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Yep, we sure did, a couple thousand of them and it has stirred up a lot of controversy and absolute apoplectic behavior by the mass media.
Deb and I were having breakfast this morning and she said, “I don’t completely understand the whole Syria thing.” I told her what I believe has been, and is, going on and she said, “You get in your office today, type up what you said and put it on your blog; maybe someone else needs to know this.” After 56 years, I know how to follow orders. So here goes.
Hafaz al-Assad, the father, ruled Syria 1971-2000. Upon his death, the son, Bashr al-Assad, has been in charge; together they represent a brutal dictatorship over Syria for 47 years. Twenty-seven years ago, following deep-seated discontent, a group of rebels tried to bring down Assad. They are still trying.
In the process Assad is responsible for 300-500 thousand dead men, women and children (the exact number will never be known). Thousands suffered and died from chemical weapon attacks. The question is, why has al-Assad not been hauled before the world court to be tried for these atrocities like Slobodan Miolsevic (Serbian dictator) was for killing tens of thousands in Bosnia and Kosovo? But I digress.
With the Syrian civil war raging for years, al-Assad has been desperate for aid; economic, weapons, ammunition and people. Iran to the rescue. Iran has eyes on dominance over the Middle East and Syria became a willing ally. Not to be outdone, the Russians, looking to be a long-term influence and player in the Middle East also signed on for aid.
When the US pulled out of Iraq in 2010, a vacuum was created and it was quickly filled by ISIS. With no resistance from the US, ISIS, by 2014, created an ISIS-led 35,000 square mile “country” referred to as a “Caliphate”. They had a governmental headquarters, a leader al-Baghdadi, staff, tax collectors, they were selling oil and financing the rise of ISIS elements in 38 countries around the world.
The US finally said enough is enough and began air strikes and some ground operations inside the Caliphate, but achieved little success. The problem was the restrictive rules of engagement imposed by the Obama White House. You need to recognize that in the Syria/ISIS type scenario, much of the success/progress results from timely attacks on “actionable intelligence” targets of opportunity.
Actionable intel targets are normally fleeting in nature and most of the “high-value” targets of opportunity required approval so far up the chain of command that we rarely successfully attacked a high-value, time-sensitive target.
Early on in 2017 President Trump and Sec Def Mattis decentralized the rules of engagement approval authority to the commander on the ground. We blew the hell out of ISIS and the caliphate has ceased to exist.
But the mass media, politicians and Washington pundits are screaming, “But ISIS is not yet defeated.”
They are correct but neither is Hamas, neither is Hezbollah, neither is Boko Haram, neither is Al-Qaeda, neither is ISIS in dozens of countries. And what’s more, they may never be “defeated.” It is the world we live in.
Ok, folks, if the 2000 US troops stay in Syria, tell me what the hell do you want them to do? Fight the Russians? Fight the Iranians? Declare war on al-Assad? Or maybe just set up camp for 17 years like we have done in Afghanistan? I know, some will respond, “Well what if they rebuild the Caliphate?” Why would they be so dumb? But if they do, we will just blow it up again with a few airplanes. But we do not need 2000 of our absolute finest sitting around in Syria doing “what ifs.” There is plenty for them to do elsewhere.
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas
Marv Covault