Obama didn't miss a beat.
He picked up where he left off. He's America's most belligerent leader.
He's waging multiple direct and proxy wars abroad and at home by other
means.
Despite pressing unresolved domestic issues, he celebrated his
electoral victory belligerently.
On November 7, he bombed Yemen. Washington's been waging proxy war
there for years. Daily attacks occur. Drones are the weapon of
choice.
Remote warriors conduct sanitized killing on the cheap. Death and
injury tolls rise. Mostly civilians are harmed. On November 8, Press
TV headlined "US drone kills three in Yemen." US media scoundrels
ignored it.
Hours after Obama's reelection, a "drone strike near the Yemeni
capital has killed three people and injured two others."
Deadly attacks persist. International, constitutional, and US
statute laws are violated. Ordinary people are harmed most. Civilian
men, women and children are terrorized and traumatized.
Obama's victory lap also included more Iranian sanctions. Multiple
rounds imposed are illegal. A November 8 State Department press
release announced the latest measure, headlining:
"Designations of Iranian Individuals and Entities for Censorship
Activities Under the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights
Act and Executive Order 13628."
Five Iranian entities and four individuals were targeted.
Accusations are part of America's longstanding anti-Iranian
hostility.
Washington claims they engage in "censorship or other activities
that prohibit, limit, or penalize freedom of expression or assembly
by citizens of Iran, or that limit access to print or broadcast
media, including by jamming international satellite broadcasts into
Iran, and related activities."
"U.S. persons are prohibited from engaging in transactions involving
the designated individuals or entities, and all designated
individuals and members of designated entities are subject to a ban
on travel to the United States. This action also blocks, or freezes,
the property and interests in property of designated individuals or
entities."
The press release disingenuously claimed Washington "will continue
to stand with the Iranian people in their quest to protect their
dignity and freedoms and prevent the Iranian Government from
creating an 'electronic curtain' to cut Iranian citizens off from
the rest of the world."
Sanctions in place impose enormous hardships on Iranian civilians. A
health crisis exists. Vital medications aren't available or are in
short supply. Medical equipment breaks down for lack of spare parts.
Human suffering and deaths result. Crimes against humanity breach
fundamental international law. Civilians must be protected at all
times.
Targeting nonbelligerent countries is lawless and unconscionable.
Washington prioritizes it. Obama is America's most belligerent
president in history. He exceeded the worst of his predecessor. His
second term may eclipse his war on humanity so far.
A previous article explained US and Israeli anti-Iranian red lines,
timelines, deadlines, sanctions, sabotage, subversion, cyber
attacks, assassinations, saber rattling, falsified IAEA hype, ad
nauseam warmongering, Obama/Netanyahu bluster, spurious accusations,
manipulated to fail P5+1 talks, and inflammatory headlines intended
to promote regime change and war.
Iran and Syria top America's target list. Syrian opposition groups
wrap up their Doha meeting Friday. AFP said opposition elements are
"under pressure to unite and bring in all parties (under) new
leadership with Islamists heavily represented."
On Thursday, a 40-member general secretariat was elected. On Friday,
a president will be chosen. Dissension and disarray marked days of
discussions.
Washington wants officials in place serving US interests. Russia's
Foreign Ministry said Clinton issued "direct orders about what the
Syrian opposition should do to form a 'government in exile' and"
who'd be permitted to join it.
Syrian National Council (SNC) head Abdelbaset Sieda objected to
being marginalized and perhaps shut out. It's unclear what's in
place.
On November 7, the UK Telegraph headlined "Syrian opposition plan
falls apart on eve of Doha conference," saying:
Ahead of Thursday's meeting, three dissident factions pulled out.
Representatives from the National Coordinating Committee, Syrian
Democratic Platform, and Kurdish minority rejected Clinton's plan.
An unnamed Western source said, "There are too many people against
this initiative for it to work now."
SNC military representative Jamal al-Wa'ard said, "The components
that were not in the SNC are not coming. The idea of a bigger
coalition initiative has failed."
SNC members rejected Western efforts to impose a solution on Syria.
Deputy Revolutionary Council head Ahmed Zaidan said, "Everyone feels
that this initiative is imposed. They've weaved the cloth but now
there is no one to wear it."
Washington-style diplomacy imposes its will on others whether or not
they concur. America, Britain and France announced their support for
newly appointed Secretariat members "as the legitimate
representative of the Syrian people."
Financial and military support will be provided. It's been ongoing
since last year. Most weapons used come from Washington, Britain,
France, and other NATO members.
British Prime Minister David Cameron toured Middle East countries to
sell arms. He also wants the 2011 Syrian weapons embargo lifted. The
measure's text in part says:
"By way of derogation….the competent authorities in the Member
States….may authorize the sale, supply, transfer or export of
equipment which might be used for internal repression, under such
conditions as they deem appropriate, if they determine that such
equipment is intended solely for humanitarian or protective use."
Cameron wants the meaning twisted to do openly what's been ongoing
covertly since conflict began last year. The London Guardian said
he'll press Obama to prioritize Syria. He wants stepped up efforts
to oust Assad.
He said he's determined to act. "That means more help for the
opposition, more pressure at the UN, more help for the refugees,
more work with the neighbors but also a general sort of:”
"Look, let's be frank what we've done for the last 18 months hasn't
been enough. The slaughter continues. The bloodshed is appalling,
the bad effects it's having on the region, the radicalization but
also the humanitarian crisis that is engulfing Syria."
"So let's work together on really pushing what more we can do, what
other steps we can take to hasten the end of this regime."
He wants more aggressive options on the table. Expect direct Western
intervention if what he has in mind fails. With US elections
concluded, it's more likely. It could happen early next year or
sooner.
On November 8, Russia Today interviewed Assad. He'll not leave
Syria, he stressed. He'll live or die there. He was frank and clear,
saying:
"We are the last stronghold of secularism and stability in the
region and coexistence, let’s say, it will have a domino effect that
will affect the world from the Atlantic to the Pacific and you know
the implication on the rest of the world."
"I am not a puppet. I was not made by the West to go to the West or
to any other country,” he said. “I am Syrian, I was made in Syria, I
have to live in Syria and die in Syria."
He doesn't expect direct Western intervention, but isn't sure what's
next. He calls "the price of (possible foreign) invasion….more than
the whole world can afford."
"My enemy is terrorism and instability in Syria."
"The West creates enemies. In the past, it was the communism then it
became Islam, and then it became Saddam Hussein for a different
reason. Now, they want to create a new enemy represented by Bashar."
"The fight now is not the president’s fight it is Syrians’ fight
to defend their country."
It's "not about the power of the President. It is about the whole
society."
"Syria faces not a civil war, but terrorism by proxies….(F)oreign
fighters (came) from abroad."
"Without foreign rebel fighters and smuggled weapons, we could
finish everything in weeks."
"Al-Qaeda’s final aim is an Islamic emirate in Syria."
He'll talk with anyone willing to help Syrians. He won't waste time
with elements wanting conflict to persist for their own interests.
"We are fighting terrorism. We are implementing our constitution by
protecting the Syrian people."
Asked if he'd do anything differently from when protests began last
March, he said, "I would do what I did on March 15 (2011)."
"Exactly the same. (He'd) ask different parties to have dialogue and
stand against terrorists because that is how it started. It did not
start as marches."
"The umbrella or cover was the marches, but within those marches you
had militants who started shooting civilians and the army at the
same time."
"Maybe on the tactical level, you could have done something
different but as a president you are not tactical. You always take
the decision on a strategic level which is something different."
He hopes Syria will emerge from conflict safe, stable, secure, and
more prosperous. He knows it won't happen soon. Washington's regime
change plans won't change. Achieving them is something else
entirely.
A Final Comment
Daily violence rages in Syria. Terror attacks are a way of life. Car
bombs and other violence happen regularly. No place is safe.
The longer conflict persists, the more public support grows for
Assad. He's the last line of defense for ordinary Syrians. Even
those against him rely on security forces for help.
Western-backed foreign mercenaries lack support and credibility.
Syrians deplore who they are and what they stand for. They want
Syria transformed into a fundamentalist caliphate. They want Sharia
replacing secular law.
Syrians want to choose their own form of government. They don't want
outsiders doing it for them. Foreign invader control will make Syria
ungovernable like Libya. People know what's going on there and want
no part of it.
Even The New York Times expressed some rare candor. It admitted that
"rebel fighters….are losing crucial support from a public
increasingly disgusted by the actions of some rebels, including
poorly planned missions, senseless destruction, criminal behavior
and the coldblooded killing of prisoners."
The shift in public sentiment is palpable. Radicalized opposition
elements scare people. Daily bloodshed reminds everyone of what's
coming if they gain control.
An unnamed Saraqib Syrian said, "They were supposed to be the people
on whom we depend to build a civil society." Instead, they're
destroying it.
An Aleppo resident "begged rebels not to camp in a neighborhood
telecommunications office. But they did, and government attacks
knocked out phone service."
"One fighter shot into the air when customers at a bakery did not
let him cut into a long line for bread. Another was enraged when a
man washing his car accidentally splashed him. He shot at him." He
escaped unharmed.
Twenty months after conflict began, people "are trapped in a
darkening mood of despair, revulsion and fear that neither side can
end the conflict."
"The most significant change is (that people openly) criticize
rebels."
"Small acts of petty humiliation and atrocities like executions have
led many more Syrians to believe that (many) rebels are (morally)
depraved…."
They "forced government soldiers from a milk factory, then destroyed
it, even though residents needed the milk and had good relations
with the owner."
"They shelled the factory and stole everything. Those are repulsive
acts."
Syrians also know who bears responsibility for months of conflict
and what's at stake. LIke others throughout the region, they deplore
Washington for good reason. They want to live free from Western
dominance. They may end up dying for it. |