MORE THAN 80 KILLED BY SYRIAN UNIVERSITY BLAST
ALEPPO, Syria - More than 80 people have been killed by two blasts in the
northern Syrian city of Aleppo, activists and officials say.
The explosions reportedly struck an area between the University of Aleppo's
halls of residence and the architecture faculty on the first day of exams.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the death toll at 83, and
Aleppo's governor said 82 people had died.
State TV said "terrorists" had launched rockets at the campus, but
activists blamed missiles fired by warplanes.
In almost two years of fighting in Syria, Aleppo has been the scene of
intense conflict between government and opposition forces.
However, neither side has been able to force the other to retreat for good,
says the BBC's James Reynolds in neighbouring Turkey.
Source: BBC...More...
FRANCE TO FUND/ARM AL QAEDA IN SYRIA
PARIS, France - THE FRENCH government has ignored the will of voters who ousted warmonger Nicolas Sarkozy in recent elections, and is continuing its unpopular military adventurism abroad as well as its support for militant terrorism across the Arab World.France has announced that it will be funding and arming terrorists operating along Syria's boarders, offering them heavy weapons, just as they did in Libya last year.
In fact, the US-British and UN-listed terrorists assisted into power in Libya, are now leading death squads currently ravaging Syria - disingenuously portrayed as "indigenous" "freedom fighters" by the Western press.
The terror wave crossing Iraq is being carried out by fighters who are currently operating on both sides of the Syrian-Iraqi border, indicating that Iraq, as well as Syria and Iran are being targeted by US-Saudi-Israeli backed militants. The violence is connected, and part of a greater strategy to reorder the Middle East against Iran, and ultimately against Russia, China, and all other potential threats to Wall Street and London's global hegemony.
Meanwhile, in Iraq, violence tore across the nation as former-vice president Tariq al-Hashemi was sentenced to death for his role in using death squads against his political rivals. While the Western press attempts to frame the power struggle within Iraq as one of an isolated sectarian nature, in reality, al-Hashemi, who is being coddled by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey, represents extremist elements backed by Saudi Arabia, the United States, and Israel, while Iraq's current government is attempting to cultivate closer ties with Iran.
Source: AgencyIn fact, the US-British and UN-listed terrorists assisted into power in Libya, are now leading death squads currently ravaging Syria - disingenuously portrayed as "indigenous" "freedom fighters" by the Western press.
- "Reuters quoted a “diplomatic source” as saying France had started supporting parts of Syria that are apparently being controlled by the armed opposition. More alarmingly, the report pointed out that Paris was considering supplying heavy artillery to anti-government fighters — a move that would harden the possibility of a full-blown civil war in the country."
- International condemnation led by Russia, China, and Iran have pointed out that the so-called "armed opposition" constitutes sectarian extremists, many of which have direct ties to Al Qaeda, many of which are also not even Syrian, betraying the West's unraveling narrative. France's recent announcement is particularly unconscionable, considering that Syria's so-called "opposition" has recently announced their intentions to begin targeting civilian infrastructure, a blatant war crime.
- Evidence stretching back as far as 2007 has exposed a Western conspiracy, years in the making, intent on using sectarian extremists under the guise of "pro-democracy" "regime change' to violently overthrow the government of Syria and undermine Iran's influence throughout the Middle East.
The terror wave crossing Iraq is being carried out by fighters who are currently operating on both sides of the Syrian-Iraqi border, indicating that Iraq, as well as Syria and Iran are being targeted by US-Saudi-Israeli backed militants. The violence is connected, and part of a greater strategy to reorder the Middle East against Iran, and ultimately against Russia, China, and all other potential threats to Wall Street and London's global hegemony.- A report published in 2007 by the New Yorker titled "The Redirection" (full article here), cited US, Saudi, and Lebanese officials who admitted that military and financial aid was already flowing to militant groups affiliated with both Al Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood with the aim of destabilizing Syria and Iran.
- Former intelligence agents were also cited, warning that the plan, then being implemented under the Bush administration, would lead to a catastrophic sectarian bloodbath - the very sectarian bloodbath now unfolding in Syria today.
- France, along with the UK, US, the autocratic Saudi and Qatari regimes, as well as NATO (specifically Turkey) have meticulously planned and created the very violence they now seek to use as justification for further military intervention. In reality, they are employing the very terrorist forces against Syria they have used as an impetus to send their own soldiers to their needless deaths in both Iraq and Afghanistan for over a decade as part of the "War on Terror."
Meanwhile, in Iraq, violence tore across the nation as former-vice president Tariq al-Hashemi was sentenced to death for his role in using death squads against his political rivals. While the Western press attempts to frame the power struggle within Iraq as one of an isolated sectarian nature, in reality, al-Hashemi, who is being coddled by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey, represents extremist elements backed by Saudi Arabia, the United States, and Israel, while Iraq's current government is attempting to cultivate closer ties with Iran.MALAYSIA TO EVACUATE STUDENTS, CLOSE SYRIA EMBASSY?
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - The Government had decided to fly Malaysian students in Syria back home in view of the country's internal political crisis.Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman (right photo) had announced on Tuesday that the first chartered flight to carry the Malaysian evacuees would arrive at KL International Airport Tuesday while the second batch would arrive Wednesday.
Anifah said the Malaysian Embassy in Damascus was making all efforts to ensure the students were evacuated as quickly as possible.
He earlier announced that the Government would commence an evacuation exercise to bring Malaysians home immediately as a precautionary measure following the civil war in Syria.- The Government has also urged all Malaysians in Syria to leave the country immediately, while those planning to travel there were advised to postpone their plans.
- It said all 138 Malaysians, comprising 128 students and 10 expatriates registered with the embassy, were safe and accounted for.
- The Malaysian ambassador and four other embassy officials will also be temporarily withdrawn from Syria once the evacuation was completed.
- The first batch of students from Syria arrived at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 4:11pm Wednesday after the flight was delayed by an hour.
The seven students who arrived on the EK 346 Emirates flight were welcomed by Deputy Foreign Minister Richard Riot Jaem.The students were Abdul Halim Mohammad Ghazali, 21; Mohd Luqman Saidin, 23; Muhammad Afifuddin Md Tahir, 23; Muhammad Hasan Hilmi Hassan Shukri, 21; Muhammad Othman Zawawi, 23; Muhammad Rusydi Ilhami Ahmad Fahmi, 22; and Syed Abdul Rahman Syed Ramli, 24.
Source: Agency
IF ATTACKED SYRIA THREATENS TO HIT ISRAEL WITH CHEMICAL WEAPONS
DAMASCUS, Syria - Sources in Syria warned Thursday that it would launch chemical weapons at Israel should Jerusalem attempt to attack its non-conventional weapons depots, a Kuwaiti paper reported.According to the report in the Kuwait daily Al-Rai, Damascus would view any attack as a declaration of war and the regime would not hesitate to use chemical weapons on Israel.
- The sources told Al-Rai that an attack on its weapons depots would cause great pollution to the environment and kill anyone in the area, a scenario that would provoke an all-out conflict.
- Israel has said it would use force to prevent Syria’s chemical weapons from falling into terrorists’ hands as President Bashar Assad’s regime comes under increasing fire. On Tuesday, Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said Israel would consider any transfer of chemical weapons to Hezbollah in Lebanon as a cause for war.
- The unnamed sources in al-Rai report dismissed Israeli officials’ comments as “overblown and immature.” They added that Israel doesn’t understand the effect such a decision would have.
- In an interview earlier this week with Fox News, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel may have to act to keep Syrian chemical weapons out of the wrong hands.
Syria is thought to have one of the largest chemical weapons stockpiles in the world, with supplies of sarin and vx nerve agents, cyanide and mustard gas.The country has vowed to not use the weapons on its own people, but has said they would be used on invading foreigners. Damascus often describes opposition rebels waging a civil war for control of the country as foreign terrorists.
AT LEAST 55 KILLED IN SYRIA'S TWIN BLAST
DAMACUS, Syria - At least 55 people were killed and 170 were injured in two explosions that rocked a highway near the capital, Damascus on Thursday, Al Arabiya reported.According to the reports broadcast by the Syrian TV, the blasts, which were followed by a skirmish, went off near the highway, leading to the airport, reportedly targeting Syrian security services.
Most of the dead are believed to be civilians, with the explosion occurring during the morning rush hour.
Footage taken in the aftermath of the blast shows a burnt bus and dozens of wrecked cars, some with bodies still inside them.
OBAMA SEEKING TO BRING SYRIA UNDER US DOMAIN?
WASHINGTON, U.S.A. - President Barack Obama called directly Thursday for Syrian President Bashar Al Assad to resign, saying the brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters makes the heir to a long Middle East family dictatorship unfit to lead.
It was the administration's first explicit demand for Al Assad to step down and was accompanied by an executive order freezing all Syrian government assets in the US and targeting the country's lucrative energy sector.
- The move was coordinated with the United Nations and with US allies in Europe and the Middle East and followed an intense diplomatic campaign to increase pressure on Al Assad. The European Union issued an identical call shortly after Obama's statement, followed quickly by similar words from the leaders of France, Britain, Germany and Canada.
And just before Obama made his demand, UN rights investigators said Syria's crackdown "may amount to crimes against humanity" and should be referred to the International Criminal Court.- In a written statement released by the White House, Obama said Al Assad had failed to follow through on promises to reform and instead escalated a brutal crackdown on pro-reform activists that rights groups say has killed nearly 2,000 people since an uprising against his regime began five months ago.
However, in response to U.S. President Barack Obama's call for the ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, journalist and political commentator Hesham Tillawi says the U.S. seeks to bring Syria under its domain.
Yemen and Bahrain are different from Syria in that they are "under the United States' domain," Tillawi said in an interview with Press TV's U.S. Desk on Thursday.
"In Syria, US want the removal of Bashar al-Assad, so Syria can come under the United States and Western Zionist domain and that's exactly why they're asking for the removal of Bashar," he added.- President Obama, for the first time, called for the Syrian president to step down from power on Thursday as he announced a new executive order imposing harsher sanctions on the country.
AMNESTY SLAMS SYRIA 'SHOOT TO KIL' POLICY
Amnesty International has said the Syrian government should be put to trial over its alleged "shoot to kill policy" towards anti-government demonstrators.The human rights group has pointed to citizens' videos that apparently show security forces killing and beating civilians.
More than 1,000 civilians have been killed across Syria since protests first erupted in mid-March, according to numerous human rights groups
Syria has banned international journalists from the country, making it almost impossible to independently verify the veracity of the videos.
SYRIAN FORCES OPEN FIRE ON PROTESTERS, KILLING 20
DAMASCUS, Syria - Syrian security forces have opened fire on anti-government protesters in the city of Sanamin near Daraa, killing at least 20 people, according to one witness. Syrian forces apparently fired after protesters set fire to a statue of the late president, Hafez al-Assad. Reuters reported that heavy gunfire could be heard in the southern city of Daraa, the focal point for demonstrations against Bashar al-Assad's regime in recent days.
Three people were also reported killed in Mouadamieh district of Damascus after a crowd confronted a procession of cars driven by supporters of president Bashar al-Assad, residents said, according to Reuters.- But regime supporters also took to the streets in sizeable numbers on Friday, waving flags and images of al-Assad. A large crowd gathered in the evening outside Al Jazeera's bureau in Damascus, demanding to be shown on the network.
The latest clashes come after protesters demanding greater freedom called for a "day of dignity" on Friday following a week-long crackdown by pro-regime forces that has left dozens dead.- At least 200 people marched in the centre of Damascus after Friday prayers in support of the people of Daraa, scene of protests against Baath Party rule, Reuters reported.
- Protests spread across Syria, with rallies also held in the central city of Hama and in Tel, near Damascus. According to our correspondent, numbers at these rallies ranged from hundreds of people to thousands.
- Daraa, the main city of southern Syria, has become a flashpoint for protests. Officials have been on the defensive after protesters in the southern city were shot dead by police.
- The crackdown has already attracted the attention of the United Nations with human rights commissioner Navi Pillay calling for an investigation and an immediate halt to violence, a message echoed by Ban Ki-moon, the UN Secretary-General.
Human rights group Amnesty International said on Friday that at least 55 people had been killed since protests erupted. The US on Friday called on the Syrian government to end the use of violence against protesters and the arrests of human rights activists."We strongly condemn the Syrian government's attempts to repress and intimidate demonstrators," said White House spokesman Jay Carney.
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