The Massacre in Syria That Wasn’t

The Massacre in Syria That Wasn’t | The Interpreter.

Muddying the waters was the Assad regime tactic of choice from the very onset of the revolution, a trick Assad’s security apparatuses learned from their KGB and Stazi mentors. So, they lied from the beginning, they spoke about infiltrators and terrorists in order to justify their uber-violent crackdown that soon mushroomed into a full-fledged genocide. At first, only those segments of Syrian society already predisposed to fearing change, that is, the country’s confessional minorities and certain segments of the Sunni community that have long thrown their lot with the Assad regime, were willing to embrace the “salvific” lies.

Continue reading “The Massacre in Syria That Wasn’t” →

Syria’s Assad: Still the wrong choice

Syria’s Assad: Still the wrong choice – latimes.com.

It’s absolutely shameful that we still have to make this argument, that Assad is the wrong choice, even now, even after so much death and mayhem. How can a genocidal maniac ever be the right choice? Look no further than Ambassador Ryan Crocker who keeps making this argument to his dying shame. People like him whose voices were silent when Assad started his genocide now speak loud and clear, their realism offers nothing by way of preventing genocide but is good at accommodating a fait accomplit. People like him are not just the Devil’s advocates, they are his enablers, for all their good intentions.

Mohamad Chatah killing targets potential Lebanon PM

BBC News – Mohamad Chatah killing targets potential Lebanon PM.

Many have forgotten about the assassination of former Lebanese PM, Rafic Al-Hariri, and the culpability of the Assad regime in the matter, so perhaps a reminder was in order. The regime’s isolation at the time lasted for a total of three years, after which, Assad was rehabilitated and was once again considered to be a reformer, a modernizer and an indispensable figure for the stability of the region! Now, and despite the ongoing genocide Assad is championing and the destabilizing effect that this is having on the region as a whole, there are those like Ryan Crocker, among many others in the Obama Administration and its friendly circles, who would argue for rehabilitating Assad again. Will they never learn? Hasn’t the regime been rehabilitated enough already? And hadn’t it used very opportunity it was given to commit more mayhem?

Continue reading “Mohamad Chatah killing targets potential Lebanon PM” →

Runner-Up: Bashar Assad The Lethal Tyrant

Runner-Up: Bashar Assad The Lethal Tyrant | TIME.com.

This, in a nutshell, is what encapsulates the essence of Bashar’s grievance: he was always second, he was his father’s second choice for president, and now, he’s Time’s second choice for Man of the Year, even after perpetrating a genocide. This cuts deep for him. And what’s worse is the growing realization that he is a mere Iranian puppet now. He probably longs to assert himself again, and that longing has always been the key to his overreach and his mistakes. Not that it matters anymore. He’s not in charge, and this is no longer his game. It has never actually been his. He is nothing but a glorified placeholder.