[2006] Assad Under Siege

"Iran and Syria are in the same boat," said former Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani during a visit to Damascus on April 12. In likening the two countries' predicaments, Mr. Rafsanjani continued, "The enemies of Syria are trying to increase the pressure, but the resistance of the Syrian people will continue." He is right: The Syrian people are resisting more than ever before. But the new wave of resistance isn't what Mr. Rafsanjani had in mind.

Two weeks before Mr. Rafsanjani's visit, Syrian military intelligence arrested 51-year-old Internet journalist and human-rights activist Mohammed Ghanem, most likely because of his work at www.surion.org. Mr. Ghanem bills the Web site as a "national, democratic, independent and free site." There, he wrote a recent series of articles detailing Syria's political realities and the plight of its Kurdish community.

After his March 31 arrest, Mr. Ghanem was reportedly transferred to the notorious Branch 235, known as the "Palestine Branch" of Syrian military intelligence. He thus joined the ranks of close to 1,500 political prisoners being held without trial...

Then there is Massoud Hamid, a 29-year-old journalism student and "cyberdissident." Last year, Mr. Hamid became one of the few journalists who managed to take photographs of a Kurdish demonstration in Syria, which he posted on a German Web site. Mr. Hamid was subsequently sentenced to three years in prison for "belonging to a secret organization" and "trying to annex part of Syria to another country."

...Assad has showered the Syrian people with promises, yet has failed to deliver on them. His weakness and ineptitude combined with an increased international focus on Syria's involvement in Lebanon and Iraq have helped reinvigorate the opposition.

Kingdom of Kurdistan -- During the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Kurds in Iraq attempted to establish a semi-independent state. On at least one occasion they succeeded and formed the Kingdom of Kurdistan, which lasted from September 1922 until July 1924. The Shaykh of the Qadiriyyah order of Sufis, the most influential personality in Southern Kurdistan, was appointed Governor of the former sanjak of Duhok, but rallied against the British and declared an independent Kurdistan in May, 1919. He was defeated in June... After the Treaty of Sèvres, which settled some territories, Sulaymaniya still remained under the direct control of the British High Commissioner. After the subsequent penetration of the Turkish "Ozdemir" Detachment into the area, an attempt was made by the British to counter this by appointing Shaykh Mahmud Governor again, in September 1922. The Shaykh revolted again, and in November declared himself King of the Kingdom of Kurdistan... Barzanji was defeated by the British in July, 1924, and in January 1926 the League of Nations gave the mandate over the territory to Iraq, with the provision for special rights for Kurds. In 1930-1931, Shaykh Makhmud Barzanji made his last unsuccessful attempt. The British Royal Air Force's Iraq Command acting on behalf of the Iraqi government in Baghdad played a part in bringing the Kingdom of Kurdistan to an end.

I Was Gassed by Bashar al-Assad
Posted: August 22, 2014 by mhamou in Uncategorized
http://stopthesiege.wordpress.com/2014/08/22/i-was-gassed-by-bashar-al-assad/

AP Enterprise: al-Qaida’s Syrian cell alarms US [al-Nusra]
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3203762/posts?page=10#10

Iraq PM Orders Halt to Shelling of Civilian Areas (Obama definitely loses Iraq)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3203804/posts

If these strongmen were smart they would get in the good graces of the U.S. by 1) not supporting terrorism, 2) Do not attack Israel and 3) Don’t kill Christians. Lip service against the U.S. is one thing but that crazy stuff only needs to go and they can count their money in their palaces. Domething tells me they have to be bad guys to control things.

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