Syria

[abitdaft]

JUST IN: Syrian warplanes take off from air base hit by U.S., carry out strikes in Homs countryside - Syrian observatory for human rights.

Source Reuters.

Edit - Came up on my Twitter feed.

 

[orchard]

Sorry, who are 'all the usual apologists for war criminals'?

It had to be done. Can no longer make excuses for gassing of civilians. There would be plenty of evidence. US sees and knows a lot more than we realise and made a very precise and clinical strike, minimising civilian casualties unlike Syria and Russia.

But here we have all the usual apologists for war criminals.

 

[dstudent]

It had to be done. Can no longer make excuses for gassing of civilians. There would be plenty of evidence. US sees and knows a lot more than we realise and made a very precise and clinical strike, minimising civilian casualties unlike Syria and Russia.

But here we have all the usual apologists for war criminals.

Hold on @DrWazzock with all due respect, would that be the same non existing evidence which brought us the Iraq war?
Because at the time they sounded pretty sure and how did that turn out?
But most importantly like this russian guy just explained on CH4 news, why would Al Assad risk such a move when just 2 days before the rtrump stated that he should remain in power together with his many statements on non US intervention?
Why risk creating a break with his ally the russians who had brokered the deal with the UN and Obama guaranteeing the removal of any chemical weapon?
Lastly if they thought that in that airbase there might be chemical weapons why the heck bomb it, wouldn t that be dangerous?
It just does not make any sense.
Remember that there are many different parties, nations who want Al Assad removed, and we should definitly look at who most profits by this situation, because it most certainly wasn t Al Assad. IMHO

 

[DrWazzock]

We have seen cities bigger than Birmingham in Syria reduced to rubble with absolutely no concern for the civilian population whatsoever, all in the name of one man Mr Assad trying to reassert his control on the country with help from Russia who run him like a puppet. The US have had no hand in the masses of civilian casualties and refugees resulting from Syrian Russian action.

Wouldn't you think Assad might eventually get the message that he isn't universally popular in Syria. How many of your own subjects have to die or do you have to kill before you decide enough's enough and you have lost all respect, credibility and worthiness to be leader of your people? That time passed long ago IMO.

 

[DrWazzock]

Rebels preparing chemical agents and they were released when bombed by Assads forces? Really?

 

[dstudent]

The problem with Syria and many many of those countries in that all area are the same, one party rule, kingdoms, run by the same families for years. Bashir doesn t even register in my top 10 of worst leaders in the all region.
Soudia Arabia, Egypt, Barhain have more vicious leaders.
However Syria is a political and religious battle ground, who is Bashir fighting?
Who has been paying, supporting and arming the so many factions battleing out against him, including the taliban and ISIS.
Ok lets remove Bashir and then what? Another Lybia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Egypt?
The Turkish fighting the Kurds, Saud Arabia and Israel against the helzbollah and Iran?
And ISIS fighting everyone. I m pretty sure the Syrian people didn t sign up for that.
For once I agreed with the rtrump and he had to go and switch on me.

 

[DrWazzock]

It's a complicated situation for sure. I don't think the Americans are trying to change the regime or trying to tell the Syrian people who should be in charge. They have had enough of that thankless task. They are only making a limited response to the crossing of a red line - the use of chemical weapons against civilians.

Whatever the political arguments the use of chemical weapons against civilians can never ever be excused and deserves a robust response. I would expect the evidence was compelling, given the lessons learned over the past years. GIven the danger of antagonising Russia, such action would not be undertaken if there was any doubt in the authenticity of the evidence.

 

[DrWazzock]

So I don't think Trump has shifted his hands off approach.

 

[Billhook]

I cannot see why chemical weapons are singled out as being particularly terrible. If a bomb lands on a house with a family inside and they are all trapped and slowly the fires increase until they are all slowly burned to death, women children. It is all terrible. To be hit by a bullet and have half your head taken away and still be alive is pretty bad.
I cannot understand the moral ground in many circumstances. For instance there are rules about not shooting an enemy soldier if he has put down his arms and is not a direct threat and yet snipers can target a soldier from a mile away who is obviously not a direct threat, or someone in a room in Texas can take out dozens of people with a drone, and seemingly ignore possible "Collateral Damage"

 

[JohnGalway]

I don't think the Americans are trying to change the regime or trying to tell the Syrian people who should be in charge

In that case you might want to explain why Rex Tillerson said Assad can't have a role in the future government of Syria.

 

[DrWazzock]

In that case you might want to explain why Rex Tillerson said Assad can't have a role in the future government of Syria.

They are putting pressure on him. Shape up or ship out.

 

[DrWazzock]

I cannot see why chemical weapons are singled out as being particularly terrible. If a bomb lands on a house with a family inside and they are all trapped and slowly the fires increase until they are all slowly burned to death, women children. It is all terrible. To be hit by a bullet and have half your head taken away and still be alive is pretty bad.
I cannot understand the moral ground in many circumstances. For instance there are rules about not shooting an enemy soldier if he has put down his arms and is not a direct threat and yet snipers can target a soldier from a mile away who is obviously not a direct threat, or someone in a room in Texas can take out dozens of people with a drone, and seemingly ignore possible "Collateral Damage"

They aren't being singled out because they are any more or less terrible. The US is making the point that Assad agreed to destroy his chemical weapons arsenal a while back then suddenly they appear again. He has shown utter contempt for global regulatory organisations and so he should expect a response.

 

[JohnGalway]

They are putting pressure on him. Shape up or ship out.

So they're entirely contradicting your earlier statement.

 

[DrWazzock]

So they're entirely contradicting your earlier statement.

Just slightly.

 

[JohnGalway]

Just slightly.

Slightly entirely it is

 

[dstudent]

I understand @DrWazzock 's outrage, but I think we should get the story straight, unilateral actions like that, without real evidence, based on a belief, just does not cut it, that lesson should ve been learn in Iraq, Afghanistan and Lybia, just the current ones.

 

[JohnGalway]

I understand @DrWazzock 's outrage, but I think we should get the story straight, unilateral actions like that, without real evidence, based on a belief, just does not cut it, that lesson should ve been learn in Iraq, Afghanistan and Lybia, just the current ones.

I've always been of the mind to play "chicken" with Putin. In Syria, and more particularly Ukraine. Turn his game of "we've done this, what you gonna do about it" against him. The only thing a bully respects is power.

 

[DrWazzock]

I understand @DrWazzock 's outrage, but I think we should get the story straight, unilateral actions like that, without real evidence, based on a belief, just does not cut it, that lesson should ve been learn in Iraq, Afghanistan and Lybia, just the current ones.

I agree that the evidence should be reliable, absolutely. Otherwise such action will only make the situation much worse.

 

[hindmaist]

Assad doesn't cooperate with the US so they want him gone.The media cooperate towards that objective.Putin backs Assad.
As for ordinary Syrian folk,Washington and Moscow couldn't give a stuff.

 

[tje]

They aren't being singled out because they are any more or less terrible. The US is making the point that Assad agreed to destroy his chemical weapons arsenal a while back then suddenly they appear again. He has shown utter contempt for global regulatory organisations and so he should expect a response.

It hasn't been confirmed 100% that it was Assad ...Isis captured lots of chemical weapons in the past ....Makes no sense that Assad starts using them now ..when he is winning the civil war and risks international condemnation.