ALREADY IN DECEMBER 2012
RUSSIA ACKNOWLEDGED THAT SYRIA’S BIO - CHEMICAL WEAPONS HAD BEEN SECURED
Source:
Also in December 2012, RUSSIA apparently went even further stating that:
RUSSIAN FORCES TAKE SYRIAN CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS UNDER THEIR CONTROL
Source:
Via DEBKAfile (Dec 2012)
“At the moment, [SYRIA’S] chemical weapons are under control,” said senior ISRAELI defense official Amos Gilad, echoing the statement by RUSSIAN Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that “the SYRIAN government has “consolidated its chemical weapons in one or two locations amid a rebel onslaught and they are under control for the time being.”
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu then said enigmatically: “We are facing a near possibility of far-reaching changes in the SYRIAN regime with ramifications for the sensitive weaponry [chemical, biological] present there.”
Like Lavrov’s comments, neither ISRAELI statement accounted for the sudden reversal of events in the last 48 hours in the turbulent history of its northern neighbor. As recently as Friday, Bashar Assad’s Scuds and warplanes were battling the rebels to keep his big chemical and biological warfare arsenals at the Al Safira complex near Aleppo out of the hands of al Qaeda adherents who were moving in fast on this target.
TWENTY FOUR HOURS LATER, THE RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ASSERTED THE WEAPONS WERE SECURE.
debkafile’s military sources disclose that the battle of al Safira was abruptly interrupted by a foreign military force which stepped in and stopped the fighting in order to commandeer the chemical and biological stocks.
debkafile identified this force as a RUSSIAN special unit.
The entire episode is covered in a heavy blanket of secrecy, imposed from Moscow, Washington, Jerusalem and Damascus. They are using the public preoccupation with the holiday period in the West to keep it dark. However, from the scraps of evidence available, it is transpires that the foreign special unit reaching al Safira gave both sides, the SYRIAN army and the rebels, an ultimatum to hold their fire until the arsenals were removed, or else this special unit would mete out crushing punishment.
DID THE RUSSIANS CARRIED OUT THEIR OPERATION FOR THE CAPTURE OF ASSAD'S WMD ALONE, OR IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE US AND ISRAEL
Since then, the SYRIAN army and rebels do not appear to have resumed fighting and it is not clear which side remains in control of the al Safira military complex.
One of the many enigmas surrounding this episode is whether the RUSSIANS carried out their operation for the capture of Assad's WMD alone, or in conjunction with the US and ISRAEL. And whether this cooperation extended up to and including implementation, or was confined to the intelligence and preparatory stages.
Amos Gilad’s comment points to a measure of international cooperation.
Furthermore, it is not clear whether the SYRIAN ruler gave permission for the removal of his unconventional weapons out of the reach of the rebels. Neither is their destination known. And most of all, what makes RUSSIAN and ISRAELI officials so sure that they are in safe hands?
Amos Gilad’s comment points to a measure of international cooperation.
Furthermore, it is not clear whether the SYRIAN ruler gave permission for the removal of his unconventional weapons out of the reach of the rebels. Neither is their destination known. And most of all, what makes RUSSIAN and ISRAELI officials so sure that they are in safe hands?
In his statement Saturday, Lavrov divulged that it had been “consolidated in one or two places” and that “RUSSIAN military advisers... kept close watch over [SYRIA’S] chemical arsenal.”
CIVIL WAR BETWEEN ASSAD AND OPPOSITION FORCES FIGHTING TO TOPPLE HIM HAD BECOME DEADLOCKED
The ISRAELI defense official was in rare tune with Moscow on the fate of the SYRIAN ruler. He asserted that the civil war between Assad and opposition forces fighting to topple him had become deadlocked, but that the SYRIAN leader showed no signs of heeding international calls to step down.
"Suppose he (Assad) does leave, there could be chaos ... in the MIDDLE EAST you never know who will come instead. We need to stay level-headed; the entire world is dealing with this (another reference to multinational action in SYRIA). At the moment, chemical weapons are under control, despite the fact that President Bashar al-Assad has lost control of parts of the country," Gilad said.
Background Information:
RUSSIAN FORCES TAKE SYRIAN CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS UNDER CONTROL
 |
| Alleged Syrian WMD storage site |
RUSSIAN FORCES DIRECTLY INVOLVED IN REMOVING THE WMD OUT OF THE REACH OF JABHAT AL-NUSRA TERRORISTS.
Via DEBKAfile
The chemical warfare threat looming over SYRIA’S civil war and its neighbors has taken an epic turn with the announcement by RUSSIAN Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Saturday, Dec. 22, that “the SYRIAN government has “consolidated its chemical weapons in one or two locations amid a rebel onslaught and they are under control for the time being.”
He added that RUSSIA, “which has military advisers training SYRIA’S military, has kept close watch over its chemical arsenal.”
He added that RUSSIA, “which has military advisers training SYRIA’S military, has kept close watch over its chemical arsenal.”
debkafile’s military and intelligence sources report: The RUSSIAN foreign minister’s statement was a message to Washington that the transfer of SYRIA’S weapons of mass destruction to one or two protected sites was under RUSSIAN control. This had removed the danger of them falling into the hands of the al Qaeda-affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra ,which had come ominously close Friday, Dec. 21, when the Islamists spearheaded a SYRIAN rebel assault for the capture of the al-Safira military complex and Bashar Assad’s chemical and biological stores.
Lavrov did not go into detail about how this arsenal was removed and to which locations. But his reference to “RUSSIAN military advisers training SYRIA’S military” clearly indicated that RUSSIAN forces were directly involved in removing the WMD out of the reach of the Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists. His assertion, that they were “under control” indicated that RUSSIA was also involved in safeguarding them.
Reason for RUSSIA’S military intervention:
THE PREVENTION OF WESTERN MILITARY INTERVENTION IN THE CIVIL WAR BEHIND THE FORCES DEDICATED TO THE REMOVAL OF BASHAR ASSAD
debkafile’s Moscow sources add:
RUSSIA’S military intervention in the SYRIAN civil war achieved four objectives:
1. The prevention of Western or ISRAEL military action for seizing control of SYRIA’S chemical and biological weapons arsenals;
2. The prevention of Western military intervention in the civil war behind the forces dedicated to the removal of Bashar Assad. The RUSSIAN military is now engaged in the dual mission of guarding his WMD arsenal and his regime;
3. The RUSSIAN military presence in SYRIA delivers a heavy swipe to the rebels;
4. RUSSIA’S intervention and military presence have laid the groundwork for Moscow and Washington to work out an accord that will bring SYRIA’S civil war to an end.
debkafile SITREP Friday, Dec. 21:
The SYRIAN Air Force is again firing Scud missiles, this time to stem the general offensive SYRIAN opposition forces, including jihadis, launched Friday, Dec. 21, to capture the SYRIAN army’s military-industrial complex at al Safira and the big chemical and biological weapons store adjoining the facility. It is there, that Scud D missiles stand ready for launching, loaded with chemical weapons.
Rebel forces are converging on Al Safira from the east, the west and the south. Among them are brigades of the Jabhat al-Nusra which the US has designated part of al Qaeda in IRAQ.
debkafile military sources report extremely heavy fighting. The rebels have reached points 1-2 kilometers from the perimeter walls of the Al Safira chemical weapons stores and are being pounded by SYRIAN warplanes and assault helicopters as well as Scuds, in a desperate effort to halt their advance.
debkafile military sources report extremely heavy fighting. The rebels have reached points 1-2 kilometers from the perimeter walls of the Al Safira chemical weapons stores and are being pounded by SYRIAN warplanes and assault helicopters as well as Scuds, in a desperate effort to halt their advance.
Success in seizing control of those stores would re-tilt the balance of the war in their favor and bring President Bashar Assad face to face with a decision on whether to broach the perilous dimension of chemical warfare on the rebels or even against NATO or US targets outside SYRIA.
A prime factor in his decision would be the information received in Moscow and Tehran – and almost certainly passed on to the SYRIAN ruler – that taking part in the offensive are rebels who underwent training in recent weeks in northern JORDAN by US, CZECH and POLISH officers in tactics for seizing chemical or biological caches and dismantling them.
RUSSIAN and IRANIAN intelligence watchers suspect that elements from all three armies as well as JORDAN are present in the rebel assault force, in order to be on the spot when the weapons of mass destruction are captured and appropriate them to forces under NATO command. They must beat Jabhat al-Nusra’s fighting brigades to this target, although at this moment, the jihadis are ahead of the race.
The battle for al Safira has brought US and NATO into direct intervention in SYRIAN hostilities. Western intelligence services estimate that even if Assad removed some of the banned weapons from this complex, large quantities remain and must be prevented from reaching the wrong hands.
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RUSSIAN FORCES TAKE SYRIAN CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS UNDER CONTROL Updated at :
12:57 PM
Friday, September 13, 2013
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