The destruction by US bombs of the Medecins Sans Frontieres hospital in Kunduz – killing doctors, nurses and patients – comes as a stinging corrective to the media pretence that Russian bombs are somehow uniquely evil and destructive. The West has inflicted far more damage in recent years. But the Russians also showed just how ruthless they can be in their brutal suppression of the legitimate desire for national independence of the Chechen people. It is the Americans who today expose most starkly the evils of attempting to solve complex political questions by bombs.
Kunduz is ethnically Uzbek. I have written of it as the place where Alexander Burnes met the fierce Uzbek chief Murad Beg. Burnes was disguised as an Armenian, and would very probably had been killed if his disguise had been penetrated. Today it is very much the territory of an equally fierce Uzbek warlord, General Dostum, the narcotics kingpin, murderer and serial war criminal who has for decades been a key CIA asset and is now Vice President of Afghanistan. That Dostum can lose Kunduz to the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, even temporarily, shows how weak the central authority still is. The decade long official western occupation has brought no significant progress, at a cost of billions in money and the waste of many young lives: except progress in achieving a 1200% increase in heroin production.
A nice summary of UKUSISIS in Syria from a ‘neutral’ Indian point of view -what a mess!
http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/talkingturkey/syrian-imbroglio-us-machinations-forced-russian-military-intervention/
Ishmael, you are boring enough as Ishmael. “Somestars” comments deleted.
Truthseekers, communicators with and about the crucial position of an accurate world view will be happy to learn that after his first Tweet [it was, “Can you hear me now?”] several million followers are now directly connected to an American marooned in Москва
Anti-‘austerity’ rally in Manchester today: £10 prize for the first to spot a protester with an anarchist banner demanding an end to ‘austerity’.
Just watched Perviy Kanal news (Russian first TV channel) where they claimed that the ISIS/Daesh freedom-fighters are dashing into Turkey to avoid the friendly-bombs. . .
And finally, this Iranian propaganda website mention how ISIS/ISIL/Daesh suspended Friday prayers – for the first time –
http://www.irna.ir/en/News/81783903/
“Andrew Marr show paper review mentioned the UK had obviously been intervening in Syrian war “on the wrong side”
Yes it was Matthew Parris who said it. I think there was a genuine belief that we could support ‘moderate’ opposition to Assad & Son Family Butchers, and thereby keep our hands clean of both supporting dictators and supporting terrorists, but as old mid east hands know, there is no such thing as a moderate opposition and no alternative to brutal dictatorship in these parts of the world other than the head-chopping Islamic fundamentalism we now see in Syria and elsewhere, and so we are now belatedly coming to the realisation that we should have backed Assad all along. The Russians do seem to have fewer qualms about these things than the liberal West.
Also on the Marr show, the New Statesman journalist (I forget her name but she’s a dead ringer for Princess Beatrice) made the valid point that while Islamic State produces horrifying but slick propaganda videos showing the beheadings, crucifyings and burnings alive etc, the crimes of the Assad regime go largely unreported, so we should be careful of throwing are weight behind Assad based on what we see of Islamic State.
Anon1
Lebanon and Turkey manage it, the former with little help from any of its neighbors. Which of the two is the King of Jordan?
Thanks for the links YKMN, reminding us again of Guantanamo’s use and of Jack Straws guilt and lying. Jack Straw ordered torture and detention of innocent people, using proxy countries.
Blair and Straw will never face the bendy justice they dispense with, non of these war mongers will ever have to stand up for the murder, mayhem, fear and chaos they spread.
@Ken 2 Chill cocks report will be a damp flannel in comparison to the realities Shaker points out, he’s a lawyer too and his report had to wait 14 years to come to fruition. Without having certain information ‘made safe’, imho, he would have been killed a long time ago.
Assad will stay and as soon as we don’t curtail the banking and finances of the principal backers of IS, here in London, Saudi and Qatar will carry on spitting feathers.
What wretched friends and allies this country sidles up to, whilst neglecting its part in a Europe they are a significant part of. Must have something to do with the servile slaves that inhabit it.
“the crimes of the Assad regime go largely unreported”
How do you know about these unreported crimes?
I doubt the Syrian people want their country to be turned into another Afghanistan, Iraq or Libya. They don’t want their infrastructure and livelihoods destroyed. This might explain why Assad has broad popular support, something that also goes largely unreported, but not because the data isn’t available.
Giyane you are entitled to your opinion, but somehow it does not mean they are vaguely valid. I have read you arguing religion and politics are separate. This proposition is a lie and a conjecture, religion is politics, and politics is religion.
Egyptians were in revolt and they did manage to kick out Mubarak and his goons. This was only made possible through the only available means of mass mobilisation; Mosques at prayer times! The European revolts began in the beer halls, as the only mean of mass mobilisation was probable in these popular watering holes.
Now you see why religion is so much frowned upon?
Let me be more simplistic;
Laws can be brought to stop the unions from their activities sowing discontent and seeking better terms for their members.
Laws can be brought to stop masses from gathering anywhere, included stopping the gatherings any more than three persons.
With Religion there cannot be a law against. Religion cannot be suppressed through legislative channels, and any move to do such would be met with a huge public backlash. Hence religion is set aside for special treatment. The nostrum that the zionist supremacists have been following with assiduousness (these unconscious automatons don’t know why? All they care; if it is good for zionistan). That is in addition to publications and books “God delusion” by that Dawkins character that is freely available in the pdf format on the net. Try and find something more relevant to human condition and the abomination of asymmetric wealth and poverty trends on the net, and see where you get?
Basically religion is a means of regulating human affairs, through a set of laws/edicts that is enforced by the presence of a higher authority (God). Secular laws/edicts are enforced by the police and the judiciary. However religion can also become a vehicle for mass mobilisation and social change. This is an anathema to the control freaks whom have set themselves as the great leaders and the dear leaders. Hence the all out assault on the only functioning religions; Islam and Catholicism.
Egyptians did manage to revolt and did throw out Mubarak and his goons, included his Welsh wife whom swiped the ill gotten gains and fled out of Egypt leaving the dear leader to face the music all by his own. Thereafter Mursi of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, which has nothing to do with any other brand of Muslim Brotherhood elsewhere in the world. Was actually elected for the first time in the long history of the dictatorships in Egypt! Mursi government was a legitimate and democratically elected government.
Then came the troubles, Mursi opened up the Gaza border and let the Palestinians to break open the medieval siege that zionist supremacists have laid on Gaza for more than a decade. Thereafter Mursi opened up the Suez canal for Iranian Navy, and lifted that embargo. All the while Mursi was targeting corruption and bribery so rife in Egyptian civil life.
I have no idea why you hate Mursi? And find him detestable but you seem to have not noticed that soon as he was elected US stopped it’s 4 billion dollar aid package to Egypt, and furthermore stopped and put an embargo on grain exports to Egypt. This step in tandem with the alignment of the movers and shakers in the Egyptian high society orchestrated the rise in the price of bread and other commodities by five to ten folds! Egyptians had democratically elected their government but they were then suffering for their mistakes in doing so!
Hence the second easy coup by Asisi the head of the security in Mubarak government a known collaborator and torturer, whom was reinstalled and balance was restored; Gaza border was shut down, US aid resumed and the hoarders and profiteers in Egypt eased off their speculations; hence bread became to be a plenty and people could eat for a change. Whilst Mubarak was sent to his palace in Sharm El Sheikh and was put under house arrest!!! Oh the humanity!
Your approach to Islam is most puzzling, because as you know Islam by its very nature is socialist, and its tenets of hard work and just and fair dealing in addition to forbidding interest and lucre effectively promoting productivity and progress, without the inflationary trends. Yet you seem to believe that politics and religion ought to be kept separate, why is the question that you have never addressed?
The length of this comment, bloody hell cal me Jon and be over with!
There is a prima facie case that the Pentagon which is now probing the massacre deliberately targeted the hospital in Kunduz, filled with Afghans sympathetic to the Taliban, and taken carry of by medical personnel who operate beyond any borders.
“There is a prima facie case that the Pentagon which is now probing the massacre deliberately targeted the hospital in Kunduz, filled with Afghans sympathetic to the Taliban, and taken carry of by medical personnel who operate beyond any borders.”
And Trowbridge wins the prize, again. I should imagine that Medicins Sans Frontiers are patching up many Taliban combatants who return to the field to fight again and again. MSF have a policy of non-discrimination in their provision of medical aid and that would not sit will with the US if they are effectively aiding the enemy.
Trowbridge, take your kupie doll.
Alcyone I have been a bit harsh on you in my comment of 3 Oct, 2015 – 6:28 pm. For which I’m sorry. I thought you were Anon(1). Seems you’re probably Villager or Technicolour, a supporting act and a far lesser nuisance.
It’s a very common case, as with Anon1, that calling the Syrian government “Assad & Son Family Butchers” correlates well with strong support for Israel – what are called hasbarists. It may also be that there is a causal relationship, but that question was not addressed in this particular study.
“This might explain why Assad has broad popular support, something that also goes largely unreported, but not because the data isn’t available.”
Goebbels would be proud of you – 70% of the population of Syria used to be Sunni Muslim do you really believe that they now support Assad.
What a load of bollocks? Syrians care about who is using their homes as trenches and running their life time’s work! But hey Assad is not a Sunni and boy that tears it!!
Little people with little world views believing they are the holders of the truth!
For you it is perfectly sensible that Sunni and Shiaa hate each other! Trouble is Muslims don’t give a fig about it, and are pretty much living in peace together and don’t mind who belongs to which?
This of course should be pretty upsetting for you and your chums, so don’t go self harming now! You hear?
A Sunni muslim colleague of mine hates Shia. He told me so. And this guy is as friendly and likeable as anyone you could meet. The fact is, Sunnis and Shia are in an internecine fight to the end and have been for a thousand years.
The zionist supremacist fantasist now has a “muslim colleague” [sic] whose opinion is same opinion of yet another zionsit that holds; warlike Muslims like killing and destruction included killing their religious brothers too!
I am now convinced after reading a liar and fantasist coming out in defence of another “colleague”!
“Goebbels would be proud of you – 70% of the population of Syria used to be Sunni Muslim do you really believe that they now support Assad”
If that’s what opinion polls show, yes, obviously. You prefer to put your faith in an irrelevant non seqitur. The Village Idiots Society must be proud of you.
“A Sunni muslim colleague of mine hates Shia. He told me so… The fact is, Sunnis and Shia are in an internecine fight to the end and have been for a thousand years”
Hehe. Sounds like the VIS is holding a convention this afternoon.
^ This abuse is supposed to be intelligent discussion?
A primer for those less bigoted – http://www.diffen.com/difference/Shia_vs_Sunni#Conflict_Between_Shia_and_Sunni_Muslims
Thanks for the support but I don’t really mind being likened to Goebbels – just good knockabout stuff.
Fedup
I didn’t say I wanted religion and politics to be separate, I said ‘takfirism’ doesn’t exist in Islam, i.e. disqualifying another human’s belief because of some self-appointed difference with another human being. I have no problem with political Islam so long as it practises Islam, not USUKIS-neo=colonialism.
Giyane in the light of the above we have no disagreement at all.
Most certainly your point about the neo colonialism that is promoting the current bunch of mercenaries masquerading as “Muslims” is a valid point.
It is sickening to find out that the deaths of the hadj worshipers occurred because of some tosser in the Saudi “royal” family was visiting Mena hence the hasty rearrangement and redirection of the normal flow of foot traffic, that resulted in the deaths of at least two thousand worshipers, which has been played down as less than a thousand in the oligarch owned media here in UK.
Nowhere in Islam does it allow for VIP worship rites, the whole idea of hadj is to remind everyone of the equality and the day of judgment during which no amount of money or power will make a difference for any individual!
These “royal” wasters of food and resources are killing the Muslims in Mecca and in Yemen and Syria, Iraq alike and threaten to export their death squads to Russia too. All the while they are supported by their freeloading and supportive imams and mullahs who are busy suppressing any dissent within their relevant congregations.
======
Now stating the facts has become to be classed as “abuse”! There again which liar like to be called liar to their face?
@Kemp
“The advertised accuracy of Paveway laser guided bombs is plus or minus 9 metres. In real combat situations I would expect it to be much worse. Accusations have been made that Russian forces in Syria are using unguided “iron” bombs and footage showing direct hits on open fields would appear to bear that out. If it is true we can expect far worse collateral damage.”
Is this the best propaganda you can produce.
Kemp you are pretty clueless about Russian technology, from memory they were one of the
first in the field with Maser and Laser technology having worked with a few leading Russian
physicists and engineers in the early 1960`s
http://www.globalresearch.ca/russia-uses-high-tech-smart-bombs-to-wipe-out-us-sponsored-al-qaeda-terrorists-panic-in-rebel-ranks/5479735
Tony M
Thanks but I am I assume that your intelligence, at best is as measured as your apology?
Sorry, but I don’t do half measures.
The period of greatest development of precision guided weapons co-incided with the fall of the old Soviet Union and there was no money for such expensive R&D projects. Russia slipped behind and still hasn’t caught up.
They have also been accused of using cluster bombs, outlawed by most other states, in Syria as they did in Georgia.
http://time.com/4059442/russia-bombing-syria-isis-assad/