12

U.S. Continues Supplying Kurds to Counteract Turkey

Firas Samuri

shipment of the U.S. military hardware on the way to Al-Hol

The mass media has been widely covering the details of the disastrous humanitarian situation in Rukban refugee camp over recent months. By the way, the crisis in other sites deserves more considerable attention. Al-Hol refugee camp located in Al-Hasakah province and run by the Syria Democratic Forces is one of them.

Every single day from 10 to 20 people, mainly women and children die due to the lack of drinking water, essential goods, and medicine. Only for the past two months, 250 children passed away in the camp. According to estimates, now more than 50,000 refugees reside there, although initially it was designed only for 25,000.

It turned out that the catastrophe of Al-Hol residents is caused by the illegal actions of the U.S. authorities. Their homes and shelters in the northern and north-eastern part of Syria have been destroyed by the indiscriminate airstrikes of the U.S.-led international coalition.

Apart from Rukban camp situated in the 55-kilometre zone near Al-Tanf, the American servicemen organized ’humanitarian assistance’ for the people in Al-Hol. However, it is really hard to believe in support of Washington to the locals. On the way to supply their bases in other parts of the country, American trucks allegedly deliver humanitarian aid to the camp. Meanwhile, under the guise of good intentions, weapons and military equipment for Kurdish militias flow from Iraq to Syria.

Since March 1, 2019, the United States has already delivered from Iraq six convoys with 100 Humvee jeeps, 150 pickup trucks equipped with machineguns, as well as small arms and grenade launchers, the local activists report.

In fact, Al-Hol residence received no humanitarian aid, and only a small part of the armament fell into the hands of the American soldiers deployed at Sarrin and Harab Isk military bases in the area of Manbij.

Three-quarters of the shipment was delivered to the Kurdish militias in Al-Hol camp and then moved to the settlements of Tell Abyad and Ras Al Ain at the border with Turkey. According to the Middle East experts, these towns could become the starting point of the Turkish army and its proxies’ large-scale military operation against Kurds in northern Syria.

Amid deterioration of the U.S.-Turkish relations, Washington continues to support SDF, that in response keep holding the oil fields in favour of the United States.

The Turkish side repeatedly expressed concern over the long-term and stable relations between the Americans and Kurds. By the way, the Pentagon has announced the allocation of $ 300 million for the train-and-equip program for the Syrian Democratic Forces. Moreover, half of the budget will be spent on the purchase of military transport.

It was also reported that the number of SDF is planned to be doubled – from 61,000 to 121,000 fighters. Exactly after this announcement, first messages on the forced recruitment in north-eastern Syria appeared.

Based on these data, the version of the secret weapons supply by the U.S. to SDF seems quite reasonable. This armament will be enough to disrupt Ankara offensive and create chaos in the north of Syria. Unfortunately, it is happening under the guise of humanitarian aid delivery to the people in need locked in Al-Hol refugee camp.


SUPPORT OFFGUARDIAN

If you enjoy OffG's content, please help us make our monthly fund-raising goal and keep the site alive.

For other ways to donate, including direct-transfer bank details click HERE.

0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

12 Comments
newest
oldest most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Headlice
Headlice
Apr 20, 2019 12:08 AM

https://m.journal-neo.org/2019/04/19/syria-a-storm-is-coming/

The deal of the century is what starts it

wardropper
wardropper
Apr 19, 2019 3:49 PM

Good grief ! At this rate, we’ll end up supporting Erdogan, and he’s the guy who called another election when he didn’t like the result of the previous one (which hadn’t given him the large majority he wanted)…
When the Conservatives lose the next election in the UK, will we be listening when they demand another election so that they can win it instead?
Our tolerance for political insanity has actually reached pathological levels.
We have become co-lunatics.

hauptmanngurski
hauptmanngurski
Apr 22, 2019 6:52 AM
Reply to  wardropper

Erdogan was absolutely furious when Sisi in Egypt was allowed to be a dictator but he Erdogan was not – that’s what the new elections and change of constitution was about.

Obviously the US has to put their weapons production somewhere – or the warehouses would overflow. Keeping the conflicts simmering always helps – you can reactivate quickly and then send new production/weaponry.

rogerglewis
rogerglewis
Apr 19, 2019 1:33 PM
David Macilwain
David Macilwain
Apr 19, 2019 12:30 PM

While the credentials of the author of this questionable report are unknown, they were immediately suspect on reading the very first sentence – and claim that is frankly perverse and outrageous. I would challenge any reader here even – and certainly in the mainstream, to have even heard of Rukban camp, because our media has been saturated with stories of the “wives of IS” and the “orphans of IS” who were all trucked to Al Hol camp near the NE Iraqi border, all the way from their “secret city” beneath Baghouz. (Meanwhile the ISIS fighters were redeployed, to al Tanf or elsewhere to be used as bait for the SDF in future operations. I described these plans in detail in a recent article:
https://ahtribune.com/world/north-africa-south-west-asia/syria-crisis/3033-baghouz-the-secret-city.html

From the hostile attitude towards the Kurds, and dubious claims about those in Al Hol, it appears that Firas Samuri is associated with the branch of the “Free Syrian Army” supported by Turkey, that seeks to control the NW Kurdish area around Afrin. His views are consequently highly partisan, and no more in line with those of the Syrian government and its allies than are those of the US, SDF or Turkey.

Rukban camp btw, has been denied any access by the US who are illegally occupying the area around it. Russian advisors and the Syrian Red Crescent and UN set up a relief centre in the desert to enable the 45000 refugees in Rukban to escape to the safety of Syrian territory controlled by the government, but the US blocked them, while the fighters from IS and other terrorist groups who they are keeping there menace the camp residents and use them as human shields.
Al Hol by contrast has the world’s media in attendance, and is overseen by the International Red Cross, and well supplied with basic aid and tent accomodation, despite the addition of some 35,000 people.

This just illustrates the problem of finding true information on a conflict with many partisan actors, but the least we need to know is who Firas Samuri speaks for, if he doesn’t support Syria’s legitimate government.

Loverat
Loverat
Apr 19, 2019 2:48 PM

I recognised the author’s name but couldn’t immediately place it. But he wrote this back in February for Off-G. Quite critical of Turkey.

https://off-guardian.org/2019/02/23/turkeys-dangerous-game-causing-idlib-catastrophe/

I think the other problem with this multi state/proxy conflict is when you write/discuss on Syria about one aspect of the conflict, you sometimes can be misunderstood to support one party or another and you have to qualify virtually everything you say to prevent this. But most people I know who put in a decent effort on writing a good article about Syria are only concerned with the truth.

rogerglewis
rogerglewis
Apr 19, 2019 2:58 PM
Reply to  Loverat

vexarb
Feb, 23, 2019
There is a very delicate end game going on between two sides: on the winning side, chessmasters Putin and Assad with strong backing from bishop Nasr’Allah, castle Rouhani and active footsoldier pawns who have practically cleared the board and pushed the opposition onto its back line. Opposition team has only one player, Erdogan, who understands political chess; its other players are our raving imbecile Leaders from the rest of NATZO. Winning side is militarily stronger on the ground; but what makes the endgame tricky is whether firm reasonableness can calm NATZO’s raving lunatic Leaders before they call in outside forces to unleash The Samson Option: a type of Gotterdaemering in which everyone dies and the resultant fire burns up Heaven itself. Fortunately both President Putin and medical Dr.Assad have an excellent track record of firm reasonableness.

“How the POTUS plays chess; like a pigeon: pecks around knocking over the pieces, shits all over the board then declares victory and flies away — to repeat the performance somewhere else.” — Attributed to President Putin after the matches with President Obumbler in Syria and Ukraine.

12

Denis O'hAichir
Denis O'hAichir
Apr 19, 2019 9:34 PM

I definitely hadn’t heard of it, there’s so much misery camps I’ve can’t remember the names, it’s extremely disturbing disheartening that I wasn’t aware of these people, shame on me.

Jen
Jen
Apr 19, 2019 10:20 PM

Firas Samuri has written articles (including the Off-Guardian.org post) for the Global Research website and they can be accessed at this link:
https://www.globalresearch.ca/author/firas-samuri

Samuri wrote this article on Poland’s contribution to US and EU propaganda on Syria: “Secret Mission of Polish Journalists in Syria”
https://www.veteranstoday.com/2018/01/10/secret-mission-of-polish-journalists-in-syria/

That VT article demonstrates quite clearly where Samuri’s sentiments lie: he has no time for Kurdish collaborators with the US and Turkey selling out their own Kurdish people.

Jen
Jen
Apr 19, 2019 11:31 PM
Reply to  Jen

Since posting my original comment I have found that Firas Samuri is a freelance writer who has worked with and maybe still works with Inside Syria Media Center.

The Duran discovered through Counterpunch’s work that Inside Syria Media Center could be a fake organisation.

https://theduran.com/fake-identities-phoney-reporting-inside-syria-media-center/

David Macilwain
David Macilwain
Apr 20, 2019 2:46 PM
Reply to  Jen

Thanks Jen – sounds plausible, and reminds me of the Aleppo Media Center and the Idlib Media Centre, and Douma Media Centre, with the first two at least operating from Gaziantep. Samuri’s partisan reporting contrasts with that of Syrian journalist Ahmed al Khaled of the “Special Monitoring Mission” to Syria – whose equally bold claims are much more plausible:
https://ahtribune.com/world/north-africa-south-west-asia/syria-crisis/2990-us-plan.html
In the end we have to make a judgement based on the content, with such freelance writers – like myself!

hauptmanngurski
hauptmanngurski
Apr 22, 2019 6:57 AM

I think, I’m gonna find myself another video ‘China from above’. That’s not depressing (normally) and I am only human.