No 'Shock and awe' as US, UK, and France opt for limited strikes in Syria

ed note–I’ll admit, we here at this humble little endeavor are a lil’ dazed-n-confuzed on a few things…

You see, day after day, week after week for close to 2 years now, we have been/are inundated on a daily basis with screeching vitriol from a whole slew of self-described experts and geniuses (who claim infallible clairvoyance on the oftentimes complicated and convoluted world of geo-politics) that all the obvious friction that seems to exist between Trump and Judea, Inc is all ‘an act’ and that secretly, he is in bed with Djooooooz and intends to give them every thing they want, including WWIII and the entire ‘Greater Israel’ project.

So, again, we’re a lil’ dazed-n-confuzed here…According to the various ‘screech reports’ we received last night, Trump launched WWIII, per Israel’s orders, except that today, we come to find out–much like it was a year ago with the air strikes on the for-the-most-part empty airfield–that it was all just for show. In fact, Trump himself has come out and basically stated that Elvis has left the building and that there is nothing more to be seen on this matter. Sec of Defense Mattis has said that there is to be no regime change–despite Israel’s demands–and that the strikes were not intended to weaken Assad, the Iranians, Russians, Hezbollah, etc.

So, a lil’ clarification would REALLY be appreciated here. Since those of us involved in this humble lil’ endeavor are obviously ‘bought off by the Djoooooz’ or else seriously lacking in the grey matter department in coming to the same conclusion (s) to which all the self-described/self-coronated ‘experts’ and geniuses have on this matter, can someone please walk us through this complicated mess? If Djooooooz want Syria destroyed and Assad gone, as they have made patently clear now for decades, and if–as all the self-described/self-coronated ‘experts’ and geniuses claim–Trump is ‘owned’ by Djoooooz, then why has he stopped short?

WAIT, I THINK I FIGURED IT OUT…DJOOOOOOOOZ DON’T REALLY WANT ASSAD GONE, IT’S ALL AN ACT TOO.

I guess we here at this humble lil’ endeavor are not as dummm as we previously thought.

In all seriousness ladies and gents, read the article, coming from no less an authoritative source than the Jerusalem Post and ask yourself whether or not Judea, Inc is pleased with this latest development.

jpost

President Donald Trump announced air strikes saying that the US does not want maintain an “indefinite” presence in Syria and UK Prime Minister Theresa May announced that the air strikes on Syria were not about “intervening in the civil war or regime change” but were a ‘limited and targeted strike’.

The US and France have both stressed that this is a limited action, and in so doing indicate that the momentous air strikes on Syria are not a version of “shock and awe,” the term Washington used in 2003 when announcing the attack on Saddam Hussein.

US Secretary of Defense James Mattis characterized the more than 100 Tomahawk cruise missiles fired at Syria as a “one time shot” and said that “right now we have no additional attacks planned.”

In Paris, Emmanuel Macron said the strike was limited to hitting the “Syrian regime’s capabilities to produce and use chemical weapons.”

This proportionate, limited and targeted response sends a message to Russia that the three Western allies do not want a wider war. It also allowed Moscow to save face by not requiring it to get deeply involved.

For instance, British warplanes operated from RAF Akrotiri base in Cyprus but did not enter Syrian air space. CNN reported that people on the ground found the strikes had less impact than they had initially thought. Strikes hit two facilities in Homs that were storage facilities. The Syrians claimed that most of the missiles were intercepted. Syria, unsurprisingly, claims that civilians were injured as cruise missiles went off course. Near Damascus a scientific research center in Barzeh on Mount Qasioun was struck. This facility was struck previously in May 2013 by air strikes that Syrian rebel groups told Reuters were carried out by Israel.

Reports on Saturday claimed that there were no Russians present at the two facilities or other locations hit and that this was a key factor in the planning and execution of the raid.

IT IS UNCLEAR how the operation will dissuade Syria from using chemical weapons. The fact that the French Defense Ministry has said that Russia was warned about the strikes shows that much of the attack was telegraphed and almost scripted. This gave plenty of time for Damascus to move men and material away from these areas.

Given that the UK has said it is not interested in regime change, that leaves Bashar Assad with the confidence that he can move forward. After the chemical weapons attack in Douma on April 7 the regime forces then pushed into the area, clearing out Syrian rebels from the area that had been struck. So the regime accomplished what it wanted. The use of chemical weapons is merely a small part of the regime strategy.

The US, UK and France have responded with a similar small and limited attempt to stop that one part of the strategy. This is designed to enforce the redline and prevent what Paris called the “trivialization” of the use of chemical weapons.

The narrowly defined targets – research facilities, storage, brigades involved in the attacks and air bases – don’t seem to really degrade the forces involved over the years. The strikes were also designed to send a message of deterrence.

Is the regime deterred? It appears that now the regime will certainly be more careful as it knows that Western powers are watching. But the regime has mostly achieved its major goals of pushing the rebels into pockets in the north and south.

By pushing the rebels to the north and south the regime has consolidated its control over the heart of its power in Damascus, Homs, Hama and Aleppo, the historic cities that make up modern Syria. The rebels in the north exist within a Turkish-backed umbrella that protects them from Syrian regime assault. Iran, Russia and Turkey have largely agreed to the Turkish presence in the north in recent months. In the south the Syrian rebels receive assistance from Jordan and some are also in contact with Israel, according to foreign reports. In the east the Syrian Democratic Forces, a mostly Kurdish-led force, is partnered with the US.

“America does not seek an indefinite presence in Syria under any circumstances,” Donald Trump said in a statement Friday. He said he wants to bring America’s warriors home. “No amount of American blood or treasure can produce lasting peace and security in the Middle East.”

The message for Assad, Russia and Iran: Wait long enough and the Americans will go away and the regime can do what it wants in Syria.