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Category: Regions

  • Homemade Sarin Was Used In Attack Near Damascus

    Homemade Sarin Was Used In Attack Near Damascus – Lavrov

    By RT

    September 26, 2013 “Information Clearing House – Russia has enough evidence to assert that homemade sarin was used on August 21 in a chemical attack near Damascus, the same type but in higher concentration than in an Aleppo incident earlier this year, Russian FM Sergey Lavrov said.

    “On the occasion of the incident in the vicinity of Aleppo on March 19, 2013 when the United Nations, under the pressure of some Security Council members, didn’t respond to the request of the Syrian government to send inspectors to investigate, Russia, at the request of the Syrian government, investigated that case, and this report, i.e. the results of this investigation are broadly available to the Security Council and publicly,” Lavrov said.

    “The main conclusion is that the type of sarin used in that incident was homemade. We also have evidence to assert that the type of sarin used on August 21 was the same, only of higher concentration.”

    The minister said he had recently presented his US counterpart John Kerry with the latest compilation of evidence, which was an analysis of publicly available information.

    “The reports by the journalists who visited the sites, who talked to the combatants, combatants telling the journalists that they were given some unusual rockets and munitions by some foreign country and they didn’t know how to use them. You have also the evidence from the nuns serving in a monastery nearby who visited the site. You can read the evidence and the assessments by the chemical weapons experts who say that the images shown do not correspond to a real situation if chemical weapons were used. And we also know about an open letter sent to President Obama by former operatives of the CIA and the Pentagon saying that the assertion that it was the government that used the chemical weapons was a fake.”

    Lavrov emphasized that Russia stands fully committed to implementing the Geneva framework of September 14, a bilateral agreement with the United States to move forward with the destruction of Syrian chemical weapons stockpiles under the Chemical Weapons Organization’s supervision.

    The foreign minister, however, reminded that the agreement did not suggest adopting any UN resolution that mentions immediate UN Chapter 7 measures against Syria, or rather the potential for the use of military force.

    “We set in that framework which we agreed in Geneva that we would be very serious about any violation of the obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention, we would be very serious about any use of chemical weapons by anyone in Syria and that those issues would be brought to the Security Council under Chapter 7.”

    UN resolution within two days?

    The draft resolution to back Syria’s disarmament could be finalized “very soon,” possibly “within the next two days,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov told the AP.

    Although the text of the resolution will include a reference to Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, Gatilov stressed there will be “no automaticity in engaging” in military or non-military actions without a separate discussion at the UN Security Council.

    The five permanent members of the Security Council have yet to agree on a final text of the resolution, though the group has indicated significant progress is being made.

    Russian news agency Interfax rebutted earlier reports on Wednesday made by Western news agencies that claimed that a deal between the United States, Russia, France, China and Britain on wording of the draft resolution on destruction of chemical weapons in Syria had been reached.

    “The alleged report claiming that five Security Council agreed on the main part of the resolution on Syria is not true. The Russian delegation was extremely surprised by the appearance of such information,” a source from the Russian delegation told Interfax.

    #Russian UN delegation says reports that the #UNSC has agreed on a resolution are false. #Syria #UN @RT_America @RT_com

    — Anastasia Churkina (@NastiaChurkina) September 25, 2013

    “This is just their wishful thinking,” the spokesman for Russia’s UN delegation said. “It is not the reality. The work on the draft resolution is still going on,” quoted Reuters.

    Earlier AFP and Reuters had reported that three Western diplomats speaking on condition of anonymity indicated that the permanent members of the Security Council had agreed on a new proposal.

    “It seems that things are moving forward,” one source told Reuters, adding that there was “an agreement among the five on the core.” “We are closer on all the key points,” he said.

    The envoys told AFP that the draft resolution would allow for sanctions under Chapter 7 of the UN charter to be considered if President Bashar al-Assad fails to keep to a Russia-US disarmament plan.

    On Tuesday, on the sidelines of the UNGA US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held a “constructive” meeting and agreed to continue pushing towards destruction of chemical weapons held by all sides in Syria under international supervision.

    © Autonomous Nonprofit Organization “TV-Novosti”, 2005–2013

    via Homemade Sarin Was Used In Attack Near Damascus – Lavrov.

  • Jews of Azerbaijan had an opportunity to develop

    Jews of Azerbaijan had an opportunity to develop

    az izPeter Lyukimson, Israel. Exclusively to Vestnik KavkazaYesterday Azerbaijani Days organized by the Association of Azerbaijan and Israel (AzIs) and Hydar Aliyev Funs and the international fund of mountain Jews STMEGI opened in Israeli city of Kiryat Ekron.

    25/09/2013 – “Azerbaijani Days in Israel is not the first and of course not the last step which we take to acquaint Israeli residents with the country of our origin, its history and culture and the difficult political situation in which Azerbaijan has found itself. The last is the most important because many citizens of Israel distort the situation and the essence of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict – it is also due to the biased and one-sided methods of several powerful mass media of Israel. It determined our approach to holding Azerbaijani Days. We decided to combine cultural and educational programs within every event. Thus, acquaintance with Azerbaijani music, dances, literature is accompanied by exposition of the mobile exhibition “Justice for Khodzhaly” and lectures on the history of the Azerbaijani statehood, the Jewish community in Azerbaijan and the history of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” Lev Spivak, Director General of AzIs, told Vestnik Kavkaza

    Mayor of Kiryat Ekron Arje Hadad spoke at the opening ceremony of Azerbaijani Days. He didn’t hide that presented photos of the exhibition “Justice for Khodzhaly” were shocking to him: “Perhaps it would be right to speak about building bridges between our nations, how it is great that we celebrate Azerbaijani Days in our city. But after what I have seen, I want to speak about different things… We all think we are educated and informed people. We follow developments in Internet and are sure that we are well-informed. And then suddenly you realize that the history of the 20th century saw awful things, and you know nothing about them because somebody decided to hush them up. It is the most striking. It is impossible to watch the pictures and feel no pain and sympathy toward the victims of the outrage committed in Khodzhaly. We must know and remember what happened there. The world must know it!”

    Azerbaijanis have always lived in peace and friendship with their Jewish neighbors; and mountain Jews of Azerbaijan had an opportunity to develop and preserve their unique culture, being devoted supporters of the Azerbaijani culture at the same time.

    The speech by Satar Agarunov, a mountain Jew who was born in Cuba and now lives in Israel, confirmed this. He continues writing poems in the Azerbaijani language. One of the man motives of his poems is love for Azerbaijan, for its land and spiritual heritage.

    Today there is a big group of writers and poets who are mountain Jews in Israel. They write in Azerbaijani. They are members of the Israeli branch of the Union of Writers of Azerbaijan and support contacts with the country of their origin. Some of them will be participants of the events planned for Azerbaijani Days.

    Link: http://vestnikkavkaza.net/articles/society/45533.html
  • Miss World 2013 Final: Venue Shifted to Bali

    Miss World 2013 Final: Venue Shifted to Bali

    The Miss WorldThe Miss World 2013 Final will be held in Bali in what has been described as a last moment decision by the organizers amid growing protests against the pageant in Indonesia.

     Earlier, the finale had been scheduled to take place at the Sentul International Convention Center, located on the outskirts of Indonesian capital, Jakarta. According to the organizers, the preparation for the pageant’s final in Jakarta had been already done three months ago, and all the tickets were sold.

    However, the official website of Miss World Organisation clearly states that the Miss World 2013 final will happen on 28 September in Bali. Bali also hosted the opening ceremony of the pageant.

    According to International Business Times the pageant, currently in its 63rd edition, has drawn huge criticism from the hardliner Muslims in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country.   The protesters have condemned the beauty contest saying, “Reject Miss World” and “Miss World Go To Hell.”

    The decision to host the closing ceremony of Miss World 2013 in Bali, the only Hindu-dominated province in Indonesia, may have been taken because of the protests. However, when IBTimes UK contacted the Miss World Organisation office in London to know about the actual cause for the change in venue, there was no response.

    Notwithstanding any assumptions, the Balinese authorities had hinted at the possibility of a change in venue of the Miss World finale during the opening ceremony of the pageant.

    “We and other security forces should be prepared. We have to keep the face of Indonesia in the eyes of the world,” former police chief of Bali said.

    Miss World contestants confined to Bali

    The Miss World 2013 pageant has been confined to Bali ever since it began early September with the arrival of contestants on the island.

    Initially, only the first round of activities of the pageant had been planned to happen in Bali in the first week from the arrival of contestants. However, their stay in Bali gradually got extended with all the activities happening there.

    While the Miss World 2013 contestants visited temples and ancient places in Bali, they were also supposed to visit iconic locations in Jakarta over the month-long pageant, according to organizers.

  • SYRIA ; To Bomb or Not to Bomb .. MESSAGE FROM WHITE HOUSE

    SYRIA ; To Bomb or Not to Bomb .. MESSAGE FROM WHITE HOUSE

    OBAMADAN GELEN MESAJ

    Subject: Syria
    Date: Tue, 10 Sep 2013 23:56:52 -0500
    To: hnurgel@hotmail.com
    From: president@messages.whitehouse.gov

    The White House, Washington

    Good evening —
    I just addressed the nation about the use of chemical weapons in Syria.
    Over the past two years, what began as a series of peaceful protests against the repressive regime of Bashar al-Assad has turned into a brutal civil war in Syria. Over 100,000 people have been killed.
    In that time, we have worked with friends and allies to provide humanitarian support for the Syrian people, to help the moderate opposition within Syria, and to shape a political settlement. But we have resisted calls for military action because we cannot resolve someone else’s civil war through force.
    The situation profoundly changed in the early hours of August 21, when more than 1,000 Syrians — including hundreds of children — were killed by chemical weapons launched by the Assad government.
    What happened to those people — to those children — is not only a violation of international law — it’s also a danger to our security. Here’s why:
    If we fail to act, the Assad regime will see no reason to stop using chemical weapons. As the ban against these deadly weapons erodes, other tyrants and authoritarian regimes will have no reason to think twice about acquiring poison gases and using them. Over time, our troops could face the prospect of chemical warfare on the battlefield. It could be easier for terrorist organizations to obtain these weapons and use them to attack civilians. If fighting spills beyond Syria’s borders, these weapons could threaten our allies in the region.
    So after careful deliberation, I determined that it is in the national security interests of the United States to respond to the Assad regime’s use of chemical weapons through a targeted military strike. The purpose of this strike would be to deter Assad from using chemical weapons, to degrade his regime’s ability to use them, and make clear to the world that we will not tolerate their use.
    Though I possess the authority to order these strikes, in the absence of a direct threat to our security I believe that Congress should consider my decision to act. Our democracy is stronger when the President acts with the support of Congress — and when Americans stand together as one people.
    Over the last few days, as this debate unfolds, we’ve already begun to see signs that the credible threat of U.S. military action may produce a diplomatic breakthrough. The Russian government has indicated a willingness to join with the international community in pushing Assad to give up his chemical weapons and the Assad regime has now admitted that it has these weapons, and even said they’d join the Chemical Weapons Convention, which prohibits their use.
    It’s too early to tell whether this offer will succeed, and any agreement must verify that the Assad regime keeps its commitments. But this initiative has the potential to remove the threat of chemical weapons without the use of force.
    That’s why I’ve asked the leaders of Congress to postpone a vote to authorize the use of force while we pursue this diplomatic path. I’m sending Secretary of State John Kerry to meet his Russian counterpart on Thursday, and I will continue my own discussions with President Putin. At the same time, we’ll work with two of our closest allies — France and the United Kingdom — to put forward a resolution at the U.N. Security Council requiring Assad to give up his chemical weapons, and to ultimately destroy them under international control.
    Meanwhile, I’ve ordered our military to maintain their current posture to keep the pressure on Assad, and to be in a position to respond if diplomacy fails. And tonight, I give thanks again to our military and their families for their incredible strength and sacrifices.
    As we continue this debate — in Washington, and across the country — I need your help to make sure that everyone understands the factors at play.
    Please share this message with others to make sure they know where I stand, and how they can stay up to date on this situation. Anyone can find the latest information about the situation in Syria, including video of tonight’s address, here:
    issues/foreign-policy/syria
    Thank you,
    President Barack Obama

    This email was sent to hnurgel@hotmail.com.
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    Please do not reply to this email. Contact the White House
    The White House • 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW • Washington, DC 20500 •  numbers button skype logo202-456-1111 

    =============

    From: Nursel Oran [mailto:nurander@primus.ca]

     

     

    “In April 2009, an Abu Dhabi newspaper carried the news that Qatar had proposed a gas pipeline from the Persian Gulf to Turkey. The Gulf sheikhdom had just finished an ambitious program to more than double its capacity to produce liquefied natural gas at the world’s biggest gas field and needed access to European markets, bypassing the troubled Persian Gulf where the threat of Iran hangs over the heads of the region’s medieval monarchs… But what Qatar and Turkey had not foreseen was the fact President Assad of Syria would have the gall to say ‘No’ to their moneymaking venture, instead inking deals with both Russia and Iran.”

     

    September 11, 2013

     

    suriye

     

    To Bomb or Not to Bomb

     

    Tarek Fatah

    The Toronto Sun

     

    While Russia and America try to outfox each other in the equivalent of a 21st century “Great Game,” Syria’s next-door neighbour Israel may end up being drawn into the conflict.

     

    After all, the Syrian civil war has taken place very close to Israel’s northern borders and the prospect of Hezbollah getting its hands on Syrian chemical weapons cannot be ruled out, despite a number of Israeli air attacks on Syrian convoys that were suspected of transferring military equipment to southern Lebanon.

     

    For the first time, Israel has deployed its Iron Dome anti-missile defence battery in the Jerusalem area. Last week, the IDF had moved Iron Dome batteries to various locations, including the Tel Aviv area, in response to the possibility of reprisals for an American attack against Syria.

     

    The possibility of cruise missiles landing in Damascus triggered serious debate on Monday at the opening of the World Summit on Counter-Terrorism hosted by the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism at the Interdisciplinary Centre in Herzliya, Israel.

     

    Uzi Arad, the former head of the Israeli National Security Council, told the conference he doubted if an attack on Syrian government forces by the U.S. would be successful.

     

    Speaking to a packed audience, Arad surprised delegates from more than 50 countries when he criticized President Barack Obama, saying the American leader, by threatening Damascus, had bitten off more than he could chew. Arad, once an adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Netenyahu, suggested the best thing President Obama could do now was to extricate himself from the corner he had backed himself into with as much dignity as possible.

     

    Twenty-four hours later, the American president seems to have received just such a chance to back out from his disastrous diplomatic debacle. This happened when the Russians called John Kerry’s bluff and obtained agreement from Syria to place its chemical weapons under international control.

     

    At the summit, Uzi Arad not only dismissed the Obama-Kerry proposed response as a bad idea, he openly questioned its legality. He told the counter-terrorism summit, “Syria is not a signatory to international conventions against the use of chemical weapons,” making the legal basis for intervention somewhat shoddy. “You cannot say that Assad violated an international convention Syria is not signed on to.”

     

    The annual summit attracted nearly 1,000 delegates from more than 50 countries ranging from India and Brazil to Canada and Australia. They included academics, intelligence officials, retired generals and police officials, and the one question on everyone’s mind, was this: “Why can’t America get its act together?”

     

    Few were aware of the oil factor behind the Syrian civil war.

     

    In April 2009, an Abu Dhabi newspaper carried the news that Qatar had proposed a gas pipeline from the Persian Gulf to Turkey. The Gulf sheikhdom had just finished an ambitious program to more than double its capacity to produce liquefied natural gas at the world’s biggest gas field and needed access to European markets, bypassing the troubled Persian Gulf where the threat of Iran hangs over the heads of the region’s medieval monarchs.

     

    Following talks with the Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, the then ruler of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani told the media, “We are eager to have a gas pipeline from Qatar to Turkey.” But what Qatar and Turkey had not foreseen was the fact President Assad of Syria would have the gall to say ‘No’ to their moneymaking venture, instead inking deals with both Russia and Iran.

     

    As one counter-terrorism expert at the Herzliya summit said, “follow the money.”

  • US: ‘Irrefutable’ evidence for Syria chemical weapons claims lacking

    US: ‘Irrefutable’ evidence for Syria chemical weapons claims lacking

    Sun Sep 8, 2013 11:53PM GMT
    36


    Key members of the Obama administration are struggling to muster support for the White House’s war plans against Syria both from abroad and from within US public and Congress.

    Related Interviews:
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    Related Viewpoints:
    • 10 chemical attacks US tends to ignore
    The administration of US President Barack Obama has admitted that it lacks “irrefutable, beyond-a-reasonable-doubt evidence” for its claims that the Syrian government used chemical weapons in an attack last month.

    The Obama White House has accused the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of using chemical weapons in an attack near capital Damascus on August 21.

    In an interview with CBS News’ Face the Nation on Sunday, the Syrian President rejected the allegations that he was behind the deadly chemical attack in August.

    Washington has not provided any conclusive evidence for its claims as Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov described the information provided to Russia as “some sketches” which contained “no supporting facts.”

    And now, Obama’s top aide, White House chief of staff Denis McDonough, has said that Washington’s claims are based on a “common-sense test” not any “irrefutable” evidence.

    “This is not a court of law. And intelligence does not work that way,” said McDonough on Sunday. “The common-sense test says he [President Assad] is responsible for this. He should be held to account.”

    Meanwhile, key members of the Obama administration are struggling to muster support for the White House’s war plans against Syria both from abroad and from within US public and Congress.

    Obama’s Secretary of State John Kerry is now in Europe courting Washington’s allies in an all-out push for an attack on Syria.

    Kerry held talks with Arab League foreign ministers in Paris and is set to travel to London next before returning to Washington on Monday to continue selling the proposed “limited military strikes” plan at home to the growingly skeptical Congress and American public.

    The White House’s lobbying efforts come as recent polls show a growing opposition to the administration’s war plans amid the US public.

    A recent Gallup poll has shown that support among Americans for a US military action against Syria is among the lowest for any military intervention in the past two decades.

    A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll has also shown that nearly 60 percent of Americans are against missile strikes on Syria.

    Also on Saturday, American antiwar activists gathered in Times Square in New York City and outside the White House in Washington to voice their opposition to another war in the Middle East.

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  • The Troodos Conundrum

    The Troodos Conundrum

    troodos

    Craig Murray

    The GCHQ listening post on Mount Troodos in Cyprus is arguably the most valued asset which the UK contributes to UK/US intelligence cooperation.  The communications intercept agencies, GCHQ in the UK and NSA in the US, share all their intelligence reports (as do the CIA and MI6).  Troodos is valued enormously by the NSA.  It monitors all radio, satellite and microwave traffic across the Middle East, ranging from Egypt and Eastern Libya right through to the Caucasus.  Even almost all landline telephone communication in this region is routed through microwave links at some stage, picked up on Troodos.

    Troodos is highly effective – the jewel in the crown of British intelligence.  Its capacity and efficiency, as well as its reach, is staggering.  The US do not have their own comparable facility for the Middle East.  I should state that I have actually been inside all of this facility and been fully briefed on its operations and capabilities, while I was head of the FCO Cyprus Section in the early 1990s.  This is fact, not speculation.

    It is therefore very strange, to say the least, that John Kerry claims to have access to communications intercepts of Syrian military and officials organising chemical weapons attacks, which intercepts were not available to the British Joint Intelligence Committee.

    On one level the explanation is simple.  The intercept evidence was provided to the USA by Mossad, according to my own well  placed source in the Washington intelligence community.  Intelligence provided by a third party is not automatically shared with the UK, and indeed Israel specifies it should not be.

    But the inescapable question is this.  Mossad have nothing comparable to the Troodos operation.  The reported content of the conversations fits exactly with key tasking for Troodos, and would have tripped all the triggers.  How can Troodos have missed this if Mossad got it?  The only remote possibility is that all the conversations went on a purely landline route, on which Mossad have a physical wire tap, but that is very unlikely in a number of ways – not least nowadays the purely landline route.

    Israel has repeatedly been involved in the Syrian civil war, carrying out a number of illegal bombings and missile strikes over many months.  This absolutely illegal activity by Israel- which has killed a great many civilians, including children – has brought no condemnation at all from the West.  Israel has now provided “intelligence” to the United States designed to allow the United States to join in with Israel’s bombing and missile campaign.

    The answer to the Troodos Conundrum is simple.  Troodos did not pick up the intercepts because they do not exist.  Mossad fabricated them.  John Kerry’s “evidence” is the shabbiest of tricks.  More children may now be blown to pieces by massive American missile blasts.  It is nothing to do with humanitarian intervention.  It is, yet again, the USA acting at the behest of Israel.

    craigmurray.org.uk