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Next 12 months will see if U.S.'s Plan B for Syria takes hold - the "democratic" partitioning of Syria

Andrew Korybko
Katehon
Fri, 03 Jun 2016 18:42 UTC
katehon syria
The War on Syria is entering into a qualitative new phase, whereby it's becoming increasingly clear to the world that the US is no longer capable of militantly pursuing its regime change ends against President Assad. Instead, a new strategy has sprung up by which the US is trying to shape the Syrian battlespace in such a way that the circumstances are created for a post-Daesh "federalization" of the country, one which would de-facto result in its internal partitioning along identity lines and the dramatic weakening of what had half a decade ago been the most solid and stable country in the Mideast.

It would also allow for the US to skillfully divide and rule the rest of Syria through the expected exploitation of formalized identity fault lines. Key to this scenario's actualization are the Kurds, which are being pushed front and center into playing the on-the-ground vanguard role on the US' behalf. The author earlier wrote an extensive three-part series about the PYD's hate-filled manifesto which describes the "federalization" of Syria as one of its defining objectives, and the reader is welcome to reference those articles for specific information about the Kurds' self-stated motivations and vision, but the present piece moves out of the realm of theory and into an investigation of how the US and its partners could operationalize this plan in practice.
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Green Light

Truck flow from Turkish border to Syria, says Russia, increases in past three days; what's up?


Sputnik
Fri, 03 Jun 2016 00:22 UTC
Guys on truck
© www.shiitenews.org
The never-ending flow from Turkey.
The flow of trucks from the Turkish-Syrian border heading towards the provinces of Aleppo and Idlib in Syria has increased in the past 72 hours, the Russian center for Syrian reconciliation at the Hmeimim airbase said in a daily bulletin posted by the Russian Defense Ministry.

"In the past 72 hours, the flow of trucks from the Turkish-Syrian border to the A'zaz settlement in the Aleppo province, as well as to... the Dar-Taaza settlement in Idlib province, where, according to locals' statements, militants have been arriving in the last few days, has significantly increased," the Thursday statement says. According to the reconciliation center, the locals have been reporting an "intense movement" of militants in regions north of the city of Aleppo.

S
truck yard
© sputniknews.com
yria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with government forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad fighting numerous opposition factions and extremist groups.

Both Moscow and Damascus have accused Turkey of sponsoring terrorism inside of Syria. In December 2015, Russia presented evidence of Islamic State (IS, also known as Daesh) smuggling oil across the Turkish border.

Overall, the cessation of hostilities regime in Syria has been violated three times in the past 24 hours, according to the Russian military. The violations were registered in Syria's Damascus province.
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Bomb

Daesh kills at least 40 Iraqi soldiers in Fallujah 'suicide' attacks


Sputnik
Fri, 03 Jun 2016 18:09 UTC
fallujah
© AP Photo/ Khalid Mohammed
At least 40 members of Iraqi forces have been killed in a series of attacks by suicide-bombers in the northern outskirts of the city of Fallujah, Ai-Jazeera television reported on Friday.

The Iraqi Army and the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), backed by US-led coalition airstrikes, launched an offensive to retake Fallujah on May 22. Iraqi and US military officials have said they expect a fierce battle with the Daesh, which has deeply embedded itself in the city over the past two years.

Comment: A little historical perspective. Twelve years ago: Lest we forget: America's 2004 'liberation' of Fallujah: Bombs and bodies

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Black Magic

Lest we forget: America's 2004 'liberation' of Fallujah: Bombs and bodies

Pepe Escobar
Asia Times
Tue, 16 Nov 2004 18:09 UTC
fallujah
© Lucian Read
The Marines of Kilo Company 3rd Battalion 1st Marines fight through their piece of Fallujah during the Nov. 2004 assault on the city.
In "Masters of War", Bob Dylan sang, "Hide behind desks" but "we can see through your masks". Now, applying their version of grassroots democracy, the US has declared that Fallujah has been "liberated". But the virtual ghost town is celebrating with no cries of joy - with no cries at all: only with the stench of tons of explosives, and the stench of decomposing bodies.

Baghdad sources close to the resistance tell Asia Times Online that in essence the Americans control only northern Fallujah and the main boulevards; the resistance controls the narrow alleys, and the southern part of the city. At night, anyone is a target - either to the resistance or to American snipers. What the resistance is stressing is the Mesopotamian version of a rapper in urban black America: "The man control the day; we control the night."
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Padlock

US tech giants Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube adopt EU hate speech rules


RT
Tue, 31 May 2016 20:01 UTC
Eu flag
© Jon Nazca/Reuters

Comment: What is offensive, shocking or disturbing in one EU country may not be offensive, shocking or disturbing in another. Who decides what "offends, shocks, or disturbs the State or any sector of the population"? The State? Masquerading as political correctness, these laws perpetuate the stifling of free speech, dissent and any viewpoints that run in opposition to the psychopathic elite.


US tech giants have signed an agreement with the European Commission to tackle the spread of illegal hate speech online that requires them to address complaints within 24 hours.

Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft, and YouTube adopted the code of conduct on Tuesday, committing to crackdown on the use of online hate speech swiftly by putting in place internal procedures to respond to the majority of notifications of abuse within 24 hours and remove the offending content if necessary.

The guidelines are aimed at combatting the use of social media by terrorists, according to a joint statement issued by the EC and the IT companies.

"The recent terror attacks have reminded us of the urgent need to address illegal online hate speech. Social media is unfortunately one of the tools that terrorist groups use to radicalize young people and racists use to spread violence and hatred," said Vĕra Jourová, EU Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality.

The IT companies also agreed to educate their users about the types of content banned under their rules and to encourage them to flag material violating the "code of conduct."

Comment: See also: The emergence of Orwellian newspeak and the death of free speech

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Bad Guys

Panicked Democrats quietly scramble for possible Hillary replacement

Robert Parry
Consortium News
Wed, 01 Jun 2016 15:50 UTC
hillary benghazi
© C-SPAN
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lies through her teeth before Congress on Jan. 23, 2013, about the fatal attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11. 2012.
Some Democratic leaders are privately scouting around for someone to replace Hillary Clinton if she stumbles again in California and/or the FBI detects a crime in her email scandal.

For months now, poll after poll have registered the judgement of the American people that they want neither Hillary Clinton nor Donald Trump as the next President, but the two major parties seem unable to steer away from this looming pileup, forcing voters to choose between two widely disdained politicians.

The Republicans are locked in after Trump's hostile takeover of the party's selection process, but the Democrats have one final chance to steer clear, on June 7 when they hold several primaries and caucuses including New Jersey and California. If Bernie Sanders can upset Clinton in California - and/or if Clinton's legal problems over her emails worsen - there remains a long-shot chance that the Democratic convention might nominate someone else.

As far-fetched as this might seem, some senior Democrats, including reportedly White House officials, are giving serious thought to how the party can grab the wheel at the last moment and avoid the collision of two historically unpopular political figures, a smash-up where Trump might be the one walking away, damaged but victorious.

Two Washington insiders - Democratic pollster and political adviser Douglas E. Schoen and famed Watergate investigative reporter Carl Bernstein - have described panicky meetings of top Democrats worried over Clinton's troubled campaign, with Schoen also describing private talks about possible last-minute alternatives.
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Evil Rays

Clinton staffer who set up her email server pleads the Fifth in email scandal deposition

Jon Street
The Blaze
Wed, 01 Jun 2016 15:29 UTC
pagliano

Bryan Pagliano, a former State Department employee who helped set up and maintain a private email server used by Hillary Rodham Clinton, departs Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2015, to give his deposition to a House panel on the Benghazi investigation. Pagliano will assert his constitutional right not to testify before any congressional committees, his lawyer says.
Bryan Pagliano, the man who was responsible for setting up Hillary Clinton's private email server at her home in Chappaqua, New York, has said that he will plead the Fifth Amendment in an open records lawsuit filed by the conservative organization Judicial Watch.

Pagliano was scheduled to give a recorded deposition and answer questions within the next week about the unique setup that Clinton used as secretary of state. However, Pagliano's lawyers now say he will refuse to answer any questions, and instead provide a written deposition.

"Given the constitutional implications, the absence of any proper purpose for video recording the deposition, and the considerable risk of abuse, the Court should preclude Judicial Watch, Inc. ("Judicial Watch") from creating an audiovisual recording of Mr. Pagliano's deposition," Pagliano's lawyers wrote, according to Fox News.

This isn't the first time Pagliano has asserted his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Comment: See also:

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Binoculars

China to participate in US naval drills despite South China Sea tensions


RT
Fri, 03 Jun 2016 14:58 UTC
China navy submarine
© AFP 2015/ POOL / Guang Niu
China is sending a flotilla of five vessels, including two warships and a hospital ship, to the US-hosted naval drills in the Pacific. The decision comes despite persistent tensions between Washington and Beijing over the South China Sea islands. The Chinese Defense Ministry announced late Thursday that it would send the flotilla to the Rim of the Pacific exercises, also known as RIMPAC. Beijing said the flotilla would participate in live fire, anti-piracy, search and rescue, and other drills, Reuters reported.

The announcement comes despite critics of the Obama administration - including Senator John McCain - urging Washington to ban China from the drills in a show of disapproval of Beijing's military actions. The US has expressed repeated concern over China's behavior in the South China Sea, where it has laid claim to almost the entire region, despite conflicting partial claims from Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, and the Philippines.

Beijing has reportedly built military installations, including runways and missile launchers, on reclaimed islands in the South China Sea, prompting international concern. Last week, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter ruffled Beijing's feathers by stating that "China's actions could erect a Great Wall of self-isolation." That comment spurred a response from China, with Beijing accusing Carter of having a Cold War mentality.

Comment: Bejing's participation in the RIMPAC exercies is interesting and an indication of China's willingness to mend ties. However, such a thing is unlikely to happen because those in power in the US are a gaggle of unreasonable hegemonic hypocrites.

See:

Exposing U.S. hypocrisy on South China Sea: Washington has done worse for centuries
Pepe Escobar: The rise of China and its New Silk Road will challenge US hegemony around the world

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Star of David

Former Mossad chief Halevy admits Israel supported al-Qaeda in Syria

Wayne Madsen
Intrepid Report
Fri, 03 Jun 2016 14:40 UTC
nusra
© AFP 2016/ RAMI AL-SAYED
In an interview with the Qatar-based news network Al Jazeera, Efraim Halevy, the former head of Mossad confirmed what many in the Middle East and around the world already surmised: that Israel provided "tactical" assistance to Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian affiliate of Al Qaeda, throughout the Syrian civil war.

The fact that Halevy chose the Qatari government-funded Al Jazeera to make his revelation is even more noteworthy considering the fact that Qatar is also a major financial supporter of Jabhat al-Nusra and Al Qaeda in Syria.

Reports from UN observers in the Golan Heights confirmed regular contact between Israel Defense Force officers and armed Jabhat al-Nusra and Islamic State terrorists at the Syrian-Israeli border.


Comment: Yet Israel's ambassador to Russia recently came out with this nonsensical narrative:
Israel does not provide medical assistance to militants in Syria, Israeli ambassador to Russia Zvi Heifetz told Sputnik. Syria's Foreign Minister Walid Muallem earlier accused Israel of treating al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front fighters in Israeli clinics.

"We once had a situation when the wounded were stranded on our side [of the border], but they were Syrian military personnel. The most humane thing we could do was to help the wounded, treat them and return them home," Heifetz said. The diplomat added that Israel was doing its best to protect the common border with Syria, stretching along the rocky Golan Heights plateau in the northwest.
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Satellite

Increasing warfare trend: UK to upgrade war satellites to expand global drone kill operations


RT
Fri, 03 Jun 2016 14:50 UTC
Space view of Earth
© Tim Peake / Reuters
Britain's military plans to replace its ageing Skynet war satellites to meet the bandwidth demands of its expanding Special Forces and drone operations.

It is the first sign of the UK's ambitions to create the next generation of military space satellites to replace the Skynet A5, the original version of which came into service in the 1960s.

It is now considering how to proceed with its Future Beyond Line of Sight (FBLOS) program.

Given the shadowy nature of the project, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has been vague about the specifics, telling Defence News: "We continue to consider a range of options for the FBLOS project and aim to submit the initial business case this summer."
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