{"article":{"id":261269,"heading":"Will or Won't Obama Attack Syria?","author":"Stephen Lendman","created":"2013-08-14 13:29:04","modified":"2013-11-11 01:12:10","last_modified":"Mon, 11 Nov 2013 08:12:10","article":"

Will or Won't Obama Attack Syria?

by Stephen Lendman

US regime change plans are longstanding. War was planned years ago. US-supported proxy fighters wage it.

Obama didn't initiate conflict to end it. At issue now is what's next. Insurgent invaders are no match for Syria's superior military. Guerrilla fighting can continue interminably.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel warned about America embroiled \"in a significant, lengthy, and uncertain commitment.\"

Joint Chiefs Chairman General Martin Dempsey said:

\"Once we take action, we should be prepared for what comes next. Deeper involvement is hard to avoid.\"

At the same time, he outlined multiple options. They're not cheap, he stressed. At least 1$ billion monthly's required, he said.

They include limited air strikes, no-fly zone implementation, involvement of \"hundreds of aircraft, ships, submarines, and other enablers,\" as well as \"thousands\" of US troops.

Some Pentagon sources believe about 70,000 are needed. According to Dempsey, controlling Syria's chemical weapons requires \"thousands of special operations forces and other ground forces...to assault and secure critical sites.\"

At the same time, whatever's tried may fail, he said. The entire effort may backfire. Syria's a cauldron of violence and instability. It's much like post-Gaddafi Libya. It's spilling cross-borders. The entire region's threatened.

William Kristol co-founded the Project for the New American Century (PNAC). The Foreign Policy Initiative's its new incarnation. It's just as belligerent. Kristol's one of four board members.

They're neocon extremists. They're ideologically over-the-top. They support permanent wars. They urge them to advance America's imperium.

On August 9, Kristol headlined \"Feebleness in the Executive,\" saying:

\"(T)wo years ago (Obama said) Assad must go. He hasn't gone. President Obama said a year ago that if Assad crossed certain red lines there would be 'enormous consequences.' There have been no consequences.\"

Kristol wants full-scale war on Syria. Violence and instability rage throughout parts of the Middle East, North Africa and Eurasia.

Kristol's mindless about making a bad situation worse. He blames Obama for \"limit(ed use) of American power.\" He made the wrong choice, he said.

\"We need to resist it for the next three and a half years,\" said Kristol. \"We need to reverse if on January 20, 2017.\"

William Inboden headed George Bush's National Security Council strategic planning. He held senior State Department positions.

He co-edits Foreign Policy magazine's Shadow Government initiative. It contributes opinion pieces. On August 8, he headlined \"The Obama Administration's Diplomatic Deficit,\" saying:

\"Obama's past hollow threats and 'red lines' on Syria have eroded American credibility and now regrettably make a diplomatic solution to that war all but impossible.\"

In other words, war is the only solution.

Washington Post editors urge \"robust\" US intervention in Syria. \"(I)t's time for Mr. Obama to recognize that the war in Syria threatens vital US interests,\" they say.

They urge direct US intervention. They've done so all along. They're mindless of potential consequences. They may get their wish.

On August 12, the Defense Department said Joint Chiefs Chairman General Martin Dempsey arrived in Israel.  It's his first stop before heading to Jordan.

He'll meet with senior Israeli and Jordanian officials.  He'll \"discuss the unwavering US commitment to Israel's security, in addition to potential threats from Iran, the ongoing civil war in Syria and uncertainty in the Sinai.

\"In Jordan, (he) plans to visit US troops and to gain a richer understanding of how the conflict in Syria is affecting Jordan and the region.\"

Pentagon air defense missiles are deployed in Jordan. US F-16 pilots patrol its airspace and Syrian border.

On August 13, Mossad-connected DEBKAfile (DF) headlined \"Dempsey in Israel, Jordan, to tie last ends before Obama decides finally on US military action in Syria.\"

Dempsey's meeting with Netanyahu, Defense Secretary Moshe Ya'alon and IDF Chief of Staff General Benny Gantz. Parallel talks in Jordan will follow.

According to DF, he came \"to lay the ground ahead of (Obama's) final decision to embark on limited US military (Syrian) intervention.\"

His plan \"involve(s) Saudi Arabia, Emirates, Israel, Jordan and possibly Turkey.\" DF claims it includes:

(1) US, UK, French, Saudi and UAE no-fly zone implementation \"over central and southern Syria.\" Israeli and Jordanian border areas as well as Damascus will be patrolled.

(2) Israeli warplanes will provide \"air cover from Syrian air space.\"

(3) \"A 40-kilometer deep military buffer zone will be drawn from the Jordanian-Israeli borders up to the southern and western outskirts of Damascus.\"

\"The military units controlling this zone will hold the entire area of the capital within artillery range.\"

(4) Washington's war on Syria began in Deraa. It's in southern Syria. It'll \"be declared capital of Liberated Syria.\"

(5) US troops won't be deployed in buffer zone areas. Anti-Assad insurgents will instead.

(6) Forces will consist of around 3,000 US-trained fighters. Jordanian special forces will direct them. They'll operate under US control.

(7) The Pentagon built a \"huge (Jordanian) training camp and logistical system.\" Weapons and equipment for war are readied there.

(8) US Brig. General John Wright's in charge. He heads America's Amman-based Syrian operational command center. He's an Afghanistan\/Iraq\/Libyan combat veteran.

(9) US warplanes are positioned for no-fly zone implementation. They're in various regional locations. They're ready to act on 36 hours notice.

(10) A special \"Druze unit\" will be a \"key (insurgent force) component.\"

(11) Regional US forces will be readied for possible reprisals.

Whether DF's right remains to be seen. Know the source. It's reports are mixed. Some are credible. Others aren't.

Nothing good can come from direct US intervention. Doing so assures escalated regional conflict. It promises greater mayhem than already.

Bush and Obama belligerence bear testimony to imperial arrogance writ large. It reflects failed policy initiatives.

Afghanistan is America's longest war. It rages. It shows no signs of ending. Things get worse, not better.

Iraq's a cauldron of violence. Multiple car bombings throughout the country occur daily. In July, nearly 1,000 died. Many others were injured.

Libya's a nation state in name only. Conditions are anarchic. They're out-of-control. Fear and panic grip the country. It's up for grabs. Gun battles, bombings and assassinations occur daily.

Libya's so-called government deployed dozens of armored vehicles to protect Tripoli. Chances of success are slim to none.

Egypt's in turmoil. Civil war perhaps is possible. Bahrainis have been struggling against Al Khalifa despotism for over two and half years. They show no signs of quitting.

Tunisians want justice. Opposition leader Mohamed Brahmi's July 25 assassination unleashed a wave of protests.

Tens of thousands chant \"We have to topple the government.\" Political deadlock shows no signs of ending.

Jordanians are restless. Protests occur intermittently. Longstanding grievances are unaddressed.

Jordanians want Americans out. Signs read \"No to the presence of American forces in Jordan.\" Egypt's coup heightened tensions.

Intermittent protests rock Saudi Arabia. They've been ongoing for over two years. Little gets reported. Whether they'll escalate further remains to be seen.

Brutal crackdowns try to prevent it. On August 12, Russia Today headlined \"Saudi prince defects: 'Brutality, oppression as govt scared of Arab revolts.' \"

Khaled Bin Farhan Al-Saud spoke to RT. He did so from Dusseldorf, Germany. He confirmed reports of extreme repression.

Tens of thousands of political prisoners languish in Saudi's gulag. They face torture and other forms of abuse.

Khaled Bin Farhan \"accused the monarchy of corruption and silencing all voices of dissent.\"

No independent judiciary exists. Evidence is fabricated. Defense attorneys are prohibited. Guilt by accusation is policy. No one the regime targets is safe inside or outside the country.

People take so much before exploding. Saudi's monarchy risks day of reckoning justice. Some observers predicted it for years.

Major grievances can't go unaddressed forever. It's true throughout the region. US intervention exacerbates things.

War on Syria assures no good ending. Attacking Iran reflects madness. Whether Obama's willing to risk it remains to be seen.

His permanent war policy makes anything possible. The price of his imperial arrogance may be greater than humanity can bear.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net<\/a>.

His new book is titled \"Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity.\"

http:\/\/www.claritypress.com\/LendmanII.html<\/a>

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.

It airs Fridays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.

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