“I told you so”, Arab cynic says as the hopes of millions are dashed

 ' “I said this from day one, you can’t have a revolution by ignorant people who don’t read, go to the theatre or do yoga. They are intellectually and spiritually not prepared. And now you see what the result is,” elaborated Mr Kamel, who often walks around carrying a book by Kafka and an emergency vegan meal pack. He is also, predictably, a fan of The Smiths. Encouraged by Mr Kamel’s statements, thousands of Arab cynics, misanthropes and chronic pessimists took to social media to show their support and express their derision towards the revolutions and people who believed in them.'

 KarlreMarks does a great Robert Fisk:

 [http://www.karlremarks.com/2012/08/robert-fisk-reporting-from-syria-with.html]

John McCain: US aid to Egypt 'should be cut off'

 When McCain says we should arm the Syrian rebels, he is dismissed as an outrider for American imperialism by those opposed to the Syrian revolution. Will the same people now dismiss the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood on the same basis? I think not.

Letter to John Baron MP

 'Behind the scenes at Newsnight, John Baron MP said to me, “If you put your emotions aside, for the sake of containment, wouldn’t it be better if Assad won?”Ramifications for Britain and Europe include all those pertaining to a zone of economic collapse and trauma on the eastern Mediterranean, all the unforeseeable knock-on effects, including at very least a new illegal migration issue and a pool of new recruits for violent political/religious organisations.

 This is very unlike Iraq and Afghanistan. Nobody is asking for invasion or occupation, not for a single dead British soldier. Neither of those two occupations came at a time of mass popular revolution. Moderate Syrians are asking for the means to bring this to a conclusion themselves, to stop a genocide, a mass torture campaign, a mass rape campaign. Nobody is pretending at this late stage that the next day will be easy.'

The shrapnel pierced his mothers heart too

 'His death and her anguish are worth an entire revolution in itself. Deir Ezzor: aug 14, 2013 - Osama Saba’a Jaj Hamidi is just 7 years old. He was outside on the street when a shell fired by Assad’s forces landed and a shard of shrapnel pierced his chest and went into his heart.

 The shrapnel did not only pierce his heart, it pierced his mothers heart too. She lay on the floor clutching her son. She can’t bear to let him go. You do not need to understand Arabic in order to understand her anguish, her sadness, her anger, her despair at losing her child to a dictator that is hell-bent on murdering every child in Syria out of spite for the “audacity” of people of Syria to dare demand freedom.'

Syria’s Economic Crisis Magnifies Human Tragedy

 'The financial support from Russia is not in the form of aid, but loans. This is not expected to continue, at least at the same pace, in light of the threat on the regime and its ability to survive.'

Life in the rebel strongholds

 Robin Yassin-Kassab:

 'The media image of the liberated areas suggests the regime has been replaced by heavy-handed militias. At least in Idlib province (Aleppo has suffered much more from thuggery, corruption and Islamist fanaticism, a fact much lamented by the activists and fighters I spoke to), it is not like that at all. No checkpoint stopped us. The men with guns were locals and were considered protectors, not oppressors.

 Many men have fought. They fight for a while, then take time off to visit their families in the camps or to harvest the fields (those that haven't been burned). Most have no political aim other than defending themselves by ending the regime. Some are Islamists, usually moderate and democratic. One such is Abu Abdullah who, before his leg injury, fought with the rebel group Liwa al-Islam in Douma in the Damascus suburbs. He shocked me with his statement: "We aren't fighting for freedom, but for Islam." But the follow-up was more reassuring. "Europe," he said, "is implementing Islam without being aware of it. It educates its people, it respects their rights, there's one law for all."

 This is an Islamist who shakes hands with unveiled women and opines that Christians often have more self-respect than Muslims. He doesn't fight for "freedom" because to him the word means people doing anything they like, regardless of the rights of others. His vision of an Islamic state is one compatible with democracy; it wouldn't enforce dress codes or ideological allegiances because (he quotes the Qur'an) "there is no compulsion in religion".

 As for the foreign fighters, Abu Abdullah, like everybody I spoke to, views them with disdain. Syria has enough men, he told me. Syria needs weapons, not men. Foreigners only cause problems. They increase the sectarian element, as Assad and Iran want. They ruin the revolution's reputation. In any case, most of them aren't fighting but resting, waiting for "the next stage".'

Safety Concerns Delay U.N. Chemical Arms Inquiry in Syria

 "How can we safely ensure that the UN doesn't have to take any action?"

John Rees On Syria

 From April 2012.

 'Our business is making sure that whatever decisions Syrians make about the future of their country, they make it without the interference of the Great Powers.'

 So John Rees has spent the last 16 months campaigning against the arms traffic from the Great Power Russia to the dictator in Syria. No, not really.

Yemen: The real reason for Obama's terrorist scaremongering

 Chris Nineham is a pro-Assad scaremonger*. It is certainly liberation for those who cannot now be bombed.

 'It is becoming clear from Syria that Tuesday's "liberation" from Assad forces by rebels of an airbase in Idlib Province, co-ordinated partly by the US-backed Syrian Military Council, had foreign and Syrian based Al-Qaeda affiliates at its heart. In the words of one US analyst, this is a further sign that "Al-Qaeda is dominating anti-Assad forces".'

*Which may be the worst kind of monger.[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/…/10233226/Alan-Partridge-Alpha-…]

Revealed: What the West has given Syria's rebels

 Mark Little was talking rubbish about this on the Wright Stuff this morning. "The worry is that they'll get the hands of jihadis". But it doesn't include any weapons. "Yeah, but I'm sure they'll slip a couple of drones in there. It's all so convoluted, Arab Spring, it's got out of the CIA's hands."

Asala Nasri

'Nasri is an outspoken supporter of the uprising against Syrian President Bashar Assad.
"From the beginning, I stood alongside the Syrian revolution, alongside the educated Syrians, nationalist, civilized and moderate youths and their goal of having a civil and democratic state," Nasri said on Sunday.'
[http://music.yahoo.com/…/anti-assad-syrian-star-performs-we…]

Israel Warns Russia Against Giving Syria Missiles (wat A Comedy)

 This was always a put-up job, to frighten the US off arming the rebels, and the Western public off the belief that anything could be done to stop the killing.

 Smuthx: "Series of events that may occur here. International politics is like a chess game.

 1. Russia may or will sell the S-300 mobile surface to air missiles to Syria.

 2. Syria will play the hundred thousands of US dollars to Russia.

 3. Some Russian military personnel will accompany the shipments of the missiles to ensure operation and teach the Syrians how its used.

 4. USA and Israel meets the Russian president and his defence team.

 5. After discussions and backroom deals.

 6. The Russians will give the coordinates of the missiles where its stored in Syria.

 7. The Russia military personnel will leave the target in time for the Israeli war machines to target and blast the storage buildings to ashes and destroyed.

 8. Russia will issue some statements and within some weeks, Russia will tune down the warnings and it will fade away.

 The Russia will win, they have gotten the money. and they will have gotten some backroom deals.

 Russia may not even sell those surface to air missiles. Its politics and its their trump card The Russians may not use."

Syria's Muslim Brotherhood faces uphill battle

 'Inside Syria, the group faces an uphill battle trying to rebuild its base with the young revolutionaries of today, many of whom view its leadership as ageing and out of touch after years away from the country.'

 At least they are trying.

The opposition advances in Damascus

 'Reports by activists in Damascus say that government troops have sometimes been forced to prevent massacres from taking place by the hands of Iraqi and Lebanese Shia militia groups – begging the question of how long the regime can retain command and control as it increasingly relies on irregular forces.

 And while the western media seems to have bought the narrative of the government’s continuing strength, under the surface things are not what they appear in the capital. Through the successful use of more sophisticated weaponry and enhanced coordination, the opposition has made unprecedented advances in Damascus and has come closer to the heart of the capital than ever before.

 Those arguing for a “let them fight it out” approach compartmentalize the Syrian conflict in ways that ignore these dynamics, which could quickly spark a regional conflagration that puts U.S. allies at risk and threatens U.S. strategic interests abroad. As Ambassador Fred Hof points out in a recent article, Assad’s victory in the war of narratives over the struggle for Syria has led to a belief in regime propaganda about the nature of this struggle.'

 Of course, there are some people who will see in the last bit a confirmation that the US really does want to install its own puppet government in Damascus. A more reality-based reading would see that the desire of the US for stability, to be sure so that their corporations can profit, coincides with the Syrians' need for revolution, as the only way that stability can be achieved again, if it is to be more than the quiet of mass graves.

Syria crisis: Eid al-Fitr in war-torn Homs

 'Mohammed says he is working towards the removal of President Bashar al-Assad by promoting the activities of rebels.

 His work on social media sites makes him a target for the regime and he has grown used to leading a solitary life, cut off from his family out of fear for their - and his - safety. But despite the personal danger, he can't bring himself to leave the city of his birth.

 "I'm a simple tradesman," he said in a Skype interview. "I have no political views, but I want freedom for my country. Freedom from corruption and the family that has ruled our lives and robbed us of our country for over 40 years." '

External support and the Syrian insurgency

 Thomas Pierret:

 'Syrian insurgents have become increasingly dependent on state supporters for their logistics. Gone are the days when rebels could storm lightly defended regime positions with assault rifles and a few RPGs. The retreat of loyalist forces on heavily fortified bases last winter has required a major quantitative and qualitative increase in the opposition's armament. This is something only foreign governments, not Jihadi utopians, can offer. Given Saudi Arabia's apparent determination to lead the way in that respect, this situation will probably continue to favour mainstream insurgents over their radical brothers-in-arms in the foreseeable future.'

Implementing ‘Sharia’ in Syria’s Liberated Provinces

 Thomas Pierret:

 'Such developments seem to confirm the widespread Western perception of the implementation of sharia as a heavy-handed imposition of an Islamic lifestyle. This is undeniably part of the reality, but there is more to the establishment of Islamic jurisdictions in the rebel-held regions of Syria than a drive to impose public morality. Indeed, this is a marginal concern compared with more urgent issues such as the need to rebuild state institutions and to restore a minimal level of law and order.'

Syria: The Physio

 'Graphic reportage from the Syrian border, by Jon Sack'

John Kerry talks with Russian minister to go ahead

 'Russia's support for President Bashar al-Assad, and America's backing of the rebels, have strained relationships.'[1m13s]

 What backing, Katy Watson?

No end in sight

 'Syria can only reach stability if the United States begins to provide real material and financial support to the rebels, or if the member nations of NATO conduct a military intervention. The Syrian people also desperately need anti-tank and anti-aircraft rockets to defend themselves.'

 Of course, whenever those who would prefer the rebels not to be armed talk about external intervention, they tend talk exclusively about the second item here, when it is the real material support of anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons that are the issue.

25 dead in Syrian forces' air attack on mosque

 'Many people were injured and 25 were killed in an air attack by Syrian regime forces on a mosque in Homs province on Thursday.

 A warplane attacked a mosque following the Eid al-Fitr prayer in the early morning, said Syrian Revolution General Commission.'

Syrians Find Innovative Ways to Stay Connected Online

 'Sami Ibrahim said one of the biggest threats to activists is when Syrian government forces torture them and force them to hand over their Skype and Facebook contacts lists.'

Activists Launch Syria-Focused Campaign In D.C. Metro Ahead Of U.S.–Russia Talks

 'When Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov meet in Washington on Friday, they'll be greeted by a smiling Syrian dictator thanking them for keeping him in his job.'

ATGM impact

 'ATGM impact on theatres in Deraa, Aleppo, S. Idlib, RIf Dimashq, and Hama have shifted some long-held dynamics lately. Latakia the same.

 Military relies heavily on tank-led artillery defence. Neutralising tanks leaves less impactful systems, more vulnerable to ground forces.

 …so far, majority of ATGMs deployed in northern Syria have been seized systems: primarily Konkurs, some Kornets.
[ATGM = Anti-Tank Guided Missile]'

 Weapons the West could have provided any time in the last year, and we wouldn't be hearing about refugees and massacres. At some point I might explain how the scare that Israel was going to bomb Russian ships was obviously a put-up job all round to scare the Americans off arming the FSA because of a set of non-existent dominoes that would topple as a result.

Latakia offensive inflames Syria’s sectarian wounds

 ' “Tit-for-tat wars generally backfire,” Landis said, pointing to the brutal slaying of possibly hundreds of Sunni civilians in Baniyas, south of Latakia, at the hands of Alawite loyalist militia in May.

 “Whenever there has been any activity in this region the retribution against the Sunni population has been immediate and brutal,” he said.'

 Joshua Landis seems to believe that any advance by the largely-secular rebel forces is incitement to sectarian bloodletting by the régime.

I Am My Homeland

 'Jandali was born in Germany, but went to school in his home town of Homs. “Every morning, we were forced to chant and memorize regime slogans,” he said, adding that the Assad regime connected the flag, the country and the national anthem to the regime and Assad family, and that Syria was “Assad’s Syria.” He said he grew up feeling like a hypocrite; praising the Assad dictatorship while at school, and returning home to a family that was against the brutal regime.'

Rebels Gain Control of Government Air Base in Syria

 'The advance brought fighting deeper into the heartland of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam to which the Assad family belongs, heightening fears of sectarian conflict. Alawites here have long feared they would face revenge killings by the mostly Sunni insurgents, and pro-government Alawite militias have been accused of killing Sunni civilians in the area.

 Some Alawites remained in their villages as rebels advanced, and a few wounded Alawites were treated in makeshift rebel hospitals.'

Syrian rebels push into Assad's Alawite mountain stronghold

 'Syrian rebel fighters armed with anti-tank missiles pushed toward President Bashar al-Assad's hometown of Qardaha on Monday, the second day of a surprise offensive in the heartland of his minority Alawite sect.'

Rebels in Homs look to Nusra for help

 'The source said the opposition asked the West for advanced and sophisticated technical assistance but were knocked back.

 “We wanted technical assistance for creative technical solutions to, for example, blow the regime communications,” the source added. “We got nothing. And the FSA no longer has the means to protect the people.” '

War of moles against hornets: Tunnels give Syria army a real headache

 'Syria's security services allege that Palestinian militant group Hamas, which fell out with the Syrian regime over its response to the uprising, has helped train rebels in the art of digging tunnels. Hamas regularly tunnels under the borders of the Gaza Strip, into neighbouring Egypt and Israel. But Khatib rejects the allegations with a laugh. "So just because I eat noodles does that make me Chinese?" he said. "Necessity is the mother of invention." '

5,000 Adra Prison inmates executed, buried in one mass grave in Al Qutaifah

 'It should be noted that this is not the first such report of the Assad regime using mass graves to dispose of victims, with leaked video footage showing dumper trucks unloading bodies emerging earlier this year.'

Syrian rebels face UN investigation over Aleppo footage

 When the Guardian's only story of the weekend on Syria is the one above, I think, fair enough, there should be prosecutions for war crimes, but remember which side is committing them daily as a matter of policy and delight.

 'The United Nations will not investigate her death. No person will be brought to justice for her death. Daraa (Nawa): Aug 3, 2013 - Ghazal Alaa Al Rifai was killed when Assad’s forces shelled her home. There will be no investigation. There will be nothing more to mark her death than this video. Her perpetrators were celebrated by the Assad regime two days ago on “Armed Forces Day".

This is the fate of Syria’s children.'
[http://www.therevoltingsyrian.com/.../the-united-nations...]

Assad's forces kill at least 13 people in the largest refugee "haven" in Homs

 'There are more than 600,000 people crammed into this neighborhood. They are all refugees from across Homs. There is no local FSA unit to protect them. They are literally imprisoned by the Assad regime and must endure this hell as they suffer from the lack of food, medicine and basic supplies.'

Global Financial Services In Conflict Zones

 This is putting a guerrilla army in the same league as warlords and terrorists.

 'Operating outside the conventional monetary systems puts stressed consumers in the same league as warlords, terrorists and guerrilla armies seeking to receive money anonymously. That came home to Anna Therese Day when she recently tagged along with the Free Syrian Army and witnessed the power and violence that an unchecked banking system can bring when in the wrong hands.

 “I traveled with foreign fighters who were responsible for bringing in cash to militia leaders to buy more arms internally on the black market,” Day said. “They went to Western Unions along the Syrian-Turkish border, and each took out cash that had been wired by financiers in the Gulf.”

 The fighters would then enter Syria to deliver the money to the leaders of international networks, Day said. So the business of banking was reduced to its most elemental level.'

 A couple of paragraphs later it gets into the same territory Christopher Walken covers with the watch in Pulp Fiction.

At gathering in Villanova, Syrians try to help their homeland

 'Takiedine, who owns several Dunkin' Donuts restaurants in Bucks and Chester Counties, came to the United States when he was 18. "I have experienced firsthand the democracy and generosity of the American people," he said, "and I wish the good life that I have experienced in this country on my people back home. But nothing in a revolution happens easily. Even in the U.S., a lot of people died for the freedoms that we enjoy now." '

Chicago anti-war leader Joe Iosbaker speaks out on Syria

 This is the most sophisticated yet straight-forward argument for supporting Assad I've seen, though I think it starts to fall apart in these paragraphs:

 'First, the lines have been drawn quite clearly – a sectarian army backed by imperialism vs. a government with a history of resisting imperialism. Those who align themselves with foreign armies are considered traitors. And second, political power grows out of the barrel of a gun. If there are still local committees that have some political and social ideas separate from the foreign dominated armies fighting the Assad government, they will have no say in any post-war Syria.

 Although it is a struggle to get through the mass of pro-rebel propaganda, truth has come out. For instance, independent sources state that the largest numbers of casualties have been [inflicted on] forces associated with the government – soldiers and militia; second, civilians, including heavy Alawite casualties; and third, rebel troops.

 But again, for anti-war forces in the U.S., there’s no other way to read this idea but a call for somebody to intervene to topple the government of Syria. In other words, some imperialist intervention is good.'

Our Revolution: A popular revolution for freedom, equality and social justice and against every kind of absolutism

 'Our revolution has remained true to its original objectives: the overthrow of the regime, the establishment of a truly democratic system committed to respecting basic freedoms, the promotion of political engagement in parties, cultures and unions, the promotion of women’s and minorities’ rights, Freedom of belief and promotion of laws on the basis of the separation of religion and the State, struggling against sectarianism, and the realization of equality and social justice.'

America's hidden agenda in Syria's war

 'The Americans began discussing the possibility of drone strikes on Al Nusra camps inside Syria and tried to enlist the rebels to fight their fellow insurgents. "The US intelligence officer said, 'We can train 30 of your fighters a month, and we want you to fight Al Nusra'," the rebel commander recalled.

 "I am worried about Islamic extremism, but I think we need to be smart in how we handle it. Otherwise we'll make matters worse, not better," he said. "In the end this should be a matter for Syrians to resolve, it's not for the West to tell us who are terrorists and who are not.

 They [foreign governments] are not fighting for the same things as us," he said. "Syrians are fighting for our freedom, while they just want us to bleed to death fighting each other." '

Against All Odds

 “I will revolt, until victory or until death.”

Sunday Morning Live

 If we'd armed the rebels a year ago, there wouldn't be any refugees, and if we armed them now the refugee numbers would stop multiplying.

 'Should Britain take in Syrian refugees? The death toll in the Syrian conflict is over 100,000 and as many as two million people are thought to have been displaced. Many are fleeing the country to live in vast refugee camps outside their homeland, with the hope that the fighting will end. The UN says the countries surrounding Syria are being overwhelmed by the influx of people - and other countries, including Britain, may be asked to take in thousands of refugees. So should we open our doors or are there better ways of tackling the crisis?'

Syria proves nothing has changed since Bosnia and Herzegovina

 A couple of years ago, I remember Kevin Ovenden, then assistant of George Galloway's, promote Davutoglu as a new sort of politician who was going to re-draw the politics of the Eastern Mediterranean for the better. Now Turkey's verbal support for the Syrian opposition has turned that geo-political analysis 180⁰.

 Davutoglu doesn't actually propose any concrete support here. States are always better at calling for freedom in their rivals' countries than their friends', and better at providing diagnosis than cure.

 Still, I did see an EA World View report* suggesting that the reason the rebels are doing better in the North than the South is that the US has less control over the Turkish than Jordanian border, and so more weapons are getting through the former.
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1JX71QvnnQ]

How Obama can stop Syria
turning into another Afghanistan

Stop the War prints more pro-Assad lies.
"What could have turned into an Egyptian-style mass uprising dissolved instead into a series of local insurgencies in which religious minorities, particularly Christians, became targets of fighters sympathetic to or affiliated with Al-Qaida. Ancient communities were cleansed from their homes in the province of Homs. Churches were bombed. Dissenters, in a phenomenon alien to Syria, were beheaded. And women, who had traditionally enjoyed greater freedoms in Syria than in most other parts of the Arab world, were forced into the veil...deposing Assad from power now will not miraculously bring peace. The collapse of the state will instead carry the civil war to an even bloodier phase as the groups that are arrayed against Assad vie for power in post-Baathist Syria."

A Rant for Syria

 'That's what happens to a nation that is cut off from the outside world and stops reading and asking questions. It becomes inbred and stupid. This is the Syria that Assad is trying to defend, because it is the only Syria he can rule over indefinitely.'

Italian priest fighting for peace in Syria

Father Paolo Dall'Oglio:

 “From day one, the Syrian regime chose violence, physical repression and deepening the action of torturing people in jail. They were consistent on their track of repression, that was their style for decades.”

Stunning Images of Destroyed Syrian City

 'The extent of the damage brought to mind the words of a United States Army officer who told the Associated Press correspondent Peter Arnett, as they surveyed the ruined Vietnamese city of Ben Tre, pulverized by American bombardment in 1968: “It became necessary to destroy the town to save it.” '

TThe beginning of the end unfolding before your very eyes

 'This is Homs as you are “used” to seeing it each and every single day for almost 2 years. Under a hell-storm of shells and rockets fired by Assad’s forces. The residents and brave fighters of Homs have been able to hold out despite an 800+ day siege. However it seems that they will not be able to hold out any longer against the combined forces of the Iranian Military, Hezbullah Mercenaries, Assad’s regular forces and the ultra sectarian “National Defense Forces” all armed to the teeth with an endless supply of weapons and supplies from the Russian Military.

 Yet despite all of the above. Despite the shells and rockets. Despite the massacres, both the ones committed and the ones yet to be carried out against them. Despite the hunger and misery. Despite it all … the people of Homs still come out to do what they did on the first days of this revolution. They came out to protest peacefully and celebrate their eventual freedom. Many of the people below, children included, know they will die, yet they also know that their deaths will not be in vain, that it will have been for the freedom of our country from tyranny few people on Earth have had the misfortune to wittiness and experience.'

Homs in 2013 and Homs in 2010

Homs in 2013 and Homs in 2010.

If This 14-Year Old Boy Can't Convince You to Intervene in Syria, Not Much Will

 "We want to get rid of the tyrant and raise babies of the revolution to build a Syria of tomorrow."

U.S. is behind the curve on Syria

 Anne Applebaum: 

 'In every instance, the timing is wrong. The moment to throw support behind “peaceful activists” was right at the beginning, before most of them were killed or imprisoned. The moment to train fighters was soon after that, before the fighters were radicalized by years of violence and the assistance they’ve ­received from Islamic extremists...With the United States on the sidelines, no one else seems able to create a “coalition of the willing” to engage, lethally or non-lethally, in helping to end the Syrian conflict.

 It’s odd: After the end of the Cold War, some thought we’d live in a unipolar world. Others thought we’d live in a multipolar world. Instead, we now live in a nonpolar world — and it’s every bit as stifling as a bad week in a Washington summer.'

Assad is responsible for the carnage in Syria

 'The West has sat by watching and left its friends to twist in the wind. Nothing, however, should blur the cardinal criminality of those who created the whole mess and who have been the engine of horror: Assad and his security apparatus.'

Fijian troops leave for Golan Heights peacekeeping mission

 'Fiji's ties with Russia in organising the deployment will also pose a risk to Fijian troops.'

 Actually the biggest risk to them is the Assad régime lashing out as it has before, in the hope that any response can lend support to their claim of fighting a foreign terrorist conspiracy.

When women joined the jihad in Syria

 'The Daughters of al-Walid train each other to use weapons to fend off Assad “gangs” and the sexual crimes that they perpetrate. Rape, not shelling and air raids, is the main cause of flight for Syrian refugees in Jordan and Lebanon, according to the International Rescue Committee, a lead relief and development organization. The heightened shame in a society where modesty and honor are paramount has even led some families to marry off their daughters to “protect” them from rape. But for women fighters, a rifle, not marriage, is their safeguard.'

Homs, Once The Capital Of Syria's Revolution, Pictured In Tatters

 'Startling images of Homs have shown the extreme devastation of the Syrian civil war, with buildings crumbled to dust and whole neighbourhoods where all the homes, cafes, stalls and businesses are gone.'

 It does look like Assad cannot re-capture the country, only destroy it.

Worries Mount as Syria Lures West's Muslims

 'More Westerners are now fighting in Syria than fought in conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia or Yemen, according to the officials...Classified estimates from Western intelligence services and unclassified assessments from government and independent experts put the number of fighters from Europe, North America and Australia who have entered Syria since 2011 at more than 600.'

 5000 people are dying each month in Syria. Isn't that a slightly more relevant figure to worry about?

U.S. Assistance to Syrian Rebels

 I think we are due 45 minutes of this on the BBC Parliament Channel from 2.15 pm.

 9:15 am ET
 Approx. 45 min.
 C-SPAN | Washington Journal
 LIVE War in Syria
 Michael Doran; Paul Orgel

 Michael Doran talked about the Obama administration’s plan to provide military assistance to rebel forces fighting President Bashar al-Assad and his military supporters in Syria.He responded to telephone calls and electronic communications. "No high-level official rolled out the policy [of "arming the rebels"]. It's more symbolic than real...The president is clearly reluctant to get involved in Syria...he's reluctant to start another war...he sees a potential quagmire."

 On his own account, Doran says, "I see inaction as more dangerous than actions", and proposes safe zones in Syria, arming vetted sections of the opposition, becoming 'the brain' of the opposition, which sounds a bit overbearing, as well as 50s SFish.

 The first caller says that all US policy is to benefit Israel, and also that the people "we" are supporting in Syria are jihadists who want to chase Christians out of the country or kill them. A Republican.

 "If you're concerned about jihadists in Syria, what's your plan for stopping them?"

 I might also remark now that the idea that Israel and Russia might go to war over Syria may be partly based on the misapprehension that Israel wants to see a change in Syria, when most statements from politicians and analysts suggest that their stance has been that they were happier with Assad who never threatened them, than the possibility that Islamists might.
Obama is not being criticized [for his inaction over Syria] by the libertarian Rand Paul tea party element dominating both young Republicans, and among Republicans in Congress.