IAC condemns Israeli air strike against Syria

The International Action Center released the following statement Nov. 2 on the Israeli bomb attack against Syria. Speaking on Nov. 3 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry repeated the U.S. declaration that Bashar al-Assad must leave office as president of Syria.

The International Action Center condemns the strike by Israeli planes or missiles on Syrian territory near the coastal city of Latakia on Oct. 31. This is at least the third time this year that Israeli forces have bombed or hit targets inside Syria, according to media and U.S. government sources.

Officials in the Barack Obama administration announced the attack, according to CNN, AFP and RT on Nov. 1. Like the earlier attacks, the Israeli government has not admitted this attack. This is its usual response. However, all Israeli media have been reporting the assault. The media report the “reason” for the attack — really the pretext — that it was to prevent transfer of sophisticated anti-aircraft weapons to the Lebanese liberation organization, Hezbollah.

Since Washington announced the attack and the U.S. is still the main — and often the only — foreign power to line up alongside Israel on every serious issue, there is little doubt the Israeli aggression had first gotten a go-ahead from the Obama administration. This implies that the U.S. considers the Geneva negotiations between the Syrian government and “rebel” forces expendable. The war’s continuation is thus the responsibility of Washington and Tel Aviv.

Since 2011, the war within Syria that has been promoted, armed and provoked by the U.S., NATO, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf monarchies has claimed 120,000 lives, nearly half from government forces and civilians who supported the government of Bashar al-Assad.

The U.S. and the U.N. are overseeing a campaign to disarm Syria of its chemical weapons. While the U.S. State Department has praised the Syrian government for its cooperation, this new attack from Israel — with obvious U.S. support — shows that Washington has not abandoned its goal of removing the Assad government.

The IAC reiterates its condemnation of this new Israeli aggression and of the whole U.S.-NATO-Israeli-Saudi plans to remove the Syrian government from power and destroy the Syrian state.