Tag Archives: Syria

Featured, Foreign Policy, Hot, International, Podcast

Truth In Media with Ben Swann, Episode 32- Trump Administration: Syria’s Assad “Does Not” Have To Go

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The Trump Administration’s stance on Syria and Bashar al-Assad goes against President Obama’s and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s policy since 2011. In this episode, Ben takes a look at how this new policy is contrary to the media narrative about Syria over the past decade.

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Ben Swann Breaks Down ABC News Fake Video of Syria Massacre

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Mainstream media outlets across the country have been rigorously covering the news of President Trump pulling troops out of Northern Syria. But are these outlets telling the truth? Is President Trump actually betraying the Kurds? And why won’t Congress officially declare war in this situation?

I discuss this and more in an interview with Daniel McAdams, the Executive Director of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity. We talk about the mainstream media’s disingenuous narrative surrounding this complex issue, particularly an ABC News report that used video footage of a gun range demonstration and claimed it as footage of Turkish forces slaughtering Kurds, and the lack of accountability faced by corporate media when publishing false news content.

Origin of ISIS:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6kdi1UXxhY&t=

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Opinion, Polls

VOTE: Do You Believe That The U.S. No Longer Funding the White Helmets?

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qm3jlUy_EdI

 

Featured, Foreign Policy, International, Politics, US

Reports: Funding for White Helmets Frozen by Trump Administration

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Washington, D.C. – The group known as the White Helmets has reportedly stopped receiving funds from the US government, according to CBS News. The White Helmets, formally known as the Syrian Civil Defense, have reportedly not received funds from the US in recent weeks, leaving the controversial group uncertain of how a “long-term or permanent halt” in funding would impact their future operations.

The cease in US funding for the White Helmets reportedly stems from President Trump’s decision in late March to freeze $200 million in U.S. recovery funding for Syria as part of a broader strategic overhaul. CBS News reported that “an internal State Department document said that its Near East Bureau needed confirmation from the administration to green light funding for the White Helmets in Syria by April 15th or the department would initiate ‘shut-down procedures on a rolling basis.’”

“We are actively reviewing our current Syria assistance programs at the President’s request, including U.S. support for the White Helmets,” a State Department official, who also noted that the United States has provided more than $33 million to the White Helmets since 2013, told CNN Friday.

“The US jointly supports the White Helmets with other donors and we expect their operations to continue as a result of additional multilateral donations. The President has been clear that partners and allies should assume a larger role in stabilizing Syria,” said the official.
CNN reported that in a subsequent statement on Friday, Saleh said the group does not receive direct funding from the United States, but rather “from organizations and associations.”
“Our work hasn’t been disrupted and all the projects we are working on will not be halted,” he added, “and our volunteers are still operating on the ground.”

The US State Department hosted the White Helmets in March and praised the group for their work in Syria.

“Our meetings in March were very positive. There were even remarks from senior officials about long-term commitments even into 2020. There were no suggestions whatsoever about stopping support,” Raed Saleh, the group’s leader, told CBS News.

In contrast to the popularized characterization of the White Helmets as heroic saviors, independent investigative reporting has described the group as less of a humanitarian construct and more of a form of propaganda/intelligence operation deployed as a Syrian Civil Defense, but which operates only in rebel-held areas, as a news means of employing western soft power in the form of information warfare meant to forward a regime change operation.

The White Helmets were founded in 2013 by James Le Mesurier, a former British military intelligence officer and private security specialist, and are largely funded by the U.S. and UK governments. The group was hosted by the US State Department less than two months ago and were lavished with praise.

CBS News reported that “U.S had accounted for about a third of the group’s overall funding,” but, “now they are not getting any U.S funding as the State Department says the support is ‘under active review.’”

“This is a very worrisome development,” said an official from the White Helmets. “Ultimately, this will negatively impact the humanitarian workers ability to save lives.”

Recently Pink Floyd great Roger Waters, during a recent solo concert in Barcelona, called out the White Helmets as a “fake organization that exists only to create propaganda for jihadists and terrorists.”

“The White Helmets is a fake organization that exists only to create propaganda for jihadists and terrorists,” Waters said. “That’s my belief… If we were to listen to the propaganda of the White Helmets and others, we would be encouraged to encourage our governments to start dropping bombs on people in Syria. This would be a mistake of monumental proportions for us as human beings.”

The group says they have received no formal notice from the US government but that the groups people in Syria report that they have not received funds for weeks. Despite a purported “emergency plan” to fund the groups work on the ground for a couple of months, representatives are concerned about a potential long-term or permanent freeze in assistance.

“If this is a long-term or permanent halt, it would have a serious impact on our ability to provide the same intensity and quality of services that we currently provide to civilians,” said Saleh.

Although the State Department has characterized the group as “selfless men,” going so far as to urge journalists to watch an Oscar-winning documentary about the group, in the video below Ben Swann provides critical analysis of the White Helmets, which reveals some penetrating truths.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EXtHoOi7_4

 

Featured, Foreign Policy, International, US, Videos

Comedian Questions CNN Reporter Sniffing Potentially Chemical-Laced Backpack

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Shortly after the United States, France and the UK launched air strikes against Syria in April in response to a suspected chemical attack allegedly carried out by the Syrian government in Douma, a CNN report featuring senior correspondent Arwa Damon reporting from a refugee camp in Aleppo was published.

The report highlighted Damon’s visit with survivors of the reported chemical attack:

We were at the camp, run and funded by Turkey, just hours after US, UK and French strikes hit three suspected regime chemical weapons site in response to the regime’s latest alleged toxic strike on Douma…

The people here believe that the strikes were part of a broader political game, and had little regard for ending or easing their suffering. The intervention did little to eliminate the rest of Assad’s deadly arsenal, they point out.

It is a sentiment that has long existed among those who live in opposition-held areas, which have borne the brunt of regime bombardment over the years: that leaders who condemn the regime are hypocrites, merely feigning outrage to push forward their own agendas, and that Syrian lives have no real value to them.

In a video accompanying the report, Damon is seen sniffing the interior of a child’s backpack, declaring that “there’s definitely something that stings” while motioning toward her nose. While the reasoning for Damon sniffing a backpack was not stated in the CNN report, the video footage lent the appearance that the item in question belonged to a child refugee and had been in close proximity to the suspected chemical attack.

One particularly vocal critic of CNN’s report and Damon’s on-air activity was comedian and political commentator Jimmy Dore, who mocked Damon for nonchalantly placing her face inside of a backpack possibly laced with toxic chemicals.

Damon’s behavior “shows that she’s not worried about it at all,” claimed Brigida Santos, a journalist accompanying Dore’s show. “I would not get anywhere near that backpack if I thought something was actually in it— I certainly wouldn’t stick my face in it and inhale it, if you’re talking about chemical weapons,” she added.

Dore compared Damon’s reporting to that of Robert Fisk, who also visited Douma and published ground reporting that questioned mainstream narratives regarding April’s chemical attack. In Fisk’s report, he wrote about his visit to “an underground clinic whose images of suffering allowed three of the Western world’s most powerful nations to bomb Syria last week.” Fisk wrote that he met a doctor in the clinic who confirmed the widespread video depicting afflicted victims was authentic, but claimed that “the patients, he says, were overcome not by gas but by oxygen starvation in the rubbish-filled tunnels and basements in which they lived, on a night of wind and heavy shelling that stirred up a dust storm.”

Featured, Foreign Policy, International, US

Saudi FM: Qatar Must Send Troops to Syria or Face Regime Change

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According to the country’s foreign minister, Saudi Arabia is pushing its former ally Qatar to send its military into Syria or face dire consequences. Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Jubeir issued the threat in response to U.S. government efforts to create an “Islamic coalition” of troops from neighboring countries that will act as a permanent military “stabilizing force” as a precondition to the U.S. removing its own forces from Syria’s occupied Northeast.

Jubeir stated on Wednesday that, were Qatar to decline to be part of the new coalition, the U.S. would cancel American protection of the country, which is home to the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East. Qatar, he said, must “send its military forces (to Syria), before the US president cancels US protection of Qatar, which consists of the presence of a US military base on its territory.”

Jubeir stated that the U.S. withdrawal of protection and military aid would lead the Qatari government “to fall there in less than a week,” insinuating that the country’s failure to send its military to Syria at the behest of the U.S. and Saudis in Syria could result in regime change.

According to a statement released by the Saudi Press Agency:

Based on the US President Donald Trump statement, during a joint press conference held with his visiting French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir announced that Qatar should pay the voucher of the price of US military forces’ presence in Syria, and to send its military forces there, before the US President lifts American protection of the State of Qatar, embodied in the presence of US military base, on its soils.

The Foreign Minister reasserted US President utterance that if the US is to withdraw its protection, represented in the military base located in Qatar, then that regime will fall, within less than a week.

It is unclear if the U.S. government supports the Saudi’s push for Qatari involvement and if they would shut down their military base in Qatar were the country not to send troops to Syria. Qatar is eager to preserve ties with the U.S. and has been reportedly pushing the U.S. to expand its base in the country by renovating its naval ports as well as pushing the Pentagon to make the base permanent.

Whether Qatar will send troops to Syria at behest of the Saudis is anyone’s guess. Indeed, the country was once a major player in the Syrian conflict and some have argued that it was Syria’s rejection of a Qatari gas pipeline in favor of an Iranian gas pipeline that helped to initiate the conflict. Qatar also covertly funded several rebel groups active in Syria, including terrorist groups, that have been fighting to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The reported ultimatum is the just the latest example of deteriorating relations between Qatar and their former ally Saudi Arabia. The diplomatic row began in June of last year, when the Saudis, along with the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Yemen, cut ties with the country after claiming that it supports terrorism. Trump followed suit, calling Qatar a “high-level sponsor of terrorism,” and later took credit for the crisis. However, the issue was not Qatar’s support for terrorism as much as Qatar’s consideration of working with Iran to develop massive natural gas reserves that both countries share.

Ultimately, Qatar failed to acquiesce to past Saudi demands and ultimatums, an embarrassing failure for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman who was largely behind the dramatic falling out.

Given that the past threats leveled at Qatar by the Saudi and its allies failed to change their foreign policy, it seems unlikely that it will now bow to Saudi pressure. If Qatar does choose to join the Saudis in occupying northeastern Syria, it would likely be due to the country’s past of fomenting the conflict in Syria and its funding of rebel groups active in the conflict, rather than concern over Saudi-backed regime change.

Featured, Foreign Policy, Government Accountability, International, Opinion, US

Examining Ground Reports From Syria

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In recent weeks the American public has been inundated with reports claiming the U.S., the U.K., and France have conclusive evidence that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad reportedly used chemical weapons against his own people. Most of the American, British, and French media have lined up behind the proclamations of their respective political leaders by declaring as fact that the Assad regime is responsible for alleged chemical attacks as far back as 2013. The most recent attack is alleged to have taken place earlier this month in Douma, Syria.

In a recent episode of Reality Check, Ben Swann examined government justification of air strikes in Syria, noting that “the U.S. government has a history of taking humanitarian action without evidence.” Swann also pointed out that “the U.S. is meddling in a country where multiple countries are playing out a proxy war, including Israel, Saudi Arabia and Iran, not to mention the heightened tensions from our president calling out Russia for its support of the Assad regime.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkQODKjDVws

Despite the confidence displayed by the corporate Western media, there is actually an abundant amount of conflicting reports regarding who used chemical weapons – was it pro-Assad forces backed by Russia and Iran, or was it “rebels” with backing from the U.S., the UK, France, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia? Some reports have also questioned whether the attacks happened at all.

[Read more: Russia Accuses UK of Masterminding Chemical Weapons Attack in Syria]

Several foreign correspondents have been able to gain access to Douma and conduct interviews with residents. A few of the reports coincide with the Western media version of events (Assad used chemical weapons on his people), but several journalists reportedly found lack of evidence of the attack, or witness testimony to place the blame for chemical attacks on the U.S.-funded rebels.

Reviewing Ground Reports

On Monday, April 16, several journalists gained access to Douma and interviewed residents in the area. One of these journalists was Robert Fisk, two-time winner of the British Press Awards’ Journalist of the Year prize and a seven-time winner of the British Press Awards’ Foreign Correspondent of the Year. Fisk is a longtime foreign correspondent who the New York Times referred to as “probably the most famous foreign correspondent in Britain” and The Guardian called “one of the most famous journalists in the world.”

Writing for The Independent, Fisk described the situation in Douma:

This is the story of a town called Douma, a ravaged, stinking place of smashed apartment blocks–and of an underground clinic whose images of suffering allowed three of the Western world’s most powerful nations to bomb Syria last week. There’s even a friendly doctor in a green coat who, when I track him down in the very same clinic, cheerfully tells me that the “gas” videotape which horrified the world– despite all the doubters–is perfectly genuine.

War stories, however, have a habit of growing darker. For the same 58-year old senior Syrian doctor then adds something profoundly uncomfortable: the patients, he says, were overcome not by gas but by oxygen starvation in the rubbish-filled tunnels and basements in which they lived, on a night of wind and heavy shelling that stirred up a dust storm.

According to the doctor Fisk spoke with, Dr. Assim Rahaibani, the international organization commonly known as The White Helmets had a role in carrying out the false or exaggerated scene depicting a chemical gas attack.

I was with my family in the basement of my home three hundred metres from here on the night but all the doctors know what happened. There was a lot of shelling [by government forces] and aircraft were always over Douma at night–but on this night, there was wind and huge dust clouds began to come into the basements and cellars where people lived. People began to arrive here suffering from hypoxia, oxygen loss. Then someone at the door, a “White Helmet”, shouted “Gas!”, and a panic began. People started throwing water over each other. Yes, the video was filmed here, it is genuine, but what you see are people suffering from hypoxia–not gas poisoning.

At the same time that Fisk was interviewing the doctor and residents, Pearson Sharp of One America News stated he interviewed between 30 to 40 residents of Douma. As with Fisk, Sharp says he found no evidence of chemical attack and the residents he spoke with seemed completely unaware of the apparent incident.

Sharp’s reports have been criticized by the mainstream press, as well as typically anti-establishment press like The Intercept. A recent report from The Intercept was critical of all of the foreign correspondents who claim to have seen no evidence of a chemical attack. However, they reserved a specific distaste for Sharp and OAN. The Intercept reported:

There was no way of knowing if any of the medical personnel who spoke to the reporters in the presence of government minders had been coerced into making those statements by threats from Assad’s secret police, the mukhabarat, to harm their families — as the head of the largest medical relief agency in Syria told The Guardian they were. Still, Russian state television channels and critics of Western military intervention seized on credulous reports from the British writer Robert Fisk, the French news agency Agence France-Presse, Dirk Emmerich of Germany’s RTL, and Pearson Sharp of One America News, which is a San Diego cable channel known for its full-throated backing of Donald Trump and its hiring of “alt-right” conspiracy theorists.

The report went on to note that “former employees of the news channel told the Washington Post last year that Herring (owner of OAN), who met his wife in Russia, had ‘directed his channel to push Trump’s candidacy, scuttle stories about police shootings, encourage antiabortion stories, minimize coverage of Russian aggression, and steer away from the new president’s troubles.'”

It appears that a priority of The Intercept is describing Sharp and OAN as pawns for President Trump and thus, their reporting from Syria unworthy of consideration by Americans. However, they do point out one important aspect of Sharp’s reporting:

When his report was broadcast, however, it revealed that he had mistakenly described the location of the suspected gas attack as a town square and interviewed people close to it who said they had not been exposed to any chemicals. Since the attack in fact took place on a residential street some distance from the square, those accounts are not surprising.

It is possible that Sharp interviewed people in the “wrong” area of Douma or in an area which government handlers directed him, yet does not change the reports from Robert Fisk or other reporters who also concluded there was little sign of a chemical attack. In addition to Fisk, Sharp, and the aforementioned journalists, there is also a new report coming from German news station ZDF which claims the attacks were staged.

While speaking on ZDF Huete, ZDF correspondent Uli Gack reportedly stated, “People told us in a very convincing manner that this whole story was staged.” According to translations of Gack’s commentary, he also noted that “the militants brought canisters containing chlorine to the area and “actually waited for the Syrian Air Force to bomb the place, which was of particular interest for them.”

It is possible that these journalists were led astray by witnesses who had been threatened by Syrian or Russian government officials. In fact, The Intercept noted that medical staff were apparently questioned by the Russian Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides, a branch of the Russian military, prior to giving interviews for foreign correspondents last Monday. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides was in the area patrolling to “control observation of ceasefire regime, ensure security, organize assistance for civilians and keep a record of refugee flow.”

The presence of the Russian military police could indicate that some witnesses may have been tampered with or instructed what to say to the incoming foreign press. However, the truth of what is taking place in Syria has been scarce in the typical 24-hour corporate news cycle which tends to grab the attention of the average American. These issues are complex, with misdirection apparently coming from both the American and Syrian governments. When looking for truth in media, individuals should start by carefully examining all of the evidence before drawing conclusions and rushing to support another potentially disastrous conflict.

Civil Liberties, Foreign Policy, International, Politics, US

WATCH: Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters Calls White Helmets a “Fake Organization”

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Barcelona, Spain – Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, during a recent solo concert in Barcelona, stopped mid-concert to address the recent bombing of Syria – under pretense of retaliation for an alleged chemical attack – and called out the White Helmets as a “fake organization that exists only to create propaganda for jihadists and terrorists.”

Waters said he had been approached by a man prior to the concert who wanted to get onstage to speak on behalf of the White Helmets regarding the alleged chemical attack in Douma, but instead chose educate the crowd himself. Although well intentioned, Waters said he believed the person had simply been misled about the White Helmets.

“The White Helmets is a fake organization that exists only to create propaganda for jihadists and terrorists,” Waters said. “That’s my belief. We have opposing beliefs. If we were to listen to the propaganda of the White Helmets and others, we would be encouraged to encourage our governments to start dropping bombs on people in Syria. This would be a mistake of monumental proportions for us as human beings.”

Officially known as Syria Civil Defense, the White Helmets were founded in 2013 by James Le Mesurier, a former British military intelligence officer and private security specialist, and are largely funded by the U.S. and UK governments. Investigative reporter James Corbett delved into the White Helmets as a western propaganda construct in a video earlier this year.

Waters went on to say that individuals should “persuade our governments not to go and drop bombs on people,” going on to imply that a rush to judgement based on propaganda isn’t a substitute research, likely in direct reference to the US-led attack on Syria, based on the Douma chemical allegations.

“What we should do is go and persuade our governments not to go and drop bombs on people. And certainly not until we have done all the research that is necessary so that we would have a clear idea of what is really going on. Because we live in the world where propaganda seems to be more important than the reality of what is really going on,” he added.

Waters has been a staunch anti-war activist throughout his career and has never shied away from controversial stances. For instance, in 2016, he explained that the entertainment industry discourages individuals from calling out the atrocities committed by the Israeli military, and how the “boycott, divestment and sanctions” (BDS) campaign was targeted:

The only response to BDS is that it is anti-Semitic, I know this because I have been accused of being a Nazi and an anti-Semite for the past 10 years. My industry has been particularly recalcitrant in even raising a voice [against Israel]. There’s me and Elvis Costello, Brian Eno, Manic Street Preachers, one or two others, but there’s nobody in the United States where I live. I’ve talked to a lot of them, and they are scared s***less.

“If they say something in public they will no longer have a career. They will be destroyed. I’m hoping to encourage some of them to stop being frightened and to stand up and be counted because we need them. We need them desperately in this conversation in the same way we needed musicians to join protesters over Vietnam,” he added.

Featured, International

Iraq Coordinates With Assad To Take Out ISIS Fighters Inside Syria

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(DCNF) Iraqi forces carried out airstrikes on Islamic State fighters inside Syria Thursday, after coordinating with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government, according to an Iraqi military spokesman.

The Iraqi air force deployed F-16 fighter jets into Syrian airspace to hit multiple ISIS targets along the Iraq-Syria border, Brigadier General Yahya Rasool said, according to Reuters.

“Carrying out air strikes on Daesh gangs in Syrian territories is because of the dangers posed by said gangs to Iraqi territories and is proof of the improved capabilities of our armed forces,” the Iraqi military said in a statement, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS.

The strikes “will accelerate the elimination” of ISIS in the region, the military added.

Close coordination with Assad reflects Baghdad’s willingness to work with whatever regional governments that have a mutual interest in the destruction of ISIS. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi will “take all necessary measures if they threaten the security of Iraq,” he said earlier this month, referring to ISIS, which at one point occupied nearly a third of the country.

Aside from Syria, Iraq also has a cooperative relationship with Iran and Russia, Assad’s main backers in the Syrian war. That has put it in awkward position with the U.S., which sees both Moscow and Tehran as adversaries in Syria and the greater Middle East. Baghdad was critical of U.S. strikes against suspected chemical weapons facilities in Syria, saying they were a distraction from the fight against jihadi groups in the region.

Top Iraqi defense officials met with their Iranian counterparts Wednesday in Baghdad to discuss security cooperation and post-ISIS reconstruction. The two nations have “donated their blood” in battle against ISIS and will work “shoulder to shoulder” to rebuild Iraq, said Iraqi Army Chief of Staff Othman al-Ghanimi.

Written by Will Racke: Follow Will on Twitter

 

This article was republished with permission from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Foreign Policy, International, Politics

American Journalist in Douma: Residents Say Chemical Attack Staged by ‘Terrorist Rebels’

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Douma, Syria — An exclusive report by Pearson Sharp of One America News, who went to the site of the alleged chemical weapons attack in the war-torn town of Douma outside the capital of Damascus, reported that residents there deny an attack happened and instead claim it was staged by rebel forces in an effort to incite a response from Western forces.

Sharp explained that during his investigation he interviewed between 30 to 40 residents of Douma, and in a series of social media posts claimed:

Sharp claims that of all of the people he interviewed on the ground in Douma — which he asserted were not scripted or staged, but with actual local residents — not one person told him that a chemical attack had taken place. Sharp said he was told the attack was staged by terrorists who were in control of the area. He also reported that the residents revealed that they were glad to see the rebels, whom they referred to as terrorists, be defeated and praised Assad and his government.

Russia has accused the UK government of being complicit in a “false flag” event in Douma in collusion with the White Helmets, and claims to be in possession of “irrefutable evidence,” according to Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkQODKjDVws

Civil Liberties, Foreign Policy, International, Politics, US

Rand Paul Grills State Sec. Nominee Pompeo on Foreign Policy

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Washington, D.C. — During the nomination hearing for Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State, on April 12, Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), who is the only Republican senator that has publicly announced opposition to President Trump’s nomination of CIA director Mike Pompeo to become Secretary of State, told Pompeo that his nomination doesn’t appear to align with the foreign policy view that Trump outlined during his presidential campaign.

“[Trump] says the Iraq war was the single worst decision ever made. So, once again, I’m concerned that you won’t be supporting the president,” Paul said to Pompeo. “That you will be influencing him in a way that I think his inclinations are actually better than many of his advisors. That the Iraq war was a mistake that we need to come home from Afghanistan.”

“He was against being involved in Syria at many times in his career,” Paul said, noting Trump’s previous public statements that implied opposition to “another Iraq war, bombing Syria without permission.”

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/375609403376144384

“So, these are the advice you will give and I guess that’s my biggest concern with your nomination is that I don’t think it reflects the millions of people who voted for President Trump who actually voted for him because they thought it’d be different. That it wouldn’t be the traditional bipartisan consensus to bomb everywhere and be everywhere around the world. So, that’s my main concern and I just want to make sure that that’s loud and clear to everyone that is my concern,” Paul repeated.

Paul also took issue with Pompeo’s belief that the President has the authority to bomb Assad’s forces or installations without congressional approval.

“Thanks for your testimony and thanks for going through this grueling enterprise and your willingness to serve the country. You discussed with Senator Kaine a little bit about whether or not the President has the authority to bomb Assad’s forces or installations in Syria and you mention historically, well we have done it in the past,” Paul said.

“I don’t think that’s a complete enough answer,” the senator added. “I mean my question would be do you think it’s constitutional? Does the President have the constitutional authority to bomb Assad’s forces? Does he have the authority absent congressional action to bomb Assad’s forces or installations?” Paul asked.

“Senator, as I — I think I said this to Senator Kaine, I’m happy to repeat my view on this. Those decisions are weighted. Every place we can, we should work alongside Congress to get that, but yes, I believe the President has the domestic authority to do that. I don’t think — I don’t think that has been disputed by Republicans or Democrats throughout an extended period of time,” Pompeo asserted.

Paul argued against Pompeo’s assertion, stating, “Actually it was disputed mostly by our founding fathers who believed they gave that authority to Congress and actually they’re uniformly opposed to the executive branch having that power. In fact, Madison wrote very specifically.”

“The executive branch is the branch most prone to war. Therefore, we have with studied care vested that authority into the legislature,” Paul added. “So, the fact that we have in the past done this doesn’t make it constitutional and I would say that I take objection to the idea that the president can go to war when he wants, where he wants.”

Paul’s continued his questioning of Pompeo by asking, “With regard to Afghanistan, some have argued that it’s time to get out of Afghanistan. What do you think?”

Watch below:

h/t RCP

Foreign Policy, International, Politics, US

Russia Claims US And Allies “Not Interested” In Objective Chemical Attack Investigation

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Moscow, Russia – The United States, France and the United Kingdom have expressed no interest in an objective investigation in Syria’s Douma, Russia’s Ambassador to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Alexander Shulgin claimed on Monday, pointing to the missile attack on Syria “before the OPCW mission reached the site find out possible evidence.”

“The fact that this tripartite aggression announced as a response to the use of chemical weapons in Douma was committed right at the moment when OPCW inspectors were expected to go to Syria to carry out a probe into the Douma developments causes resentment and indignation,” the Russian diplomat said at a meeting of the OPCW Executive Council. “It means that the United States, France and the United Kingdom are not interested in any objective investigation. We see that they need no objective investigation. They put entire blame on the Syrian authorities beforehand, even before the OPCW mission reached the site to find out possible evidence to the use of chemical weapons in Syria.”

In addition, the Russian government claims to have “irrefutable proof” that the alleged chemical attack in Douma was operationalized by British security services with assistance from the United States, said Shulgin, echoing earlier statements by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

“We have not just a ‘high level of confidence,’ as our Western partners uniformly put it; we have irrefutable proof that there was no chemical attack in Douma on April 7,” Shulgin said on Monday at a special meeting of the UN chemical watchdog’s executive council.

The Russian ambassador went on to say that the alleged chemical attack in Douma had actually been a “pre-planned false-flag attack by the British security services, which could have also been aided by their allies in Washington.”

[Read more: Russia Accuses UK of Masterminding Chemical Weapons Attack in Syria]

“Things unfolded according to the pre-written scenario prepared by Washington. There’s no doubt, the Americans play ‘first fiddle’ in all of this,” Shulgin said, while claiming that the “attack” was staged by “pseudo-humanitarian NGOs” in reference to the White Helmets, which have received millions in funding from the US and UK government.

Shulgin’s sentiments mirrored those of Lavrov, who during a news conference with Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Stef Blok, said, “We have irrefutable evidence that it was another staging, and the special services of a state which is in the forefront of the Russophobic campaign had a hand in the staging.”

Lavrov went on to warn, “God forbid something adventurous will be undertaken in Syria similar to the Libyan or Iraqi experience… I hope nobody dares to.”

The US, UK and France “are playing the hypocrite as they pretend to be the defenders of the international law. In fact, however, no one except for their allies… has any doubts that the major threat to the world comes from these ‘leaders’ of the Western [political] camp,” Shulgin said during the special meeting of the OPWC executive council.

Shulgin claimed that chemical, biological and radiological experts inspected the scene of the alleged chemical attack blamed on the Syrian government, but that the team found “not a single piece of evidence” that could substantiate the recordings distributed broadly on social and mass media – but said they uncovered witnesses who said the video purported to show the aftermath of the attack was staged.

RT reported that OPCW investigators are expected to start their work in Douma on Monday, after meeting with Syrian officials on Sunday to discuss details of the mission. The OPCW team is expected to finish its investigation by Wednesday and is to present a preliminary report to the UN prior to leaving Syria, according to local media.

https://youtu.be/hcOxFAp-nx4

Featured, Foreign Policy, International

Russia Accuses UK of Masterminding Chemical Weapons Attack in Syria

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Hours before the United States, the UK, and France carried out “limited” strikes last Saturday morning, the Russian military presented what it claimed to be proof that the chemical weapons attack used as the pretext for those strikes was staged at the behest of the UK government.

During a Friday briefing, the Russian Defense Ministry showed interviews with medical professionals reported to work in the only functional hospital in Douma – the suburb of the Syrian capital Damascus where the attacks are said to have taken place. In their testimony, the two men asserted that the footage of the alleged chemical attack was taken after a Syrian air strike occurred and that the affected people shown in the video were suffering from smoke poisoning. They stated that a false claim of chemical weapons use was then circulated, leading concerned family members to douse those affected with water.

The Russian military then asserted that the White Helmets, the foreign-funded “humanitarian” group active in Syria, were pressured by the UK government to “speed up” a provocation that they had been preparing in order to push for Western intervention.

British UN Ambassador Karen Pierce called the allegations “grotesque,” “a blatant lie” and “the worst piece of fake news we’ve yet seen from the Russian propaganda machine.”

The main group that has provided footage and evidence purporting to show the chemical weapons attack in Douma are the White Helmets. Syria’s White Helmets, while they have largely been portrayed in Western media as a humanitarian first responder group, were actually founded in Turkey in 2013 by a British mercenary named James Le Mesurier. Le Mesurier is a former officer in the British military and also formerly worked for British intelligence. He eventually left his work with the British government to join with the Olive Group before it merged with Blackwater-Academi to become Constellis Holdings. He then worked in Abu Dhabi before moving to Turkey and founding the White Helmets.

To found the group, Le Mesurier raised $300,000 in seed funding provided by the UK, the U.S. and Japan, according to journalist Vanessa Beeley. Since its founding, the White Helmets have received over $123 million from 2013 to 2016 from the U.S. and UK governments, as well as Western NGOs and Gulf state monarchies. In addition, during the past five years, the White Helmets have been instrumental in blaming the Syrian government for any and all chemical weapons attacks in Syria, acting as both witnesses and responders to events that were later reported to be the work of the armed opposition in Syria or staged.

In Mid-March, the Syrian Arab Army intercepted a truck containing weapons and ammunition destined for the militant rebel groups in the area where the chemical weapons attack is said to have occurred. Among the items found were canisters apparently containing smoke grenades made in Salisbury, England – where the UK government has a chemical weapons laboratory.

Regardless of what information emerges from Douma regarding the alleged chemical weapons attack, the UK and its allies have already unilaterally attacked Syria even though they have admitted that they have no evidence that the attack even took place, beyond social media posts and YouTube videos created by controversial groups with ties to U.K. intelligence.

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VOTE: Should the U.S. Be Bombing Syria?

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Foreign Policy, International, Politics, US

Veterans Group Warns US Attack on Syria Could Lead to Nuclear War

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Washington, D.C. – Veterans for Peace, a prevalent veterans’ organization in the United States, has issued a press release warning that a U.S. attack in Syria could lead to a nuclear war with Russia. VFP president Gerry Condon warned of the catastrophic danger inherent in a direct conflict between the U.S. and Russia, presciently asking why the mass media is “cheerleading for war instead of asking hard questions.” Condon went on to highlight the fact that the only “proof” of the attack is a “video made by a fundamentalist rebel group,” noting that even if true, a “military response will only lead to more death, destruction and dangerous escalations.”

Additionally, Condon invoked previous lies told to the American public about “weapons of mass destruction” used to lure the public into supporting the war in Iraq, and urged all veterans, GIs and their families “not to accept another war based on lies.” Furthermore, VFP claims that “all military personnel, from low ranking GI’s to the top generals and admirals, have an obligation to disobey illegal orders. Orders to carry out acts of war against a sovereign nation that is not threatening the U.S. are illegal orders.”

[Related: Reality Check: No Sarin Gas Used by Assad in Syria?]

Read the entire press release, as it appears on Common Dreams, below:

A leading veterans’ organization is warning that a U.S. attack on Syria could lead to a nuclear war. Russian military forces in Syria will undoubtedly be among the targets of U.S. missiles.  Russia has said it will shoot down U.S. missiles, and attack the “platforms from which they are fired,” i.e. U.S. ships.

 “Why the rush to war?” asked Gerry Condon, president of Veterans For Peace.  “Why is the mass media cheerleading for war instead of asking hard questions?  Why are Democratic and Republican politicians trying to out-do one another with calls for ever more massive attacks on Syria?

“There is no proof yet of a Syrian government gas attack, only a video made by a fundamentalist rebel group that wants more U.S. intervention.  Even if the reports are true, a military response will only lead to more death and destruction, and dangerous escalations.

“We are talking about a direct confrontation between the two nuclear superpowers,” said Gerry Condon. “Why would the U.S. risk nuclear war over dubious chemical weapons claims?

“Veterans have longer memories than the press and the politicians,” said Condon.  “We remember how we were lied into the Iraq War with false reports of ‘weapons of mass destruction.’ U.S. wars throughout the Middle East have caused millions of deaths and destroyed entire societies.  Our soldiers and their families have also paid an extremely high price.”

“Veterans, GI’s and their families will not accept another war based on lies,” said Gerry Condon.  “We will be protesting in the streets, in the suites, at media outlets and at military bases.

All military personnel, from low ranking GI’s to the top generals and admirals, have an obligation to disobey illegal orders.  Orders to carry out acts of war against a sovereign nation that is not threatening the U.S. are illegal orders.

“We swore an oath to defend the Constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic,” said Gerry Condon, president of Veterans For Peace. “Right now those enemies are those who would rush our country recklessly into another devastating war.”

According to Common Dreams, “Veterans For Peace is a national organization founded in 1985. It is structured around a national office in Saint Louis, MO and comprised of members across the country organized in chapters or as at-large members. The organization includes men and women veterans of all eras and duty stations including from the Spanish Civil War (1936-39), World War II, the Korean, Vietnam, Gulf and current Iraq wars as well as other conflicts. Our collective experience tells us wars are easy to start and hard to stop and that those hurt are often the innocent. Thus, other means of problem solving are necessary.”

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hcOxFAp-nx4

Featured, Foreign Policy, International, Politics, US

Ron Paul: Assad Gassing His Own People is “Total Nonsense”

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Washington, D.C. – Former Congressman Ron Paul has strongly argued following the alleged chemical gas attack blamed on the Syrian government that it makes no logical sense for Assad to order a gas attack, and has called the accusations a telltale sign of a false flag attack meant to provide justification for the U.S. military to maintain a presence in Syria.

“An incident will occur and somebody will get blamed and it’s usually a false flag,” said Paul.

“Right now, recently, it’s all been in Syria, ‘Assad did it! Assad did it!’” explained the former congressman. “No proof at all.”

“The way the people that perpetuate these false flags [sic] say that Assad is gassing his own people, at the same time, he’s winning the war and the people are flocking back in to go to the territories that he has returned to the government of Syria,” explained Paul. “But, nevertheless, he’s out there gassing his own people, which makes no sense whatsoever and fewer and fewer people are believing this.”

Paul, who founded the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity in 2013 after leaving the U.S. House, presented his analysis via the Ron Paul Liberty Report, describing how foreign policy goals related to Saudi Arabia and Iran, and Russia, as well as the influence of neoconservatives, oil interests, and the military-industrial complex play into the current paradigm we see playing out in Syria.

During an appearance on RT, Paul further elaborated. “This whole idea that all of a sudden Assad’s gassing his own people, I think, is total nonsense,” Paul said, pointing out that “over and over again” the US has claimed the Syrian or Russian government has been complicit in previous gas attacks in Syria – and the alleged poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in London — but “nothing panned out.” Or as Paul put it, one “fake news” story after another.

The libertarian icon then reasoned that the rush to condemn the Syrian government without evidence is meant to provide a justification for those wanting the US to remain in Syria and topple the Syrian government in hopes of installing a more western-friendly regime that is not within Russia or Iran’s sphere of influence.

Paul argued that, while it provides little to no strategic benefit for Assad to gas his own people, it would greatly benefit those that are pushing for regime change – especially after Trump recently said he would like to remove U.S. troops from Syria.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hcOxFAp-nx4

Government Accountability, International, Politics

Report: Russian Black Sea Fleet on “High Level” Alert

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Washington, D.C.— The Russian Black Sea Fleet has reportedly been placed on high level combat alert after a U.S. ship left Cyprus for Syrian waters, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense as reported by Al-Masdar News of Beirut. Additionally, NBC News is reporting that the Russian military is jamming U.S. military drones operating over Syria, which is affecting American military operations, according to several U.S. officials. These moves by Russia likely come in anticipation of a possible U.S.-led coalition military strike.

A U.S. military strike— a decision yet to be made by President Trump, but one which he has strongly suggested— would be the result of an alleged chemical weapons attack in the in the city of Douma that was blamed on the Syrian Army by “rebels” as well as the White Helmets. In response, Russia claimed that their investigators found no traces of chemicals being used at the alleged attack site. An investigation team from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) will be traveling to Syria to conduct their own research following a request from Russia and Syria.

While Washington was quick to report that the Assad government was behind the alleged chemical attack, Russia warned weeks ago of false flag chemical weapons attacks by Islamist rebels intent on blaming the Assad government, as Truth in Media previously reported:

Russia’s Chief of the General Staff of Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, warned on Tuesday that Syrian rebels are preparing to utilize chemical weapons— to be blamed on the Syrian government— as a justification for U.S. strikes on Damascus, and cautioned that “in the event of a threat to our military servicemen’s lives, Russia’s Armed Forces will take retaliatory measures to target both the missiles and their delivery vehicles.”

“This has been confirmed by the discovery of a laboratory for the production of chemical weapons in the village of Aftris, which was liberated from terrorists,” Gerasimov stressed.

“As a countermeasure, Washington plans to deliver a missile and bomb strike against Damascus’ government districts,” Gerasimov continued.

The increased defensive alertness of Russian forces could raise concern, given Gerasimov’s warning of “retaliatory measures to target both missiles and their delivery vehicles.”

[Watch: Reality Check: No Sarin Gas Used by Assad in Syria?]

According to NBC News’ report:

The Russians began jamming some smaller U.S. drones several weeks ago, the officials said, after a series of suspected chemical weapons attacks on civilians in rebel-held eastern Ghouta. The Russian military was concerned the U.S. military would retaliate for the attacks and began jamming the GPS systems of drones operating in the area, the officials explained.

Dr. Todd Humphreys, an expert on GPS spoofing and jamming and director of the Radionavigation Laboratory at the University of Texas at Austin, warned that the Russian GPS jamming could be powerful, potentially causing them to malfunction.

“GPS receivers in most drones can be fairly easily jammed,” Humphreys said. “At the very least it could cause some serious confusion.”

NBC News reports that the Pentagon refused to say whether the jamming is causing drones to crash over concerns of operational security, but one official speaking off the record said the Russian jamming is sophisticated and has made a tactical impact on U.S. military operations in Syria.

“The U.S. military maintains sufficient countermeasures and protections to ensure the safety of our manned and unmanned aircraft, our forces and the missions they support,” Pentagon spokesman Eric Pahon told NBC.

An unnamed U.S. official told NBC that the tactic is having an operational impact on U.S. military operations in Syria, and said “the equipment being used was developed by the Russian military and is very sophisticated, proving effective even against some encrypted signals and anti-jamming receivers.”

Investigative journalist Ben Swann’s most recent Reality Check fully summarizes the most recent chemical attack and the much larger conflict surrounding the incident:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcOxFAp-nx4

Reality Check

Reality Check: Syrian Gas Attack Connected to Bigger Conflict?

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Another devastating report from the Middle East: some 40 children hit by a gas attack in Syria, with Assad’s regime being blamed.

President Trump tweets Assad is an “animal,” but that Russia and Iran are responsible for backing him. And there’s a “big price to pay.”

Twelve hours later, missile strikes hit a Syrian air base, killing 14 including Iranians. Assad blames Israel, and Senator Lindsey Graham says Israel would have every right to do so “because Iran is very embedded in Syria.”

So, is there any evidence that the Syrian government is responsible for the gas attack? And what about the tensions between Israel, Syria and Iran?

There are major problems with what is being played out in the Middle East that other media are just going to ignore. But we won’t.

Let’s give it a Reality Check.

It is a difficult issue to take on. Largely because emotions around the issue are so high. Over the weekend, reports of another chemical attack in Syria, this one in the city of Douma.

Video has been released on ABC, CNN, Al-Jazeera and so many other networks shows the horrific sight of small children who have been gassed.

According to the Associated Press, “Suspected poison gas was used to attack the last remaining foothold for the Syrian opposition in the eastern suburbs of Damascus, killing at least 40 people, including families found in their homes and shelters.” These reports come from rescue groups and anti government forces in Syria.

Sunday, President Trump responded with a series of tweets:

“Many dead, including women and children, in mindless CHEMICAL attack in Syria. Area of atrocity is in lockdown and encircled by Syrian Army, making it completely inaccessible to outside world. President Putin, Russia and Iran are responsible for backing Animal Assad. Big price… to pay Open area immediately for medical help and verification. Another humanitarian disaster for no reason whatsoever. SICK!”

President Trump went even further to threaten even more action against Assad, tweeting:

“If President Obama had crossed his stated Red Line In The Sand, the Syrian disaster would have ended long ago! Animal Assad would have been history!”

It was nearly a year to the day when reports of another Syrian gas attack prompted the U.S. military to conduct airstrikes against a Syrian air base.

But as I reported only a few weeks ago, the U.S. Secretary of Defense now admits that there was actually no evidence in that case, or in any case that the Syrian government was the one that used sarin gas. And yet, that was the reason the U.S. gave for its the most recent airstrike.

So with no evidence, the U.S. previously conducted an airstrike against a Syrian air base. Now, President Trump is saying he will go even further. And the usual war cheerleaders in Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham are pushing the president to do so.

For his part, Sen. McCain released a statement that attempted to blame President Trump for Sunday’s attack.

“President Trump last week signaled to the world that the United States would prematurely withdraw from Syria. Bashar Assad and his Russian and Iranian backers have heard him, and emboldened by American inaction, Assad has reportedly launched another chemical attack against innocent men, women and children, this time in Douma.”

All of this as the media continues to discount the idea that jihadists, including so called U.S. backed Syrian rebels have used chemical weapons in the past. “Even though U.N. Investigator Carla del Ponte, was unable to fulfill her U.N. joint Investigative mandate in Syria and withdrew in protest over the United States refusing to fully investigate allegations of chemical weapon use by ‘rebels’ who are actually jihadis, allied with the American effort to oust President Assad (including the use of Sarin by anti-Assad rebels).”

According to the Times of London, “Carla del Ponte, head of the independent UN commission investigating reports of chemical weapons use in Syria, told a Swiss-Italian television station that UN investigators gleaned testimony from victims of Syria’s civil war and medical staff which indicated that rebel forces used sarin gas, a deadly nerve agent.”

“Our investigators have been in neighboring countries interviewing victims, doctors and field hospitals and according to their report, of last week, which i have seen, there are strong, concrete suspicions but not yet incontrovertible proof of the use of sarin gas, from the way the victims were treated,’ Del Ponte said in the interview, translated by Reuters. ‘This was use on the part of the opposition, the rebels, not by the government authorities, she added.”

What you need to know goes back to what Sen. John McCain said about Syria doing this because the U.S. might withdraw, the opposite is likely true.

Consider this: a year ago, with no evidence, President Trump ordered the largest strike so far against Syria over claims of chemical weapon use.

So if now, the president signaled that he would withdraw from Syria, why would the Syrian government, before that withdrawal happens, use chemical weapons on its own people?

Strategically that makes no sense at all. Unless there’s a bigger strategy at play here involving the U.S., Israel, Russia and Iran.

But believe this: what is being sold in the media as to what is happening in Syria is not what it seems.

Would Israel and the U.S. attack Syria and Iran because of a chemical attack that has not been proven to be from the Syrian government? Remember, Israel recently admitted that it was behind the 2007 bombing of Syria’s nuclear reactor. And, just two weeks ago, the a joint military exercise between Israel and the U.S. played out a scenario of an Iranian attack on Israel.

Meanwhile the media shows you pictures of harmed children and avoids the bigger question, which is this: is the U.S. potentially being pulled into an all-out war with Iran and Syria?

That’s Reality Check, let’s talk about it right now on social media.

Featured, Foreign Policy, Government Accountability, International, US

Trump: “Major Decision” on Syria “By The End of Today”

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Washington, D.C. – While speaking to reporters, President Trump said on Monday that he will make a “major decision” regarding a U.S. response to alleged chemical weapons use by the Syrian government in Douma, East Ghouta, in the next 24-48 hours. Trump went on to specify that the decision will be made “very quickly,” likely “by the end of today,” and that “nothing is off the table.”

Trump stated at the cabinet meeting:

We are studying that situation extremely closely.  We are meeting with our military and everybody else, and we’ll be making some major decisions over the next 24 to 48 hours.  We are very concerned when a thing like that can happen.  This is about humanity.  We’re talking about humanity.  And it can’t be allowed to happen.

So we’ll be looking at that barbaric act and studying what’s going on. We’re trying to get people in there. As you know, it’s been surrounded. So it’s very hard to get people in because not only has it been hit, it’s been surrounded. And if they’re innocent, why aren’t they allowing people to go in and prove? Because as you know, they’re claiming they didn’t make the attack.

So if it’s Russia, if it’s Syria, if it’s Iran, if it’s all of them together, we’ll figure it out and we’ll know the answers quite soon. So we’re looking at that very, very strongly and very seriously.

On Sunday, Trump wrote on Twitter that there would be a “big price to pay” for the alleged attack and called President Bashar al-Assad an “animal.” Trump’s comments echo those of U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis, who told a reporter when asked about potential military strikes in Syria that he “would not rule out anything right now.”

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/982966315467116544

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/982967389028569088

Both Syria and Russia have denied involvement in the alleged chemical attack. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated on April 9:

False information is being planted about the alleged use of chlorine and other toxic agents by the Syrian government forces. The latest fake news about a chemical attack on Douma was reported yesterday. These reports are again referenced to the notorious White Helmets, which have been proved more than once to be working hand in glove with the terrorists, as well as to other pseudo-humanitarian organisations headquartered in the UK and the US.

As Truth in Media reported on weeks ago, Russia warned of an impending chemical attack by anti-government forces based upon intelligence reports:

Russia’s Chief of the General Staff of Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, warned on Tuesday that Syrian rebels are preparing to utilize chemical weapons— to be blamed on the Syrian government— as a justification for U.S. strikes on Damascus, and cautioned that “in the event of a threat to our military servicemen’s lives, Russia’s Armed Forces will take retaliatory measures to target both the missiles and their delivery vehicles.”

According to Gerasimov, the U.S. plans to accuse the Syrian government of using chemical weapons, thus justifying a potential attack on Syrian government facilities in the Syrian capital of Damascus.

Gerasimov noted that Russia has intelligence which indicates preparations are underway to stage the use of chemical weapons against civilians, stating that the United States plans to “furnish the so-called ‘evidence’ of the alleged mass civilian deaths through the fault of the Syrian government and the Russian leadership supporting it.”

Allegations of a government sponsored chemical attack in in Syria on Saturday comes as pro-government forces concluded an operation to liberate the region from Islamic militants that had taken control of vast swaths of the country, and only days after Trump publicly stated his intention to get U.S. troops out of Syria.

This entire incident rings similar to what happened in February, when Rex Tillerson blamed Russia for a “chemical attack” alleged to have been undertaken by the Syrian government, only to later admit he didn’t actually know who did it. Trump’s language used last April in response to an alleged chemical attack blamed on Assad’s forces in Idlib province — followed by the U.S. launching Tomahawk cruise missile strikes on Syria—was also similar to his response to this recent chemical weapons incident.

Following the reports of a chemical attack, Israel targeted a Syrian airbase with missiles in Homs on Sunday night, according to the Associated Press; that attack reportedly killed 14 people. NBC News confirmed the report, noting that the U.S. had been made aware of the pending strikes before they were launched.

In a statement released on Monday, the U.S. State Department claimed that victims of the alleged attack in Douma showed symptoms of nerve agent exposure, and called on Syria and Russia to open the area to international monitors, according to RT. Additionally, Monday marks the first day on the job for Trump’s new national security advisor John Bolton. Bolton, a former Bush-era ambassador to the UN, is a renowned proponent of increased U.S. military adventurism in the Middle East.

Foreign Policy, International, Politics, US

Russia Warns of Chemical Weapons Guise in Syria to Justify US Escalation

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Moscow, Russia— Russia’s Chief of the General Staff of Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, warned on Tuesday that Syrian rebels are preparing to utilize chemical weapons— to be blamed on the Syrian government— as a justification for U.S. strikes on Damascus, and cautioned that “in the event of a threat to our military servicemen’s lives, Russia’s Armed Forces will take retaliatory measures to target both the missiles and their delivery vehicles.”

According to Gerasimov, the U.S. plans to accuse the Syrian government of using chemical weapons, thus justifying a potential attack on Syrian government facilities in the Syrian capital of Damascus.

Gerasimov noted that Russia has intelligence which indicates preparations are underway to stage the use of chemical weapons against civilians, stating that the United States plans to “furnish the so-called ‘evidence’ of the alleged mass civilian deaths through the fault of the Syrian government and the Russian leadership supporting it.”

“This has been confirmed by the discovery of a laboratory for the production of chemical weapons in the village of Aftris, which was liberated from terrorists,” Gerasimov stressed.

“As a countermeasure, Washington plans to deliver a missile and bomb strike against Damascus’ government districts,” Gerasimov continued.

[RELATED: Reality Check: No Sarin Gas Used by Assad in Syria?]

“We have reliable information about militants preparing to falsify a government chemical attack against civilians. In several districts of Eastern Ghouta, a crowd was assembled with women, children and old people, brought from other regions, who were to represent the victims of the chemical incident,” Gerasimov said.

The statement by Gerasimov comes a day after US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley ominously stated that the US was “prepared” to take action in Syria to halt civilian bombing in Syria if the UN refrained from doing so. “When the international community consistently fails to act, there are times when states are compelled to take their own action,” Haley said. “We warn any nation determined to impose its will through chemical attacks and inhuman suffering, but most especially the outlaw Syrian regime, the United States remains prepared to act if we must.”

In that same session, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vasily Nebenzya said that al-Qaeda linked militants had already used chemical weapons in East Ghouta.

The Russian Ministry of Defense will take retaliatory measures against the U.S. if there are any “threat to the lives” of Russian armed forces in Syria, Gerasimov warned.

“At the same time, Russian military advisors, members of the Russian Reconciliation Center for the Conflicting Sides and military policemen are staying in the Syrian Defense Ministry’s facilities in Damascus. In case there is a threat to the lives of our military, the Russian Armed Force will take retaliatory measures both over the missiles and carriers that will use them,” he said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nruCoO478Kk