Hezbollah in Syria's Slaughter and Israel's Acts of Kindness

Nadene Goldfoot                                                                            

Shiite Hezbollah fighters are supporting President Bashar Assad's forces.   In the north of Syria is Aleppo, a former center of Jewish life.  Today, one of two main alliances who emerged in September is the Islamic Alliance.   In the south is the 2nd group, carrying the black flag of jihad,  which includes the Damascus suburbs. Both groups  are  Salafist organizations.   "Salafism is deemed a hybrid of Wahhabism and other movements since the 1960s.  Salafism has become associated with literalist, strict and puritanical approaches to Islam and, particularly in the West, with the Salafi Jihadis who espouse violent jihad against civilians as a legitimate expression of Islam,   though leading Salafi scholars have condemned attacks on civilians,  and Salafi who support such attacks are in a minority.
                                                                         

 Damascus was the home of the Jewish Quarter, whose Jewish population  were removed in 1994 when Israel managed a dangerous airlift to rescue them out of a severe situation of having been quartered there somewhat like what happened in the Warsaw Ghetto.  The other Salafist organization is The Army of Islam who has taken over this part of Syria.  These two groups want Shariah law.     They have denounced the Syrian National Coalition who has lost its power and is backed by the USA.

The in-politicians  of Assad and the rebels themselves  have no thought of their morality in how they treat their own people.  The paper reports about Marwan, a 35 year old Syrian refugee and former  clothing salesman from Homs, Syria, now living in the refugee camp in Mafraq, Jordan.  He was on his way to the grocery store and picked on as a possible opposition rebel and shot by a policeman in the knee and elbow  and then tortured.  So this was Assad's people who did this.   Officers hung him from the ceiling by his wrists and then beat him with sticks for a month and a half.  They wanted him to confess to fighting for the opposition.  He was then blindfolded and taken to Damascus where they put him in a 3 foot square cell for over 3 months with 4 others.  He was hung by his wrists again during the night every 3rd day, so I suppose this was better treatment  than before.  Finally he was released but without any documents saying he was innocent.

What this story leaves out has been filled in by a contact of mine.  People can be picked up who are innocent  and possibly more affluent and held for ransom.  $10,000 will get you out of jail.  Before someone coughs up the money, though, you will be tortured.  Often, the person is actually killed if the money doesn't come through.  Bodies of deceased will be visible for those alive and undergoing the torture.  This is how these rebels get money to proceed.
                                                                         

The rebels are mostly Sunnis.   What is happening is that rebel factions are fighting each other.   A thousand militias are trying to merge into a few big coalitions.  Do they even know what they are fighting for or have they just allowed themselves to become fighters without any forethought.  It seems as if the whole of Syria has turned into gangs fighting each other for turf and that's it and any sort of behavior goes as long as the outcome is success.  The civilians are just in the way of their actions.

This is why the United Nations thinks that another 2 million or more refugees will be added onto the already 2 million in 2014, which isn't that far away.  2.25 million might be displaced within the country before they get to a refugee center.  They are building a 2nd giant refugee camp in Jordan to hold 130,000 called Al Azraq.  Jordan can only take 300 per day into their country.  This is hard on their water supply and food.  Syria was at the start of the Civil War a country with a population of 22,505,000 with 90% Sunni/Shi'a following the Hanafi/Alevi  fiqh.  It was a state of Islamic people  that was neither  religious nor state controlled.  Their military power consisted of about 296,000 soldiers.  Now, about 10,000 foreign jihadists have joined the fight.

Speaking of food, you can imagine that this is running out in Syria. All the fighters should have realized by now that wheat growing in the fields has to get to the bakeries.  There are many steps that have to be taken before it gets there.    They have to provide food, water, electricity and schools besides defense.  Farming under these conditions has almost stopped as they're running out of fertilizer and money to operate.  Diesel prices are soaring even though they are living in an oil producing country. With bombs falling everywhere, I doubt if many people are out in fields working. People can't get food.  They'll be leaving on that reason alone.

 Some have resorted to eating bark off trees in Homs, Syria reports Batool, a 15 year old in the 9th grade in a refugee camp in Mafraq, Jordan.  They would like to go to France or Sweden but have had no replies to their applications.  She had 3 cousins shot and killed in Homs.  They still have family living there.  They're running out of savings.

Though Israelis are the hated and terrible "Jews, " there are  Jews who have been helping the refugees with medical aid  and food all along at the border who organized themselves.  Their comment is that nobody asked permission to kill, so we aren't asking permission to save lives. They've been helping out since 2000.  "Seventy tons of sanitation items, 670 tons of food, 120 tons of basic home items and 20 tons of medication are just a sample of the aid one Israeli NGO has delivered to Syrian refugees amid the current crisis."   Some wounded Syrians have even been taken into Israeli hospitals.   Such terrible people we are.

A mysterious website at www.stop910.com has a mission to bring attention to Hezbollah's "Unit 910" which is Hezbollah's international operations unit.  The mysterious website is offering a reward for information about this  international wing.  It's not known who is offering this or who is responsible for this website which is fighting against Hezbollah, the Shiite Muslim movement in Lebanon and is against Israel.  Shiites are mostly found in Iran, which is 98% Shi'a following the Jafari fiqh.  They have a lot of fighters to spare with a population of 76,923,300.  Supposedly they have an army of 545,000.

Resource:  Oregonian newspaper 10/26/13 page Frontpage and A13,, WAve of refugees heightens fears of spreading violence by Richard Read reporting from Baalbek, Lebanon,  Syria
http://www.jpost.com/National-News/Israeli-organization-delivers-hundreds-of-tons-of-food-medicine-to-Syrian-refugees-325579
http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2013/09/13/221991236/an-unlikely-refuge-some-wounded-syrians-get-treated-in-israel
Batool, 15 year old, Oregonian, 10/26/13 page A14 report about Homs, Syria
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/09/25/do-you-know-the-history-behind-the-black-flags-of-jihad-theblazes-buck-sexton-breaks-it-down/
Oregonian 10/26/13 page A12, The Buzz on anti-Hezbollah website
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salafi_movement

Syria's Position Today

Nadene Goldfoot                                                                          

After over 100,00 people have been killed in the Syrian Civil War and 2 million have been forced from their homes out of a population of 22,505,000,  the fighting may be coming to a halt.  The Syrian opposition group against Assad  is the Syrian National Coalition, backed by the West.   These rebels are outgunned by the regime forces who have gained speed since Assad agreed to give up his chemical weapons stocks and has thrown off the threat of of imminent US military action from jet planes. Deadly battles have been taking place, however.

The Sunni town al-Mitras of 8,000  lies in an area dominated by Assad's Alawite Shi'a sect where a lot of shelling has taken place.  Assad's soldiers want the surrender of dozens of fighters in there.  The town's officials persuaded defectors and rebels to surrender to the authorities with the promise of being freed after "repenting."  This ploy has often been used in stalemates in Syria such as the recent one in Talkalakh.  Bayda and Banias, nearby Sunni towns,  is where troops killed 248 people after days of shelling.

Syria is 13% Shia like Iran and the Alawites are a Shia group which is why Iran backs Assad.  The Twelvers and Ismailis follow that sect.  This is a Civil War of religion more than it is about politics with the 2 intertwined.

With either group, the worst thing to be was Jewish even though both Sunnis and Shia could be carrying some Jewish genes since Jews lived in the area since King David of Israel  who lived from 1010 BCE to 970 BCE. Syria was part of Israel-Judah which the Bible called Aram.  The coast had been settled in those days by the Phoenicians.  In the 8th century BCE, Syria had been overrun by the Assyrians who had  also attacked Israel in 721 BCE.  Assyria itself was an ancient state in western Asia whose people were also Semites and had established an aggressive kingdom in the 20th century BCE.  I think a lot of the present day Syrians must have inherited some of that aggressiveness.

Sunni Muslims are the majority and dominate the revolt  which started in March 2011, inspired by the Arab Spring in Egypt.  Christians and other Muslim sects have been on the side of the regime, which is surprising because the regime was so terrible to the Jews of Syria that they finally were forced find ways to escape. In the end, a Canadian woman helped to get them to Israel and the USA in 1994.

After the creation of Israel in 1948 the Jews in Syria were terribly persecuted.  This was far worse than the Jews of the Middle East being treated as dhimmis or 2nd class citizens which was bad enough where they had no rights as real citizens.  Instead, they had restrictions and had to pay a poll tax others did not have to pay.   Rights were taken away such as owning their property, travel or even to practice their occupations.  If they tried to leave the country they were persecuted.  If they were Jews who needed to travel for business purposes they had to travel alone for fear they would flee to a free country.  The big fear of the government was that the men would join the Israeli forces and fight against them in the Israeli army.   Here in Aleppo, the 3,000 year old Jewish history went back to King David.  Damascus's Jewish community also went back to that period and  both went back to Jews entering the country after the 1492 expulsion of Jews from Spain's Spanish Inquisition.  Why the Christians stand with Assad seems artificial if they are for freedom.

Beautiful neighborhoods of modern homes have been bombed away. New homes have been flattened in communities that were modern with all the amenities of a Florida home.  Cemeteries guarding genealogy for families have been destroyed.   Assad has been reported to have secretly moved chemically tipped missiles over to Lebanon, now.  That's what happened most likely to the same chemicals that started in Iraq.

 The last I read was that Assad may not seek another term.  How sad.  He's finally getting the message that he no longer is finding favor with his people.  He'll probably take his money and hide out in South America.

Update: 10/9/13  Since 1,400 people were killed by Sarin gas attacks on 8/21/13 in Syria, 100  experts will arrive in Damascus today to expand on work by the first team that came on 10/1/13 to find and see to the destruction of these chemicals.  They have to identify, sequester and oversee about 1,000 tons of the chemical arsenal and have about 8 months to do the job.  The actual work of it is to be done by Syrian forces.  Their job is to verify that Syria has destroyed the entire arsenal which is to be done by mid 2014.

Resource:  Oregonian newspaper 10/6/13 page A11, Bloodshed precedes cease-fire agreement by Bassem Mrous, AP.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_in_Syria
http://middleeast.about.com/od/syria/tp/The-Difference-Between-Alawites-And-Sunnis-In-Syria.htm
Picture by Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters, lone fighter in Alawite district surveying damage
The New Standard Jewish Encyclopedia
Oregonian newspaper, 10/9/13, page A9, 2nd chemical team going to Syria by Ben Hubbard, NY Times

  

Who Are the Syrian Rebels That Obama Is Arming?

Nadene Goldfoot                                                                 

                                       Rebel in Homs, Syria

Out of about 100,000 rebels fighting in Syria's 22,505,000 populated country which had about 296,000 active military troops at their disposal, 10,000 are jihadists.  This includes foreign fighters that are linked directly to terrorist organizations like al Qaeda.  Add to that another 30,000 to 35,000 hardline Islamists who share the same philosophy as al Qaeda, but are focused on war in Syria.  The aim of many jihadists is to create a worldwide Islamic Caliphate.  Another 30,000 in the mix that also share their brother's Islamic character are more moderate than the rest .  The downside of this is that strictly nationalist groups wanting a piece of the Arab Spring, meaning a more democratic state, are a small minority of the rebels.  Secular groups are not in any leadership capacity.

"While many non-Muslims are now aware that there is a sectarian divide in Islam between Sunnis and Shiites, it is less commonly known that Syria is ruled largely by members of an esoteric Islamic sect, the Alawites, whose belief in the divinity of Ali, Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, is just one of the reasons that they were oppressed as infidels for centuries by other Muslims."  Syria has Lebanon and Iraq as neighbors who have gone through civil war.  Assad has warned that if he loses power, the country would be in a civil war.  That's quite ironic being he is now the cause of it in trying to hold on.  

Al Qaeda is the prevalent group.  It is a "global militant Islamist organization founded by Osama bin Laden in Peshawar, Pakistan, at some point between August 1988 and late 1989, with its origins being traceable to the Soviet War in Afghanistan. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad and a strict interpretation of sharia law."

So, ignoring these facts, our president of the USA, Obama, has waived two laws that were designed to prevent arming terrorists and our government has already started doing just this before his signing was even completed, meaning that Congress doesn't even get their 15 day warning about it.  We have already sent over weapons, vehicles, advanced communications equipment and advanced medical kits.  

McCain, our warrior, is all for it, probably thinking this is being most humanitarian.  His strategy is to provide "meaningful lethal assistance to moderate opposition forces."  Al Qaeda was lead by Osama bin Lauden who engineered the 9/11 attacks that downed the Twin Towers 12 years ago.  They are far from being moderate. 

Last month it was al Qaeda who launched 4 rockets from Lebanon into Israel on the trumped up charges that Israel was plotting with Hezbollah to fight against the Syrian rebels.  What a cock-a may-mee story this one is, and believe me, they will all believe it.   The Abdullah Azzam Brigade is not an honorable group.  They are the al Qaeda members who are spreading this propaganda.  

Hezbollah is a big  Shi'a terrorist group out of Lebanon.  They are also political, so there is competition here between Hezbollah and al Qaeda in who has the power, similar to Hamas and Fatah in Gaza and Judea/Samaria.  Hezbollah has a big hatred for Jews.  ""The anti-Semitism of Hezbollah leaders and spokesmen combines the image of seemingly invincible Jewish power ... and cunning with the contempt normally reserved for weak and cowardly enemies."

Our Arab Israelis have been joining the Syrian rebels lately. " There is a possibility that Arab Israelis who are being trained in Syria may use their knowledge against Israel – both by spreading ideologies and by using intel and military capabilities they've learned there."   These men are not forced into Israel's IDF and usually don't opt to join.  Actually, this hurts their opportunities to get better jobs, as an IDF service on one's resume is highly desirable.  Arab Israeli women have been reported to feel more nationalistic about Israel and have been joining up in the IDF.  

Lost in this morass of fighters is the honest nationalistic Syrian who wants to live a democratic life.  He is surrounded by other fighters who want something quite different.  Assad was a tyrant without a heart, but was able as an Alawite to keep control with his whip.  He was detestable to the Jewish community of Aleppo and Damascus and drove them all out, the last leaving in 1994 with Israel's help.  

Barack Hussein Obama II, our American president, is daring to take a very large step in overlooking the necessary steps in this recent enterprise of aiding and abetting the rebels.  The rebels are not all of one mind.  It's almost impossible for the USA to vet them.  He has waived the prohibitions set up to arm these rebels.  At the rate they are warring each other like Syria is warring against its own people, it won't take long for the arms to get into the hands that are the strongest, and that will be the large terrorist groups of al Qaeda and Hezbollah, who probably do a little recruiting on the side.    

Last year Israel announced that they knew of 200,000 missiles pointed in their direction.  Though they are ready for them,  Israel realizes that there are "growing threats Israel was facing: "a more hostile, more Islamic, more sensitive Middle East, one more attune to public sentiment, less controlled by the regimes, and less susceptible to international influence."  I guess we can thank the Arab Spring for a lot of this turmoil.  With a supreme take -over- all- the- land -attitude and force everyone to convert, Democracy just doesn't stand a chance.  The Muslim Brotherhood,  who is all for sharia law,  seems to work against any democratic values.  

The Brotherhood calls for jihad against “the Muslim’s real enemies, not only Israel but also the United States. Waging jihad against both of these infidels is a commandment of Allah that cannot be disregarded.” —Muslim Brotherhood Supreme Guide Muhammed Badi, Sept. 2010.   

Reference:  http://frontpagemag.com/2013/arnold-ahlert/obamas-move-to-arm-al-qaeda-in-syria/?utm_source=FrontPage+Magazine&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=f071ead496-Mailchimp_FrontPageMag&utm_term=0_57e32c1dad-f071ead496-156514682
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda
http://freebeacon.com/al-qaeda-affiliated-group-claims-responsibility-for-rocket-attack-on-israel/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hezbollah
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4431574,00.html
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/some-200-000-missiles-aimed-consistently-at-israel-top-idf-officer-says-1.410584
https://www.standwithus.com/news/article.asp?id=1757#.Ujx5_dKOTqE on Muslim Brotherhood Charter
http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/06/14/syrias-ruling-alawite-sect/?_r=0

Syria Threatens Israel If American Coalition Attacks

Nadene Goldfoot                                                                  

Syria's defensive tactic if the USA and Britain attack its rocket bases is to attack Israel full force, including mystery surprises.  It's like taking a hostage for protection and Israel is the closest to pick on.

This comes from Syria's Foreign Minister, Walid Muallem today.  He mentioned al-Qaeda in in his speech, strange, since it's Hezbollah out of Lebanon who are on the side of Syria along with Iran.  However, he did mention that Israel's attackers would be a Syrian-led mob made up of Iran, Iraq, Lebanon and themselves, the usual countries that have warred against Israel in the past.

Muallem is demanding proof that the Syrian government used chemical weapons against their own people, which have been collected by investigators other than the UN investigators who were delayed beyond the time which would have divulged more facts.  Just the fact that Doctors Without Borders had reported Saturday that about 3,600 patients had been treated at 3 hospitals for symptoms coming from exposure to chemical weapons in which about 300 have died tells the story, but they aren't the Official Inspectors.  The group told Monday that out of their 100 volunteers, 70 who had actually taken care of these patients became ill and one had died.

This has caused the USA with John Kerry citing this evidence to talk about the military response, and we know that Britain's ships are also in the Mediterranean along with 4 of the Americans ready to attack with cruise missiles.   Targets in Syria are the military ones.

In the next few days the USA's intelligence agencies will give Assad the proof he is asking for telling how his forces used chemical weapons.  They have proof from radio or phone calls between Syrian military commanders.  The UN inspectors were to be given free passage by the Syrian government but the lead car in a caravan was hit in the tires and front window and taken out.  They were going into a Damascus suburb.  Kerry was brilliant in his retort to Walid al Moallem on Thursday that if the Assad government had nothing to hide it should provide immediate access to the attack site, which never happened.  They had stalled for 5 days and then attacked the area even more by shelling it and destroying all evidence.

If the Syrian government turns around, this can all be averted.  This has been a moral obscenity and is inexcusable to do to their own citizens of which over 100,000 have already been killed.  Russia is expected to veto an action from the UN.  France might step in to help out the allies.   Is one of the "surprises" intended to harm Israel the Al-Nusra Front, which is an al-Qaida-linked jihadist group?  Assad acts like the chemical weapons cause  is just a front to go in and take over Syria.   Already a top Syrian offical had threatened Israel if Syria were attacked by the West.  This was from Syria's Deputy Information Minister, Half Al-Maftah,  said in Arabic.

Israel has intended to stay out of the conflict,  but if they are attacked, they will not be held back.  They have warned Syria not to retaliate against them.  Of course Israel is being blamed for even thinking Syria would do such a thing.  "A member of the Syrian Baath Party national council, Halef al-Muftah, said that Syria regards Israel as being "behind the aggression".  Israel said the chemical attacks came from outside Damascus in the mountain range where the headquarters is of the 4th Armoured  Division and  is located and commanded by Assad's brother, Maher al-Assad.

A thought:  Could Maher be framing his brother just so he could become President instead?  It wouldn't be a first in the Middle East.

Resource:  Oregonian newspaper 8/27, 13 Front page and p. A4, : US sets stage for Syria action by Michael  R. Gordon and Mark Landler NY Times,
Arutz Sheva news@israelnationalnews.com Syrian FM threatens "Surprises" for Western Forces by Ari Soffer
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11115311

Syria's Chemical Warfare Hits Innocent Syrians

Nadene Goldfoot                                                                       

                                                 No Rose Colored Gas Masks For Syrians

Chemical warfare was first used in WWI. Tear gas, severe mustard gas, phosgene and  chlorine were used.   Then, only 4% of the deaths were from these weapons in the worst war ever. They've all been outlawed.   Saddam Hussein used chemical weapons against the Kurds anyway  in Iraq in the late 1980's. He killed thousands with mustard gas and  nerve agents with arial bombs, 122 mm rockets, and conventional artillery shells.   Nothing is impossible in the Middle East when powers that be want to gain more power, evidently, even the grotesque death of victims gasping for breath or going through trembling gyrations.  This horror is hitting Syria where the shooters are still unconfirmed.  Is it the rebels or the government of Syria doing this dastardly deed, and how many groups make up the rebels and what is their aim?  Some rebels are people that belong to al-Qaida or Hezbollah, terrorist groups.
                                                                               

Israel has had to dispense gas masks to their whole population, now 7 million, several times in order to try to protect them from maniacs who would attack by chemical warfare, something that is outlawed according to the Geneva Convention. My cousin Stanley was in an attack in his home in Jerusalem where everyone had to don their gas masks around 1993.  They feared the worst and again were issued masks in 2010 and 2012.  Bathrooms were to be sealed as a safe room.   Syrians are at the mercy of a government that is against their own populace.  They first destroyed the Jewish community of which the last was able to escape in 1994 when an airlift took them to Tel Aviv, Israel.  They were living in Gestapo-type ghetto-like conditions,  unable to have any civil liberties.  Now it is the few Christians who are in danger.

Syria had 22,505,000 people of which 90% are Muslims, a mixture of Sunni and Shi'a  They have no stated state religion as some states do in the Middle East.  Today Syrians have fled to refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and many fled to Egypt under Morsi's short reign, who hoped they were all proponents of the Muslim Brotherhood, and are not even registered refugees receiving UN aid, but are about out of their own funds to help them to survive.  Work there is impossible to find under their present emergency.  The UN would do well to survey that situation.

The USA was aware of chemical warfare being used early this year when they confirmed this knowledge and said they would supply some form of weapons to the rebels, but have since had second thoughts about "rebels."  Rebels could be any of the terrorist groups, Hezbollah or al-Qaida who have immersed themselves into the remaining population.

Israel's intelligence strongly suggested a chemical weapons attack, but the rebels have pointed out where 4 rockets had been fired from that proved that the attack could have been carried out only by the government's forces. Sane people question how that could be when this happened on the day the inspectors had arrived in Damascus to check out previous attacks.  The timing is incredibly idiotic.  Russia thinks the rebels staged the attack, which does sound logical to me as it's so incredible that the government would do it upon the inspector's arrival.  .

The rebels reasoning is that the government is softening up the opposition before a major attack with tanks, armored personnel carriers and planes.

The recent attack happened just after 2:00am.  "Chemically equipped rockets were launched; 2 from a bridge on the highway from Damascus to Homs; others  from a Sironex factor in the Qabun neighborhood of  Damascus.

Now the UN may not be able to send investigators in to collect samples from the wounded and dead.

How will the UN respond to all this?  The USA has combat aircraft, fighters and bombers for an air attack, but what is the target and will civilians be killed?  The targets would be missile or artillery batteries that can launch chemical munitions of nerve gas and communications and support facilities, or on the headquarters and government offices of the government.  These are all bad choices according to a European official.  The USA is also divided over the proper response to use, as it was earlier.

Until the world powers get their act together, someone should go into Syria with gas masks, food and water for civilians not involved.  They are between a rock and a hard place, for sure.

Resource: Oregonian newspaper, 8/23/2013,  headlines: chemical quandary in Syria by Mark Landler, Mark mazzetti and Alissa J. Rubin, NY Times, front page and page A6.
http://www.amazon.com/Israeli-Civilian-Mask-Nato-Filter/dp/B0002XJ2OU
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3855283,00.html
http://academic.regis.edu/jriley/saddam_hussein.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_weapons_in_World_War_I

Syria's Explosive Border Draws USA Military to Assist Jordan

Nadene Goldfoot
The USA sent military troops to the Jordan-Syria border just in case, Leon Panetta just announced a few hours ago.  He was speaking at a NATO conference in Brussels.  He said that the US has been working with Jordan in watching for chemical and biological weapons sites in Syria and help out with dealing with Syrian refugees that are coming over the border.  The USA has provided medical kits, water tnks and other humanitarian aid to help Jordanians help out Syrian refugees that came into Jordan.

Syria had threatened to hit Tel Aviv if there was any intervention, especially involving NATO.  For the past 5 days Turkey's border towns have been hit by Syrian mortars.  Was this the result of nudging by Romney who accused Obama of been too passive?  The policy so far has been providing only non-lethal aid to rebels who want to topple Assad.  Israel and Panetta have been concerned about Assad's stash of chemical weapons.  The word is that Syria has been seen moving some chemical weapons recently.

Syria's population before the uprising against Abbas was 22,505,000.  200,000 Syrian refugees have come into Jordan and the country has meager resources.  About 25 have already rioted in Zaatari earlier this month and destroyed tents and medicine with the result that many families were left without shelter and the nights are now cold.  Whatever where they rioting about to do such a nasty thing, I'm wondering.  Do they have to be policed as well?  With that many people together in tents, I guess Jordan does need help.

Some Jordanians have hooked up with those across their border to join about 2,000 foreigners fighting with the Syrian rebels.  So far they've wounded a Jordanian border guard.

Turkey reinforced its border with artillery guns and have more fighter jets.  NATO said it stood ready to defend Turkey if necessary.

Israel has maintained peace with Syria for the past 40 years but it has been a simmering peace.  The news that "Syran-Kurdish activist Abdelbasset Sida is to head the main opposition group in exile, the Syrian National Council, now presents Jerusalem with an opportunity to express tacit support for a possible successor to Mr. Assad."

Resource:http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/panetta-us-sends-forces-to-jordan-in-case-of-syrian-escalation/2012/
 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303734204577465990770998890.html

Americans Join Flotilla Against Israel While Middle East Is In Smoke

Nadene Goldfoot
The population of Gaza is about 1.5 to 1.7 million Arabs of which the Hamas terrorists were voted as their leaders.  Their charter is to destroy Israel and never to make peace with them.  They have been engaged in a war of destruction with Israel  They bomb the Jewish country with rockets, missiles and mortars along with all the negative propaganda they can create.  Hamas is backed and armed with weapons from Iran, who also want to destroy Israel.  Besides being a democratic state, the only one in the Middle East, Israel happens to be a Jewish state, one amid the Islamic nations   This is the sole reason that these states are so against Israel.  Jews had the audacity to accept  their land in 1948 from England when the Arabs refused their share and the Israelis have made something out of it.  The Jews have prospered in their teeny land and have created thousands of things, medical discoveries as well as businesses.    For this Jews have not been forgiven. 

Israel has had to have a naval blockade on Gaza because of Hamas's need to procure weapons from Iran and whoever else will supply them.  Gaza has all the necessities it needs.  It is Israel who has taken on the responsibility of trucking them into Gaza. There are at least 300 trucks that carry supplies into Gaza daily from Israel.   Even the UN has told people not to break the blockade and that it is not necessary (unless of course their goal is to sneak in weapons).  Hamas refuses to make peace with Israel.  This is a state of war of their own choosing. 

However, not to heed advice, 36 Americans are still planning on boarding their ship, Audacity of Hope,  and break the blockade.  They will fly later to Athens to get ready for the short journey from there.  Their reasoning is that they say they see this as a human rights violation.   Professor Rashid Khalidi, Palestinian-American critic of Israel from Columbia U is a major organizer of this ship.  Last I heard was the group was trying to raise $370,000 to get the ship. 

I feel they are doing this, not for the sake of bringing anything of value to Gaza, but for the publicity that they hope to cause against  Israel.   If anyone is a violator of human rights, it is Hamas who continually fire on Israel hitting Sderot and Ashkelon and the country-side and stir their people to kill Israelis, like the Fogel family recently slaughtered in Itamar, Samaria. 

They concentrate on Israel while the Syrian troops are going into their rebel's villages near the Turkish border setting fire to their homes and a bakery.  They have cut off the lifeline to thousands of these uprooted people that are stranded out in the open arresting masses of people.  Turkey has taken pity on them at least and are bringing food to them even though they are on the Syrian side of the border.  Atrocities of all sorts are going on in the Middle East, yet our Americans can only see fault with Israel and with the people who brought to the world the 10 Commandments. 

update: 6/27/11 On Sunday, however, Greek officials blocked some of the ships from setting sail to Gaza. Organizers said that they had retained lawyers to will fight the stop-order with the aim of allowing the vessels to leave harbor on schedule.

Vessels from Italy, Spain and Canada are also participating in the flotilla.
(If they try to breat the blockade, they will be arrested by Israel.)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110619/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_mideast_protests_glance
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110620/ap_on_re_us/us_gaza_flotilla
http://jewishfactsfromportland.blogspot.com/2011/06/flotilla-future-member-audacity-of-hope.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashid_Khalidi
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4057894,00.html
http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/News/today/2011/03/2402.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/17/world/middleeast/17flotilla.html?_r=1
http://idfspokesperson.com/2011/06/26/the-idfs-lawfully-enforced-naval-blockade-on-the-gaza-strip/
http://www.aish.com/jw/me/The_Hamas_Flotilla.html by David Harris; excellent
http://www.giyus.org/ 6/27/11
http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?ID=226829&R=R1