Originally posted by erebh
reply to post by Zoyd23
I didnt see anyone talk about Assad's personality in anyway nor did anyone mention knowing him personally. The press tell us these rebels are fed up
with his policies and want change and all out rebellion is there only way - and you believe this? That normal Joe Soaps pissed off with the status quo
can pull tanks and M16s out of their wardrobe and shoot down planes?
Play with me for a moment - suppose these "rebels" were CIA infiltrators sent in to cause havoc - to depose Assad for the reasons of oil, power,
western banks, to keep the oil currency in dollars rather than Africa Gold Dinars (Gadaffi, Hussein etc) and Assad sent his troops out to kill these
CIA infilltrators and restore the status quo that held before the so called arab spring. Would he have the right to do so?
The West are chomping at the bit to go in and kill Assad but the Russians and Chinese are holding it up... why? Do they feel guilty about watching the
West do this to every other North African country in the last year or two?
What exactly has Assad done? Did he wake up one day with a mad hangover and send his army out to kill his own population? Do you think his army would
do that? Would you?
What exactly has Assad done, you ask. His father ordered and executed a vicious attack on the province of
Hama.
Hama Massacre Despite who you believe caused the massacre (reasonable minds may differ)
40,000 people were killed, mostly civilians. The scorched earth tactics employed by the regime are unjustifiable, even if some sort of retaliation
was justifiable. Bashar, a dictator who was never credibly elected, took control of the regime in 2000 after the death of his father. The people of
Syria were constantly promised free and open elections and a constitution that protected civil rights, naturally these things never game to fruition
and the country was run like a tolitarian regime. For a history of human rights abuses
Click
Here.
Under Bashar the Syrian economy was in constant recession and the majority of wealth was garnered through government projects. Though the country is
over 70% Sunni, the majority of wealth of the nation is held by the minority Alewite clan, not surprisingly Assad's own ethnic group. Nearly all
government funding, access to education, and economic opportunity is linked to identifying culturally with the Assad family, or pledging a deep rooted
allegiance to the regime. If you look at the numerous violations of civil rights you will see that free speech or any sense of juris prudence simply
does not exist in Syria, its your classic dictatorship. Empowered by the success of peaceful demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt which led to the
overthrow of dictatorships in those countries the citizens of Syria demanded free and open elections.
As you hopefully know, the government response to these demonstrations was hiring Alewite militias to "disperse" the crows through acts of violence.
Not willing to be intimidated peaceful protests continued for two months. At this juncture in time, most accounts suggest, that the military was
ordered to disperse crowds through the use of lethal force. A large majority of Syrian soldiers refused to fire upon their fellow neighbors and large
contingents of the regimes armed forces failed to show up for duty. Viewing this as an act of betrayal and a national security risk, the regime began
to employ the use of heavy weapons, snipers, and brutal knife massacres in which women and children were raped, beheaded and sometimes set on fire, to
punish those who disbanded from the army.
Fearing for their lives large numbers of military personnel decided to organize the Free Syrian Army and employ guerrilla tactics to defend against
such attacks and protect demonstrations. This led to direct military confrontations with the standing army. More and more soldiers defected to the
FSA side and brought with them tanks and other gear. At this point all kinds of wackos all over the middle east decided to join the fight some
joining the FSA some joining the regime forces. The rest of the story is playing out daily before your eyes.
In conclusion, if you think this rebellion came out of nowhere, I suggest you read up on Syrian history. This revolution was almost inevitable, not
surprising. If you think Assad is an angel who is a victim of circumstances you would probably get along well with hitler and stalin. I'm not
saying that the rebels are the good guys because alot of them are not, and they have committed there own fair share of atrocities. The majority of
the Syrian people are good freedom loving people and have been subjected to a brutal treatment for over 50 years by this selfish regime.