Freies Politikforum für Demokraten und Anarchisten

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

French journalist Nicolas Henin, once an ISIL captive, says the armed rebel group wanted "nothing more than to provoke an escalation" by carrying out a series of deadly attacks in Paris last Friday that killed at least 129 people.

In an interview with Al Jazeera on Tuesday, the reporter - who was held for 10 months and released in 2014 - added that France's recent air strikes following the attacks "are actually helping" the group's propaganda.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/11/isil-hostage-nicolasenin-151117172352361.html

Syrians in Raqqa tell of 'insane nights' of air strikes

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/11/syrians-insane-nights-french-bombing-151117052945111.html

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

This could just as well be the motto of the United States as one of the cardinal verses in the Torah. It should be stamped on Bibi Netanyahu’s forehead since he violates this precept virtually every day that he maintains prison camps for African refugees, who he refuses to grant asylum or even an application process. For those who take the passage to heart, it means be humble, remember the refugee, show kindness and hospitality to the less fortunate. The Republican presidential candidates apparently don’t read their Bibles. Or if they do, they’re reading the wrong passages.

The GOP is now making hay out of the Paris terror attacks. Each candidate falls all over himself to be more punitive, more intolerant than the next. 23 governors, including one Democrat, have said they will refuse to accept Syrian refugees within their states. This, despite the fact that governors have no say in immigration matters and may not expel legal refugees. That’s the job of the federal government. But don’t tell the governors that. It might educate them about the separate powers delegated to the states and federal government. A little something called the Constitution.

http://www.richardsilverstein.com/2015/11/18/remember-the-stranger-for-you-yourself-were-strangers/

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

Bassel Khartabil’s loved ones have been kept in the dark about his fate. Although the Palestinian software developer is believed to have been sentenced to death in Syria, this has not been officially confirmed. Some rumors suggest that the execution has already been carried out.

The lack of reliable information is proving extremely stressful for his wife, Noura Ghazi.

“I’m losing weight and my hair is falling out,” Ghazi said. “I don’t even know whether he’s alive or dead.”
https://electronicintifada.net/content/death-sentence-battling-syrias-censors/15040

Asad’s Officer Ghetto: Why the Syrian Army Remains Loyal

The Syrian army’s officer corps has remained intact despite the immense pressure of nearly four years of civil and military conflict, a fact that has prevented the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Asad’s regime. The military housing system is a crucial aspect of this cohesion: it reveals the world Syrian officers inhabit, their relations with the regime and wider Syrian society, and the reasons why so few have defected so far.
http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/23129/asad%E2%80%99s-officer-ghetto_why-the-syrian-army-remains-

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

A recently formed secular Kurdish-Arab alliance demanded on Sunday that the United Nations give it a seat at the table in upcoming Syria peace talks in Geneva.

"For us, it is very important that all components of the Syrian opposition have equal rights to participate in the future negotiations," said Haytham Mannaa, the co-head of the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC).

"We are ready to participate in any negotiation under the umbrella of [UN special envoy for Syria] Staffan De Mistura," he told AFP, as the organisation ended a two-day meeting in Geneva.

His comments came amid speculation over whether the new alliance would receive a seat at the table in the new round of UN-hosted Syria peace talks in Geneva set to start on 25 January.
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/secular-syrian-alliance-demands-seat-peace-talks-table-960148387

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

The leader of al Qaeda's Syrian wing tried unsuccessfully at a recent meeting to convince rival Islamist factions to merge into one unit, several insurgency sources have told Reuters.

Abu Mohamad al-Golani, head of the Nusra Front, even suggested he was willing to change the name of his group if the others, including the powerful Ahrar al-Sham organization, agreed to the deal, the sources said.

But he made clear that Nusra would not cut its ties with al Qaeda, and its allegiance would remain to Ayman al-Zawahri, who took over as leader after U.S. Navy SEALS killed Osama bin Laden in 2011.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-nusra-insight-idUSKCN0V729B

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZRLvbgaIHs

Homs destroyed: Russian drone footage shows devastation in Syria
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/fresh-drone-footage-gives-glimpse-devastation-syrias-homs-116177962

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

Nearly six years into Syria's civil war, lines between allies and enemies have become so blurred that in northern Syria Arabs are now fighting Arabs at the behest of Kurds.

In recent weeks, under the cover of both US and Russian jets, Syrian Kurds fighting with the YPG have managed to expand their control over much of the region.

As they have advanced into Marea and towards Azaz, the YPG has been joined by its allies in the 40,000-strong Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed militia that includes Christians, Druze, Turkmen, Assyrians as well as Sunni Arabs like Jaysh al-Thuwwar (JaT) and the al-Sanadid Forces.

Last May, JaT was founded as an amalgamation of Aleppo-based opposition groups fighting under the Free Syrian Army banner against President Bashar al-Assad's government and the Islamic State (IS).

Less than a year later – and to the confusion of observers who long for clear divisions in the conflict - JaT finds itself aligned with the YPG, a move the group says it was forced to make with the rise of militant groups like al-Nusra Front.
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/who-are-arab-allies-syrian-kurdish-militias-987640517

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

Inside Rakka: IS-Deserteure packen aus | Arte
On 17. März 2016 by Anne

„Die „religiöse Vorbereitung“ ist die reinste Gehirnwäsche. Danach bist du bereit, dich in einen Panzer zu setzen und dich in die Luft zu jagen. Egal wo, ob gegen die Armee von Assad oder gegen die Freie Syrische Armee. Dabei sind sie alle Muslime wie wir.“

Ehemalige IS-Kämpfer erzählen von den grauenhaften Taten, die täglich in dem als „Islamischer Staat“ ausgerufenen Gebiet in Syrien verbrochen werden. Menschen werden geradezu wahllos auf offner Straße erschossen, oder noch schlimmer: Es wird ihnen mit einem absichtlich stummen Messer die Kehle durchgeschnitten, um sie besonders leiden zu lassen und den Körper zu verstümmeln. Überall liegen Leichen mit abgetrennten Köpfen. Opfer von den fanatischen und alles andere als islamischen IS-Kämpfern. Doch nicht nur mit den „Ungläubigen“ wird grauenvoll umgegangen, auch ihre eigenen Kämpfer lassen die Kommandeure auf den Schlachtfeldern verbluten und verkümmern.

Die Erlebnisse, die die IS-Deserteure schildern, sind unvorstellbar. Wir hören von Folter, Vergewaltigung und Mord und fragen uns, wie ein Mensch freiwillig in diese Hölle gehen kann, um dem IS zu dienen? Und auch davon, was sie bewogen hat und warum sie wieder rauswollten, erzählen die reuigen Dschihadisten, welche von einem geheimen Netzwerks zur Ausschleusung aus dem Kampfgebiet geholt wurden.

video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSBrdqcVOXw

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

Adnan bribed his way out of Bashar al-Assad’s army when he was 19. Mid-level officers in Syria’s military do not make enough to turn down cash from teenage soldiers.

HIs entry to the army was as abrupt as his depature. In October 2013, Adnan was on his way to buy breakfast for his wife, Hala, a “very sweet” girl from his neighbourhood whom he had married 10 days earlier.

But soldiers grabbed him on his way to the bakery, bundled him into a bus and sent him to an army barracks.

He was given a gun, told how to shoot it, and was soon shipped out to fight alongside Assad's career soldiers.

“They put me on the front lines," he said. "They said if I didn’t fight, they would kill me.”

For eight weeks, Adnan said, he fought far from home and against enemies that were never identified. When asked whom he fought, Adnan simply replied: "We fought for the regime – that's it."

He survived two months of Assad’s war before identifying a mid-level officer known for accepting escape bribes.

Adnan's family sold their house, and his brother secretly transferred the money to a guard, who turned the other way when Adnan ran from camp.

He fled to Turkey, and then to Chios as one of 1,322 refugees who arrived during a single night in February.
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/escape-assads-army-373201818

palestina libera · Beiträge: 1665

An IRIN investigation has found that a probe by a US government watchdog into corruption in aid delivery across the Turkey-Syria border runs deeper and involves more NGOs than previously reported.
https://www.irinnews.org/news/2016/05/09/us-probe-turkey-syria-aid-corruption-deepens