US warns UN it is "no longer safe for inspectors to remain in Syria", their mission is "pointless"

[Catherina]

Updated August 26, 2013, 5:43 p.m. ET

U.S., Citing 'Moral Obscenity' in Syria, Weighs Response
Kerry Calls Attacks 'Undeniable'; U.N. Reaches Attack Site After U.S. Issued Caution Over Mission

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Monday that the use of chemical weapons against Syrian civilians is a "moral obscenity," delivering the clearest indication yet that the Obama administration is preparing to attack President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

In a forceful statement delivered in Washington, Mr. Kerry called the attacks "undeniable" and said the administration has developed conclusive evidence that chemical weapons were used last week in the suburbs of Damascus, killing hundreds of civilians. Syria's delays in allowing international monitors to reach alleged attack sites implies its guilt, he said, adding that the U.S. and its allies are "actively consulting" on how to respond.

...

Mr. Kerry's statement came as United Nations inspectors faced gunfire from unidentified snipers as they set out to investigate reports of the chemical-weapons attack in a Damascus suburb.

The U.N. team turned back, but later in the day made it to Mouadhamiya, where one of the suspected chemical-weapons attacks took place. The team visited two hospitals, interviewed survivors and doctors, and collected samples, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement Monday.

...

The U.N. weapons inspectors arrived at the site after the U.S. delivered a caution to Mr. Ban, telling him it was no longer safe for the inspectors to remain in Syria and that their mission was pointless, said a person familiar with the matter. Mr. Ban "stood firm on principle," ordering his team to continue their work establishing whether chemical weapons or toxins were responsible for the estimated hundreds of deaths of Syrian civilians.

...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323407104579036173795495190.html

[mike_c]

1. sounds an awful lot like Iraq....

The U.S. seems awfully eager to prevent U.N. inspectors from gathering data that might contradict the narrative we want to advance. Maybe that's not what's happening, but it damn sure was what happened in Iraq, and this movie is beginning to look pretty damned familiar.

[Purveyor]

2. My gawd Obama isn't even trying to rearrange at least few chapters in Dubya's 'playbook'. Wonder

if it include the 'Mission Accomplished' banner and photo-op too?

[ctsnowman]

7. Hopefully they can get out

the one Bush used. It may be in his library with my pet goat.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

15. Comparisons to Iraq 2003 are getting a bit ridiculous IMHO

Syria isn't Iraq ca. 2003 and the Obama Administration is NOT the Bush (mis-)administration. It appears that SOMEBODY has actually used chemical weapons and people have been killed or injured as a result. Also, President Obama hasn't AFAIK made any decisions about what to do about it. He certainly hasn't been trying to "sell" the public on military intervention in Syria (if anything he has been extraordinarily cautious) and the UN is definitely concerned about this situation. I'm not gung-ho about engaging in any military conflicts but to equate any and all present and/or future military interventions to what the Bush (mis-)administration did in Iraq strikes me as a bit dishonest and mistaken IMHO.

[dkf]

3. "Implies its guilt". And there we have it...the basis for going to war. OMG...I can't take this shit

[Catherina]

4. You're not alone, I feel like exploding right now. n/t

[ctsnowman]

8. It's surreal.

[Junkdrawer]

5. Inspectors? We don't need no steeking inspectors....

[Ichingcarpenter]

9. I was gonna do that meme

thought on the same lines Great minds and all that.

Yeah, Sarin gas was used
but who used it.. There's been two episodes so far.

The earliest is where the Govt. accused the rebels

And now where the rebels accused the govt.

The UN is inspecting both.


I don't like the game being played now it sounds like
curveball.

[Junkdrawer]

10. Videos posted the day before the latest attack. (Poorly) Pre-planned provocation...

Seems the British Royal Navy and the US are coordinating this attack. Pretty sophisticated for just a few days planning, huh?

[Ichingcarpenter]

12. The fix is in

The Wall Street Journal reports:

“The [weapons inspection] team must be able to conduct a full, thorough and unimpeded investigation,” said U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday night. However, the team is only mandated to determine if chemical weapons were used, not who used them, Mr. Ban’s spokesman said.

[bemildred]

6. Could they be any more transparent?

[xchrom]

11. ...

[Starry Messenger]

13. I thought we were out of money.

No words.

[neverforget]

16. never short of money for war.

The MIC must be fed.

[leveymg]

14. Photo of Secretary Kerry's address to the UN>