Video: Muslims use Ben Gurion Airport synagogue as mosque, prayer shawls as prayer rugs
This disturbing video was shot in the Ben Gurion Airport synagogue, apparently on Sunday night or Monday morning. I first saw it on Facebook last night when the holiday ended.
Let's go to the videotape. More after the video.
To me, the question is why the airport synagogue was open at all on a day when it was clear that there were not going to be any Orthodox Jews passing through. Chabad is in charge of the synagogue, and someone ought to make sure that they see this video if they have not already.
According to the Facebook post, the Muslims in the video are Turkish and wandered into the synagogue by 'accident.' There are several night flights to Istanbul from Ben Gurion on Turkish Airlines....
Still, this is disgraceful.
Labels: Ben Gurion Airport, Istanbul, Muslims, synagogues, Turkey, Turkish Airways
ICYMI: Erdogan sends Deputy Mayor(!) to greet Biden at airport, Biden calls coup plotters 'terrorists'
Shavua tov, a good week to everyone.
You probably didn't hear much about Joe Biden's trip to Turkey last week. It's funny how Biden was '
humiliated' six and a half years ago when an Israeli bureaucrat announced a building permit when he was here in Israel, but apparently didn't notice
who greeted him at the airport in Ankara last week. But don't worry - that didn't stop Biden from sucking up to Sultan Erdogan.
Erdogan sent a lowly deputy mayor to meet him at the airport and
later said the US must arrest Gulen to stop him from giving press
interviews.
Biden called the coup plotters “terrorists” and urged Kurdish forces
in Syria to move away from Turkey’s borders, but he said the US must
follow due process on Gulen.
“The constitution and our laws require for someone to be extradited
that a court of the United States has to conclude there’s probable cause
to extradite," he said.
"Thus far ... there has been no evidence presented about the coup."
The rift between Western powers and their Nato ally in the Middle
East has prompted speculation that Turkey might forge a new alliance
with Russia.
Erodgan met Russian leader Vladimir Putin earlier this month, while
Russian propaganda has switched to highlighting irritants in EU-Turkey
and US-Turkey relations.
By the way, those apartments are now being built six and a half years later. They're scheduled to be ready in 2020 (there's no infrastructure there - that comes first). Aren't double standards grand?
Labels: double standards, Joe Biden, Ramat Shlomo, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey
Oh my... US moving nukes from Turkey to Romania
A report on a Belgian website claims that the United States is in the process of
moving some 20+ nuclear weapons from the Incirlik base in Turkey to Romania.
EXCLUSIVE/ Two independent sources told EurActiv.com that the US has
started transferring nuclear weapons stationed in Turkey to Romania,
against the background of worsening relations between Washington and
Ankara.
According to one of the sources, the transfer has been very challenging in technical and political terms.
“It’s not easy to move 20+ nukes,” said the source, on conditions of anonymity.
According to a recent report by the Simson Center,
since the Cold War, some 50 US tactical nuclear weapons have been
stationed at Turkey’s Incirlik air base, approximately 100 kilometres
from the Syrian border.
During the failed coup in Turkey in July, Incirlik’s power was cut,
and the Turkish government prohibited US aircraft from flying in or out.
Eventually, the base commander was arrested and implicated in the coup.
Whether the US could have maintained control of the weapons in the
event of a protracted civil conflict in Turkey is an unanswerable
question, the report says.
Another source told EurActiv.com that the US-Turkey relations had
deteriorated so much following the coup that Washington no longer
trusted Ankara to host the weapons. The American weapons are being moved
to the Deveselu air base in Romania, the source said.
Deveselu, near the city of Caracal, is the new home of the US missile shield, which has infuriated Russia.
The Romanians are denying the story. And of course, no one else is confirming it.
According to practice dating from the Cold War, leaked information
regarding the presence of US nuclear weapons on European soil has never
been officially confirmed. It is, however, public knowledge that
Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Italy host US nuclear weapons.
From Israel's perspective, anything that gets nuclear weapons away from Turkey is good for the Jews.
Labels: NATO, nuclear weapons, Romania, Russia, Turkey, United States
The love affair is over....
In case you're wondering, I'm in Boston again and the Sabbath doesn't start here for about another seven hours.
Compare the picture above to the tweet below. The love affair is over. Obama has 'earned' Erdogan's respect.
#ThanksObama
Wonder what's happening with the 'reconciliation with Israel.....
Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Joe Biden, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Russia, Turkey, United States
Why IS Turkey part of NATO?
The Clarion Project posts a brutal summary of the
beating and torture of military personnel by Turkey's Islamist police in the aftermath of the supposed coup attempt last week. It finishes off with this:
Since 1952, Turkey has been a member of NATO, which is supposed to
defend freedom and democracies. However for decades, Turkey has been a
center of torture and other human rights abuses of the worst magnitude.
If the Turkish government authorities, police officers and so many
average citizens are capable of torturing, starving and raping even
their own soldiers and citizens, how can they be worthy of being
recognized as a Western ally and partner?
Moreover, we can only imagine that if
this is what they do to their own soldiers, imagine what they have been
doing to their minority citizens, who they fundamentally see as
“enemies” -- Greeks, Armenians, Assyrians, Jews, Kurds, Alevis and
others.
By the way, is their EU application still live? And what on earth is the President of the United States doing hugging Turkish strongman Recep Tayyip Erdogan?
Read the whole thing.
Labels: Islamic terrorism, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, torture, Turkey, Turkish army, Turkish Kurds, Turkish regime change, Turkish repression
Breaking: Sultan Erdogan declares 'state of emergency'
It's come to
this:
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has declared a three-month state of emergency.
Speaking to the nation Wednesday night, Erdogan said he met with the
National Security Council and together they decided to recommend a state
of emergency be declared.
“The purpose of state of emergency is to be able to take most efficient
steps to remove threat as soon as possible,” he said. “It will
strengthen and protect democratic values and rule of law.”
He also commended the citizens of Turkey who heeded his call and took to
the streets. “Citizens are occupying the squares on a democracy watch
and their names will go down in golden letters in the history of
democracy.”
Adding that, “Turkey proved its allegiance to democracy and the rule of
law by paying the high price of the lives of its citizens.”
“This nation has the right to determine its own destiny. Everyone should know that.”
He assured the nation that the armed forces will remain under the
command and control of the governors and, “As the president elected, as
the commander in chief, I will attend to it so that all viruses in the
armed forces will be cleansed.”
“My people, do not have any concerns. Turkey has overcome this challenge
and will come out of it stronger by investing more,” he concluded.
The latest estimates are that some 60,000 people have been arrested in Turkey. And they don't get Miranda warnings.
Obama and Kerry were last heard mumbling something about the world's only Muslim democracy.
#Legacy
Labels: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey, Turkish repression
Istanbul terror attack had nothing to do with reconciliation with Israel
Just a brief comment on Tuesday night's triple suicide bombing at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport in which at least 36 people were killed and 147 injured (I saw a number that had over 200 injured a short while ago).
Although Israel and Turkey supposedly 'reconciled' earlier this week, I can guarantee you that last night's terror attack had NOTHING to do with that. Although there were
Israeli diplomats present in the airport at the time (they escaped injury), the planning for this type of attack takes weeks and months. The fact that it took place a day after the announcement of an Israeli-Turkish rapprochement is nothing but coincidence.
Labels: Islamic State, Islamic terrorism, Istanbul, Turkey
Israel and Turkey 'reconcile': Good for Israel?
Israel and Turkey have agreed to
reconcile their six-year split going back to the
Mavi Marmara incident in
May 2010 in which nine Turkish citizens were
killed after they
attacked IDF soldiers stopping the ship from reaching Gaza (and even
before that).
This is from the first link.
As part of the agreement, Israel has agreed to pay $20 million in
compensation to the bereaved and injured, and in return Turkey will pass
legislation banning legal proceedings against the Israeli soldiers in
its courts. Turkey also dropped a demand for Israel to lift the blockade
on Gaza, and will only be permitted to send aid to the territory after
it passes security checks at Israel’s Ashdod port. Ankara will also be
allowed to build a hospital as well as a power and desalinization plant
in Gaza.
In addressing these terms, Netanyahu stressed that the deal will
secure the “continuation of the maritime security blockade off the Gaza
Strip coast.”
“This is a supreme security interest for us. I was not prepared to compromise on it,” Netanyahu continued.
Turkey in return has committed to thwart the plotting and financing
of Hamas terrorist acts against Israel from its soil. It will also not
stand in the way of Israeli involvement in international forums to which
it belongs, mostly notably NATO.
Jerusalem and Ankara will also restore full diplomatic relations,
appointing ambassadors and lifting restrictions on military and
intelligence cooperation. Netanyahu added that the deal will open
Turkey to Israeli natural gas exports, and that the country could
possibly serve as a gateway to European markets. “[The deal has] immense
implications for the Israeli economy, and I use that word advisedly,”
the prime minister told reporters.
While not a formal part of the deal, Turkish President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan also personally pledged in a letter to help return the bodies of
two Israeli soldiers killed during the 2014 Gaza war, which are thought
to be held by Hamas, and free two Israelis reportedly being held by the
terrorist group. One of the captives is an Ethiopian Jew — described as
mentally-ill by his family — who wandered into Gaza accidentally in
2014; the second man, a resident of a Bedouin town in Israel’s Negev
desert, also apparently crossed into Gaza of his own volition. He has
been described as mentally disabled.
The agreement is expected to be approved by Israel’s security cabinet on Wednesday.
Secretary of State John Kerry congratulated Netanyahu on the
agreement when the two met in Rome on Monday, calling it a “positive
step.”
Who wins from this deal?
“Israel comes out on top here,” Louis Fishman, an assistant professor
at Brooklyn College who focuses on Turkish and Israeli affairs, told
Reuters. “From the start it believed that a deal could be worked out
where Turkish aid was able to enter the Gaza Strip under Israeli
supervision. It seems this is what was struck.”
“Restoring relations with Ankara is a linchpin in Israel’s strategy
to unlock its natural gas wealth,” Reuters added, noting that Israeli
energy stocks and shares in Turkey’s Zorlu Energy rose in reaction
to the agreement.
A senior Turkish official has also called the deal a “diplomatic victory.”
But not everyone sees it that way. Some people think
the real winner is Hamas.
Israel apparently has agreed to the presence of Hamas in Turkey as
long as it does not involve itself directly in terrorist attacks against
Israel, but limits itself to political and other supposedly nonviolent
activity.
However, the sanction of the presence and “political”
activity of Hamas in a country with diplomatic ties with Israel
undermines years of Israeli public relations against the terrorist
group, which sought to identify Hamas with other Sunni groups such as
al-Qaida and Islamic State.
...
Would Israel or any other Western country allow the leader of a
friendly state with which it has diplomatic relations meet with Islamic
State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and allow the organization to operate
within its territory? Jonathan Schanzer, vice president for research
at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington, told The Jerusalem Post the upcoming deal is “a win for the status quo as nothing really changes.”
Besides
Hamas not being able to carry out military activity from Turkish soil,
everything else stays the same: Hamas maintains its Turkish
headquarters; Turkey continues assisting Hamas-ruled Gaza; and Israel
facilitates this.
...
Schanzer pointed out that from Israel’s perspective, the government
would like to have normalized ties with Muslim countries in general.
“But
there is no way to have true normalized relations with Erdogan’s
government. It is virtually impossible to imagine, given that Turkey
remains an Islamist-ruled state with close ties to Hamas and other
anti-Israel organizations.”
Perhaps the deal can be best
described as an agreement “to stop publicly fighting, while quietly
continuing to disagree on virtually everything.”
It also remains to be seen how Israel's relations with
Greece, Cyprus, Romania and Bulgaria will be affected by the reconciliation with Turkey.
All in all, it's not a great deal for Israel, principally because it leaves Hamas in place in Turkey. It remains to be seen how Israel will react if Hamas continues to use its Turkish headquarters to
orchestrate terror attacks in Judea and Samaria.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, Gaza, Hamas, IHH, Mavi Marmara, Palestinian terrorism, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey, Turkish obsession with Israel
'So I lied (again)'
Shavua tov everyone.
'
Moderate' '
Palestinian' President
Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen has in essence now
admitted that lied when he told the European Parliament on Thursday that a 'rabbi' ordered Jews to poison 'Palestinian' water. The 'rabbi' doesn't exist, the organization he 'represented' doesn't exist, but none of that stopped Abu Bluff from telling the lie, nor did it stop the European anti-Semites who make up the European Parliament (including a grinning ear-to-ear foreign policy chief Federika Mog - a pity you
can't watch the video anymore).
This is from the
New York Times.
Mr.
Abbas’s retraction was sent to reporters early Saturday morning, issued
by the P.L.O., of which Mr. Abbas is the chairman. It said that Mr.
Abbas “rejected all claims that accuse him and the Palestinian people of
offending the Jewish religion.” It added that he “also condemned all
accusations of anti-Semitism.”
“After
it has become evident that the alleged statements by a rabbi on
poisoning Palestinian wells, which were reported by various media
outlets, are baseless, President Mahmoud Abbas has affirmed that he
didn’t intend to do harm to Judaism or to offend Jewish people around
the world,” the statement continued.
It
was not immediately clear why Mr. Abbas repeated the allegation on
Thursday, days after it was widely debunked. Neither the rabbi who
supposedly made the claim, nor the organization quoted in the original
P.L.O. article, appear to exist.
And of course, this is not the first time that 'Mr. Abbas' has invented a lie. In fact, the entire existence of a 'Palestinian people' is one great big lie.
In October, Mr. Abbas erroneously accused Israeli forces of killing a 13-year-old Palestinian boy who had taken part in the stabbing of two Israelis. The boy had actually been wounded and later recovered.
So what's the genesis of this particular lie (aside from the Bubonic plague in 14th century Europe)?
Here's where it came from.
The story was discovered to be false by Palestinian Media Watch (PMW),
an Israeli NGO that monitors Palestinian incitement. PMW claims that
Abbas’ accusation is based on an article published last week in Anadolu,
a Turkish news service, which claimed , “Rabbi Shlomo Mlma (sic),
chairman of the Council of Rabbis in the West Bank settlements(sic), has
issued an advisory opinion in which he allowed Jewish settlers to
poison water in Palestinian villages and cities in the West Bank.”
PMW reported that the story in Anadolu was based on a claim by Yehuda Shaul, a leader of the extreme left-wing Israeli NGO Breaking the Silence. Shaul was quoted in the Hebrew news service, NRG, as saying that “settlers poisoned” the water of a Palestinian town a number of years ago causing the Palestinians to leave”.
The story was confirmed as incorrect by several news services including Reuters and Haaretz. No such rabbi or council was found to exist.
Shocked. Just totally shocked... to see the Turks and the self-hating Jews at 'Breaking the Silence' involved in this....
Labels: Abu Mazen, blood libel, Breaking the Silence, European anti-Semitism, European Union, Federica Mogherini, Palestinian lies, Turkey
What difference does it make? Hamas lauds terror attack, Abu Mazen calls it 'natural response' to Israeli 'crimes'
Hamas lauded and - as you can see from the picture above - Gazans celebrated Wednesday night's terror attack in Tel Aviv in which
four Israelis were murdered.
The world still doesn't get it. Or doesn't want to get it. Russian Nikolay Mladenov is the UN Special Coordinator for the 'peace process.' He condemned the attack:
And yet, he expressed shock that Hamas celebrated the attack.
And my prediction that Abbas would declare the terrorists 'heroes' or 'martyrs' or something similar did not take long to come true.
This morning, the 'moderate' 'Abbas' goes even further, by himself, calling last night's terror attack a 'natural response' to Israeli 'crimes.'
But Mladenov was not the only one whose reaction belied sincerity. Here's the EU's Federika Mog with my response.
And Gaza was not the only place they celebrated. Here's a picture from a NATO country of a celebration of the Tel Aviv terror attack. Can you guess in which country this took place?
Okay, it says Istanbul. Yes, Turkey. You know, the country that's supposed to be 'reconciling' with us any day now. Don't hold your breaths.
And finally, for those who have not seen it yet, here's a harrowing video of last night's terror attack.
Let's go to the videotape.
Mrs. Carl and I went out to dinner here in Jerusalem shortly before the attack happened. The place where we ate had actually had a suicide bombing very close by during the intifada in the early 2000's, and I was surprised to see that there was no security guard outside. My guess is that you go back tonight, there will be one there.
The 'Palestinians' continue to look for opportunities to murder us. Occasionally, they succeed. Fortunately, it's far less often than it was 15 years ago.
By the way, the United States and Hillary Clinton have condemned last night's terror attack. I have not yet seen any condemnation issued by President Obama or Donald Trump. If you see one, please give me a holler. I've been too busy working to post much recently....
Labels: Fatah, Hamas, Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian terrorism, Tel Aviv, Turkey
You didn't really think there would be a deal between Israel and Turkey, did you?
So after a weekend without WiFi access (did not even turn on the computer), greetings once again from Boston.
To those of you who thought that a deal between Israel and Turkey would happen, this should remove your delusions. Sultan Erdogan is saying that
a deal won't happen unless Israel lifts its 'Gaza blockade.'
“What happens in Gaza is unacceptable, the occupation by Israel must
end," Ibrahim Kalın a spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan said on Monday.
On Friday, a day after high level
Turkish and Israeli officials met in London, the Turkish Foreign
Ministry issued a statement saying that “The teams made progress toward
finalizing the agreement and closing the gaps, and agreed that the deal
would be finalized in the next meeting which will be convened very
soon.”
In Israel, both the Prime Minister's Office and the Foreign
Ministry declined to comment – as they have done for months – on the
talks.
...
Two major obstacles to an agreement are Israel’s demand that Turkey not
house a Hamas command center in Istanbul, and Turkey's demand that
Israel lift its maritime blockade of Gaza.
Israel has made clear
that it does not intend to lift the blockade of Gaza, which it deems
vital for the country's security, although it is apparently willing to
let Turkey ship some humanitarian aid to Gaza.
According to the
Daily Sabah newspaper, another Turkish demand is that Israel let Turkey
dispatch to the area a floating power-generating ship to relieve energy
problems in Gaza. According to the report, Israel did not reject the
idea and is considering it, although there is concern that it would set a
precedent. This idea was first broached already in 2014.
The Turkish newspaper said that the next meeting between the two countries will take place within the next two weeks.
Hey folks - this deal is not going to happen. The 'negotiations' are a charade, probably to keep Obama happy. Get used to it.
Labels: Gaza blockade, Hamas, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey, Turkish anti-Semitism, Turkish obsession with Israel
Israelis warned to leave Turkey immediately
A reminder that I am in Boston where the Sabbath doesn't start for another couple of hours.
Israel's National Counter-Terrorism Bureau is urging all Israelis to
leave Turkey at once due to a specific terrorist threat.
The National Security Council’s
Counter-Terrorism Bureau released a statement Friday warning Israelis at
home and abroad to avoid travel to Turkey due to the "heightened
security risk" and "threat of an terror attacks" in the country.
"Following the evaluation of the current situation in Turkey, we
have raised the alert level," the statement from the bureau begins.
"At the same time we encourage Israelis currently in Turkey to
refrain from visiting tourist areas with large crowds and follow the
instructions of local security officials," the statement added.
The statement noted that the travel warning was "hot" or of high
value and that the defense establishment "wished to reiterate its
recommendation to avoid visiting the country and those in it to leave as
soon as possible".
Stay safe folks - and get out of there while you can.
Labels: Islamic terrorism, Turkey, Turkish obsession with Israel
Hmmm.... Erdogan claims Turkey deported Brussels attacker, Belgium set him free
The Europeans are even bigger idiots than we give them credit for being....
By the way, Belgium doesn't do terror raids after 9:00 pm. They don't want to disturb the terrorists' sleep (yes, that's true).
Unbelievable.
Labels: Belgium, Brussels terror attacks, Islamic terrorism, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey
Turkish 'normalization' on ice?
Greetings from somewhere over the Pacific coast - I'm flying from Los Angeles to San Francisco.
As I'm sure many of you have heard already, a suicide bomber
killed three Israelis in Turkey on Saturday in an attack that may or may not have been directed at Israelis in Istanbul (Prime Minister Netanyahu believes that Israelis were the intended targets).
Now, that 'normalization' of relations with Turkey that's been on the table may be on ice:
Fat chance that will ever happen.
Labels: Islamic State, Islamic terrorism, Istanbul, Turkey, Turkish anti-Semitism, Turkish obsession with Israel
Breaking: 5 dead, 10 injured in car bomb attack in Ankara - UPDATED
Five people have been killed and 10 injured in a
car bomb attack in Ankara.
The explosion took place near a Turkish
military dormitory.
More to follow.
UPDATE 11:42 PM
There are now
28 dead and 61 wounded. But no one in Turkey knows that. The Turkish government, which is blaming the Kurdish PKK, has placed a
ban on publication.
I'd say it's far more likely the Russians, and that Erdogan has learned well from his Best Friend Forever Obama, who wishes he could ban publication of his
politically inexpedient moves.
Labels: Ankara, Islamic terrorism, Turkey
Oh my... Somali bomber was meant to be on Turkish Air flight
A Somali suicide bomber who was sucked out a hole in a Daallo Airlines flight from Mogadishu to Dijbouti last Tuesday was actually
meant to be on a Turkish Air flight to Turkey along with 73 other passengers.
The 74 passengers aboard the flight were originally checked in with
Turkish Airlines, which flies to Somalia three times per week, Mohamed
Ibrahim Yasin Olad, Daallo Airlines chief told Al Jazeera on Sunday.
"They were not our passengers. Turkish Airlines cancelled its flight
from Mogadishu that morning because their incoming flight from Djibouti
could not come to Mogadishu because of what they said was strong
wind," Olad said.
"They requested we carry the passengers on their behalf to Djibouti
where they would continue their journey on a Turkish Airlines flight,"
Olad added.
And the Turks? They're trying to disown the whole story.
"Turkish Airlines have not been in contact with us since the incident
happened. You can say they are trying to distance themselves from the
incident." Olad said.
Turkish Airlines suspended its flights to Somalia on Tuesday.
Al Jazeera contacted Turkish Airlines for comment but so far did not get a response.
Hmmm.
Labels: Somalia, Turkey, Turkish Airways
It's come to this: Egypt asks Israel to keep Turkey away from Gaza
Egypt is worried - really worried - about the prospect that Turkey will have a role to play in Gaza, and with 'reconciliation talks' between Israel and Turkey ostensibly taking place, the Egyptians have asked Israel to ensure that
Turkey will stay away.
Senior officials in Jerusalem told Haaretz that Egypt expressed its reservations regarding granting Turkey a role in the Gaza Strip, and asked whether Israel had committed to any easing of restrictions in the closure imposed on Gaza.
These officials, who asked to remain anonymous due to the delicate diplomatic nature of the issue, stated that what caused the Egyptian government’s displeasure was Israeli media reports from a few weeks ago, according to which a breakthrough had been reached in reconciliation talks with Turkey, as well as reports in the Turkish media that Israel had agreed to take significant steps in easing the maritime siege on Gaza.
Senior Egyptian Foreign Ministry officials met with Israel’s ambassador Haim Koren and asked if these reports were correct and whether Israel and Turkey are indeed close to reconciling. The temporary chargé d’affaires at the Egyptian embassy in Tel Aviv delivered similar messages in a recent meeting with senior Foreign Ministry officials in Jerusalem. Egypt expressed its opposition to any Israeli concessions to Turkey with regard to the Gaza Strip.
Egypt has two concerns: Turkey's support for Mohammed Morsy's Muslim Brotherhood regime in Egypt, and Turkey's close relations with Hamas.
Last week, Erdogan said that as part of the negotiations with Israel over the agreement, Turkey is interested in sending a ship that would arrive directly in Gaza, providing electricity and delivering construction materials. He noted that Israel has told Turkey that it would lift the siege if aid to Gaza goes through Turkey.
Last week, the Turkish Hürriyet Daily News reported that Turkey demanded that Israel grants it “unlimited access” in providing aid to the Gaza Strip. The report noted that senior Turkish officials said that if Israel allows this, Turkey will consider it a fulfillment of its condition that Israel lifts its siege.
Haaretz's Barak Ravid reports that the tensions between Egypt and Turkey are holding up any Israeli reconciliation with Turkey. Well, good.
Labels: Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Egypt, Egypt-Turkey alliance, Gaza, Gaza blockade, Hamas, Mohammed Morsy, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey
Report: As Obama administration knowingly armed Islamic State in Syria, Joint Chiefs passed US intel to Assad
It's come to this: The Obama administration - and in particular the CIA -
knowingly armed Islamic State terrorists in Syria. Okay, take it with a grain of salt. It came from Seymour Hersh.
Barack Obama’s
repeated insistence that Bashar al-Assad must leave office – and that
there are ‘moderate’ rebel groups in Syria capable of defeating him –
has in recent years provoked quiet dissent, and even overt opposition,
among some of the most senior officers on the Pentagon’s Joint Staff.
Their criticism has focused on what they see as the administration’s
fixation on Assad’s primary ally, Vladimir Putin. In their view, Obama
is captive to Cold War thinking about Russia and China, and hasn’t
adjusted his stance on Syria to the fact both countries share
Washington’s anxiety about the spread of terrorism in and beyond Syria;
like Washington, they believe that Islamic State must be stopped.
The military’s resistance dates back to the summer of 2013, when a
highly classified assessment, put together by the Defense Intelligence
Agency (DIA) and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, then led by General Martin
Dempsey, forecast that the fall of the Assad regime would lead to chaos
and, potentially, to Syria’s takeover by jihadi extremists, much as was
then happening in Libya. A former senior adviser to the Joint Chiefs
told me that the document was an ‘all-source’ appraisal, drawing on
information from signals, satellite and human intelligence, and took a
dim view of the Obama administration’s insistence on continuing to
finance and arm the so-called moderate rebel groups. By then, the CIA
had been conspiring for more than a year with allies in the UK, Saudi
Arabia and Qatar to ship guns and goods – to be used for the overthrow
of Assad – from Libya, via Turkey, into Syria. The new intelligence
estimate singled out Turkey as a major impediment to Obama’s Syria
policy. The document showed, the adviser said, ‘that what was started as
a covert US programme to arm and support the moderate rebels fighting
Assad had been co-opted by Turkey, and had morphed into an
across-the-board technical, arms and logistical programme for all of the
opposition, including Jabhat al-Nusra and Islamic State. The so-called
moderates had evaporated and the Free Syrian Army was a rump group
stationed at an airbase in Turkey.’ The assessment was bleak: there was
no viable ‘moderate’ opposition to Assad, and the US was arming
extremists.
Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, director of the DIA
between 2012 and 2014, confirmed that his agency had sent a constant
stream of classified warnings to the civilian leadership about the dire
consequences of toppling Assad. The jihadists, he said, were in control
of the opposition. Turkey wasn’t doing enough to stop the smuggling of
foreign fighters and weapons across the border. ‘If the American public
saw the intelligence we were producing daily, at the most sensitive
level, they would go ballistic,’ Flynn told me. ‘We understood Isis’s
long-term strategy and its campaign plans, and we also discussed the
fact that Turkey was looking the other way when it came to the growth of
the Islamic State inside Syria.’ The DIA’s reporting, he said, ‘got
enormous pushback’ from the Obama administration. ‘I felt that they did
not want to hear the truth.’
‘Our policy of arming the opposition
to Assad was unsuccessful and actually having a negative impact,’ the
former JCS adviser said. ‘The Joint Chiefs believed that Assad should
not be replaced by fundamentalists. The administration’s policy was
contradictory. They wanted Assad to go but the opposition was dominated
by extremists. So who was going to replace him? To say Assad’s got to go
is fine, but if you follow that through – therefore anyone is better.
It’s the “anybody else is better” issue that the JCS had with Obama’s
policy.’
But what's more shocking is what the Joint Chiefs decided to do about it.
The Joint Chiefs felt that a direct challenge to Obama’s policy would
have ‘had a zero chance of success’. So in the autumn of 2013 they
decided to take steps against the extremists without going through
political channels, by providing US intelligence to the militaries of
other nations, on the understanding that it would be passed on to the
Syrian army and used against the common enemy, Jabhat al-Nusra and
Islamic State.
Germany, Israel and Russia were in contact with the
Syrian army, and able to exercise some influence over Assad’s decisions
– it was through them that US intelligence would be shared. Each had
its reasons for co-operating with Assad: Germany feared what might
happen among its own population of six million Muslims if Islamic State
expanded; Israel was concerned with border security; Russia had an
alliance of very long standing with Syria, and was worried by the threat
to its only naval base on the Mediterranean, at Tartus. ‘We weren’t
intent on deviating from Obama’s stated policies,’ the adviser said.
‘But sharing our assessments via the military-to-military relationships
with other countries could prove productive. It was clear that Assad
needed better tactical intelligence and operational advice. The JCS
concluded that if those needs were met, the overall fight against
Islamist terrorism would be enhanced. Obama didn’t know, but Obama
doesn’t know what the JCS does in every circumstance and that’s true of
all presidents.’
Once the flow of US intelligence began, Germany,
Israel and Russia started passing on information about the whereabouts
and intent of radical jihadist groups to the Syrian army; in return,
Syria provided information about its own capabilities and intentions.
There was no direct contact between the US and the Syrian military;
instead, the adviser said, ‘we provided the information – including
long-range analyses on Syria’s future put together by contractors or one
of our war colleges – and these countries could do with it what they
chose, including sharing it with Assad. We were saying to the Germans
and the others: “Here’s some information that’s pretty interesting and
our interest is mutual.” End of conversation. The JCS could conclude
that something beneficial would arise from it – but it was a military to
military thing, and not some sort of a sinister Joint Chiefs’ plot to
go around Obama and support Assad. It was a lot cleverer than that. If
Assad remains in power, it will not be because we did it. It’s because
he was smart enough to use the intelligence and sound tactical advice we
provided to others.’
Read the whole thing.
Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Bashar al-Assad, CIA, Germany, ISIS, Islamic State, Israel, Russia, Syria, Syrian uprising, Turkey, United States
R. Moshe Shternbuch: If Russia conquers Istanbul put on your Sabbath finery for the Messiah
Some of you might recall this post which quoted the
Vilna Gaon as saying that a war between Russia and Turkey would be a
precursor to the Messiah's arrival. Someone questioned whether the Gaon actually said that. Thanks to
Yonatan H who put me onto this audio of Rabbi Moshe Shternbuch, the head of the Badatz Eida Haredith in Jerusalem who says in the name of the Gaon (known as the Gra) that if Russia conquers Istanbul, get ready for the Messiah's arrival.
For the Hebrew readers, there's more
here (including the audio).
Labels: Istanbul, Rav Moshe Shternbuch, Russia, Russian weapons, Syria, Turkey, Turkish army, Vilna Gaon
Turkish general says government has to own shooting down of Russia plane
Back in November, the Turkish air force downed a Russian jet. Afterward, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed that had they known that the plane was Russian, they might have acted differently during what was about 17 seconds(!) over disputed Turkish-Syrian territory. Now, a Turkish Air Force General says - surprise -
that's a lie.
Pilots of the Turkish Air Forces (THK) followed the rules of engagement as outlined by the government during the downing of a Russian
jet near the Syrian border on Nov. 24 and would have been accused of
neglecting their duty if they hadn't done so, a general who remained
anonymous told a daily on Wednesday.
Speaking with the Sözcü daily, the general from the THK underlined
that the government must accept any political responsibility as it is
the government that outlines the rules of engagement for border
violations, which are considered orders to the army.
THK head Gen. Abidin Ünal has been targeted by pro-government Twitter
users saying that he had placed President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government in a difficult
situation after bilateral relations with Russia broke down as a result
of the downing of the jet.
According to Sözcü, some Twitter users tweeted after the incident
that Ünal must resign as he shot down the Russian jet without orders
from the president. “Resign! Otherwise, Reis [Erdoğan] will take care of
you,” another user tweeted.
The anonymous general also underlined that it is a border violation
when any jet belonging to a foreign nation violates another nation's air
space, even for a second. “The rules of engagement are outlined by the
government according to a specific time, region and purpose to protect
its borders. The armed forces will automatically follow them,” general
said.
“Had we known it was a Russian plane we might have acted
differently,” Erdoğan said in an exclusive interview with France 24 news
channel on Nov. 26. “But our pilots know the rules of engagement and
have to do their duty to protect Turkish airspace,” he added.
During a parliamentary group speech of his party on Nov. 25, Prime
Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said the THK had carried out orders given by
him personally. “Despite all the warnings, we had to destroy the
aircraft,” he said.
According to the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), the Russian jet violated
Turkish airspace for 17 seconds and there were no warning shots.
The Turkish General Staff said on Nov. 24 that it shot down the
Russian Su-24 jet after warning it 10 times in five minutes by radio.
However the Russian Defense Ministry claims it was shot down in Syrian
airspace.
Something tells me that the Turks are going to be really sorry about this. On Sunday, I posted this on my Twitter feed:
I have since spoken to a neighbor who is an expert on the writings of the
Vilna Gaon who has confirmed to me that the passage does exist, but he has not yet shown/told me where it is.
Hmmm.
Labels: Russia, Russian weapons, Syria, Turkey, Turkish army
