Alleged Gas Attack in Eastern Gouta Provides Cover for a Wider Regional War

This all seems designed to prepare the world for a three-fer against Syria, Russia, and Iran.  And if it comes to war, we need to remember that China has indicated that with any attack on Russia, China will respond.  I’ll hand you over to CNN for now, and note that Wesley Clark says that John Bolton has assembled the National Security Council today.  Mad Dog says he won’t rule anything out, but ask why are there chemical weapons in Syria when Russia was supposed to have removed them all?  Please consider this an Open Thread.

But let’s back up to those who call the claims dubious at best, total lies at worst:

Another chemical attack in Syria: But why is the corporate media missing crucial points?, fort-russ.com, April 8

“…characteristically and typically, the mainstream media have immediately blamed the Syrian military for the dreadful attack even before investigations can occur. Their sources?

The White Helmets and Jaish al-Islam.

Lets first deal with Jaish al-Islam. The media have used Jaish al-Islam for information on the attacks, but how can a group who openly and proudly publish photos of them caging women to be used as human shields as they launch endless mortar and rocket attacks against civilians in Damascus be trusted?

It was reported by journalist Sharmine Narwani who was on the ground in East Ghouta just last month that the Syrian Army liberated “Eastern Ghouta farmlands between Shifouniyeh and Douma and discovered a well-equipped chemical laboratory run by Saudi-backed Islamist terrorists. Not a single Western reporter showed up to investigate the facility.”

Her report goes into further details and provides photos of the laboratory. Why is it such a far fetched idea to the corporate media that the terrorists could have conducted this latest atrocity?

Then, the second and quoted source for the reports are the White Helmets. I am not going into detail why they are an unreliable source as this has already been done in great detail by other journalists such as Vanessa Beeley. However, it must be questioned why the White Helmets who claim to be neutral only operate in areas controlled by terrorist organisations such as Jaish al-Islam and Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Nusra Front, or why their members often change uniforms between the white helmet and militant uniforms.” [snip]

“But does this prove the Syrian government did not conduct the chemical weapon attack? Of course it does not, but we must question why the Syrian military would resort to such a drastic measure. There was no clear strategic advantage to deploy such weapons.

The Syrian Army in a little more than a month liberated over 90% of the East Ghouta pocket with ease, so why at the final hurdle with every advantage in their favor, would they resort to chemical weapons. The corporate media portrays the Syrian authorities as acting irrationally without thought to consequences, but rather, there has been many examples where Syria could have deployed such weapons to preserve their own soldiers, but has opted not to and risked further casualties to ensure that civilians face minimal harm in any operation.”

Or: @VanessaBeeley Apr 7 @fpleitgenCNN “Why no mention of #EasternGhouta terrorist chemical weapons lab u visited wth me on 6th March? Why no mention of 3,500 plus civilian prisoners of Jaish Al Islam held in “repentance” prisons? Who gains fm this alleged CW use? @PiersRobinson1 with a link to this claim at CNN:

‘Dozens dead in possible gas attack in Syria; regime denies allegation’

By Steve Almasy, CNN, April 8, 2018 (video included)

“Several Syrian activist groups Saturday reported that a brutal attack on the remnants of the rebel-held city of Douma in Eastern Ghouta left dozens of civilians dead and scores wounded.

The groups — including the White Helmets, the Douma Coordination Committee and the Ghouta Media Center — said toxic gas inside barrel bombs dropped by helicopters over Douma caused people to suffocate and choke.”

“Graphic images showed people, including children, apparently dead and injured — some with some kind of spittle or foam in their mouths in makeshift medical centers.

An official with the Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations (UOSSM) told CNN that doctors in eastern Ghouta have told him they were seeing patients who were convulsing from side to side and some appeared to be paralyzed and unresponsive.”

But at least they admitted:

CNN could not immediately confirm the authenticity of the images.”

The proven historical ‘facts’ Heather Nauert and others narrated…were scarcely ‘undisputed facts’.  But even if you’d heard that the White House had walked back Herr Trump’s ‘leaving Syria for others to finally finish off’ to a later timeline just before the midterms, this is nonetheless relevant:

Syria gases own people just as Trump mulls withdrawal?’ Journalists question Douma ‘chem attack’, via RT April 8

“While a media storm immediately followed, accusing Syria’s Bashar Assad of heinous crimes and predicting a new US strike against Damascus forces in response, journalists with knowledge of events on the ground in Syria wondered aloud if the claims should be treated with a grain of salt.

Independent journalist Vanessa Beeley, who visited the Syrian frontline on numerous occasions, said the chemical attack report, quickly picked up by mainstream media, was “also 100 percent lie,” pointing out that the White Helmets group had been caught producing fakes before. 

The timing of the alleged chemical attack claims was questioned by journalist Caitlin Johnstone, who pointed out that reports spread “just as Trump was seeking a withdrawal from Syria and just as [Syrian President Bashar] Assad was approaching victory in Douma.”

In her article on the Medium website, Johnstone doubted the credibility of the White Helmets as a source, due to their “extremely suspicious western funding and terrorist ties”, also reminding readers of the Western governments’ “extensive history of using lies, propaganda and false flags to manufacture support for military aggression.”

The chemical attack on his own people, certain to “provoke the wrath of the US war machine,” would mean that “Assad spontaneously began acting against his own self-interest,” the journalist wrote. She decried the influence of the mainstream media, which she said makes such news “easier to believe that Bashar al-Assad and Vladimir Putin are deliberately killing civilians with poisonous gas for no reason whatsoever than to believe that the same empire which deceived us into Iraq is deceiving us into Iraq’s next-door neighbor Syria.”

“American journalist and writer Mike Cernovich pointed out that President Assad had absolutely no motivation to use chemical weapons against his own people. “It makes total sense for Assad to gas children right as Trump announces a troop withdrawal. It’s the only sane, rational decision to make,” he tweeted, sarcastically.

At the same time, Cernovich believes that the escalation of the Syrian conflict and prolonged US stay in the country may even reconcile the Republicans and Democrats. 

“War is good for the ruling party facing mid-term elections, which is one reason the war mongering Democrats might not support Trump’s leading a ground war in Syria. But their blood lust is strong, and may overcome their desire to sweep the House,” he wrote.

Following the chemical attack reports, US President Donald Trump, who said on Tuesday that he wanted to “get out” of Syria, called Assad an “Animal,” adding that “President Putin, Russia and Iran” were responsible, as backers of the Syrian authorities.” 

Patrick Martin at wsws.org doesn’t mince words: ‘CIA stages gas attack pretext for Syria escalation’, 9 April 2018  

A few bits:

“As with previous allegations of chemical weapons’ use, the public is being inundated with unverified footage of suffering victims, while government officials and the corporate media, prior to any investigation and without any substantiation, declare the government of Bashar al-Assad and its Iranian and Russian allies to be guilty of a war crime.

The alleged gas attack that was used in April 2017 to justify the major US cruise missile assault on a Syrian air base was similarly exposed to have resulted from an air strike on a “rebel” poison gas facility.”

“The previous pretexts for military escalation were staged by the CIA and its proxy forces in Syria. The latest provocation is no different.

There is no credible evidence concerning the claimed attack in the Eastern Ghouta city of Douma, a few miles from the Syrian capital. There are video clips that prove nothing, since they could have been manufactured at any time and edited to serve the purpose. The sole on-the-spot accounts come from the White Helmets, celebrated by the media as a rescue organization, but affiliated with the anti-Assad “rebels” and largely funded by the United States, Britain, Germany and other imperialist powers. This includes $23 million from the US Agency for International Development, a longtime front for the CIA.

“A wider conflict is the deliberate aim of the US military-intelligence apparatus. For a month, the world stage has been dominated by a British-American campaign against Russia, centered on the supposed poisoning of Sergei Skripal, a British spy, and his daughter Yulia, in Salisbury, England. There has been an escalating campaign of accusations, expulsions of Russian officials, and suggestions that the incident amounts to a nerve gas attack on Britain by Moscow, i.e., an act of war.

Last week, however, the official narrative of Russian government poisoning collapsed. The British chemical weapons authority announced that it could not determine the source of the supposed poison and both Skripals were reported to be recovering—making nonsense of the claim that they had been poisoned by a deadly nerve gas manufactured in Russia.”

[wd here: some wags in the Twittersphere noted that ‘it must have been a bad batch’.]

The new media hysteria over a poison gas attack in Syria serves to divert attention from the collapse of the Skripal provocation, while providing a fresh pretext for escalating the offensive against Russia.”

“According to Al Jazeera and Russian news sources, Jaysh al-Islam has been so thoroughly defeated that it has struck an agreement to completely withdraw all its militia and their families from Douma over the next 48 hours or so. Russian troops will reportedly move in to take control of the city.”

“The latest provocation follows a well-worn pattern, from the lies over Iraqi “weapons of mass destruction” to the present. The American intelligence agencies give the signal. Nonstop coverage is immediately launched on cable television, then demands for action are made by the White House and congressional leaders, boosted by editorials written by CIA mouthpieces such as the New York Times.

The brazen lies of the media are accompanied by breathtaking hypocrisy. The Times, the Washington Post, NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN and company downplay and cover up the atrocities carried out by American forces and their allies—the incineration of Mosul and Raqqa, the gunning down of demonstrators in Gaza by the Israeli military, the mass killings in Yemen carried out with US support by Saudi Arabia, even as its crown prince is feted by the US ruling elite, and the ongoing slaughter in Afghanistan.”

And if you should happen to need more: ‘Don’t drink the Kool-Aid! West promoting chemical false flags as pretext for military action’, Robert Bridge, RT April 9, with videos, including:

Do you wonder why the UN Russian envoy says the OPCW must investigate on the ground in Syria?  Two Israeli fighters had already fired eight missiles at the T-4 airfield in Homs; five were reportedly shot down, casualties unknown at the time.

Stay tuned for what ‘decisions’, likely top secret, are to come out of Bolton’s Big Meeting in the sit-room it began at 10:00 this a.m.  The UN Security Council will meet tomorrow, as I understand it.  Or at least as Nikki Haley understands it.

This just in: ‘US will act against ‘monster’ Assad with or without UN ‒ Haley’; moments ago, via RT

“The US will act against the Syrian government with or without a UN blessing, US envoy Nikki Haley told the Security Council, blaming Russian “obstructionism” for allowing the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria and beyond.

“We are beyond showing pictures of dead babies. We are beyond appeals to conscience. We have reached the moment when the world must see justice done,” Haley declared to the Security Council on Monday, accusing Russia of backing the “monster” [Bashar] Assad, who was murdering children with chemical weapons.

“The Russian regime, whose hands are all covered with the blood of Syrian children, cannot be ashamed by pictures of its victims. We’ve tried that before,” Haley said, adding that “no civilized government would have anything to do with Assad’s murderous regime.”

“History will record this as the moment when the Security Council either discharged its duty or demonstrated its utter and complete failure to protect the people of Syria. Either way, the United States will respond​​​,” she said.”

(cross-posted from Café Babylon)

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wendy davis's picture

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@wendy davis What an absolute twit. And she may be just stupid enough to actually believe the garbage that comes out of that ignorant mouth.

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Only a fool lets someone else tell him who his enemy is. Assata Shakur

Big Al's picture

@lizzyh7 stupid.

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@lizzyh7 the more you kill, the more you gain. WTF, they are stealing palestinian land, killing the people in the process and the US population is paying for it. Gaza for 100 points: they resist, isreal kills, un sanctions and us makes money.

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@QMS @QMS the Empire Files video with Max Blumenthal I downloaded to kindle his book "The 51 day War..." Needless to say, I am just sickened even more, if that's possible, by the blatant and ugly hypocrisy of this country. If I knew of a place I could run to from it I surely would. Although fat lot of good that does. The sooner this bitch goes down, the better. Oh, and by this bitch I mean this warmongering country and its cabal of loons, not just Haley.

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Only a fool lets someone else tell him who his enemy is. Assata Shakur

@lizzyh7 who could be inoculated by the truth. It is not wrong to be right in your thinking. We are being led to believe it is a personal misunderstanding to be aggrieved with the decisive proclamations of our rulers. Truth is, they are feeding us lies to further their agenda to dominate our thoughts, needs and wants. Don't believe it. Make your own way in this journey.

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wendy davis's picture

@lizzyh7

and it couldn't be better, imo.

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TheOtherMaven's picture

@wendy davis

The US is every bit as guilty as it accuses Assad of being. Except in the case of the US there is HARD EVIDENCE, not just "we say so".

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There is no justice. There can be no peace.

wendy davis's picture

@TheOtherMaven

william blum keeps lists. this one is nations the US has bombed since 1950; it's a pretty impressive list. he also has another on how many nations' leaders the US has helped to depose. it's long as well.

the reason i'd named my home site 'café babylon' is that for rastafarians, 'babylon' is the western evil empire (smile).

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Big Al's picture

@wendy davis 20-30 million killed since WWII. It's ridiculous to even compare. Most people simply parrot what's been drilled into their heads by the corporate media and our lying government and don't really have any idea what goes on in Syria or North Korea or Venezuela, etc.
It's the old, "I know Saddam/Gaddafi/Assad/Kim, etc. is evil thing people feel they need to add so they don't look like apologists.

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snoopydawg's picture

[video:https://youtube.com/watch?v=9rOL7fYyRQo]

That's a wrap. Good job.

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wendy davis's picture

@snoopydawg

love the sirens, too. thanks: shorter is better, lol.

may i add this? jeebus. b at MoA has recently put up a thread about all of this, and a commenter said:

“Glenn Greenwald on DemocracyNow! today comes out clearly as a "useful idiot" for the AZ Empire.
“I think the evidence is quite overwhelming that the perpetrators of this chemical weapons attack, as well as previous ones is the Assad government.”
“The Assad government has killed more people than any other.”

Glenn absurdly claims Obama said, “we’re not going to get involved in Syria. We’re not going to devote efforts to regime change. The CIA under Obama did spend roughly $1 Billion per year to arm and train Syrian Rebels, but nowhere near enough to actually overthrow Assad - just enough to keep the war going because Obama was very afraid of confronting Russia in Syria, and also of the chaos that would ensue if Assad was removed… he allowed Assad to remain in power even after he had threatened to remove him if he crossed the ‘red line’ of using chemical weapons, which Assad then crossed.

Then, later in the show he actually says the propaganda regarding former President Lula in his home of Brazil is the worst he's ever seen, with perhaps the buildup to 2003 Iraq War coming closest!
This is the man who has twice set up whistle blowers to be arrested after leaking information to Omidyar's The Intercept. To me, The Intercept looks like the sort of propaganda apparatus created for we who have come to realize the MSM is lying propaganda.'

well, here it is in all it's...glory? pierre's puppet?

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Big Al's picture

@wendy davis so his proclivity to oligarchy and empire precedes his alliance with the billionaire. This should be the final nail in his coffin as well as Goodman and Gonzalez of Democracy Now, progressive favs. But it won't be because of the lesser evil thing.

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wendy davis's picture

@Big Al

but i will say that "pierre" invested heavily in the ukraine putsch, which of course another proxy roosian war, especially now in crimea and the donbass area. dunno about final nails in coffins, but i reckon most readers and watchers exactly agree w/ him and amy. remember, a well, that both the intercept via maz hussain (iirc) and amy glorified the white helmuts and the film, much to the consternation of most of the commentariat.

during the last two intercept hits on julian assange, comments were stridently against their bullshit. so...everyone will decide, yes?

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snoopydawg's picture

@wendy davis

You know, the ones that he gave you to release to us after you verified them? It's interesting that Pierre created the Intercept so that you had some place to put them and we've only seen a few of them. And how many whistleblowers have you setup to publish only to give out their identity? It's disappointing to hear that he sold out. I too didn't know that he supported the Iraq war.

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wendy davis's picture

@snoopydawg

for GG to publish them, though. but if you consider that meager percentage published (even though many may not be interesting or informative, "intercept" takes on a whole new meaning, doesn't it? i've just seen GG lie, obfuscate, and equivocate too many times over the years to care for him any longer. he never asked about the source of his benefactor's wealth, nor knew about pierre's part in the wikileaks paypal blockade? ach, so very 'fearlessly investigative' of him!

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Big Al's picture

@wendy davis in response to the missile strikes ordered by Trump for the alleged chemical weapons attack that Mattis had admitted there was no evidence Assad did it.

“In a world of vicious dictators, Syria’s Bashar Assad tops the list as a dictator who has killed hundreds of thousands of his own citizens to protect his own power and wealth. His regime’s use of chemical weapons against the men, women and children of his country, in violation of all international conventions and moral standards, makes him a war criminal.

“As the most powerful nation on earth, the United States must work with the international community to bring peace and stability to Syria, where over 400,000 people have been killed and over 6 million displaced. The horror of Syria’s civil war is almost unimaginable."

https://medium.com/@pplswar/bernie-sanders-on-syria-strikes-assad-is-a-w...

No doubt he and every single politician we have will take the same line on this one. The fucking lies, which includes the complete avoidance of discussing U.S. responsibility for Syria, are incredible and none of our representatives can challenge it. And that's with the truth out there. That's how fucked up our government system is.

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wendy davis's picture

@Big Al

guess that's even worse than his comments on the atrocities in gaza the last ten days, isn't it? but that's a bit what i'd meant on my other thread about: DSA anti-imperialism except assad, palestinians, and ___ (fill in the blank).

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snoopydawg's picture

@wendy davis @wendy davis

found this sweet video on teaching kids how to play along with a gas attack. No words. Looks like not many people are buying Haley's twit. This is good to see.

That's too bad that Glenn is drinking the Koolaid on Assad doing the deed. He's smarter than that. At least I thought he was. Amy I know sold out long ago. She will do some good shows, but when she's off, she's far off.

The video in the tweet doesn't load

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wendy davis's picture

@snoopydawg

OMG. use blue lip paint for the real deal? how fucked up to use kids like that, including bana alabed and her clone in afghanistan? sheee-it, i was sick when i'd seeen jeffrey st. clair, CP editor) buy into it: "she's alive and well and at the Guardian!"

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@wendy davis
Did you notice that in one photo only two of the "White Helmuts" had face-masks and they were cheap hardware store dust-masks, of no use whatsoever against CW. No other personal protection, as they handle "victims" of chemical agents. What a joke. Send them back to Hollywood (with another 10 million dollar check from the US taxpayers).

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Capitalism has always been the rule of the people by the oligarchs. You only have two choices, eliminate them or restrict their power.

wendy davis's picture

@The Wizard

but you mean to protect from sanding dust? sooooo believable, though. but it' all about appealing to perceptions: holding *dead, dying* kids in one hands provokes strong emotional reactions, telling one's rational brain to take a seat (stfu). what can be done for these chirren in ___ who can't even attend school (afghanistan), have nothing to eat! (VZ), 'rapes' by gadaffi's forces in libya, 'babbies stolen from their incubators in iraq'. all ad campaigns, i used to know which firm had come up w/ the last one, but again: bernays laughs from his grave.

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edg's picture

@snoopydawg

I want uniforms like the White Helmets have. They're able to rescue victims from smoldering rubble all day long without getting a speck of dirt on or a wrinkle in their brand new looking uniforms!! I want me some of them.

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wendy davis's picture

@edg

it ain't just for (miscreant) candidates any more, but for one of the worst psyops imaginable! of course, like bibi over gaza assassinations, miz nikki and many others in amerika would say: #fake videos!

gotta go make dinner before mr. wd starts chewin' on my ankle; he worked hard today. then do some other chores; back later.

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Pluto's Republic's picture

...when we will be forced to watch the unbelievable carnage, and witness the West killing President Assad and his young family. The slaughter the Syrian people will be accomplished with few words. We will see Damascus destroyed to rubble sending millions of innocent Syrian survivors, now dislocated, on their deadly journey to nothingness. The Shiites will be exterminated. Syria's oil will go to the victors. We will watch that, too.

Because, isn't the alternative even worse?

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____________________

The political system is what it is because the People are who they are. — Plato
snoopydawg's picture

@Pluto's Republic

They know that Putin would never allow them to go that far. I think that they are taking a pretty big chance now if they hit Syria too hard. Putin has warned them about doing that. But I guess we'll see. Yep. The poor Syrians who are caught in the middle of this.

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Pluto's Republic's picture

@snoopydawg

This will drop Iran and Russia into war on their own land.

If the US doesn't do it now, what has this all been for? What was the point of the false flag that Russia has been warning about every day for the past two weeks? This is where the US Empire dies — if Russia and Iran do not engage. And, Russia and Iran may just decide to let Syria be destroyed rather than go to war with the US.

That forces the US hand. If the US doesn't use this opportunity to attack Iran and Russia — in their own front yards — then the US is finished. They will have activated their deadly enemies, who can take their time to do it right.

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____________________

The political system is what it is because the People are who they are. — Plato
snoopydawg's picture

@Pluto's Republic

After all Hillary was set on creating the no fly zone and she knew that Russia wouldn't just do what she wanted. I did think that all aspects of Russia Gate was to move us to war. This could be the start of it.

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wendy davis's picture

@Pluto's Republic

but i need further explanation. i get syria's part in pipelinestan above, and i think i see what you mean here: "If the US doesn't use this opportunity to attack Iran and Russia — in their own front yards — then the US is finished. They will have activated their deadly enemies, who can take their time to do it right."

but you're positng as well that 'Russia and Iran may just decide to let Syria be destroyed rather than go to war with the US'; it's an interesting surmise that i'm not seeing, i guess. although some of the tankies on twitter have claimed in the past the russia has almost advocating for federalizing syria, and were pissed as hell. i'm still baffled over the ypg 'feminist anarchists' in the north, for instance.

might you make your case more clearly to the thickwits among us?

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edg's picture

We see pictures of kids being washed down with hoses. We see pictures of presumably dead bodies. What we haven't seen is a single picture of a Syrian helicopter dropping a chlorine barrel bomb or a single picture of a barrel bomb provably on the ground in Douma. I wonder why.

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snoopydawg's picture

@edg

I would think that the people who treated the kids would be wearing some type of protection. But that costs money and besides, how many people are even aware that they should be wearing them?
If there was some left over gas on the kids, wouldn't that affect the care givers?

IMG_1963.JPG

Sorry. I couldn't find a photo of the Syrian plane that dropped the bombs. The White Helmets were too busy to take pictures of them.

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edg's picture

@snoopydawg

I notice since the White Helmets were busted "rescuing" people from the supposed sarin bomb attack last year without benefit of any protective gear or masks, they now stick to photos of them hosing down little kids after supposed chlorine bomb attacks. Without benefit of any protective gear or even gloves.

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WaterLily's picture

But how does one reconcile Trump being Putin's puppet, with:

Following the chemical attack reports, US President Donald Trump, who said on Tuesday that he wanted to “get out” of Syria, called Assad an “Animal,” adding that “President Putin, Russia and Iran” were responsible, as backers of the Syrian authorities.”

or

“The US will act against the Syrian government with or without a UN blessing, US envoy Nikki Haley told the Security Council, blaming Russian “obstructionism” for allowing the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria and beyond.

'Cause I'm willing to bet that Moosetits' Minions are, at this very moment, contorting themselves to do just that. (On matter of principle, I refuse to personally verify).

But, really. Is the majority of the U.S Western population so far gone at this point as to accept an official narrative that doesn't even attempt to hide its contradictions anymore?

(Rhetorical question).

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Big Al's picture

@WaterLily (To your rhetorical question.) I'd say a full quarter don't even know what happened.

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wendy davis's picture

@WaterLily

dunno when he and his admin had decided not to be known as putin's puppet, all he'd ever claimed was to 'want to get along' (as per rodney king). but it was his treasury dept. that laid shittons of sanctions on specific russians, his state dept. that shut down russian embassies and consualates, and so on.

dunno who or what's changed things over time, but...here we are. i'd had a short RT video of him at a presser saying that 'they'll all pay' in the original diary, but i'd failed to link it, which meant i'd had to do this whole cross-post anew. but i'd said: "look at his body language! arms crossed over his (i assume) silk-clad chest, flailing about in his chair, eyes darting...' but yeah, i wish i could find it again as extremely key to try to read him.

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WaterLily's picture

@wendy davis It is she, I believe, who first used this term of endearment for Kos.

"Markie Moosetits."

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wendy davis's picture

@WaterLily

with confessions that i never grasped folks who'd blogged or commented at the GOS, but it seems there were a hella lot of ya'll. good some of you got a different religion...later on in time (smile)

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwtdhWltSIg]

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@wendy davis thanks but the religion thread is over that way ---> ! OMG don't anybody go back and look at my daily cheer leading in the BNR at DailyKos. Fanatic much? Beeeern! /kelso
AND
if that's not enough, don't look at the marathon LiveBlog of Her Heinous being grilled by the likes of Republican Q-Tip Head what's his name? I forget, but he is revolving to private cash now anyway, gotta fill his coffers for the next run up.
Lastly, but not leastly, do not look at that "Missing Girls" diary that Denise Olivesomething put up and I plotzed about the racists in the crowd. I paid them $40 for those fainting spellz. Fuck.

All I can say is whatever I am thinking and saying right now today, it will probably be stupid and wrong tomorrow. Must be Putin planting distrust all up in my head, and under my skin. ~ shiver ~

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wendy davis's picture

@eyo

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@wendy davis those are diaries or essays or whatever you want to call 'em, that got thousands of comments on DailyKos. BNR was Liepar Destin's daily upbeat Bernie News Roundup, which he moved to theprogressvivewing.com after the Ides of March ban of all things Bernie (so as not to detract from Her Heinous' campaign). Little did I know what was really going down. David Brock named his thing the Blue News Review quite by accident I'm sure (not), what an asshole. It's all old news anyway, I was taking a stroll down memory lane again.

They had live blogs when Republicans grilled Her on the TV machine that time, about her sekret server and Benghazi and stuff, I defended Her in the comments over there and made fun of Q-Tip Gowdy (I think). Now I can't wait for those damned recovered emails, thanks to wikileaks for gems like: "Libya in disarray! Brink of civil war!" Okay, but "Did you get info from Chelsea about the wall lamps?" (that Clinton response was in a State Department email thread, I am not kidding.)

Denise Olivesomething was an academic, a loyal D to the last drop. Some of my first comments over there were in her diary about black girls kidnapped by terrorists in Africa, "What if they were white?". It got a thousand comments, I remember jumping in and being appalled by the racist remarks. I am always appalled by racist remarks, so that hasn't changed much. It is kind of fascinating to go back and look at what others wrote then too. I can't imagine being loyal to any political party ever again, that seems dumb now. Thanks.

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wendy davis's picture

@eyo

and i'd ask fr a translation of your translation, but...i won't, lol. i dunno one single name you've mentioned, but er...thank you?

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@wendy davis heh Not sure if you're serious or what you're after. Real names? ~shrug~ nenni ekki but it's all over there archived, except for what was scrubbed. You could go explore their silly drama and see for yourself, I'm sorry I dragged it up in my weird flashback way. That is the old D is for Dead blog, this is the new non-partisan blog.

long may you run
have fun

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wendy davis's picture

@eyo

saying i could look if i wanted. thanks to snoopy dog and Jvolvo, as well.

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decent Progressive website then shithead Brock bought it outright late Nov 2015 (for the no-longer-a-cakewalk primary warz) then corrupted it with Peter Daou and rampant Hillbot propaganda.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/blue-nation-review-true-blue-133000087.html

@eyo

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JVolvo2

snoopydawg's picture

@eyo

Is that the cueball you meant? Cotton head. Moosetits. Brings back fond memories. Benghaziiiiiiii!

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

WaterLily's picture

@wendy davis A hella lot of us. Then we woke up, jumped ship (or were forced to walk the plank for insufficient loyalty to Her) and swam directly over here. Thank the FSM.

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called him Markos Mousetits so I'd tip my hat there.

Remember the good old days - before Sam Seder freaked out (now he hate posts at Jimmy Dore). It was pure gold to watch McJoan swear on video!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFPXHrp_quM

@WaterLily

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JVolvo2

snoopydawg's picture

@WaterLily

Since they believe in Russia Gate it isn't very far for them to believe in Weapons Gate. It must be very difficult for them to see Trump saying things against Putin but by golly they found a way to criticize him after the false flag.

"Why did he call him President Putin? He didn't call Assad by his proper title."

No matter what Trump does to Russia, it's never enough for him to stop being Putin's puppet!

Oh yeah, and if he does bomb Syria it's only because his lawyer's office was raided today. He's just wagging the dawg. Sigh

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

evening. He seems to be the only person on MSM who's not a complete loon on this subject. On Fox no less--go figure.

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chuck utzman

TULSI 2020

wendy davis's picture

@chuckutzman

short enuff for even me to watch. one error, i think, was that he said 'both sides' have chemical weapons in syria, but i'd thought that there was a joint US/russian operation to get rid of them. and the russian envoy to the UN has requested that the OPCW get to douma tomorrow at the latest, as russians and syrians on the ground found no traces of chemicals, nor hospitalized 'victims'. information wars continue.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=186&v=U0niyl-vDBk]

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WaterLily's picture

But the Pollyanna side of me still likes to think that Bernie has sold half his soul in order to keep the other half intact -- advocating for the things that most of us still really want, and need.

In other words, he's talking out of both sides of his mouth: but in some sort of Opposite Land, where the idiots who believe him are the establishment pols, and the ones who know the truth are we.

(I know, I know: clearly I'm still in mourning for what I naively thought Could Have Been).

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WaterLily's picture

@WaterLily Misplaced comment. This was supposed to be upstream, connected to BA's comment on Bernie, and WD's reply to same ...

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Big Al's picture

@WaterLily i.e., we can no longer accept half measures and the immorality of U.S. imperialism and Israel apartheid. Like with 9/11, none of our elected "representatives" can rock these boats even if they wanted to, Sanders included. That's a problem with the system and something we can no longer accept. Things are too fucked up and we need major radical changes. That won't come from Congress and Senate, it has to come from the people who want it.

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wendy davis's picture

@WaterLily

i'd written a long comment oh your 'putin's puppet' question. but as to your comment here, sadly, for too many of us: hope dies last. if this embeds too big, i'll link to it. it's a mural in france somewhere i've used before. arthur silber says that hope is the worst con of all...

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WaterLily's picture

@wendy davis I know you're right (Big Al, too).

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wendy davis's picture

@WaterLily

who end up having such feet of clay. even the 'leftist' café denizens weren't able to let go of this sell-out, alexis tsipras. #whatagoodamshame

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Russia is hopping mad. She has been screaming "false flag" for two months now. No one has been listening. You might get away with that with a non-nuclear state, but not Russia. Russia has informed the US that any military attack on Syria that endangers Russian military lives will be met by destroying the source of that attack, be it a warship or plane. Russia's war fleet in the Mediterranean is on full alert, as I'm sure the US fleet is also. If Trump gives the order for a punitive strike on Syria, the sailors on the US ship launching the strike will be shitting a brick. Russia doesn't bluff, that's Trump's tactic. Where does it go from there? The US will consider the sinking of one of its warships as an act of war. For that reason I think that Israel's tactic of firing stand-off missiles from fighter jets outside of Syrian airspace would be the most probable US tactic. In which case Russia will release a hail of missiles from their S400 air defense system, probably downing most or all of the US warplanes. Russia has just warned that the range of the S400 is far greater than the US thinks. Considering that this is Trump and Bolton expect a large scale attack. It looks like each F15 can carry four stand-off air to ground missiles each, so expect Trump to order at least 30 warplanes into the air. What a carnage this is going to be.

Russians' reaction to the US varies from bewilderment to outrage. Considering that this is obviously a false flag event, like so many before that the US has used, it is extremely obvious to Russians that this is nothing more than a blatant, hostile attack on Russia, an act of war. President Putin has been under enormous pressure to be more aggressive towards the West. He has been the voice of moderation ("our American partners"). Expect this to end.

The reaction that I'm seeing internationally from Poland to Africa to South America is that people of the world have had it with the United States. It will take a while for the bought-and-paid leadership of these countries to get-it, but they will when faced with the people's anger. This is not going to play out well. We are in a slow-moving Cuban Missile Crisis. Slow only because President Putin is cautious and measured unlike JFK. JFK was rash but at least he had a sense that Nuclear war was the end of everything, I'm pretty sure that Trump and his neocon advisers think otherwise, that the US is so strong that Russia will back down. Good luck and good night all.

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Capitalism has always been the rule of the people by the oligarchs. You only have two choices, eliminate them or restrict their power.

wendy davis's picture

@The Wizard

and now comes a new version of putin's 'look what you've done!' as in: you create chaos and enemies wherever you intercede.

can't say what this means in truth, because the US does bluff, or issue warnings by way of fleets, but from RT, with the navy's tweet:

"The USS ‘Donald Cook’, a guided-missile destroyer, has left Cyprus and is reportedly moving to the eastern Mediterranean. The movement of the vessel comes as top US officials have threatened to attack Syria.

The Arleigh Burke-class warship, which carries 60 Tomahawk cruise missiles on board, left the port of Larnaca in Cyprus on Monday, the US Navy reported. Several media outlets cited defense sources as saying that the destroyer is moving towards Syria. The ship is currently the only naval asset the US could use to strike targets in Syria with cruise missiles."

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Soros: I can't believe it! I've my guys write daily articles on why we had to stay in Syria. He still thinks we should pull out. Do you know how hard it is to say the same thing everyday? 'Stability' in Syria? Avoid the re-emergence of ISIS?

Koch: What? You idiot. Newspaper articles? This is Trump. You want him to stay it has to live in his world. You need Tweets for the Twit! I speak his language. It's simple. All it took was a few videos of kids last year at this same time and he went from ignoring Syria to bombing it.

Soros: Oh yeah. I am used to dealing with people with at least some education and understanding of institutions. Which is why I love them so. USAID has made me a fortune! But anyway, back to Trump. How many kids in one video do you think it would take?

Koch: How many can we fit in?

Soros: This will have to be a rush job. How believable?

Koch: Believable? None. Throw a gas mask on a guy and he will be a chemical expert. Hell, if they believe the crown prince of Saudi Arabia is the second coming of Ghandi, they'll believe anything.

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wendy davis's picture

@Mickt

and that the clown prince is the second coming of gandhi...made it 'art' of the only-too-believable sort. heard there are photos with him with bezos and gates: moolah walks big moolah...runs to the nearest oligarch.

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has a report and photographs concerning the Syrian finding of German and British production labels on chemical weapons they found at the cache in East Ghouta.

The point of the article is that the hysteria, the false flag, and the aggression are predictable. The chemical weapons facility not only nails Al Nusra and its colleagues as having the weapons, it also indicates who supplied them.

https://www.veteranstoday.com/2018/04/08/proof-intel-drop-trump-bolton-b...

Proof: Intel Drop, Trump, Bolton behind Syria chemical attacks, confirmed
Germany, Britain, America, Israel - VT provides proof of chemical warfare and war crimes.

By Gordon Duff, Senior Editor - April 8, 2018

… The SAA capturing this chemical weapons facility was a huge turn of events.

… The impending attack on Damascus by the US was partially due to what the SAA might uncover in East Ghouta; and because they were able to move fast, they overran the US Coalition’s chemical weapons operations faster than anyone thought possible.

The SAA has US Coalition chemical weapons officers in custody; and Russia has told the US, Brits, Israelis, and Saudis that they will have to deal with Damascus.

How long US media and our own Congress can pretend they know nothing about who some of the major terrorist elements are that most are afraid to mention? Their house of cards is crumbling, and “they” will be more dangerous in that situation, as we are talking about some serious crimes here...

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wendy davis's picture

@Linda Wood

but other than joltin' bolton's past calumnies on deadly neuro-toxins, etc., i hadn't seen his name mentioned except in the title. i'd thought maybe similar pictures were in the essay from sharmine narwani, but i may just be missing the different locations. evil stalks the land...in angel clothing and wings.

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@wendy davis

with the that title too, which implied Bolton was connected to the supplying of chemical weapons to the Ghouta forces. But since Bolton is known to strongly support the MEK terrorist organization, which opposes Iran, and since he advocates using the MEK terrorist force as a proxy army against Iran, maybe it's just the symmetry, the use of proxy terrorism to achieve regime change, that implies he has used Al Qaeda/Al Nusra in the same way. It is the same strategy.

https://www.globalresearch.ca/us-national-security-advisor-john-bolton-b...

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wendy davis's picture

@Linda Wood

like: 'former head of OPCW was told to shut up by bolton' or some such, so i'd wondered about his history on chemical warfare lies. but double thanks cuz i'd just added some tweets about and by the brookings institute, so i'll add that paragraph.

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wendy davis's picture

@Linda Wood

from RT: 'I give you 24 hours to resign': 1st OPCW chief on how John Bolton bullied him before Iraq War'

"In 2001, OPCW inspectors examined Iraqi facilities, and it was "a successful operation," after which Bustani's informal dialogue with the Iraqis and Libyans about joining the organization made a breakthrough, he recalled.

But diplomatic efforts and peacemaking did not sit well with Washington, because "they had plans already to take some action – military action – against Iraq," Bustani claims. Shortly afterwards, the Bush administration began to aggressively lobby for his removal, and it became "a tragic story" for him, he said.

"I got a phone call from John Bolton – it was first time I had contact with him – and he said he had instructions to tell me that I have to resign from the organization, and I asked him why," Bustani told RT. "He said that [my] management style was not agreeable to Washington."

He resolutely refused to resign, only to see Bolton again at OPCW headquarters in The Hague several weeks after the phone conversation. "He came to my office and said: 'You have to resign and I give you 24 hours, this is what we want. You have to leave, you have to resign from your organization, director-general.'"

Bustani said he "owed nothing" to the US, pointing out that he was appointed by all OPCW member states. Striking a more sinister tone, Bolton said: "OK, so there will be retaliation. Prepare to accept the consequences. We know where your kids are."

On April 21, 2002, a special meeting was finally held in The Hague, and Bustani's removal was carried out by a vote of 48–7, with 43 abstentions. The diplomat said those who abstained were from developing countries, and that his own government in Brazil "left me behind."

gawd's blood; what a nasty sod he is, and ugly as sin to boot.

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they'll believe anything.

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Alligator Ed's picture

Some of you probably believe I am swilling too much swamp water--which may be true--but there are interesting Q posts precisely on target here.

#1080 They [deep state] are trying to start a war [actually a wider war]. This shifts public's attention from the Syrian pullout announcement. Chemical attack simply a coincidence? These people are sick. (Yes, to callously kill perhaps 100 hundred innocents in order to foment a wider war)

#1081 POTUS never telegraphs his moves. Think logically. (this pullout announcement was to propel the deep state into showing their next move--and they waited less than a day to do so).
i.e., moves and countermoves.

#1106 Syria. Hold until confirmed (i.e., take no action yet without verification). Military assets on the ground locked out of Gaza (by the Israelis of course--why is that important?) Israel strike harmed ability to prove (verify) events. Clown (CIA) report must be verified. Troop unwind to still occur (Trump's following through with the troop withdrawal regardless).

Disregard what numbskull Haley says. Trump plays his cards close to the vest and she isn't given a peek.

Suspected malefactors here (take your pick): Israel, CIA, "moderate rebels", Turkey, SA. This chemical bombing is just so much bullshit--which is not to say that people didn't die.

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Big Al's picture

@Alligator Ed we know that. Fucking sickos who don't care about causing death and misery so they can become more rich and powerful. And our representative system of government is totally broken, there are zero in congress and senate who can really tell the truth about what's going on, even if they wanted to.

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wendy davis's picture

@Alligator Ed

hospitalized, at least according to the syrian red crescent. but now the OSCW says they wi come to douma soon, as in: "shortly". and we hope they won't say that the syrian and russian military investigators who said "no chemical residue what.so.ever" aren't accused of removing the "evidence".

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CB's picture

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAyeayfKnFE]

Trump considers military action against an unconfirmed "chemical attack" in Syria. WMDs being used as an excuse for war in the Middle East? How many times must this false lesson be learned?

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Alligator Ed's picture

@CB Thank you for posting this YouTube video. Note SM is a conservative and a Libertarian but, like us "far-lefties" anti-war. In this and other matters, such as election reform, we must make common ground. Work out the differences later but work together now to end these stupid, hateful, destructive, mind-numbing wars.

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snoopydawg's picture

@Alligator Ed

This covers a few topics that I don't remember :). anyhoo .. it goes great with the one above.

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

@CB

this is wonderful. I had not heard of Molyneux. So many interesting, powerful points. His logic in exposing the illogic of the current hysteria is so strong. What's exasperating for so many of us may be that which is causing him to agonize, running his hands over, across his head, as I keep doing as I try to keep from losing my grip, the incomprehensible appearance that so many intelligent Americans have fallen for this illogical tripe. How has the CIA become rehabilitated in the hearts and minds of Democratic voters? What happened?

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wendy davis's picture

@CB

31 minutes...i canna do it, but we all thank you.

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wendy davis's picture

thanks for such a stellar conversation, and for engaging with one another. i'll be back in the morning, and as i can't get out under the night sky except to see a huge hanging venus in the west from the porch, i'll say good night with this lullaby that serves the same purpose to me. from the late great john trudell, the last song he ever recorded. 'time dreams', bless his santee sioux timeless heart and moral compass set at True North. quiltman was with him one last time...

love one another as it's possible, make community where you're able...

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRTMe_EPgSM]

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wendy davis's picture

this man is brookings:

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wendy davis's picture

@wendy davis

"In the 2009 Brookings Institution policy paper, “Which Path to Persia? Options for a New American Strategy Toward Iran,” US policymakers openly admitted MEK’s candidacy as a US proxy (emphasis added):

Perhaps the most prominent (and certainly the most controversial) opposition group that has attracted attention as a potential U.S. proxy is the NCRI (National Council of Resistance of Iran), the political movement established by the MEK (Mujahedin-e Khalq). Critics believe the group to be undemocratic and unpopular, and indeed anti-American.

In contrast, the group’s champions contend that the movement’s long-standing opposition to the Iranian regime and record of successful attacks on and intelligence-gathering operations against the regime make it worthy of U.S. support. They also argue that the group is no longer anti-American and question the merit of earlier accusations. Raymond Tanter, one of the group’s supporters in the United States, contends that the MEK and the NCRI are allies for regime change in Tehran and also act as a useful proxy for gathering intelligence. The MEK’s greatest intelligence coup was the provision of intelligence in 2002 that led to the discovery of a secret site in Iran for enriching uranium."

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