Jordan Not Happy With Obama’s Plans
The Kingdom of Jordan is deeply concerned about the Obama administration’s renewed plans to train “moderate” rebels in Syria, believing the Syrian rebels are mostly extremists who espouse radical Al Qaeda-like ideology, a senior Jordanian security official told this reporter.
The official said Obama’s decision to fight the Islamic State and at the same time arm Syrian rebels was made during a compromise with Saudi Arabia in exchange for Saudi help in scaling back the ISIS threat.
Obama last week announced a sustained campaign against ISIS that could include strikes and other action in Syria and Iraq. Democrats and Republicans in Congress reportedly support utilizing up to $4 billion to arm the Syrian rebels, particularly the Free Syrian Army.
The security official said Jordan’s estimation is that the Free Syrian Army is no longer a cohesive fighting unit.
The Jordanian Kingdom fears that with U.S. acquiescence, Saudi Arabia will train and arm the Al Nusra front in Syria. Al Nusra is allied with Al Qaeda although some Al Nusra militants have fought factional conflicts with ISIS.
The Jordanian official warned that Al Nusra shares the same values as ISIS and ultimately seeks an Islamic caliphate utilizing the tactics of brutal jihad.
The information that the Saudis are helping to combat ISIS is unusual considering that KleinOnline reported in June that, according to Jordanian and Syrian regime sources, Saudi Arabia has been arming ISIS.
Jordan’s concern over arming Syrian rebels represents a major turnabout. Previously, Jordan reportedly aided the U.S. and other Western countries in arming the Syrian rebels.
Questions Congressmen Should Ask At The Benghazi Hearings
As the Benghazi Select Committee gears up for its first open hearing on Wednesday, this author has released a series of recommended questions for lawmakers to pose.
The suggested queries are based largely on information documented in my book The REAL Benghazi Story.
Included are questions for members and former members of the Obama administration, and specific questions for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Here are some:
* An 85-page Senate report concluded that according to the State Department the Benghazi “Mission facility did not store classified information, and therefore no Marine contingent was present.” What, then, was the purpose of the U.S. Special Mission? What kinds of activities transpired at the Mission? This is one of the most important questions that must be asked.
*A top State official revealed that the State Department refused a request to install guard towers at the doomed U.S. facility in Benghazi. Why were the guard towers not installed? One reason initially provided is that the towers would attract too much attention to the facility. Why was the State Department so concerned about attracting too much attention to this particular facility? Other nations had a public presence in Benghazi.
* The mission’s entire external security depended on “unarmed, locally contracted Blue Mountain Libya guards,” the State Department’s Accountability Review Board, or ARB, relates. Why were unarmed guards protecting a U.S. compound in one of the most dangerous cities in the world?
* Why was internal security for the compound – the quick reaction force – provided by armed 17th of February Martyrs Brigade members? The February 17 Brigade is part of the Al Qaeda-linked Ansar Al-Sharia, a militia that advocates the strict implementation of Islamic law and took credit for previous attacks against other diplomatic posts in Benghazi prior to the September 11th attacks. Ultimately, Answer al-Sharia was implicated in the Benghazi attacks, as well. How could the State Department trust an Al Qaeda-tied Islamic extremist militia to serve as the armed quick reaction force within the U.S. Special Mission? Who within the State Department approved the 17th of February Brigade force?