Archive for March 4, 2012
Bigger than Stalingrad
I have written before that propaganda of the Syrian National Council and its affiliates is characterized with exaggerations, fabrications, rumors, lies, and falsehood with little truths sprinkled in between (and only sometimes.) I just heard a sp…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
Bigger than Stalingrad
I have written before that propaganda of the Syrian National Council and its affiliates is characterized with exaggerations, fabrications, rumors, lies, and falsehood with little truths sprinkled in between (and only sometimes.) I just heard a sp…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
Syrian opposition
Syrian opposition figure, Michel Kilo notes that Saudi and Qatari media ignored the formation of a new Syrian opposition grouping because it is opposed to foreign intervention in Syria.
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
Shimon Peres
I heard Shimon Peres (a war criminal at large) moralize about Iran at AIPAC conference. A very simple question: who has caused more deaths in their lives and careers? Peres or Ahmadejad?
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
University of Michigan
Here is information on the panel on Syria in which I am speaking at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
The two lousy sides
Today, downtown Beirut hosted two ugly parties: the pro-Saudi Salafites who claim to rally for the support of the Syrian people, while the minuscule Lebanese Ba`th Party (the pro-Syrian branch) rallies for the support of the Syrian regime. T…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
Photoshop propaganda in Saudi Arabia
Several readers noted that this image in the mouthpiece of Prince Salman, Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat (one of the worst examples of crude Saudi propaganda outlets), is not authentic: that it was photoshopped to show Syrian support of the lousy GCC governments.
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
the responsibility of the Syrian National Council and when Jeffrey Feltman pontificates
This lousy outfit is responsible for losing support among non-Syrian Arabs. The pronouncements and alliances of the Syrian National Council have clearly undermined Arab popular support and sympathy for the Syrian protest movement. Two weeks…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
You don’t see this in the mainstream press
“The line-up of foreign powers on the opposing sides is beginning to resemble the coalitions that destroyed Biafra 40 years ago. With the Assad regime are Russia, China, Iran, Iraq and Lebanon’s Hizbollah. The dissident factions are counting on the Uni…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
Unbelievable: the Bin Ladenite militias that were armed by Western governments are anti-Western
I mean, this is shocking really. So the Bin Ladenite militias that NATO armed and supported don’t like the West? Really? This is like informing me that the Afghan mujahidin in the 1980s were anti-Western. Were they? (thanks Ahmet)
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
The photographer reports
It is amazing how when Western governments develop a particular policy in the Middle East, all reporters (and photographers even) have to follow that policy. In the case of Egypt when the uprising was directed against a dictator favored by the US…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
"Bashshar Al-Asad rapes children"
My latest blog post for Al-Akhbar English: ” ‘Bashshar Al-Asad rapes Children’ “.
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
King Faysal propaganda
All propaganda about King Faysal is usually paid for by his sons. I know that. So there is a new documentary about him: it features Arabs and Americans who offer fawning tributes. But notice how the House of Saud is still holding a gr…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
a new batallion
The lousy Free Syrian Army today named a battalion after Husayn bin `Ali. I am sure that they did that to deflect from the bad press that followed the naming of Yazid Bin Mu`awiyah battalion. I am as impressed with this gesture as I am with…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
One state only
“Beyond appropriate legal regimes is a question of pragmatism. While two-state adherents emphasize the pragmatic nature of the two-state solution relative to the idealistic proponents of a single and democratic state, the facts on the ground demonstrat…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
Israel: the people enamored with war crimes–their own
“Only 19 percent of Israelis polled expressed support for an attack without U.S. backing, according to a poll I conducted — fielded by Israel’s Dahaf Institute Feb. 22-26 — while 42 percent endorsed a strike only if there is at least U.S. support…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
Israel in the US
“Israel features in the American presidential campaign as no other foreign country does, with the candidates vying for the sobriquet of “biggest Israel-lover” to the point where it often seems to be the main issue. Rich Jews like Sheldon Adelson donate…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
This is certainly NOT a revolution
Look at the banner in Idlib: saluting Qatar and Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. A movement that offers thanks and gratitude to the Kuwaiti and Qatari and Saudi dynasties is NO revolution. Count me out, please.
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
Tim Arango on sectarianism in the Syrian conflict
So Tim Arango wrote this in the New York Times days ago: ” Syria is drawing in sectarian forces from its neighbors, and threatening to spill its conflict into a wider conflagration.” It is the season. Correspondents and columnist…
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad
gendered analysis of Arab uprisings
“Arab regimes are not the only actors using sexed and gender violence to discredit protestors and revolutionaries in the Arab world. As the hysteria surrounding the sexual assault of Lara Logan revealed in the days when the United States was …
Posted on March 4, 2012 by As'ad