"Russia said Tuesday that its scientific analysis of a suspected chemical weapons attack in Syria on March 19 showed it probably had been carried out by insurgents using sarin nerve gas of “cottage industry” quality delivered by a crudely made missile. The finding contradicted conclusions presented by Western nations, including the United States, that the Syrian government had been responsible.
The Russian analysis, announced at a United Nations news conference by its ambassador, Vitaly I. Churkin, was based on what he said was evidence collected directly by Russian forensics specialists who had been permitted by the Syrian government to visit the site, Khan al-Assal in northern Syria. Mr. Churkin said he had informed Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations secretary general, who has been unsuccessfully pressing the Syrian authorities to permit his own team of chemical weapons experts to visit the country." NY Times
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"Though the Obama administration has authorized military aid to the rebel opposition currently engaged in a civil war with the government of Bashar Assad, it now appears that the US Congress has essentially blocked that move over terrorism fears.
Members of both the House and Senate intelligence committees have moved to enact stringent restrictions on funding the Syrian rebels, a move sufficient to prevent the White House from delivering on arms shipments according to sources who spoke with The Hill.
In mid-June, following allegations from the White House that the Assad government had used chemical weapons against opposition forces moving to depose him, the Obama administration authorized arms shipments in a marked escalation of US involvement in the region." RT.com
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Well, well, well. The Russians sent people to Syria to gather their own samples and their conclusion is that the Sarin was home made by the rebels. The Congress of the US seem to think that is a "red line," and has moved to block fundng for giving weapons to the Syrian rebels on the basis that future movement of such weapons to the jihadis among the rebels could not be prevented. Having participated in such "drills" in the past, I would agree that once you give people guns you loose control of the guns forever.
The sad thing about the Sarin gas debacle is that the BHO Administration clearly tried to manipulate the American people, media and Congress by exagerating and lying. US IO against American citizens? Someone should pay for this. pl
http://rt.com/usa/congress-derails-arming-syrian-rebels-865/
No offence meant but the news photo captioned shows Assad’s face, not any of the FSA rebels. Just who is the face of the FSA?
Joe
Listen Joe, there is a concept in literature called “irony.” Look it up. Stupidity is not welcome here. pl
“the House and Senate intelligence committees have moved to enact stringent restrictions on funding the Syrian rebels, a move sufficient to prevent the White House from delivering on arms shipments”
The Reagan House also had rules and restrictions! That did not stop it from funding the contra mercenaries! Besides, this House can always count on its other house, the house of saud. At least on the surface, it sounds good for now. Lets wait when we hear the SF have come home from jordan and turkey.
If the Russian’s analysis is correct, I wonder what John McCain would say!!
From the administration that brought you “Fast and Furious” comes “Fast and Furious 2: Syrian Boogaloo”.
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
Yes, someone should pay. But that someone will not be BHO, who, like his predecessor, has lied about practically everything.
So there needs to be a manhunt established for those responsible for selling the recipe, which has probably been resold to unsavory folks around the globe by now.
Any guesses as to the culprits?
The Russians are really laying down their marker on this one. For every false US/UK claim they will counter with either the truth or their own falsehood just to shut us up. This is their back yard and its none of our damn business.
What do we have to gain from this whole debacle? Less than was offered in Iraq because they have little oil. And only the empowerment of our enemies in Political Islam.
When Obama failes to create the atmosphere to make the Bush-Cheney-Perle regime pay for their lies, (which the antiwar left was assuming was a given) you could place a bet he was planning on some lyin’ too.
Tony,
I’ll bet you won’t be wondering long, he’ll be on the talk-show circuit soon enough.
I wonder if BHO ever had his heart in this, I’m suspecting he had hoped to delegate foreign policy to the crew of ex-Clintonites he assembled, or perhaps was assembled for him.
Increasing circumstantial evidence that WH expects Senate to turn Republican in 2015 and will need to show BHO policy derived from a Republican continuum extending back to George W. Bush administration. Who would have thought it?
US IO against American citizens continues unabated. To add to the blanket surveillance of all communications of citizens. And the uneven application of the law – one law for ordinary citizens and another to the power brokers. All to what end?
For more mutual back-slapping in the DC cocktail circuit. For more gravy from the ever growing government spend. For even more power for those that know to play that game.
Again, to what end? And where are the citizens in all this?
Col. Lang-
Domestic information operations? Sir, it wouldn’t be the first time that question’s come up. I recall what Sam Gardiner was writing about post 2003 regarding Iraq.
Name of new Israeli Ambassador to USA released. Note again that unlike most of Israel many of these ‘diplos” are USA born.
WHY?
The avalanche has already started. It is too late for the pebbles to vote.
Yeah, it couldn’t be BHO’s fault. He is the eternal victim, isn’t he? ‘the Devil made me do it!’
Yes Tyler , lather, rinse repeat …
Lord Curzon,
Too cryptic for me. What is the avalanche, and who are the pebbles?
“If Syrian rebels gain access to the vast stockpile of chemical weapons, it would have ‘catastrophic consequences,’ MI6 has warned. There are concerns a regime fall may trigger the proliferation of ‘the deadliest nerve agent ever created…’
The report classified extremist elements in Syria as “the most worrying emerging terrorist threat” to the UK and its allies.”
It noted the movement of “radicalized individuals” from the UK and other countries in the EU towards the conflict zone.
“They are likely to acquire expertise and experience which could significantly increase the threat posed when they return home.”
http://rt.com/news/syria-chemical-catastrophic-uk-932/
Of course, MI6 does not acknowledge that British and American intelligence have played footsie with many of these folks for years, as documented by Mark Curtis in his book, “Secret Affairs – Britain’s Collusion with Radical Islam.”
Interesting, isn’t it, that there seems to be no effort to apprehend those who sold the rebels the recipe for sarin?
What, what – domestic information operations? Is that not highly illegal?
Oh wait … when the president can wage war without having to bother getting congresses approval, can kill US citizens, domestically or abroad, without trial by dronestrike can indefinitely detain anybody without trial, capture and store everybody’s metadata … if all that goes, then domestic information operations go also, they pale in comparison after all.
Witness the inherent logic of the imperial presidency (or unitary executive branch, or however else one wants to call it).
America is exceptional – they won the Cold War, vindicationg America on everything! And America#s leaders are equally exceptional – endowed with great virtue, so they can safely be entrusted such sweepoing powers – so what is there to correct? And everyone lived happily everafter …
Looking at Senate and Congress, I see little inclination to change anything – the abovementioned points are all subject of bipartisan policy consensus.
Probably, they are supposed to better know how to play the US audience, and make for telegenic tv appearances without that nasty Middle Easterner accent.
Derner is a Netanyahoo trustee, and they guy who talked Bibi into backing Romney. He can thus be trusted to not meddle in US domestic policy – NOT.
According to Beinhart, Derner father said about his son: “He supports the sorts of conditions that they [the Palestinians] will never accept”
Sarin is not that high tech. It is nasty stuff, but it can probably be produced in lab quantity by able chemists, actually has been: Nobody needed to sell them anything. Nobody sold Aum Shinrikyo the recipe for Sarin either.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarin_gas_attack_on_the_Tokyo_subway
Sarin formulation may not be high tech, but Saddam, who had a nuke program for a while, apparently bought his chemical weapons from the US with Rumsfeld’s help.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-153210/Rumsfeld-helped-Iraq-chemical-weapons.html
If Saddam didn’t make his own chemical weapons, I doubt that the Syrian rebels, who have other serious priorities, would do the research needed.
The point is that NATO and GCC are outraged, just outraged, that Assad might have used sarin. But if sarin is as much of a threat as MI6 claims, why doesn’t anyone seem to care about where it really came from?
To me, this is highly suspicious behavior, implying that those who could care less about its deployment may have had something to do with it.
JohnH
Iraq bought some very basic chemical industry technologies form the US. This was cleared for export by the Department of Agriculture because it had to do with the production of insecticide, a necessary precursor technology for nerve gas. The US IC had very clear evidence in depth that Iraq produced its own war gases. pl
Aum Shinrikyo did this without US help, and it stands to reason that when they didn’t need US or anybody’s help, much less so did Saddam. The Japanese cult drew their knowledge from open sources.
http://www.cnas.org/files/documents/publications/CNAS_AumShinrikyo_Danzig_1.pdf
The Iraqis did have a Chemical Weapons program, that the West supplied with precursors – but building the fiendish stuff the Iraqis did himself.
The precursors aren’t that sophisticated chemicals. What about Isopropanol? I myself bought that in a pharmacy as an antiseptic.
Related chemicals have legitimate uses, for instance for the production of insecticides, in fact it is quite similar to Parathion (E605) and Malathion.
Iirc the opposition to Assad conquered at least one chemical factory in Syria, giving them access to chemicals and probably laboratories also.
I thought I slammed him pretty well, actually. However, I deem incompetence to be fault.
I sent this on 15 June.
Dear President Obama, I’m sorry to have to write this letter, but I find it necessary in the face of the mindless direction we appear to be heading based on half-baked information. The bit about Sarin gas is extremely suspicious. If it was really used at all it would likely have had considerably greater impact. What I see is a propaganda campaign by the anti-Asad mixed terrorist organizations to cause America to do exactly what appears to be happening. This is not to say Asad is really any better than his opponents, but it is to say that we Americans need to stay out of this ridiculous fray and quit wasting our precious resources on worthless fools of either side. If we do not wake up to the realities facing us than I for one will drop my support for President Obama, not because I dislike him but because I can see him falling into a trap similar to the younger Bush nonsense in falling into the Iraq abyss. Wake up America!