http://www.liveleak.com/browse?q=destruction Sun, 19 May 2013 17:37:35 -0400 Liveleak http://edge.liveleak.com/80281E/u/u/ll2/logo.gif http://www.liveleak.com/browse?q=destruction Sun, 19 May 2013 05:56:45 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=536_1368957227 AntiPropagaanda JERUSALEM - A Jewish rabbi has issued a book giving Jews permission to murder non-Jews, including babies and children, who may pose an actual or potential threat to Jews or Israel. "It is permissible to kill the Righteous among non-Jews even if they are not responsible for the threatening situation," Rabbi Yitzhak Shapiro, who heads the Od Yosef Chai Yeshiva in the Yitzhar settlement in the occupied West Bank, wrote in his book "The King's Torah." He argues that goyem (a derogatory epithet for non-Jews) may be killed if they threaten Israel. "If we kill a Gentile who has sinned or has violated one of the seven commandments - because we care about thecommandments - there is nothing wrong with the murder." Rabbi Yitzhak Shapiro - co-author of the book Shapiro, who heads a small Talmudic school at the settlement of Yitzhar near Nablus, claims his edict "is fully justified by the Torah and the Talmud." The anti-goyem edict seems to come in response to the arrest by Israeli police of a Jewish terrorist who has confessed to having murdered two Palestinian shepherds in the West Bank. The terrorist, an American-born immigrant named Yaakov Teitel, also confessed to have tried to assassinate leftist Jewish figures. Police considered the arrest an important achievement in combating Jewish terrorism, which experts contend thrives on religious edicts issued by rabbis affiliated with the religious-Zionist camp. Nearly 16 years ago, a Jewish terrorist named Yigal Amir assassinated then Israeli Premier Yitzhak Rabin. Moreover, numerous innocent Palestinians have also been murdered in cold blood by Jewish terrorists. In 1994, Baruch Goldstein, a notorious Jewish terrorist, murdered 29 Muslim worshipers inside Al-Ibrahimi Mosque in the West Bank town of al-Khalil. Non-Humans The controversial edict is backed by numerous rabbis affiliated with the so-called national-religious camp as well as the Talmudic seminary in West Jerusalem, known as Merkaz Ha'rav. Among the rabbis who have publicly supported the edict are Yitzhak Ginsburg and Ya'akov Yosef. Ginsburg had written a leaflet glorifying murderer Goldstein and called him a "saintly figure." Shapiro's views on how Palestinians and non-Jews in general ought to be treated according to Jewish religious law (halacha) are widely looked at as representing the mainstream not the exception in Israel. During the Israeli onslaught against Gaza earlier this year, Mordecahi Elyahu, one of the leading rabbinic figures in Israel, urged the army not to refrain from killing enemy children in order to save the lives of Israeli soldiers. He had even petitioned the Israeli government to carry out a series of carpet bombing of Palestinian population centers in Gaza. "If they don't stop after we kill 100, then we must kill a thousand. And if they do not stop after we kill a thousand, then we must kill 10,000. If they still don't stop, we must kill 100,000, even a million. Whatever it takes to stop them." According to Israel Shahak, author of "Jewish History, Jewish Religion: the Weight of Three Thousand years," the term "human beings" in Jewish law refers solely to Jews. Many Jewish orthodox rabbis, especially within the national-religious sector, view international conventions incriminating the deliberate killing of civilians and destruction of civilian homes and property as representing "Christian morals" not binding on Jews. In 2006, the Rabbinic Council of Jewish Settlements in the West Bank urged the army "to ignore Christian morals and exterminate the enemy in the north (Lebanon) and the south (Gaza Strip). Such manifestly racist and hateful edicts don't raise many eyebrows in Israel, neither among the intelligentsia nor in the society at large. Source The article is also available on Israeli website Haaretz . http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=536_1368957227 AntiPropagaanda Book about killing gentile children becomes bestseller in Israel Jews, killing, Gentile, Non-Jews, children, bestseller, Israel, USA, America, Wed, 15 May 2013 04:47:04 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=4e6_1368607148 MortenHj 15.5.2013 Daraa, Syria In a PR stunt (2 cameras, second 1 can be seen from 0:00 - 0:03) And the ID is wrong then correct me with some proof and I will edit. This is the last frame of the short video when the camera man wants to film the target being shot at. Video cuts before we see it all but this is just typical fsa destruction of Syria. Original title http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=4e6_1368607148 MortenHj Fsa terrorist shooting M-72 LAW rocket launcher Syria, Usa, Norway, LAW, M-72, rocket launcher, fsa, terrorists, destruction, civilian houses, human trash Fri, 17 May 2013 17:02:17 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=396_1368824434 cathy winslow Despite Iraq being rich in natural resources and the US pouring money into its economy for over a decade, Iraqi infrastructure is constantly failing and the people are forced to beg, as RT's Lucy Kafanov reported from the war-torn country. Read on Friday and Thursday bombings in Iraq here In spite of billions of dollars spent on reconstruction following the decade-long conflict, many neighborhoods lack sewerage systems and trash collection services. In some settlements, there are barely any streets. Water is also a big problem, locals pointed out. "Nobody drinks the city water because we know it's not clean. Since the war, I've had to rely on bottled water. What comes out of the tap is contaminated and makes us sick. How can we drink it?" local resident Umm Muhammad indicated. Central power is another issue, with the system sometimes on for as little as two hours a day. Electrician from Baghdad Abu Meria is sure the new government is to blame for the chaos that reigning in his homeland. "It's the citizens who suffer in the end, not the government. The services are so bad and the power system has really deteriorated. There were billions spent on fixing the grid but there's little to show for it." Abu Meria now earns four times more than before the war due to the frequent failures and blackouts all over the city. As RT's Lucy Kafanov also discovered, the crumbling infrastructure is closely entangled with rampant corruption. Transparency International group has ranked Iraq as the eighth most-corrupt state in the world. In the latest scandal, the country's Electricity Ministry was involved in a $1.7 billion fraud case. On the backdrop of this, most Iraqis remain impoverished, struggling to make their ends meet. In the Al Tajiat landfill, on the outskirts of Baghdad, people are actually forced to live -- without any proper living conditions. "There are no schools for the kids here, no electricity, no real houses. To get a drink of water we have to travel 4km. It's very difficult to live here." Watch RT's Lucy Kafanov's full report. http://on.rt.com/yg993f http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=396_1368824434 cathy winslow Iraq in ruins: Post-war life overshadowed by crumbling infrastructure, corruption, poverty Iraq,Baghdad,Ruin,Destruction,chaos Mon, 13 May 2013 14:31:33 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=42f_1368468858 MortenHj 13.5.2013 Aleppo, Syria The Great Umayyad Mosque of Aleppo being robbed for its antiquities by fsa terrorists under this persons command As always they claim they are removing it to "preserve it". Like the looted Pillars from Baalbek Ottomans stole and put back up in their palaces. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=42f_1368468858 MortenHj Fsa looting relics from Umayyad Mosque in Aleppo Aleppo, fsa, looting Umayyad Mosque, terrorists, Syria, Turkey, destruction, Sat, 18 May 2013 00:19:24 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=79b_1368850537 Richard_Dorkins Thanks to technology, Christopher Hitchens has forever immortalised here in his complete destruction of that terrorist supporting, sympathizing and enabling George Galloway. This video is likely a repost, though I wish to add it here as a reminder because I have seen a few Galloway videos as of late. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=79b_1368850537 Richard_Dorkins Hitchens destroys George Galloway george, galloway, traitor, christopher, hitchens, hero Fri, 17 May 2013 04:31:47 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=51b_1368779366 omniradar Iraq Then, Syria Now? New York Times, sarin and skepticism By FAIR May 16, 2013 "Information Clearing House " -" FAIR "- During the run-up to the Iraq War, the New York Times amplified erroneous official claims about weapons of mass destruction (FAIR Action Alert, 9/8/06). Looking at the paper's coverage of allegations of chemical weapons use by Syria, some of the same patterns are clear: an over-reliance on official sources and the downplaying of critical or skeptical analysis of the available intelligence. In "Syria Faces New Claim on Chemical Arms" ( 4/19/13 ), the paper told readers that, according to anonymous diplomats, Britain and France had sent letters to the United Nations about "credible evidence" against Syria regarding chemical weapon use. On April 24, the Times reported that Israel had "evidence that the Syrian government repeatedly used chemical weapons last month." The next day ( 4/25/13 ), the Times reported that, according to an unnamed "senior official," the White House "shares the suspicions of several of its allies that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons." The article spoke of the "mounting pressure to act against Syria," adding, "Some analysts say they worry that if the United States waits too long, it will embolden President Bashar al-Assad." And then on April 26, under the headline "White House Says Syria Has Used Chemical Arms," the Times reported: The White House, in a letter to Congressional leaders, said the nation's intelligence agencies assessed ''with varying degrees of confidence'' that the government of President Bashar al-Assad had used the chemical agent sarin on a small scale. The story included a source, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D.-Calif.), who presented the intelligence as more definitive: She "said the agencies actually expressed more certainty about the use of these weapons than the White House indicated in its letter." An April 27 Times report warned that there were dangers in waiting too long to respond to the charges that Syria has used chemical weapons: If the president waits for courtroom levels of proof, what has been a few dozen deaths from chemical weapons--in a war that has claimed more than 70,000 lives--could multiply. In following days, the accusations of chemical weapons use were presented uncritically as the premise for political stories: pondering how the White House would "respond to growing evidence that Syrian officials have used chemical weapons" ( 4/28/13 ) or noting Republican attacks on the White House following "revelations last week that the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, is believed to have used chemical weapons against his own people" ( 4/29/13 ). On May 5, the Times was again weighing in on the political ramifications: Confronted with evidence that chemical weapons have been used in Syria, President Obama now finds himself in a geopolitical box, his credibility at stake with frustratingly few good options. Then, on May 5 came an unusual shift: Carla Del Ponte, a member of a United Nations team investigating human rights abuses in the Syrian civil war, claimed that the UN had collected evidence that chemical weapons had been used in Syria--but by the rebels, not by the government. After running a Reuters dispatch on May 6, the Times published its own piece on May 7, a report that talked about "new questions about the use of chemical weapons." But the emphasis was clearly on rebutting the charges: The paper reported that the White House had "cast doubt on an assertion by a United Nations official that the Syrian rebels...had used the nerve agent sarin." The piece included three U.S. sources--one named, two unnamed--who questioned the Del Ponte claims. The article went on to reiterate that the White House was weighing other options based on "its conclusion that there was a strong likelihood that the Assad government has used chemical weapons on its citizens." Outside the New York Times, though, doubts about the evidence pointing to Syrian use of poison gas were evident from the very start. McClatchy's Jonathan Landay ( 4/26/13 ) reported that one source characterized the U.S. intelligence as "tiny little data points" that were of "low to moderate" confidence. An April 30 report from GlobalPost noted that a "spent canister" at the scene of one attack "and the symptoms displayed by the victims are inconsistent with a chemical weapon such as sarin gas." A subsequent GlobalPost dispatch ( 5/5/13 ) reported that blood samples tested in Turkey were not turning up evidence of sarin exposure. NBC reporter Richard Engel (5/8/13) traveled to Syria with rebel forces to examine evidence they had collected. He seemed to concur with the GlobalPost reports that the chemical exposure could very well have been from a type of tear gas. By May 7, McClatchy was reporting that the case was looking weaker, noting that no concrete proof has emerged, and some headline-grabbing claims have been discredited or contested. Officials worldwide now admit that no allegations rise to the level of certainty.....Existing evidence casts more doubt on claims of chemical weapons use than it does to help build a case that one or both sides of the conflict have employed them. It is clear that the Times has promoted a storyline that treats the chemical weapons claims as more definitive than they are, and has given scant attention to subsequent revelations about the evidence. In a recent column ( 5/5/13 ), Times public editor Margaret Sullivan argued that the paper still faces problems with its credibility based on its reporting about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction over 10 years ago. The Times "pledged more skeptical and rigorous reporting" going forward, and Sullivan argues that the Times "has taken important steps" in that direction. But does the paper's handling of the Syria chemical weapons stories demonstrate that the paper has learned lessons? Or is it repeating the same mistakes? http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=51b_1368779366 omniradar Iraq Then, Syria Now? New York Times, sarin and skepticism Western Meddling In The Middle East ! Thu, 16 May 2013 18:56:33 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=b8f_1368744763 plokiju BOISE, Idaho -- U.S. authorities in Idaho said Thursday they have arrested an Uzbekistan national on federal terrorism charges. Federal prosecutors said Fazliddin Kurbanov, 30, was arrested in Boise on Thursday after a grand jury issued a three-count indictment as part of a terrorism investigation. The indictment charges Kurbanov with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists. The indictment also alleges he possessed an unregistered explosive device. A separate federal grand jury in Utah also returned an indictment charging Kurbanov with distributing information about explosives, bombs and weapons of mass destruction. He is scheduled to appear in federal court in Boise at 9 a.m. Friday. The Idaho indictment alleges that between August 2012 and May 2013, Kurbanov knowingly conspired with others to provide support and resources, including computer software and money, to the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, a designated terrorist organization. The alleged co-conspirators were not named. In count two, the indictment alleges Kurbanov provided material support to terrorists, knowing that the help was to be used in preparation for a plot involving the use of a weapon of mass destruction. The indictment also alleges that on Nov. 15, 2012, Kurbanov possessed an explosive device, consisting of a series of parts intended to be converted into a bomb. Those parts included a hollow hand grenade, a hobby fuse, aluminum powder, potassium nitrate and sulfur. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/16/fazliddin-kurbanov-terrorism-boise_n_3288670.html?utm_hp_ref=world&amp;ir=World http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=b8f_1368744763 plokiju Uzbek Man Arrested In Terrorism Case In Boise, Idaho Uzbek, Man, Arrested, In, Terrorism, Case, In, Boise, Idaho, Fazliddin, Kurbanov Wed, 15 May 2013 12:07:17 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1e5_1368633297 m16carbine Extract from Damascus Courts the West: Syrian Politics, 1989-1991 , pp. 3-6, by Daniel Pipes. Today, the author of the 1991 article currently prefers Assad Jr. to his alternative. Hafez al-Assad vs. Saddam Hussein (1991) Hafez al-Assad and Saddam Hussein have much in common. They are about the same age (Saddam was born in 1937, Assad in 1930) and come from minority backgrounds. Both grew up in an impoverished countryside with a twentieth century tradition of exporting people to the cities. Both experienced Egyptian prisons and have effectively ruled their countries since about the same year (1972 for Saddam, 1969 for Assad). Both imposed an extreme centralization, to create a stable order where turmoil had previously prevailed. Both are far more interested in building their militaries than their countries. Each of them looked to Moscow for primary support, but on occasion wooed the U.S. government. Both rely extensively on the terrorist instrument. They have claimed to represent the Palestinians and sought to control weak neighbors. In personality, they share vaulting ambitions, a passion for secrecy, and a Manichean outlook that divides the world into agents and enemies. Both tend toward brinkmanship and a readiness to sacrifice the interests of their countries for personal and ethnic interests. Their political systems rely to a strikingly parallel degree on Ba'ath Party control, the pervasive use of informants, and brutality. (Middle East Watch found torture in Iraq to be &quot;used routinely&quot;; Amnesty International has termed the Syrian jails &quot;almost a research center for torture.&quot;) Though life in Syria is an iota better,^ the two dictatorships in the Fertile Crescent are about as similar as any pair of governments on the planet. The two men also differ profoundly. Where Saddam revels in brutality for its own sake, Assad resorts to it as an instrument of power. The one kills with his own hands, the other keeps his distance from such unpleasantries. Saddam's ambitions know no limit: he seeks to become both the greatest leader in Iraqi history and a giant on the world stage; his dreams of glory distort practical decisionmaking. In contrast, Assad knows his limitations and acts within their parameters: the conquest of Lebanon and the perpetuation of Alawi rule are quite enough for him for now, thank you. Saddam's overt aggression makes him enemies everywhere; Assad's is cloaked in an ambiguity which allows hostile states the luxury of ignoring his trespasses. Both leaders follow policies which the outside world often finds difficult to understand, but while Saddam confuses observers through stupidity, Assad does so through subtlety. While Saddam and Assad both engage in international brinkmanship, only Assad can reliably locate the brink. Saddam displays an increasingly uncontrollable streak of impatience and has a terrible sense of timing (the invasion of Kuwait could not have occurred at a worse moment from the Iraqi point of view); Assad is infinitely deliberate and has a most refined timing (the seizure of Beirut in October 1990, fifteen years after Syrian military involvement in Lebanon began, was a political masterpiece). More broadly, Saddam Hussein showed in 1990-91 that he may be one of the worst strategists and tacticians of history; in contrast, Assad rightly prides himself on his skills as a military planner. Like his adopted namesake, the lion, Assad is a patient operator. He probes his opponents' weaknesses, waits for the right moment, chooses the most advantageous field of battle, and strikes. In this way, Assad has defeated one enemy after another-the Muslim Brethren, Lebanese militias, American troops in Beirut, Israelis in south Lebanon, and Iraqi armed forces. Observers are in agreement as to his impressive skills. Thus, Annie Laurent and Antoine Basbous see his main characteristics as &quot;patience and a taste for secrecy.&quot; Dov Tamari concludes that &quot;the Syrian regime has demonstrated patience and restraint on the one hand, persistence and stubbornness on the other.&quot; Imagine-to take this comparison one step further-that Assad ruled in Baghdad, and that he wanted to bring Kuwait, with all its wealth and coastline, under his control. What would he have done differently from Saddam? Everything. He would have prepared the way years ahead of time by hosting Kuwaiti dissident movements in Baghdad and laying repeated but elliptical claims to Kuwait. When the time was right, he would have solicited an invitation from bona fide Kuwaiti leaders to send Iraqi troops into Kuwait. Rather than seize the whole country, he would have taken only some slices of it (the Rumayla oil field, Bubiyan and Warba Islands) and worked to get his allies and agents into power. The outside world would surely have protested, but Assad's salami tactics would have allowed him to take Kuwait without sustained armed opposition. In the end, just as everyone acquiesced to his seizure of Lebanon, so they would have gone along with his control over Kuwait. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I also extracted an interesting 2005 interview with Der Spiegel where Bashar al-Assad discusses Saddam and the differences with his father. It's also interesting in showing the difficult situation Bashar inherited from his father, and his allusions to the Algerian Civil War (1991-2002) , which is similar to how he views his current crisis. SPIEGEL: Mr. President, there are tentative movements toward democracy here and there in the Arab world. But there is little evidence of that in Syria. Why not? Assad: Well, it just happens that the Arab states develop at different rates and under different historical conditions. Egypt, for example, has not experienced as many coups as Syria. Besides, Cairo signed a peace treaty with Israel, whereas we remain in neither a state of war nor a state of peace with Israel. Incidentally, our development only began a few years ago, so of course expectations will vary widely. But the main issue is that we in Syria have at least opened up a dialogue about it. SPIEGEL: But it's taking longer than many would like. Assad: The pace of our development depends upon the challenges that we must face, which we cannot always influence. For example, we have to deal with foreign powers meddling in our internal affairs. SPIEGEL: You mean the Americans' demands for more democracy and for putting an end to support for terrorists? Assad: The more meddling there is, the slower the pace of development in Syria. After all, the democratic process should pervade the entire country. Naturally, the unresolved Middle East conflict also slows down development. And then there is the question of what should be our greatest priority -- political development or economic growth. SPIEGEL: Are they mutually exclusive? Assad: There is a tremendous gulf between the two objectives. To promote growth, we urgently need help from the European Union. For many of the Syrians I meet, poverty is a far greater concern than the outlook for a democratic constitution. Besides, there is also terrorism, which stands in the way of democratic development. We simply have to act as quickly as possible to keep things moving forward. SPIEGEL: But you don't exactly make it easy for your fellow Syrians. Political parties are permitted, but they are immediately prohibited as soon as they form, while members of the opposition are arrested. Assad: But you've been talking to opposition leaders in our country. If we were to arrest them all, there wouldn't be enough space in our prisons. SPIEGEL: Most members of the opposition with whom we spoke have spent many years in prison. Assad: But now they're out again. You can't simply equate the situation in the West with the situation in our country. Take religion, for example. In Great Britain, an author published a book in which he claimed that Jesus Christ had children. Such statements don't trigger civil unrest and bloodshed in Europe. But write similar statements about Islam in Syria and you might see bloody uprisings. SPIEGEL: What does that have to do with real opposition in Syria? Assad: When we put someone on trial, we're not trying him as a person. Instead, what concerns us is that he does not attack the population's religious and ethnic structure. The umbrella of stability must not be damaged. We gave the go-ahead for the formation of parties two months ago, and we are currently taking a very close look at these parties. I certainly don't dispute the contention that we do not have a well-developed system of political parties yet. I simply wanted to show you where we have to be cautious. SPIEGEL: What exactly are you afraid of? Assad: Developments like those in Algeria since 1991. At that time, the government misjudged the people, and the Islamists threatened to assume power. To this day, the Algerians are paying the price for this miscalculation with their own blood. SPIEGEL: Look at the example of Riad Seif, a self-made businessman and member of the Syrian National Assembly. He criticized the omnipotence of the monopoly and was sentenced to five years in prison. Assad: He questioned the unity of the nation, and we happen to have a law that calls for penalties for those who assail the mosaic of the various ethnic and religious groups. SPIEGEL: Wasn't Seif merely questioning the distribution of power? Assad: No, no one is put on trial for attacking me personally. But assaulting the composition of Syrian society is simply too explosive. SPIEGEL: Journalists, too, are prevented from doing their work and sometimes even thrown in prison. When will you have true freedom of the press? Assad: We have never locked up anyone because of his personal opinion. SPIEGEL: A correspondent for a large Arab newspaper, Al-Hayat, was recently sent to prison for several months. Assad: That's a different issue. Under Syrian law, a journalist is not allowed to report on military matters. This may be wrong or right, but that's just the way it is. SPIEGEL: You said that fighting poverty is more important than democracy. Does this mean that you intend to emulate the Chinese model: economic liberalization without political reforms? Assad: When I say that the economy takes priority, it certainly doesn't mean that we relegate political reforms to the back seat. The economy may have taken priority in the last five years -- that's because it is important to improve the general standard of living. It's a dangerous thing when someone gets up in the morning and has nothing to eat. If I say to that person, &quot;I intend to allow you to have political parties,&quot; how will he responsd? We don't care if this is the Chinese model or something else. Our actions reflect the needs of our country. SPIEGEL: When will there be a recognizable democratic multiparty system in Syria? Assad: It took us five years to achieve a societal dialogue. Now we are in the second phase, in which we begin discussing parties. It won't happen that quickly. For example, the same process took three years in Morocco. SPIEGEL: Will it happen before the 2007 general election? Assad: It's very likely, but you just can't make long-term predictions in our corner of the world. I cannot afford to make mistakes. Instead of jumping forward too quickly and possibly falling on our faces, we prefer to divide our tasks into smaller steps. SPIEGEL: How do you propose to prevent the Algerian model -- the formation of religious parties that are democratically elected, but then act undemocratically? Assad: Once again, we cannot apply Western standards to development in the Orient. In Germany, you may have a religious Christian party, the CDU (Christian Democratic Union), but it has effectively assimilated itself into the fabric of the country. In return, your history prevents you from having any large nationalist parties. Our experience has shown us that the situation in Syria became stable because the entire society is secular. We must preserve that. SPIEGEL: In many of his speeches, United States President George W. Bush has complained that freedom must all too often take a back seat to stability. Do you feel he is addressing you with these comments? Assad: Freedom and democracy are nothing but instruments, just like stability. The goal is called progress and growth. Anyone who puts freedom ahead of stability is hurting growth. Besides, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo and Iraq aren't exactly models of freedom. SPIEGEL: Washington sees you as a sort of &quot;Saddam-light.&quot; Assad: There were real hostilities between the regime of Saddam Hussein and that of my father. Fifteen thousand Syrians lost their lives in these conflicts. Whereas I involve people from outside the party in the decision-making process, Saddam only permitted his own opinion. If we had taken the approach Saddam took in Iraq, I wouldn't feel safe walking on the street with my wife and children. Saddam was constantly in hiding. The fact that there are people who criticize me doesn't mean that people hate me. SPIEGEL: Your father supported the first President Bush in the 1991 Gulf War. You, on the other hand, were a vocal critic of the war in 2003. Assad: The first war was about the liberation of an Arab people suffering under occupation. The more recent war led to the occupation of an Arab country. There's a huge difference. SPIEGEL: Do you sympathize with the insurgents who are fighting the occupation troops and the new government in Iraq? Assad: There are terrorist operations in Iraq that claim the lives of innocent people; those we reject categorically. But there is also a resistance movement, and that's a different issue altogether -- a completely normal issue. SPIEGEL: Are suicide attacks a legitimate weapon against the occupation forces? Assad: Even the religious scholars disagree on that question, but I have the impression that most are in favor of these attacks. But this is a hypothetical debate. A person who is absolutely determined to blow himself up isn't about to ask you or me for our opinion. This debate is a waste of time. SPIEGEL: The American government has accused you of facilitating access to Iraq through Syria for the insurgents. Assad: It also accused Saddam of having weapons of mass destruction. But seriously, if you ask Americans whether they've been successful at sealing the border with Mexico, they'll tell you that it's a very difficult proposition. We've made it very clear to the Americans that it's impossible to completely control our border with Iraq. But we also tell them that the war itself is what's causing the chaos. It's not exactly fair to make a mistake yourself and then start blaming others for it. SPIEGEL: The American government has classified Syria as a &quot;rogue nation.&quot; Are you concerned that Washington plans to remove you from office? Assad: Look at the results of regime change in Iraq. You can't possibly claim that it was successful. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1e5_1368633297 m16carbine Hafez al-Assad vs. Saddam Hussein (1991 article) Assad, Syria, Syrian Civil War, Islamism, Saddam Hussein, Bashar al-Assad, Hafez Tue, 14 May 2013 14:11:30 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ce9_1368553949 Tama7866 One of the biggest Mayan pyramids in Belize has been all but destroyed by 'ignorant' builders who ravaged the ancient structure for crushed rock to fill in a new road. The construction workers used bulldozers and diggers to claw at the sloping sides of the 100ft tall pyramid, which is part of the Nohmul complex - the most important Mayan site in northern Belize and one which dates back at least 2,300 years. Horrified archaeologists claim there is no way the builders could have mistaken the Mayan ruins for a hill, as the landscape is naturally flat and the Nohmul complex is well known. 'It's a feeling of Incredible disbelief because of the ignorance and the insensitivity ... they were using this for road fill,' Mr Awe said. 'It's like being punched in the stomach, it's just so horrendous.' Nohmul sat in the middle of a privately owned sugar cane field, and lacked the even stone sides frequently seen in reconstructed or better-preserved pyramids. Nonetheless Mr Awe is certain the builders could not have mistaken the pyramid mound for anything other than Mayan ruins. 'These guys knew that this was an ancient structure. It's just bloody laziness,' he said. The builders used backhoes to claw at the sides of the pyramid, leaving an isolated core of limestone cobbles at the centre, with what appears to be a narrow Mayan chamber dangling above one hollowed-out section. 'Just to realize that the ancient Maya acquired all this building material to erect these buildings, using nothing more than stone tools and quarried the stone, and carried this material on their heads, using tump lines,' said the archaeologist. 'To think that today we have modern equipment, that you can go and excavate in a quarry anywhere, but that this company would completely disregard that and completely destroyed this building. Why can't these people just go and quarry somewhere that has no cultural significance? It's mind-boggling.' Belizean police said they are conducting an investigation and that criminal charges may be brought against the construction company. The Nohmul complex sits on private land, but Belizean law says that any pre-Hispanic ruins are under government protection. The Belize community-action group Citizens Organized for Liberty Through Action called the destruction of the archaeological site 'an obscene example of disrespect for the environment and history'. It is not the first time it's happened in Belize, a country of about 350,000 people that is largely covered in jungle and dotted with hundreds of Mayan ruin sites - though few as large as Nohmul. Norman Hammond, an emeritus professor of archaeology at Boston University who worked in Belizean research projects in the 1980s, said it was far from the first time Mayan mounds had been targeted by construction workers seeking materials. He wrote in an email that 'bulldozing Maya mounds for road fill is an endemic problem in Belize (the whole of the San Estevan center has gone, both of the major pyramids at Louisville, other structures at Nohmul, many smaller sites), but this sounds like the biggest yet'. Arlen Chase, chairman of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Central Florida, said: 'Archaeologists are disturbed when such things occur, but there is only a very limited infrastructure in Belize that can be applied to cultural heritage management. 'Unfortunately, they (destruction of sites) are all too common, but not usually in the center of a large Maya site,' he said. He said there had probably still been much to learn from the site. 'A great deal of archaeology was undertaken at Nohmul in the `70s and `80s, but this only sampled a small part of this large center.' Belize isn't the only place where the handiwork of the far-flung and enormously prolific Maya builders is being destroyed. The ancient Mayas spread across southeastern Mexico and through Guatemala, Honduras and Belize. 'I don't think I am exaggerating if I say that every day a Maya mound is being destroyed for construction in one of the countries where the Maya lived,' wrote Francisco Estrada-Belli, a professor at Tulane University's Anthropology Department. 'Unfortunately, this destruction of our heritage is irreversible but many don't take it seriously,' he added. 'The only way to stop it is by showing that it is a major crime and people can and will go to jail for it.' Robert Rosenswig, an archaeologist at the State University of New York at Albany, described the difficult and heartbreaking work of trying to salvage information at the nearby site of San Estevan following similar destruction around 2005. 'Bulldozing damage at San Estevan is extensive and the site is littered with Classic period potsherds,' he wrote in an academic paper describing the scene. 'We spent a number of days at the beginning of the 2005 season trying to figure out the extent of the damage .... after scratching our heads for many days, a bulldozer showed up and we realized that what appear to be mounds, when overgrown with chest-high vegetation, are actually recently bulldozed garbage piles.' However small the compensation, bulldozing pyramids is one very brutal way of revealing the inner cores of the structures, which were often built up in periodic stages of construction. "The one advantage of this massive destruction, to the core site, is that the remains of early domestic activity are now visible on the surface,' Mr Rosenswig wrote. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ce9_1368553949 Tama7866 Idiot builders destroy 2,300-yr.old Mayan pyramid in Central America idiots,destroy,temple,ruins,belize,mayan,satan,end,of,the,world,prophecy Mon, 13 May 2013 17:43:35 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=31f_1368480714 euronymus In a SPIEGEL interview, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi discusses the civil war in Syria, his government's "condemnation" of chemical weapons and his belief that Tehran is in a strong position to initiate negotiations for a settlement between the opposition and government in Damascus. Ali Akbar Salehi looks exhausted. In the last 48 hours, the Iranian foreign minister had a lengthy meeting in Jordan with King Abdullah II before flying to beleaguered Damascus to discuss the situation in Syria with President Bashar Assad. He had hardly returned to Tehran when he accompanied his own president on a campaign trip within Iran, which is in the middle of an election campaign. Still, Salehi found the time to meet with two SPIEGEL editors in Tehran last Thursday. Israel had bombed targets in Damascus only 10 days earlier. The power struggle in Syria has been escalating since the beginning of the year, and chemical weapons may have been used. Iran, Assad's large ally, is playing a key role, both openly and behind the scenes. After two conferences on Syria last year, Salehi is now planning another meeting with the aim of putting an end to the bloodshed. Moscow Plays for Time Moscow and Washington have the same goal and have announced an international summit on the Syrian crisis. The Russians, however, have been doing everything possible to support the Assad regime. In addition to supplying weapons and ammunition, Moscow has troops stationed at its naval basis in the Syrian port city of Tartus and in air defense positions. In reality, Moscow appears to be playing for time, primarily to prevent United States President Barack Obama from intervening militarily. Because poison gas was allegedly used against civilians, Obama could be forced to do just that, even though he doesn't want to be drawn into the war. As the Wall Street Journal reported, Obama's current preference is for a negotiated solution rather than to overthrow Assad. The American president wants to preserve the government apparatus in Syria to avoid total chaos. While the West is noting with concern the strengthening of Sunni fanatics among the rebels in Syria, Alawites, who are fighting for Assad, are calling for a campaign against their Muslim adversaries. The Shiite Hezbollah from Lebanon is also involved, with thousands of its men already positioned in Syria. According to Western intelligence information SPIEGEL has obtained, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iranian Revolutionary Guard General Qasem Soleimani decided in early March to move their liaison office from Damascus to Tehran as quickly as possible. They also aim to send more fighters to Assad's aid. Salehi, 64, is a key figure in the Middle East and one of the few Iranian politicians to enjoy the trust of many powerful figures in the region while at the same time having an appreciation for the West. A nuclear physicist, Salehi is seen as relatively open-minded. He earned his PhD at the elite Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and he is more familiar with the Iranian nuclear program than most. Most of all Salehi, like few other members of the government, has the full support of revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final word on all key policy issues in Tehran. Interview transcript: SPIEGEL : Mr. Foreign Minister, you have just returned from Damascus, where you spoke with President Bashar Assad. Israeli fighter jets bombed several targets there 10 days ago. How did Assad react to the Israeli attacks? Salehi : He was unimpressed by the military strike. The man I met with is extremely determined and sticking to his course. I had the same impression six months ago, but this time the president seemed even more resolute. Those who believe that Bashar Assad is becoming fickle or that his government is collapsing are suffering from an illusion. The president is pleased with the progress his military is making. He says that his military leaders have the upper hand. SPIEGEL : That contradicts all the information we have. Instead, the rebels appear to be advancing. Salehi : I don't believe that Assad is portraying the situation unrealistically. When the conflict began two years ago, many said that his government couldn't last long. And now? He's still there. Don't underestimate Bashar Assad. SPIEGEL : What is your assessment of Assad's restrained reaction to Israel's air strikes? Salehi : It isn't a sign of weakness. The president responded levelheadedly. The next time Syria will strike back, he told me. SPIEGEL : Assad is threatening war with Israel? Salehi : The president said that his people are literally urging him to defend himself, fiercely and immediately. The situation will escalate if the other side doesn't hold back and continues to bomb the Syrians' military and research facilities. SPIEGEL : That's Assad's version. According to information obtained by Western intelligence services, the attack targeted weapons transports bound for the Lebanese group Hezbollah, which is aligned with the Syrian regime. Salehi : You know, you can claim everything is a Hezbollah facility in an attempt to justify intervening in Syria's internal affairs. SPIEGEL : But you certainly aren't denying that Iran supplies Hezbollah with weapons, some of which are transported through Syria. Salehi : But they don't even need that. Hezbollah leader Sayyid Hassan Nasrallah said recently that he is very well supplied and has no need (for weapons). Independent from that, Hezbollah is engaged in a resistance that we support. And the Syrians have little need for our help. President Assad has a large army with hundreds of thousands of men under arms. Over the decades, his government has armed itself against its ruthless enemy, Israel, and he doesn't need a few guns from here or there. SPIEGEL : Western intelligence agencies say that Iran already has a plan B for the event that Damascus can no longer serve as a hub for Iranian arms shipments to Hezbollah: an airlift between Tehran and Beirut. Salehi : I'm tired of constantly having to deny accusations that are completely absurd. If anyone is making such claims, he should provide proof. SPIEGEL : Then how do you explain the Israeli attacks? Salehi : It was a coordinated campaign between the rebels, who are losing ground, and the Zionist regime. The Israelis came to the aid of the rebels by attacking the Syrian army. It wasn't about their positions or Hezbollah arms depots. I received reports that a rebel commander even publicly expressed his gratitude for the Israeli support. SPIEGEL : Actually, isn't Assad under more pressure than the armed opposition? Salehi : This president has the situation completely under control. He is very well informed about everything that is going on. Bashar Assad believes in victory and will resolutely pursue his path. SPIEGEL : Does he seriously believe that he can survive this conflict? Salehi : I wasn't under the impression that Damascus is under siege. The city seems vibrant and clean, the streets are crowded, there are traffic jams and people are going to work. On our approach to the airport, I saw farmers working in their fields in the surrounding countryside. Even I was astonished by how normal it looked. SPIEGEL : Your description is a far cry from what our colleagues are reporting from there. They say that the rebels are already in the city's suburbs. Salehi : I have a different analysis. According to our information, the population does not support the armed portion of the opposition. People are increasingly realizing that many of the insurgents are mercenaries, controlled by foreign powers ... SPIEGEL : ... do you mean Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf countries? Salehi : As foreign minister, I can't name any names. But there are countries that support these mercenaries. A few months ago, there may have been some sympathy for these rebels among a portion of Syrians, but that has now changed. The people have awakened and now oppose them. SPIEGEL : You are condemned to optimism. Your government can't afford an overthrow of the Assad regime. Salehi : Damascus is indeed an important partner for us, one that we don't want to lose. But some countries make it too easy for themselves. They believe that by striking Syria they'll weaken us. In that sense, the struggle for Syria is partly a proxy war. And we admire the Syrian government for putting up such impressive resistance. SPIEGEL : But the threat is growing for the entire region. Salehi : There will be serious consequences if Israel doesn't exercise restraint. You can burn down an entire forest with a single match. However, an expansion of the conflict would be extremely dangerous for the Zionists, which is why they'll think carefully about what they do. SPIEGEL : Does the Assad regime enjoy your unconditional support, even if it uses chemical weapons in the civil war? Salehi : We too were the target of many poison gas attacks in the eight-year war with Iraq. We condemn chemical weapons. SPIEGEL : Then you would have to drop your support for Assad, if there is evidence that he is using chemical weapons. Salehi : We are decidedly opposed to weapons of mass destruction of all kinds. SPIEGEL : But the regime has huge stockpiles. And there are indications that poison gas, albeit in very small amounts, was used in Syria. Salehi : But not by the president's troops. It was the Syrian government that brought the victims of poison gas attacks to the attention of the United Nations. I am convinced that the foreign mercenaries were the culprits. Nevertheless, I wrote a letter to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and urged him to investigate these horrific incidents. We have called upon the UN to send inspectors. SPIEGEL : Civilians were among the alleged victims. Why would the rebels do something like that? Salehi : So that Assad can be blamed as the culprit. And perhaps to see how the United States responds. President Barack Obama has said that the Syrian government's use of chemical weapons is his red line. The rebels want to draw America into the war. SPIEGEL : You draw the same red line as America, "the Great Satan" -- an odd alliance. Salehi : It's a question of one of our fundamental principles: We will never tolerate the use of weapons of mass destruction, no matter who uses them. If others share our principles, we welcome it, no matter who they are. SPIEGEL : Moscow and Washington want to prepare an international conference on Syria. Will you participate? Salehi : We haven't received an invitation yet. But of course we would attend. We are a power factor in the region. We could initiate negotiations between the opposition and the government in Syria. But the conflict can only be resolved if everyone seeks a solution without restrictions. For us, this means that the end of Assad cannot be a precondition of talks. SPIEGEL : So what solutions does Tehran propose? Salehi : We aren't acting on our own, but instead are in constant contact with our friends in Cairo. The Egyptians have a plan, and even if we don't agree with them on all the details, we do support their proposals. SPIEGEL : Is a new Cairo-Tehran axis taking shape? Salehi : We are expanding our relationship and hope that Egypt will be able to achieve a great deal in the Arab world with its political influence. We share three demands on Syria: There should be no foreign intervention, the country's integrity and sovereignty must be preserved, and the government and opposition should form a shared interim leadership. This leadership must lead the country into a new era. There is no other alternative. SPIEGEL : Do you also envision a solution for another major conflict, the dispute over Iran's nuclear program? Salehi : We have a right to the civilian use of nuclear energy. Our entire nation wants us to defend this right. SPIEGEL : President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has repeatedly provoked the West. Will Iran be more accommodating toward the global community after it elects a new president on June 14? Salehi : There will be strictly no compromises on this issue, regardless of the new president's political stripe. Nevertheless, I hope that we will be able to find more common ground in the next rounds of negotiations, and come up with a solution that benefits both sides. Source: http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/interview-with-iranian-foreign-minister-salehi-on-syria-a-899315-2.html http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=31f_1368480714 euronymus Salehi: &quot;We Condemn Chemical Weapons&quot; Syria, Iran, Hezbollah, al, Assad, Salehi, weapons, chemical, Israel Sun, 12 May 2013 21:10:32 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=73f_1368407140 KedarPL by F. William Engdahl ( voltairenet.org ) http://www.voltairenet.org/article178470.html On May 3-4 the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) launched two successive aerial bombing strikes deep inside Syrian territory, reportedly against the Jamraya military research center near Damascus Airport. While Israeli spokesmen have been coy about admitting responsibility, the Obama Administration confirmed and endorsed the bombings in Syrian sovereign territory. By precepts of international law, Israel has committed acts of war against Syria, in violation of the UN Charter. The alleged justification for the Netanyahu regime, which seems to set another set of laws for itself as the norms of international law, was the claim that the strikes targeted a warehouse storing Iranian Fateh-110 "game changing" missiles in transit to the Lebanese Hezbollah. In January the IDF made a similar air strike to destroy a convoy of advanced air defense missiles en route to Hezbollah that would hinder Israel's ability to enter Lebanese airspace unharrassed. To grasp what is going on inside Tel Aviv a recent timeline helps. On April 27, before Israel embarked on action against Syria, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov forged a new Russian alliance with Hezbollah in Beirut. According to Debka.com , an online source with reported close ties to the Israeli intelligence community, "This was Putin's answer to Obama's direct appeal for a partnership in the effort to terminate the Syrian conflict. Obama's rejoinder was the green light he gave Israel to go for Iranian and Hezbollah targets in Syria." On April 30, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah made a public speech in which he for the first time indicated that his organization was ready to come to the active aid of Assad's Syrian regime in the fight against Al Qaeda and assorted foreign and domestic "opposition" to Assad's rule. Nasrallah also said charges that Syria used chemical sarin weapons were fabricated to justify foreign intervention. At the same time Iran called on the UN to investigate alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria. The next day, on May 1, President Barack Obama said the US is now ready to arm Syrian rebels and to increase efforts to topple Bashar al Assad. On May 3-4 the IDF bombing strikes took place. Then on May 6 the United Nations Independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria issued a statement that they had no evidence that the Syrian Government has used chemical weapons, sarin or other, against the rebel insurgents. Instead, the UN found evidence that the rebels had used sarin and tried to blame it on the regime. No small embarrassment for Washington and Tel Aviv which claimed otherwise.The Israeli bombings come coincidentally at a time when direct reports from within Syria indicate major recent successes of the Syrian Army in rolling back rebel held areas along the border to Lebanon. Until Israel or Washington are able to produce overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the weight of suspicion for the Israeli acts of war has to be not interdiction of potential "game changer" missiles to Hezbollah, but rather an attempt by Israel, with Washington backing, to prepare the climate of world opinion for a full-scale Libya-style NATO-IDF air campaign to obliterate Syria, as more than two years of surrogate arming and training of mercenaries and even Al Qaeda terrorists to wage a regime destruction in Syria appear to have failed. The Netanyahu aggressions are an ultra-high-risk gamble that could colossally backfire on Tel Aviv as well as Washington. The Shi'ite alliance of Tehran-Damascus-Hezbollah in Lebanon is backed firmly by Putin's Russia with China supporting. The rebels are backed by Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Washington and now Israel. Already Syria, Iran and Hezbollah have promised retaliation. The situation has the potentials for conflict out of control. Is anyone for the rule of international law, notions of just and unjust wars, classical diplomacy and basic human rights for a change? http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=73f_1368407140 KedarPL Israel's Act of War Against Syria-Madness or Cold Calculation? syria,IDF,israel,SAA,FSA,war,fighting,arab,syrian,army,battle,strike,missle,attack,provocation,middle east Sat, 11 May 2013 03:22:01 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=583_1368256551 aydeo Protest against alleged Israeli airstrike in Syria, detention of Muslim cleric; protesters chant for Israel's destruction: Free Palestine from sons of monkeys. Chants of "the people want destruction of Israel" rang out Friday inside Al-Azhar mosque, the centuries-old seat of Sunni Muslim learning. The rally is the first such protest by the Brotherhood, from which Egyptian President Mohammed Mursi hails, since it gained prominence after 2011 uprising that ousted president Hosni Mubarak. Group officials say they are protesting the Israeli detention of top Palestinian Muslim cleric in the Holy Land in a rare crackdown on a leading religious figure that drew fierce condemnation from Palestinians. The demonstrators also were denouncing Israeli airstrikes in Syria that targeted alleged shipments of advanced Iranian missiles thought to be bound for Hezbollah. http://www.jta.org/2013/05/10/news-opinion/calls-to-destroy-israel-at-muslim-brotherhoods-cairo-rally http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/10/Egyptian-Muslim-Brotherhood-rallies-against-Israel.html http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=583_1368256551 aydeo "The people want <span class="highlight">destruction</span> of Israel" chants during Muslim Brotherhood protest against Israel Cairo,Muslim Brotherhood,Chants,Israel destruction