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Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu says Ankara supports supplying arms to rebels in Syria fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
Davutoglu claimed that the “international community’s message might be conveyed to the Syrian administration via certain methods including the arming of the Syrian National Council (SNC).”
The Turkish foreign minister made the remarks in a press conference with Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi in Istanbul on Saturday.
“If necessary, a transition similar to the Yemen model is worth discussion,” Davutoglu added.
The latest remarks by the Turkish foreign minister come a couple of days after Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani said on February 27 that the “international community” should provide arms to the Syrian rebels and that “Arab countries should take the lead in providing a safe haven for rebels inside Syria.”
Saudi Arabia has also voiced support for the rebels in Syria.
President Assad said on February 20 that “some foreign countries” are fueling the year-long turmoil in Syria by supporting and funding “armed terrorist groups fighting against the government.”
Statements from Western leaders on Syria have grown harsh, if not menacing, as criticisms of the Bashar Assad government are unleashed and regime change becomes a common theme.
The fury and thirst for blood can be heard around the world as Washington and Brussels make their views known on how the conflict in Syria should be resolved. The noose began tightening around Damascus after reports emerged in the previous week that several foreign journalists were killed and injured in a siege of the rebel stronghold Homs. And now, Western officials are taking advantage of the incident as an excuse for openly calling for the removal of Assad and his government. The new labels for the country’s president and his regime are growing creative in their severity.
‘Medieval barbarity’ condemned from the UK
Responsibility for the “medieval barbarity” in Syria lies solely with the country’s leadership, UK Prime Minister David Cameron said at the end of an EU summit in Brussels.
“We will make sure … that there is a day of reckoning for those who are responsible. I have a clear message for those in authority in Syria: make a choice, turn your back on this criminal regime or face justice for the blood that is on your hands,” he said.
Britain is now demanding that Assad face a war crimes tribunal for what Cameron describes as “butchering his own people.”
“It is very important that we set out the war crimes that effectively are being committed, that we write them down, we take the photographic evidence, we bring it together and … make sure that the day of reckoning will come,” he said.
London is withdrawing its entire diplomatic staff from the troubled country, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Thursday.
France wants ‘dictators to pay’
As the two French journalists Edith Bouvier and William Daniels, who were evacuated from the embattled city of Homs, arrived at an airport near Paris, French President Nicolas Sarkozy asserted that “dictators anywhere in the world should know that they will have to account for their crimes.”
“The crimes that they have committed will not go unpunished,” Sarkozy is quoted as saying by Al Arabiya.
He backed his rhetoric with the announcement that France is to close its embassy in Damascus.
‘Assad’s days numbered,’ Obama warns
The US is obviously not the country to avoid inflammatory comments on the issue. President Barack Obama stated in an interview with the Atlantic Monthly published on Friday that the Syrian president’s “days are numbered,” and said that the US was working to accelerate the transition to what it calls democracy for the country.
“It is our estimation that [Assad’s] days are numbered – it’s a matter not of if, but when,” Obama added.
“Now, can we accelerate that? We’re working with the world community to try to do that,” he said.
Obama did not hesitate to openly compare the situation in Syria to that in Libya some time ago, saying that the country is more sophisticated and more complicated than Libya – while regretting that “countries like Russia are blocking UN action.”
Regime change was the objective in two separate resolutions presented to the UN Security Council, both vetoed by Russia and China, who believe the international community cannot simply push out governments. Moscow and Beijing maintain that the Syrian people must decide what is to take place in their country, and support initiatives that would have both the government and the opposition agree to a ceasefire.
Obama noted that US is trying through the “Friends of the Syrian People” group to promote humanitarian relief to cities under attack from Syrian government forces.
“But they can also accelerate a transition to a peaceful and stable and representative Syrian government,” he added.
Earlier in the week, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told a Congressional committee that Assad could be classified as a war criminal, while France suggested Assad be referred to the International Criminal Court at The Hague.
Assad bad, rebels good?
Western leaders are classifying the Syrian conflict in more black-and-white terms every day, with Assad consistently on the dark side. But while Brussels and Washington condemn the Assad government, eyewitnesses from Homs tell chilling stories of atrocities committed by opposition fighters, who kidnap and kill anyone they choose.
The Free Syrian Army blocked passage to Red Cross and Red Crescent ambulances, delaying evacuation from humanitarian disaster areas like the one in Baba Amr, a district of Homs. Further, on several instances when aid did reach its destination, there was no guarantee the people, who needed it, would receive it.
Thus, on Tuesday, a Russian helicopter flew into a neutral area to pick up Edith Bouvier, a French journalist wounded in the shelling of Homs on February 22. She was meant to be transported to France or Lebanon, but failed to appear, said Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Thursday.
“She was in the area controlled by the rebels. They could carry her out to the helicopter. But she never came. Or were the rebels holding her?” added Putin.
Nothing changed after two attempts by Red Crescent ambulances.
Bouvier and another injured reporter, William Daniels, finally reached Paris on Friday night. But as far as the official powers are concerned, there was no reason for the wounded journalists to spend so much time in the devastated city.
As the recent death toll in Syria's year-long uprising has leapt over 7,500 people, a growing number of voices are saying the atrocities carried out by the opposition can no longer be ignored.
“There is a growing recognition that some of the fundamentalist Islamic groups, who probably make up about 30 per cent of the armed insurgents, are guilty of as much brutality as the Syrian army,” Aisling Byrne, a project coordinator at the Conflicts Forum, told RT. “It is a guerrilla war. This is not a fight for democracy, but a fight to introduce a hardline Sunni regime.”
The Pentagon has prepared “detailed plans” for a military strike against Syria in case President Barack Obama issues an attack order.
According to an unnamed senior US official, the plans include several different kinds of operations, number of personnel as well as the type of military equipment needed, CNN reported.
“There are lots of ideas floating around,” the official said, adding that “People are teeing up to options.”
The revelation comes as several high-ranking US officials have in recent weeks voiced their support to put pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to give up power, including providing increased assistance to the armed groups fighting Syria’s government.
“If we can't get Assad to yield to the pressure that we are all bringing to bear, we may have to consider additional measures,” said US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said, without elaborating what those measures could be.
Meanwhile, US Senator John McCain called on the international community in mid-February, to help provide military equipment to the armed gangs in Syria.
"There are ways to get weapons to people who are fighting against this kind of oppression, we showed that in Libya," McCain told reporters on a visit to al-Qods (Jerusalem).
On Tuesday, a defected military officer who refused to be named told reporters in the western Syrian city of Al-Qusayr that the armed groups were receiving military equipment from both France and the US.
"We now have weapons and anti-aircraft missiles and… we will defeat Bashar [al-Assad]," the general said.
Assad had on February 20 said that a number of foreign countries were fueling unrest in Syria by supporting and funding the armed terrorist groups fighting against the government. He also said that they were blocking the attempts made by Damascus to end the month-long unrest in the country as well as preventing it from treading the patch of reforms.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. Damascus blames “outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups” for the unrest, asserting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
Syrian army has taken full control of a key terrorist stronghold in the central city of Homs after more than three weeks of clashes, forcing the anti-government forces to pull out of the area.
Officials said the soldiers took control of the Baba Amr district of Homs on Thursday after they defeated the last pockets of armed gangs in the neighborhood and forced them to flee the area.
The main anti-government group, the Free Syrian Army confirmed the news, but claimed to have pulled out of the district in a "tactical" move.
The takeover comes two days after the Syrian armed gangs admitted that they have received weapons from the United States and France.
Earlier a number of Western and Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia and Qatar, had supported the idea of sending weapons and financial aid to armed groups in Syria, who have been fighting against the government since March last year.
The move came despite efforts made by the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad government for implementing reforms with the aim of ending unrest which has been plaguing the country for several months.
The Syrian government has recently endorsed a new draft constitution that was approved by nearly 90 percent of eligible voters in a Sunday referendum.
The new constitution excludes Article 8, which declared the ruling Baath Party as the “leader of the state and society,” and also establishes a multiparty system in Syria and limits the presidential term to two seven-year periods.
Despite Western and Arab pressure on Assad's government to step down, Russia has continued calling for the resolution of Syrian crisis through dialogue.
At a meeting of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Tuesday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov reaffirmed that Russian diplomacy has been working and will continue to work to resolve the Syrian crisis.
"Today it is clear that aims to instill democracy through force are doomed to disaster and achieve the opposite. What is important today is that we do not allow for a full scale civil war in Syria," Galitov said.
Israel is reportedly preparing the grounds for military meddling in Syria by creating chaos in the southwestern Syrian province of Quneitra, bordering the occupied territories.
Informed sources say Tel Aviv is making efforts to create an insecure and tense atmosphere in the Syrian border province of Quneitra in order to pave the way for the presence of UN observers there which will then be followed by Israeli forces.
The move comes after the failure of Western-backed attempts to create buffer zones along Syria’s border with Turkey and Lebanon.
According to informed sources, Quneitra’s residents are receiving phone calls and SMS from unknown parties, urging them to hold anti-government protest rallies and cause unrest in the border town. Sources also said unknown groups of people have entered the province in recent days, apparently for committing acts of violence in the region.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak's recent call for the establishment of tents along the Syrian-Israeli border for the Syrian refugees fleeing violence in their country, is believed to be part of Tel Aviv's new anti-Syria plot.
Israel openly supports armed groups fighting against the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, arguing that it would break the Iran-Syria nexus of resistance against Tel Aviv.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. The violence has claimed the lives of hundreds, including security forces.
While the opposition blames the Assad government, Damascus blames ‘outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups’ for the unrest, asserting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
Syria condemns Qatari and Saudi Arabian calls for arming terrorist groups fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad as a hostile bid aimed at fueling unrest in the country.
Syrian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Jihad Maqdisi said on Wednesday that by arming anti-government terrorists in Syria the Kingdom and Qatar are only worsening the situation in Syria and therefore more people will be killed.
He also held those countries funding and arming terrorist groups in Syria responsible for the months of deadly violence in the country.
"The Syrian response to such calls was reserved. We would like the brothers in Qatar and Saudi Arabia or whomsoever to contribute to getting the opposition figures to act rationally and come to the dialogue table, and not to arming the opposition and shedding the Syrian blood, for which they are fully responsible as they are consciously shedding it," Maqdisi told a news conference in the capital, Damascus.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar have recently said that they support the idea of sending weapons to anti-government groups, who have been fighting against the Syrian government since last year.
Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Araby has said that arming Syrian rebels might be a possible alternative if the international community fails to end the violence in the country.
Maqdisi also said that Damascus is committed to helping evacuate the Western journalists trapped in the restive city of Homs, blaming rebel refusal to cooperate with the Red Crescent for the delay in their transfer.
"We entrusted the Red Crescent, in cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross, to negotiate (the evacuation) but the gunmen refused to hand over the bodies and the journalists," the Foreign Ministry Spokesman said
Almost 90 percent of Syrian voters have said 'yes' to the country’s new constitution, says Interior Minister Mohammad Ibrahim al-Shaar.
According to the Syrian minister, nearly 60 percent of eligible voters took part in the referendum on Sunday, with 7,490,319 (89.4 percent) supporting it and 753,208 (9 percent) saying "No."
The new constitution will end five decades of Ba'ath party rule by allowing political pluralism, it will also enact a presidential limit of two seven-year terms.
Article 23 of the new constitution guarantees the women’s rights to participate in the social, economic, and political activities, while Article 42 states that citizens have the right to express their thoughts freely and to hold peaceful demonstrations.
Damascus has pledged multi-party parliamentary elections within three months.
The new constitution is part of the reforms plans promised by President Bashar al-Assad.
The referendum came after a year of deadly violence in the country.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. The violence has claimed the lives of hundreds, reportedly including over 2,000 security forces.
Damascus blames ‘outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups’ for the unrest, asserting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (L) meets with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, Tunis, February 24, 2012.
Saudi Arabia has said that arming the Syrian rebels is “an excellent idea,” following remarks by US President Barack Obama vowing to use every tool available against Damascus.
"I think it's an excellent idea... because they have to protect themselves," Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal said before a meeting with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the sidelines of a conference on Syria in Tunisia.
The pro-opposition so-called Friends of Syria conference organized by a number of Western countries and the Arab League kicked off in Tunisia on Friday to discuss the Syrian unrest.
Faisal’s remarks could yet be seen as another signal of Riyadh's intervention in a foreign country after it sent hundreds of troops to neighboring Bahrain to crush peaceful protests there.
Clinton also threatened Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with a "heavy cost" if he refuses to resign.
Meanwhile, Obama has threatened to mount pressure on the Syrian government.
"We're going to continue to keep the pressure up and look for every tool available” to put pressure on Syrian government, Obama told reporters in Washington.
Pro-Israeli US Republican presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich have also called for arming the Syrian opposition with the help of Turkey and Saudi Arabia.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. Damascus blames ‘outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups’ for the unrest, asserting that it is being orchestrated from abroad. The West and the Syrian opposition, however, accuse the Syrian government of killing the protesters.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has accused Russia and China of supporting the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for commercial reasons.
"The pressure will build on countries like Russia and China because world opinion is not going to stand idly by," Clinton told reporters in London on Thursday.
Referring directly to Moscow and Beijing, she added, "Arab opinion is not going to be satisfied watching two nations, one for commercial reasons one for commercial and ideological reasons, bolstering a regime that is defying every rule of modern international norms."
Earlier in February, the two countries vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution on Syria, which called on Assad to resign and hand over the power to opposition leaders.
The two had also vetoed a similar resolution against Syria in October.
"There will be increasingly capable opposition forces. They will from somewhere, somehow, find the means to defend themselves as well as begin offensive measures," Clinton said.
She also said confidently that she would bet against the Syrian president. "If I were a betting person for the medium term and certainly the long term, I would be betting against Assad."
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. Hundreds of people, including many Syrian security forces, have been killed in the course of the turmoil.
Damascus blames ‘outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups’ for the unrest, asserting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
The West and the Syrian opposition, however, accuse the government of killing protesters.
Moscow has asserted that the unrest should be resolved through negotiation between Damascus and the Syrian opposition. Beijing has also declared that it maintains an unbiased position on the situation in Syria and is trying to resolve the issue through dialog with all the involved parties.
However, more than 70 nations and international groups are expected to gather in the Tunisian capital Tunis on Friday to discuss arming the opposition in the Arab state.
Turkey has announced that it will purchase 100 Lockheed Martin F-35 jet fighters from the United States at a cost of $16 billion while two of the planes have been initially ordered for delivery in 2015.
In a written statement in response to a parliamentary question from a member of Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz announced that the ministry is not currently considering cancellation of the purchase, Today’s Zaman reported on Thursday.
Turkey announced in March 2011 that the planned purchase of jet fighters from the US was suspended as the Pentagon refused to share the source code used in the aircraft software, and codes for external activation of planes.
The 16-billion-dollar purchase is part of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Program (JSF), an international development and acquisition program intended to replace a wide range of existing fighter, strike, and ground attack aircraft in the US, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and their allies.
The hi-tech jet fighters, manufactured by the US Lockheed Martin Company, are reportedly the Pentagon's most expensive weapons program ever.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei says his country will not participate in so-called 'Friends of Syria' conference, which is expected to gather several western nations and international groups in Tunisia.
Hong said China is not prepared to attend the conference as it needs to further study the aim, effect and mechanism of the conference, and has no idea of the preparations of the meeting.
He added that China is a friend of the Syrian and Arab nations.
“China supports all efforts that are conducive to peacefully and properly resolving the Syrian issue," Hong said.
The senior Chinese official pointed out that China hopes to work with all concerned parties to play a positive and constructive role in the process of settling the Syrian crisis.
China believes that any action taken by the international community should help end tensions, boost political dialogues, resolve differences and maintain peace and stability in the Middle East, Hong said.
'Friends of Syria' conference is to be held in the Tunisian capital Tunis on Friday.
Meanwhile, Russia has announced that it would not take part in the conference.
Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov on February 22 described the absence of Syrian officials at the 'Friends of Syria' conference as a big blunder by its organizers.
“Concerning the meeting, we have several questions, especially the composition of invitees. We paid the attention to the fact that there are no representatives of the Syrian government among them. In short, the organizers are planning to discuss issues related to Syria’s serious crisis without the involvement of one of its main players, the Syrian authorities,” Gatilov said.
“Secondly, on the eve of the meeting, the Western and Arab countries are supposed to meet separately. Supposedly, they will determine the character of discussion at the meeting in Tunisia and even will draft a final document. Russia believes that such an approach is completely unacceptable," he noted.
“We consider it is incorrect to adopt or draft documents on such an important issue without the involvement of key players of the Syrian crisis. Consequently, we consider that it’s impossible for Russia to take part in the meeting in Tunisia. We have informed our decision to its organizers,” Gatilov concluded.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March last year.
While the West and the Syrian opposition accuse the government of the killings, Damascus blames ''outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups'' for the unrest that erupted in mid-March, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
In interviews with Israeli news outlets over the past few months, the Syrian armed rebels have clearly expressed their vision for the future of Syria and their interest in establishing relations with the Tel Aviv regime.
However, Syrian people have repeatedly expressed solidarity with the government.
The United States has once again said it will consider military assistance to armed groups fighting the Syrian government in an effort to put pressure on President Bashar al-Assad to give up power.
US officials say “additional measures” might have to be considered if the Syrian president does not step down.
“If we can't get Assad to yield to the pressure that we are all bringing to bear, we may have to consider additional measures,” said US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland, but she declined to elaborate on what those measures might be.
In recent days, US officials have increasingly spoken out against Damascus and some US politicians have called for arming the Syrian opposition.
On Monday, senior US Senator John McCain said it is time for the international community to provide increased assistance to the Syrian opposition.
"There are ways to get weapons to people who are fighting against this kind of oppression, we showed that in Libya," McCain told reporters on a visit to al-Qods (Jerusalem).
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has also pledged to talk Russia and China into changing their positions on Syria.
President Assad said on Monday that some foreign countries are fueling unrest in Syria by supporting and funding armed terrorist groups fighting against the government. He said that they are blocking attempts to end months of unrest in the country and preventing it from treading the path of reforms.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. Many people, including security forces, have been killed in the unrest. Damascus blames “outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups” for the unrest, asserting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
Russia and Lebanon have announced they will boycott a meeting of the so-called “Friends of Syria” group in Tunisia scheduled to be held on February 24, Press TV reports.
Lebanese Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour said on Tuesday the decision not to participate in the meeting was in line with the decision to “dissociate Lebanon from the developments in Syria,” a Press TV correspondent reported.
Meanwhile, the Russian foreign ministry issued a statement on Tuesday saying the meeting in Tunis followed the “purpose of supporting one side against another in an internal conflict.”
“We cannot accept the offer to attend this meeting,” the Russian statement added.
Tunisian Foreign Minister Rafik Ben Abdessalam said on February 12 that Tunis would host the meeting, which was proposed by France and the United States.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011, with demonstrations being held both against and in favor of President Bashar al-Assad.
The Syrian president accused certain states of blocking attempts to end the unrest in Syria during a meeting with Russian Chairman of the State Duma International Affairs Committee Alexei Pushkov on February 20. Assad said “some foreign countries” are fueling the turmoil in Syria by supporting and funding “armed terrorist groups fighting against the government.”
On February 16, the United Nations General Assembly approved a non-binding resolution, introduced by Egypt, which supports an Arab League plan concerning the unrest in Syria.
Syrian Ambassador to the UN Bashar Jaafari said after the UN vote that the resolution “would only lead to a tightening of the crisis and more violence in the region as a whole.”
Jaafari added that the United Nations was in danger of being used by “some member states” as a means of providing cover for “armed terrorist groups” in Syria.
The Israeli regime has publicized its worries about the presence of two Iranian naval ships at the Syrian port of Tartus, declaring that the ships would be watched “very closely” in case they come near its waters.
“If the boats come near our territorial waters, we will monitor them very closely," Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said on Sunday.
Two Iranian Navy ships docked at the Syrian port of Tartus on Saturday to provide maritime training to naval forces of Syria under an agreement signed between Tehran and Damascus a year ago.
The Iranian fleet, consisting of a destroyer and a supply ship, arrived at the port, situated 220 kilometers (136 miles) northwest of the Syrian capital of Damascus on Friday, upon obtaining authorization from the Egyptian armed forces a day earlier to sail along the Suez Canal into the Mediterranean Sea on their way to the Syrian coastal waters.
Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said Sunday night that the presence of Iranian warships in the international waters is reflective of the Islamic Republic’s naval might.
Brigadier General Vahidi pointed out that such overseas presence was within Iran's rights, adding that the Iranian Navy’s missions abroad were based on policies aimed at enhancing Iran's naval capabilities and readiness.
On Saturday, Iran's Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said that the country’s 18th fleet had sailed through Egypt’s Suez Canal into the Mediterranean Sea.
This was the second time that an Iranian naval fleet passed through the waterway since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
The Suez Canal cuts through Egypt and allows shipping to pass from the Middle East to Europe and vice versa without sailing around the southern tip of Africa.
Two Republican US senators have called on the administration of the country’s President Barack Obama to multiply its efforts to oust the Syrian regime by arming the Middle Eastern country’s opposition.
Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, who both serve on Senate Armed Services Committee, made the appeal on Sunday.
“I believe there are ways to get weapons to the opposition without direct United States involvement,” McCain said.
“So I am not only not opposed, but I am in favor of weapons being obtained by the opposition,” he added.
The senator further explained that the US government could equip the Syrian opposition through ‘third-world countries’ and the Arab League (AL).
Graham said, “If the Syrian regime is replaced with another form of government…the world is a better place.”
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. The violence has claimed the lives of hundreds, reportedly including over 2,000 security forces.
Damascus blames ‘outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups’ for the unrest, asserting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
The West and the Syrian opposition, however, accuse the government of killing protesters.
The senators’ comments come a day after media reports showed that ‘a good number’ of US military and intelligence drones are operating in the airspace over Syria.
Graham also said that Washington had to continue pressuring Russia and China to make them change their stances towards Damascus.
Earlier in February, China and Russia vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution on the country, which called on Assad to resign and hand over power to opposition leaders.
The two countries had also vetoed a similar resolution against Syria in October.
A senior Iranian lawmaker says the presence of Iranian and Russian naval forces in Syria’s coastal waters is a clear warning to the US to refrain from any possible military adventurism.
“The United States should take Iran's warning about [refraining from any possible] military intervention in Syria seriously,” Hossein Ebrahimi, deputy chairman of Iran Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said Sunday.
He added that in the event of a US strategic mistake in Syria, Washington may receive a crushing response from Iran, Syria and a few other countries.
On Sunday, January 8, a large Russian navy flotilla led by an aircraft carrier arrived at the Syrian port of Tartus in the Mediterranean Sea for a six-day port call, to show Moscow's solidarity with Damascus.
"The port call is aimed at bringing the two countries closer together and strengthening their ties of friendship," the official SANA news agency quoted a Russian naval officer Yakushin Vladimir Anatolievich as saying.
Two Iranian Navy ships also docked in the Syrian port of Tartus on Friday, February 17, to train Syrian naval forces under an agreement signed between Tehran and Damascus one year ago.
“Syrians are against any form of foreign intervention in their country, but the United States by arming opposition groups is trying to harm the [anti-Israeli] axis of resistance in the region [in order to] affect Islamic Awakening in regional countries,” Ebrahimi added.
The lawmaker went on to say that the recent dispatch of a number of unmanned military and intelligence drones for operations in Syrian skies by the US military will only result in more solidarity among the Syrians.
NBC News quoted unnamed US defense officials as saying on February 18 that US drones are monitoring “the Syrian military attacks against opposition forces and civilians.”
Syria has been the scene of unrest since mid-March, 2011, with demonstrations being held both against and in support of President Bashar al-Assad's government.
The West and the Syrian opposition accuse the government of killing protesters. But Damascus blames ''outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups'' for the unrest, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
Supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have held a demonstration in the southern Turkish city of Antakya near the border with Syria, Press TV reports.
Hundreds of Syrians demonstrated in support of President Assad on Sunday and condemned international attempts against the Syrian government.
Demonstrators also chanted the name of the Syrian president and urged him to resist foreign pressures against Damascus.
The demonstration in Antakya comes as the United Nations General Assembly approved a non-binding resolution, introduced by Egypt, which supports an Arab League plan concerning the unrest in Syria on February 16.
Syrian Ambassador to the UN Bashar Jaafari said after the UN vote that the resolution “would only lead to a tightening of the crisis and more violence in the region as a whole.”
Jaafari added that the United Nations was in danger of being used by “some member states” as a means of providing cover for “armed terrorist groups” in Syria.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011, with demonstrations being held both against and in favor of President Assad.
The West and the opposition accuse the government of being behind the months-long unrest, but Damascus says “outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups” are responsible for the turmoil, which it says has been orchestrated from abroad.
File photo of former Saudi Ambassador to the United States Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud (L) and former US Ambassador to Lebanon Jeffrey Feltman
The former Saudi ambassador to the United States and the former US ambassador to Lebanon devised a plot in 2008 to overthrow the Syrian government, reports say.
Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud and Jeffrey Feltman reportedly devised a “well-organized” plan to create chaos in Syria.
The plot against Syria was backed by a financial support worth about “2 billion” dollars, the reports said.
According to the Saudi-US scheme, Syria was divided into three areas, “big cities, small cities and villages.” Five types of networks were also defined in the country in line with the aims of the anti-Syria plot.
The first network was named the “Fuel” comprising “educated and unemployed youths.”
The “Thugs” network was the second group which included “outlaws and criminals from remote areas, preferably non-Syrians.”
The third network was the “Ethnic-Sectarian” group consisting of “young people with limited education representing ethnic communities that support or oppose” the Syrian president.
The “Media” network was the fourth group that consisted of “some leaders of civil society institutions” that had “European funding.”
The last division was the “Capital” network comprising “traders, company owners, banks and commercial centers in the capital Damascus, the northwestern city of Aleppo and the western city of Homs.”
A senior political analyst says the oil-thirsty West is gearing up for a military intervention in Syria and a strike on Iran which would potentially trigger a nuclear world war.
“The multinational New World Order, led by the Anglo-American axis and Israel (spearheaded by the UN), are preparing a final conquest of the Middle East, Central Asia and Africa, with nuclear world war implications,” Larry Chin wrote on the Global Research website on Wednesday.
“Syria and Iran are being relentlessly destabilized. CIA operations have been continuous for months and years. Two nations are targeted to fall sequentially, as part of one agenda,” he added.
The prominent analyst argued that the rising oil prices pose a threat to the “petroleum-driven” world economy and the Western desire to quench this thirst has increased the likelihood of an attack on Syria and Iran.
“The empire is hell-bent on securing what is necessary to sustain its dying economic and industrial engine, regardless of how many lives are taken in the process,” Chin concluded.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March and many people have lost their lives in the violence.
The West and the Syrian opposition accuse the government of killing protesters. But Damascus blames “outlaws, saboteurs and armed terrorist groups” for the unrest, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.
Meanwhile, the United States, Israel, and some of their allies accuse Tehran of pursuing military objectives in its nuclear program, and have used this pretext to push for international and unilateral sanctions against Tehran.
Washington and Tel Aviv have also repeatedly threatened Tehran with the "option" of a military strike over its nuclear program.
Iran has refuted the allegations, arguing that as a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and member of the International Atomic Energy Agency, it has the right to use nuclear technology for peaceful use.
The Iranian ambassador to the UN has criticized the UN General Assembly resolution against Syria, arguing that it will not contribute to the restoration of peace and security in the country.
On the case of Syria, any attempt to interfere in the Syrian internal affairs would only lead to the deepening of political and social crises, Mohammad Khazaei told a UN General Assembly meeting late Thursday.
He said that the persistence of chaos in Syria will lead to instability in the Middle East, adding that mounting violence in the region will serve the interests of Israel, but harm the interests of Muslims and the Arab world.
At a time when all must work to come up with a comprehensive, effective and viable solution to end the Syria crisis peacefully, this resolution, in its present form, will not help us achieve that goal, Khazaei added.
The Iranian envoy said that the resolution would not work since it failed to take into consideration the real situation in the Middle East and in particular Syria.
He said that the resolution’s failure to tackle the issue of armed groups in Syria would result in the persistence of violence and terrorism in the country, and pointed out that it should be clarified which sources funnel weapons to armed groups in Syria.
The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday adopted an Arab League-sponsored resolution on Syria for what it calls the government's crackdown on opposition protests.
137 members of the UN voted in favor of the resolution while 12 members including Iran, Russia and China voted against the measure.
The non-binding resolution was drafted by the Arab League and backed by the United States and Britain.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. The government blames ''outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups'' for the violence, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad. The West and the opposition claim the government is behind the killings of protesters.
South Africa's Closing Argument Against Israel for Genocide at the ICJ
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