JUST when you thought President Obama’s situation couldn’t get any worse, from Moscow comes news of FSB, Federal Security Service, detaining an alleged American spy trying to recruit a Russian intelligence officer. The scandal erupts just before the upcoming international conference on Syria. “It clearly will have an effect on the talks. I don’t think [...]
Tag Archives | Syria
Syrian Rebels Accused of Using Sarin Gas
“This was use on the part of the opposition, the rebels, not by the government authorities,” she added, speaking in Italian. [Reuters] WHATEVER “bind” President Obama was wrongly judged to be in over his “red line” comments on chemical weapons has quickly subsided with the news about the Syrian rebels. U.N. inspectors revealing that anti-Assad [...]
Syria: Israeli Airstrikes “Declaration of War”
*UPDATED BELOW* WHAT’S escalating this weekend with Israeli airstrikes inside Syria started with the announcement from Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel that chemical weapons had been used by Bashar Assad, though the Administration didn’t have specifics. The Israeli airstrikes led Syria to make provocative statements on Sunday. In an exclusive interview with CNN hours after [...]
Israel Launches Airstrikes Inside Syria *Update – Video*
Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Israeli warplanes launched airstrikes against targets inside Syria on Friday, U.S. officials told NBC News. It’s believed the primary target was a shipment of weapons headed for Hezbollah in Lebanon, they said. A senior U.S. official said the airstrikes were believed to be [...]
What Should Obama Do About Syria?
IN ALL the ramped up rhetoric over Syria, the question is not just what should Obama do about it, but also how much support does he have in the American public to launch military action? Eli Lake has a post up today that will give you pause. A recent New York Times/CBS poll presents real [...]
Obama on Syria, Alleged Benghazi Whistle-Blowers, Gitmo [Transcript] *Updated*
TODAY in his news conference Syria was the subject of the first question. President Obama restated that President Bashar Assad’s possible use of chemical weapons is an international community position that shouldn’t surprise anyone. Obama then stated that what isn’t known is how the chemical weapons were used and what exactly happened, with a “clear [...]
Hagel: U.S. Believes Bashar Assad Used Sarin Gas
The United States now believes “with varying degrees of confidence” that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons against its people, according to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and the White House. Hagel, speaking to reporters in Abu Dhabi, also said the U.S. government believes “any use of chemical weapons in Syria very likely originated” with [...]
Obama in the Middle East, aka “Operation Desert Schmooze” [Photobomb - Video]
… Any serious analysis of Obama’s policies must begin with his pragmatism. That’s how he functioned throughout his political career, and especially over the last four years. Despite his vision of change, he is a realist to the core. He sounds like an idealist but leads pragmatically. [...] Be that as it may, Obama’s visit [...]
Top Story — Netanyahu and Obama Agree, Israel’s Right to Self-Defense is Sacrosanct, Meets with Abbas *Updates*
“Netanyahu has been able to get a bump every time he says no to the president. When he upbraided him in the Oval Office, he got a 10 percent rise in the Israeli public opinion. That is unheard of,” said Martin Indyk, Bill Clinton’s ambassador to Israel, during a roundtable discussion in Washington last week. [...]
Showtime’s Dick Cheney Doc Reveals What Obama and Hillary Clinton Did in Resurrecting America’s Foreign Policy Brand
“If you’re a man of principle, compromise is a bit of a dirty word. The President made the decision that he wanted to avoid major controversy. It was his call, so that’s what we did.” – Dick Cheney on George W. Bush’s decision to reverse himself on warrantless wiretaps when he finds out what Cheney [...]
News Desk: Kerry Pledges $60 Million Non-military U.S. Aid for Syrian Rebels
Kerry, after the talks in Rome, said Washington would more than double its aid to the Syrian civilian opposition, giving it an extra $60 million to help provide food, sanitation and medical care to devastated communities. The United States would now “extend food and medical supplies to the opposition, including to the Syrian opposition’s Supreme [...]
Israel Warplanes Strike Inside Syria [Video]
Watch Israeli Warplanes Strike Weapons Convoy in Syria on PBS. See more from PBS NewsHour. THE PBS News Hour report with Margaret Warner above will give you the best idea of what happened. There has been analysis, including some quoted at the Council of Foreign Relations, that Assad falling would make things more difficult for [...]
John Kerry, President Obama’s Easy Nomination
“Over these many years, John’s earned the respect and confidence of leaders around the world. He is not going to need a lot of on-the-job-training,” President Barack Obama said when he nominated Kerry last month. “I think it is fair to say that few individuals know as many presidents and prime ministers or grasp our [...]
News Desk: Follow Up to Report on Alleged Syrian Chemical Weapons Use
THE REPORT originally came from Foreign Policy’s Josh Rogin, who wrote that a “compelling case” included evidence that Bashar al-Assad had deployed chemical weapons in his fight with rebels. FP has obtained the text of the original cable. A snippet from Rogin: “CSO officers spoke with three contacts, including a former Chief of Staff of [...]
News Desk: Richard Engel and Crew Released After Capture in Syria
ON MONDAY, a flurry of tweets and posts started popping up after a Turkish news report revealed NBC’s chief foreign correspondent had been captured inside Syria. Gawker led the way with blasting it out, but it was also picked up by Breitbart and a diarist at DailyKos, which eventually deleted the post. Tweets were re-tweeted [...]
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