Stripped of any international legitimacy due to the massacre of unarmed civilians which has continued for 12 weeks, Assad’s regime has contrived a duplicitous formula by which it hopes to survive: get the Syrian people to blame Israel for Assad’s continued rule.
The regime is so certain of its new strategy it has been telling the world — via its supporters abroad and certain CIA analysts — that Assad will survive.
The Reform Party of Syria had noticed this strategy developing via Facebook postings. When Syrians realized the world showed little interest in forcing regime change, they looked for someone to blame: Iranian and Hezbollah flags were burned. However, pro-Assad Facebook infiltrators kept pointing the finger at Israel, and this has had an effect despite the argument’s total absurdity.
This video was shot on Friday by the people of Homs; in it, Syrians stomp on an Israeli flag to vent their anger against the country supposedly protecting Assad (note that Syrian citizens would never have access to an Israeli flag unless it was given to them by the regime):
Give credit to the Assad regime for their cleverness — they are utilizing the world’s predictable failure to act.
Not only have Syrians, en masse, diverted their attention to the state of Israel even as Assad continues massacring them, but Assad has distorted reality by disseminating a false image of the Syrian people. Further, Assad dispatched several hundred well-paid Syrians in air-conditioned coaches to the Golan Sunday — a repeat of a similar incident on Nakba Day when Palestinians stormed Israel’s borders. The PR message? Israel not only protects Assad, but they kill Syrians too, just like him.
From sources within Lebanon, RPS learned that the Syrians storming the Golan Heights were each paid $1,000 to appear at the borders — and $10,000 would be sent to their families if they were to perish. With a GDP per capita differential of about 10x, to an American this is equivalent to $10,000 to show up and $100,000 to die. A steep purse for a country listed as 153rd in real GDP, but a small price for Assad to pay for effective propaganda. Even Syrian poverty is grounds for exploitation to the regime’s advantage.
It is imperative that the U.S. and Israel coordinate to diminish the capacity Assad still has over his destiny, or Israel can expect more Golan incursions.
At the highest levels, Israel must deny it supports Assad or his regime of terror. Syrians are not always abreast of the danger he causes — through his impenetrable alliance with Iran — to Israel and its citizens via proxy organizations of terror like Hezbollah and Hamas.
Second, Israel must formulate a counter-strategy against repeated Golan incursions. Because Assad was not punished for it the first time, he now has an inexpensive “Flotilla” tactic that not only harms Syrians clueless about their pawn status, but also their image. If a legal framework can be justified, a drone attack against a symbol of Assad’s oppression would send two signals: Israel will not tolerate Assad’s infantile gestures that put the region at risk of all-out war; and Israel stands by the people of Syria and against the massacres.
RPS highly recommends destroying the main Mukhabarat center in Homs.
Third, Israel needs to announce a humanitarian mission of some sort to support the Syrian people. In 1948, the Allies masterminded the superb Berlin Airlift to keep the Soviets from controlling West Berlin; today such action by Israel would distinguish her from the violent Arab dictators massacring their own people. Even if the goods do not reach their destination, al-Jazeera TV images of Israeli-marked aid will stir hearts.
Israel should think of herself as a neighbor to the oppressed Syrians. Solidarity with our people during these difficult times will plant the seeds of peace.
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June 3 — Maarat an-Numan, near Aleppo:
Syrians challenge security men, who look bewildered. The Syrians chant for regime change.
Security men and the Syrian army have been told they will be protecting Syria by fighting foreign terrorists, yet they are only confronted by unarmed civilians looking for the regime to fall.
Expect these security men to eventually join the rebellion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMmnyyhcuyU
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