Doctor Death from Damascus?

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Butcher of Damascus. Gasser of children. Baby Killer of Syria. Tool of Moscow. Cruel despot. Monster.

These are all names the western media and politicians routinely heap on Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad. He has now become the top Mideast villain, the man we love to hate.

As a veteran Mideast watcher, I find all this hard to swallow.  Compared to other brutal Mideast leaders, Assad is pretty weak tea. The US/British propaganda effort to paint Assad in blackest colors is having a difficult time.

Mideast leaders who toe the US line and make nice to Israel are invariably called “statesmen” or “president” by the American government and its increasingly tame media. There’s good old President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt, the military dictator who crushed that nation’s only democracy and imposed an iron-fisted rule. But we will never hear from the US media of Egypt’s political murders, disappearances, secret prisons and torture. Or that Egypt has been one of the world’s most draconian police states since the era of Anwar Sadat and successor Hosni Mubarak.

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Saudi rulers are reverently treated by the US media and government in spite of leading the world in executions. Last year, 44 people were publicly beheaded.  In some years, around 150 people have been beheaded in Saudi Arabia, often a quarter of them Pakistani guest workers. Having been arrested by the Saudi religious police, I can tell you that the kingdom is a police state with sand dunes and camels. Saudi vassal states Bahrain and the Emirates are better, but not much.

Morocco, a key US ally, is notorious for its ghastly prisons and brutal torture. Iraq and Afghanistan, now under US control, are even worse. Israel, the largest recipient of US aid, holds close to 7,000 Palestinian political prisoners, among them 400 children, and is gunning down Palestinian demonstrators on the Gaza border.

Syria has always been a repressive police state. I recall watching “spies” being hanged in front of my hotel. Its various police forces are notorious for brutality and torture. In fact, until recently, the US actually sent captive suspects to Syria to be tortured and jailed.

That was before Washington made the decision to overthrow Syria’s legitimate government (“regime” in DC talk) as the first step in attacking Iran.

But Damascus was no worse a human rights abuser than Cairo, Amman, Rabat and Riyadh, all US vassals.

While looking at the current western hate campaigns against Syria and Iran, keep in mind the history of the modern Mideast. We are again seeing the 1914 era lies from London about Belgian babies speared on German bayonets.

Any Arab or Iranian leader who sought an independent policy or refused the tutelage of London and then Washington was delegitimized, excoriated, and demonized. Remember the Iranian leader Mohammed Mossadegh overthrown in a CIA coup? The renowned Egyptian leader, Gamal Abdel Nasser, whom the British branded “Hitler on the Nile”? Or the late, murdered Libyan Muammar Khadaffi, called “Mad Dog of the Mideast” by President Ronald Reagan?  Imam Khomeini of Iran and President Ahmadinejad, both favored targets of western media invective, and both compared to the much overused Hitler.  Saddam Hussein, the “Butcher of Baghdad,” and that modern Dr Fu Manchu, Osama bin Laden, the all-time favorite Muslim arch villain.

Of course, there’s nothing new in this nasty name-calling. During the Victorian Era, Britain’s press demonized arch villains like “the Mad Mullah,” the Mahdi, the Fakir of Ipi, and Nana Sahib of the 1857 Indian uprising against British imperial rule.

Bashar al-Assad was a mild-mannered ophthalmologist living in London with his British-born wife. When his rash elder brother Basil was killed in a car crash, Bashar was compelled to return to Syria and become the nominal political leader after the death of his very tough, ruthless father, Hafez al-Assad. Bashar’s main role was mediating between powerful factions in Damascus and trying to modernize his nation.

In 2011, the US, Britain, Israel and Saudi Arabia ignited an uprising in Syria using often fanatical jihadists. The shy, retiring Bashar was forced to become war leader in a bloody civil conflict as his nation disintegrated.

President Trump, whose B-52 bombers are ravaging the Mideast, Afghanistan, Somalia and Yemen calls al-Assad a “monster.”  Some of his relatives are indeed ruthless. But very many Syrians think of Assad as their nation’s only hope of returning to normalcy.

Reprinted with permission from EricMargolis.com.

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19 Comments
Boat Guy
Boat Guy
April 23, 2018 6:52 am

You are not attempting to convince me that American foreign policies especially in the Middle East are all driven by lies and subterfuge at the highest levels of American Government are you ?
We have done nothing but destabilize every place we go turning hopeful allies and independent nations into shitholes . Then we bomb the piss out of them for becoming a shit hole of our own design . From Wall Street to K-Street to Capitol Street the Washington DC circle jerk is alive and well under Donald Trump the new Sheriff of the Swamp !
Oh to sleep per chance to dream , what might have been !

SmallerGovNow
SmallerGovNow
  Boat Guy
April 23, 2018 9:41 am
Southern Sage
Southern Sage
April 23, 2018 7:33 am

Assad is a dentist, for Christ sake! He has protected the Christian and other minorities from the deranged Sunni terrorists we armed and encouraged. This gas nonsense is a total hoax invented in Tel Aviv. The Israeli murder of some Hamas guy in Malaysia shows what they are capable of.

OutWithLibs
OutWithLibs
  Southern Sage
April 23, 2018 7:58 am

Actually he is an eye dr., but that’s beside the point….
Assad was elected by HIS people. The US, as usual, doesn’t want him there, just like Ukraine and numerous other countries, so they have destroyed that country in the name of democracy and freedom. Well, helllloooooo….. they were as free as they wanted to be and were far better off before the good ‘ole USofA decided they the people needed a “better” way of life, like blown up buildings, tens of thousands of dead Syrians, and a new best friend.
The USSA has been for 70 years, and continues to be the world bully, and we’re about to get more than one big black eye, we’ll lose a few limbs in the process.

whiskey tango foxtrot
whiskey tango foxtrot
April 23, 2018 8:13 am

On a positive note…….All but the most pathetically ignorant, obtuse, self-involved Americans now see the MSM as an ass kissing Otis to the Fed Govs Lex Luther.

Zarathustra
Zarathustra
April 23, 2018 9:08 am

Assad must go simply because Israel wants him gone. Meanwhile the western media can get hysterical over a bunch on non-existent civilian deaths while Israeli snipers deliberately target and murder Palestinian children….most moral army and shit…

TC
TC
April 23, 2018 9:22 am

For a brutal dictator he sure seems to be loved by his people.

kokoda the Deplorable Raccoon and I-LUV-CO2
kokoda the Deplorable Raccoon and I-LUV-CO2
  TC
April 23, 2018 11:12 am

Ignoring the asshole comment from cliff below (cuz he doesn’t know shit about Assad), your implication is correct.

For example, back in 2006 Assad passed laws that protect minorities and women. A woman is Vice-President. A woman is head of Parliament. A Muslim woman does not have to wear a hijab. Most of school principals are women.

Where are all our liberals and liberal women when they should be protesting at 1600 Penn. Ave. to help Assad and not aid the terrorists.

Just another reason for my contempt of liberals.

TC
TC

Not to put words in his mouth, but I think cliff’s point is that doesn’t matter what kind of leader Assad is. I’d have to agree.

kokoda the Deplorable Raccoon and I-LUV-CO2
kokoda the Deplorable Raccoon and I-LUV-CO2
  TC
April 23, 2018 11:46 am

TC….yes, and I did understand that. But, “Assad is probably about as ethical as our politicians” is pure BS and ticks me off. You think cliff knew about what I posted on Assad.

It is doubly insulting to compare Assad (good) to our politicians (evil).

overthecliff
overthecliff
April 23, 2018 10:23 am

Assad is probably about as ethical as our politicians which makes him a scumbag and worse. I don’t really know and don’t really care. I don’t know if he gassed children and don’t care. It is not the business of the USA what happens in Syria. Not one 20 year old from Kansas should die should die in Syria so some other scumbag can gas children.

nkit
nkit
  overthecliff
April 23, 2018 1:40 pm

+100 OTC

suzanna
suzanna
April 23, 2018 10:26 am

What a mess! Think Ocam’s Razor…the obvious and most likely is where
the truth lies. Is that a pun?

RHS Jr
RHS Jr
April 23, 2018 11:30 am

By attacking Syria again, Trump has lost all credibility; he is saved by 99% of the rest of our politicians being just as bad and by Putin being a Statesman. Most Americans believe Germans should have removed Hitler when he attacked Poland. What about US? When WDC rejected Christianity? Ron Paul? Almost elected Harpy? Elected Trump who then turned out to be a RINO who isn’t building a wall, signed Omnibus, attacked Syria again? The Russians finally removed their Oligarchs 20 years ago yet the ZOG still rules US.

Stucky
Stucky
April 23, 2018 1:31 pm

He doesn’t kill.

He orders others to kill.

He is an American Monster #1.

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Stucky
Stucky
April 23, 2018 1:34 pm

He does kill.

Because he is just following orders.

He is the American Monster #2.

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