Posted on 06/17/2013 3:12:55 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
If you’re like me, you’ve gotten increasingly frustrated with the constant mention of “the rebels” in reports about Syria, without much context about who they are. It reminds me of some 1980s action movie in which generic “rebels” serve as some sort of MacGuffin for the hero to blow stuff up. Now that President Obama has decided to arm the rebels, it’s even more imperative that Americans have a good idea of the different rebel groups in Syria, which unfortunately are dominated by Islamists.
Today, the Wall Street Journal reports:
The move is an about-face by Mr. Obama, who last year blocked a proposal backed by then-Central Intelligence Agency Director David Petraeus and then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to arm the rebels. At the time, Mr. Obama voiced concerns that arms could end up in the hands of Islamists battling Mr. Assad.
But administration officials who favored providing arms said the White House believes it has a clearer picture today of the opposition and confidence that sufficient safeguards can be put in place to prevent U.S. weapons from reaching Islamist fighters aligned with al Qaeda.
Last month, the Economist had an illuminating report on the Syrian opposition groups, which concluded that, “As the civil war has dragged on, the rebels, hardened by war and seeing where their bread is buttered, have become more Islamist and extreme.” An accompanying helpful chart breaks down the three main fronts of the opposition (which represent alliances of various rebel fighting groups) and then further breaks down the nine key rebel fighting groups. According to the chart, two of the three main fronts are Islamist, as are seven of the nine key rebel fighting groups.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonexaminer.com ...
Muslim Brotherhood approved...
Only seven? I want a recount!
Our troops should not take part in this liberation.
WHOA!!!!
SEVEN OF NINE?
<<<< Ping! >>>>>
It's all right, our government is only going to arm the "good" rebels.
Speaking of whom . . .
DANG!
You beat me to it!
We need not even ask Laz about le golpe...
Gee, ya think?
Anyone wanting on or off this ping list, please advise.
Oh, she was so HOT.
It was those, those, those, cheekbones, yes cheekbones.
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