Epstein Secrets

rtunity the regime once possessed is being jeopardised by its actions. Brutal repression has overshadowed belated, half-hearted reform suggestions; Bashar has squandered credibility; his regime has lost much of the legitimacy derived from its foreign policy. The international community, largely from

t did not have to be so. The protest movement is strong and getting stronger but yet to reach critical mass. Unlike toppled Arab leaders, President Bashar Assad enjoyed some genuine popularity. Many Syrians dread chaos and their nation's fragmentation. But whatever opportunity the regime once possessed is

ss. Unlike toppled Arab leaders, President Bashar Assad enjoyed some genuine popularity. Many Syrians dr

hmadinejad's insubordination; privately, however, he unleashed jackals that had long been salivating for the president's comeuppance. The powerful Revolutionary Guards — who helped engineer Ahmadinejad's contested 2009 reelection — swiftly declared their devotion to Khamenei, and several of the president's adviser

r el-Qaddafi. It's true. But what an ally! What a thing to regret! And, now, the more Putin throws his support behind the murderous dictatorship of Bashar al- Assad in Syria, the more he looks like a person buying a round- trip ticket on the Titanic — after it has already hit the iceberg. Assad is a de

i. It's true. But what an ally! What a thing to regret! And, now, the more Putin throws his support behind the murderous dictatorship of Bashar al- Assad in Syria, the more he looks like a person buying a round- trip ticket on the Titanic — after it has already hit the iceberg. Assad is a dead man wal

kolas Gvosdev 03 Feb 2012 -- Now that the United States, France and other Western powers have endorsed the Arab League's call for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down -- even if that formulation is ultimately edited out of the final draft of the resolution pending before the U.N. Security Council --

s influence throughout the region. Neither Iran nor Hezbollah in Lebanon would welcome those developments. Already there are reports that Iranian Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah fighters have supported the pro-Assad forces, and both would have strong incentives to back an Alawite insurgency against a Sunni-dom

viding of training, funding, and weapons to terror groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad, as well as to the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. New Jersey attorney Stephen M. Flatow recalled that when he sued Iran in 1998 for the murder of his daughter, Alisa Flatow, by the Palestinian te

dded. Amirahmadi acknowledged that Iran will probably give some of these funds to entities it considers "friends" in the region, like Hezbollah or Assad, whose civil war-ridden country just received a S1 billion credit line from the Islamic Republic. "There's no question about it," he said, though c

et. EFTA00667778 "Most likely, the military will get most of [this money). In the Iranian budget as we speak, about 34 percent of it goes to the Revolutionary Guards and others in the military. And then the rest will go to social programs, economic programs, and so on... As we speak, [Iranian) public employees h

t ready to return" as long as President Bashar al-Assad "and his government remain in power." While al-A

than six million refugees who fled the country's civil war to come home," but "many refugees say they are not ready to return" as long as President Bashar al-Assad "and his government remain in power." While al-Assad "appears to be secure and the big battles have subsided" since protests calling for his ouster

television. The Ahvaz National Resistance "claimed responsibility for the attack that killed 25 people, almost half of them members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards." Iranian state TV said, "Farajollah Chaab, the leader of the separatist group, has been arrested by Iran's intelligence ministry agents." The repor

t ready to return" as long as President Bashar al-Assad "and his government remain in power." While al-A

than six million refugees who fled the country's civil war to come home," but "many refugees say they are not ready to return" as long as President Bashar al-Assad "and his government remain in power." While al-Assad "appears to be secure and the big battles have subsided" since protests calling for his ouster

television. The Ahvaz National Resistance "claimed responsibility for the attack that killed 25 people, almost half of them members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards." Iranian state TV EFTA00148403 said, "Farajollah Chaab, the leader of the separatist group, has been arrested by Iran's intelligence ministry ag

case under President Obama — albeit rhetorically and to the exclusion of Syria, as the source remarked. The source said the policy based on urging Assad to step down under Obama was rhetorical, and never intended to be enforced. "Bashar al-Assad is still in power. This is a fact. Accordingly, the new

the source remarked. The source said the policy based on urging Assad to step down under Obama was rhetorical, and never intended to be enforced. "Bashar al-Assad is still in power. This is a fact. Accordingly, the new policy will be based on acknowledging this but classing him as rogue and isolating him." In

n forces including those backed by Iran. Iran, however, wants to keep its influence in Syria through paramilitary forces along the lines of its own Revolutionary Guards. These issues will be on hold for now, according to Guterres, who has indicated the withdrawal of foreign forces from Syrian include all forces wit

ther than avoiding war, it's hard to know what Obama wants. I know what he says, but actions always speak louder than words. For instance, he wanted Bashar al- Assad to cease using chemical weapons. His language was strong, nearly warlike: "Assad's government gassed to death over a thousand people, incl

t said, it's unlikely that Mr. Maliki will have the stomach to retake the Sunni- majority areas of western Iraq anytime soon. The rump Iraq, like the Assad regime in Syria, will be ever more in thrall to Iran, and committed to domestic policies that make the reconstitution of the country via a politica

ain Iraq does not become wholly dependent on Iranian aid and that the US will play an important role in shaping the operational environment. Iran's Revolutionary Guards are already in Iraq advising and assisting the government on the military operations. Iran has openly declared its ability and EFTA00706980 inten

e opposition in Syria began as a largely peaceful, grass- roots, pan-Syrian movement for democratic change. But it was deliberately met by President Bashar al-Assad with murder and sectarian venom. He wanted to make the conflict about his Alawite minority versus the country's Sunni Muslim majority as a way of d

m, democracy and reform." Iran, Hamas knows, is not amused. But that appears to be a diminishing concern for the movement. Hamas' relationship with Assad, Tehran's key Arab ally, began to sour last year when the Palestinian group resisted pressure to stage pro- regime events in refugee camps in Syria.

sewhere. That would require a degree of organization and infrastructure. Iran already has the means and EFTA00686842 capability to do this, using Revolutionary Guards from the Quds Force or Hezbollah, its Lebanese terrorist surrogates. Al-Qaeda, which has established a front inside Syria, has expressed an interes

rs the uprising in Syria to be, to some extent, the handiwork of the United States and its European allies. This perception is fundamentally wrong: Assad's is an oppressive, minority-Alawi regime. It came to power via a 1970 coup. In 1982, the current dictator's father, then president Hafez al- Assad

akes in Muslim Brotherhood, Salafi and even al-Qaeda- affiliated factions. Despite President Obama's "reset" policy, Russia continues to support [4] Bashar al-Assad's brutal regime. But in a rare admission of reality, a senior Middle East hand acknowledged that Russia must step back. Mikhail Margelov, chair of th

ntain some significant element of surprise—a known unknown. What could that be? Here's a hint: Gen. Hossein Salami, the deputy commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, recently warned that "any place where enemy offensive operations against the Islamic Republic originate will be the target of a reciprocal attack.

t ready to return" as long as President Bashar al-Assad "and his government remain in power." While al-A

than six million refugees who fled the country's civil war to come home," but "many refugees say they are not ready to return" as long as President Bashar al-Assad "and his government remain in power." While al-Assad "appears to be secure and the big battles have subsided" since protests calling for his ouster

television. The Ahvaz National Resistance "claimed responsibility for the attack that killed 25 people, almost half of them members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards." Iranian state TV said, "Farajollah Chaab, the leader of the separatist group, has been arrested by Iran's intelligence ministry agents." The repo