By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, September
19 --
While
the UN
Security
Council's
meeting on
Iraq went on,
Canada's Foreign
Minister John
Baird came out
to take
questions at
the Council
stakeout.
Inner City
Press asked
him if Canada
thinks that
for airstrikes
in Syria
against ISIL,
the consent of
the Assad
government or
of the
Security Council
should be
sought.
Baird said
that on
"intervention
in Syria there
are two views.
One could say
that every
country has a
right to
defend itself.
Iraq is being
attack by
terrorists in
the
neighboring
country. We
take great
issue with
Assad... That
has yet to be
determined."
The Syrian
Opposition
Coalition, it
emerges, will
hold a press
conference
inside the UN
building on
September 22.
But it will
not be a UN
press
conference -
instead, it
will be in the
clubhouse the
UN gives to
what has
become its UN
Censorship
Alliance (having
tried
to get the
investigative
Press thrown
out of the UN),
publicized
only to those
who pay money
to UNCA in
dues.
Why not go
through the
front door,
and have a
member state
like Canada
sponsor the
Syrian Coalition's
Hadi Al Bahra
in the UN
Press Briefing
Room, as
others do?
We'll have
more on this.
On September
18, the day
after the US
House of
Representatives
voted to arm
and train
"moderate"
rebels in
Syria, the
Syrian
Opposition
Coalition said
training 5,000
will not be
enough. An
hour later, they
put out a
statement
about ISIL
stranding
7,000
civilians on
the Syrian -
Turkish
border:
"As
the 'Islamic
State'
intensifies
shelling on
Ayn al Arab
(Kobanę in
Kurdish) in
northern
Syria,
thousands of
people remain
trapped in the
towns and
villages in
the area. As
as a result,
activists
reported a
mass exodus of
civilians from
the
neighboring
villages of
Kaalak, Zark
Qumshi,
Zalkhek, and
Turaman. The
Syrian
Coalition
condemns
ISIS's brutal
tactics and
calls on
Turkish
authorities to
open borders
in the area
and provide
refuge to
those fleeing
from the
barbaric
group. More
than 7000
civilians are
reported to be
stranded along
the Turkish
Syrian borders
since
Thursday, most
of them women
and children."
Echoes
of Mount
Sinjar in Iraq
- and that led
to airstrikes.
Earlier on
September 18,
the Syrian Coalition
put this out:
"Abdelahad
Astepho,
member of the
political
committee,
said that the
US Congress’s
vote in favor
of President
Obama’s plan
to train and
equip the Free
Syrian Army is
'a step in the
right
direction
though it was
made late.
Limiting the
training and
equipment
program to
5,000 FSA
fighters is
not enough to
counter the
threat of the
Assad regime
and ISIS.
Therefore, it
is necessary
to increase
the number of
trainees to
solve the
whole problem
of terrorism
once and for
all. Moreover,
limiting the
program to
this small
number may
prolong the
bloody
conflict, thus
prolonging the
suffering of
the Syrian
people.'
Astepho calls
on the US
Senate 'to
back the
training and
equipment
program and
for its
immediate
implementation,
as any delay
will cost
Syrians more
lives. Any
delay in the
implementation
of this plan
will lead to
further
expansion of
the terror
practiced by
the Assad
regime and the
terrorist
group ISIS.'"
This
after on the
Senate floor
just who these
"moderate"
rebels are was
still being
questioned. If
5000 is not
enough, how
many would be?
To the Senate
Foreign Relations
Committee on September
17, former
Ambassador Bob
Ford said
there are
80,000
"non-Nusra,
non-ISIL"
rebels. Where
do these figures
come front?
Back on
September 13,
hours after US
President
Barack Obama's
speech, the
Syrian
Coalition put
out a press
release
requesting
airstrikes and
cash from
Congress,
pronto.
On September
13 the
Coalition put
out this,
about UN envoy
de Mistura:
"Khatib
Badla, member
of the
political
committee,
said that the
new UN special
envoy to Syria
will not be
able to
succeed in his
mission if he
follows the
same approach
followed by
his
predecessors
who failed to
bring the
Assad regime
to the
negotiating
table,"
commenting on
the statements
of the UN
envoy to
Syria, Staffan
de Mistura,
who described
as “useful"
his meeting
with Assad...
De
Mistura has
described his
meeting with
Assad as “long
and very
useful,” and
underlined the
“necessity of
combating
terrorism and
helping
Syrians solve
their crisis
politically.
“Terrorist
threats have
become a
source of
concern for
people all
over the
world, de
Mistura told
reporters
after the
encounter. He
added that
“combating
terrorist
groups is one
of the UN's
priorities and
this move
would not be
made without
solving the
country's
crisis to
create better
situations for
Syrians,
stressing this
move would be
made to
coincide with
a
comprehensive
political
process taking
into
consideration
UN Resolution
2170 tasked
with combating
terrorism.”
Inner City
Press asked UN
Spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric the
following, in
writing:
"on
Mr. de Mistura,
state his
contract
status: When
Actually
Employed? Paid
at USG level?
Is he being
allowed to
continue
working with /
for any non-UN
organization,
if so which,
and what
review of
possible
conflicts of
interest was
made, and by
whom?"
Days
later and no
answer to the
above-quoted
questions:
UNtransparent.
, 
