Dear All
At present there is a debate raging in the
US and Britain about the arming the Syrian rebels, I see it as ‘regime change’
on the cheap. Rather than stablising the Middle East, the continual collapsing
of Arab States has led to breakdown of social order.
I don’t know President Bashar al-Assad or
what he stands for, and although Syria has been a problem for the West and
Israel, it has been for generations, a key stakeholder in the region.
Syria as also a country of fertile plains,
high mountains and deserts, it is home to diverse ethnic and religious groups,
including Kurds, Armenians, Assyrians, Turks, Christians, Druze,
Alawite Shias and Arab Sunnis, the latter make up the majority of the
population.
It is a major mistake to even consider
arming the Syrian rebels, these people aren’t a professional army and don’t
abide by articles such as the Geneva Convention or basic human rights.
Prisoners taken are murdered in a most
brutal fashion by the rebels, given the footage, the lawful government of Syria
has no option but to act, whether Bashar al-Assad should remain President is
another matter.
However, behind him is the Army, what was once civil unrest has
gone onto full blown civil war!
The latest atrocity to take place by the
Syrian rebels is the cold blooded murderer of a Syrian Catholic priest.
He was tortured and beheaded by jihadist
fighters in Syria; it has even been filmed, depending where civil unrest is
happening in the World, the UK’s William Hague has been promoting the concept
of peace talks. Egypt is also under pressure, we have seen breakdowns in Turkey
and as far afield as Brazil.
2013 is the year of riots as people unhappy
with their lot riot in the hope of a better tomorrow, and it isn’t just the
unemployed who are taking to the streets, educated people with good jobs are
also out protesting.
The death of Franciscan Father Francois
Murad has been confirmed by the official Vatican news agency, in a normal
society, this act of murder would be a matter for the Police, and quite rightly
so. Law and Order has broken down, we have armed thugs roaming free; much of
the work done by the West hasn’t brought democracy to the Middle East. If there is a plan by the West, it clearly
isn’t working, far from enhancing people’s lives; many people are worse off due
to interventions by the West. Afghanistan has been a fool’s errand, Libya is
wrecked, Iraq remains in a desperate state with its infrastructure completely
smashed, even such things like electricity which we take for granted are
limited.
If we arm the Syrian rebels, we will be
storing up trouble much in the same way that the West did in Afghanistan in the
1980’s. And look how that turned out, we help create Al Qaeda because of our
failed diplomacy with the Soviets.
Father Francois, was killed on 23 June in
Gassanieh, in northern Syria, he had been staying in the convent of the Custody
of the Holy Land.
Catholic.org reported:
'Syrian terrorists have beheaded a Catholic
priest who they accused of collaborating with the Assad regime. Those
accusations have not yet been verified.'
Fides News Agency said:
'According to local sources, the monastery
where Fr. Murad was staying was attacked by militants linked to the jihadi
group Jabhat al-Nusra.'
Jabhat al-Nusra, also known as the Front
for the Protection of the Syrian People, is an Al Qaeda associated group,
described as 'the most aggressive and successful arm of the rebel force.'
These people are murderers, Winston
Churchill famously talked about an ‘iron curtain’ in Europe, we are heading towards
another ‘iron curtain’ in Europe in the South, clearly there will have to be
changes as new rogue states emerge in the region.
Hopefully, the West will review the
situation and decide against arming the rebels, perhaps, a U turn is in order,
although unlikely.
War is sometimes a necessary evil as we
have seen through-out history, but replacing one problem with another is never
a solution, the West can ‘do’ business with President Bashar al-Assad.
I doubt it can do business with these
people, they aren’t fighting for democracy.
David Cameron and William Hague really do
need to face up to the reality on the ground.
Yours
sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow
University
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