March 31st, 2016.
The Liberation of Palmyra.
Civilisation triumphs over the forces of nihilism, chaos and destruction.
The US Air force stood, watched and did nothing in May 2015 as the city of Palmyra fell to ISIS.
Ten months later and Russia has emerged as the defender of civilisation in Syria and nothing makes this clearer than the liberation of Palmyra.
While the US was perfectly happy to stand back and watch Syria being looted and pillaged by the forces of chaos and mayhem, Russia sent her soldiers to fight and die in the fight against them and they have succeeded.
While ISIS clearly made a tactical decision to withdraw from Palmyra and Tadmur this week, the group are still present in the area, still well armed and still capable of mounting successful small-scale attacks.
Russia Defense Report: The Hero of Palmyra
The Western “Response.”
Reporting on the liberation of Palmyra, the BBC World Service were reduced to offering the pitiful “many blame the Syrian Government for allowing the city to fall.”
It is worth remembering that fewer than two years ago the Western elite and their pet media were trying to present the Russian President, with a straight face, as the new Hitler.
This now laughable idea was actually a very popular meme throughout 2014 being voiced by Democrat front-runner Hillary Clinton, the British Prime Minister and the next in line to the British throne, among many others.
The hollow men and woman of the Western media supported these fallacious pronouncements as they do everything, with mindless enthusiasm and transparent sophistry.
The southern outpost of the Mighty Wurlitzer took to the task with shameless relish.
So these latest developments are another self-inflicted moment of acute humiliation for the self appointed masters of the universe.
In this light the muted, sulking and whining response to the Russian operation in Syria and the Palmyra triumph make perfect sense.
The past two years have been among other things one long festival of humiliation for the Neoconservative Western elite, much of it at the hands of the Russian President. This must be a difficult moment for them.
In the Daily Beast they were still droning and whining about moderate rebels, in an unintentionally comedic piece written in the parallel universe of the Western propagandist where al Qaeda are moderate democrats!
To describe the al Nusra Front are a terror group is a simple statement of fact. This is their legal status as designated by the UN along with their parent organisation al Qaeda.
al Nusra front deserve the designation having conducted terror attacks that target civilians in both Syria and Lebanon where the “plucky moderates” sent a suicide bomber to commit murder in a Tripoli cafe in late 2014.
Nusra Front claims Lebanon suicide attack – Al Jazeera English
They have massacred numerous groups from whom they differ including Shia, Christian and Druze. They have desecrated Christian churches, they have conducted chemical weapons attacks against both military and civilian targets. The only meaningful ideological difference they have with ISIS is that they believe in building an Islamic State in Syria after the war ISIS have tried and failed to do so during the war.
Any “journalist” who attempts to portray the Syrian opposition other than ISIS as being moderate is either a brazen liar and fraudster or simply a tool who deserves to the same contempt they have for their audience.
Al Nusra are the pivot group of the entire Syrian insurgency, throughout the war they have been allied with militant factions across the board and were the core and spearhead of the Army of Conquest coalition that swept through north-western Syria in 2015 seizing the province of Idlib. Jabhat al Nusra have maintained alliances with the supposed moderates of the Free Syrian Army throughout the entire war.
FSA, Jabhat a-Nusra ally in north Homs ahead of expected Russian-backed offensive – Syria Direct
Syria: Drone shows ancient Palmyra relics following end of IS siege
Inside Old Palmyra: Exclusive access to ancient relics after ISIS flees
The Road Ahead.
The Syrian Army are in the process of de-mining Palmyra, removing the hundreds of bombs and booby traps placed by the guerrillas, other units have fanned out in several directions and although clashes continue in the Palmyra area it is expected that the Syrian Army and their allies will soon begin to move further north-east as they follow the M7 highway towards Der ez Zour.
Der ez Zour is 200kms away through a desert of sparse villages. If ISIS choose to mount guerrilla raids on the advancing forces it may take them months to advance across the desert.
On the other hand if the group withdraw the Syrian Army could be fighting to break the siege of Der ez Zour within weeks. If recent history is any guide it will be many months.
Palmyra victory has Syrian Army set to break ISIS siege on Deir Ezzor
If the Syrian Army manage to cross the desert and link up with the forces besieged in Der ez Zour, the current episode of the Caliphate project will be over. The forces in Syria will be reduced to operating in small isolated pockets of territory.
Amidst the deafening silence, the obfuscation and barefaced lies, Robert Fisk of the Independent stood out as one Western journalist willing to state the truth about Palmyra and the West.
Why is David Cameron so silent on the recapture of Palmyra from the clutches of Isis?
“So in the end, it was the Syrian army and its Hezbollah chums from Lebanon and the Iranians and the Russians who drove the Isis murderers out of Palmyra, and who may – heavens preserve us from such a success – even storm the Isis Syrian ‘capital’ of Raqqa. I have written many times that the Syrian army will decide the future of Syria. If they grab back Raqqa – and Deir el-Zour, where the Nusrah front destroyed the church of the Armenian genocide and threw the bones of the long-dead 1915 Christian victims into the streets – I promise you we will be silent again.”
Crimes of Empire 
Wondered what you’d come up with? First, lest we forget… the wicked standing and watching. Oh what empire criminals. Conversely, they came, they saw, they gambled and… Lost. All arrogance and hubris, “Assad… Hitler, no, no, Pu–tin…” Now sounds so hollow eh, in what could’ve always been a tide-turning back. AND IS. Them string-pullers must have been so convinced of being, come-what-may, undefeatable. Their clocking under ‘moderate’, always discredited, now fading from the lie-course. It was hard not to be hanging-on, expecting they edge on and on, to demolishing – even more than suffered – Damascus. Done hope, jitters, hope, jitters… even though way-removed, feel the upset. Reading retrospectively, there’s still jitters – but firmer HOPE has risen. Faith.
Syria prior to the ‘invasion’ was the bridge that carried so much. I’m sitting here bubbling quiet prayer, oh, that the momentum to make this peoples’ safer-home secure. We talk about multi-racial, ethnic… what they had, may they get their chance to have again. I understand the question on forcing cultures together more artificially but relatively… Syria got on, and for how long? Syria: ‘Civilisation triumphs over the forces of nihilism, chaos and destruction’. Without pedestalling them up, you have to look at Syria, even among this could/can be peaceful region and consider the incredibly admirably, humane, humanity. Bit like those old old buildings. They got some stature.
And there’s Lizzie Phelan wading about, informed and compassionate, doing what journalists are supposed to do – but where else? And Vanessa Beeley, who kindly appreciates an occasional tweeted comment from me, writes up a storm. Eva Bartlett, Sharmine Narwani, and o’course Partisangirl – all communication troopers. And others, and some boys – but hey, women stepping-up, get me little call-out.
Thanks James. I wrote of someone else today. ‘All succinct and substance’. That’s this. Clear as. Sure I’m biased to like but reckon it rocks for the cause. Next? Please.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for being so kind Mark. and thanks for that excellent comment. You make a very good point regarding the role that female journalists have played in covering Syria that had not occurred to me prior. Thank you for making a tweet relating to this very humble piece and thanks for commenting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
American troops would love to have fought on the side of decency and civilization. Instead, they were under orders to avoid interference with the ISIS barbarians. Sad that our once-proud warriors had to stand aside and watch the brutal war crimes committed by our covert allies–ISIS, al Qaeda, al Nusra.
Thank God for the Russians and their willingness to step forward and defend the innocent. Were it not for President Putin’s courageous military initiative, Damascus would now be awash in a sea of blood–flying the dread black and white flag of al Qaeda.
Yet not one media mogul admits that the U.S. has armed, paid and trained the offspring of the very men who murdered 3,000 Americans on 9-11. If that is not treason, there is no such thing.
Bravo to Syria and the SAA and SAF. May God grant them victory over the satanic forces we unleashed against them.
Richard H. Black
Senator of Virginia, 13th District
LikeLiked by 1 person
Many thanks Senator, I know you are right about the US military. Thanks for a great comment.
LikeLiked by 1 person