Syrian army kills 62 rebels east of Damascus

[Rhiannon12866]

Last edited Wed Aug 7, 2013, 06:02 AM - Edit history (1)

Source: Reuters

BEIRUT | Wed Aug 7, 2013 5:32am EDT

(Reuters) - Sixty-two rebel fighters were killed in a Syrian army ambush at dawn on Wednesday near the town of Adra, east of Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group opposed to President Bashar al-Assad, said.

The state news agency SANA did not give a death toll for the ambush but said the rebels were from the al Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front. It said all the rebels were killed and machineguns and rocket-propelled grenades confiscated.

SANA said the "terrorists" included non-Syrians and the Observatory said that eight rebels were still unaccounted for after the attack, which happened west of an industrial area east of Adra.

Assad's forces have been on the offensive around Damascus after rebels pushed into towns and suburbs on the outskirts of the capital last year. Adra is in the Eastern Ghouta region, which has been besieged by the army for months.


Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/07/us-syria-crisis-ambush-idUSBRE9760DQ20130807?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&dlvrit=992637

---

This horrific conflict seems far from over...

[delrem]

1. I wonder what the 'Friends of Syria' (tm) think of that?

I think 'Friends of Syria' (tm) was HRC's singular achievement.

[Rhiannon12866]

2. They must be dismayed. John Kerry met with them in June:

Friends of Syria agree on urgent support for rebels to curb ‘imbalance’
http://rt.com/news/friends-syria-kerry-weapons-114/

[delrem]

3. This is way beyond my capacity to "take it".

The entire horribleness of it, for 8 yrs of W and now, doubled because it's such a betrayal, for 5 yrs of Obama. And HRC, of course - and these are hardly alone at the top.

[John2]

4. It is not

going to end anytime soon because both sides are very determined to win. There is a lot of violence going on in the Middle East right now, and it is not only in Syria. There are reports on the net, four Israli soldiers were injured on the Lebonese border. The rebels claimed they captured a Syrian airbase in the North and fighting between the Kurds and Al Nusra. It is reported, Al Nusra raised a Black Flag in the captured Air Base.

I got one question though, where is the FSA? The Terrorists seems to be doing all the fighting and dying on the battlefield. In every attack cited, they use suicide bombers. Their initial assault on this Air base beganned with suicide bombers. When they attacked the Aleppo prison, it was with suicide bombers. They also carried out an attack yesterday, in a intersection with car bombs.

The Syrian Observatory claimed that the 62 rebels ambushed were young boys and martyrs. The Syrian State media is showing photographs of the dead rebels in military uniforms and many have beards. They claim they were mostly foreigners and with Al Nusra. They claim the uniforms were labeled FSA. Do the FSA carry out suicide attacks? They also had weapons from specific countries, That I want name.

[pampango]

5. Interestingly this victory for Assad's army was reported by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights,

"a monitoring group opposed to President Bashar al-Assad", which some have accused of being a propaganda arm of the opposition. The SOHR has reported on rebel defeats and abuses committed by rebel factions, while neither SANA, the state news agency, nor the army's press releases ever mention government defeats or abuses.

More than 100,000 people have died in Syria's civil war and millions have been displaced. Protesters took to the streets in March 2011 to call for democratic reforms but were fired on by security forces, leading to an armed uprising.

The army has made efforts to secure the capital and its links to the western coast while the rebels have overrun much of the north and east.

[John2]

6. That is not

exactly accurate. The Syrian Army hasn't reported any abuses by them, but they have reported casualties. They reported a Brigdier General killed in action a couple of weeks ago and soldiers that lossed their lives in action like any other Army, which they can't hide from their families. I don't know any Army that report abuses by their soldiers very often because they come under a military code of justice. They have a better command and discipline structure. Commanders and officers are responsible for what their soldiers do on the field of battle.

That is not the case for the undisciplined group of rebels. They have no military code of justice or anybody to answer to. General Idriss is just a joke and a figure head. Groups like Al Nusra, don't follow orders from him, or any of those mercenaries fighting in Syria. Just what command structure do you believe those rebels that were ambushed had from the FSA? Who comnmanded them to take this operation, and what commander would take responsibility for the failure of it in the FSA? It indicates these people are amateurs.

Sixty two of them got ambushed in or near Damascus, all in one massive group. The Syrian Observatory couldn't hide this catastrophe because of where it happened and how it happened. It was in an urban area, where you had too many witnesses and independent press sources to verify it. Photographs clearly revealed it. It revealed who actually got slaughtered too. They weren't women and children this time. These men had on military uniforms, that was very easily identified. They were FSA uniforms for sure, bu they were made in certain countries supporting them The weapons were identified what country they were issued from also. They had identification to prove these people weren't from Syria either. So that is who the Syrian Observatory has direct contact with, which proves, they are operating with Al Nusra. I ask this question of you, where are all these fighters, that you claim are Syrians?

Why is every major battle being carried out by Al Nusra and other groups? That Northern Base, which the Syrian Army admits evacuating, was captured mainly by Al Nusra and Foreign fighters. They even raised their Black Flag over it. They are the same groups fighting and killing Kurds now. You sure the FSA is not the same groups, playing you and those Western supporters of the FSA? The Taliban is fighting in Syria also. What makes you think the Taliban isn't playing you, like they did in Afghanistan?

[pampango]

7. "The Syrian Army hasn't reported any abuses by them(selves)." -Well, they commit the 'vast majority'

of human rights abuses and war crimes according to Amnesty International. (I know. You have thrown AI under the bus, along with Human Rights Watch, the Center for American Progress and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) because they don't the information that the Syrian government and army release.)

... they (the Syrian army) have reported casualties ... which they can't hide from their families.

The Syrian Observatory couldn't hide this catastrophe because of where it happened and how it happened.

The Syrian army releases information on casualties "which they can't hide from their families". In other words they release information they can't hide. Yet you accuse the SOHR of covering the ambush and killing of 62 rebels because they "couldn't hide this catastrophe because of where it happened and how it happened." So do the army and SOHR get credit or blame for only covering bad things when they cannot hide them? You can't praise one side for doing that and condemn the other.

They have a better command and discipline structure. - With such great command and discipline, what orders are they operating under if they are committing the 'vast majority' of human rights abuses.

So that is who the Syrian Observatory has direct contact with, which proves, they are operating with Al Nusra. - So if the SOHR reports on a rebel abuse or defeat, they are implicated as associated with al Nusra. If it does not report, it is a "propaganda arm" of the rebels and 'never releases negative news' about them. You kind of have them coming and going there. Nice work! Of course, just because AI and HRW report on government abuses does not mean they are associated with the government forces committing them.

Also, on SOHR website right now, they have 6 stories in their "Syrian Revolution News" section. Two of them deal with abuses conducted by the rebels: "Rebel fighters assassinate a peaceful activist." and "Rebel fighters execute civilians in Damascus." Either SOHR is a very poor propaganda arm for the rebels (which you think it is) or it is more objective than you want to let on. I wonder if the Syrian Information Ministry devotes 1/3 of its stories to abuses committed by government forces.

What makes you think the Taliban isn't playing you, like they did in Afghanistan? - What makes you think the dictator is not playing you in order to be able to go on being a dictator which is what his father raised him to be.

[John2]

8. Well, maybe

it is because I not only have numerous years of military experience, but a Degree majoring in Political Science and History.

As far as my experience in the military, I can sense when somebody is lying. The numbers don't add up for the Syrian Observatory. When I was in the military, we did After Action reports, documenting everything that occurs in a conflict. The Syrian Army has been giving After Action Reports, which have been checked out by other sources.

The rebels, gangs or terrorists have not been giving these detailed reports and I've found many discrepancies in their reports.

The Syrian Army has been giving detailed reports, which includes the number of rebels killed or captured and escaped, weapons or equipment destroyed or captured, and the results of the conflict. They have also given the exact names of the dead and captured. They were able to identify them from IDs off their bodies, which includes their nationalities.

They have given videos from captives, giving information about the rebels and have released some captives to parents, on conditions. Some of these parents were from Tunisia and Turkey. The rebels haven't shown any of their prisoners, because they kill them. Do you want to deny that? This can be very easily checked out by the parents of some captured rebels. There are a number of ex Syrian-Rebels, that have turned in their arms to the government also, and given amnesty. So that can easily be confirmed.

Furthermore, there is a French journalist, that was freed from the rebels, because the Syrian Government, allowed a 450 million dollar payment to the kidnappers. He revealed everything that happened to him, and described some atrocities the rebels commited involving Syrian civilians loyal to the regime. What do you think the rebels did to those people, including women and children?

Also, how many civilians, the Syrian Army has killed with car bombs? How many priests and journalists have the Syrian Army kidnapped now? How many political assasinations has the Syrian Army committed? This can all be verified. How many people have they killed in Iraq and Lebanon now? How many Kurdish civilians have the Syrian Army killed in this conflict? I guess you have not heard the latest rumors floating around on the Internet about their latest massacre of Kurds? The claim by some Security Council member, it was hundreds of Kurdish women and children.

I have not seen any videos of the Syrian Army cutting off Heads too, Al Qaeda style, by way of the Salafists. Just how many do you think died that way so far, or do you even think the rebels are capable of such things?

The rebels also claim, Assad's Forces are not losing because they are heavily supported by thousands of Hezbullah and Iranian foreign fighters. How many Hezbullah and Iranian fighters have they killed now? How many funerals have Hezbullah conducted now and how about Iran?

How many Syrian soldiers have they claimed been killed now and Shiba? How many Syrian Police Forces have been killed? So we are describing a military, with armored units, Jet fighters, and naval forces. How many villages and towns have the Syrian Army looted now?

Now lets look at this from the Past. Why do you think the Assad regime would treat the Brother Muslimhood in Syria even more favorably than his father? Where were these Gulf Sates and the West then? Where were they during the attack on Iraq? Also, why do you think Assad's regime was different than Egypt, when the military oppressed and jailed the Muslim Brotherhood? Where were the Gulf States, the West and Israel then or now? Do they want to enforce a No Fly Zone over Egypt now? Now to your Human Rights organizations. Just who exactly run them? What countries are they based in? Who exactly are their members and who financed them? Who is the head of the Syrian Observatory and are they members of any other Human Rights organizations? Is it true, the founder of the Syrian Observatory was once affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, goes by a false name, and has membership in another Human Rights organization?

[LanternWaste]

9. Many people pretend they can.

"I can sense when somebody is lying..."

Many people pretend they can. Some of them even believe it to be true.

(insert rationalization here)

[John2]

11. I know how to cross

check with other sources, including using my own experience. I don't take anybody's word or censor anything. Just what did you think I did in the military or those classes? These rebels are nothing more than loose bands of terrorists organizations. They are affiliated with the worst killers in the entire World. They are not only that, they are mostly paid killers. And the best kind are hardcore criminals. Just like in Benghazi. You want to contradict that, with a straight face? You are going to tell us, the Saudi, Qatar and Muslim Brotherhood are the most honest people in the World? Their only idol is power and money, which fits right in with the Top percent.Just who do you think the Head of the SNC anwers to? Where do you think he is from? Maybe it is the same monarch, trying to pay off Putin now with his money?

I know when somebody is full of shit when I see it. I'm here to say, they are full of shit, just like with Iraq, Benghazi, the IRS, and the NSA revelations. Just like they were full of shit, claiming both Iran and Iraq used chemical weapons. They were the same corrupt Gulf States and their Western Allies then, with their Human Rights and Intelligence reports. We know that was a big lie now, when they decided to get rid of their dog Saddam turned on them. It is the same old story. The BlueDog coalition can kiss my you know what. They are just as corrupt as the neocons with their lies. I'm not one of the sheep you know. So what is the next step? A Diagnosis of being crazy? That is how it works right? So just what makes you think, what I claim is not true?

[pampango]

10. "...how many civilians, the Syrian Army has killed with car bombs?" How many has Assad killed with

aerial bombing, tank shelling, etc. Are you claiming that getting killed by a car bomb is somehow worse than getting killed by a bomb on your neighborhood by a jet?

None of the human rights organizations deny that the rebels have committed war crimes. They just state that the Assad regime has committed the 'vast majority' of them. While the SOHR details these crimes committed by rebels, no one from the government ever seems to get around to acknowledging the regime's war crimes. Which side's reporting is more objective?

As far as my experience in the military, I can sense when somebody is lying.

Now to your Human Rights organizations. Just who exactly run them? What countries are they based in? Who exactly are their members and who financed them? Who is the head of the Syrian Observatory and are they members of any other Human Rights organizations?

Obviously you think Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the Center for American Progress and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights are all lying all the time about Syria. (Your experience in the military has given you the ability to determine this.)

You probably think all the human rights organizations are all controlled by Jews or neocons, despite the fact that their reports are objective and are critical of the American government and the Obama administration as often as they do any other government. You must not know anything about them if you want to throw them all under the bus just because you disagree with them on one issue. You seem to be comfortable relying on the Syrian Army and the state news agency, SANA, for your news.

[John2]

12. No, they don't.

They claim the Terrorists, they are fighting have committed crimes. The Terrorists and rebels are one and the same. So you are going to sit here with a straight face, and claim the FSA has 80,000 soldiers, yet they can't even control a few Terrorists, much less the entire Syrian Army? Who are you trying to fool? You got a lot of balls, when the Top General of the Syrian Arab Army is a Sunni. What did vice President Biden say to wannabe Ryan now?

It is not just SANA. It includes the Russian News Media. The sources out of Iraq and Lebanon. The sources out of Tunisia, Algeria and Belgium. Even some sources out of Egypt from the opposition. It has been some Palestinian sources and Kurdish. It has been independent civilian sources within syria, that suffered from these atrocities. People that have died and been kidnapped by these rebels. You even ignored the information coming from a French journalist released. It leaves me to think, you are part of one of these organizations, push for regime change. If what you say is true, then why aren't they calling for regime change and a resolution in the U.N. Do you even understand who controls the UN? Which countries have the most influence? Do you even understand what Aid is used for? I think you probably do.

[Cooley Hurd]

13. Kicking and reccing...

Such a fucking tragedy...

[David__77]

14. It would have to be 6,200 to make a strategic difference.

And the way forward is for Syria's friends to escalate intelligence support to enable the restoration of security to the country. Terrorism has to be snuffed out in Syria one way or the other. These terrorist radicals being trained in Syria will endanger US citizens in the future if Syria fails to defeat them.