, supplying, and assisting the Syrian security forces and regime-backed militias that are carrying out gross human rights abuses against the Syrian people. Iran is also providing the Assad regime with equipment to monitor opposition activity on the Internet."
The move comes as U.S. State secretary Hillary Clinton arrived in Turkey for talks with senior Turkish officials and Syrian opposition groups.
The State Department said it acted under the 1996 Iran Sanctions Act.
Washington and its allies say Iran is developing an atomic bomb, an accusation Tehran denies.
Earlier on Friday, the U.S. Treasury Department said it was extending sanctions against the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah for providing "training, advice and extensive logistical support" to the Syrian regime.
The group is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States.

[Camera]

Off topic, but still more bad news for Assad.

Syrian Olympic hurdler disqualified for doping
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7...267183,00.html

[80 EAN]

Lot of discussion lately about Turkey imposing a no fly zone over Syria (or territories controlled by FSA only ). Do you think this plan has any chances to succeed?

[Astaran]

Lot of discussion lately about Turkey imposing a no fly zone over Syria (or territories controlled by FSA only ). Do you think this plan has any chances to succeed?

If the Turks do it on their own, why not? I just don't want to see NATO getting involved in this Syrian cluster****

[Popsiq]

If the Turks do it on their own, why not? I just don't want to see NATO getting involved in this Syrian cluster****

But are the Turks up for the requisite humanitarian bombing? They're not used to humanitarianly bombing the Kurds.

[kalerab]

If the Turks do it on their own, why not? I just don't want to see NATO getting involved in this Syrian cluster****

Turks won´t do nothing without US backing. However given what Hillary told today in Istanbul, maybe USA are past that point. Although that seems unlikely before the elections.

[Franzuu]

Local populace support to the FSA and lack of it, also an overflowing Mukhabarat morgue with bodies from before the Aleppo fighting.

[Camera]

Report: No proof Syria behind downing of Turkish jet

Amid tensions with Syria, relations between Turkey and Iran have significantly deteriorated, after the two countries exchanged threatening declarations last week.


By Zvi Bar'el |

http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-e...h-jet-1.457491

[kabooski]

Turkey not worried about Scuds with chemical warheads or artillery? If Assad is cornered what is keeping him from using the stockpile? Anything else the whole WMD program was just for show.