Aa
Syria loads chemical weapons into bombs; military awaits Assad's order
http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/05/15706380-syria-loads-chemical-weapons-into-bombs-military-awaits-assads-order?lite
Pentagon sources tell NBC News that the Syrian military is awaiting final orders to launch chemical weapons against its own people after precursor chemicals for deadly sarin gas were loaded into aerial bombs. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reports.
Updated at 8:20 a.m. ET: The Syrian military is prepared to use chemical weapons against its own people and is awaiting final orders from President Bashar Assad, U.S. officials told NBC News on Wednesday.
The military has loaded the precursor chemicals for sarin, a deadly nerve gas, into aerial bombs that could be dropped onto the Syrian people from dozens of fighter-bombers, the officials said.
As recently as Tuesday, officials had said there was as yet no evidence that the process of mixing the "precursor" chemicals had begun. But Wednesday, they said their worst fears had been confirmed: The nerve agents were locked and loaded inside the bombs.
Sarin is an extraordinarily lethal agent. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's forces killed 5,000 Kurds with a single sarin attack on Halabja in 1988.
U.S. officials stressed that as of now, the sarin bombs hadn't been loaded onto planes and that Assad hadn't issued a final order to use them. But if he does, one of the officials said, "there's little the outside world can do to stop it."
Pentagon sources tell NBC News that the Syrian military is awaiting final orders to launch chemical weapons against its own people after precursor chemicals for deadly sarin gas were loaded into aerial bombs. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reports.
Updated at 8:20 a.m. ET: The Syrian military is prepared to use chemical weapons against its own people and is awaiting final orders from President Bashar Assad, U.S. officials told NBC News on Wednesday.
The military has loaded the precursor chemicals for sarin, a deadly nerve gas, into aerial bombs that could be dropped onto the Syrian people from dozens of fighter-bombers, the officials said.
As recently as Tuesday, officials had said there was as yet no evidence that the process of mixing the "precursor" chemicals had begun. But Wednesday, they said their worst fears had been confirmed: The nerve agents were locked and loaded inside the bombs.
Sarin is an extraordinarily lethal agent. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's forces killed 5,000 Kurds with a single sarin attack on Halabja in 1988.
U.S. officials stressed that as of now, the sarin bombs hadn't been loaded onto planes and that Assad hadn't issued a final order to use them. But if he does, one of the officials said, "there's little the outside world can do to stop it."
No Problem. I know it’s The C.E. Forum but sometimes it’s good to veer off from the Negativity that surrounds us. Even if it requires the occasional Gutter Diving.<<Going to go run some errands. Ya'll have a Great Day.
LOL!
I am so grateful to you Glass. Don't know if you intended it but you just got me off the hook.
You outdid me in crudity and now I don't have to feel quite so embarrassed. Thanks sweetie!
I am so grateful to you Glass. Don't know if you intended it but you just got me off the hook.
You outdid me in crudity and now I don't have to feel quite so embarrassed. Thanks sweetie!
"Don't come a knockin if the trailer is a rockin"
LOL!!
No, I used to be quite vain. Thought I was the cat's meow.
But not anymore. I think it was the cirrhosis that made me realize the futility of any illusions of beauty.
You had a nice sign in your pictures about freedom being the result of not caring what anyone thinks.
Yes "make love not war"-you are of the same generation, no?
Don't be coy Glass you are not much younger than I. Oh, but wait, your the dear redneck, so making love and not war wouldn't have been your song..hmmm-so what was your favorite slogan?
No, I used to be quite vain. Thought I was the cat's meow.
But not anymore. I think it was the cirrhosis that made me realize the futility of any illusions of beauty.
You had a nice sign in your pictures about freedom being the result of not caring what anyone thinks.
Yes "make love not war"-you are of the same generation, no?
Don't be coy Glass you are not much younger than I. Oh, but wait, your the dear redneck, so making love and not war wouldn't have been your song..hmmm-so what was your favorite slogan?
You’re Dancing all around it to keep from showing your age. I’ll help you out and say it for you.
MAKE LOVE NOT WAR!!!
LOL
MAKE LOVE NOT WAR!!!
LOL
Yeah, but I was trying not to be that explicit. :)
I was trying to say that a little subtlety and attention can go a long way and I really did mean in terms of nations negotiating in respect to their mindless,powerful weapons, but the sexual innuendo came out a little crude.
I was trying to say that a little subtlety and attention can go a long way and I really did mean in terms of nations negotiating in respect to their mindless,powerful weapons, but the sexual innuendo came out a little crude.
"I tell you guys, size really doesn't matter--it is about the love."
I thought it was "size really doesn't matter--it's the Motion in the Ocean."
I thought it was "size really doesn't matter--it's the Motion in the Ocean."
Does anyone remember a time when the world discussed arms reduction ?
In my view our principle players are too caught up in the big monetary gains of selling arms to care about the cost to humanity.
Both sides sell arms and wars continue to be waged around the globe for the profit of a few.
In my view our principle players are too caught up in the big monetary gains of selling arms to care about the cost to humanity.
Both sides sell arms and wars continue to be waged around the globe for the profit of a few.
Ach, sorry, that was inappropriate.Sometimes I just need to think a bit before posting...
Well, Russia would then be dropping their "big one" and where will we be then?
I tell you guys, size really doesn't matter--it is about the love.
I tell you guys, size really doesn't matter--it is about the love.
Since no else seems to have a plan, this one may just work. Defense Cuts? No problem, we wouldn’t need much of a Defense Budget. National Deficit? No problem, no one left to owe. Foreign Aid, No Problem, no more Foreigners to send Aid to. Cutting Entitlements? No need for it because we are Debt Free and are Saving so much money on Programs no longer needed, we can Raise SS and Medicare. .
“They All Hate us Anyhow, so Let’s just Drop the Big One Now”
“They All Hate us Anyhow, so Let’s just Drop the Big One Now”
While we hope there's something irrefutable about how our fears unfounded; I doubt you're going to find it until this whole scenario plays out.
Many of these countries hate the U.S, so I wonder if any action by the U.S. may only make matters worse; since Russia has backed Syria, they may be the only entity capable of diffusing the situation, at this point.
Or am I not understanding things right?
Many of these countries hate the U.S, so I wonder if any action by the U.S. may only make matters worse; since Russia has backed Syria, they may be the only entity capable of diffusing the situation, at this point.
Or am I not understanding things right?
Geesh Glass, I thought it was going to be something irrefutable bout how all our fears are unfounded!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGO42gvCSPI
Well lets see now, not to add fuel to the fire but Iran is what used to be called Persia in the bible. If you get into any of that, you know this whole thing is not good and could easily put us on the track to world war three. Add that to the mayan calender theory and one world government theory, we are doomed anyway. Just a matter of time.
LOL,,,,I guess this is not a good time to bring all that stuff up. Okay, Im done!
LOL,,,,I guess this is not a good time to bring all that stuff up. Okay, Im done!
You just have to wonder....there's our side, their side...what is the REAL truth?
Not that Assad is trustworthy or sincere, but what he said kind of is noteworthy...that deploying chemical warfare would be suicide, as he knows we would act...so maybe there IS some truth in him saying that the West is painting a nastier picture?? I dunno.
My biggest worry is that we do something Russia doesn't like. Russia is Syria's ally after all. VERY touchy situation. While the cold war may be over...no doubt Russia still has the capability of doing some serious harm to us in a moment's notice (and vice versa).
I don't like this situation, not at all....for many many reasons.
Gee, maybe the Mayans were right huh? :0( If so, I bought all my presents for nothing!
Not that Assad is trustworthy or sincere, but what he said kind of is noteworthy...that deploying chemical warfare would be suicide, as he knows we would act...so maybe there IS some truth in him saying that the West is painting a nastier picture?? I dunno.
My biggest worry is that we do something Russia doesn't like. Russia is Syria's ally after all. VERY touchy situation. While the cold war may be over...no doubt Russia still has the capability of doing some serious harm to us in a moment's notice (and vice versa).
I don't like this situation, not at all....for many many reasons.
Gee, maybe the Mayans were right huh? :0( If so, I bought all my presents for nothing!
Syria has not confirmed it has chemicals weapons, while insisting that it would never use such arms against its own people.
"I repeat for the hundredth time that even if such weapons exist in Syria, they will not be used against the Syrian people," Mekdad said. "We cannot possibly commit suicide."
Analysts say the missile deployment sends a message to Assad to keep the war in his own country.
"There is an element there of deterrence, of coercive diplomacy," said Yezid Sayigh of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut. "We won't go further if you don't go further."
Sayigh said it is possible that Syria, too, moved its chemical weapons to send a counter-message to the West.
Still, the missile deployment does not appear to be a step toward military intervention, he said, noting that no NATO member nations want to enter the war.
NATO officials said the Patriots will be programmed only to intercept Syrian weapons that enter Turkish airspace and will not be fired into Turkey preemptively. This means they would not target Syrian military activities that remain inside Syria.
The German Parliament is expected give its final approval in mid-December, and the Dutch are also expected to approve the move soon, allowing the plan to go ahead. Due to the complexity and size of the Patriot batteries, they will probably have to travel by sea and won't arrive in Turkey for another month.
In Syria, government forces shelled rebellious suburbs around the capital, Damascus. They also clashed with rebels in Damascus as well as in the northern city of Aleppo and elsewhere. Anti-regime activists say more than 40,000 have been killed since the country's crisis started with political protests in March 2011.
The fighting in Syria has enflamed tensions in neighboring Lebanon, where security officials said the toll in clashes between two neighborhoods in the northern city of Tripoli had risen to eight dead and more than 60 wounded.
The clashes between the two communities, which support opposite sides in Syria's civil war, started Monday, following reports that 17 Lebanese men were killed after entering Syria to fight alongside the rebels.
"I repeat for the hundredth time that even if such weapons exist in Syria, they will not be used against the Syrian people," Mekdad said. "We cannot possibly commit suicide."
Analysts say the missile deployment sends a message to Assad to keep the war in his own country.
"There is an element there of deterrence, of coercive diplomacy," said Yezid Sayigh of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut. "We won't go further if you don't go further."
Sayigh said it is possible that Syria, too, moved its chemical weapons to send a counter-message to the West.
Still, the missile deployment does not appear to be a step toward military intervention, he said, noting that no NATO member nations want to enter the war.
NATO officials said the Patriots will be programmed only to intercept Syrian weapons that enter Turkish airspace and will not be fired into Turkey preemptively. This means they would not target Syrian military activities that remain inside Syria.
The German Parliament is expected give its final approval in mid-December, and the Dutch are also expected to approve the move soon, allowing the plan to go ahead. Due to the complexity and size of the Patriot batteries, they will probably have to travel by sea and won't arrive in Turkey for another month.
In Syria, government forces shelled rebellious suburbs around the capital, Damascus. They also clashed with rebels in Damascus as well as in the northern city of Aleppo and elsewhere. Anti-regime activists say more than 40,000 have been killed since the country's crisis started with political protests in March 2011.
The fighting in Syria has enflamed tensions in neighboring Lebanon, where security officials said the toll in clashes between two neighborhoods in the northern city of Tripoli had risen to eight dead and more than 60 wounded.
The clashes between the two communities, which support opposite sides in Syria's civil war, started Monday, following reports that 17 Lebanese men were killed after entering Syria to fight alongside the rebels.
In Dublin, Ireland, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton joined Russia's foreign minister and the U.N. peace envoy to the Arab country for three-way talks that suggested Washington and Moscow were working toward a common strategy as the Assad regime weakens.
The diplomatic efforts to end the civil war come days after NATO agreed to post Patriot missiles and troops along Turkey's southern border with Syria after mortars and shells from Syria killed five Turks.
Germany's Cabinet approved the move on Thursday, and German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere told reporters that the overall mission is expected to include two batteries each from the Netherlands and the United States, plus 400 soldiers and monitoring aircraft.
"Nobody knows what such a regime is capable of and that is why we are acting protectively here," said German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle.
In Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Thursday that intelligence reports raise fears that an increasingly desperate Assad is considering using his chemical weapons arsenal — which the U.S. and Russia agree is unacceptable.
The Assad regime said the NATO deployment would not make Assad change course, calling the talk of chemical weapons part of a conspiracy to justify future intervention.
"The Turkish step and NATO's support for it are provocative moves that constitute psychological warfare," Syria's Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said in an interview with Lebanon's Al-Manar TV. "But if they think this will affect our determination and work for a decisive victory in this fight against terrorism, they are very wrong."
The diplomatic efforts to end the civil war come days after NATO agreed to post Patriot missiles and troops along Turkey's southern border with Syria after mortars and shells from Syria killed five Turks.
Germany's Cabinet approved the move on Thursday, and German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere told reporters that the overall mission is expected to include two batteries each from the Netherlands and the United States, plus 400 soldiers and monitoring aircraft.
"Nobody knows what such a regime is capable of and that is why we are acting protectively here," said German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle.
In Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Thursday that intelligence reports raise fears that an increasingly desperate Assad is considering using his chemical weapons arsenal — which the U.S. and Russia agree is unacceptable.
The Assad regime said the NATO deployment would not make Assad change course, calling the talk of chemical weapons part of a conspiracy to justify future intervention.
"The Turkish step and NATO's support for it are provocative moves that constitute psychological warfare," Syria's Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said in an interview with Lebanon's Al-Manar TV. "But if they think this will affect our determination and work for a decisive victory in this fight against terrorism, they are very wrong."
http://news.yahoo.com/nato-moves-toward-deployment-syria-border-190530827.html
BEIRUT (AP) — As fears grow in the West that Syrian President Bashar Assad will unleash chemical weapons as an act of desperation, NATO moved forward Thursday with its plan to place Patriot missiles and troops along Syria's border with Turkey to protect against potential attacks.
Assad's regime blasted the move as "psychological warfare," saying the new deployment would not deter it from seeking victory over rebels it views as terrorists.
The missile deployment sends a clear message to Assad that consequences will follow if he uses chemical weapons or strikes NATO member Turkey, which backs the rebels seeking his ouster. But its limited scope also reflects the low appetite in Western capitals for direct military intervention in the civil war.
The U.S. and many European and Arab countries called for Assad to step down early in the uprising but have struggled to make that happen. Russia and China have protected Assad from censure by the U.N. Security Council, and the presence of extremists among the rebels makes the U.S. and others nervous about arming them.
BEIRUT (AP) — As fears grow in the West that Syrian President Bashar Assad will unleash chemical weapons as an act of desperation, NATO moved forward Thursday with its plan to place Patriot missiles and troops along Syria's border with Turkey to protect against potential attacks.
Assad's regime blasted the move as "psychological warfare," saying the new deployment would not deter it from seeking victory over rebels it views as terrorists.
The missile deployment sends a clear message to Assad that consequences will follow if he uses chemical weapons or strikes NATO member Turkey, which backs the rebels seeking his ouster. But its limited scope also reflects the low appetite in Western capitals for direct military intervention in the civil war.
The U.S. and many European and Arab countries called for Assad to step down early in the uprising but have struggled to make that happen. Russia and China have protected Assad from censure by the U.N. Security Council, and the presence of extremists among the rebels makes the U.S. and others nervous about arming them.
I heard earlier that talks are going on with Russia. Russia would be the one with most influence with this tyrant. I believe that is true and I understand Russia is now having second thoughts as to whether tyrant can or should try to stay in power. This needs to happen this way imo., Obviously it goes without saying that if something like this was to happen, there would be rapid response.
Sadly it sounds like business as usual.
We've backed Assad into a corner where his own people will kill him if he tries to negotiate and the opposition will kill him if they take control. The media is already preparing the public for mass casualties by saying there's no way to stop him until after he's already started the gassing. Our own stategic interests demand that these weapons not fall into the hands of terrorists. Clinton and Obama have made clear the fact that our response will be harsh if he uses these weapons.
Next steps: civilians as 'collateral damage' then regime change.
Who says we don't have a well planned foreign policy?
Next steps: civilians as 'collateral damage' then regime change.
Who says we don't have a well planned foreign policy?
http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/06/15727284-syria-fears-us-seeking-a-pretext-to-intervene-in-civil-war?lite
From this article:
However, Assad's deputy foreign minister Faisal Maqdad said Thursday that they would never kill Syrians with chemical weapons, dismissing the Western intelligence reports as "theater."
Advertise | AdChoices"Syria stresses again, for the tenth, the hundredth time, that if we had such weapons, they would not be used against its people. We would not commit suicide," he said.
"In fact, we fear a conspiracy ... by the United States and some European states, which might have supplied such weapons to terrorist organizations in Syria, in order to claim later that Syria is the one that used these weapons," he added, speaking on Lebanon's Al Manar television, the voice of Hezbollah.
"We fear there is a conspiracy to provide a pretext for any subsequent interventions in Syria by these countries that are increasing pressure on Syria," he said.
From this article:
However, Assad's deputy foreign minister Faisal Maqdad said Thursday that they would never kill Syrians with chemical weapons, dismissing the Western intelligence reports as "theater."
Advertise | AdChoices"Syria stresses again, for the tenth, the hundredth time, that if we had such weapons, they would not be used against its people. We would not commit suicide," he said.
"In fact, we fear a conspiracy ... by the United States and some European states, which might have supplied such weapons to terrorist organizations in Syria, in order to claim later that Syria is the one that used these weapons," he added, speaking on Lebanon's Al Manar television, the voice of Hezbollah.
"We fear there is a conspiracy to provide a pretext for any subsequent interventions in Syria by these countries that are increasing pressure on Syria," he said.
Oh dear God. This just makes me sick, and Vance, I agree with you 100%!! Obama needs to make it VERY clear that this will NOT be tolerated.
Assad should have been gone a long time ago. :0(
Assad should have been gone a long time ago. :0(
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