Introduction In the mainstream view, al-Qaeda did not play a role in the Syria conflict until Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi dispatched his deputy, Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, to Syria in August 2011 to establish a wing of the group there, called Jabhat al-Nusra, or the Nusra Front. Additionally, al-Qaeda allegedly did not carry out any military operations until December 2011 and did not announce its establishment until January 2012. However, there is evidence that al-Qaeda affiliated militants were involved in the Syrian conflict much earlier. Saudi intelligence...
Aleppo
Remember When
In Syria we had CIA-armed militias fighting Pentagon-backed militias. In mid-February, a CIA-armed militia called Fursan al Haq, or Knights of Righteousness, was run out of the town of Marea, about 20 miles north of Aleppo, by Pentagon-backed Syrian Democratic Forces moving in from Kurdish-controlled areas to the east. And this from the congressman who is trying to impeach Trump: "It is an enormous challenge," said Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, who described the clashes between U.S.-supported groups as "a fairly new phenomenon." "It...
8/23/17 Eric Margolis on his heroic rescue of starving zoo animals in Aleppo
Eric Margolis returns to the show to discuss his recent heroic trip to the Middle East where he helped save starving zoo animals from Aleppo with Four Paws International. Margolis recounted his trip and the incredible rescue he helped bring about in his latest article "Escape from the Aleppo Zoo." After filling Scott in on his role in the rescue, Margolis discusses the current situation in Syria, Israel's role in the Syrian war, and whether there's any merit to the rumor that the Russians are funding the Taliban against the United States in Afghanistan. Finally Margolis explains what the...
1/9/17 Daniel McAdams on Russian election hacking claims, Trump’s pick for director of national intelligence, and the Syria war
Daniel McAdams, Executive Director of the Ron Paul Institute For Peace and Prosperity, discusses the Intelligence Community report on Russian election hacking claims; Trump's likely nomination of pro-every-war Dan Coats for director of national intelligence; and the outlook for Syria after government forces recaptured East Aleppo.
There’s more propaganda than news coming out of Aleppo this week
There was a period in 2011 and 2012 when there were genuinely independent opposition activists operating inside Syria, but as the jihadis took over these brave people were forced to flee abroad, fell silent or were dead It has just become more dangerous to be a foreign correspondent reporting on the civil war in Syria. This is because the jihadis holding power in east Aleppo were able to exclude Western journalists, who would be abducted and very likely killed if they went there, and replace them as news sources with highly partisan “local activists” who cannot escape being under jihadi...
12/8/16 Daniel McAdams on the Obama administration’s refusal to concede defeat in their Syria regime-change operation
Daniel McAdams, Executive Director of the Ron Paul Institute For Peace and Prosperity, discusses the Syrian government's defeat of rebels in East Aleppo; Rep. Tulsi Gabbard's "Stop Arming Terrorists Act;" and the upside to having Dana Rohrabacher as secretary of state - if Trump chooses him.
12/4/16 Brad Hoff on Syria’s ‘endless insurgency’ and expectations for Trump’s foreign policy
Brad Hoff, Managing Editor of Levant Report, discusses why the Syrian government's recent military success in East Aleppo won't stop the insurgency any time soon; the Obama administration's treasonous support for al-Qaeda and other rebel groups in Syria that previously killed US soldiers in Iraq; and why Trump's somewhat non-interventionist rhetoric will likely be overcome by his coterie of foreign policy advisors.
11/11/16 Gareth Porter on switching sides in Syria again
Gareth Porter, author of Manufactured Crisis: The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare, discusses the similarities between the Russian/Syrian bombing of Aleppo, the 2003 US bombing of Iraq, and Israel’s 2014 bombing of Gaza; and Obama’s apparent change in Syria policy as he targets Jabhat al-Nusra – a formidable opponent of...