A few weeks ago I said that al-Assad would not step down. As time passed, videos, and reports came out depicting the slaughter being unleashed against the Syrian people. As bodies were dumped off pick-up trucks into the ocean protestors continued. I suppose when you know that you are going to die you may as well go down screaming what you believe.
It was not until after UN leadership spoke about alleged atrocities ongoing in Syria that US leadership spoke up at all. The feeling I had was that our leadership was going to wait for the UN to say what was wrong and then we would lock step and parrot the weak and watery leadership for the UN. Blogs and tweets showed up relentlessly at White House pages. Finally, the page 8 articles from Lames Stream Media were noticed. Clinton spoke out and an international coalition was being built to do something. The coalition, US, EU, and UN (the UN being largely OIC and OPEC) spoke out against al-Assad.
This coalition called for a cease to hostilities and for al-Assad to step down. The threat of criminal charges in the International Criminal Court would appear to have been noticed. New sanctions were not seen as threatening enough by the regime, as Assad had clearly said that he could get all the resources he needed. Clearly, the political solution that Assad had insisted was going to come from his people was more the rest of the world tapping on his shoulder.
Al-Assad said that he stopped the killing of his people on the 18th. The weekend would appear to have been quiet; however, Monday morning brings more bodies in fresh blood. I am (sarcastically) quite certain that these two protestors were shot either accidentally (which will, of course result in the troops being severely dealt with) or they were violent and well armed Syrian versions of Schwarzenegger from the movie Commando and these guards had simply acted in accordance with protecting themselves.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/18/syria-assad-claims-military-operations-stopped
It was not until after UN leadership spoke about alleged atrocities ongoing in Syria that US leadership spoke up at all. The feeling I had was that our leadership was going to wait for the UN to say what was wrong and then we would lock step and parrot the weak and watery leadership for the UN. Blogs and tweets showed up relentlessly at White House pages. Finally, the page 8 articles from Lames Stream Media were noticed. Clinton spoke out and an international coalition was being built to do something. The coalition, US, EU, and UN (the UN being largely OIC and OPEC) spoke out against al-Assad.
This coalition called for a cease to hostilities and for al-Assad to step down. The threat of criminal charges in the International Criminal Court would appear to have been noticed. New sanctions were not seen as threatening enough by the regime, as Assad had clearly said that he could get all the resources he needed. Clearly, the political solution that Assad had insisted was going to come from his people was more the rest of the world tapping on his shoulder.
Al-Assad said that he stopped the killing of his people on the 18th. The weekend would appear to have been quiet; however, Monday morning brings more bodies in fresh blood. I am (sarcastically) quite certain that these two protestors were shot either accidentally (which will, of course result in the troops being severely dealt with) or they were violent and well armed Syrian versions of Schwarzenegger from the movie Commando and these guards had simply acted in accordance with protecting themselves.
Al-Assad will not step down. He will continue to scoff and throw shoes at the rest of the world. He knows that, like al-Bashir the president of Sudan (indicted for war crimes and crimes against his own people due to committing similar attacks as al-Assad), he will not be apprehended. No one is going to go into Syria to catch him. Any country he goes to quietly will not turn him over to the ICC. And, like al-Bashir, the Obama administration and Clinton State Department will likely move to restore relations with al-Assad within the year.
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2011/08/22/world/middleeast/22syria.xml
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/18/syria-assad-claims-military-operations-stopped
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-14577333
I cannot wait for the horror stoires and the accounts of mass rapes and mutilations to begin.
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