A must read for the interested audience...
Global Research, July 04, 2015
19 June 2014
Originally published on Global Research in June, 2014.
Iraq is once again front page news. And
once again the picture that is presented to us in the Western mainstream
media is a mixture of half truths, falsehoods, disinformation and
propaganda. The mainstream media will not tell you that the US is
supporting both sides in the Iraqi conflict. Washington is overtly
supporting the Iraqi Shiite government, while covertly training, arming
and funding the Sunni Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Supporting
the influx of terrorist brigades in Iraq is an act of foreign
aggression. But the mainstream media will tell you that the Obama
administration is “concerned” by the actions committed by the
terrorists.
The preferred narrative in the U.S. and most Western mainstream media
is that the current situation is due to the U.S “withdrawal” which
ended in December 2011 (more than 200 U.S. troops and military advisors
remained in Iraq). This portrait of events in which the US withdrawal is
to blame for the insurgency does not draw any connection between the
U.S. invasion of 2003 and the occupation that ensued. It also ignores
the death squads trained by U.S advisors in Iraq in the wake of the
invasion and which are at the heart of the current turmoil.
As usual, the mainstream media does not want you to
understand what’s going on. Its goal is to shape perceptions and
opinions by crafting a view of the world which serves powerful
interests. For that matter, they will tell you it’s a civil war.
What is unfolding is a process of “constructive chaos”, engineered by
the West. The destabilization of Iraq and its fragmentation has been
planned long ago and is part of the ”Anglo-American-Israeli ‘military
road map’ in the Middle East”, as explained in 2006 in the following
article:
“This project, which has been in the planning stages for
several years, consists in creating an arc of instability, chaos, and
violence extending from Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria to Iraq, the
Persian Gulf, Iran, and the borders of NATO-garrisoned Afghanistan.
The ‘New Middle East’ project was introduced publicly by Washington
and Tel Aviv with the expectation that Lebanon would be the pressure
point for realigning the whole Middle East and thereby unleashing the
forces of “constructive chaos.” This “constructive chaos” –which
generates conditions of violence and warfare throughout the region–
would in turn be used so that the United States, Britain, and Israel
could redraw the map of the Middle East in accordance with their
geo-strategic needs and objectives. …
The redrawing and partition of the Middle East from the Eastern
Mediterranean shores of Lebanon and Syria to Anatolia (Asia
Minor), Arabia, the Persian Gulf, and the Iranian Plateau responds to
broad economic, strategic and military objectives, which are part of a
longstanding Anglo-American and Israeli agenda in the region…
A wider war in the Middle East could result in redrawn borders that
are strategically advantageous to Anglo-American interests and Israel…
Attempts at intentionally creating animosity between the different
ethno-cultural and religious groups of the Middle East have been
systematic. In fact, they are part of a carefully designed covert
intelligence agenda.
Even more ominous, many Middle Eastern governments,
such as that of Saudi Arabia, are assisting Washington in fomenting
divisions between Middle Eastern populations. The ultimate objective is
to weaken the resistance movement against foreign occupation through a
“divide and conquer strategy” which serves Anglo-American and Israeli
interests in the broader region.” (Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya, Plans for Redrawing the Middle East: The Project for a “New Middle East”,
November 2006)
Although the divide and conquer strategy is not new, it still works thanks to the media smoke screens and mirrors.
Engineering a civil war is the best way to divide a country into
several territories. It worked in the Balkans and it is well documented
that ethnic tensions were used and abused in order to destroy Yugoslavia
and divide it into seven separate entities.
Today we are clearly witnessing the balkanization of Iraq with the
help of the favorite imperial tool, namely armed militias, referred to
as pro-democracy opposition or terrorists depending on the context and
the role they have to play in the collective psyche.
Western media and government officials define them not by who they
are, but by who they fight against. In Syria they constitute a
“legitimate opposition, freedom fighters fighting for democracy against a
brutal dictatorship”, whereas in Iraq, they are “terrorists fighting a
democratically elected U.S.-supported government”:
“Known and documented, Al Qaeda affiliated entities have
been used by US-NATO in numerous conflicts as ‘intelligence assets’
since the heyday of the Soviet-Afghan war. In Syria, the Al Nusrah and
ISIS rebels are the foot-soldiers of the Western military alliance,
which oversees and controls the recruitment and training of paramilitary
forces.
The decision was taken by Washington to channel its support
(covertly) in favor of a terrorist entity which operates in both Syria
and Iraq and which has logistical bases in both countries. The Islamic
State of Iraq and al-Sham’s Sunni caliphate project coincides with a
longstanding US agenda to carve up both Iraq and Syria into three
separate territories: A Sunni Islamist Caliphate, an Arab Shia Republic,
and a Republic of Kurdistan.
Whereas the (US proxy) government in Baghdad
purchases advanced weapons systems from the US including F16 fighter
jets from Lockheed Martin, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham –which
is fighting Iraqi government forces– is supported covertly by Western
intelligence. The objective is to engineer a civil war in Iraq, in which
both sides are controlled indirectly by US-NATO.
The scenario is to arm and equip them, on both sides, finance them with advanced weapons systems and then ‘let them fight’…
Under the banner of a civil war, an undercover war of
aggression is being fought which essentially contributes to further
destroying an entire country, its institutions, its economy. The
undercover operation is part of an intelligence agenda, an engineered
process which consists in transforming Iraq into an open territory.
We knew well before the beginning of the war on
terror that Saudi Arabia was a major supporter of Islamic terrorism. But
being a staunch U.S. ally Saudi Arabia is the exception to the rule
proclaimed by George W. Bush after the 9/11 terrorist attacks: ”We will
make no distinction between those who committed these acts and those who
harbor them.”
The
fact of the matter is they always do make a distinction, especially
when it comes to Saudi Arabia. But while its support for terrorism is
acknowledged by the mainstream media, the latter ignores that the fact
that the U.S. is (indirectly) supporting terrorist entities. In
addition, mainstream journalists never address the reason why the U.S is
not reacting to Saudi support for terrorists. The facts are clear: the
US is supporting terrorism through allies like Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
If those who shape the discourse in the mainstream media fail to connect
the dots, it is only because they don’t want to.
In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia has been serving US
interests as well as its own. The US alliance with Saudi Arabia shows
the contempt the US actually has for democracy. This alliance alone
clearly indicates that the goal of the US invasion of Iraq was not to
bring democracy and freedom to Iraqis. For Saudi Arabia, a democratic
Iraq would be a nightmare and a threat to its repressive monarchic rule:
“Ever since the overthrow of Saddam’s regime in 2003,
the Saudi regime has been emphatically hostile towards Iraq. This has
been largely due to its deeply entrenched fear that the success of
democracy in Iraq would undoubtedly inspire its own people. Another
reason is the deeply rooted hatred – by Saudi Arabia’s extremist Wahhabi
Salafi religious establishment – towards the Shia. The Saudi regime
also accuses Maliki, of giving Iran a freehand to dramatically intensify
its influence in Iraq. The Saudi regime has made no secret that its
overriding priority is to severely undermine what it perceives as highly
perilous and yet growing Iranian influence.
Even though the Saudi regime vehemently opposed U.S.
pull out from Iraq, nevertheless in Dec. 2011, Syria rather than Iraq
became Saudi Arabia’s principal target for regime change. The Saudi
regime has consistently considered the Syrian regime of Bashar Al Assad,
an irreplaceable strategic ally to its primary foe Iran. The Saudis
moved swiftly to shore up the armed insurgents by deploying its
intelligence services, whose instrumental role in establishing Jabhat Al
Nusra JN was highlighted in an intelligence review released in Paris in
January 2013. The Saudi regime also used its huge influence and
leverage on not only Sunni tribal leaders in western Iraq, but also on
Saudi members of AQI, convincing it that its principal battlefield must
be Syria and that its ultimate goal should be deposing Bashar Al Assad’s
Alawite regime, since its overthrow would break the back-bone of the
Iraqi Shia-led government and inevitably loosen Iran’s grip on Iraq.”
(Zayd Alisa Resurgence of Al Qaeda in Iraq, Fuelled by Saudi Arabia, March 3, 2014)
From Paul Bremer to John Negroponte
But the most important piece of the Iraqi puzzle is Washington’s
covert support of the terrorists. To better understand the sectarian
violence plaguing the country today, we need to understand what the
US has done during the occupation. Paul Bremer, author of “My year in
Iraq, the Struggle to Build a Future of Hope”, played an important role
while he was Civil Governor of Iraq in 2003-2004. Hopeful future for
whom, one might ask when looking back at what he has done during that
year. Certainly not for the Iraqis:
“When Paul Bremer dissolved the Iraqi National
Security and Police Forces, he formed another one from mercenaries and
sectarian militias who were backing and supporting the occupation. In
reality, the nature of hideous crimes committed by these forces was the
major motivation behind the sectarian violence killing of 2006-2007.
According to Geneva Convention Protocols, the
occupation represented by Bremer, not only failed its duty to protect
the population of the country under occupation, they officially formed
militias and armed gangs to help them control the country.
In 2004-2005, US Ambassador John Negroponte
continued Bremer’s work. With his experience in crushing dissent in
Central America with the help of bloodthirsty death squads during the
80′s, Negroponte was “the man for the job” in Iraq:
“US sponsored death squads were recruited in Iraq
starting in 2004-2005 in an initiative launched under the helm of the US
Ambassador John Negroponte, who was dispatched to Baghdad by the US
State Department in June 2004…
Negroponte was the ‘man for the job’. As US
Ambassador to Honduras from 1981 to 1985. Negroponte played a key role
in supporting and supervising the Nicaraguan Contras based in Honduras
as well as overseeing the activities of the Honduran military death
squads.
In January 2005, the Pentagon, confirmed that it was considering:
‘forming
hit squads of Kurdish and Shia fighters to target leaders of the Iraqi
insurgency [Resistance] in a strategic shift borrowed from the American
struggle against left-wing guerrillas in Central America 20 years ago’.
Under the so-called ‘El Salvador option’, Iraqi and American forces
would be sent to kill or kidnap insurgency leaders, even in Syria, where
some are thought to shelter. …
Hit squads would be controversial and would probably be kept secret.
While the stated objective
of the ‘Iraq Salvador Option’ was to ‘take out the insurgency’, in
practice the US sponsored terror brigades were involved in routine
killings of civilians with a view to fomenting sectarian violence. In
turn, the CIA and MI6 were overseeing ‘Al Qaeda in Iraq’ units involved
in targeted assassinations directed against the Shiite population. Of
significance, the death squads were integrated and advised by undercover
US Special Forces.” (Prof Michel Chossudovsky, Terrorism with a “Human Face”: The History of America’s Death Squads, January 04, 2013)
Now we are being told that ISIS has managed to put its hands on
US-made sophisticated weapons. Make no mistakes. These weapons did not
get there accidentally. The US knew exactly what it was doing when it
armed and funded the “opposition” in Libya and Syria. What they did was
not stupid. They knew what was going to happen and that is what they
wanted. Some in the progressive media talk about blowback, when an
intelligence asset goes against its sponsors. Forget about blowback. If
that’s what it is, it was a very carefully planned “blowback”.
US Foreign Policy. Failed, Stupid or Diabolical
Some will argue that US foreign policy in the Middle East is a
“failure”, that policymakers are “stupid”. It’s not a failure and
they’re not stupid. That’s what they want you to think because they
think you’re stupid.
What is happening now was planned long ago. The truth is that US
foreign policy in the Middle East is diabolical, brutally repressive,
criminal and undemocratic. And the only way out of this bloody mess is
“a return to the law”:
SELECTED ARTICLES
The following GR articles provide a detailed assessment of recent developments in Iraq.
We also refer our readers to Global Research’s Iraq
Report, which contains an extensive archive of articles of more than a
thousand articles.
The Truth About US Troops “Sent to Iraq”, Tony Cartalucci
American Imperialism and Non-Conventional Warfare in Iraq: Premeditated Covert Operations and the ISIS Insurgency, Phil Greaves
Iraq: ISIS Terrorists Target Native Assyrian Christians in Nineveh, The Assyrian American Association
ISIS “Made in USA”. Iraq “Geopolitical Arsonists” Seek to Burn Region, ISIS “Made in USA”. Iraq “Geopolitical Arsonists” Seek to Burn Region
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS): An Instrument of the Western Military Alliance, Michel Chossudovsky
I would first like to wish everyone Ramadan Kareem. May Allah accept our fasting! Every Ramadan, families spend a lot of money on food. I would like to remind everyone of the importance of moderation when it comes to spending on food during the holy month. We have reached a stage where the amount that we spend and waste has spiraled out of control. I am also talking about the food that is given in charity. It seems that we waste a lot of food when we put up Iftar tents and fill them with food.
