Syrian troops and Kurdish tribesman are locked in fierce battle since the Syrian army blasted four northeastern Kurdish towns and neighborhoods at the end of June, debkafile's military and intelligence sources report. Hundreds of Kurds are reported dead.
The Syrian campaign is backed by Heron (Eitan) spy drones Israel sold Turkey, made accessible on the personal say-so of Prime Minister Tayyip Recep Erdogan. Turkey therefore becomes the first NATO member to make advanced Western military technology available for the use of a strong ally of radical Iran and an active sponsor of terrorists. Following intense exchanges between Jerusalem and Washington, the NATO command was urged to put Ankara on the carpet - with no response as yet.
The drones are being used to track Kurds in flight across Syria's borders, mainly into Lebanon, where Hizballah is helping Syria hunt the refugees down. The accessibility to Damascus of the unmanned aerial vehicles is in direct breach of the Israel-Turkish sales contracts which barred their use - and the use of other Israeli high-tech items sold to Turkey during years of close military collaboration - in the service of hostile states or entities.
Extending their sphere to Syrian and Lebanese skies gives the Syrian army and Hizballah (Iran's external arm) a unique opportunity to study the Heron (Eitan)'s sophisticated attributes in real combat conditions at close hand and adjust their own tactics accordingly to outwit them.
debkafile's intelligence sources have no doubt that Iranian intelligence officers stationed in Damascus and Beirut jumped at the opportunity to learn more about the Israeli wonder-drones.
Regarding the crackdown on the Kurds, our military sources report that three large-scale Syrian military operations against the Kurdish people are in progress under the guidance of Turkish generals based at Syrian staff headquarters in Damascus:
1. Syrian elite forces are battling suspected Kurdish members of the Turkish PKK in at least four northeastern Syrian towns near the Syrian-Turkish-Iraqi border triangle: the big Kurdish town of Qamishli, the mixed Kurdish-Assyrian town of Al Asakah and two others, Qaratshuk and Diwar. All four and their outlying villages are under massive Syrian army siege after complete residential blocks were blasted - acting as the trigger for the current fighting.
Not all the victims are PKK fighters by any means. Most were civilians. Turkish intelligence sources tried to justify the Syrian massacre and their government's complicity by claiming that 2,000 of the 6,000 PKK fighters conducting terrorist attacks in Turkey from North Iraqi havens are Syrian Kurds or providers of alternative bases for their Turkish comrades to strike Turkish military positions from a second direction.
While until Saturday, July 17, Damascus was tight-lipped about its grim campaign against its Kurdish community, Turkish military sources were more vocal. They placed the number of Kurdish dead in battle at 185 and another 400 taken captive, many of whom will be turned over to Ankara. Our sources estimate the number of dead as much higher - more than 300, with at least 1,000 injured.
2. Large Syrian contingents are sealing the Iraqi border against the flight of Syrian Kurds - but also to block the entry of PKK reinforcements for aiding their beleaguered brethren.
3. The Syrian-Lebanese frontier is similarly sealed to keep Kurdish fighters from fleeing the country. debkafile's military sources report that on this border, Syrian and Hizballah units are working together, with the latter forcibly blocking the roads to Lebanese cities.
Source - http://www.debka.com/article/8916/
Showing posts with label Massacre. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Massacre. Show all posts
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
Bluefin tuna loses out simply because scarce fish make a profit
Idiots. Morons. Blockheads. Numbskulls. Nothing quite captures the mind-withering stupidity of what has just happened in Doha. Swayed by Japan and a number of other countries, some of them doubtless bought off in traditional fashion, the members of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) have decided not to protect the Atlantic bluefin tuna.
Those who opposed suspending trade in the species argued that the temporary ban proposed by Monaco would devastate their fishing industries. There is some truth in this: for the years in which bluefin stocks would have been allowed to recover, the export ban would have put people out of work and reduced the output of their industry. But the absence of a ban ensures that, after one or two more seasons of fishing at current levels, all the jobs and the entire industry are finished forever, along with the magnificent species that supported them. The insistence that the fishing can continue without consequences betrays Olympic-class denial, a flat refusal to look reality in the face.
One of the commenters on a Guardian thread this week, who lives in Japan and uses the tag Kimpatsu, related his experiences of trying to discuss these issues.
"the Japanese policy towards both Bluefin tuna and whales has two engines of motivation. The first is the fact that the average Japanese is in denial about the imminent extinction of these creatures; the thought runs that as they have always eaten these animals (and many Japanese mistakenly think that the whale is a fish) since time immemorial, they will be able to continue doing so indefinitely into the future. When pressed on the subject of hunting to extinction, they grow aggressive. (I know from personal experience.) The second reason is the low-grade paranoia that informs all Japanese interaction with the outside world; the notion of Nihon tataki (Japan-bashing) is omnipresent. If you protest against whaling or tuna fishing, you're a cultural imperialist. If you point out that some Japanese are members of Greenpeace or oppose whaling (my GP is one), then "you don't understand Japanese mind so much". Remember: all your actions against whaling and overfishing are driven by a deep-seated, irrational hatred of Japan. Consequently, when you push, they push back."
I have no idea how representative this is, but the attitudes Kimpatsu describes were powerfully represented in The Cove, the film about the secret dolphin slaughter in Japan which won the 2010 Oscar for best documentary. The massacre it exposed is pointless, counter-productive and profoundly damaging to Japan's international image, but it was fiercely defended by what seemed to be the entire political establishment. Denial is evident everywhere on earth, but in the Japanese fishing and whaling industries it seems to have been raised to an art-form.
Source 1
Those who opposed suspending trade in the species argued that the temporary ban proposed by Monaco would devastate their fishing industries. There is some truth in this: for the years in which bluefin stocks would have been allowed to recover, the export ban would have put people out of work and reduced the output of their industry. But the absence of a ban ensures that, after one or two more seasons of fishing at current levels, all the jobs and the entire industry are finished forever, along with the magnificent species that supported them. The insistence that the fishing can continue without consequences betrays Olympic-class denial, a flat refusal to look reality in the face.
One of the commenters on a Guardian thread this week, who lives in Japan and uses the tag Kimpatsu, related his experiences of trying to discuss these issues.
"the Japanese policy towards both Bluefin tuna and whales has two engines of motivation. The first is the fact that the average Japanese is in denial about the imminent extinction of these creatures; the thought runs that as they have always eaten these animals (and many Japanese mistakenly think that the whale is a fish) since time immemorial, they will be able to continue doing so indefinitely into the future. When pressed on the subject of hunting to extinction, they grow aggressive. (I know from personal experience.) The second reason is the low-grade paranoia that informs all Japanese interaction with the outside world; the notion of Nihon tataki (Japan-bashing) is omnipresent. If you protest against whaling or tuna fishing, you're a cultural imperialist. If you point out that some Japanese are members of Greenpeace or oppose whaling (my GP is one), then "you don't understand Japanese mind so much". Remember: all your actions against whaling and overfishing are driven by a deep-seated, irrational hatred of Japan. Consequently, when you push, they push back."
I have no idea how representative this is, but the attitudes Kimpatsu describes were powerfully represented in The Cove, the film about the secret dolphin slaughter in Japan which won the 2010 Oscar for best documentary. The massacre it exposed is pointless, counter-productive and profoundly damaging to Japan's international image, but it was fiercely defended by what seemed to be the entire political establishment. Denial is evident everywhere on earth, but in the Japanese fishing and whaling industries it seems to have been raised to an art-form.
Source 1
Game Called Muslim Massacre
Computer games in which players aim to kill as many people as possible are, sadly, pretty common. But what sets "Muslim Massacre - the game of modern religious genocide" - apart from the others is that an American soldier sets out to "wipe out" the entire Muslim race. Worse still, the game is available free on the internet, with no restrictions to prevent children and the vulnerable from accessing it.
The world wide web is one area that the law still struggles to regulate.
Some may see the game as a parody of American foreign policy and point out that it is aimed at adults, rather than children. After all, the average US video game player is a 35-year-old man.
But the game reaches a new low in bad taste and contains a blatantly destructive message. The game's premise is that the US has declared war on Islam and invites players to take control of the American "hero" who will wipe out the Muslim race with "an arsenal of the world's most destructive weapons".
The "hero" uses machine guns and rocket launchers to kill as many Muslims as possible - ranging from terrorists and what appear to be civilians to Osama bin Laden, Muhammad and Allah.
The game's creator, a freelance programmer called Sigvatr, describes the game as "fun and funny" and says to his critics: "Don't whinge about how offensive and 'edgy' this is."
He says: "Ultimately it's just a game where you blow the gently caress (slang for a common swear word) out of Arabs…I don't even know how to interpret it myself anymore. The bottom line is that I enjoyed making it and it's fun to play."
Later he adds: "The Muslims represented in the game aren't meant to be based on actual Muslims.
"If I was to try and come up with a meaning for the game at this moment, it would probably be something along the lines of metaphorically destroying the stereotypical depiction of a Muslim."
That's not the way some Muslim groups see it. The Ramadhan Foundation says the game is "unacceptable, tasteless and deeply offensive".
http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/blog/2008/sep/11/technologygames
The Ramadhan responce
The Ramadhan Foundation expresses its deep condemnation and anger at the computer game released called Muslim massacre. This game is glorifying the killing of Muslims in the Middle East and we urge ISP providers to take action to remove this site from their services as it incites violence towards Muslims and is trying to justify the killing of innocent Muslims.
We have written to the British Government today to urge an inquiry into this game and take action to shut down the site; this is not satire but a deliberate attempt to demonise Muslims.
Mr. Mohammed Shafiq, Chief Executive of the Foundation comments:
“Encouraging children and young people in a game to kill Muslims is unacceptable, tasteless and deeply offensive.
'There is an increase in violence in this country and some of it comes from video games.
'When kids spend six hours a day on violent games they are more likely to go outside and commit violence.
'If it was the other way around, with a game featuring Muslims killing Israelis or Americans, there would be uproar and rightly so.
I would urge ISPs to take action against sites like this and there can be no justification for this sort of video game, I hope the person who made this game thinks again.
http://www.ramadhanfoundation.com/muslimmassacre.htm
The world wide web is one area that the law still struggles to regulate.
Some may see the game as a parody of American foreign policy and point out that it is aimed at adults, rather than children. After all, the average US video game player is a 35-year-old man.
But the game reaches a new low in bad taste and contains a blatantly destructive message. The game's premise is that the US has declared war on Islam and invites players to take control of the American "hero" who will wipe out the Muslim race with "an arsenal of the world's most destructive weapons".
The "hero" uses machine guns and rocket launchers to kill as many Muslims as possible - ranging from terrorists and what appear to be civilians to Osama bin Laden, Muhammad and Allah.
The game's creator, a freelance programmer called Sigvatr, describes the game as "fun and funny" and says to his critics: "Don't whinge about how offensive and 'edgy' this is."
He says: "Ultimately it's just a game where you blow the gently caress (slang for a common swear word) out of Arabs…I don't even know how to interpret it myself anymore. The bottom line is that I enjoyed making it and it's fun to play."
Later he adds: "The Muslims represented in the game aren't meant to be based on actual Muslims.
"If I was to try and come up with a meaning for the game at this moment, it would probably be something along the lines of metaphorically destroying the stereotypical depiction of a Muslim."
That's not the way some Muslim groups see it. The Ramadhan Foundation says the game is "unacceptable, tasteless and deeply offensive".
http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/blog/2008/sep/11/technologygames
The Ramadhan responce
The Ramadhan Foundation expresses its deep condemnation and anger at the computer game released called Muslim massacre. This game is glorifying the killing of Muslims in the Middle East and we urge ISP providers to take action to remove this site from their services as it incites violence towards Muslims and is trying to justify the killing of innocent Muslims.
We have written to the British Government today to urge an inquiry into this game and take action to shut down the site; this is not satire but a deliberate attempt to demonise Muslims.
Mr. Mohammed Shafiq, Chief Executive of the Foundation comments:
“Encouraging children and young people in a game to kill Muslims is unacceptable, tasteless and deeply offensive.
'There is an increase in violence in this country and some of it comes from video games.
'When kids spend six hours a day on violent games they are more likely to go outside and commit violence.
'If it was the other way around, with a game featuring Muslims killing Israelis or Americans, there would be uproar and rightly so.
I would urge ISPs to take action against sites like this and there can be no justification for this sort of video game, I hope the person who made this game thinks again.
http://www.ramadhanfoundation.com/muslimmassacre.htm
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