More on the NATO plane shot down over Syria

Note: The F-4`s are known as 'air weasels' who sniff out the air-defenses of a host country and used for probing attacks on air-defense batteries and carry out reconnaissance. Its no surprise a NATO jet flown by Turkey would be conducting such a operation like this. The F-4`s, even though 30 years old, are the work horses for conducting the initial phase of warfare to plan the air and ground war campaign....As always there's always more than meets the eye. - RSA

Tony Cartalucci
Infowars.com
June 27, 2012

Once again the Western press preys on the ignorance of the population as a whole, freely admitting that a Turkish jet entered Syrian airspace (later confirmed here) but was “a mile into international waters” by the time it was shot down.

Technicalities
The F-4 fighter jet, the newest of which are already around 30 years old, has a top speed of mach 2.2, or 1,600 mph/2,500 kph. That means in one minute it can travel 26 miles – or nearly one mile ever 2 seconds.

Any anti-aircraft weapon fired against Turkey’s admittedly “off course” fighter aircraft would have certainly been fired while the aircraft was well within Syrian airspace with the fired ordnance airborne and on course to intercepting the aircraft before the aircraft traveled back over international waters. Turkey’s claim of being “a mile” within international airspace may seem reasonable to the average reader accustomed to traveling at speeds where a mile is relatively far, but in terms of air combat, a mile equates into seconds.

Turkey, acutely aware of the immense tensions it itself has cultivated with neighboring Syria, exercised reckless abandon by traveling so closely to Syrian airspace. What readers may also be unaware of is the role US-built F-4′s play in scouting out and neutralizing air defense systems. Designated “wild weasels,” F-4′s had been extensively used in the opening phases of war against Iraq in 1991, flying 2,596 sorties, firing more than 1,000 air-to-ground missiles, and destroying more than 200 targets in a campaign aimed at destroying Iraqi air defenses.

Perhaps hoping the average reader is profoundly ignorant to how speeds, trajectories, and weapons of modern warfare work, the press has attempted to portray the downing of the F-4 as a provocative act carried out entirely over international waters. In reality, Turkey’s jet was fired upon in Syrian airspace, by its own account, as it was supposedly in “international space” for only one or two seconds before finally being struck. Syria claims the entire event took place over Syrian waters – a claim NATO has been unable to refute with anything more substantial than mere rhetoric.

Act of War
Turkey has been admittedly harboring, arming, and supporting terrorists within its borders to destabilize neighboring Syria, according to US policy makers. Turkey has also made multiple threats against Syria, threatening partial invasion and conducting blockades. When a Turkish fighter crossed into Syrian airspace, Syria had every right to believe it was merely the next stage of military escalation implemented by NATO through its member-state Turkey.

Compounding Turkey’s provocative violation of Syria’s airspace, at the loss of one of its fighters, it with NATO’s explicit backing, is trying to escalate an already unjustified posture of war and aggression against Syria. The United Nations has been characteristically mute over these brazen violations of world peace as the West pursues openly a campaign to overthrow the government of Syria and replace it with a suitable proxy regime of its own preference...

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Israel confirms 'Free Syrian Army' has penetrated Assad`s inner circle...regime collapse on the verge?

Syrian rebels tried to kill Assad's top aides, Israeli officials confirm
Information shows that Syrian President Bashar Assad's brother-in-law, Assef Shawkat, and several other senior officials were indeed poisoned, just as the Free Syrian Army claims.

By Barak Ravid
HAARETZ
May 25, 2012

A member of the Free Syrian Army holds a burning portrait of embattled President Bashar al-Assad in Al-Qsair, 25kms southwest of the flashpoint city Homs, on January 25, 2012. Photo credit: Alessio Romenzi/AFP/Getty Images)

Israel has reliable information showing that despite Syria's official denials, an attempt was made to assassinate several top regime officials four days ago, senior Israeli officials said on Thursday.

The information shows that Syrian President Bashar Assad's brother-in-law, Assef Shawkat, and several other senior officials were indeed poisoned, just as the Free Syrian Army claims. But prompt medical treatment saved their lives.

Israel views this as an important milestone in the ongoing revolution: It shows the opposition has penetrated Assad's inner circle, casting doubt on the regime's stability.

"The Syrian revolt is no longer in faraway cities; it's reached the leaders of the regime," one senior Israeli official said. "An assassination on a similar scale in the future could accelerate the regime's collapse. The opposition has the tools to reach the heads of Assad's regime, and in this case, it's been proven."

The Israeli officials, who are well-briefed on intelligence from Syria, said the poisoning was carried out by the Free Syrian Army's Al-Sahaba battalion. The targets, aside from Shawkat, were Defense Minister Daoud Rajha; Interior Minister Mohammed al-Shaar; Hassan Turkmani, an aide to the vice president; national security chief Hisham Bakhtiar; and Mohammed Said Bakhtian, national secretary of the Baath Party.

On May 20, the Free Syrian Army announced that an assassination attempt had been carried out the previous evening by Bakhtian's bodyguard, who was recruited into the Syrian opposition. The bodyguard, it said, poisoned the food served to senior regime officials during a meeting of the "crisis management cell," charged with managing the ongoing fighting in Syria. As a result, the announcement added, the officials were rushed to the hospital during the meeting.

In response to this announcement, some of those who attended the meeting either made rare appearances on Syrian television or phoned the studio during a live broadcast to prove they were still alive.

Al-Shaar denied that the attempted assassination ever took place. "I'm calling you right now from my office," he said during a live television broadcast. Turkmeni also phoned the studio.

But other senior officials who attended the meeting have not been seen publicly since that day.

A senior Israeli official said the information obtained indicates that the food at the meeting really was poisoned. "All those who ate the food were rushed to the hospital and saved at the last minute by medical attendants," he said. "The bodyguard who slipped the poison in was smuggled out of Syria."

Another Israeli official said the information published by the Syrian opposition after the incident is deemed credible by Israel. "There was an attempt to poison Shawkat and the other senior officials, but it failed, and all those who were at the meeting are still alive," he said.

The true nature and duplicity of the "Friends of Syria" group

“Friends of Syria”: Not Friends of the Syrian People

By Ghali Hassan, 
AXIS of LOGIC 
Wednesday, May 2, 2012

On 01 April 2012, the so-called “Friends of Syria” met in Istanbul to plan their agenda of fomenting civil war in Syria to destroy the country and oust the Syrian Government, using “human rights” as a pretext. They have agreed to provide finance and arms to outlawed groups attacking the Syrian state and the people of Syrian.

For a start, the anti-government violence in Syria has nothing to do with a popular civilian uprising. It is a Western-sponsored armed insurrection that is condemned and rejected by the overwhelming majority of the Syrian population. Even Syrian civilians who opposed the current Government have rejected the armed insurrection. The U.S. and its allies (vassals) will never support an anti-imperialist popular uprising.

From the outset, the armed insurrection has been instigated and financed by the U.S. and its allies, not only to destroy the country (Iraq and Libya are good examples) but also to oust the legitimate Syrian Government and replace it with a U.S.-controlled despotic regime. Syria is a sovereign nation and has the right to take a sovereign decision to defend the Syrian nation from foreign-sponsored armed insurrection.

According to the Lebanese newspaper Al-Manar (05 March 2012), the armed insurrection is led by a collection of Western-sponsored criminals, C.I.A. assets, Israeli terrorists, blackwater mercenaries and bribed army deserters. In short, they are C.I.A.-Mossad led paramilitary militias (a.k.a. terrorists). They are well armed and well paid by foreign powers. The U.S., Israel, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are providing arms and cash. France and Britain are actively providing military training and advice. The terrorists are committing heinous crimes against the Syrian population, including torture, rape, and mass executions of young men.

The terrorists have been instructed by their Western handlers to engage in violence and acts of terrorism against the population to tarnish the image of the Syrian Government. They have rejected peaceful negotiations and are demanding U.S./NATO military intervention based on the Libyan model to oust the legitimate Syrian Government. To enhance their image, the terrorists have been glorified by Western media and promoted as the “Free Syrian Army”, the “Syrian National Council” and “Opposition activists”. They have powerful “friends” that no other anti-government protesters have.

The major players of the “Friends of Syria” are: the U.S., Britain, France, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, Bahrain and other U.S. vassals. Almost all of them are repressive states and violators of human rights. Many of these states are tyrannical dictators. The U.S., Israel, Britain and France (under Nicolas Sarkozy) are police states that espoused a fascist ideology under a veneer of fake democracy. The U.S. and its allies have supported and continue to support the most repressive and murderous regimes on the planet. The U.S., Britain, Israel, France and Turkey are vicious enemies of the Arab people. In fact, the prevalent attitudes of U.S.-NATO states toward the Arabs (and Muslims in general) are reminiscent of the Nazis’ attitudes toward Russians, Roma people, and Jews.

In addition to powerful friends, the terrorists can count on the support of the leading capitalist media. The main Zionist propaganda organs, the BBC, New York Times and Al-Jazeera have formed a second front in the war against Syria. Specialised in distortion of facts and fabrication of false stories, the media are guilty of war crimes. And with dishonest journalists and pundits, such as Robert Fisk, Andrew Cockburn and Gilbert Achcar, the people of Syria are facing a criminal conspiracy.

It is important to remember that, “Friends of Syria” are the same friends who colluded with George Bush to invade and destroy Iraq. The barbaric invasion and murderous Occupation caused the death of more than 1.5 million innocent Iraqi men, women and children...

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Please visit AxisofLogic.com

Zionist ally and Israeli lobbyist U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman in Saudi Arabia "adamant" for more "substantive military aid" to terrorists in Syria

US Senator, Saudi King Discuss Syria Crisis
Al-Manar/AFP
5/1/2012

Photo credit: Al-Manar/AFP

US Senator Joe Lieberman discussed Syria crisis with Saudi King Abdullah and other senior officials during a visit to the Kingdom.

Lieberman also met with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal, Defense Minister Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz -- who recently held talks at the Pentagon with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta to discuss the Syria crisis -- and General Intelligence chief Prince Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz.

"The senator is traveling in the Middle East this week, focused on the continuing crisis in Syria and other issues related to US national security in the region," Lieberman aide Whitney Phillips told AFP.

It is the second trip to the region in three weeks for Lieberman, who chairs the Senate Homeland Security Committee and also sits on the Armed Services Committee.
The Senator has advocated further US intervention in Syria, including the arming of Syrian opposition groups against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

And while he stressed he wanted "no (US) boots on the ground" in Syria, he was “adamant” about the need to provide more “substantive military aid”.

"At some point we simply have to say, 'we're going to help them, we're going to give them weapons to defend themselves,' and that will make them strong and more organized", Lieberman said last week at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.

On Sunday he was in Qatar, where he met with the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Khaled al-Attiyah, Phillips said.