Posted on 07/05/2012 8:37:37 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
Syrian troops pushed into the rebel-held northern town of Khan Sheikhoun on Thursday, activists said, as President Bashar al-Assad said he would have been toppled like the shah of Iran if his people had not been behind him.
Activists said Syrian forces pursuing their latest offensive had killed at least 11 people as they entered Khan Sheikhoun in an armoured assault from the south at dawn after a fierce bombardment.
"They are burning houses and farms," local activist Abu al-Ghaith al-Khani said, adding that 80 percent of residents had fled.
Assad blamed the revolt on Islamist militants from hostile Arab countries and an alleged Western plot to break up Syria or plunge it into civil war.
"The big game targeting Syria is much bigger than we expected," he told Turkey's Cumhuriyet daily. "The fight against terrorism will continue decisively in the face of this.
He noted that Western backing and a strong army had not prevented Iran's shah being toppled in a revolution in 1979.
(Excerpt) Read more at swissinfo.ch ...
(Additional reporting by Khaled Yacoub Oweis in Antakya, Sylvia Westall in Baghdad, Daren Butler in Istanbul, Jonathon Burch in Ankara, Gleb Bryanski in Moscow, Arshad Mohammed in Washington, Stephen Brown in Berlin and Marwan Makdisi in Damascus; Writing by Alistair Lyon; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
A couple of thoughts.
Syria learned from Iran and from Egypt. Crush the opposition. Do NOT allow them to organize or demonstrate. Kill them quickly in order to stay in power.
To the obama administration - Israel is STILL the evil of the ME...
Ask Colonel Gaddafi how your approach works. The alternative is to build democratic institutions and transition away from authoritarian government, so that when the people eventually tire of your leadership (as they do with all leaders) they beat you in the ballot box, not with the butts of AK-74s.
Of course there are downsides and upsides. The downside is you may retire earlier than you would otherwise. The upside is that you’ll be able to enjoy your retirement.
Even if GOD moved the entire nation of Israel from the surface of the Earth to an island in the Pacific, the middle east would still be 'at war'. Over there, as here, the war is between the haves and the have nots.
>>>>>>Ask Colonel Gaddafi how your approach works. The alternative is to build democratic institutions and transition away from authoritarian government, so that when the people eventually tire of your leadership (as they do with all leaders) they beat you in the ballot box, not with the butts of AK-74s.>>>>>>>>
That is a neocon illusion which led to destabilizing the whole ME. Apart from Israel, only Iran and Pakistan has some functional democratic institutions and it doesn’t make these nations any reliable players. Liberty in ME considered as a freedom to kill infidel, to rape a child or rob someone. Dictators are there for a reason to keep these ants locked in a jar and force them play peace and love separating the most extreme haters from their testicles time to time.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.