The Syrian Crisis

[W.G.Ewald]

BBC News - Syria conflict: UK to give extra £5m to opposition groups

Foreign Secretary William Hague says the UK's commitment of an extra £5m in non-lethal equipment to Syrian opposition groups is "the right thing to do" and will "help save lives".

The help for unarmed opposition members will include medical supplies and radio and satellite equipment.

But it will not include weapons and is in addition to £27.5m humanitarian aid.

The BBC's James Robbins says the move is a significant shift in policy after frustration about Syria's opposition.

Aside from concerns about divisions within the opposition, there have also been complaints that it has failed to set out a clear programme for good government, our correspondent added.

Speaking at a press conference, Mr Hague said the funding would go to "unarmed opposition groups, human rights activists and civilians" and that Britain was speaking to people from the political arm of the Free Syrian Army, an armed rebel group which is opposed to President Bashar al-Assad.

 

[Kunal Biswas]

Really? That's the regular Syrian Army? No boots, mixed helmet types (US & Russian I guess) or no helmet and uniform with civvie shirts...

No MOUT formations displayed. Very odd.

Daily mail publication..

I guess reservists..

 

[Apollyon]

Propaganda only works on the naive and the ignorant!

The rebels only seemed to be close to winning because assad hadn't gone ahead full throttle to crush them...he was still interested in a diplomatic negotiation but the bombing of his inner circle tipped the balance and all bets were off. And yes the propaganda was working overtime for the rest of the world.

The time Assad start countering those rebels with full force, western peace seeking democracies will declare a no-fly zone and then a full blown war. The Syrian Armed Forces had repelled those rebels from the Aleppo (major economic and industrial hub), indeed a good news. As been stated by Major-General Adnan Silou (who defected to Turkey), former head of Syria's chemical weapons program :

Deploy them against whom? The rebels or civilians?

Silou: He'd use them against everyone, rebels and civilians. This would be total destruction. These weapons hurt everyone.

Lebanon news - NOW Lebanon -Will Assad go chemical?

Long Live Assad

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Daily mail publication..

I guess reservists..

That they are reservists makes sense and explains their appearance. I wonder how many reservists may have gone over to FSA.

 

[pmaitra]

The rebels also have 12.7 mm ZPU and 23 mm ZU-23-2 Ack-Ack guns.

12.7 mm ZPU

23 mm ZU-23-2

 

[W.G.Ewald]

The rebels also have 12.7 mm ZPU and 23 mm ZU-23-2 Ack-Ack guns.

Iranian Zu-23-2

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Turkey training Syria rebels, says FSA fighter | Ya Libnan | World News Live from Lebanon

Just a few months ago, Thwaiba Kanafani was leading a normal life with her husband, six-year-old son and three-year-old daughter in Canada.

An engineer by training, she had been working in the oil industry.

But now she has left all that behind.

When we met up in the city of Adana in southern Turkey, she had just fled across the border from the Syrian city of Aleppo after a mission with rebel forces that went wrong.

Two male colleagues who were acting as her minders, were killed.

At the end of June she joined the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and was given a particularly dangerous role to fulfil.

As a woman she has able to move more easily around the streets of Aleppo than the men.

"Lots of women are working with me and we do a lot of spying work," she says.

"We usually check the locations of regime people [military forces] and check where would be the best points to locate the Free Syrian Army.

"We also spy on high-ranking people in the government so we can help the FSA arrest and capture them."

In the midst of all this, she speaks on the phone with her family every day to reassure them she is fine.

"I wonder why I am not afraid of being shot through the head," she says pointing to her forehead.
"But sometimes when you face death, you lose your fear."

'Secret nerve centre'
Thwaiba Kanafani is one of a growing number of Syrians without any previous military experience who have joined the rebels.

There is a special training programme based in Turkey at secret camps run by the Turkish military, she says.

"The Turkish people are really helping us. Lots of people are getting training in those camps."

"The training is really professional. You can only sleep four hours a day.

"You have to climb mountains, you get weapons training. It's hard work."

Qatar and Saudi Arabia are also reported to be providing assistance for what has been described as a secret nerve centre for military aid and communications for the Syrian rebels.

This is reported to have been set up in Adana.

None of these countries has confirmed the existence of the base.

Separately, Syrian opposition sources have told the BBC they have been called to meetings with foreigners in Istanbul in recent weeks to discuss recruiting volunteers from different cities in Syria to staff an "operation room" in Turkey.

The aim is to co-ordinate and plan rebel actions and the supply of weapons.

Turkey has denied supplying weapons to the Syrian rebels.

Covert help
The failure of the United Nations to reach agreement on how to resolve the Syrian crisis seems to have spurred a number of countries to step up unilateral assistance to rebel forces.

It has been reported in recent days that US President Barack Obama has given the go-ahead for covert help to be provided, although it is not clear what kind of assistance is being considered.

On Friday the British government confirmed it would provide more communications equipment to the rebels next month.

The rebels themselves have been asking the international community for many months for much more sophisticated weapons, including portable anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles.

This, they believe, would turn the tide of the conflict decisively in their favour.

At the moment helicopter gunships and fighter jets of the Syrian armed forces are able to carry out frequent attacks on rebel positions and tanks are being used in all major operations.

But so far countries backing the rebels have been reluctant, fearing the consequences of such weapons getting into the hands of jihadi groups now operating inside Syria.

BBC

 

[W.G.Ewald]

The rebels also have 12.7 mm ZPU and 23 mm ZU-23-2 Ack-Ack guns.

They would need trained gunners and organizational support for them, too.

 

[Daredevil]

The rebels are on retreat and are moving out of Aleppo in hordes with no sleep for last 2 days due to continuous shelling by Syrian Army.

What does Armand has to say on this?. IS FSA still holding the Aleppo?.

 

[Apollyon]

The rebels are on retreat and are moving out of Aleppo in hordes with no sleep for last 2 days due to continuous shelling by Syrian Army.

What does Armand has to say on this?. IS FSA still holding the Aleppo?.

It's a conspiracy, how could Syrian Armed Forces out-class the FSA which are being trained by the French (who are known for Bravery throughout history)

 

[pmaitra]

They would need trained gunners and organizational support for them, too.

Old report from BBC: Syria crisis: Turkey training rebels, says FSA fighter

 

[pmaitra]

Syrian unrest: Aleppo clashes spark rise in refugees

Syrian civilians are fleeing the city of Aleppo in increasing numbers, the UN says, amid a lull in fighting between rebels and government forces.

Source: BBC News - Syrian unrest: Aleppo clashes spark rise in refugees

 

[Kunal Biswas]

They would need trained gunners and organizational support for them, too.

In Libya war Libyan Army defected & Joined the rebels trained them how to use ( Feed, Aim & fire ) rest they simply used them mainly against ground targets ( 23m HE rounds ) with some very impressive results..

Now same Libyan rebels fighting here Also there are many Syrian Army who joined the rebels teaching them..

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Long Live Assad

If he is forced to leave, he probably has a better exit strategy than Gaddafi did.

 

[pmaitra]

Syrian rebels accused of war crimes

Human rights groups have accused Syrian rebels of war crimes for carrying out summary executions and imposing arbitrary justice on hundreds of regime detainees consigned to makeshift prisons.

Source: Syrian rebels accused of war crimes - Telegraph

 

[pmaitra]

Is there a moral distinction between providing guns that deal death directly, and phones that help the process?

Is there a moral distinction between providing guns that deal death directly, and phones that help the process? – Telegraph Blogs

Funny comments:

emmiem
53 minutes ago
Hague always was a clever dick. -I used to admire him in his earlier days for his wit and his easy humour. -Clearly he's undergone a great deal of brainwashing in the interim or he's controlled from Central NWO via an implant. -He has morphed into an odious lying toad; unrecognizable now from his earlier persona.-

This is some kind of proxy war with Russia and Iran though it's unclear what they are trying to achieve beyond installing the Muslim Brotherhood in every nation with a bloody and revolutionary regime change. -The Arab 'Spring' is about to become the Muslim 'Winter'.-

Maybe the Washington, Tel Aviv and London plan is to surround Israel with hostile aggressive muslimists giving the west the excuse they need to blame the Iranians for any attacks against Israel. -Who knows what the psychopaths are really plotting but whatever it turns out to be it's sure to involve us all in WW3.-
[HR][/HR]
BlueScreenOfDeath
2 hours ago
Why are we spending blood and treasure fighting Islamic fundamentalist swine such as the Taliban and al Quaida in Afghanistan and supporting them in Libya and now Syria?

Admittedly Quadaffi and Assad were/are not particularly pleasant individuals, but under them their states were relatively stable and minorities such as the Christians were permitted to survive and even worship, things that the so-called "freedom fighters" in Syria have already taken steps to prevent.

And in Libya, the "freedom fighters" are demonstrating their gratitude by destroying our war cemeteries.

Crazy stuff.
[HR][/HR]
Scuzza Man
5 hours ago
The UK government is 'investing' in future conflict and associated arms sales. That it never asks the people of the UK if they want to be thus involved in other people's wars, never seems to concern them. They're doing it for the profit of the people who pay their election campaign costs and employ them for their influence after their political careers end. That's who they represent.

The UK is also signatory to the UN treaties banning aggressive warfare - i.e. the invasion of other nations that have not attacked yours - but it along with many western nations have constantly broken these treaties.

We will never improve ourselves while we continue to lie about our nature, our actions, and the reasons for them.

 

[Known_Unknown]

This is the right time for Russia to export large quantities of S-300's to Syria. Also a few nuke tipped ICBM's won't hurt.......in fact those are probably the only things that will bring the conflict to an immediate halt.

 

[pmaitra]

Qatar offered Syrian ambassador $5.8mn for defection - report

Qatar's ambassador in Mauritania allegedly offered his Syrian counterpart an advance payment of US$1 million and a monthly salary of $20,000 over 20 years, trying to convince the diplomat to defect and voice support for the opposition.

Hamad Seed Albni was also offered a permanent residence in the Qatari capital Doha, but refused the proposition, claims Lebanese-based Al-Manar TV. The diplomat reportedly called the offer a "blatant interference" in Syria's affairs and warned not to come up with such initiatives anymore.

Bashar al-Assad's government has endured a number of high-profile defections recently. Diplomats representing Syria in the United Arab Emirates and Iraq, Abdel Latif al-Dabbagh and Nawaf al-Fares, abandoned their positions and so did the country's Prime Minister Riyad Hijab. The officials explained their defections, saying they could not work for a regime oppressing its own people

Damascus says Qatar uses its financial resources to promote defections among the ranks of Syrian officials. Doha reportedly allocated $300 million for the purpose, Iran's Fars news agency claimed.

Source: Qatar offered Syrian ambassador $5.8mn for defection - report — RT

 

[Kunal Biswas]

:cool2:

 

[SajeevJino]

This is the right time for Russia to export large quantities of S-300's to Syria. Also a few nuke tipped ICBM's won't hurt.......in fact those are probably the only things that will bring the conflict to an immediate halt.

That's nice suggestion ...If Russian does that things to Syria ..rebels easily capture the Nuke tip ICBM's and the S300 defense system..then they sell to some terrorist groups to start the

Did you know syrian rebels have tanks and small air defence system ....