THEY BRAVE ASSAD’S BOMBS AND PROTEST TO MARK SYRIA’S INDEPENDENCE DAY. Aleppo: Apr 17, 2013 - The day is remembered for Syria’s independence from France. However today it is celebrated for the eventual independence from the Assad regime.
Thanks @NuffSilence
RIP YVES DEBAY. ANOTHER FOREIGN JOURNALIST KILLED BY ASSAD’S FORCES IN SYRIA. Aleppo (City): Jan 17, 2013 - The Belgian born Fench journalist was shot in the head by Assad’s forces in Aleppo and was taken to Turkey, however he was already dead when he arrived.
Yves is the 17th foreign journalist to die while covering the Syrian Revolution. Almost all have been killed by Assad’s forces except for the NYT’s Anthony Shadid who died of an unfortunate allergy attack as he was heading back towards Turkey.
No less than 40 Syrian journalists have also been killed by Assad’s forces since March 15, 2011. The latest was Mohamed Musallmeh from Daraa (see here)
The journalists that choose to risk their lives and cover what is happening in Syria deserve all our gratitude, for they do not have to do it and have no reason other than their moral values to do so.
Finally, for those that would take offence to the video of Yves posted above, he is a human being like any of us and like any Syrian. He was killed the same way almost 60,000 Syrians have been killed and we will document, mourn and remember his death the same way.
Thanks @EatingMyPeaz
Raising the Independence Flag at the Citadel in Aleppo, Syria in 1946. It will be raised again over the Citadel soon …
Thanks @tweets4peace
“I worry that when history books are written, people will look back and say why we couldn’t do more,” David Cameron, the British prime minister, said at a talk earlier this month in Abu Dhabi.
The UK’s recognition of Syria’s newly formed National Coalition yesterday was a good start. So far, the six Arab GCC states, Libya, Turkey and France have also recognised the coalition as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people. Other countries, particularly the US, need to follow suit. There are at least three reasons why the world must not only recognise the coalition, but support it diplomatically and financially - sooner rather than later.
First, the coalition is extremely fragile and there are already attempts to undermine it because it has failed to deliver on its promises of full recognition and military support for the fighters on the ground. The coalition was originally a US-sponsored idea that succeeded largely because of these promises. But an increasing number of Syrians are becoming anxious because that support has not materialised.
On Sunday, for example, a group of fighters who had falsely claimed that they represented the majority of fighting factions in Aleppo rejected the coalition and called for an Islamic caliphate instead. It is clear the group represents only the interests of certain opposition factions (and probably regional actors) who are unhappy with the roles of Qatar and Turkey in the formation in the coalition. But such statements, often driven by foreign donors, can gain momentum if the coalition does not quickly receive recognition and provide alternative funds to fighting groups.
The unification of fighters on the ground begins with the ability of the coalition to channel financial and military support - plain and simple. Requiring the factions to be unified as a prerequisite for increased support is a misguided policy. A legitimate political body with access to resources can achieve independence from individual donors - and control the behaviour of fighters.
The second reason arguing for recognition is that the coalition is the most representative political entity to emerge during the 20-month uprising, reversing the domination of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Syrian National Council. The coalition, unlike the SNC, is structurally open to other forces, which allows for even more inclusiveness. Also unlike the SNC, the coalition has a limited mandate and does not aim to manage the transition period on its own. Above all, it has been well-received by the majority of anti-regime Syrians.
The world has long demanded a “viable alternative” to the Assad regime. An “alternative” should be offered by Syrians, but “viability” will only be attained with the assistance of countries that support their democratic aspirations. The coalition’s leadership and structure is well-suited to deal with the challenges on the ground, particularly because it is led by a person - Moaz Al Khatib - who has dedicated his career to fighting sectarianism, extremism and vigilantism.
Mr Al Khatib might not yet be a savvy politician, but he is a well-spoken community leader who has extensive ties with like-minded clerics and other influential people. That is exactly what Syria needs to meet the challenges that face the rebellion on the ground. Mr Al Khatib has a record of unequivocally arguing against sectarianism, and religious and extremist sentiments. The first time he was banned from preaching in 2007 at the Ummayad Mosque in Damascus was because he preached about secularism: he said that secularism did not contradict religiosity and that a Muslim could be secular just as an atheist could. The regime disapproved because the talk involved politics.
The formation of the coalition has been received with cynicism, rather than scepticism, by some outsiders who view the election of a former preacher as a sign of creeping Islamism. But in a democratic Syria, institutions and governance matter more than individual figures. Mr Al Khatib was not elected as an individual, but as a representative of Damascus’s local council.
Recognition of the new coalition does not mean that friendly countries should stop pressing it to be more inclusive. Pressure and mediation must continue to include other forces, particular the moderate voices, who should know that being part of the coalition strengthens their voices - and shields people such as Mr Al Khatib from pressure from extremist voices. So far, many secular-leaning figures have refused to join the opposition councils, to the country’s and their own disadvantage.
The third priority is to have an authority that begins to replace the regime in areas outside its control. As the situation stands in Syria, rebels are making impressive progress on the ground: the majority of the country is outside the regime’s control, some of the regime’s operatives and militia leaders are being either captured or killed, and its elite forces are being humiliated and forced to retreat. As the regime withdraws, it is important that institutions take its place and learn how to run the country after the regime falls.
Equally important, a fully recognised authority in parts of the country where rebels have the military ability to withstand regime attacks will send a strong message to the regime and its pawns. The regime should know that it is being replaced and needs to negotiate a way out of power - not a way back in.
By failing to fully recognise and meaningfully aid the opposition, the world is sending a clear message to Bashar Al Assad: we are not prepared to let you go. That makes the world an accomplice, at least in the eyes of the rebels.
Crowds in Syria celebrate their independence from France in 1946. The grandchildren of these people will celebrate our independence from Assad soon … waving the same flags.
Pierre Piccinin’s Conversion on the road to Damascus
Frequently quoted by alternative news sources, a guest on RT where he predicted many sunny days for Assad and falsity in the “narrative” of the opposition and the media attention in the west, Pierre Piccinin had a dramatic change of heart when he finally was able to experience the full-immersion into Syrian reality, the arbitrary arrests on false accusations and physical abuse. He now states:
“faced with the horror that I discovered and for each of these men I’ve seen horribly mutilated by barbarians in the service of a dictatorship which I never imagined the daring and the degree of ferocity, I agree with them, I call for military intervention in Syria, which can reverse the abomination of the Baathist regime, even if the country is sinking into civil war if this difficult passage is necessary, it must be attempted, so to put an end to forty-two years of organized terror in proportions which I had no idea.”
His own site was a treasure trove for the anti-imperialist and particularly pro-Assad websites to use as a source. Take for instance this excerpt (a bit of fact checking to find out his nationality would have been a nice touch if we are talking about accuracy, but anyway)
Click the title to read more …
Thanks @HamaEcho
When Dr Jacques Bérès crossed into Syria by truck last week, his hulking suitcase full of surgical kit was perched against an awkward cargo – two dozen rocket launchers.
The retired French surgeon – who has volunteered his services in nearly every major global conflict since Vietnam in 1968 – said he rarely had to share transport with gunrunners on his mercy missions. But nothing about this war in Syria seems to be going to script.
“It’s not good,” Bérès said of his arrival. “In principle, it is forbidden for humanitarian people to travel with weapons. But it is their country and their war. We are the observers. We are just here to help in some way.”
Click the title to read more…
WHO KILLED GILLES JACQUIER? - Time and time again the dirty hand of the Assad regime has been implicated and caught red handed (literally) in orchestrating such events as the two Damascus bombings and the death of French journalist Gilles Jacquier at a pro-regime rally in Homs. Where is the evidence of this? Why it comes directly from Syrian State TV of course. In their poor job of editing (fabricating) they have made many mistakes.
In this video (english subtitles) we can see how the cameramen seem to always be in the right place at the right time and we can hear their voices (edited out of later broadcasts) where they are heard telling Assad’s forces to stop firing as they have foreign journalists with them.
French TV journalist Gilles Jacquier was killed on Wednesday in the Syrian city of Homs, according to news reports. Jacquier is the first foreignjournalist killed in Syria since the 10-month uprising began.
“We send our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Gilles Jacquier,” said Mohamed Abdel Dayem, CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator. “Jacquier’s death marks the third work-related journalist fatality in Homs province since November. We call on the Syrian government to explain the circumstances of this tragedy.”
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Most people know him as Alexander Page, which is the alias he used while still in Syria. Rami Jarah, 27, has played an important role in getting information out of Syria, where foreign journalists are currently barred.
Jarah was living in the capital Damascus when the protests started in March. Thanks to his impeccable English, he was quickly called on by Al Jazeera, CNN and many other international news outlets to describe the violence he witnessed. He also took to Twitter to chronicle the crackdown tweet by tweet. After the Syrian authorities discovered his true identity in October, he fled to Cairo, where he now lives with his family. From there, he continues to fight the Syrian regime by putting international media in touch with activists on the ground.
Click the title to read more…
The French government provides round-the-clock police security for Abdul-Halim Khaddam, Syria’s vice president who resigned seven years ago and now lives in exile in Paris. France’s interior minister, Claude Gueant, said last week that his government is taking unspecified measures to protect Burhan Ghalioun, a Syrian intellectual and professor of political sociology at the Université de Paris III (Sorbonne Nouvelle), who is president of the opposition Syrian National Council and often speaks at rallies in Paris calling for the end to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
According to The Long Reach of the Mukhabaraat, an October report on Syria’s worldwide intelligence and security apparatus by Amnesty International, the names on Assad’s blacklist also include many who would probably not be leading a new government, if his regime falls. One is a fashion designer in Chile. Another is a concert pianist and composer living in the United States.
French media reported that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and U.S. Secretary for Homeland Security Janet Napolitano discussed incidents of Syrian government harassment of Syrians abroad with the French interior minister at a G6 + 1 ministerial meeting in Paris last week.
Click the title to read more …
“STOP BARKING BASHAR, THE PEOPLE WANT A NO-FLY ZONE” - Oct 28, 2011: The people of Occupied Homs chant between lulls in shelling, murder and destruction just in case the world community forgets their plight.
I hope this doesn’t happen … NATO helped the freedom fighters in Libya not because of their humanitarian compassion for innocent Libyans, but for their own agenda.
Libyans should say, “Thank You NATO, now get the f**k out of our country”
Remember who Gaddafi’s “friends” were before the revolution…. yes, it was all NATO member countries. This is why NATO couldn’t give a crap about innocent Syrian protesters being massacred daily.
The following is a collection of videos highlighting the Al-Assad regimes crimes against children, more than 70 have been shot, tortured or beaten to death since the peaceful uprising began.
