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Rob Nicholson Says Canada’s Commitment To Iraq Will Be Similar To Afghanistan
Rob Nicholson Says Canada’s Commitment To Iraq Will Be Similar To Afghanistan
OTTAWA — Canada could be active in Iraq for the next decade as the war against ISIL continues and the region needs rebuilding, Canada’s foreign affairs minister suggested Thursday.
“We’re in this for the longer term to make sure that we do what we can to help,” Rob Nicholson told reporters during a phone call from Amman, Jordan, after completing a secret trip to the region.
“It’s similar to what we did in Afghanistan for instance,” he elaborated when asked by The Huffington Post Canada. “We were in Afghanistan, but we indicated that we would continue our assistance, and we have in Afghanistan.”
Canada’s military mission in Afghanistan lasted 12 years butdevelopment assistance has continuedpast the Canadian Forces’ pullout in 2014.
“It’s not just the military, it has to be a bigger picture in terms of what the solutions are,” Nicholson said, referring to continued humanitarian assistance. Canada has so far pledged$100 million to Iraq in humanitarian stabilization and security programming, he said.
“And this is going to continue. We’ve made that very clear.”
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
US Considering Openly Arming Syrian al-Qaeda Faction, al-Nusra
US Considering Openly Arming Syrian al-Qaeda Faction, al-Nusra
As reported at Antiwar.com, the US and some of its regional client dictatorships are prodding the major al-Qaeda faction operating in Syria, a brutal terrorist group called al-Nusra, to “re-brand” so the US can openly arm it.
Wikipedia notes that al-Nusra:
…is a branch of al-Qaeda operating in Syria…
…has been designated as a terrorist organisation by the United Nations, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Turkey.
…is generally made up of native Syrian mujahideen who adhere to Sunni Islam. Its goal is to overthrow Bashar al-Assad’s government in Syria and create an Islamic Emirate under Sharia law.
Members of the group have referred to the United States and Israel as enemies of Islam, and warned against Western intervention in Syria.
al-Nusra is also, according to both the United States government and ISIS itself, affiliated with ISIS, formerly known as AQI – al Qaeda in Iraq.
The Council on Foreign Relations notes:
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Obama Prioritizes Weakening Russia, Over Weakening ISIS
Obama Prioritizes Weakening Russia, Over Weakening ISIS
Michael Snyder noted at Global Research on March 1st, that the U.S. is now air-dropping weapons into ISIS territory inside Syria. The U.S. is arming ISIS against Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, whom Obama wants to remove. Snyder asks rhetorically: “We have the most sophisticated military on the entire planet and yet we drop weapons into the hands of the enemy by mistake? Come on.” Can it be that the U.S. Air Force doesn’t have maps showing the half of Syria that’s controlled by ISIS? Of course not. ISIS’s chunk of the country constitutes almost the entire northeastern half of Syria.
Snyder further notes: “When it comes to airstrikes [against ISIS], the Obama administration has had an ‘Iraq first’ policy. This has put ISIS on a defensive posture in Iraq, but this has actually encouraged expansion of ISIS in Syria. ISIS is just following the path of least resistance. Is Obama trying to discourage ISIS from committing troops and resources in Iraq because he actually wants them to focus on taking down the Assad regime in Syria?”
Well, it’s certainly working. Snyder also notes that, “ISIS has almost doubled the land it controls in Syria since the US-led coalition began airstrikes against the extremist group in the summer, a new map has revealed.” He points out the obvious conclusion: “Obama knows all of this. He just wants to take down Assad.”
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
The Stage Is Set For The Syrian Invasion
The Stage Is Set For The Syrian Invasion
One week ago, when reporting on the latest bizarre plan presented by the Pentagon, namely providing Syrian rebels (but only the moderate ones, not the jihadists like al Nusra, or, well, ISIS) with B-1B Bomber air support in their attacks on ISIS, when we wrote that this “means in the coming weeks and months look forward to a surge in false flag “attacks” blamed on the Assad regime, aiming to give Obama validation to expand the “War against ISIS” to include Syria’s regime as well.”
We didn’t have long to wait: in an entirely unsourced Time article written today by Aryn Baker, the Middle East Bureau Chief, the stage for the second attempt at invading Assad regime is finally set.
The article, titled “Why Bashar Assad Won’t Fight ISIS” is essentially an essay that, as the title suggests “proves” that the Syrian leader is, in fact, quite close with ISIS and derives strategis benefits from his relationship, which is why he won’t attack them, and thus by implication is just as bad as ISIS and worthy of America’s wrath.
How does Baker build up her propaganda? First, she cits a “Sunni businessman who is close to the regime but wants to remain anonymous for fear of repercussions from both ISIS supporters and the regime” and who “trades goods all over the country so his drivers have regular interactions with ISIS supporters and members in Raqqa, the ISIS stronghold in Syria, and in ISIS-controlled areas like Dier-ezzor.” According to this Syrian version of Amazon:
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
How ISIS Pays Its Fighters——From Gulf State Bankrollers
How ISIS Pays Its Fighters——From Gulf State Bankrollers
Islamic State is still receiving significant financial support from Arab sympathisers outside Iraq and Syria, enabling it to expand its war effort, says a senior Kurdish official.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Since 9/11, The U.S. Has Been Involved In More Than 5 Wars … And They’ve All Been Disasters
Since 9/11, The U.S. Has Been Involved In More Than 5 Wars … And They’ve All Been Disasters
Why Does America Keep “Losing” Its Wars?
Below, we demonstrate that the U.S. keeps “losing” war after war.
There are 3 potential reasons this might be happening:
- Is this chaos an intentional way to implement regime change and grab resources?
- Or is this a sign of the decline of the American empire … and we just can’t win a war anymore?
- Or do those in charge just not really give a damn about winning … and are they just focusing on one short-term goal after another?
We’ll let you decide why you think this keeps happening. But if you don’t believe that the U.S. has been losing its recent wars, read on …
U.S. Keeps Messing Up
We noted last year:
Since 2001, the U.S. has undertaken regime change in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya.
All 3 countries are now in chaos … and extremists are more in control than ever.
Iraq
In Iraq, hardcore Islamic jihadis known as ISIS have taken over much of the country – shown in red as the new “Islamic State” or self-described caliphate – using captured American weapons:
USA Today notes: “Iraq is already splitting into three states“.
Christians are being rounded up and killed, and Christian leaders in Iraq say the end of Christianity in Iraq is “very near”. But as we documented in 2012, Saddam Hussein – for all his faults – was a secular leader who tolerated Christians.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Obama’s AUMF—–An Affront To Congress And A Blank Check For War
Obama’s AUMF—–An Affront To Congress And A Blank Check For War
After waging war on the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) for six months, President Obama is asking Congress for its blessing. But whether or not he gets it, he plans to continue doing whatever he thinks is necessary to “degrade and ultimately destroy this terrorist group.”
Since he will not take no for an answer, Obama’s solicitation of the legislative branch’s input is a gesture of contempt rather than respect. Congress should assert its constitutional authority by rescinding the 2001 authorization for use of military force (AUMF) that Obama implausibly claims already gives him permission for his war on ISIS.
The 2001 AUMF authorized military action against the perpetrators of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In a 2013 speech, Obama called upon Congress to “refine, and ultimately repeal, the AUMF’s mandate,” because “unless we discipline our thinking, our definitions, our actions, we may be drawn into more wars we don’t need to fight.”
Last year Obama illustrated that danger by citing the 2001 AUMF as a justification for the military campaign against ISIS, which did not exist in 2001 and is no longer part of Al Qaeda. The ISIS-specific AUMF that he proposed last week repeals the 2002 resolution authorizing George W. Bush’s war in Iraq but conspicuously leaves in place the 2001 AUMF.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Welcome to World War Three
Welcome to World War Three
In case anyone didn’t get ISIL’s message from their latest video in which 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians have their heads sawn off, here it is: “We’re executioners, not warriors.” Those gouts of blood spilled on a Libyan beach amount to ISIL’s welcome mat to the mass execution of the Euro-American west. The dignity of a funeral is not even on the program.
What we’ve got now with apocalyptic Jihadism spreading clear across the region from Pakistan to Morocco, and Europe blandly ignoring it across the Mediterranean, is an epochal face-off that will change the world. It comes at an odd moment in history, namely as the massive oil wealth of the Middle East and North Africa enters decline. It was that oil wealth that provoked a population spike in a desolate corner of the planet the past century. Now there is a huge over-supply of young men there with nothing to do but act out their angry psychodrama over having no future. When a whole peoples’ prospects for a decent life on Earth dwindle to zero, is it any wonder that they become preoccupied with end-times visions of feasts and virgins awaiting in an after-life?
Partly what you’re seeing over there is an internal fight to control what’s left of the treasure. That battle has already had the strange consequence of disabling the oil production capacity in places like Iraq and Libya, where there is still a lot of oil, but not enough political stability to allow the complicated business of extraction and transport to take place. What’s more there has also been tremendous damage to the oil infrastructure in these places, some from deliberate sabotage, some from shelling and bombing, and a lot from sheer neglect and deferred maintenance. Oil refineries and transport terminals are very delicate machines that require constant loving care.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
ISIS CAPTURES CITY WHERE MARINES ARE TRAINING IRAQI TROOPS AFTER OBAMA SUBMITS WAR AUTHORIZATION
ISIS CAPTURES CITY WHERE MARINES ARE TRAINING IRAQI TROOPS AFTER OBAMA SUBMITS WAR AUTHORIZATION
Corporate poll says majority of Americans favor continued and expanded war
On Thursday ISIS fighters attacked and seized a large section of the Iraqi city of al-Baghdadi, located about 50 miles northwest of Ramadi in Anbar province.
They also advanced on the Ain al-Asad air base near the town where 320 U.S. Marines are training members of the Iraqi 7th Division.
The Pentagon reported “heavy fighting” in al-Baghdadi and said there were “reports of ineffective indirect fire in the vicinity of the base,” according to Reuters.
It also said Anbar is under “severe threat” by Islamic State fighters.
“Thursday’s fighting also demonstrates the continued ability of the Islamic State to remain on the attack despite coalition airstrikes. Still, U.S. officials maintain that the militants remain largely on the defensive,” the Washington Post reported.
Unconfirmed reports state ISIS has captured the air base and the Marines stationed there:
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
OBAMA ASKS CONGRESS TO AUTHORIZE WAR THAT’S ALREADY STARTED
OBAMA ASKS CONGRESS TO AUTHORIZE WAR THAT’S ALREADY STARTED
As the U.S. continues to bomb the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, President Obama asked Congress today to approve a new legal framework for the ongoing military campaign.
The administration’s draft law “would not authorize long-term, large-scale ground combat operations” like Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama wrote in aletter accompanying the proposal. The draft’s actual language is vague, allowing for ground troops in what Obama described as “limited circumstances,” like special operations and rescue missions.
The authorization would have no geographic limitations and allow action against “associated persons or forces” of the Islamic State. It would expire in three years.
Speaking at New York University School of Law this afternoon, Harold Koh, the State Department’s legal adviser until 2013, said that the Obama administration is currently on shaky legal grounds, tying the airstrikes to a law passed days after 9/11.
Koh said that stretching the law like that is inconsistent with Obama’s stated goal of bringing the U.S. off of “perpetual wartime footing.” Acting without a new authorization from Congress “doesn’t promote the end of the ‘Forever War,’” Koh said.
Since August, the U.S. and other nations have carried out more than 2,300 airstrikes, according to data released by the U.S. military and compiled by journalist Chris Woods.
The administration currently justifies those airstrikes by invoking self-defense and the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force. Passed one week after the September 11th, 2001 and just 60 words long, that law in broad language gave the White House the power to go after anyone connected to the 9/11 attacks.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
The New York Times Admits – Despite Going to Congress, Obama is Still Defending Unlimited War Powers
The New York Times Admits – Despite Going to Congress, Obama is Still Defending Unlimited War Powers
President Obama is going before Congress to request authorization for the limited use of military force in a battle of up to three years against the Islamic State. On the surface, this looks like a welcome recognition of Congress’s ultimate authority in matters of war and peace. But unless the resolution put forward by the White House is amended, it will have the opposite effect. Congressional support will amount to the ringing endorsement of unlimited presidential war making.
People who take the Constitution seriously, on both sides of the aisle, must not allow this to happen. They should insist on the repeal of the 2001 resolution and an explicit repudiation of the “associated forces” doctrine. Only then will the next president be required to return to Congress to gain its consent if he or she wants to continue the war past the 2018 deadline. If it fails to take a stand now, its sham debate will generate another destructive cycle of distrust that will further alienate Americans from their representatives.
– From Bruce Ackerman’s New York Times op-ed: Congress, Don’t Be Fooled; Obama Still Believes in Unlimited War
First off, I want to thank Bruce Ackerman for writing this op-ed in theNew York Times yesterday. Although the Obama administration already claims unlimited war powers in practice, this claim is illegitimate, which is why he is going to Congress to solidify his ability to declare worldwide warfare against a terrorist group that is a direct result of U.S. foreign policy: ISIS.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
US invasion of Iraq helped create ISIS – former UN chief
US invasion of Iraq helped create ISIS – former UN chief
Kofi Annan, the former UN secretary general, said the US-led invasion of Iraq was a mistake and helped to create the Islamist State militant group. He also blamed regional powers for making the conflict worse.
“I was against this invasion and my fears have been founded. The break-up of the Iraqi forces poured hundreds if not thousands of disgruntled soldiers and police officers onto the streets,” Kofi Annan told the Munich Security Conference on Sunday. He added that some of these former security force members went on to join the Islamic State.
“The aim of creating democracy without the existing institutions ushered in corrupt sectarian governments,” Annan said. He added that the country has been unstable ever since and this has proved the perfect breeding ground for Sunni radical Muslims, who have become affiliated with the Islamic State.
The Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) stunned the world last summer by capturing large swaths of Iraq and Syria, including the city of Mosul in mid-June. The group has created what it calls an Islamic caliphate that straddles the Iraq-Syria border.
READ MORE: ISIS executed nearly 2,000 people in Syria, mostly civilians, in 6 months – monitor
The militant group has attracted a number of foreign jihadist fighters and has become infamous for the brutal way it kills hostages. A number of Western captives have been beheaded, with the videos of the executions being posted on line. On February 3, Moath al-Kasasbeh, a Jordanian pilot captured in December, was burnt alive, a move which was condemned by large sections of the Muslim world.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Japan seizes passport of journalist planning Syria trip
Japan seizes passport of journalist planning Syria trip
Move follows brutal killing of Japanese by ISIL and comes amid soaring ratings for PM over handling of hostage crisis.
Japan has seized the passport of a journalist planning to travel to Syria following the brutal killing of two Japanese hostages by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group there, according to local media.
It was the first time Tokyo had taken such a measure on the grounds it was needed to protect the passport-holder’s life, the Asahi Shimbunand other news reports said on Sunday.
They said the foreign ministry on Saturday confiscated the passport of Yuichi Sugimoto, a freelance photographer who had planned to enter Syria on February 27 to cover refugee camps among other places.
But the 58-year-old, who has covered conflict zones in Iraq and Syria over the years, said he had no plans to enter areas controlled by ISIL, Kyodo News reported.
“Tonight, an official with the foreign ministry’s passport division came and took my passport,” Sugimoto told the Asahi.
“What happens to my freedom to travel and freedom of the press?”
The passport confiscation came in the wake of the beheadings of journalist Kenji Goto and self-styled security consultant Haruna Yukawa by ISIL.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
