U.S., Saudis to bolster support for “moderate Syrian opposition”

OCTOBER 26, 2015 8:09 PM BY ROBERT SPENCER22 COMMENTS

This moderate Syrian opposition is made up of Islamic jihadists. Former Defense Intelligence Agency director Michael Flynn recently confirmed that the Obama Administration knowingly decided to support al-Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria, and directly enabled the rise of the Islamic State. The rebels are not by any stretch of the imagination “moderates”: they’re pro-Sharia Islamic jihad terrorists. Remember, the Obama Administration spent $500 million to find and train “moderates” in Syria, and could only come up with fifty trainees.

“U.S., Saudi Arabia to bolster support for moderate Syrian opposition,” Reuters, October 25, 2015:

The United States and Saudi Arabia agreed to increase support to Syria’s moderate opposition while seeking a political resolution of the four-year conflict, the U.S. State Department said after Secretary of State John Kerry met King Salman on Saturday.

Kerry was in Riyadh for meetings with the Saudi monarch, crown prince, deputy crown prince and foreign minister – the last stop in a trip that also included Vienna, where he met counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Russia.

“They pledged to continue and intensify support to the moderate Syrian opposition while the political track is being pursued,” the State Department statement said after Kerry’s meetings in Saudi Arabia. It did not spell out what kind of support would be offered

Rebels have appealed for more military support from foreign backers, including Saudi Arabia, to confront major Syrian army offensives. Those offensives are backed by Lebanese Hezbollah and Iranian fighters and Russian air strikes.

The United States and Saudi Arabia, together with other states opposed to Assad, already provides some military support to Syrian rebels. That includes training by the Central Intelligence Agency and anti-tank missiles.

Kerry said in Vienna on Friday he expected new talks on Syria to begin as soon as next week. So far, all diplomatic efforts to end the conflict have foundered over the demand by the United States and its allies that Assad leave power, which he refuses to consider.

Saudi Arabia, a strident opponent of Assad, has said he must be removed from power to eliminate the militant Islamic State. Riyadh has also criticized Russia’s bombing campaign in Syria.

Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said after the Vienna meeting that he and his fellow participants had not reached consensus on Assad’s political future.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the Kremlin wanted Syria to prepare for parliamentary and presidential elections.

Washington has criticized Moscow, which has been bombing Islamist militants in Syria since Sept. 30, for focusing most of its firepower on groups supported by the West and its allies rather than Islamic State….