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Money, hatred for the Kurds drives Turkey's Syrian fighters

39 Comments
By SARAH EL DEEB and JOSEPH KRAUSS

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39 Comments
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Trump's not abandoning them. Enormous economic pressure is being put on Turkey to not go too far with this military assault.

Yes, he did abandon them.

10 ( +12 / -2 )

> Trump's not abandoning them. Enormous economic pressure is being put on Turkey to not go too far with this military assault

Sanctions might have an effect in 12 months or so, great comfort to the thousands of abandoned Kurds killed in the meantime, I'm sure.

8 ( +10 / -2 )

Trumps abandoning millions of Kurdish allies to be brutally hunted and in many cases murdered by Turkish led forces will no doubt see him taken to the Hague and charged with crimes against humanity in 2020 when he loses the protection of office. Remaining US allies should be the first to support such charges, it could well have been them that Trump abandoned. Nothing is sacred to Trump. No action to despicable for him to take.

Disgusting person.

8 ( +10 / -2 )

Want to know the link between Ukraine and Turkey? Look no farther than Crazy Rudy.

He was conducting a rogue dirt-gathering operation in Ukraine and lobbying for a Turkish businessman wanted to the Turkish government.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/oct/11/rudy-giuliani-trump-oval-office-turkey-iran-prisoner-swap

Bolton hit it right on the head when he said Rudy was a hand grenade ready to go off - well, it's exploded and is taking the Trump Presidency with it...

Now we find out Rudy was being paid big bucks by the sham company of the two pro-Russian Ukrainians arrested yesterday.

President Donald Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, was paid $500,000 for work he did for a company co-founded by the Ukrainian-American businessman arrested last week on campaign finance charges, Giuliani told Reuters on Monday.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/exclusive-trump-lawyer-giuliani-paid-030904467.html

Crazy Rudy - for impeachment, the gift that keeps on giving...

7 ( +7 / -0 )

Foul. Between Donny abandoning the Kurds and pulling out of the nuclear deal, nobody in their right minds should trust him. Then again, no rational adult trusted him long before he became president.

6 ( +10 / -4 )

Irrelevant to Donny suddenly abandoning the them and thus further tanking the America's credibility.

Trump's not abandoning them. Enormous economic pressure is being put on Turkey to not go too far with this military assault.

BS - Trump gave Erdogan the green light last week - and when the Repubs in the Senate erupted, he put on some weak, paper-thin sanctions. And Erdogan doesn't care - his credibility is on the line so he won't back off.

An absolute disaster for the US - a clear win for Putin, as if that's any surprise...Putin's Poodle doing his Master's work...

And did you see where its being reported that Bolton called Crazy Rudy a "hand grenade" ready to go off and take out a bunch of people - he sure called that one right...

5 ( +8 / -3 )

World upside down very much? Trump inherited the mess from his warmongering predecessors, and is finally trying to disengage from the region. US military has no business being in Syria illegally, and the warmongering media's insinuation that US troops should be in the middle of a conflict between Turkey and Syria in disgusting.

By warmongering predecessors I assume you mean all the Republican administrations that have started or involved the US in wars in the Middle East...with war-lovers like Pompeo, Bolton, and all the rest of the far-right NEOCONs?

A sensible deal could have been made between the Syrian government and Kurdish factions long ago, if it was not for the meddling by the US and their so-called friends Saudi Arabia and Israel, who both want a partitioned Syria. Enough already!

Don't support Israel? How do the other Trumpers here feel about that? Time for the US to abandon Israel too?

But the corporate media drumbeat continues. We must make war because orange man baaad!

The only media outlets supporting wars in the Middle East are the far-right ones. Just look back at how Fox News supported the Iraq War...

As the invasion of Iraq unfolds, this visceral approach has become more the rule than the exception at Fox News. Always presented as an alternative to the rest of the establishment press, Fox has switched into even higher gear, encouraging a resolutely pro-American, sometimes explicitly pro-war stance.

https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2003-04-02-0304020026-story.html

5 ( +6 / -1 )

We've helped them enough, more than anyone else. Sorry, we're not staying in Syria forever.

Irrelevant to Donny suddenly abandoning the them and thus further tanking the America's credibility.

4 ( +8 / -4 )

Question for the anti-Trumpers - Where's the UN?

> Second question - Where's the UN?

> Final question - Where's the UN?

So you want the UN's help now?

4 ( +7 / -3 )

World upside down very much? Trump inherited the mess from his warmongering predecessors, and is finally trying to disengage from the region. US military has no business being in Syria illegally, and the warmongering media's insinuation that US troops should be in the middle of a conflict between Turkey and Syria in disgusting.

A sensible deal could have been made between the Syrian government and Kurdish factions long ago, if it was not for the meddling by the US and their so-called friends Saudi Arabia and Israel, who both want a partitioned Syria. Enough already! 

But the corporate media drumbeat continues. We must make war because orange man baaad!

Bingo!

You Trumpophiles and your insistence that the world is binary . . . You refuse to understand that how Donny does something - usually without thinking about it or getting advice from experts - is just as important as what he does.

For instance, if he cured cancer by killing innocent babies, his curing cancer should be criticized. Is that simple enough forcyou to understand?

4 ( +6 / -2 )

Hey Trump people!! John Bolton has turned against Trump

4 ( +4 / -0 )

In other words, Turkey is no friend of Syria, the Kurds, or really anyone for that matter. Just looking out for their own selfish interests, no matter the cost.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Nobody should be surprised that Tump couldn't keep his tiny hands off Pandora's Box in Syria, nor that "jack-in-the-box" Giuliani will probably be found lurking inside with the Turkey Trump Towers and other greasy emoluments for his Master's enrichment. The Box has an unmistakable whiff of corruption about it and may prove to be another piece that fits perfectly into the impeachment jigsaw puzzle.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

Thankyou President Trump for doing the right thing.

When abandoning a reliable and trustworthy ally, when they have done no wrong, is the "right thing to do", then it's time for the US to stand alone. They no longer deserve to have any allies at all.

Trump making America look like a bunch of shallow ungrateful spoiled idiots who can not be trusted.

Backing out of international agreements, pacts and alliances means trust America at your peril. Just when you need them most, Trump will leave you hanging.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

 As a result, they publicly said they would not support legal immunity for any American troops.

Speaking of Falsehoods: There is no IMMUNITY with SOFA status. It gives you certain legal RIGHTS,

that a US Citizen would have on US Soil. NOTHING more. You are not IMMUNE to crimes. Period.

I was in Iraq when we were all ordered out of the country. We LEFT because of this & wa-la' : ISIS.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Turkish mohammedans are just doing what unrestrained mohammedans do

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

These same guys were America or so called civilized-world backed democracy fighters a week ago.

All the events passed in Syria for 7 years are total disgrace for the world and our civilization, putting all the blame in Turkey in a week is absolutely unfair also the amount of anti-Turkey propaganda in a week is disgusting and too suspicious for me. All this news have an aim to below plan.

There is an ongoing plan to create an autonomous Kurdistan in that region and all the parties already agreed for that new country including Turkey, however what they didn't agree is how this new country will be big, whether it will have a part in mediterranen coast of Syria or not, will there be frontieres with Federal Kurdish State of Iraq or not?

Turkey now has 3.6 million documented refugees (65% Sunni Arab, 20% Kurds 15% Christian Arab (Assyrian), Armenian and Yazidi) most of them came from the northern and north-western part of Syria. Turkish aim is to let them go back before foundation of Kurdistan and make them the part of the upcoming population referandum which will finalize the map at the end.

-2 ( +3 / -5 )

Even America is subject to international laws including on whether attacking another county is legal and not just because America says so.

But it happened and the U.N. did nothing and would not do anything.

In the case of Iraq it had not attacked America but America attacked it and then invaded to destroy the country.

But the Pentagon and Bush administration felt Saddam needed to go and he went.

Simply dismissing the evidence and claiming the American president, in this case, Bush can do whatever he decides and wants makes it legal is a misplaced belief in the Court of International Justice.

But it’s over now. Saddam is gone, it was a good thing and it won’t change no matter how many Democrats rehash this. Now moving forward should we go and get involved in these endless wars? A debatable question for sure.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

Zichi:

The current Middle East situation stems from the President Bush illegal wars in Iraq and Afghanistan

Bad US policy in the region did not start or end with Bush. In case of Syria, I notice that Obama/Clintons destruction of Libya, and funnelling of Libyen arms to their beloved "vetted rebels" in Syria to affect regime change seems be covered by a gigantic blind spot.

-4 ( +5 / -9 )

Indeed, where is the UN??

Too busy applauding Greta’s rants?

Where is Merkel??

Wheres Europe?

All hiding behind Trump and the US - all quick with criticism but invisible with action.

Thankyou President Trump for doing the right thing.

Step in EU by all means! But that wont happen. I wonder why?

-6 ( +2 / -8 )

What legal right do you think America had to attack and invade Iraq. There was no UN mandate which would be needed. Iraq had never attacked America.

We had every right to deal with Saddam and don’t get me started on the useless U.N., they can’t even agree upon as a body as to what terrorism is. Sorry, the President will decide when it comes to well being of the US ultimately who is a threat and who isn’t, not the U.N..

You don't seem to understand what SOFA is.

I do very much so, that’s why I was so upset with Obama, but he made the call and that’s it.

-6 ( +0 / -6 )

Anyone who does not notice the sheer propaganda in this article should learn some critical reading.

-7 ( +6 / -13 )

Between Donny abandoning the Kurds 

We've helped them enough, more than anyone else. Sorry, we're not staying in Syria forever.

-7 ( +7 / -14 )

Nobody should be surprised that Tump couldn't keep his tiny hands off Pandora's Box in Syria,

World upside down very much? Trump inherited the mess from his warmongering predecessors, and is finally trying to disengage from the region. US military has no business being in Syria illegally, and the warmongering media's insinuation that US troops should be in the middle of a conflict between Turkey and Syria in disgusting.

A sensible deal could have been made between the Syrian government and Kurdish factions long ago, if it was not for the meddling by the US and their so-called friends Saudi Arabia and Israel, who both want a partitioned Syria. Enough already!

But the corporate media drumbeat continues. We must make war because orange man baaad!

-7 ( +3 / -10 )

These are the wars that President Obama had to pick up and resolve even though he ever supported them from the beginning.

And he still left a vacuum as a result of not establishing a SOFA with the Iraqis.

Now it's the turn of President Trump to how the mantle. But he can not and should not just take rapid decisions and then announce them via Twitter without even consulting with his generals, his defense team, the Pentagon, CIA, Secretary of State. None of which he did when he announced the withdraw of troops from Syria.

No and I personally don’t like the decision, but the question needs to be asked what did we get all those years being in these wars and now that the majority of Americans want our troops to come home the President had his pulse on these pleas and he responded, so while I think the move was to speedy IMHO it’s the families of these soldiers that want and think we’ve done enough.

Trump has zero military experience and is incapable of making them alone.

Obama didn’t either and yet both these men, right or wrong felt that their decisions were justified and the right thing to do.

-7 ( +1 / -8 )

Question for the anti-Trumpers - Where's the UN?

Second question - Where's the UN?

Final question - Where's the UN?

-8 ( +4 / -12 )

The current Middle East situation stems from the President Bush illegal wars in Iraq and Afghanistan which resulted the deaths of millions and the formation of ISIS. Iraq a totally destroyed country without any exit plan. Wars always need an exit plan.

First we had every right to remove Saddam, no one misses the butcher of Baghdad and second, Obama’s decision not to establish a SOFA agreement and pullout was just as devastating and led to the rise of ISIS.

These are the wars that President Obama had to pick up and resolve even though he ever supported them from the beginning.

Doesn't matter ISIS still grew and flourished under his watch.

Now it's the turn of President Trump to how the mantle. But he can not and should not just take rapid decisions and then announce them via Twitter without even consulting with his generals, his defense team, the Pentagon, CIA, Secretary of State. None of which he did when he announced the withdraw of troops from Syria.

But it doesn’t matter if you or I or the Generals don’t like it, he as well as Obama wanted out at the advice of the Generals and Pentagon and that’s it. I don’t particularly like that we have abandoned the Kurds, but Trump thinks what did we get for being there all these years? It’s time to call our troops home and Trump has a lot of support among the American people for doing this.

-8 ( +1 / -9 )

A trumpetfan defending their Master..

PATHETIIIIIIIC !!!!...

Better than Trump haters being under the spell of the Washington establishment mind controlled puppets.

-8 ( +1 / -9 )

World upside down very much? Trump inherited the mess from his warmongering predecessors, and is finally trying to disengage from the region. US military has no business being in Syria illegally, and the warmongering media's insinuation that US troops should be in the middle of a conflict between Turkey and Syria in disgusting.

A sensible deal could have been made between the Syrian government and Kurdish factions long ago, if it was not for the meddling by the US and their so-called friends Saudi Arabia and Israel, who both want a partitioned Syria. Enough already! 

But the corporate media drumbeat continues. We must make war because orange man baaad!

Bingo!

-9 ( +2 / -11 )

Irrelevant to Donny suddenly abandoning the them and thus further tanking the America's credibility.

Trump's not abandoning them. Enormous economic pressure is being put on Turkey to not go too far with this military assault.

-12 ( +2 / -14 )

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