US Arming Syrian Rebels

Frontline PBS recently revealed in a short documentary how Syrian rebels are being trained by the CIA. This comes as a surprise considering that the US only recently stated that they're still considering training the rebels. The documentary displays testimonials of rebels soldiers of the Free Syrian Army, who explain in detail how the US has been providing them ammunition as well as training. Though the documentary in itself is a half-baked, biased attempt at understanding the Syrian situation, three things about it stand out in particular.

Firstly, claims by the US of providing only non-lethal aid to Syria are completely false. In the past few months, the rebels have been using more sophisticated weaponry. This, they say, is given to them by US suppliers. The documentary follows the rebel soldiers' journey towards the Turkish border, to pick up ammunition sent by US suppliers, in the middle of the night. They're provided TOW anti-tank missiles and Russian Kalashnikov etc. (Did someone say non-lethal aid?), to fight Bashar-Al-Assad and the extremists. The choice of Russian weapons is part of a cleverly thought out plan. It's meant to remove any doubt of it being a US funded operation. Banking on Syria's strong friendship with Russia, the Americans have ensured that the weapons only point to a civil war, free from any external intervention.

This brings us to the second point, which is the route through which the US operates. About 80 rebel soldiers are taken from Syria to Doha, Qatar via Ankara. Here, they are supplied with new uniforms and boots and are trained for about 3 weeks. They're given hands-on training to ambush vehicles, raid them and finish off enemy soldiers. The route is fascinating simply because it affirms the imperialist character of the US. The fact that it an carry out such covert operations in the West Asia shows that it has bases and networks running all through the region.

Finally, it is the use of the word “moderates” for the rebels of the Free Syrian Army, which is most baffling. We see these “moderates” chanting “Allah hu Akbar” every time they fire their weapons. Many within the Army believe in establishing an Islamic state. It is very clear, in more ways than one, that these rebels are extremists too. The shade or degree of extremism, however, is a debatable subject. The use of the word “moderates” is just to placate dissenting voices, both within the US and outside it, so that Uncle Sam's intrusion in the West Asia continues, unhindered. Clearly, the US has learnt nothing from its experience of funding Mujahideen forces against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan during the Cold War. It seems many more Osamas are in the making.

To view the Frontline PBS documentary, please click here.