June 18th US raid into Syria killed 80

[indictrichardperle]

and penetrated 25 miles into Syria. False intel said "high ranking Iraqi officials, possibly including Saddam were crossing into Syria".
(actually they were SUVs smuggling propane)

Ex-CIA official says Israel was the source of the intel. Pat Lang from DIA states "certain officials in the pentagon want to depose Assad and force Syria to sign a peace agreement with Israel".


http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article4138.htm

[Nambe]

1. If this is true, war crime charges are in order.

Stop the carnage now.

[NYC]

2. This is horrifying.

Thanks for the info.

[JohnOneillsMemory]

3. But if the Viet Cong are hiding in Cambodia..

then surely ...oops...how embarassing...wrong war crime. Never mind.

[realFedUp]

4. Israeli intelligence

"Do we tend to over-rely on the Israelis? Probably, but you have to remember too that the CIA is permanently pissed by Israel and likes to discredit it," he said.
A former very senior CIA official told UPI: "Too often the Israeli intelligence product is hard to distinguish from Israel political messages."

The Times report said Task Force 20, supported by helicopters and AC-130 gunships, struck the convoy and a housing compound "in a village not far from the Syria border." Task Force 20 captured 20 Iraqis, all of whom were later released, the Times and other news reports said.
But one senior administration official told UPI the attack crossed "25 miles or more" into Syria, and the Pentagon had initial reports of 80 Syrians "who were KIA (killed in action)."

Cordesman said he believed this to be possible because "the fighting between our forces and the Syrians was extremely intense."
But instead of capturing any high-value Iraqi targets, the Task Force destroyed "a gas smuggling ring," a former senior U.S. intelligence official said. This official labeled the attack "a colossal blunder."

[Guaranteed]

5. Continuance of article

"I think this was a deliberate effort to disrupt cooperation between U.S. and Syrian intelligence agencies," an administration official said.

According to a report in The New York Times, administration officials said that attack, carried out by Task Force 20, a Special Operations force, was based on intelligence that a convoy of SUVs, heading for Syria, was linked to senior fugitive Iraqi leaders.

"The (intel) was that senior Iraqis, perhaps even (former Iraqi leader) Saddam Hussein were getting out of the country," a State Department official told United Press International.

The ensuing raid "was conducted under the rules of hot pursuit," an administration official told UPI on condition his name not be used.

In the same Times report, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, defended the attack, saying it was based on "solid intelligence."

"We had good intelligence, and it indicated that there were people moving around during their curfew close to the border in a convoy of SUV's and our forces went in and stopped them," the Times quoted Rumsfeld as saying.

But one administration official described the intelligence as "totally false," and a former CIA official labeled it "flimsy" and another former U.S. intelligence official called it "almost non-existent."

One former senior CIA official with access to current intelligence information said he believed the source of the intelligence was Israel, which for months has said either Saddam or weapons of mass destruction were being smuggled into Syria.

"The Izzies (Israelis) have been pitching this to anyone who would listen," the former CIA official said.

Chief Israeli Embassy spokesman, Mark Regev, said only: "I simply don't ever discuss such matters."

[Julien Sorel]

8. It's frightening that Americans think of Israel as an ally.

Allies are supposed to help each other, but this incident is one of many in which Israel has fed the U.S. false information to suit its own aims. In fact, I'm unaware of a single instance in history where the U.S. benefitted from its 'alliance' with Israel. Of course, the billions in aid and endless supply of UNSC vetoes continue to flow no matter what, anyway. Israel is somewhat less useful to the U.S. as an ally than a flea is to a dog.

[Zero Gravitas]

6. They Are CRAZY

These lunatics have no common sense. This is INSANE, we've got to get these people out of power ASAP. IF only impeachment was politicaly realistic, there is certainly ample grounds for it.

[Neutrino]

7. Not to mention the sheep. I guess that's too embarrassing

to admit. Great "intelligence". Or is it that Iraqi (or Syrian)
life just doesn't matter?

[Zero Gravitas]

9. no their lives don't matter

1) their families can't vote in US elections (assuming we will continue to have elections)
2) they don't give money to the RNC/"re"-elect Bush campaign
3) non-white
4) non-christian

4 strikes and they're dead.