The İHH and Syria
Claudia Rossett, a journalist I really admire, asks today why the Freedom Flotilla Freaks aren't trying to send their "humanitarian" aid to Syria:
If anyone involved in the launching of this “Freedom Flotilla II” really wants to do some good in this world, there is another piece of turf along the eastern Mediterranean coast they could aim for. It’s a place where a blockade of sorts has been imposed not by Israel, but by the country’s own government — which is now preventing entry by anyone likely to report back on the atrocities within. It’s a country where Iran has been sending in the thugs of its elite Quds force to help crush an uprising of people calling for an end to decades of dynastic totalitarian rule. It’s a place where international peace activists hoping to galvanize world opinion with a high-profile boat trip might usefully attempt a landing and display of solidarity, if only to let the world witness the response.
It kills me to have to say this, because someone, somewhere is going to use it to support İHH propaganda. But I think it's important to be as accurate as possible about this group, to understand its ideology, and to get the details right. Her characterization is sort of right and sort of wrong, because in fact, the İHH has been extremely loud about what's happening in Syria and has been bringing aid to Syrian refugees (or so they say):
In order to help Syrian refugees who try to cling to life under very difficult circumstances in Lebanon, the IHH sent an emergency aid team to the country. The IHH team reached Halid town near Akar region which is closest to the Syrian border where most refugees live. IHH aid workers delivered food to 400 families in Halid on the Syrian-Lebanon border where refugees from al-Aridah and Talkalakh live. In addition, the IHH team delivered clothes to the refugees who had to leave their houses without taking extra clothes with them.
The only anti-Assad protests I've heard about in Istanbul were organized by the İHH:
Platform members marched to the Embassy in procession after the Friday prayer at Teşvikiye Mosque. Approximately 300 people attended the march and they held banners writing 'the blood in Dera and Banyas is our blood', 'al-Assad is killing, the world is watching'. The group, which closed the Teşvikiye street to traffic during the march, also called out slogans like 'murderer Bashar, get out of Syria', 'the Syrian people are not alone', 'long live the global uprising', and 'dictators will be overthrown one by one'.
In fact, seeing this has made me take more seriously the idea that Obama may be right to be so tepid about encouraging the collapse of the Assad regime. The fact that the İHH wants it so much should at least give you pause and make you say, "Huh. What might that mean?" I doubt it's entirely lacking in significance.
Anyway, the İHH apparently put on a disgusting performance in Taksim Square last night. They live-streamed it. I didn't watch it--to be honest, I fell asleep--but Okan watched some of it and sent me updates by e-mail as it happened. Here's what he wrote:
10:59:56: The speaker is yelling out "Israel, fear! You, the cruelest nation in the world." They are openly stating the flotilla will be for the liberation of Palestine.
11:03:14: "We hope for all of our Muslim friends around the world to meet in Jerusalem some day..."
11:20:53: IHH pres says "The Egyptian Pharaoh Mubarak went down allowing them to open the Rafah crossing, thanks to the nine dead they gave last time out. They are now going back with the spirit of the nine dead to show Israel and America. America needs to give an account of Iraq and Afghanistan instead of telling IHH what to do or not to do. Last week, they had a hard time figuring out whether the American president was Obama or Netunyahu. Instead of trying to stop them, the UN and the USA should capture the Israeli killers and punish them. Israel sieges not only Gaza, but also world trade (mentions the Israeli warnings to insurance companies). So, now we will lift Israel's siege off the whole world, not just Gaza. Mavi Marmara brought down the dictators among us. The photo most shared by the Facebook youth in Tahrir Square was the photo of one our dead."
11:26:18: Can't watch it any longer. I am going to throw up if I do.
So, to summarize: Where Syria's concerned, the IHH actually is sort of doing what Claudia's suggesting they do if they want to do some good in the world. But maybe we should be careful what we wish for.
That said, I just can't help but long to see Assad ripped limb from limb by a pack of ravening wolves.
Maybe the IHH and I just agree about something, which is awkward. Ah, well. It's a confusing world. I report, you decide.
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Feb '11
Re: The İHH and Syria
It's a hard line to walk between "get rid of the bad" and "maybe it will bring worse."
If you think that there is a certain level of bad that makes it irrelevant that the alternative is worse, then the Assads are certainly in that category, while the Mubaraks probably are not. I suppose that reasonable people can differ about the Saudis, the Ghadafis and the PLO - at least on that score.
The problem is, this does not seem to be what the Obama waffle is all about. The US administration seems to be a lot of incompetence mixed in with no small amount of personal malevolence, as least from where we Israel is sit.
Mar '11
Re: The İHH and Syria
I don't think it's all that confusing - I'm guessing the IHH is an Islamic charity group? Hezbollah, for example, does a lot of charity work, as a means of taking over Power - it's par for the course. So, it's quite possible for them to share the goal of an Assad, erm, ripped limb from limb, while wanting a different outcome after that - perhaps they want a Global Islam, with it's capital in Jerusalem? Just a wild guess.
Feb '11
Re: The İHH and Syria
Global Islam has never been interested in Jerusalem as a capital. This is a new concept based on the fact that someone else has it.
Re: The İHH and Syria
Israel P.
Global Islam has never been interested in Jerusalem as a capital. This is a new concept based on the fact that someone else has it. · May 31 at 8:17am
Quite. A very novel idea, in fact.
Feb '11
Re: The İHH and Syria
Rossett's presentation gives, I think, a mistaken sense of events in Syria. This "uprising" is still localized and sectarian.
Some Sunnis are participating, mostly in poorer urban areas. Sunnis with money and connections still back the government, as also the poorest Sunnis (still more worried about eating).
Kurdish demonstrations are limited to symbolic acts of solidarity on Friday afternoons -- reminders to the government that matters could be worse. Druze and Shiite are standing with the regime. Christians, lacking reserve militias of their own, are quiet as church mice -- though I'm told that some have negotiated protection from the Kurds, in the event of sectarian violence.
The Syrians may be "preventing entry" to reporters, but this is not true on the whole. While you'll not want to vacation there, most of the country is fairly safe. The border crossings are (mostly) open, as is the airport. Most roads are safe, if slow because of checkpoints (nothing new). International phones are usually working.
A colleague last week flew into Damascus, spent a few days there and in Aleppo, and took the minibus to the Turkish border, crossing to Mardin. He had no troubles.
So far, the regime is holding.