The Assad Regime was Ghastly but the West’s Favourite Jihadists HTS May Be Even More Bloody

The Zionist & American Aim is to Splinter Syria along Ethnic Lines & to Reconfigure the Middle East on Sectarian Lines

The Fall of Assad & What it Means for The Mid East (w/ Alastair Crooke) | The Chris Hedges Report

It has been reported that the US closely coordinated the Idlib offensive of HTS with Israel and also Turkey. It is no coincidence that the jihadi attack on Syrian towns began immediately after the ceasefire in Lebanon that Hezbollah was forced to agree to.

As soon as Assad had been overthrown Israel moved its troops onto the other side of Mount Hermon, breaking the 1974 Disengagement Agreement between Israel and Syria. Israel has never missed an opportunity to attack its neighbours and steal some more land. All in the name of ‘security’ and the ‘right of self defence’ of course.

“There should be no military forces or activities in the area of separation. And Israel and Syria must continue to uphold the terms of that 1974 agreement, and preserve stability in the Golan,” said Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN secretary general, António Guterres.

 Israel’s pretext is that it is acting in self-defence, a lie that David Lammy, who must qualify as the diplomatic equivalent of Netanyahu’s pet pooch, echoed.

Israel’s unprovoked attack on Syria’s military assets - its navy and airforce - is based on the proposition that no victim of Israeli aggression is entitled to exercise the right to self defence. Only Israel has that right or more accurately Israel reserves to itself the right to attack any country, anytime and anywhere. All with the blessing of the United States and Britain’s colourless and characterless Prime Minister Sir Kid Starver.

The Liquidation of Syrian Army Officers

The US has never paid much attention to international law. Whilst every other state in the world must adhere to the international ‘rules based order,’ the United States is endowed with a belief in Manifest Destiny. God has apparently singled out America for special treatment and given it the right to engage in limitless expansion.

Hence why in 2002 it passed the American Service-Members' Protection Act otherwise known as the Hague Invasion Act which renders American war criminals immune from prosecution at the International Criminal Court. Only African dictators are supposed to adhere to international law. When one thinks of the US and the rule of law, Al Capone and the Mafia come to mind.

In the wake of the defeat of Nazi Germany wars of aggression were considered the supreme war crime. The Nuremberg Declaration on the Crime of Aggression states quite clearly

Recalling that all members of the United Nations shall refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations as per Article 2(4) of the UN Charter, Mindful of the fact that aggression constitutes the most serious violation of the prohibition of the use of force

Israel’s role in the Middle East was mapped out from the very beginning of Zionism. In his pamphlet The Jewish State, Zionism’s founder Theodor Herzl described a future Jewish state as ‘a portion of a rampart of Europe against Asia, an outpost of civilization as opposed to barbarism.’ Ben-Gurion described Zionism as a ‘bulwark against assimilation and communism.’

No-one should be deceived by Netanyahu’s lies about Israel having to act to protect its own security. There is a past history of Israeli leaders wishing to invade and change the political geography of their neighbours. Their only concern was how to do so without seeming to be obvious aggressors.

Livia Rokach first published in 1980 a book ‘Israel’s Sacred Terrorism’ based on the Diaries of Moshe Sharrett, the only ‘dove’ to become Prime Minister of Israel. At this time, of all times, they are worth revisiting.

On February 25, 1954, Syrian troops stationed in Aleppo revolted against Adib Shishakly's regime. Sharrett wrote

After lunch Lavon [then Defence Minister] took me aside and started trying to persuade me: This is the right moment to act this is the time to move forward and occupy the Syrian border positions beyond the Demilitarized Zone. Syria is disintegrating. A State with whom we signed an armistice agreement exists no more. Its government is about to fall and there is no other power in view. Moreover, Iraq has practically moved into Syria. This is an historical opportunity, we shouldn't miss it.

I was reluctant to approve such a blitz-plan and saw ourselves on the verge of an abyss of disastrous adventure. I asked if he suggests to act immediately and I was shocked when I realized that he does. I said that if indeed Iraq will move into Syria with its army it will be a revolutionary turn which will ... justify far reaching conclusions, but for the time being this is only a danger, not a fact. It is not even clear if Shishakly will fall: he may survive. We ought to wait before making any decision. He repeated that time was precious and we must act so as not to miss an opportunity which otherwise might be lost forever. Again I answered that under the circumstances right now I cannot approve any such action. Finally I said that next Saturday we would be meeting with Ben Gurion ... and we could consult him then on the matter. I saw that he was extremely displeased by the delay. However, he had no choice but to agree. (25 February 1954, 374)

The next day the Shishakly regime actually fell. The following day, February 27, Sharett was present at a meeting where Lavon and Dayan reported to Ben Gurion that what happened in Syria was - "a typical Iraqi action." The two proposed again that the Israeli army be put on the march. Ben Gurion, "electrified," agreed. Sharett reiterated his opposition, pointing to the certainty of a Security Council condemnation, the possibility of the use against Israel of the Tripartite Declaration of 1950, hence the probability of a "shameful failure" The three objected that "our entrance [into Syria] is justified in view of the situation in Syria. This is an act of defense of our border area." Sharett closed the discussion by insisting on the need for further discussion in the cabinet meeting, scheduled for the next morning:

Lavon's face wore a depressed expression. He understood this to be the end of the matter. (27 February 1954, 377)

On Sunday, February 28, the press reported that no Iraqi troops had entered Syria. The situation in Damascus was under the complete control of President Hashem Al Atassi. The cabinet approved Sharett's position and rejected Lavon's vehement appeal not to miss a historical opportunity. Lavon said "The U.S. is about to betray us and ally itself with the Arab world." We should "demonstrate our strength and indicate to the U.S. that our life depends on this so that they will not dare do anything against us." The premier's victory, however, was to be short-lived.

Until that time the Syrian-Israeli border presented no particular problems to the Israelis. When tensions developed, it was almost invariably due to Israeli provocations, such as the irrigation work on lands belonging to Arab farmers, which was condemned by the UN; or the use of military patrol boats against Syrian fishermen fishing in the Lake of Tiberias. No Syrian regime could afford to refrain from offering some minimum protection to its border citizens against Israeli attacks or the taking away of their livelihoods, but neither did the rulers of Damascus feel stable enough to wish to be dragged into a major conflict with their southern neighbor. Clashes were therefore minor, and essentially seasonal. No security arguments could be credibly invoked to justify an expansionist program, or any other aggression against Syria.

On December 12, 1954, however, a Syrian civilian plane was hijacked by Israeli war planes shortly after its takeoff, and forced to land at Lydda airport. Passengers and crew were detained and interrogated for two days, until stormy international protests

It must be clear to you that we had no justification whatsoever to seize the plane, and that once forced down we should have immediately released it and not held the passengers under interrogation for 48 hours. I have no reason to doubt the truth of the factual affirmation of the U.S. State Department that our action was without precedent in the history of international practice. ..... What shocks and worries me is the narrow-mindedness and the shortsightedness of our military leaders. They seem to presume that the State of Israel may or even must-behave in the realm of international relations according to the laws of the jungle. (22 December 1954, 607)

In the 1950s Israel didn’t posses the military power it does today nor did the United States give it carte blanche to do what it wanted. At that time the Arab regimes were fearful of Israel and inclined to put pressure on Britain and the United States to keep it in check. Today that is not the case but what this shows is that from its very beginnings Israeli leaders have been looking to expand their territory and interfere in the governance of their neighbours. It’s not accidental that Israel is the only state in the world not to define its borders.

THROWBACK: Ex-Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for the Middle East Dana Stroul gloats that the US 'owns' the most hydrocarbon & grain-rich one-third of Syria🇸🇾 and that the US will use it as leverage to pursue regime change

The architect of Syria’s tragedy is the USA pic.twitter.com/wjdqWQXkPB

— Afshin Rattansi (@afshinrattansi) December 2, 2024

What happens in Syria today is no business of Israel. If Jihadists have come to power in Syria it is in no small measure thanks to the support they have received from the United States and Israel.

No one should defend the crimes of Bashar Assad against his own people. When they rose up against him in 2011 he mowed down thousands without a thought. His prisons have indeed been grim torture chambers operating entirely outside the law. But the West’s mock shock horror about this is the ultimate in hypocrisy.

Maher Arar

In September 2002, as he was on his way home to Canada, Maher Arar was sent by the US officials to be detained and interrogated under torture in Syria under a program known as “extraordinary rendition.” The horrifying account of what happened to him is documented by the Centre for Constitutional Rights.

Syria is on the way to becoming another failed state along the lines of Libya and Iraq. Turkish-backed rebels have launched an offensive against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Front on the northern border. The US has carried out dozens of airstrikes against ISIS.

Israel is destroying Syrian air bases, military and defense systems, intelligene, military & government structures.

Basically they're demilitarizing Syria. https://t.co/inj2U1yVJ1 pic.twitter.com/ysIn6VI20Z

— MenchOsint (@MenchOsint) December 8, 2024

Israel has launched massive bombing raids on Damascus and other areas without any justification at all other than its long proclaimed ‘right to self defence’. Of course Starmer and Lammy have gone along with anything that Israel deems necessary. That is how these ‘Labour’ supporters of imperialism behave.

We remain committed to bringing leading AQS figures in HTS to justice. #Syria pic.twitter.com/R8evqffWum

— U.S. Embassy Syria (@USEmbassySyria) May 15, 2017

 

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham [HTS] was formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian branch of Al Qaeda. It is led by Muhammad al-Julani who in the early 2000s joined Al Qaida in Iraq, which morphed into ISIS. In 2011 he was sent into Syria to set up a branch of ISIS, which was named the al-Nusra Front only to break away from them.

HTS is on Britain’s list of proscribed terrorist organisations but the British and US governments have made it plain that as long as they don’t oppose western interests then the label ‘terrorist’ can be removed. In the meantime the press and BBC are falling over themselves to praise their ‘moderation’ despite their still being proscribed!

The British Police have not though arrested any editors of these papers still less the BBC. It is only Palestinian and Kurdish supporters of the PKK who are accused of terrorism if they dare say anything about proscribed Palestinian and Kurdish groups.

In March it was reported that protests erupted in some 20 locations in the Idlib enclave against HTS’s dictatorial rule. They may profess their horror at Assad’s appalling human rights record but their own history suggests that they will not be that different.

Protesters chant slogans against HTS leader Abu Muhammad al-Julani, demanding the release of prisoners held by the extremist group and an end to its security grip on the enclave.

the US government-funded media network said.

Another uprising broke out in May against Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s “increasingly dictatorial” rule, including allegedly torturing prisoners to death.

It is clear that the deposing of Assad, coupled with the weakening of Hezbollah, which was forced to accept a humiliating ‘ceasefire’ and the loss of Syrian territory that acted as a conduit for Iranian weaponry, is a defeat for both Iran, Hezbollah and the Palestinians.

The Axis of Resistance, which was always a cover for the interests of the Iranian regime, is no more. The Iranian regime itself is now directly in the cross-hairs of the Israel regime and its US/British sponsors.

The last time al-Qaeda and other Jihadi groups were present in the south of Syria, Israel established warm relations with them, treating their fighters in a specially constructed field hospital and even arming them. It also provided them with weapons.

Netanyahu has signaled the revival of that policy. He said that Israel would pursue “the same approach we maintained when we set up a field hospital here that treated thousands of Syrians injured during the civil war. Hundreds of Syrian children were born here in Israel.”

Terrorist activists from Idlib to Kan News: "We have a problem with Iran and the Syrian regime. We were very happy when you attacked Hezbollah, and we are happy that you won. We love Israel and thank you" pic.twitter.com/HnTNYOqMaj

— Huma Zehra (@HumaZhr) December 3, 2024

What are the lessons that we have to draw? The first is that it is an illusion to believe that the Palestinians can rely on the support of regimes which are fundamentally undemocratic such as Assad or Khameini’s Iran. The problem in the Arab East is precisely the fact that the wealth of the region is commandeered by repressive and corrupt regimes that fear their own people and enter into alliances with both the United States and Israel.

Assad’s Syria would have been happy to reach a deal with the United States and Israel. The fact is that Israel preferred to keep the Golan Heights than make a deal.

Zionism will not disappear until the Arab masses take matters into their own hands. Above all that means both a social and national revolution in the Arab states if imperialism is to be defeated. The Iranian regime is both corrupt and repressive as well as being unpopular with its own people.

It is doubtful that Iran is capable of withstanding an attack from the United States and Israel, not least given the cowardice and complicity of surrounding regimes. The Iranian regime has, for years, tried to reach a deal with the US only to be spurned. Obama’s deal on its nuclear programme was torn up by Trump. It is unlikely to be revivted.

Iranian attempts to become a regional hegemon, which was Israel’s real objection to it, today lie in ruins. Israel has asserted its power with the full backing of Western imperialism.

However as Israel extends its forces and seeks to grab a portion of Southern Syria, which has always been a long-term goal, it will find new enemies on its borders and we can hope to see a new Hezbollah arise in Syria if Israel doesn’t withdraw. That is why in the long-term Zionism is doomed. Its attempts to recreate the biblical land of Israel [Eretz Yisrael] are a pipedream but no less real for that.

Tony Greenstein

Further Reading

Why Israel thinks it won in Syria  EI

Israel occupies new Syrian territory following Assad’s collapse

How Different is the Fourth Israeli Invasion of Lebanon?

The Fall of Assad & What it Means for The Mid East (w/ Alastair Crooke) | The Chris Hedges Report

Understanding the rebellion in Syria - An interview with Joseph Daher

Destroying Syrian Airbase