Absurd demands were put forth by US Secretary of State John Kerry, regarding Iraqi airspace and alleged aircraft passing through it with arms and cash supposedly destined for the Syrian government. The Washington Post reported in its article, “Kerry: Iraq helping Syria’s Assad by allowing arms flow,” that:
Iraq is helping to shore up the besieged regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad by allowing Iranian arms and fighters to cross into Syria from Iraq, Secretary of State John F. Kerry charged Sunday.
During an unannounced trip to Baghdad, Kerry lobbied Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for greater scrutiny of flights that cross Iraq. He appeared to make little headway with Maliki, a Shiite with long ties to Iran and little inclination to do U.S. bidding 10 years after the American invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein.
As Kerry lodged his feckless complaints, the United States, UK, France, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Israel continue to ship literally thousands of tons of weapons to sectarian extremists arrayed against the Syrian government since at least 2007. A recent report published by the London Telegraph titled, “US and Europe in ‘major airlift of arms to Syrian rebels through Zagreb’,” stated of such shipments:
… 3,000 tons of weapons dating back to the former Yugoslavia have been sent in 75 planeloads from Zagreb airport to the rebels, largely via Jordan since November
The story confirmed the origins of ex-Yugoslav weapons seen in growing numbers in rebel hands in online videos, as described last month by The Daily Telegraph and other newspapers, but suggests far bigger quantities than previously suspected.
The shipments were allegedly paid for by Saudi Arabia at the bidding of the United States, with assistance on supplying the weapons organised through Turkey and Jordan, Syria’s neighbours. But the report added that as well as from Croatia, weapons came “from several other European countries including Britain”, without specifying if they were British-supplied or British-procured arms.
British military advisers however are known to be operating in countries bordering Syria alongside French and Americans, offering training to rebel leaders and former Syrian army officers. The Americans are also believed to be providing training on securing chemical weapons sites inside Syria.
And while the US insists that these weapons are being funneled into the hands of “moderate,” “secular” fighters by its own CIA agents operating on and across the Turkish-Syrian border, it is admitted that Al Qaeda’s Syrian franchise, al-Nusra, has emerged as the most effective, organized fighting force amongst the so-called opposition. CNN’s article, “Syrian opposition group turns down leader’s resignation,” stated explicitly that:
Fighting in the area has intensified in recent days as rebels backed by Nusra Front fighters gain territory.
The radical Islamist al-Nusra Front has emerged as one of the most effective groups in the Syrian resistance, drawing on foreign fighters with combat experience in Iraq and elsewhere.
In December, the U.S. State Department moved to blacklist the rebel group as a foreign terror organization linked to al Qaeda in Iraq.
If 3,000 tons of weapons were sent to moderates in Syria by the US and Saudi Arabia, who could possibly be sending even more weapons to al-Nusra, establishing them as the premier armed front in Syria? Clearly, such a turn of events is not possible without al-Nusra receiving extensive and continuous state-sponsorship. Indeed, the US, Saudi Arabia, and Israel had conspired as early as 2007 to supply just such groups with arms, cash, and military aid to overthrow the Syrian government. Documented in Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh’s article, “The Redirection: Is the Administration’s new policy benefiting our enemies in the war on terrorism?” it was stated that:
“To undermine Iran, which is predominantly Shiite, the Bush Administration has decided, in effect, to reconfigure its priorities in the Middle East. In Lebanon, the Administration has coöperated with Saudi Arabia’s government, which is Sunni, in clandestine operations that are intended to weaken Hezbollah, the Shiite organization that is backed by Iran. The U.S. has also taken part in clandestine operations aimed at Iran and its ally Syria. A by-product of these activities has been the bolstering of Sunni extremist groups that espouse a militant vision of Islam and are hostile to America and sympathetic to Al Qaeda.”
It is beyond doubt that the West and its regional allies are now doing just that – bolstering militant groups sympathetic to Al Qaeda, and the 3,000 tons of weapons were funneled primarily, and intentionally into the hands of Al Qaeda’s al-Nusra front. Disturbing then, that Kerry is demanding that Iraq cease alleged aid being sent to Syria to fight these extremist groups – groups the US sent over 4,000 of its own sons to fight and die during the 10 year occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, and extremists who were allegedly behind the death of 3,000 Americans on September 11, 2001, tipping off a costly and unending “War on Terror.”
The absurdity of Secretary John Kerry’s demands, and the unraveling agenda he now represents, set new lows for American foreign policy and will irreparably damage America’s image globally for many years to come. The insidious campaign pursued versus Syria, now at this juncture, has damaged Western interests and global standings to such an extent that even victory tomorrow would not avert or blunt the lasting ramifications of its willful, murderous, hegemonic aggression.
