Moon of Alabama Brecht quote
April 9, 2012
The Media Will Sabotage The Syrian Cease-Fire

Yusuf Kanli writes for the Turkish daily Hurriyet on the situation in Syria:

Will it be possible to achieve a cease-fire? Indications are that before Tuesday’s withdrawal of troops deadline, Damascus will undertake whatever possible to strengthen its position. The rebels, in the hope of getting foreign arms and war machinery assistance – if not direct intervention in the civil war – will most probably engage in all kinds of provocation to be able to tell the international community that the Baathist regime is cheating truce terms. Besides, the international media propaganda machine will likely work hard over the next few days to show that a truce can not be established, and even if it is established can not amount to much.

The international “coalition of the willing” on the other hand, has started trumpeting that the Syrian regime will cheat on the terms of the truce even if a cease-fire can be achieved. There is, of course, some degree of distrust towards the al-Assad regime because of its not-so-promising past record with regard to honoring its own words. But, there is also rampant prejudice fuelled by wild expectations of a post-Baathist Syria.

Kanli is right in his expectations that the usual "western" media will blame the Syrian government for not agreeing on its own immediate surrender in a one sided ceasefire and, as far as the ceasefire will take place, will blame the Syrian government when the rebels break it.

This is already appearing with the false claim that Syria has set "new conditions" on a ceasefire. The New York Times headlines today: Cease-Fire in Doubt as Syria Demands New Conditions:

The Syrian government put new conditions on any troop pullback on Sunday, casting new doubt on a truce that was scheduled to begin this week.

The government of President Bashar al-Assad said it now wanted “written guarantees” that rebels would stop fighting before it pulled back its troops under the cease-fire plan, which it accepted last week.

The demand for guarantees is not, as the New York Times and the Washington Post write, new. It was part of the Annan process and six-point proposal from the very beginning:

A key point of the proposal calls for Syria to "commit to stop the fighting and achieve urgently an effective United Nations supervised cessation of armed violence by all parties.” As these actions are being taken, Annan "shall seek similar commitments from all other armed groups to cease violence under an effective United Nations supervision mechanism," it said.

In a letter to Annan, Syria said it is "keen to end violence," but insisted that armed opposition groups give up their weapons first. It also demanded that Annan halt the supply and financing of weapons to the opposition.

Syria has given a written committment to the ceasefire to Annan. The Annan proposal called for "similar commitments" from the opposition site. Syria is not demanding anything new. It simply demands that the Annan six-point plan is met by both sides. This has been expressed by Syria several times.

As the Associated Press reported on April 5:

[Syria’s U.N. Ambassador Bashar] Ja’afari accused Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, France and the United States of assisting the Free Syrian Army and said his government needs “a crystal cut commitment and a guarantee by Mr. Annan himself after he consults with Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the others that once the government will observe and will respect the end of violence, the other parties will do the same and not fill the vacuum.”

There will be more false claims in the "western" media about the ceasefire when its implementation will start on April 10. Any soldier or policeman that will then still provide security for the population will be called a break of the ceasefire.

But what such false claims are in the end supposed to achieve is beyond me.

Comments

Clearly the rebels/opposition have set out to sabotage the Annan peace process, to push for a international intervention with the ultimate goal of the Assad government to resign power. All before the may 7. election. That is the practical strategy, disrupt any chance of the election to establish the Assad government legitimacy.

Posted by: Alexander | Apr 9 2012 10:35 utc | 1

the Western media
You repeat this in the same kind of moronic incantation as the knuckleheads do with their “MSM.” Conspiracy!
Of course he’s “reneging.” What’s a tyrant to do?

Posted by: slothrop | Apr 9 2012 15:04 utc | 2

Mmmmm.. And never in human history has anyone ever tried to manipulate public opinion.

Posted by: ben | Apr 9 2012 15:34 utc | 3

The anti-semites are everywhere! They’re coming for the Jews! Conspiracy!

Posted by: yes_but | Apr 9 2012 15:51 utc | 4

The Oz media reported that the ‘rebels’ said they’ve given the Assad Govt a signed undertaking to observe the ceasefire. But they refrained from showing the media a copy. But that shouldn’t matter.
Supervised agreements of this kind between two parties are formalised by both parties exchanging signed copies of the same document and lodging a third copy with the supervising body. So Kofi ought to know who has and hasn’t signed an agreement of this kind. But Kofi hasn’t said a word today. However, last week he announced that Syria had agreed to the plan which means, at the very least, that Kofi has a copy of an agreement signed by Syria.
The only way the situation we’re hearing about today could occur would be if no-one knows precisely how many ‘rebel’ factions there are, and who they are. I suspect that the UN is deliberately not following standard protocols and procedures for obtaining formal agreements and has been told by the Coalition of Liars to blame Assad for the UN’s failure to act in good faith.

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Apr 9 2012 16:09 utc | 5

Correction.
One way the situation we’re hearing about today could occur…

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Apr 9 2012 16:17 utc | 6

Off top[c.
There’s a doco screening on SBS right now which is ripping into Amnesty International for its role in facilitating the proliferation of Yankee bullshit. I’m not paying close attention but so far they’ve covered Amnesty’s Kuwait incubator concoction and its deafening silence during the Rwanda massacre.

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Apr 9 2012 16:31 utc | 7

According to the TV guide the doco was called
Amnesty! When They Are All Free.

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Apr 9 2012 16:46 utc | 8

“In a letter to Annan, Syria said it is “keen to end violence,” but insisted that armed opposition groups give up their weapons first. ”
Question: Has Assad agreed to “give up” his weapons too, or is he just asking the rebels to “give up” theirs? How about just agreeing to not pile up another 10-years supply of munitions to indiscriminately target his towns with?!!!

Posted by: A V | Apr 9 2012 23:03 utc | 9

once america collapses, and israel is on its own, israelis will have to support themselves and their mercenary armies with oil revenue.
oil transportation safety, convenience and expese have been calculated, wand those calculations show that pipelines to the west will have to be reestablished — pipelines from the persian gulf to the mediterranean, pipelines from iraq through syria to the med.
israeli control of syria and lebanon thus becomes necessary, out of pure phusical requirements (pipeline routes and oil ports), and out of the necessity to siphon off part of the oil revenue so israelis can support their merc armies.
now then, that’s the zionist pipedream… lots of people dont believe in it for minute, but they are giving it lip service because it affords such magnificent looting opportunities.
the only rational thing to do, if you’re elite in a doomed empire that’s fatally addicted to a dwindling resource, an empire that’s firmly in the clutches of racist, religious and ideological fanatics, is to loot.
(click on my handle below for a map)

Posted by: retreatingbladestall | Apr 9 2012 23:45 utc | 10

you forgot to mention that they are also trying to protect Israel from the inevitable invasion of the Penguins

Posted by: Hu Bris | Apr 10 2012 3:25 utc | 11

b- “But what such false claims are in the end supposed to achieve is beyond me.”
Perception Management and distraction.
The manipulators are well aware the manipulated don’t pay attention to the details
Rather they react to having their emotions played

Posted by: Penny | Apr 10 2012 13:52 utc | 12

Penny’s right — it’s the perception, stupid. And it seems to be working here in the US, with the MCM (Mainstream Corporate Media) going gangbusters on using buzz words to hit the right emotions and raise the ire of the public against the Evil Dictator of Syria.
I think that the administration and the war hawks are speeding up the cycle too much, throwing too many “justifiable” wars at the public too close together. They’re not leaving enough time for the public to forget the horrors of was, such as they’re told about them or realize.
But, then again, reading the left/middling blogs who support Obama (and some who support Hillary), the anger at Assad is palpable. The pressure for Obama “to do something” seems to be rising.
Yesterday, I heard only one MCM reporter mention that exactly what happened in the Syrian/cross border shootings was not clearm was possibly open to different interpretations…but the implication was the Syrians were the Bad Guys. The rest of the reports had all the blame on Syria. End of story.
Plus, Assad’s wife spends money on funny looking shoes and other expensive things.

Posted by: jawbone | Apr 10 2012 14:33 utc | 13

re #8
full doc

Posted by: citizen x | Apr 10 2012 14:41 utc | 14

Rat Kofi Annan … perhaps wants the SYRIAN ARMY to leave SYRIA … and to move to hotels in I$rael (and Jews just to make money …) ???

Posted by: Niakoi | Apr 11 2012 11:12 utc | 15