07-23-2019, 08:42 PM
** 23-Jul-2019 World View: Frustrated Syria, Russia step up Idlib bombing
In an all too familiar pattern, Syrian and Russian bombers have been
targeting marketplaces, hospitals and schools in Syria's Idlib
province, threatening and killing as many women and children as
possible. Idlib was supposed to be a ceasefire "de-escalation zone,"
but that was never more than a cover to give Syria's psychopathic
monster president the necessary time for Syria and Russia prepare to
finish the full-scale genocide and ethnic cleansing of al-Assad's
Sunni Arab opponents, including civilians.
The only thing that's missing so far is the use of chemical weapons --
chlorine gas and Sarin gas -- which al-Assad used with impunity in
Aleppo, Ghouta, Daraa, and other de-escalation zones. I wouldn't be
surprise to see chemical weapons used soon.
There's a big difference between Idlib versus Aleppo, Ghouta, Daraa,
and previous de-escalation zones: Civilians in the early zones were
permitted to flee to Idlib, but "there's no Idlib for Idlib," meaning
that there's no way place to flee.
Al-Assad has repeatedly said that he will take full control of Idlib,
and eliminate the entire population of over 3 million people, all of
whom he says are "terrorists," to be killed like cockroaches. Since
there's no Idlib for the "terrorists" to escape to from Idlib,
al-Assad probably thought that he could simply exterminate them in a
few months at his leisure.
However, the fact that the Idlib population is trapped has apparently
created another reality. Since they can't escape, they're standing
and fighting, and news reports indicate that for the last few weeks,
Syria's army has not gained any ground. Al-Assad and the Russians are
now responding by increasing the bombing on markets, hospitals and
schools, but so far it hasn't worked.
There's another dynamic here. Turkey already hosts 3.5 million
Syrians that have escaped from al-Assad's violence, and doesn't want
to have to host another million or two from Idlib.
Therefore, some reports indicate that Turkey is supplying arms to the
anti-Assad rebels, helping them to hold back the Syrian army. That's
why I say that the desperate psychopath al-Assad will almost certainly
turn to chemical weapons before long.
According to reports, Turkey is taking some other steps as well.
Turkey has taken advantage of the chaos to take control of a buffer
zone in Syria, along the border with Syria.
Also, there are reports that Turkey is deporting hundreds of Syrians
who entered illegally or are believed to have engaged in criminal
activities.
The broader picture is that I remain continually astonished that there
are three Holocausts going on today in three different countries
today, all targeting Sunni Muslims -- China's genocide and ethnic
cleansing of Uighurs and Kazakhs, Myanmar's (Burma's) genocide and
ethnic cleansing of Rohingyas, and Syria's (Bashar al-Assad's)
genocide and ethnic cleansing of his Arab Sunni enemies. After
hearing "Never Again!" over and over again for decades, referring to
the Nazi genocide targeting Jews, it continues to astonish me that
there are three Holocausts going on today, and nobody cares.
---- Sources:
-- Russia and Syria step up airstrikes against civilians in Idlib
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/j...s-in-idlib
(Guardian, London, 22-Jul-2019)
-- 'Boundless criminality': Idlib market bombing toll rises to 38
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeas...58010.html
(Al-Jazeera, 23-Jul-2019)
-- Russian jets strike Idlib market, killing 50 civilians in northwest
Syria
https://www.dailysabah.com/syrian-crisis...n-nw-syria
(Al-Sabah, Ankara, 23-Jul-2019)
-- As Idlib burns, Turkey focuses on another corner of Syria
https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/origina...burns.html
(Al-Monitor, 23-Jul-2019)
In an all too familiar pattern, Syrian and Russian bombers have been
targeting marketplaces, hospitals and schools in Syria's Idlib
province, threatening and killing as many women and children as
possible. Idlib was supposed to be a ceasefire "de-escalation zone,"
but that was never more than a cover to give Syria's psychopathic
monster president the necessary time for Syria and Russia prepare to
finish the full-scale genocide and ethnic cleansing of al-Assad's
Sunni Arab opponents, including civilians.
The only thing that's missing so far is the use of chemical weapons --
chlorine gas and Sarin gas -- which al-Assad used with impunity in
Aleppo, Ghouta, Daraa, and other de-escalation zones. I wouldn't be
surprise to see chemical weapons used soon.
There's a big difference between Idlib versus Aleppo, Ghouta, Daraa,
and previous de-escalation zones: Civilians in the early zones were
permitted to flee to Idlib, but "there's no Idlib for Idlib," meaning
that there's no way place to flee.
Al-Assad has repeatedly said that he will take full control of Idlib,
and eliminate the entire population of over 3 million people, all of
whom he says are "terrorists," to be killed like cockroaches. Since
there's no Idlib for the "terrorists" to escape to from Idlib,
al-Assad probably thought that he could simply exterminate them in a
few months at his leisure.
However, the fact that the Idlib population is trapped has apparently
created another reality. Since they can't escape, they're standing
and fighting, and news reports indicate that for the last few weeks,
Syria's army has not gained any ground. Al-Assad and the Russians are
now responding by increasing the bombing on markets, hospitals and
schools, but so far it hasn't worked.
There's another dynamic here. Turkey already hosts 3.5 million
Syrians that have escaped from al-Assad's violence, and doesn't want
to have to host another million or two from Idlib.
Therefore, some reports indicate that Turkey is supplying arms to the
anti-Assad rebels, helping them to hold back the Syrian army. That's
why I say that the desperate psychopath al-Assad will almost certainly
turn to chemical weapons before long.
According to reports, Turkey is taking some other steps as well.
Turkey has taken advantage of the chaos to take control of a buffer
zone in Syria, along the border with Syria.
Also, there are reports that Turkey is deporting hundreds of Syrians
who entered illegally or are believed to have engaged in criminal
activities.
The broader picture is that I remain continually astonished that there
are three Holocausts going on today in three different countries
today, all targeting Sunni Muslims -- China's genocide and ethnic
cleansing of Uighurs and Kazakhs, Myanmar's (Burma's) genocide and
ethnic cleansing of Rohingyas, and Syria's (Bashar al-Assad's)
genocide and ethnic cleansing of his Arab Sunni enemies. After
hearing "Never Again!" over and over again for decades, referring to
the Nazi genocide targeting Jews, it continues to astonish me that
there are three Holocausts going on today, and nobody cares.
---- Sources:
-- Russia and Syria step up airstrikes against civilians in Idlib
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/j...s-in-idlib
(Guardian, London, 22-Jul-2019)
-- 'Boundless criminality': Idlib market bombing toll rises to 38
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeas...58010.html
(Al-Jazeera, 23-Jul-2019)
-- Russian jets strike Idlib market, killing 50 civilians in northwest
Syria
https://www.dailysabah.com/syrian-crisis...n-nw-syria
(Al-Sabah, Ankara, 23-Jul-2019)
-- As Idlib burns, Turkey focuses on another corner of Syria
https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/origina...burns.html
(Al-Monitor, 23-Jul-2019)
