{"id":102372,"date":"2023-03-02T17:05:11","date_gmt":"2023-03-02T15:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=102372"},"modified":"2023-02-24T09:39:31","modified_gmt":"2023-02-24T07:39:31","slug":"02-05-88","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=102372","title":{"rendered":"Rehabilitating a War Criminal like Assad is Not an Option"},"content":{"rendered":"<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gatestoneinstitute.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"center alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gatestoneinstitute.org\/images\/gatestone-logo-1000.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"50%\" \/><\/a><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #000080;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #000080; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gatestoneinstitute.org\/19429\/rehabilitating-war-criminal-assad\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Rehabilitating a War Criminal like Assad is Not an Option<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Con Coughlin<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<hr style=\"height: 15px; background: #d0e6fa; width: 100%;\" \/>\n<ul class=\"content_preface_bullets\">\n<li><strong>Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad&#8217;s offer to ease border restrictions to allow aid agencies better access to areas of northern Syria that were devastated by the recent earthquake is nothing more than a calculated ploy to have the punitive sanctions regime against Damascus eased.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>The same pattern of double-dealing is now evident with the Assad regime&#8217;s blatant attempt to exploit the humanitarian disaster caused by the earthquake on the Turkey-Syrian border for its own ends.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Instead of easing sanctions against Assad, the Biden administration should be supporting efforts to establish an international war crimes tribunal that will ensure Assad and his henchmen stand trial for their despicable crimes.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Nor is Syria the only rogue Middle Eastern state seeking to exploit the earthquake.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Reports have also emerged that Iran, Syria&#8217;s main regional ally, is similarly seeking to take advantage of the humanitarian disaster to expand its military presence in Syria, a policy that is designed to intensify its efforts to threaten neighbouring Israel.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>It is reported that Iran is using the earthquake to smuggle convoys of weapons disguised as humanitarian aid for earthquake victims in Syria.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>The Biden Administration should not be encouraging them in their duplicity.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gatestoneinstitute.org\/pics\/4584.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"100%\" \/><span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em>Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad&#8217;s offer to ease border restrictions to allow aid agencies better access to areas of northern Syria that were devastated by the recent earthquake is nothing more than a calculated ploy to have the punitive sanctions regime against Damascus eased. Pictured: A convoy of trucks from Doctors Without Borders, carrying aid to earthquake victims, enters Syria from Turkey via the al-Hamam border crossing, on February 19, 2023. (Photo by Bakr Alkasem\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad&#8217;s offer to ease border restrictions to allow aid agencies better access to areas of northern Syria that were devastated by the recent earthquake is nothing more than a calculated ploy to have the punitive sanctions regime against Damascus eased.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">During the five decades or so the Assad regime has been in power, one of its less appealing characteristics has been its willingness to exploit any global crisis for its own benefit.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">In the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks in 2001, for example, Bashar al-Assad tried to improve relations with Washington by offering to help tackle the Al-Qaeda terrorist network that had masterminded the attack.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">It later turned out to be an empty gesture, as Damascus soon turned its attention to supporting the numerous jihadi groups formed to carry out terrorist attacks against US forces operating in the Middle East.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The same pattern of double-dealing is now evident with the Assad regime&#8217;s blatant attempt to exploit the humanitarian disaster caused by the earthquake on the Turkey-Syrian border for its own ends.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Much of the Syrian area affected by the earthquake lies in rebel-controlled territory or territory formerly controlled by rebels such as Aleppo, which had already suffered extensive devastation as a result of the brutal offensive undertaken by Russia and pro-regime forces during the country&#8217;s crushing civil war.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Despite his regime&#8217;s best efforts, Assad had no control over most of northern Syria, which has been divided into numerous enclaves controlled by a variety of actors, from the al-Qaeda-linked factions based in the western area around Idlib to the US-backed Kurdish autonomous zone to the east.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">As a result, the Assad regime initially proved\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/news\/dispatch\/how-assad-blocked-aid-to-syrian-earthquake-victims\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">unwilling<\/a>\u00a0to allow aid agencies access, even though they were some of the worst-affected areas from the earthquake.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Then, bowing to international pressure, Damascus suddenly changed its mind last week, and\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/middle-east\/un-chief-says-syrias-assad-agrees-expand-un-aid-access-turkey-2023-02-13\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">agreed to open<\/a>\u00a0several border crossings between Turkey and Syria to allow humanitarian aid to reach the stricken areas.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">As with any decision taken by the Assad regime, the opening of the crossing was not done out of any great concern for the victims of the earthquake in rebel-held areas, but more as a calculated political gamble designed to see if Damascus can turn the humanitarian disaster to its own advantage.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">At the very least, the disaster has opened the door for a deeper reconciliation between Syria and other Arab states, such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, that have shunned the Syrian despot since the start of the civil war. Following the earthquake Assad had his\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/english.alarabiya.net\/News\/middle-east\/2023\/02\/07\/In-a-first-Egypt-s-Sisi-calls-Syria-s-Assad-after-devastating-earthquake-\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">first phone call<\/a>\u00a0with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, while Saudi Arabia sent an aircraft carrying relief supplies to Assad-controlled Aleppo.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">There have also been contacts between Syria and Turkey, which supported Islamist fighters seeking to overthrow the Assad regime, about opening border crossings to allow UN aid to be moved into Syrian government-controlled areas, raising hopes that Ankara and Damascus can establish a more constructive relationship.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">By far the most significant development, though, so far as the Assad regime is concerned, is Washington&#8217;s decision to ease sanctions on Syria allowing all transactions related to earthquake relief to be authorised, which would otherwise be blocked by the sanctions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">While US officials insist there are no plans to re-engage with Assad, Damascus will certainly see this gesture as a potential opening in its campaign for international rehabilitation, a move that, if it happened, would amount to an abject betrayal of the Syrian people.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The latest estimates suggest that in excess of 500,000 Syrians died during the country&#8217;s decade-long civil war, many as a result of the\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/bashar-al-assad-syria-evidence-war-crimes-60-minutes-2021-07-11\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">savage war crimes<\/a>\u00a0committed by Assad&#8217;s regime, including the indiscriminate bombing of civilian areas and the industrial-scale torture and murder of regime opponents.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Instead of easing sanctions against Assad, the Biden administration should be supporting efforts to establish an international war crimes tribunal that will ensure Assad and his henchmen stand trial for their despicable crimes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Nor is Syria the only rogue Middle Eastern state seeking to exploit the earthquake.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Reports have also emerged that Iran, Syria&#8217;s main regional ally, is similarly seeking to take advantage of the humanitarian disaster to expand its military presence in Syria, a policy that is designed to intensify its efforts to threaten neighbouring Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">It is reported that Iran is using the earthquake to smuggle\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jpost.com\/middle-east\/article-731548\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">convoys of weapons<\/a>\u00a0disguised as humanitarian aid for earthquake victims in Syria.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">It is a measure of the moral bankruptcy that lies at the heart of rogue regimes such as Syria and Iran that, even in times of disaster, they are willing to exploit the suffering of others in pursuit of their own perverse agendas.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The Biden Administration should not be encouraging them in their duplicity.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #808080;\"><i><strong>Con Coughlin<\/strong> is the<\/i>\u00a0Telegraph<i>&#8216;s Defence and Foreign Affairs Editor and a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<hr style=\"height: 15px; background: #d0e6fa; width: 100%;\" \/>\n<div id=\"content\" class=\"content-alignment\">\n<div id=\"watch-description\" class=\"yt-uix-button-panel\">\n<div id=\"watch-description-text\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<p><em>Zawarto\u015b\u0107 publikowanych artyku\u0142\u00f3w i materia\u0142\u00f3w nie reprezentuje pogl\u0105d\u00f3w ani opinii Reunion&#8217;68,<\/em><em><br \/>\nani te\u017c webmastera Blogu Reunion&#8217;68, chyba ze jest to wyra\u017anie zaznaczone.<br \/>\nTwoje uwagi, linki, w\u0142asne artyku\u0142y lub wiadomo\u015bci prze\u015blij na adres:<br \/>\n<\/em><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong><em><a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"mailto:webmaster@reunion68.com\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">webmaster@reunion68.com<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr style=\"width: 100%;\" \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rehabilitating a War Criminal like Assad is Not an Option Con Coughlin Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad&#8217;s offer to ease border restrictions to allow aid agencies better access to areas of northern Syria that were devastated by the recent earthquake is nothing more than a calculated ploy to have the punitive sanctions regime against Damascus eased. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[26,24],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102372"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=102372"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102372\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102402,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102372\/revisions\/102402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=102372"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=102372"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=102372"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}