Syria Arms Embargo: Is It 'Right'?

EU ARMS Embargo -
'Not Right'
Says Qatar PM

EU Move On Syria
'Inappropriate'
Says Qatar Prime Minister

February 20, 2013 From 'The Peninsula' - Doha, Qatar --

Doha, Qatar -- PM says "EU Embargo Decision Completely INAPPOSITE! (no parallels in it)

Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister  H E Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabor Al Thani, also the Chairman of Arab Ministerial Committee on Syria, says, "European Union’s decision on Monday to amend the arms embargo to allow “non-lethal” aid and “technical assistance” to flow to the Syrians is completely inapposite (inapposite: there are no parallels in it at all).

Responding to a question about the impact of the European Union decision and the international indecision on prolonging the crisis in Syria, the Prime Minister told Aljazeera - 'Syrian people are paying the price for prolonging the crisis' - pointing to the huge number of people being killed resulting from this crisis continues to rise, and the fact the Syrian government has not changed its position on the this crisis.

Some Facts --

EU - Foreign Minister Decide to Keep Sanctions Against Syria for 3 more months.

BRUSSELS  EU foreign ministers decided to extend arms embargo on Syria for three more months in order to protect the civilians in the country.

The ministers also rejected the proposal of France and Britain to ease the arms embargo for Syrian opponents.

EU, so far, maintained nearly 20 sanctions on Syria, including the arms embargo, ban on importing Syrian oil, and measures against various individuals and companies.

EU foreign ministers, who convened inBrussels on Monday, expressed deep concern about the influences of Syrian crisis in its neighboring countries, while underlining commitment to independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria.

Not everyone agrees about the embargo, established back 2011 --

For instance, Colette Beukman of the Journal of Turkish Weekly - had this to say:

Since the debate arose in late 2011, Obama has always rejected plans to provide Syrian rebels with military equipment. Despite the advice of the Pentagon, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the CIA and Hilary Clinton, the president decided to support Syrian rebels solely through nonlethal assistance.

This decision was made based on the fear that US arms might fall into the wrong hands, being used against civilians, Israel, or other American interests. On top of that the president feared to be drawn into a proxy war against the Syrian government and its Iranian and Russian backers.

The EU implemented an arms embargo for similar reasons, yet is currently debating its (partial) removal. The United Kingdom and France for instance support this removal, while Germany and the Scandinavian countries heavily oppose it.

Supporters of the removal argue that while the Syrian government is receiving military aid in several forms from Russia, Iran, and the Hezbollah, the rebels are receiving close to none and therefore remain relatively weak.

Meanwhile, Mr. Assad seems to be far from ready to yield power.  Officials of the White House point out that they are learning more about the Syrian rebel factions every day, as well as about what can and should be supplied to them.

While there are no quotes from Obama himself confirming a possible reconsideration of his veto, a senior administration officer told the New York Times that: “This is not a closed decision … as the situation evolves, as our confidence increases, we might revisit it”. For the time being, they will not take any options off the table.

By Colette Beukman  20 February 2013  -- Journal of Turkish Weekly

Islam teaches us patience, tolerance and respect. This is very clear. But the question now is, just how much patience should the civilians of Syria have in this crisis?

Also, who are the real bad guys in this whole scenario?

Why is this happening here and at this particular time in history?

Where is the support of Allah for the 'Believers'?

What can we expect in the future?

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