The Syrian Civil War Thread

[Sir Pignans]

Terrorist attack in Damascus. Somebody's giving the rebels a bad name. It looks like most of those killed were civilians.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-21529634

State and pro-regime TV showed pictures of dead bodies and destroyed cars. State media said at least 53 were killed and another 200 injured in the blast. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based activist group, said at least 42 had died, most of them civilians.

[motiv-8]

Apparently the target was Ba'ath Party Headquarters but the cars got stopped at a military checkpoint just a hundred meters or so down the street and I guess the bombers just decided to go off.

[Sir Pignans]

It was between the Russian and Baath party headquarters apparently, so it might of been trying to hit both at the same time.

Regardless, stupid decision. It's just making the rebels look bad.

[motiv-8]

The people who are doing this, if it is who I think it is, aren't at all concerned with maintaining an image in the eyes of the world. Truth be told a lot of Syrians are extremely tired of being chastised by the international community while Assad's extensive crimes go unpunished. Just bad air all around,

[s.rwitt]

Regardless, stupid decision. It's just making the rebels look bad.

It really is a dumb one. I just don't get the logic behind car bombing with such obvious collateral damage, especially when you already know that the people who's support you need the most (the west) are already hesitant about supporting you. I mean, I know the philosophy behind using terrorism for coercion and the way its supposed to influence the enemy and when its effective versus when its not and how its used by those without fancy weapons and how its supposed to build morale on your side while destroying it on the other side...but still. I don't think I'd ever use it in this situation. Certainly not against Assad, whose decisions are completely separated from the will of the Syrian people and who is desperate to portray the entire resistance as thugs and terrorists.

[Treize]

Only religious nutjobs would commit suicide bombings, not nice freedom loving people.

[s.rwitt]

Only religious nutjobs would commit suicide bombings, not nice freedom loving people.

No, religious nut jobs don't have a monopoly on suicide attacks, be they by bombing or otherwise.

[Sir Pignans]

The people who are doing this, if it is who I think it is, aren't at all concerned with maintaining an image in the eyes of the world. Truth be told a lot of Syrians are extremely tired of being chastised by the international community while Assad's extensive crimes go unpunished. Just bad air all around,

The majority of western media/western organisations I see criticize Assad far more than the rebels. At least, that is what I've seen with my own eyes.

Would it probably be al-Nursa that carried out this attack?

[white-wolf]

Only religious nutjobs would commit suicide bombings, not nice freedom loving people.

While noting not only religious nutjobs commit suicide bombings, it is very ironic the bolded part of your post. It is the utmost sin to kill himself/herself and it causes one way ticket to the hell. If they are very religious, they should not do it.

[motiv-8]

Only religious nutjobs would commit suicide bombings, not nice freedom loving people.

That is demonstrably false. Only last month the US embassy in Turkey was hit by suicide bomber belonging to a Marxist group.

[Blaze86420]

Only religious nutjobs would commit suicide bombings, not nice freedom loving people.

Religious nutjobs? Like the PKK, the PFLP, and the SSNP?

[Thorn777]

not this nonsense again. next the ira is marxist. but anyway, if your point is that the hipster FSA is just as nuts as the Al-Nusra deathsquads, then you did a fine point making it. not that I believe that...we all know what folks are behind it and what they have been doing for a long time there.

[s.rwitt]

No one who does anything bad could possibly be a marxist. Because then they wouldn't be a marxist, you see.

[Thorn777]

your logic is as stellar as ever my american pen friend. anyway, I explained this in another thread. if you people are so obsessed with tags and cant or wont understand your world otherwhise then be my guest. all a dem marxist PKK etc.

[motiv-8]

No one who does anything bad could possibly be a marxist. Because then they wouldn't be a marxist, you see.

And somehow I'M the wannabe Comical Ali, lol

Guess we'll just pretend the Tamil Tigers never existed either. Or the Naxalites in India.

It's funny how he attacks us for creating "labels" (apparently because we're just so helpless otherwise) while being somehow ("somehow") completely oblivious to the fact that this is how those groups label themselves.

[s.rwitt]

Some were blessed with the ability to see through labels, motiv-8. They can see through propaganda and media trickery, even when the sources that make up that media disagree with one another, as well. They're special

Looks like Thorn missed that I was mocking his point. Oh well.

[Thorn777]

Its really kindergarten level down this forum.

Of course you have rare incidents by subjects within secular resistance groups in history commiting these kinds of actions, but with the grand import operation of jihadist euro-muslim loosers and die hard veteran deathsquads running around the country the likelyness of one of those hipsters blowing 50 people up is tiny.

But go ahead, smear your FSA. Enough of the glorifying of naive young ones not knowing a dreck about a feasible alternative anyway while having Joe The Jihadist right besides him.

However. It really goes to show how you folks once again jump on your Marxist-tag, build up a strawman around my leftism and go playing Get Thorn While You Think You Can Game, and neglect the actual point. All while making so much fun on an issue just killing 50 civillians. So much fun in the country you people care so much about you want to see it go up in flames so Assad can let the people free.

[motiv-8]

Its really kindergarten level down this forum.

Yes yes get on my level I'm too good for this, etc etc. Old.

Of course you have rare incidents by subjects within secular resistance groups in history commiting these kinds of actions

lol, rare? Still utterly ignorant of history I see. Some of the most violent upheavals in modern history came about from secular resistance groups. These groups also until the Iraq War were far and away the most prolific users of the tactic of suicide bombing. All well-documented and utterly ignored by you because you apparently dislike facing realities.

but with the grand import operation of jihadist euro-muslim loosers and die hard veteran deathsquads running around the country the likelyness of one of those hipsters blowing 50 people up is tiny.

What grand import operation? You've never provided any figures, or really any facts at all. For two weeks I've been waiting for any kind of information from you that reflects any sort of reality, it's quite sad at this point.

But go ahead, smear your FSA. Enough of the glorifying of naive young ones not knowing a dreck about a feasible alternative anyway while having Joe The Jihadist right besides him.

And it's precisely the lack of having facts that leads you to using this kind of ambiguous, bizarre, and frankly irrelevant language.

However. It really goes to show how you folks once again jump on your Marxist-tag, build up a strawman around my leftism and go playing Get Thorn While You Think You Can Game, and neglect the actual point. All while making so much fun on an issue just killing 50 civillians. So much fun in the country you people care so much about you want to see it go up in flames so Assad can let the people free.

And again.

It's funny how you rail on about "labels" and yet you call everyone participating in the revolution in Syria a "terrorist."

[Sir Pignans]

I wouldn't say the Tamil Tigers were marxists. Whether or not they called themselves marxists is an entirely different matter.

[s.rwitt]

yes, yes, we want Syria to burn. That's it.