UPDATE III:
October 14, 2019. Seven days day after our modern-day Benedict Arnold’ traitorous telephone call with the Turkish dictator, the bloody fallout not only continues but worsens. Here, once again, today’s headlines tell the story (Source: Memeorandum.com)
• CNN: Retired Marine Gen. John Allen: ‘There is blood on Trump’s hands for abandoning our Kurdish allies’ — A retired four-star Marine general on Sunday bluntly criticized President Donald Trump over the ongoing Turkish military offensive in northern Syria…
• The Daily Beast: The U.S. Spoiled a Deal That Might Have Saved the Kurds, Former Top Official Says — Forsaken by the U.S. and under attack by Turkish troops, the Kurds are turning to Russia for help. The last time they tried to do so, the Americans worked to talk them out of it.
• The Washington Post: Unswayed by top advisers, Trump doubles down on decision to withdraw troops — President Trump’s order to withdraw essentially all U.S. forces from northern Syria came after the commander in chief privately agitated for days to bring troops home, according to administration officials …
• The New York Times: Pullback Leaves Green Berets Feeling ‘Ashamed,’ and Kurdish Allies Describing ‘Betrayal’
• Washington Monthly: Kremlin relishes US pullback from Syria, turmoil in Ukraine
• The New Yorker: Chaos in Syria: ISIS Detainees Escape as the U.S. Pulls Out
• Committee to Protect Journalism: Syrian Kurdish journalist killed in Turkish airstrike on civilian convoy
Ant then there is this from Reuters:
Russia-backed Syrian forces enter Kurdish-held region amid U.S. retreat.
Russia-backed Syrian forces wasted no time in taking advantage of an abrupt U.S. retreat from Syria on Monday, deploying deep inside Kurdish-held territory south of the Turkish frontier less than 24 hours after Washington announced a full withdrawal.
And from the Military Times:
US troops believe Turkey deliberately fired artillery at an American commando outpost in Syria
UPDATE II:
And the fallout continues: (From memeorandum.com)
• Newsweek: Exclusive: Turkey bombs US special forces in Syria attack, apparently by mistake — A contingent of U.S. Special Forces has been caught up in Turkish shelling against U.S.-backed Kurdish positions in northern Syria. — Newsweek has learned through both an Iraqi Kurdish intelligence official …
• The Independent: Isis militants break out of prison in Syria after bombing by Turkey — Escape comes after Trump cleared way for Erdogan to launch offensive on Kurds — Five Isis militants have broken out of a prison in northern Syria after Turkish shelling nearby, a spokesman in the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has said
• CNN: Fact check: Trump falsely claims ‘we have no soldiers in Syria’
UPDATE I:
Turkish warplanes and artillery hit Kurdish militia targets in northeast Syria on the third day of an offensive that has killed hundreds of people, forced tens of thousands to flee and turned Washington’s establishment against President Donald Trump.
::
The International Rescue Committee aid group said 64,000 people in Syria have fled since the campaign began. Ras al Ain and Darbasiya, some 60 km (37 miles) to the east, were largely deserted.
::
At least 29 fighters with the SDF and 17 fighters with a Turkish-backed Syrian rebel group had been killed, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war.
In the meantime, the guy who gave Turkey the green light says: “I hope we can mediate,”
Original Post:
As our allies in the war against ISIS, the Kurdish fighters – courageous men and women — are betrayed and abandoned by Trump and as dozens of them are being killed and wounded* by Turkish airstrikes, artillery and ground forces, the Washington Times – in an “exclusive” report — is headlining how Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez spent $300 on hairdo at Last Tangle Salon in Washington, D.C.
Fortunately, not all Republicans are consumed with finding dirt – including from foreign governments – on their political opponents at a time when those who fought alongside American troops are at risk of being mass-slaughtered, thanks to a single, shameful phone call from the U.S. commander in chief, “despite disagreement from his own military officers and State Department.”
Interestingly, just as Trump did, “Russia indicated it would not stand in the way.”
Among those who have criticized Trump’s betrayal are:
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who called on Turkey to “stop immediately and continue to work with the US to secure the region.”
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), chair of the House Republican Conference, who said Trump’s betrayal was having “sickening and predictable consequences…. this decision aids America’s adversaries, Russia, Iran and Turkey, and paves the way for a resurgence of ISIS.”
Even normally docile and loyal-to-the extreme-to-Trump Lindsey Graham tweeted, “Pray for our Kurdish allies who have been shamelessly abandoned by the Trump Administration.”
Other Republicans have strongly rebuked Trump as well. But perhaps the most meaningful criticism has come from a young Republican who – having served both in Iraq and Afghanistan — knows a little about combat and about loyalty to fellow fighters.
Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill. has spoken out against Trump’s betrayal on Fox News and in several other media.
“Once again @realDonaldTrump uses Rand Paul’s ‘endless wars’ talking points as he orders America to once again abandon our friends and give Russia & Iran exactly what they want. This is wrong. #Syria,” he tweeted.
In a press statement, Kinzinger said “Withdrawing U.S. troops from Syria as Turkey moves forward with their offensive in the northern region is wrong, dangerous, and it means we are abandoning our friends in the region.”
On Monday, Kinzinger told CNN’s Chris Cuomo “Now to abandon them [the Kurds] because Turkey’s … upset — it’s going to send another message again … too many times, America has left our allies behind because we just didn’t want to be there anymore.”
And on Fox News:
I mean, think about if 10,000 ISIS fighters get released. The president keeps saying we’ve won this war against ISIS. We certainly have not won the war against ISIS. We’ve made gains… And, if you release 10,000 of them, that’s incredible.
*The New York Times reports this morning that at least 16 Kurdish fighters are reported to have been killed and an additional 33 members of the Syrian Democratic Forces have been wounded thus far.
Also:
The fighting threatens to create a humanitarian crisis for hundreds of thousands of people who have been cut off from Syrian assistance for years. Most rely on the Kurdish forces and aid groups for basic services. Civilians jammed roads while fleeing with their possessions on Wednesday.
