By Lizzie Phelan
February 10, 2012
Today’s massacre committed by western-backed insurgents in Syria’s second city, Aleppo, sent a clear message to Russia and China – that it is prepared to violate all international procedures to force the destabilisation of Syria and the end of the government Presided by Bashar al-Assad.
The death toll of the attacks is currently at 28 with 236 wounded. Accounts from eyewitnesses who said they felt the explosion up to 20 kilometers away, indicate that the explosives used were highly advanced.
The attacks that began at 9am took place five minutes apart outside buildings of extreme sensitivity – one military security building and the other a law enforcement agency – both located in residential areas including near a park where people have breakfast in the morning. Footage showed limbs strewn across the streets and the dead included children, adult civilians and members of the security forces.
Initial reports by western and GCC backed media seeking to pin responsibility for the massacre on the Syrian government were blown out of the water by admissions from senior insurgents in the so-called “Free Syrian Army” (FSA) including FSA commander Riad al-Assad, colonel Malik al-Kurdi and colonel Arif Hamood.
There can be no doubt that this attack was directed by the west. That they took place in areas of such high security, indicates that they depended on extremely advanced intelligence – something which the insurgents must rely on western forces for. The sheer strength of the explosions also suggests that the explosives used were provided by powerful forces. Yesterday, Syrian media reported that the authorities had seized a cache of Israeli weapons, explosive devices and military uniforms in a Peugot 404 in the al-Khalidya neighbourhood of Homs.
The west and zionist forces have made no secret of their financial, military and diplomatic support for the FSA insurgents responsible for today’s massacre. On Tuesday, British foreign secretary William Hague insisted thatthere was “no limit on what resources” the British would provide them with. On Wednesday, Israeli intelligence website Debkafile reported that there were British and Qatari special forces on the ground in Homs, this has been denied by a British source in the embassy in Moscow. For those who rightly question Debkafile’s credibility, Hague’s statement, combined with British, French and Qatari admissions that they had special forces on the ground in Libya from the outset of the crisis, despite their initial denials, in addition to the Qataris brazen shows of unrestricted support for the insurgents, including going so far as to call for Arab troops to invade Syria, should put to bed any doubts about those reports.
Another telling sign of the west’s close cooperation with the insurgents is that French media in both this case, and in the attack on Homs that killed eight civilians and France 2 correspondent Gilles Jacquier, were the first to break the news that FSA insurgents were claiming responsibility for the attacks. This reveals a close and frequent communication between the French elite sponsored media and the insurgents. Finally, this video demonstrates a close level of cooperation between the FSA and the zionists.
The insurgents have been desperate for Aleppo to be drawn into the Homs and Hama fold of conflict. Being Syria’s second city close to the border with Turkey, not only is it of geostrategic importance, but its majority Sunni population makes it important for the legitimisation of the insurgents’ claims that there is little support amongst the population for the government that is headed by an Alawi Assad. However divisions along sectarian lines are something that scarcely existed in Syria prior to this conflict. In line with that reality, Aleppo has remained over these past 11 months a stronghold of support for Assad and some of Aleppo’s residents have reported that a pro-government and anti FSA protest is expected in the city tomorrow.
Initially, western media coverage sought to deflect attention from the real massacre by insurgents in Aleppo by continuing to churn out unsubstantiated claims of a government directed massacre in Homs. Indeed there is a Syrian military operation underway in that city, that for the time being has successfully eradicated the immediate threat posed by insurgents in the areas of al-Inshaat and al-Waer. Baba Amr remains ridden with insurgents and predictably the western and GCC media has accused the government of committing massacres there, while Syrian media has reported that “military engineering units dismantled 15 explosive devices, weighing between 10 to 15 kg, which the armed terrorist groups planted at some streets and houses in the neighborhood to target civilians and law-enforcement forces.” This video is further evidence of the recent crimes committed by insurgents in Homs.
This would not be the first time that FSA and its western and GCC media mouthpieces have attributed blame for insurgent crimes to the government. Like today’s attack in Aleppo, they did a u-turn on their initial claims that the January 11 attack which killed 8 Syrian civilians and Gilles Jacquier, a few days later admitting that insurgents were responsible. This was also confirmed by Arab League observers on the ground. On February 4th, in the run up to the UNSC vote in which Russia and China vetoed the resolution that would have paved the way for direct western military in Syria, the western and GCC media’s unverifiable claims of the Syrian government attacking Homs from the air published along with pictures of victims lined up with their hands tied behind their back, were so clearly suspicious to anyone paid enough attention to contemplate that if someone attacks from the air, they are highly unlikely to run into the area and tie up their victims hands behind their backs. Additionally, the injuries sustained by the victims did not correspond to such an attack, and no evidence of buildings destroyed by such shelling was displayed.
As Basel Mohaisen highlighted in his latest contribution, that Homs has been the focal point of the insurgents would surprise some considering that it is a majority Alawite area. However, their attempts to bring the area into their control through their relentless terrorisation of the city’s residents, is intended to present a carrot to the west. Homs is a geo-strategically important area because the Iran-Iraq-Syria gas pipeline, that would rival the European’s Nabucco pipeline, is destined to run through the city.
The west’s support for insurgents seeking to overthrow the Syrian government is in gross violation of international law, not least the reason of existence for the now farcical United Nations – to uphold the right of nations to defend their sovereignity and right to be free from foreign interference in their external affairs. That the US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice and company, can claim to be “friends” of the Syrian people and call for an “end to the bloodshed”, while sponsoring massacres such as that which took place in Aleppo today, and while blocking any efforts by the Russians, the Syrian government and others to facilitate dialogue between all parties, exposes to any sceptics their agenda – an imposition of western hegemony, at any cost to human life and dignity. Thanks to Russia and China’s steadfadness in upholding the priniciples of the UN and continuing any efforts to get a UN figleaf for a Libya style destabilisation of Syria, we can expect to see continued bloodshed like that seen today, as the west tries to force the destabilisation and thus delegitimisation of the Syrian government.
The prison gates are open... 