Here we go again: reports of British troops inside Syria

From Debkafile:

"Unconfirmed first reports from British, French and Turkish sources say British special operations forces crossed from Turkey into northern Syria Tuesday, May 26, and advanced up to 10 kilometers inside the country. The same sources report heavy fighting around the Presidential Guards compound on the outskirts of Damascus."

Syria versus the West, and that downed plane

Now, listen carefully children: those nasty, wicked Syrians have done another terrible thing. They've shot down a Turkish warplane which was totally innocently minding its own business. The Syrians claim it violated their airspace, which the Turks admit, but that changes nothing!

The important thing is to focus on the real story: the outrage of shooting down a warplane, just because it happens to stray accidentally into your airspace. It's immaterial that the Turkish government is allowing its territory to be used for training Al Qaeda death squads and funneling weapons to anti-government militias, or that Turkey's main Nato allies are drooling at the prospect of raining death down on Syria in support of their Sunni extremist chums in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, which is most likely making the Syrian air defence somewhat jittery. Forget all that.

Just remember: it's all Syria's fault.

Yeah.

Meanwhile in Nato's liberated Libya

... liberated of its gold, its oil wealth, its foreign investments etc.

From WSWS, Jean Shaoul reports:

"Libya’s ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) has postponed elections scheduled for June 19 amid continuing militia clashes, kidnappings and arrests. The elections are unlikely to be held before mid-July at the earliest.

On Wednesday, the US Consulate in Benghazi came under bomb and grenade attack, although no one was injured. It was reportedly in retaliation for the killing of Libyan-born cleric Abu Yahya al-Libi by a US drone strike in Pakistan hours before.

Earlier in the week, a brigade of al-Afwiya militiamen briefly took over the capital’s international airport in Tripoli and grounded all flights to pressure the NTC to release their leader, Abu Ajila al-Habshi.

The al-Afwiya is only one of more than 500 “rebel” armed outfits that fought Gaddafi’s forces. During the NATO war, they seized different parts of Libya and its vital and most lucrative infrastructure and funds and set up checkpoints along the major highways. Many of these rival gangs have yet to disband or be integrated into the national army, itself little more than another militia. There have been constant reports of fighting between these armed groups as they carve up Libya’s towns and cities into “zones of influence.”

The continuation of these conflicts exposes as a lie the justification for the NATO-led war for regime-change—that it would bring democracy and human rights. Rather than “liberation”, the country faces violent break-up and civil war."

Houla Massacre: what the BBC isn't reporting

From National Review

It was, in the words of U.N. special envoy Kofi Annan, the “tipping point” in the Syria conflict: a savage massacre of over 90 people, predominantly women and children, for which the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad was immediately blamed by virtually the entirety of the Western media. Within days of the first reports of the Houla massacre, the U.S., France, Great Britain, Germany, and several other Western countries announced that they were expelling Syria’s ambassadors in protest.

But according to a new report in Germany’s leading daily, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), the Houla massacre was in fact committed by anti-Assad Sunni militants, and the bulk of the victims were member of the Alawi and Shia minorities, which have been largely supportive of Assad. For its account of the massacre, the report cites opponents of Assad, who, however, declined to have their names appear in print out of fear of reprisals from armed opposition groups.

... Read the article

UPDATE:

I see the BBC's blockade of the truth may be crumbling. Here's Peter Hitchens writing in the Mail on Sunday:

The truth seeps out of Syria

I have been contacted by a group of Western women who live in Syria and who believe that most of what the world is being told about that country is false...

... Read on

My advice to Assad ...

Get yourself some drones, man. It's the guilt-free way to kill. Transforms atrocity victims into mere collateral damage.

Something stinks about the Houla massacre

From my armchair research station, using a battery of resources, such as skepticism, suspicion, gut instinct and having seen it all before a number of times, I conclude; at the very least we are being spun a line on this Houla massacre.

War is a very dirty business, and the coalition ranged against the Syrian government, including the suicide bombers of Al Qaeda, is just as capable of committing atrocities as the Ba'athists, and in this particular case, has a stronger motive.

Assad to attend Queen's Jubilee

Oh no, sorry, I got confused. I meant the King of Bahrain. Now I remember; Assad's that evil dictator from the Middle East, accused of human rights abuses and killing his own citizens. Hopefully our allies in Al Quaeda will soon be spilling out of the Albanian training camps to set up a democracy ... or do I mean bloody theocracy?

Rap News and Other Views on Kony

A few worthwhile points being made here. Many people have noticed something fishy about the sudden elevation of Kony in the World's Most Wanted list, and how it seems to play to the agenda of making Africa the new front in the Project for the New American Century. Gotta stop dem Chi Coms.

Meanwhile he's an actual Ugandan, journalist and fellow blogger Rosebell Kagumire giving her view on the Kony campaign.

Hat tip: Infowars

Afghanistan: the beginning of the end?

Although I possess no crystal ball, I have a feeling that the massacre of 16 civilians, including many children, in Afghanistan will mark a turning point - a 'jump the shark' moment, if I may be inappropriate. Although the deaths in their number are sadly not remarkable, the manner of their killing may well fatally undermine what's left of Nato's moral authority in their own eyes, as much as anyone else.

It is not that the Taliban ever worry too much about 'collateral damage'. Whatever their vow to avenge these 'martyrs', they've made plenty of their own. But this latest event looks like the kind of thing that will drive a permanent wedge between Nato and her allies in Afghanistan, and make the people there understand that, whatever the issues, the occupation cannot resolve them.

One of the reasons for the continuing occupation is that it is easier, from a political point of view, to stay, than to pull out - or 'cut and run' as it would be called, would make it seem that all the blood and treasure was spent in vain. So, in order to maintain face, the troops will stay on, searching for an opportunity to march out heads held high, rather than scrambling onto the Saigon chopper. Such an exit has almost invariably eluded Afghanistan's would-be conquerors, but I guess there's always a first time.

Our charming allies in Iraq

The other day I commented on the people who Nato have brought to power in Libya. Now here's a lovely tale from that other success story of "liberal intervention", Iraq.

At least ninety young people abducted and stoned to death because of the way they dress - murdered by the extremist elements brought to power by the destruction of the previous regime.

According to the Mail:

Iraq's Moral Police released a statement on the interior ministry's website condemning the 'emo phenomenon' among Iraqi youth, declaring its intent to 'eliminate' the trend.

Surely this kind of crazy brutality is the stuff which gets the "liberal interventionists" all hot under the collar and ready to wage war? Or maybe it makes them pause for thought, that it was they who put these murderous nutters in power? Ah, but I realise my error: there is no pause for thought or reflection amongst the "liberal interventionists". They are too busy focusing on the next task in hand. Surveying the desolation they leave in their wake would only confuse matters.

Our charming allies in Libya

The Telegraph reports on the desecration of British military graves in Libya. This is not, however, the worst that is happening in that country, as the suffering of living people must outrank such distasteful scenes.

It is no surprise that the western media cheerleaders who did such sterling work propagandising for NATO during the months of bombardment have largely lost interest in covering the aftermath of Gadaffi's overthrow. Indeed, Libya is being held up as some kind of example of how such interventions should be run, with some demanding a similar mission to deliver 'peace and democracy' to Syria.

The 'Good' Al Qaida

Yet again, we are confronted by the strange singularity of purpose existing between the hawks of Nato and their supposed arch-enemies Al Qaida. A statement from Ayman Al Zawahiri, the purported leader of the shadowy terror network, urges on the resistance to the Syrian government, as reported in the Guardian. This follows the well-known AQ involvement alongside Nato in toppling the Libyan government.

Given the monetary and ideological base for AQ has always been the West's favourite ally Saudi Arabia, and given the murky history of 'Great Game' subterfuge, this is not really surprising, at least to someone unafraid to be branded a conspiracy theorist. But for the simple-minded, who allow themselves to be led by the nose by the establishment media to see only one side of these complex issues, that being the side aggressively pushed by Nato and its propaganda outlets, such as the BBC, does it not make you pause for thought?

Babies, incubators and war propaganda

There's something strangely familiar about this piece of news carried by The Independent:

As many as 18 premature babies, all of whom were being kept alive on generators, were reportedly killed after power was cut to Homs’ Al-Walid hospital. “The families were there when it happened,” said Mahmoud Araby, a 25-year-old student who was among dozens of families sheltering inside a wedding hall when they heard the news. “We were so angry and disgusted.” State TV denied the incident, claiming all hospitals in the area were functioning as normal.

Of course, I'm thinking of the Big Lie used to gee up the American public for the first Gulf War, that Iraqi troops were throwing babies out of incubators in Kuwaiti hospitals. It never happened, but it worked a treat. With that idea fixed in everyone's mind, the Iraqi conscript was effectively dehumanised, and could then be killed without a pangs of conscience.

Whatever is happening in Syria right now, we the public have no real idea. We certainly cannot trust the establishment media to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. It would be more sensible to start with a default position of deep scepticism. There is no doubt that powerful interests want Assad toppled, and other powerful interests want to keep him in power. The former have an MO which includes funding terrorists and using establishment media to diseminate black propaganda. Both sides are prepared to stoop to brutality. Let us not allow this country to be dragged into yet another foreign adventure, nor should we close our eyes to this elements sheltered under the wings of our own state who have a long track record in the dark arts of espionage and terrorism.

Jonestown x 1,000,000

Browsing YouTube, I came across this clip from the time of Kim I's death, which, if it weren't for the quality of the footage, could easily be substituted for that of the current events.

At first, viewing the scenes of mass grief, I must confess I was laughing, but after a while that laughter dies away.

Time Machine: A Reality

Well, it's an aeroplane really, bound for Saudi Arabia.

Libyan update

From an editorial from the Hindu:

Libya's interim government, the National Transitional Council (NTC), is getting no international help over the enormous problems it faces. To start with, the NTC has failed to restrain the militias that hold several areas and have killed thousands of people in attacks on alleged or real former supporters of Muammar al-Qadhafi. Reliable Libyan observers have likened the arbitrary killings, arrests, and torture to the former regime's brutalities. There have also been racist lynchings of African migrant labourers mistaken for mercenaries. A recent United Nations report characterises the militias as a major challenge to the NTC; it points out that women whom they detain are at particular risk. The NTC also faces political problems with Libya's severely divided society; five Amazigh or Berber leaders boycotted the November 24 swearing-in of the cabinet, saying that their ethnic group had not got enough posts. Nato, which deployed U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973 ostensibly to protect civilians but in reality to cause violent regime change, is making no attempt to intervene. The U.N. mandate ended on October 27, and the Atlantic alliance has rejected Tripoli's request that it protect Libyan frontiers against possible re-entry by Qadhafi loyalists who fled the country as the regime disintegrated.

Read the whole article.

Hat tip: Aangirfan

Chavez wants the gold back - watch out for a 'Venezuelan Spring'

If there's one thing likely to get a president killed or overthrown, it's demanding the banksters turn over the gold they owe you. That's what did for Gaddafi. Now Chavez is calling in the deposits from the Whore of Threadneedle Street and JP Morgan.

Here's Zero Hedge:

In addition to the nationalization of his gold insutry, Chavez earlier also announced that he would recover virtually all gold that Venezuela hold abroad, starting with 99 tons of gold at the Bank of England. As the WSJ reported earlier, "The Bank of England recently received a request from the Venezuelan government about transferring the 99 tons of gold Venezuela holds in the bank back to Venezuela, said a person familiar with the matter. A spokesman from the Bank of England declined to comment whether Venezuela had any gold on deposit at the bank." That's great, but not really a gamechanger. After all the BOE should have said gold. What could well be a gamechanger is that according to an update from Bloomberg, Venezuela has gold with, you guessed it, JP Morgan, Barclays, and Bank Of Nova Scotia. As most know, JPM is one of the 5 vault banks. The fun begins if Chavez demands physical delivery of more than 10.6 tons of physical because as today's CME update of metal depository statistics, JPM only has 338,303 ounces of registered gold in storage. Or roughly 10.6 tons. A modest deposit of this size would cause some serious white hair at JPM as the bank scrambles to find the replacement gold, which has already been pledged about 100 times across the various paper markets. Keep an eye on gold in the illiquid after hour market. The overdue scramble for delivery may be about to begin.

Chavez better double and triple his guards, and make sure they're all close family members, and if I were him, I'd make sure that gold is gold, and not gold-plated tungsten.

Now, Chavez, being a socialist, is not exactly my ideal leader. But I could say the same about a lot of leaders, being both socialist and far from ideal. At least he knows he's a socialist.

What is Hague demanding now?

Foreign Secretary William Hague is blowing hard over the Iranian protests against the British embassy in Tehran. This is not particularly surprising, but what does he want the Iranian authorities to do? Shoot the protesters?

Update: Reading that article, I come to this bizarre paragraph:

"The storming of the British embassy was the latest, and most violent, blow struck in a long-running battle of wits over Iran's nuclear programme. Diplomats had been expecting a major protest in Tehran on Tuesday to mark the first anniversary of the assassination of a senior Iranian nuclear scientist, Majid Shahriari, one of three killed over the past two years in the streets of the capital. "

How can a protest, leading to criminal damage and a few FO workers being jostled be called 'the most violent blow', when, in the same paragraph, it notes the assassinations of various Iranian scientists?

I am, by the way, aware of the rules about protecting embassies, but let's not get so fucking precious about it, eh.

Haiti: standard UN operation

Via Activist Post, I come across this interesting article on the UN military occupation of Haiti, which has overstayed its welcome to say the least.

Wherever they go, UN troops seem to alienate the locals. In the case of Haiti, causing an outbreak of cholera by dumping raw sewage in a river, shooting people and raping people (in other words, the usual MO) has not helped.

I'm guessing that whenever they do leave, however many billions of dollars they've managed to burn through, Haiti will look much the same.

Another fine mess

From the Independent:

Thousands of people, including women and children, are being illegally detained by rebel militias in Libya, according to a report by the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Many of the prisoners are suffering torture and systematic mistreatment while being held in private jails outside the control of the country's new government.

Read the article here.

Don't hold your breath waiting for the cheerleaders for bombing Libya to manifest any desire to address the bloody mess they have unleashed, and don't expect any remorse or sense of culpability from the Nato warmongers if or when any of those thousands of SAMs now presumed to be in the hands of the salafists end up getting used. Instead, it's a case of 'onwards and upwards' to Syria and Iran.