WaPo Urges Escalated US Aggression in Idlib, Syria

by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org - Home - Stephen Lendman)

Aggressors rely on endless wars to achieve their objectives, peace and stability considered anathema notions.

Following Putin and Turkish despot Erdogan agreeing to establish a demilitarized zone in northern Idlib province near Turkey's border, a plan fraught with dangers and uncertainties, a neocon/CIA house organ Washington Post op-ed by Brookings Institution hardliners Michael O'Hanlon and Steven Heydemann urged escalated war in Syria to avoid what they called "a looming catastrophe," not stepping back from the brink, saying:

"President Bashar al-Assad and his Russian backers are determined to assault the last remaining (major) enclave of resistance" in the country.

"(I)t will be horrible…kill(ing) civilians…(a demilitarized) safe zone in Idlib…unlikely (to hold), and (it's) only in a limited geographic space for a modest fraction of the region's population."

Fact: So-called anti-Assad "resistance" is comprised of heavily armed, US-supported cutthroat killer jihadists, terrorizing Idlib residents, holding them hostage as human shields, brutalizing them, killing anyone trying to leave.

Fact: Putin agreed to delay the offensive by Syrian ground forces and Russian airpower to liberate Idlib - essential to accomplish. Conflict won't end until terrorists throughout the country are eliminated, along with foreign occupation of northern and southern areas ended.

Fact: True enough, cessation of hostilities in a demilitarized zone almost certainly won't hold. Multiple daily ceasefire violations occur in all Russian established deescalation zones in the country. A northern Syria demilitarized area won't likely work any better.

WaPo: "The United States must take a stand. We can't reverse the course of the war, but we can at least take action to ensure that the people of Idlib are spared the worst."

"Assertive deterrence (aka naked aggression) by the United States and its partners is essential."

Fact: In March 2011, the Obama regime launched naked aggression in Syria, falsely blaming Assad for its highest of high crimes, waged for regime change, seeking another imperial trophy, wanting Iran isolated regionally ahead of a similar strategy to topple its legitimate government.

WaPo: "Washington should…retaliate in the event of any indiscriminate use of violence by Assad against his own people, in a manner of our choosing. This could be done without dramatically escalating US involvement in the war."

Fact: Syria was invaded by heavily armed, US-supported cutthroat killer jihadists, recruited from scores of countries, used as imperial proxies, aided by Pentagon-led terror-bombing, massacring countless thousands of civilians, destroying vital infrastructure, naked aggression in its 8th year with no prospect for conflict resolution any time soon.

WaPo: Trump regime hardliners "threatened to respond if Assad uses chemical weapons in his planned campaign."

Fact: Throughout the war, US-supported terrorists alone used CWs numerous times, falsely blamed on Damascus. No evidence suggests Syrian forces used these or other banned weapons throughout years of fighting - a US/NATO/Israeli specialty, not Assad's, responsibly defending his country against naked aggression.

Fact: US-supported terrorists and Pentagon-led terror-bombing are responsible for the vast majority of civilian deaths since war began.

Fact: Russian and Syrian forces scrupulously try minimizing civilian casualties. In war theaters, they're unavoidable. The Trump regime, its imperial partners, and terrorist foot soldiers massacre civilians indiscriminately - what Russian and Syrian forces try to avoid. Claiming otherwise is a bald-faced lie.

WaPo: "(R)emoving…al-Qaeda and Islamic State elements who have infiltrated the more moderate opposition forces and civilian populations in Idlib" should be "prioritize(d)."

Fact: No "moderate opposition forces" exist. All anti-Assad fighters are US-supported cutthroat killer terrorists - deployed where Pentagon commanders and the CIA want them used.

WaPo hardline writers opposes Idlib's liberation, shamefully calling for the province to "remain (illegally) autonomous from Damascus," urging US-led forces to combat Syrian efforts to liberate its own territory, hostile to the notion of freeing its people from brutalization by US-supported jihadists.

The op-ed extremists support illegal regime change, opposing Syria's sovereign independence, territorial integrity, and right of its people alone to choose their leadership and governance - free from hostile foreign interference.

Following Putin's meeting with Erdogan on Monday, liberating Idlib province is on hold, an essential campaign disturbingly delayed, not cancelled - when to be launched likely depending on geopolitical considerations and events on the ground as they unfold.

A "looming catastrophe" in Syria can only be avoided if the country is liberated from US-supported terrorists and foreign occupation - essential objectives to achieve.

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