Workers Resistance

Category: Syria

  • Observer speaks out on Syria elections

    Damasucs, Syria – On June 4, a group of parliamentarians met with the delegation of election observers from Canada, Ireland and the U.S. for a press event, which was covered by SANA, the Syrian public news company.

    The chairwoman of the Foreign Policy Committee of the People’s Assembly, Dr. Fadia Deeb, convened the meeting. Assemblywoman Deeb is from the city of Homs, which had been one of the starting places for the uprising of right-wing rebels that has torn apart the country for three years.

    The following is a statement made by Joe Iosbaker, who served as an observer for the elections and is prominent Chicago based anti war activist:

    “I was an election observer in Homs, where I spent time at multiple polling places. I directly observed several dozen people casting their ballots; I spoke with several of them at each of the precincts; I listened as other members of the delegation spoke with voters, as well as precinct workers.

    “The election I observed was as free and fair as any I’ve witnessed in the U.S. The election was characterized by a high level of participation, with hundreds at enthusiastic voters, as well as the children of the community, rallying at each poll. Politically, it was more than a first multi-party election for president; it was a celebration of victory over the foreign armies that had finally withdrawn less than one month earlier.

    “I am an experienced electoral activist in Chicago, where I am from. I want to compare the Syrian election with elections in the U.S. First, there is a much lower level of participation in the U.S. There are several reasons for this. For one, political parties work to depress turn out among workers, the poor, African Americans, Latinos and immigrants and youth. Also the electoral system requires a special registration to vote.

    “Given the lies being told by the White House, I wanted to share with you a feature of the political system in the city of Chicago. Chicago, a city of 3 million, is a one-party state. The Democratic Party has controlled city government for 80 years. The last Republican mayor left office in 1931. There are 50 members of city council. They are all Democrats and there hasn’t been a Republican council member since the 1940s. Chicago is in Cook County, and all those elected from Chicago to county government are Democrats. The state assembly representatives and senators for the city of Chicago, of which there are a total of 45, are all Democrats. The six federal congresswomen and men for the city of Chicago are all Democrats as well. And on election day in Chicago, the precincts are required to have both Democratic and Republican party judges. It is routine that the ‘Republican’ judges are in fact Democrats, wearing the Republican badge for the day.

    “Furthermore, I believe this is true in many cities in the U.S. In conclusion, the U.S. government has no right to criticize the elections in Syria.”

  • U.S. trying to oust Assad by any means possible, aims for compliant Syria

    Editors note: Prominent Chicago- based anti-war activist Joe Iosbaker is in route to Damascus, Syria where he will participate in a delegation of observers for the Syrian election’s. Fight Back! will publish commentary by Iosbaker as we receive it.

    Beirut, Lebanon – In a front page story, May 30, headlined “Foreign Jihadis in Syria Pose Risk to West,” the New York Times reports that the U.S. and the UK are concerned about the blowback from the U.S./NATO war on Syria. Hundreds of sectarian fighters have been recruited from the UK and France, and according to the U.S. government, 70 from the US. The article describes efforts by Al Qaeda groups to prepare these recruits to “strike back home.”

    In President Obama’s speech at West Point this week, he announced plans for increasing U.S. support for “moderates” among the Free Syrian Army (FSA). This is another effort to get their war in Syria on course. But this aid to so-called moderates is for public relations in the West. The FSA is not a unified, disciplined army. It is well known that weapons provided to a ‘moderate’ reactionary force today end up in the hands of the most brutal of the sectarian forces tomorrow.

    The most successful armies fighting to overthrow Syria’s government are those of the Al Qaeda-affiliated Al Nusra Front and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Fighters tired of losing will join them. In the fall, the largest of the brigades linked to the U.S.-supported Syrian National Council crossed over and announced they would be affiliating with the Nusra Front.

    To spell it out, the U.S. support of the ‘moderates’ won’t achieve the stated objective of countering the influence of sectarians. So what is the real objective of the White House?

    Ousting Assad by any means

    For three years, the U.S. has funded foreign-led, foreign-dominated armies in Syria. U.S. allies Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey have been responsible for most of the direct aid and delivered most of the weapons. The U.S. began directly providing small arms and other battlefield equipment in the summer of 2013, but was involved from the outset in vetting the forces that the Qataris were backing.

    In the U.S., the Obama administration and the mainstream media stick to the mantra that the U.S. allies operate independent of Washington. This is a pretty weak story. Over a year ago, the New York Times revealed that back in 2011, the CIA had been in the Qatari cabinet meetings where the decisions were being made about which of the Syrian fighters to arm. More than that, the Gulf States and Turkey would never have made those moves if the U.S. hadn’t given them the OK.

    The monarchies in the Gulf States have supplied several billion dollars worth of arms, not just to any of the fighters arrayed against the Syrian Arab Army; they have especially backed the most sectarian of those. Saudi Arabia is the main backer of those linked to Al Qaeda. If Washington truly wanted that stopped, how could the Saudi’s have continued it? The tail doesn’t wag the dog.

    New rhetoric, unchanged U.S. objective

    Increased U.S. training of the ‘moderates’ in the FSA has two purposes. The main goal of everything the U.S. is doing in Syria is to get a government that is compliant with U.S. and Israeli wishes. They have decided that President Assad must go.

    But the problems with the jihadists are something that the U.S. has to address. The imperialists have to be concerned that the fighters will move against targets other than Assad – Israel, for example. Or returning to the U.S. or the UK. This is a public relations problem, as well as a military matter.

    But bad PR won’t stop the U.S. from their course: using any means necessary to achieve their objective in Syria. The anti-war movement must build the movement against the U.S. war of intervention in Syria. We have our work cut out for us.

  • Eyewitness to Syria presidential election: Is the end to the U.S. war in sight?

    Damascus, Syria – Ten people from the U.S., Canada and Ireland have traveled to Syria to observe the presidential elections taking place here June 3. Our delegation is mainly anti-war and international solidarity activists who are members of organizations including the International Action Center, Syria Solidarity Committee, the Anti-War Committee-Chicago, the United National Antiwar Coalition and the International Solidarity Movement. We are hosted by a Iranian non-governmental organization, the International Union of Unified Ummah (Muslim community).

    Since arriving in Damascus yesterday, we’ve had several meetings with officials and experts to get an understanding of the elections and what’s at stake. Our first meeting was with Dr. Bassam Abu Abdallah, a local member of the nationalist Baath Party and director of the Damascus Security Center. He talked about how this will be the first multi-party election for president. The rules of the election were established in a new constitution voted on last year.

    The three candidates on the ballot were selected from an initial list of 24. The requirements to run include being Syrian, having lived in the country for at least the last ten years, and having the endorsement of 35 members of the national assembly. Previously, the Baath Party was constitutionally the only party that could lead the government. This change was a big concession to demands raised by the protests in the Arab Spring in 2011.

    Dr. Abu Abdallah was asked if the elections would have an effect on the armies fighting the government. He answered yes, that it will demoralize them, saying, “First, they see that the U.S. won’t send troops. They’re tired of fighting and they have no vision, other than dying and going to paradise.”

    As with the liberation of the Old City in Homs, the mercenaries can see the writing on the wall. “First we put them under siege. The foreign-backed armies previously had perhaps 500,000 with them. Now they have only 100,000. Our soldiers in the Syrian Arab Army [SAA] will continue to fight until the last centimeters of land,” Abdullah added.

    Election commission

    On the second day, we met with the election commission. Hasham Al Shaher, the commission head, told us we were free to go where we wanted to observe at the polling places. Some will go to Homs, or Atakia and others will stay in Damascus.

    He explained that the commission is independent of the administration and appointed to four-year terms. People over 18 years of age (15 million people) are eligible to vote. All that is needed to vote is to be a citizen and to have an ID. No one is required to register in advance.

    The Western media was stunned when hundreds of thousands of refugees turned out to vote in Beirut in neighboring Lebanon. It turns out that the commissioners were surprised by the turnout as well. As a result, many thousands were turned away. The Lebanese authorities told them if they returned to Syria to vote, they’d be denied re-entry into Lebanon.

    The outpouring was overwhelmingly people wanting to vote for the current president, Bashar al Assad. Coming from people displaced by the war, this was a clear message of opposition to the so-called rebels. Commissioner Al Shaher said, “This shows the insistence and nationalist feelings of the Syrians. Over 95% of those eligible registered to vote.”

    Speaker of the Parliament

    Speaker of the Parliament Jihad Laham described the political situation they are facing with this war. “We take issue with the criminal American policy to Syria and Palestine. China and Russia have used their veto power to stop the criminal war, while the U.S. has used their veto power 60 times to shield Israel.”

    “Unfortunately,” he continued, “we live in dog eat dog times, where the powerful eat the less powerful.” He explained that they had invited parliamentarians to see the truth, but U.S. and NATO governments pressured them not to. “The U.S. is partnered with Saudi Arabia, which has no elections.”

    He told us, “Most of the organizations fighting have extreme Islamic orientation. Syria has survived because we are in the right.” The speaker related some of the features of the social program of the government. “Basic food is subsidized: two kilos of bread is less than 10 cents. Education is free. Health care is free. Fuel is subsidized.”

    Returning to the countries behind the war, he continued, “Where did the rebels get their weapons? From neighbors with the support of the U.S. and NATO.”

    Regarding the moment of the chemical weapon attack last summer that was President Obama’s ‘red line,’ upon which he threatened to hit Syria with hundreds of cruise missiles, the speaker said, “Syria had requested the U.N. to investigate a sarin gas attack in March 2013. It took three months for the inspection committee to arrive, and just then, there was another attack in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta.”

    He denied the use of sarin by the government forces, noting, “The SAA is victorious daily; why would we need sarin?”

    A question was asked about U.S. objectives and next steps after the election. Laham replied, “The U.S. plan is unchangeable, but sometimes they are forced to delay.” This helped make it clear to the anti-war forces in the room that we had to return to the U.S. and educate people about what we learn from the elections, in order to win people to taking a stand against the U.S. war which has already killed as many as 160,000 people.

  • Chicago protest says: ‘Turkey, NATO, hands off Syria!’

    Chicago, IL – 100 Syrians gathered here, April 5, in front of the Turkish consulate to demand “Turkey, NATO, hands off Syria!” The group also called out their love for their homeland in Arabic, chanting “Tahya Suria!” Long live Syria!

    The incident that caused this international day of protest in places with Syrian and Armenian immigrant communities is an attack on the village of Kessab in northwestern Syria. Kessab is a mainly Armenian Christian community, which was attacked by the Turkish-backed terrorist group Al Nusra Front in late March. Thousands have fled Kessab, and the fear of a repeat of the Armenian genocide has caused even Armenian American Kim Kardashian to speak out.

    Mark Ahmad of the Syrian American Forum addressed the protest. “We want Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey to stop supporting and sending the terrorists to attack our motherland. Every one of you must inform your neighbors and coworkers and contact their legislators with the message that our U.S. policy should not support repeated aggression against Syria by the government of Turkey.”

    Joe Iosbaker of the Anti-war Committee-Chicago addressed the crowd. “We have to oppose the U.S. and its junior partners in NATO, which include Turkey; the U.S. puppets in the Gulf States; and of course Israel, the main provocateur and biggest cheerleader for war in Syria.” Iosbaker also called for the Syrians to support the Palestinian activist Rasmea Odeh, who is facing charges by the U.S. Attorney in Detroit for her work in the Palestinian community in Chicago.

     

  • Israeli war planes, artillery attack Syria

    Israeli war planes attacked Syrian military positions inside Syria, March 19. The Syrian Arab News Agency is reporting that one person was killed and seven more were wounded in the attacks.

    On March 18, Israeli forces fired artillery, tank and anti-tank shells into Syria. The aggression followed the wounding of four Israeli soldiers in the illegally occupied Golan Heights.

    A statement issued Syria’s Command of the Army and the Armed Forces said, “This new aggression came in a bid to divert attention from the successive victories achieved by the Syrian Arab Army.”

    In recent weeks the Syrian Army won a spectacular victory over U.S. and Israeli-backed terrorists in Yabroud City.

  • Minneapolis protests growing danger of a new cold war and U.S. intervention

    Minneapolis, MN – More than 50 people joined a coalition of Twin Cities peace and anti-war groups, March 15, to speak out against the growing danger of a new cold war with Russia. The protest was organized under the call, “No New Cold War with Russia – U.S. Hands Off Ukraine, Venezuela, Syria & Everywhere – No New U.S. Wars and Interventions – People Need Funds for Housing, Jobs and Education, not the Pentagon!”

    A statement issued by organizers says in part, “The Ukraine crisis has the U.S. and NATO issuing threats of sanctions against Russia, we see a build-up of military forces, warships with guided missiles to the Black Sea, F-15 fighter jets being dispatched to Poland. These are dangerous times. For people in the U.S., we must always remember, the U.S. government does not intervene for justice or democracy, but to uphold the interests of the 1%. A new set of wars, or a new cold war with Russia, will not benefit anyone but the corporations and the defense contractors.”

    Holding signs and banners at the very busy intersection of Cedar Avenue and 3rd South Street on the West Bank in Minneapolis, participants chanted and listened to speakers.

    Alan Dale, of the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition, opened the rally and then introduced Marie Braun, of the Twin Cities Peace Campaign and Women Against Military Madness. She said, “Americans came out in force against missile attacks in Syria. Hopefully, Americans will understand that a new cold war is not in their interest. A new cold war will primarily benefit corporations and defense contractors, and that is not the 99%.”

    Meredith Aby, of the MN Anti-War Committee, said, “I find the Obama administration’s recent expressions of concern for the right to dissent in other countries to be particularly outrageous while anti-war activists like myself are under federal investigation in this country for organizing peace protests and solidarity with Colombia and Palestine. Democracy, free speech, human rights – these are excuses given by the U.S. government to persuade the public to support their wars.”

    Aby also said, “It is important that we are here today to say no to the Obama administration’s efforts to delegitimize Venezuela’s democratically elected government. We must oppose the $5 million in the 2014 U.S. federal budget and the hundreds of millions of dollars the U.S. has spent over the past fifteen years funding opposition activities inside Venezuela.”

    The crowd was roused as Braun and Aby each challenged the hypocrisy of the recent statement by Secretary of State John Kerry, “You just don’t in the 21st century behave in 19th century fashion by invading another country on completely trumped up pretext.” They recalled U.S. invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. role in Libya, and its threats to bomb Syria and attack Iran.

    Other speakers included Dave Logsdon, Vice President of Veterans for Peace Chapter 27, and Cherrene Horazuk, president of AFSCME Local 3800. Horazuk recently returned from observing elections in El Salvador. Warning against right-wing threats against the newly-elected government of Salvador Sánchez Cerén, she compared these efforts them to the US-backed protests by the elite in Venezuela.

    The Saturday protest was endorsed by MN Anti-War Committee, Mayday Books, MN Peace Action Coalition, Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace Chapter 27 and Women Against Military Madness. The Minneapolis protest is one of a series of local anti-war protests being held in cities across the U.S. this weekend initiated by the International Action Center.

  • Mother Agnes-Mariam of the Cross speaks to Anti-War activists about Syria

    Minneapolis, MN – On, Feb. 16, Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) organized an event for Mother Agnes-Mariam of the Cross, the Mother Superior at the Monastery and Convent of Saint James in Qara, Syria, to speak via Skype to a packed room at the 4200 Cedar Community Center here.

    Mother Agnes is an international spokesperson for peace in the Syrian conflict. Time and again, Mother Agnes has faced life-threatening situations in her humanitarian work for the safety and security of others.

    Margaret Sarfehjooy, chair of the WAMM Mideast Committee, opened the event, saying, “We care deeply about the human suffering of the Syrian people… The situation is becoming more and more violent, with more and more Syrians losing their homes, losing their children, living in horrible situations that we can’t even imagine. What can we, in the U.S. do to help?”

    She continued, “WAMM strongly opposes U.S. military intervention, whether direct or indirect, in the war that is currently raging in Syria, and call for an escalation of diplomacy, not war.”

    Noting the significance of the Syrian conflict, Mother Agnes said, “Syria is becoming a battleground of regional war, and maybe a worldwide war.” She noted that on the one hand, Syria’s government has the support of the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China), ALBA countries (Latin American countries including Cuba and Venezuela), and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

    She named some of the countries supporting the opposition, “Qatar, Saudi Arabia, France, the U.S., Britain, Jordan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and of course, Israel.” She continued, “We think it is scandalous to set out to topple the Syrian government with these allies.”

    Mother Agnes is one of the main organizers of this Mussalaha Intitiative, which Sarfehjooy described as, “an example of how diplomacy and reconciliation are used in Syria to reduce the violence. Mussalaha describes itself as a community-based, non-violent initiative originating within Syrian civil society. Founded at the community level, it includes members of all Syria’s ethnic and religious communities who are tired of war. It stands as a demonstration of hope that a third way option to armed conflict remains possible and provides an alternative to military intervention from abroad.”

    Mother Agnes said, “Reconciliation brings the possibility to build bridges between different sides of conflict. Diverse people were living together for a long time in Syria under a civilian pact. Foreign forces are sowing dangerous fear and hatred among people. Mediators must be willing to talk to all sides and bring them to a common accord in civilian areas.”

    She then described one community, where the intervention of foreign fighters had displaced 50,000 civilians, brought on a military siege and resulted in starvation conditions for the remaining inhabitants. Through her work, a ceasefire was negotiated to allow the evacuation of those who wanted to leave. Following the agreement, she said, “650 rebels came to give up their arms and act as non-violent opposition. Now that neighborhood has settled a peaceful agreement with guarantees the population its rights.” Mother Agnes reported that such agreements had been negotiated in six more areas, covering 1.5 million people.

    Critical of the U.S., Mother Agnes said, “We need to stop fueling this on all sides with arms. The U.S. should agree with Russia to not arm either side, but instead to support reconciliation.”

    When asked about the prospects for a negotiated settlement to come out of Geneva 2 talks, she said, “As long as toppling the government is a condition of the talks, nothing can happen. This government enjoys the support of more than half the population. The demand should be to create a good atmosphere for fair elections.”

    Mother Agnes urged U.S. peace activists to oppose U.S. military intervention in Syria, including the shipment of arms to fuel the conflict, in Syria. She said, “I love the American people, but the American government can be very harmful. When they want something they think any means are justified.”

    Some 70 people attended the event, which was endorsed by the Minnesota Anti-War Committee, the Twin Cities Peace Campaign, and Veterans for Peace Chapter 27.

  • Grand Mufti joins Jacksonville rally for Syria peace

    Jacksonville, FL – On Oct. 13, 40 people held a “Rally for Peace in Syria” at Saint Ephrem Syriac Catholic Church in Jacksonville. The peace rally drew members of the church congregation, anti-war activists and members of Jacksonville’s large Syrian-American and Arab-American community. Friends of the Syrian American Forum organized the rally.

    Protesters carried signs reading, “U.S. hands off Syria” and “U.S. stop funding al-Qaeda,” referring to the U.S. and Saudi-backed rebels affiliated with al-Qaeda. Obama’s White House and U.S. intelligence agencies have spent over $1 billion on ‘rebels’ in Syria already. Another sign featured U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s quote during his attempt to drive the U.S. into another Middle East war, “They [the Syrian rebels] are becoming more moderate by the day,” along with a photo of civilians massacred by the U.S. and Israeli-backed rebels.

    The rally began with several chants calling for no U.S. war on Syria and then others offered a prayer for peace. Both Muslims and Christians attended the rally, praying together and demanding an end to the U.S.-sponsored violence in Syria.

    The Grand Mufti of Syria, Ahmad Badr Al-Din Hassoun, spoke to the crowd by videoconference. Syria’s highest Muslim religious figure, Hassoun addressed the rally in Arabic, praying and calling for peace in Syria. He emphasized his desire for unity with all of Syria’s religious groups, including Christians, and called on Syrians to support President Assad in fighting the U.S. and Saudi-backed rebels.

    People asked Hassoun questions

    Dave Schneider, an organizer with Jacksonville Against the War on Syria (JAWS), told Hassoun about the efforts in Florida to stop U.S. military intervention in Syria. With someone translating his words into Arabic, he said, “We have brought together hundreds of people to tell the politicians who make the laws in this country that we don’t want war. 91% of the American people do not want war on Syria. And many of us see the courage of the Syrian people and President Bashar al-Assad in the face of U.S. intervention and the Saudi-funded rebels, and we are inspired by that courage.”

    Hassoun, whose son was assassinated at a university by the so-called rebels, thanked the people of Jacksonville for their support and asked them to continue spreading the truth about Syria. He told the rally that his attempt to come and address the U.S. Congress was blocked by the U.S. State Department, which denied his visa.

    Hassoun said, “When Obama was elected, he promised peace, but now he wants to deliver more war.”

    Jacksonville’s rally was part of a larger nationwide day of action called by the Friends of the Syrian American Forum. The organization plans to call more days of action in the future to demand “Hands off Syria” and an end to U.S. war.

  • Hands off Syria! International Day of Protest marked in Chicago

    Chicago, IL – 50 people gathered in Chicago’s Federal Plaza Oct. 13 joining thousands rallying around the world in an international day of solidarity with the people of Syria. Syrians stood together with anti-war activists to tell the U.S., “No war on Syria!”

    The most popular chant that was “Hands off Syria, no more arms.” The U.S. began sending weapons directly to the pro-Western Syrian rebels in early September. When U.S. missile strikes were stopped by public opinion and the Russian diplomatic deal, President Obama then announced that weapons would begin to flow to the U.S. proxy army.

    The rally in Chicago and other states was initiated by the Syrian American Forum, and endorsed by the Anti-War Committee-Chicago, ANSWER Coalition-Chicago, Gay Liberation Network, U.S. Palestinian Community Network-Chicago and March 19 Anti-War Coalition.

    Dr. Matar Matar of the Syrian American Forum, explained, “We want to ask the Obama administration to work in the direction of peace, not fueling war. Mr. Obama received the Nobel Peace Prize for ending the war in Iraq. By supporting insurgents in Syria he is losing his credibility as a peace achiever.”

    Nancy Hammond of the Anti-War Committee-Chicago, also called on the U.S. government to end its war on Syria. “Since Vietnam, the U.S. has not stopped waging wars: on Central America, on Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and now Syria. It has to end.”

    An emotional moment for the Syrians present came when Syria’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Bashar Ja’afari, spoke to the rally by telephone.

     

  • Hands off Syria! International Day of Protest marked in Chicago

    Chicago, IL – 50 people gathered in Chicago’s Federal Plaza Oct. 13 joining thousands rallying around the world in an international day of solidarity with the people of Syria. Syrians stood together with anti-war activists to tell the U.S., “No war on Syria!”

    The most popular chant that was “Hands off Syria, no more arms.” The U.S. began sending weapons directly to the pro-Western Syrian rebels in early September. When U.S. missile strikes were stopped by public opinion and the Russian diplomatic deal, President Obama then announced that weapons would begin to flow to the U.S. proxy army.

    The rally in Chicago and other states was initiated by the Syrian American Forum, and endorsed by the Anti-War Committee-Chicago, ANSWER Coalition-Chicago, Gay Liberation Network, U.S. Palestinian Community Network-Chicago and March 19 Anti-War Coalition.

    Dr. Matar Matar of the Syrian American Forum, explained, “We want to ask the Obama administration to work in the direction of peace, not fueling war. Mr. Obama received the Nobel Peace Prize for ending the war in Iraq. By supporting insurgents in Syria he is losing his credibility as a peace achiever.”

    Nancy Hammond of the Anti-War Committee-Chicago, also called on the U.S. government to end its war on Syria. “Since Vietnam, the U.S. has not stopped waging wars: on Central America, on Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and now Syria. It has to end.”

    An emotional moment for the Syrians present came when Syria’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Bashar Ja’afari, spoke to the rally by telephone.