Born In Damas

2008-11-07T13:58:00.002+02:00

The US and Syria: Belligerence and National Security

Amidst the celebration of Obama's election as President of the United States the world seems to have forgotten the recent helicopter incursion by US forces into Syria to allegedly terminate some individual that apparently constituted a danger to US national security.

Last month a raid was carried out a few kilometres inside the Syrian border with Iraq.

I have not seen much reaction in the US media about it nor much outcry in international places maybe because the Americans are a bit embarrassed and do not know what to think about this 'incident' and maybe because the Europeans are totally flabbergasted as it does not fit in with the direction the current Syrian -EU-US relations was going into?

You can check what happened on you can read in these BBC articles. I also recommending reading Joshua Landis has compilation of reports and commentaries.

Additionally, Syrian blogger Ayman raises some disturbing questions , namely who was really the targeted "Jihadist smuggler" allegedlly living in Syria in that specific village?
He concludes " Badran Turki Hishan or Khalid Suleiman? Damascus, Zabadani, Boukamal or Mosul? Killed in 2005 or 2008 or still alive? I am not expecting the people who shamelessly lied about Iraqi WMDs to provide answers or evidence. I am hoping the media would bother to investigate the truth before simply labeling the men murdered in Boukamal as bodyguards of a mysterious terrorist.".

Very mysterious stuff indeed, we don't really know if this wanted guy was taken down but as usual with American firepower there is "collateral damage" of innocents including women and children.

Like Ayman I don't think the US government cares about anyone or anything. This behaviour has been clear throughout the decades- don't get me wrong, I am not talking here about the general American populace which in my opinion are quite naive and busy with other things. Coincidentally watching the movie "body of lies" that day and it struck me how everything is a lie in the politics and foreign policy of the United States.

The plot of the movie/book is nicely laid out here, but it basically centers on a "plan to lure a terrorist leader named Al-Saleem out of hiding by making it appear that a rival yet fake organization has become as scary, deadly and effectual as Al-Saleem's own group.".
To do this everything is allowed from framing an innocent Arab man to sacrificing a CIA operative or even allies of the US in Iraq and other countries once they are milked out of information or they become useless and ask for assylum to America when their life becomes in danger. This demonstrates the usual US stances that will "stop at nothing to protect the highest goal, national security".

I have nothing to say to that but it does to me put in context the recent raid in Syria. If the US deems there is danger it won't stop at anything including violations of international laws.

The US says it is waging 'war on terrorism' and that this is a just war. The US considers that 9/11, an embassy attack, a hostage situation, the taking down of a plane, the presence of an unauthorised military power in its country or an attack on its properties for example as declaration of war and worthy of a retaliatory attack.

Could not the recent border raid be considered as a belligerent attitude and a casus belli for Syria? is that not a declaration of war by the United States. Does it not demonstrate total disregard for borders and others besides its own navel?

I am wondering what would the US government have done if Syria (or Venezuela :P) had flown helicopters into the US to take out someone that Syrians or Venezuelans think is a threat to them. Or what if Syria carried out a similar act over the Israeli border?

I am confident that in both cases America would have carpet bombed Syria/Venezuela and stated loudly that the Syrian or Venezuelan action was a clear declaration of war even before starting to claim that international treaties and conventions and laws etc were violated. Israel would have also declared war on Syria and cried wolf at the UNSC.

Bloggers and pundits would be having a field day beating the drums of war against Syria or Venezuela if we take my example. But if America aggresses another country I think it is the rare American who would attempt to justify this taking it as granted that Americas action are always justified and beyond reproach.

Questions come to my mind about what was the Bush administration thinking last week when they authorised this incursion into the Syrian border and what evil lies behind it? Although Syria's retaliation would have been justified in the name of national interest and in self defense, I think that its coolness of head and taking the matter to the UN is better is wiser. Firstly because Syria does not have the military/economic power to fight the US Goliath and secondly because this frustrates whatever evil plans the US has to drag one more Arab country into its net of destruction.

There is always time to seek revenge.

The outstanding point now is to seek compensations for innocent victims of this raid along the same line as the Lockerbie and Berlin Disco cases.

2008-09-05T13:37:00.003+03:00

Ramadan and back to blogging

I feel like blogging again, but first Ramadan Kareem we in3ad 3alekum.

2006-04-24T13:05:00.000+03:00

Exit – Reentry visa for Iraqis in Syria

My sister has a problem , four times a year her husband hauls her and their children to Iraq. The trip to the Rabiaa border crossing ( different from the Tanef border ) is harrowing and expensive so why do they go through with it ?

Map courtesy of the Telegraph news.

Because after 3 months their visa expires and it is easier to go to the border get their passport stamped and re-enter Syria then apply for residence status if you do not have a job contract.

Syria has probably the best immigration laws for visitors so it is not mistreating the Iraqis – all Arabs enter without a visa in Syria,they only need to make their stay legal after 3 months.

Since the US invasion in 2003, Syria has absorbed hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees. Their presence has affected the Syrian economy in that real estate prices have risen extensively and this has negatively affected the buying capacity of the Syrian citizen, even though many industries have grown to cater to the large Iraqi community we have here.
Syrian hospitality is legendary and you would expect the Iraqi military ( or whatever you can call them now – no offense meant ) to be hepful to their own people at the border crossings by stamping routinely the passport of Iraqis . Nope it does not happen this way, the new recruits are mostly people who have not made enough money from kickbacks yet and they also have to follow the orders of the American military who are the real boss there on that border. According to the 'boss' the Iraqi has to stay 24hrs in Iraq before stamping his passport and letting him leave Iraq. The trip is so expensive and when you have a whole family with wife and kids where in no man’s land can you stay ? It’s even worse if your wife is Syrian because now apparently she needs a visa to enter Iraq ( was not needed before ), while the Iraqis still do not need a visa. So my sister stays on the Syrian border while her husband and children stand on the other side of the border with their dad waiting either for an Iraqi soldier to have the guts to make a decision in his own country and stand up to the occupation or for the occupation boss to feel sorry for the kids amassing and crying to around their dads and needing to be changed into clean diapers or fed or whatever. I’m telling this adds so much to the peaceful image. These people stay at the border because they cannot afford to travel to Baghdad which is about 5 hours more and very very dangerous . It is enough that they had to go trough the grueling journey of the Syrian desert where the bus does not do bathroom stops or any stops because of ‘highwaymen’. Another alternative to shorten the journey is to take a plane to Kamishli and then drive to Rabiaa border point from there.
Thank you America for making not only Iraqis’ lives harder but also Syrian wives lives. I appreciate that you are thinking of your own security and trying to prevent terrorists and wannabe jihadis but you should have done that 3 years ago not now when those people know how to dodge you.

Update : now I hear that all his family want to come to Syria because the security situation is simply unbearable in Iraq.

2006-04-21T03:12:00.000+03:00

The Cartoon Controversy

A lot of water has passed under the bridge following the tasteless stereotypical and shocking ‘Danish cartoons’ and the not less shockingly violent response in the Islamic world. I haven’t really broached this topic as I was waiting for things to cool down and also too much ink ( or for that matter megabytes) has already been devoted to it.

This is not an Islamic-Christian conflict because Christianity in the West is just as badly handled as Islam ( in terms of caricaturing etc…). Even in so called ‘democratic’ countries, freedom of expression is not absolute but is governed by laws. Claiming the right to publish Islamophobic caricatures in the name of democracy is the best and shortest way to discredit this very democracy in the eyes of millions of Muslims and to pit peoples against each other.
Neither society nor civilization can live without freedom but at the same time they cannot live without interdictions . Hence, the West is currently living in a crisis - a spiritual crisis; while the Muslim countries -characterized for years by failure and impotence would still be deserving of respect despite the reactions. Maybe we would like to make the West ponder about its own society?

However, does that mean that one of the two camps should concede, abandon freedom of expression or accept to be insulted in the wave of such a ‘freedom’? A freedom which if not properly guided can hide the greatest intolerance of all. We have to think deeply of the significance of this crisis. If the cartoons have hurt it is a demonstration of an ignorance of the multiple complex reality of the Middle East.
If the calls for censorship have shocked , they show ignorance of the history and values of the West.

So the clash is that of ignorance on both sides and NOT of civilizations. The solution is not in mutual renunciation of our identity, but lies in discovering each other in hearing each other in understanding what brings us together but also what distinguishes us from each other. Knowing each other is UNDERSTANDING, understanding means ACCEPTING each other.

2006-03-16T19:43:00.000+02:00

Aleppo , the centre of Islamic culture

"Aleppo has been chosen as the capital of Islamic culture considering its status as a bridge between the western and eastern cultures".

click to read more.

2006-03-16T18:54:00.000+02:00

Syrian chemist discovers Pharaoh's secret

According to alarabonline , a Syrian chemist succeeds in decoding the composition of the mummifying techniques used by the Pharaohs. I can't find a link in English yet on Azam Zahrawi's discovery even though it seems to have been quoted originally by Reuters.
Maybe this guy is simply of Syrian origin?I'll update if I find more.
Well many people have searched for the elixir of eternity

If you want to read all about mummies check this cool website: Mummy tomb.

2006-02-25T02:08:00.000+02:00

The Islamists in Syria

Well thanks to the changed balance in the ME, we have now increased prospective terrorists and terror. Yes Islamism is on the rise in Syria.

2005-12-29T17:36:00.000+02:00

Dear All,

I have been busy helping my sister who has recently returned from Iraq. It was hectic trying to settle her and the kids again after she and her Iraqi husband H left everything behind them in Baghdad. Now they need to start a fresh life. Her husband who survived the Iran-Iraq war ran away during the invasion of Kuwait in 1991. Following years of hardship in foreign lands he decided about 10 years later to take his chance and return voluntarily home because he was fed up of being constantly on the run. H was hoping for a presidential pardon but instead he was court marshaled as a deserter and sentenced to seven years of prison by Saddam’s men . Once in prison, a similarity in names between a wanted political dissident served to send him -a soft spoken professor of music- to the torture chamber and places which make Abu Ghraib seem benign in comparison

My sister spent a harrowing time trying to find him and prove to the authorities that he was only an army deserter not a political dissident plotting Saddam’s downfall. Her tales of journeying from one government official to another and from building to another and from one known prison to another would break your heart. She did not disappear simply because she was not Iraqi and had made her presence known at the Syrian embassy in Baghdad. My sister tasted hunger, fear and humiliation. She felt the bitter cold and the searing heat, She gave birth in unhygienic circumstances and her baby boy is a living testament to God’s will. When she recounted those episodes to me, I felt like I had stepped into a movie scene or a novel. Those things could not happen in this day and age. Or could they ?

She has aged beyond her years and her one time red hair is now mostly grey. Her sparkling eyes seem whitewashed to me from crying and I am left wondering how long she would need to recover. I will not recount how she got her husband out of that tight spot because that would jeopardize many people’s lives and anonymity especially with occupied Iraq and despite Saddam no longer being boss. But I will say one thing that she managed to clear his name and he was brought to prison where he could be visited at least, and serve his desertion sentence. In October 2002 , he was set free along with about 10 000 others through a Presidential amnesty.

By then it was the countdown to the invasion of Iraq, the tales of the UN inspectors and the famous WMD ( which incidentally have not materialized).

Still the family struggled to make a life in these circumstances, what can a music composer, or teacher do ? He took to singing at weddings. Better than starve right ? It was kind of ok. But this respite was short lived the day a US bomb was dropped on their home and the roof collapsed missing the baby’s crib by a fraction. There was no home left, no belonging and no weddings to sing at , who wanted to hire a band under the B52 sorties ?

Under those circumstances my sister could not stand the constant nerve wracking especially after the fall of Baghdad and she asked him to return to Syria . Their journey to Damascus is an epic. Suffice it to say that leaving Iraq has left them penniless, and with an elder son who walks on crutches, while the youngest son thinks that tea is milk. I felt that blogging throughout the past six months was silly and petty compared to what they have been through. However, I owed an apology to whoever is still reading this blog and hence the explanation.

On another note, the current situation with the fingers increasingly being pointed at Syria leaves me in an unenviable space. Both Lebanon and Syria are mine and I can’t think of one without the other. I will attempt to be balanced and fair but I’m not sure Lebanon remembers all those Syrian young men who died to let it keep its democracy.

2005-07-20T16:58:00.000+03:00

Syrian-Lebanese border woes

Mr. Abdul Rahman al-Rashed of Ashaq-al -Awsat newspaper and also General Manager of Al-Arabiya TV , has spearheaded some 'anti-Syria' rhetoric. So when Syria - which has left Lebanon after popular demonstration in Beirut and International pressure ( and rightly so anyway as I said in an earlier post it is about bloody time they did) - has started to implement tougher stances on its borders and sovereign waters, since Lebanon is a 'liberated' country now, Al-Rashed has suddenly changed his tune, and states 'Syrian behaviour is appropriate' .

In this article full of hardly hidden venom, he can only agree that Syria has the right to regulate its borders and to request from Lebanese fishermen not to fish without permission from its waters. Well why not would I ask ? The special relationship is over, let Lebanon solve its own problems especially that now it is within the range of interest of US, Israel and the West again. I expect they will give it more loans to do something about that huge deficit run by none-other than dear 'martyr' Hariri. As much as I deplore this guy's death we Lebanese know who and what he was exactly. Being half Lebanese myself gives me full right to criticize both my countries . Message to my Lebanese brothers , sovereignty runs on both sides !

Al-Rashed in his own words says :
"It may even benefit both parties to go through a period of a freeze in relations so the governments in Beirut and Damascus can analyze the leverage they possess and understand the importance of their neighbor. Bad neighborly relations can therefore be helpful in the sense that each party could reform itself without pressure from the other. The question remains as to who will pay the price in the upcoming weeks and months?
The Lebanese will need to swallow their pride and their fruits whilst patiently awaiting a resolution to the current crisis. Until relations are normalized, I advise Arab tourist and Lebanese visitors to avoid traveling to Lebanon by car, given that Damascus might shut its borders on their way back and they might have to sell the car for scrap by the end of the summer. "

Al-Rashed 's tone both in the Arabic version here and the badly edited/translated English version ( note to Asharq -al Awsat please do something about bad English as foreigners do read our media) above mentioned seems to suggest though that he is coming to this conclusion reluctantly.

2005-06-04T01:18:00.000+03:00

Missiles

That is not the most brilliant idea, but somehow I wish it landed somewhere else....

2005-05-24T17:56:00.000+03:00

Syria severs military cooperation with U.S. ( courtesy of Yahoo news)

Could not resist posting this article (not just the link ):

[Syria has severed military and intelligence cooperation with the United States, its ambassador to Washington told The New York Times in an interview published on its Web site on Monday.
The ambassador, Imad Moustapha, told the newspaper in an interview given last Friday at the Syrian Embassy in Washington, that his country had, in the last 10 days, "severed all links" with the U.S. military and Central Intelligence Agency because of what he called unjust American allegations.
Moustapha said he believed the Bush administration had decided "to escalate the situation with Syria" despite steps the Syrians have taken against insurgents in Iraq, and despite the recent withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon, in response to international demands.
"We thought, why should we continue to cooperate?" he said.
The comments were in response to Bush administration complaints that Syria was not doing enough to halt the flow of men and money to the insurgency in Iraq.]

What do you mean not doing enough habibi ? has the US been able to do enough to stop drug smuggling on it own borders with Mexico ? and what are the US servicemen doing on the Iraq-Syria border? come on you occupy a country so please protect its borders man! I'm sure there is a complicity here or they are turning a blind eye ..can't be all the fault of Syria.

[Moustapha said his government had done all it could to respond to American complaints, including taking steps to build barriers and add to border patrols.
Relations between Syria and the United States have been strained for months, and some Bush administration officials said Syria's level of cooperation had been dwindling even before the latest move to halt cooperation.
Bush administration officials said Syria's stance has prompted intense debate at high levels in the administration about new steps that might be taken against the Syrian government, The Times reported.]

Of course they won't get their tips on 'alleged ' terrorists anymore.

[The officials said options included possible military, diplomatic or economic action. But senior Pentagon and military officials cautioned Monday that if any military action was ordered, it was likely to be limited, the report said.]

What else is new ? you keep proving that all you want is to kill Arabs

["There's a lot of discussion about what to do about Syria and what a problem it is," the administration official, who works for an agency involved in the debate, told The Times. ]

Looking for an excuse to invade I guess? they could not get at Iran and North Korea because both have some kind of nuclear deterrent at least !

Did not think they would stoop so low , but that's politics I guess. Regardless of how the Syrian regime is treating its people, no one wishes to be 'punished' by America.

2005-05-11T04:12:00.000+03:00

The power of news titles

Don't know how these journalists come up with such powerful titles evoking all this imagery
for example just read this : Marines Push Toward Iraq's Syrian Border

very interesting read the whole article , I found this sentence particularly telling

"Gunmen kidnapped Anbar's governor Tuesday morning and told his family he would be released only when U.S. forces withdrew from Qaim [...] Lt. Col. Steven Boylan, a spokesman for U.S. forces in Iraq, said: "We don't respond to insurgent or terrorist demands"

My comment : of course they don't ( stupid) the hostage is not American his life does not count ..collateral damage .

2005-05-08T02:51:00.000+03:00

Syria is a threat to the US says Bush

'Bush extended a ban on Thursday on certain U.S. imports to Syria and other sanctions imposed last May. He said the Arab country was a threat to the United States.' I still can't figure how what kind of threat we are to the US. I thought North Korea was more of threat ..Well we don't have the economy, the arms or the power to be a threat ..come on Bush ...this is tooooooo much, You're giving people like me a superpower status all of a sudden !

The New World Order & The National Security Strategy marching on

2005-04-04T23:34:00.000+03:00

It looks like President Bush and the group holding the US reigns of power will be getting their wish of yet another card falling in the Middle East and yet another 'liberation' success story.

After the 'Purple Revolution' and the 'Cedar Revolution' , we will have the " Syrian Spring PART II" keep watching it promises to be interesting. Look at who has been enouraged to rear its head, none other that our dear Islamists . Whenever dear freedom- loving America meddles these people get in power or am making the wrong conclusions ?

I am going to copy paste a comment for Karfan & friend blog on his most recent post Myth no. 7. Sorry if I'm unwittingly breaking any copyright laws , but I thought this piece of writing was pure genius.

"The biggest danger in the world today is the unchecked power of the US. The extent of this danger will appear when the US economy will start lagging behind (and it will as all economies have ups & downs). President Bush has started an inevitable trend that will only get worse as long as the US power is unchallanged. So expect more redness of neck in the next few decades as America's self interest will show its ugly head.The second biggest danger to the world is the vulnarability of prosperous liberal democracies to terrorism. Bin Laden is again the begining of a trend that will be more sophisticated with time and will not be limited to Islamic radicals.What adds water to the mud is the merging of interest between the terrorists and the rednecks, both using each other as an excuse to escalate of conflict.So what does this have to with Syria? Well, we live a similar situation where the regime is too powerful to be challanged and the only contender being a radical muslim revolution. As the regime discovers that really can do what it wants it gets more and more corrupt. While at the same time it justifies its actions as a protector of society against the Islamic invasion. Radical muslims on the other hand use regime actions as their recruitement platform.In order to break this pattern we need to deal with these dangers as 2 enemies of freedom and democracy rather than deciding which side we lie on. We have to define a 3rd way. We dont want Coke, we dont want Pepsi, we want 7UP.Sounds like we are doomed :) "

I believe it echos what Big Pharaoh ( see post Bye America Hello Israel dated April 3rd &Muslim Brotherhood flexes muscles 27th March) in which he basically says that he doesn't want Mubarak removed because that will destabilise the country , Egyptiansandmonkey also thinks the same here. Also Liminal from Shlonkom Bakazay has blogged along the same idea more or less in his aptly named 'Enough of the Axis of Hypocrisy!'

So my question is why the White House is trying to prevent Arabs from keeping or getting rid of their presidents or whatever under such a time as is favourable? Is it because some 'leaders' are more stooges and puppets that others ? or is the puppeteer fed up with them and wants another more suitable puppet and to hell with the safety of our countries (viz. Iraq ). We demand to make our own choices !

A big welcome back to our troops

2005-03-18T06:59:00.000+02:00

Never followed up from the earlier post ..so you're thinking she's not serious ? No I've been pretty busy and life has been 'slightly' hectic in Syria lately. So much is happening too quickly. The most important is that finally our troops are returning from Lebanon. Most of us here are elated about this, because serving in Lebanon was like a punishment, our men could not get days off to go home and the circumstances were not that fantastic either...so really it was not cakewalk being there ( I should know I'm half Lebanese) .These last few days you cannot imagine the joy of Syrian families not having to worry about their 18 year kids anymore, many are celebrating. The military service here is compulsory so no getting away from it unless you are still studying or have some kind of illness or handicap.

Here are a couple of photos of our returning men, they've done a great job and thousands died for Lebanon. I'd like to propose a toast : here's to the hope that no more of our kids would get killed instead of Lebanese men. I hope that now Lebanon can take care of itself on its own!
.....:)) enjoy while I go and have sweets and great my dear cousin !

nice crowd

Roses for the heroes

Welcome back boys

yes we're home:)

First post

2005-03-11T18:44:00.000+02:00

Lurking for years on other blogs, becoming addicted, I've decided to have my own now. I would like to add my voice to the world. You want to hear about Syria? Well get the news from it's residents and not foreigners who have never set a foot here.
Enjoy your visit.