UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon today rejected US demands to withdraw chemical weapons inspectors from Syria, with those familiar with the conversation saying he “stood firm on principle.”
US and other Western officials are desperate to retain the narrative of Syrian chemical weapons use, and seem to be anticipating the UN investigation doing serious harm to that claim.
That’s why after initial demands to allow inspectors into the site, the US suddenly reversed course when Syria agreed, insisting it was “too late.” Since then, officials have maintained that they are already convinced of Syria’s guilt because of media reports and rebel accounts, and are preparing to launch attacks in the next couple of weeks.
British officials went a step further and tried to preempt the investigators’ results, saying that the evidence might conceivably have been destroyed or “tampered with” and that what the investigators tell the world about what happened in Jobar couldn’t be trusted anymore.
Mirroring the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq, officials have already made their decision and are now trying to do anything and everything they can to avoid evidence coming out that would ruin their scheme.
Is this like the mysterious building destroyed by Israelis that – so it is said – housed a North-Korea sourced nuclear pile but for which statement no reliably sourced evidence except Israeli says-sos could ever be found?
Why does yellow cake and Ft Detrick anthrax keep popping into my head?
An attempted repeat of the scam in Iraq – so the warmongers could make a false claim that Assad(Hussein) drove out the inspectors, implying he had something to hide. So far the UN are not going along with the warmongers.
Kinda like the Taliban's request for evidence of OBL's culpability –which the US ignored. Also shades of the US rejecting Iran's deal worked on with BRICs. Those put-up-or-shut-up moments are a b–ch.
evidence might conceivably have been destroyed or “tampered with” and that what the investigators tell the world about what happened in Jobar couldn’t be trusted anymore. …or 'improperly tampered with' –lord knows you wouldn't want someone honest in possession of 'evidence.' Surely we need those free-er-than-thou foreigners to do the 'analysis.' Which they already have, to exactly the extent they ever will, considering they already think they know hoodunnit.
I hope they make much more noise about a potentially discrediting study of the evidence. Not that it could rouse a GWoT-sucker from her white-feathered nest.
At LEAST……… the UN isn't asking how high when the "Os" say jump……. like the UN did when it was the Moron Prince's administration doing the asking…………. Let's hope it's "fool me once and you won't be able to fool me again" and the Iraq, Hans Blict fiasco won't be repeated……. with a million dead ………..
Putin must stand strong, and force the US to rethink its mendacious lies, or face a real war..period
Syria must be a red line and shouldn't be violated even at the cost of a world war.
Russia China Iran and Syria will not sit on their haunches and allow it to happen and Iran may show her nuclear face that should put the brake on these war criminals.
The First World War was, by and large, set in motion not by boiling nationalism, but by a set of then-secret mutual-defense-treaties, which were unkown to the other participants in the "Danse "Macabre" on the Balkans.
For me, the situation in Syria is strikingly similar to the situation in the Balkans in 1914, only with the USA playing the role of Germany, which was bound by a mutual-defense treaty with Austria-Hungary and had to enter the fray on the sides of austrian Emperor Franz, once Austria committed the folly of declaring war on tiny Serbia – which only also had a secret mutual-defense treaty with Russia.
Things went downhill at free-fall speed from there.
I wouldn't be surprised in the least if, shortly after the first american Cruise Missiles will have left their launch-rails to strike targets in Syria, Russia will announce to the World that they have a secret mutual-defense-treaty with Syria and iran and, thus, are obliged to declare on the United States, due to their unsolicited attack on Syria.
And then what?
Oops! That's "… to declare WAR on the United States…" – my bad.
One would hope that someone sussed in the meantime that "secret" treaties are less than useful. Their whole idea resides in the fact that they be open. Because otherwise, one can renege on them with plausible deniability.
Juan Cole who writes at "informed comment" pose as "progressive" in fact is the supporter of Evil Empire and cover for the war crime activitities of the first black 'president', a war criminal since his installation by the zionist banker. The US govenment criems against humanity cannot be possible without the COOPERATION OF PEOPLE LIKE JUAN COLE whose job to keep the public FOOLED by spreading the LiES of the officials. Tojustify the War against Syria for his lover, Obama the baby killer, Juan Cole gives the following LIE to a question:
Q: would it not make sense to let the UN inspectors complete their work to at least identify which chemical agent was used, whether it was weapons-grade and how it may have been delivered before drawing conclusions on who did it.
{Juan Cole:Heavy Syrian gov’t bombardment of the site of chemical use likely destroyed the evidence}.