Syria Tag

In an effort to deter the US from attacking Syria, the “International Human Shields” movement is eying to locate civilians to Damascus from across the globe, including Britain and the US, reports the Daily Telegraph. Even as residents are evacuating Syria, hundreds of activists are volunteering to be placed in harm’s way against possible air strikes, despite the dangerous nature of the protest. One such activist is Andrew, a 33 year-old Canadian pianist. “I don’t want to see Syria turn into another Libya,” he told the Daily Telegraph. “If I had a hand big enough to squash the US tanks then I would. Democracy is America’s deadliest export, they use it as an excuse to destroy countries.” Franklin Lamb, a lawyer appointed as the legal adviser for the US-based group, stated in a recent op-ed that he is frequently asked how Obama can ignore the reluctance of American people to become militarily involved in Syria. “What kind of Democracy do you have that your President can ignore the will of the American public?”, he is asked by Syrians. Lamb describes how the goal is to bring “1000 Americans and thousands of others”  to potential bomb sites in Syria during the next ten days, reminding Lamb of "one of the International Solidarity Movement international volunteer’s efforts in Occupied Palestine in order to try to protect homes of Palestinians from Government bulldozing". According to Lamb, an objective of the movement is to ensure a message of solidarity among the international community by sending “ideally at least one representative from every UN Member State.” However, one of the major obstacles to fulfilling this goal will be convincing the Syrian government to allow the activists to enter the country. If allowed in the country, activists are to be sent to sites deemed critical to the survival of the Syrian people which include, “power plants, water treatment facilities, bomb shelters (if they exist), civilian communications sites, food storage sites.” Meanwhile, Syria prepares for US attacks, positioning troops in residential neighborhoods and warning residents to move out, according to the Wall Street Journal. Another group of human shields, called “Over Our Dead Bodies, has already been organized by some Damascenes. Reuters has footage of the group, which has allegedly received support from all over the globe, in the video below.

Having been mostly away from the internet these past two days, I've watched from afar how quickly things have turned on Syria. It's amazing how Obama has gone from being backed into a corner to being on a ledge where his presidency is just a vote...

This is the big headline today: "I did not set a red line." (added) Transcript via Real Clear Politics:

STEVE HOLLAND, REUTERS: Have you made up your mind whether to take action against Syria whether or not you have a congressional resolution approved? Is a strike needed in order to preserve your credibility for when you set these sort of red lines? And were you able to enlist the support of the prime minister here for support in Syria? PRESIDENT OBAMA: Let me unpack the question. First of all, I didn't set a red line. The world set a red line. The world set a red line when governments representing 98 percent of the world's population said the use of chemical weapons are abhorrent and passed a treaty forbidding their use even when countries are engaged in war. Congress set a red line when it ratified that treaty. Congress set a red line when it indicated that in a piece of legislation titled the Syria Accountability Act that some of the horrendous thing that are happening on the ground there need to be answered for. And so, when I said, in a press conference, that my calculus about what's happening in Syria would be altered by the use of chemical weapons, which the overwhelming consensus of humanity says is wrong, that wasn't something I just kind of made up. I didn't pluck it out of thin air. There was a reason for it. That's point number one. Point number two, my credibility is not on the line. The international community's credibility is on the line. And America and Congress' credibility is on the line because we give lip service to the notion that these international norms are important.

People are contrasting it with this August 2012 statement: This is too important for gamesmanship: