Syria using Iranian snipers as violent crackdown continues

[TruthSeeker]

From the Egyptian news service Bikya Masr:


Iranian snipers reportedly being deployed in Syria
Bikya Masr Staff | 16 August 2011

Reports indicate Iranian troops are in Syria.

News reports on Tuesday indicated that Iranian snipers were being deployed in Syria against protesters calling for the removal of President Bashar al-Assad. According to the London’s Telegraph, secret police have said Iran has sent snipers into Syria to help quell the unrest.

The officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he had beaten prisoners and fired on protesters in Damascus.

He added that he knew of Iranian troops on the ground in Syria during the past few months.

“We knew they were from Iran because we were not allowed to speak to them and they were kept well away from us,” he told London’s Telegraph newspaper.

His account confirmed other reports that Syria has turned to its closest ally for help in putting down the protests directed at the Assad family’s 41 years in power.

According to Christopher Gunnes, spokesman for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), thousands have fled a Palestinian refugee camp in the coastal city of Latakia, some under orders from authorities and some due to gunfire.

“Between 5,000 and 10,000 have fled, we don’t know where these people are so it’s very worrying,” he said. “We have a handful of confirmed deaths and nearly 20 injured.”

Jordan has also called for a halt to the violence in Syria, adding to the ever growing diplomatic pressure on Damascus by their neighboring countries.

Since protests began on March 15, over 2,000 people have been killed as the Syrian government continues to use tanks and military action against peaceful protesters in the country.

Iranian snipers reportedly being deployed in Syria : Bikya Masr | Independent news for the world

 

[TruthSeeker]

From the warmongering Canadians:

Iran sees support for Syria essential to fend off U.S., Israeli 'wolves'

By Rob Crilly and Robin Pomeroy, Daily Telegraph And Reuters August 16, 2011

Iranian snipers have been deployed in Syria as part of the crackdown on protests against the rule of President Bashar Assad, according to a former member of the regime's secret police.

The officer, speaking on condition of anonymity to avoid reprisals, crossed the border into Turkey last week after being ordered to shoot to kill. He said he had beaten prisoners and fired on protesters in Damascus. At times during the past two months he was aware of Iranian troops - confirmed by senior officers - alongside his team in the Syrian capital.

"We knew they were from Iran because we were not allowed to speak to them and they were kept well away from us," he told Daily Telegraph in Yayladagi, the nearest town to the refugee camp where he now lives.

His account confirms other reports that Syria has turned to its closest ally for help in putting down the protests directed at the Assad family's 41 years in power.

Beset by civil unrest at home and lambasted by the West and his Arab neighbours for his violent crackdown on dissent, Assad can count its ally Iran.

In a country that knows a thing or two about diplomatic isolation, Iran's politicians and media describe the Damascus government as an outpost of resistance to Israel that has been set upon by Washington and its lackeys in the region.

While several Gulf Arab countries have withdrawn their ambassadors in protest at the violence, and countries once close to Damascus, Russia and Turkey, have turned harshly critical, Iran is the only big country still backing Syria, arguing anything else would spell disaster.

"In regard to Syria we are confronted with two choices. The first is for us to place Syria in the mouth of a wolf named America and change conditions in a way that NATO would attack Syria," said Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of the Iranian parliament's foreign affairs committee.

"That would mean we would have a tragedy added to our other tragedies in the world of Islam."

"The second choice would be for us to contribute to the termination of the clashes in Syria," Boroujerdi said.

"The interests of the Muslim people command that we mobilize ourselves to support Syria as a centre of Palestinian resistance."

A senior cleric pressed the message home.

"It is the duty of all Muslims to help stabilize Syria against the destructive plots of America and Israel," said Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi.

Iran had hoped the Arab Spring, something Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei dubbed the "Islamic Awakening," would spell the end of U.S.-backed autocracies and usher in an era of Muslim unity to face-down the West and Israel.

Khamenei used the June anniversary of the death of Iran's revolutionary leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, to tell the nation: "Our stance is clear: wherever a movement is Islamic, popular and anti-American, we support it."

Without mentioning Syria by name, he continued: "If somewhere a movement is provoked by America and Zionists, we will not support it. Wherever America and the Zionists enter the scene to topple a regime and occupy a country, we are on the opposite side."

Mohammad Marandi, an associate professor at the University of Tehran, said Iran's support for Syria was based on a shared interest in helping resistance to Israel - both countries support Hamas and Hezbollah - and that continuing to back Assad while he reforms Syria's one-party system was imperative.

"Iran has always believed that Syria should not be weakened, because the Israeli regime will certainly take advantage of any weakness," Marandi said.

Read more: Iran sees support for Syria essential to fend off U.S., Israeli 'wolves'

 

[TruthSeeker]

From Now Lebanon:

Is Iran helping Syria squelch dissent?

Aline Sara , July 23, 2011

In this video, a Syrian soldier explains that he defected from the army after he realized that Iranian snipers were shooting at his troops to dupe them into thinking the bullets were from Syrian protesters. (Youtube)

In the amateur video above, a former soldier explains why he defected from the Syrian army.

Though originally sent to “protect” anti-regime protesters in Rastan, a town in the Homs governorate, he says his troops were ordered to shoot at civilians during a melee that left “about 500 people killed.”

“We entered their homes and found the protesters had no weapons,” he told the camera. “The bullets were coming from Iranian snipers, trying to trick us into thinking they were from the protesters.”

This is not the first account of Iranian involvement in Syria’s bloody crackdown on a four-month-old uprising. Given 30 years of close ties between Iran and Syria, how taxing would Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s fall be for Iran, and to what extent is the Islamic Republic involved in quelling the anti-government upheaval?

Though more than 2,000 people have died, with tens of thousands arrested and tortured since the beginning of the revolution last March, the UN Security Council has still not denounced the Syrian government’s crushing of protesters, with just this week France pointing the finger at Russia and China for preventing any UNSC condemnation. Damascus, in turn, continues to bash the West, particularly the US and France, for allegedly meddling in its domestic affairs.

The Syrian opposition, meanwhile, is concerned about the Islamic Republic’s role in the crackdown.

“While we have not seen any documented proof, there is circumstantial evidence of Iranian interference,” said Murhaf Jouejati, a Syrian-born expert on Middle East affairs who specializes in Syrian politics and the Levant at the Middle East Institute in Washington. “Stakes are high if Iran is to succeed in its regional hegemony as it aspires to, and Iran needs Syria,” he said.

Back in April Washington began to accuse Iran of aiding Syria’s repression of protests, and the EU imposed sanctions on three members of the Iranian Revolutionary guards in June.

Diplomatic sources in Damascus accused Teheran of having its personnel on Syrian grounds, of advising the Syrian regime on ways to monitor telecommunications between dissidents, and of supplying Syrian police with batons and helmets.

“There is more than one source, including the soldier [from the above video], who has seen Iranians instruct Syrian officers on what to do,” Jouejati told NOW Lebanon. “People have heard Persian spoken between the men, and there is circumstantial evidence that Iran has shipped equipment to Syria to block communications, all of which are apparently [from] lessons learned in Iran during its crisis two years ago,” Jouejati said in reference to the so-called Green Revolution that the Iranian security forces squashed.

“Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and Quds Force are known for their excellent surveillance techniques,” said Mehdi Khalaji, an Iranian scholar from the Washington Institute, during a phone conversation with NOW Lebanon. “Syrians aren’t as good [as the Iranians,] and I can believe they are giving them advice and even technology.”

“In fact, given the enormously high stakes for Iran, it would be odd if Teheran were not doing its utmost to make sure [Assad] stays in power,” echoed Karim Sadjapour, an associate from the Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “Syria has been Iran’s only reliable ally since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and provides a crucial logistical bridge between Tehran and Hezbollah,” thus providing Iran’s main conduit into the Arab-Israeli conflict, he added.

Assad’s fall would affect Iran’s relations with the whole region, said Khalaji, and in spite of a seemingly similar political agenda to that of Turkey, Damascus and Ankara have many conflicts of interests, he stressed.

Turkey, over the course of the Syrian uprising, has taken a clear stance against Assad’s maneuvering. The NATO member has also received tens of thousands of Syrian refugees. Turkey was also warming its relations with Iran before the Syrian uprising and has now expressed its displeasure with Tehran’s support of Assad’s crackdown.

What would be the effect of Assad’s fall on Iran’s other regional ally, Hezbollah?

“Given the fact that Iran has direct flights between Beirut and Tehran, I think that it should not represent a significant problem in terms of Iran’s direct contact with Hezbollah, but obviously, it would be very harmful to the interests of both powers,” said Khalaji. “Both countries, in the case of Assad’s fall, will try to use Syrian territory for their benefit as much as they can.”

Assad’s ouster might even make Iran stronger in Lebanon, said Jouejati, as it would have an even bigger stake in the country.

To read more: Lebanon news - NOW Lebanon -Is Iran helping Syria squelch dissent?
Only 25% of a given NOW Lebanon article can be republished. For information on republishing rights from NOW Lebanon: Lebanon news - NOW Lebanon


NOW Lebanon is independent, non-sectarian, and includes members from all Lebanese political, ethnic, religious and socio-economic groups and persuasions. The single idea that is truly sacred in this forum is the pursuit of an independent, democratic, liberal and prosperous Lebanon, with equal rights and opportunities for all its citizens.

NOW Lebanon is funded entirely by the private sector and individual donations.

To read more: Lebanon news - NOW Lebanon
Only 25% of a given NOW Lebanon article can be republished. For information on republishing rights from NOW Lebanon: Lebanon news - NOW Lebanon

 

[fd24]

Didnt americans supply snipers recently to UK to overcome unrest in london?

 

[Zabaniyah]

lol, warmongering Canadians

Now, why would the Iranians send snipers? Do the Syrians have a short supply of snipers? Odd.

 

[Abii]

biggest load of balls in history
more pathetic lies from the US

Capture one of these so called Iranian snipers and ask them to speak Persian.

The evidence here is that some Syrian defector has claimed that there are "Iranian snipers"!

LMAO

 

[Naifov]

Now, why would the Iranians send snipers? Do the Syrians have a short supply of snipers? Odd

Get this :
Many Syrian officers and soldiers have left bashar's army so there is some short supply
and many of bashar's current killing machine are Iranians and Hezbollah members

 

[Abii]

lol, warmongering Canadians

Now, why would the Iranians send snipers? Do the Syrians have a short supply of snipers? Odd.

before asking them these questions, which are valid, we need to ask them for evidence. They are publishing reports based on some mofo defector's claims!!!!

I swear, they are waiting to talk **** about Iran lol

---------- Post added at 12:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:50 PM ----------

Get this :
Many Syrian officers and soldiers have left bashar's army so there is some short supply
and many of bashar's current killing machine are Iranians and Hezbollah members

oy wahabi
where's your evidence that they are Iranians? Have you seen a video where they are speaking Persian? If not then stfu

 

[Don Jaguar]

biggest load of balls in history
more pathetic lies from the US

Capture one of these so called Iranian snipers and ask them to speak Persian.

The evidence here is that some Syrian defector has claimed that there are "Iranian snipers"!

LMAO

Welcome back friend i was anxiously waiting for you!!!

 

[PERSIAN GOD KING]

Get this :
Many Syrian officers and soldiers have left bashar's army so there is some short supply
and many of bashar's current killing machine are Iranians and Hezbollah members

How many soldiers have left bashar? Your in need of mental help if you think iran would actually send troops to syria right now.

 

[Abii]

How many soldiers have left bashar? Your in need of mental help if you think iran would actually send troops to syria right now.

these idiots don't have a shred of evidence (other than that defector's claims lmao) but they are accusing Iran. The funny thing is that they are sending troops on MASS to Bahrain to kill Bahraini protestors!!!
Bunch of grade A hypocrites. Stupid hypocrites at that lol

 

[Vassnti]

these idiots don't have a shred of evidence

Does seem logical if your going to get snipers to shoot innocent protesters you would hire those with work experience.

 

[IranZamin]

lol again propaganda. who cares

 

[Abii]

Does seem logical if your going to get snipers to shoot innocent protesters you would hire those with work experience.

you're a pathetic sorry excuse of a human being by mocking her sacrifice

as we're seeing, all the Iran haters are just waiting for an opportunity to talk out of their bottom.

 

[Naifov]

where's your evidence that they are Iranians? Have you seen a video where they are speaking Persian? If not then stfu

youtube is filled with videos showing iranians and hezbollah members
other than that I'm just an ordinary guy who watches the news and
hear what those people say,
and honestly your mullahs are not really that innocent
Iraq is well known of being ruled by your mullahs and your
revolutionary guards

these idiots

who ?
I'm the only one who is talking here
and I don't mind if you call me an idiot
but I'm kinda curious about the other idiots