Posted on 11/23/2011 5:56:38 PM PST by RobertClark
Yesterday we reported that the Arab League (with European and US support) are preparing to institute a no fly zone over Syria. Today, we get an escalation which confirms we may be on the edge. Just out from CBS: "The U.S. Embassy in Damascus urged its citizens in Syria to depart "immediately," and Turkey's foreign ministry urged Turkish pilgrims to opt for flights to return home from Saudi Arabia to avoid traveling through Syria." But probably the most damning evidence that the "western world" is about to do the unthinkable and invade Syria, and in the process force Iran to retaliate, is the weekly naval update from Stratfor, which always has some very interesting if always controversial view on geopolitics, where we find that for the first time in many months, CVN 77 George H.W. Bush has left its traditional theater of operations just off the Straits of Hormuz, a critical choke point, where it traditionally accompanies the Stennis, and has parked... right next to Syria.
And from CBS:
"The U.S. Embassy continues to urge U.S. citizens in Syria to depart immediately while commercial transportation is available," said a statement issued to the American community in Syria Wednesday and posted on the Embassy's website. "The number of airlines serving Syria has decreased significantly since the summer, while many of those airlines remaining have reduced their number of flights."
The warning followed an announcement in Washington this week that Ambassador Robert Ford would not return to Syria this month as planned, indicating concerns over his safety.
The Obama administration quietly pulled Ford out of Syria last month, citing credible personal threats against him.
The Turkish foreign ministry on Wednesday urged Turkish pilgrims to opt for flights to return home from Saudi Arabia and avoid traveling through Syria for security reasons.
The warning came two days after Syrian soldiers opened fire on at least two buses carrying Turkish citizens, witnesses and officials said, apparent retaliation for Turkey's criticism of Assad. The Turks were returning from Saudi Arabia after performing the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
Uh...Got Brent?
You may be right but I am sure Syria is not so sure:
“The US has deployed its newest aircraft carrier off the Syrian coast amid mounting speculations of a Washington-led military invasion against the Arab nation.
A US naval task force, led by the USS George H.W. Bush, parked off just outside Syria’s territorial waters, just after the US embassy in Damascus urged Americans to immediately leave the country, the Daily Caller news website reported on Wednesday.
Media reports also indicated that US ambassador to Damascus Robert Ford, recalled from Syria in October due the mounting anti-US sentiment in the country, will not return later this month as planned.
The developments come amid Western attempts, spearheaded by the United States, to pressure Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down.
The CVN 77, better known as the George H.W. Bush, is capable of carrying up to 70 aircraft, including 48 fighter jets.
Washington has not explained the purpose of the carrier’s deployment to the Syrian coast.
Meanwhile, NATO-ally Turkey is seen as likely to launch a military action against Syria.
Turkish President Abdullah Gul has already suggested that Ankara might invade the country under the pretext of weeding out Kurdistan Workers’ Party terrorists operating inside Syria.
Arab media have also spoken of an impending no-fly zone over Syria, similar to the one imposed over Libya before NATO launched massive missile strikes and aerial bombardments of the oil-rich country earlier in the year.”
Press TV (Iranian TV)
I'm thinking "Operation Save Obama's Presidency" is more likely, but I've been wrong before....
According to the Facebook page for the Bush, they just pulled into Marseille, France.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/USSGeorgeHWBush
Operation Deny Christmas.
OMG - we must be planning to invade France
Obama the man of peace uses the military again.
OMG - we must be planning to invade France
Methinks conquering France two times was enough. It would be like conquering Nova Scotia, or Mexico. What the hell would we do with them? We would be worse off for winning.
5.56mm
I must have missed that one, do you have a link? Most of our boats are tied up at the docks right now.
Oh sorry I just realized (someone else also asked) I didn’t see your question.
Per Drudge’s version of a headline time machine from Wednesday:
(3rd paragraph)
Okay can anyone for sure say where our carriers are for real, beside a map saying that’s where they are? This is where the map says they are, but can someone second this. I believe are carriers are not where the map says they are.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.