It should be easy to verify this situation in Raqqa. Should The USA and NATO now give the green flag to Assad to carry out Airstrikes. Israel got the green flag to take out certain weapons. Or will it be a case of Double Standards?.
The black flag of al-Qaeda flies high over Raqqa’s main square in front of the
smart new governor’s palace, its former occupant last seen in their prison.
Their fighters, clad also in black, patrol the streets, or set up positions
behind sandbags.

Why ask us?

Apparently you know everything going on in Syria.

Why ain't you calling the shots?

You got the situation "verified".

Go do something about it.

I don't care if you like Bashar or the rebels...go end the war or else I will just think of you as some guy sitting behind a computer who doesn't actually try to make things better...

Just gripes about it like Americans.

We are all experts here on Mingle (some more than others). One big happy family.

Since early 2011, Obama’s been waging proxy war on Syria. Imported death squads masquerade as freedom fighters. The scheme’s familiar. It repeats. It reflects US imperialism’s dark side.

In the 1980s, CIA-recruited Mujahideen fighters battled Afghanistan’s Soviet occupiers. Ronald Reagan called them “the moral equivalent of our founding fathers.” He characterized Contra killers the same way.

Naked aggression is called humanitarian intervention. New wars follow earlier ones. Ravaging humanity is called liberation. Propaganda convinces people that America is threatened. Truth is turned on its head.

Syria is Washington’s latest target. Plans haven’t gone as expected. Ousting another government was supposed to be easy. US-enlisted terrorists are no match against Syria’s military superiority.

Implementing Plan B looms. It could come any time. Obama’s heading toward full-scale intervention. Pretexts are easy to create. Assad’s been falsely blamed for numerous insurgent massacres. Evidence showed he had nothing to do with them.

More recently, he was unjustifiably accused of using chemical weapons. Insurgents used them several times. A previous article said Pentagon contractors trained them in their use. This is how imperial America operates.

Another previous article discussed a US-hatched scheme. It cited a no longer available UK Daily Mail article, saying:

“Leaked emails have allegedly proved that the White House gave the green light to a chemical weapons attack in Syria that could be blamed on Assad’s regime and in turn, spur international military action in the devastated country.”

“A report released on Monday contains an email exchange between two senior officials at British-based contractor Britam Defence where a scheme ‘approved by Washington’ is outlined explaining that Qatar would fund rebel forces in Syria to use chemical weapons.”

“Barack Obama made it clear to Syrian president Bashar al-Assad last month that the US would not tolerate Syria using chemical weapons against its own people.”

On Saturday, two car bombs exploded outside Reyhanli, Turkey’s city hall. Prime Minister Erdogan’s heading for Washington later this week.

It wasn’t coincidental that bombings killed and injured Turkish citizens days before his arrival. It’s red meat for him and Obama to discuss.

Reyhanli’s close to Syria’s border. It’s a hub for Syrian refugees and anti-Assad insurgents.

Dozens were killed. Many more were injured. Buildings were destroyed. Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc said:

“We know that the Syrian refugees have become a target of the Syrian regime. Reyhanli was not chosen by coincidence.”

“Our thoughts are that their Mukhabarat (Syrian intelligence) and armed organizations are the usual suspects in planning and the carrying out of such devilish plans,” he added.

Turkey will “do whatever is necessary” if Syria ordered the attack.

Hurriyet Daily News said:

“Officials confirm(ed) link with Syrian intelligence.” Interior Minister Muammer Guler and Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay were cited.

Atalay said:

“We have to a great extent completed our work toward identifying the assailants.” How and what evidence corroborates it within hours of the attack he didn’t explain.

Legitimate forensic and other information gathering requires considerable time and analysis. A rush to judgment raises obvious questions.

Reports said Turkey began deploying large numbers of air and ground forces to Reyhanli. What follows remains to be seen.

In mid-February, a car bomb struck the Cilvegozu Turkish/Syrian border crossing. At least eight died. Around 30 others were wounded. Anti-Assad elements blamed Syria. No evidence proved it.

Turkey and Western allies blame “the usual suspects.” It happens every time.

Following Saturday’s bombings, a State Department press release said:

“The United States condemns today’s car bombings and we stand with our ally, Turkey.”

“This awful news strikes an especially personal note for all of us given how closely we work in partnership with Turkey, and how many times Turkey’s been a vital interlocutor at the center of my work as Secretary of State these last three months.”

“Our thoughts are with the wounded and we extend our deepest condolences to the families of the victims.”

The glaring hypocrisy requires no comment.

NATO Secretary-General Fogh Rasmussen and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius expressed “full solidarity” with Turkey.

Washington’s Ankara embassy condemned the “murderous attack.” A statement said America “stands with the people and government of Turkey to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice.”

It left no ambiguity who’ll be blamed. The anti-Assad Syrian National Coalition suggested Assad’s involvement. A statement said:

“The Coalition sees these heinous terrorist acts as an attempt to take revenge on the Turkish people and punish them for their honorable support for the Syrian people, including their welcoming of Syrian refugees who have fled the regime’s crimes in their villages and cities.”

“The Coalition views this attack as a desperate and failed attempt to sow discord between the two peoples.”

Lebanon’s Daily Star published an AP report. It said Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi denied Damascus’ involvement in Saturday’s bombings.

“(N)o one has the right to make false accusations,” he said. (T)his is not the behavior of the Syrian government.”

“The Turkish government should be held responsible for what happened. It turned the border area into a center for international terrorism.”

Erdogan “must step down. He must not build his glory on the blood of Turks and Syrians.”

Assad has no death wish. It’s inconceivable that he or other Syrian officials ordered the attack. Doing so would be madness.

Syria’s fully involved internally. It’s gone to great pains to avoid direct foreign intervention. Attacking a neighboring country would invite it. Responsibility lies with anti-Assad elements.

Perhaps Ankara planned and implemented the attack. Last October, an alleged Syrian mortar attack killed five Turkish nationals.

Yurt is a Turkish newspaper. At the time, it said Prime Minister Erdogan acted on Washington’s behalf. His government supplied Free Syrian Army (FSA) elements with mortars.

The “bomber” used to launch them “is only used by NATO.” They were fired from FSA-controlled territory.

False flags are commonly used. Washington prioritizes them. Turkey’s complicit in plans to topple Assad.

Years earlier, Turkey’s military hatched a plan to bomb internal mosques, down one of its own warplanes, blame Greece, and destabilize the newly-installed Islamist government.

America has a long history of false flags. So do other NATO allies and Israel.

On Saturday, Lebanon’s Al-Manar television said five rockets fired from inside Syria struck Lebanese territory. They “landed in open areas of the Northern Beqaa region of Hermel. No casualties have been reported.”

“This was not the first time (anti-Assad) militiamen rockets passed Lebanon’s northern borders to target residential areas.”

Expect more incidents falsely blamed on Assad. Perhaps something major is planned. Doing so builds a case for war. It’s happening in plain sight.

On May 12, Haaretz headlined “Turkey blames Syria for deadly twin blasts; Damascus rejects ‘false accusations.’ ”

Nine arrests were made. They’re Turkish citizens. Ankara claims they’re Assad loyalists. Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu blamed them for an early May attack. Dozens died in Banias, Syria.

Davutoglu blamed Syria for both incidents. It’s clear where these accusations are heading. Washington’s orchestrating everything. Turkey is its lead attack dog. It’s part of Obama’s scheme to topple Assad. Libya 2.0 looms.

A Final Comment

Conflicting reports on whether Russia plans selling Syria sophisticated air defense systems surfaced. Washington and Israel expressed concern.

Kerry discussed it in Moscow. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov denied intentions to do so. S-300 launch systems and others were mentioned. Lavrov added that Russia and Syria have weapons deals yet to be completed.

Vladimir Putin said existing contracts will be honored. He and others added that weapons supplied are defensive.

Netanyahu’s going to Moscow. He plans doing so soon. He’ll urge Putin against supplying Syria with launch systems able to take out invading aircraft.

He’s doing so in the context of Israel’s recent attacks. Lebanon’s Daily Star suggested they were launched from inside Lebanese territory.

On May 11, Mossad-connected DEBKAfile (DF) headlined “Netanyahu to visit Putin in a bid to stop his S-300 missile sale to Syria.”

It’s a “last-ditched attempt” to call it off. DF claims doing so is “extremely slim.”

“After Israel’s (May 4 and 5 air strikes), nothing would now stop the S-300 deliveries.”

Putin is “placing a severe constraint on Israel’s operational freedom by spreading an anti-air missile cover over the Syrian, Hizballah and the Iranian Basij forces fighting for Bashar Assad.”

“Since the chances of dissuading Putin to abandon this strategy are just about nil, the best Netanyahu can hope for by his face-to-face with the Russian president is a limited accord on ground rules for averting an Israeli-Russian military clash in Syria.”

Whether this suggests Russia will back Syria if US-led NATO intervenes remains to be seen. It’s in Moscow’s interest to prevent replacing its government a pro-Western one subservient to Washington.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book is titled “Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity.”

That ain't an answer.

You have been here a month and 1 day.

You ain't part of the family yet.

You got a problem that you want to complain about...fine.

Give us your solution or do yourself a favour....and shut up.

That wasn't to you toody...your post was way too long for me to read.

No..."We"aren't experts....You are.

Enlighten us.

Stephen Lendman was born in 1934 in Boston, MA. In 1956, he received a BA from Harvard University. Two years of US Army service followed, then an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1960.



After working seven years as a marketing research analyst, he joined the Lendman Group family business in 1967. He remained there until retiring at year end 1999.


Writing on major world and national issues began in summer 2005. In early 2007, radio hosting followed. Lendman now hosts the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network three times weekly.


Distinguished guests are featured. Listen live or achived. Major world and national issues are discussed.


Lendman is a 2008 Project Censored winner and 2011 Mexican Journalists Club international journalism award recipient. His books are listed below.

It must be the Irish influence on those Bostonians that I like. An American who feels he can tell the truth about his country and not feel guilt.

Since when do the British like the Irish?

Beyond that....since when should Americans care what a Brit thinks?

Please note...I know some super cool british chicks who live in Texas...

I thought that England thought of Irish,Scottish,and American as peasants.

....except for when they visit....then they are super cool.

We are all cool these days.

it is getting stranger and stranger,however I am quite optimistic!