Syria's Assad says Western plots against him foiled but war not yet won

[webfact]

Syria's Assad says Western plots against him foiled but war not yet won

By Suleiman Al-Khalidi

 

 

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad speaks during an interview with RIA Novosti and Sputnik in this handout picture provided by SANA on April 21, 2017, Syria. SANA/Handout via REUTERS/files

 

AMMAN (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Sunday his country had foiled Western designs to topple him but his army had not yet won the fight to end Syria's six-year-old insurgency.

 

In an televised address, Assad said that even though there were signs of victory after six-and-a-half years of civil war, the "battle continues, and where we go later and it becomes possible to talk about victory...that's a different matter".

 

He did not elaborate on that point.

 

However, he said the assistance extended by stalwart allies Russia, Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah movement had enabled the army to make battlefield gains and reduce the burden of war.

 

"Their direct support - politically, economically and militarily - has made possible bigger advances on the battlefield and reduced the losses and burdens of war," Assad added.

 

Assad vowed to pursue an offensive in Syria's vast deserts, where he is backed by Iranian-funded militias and heavy Russian air power that have allowed his troops to capture significant ground from Islamic State insurgents on several major fronts.

 

His government hopes to steal a march on U.S.-backed militias in the attack on Islamic State's last major Syrian stronghold, the Deir al-Zor region that extends to the Iraqi border. The eastward thrust, unthinkable two years ago when Assad seemed in danger, has underlined his ever more confident position and the dilemma facing Western leaders who still want him to leave power in a negotiated transition.

 

"Our army is achieving one gain after another every day to eliminate terrorists...We will continue to attack terrorists until the last terrorist on Syrian land," Assad said.

 

He said his country welcomed Russian-brokered local ceasefire deals that Moscow is seeking to extend elsewhere in Syria as these would end bloodshed and bring an end to the insurgency and pardoning of rebels who agree to lay down arms.

 

"RETURN TO NORMALCY"

 

"The idea of these de-escalation zones is to stop the bloodletting ... and the eviction of the armed groups handing over their weapons and the return of normalcy," Assad said. "We have an interest in the success of this initiative."

 

Russia has since last month deployed military police beside army checkpoints in southwest Syria and in Eastern Ghouta near Damascus to help ensure calm in deals it has worked out with Syrian rebel groups.

 

Negotiations are under way with mainstream armed groups and local councils to broker a truce in the besieged northern Homs countryside enclave, where rebels have sought the intervention of Moscow to get humanitarian aid to trapped civilians.

 

Rebel leaders are also calling for the release of thousands of detainees held in government security prisons.

 

Many mainstream rebel groups have been sceptical about Moscow's ultimate aims in Syria and cast doubt on its readiness to put genuine pressure on Assad to abide by local truces.

 

They also worry that these ceasefire deals are a means for Assad's army and its allies to redeploy in other areas to recover territory by using firepower freed by the truces.

 

Rebel factions have already accused the army and Iranian-backed militias of ceasefire violations in Eastern Ghouta. The army continues to pound residential areas in rebel-held eastern suburbs of Damascus, witnesses say.

 

Assad, whose government brands many of the Western backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) rebel groups that Moscow has reached truces with as "terrorists", has said his army retained the right to continue to attack insurgents.

 

However, Assad has condemned U.S.-inspired "safe zones" which President Donald Trump earlier this year said he hoped to achieve with Russia, saying such a plan would only "give cover to terrorists".

 

(Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi; editing by Mark Heinrich)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-08-21

[craigt3365]

Assad will eventually be charged with crimes against humanity. Brutal dictator that's been responsible for so many deaths of innocent civilians.

[Srikcir]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

.We will continue to attack terrorists until the last terrorist on Syrian land," Assad said.

Assad is going to take himself out?

[craigt3365]

31 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

Assad is going to take himself out?

We can only wish. Along with millions of Syrians.

[retarius]

Hang in there Assad. They call you a tyrant but the prescription for your tyranny is to turn Stria into a medieval country with Sunni terrorists running things.....the cure is worse than the disease. 

 

The West cares nothing for ordinary Syrians who are simply pawns in their game of hegemony....they don;t care how many orphans their bombs kill, or how many fathers, sons, mothers and daughters have been mutilated or slain and how many lives blighted for the sake of a bloody pipeline that the US wanted to have built to poke Russia in the eye.

 

I read a brilliant article which asked the question why America keeps going in for these regime changes in the Middle East which turn out disastrously and leave the country destabilized and shattered. The conclusion was that what America really wants is not to kill off the Saddams and Assads, but to shatter and destabilize these countries. The number of people killed by the Assad regime pales into insignificance next to the numbers whose live have been wrecked by the West sponsored regime change invasion.

 

Hang in the Mr Assad.

[Global Guy]

2 hours ago, craigt3365 said:

Assad will eventually be charged with crimes against humanity. Brutal dictator that's been responsible for so many deaths of innocent civilians.

So in turn the US will be charged because of all the innocent civilians they killed in their illegal invasion of Syria? Remember, the US was NOT invited into Syria. They also advocated the illegal coup of a sitting government. Who will charge the US for these crimes?

[craigt3365]

7 minutes ago, retarius said:

Hang in there Assad. They call you a tyrant but the prescription for your tyranny is to turn Stria into a medieval country with Sunni terrorists running things.....the cure is worse than the disease. 

 

The West cares nothing for ordinary Syrians who are simply pawns in their game of hegemony....they don;t care how many orphans their bombs kill, or how many fathers, sons, mothers and daughters have been mutilated or slain and how many lives blighted for the sake of a bloody pipeline that the US wanted to have built to poke Russia in the eye.

 

I read a brilliant article which asked the question why America keeps going in for these regime changes in the Middle East which turn out disastrously and leave the country destabilized and shattered. The conclusion was that what America really wants is not to kill off the Saddams and Assads, but to shatter and destabilize these countries. The number of people killed by the Assad regime pales into insignificance next to the numbers whose live have been wrecked by the West sponsored regime change invasion.

 

Hang in the Mr Assad.

BS. To say the West doesn't care for ordinary Syrians is absolutely wrong and trolling.  Assad and his friends have killed way more than the West AND ISIS put together.  Amazing you don't see this and back a brutal dictator.

 

P.S. it's not America that wants that pipeline. It's Qatar for the revenue and Europe to help reduce their dependence on Russia's stranglehold on them. Can't blame them. Amazing you blame everything on the US.  LOL

 

I read a brilliant article where the French are charging Assad with crimes against humanity.  Fantastic! Well deserved.

[craigt3365]

6 minutes ago, Global Guy said:

So in turn the US will be charged because of all the innocent civilians they killed in their illegal invasion of Syria? Remember, the US was NOT invited into Syria. They also advocated the illegal coup of a sitting government. Who will charge the US for these crimes?

You mean the 10 to 16 countries that make up the coalition fighting in Syria?

 

Guaranteed the millions of Syrians displaced by Assads bombing of them won't sue the US nor the coalition members. LOL

[Global Guy]

2 minutes ago, craigt3365 said:

BS. To say the West doesn't care for ordinary Syrians is absolutely wrong and trolling.  Assad and his friends have killed way more than the West AND ISIS put together.  Amazing you don't see this and back a brutal dictator.

 

P.S. it's not America that wants that pipeline. It's Qatar for the revenue and Europe to help reduce their dependence on Russia's stranglehold on them. Can't blame them. Amazing you blame everything on the US.  LOL

 

I read a brilliant article where the French are charging Assad with crimes against humanity.  Fantastic! Well deserved.

To blame Assad but not blame the US for committing the same crimes you accuse them of is the height of hypocrisy. Just because the US kills innocent people with bombs and bullets doesn't make it legal. Assad is the leader of the country.

 

The US has zero legal authority to step one foot in that country. But how convenient it is for Americans to "forget" that. Maybe because their illegal invasions around the world have become so common that people have become desensitized to these crimes.

 

If you sit on a high horse condemning criminal acts, then that includes the US too.

 

Just an FYI....

[Global Guy]

2 minutes ago, craigt3365 said:

You mean the 10 to 16 countries that make up the coalition fighting in Syria?

 

Guaranteed the millions of Syrians displaced by Assads bombing of them won't sue the US nor the coalition members. LOL

Yes, an uninvited coalition. Just because the US invited their buddies doesn't make it legal. How CNN of you.

[craigt3365]

7 minutes ago, Global Guy said:

To blame Assad but not blame the US for committing the same crimes you accuse them of is the height of hypocrisy. Just because the US kills innocent people with bombs and bullets doesn't make it legal. Assad is the leader of the country.

 

The US has zero legal authority to step one foot in that country. But how convenient it is for Americans to "forget" that. Maybe because their illegal invasions around the world have become so common that people have become desensitized to these crimes.

 

If you sit on a high horse condemning criminal acts, then that includes the US too.

 

Just an FYI....

What triggered this? Assads brutal crackdown on protesters during the Arab Spring. The US didn't start this.

 

The US has not indiscriminately bombed civilians with barrel bombs nor used chemicals on them. So no, not the same crimes. Nowhere even near.

 

Assad may or may not be the leader of Syria. That's up for debate. What is Syria now? Civil wars tend to change borders.

 

Pretty much the entire world community is against Assad and his actions. Almost complete unity. That should tell you something.

 

Read up on France's take on this.

 

I'd love for the US to not be involved. But that means Assad would have to stop killing his own innocent people. Right?

 

Read my signature tag.

[craigt3365]

13 minutes ago, Global Guy said:

Yes, an uninvited coalition. Just because the US invited their buddies doesn't make it legal. How CNN of you.

So you support the mass bombing and use of chemicals against civilian populations? Really?

[Srikcir]

1 hour ago, retarius said:

Hang in the Mr Assad.

Didn't work for Saddam.

Won't work for Assad.

Except in a nasty way.

[Global Guy]

6 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

Didn't work for Saddam.

Won't work for Assad.

Except in a nasty way.

 

33 minutes ago, craigt3365 said:

So you support the mass bombing and use of chemicals against civilian populations? Really?

Show me where I wrote that?  When you don't like facts do you always just make something up?  BTW, your post just described the U.S. actions in Syria.  Really? Yes, really. I knew putting these facts out there would ruffle some panties. The US is funding, arming, training, and fighting WITH the terrorists in Syria. That they brag about. They put some fluffy adjective before the word "terrorist" oh wait, excuse me, rebel.....and people fall for it. Lemmings.....

[craigt3365]

25 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

Didn't work for Saddam.

Won't work for Assad.

Except in a nasty way.

Some are too anti US to get it. The US is far from perfect. And luckily, far from being as brutal as Assad.

[Global Guy]

Just now, craigt3365 said:

Some are too anti US to get it. The US is far from perfect. And luckily, far from being as brutal as Assad.

No, the US kills far more. I'm not anti US, I'm anti-hypocrite. That's why I left my position with the US govt, where I worked with and was trained by the two and three letter agencies and was briefed on a daily basis about all of this. So, being behind the curtain for so many years, you either sell your soul and buy into the global killings or you get out.

 

I chose to get out. So, I'm a critic of killing for profit. The US just so happens to be the best at it. The sad part is how much the citizens have bought into it, like it's a good thing.

[Scott]

An off-topic rant has been removed.   Please stay on topic.  

 

[Caps]

15 minutes ago, Global Guy said:

and was trained by the two and three letter agencies and was briefed on a daily basis about all of this.

CNN, NBC? 

[Global Guy]

1 minute ago, Caps said:

CNN, NBC? 

Cute. But no. They are puppets of the US govt, but not the govt itself. 

[Caps]

Just now, Global Guy said:

Cute. But no. They are puppets of the US govt, but not the govt itself. 

Sorry I couldn't resist,  no harm intended

[Global Guy]

Just now, Caps said:

Sorry I couldn't resist,  no harm intended

If you see a drone outside your window tonight, I had nothing to do with it....really. No harm intended (BTW, that was sarcasm.)  It's all good!

[craigt3365]

1 hour ago, Global Guy said:

Cute. But no. They are puppets of the US govt, but not the govt itself. 

Puppets of the US government? My gosh. You lost all credibility with that post.

[ilostmypassword]

1 hour ago, craigt3365 said:

Some are too anti US to get it. The US is far from perfect. And luckily, far from being as brutal as Assad.

It just supports allies who are as brutal as Assad. 

[craigt3365]

2 minutes ago, ilostmypassword said:

It just supports allies who are as brutal as Assad. 

Name one as brutal as Assad?

[ilostmypassword]

41 minutes ago, craigt3365 said:

Name one as brutal as Assad?

Saudi Arabia

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/06/24/534236954/yemen-now-faces-the-worst-cholera-outbreak-in-the-world-u-n-says

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/16/third-of-saudi-airstrikes-on-yemen-have-hit-civilian-sites-data-shows

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/jul/27/childrens-crisis-yemen-conflict-80-percent-kids-urgent-aid-acute-malnutrition

[craigt3365]

10 hours ago, ilostmypassword said:

Saudi Arabia

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/06/24/534236954/yemen-now-faces-the-worst-cholera-outbreak-in-the-world-u-n-says

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/16/third-of-saudi-airstrikes-on-yemen-have-hit-civilian-sites-data-shows

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/jul/27/childrens-crisis-yemen-conflict-80-percent-kids-urgent-aid-acute-malnutrition

Agreed. But no comparison to Assad. Syria is the worst humanitarian disaster in recent history. Bar none.

[Srikcir]

2 hours ago, craigt3365 said:

Bar none.

Bar several.

Specifically, Yemen, South Sudan, Nigeria and Somalia - 20 million people at risk.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/11/world-faces-worst-humanitarian-crisis-since-1945-says-un-official

http://www.ocregister.com/2017/03/29/worst-humanitarian-crisis-hits-africa-as-u-s-looks-to-slash-foreign-aid/

Syria just gets more PR.

[tonbridgebrit]

17 hours ago, Srikcir said:

Didn't work for Saddam.

Won't work for Assad.

Except in a nasty way.

What are you trying to say ??

Yes, Saddam was removed, and they executed him. What about Assad ?  Assad is obviously not going to go, Assad will remain.

What about Iraq ? What happened to Iraq after Saddam was removed ? Well, it didn't look good. And what about Iraq today ? Iraq, today, is still a country that is not actually at peace.
What about Syria ? The rebels are still there. But hopefully, they will be gone soon. Right now as we speak, Assad's Syrian army and Hezbollah are removing the ISIS units that are near the Syria-Lebanon border. The Lebanese army (Washington has supplied equipment to the Lebanese army) is removing ISIS on the Lebanese side of the Lebanon-Syria border. Let's hope that Assad will remove all the other rebels after this latest bit of action.

And then what ? How about Assad removes all the rebels in Syria, and, and Syria goes back to what it was before the civil war, with Assad in charge. The situation will not be perfect, but what other scenarios can there be ?

[tonbridgebrit]

16 hours ago, Global Guy said:

No, the US kills far more. I'm not anti US, I'm anti-hypocrite. That's why I left my position with the US govt, where I worked with and was trained by the two and three letter agencies and was briefed on a daily basis about all of this. So, being behind the curtain for so many years, you either sell your soul and buy into the global killings or you get out.

 

I chose to get out. So, I'm a critic of killing for profit. The US just so happens to be the best at it. The sad part is how much the citizens have bought into it, like it's a good thing.

"The sad part is how much the citizens have bought into it, like it's a good thing."

Some people have been blinded and fooled by the media, and go along with Washington.
Some people simply don't care.
And some people, they know that Washington is hypocritical, they know what Washington is actually doing, and they want to cheer on Washington. And whilst they're cheering on Washington, they pretend that they don't realise that Washington is killing for profit. Who on earth is actually going to admit and say "so Washington is killing for profit, nothing wrong with that, let Washington do it". Nobody.

[craigt3365]

1 hour ago, Srikcir said:

Bar several.

Specifically, Yemen, South Sudan, Nigeria and Somalia - 20 million people at risk.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/11/world-faces-worst-humanitarian-crisis-since-1945-says-un-official

http://www.ocregister.com/2017/03/29/worst-humanitarian-crisis-hits-africa-as-u-s-looks-to-slash-foreign-aid/

Syria just gets more PR.

Just quoting what I have read!

 

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2017/03/syria-war-worst-man-disaster-world-war-ii-170315054907704.html

Syria war: 'Worst man-made disaster since World War II'