It takes a real man to admit he’s wrong. I accept that … good on you
Should I get a pap to Bristol translator requested on Google translate?
That post was not terse, Ted.
I’m going to to agree with you mate whatever, in the spirit of New Year 
“It takes a real man to admit he’s wrong. I accept that … good on you”
Is quite obviously a provocative post … I’m bored etc, sorry
I get bored and I like to disagree 
You’re wrong about Putin though
I believe the answer is still NO
Is this involved? Possibly, but then again, with every word i write, the more pissed i realise i am, so who knows?
Seems to be a lot of things going wrong for Turkey lately.
Wonder why?
I wouldn’t be surprised. I guess the question to ask is who or what is directing ISIS. I’ve always found it strange that the biggest baddest so called Islamic extremists on the planet have been so inactive on a couple of issues. They’re in the Sinai peninsula. They’re in Syria. They’re within easy striking distance of Israel, and would no doubt have rallied people to their cause if they’d attacked. They never have.
Two years ago, during Israel’s move into Gaza, coverage was extremely biased. Along with tens of thousands of others, I protested the BBC for its sins of omission. At a time when Israel was bombing UN schools and hospitals, the Beeb was lining up people from the Henry Jackson Society as if they were independent voices in the discussion.
Another reason that the atrocities in Gaza didn’t make the news is because ISIS were making it, big style. At the time they were killing Christians in Iraq, which of course, managed to trump Gaza in the Christian-centric Western world.
It is now beyond reasonable doubt that the West has been perfectly willing to finance fanatics that are just as mental as ISIS appear to be; the reports (and videos, but for your own sanity, I’d recommend not looking at them) coming out of Syria are disgraceful, and these are apparently the 70k moderates.
In those circumstances, it’s not really a stretch to suggest that ISIS _might _be under some kind of foreign direction, more likely to be Saudi than anyone else, but likely to have other agents (such as Israel and the US) be able to feed into it.
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Just to be really clear about my position on this topic, as it would be easy to misinterpret it given some of the recent discussion. As I’ve said right from the start, (possibly on the other forum) I don’t know the answers to Syria, and while I think the West’s lack of involvement has been shameful, I also know they were on a hiding to nothing no matter what they did.
What I find abhorrent about the title of this thread, and therefore, why I’ve not wanted to get involved with it no matter how much I get trolled, is the championing of Russia’s involvement, and methods they used. Their original claims to be targeting ISIS were suspect from the start, and the daily bombing of market places, residential areas, hospitals, schools etc, the mass displacement, horrendous death toll, demonstrated their objective to support Assad back into control no matter the human cost. That they’ve succeeded is no surprise. I’m surprised it took them that long.
I completely understand why people take the real politik point of view on this, even though I don’t agree. But to champion it? Like they are somehow saviours?
No thanks.
Poor, poor Aleppo.
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Respect, and Happy New Year Lou.
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And to you, Pap.
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Just to comment on Lou’s excellent post. I for one won’t “Champion” Russian involvement. However at least they got off their asses and did SOMETHING.
Aleppo is horrific yet what would have been the death toll IF the status quo had continued? Or worse, an IS Caliphate had been the outcome? (Which I still believe was the Israeli goal)
Western liberals wrung their hands and said Basheer must go that to me was what caused so much suffering. I’ve stated on here he must go & ordinary Syrians understand that. But just imagine for one moment what the UK would look like if every civil servant or public sector worker got removed every soldier police judge magistrate removed? All on the same day? Hell even Teachers?
How could you do CRB checks on people working with kids who runs the jails? how would you import & distribute food? Who would man the Power Stations how would they be paid?
The West destroyed Libya & Iraq nearly destroyed Egypt it took them years to recover & still they are nowhere near their status of civilisation before.
One year of transition or 5 to 10 of chaos? For your moral consciences? Seriously? Stick conscience up your asses & stop killing people so YOU feel good on Twitter (the West not Lou!)
Imposing Morals on others is fine but not when it costs millions of lives to be destroyed. The solution was transition so the West had no action it could take once they said death to Basher (a la Sadam & Gadafi).
I don’t support Russian involvement I support safety & security for the Syrian people. The West NEVER had a solution. Sorry if that is Realpolitik or unpleasant to some
(Meanwhile I can’t copy it but Google BriEgo’s FB Post about the decline of Politics in the West from 1st Jan. The mess is coming to the EU before long unless everyone wakes up (no not terror - but ruling elites & the 1%) needs it’s own thread
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Start the thread D_P, sounds interesting. I searched BriEgo and got thousands of hits. Unfortunately all about Spanish wine.
As this thread already has the green tick saying yes solved
Was the answer
Yes
or
No
Guess this won’t make the western press.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad announced that his government was willing to negotiate on “everything” during proposed peace talks in Kazakhstan. However, there has been no date set for the talks yet.
© Reuters/Sana plain
President Assad said that his delegation was willing to approach the negotiating table with an open mind during upcoming peace talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana, and that he was ready to discuss even his position as president. Assad added, however that his “position is linked to the constitution.”
“If they want to discuss this point they must discuss the constitution,” he said, indicating that any new constitution would have to be put to a referendum, and that it was up to the Syrian people to elect the president.
A visiting French lawmaker, Thierry Mariani, said that Assad also declared himself willing to negotiate with nearly 100 rebel groups fighting against his government. Despite his willingness to sit at the table with the warring parties, the Syrian president said that lasting peace could only be achieved in a unified country.
Details on peace talks still unclear
Syria’s biggest ally Russia had announced in December 2016 that new talks would be held in Kazakhstan following the recapture of eastern Aleppo from rebel hands earlier that month. Turkey and Iran had also agreed to participate in the talks, but details remain sketchy; it is not clear who will represent the opposition after rebel fighters suffered their biggest defeat of the war in Aleppo. The date for the talks is also yet to be announced; Turkey has suggested that the Astana talks could be convened around the last week of January.
“Who will be there from the other side? We do not yet know. Will it be a real Syrian opposition?” Assad asked during remarks made to French media, as later published by the Syrian state-run news agency SANA. Rebel groups operating under the “Free Syrian Army” banner had announced earlier in January that they had frozen any talks about their possible participation in the Astana talks due to violations of the ceasefire brokered by Turkey and Russia.
Assad also stressed that the truce was repeatedly being violated and that the Syrian army would therefore have to recapture all of Syria. Assad particularly highlighted a rebel-held area near Damascus where water supplies have been bombed out of service. He added that his government delegation was ready to go to Astana “when the time of the conference is set.”
Liberation of “Islamic State”-held territories
Assad acknowledged that the recapture of the eastern parts of Aleppo was a “tipping point” in the war, saying that he considered his military to be “on the way to victory.”
“The victory will be when you get rid of all the terrorists,” Assad said in the interview which was shown on the French networks France Info, LCP and RTL television. Syria’s president is known for using the term “terrorist” as a blanket term for anyone opposed to his government in the conflict.
Asked whether the Syrian government was planning to recapture the city of Raqqa, which is held by the self-styled “Islamic State” group, Assad said it was the Syrian army’s job to liberate “every inch” of Syrian land and all Syria should be under state authority.
“Of course it’s very painful for us as Syrians to see any part of our country destroyed, or to see any bloodshed anywhere. Every war is bad,” he said.
“Is it better to leave [civilians] under [the rebels’] supervision, under their oppression, by beheading, by killing?”
The violence in Syria has killed almost half a million Syrians since 2011 and has displaced more than half the country’s population while causing massive destruction.
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Originally posted by @Dubai_Phil
Guess this won’t make the western press.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad announced that his government was willing to negotiate on “everything” during proposed peace talks in Kazakhstan. However, there has been no date set for the talks yet.
© Reuters/Sana plain
President Assad said that his delegation was willing to approach the negotiating table with an open mind during upcoming peace talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana, and that he was ready to discuss even his position as president. Assad added, however that his “position is linked to the constitution.”
“If they want to discuss this point they must discuss the constitution,” he said, indicating that any new constitution would have to be put to a referendum, and that it was up to the Syrian people to elect the president.
A visiting French lawmaker, Thierry Mariani, said that Assad also declared himself willing to negotiate with nearly 100 rebel groups fighting against his government. Despite his willingness to sit at the table with the warring parties, the Syrian president said that lasting peace could only be achieved in a unified country.
Details on peace talks still unclear
Syria’s biggest ally Russia had announced in December 2016 that new talks would be held in Kazakhstan following the recapture of eastern Aleppo from rebel hands earlier that month. Turkey and Iran had also agreed to participate in the talks, but details remain sketchy; it is not clear who will represent the opposition after rebel fighters suffered their biggest defeat of the war in Aleppo. The date for the talks is also yet to be announced; Turkey has suggested that the Astana talks could be convened around the last week of January.
“Who will be there from the other side? We do not yet know. Will it be a real Syrian opposition?” Assad asked during remarks made to French media, as later published by the Syrian state-run news agency SANA. Rebel groups operating under the “Free Syrian Army” banner had announced earlier in January that they had frozen any talks about their possible participation in the Astana talks due to violations of the ceasefire brokered by Turkey and Russia.
Assad also stressed that the truce was repeatedly being violated and that the Syrian army would therefore have to recapture all of Syria. Assad particularly highlighted a rebel-held area near Damascus where water supplies have been bombed out of service. He added that his government delegation was ready to go to Astana “when the time of the conference is set.”
Liberation of “Islamic State”-held territories
Assad acknowledged that the recapture of the eastern parts of Aleppo was a “tipping point” in the war, saying that he considered his military to be “on the way to victory.”
“The victory will be when you get rid of all the terrorists,” Assad said in the interview which was shown on the French networks France Info, LCP and RTL television. Syria’s president is known for using the term “terrorist” as a blanket term for anyone opposed to his government in the conflict.
Asked whether the Syrian government was planning to recapture the city of Raqqa, which is held by the self-styled “Islamic State” group, Assad said it was the Syrian army’s job to liberate “every inch” of Syrian land and all Syria should be under state authority.
“Of course it’s very painful for us as Syrians to see any part of our country destroyed, or to see any bloodshed anywhere. Every war is bad,” he said.
“Is it better to leave [civilians] under [the rebels’] supervision, under their oppression, by beheading, by killing?”
The violence in Syria has killed almost half a million Syrians since 2011 and has displaced more than half the country’s population while causing massive destruction.
It will be looked at as genocide. The deliberate targeting of hosptals is just inhuman on any scale really.
Not gonna argue what it’s called Bristol (or who did/funded what)
My ONLY concern is for the PEOPLE of Syria and establishing peace in a beautiful country.
For that there has to be a deal. There has to be a transition.
After that the loudest moaner on Twitter can be given a silenced Walther PPK & dropped off in Russia or Iran to serve justice
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