Is he really this clueless? Newly formed Syrian jihadist groups have sent waves of suicide bombers directed at regime targets, hardly a repudiation of al-Qaeda.
(Boston Globe) — Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona blasted President Obama on foreign policy Sunday, accusing him of mishandling relationships with countries throughout the Middle East.
McCain said the United States should arm rebels in Syria to help them fight against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
“Absolutely. It’s an unfair fight,” McCain said on ABC’S “This Week. “The Russians are supplying arms. The Iranians are on the ground. How could we not stand up for these people? How could we sit by and watch this slaughter go on, while the president of the United States is totally silent?”
McCain downplayed the risk of arming a group of Syrian rebels whose long-term mission is uncertain.
“I heard this same story in Libya. I heard it in Tunisia. I heard it in Egypt,” McCain said. “There’s always, ‘We don’t know who they are.’ I’ll tell you who they are. They’re a direct repudiation of Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda believes in acts of terror to change governments. These people believe in peaceful demonstration.”
Update 10:45 am EST: Somehow this is a “repudiation of al-Qaeda” in McRINO’s eyes.
Via LWJ:
The Al Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant has claimed yet another suicide attack in Syria. The group released a statement on May 4 claiming credit for the April 20 suicide attack on Syrian forces at a restaurant in Hama. The Al Nusrah Front, which has been described as an al Qaeda-linked jihadist group in Syria, said the attack was designed to avenge a “brutal massacre” in the town of Al Latamnah near Hama. Below is an excerpt from the statement, which was translated by the SITE Intelligence Group:
The soldiers of the al-Nusra Front, may Allah grant it glory, knew about that, and the horses of jihad were issued the call. . .The military regiment that carried out the massacre stayed between the village of M’ardas and the city of Tibat al-Imam, both of which are close to the city of Hama. They were in a two-floor restaurant called Qatrul Nada, and the number of elements there were about 350 criminals, while the rest of the forces were distributed around the restaurant. On Friday night, 20/4/2012, with grace from Allah the Almighty, an explosives-laden vehicle was prepared and it was driven by the heroic martyrdom-seeker Abu Bakr al-Hamawi, may Allah accept him — whose last words were: “The tyrant Bashar and his henchmen should know that this act will not pass without retaliation from the respectable ones. . .”