Middle East - Brief Overview | Obama 7 Years, 7 Countries Bombed

Barack Obama: The Nobel Peace Prize Winner Who Bombed Seven Countries U.S. jets are bombing Syria again this month, part of an overall pattern of military expansion during the Obama administration that’s seen military involvement in dozens of conflicts. As the United States renews a bombing campaign against ISIS forces in Syria, it seems like America’s penchant for waging war knows no bounds. During the first seven years of Barack Obama’s presidency, the U.S. bombed seven countries while supporting other destabilizing military actions throughout the Middle East. Here’s a look at these seven countries and the effects of bombing: Afghanistan — Despite the announced “end” of the Afghanistan War, significant U.S. military presence in Afghanistan remains. Drones are a frequent presence in Afghan skies. One strike earlier this month killed 12 people, according to Iran’s PressTV. Iraq — The Obama administration has conducted over 5,000 airstrikes in Iraq and Syria in just the past year, David Lerman reported for Bloomberg Business. Despite ongoing U.S. military involvement ,terrorism continues to be a deadly presence in Iraq’s cities. Libya — While the European Union and its allies carried out many of the airstrikes during Libya’s civil war, the U.S. was instrumental in destabilizing that country through both military aid and direct support, especially during the lead up to Gen. Moammar Gadhafi’s overthrow in 2011. Now ISIS is also gaining a stronghold here and the country has been described as a failed state. Pakistan — Drone strikes are also frequent in Pakistan, where the Bureau of Investigative Journalism estimated that only 4 percent of the victims could be identified as al-Qaida members. Although drone strikes on Pakistan began under George W. Bush, their frequency has dramatically increased under Obama, RT reported last year.  Somalia — Over 100 U.S. troops have been stationed in Somalia since 2007, Reuters reported last year. In September, the U.S. again carried out airstrikes there, apparently killing Ahmed Abdi Godane, leader of the extremist group Al-Shabaab, which the U.S. claimed was allying with al-Qaida.  Syria — The U.S. renewed its bombing campaign against ISIS in Syria earlier this month, with U.S. war planes taking off from bases in Turkey. Airstrikes were also used in a failed attempt to defend “Division 30,” the failed American attempt to train so-called “moderate” Syrian rebels.  Yemen — U.S. cables revealed by WikiLeaks show that Yemeni officials have allowed airstrikes, which began under George W. Bush, to continue under the Obama administration. RT reported last year: “US bombing raids in Yemen are almost solely carried out by drones and they have been increasing in intensity in recent years. … A report by Human Rights Watch in 2013 analyzed six airstrikes in Yemen carried out since 2009. The organization found that out of the 82 people who died in the airstrikes, 57 were civilians. In all, the U.S. has bombed 14 predominantly Muslim countries since 1980. The death toll from all modern wars in the Middle East may be as high as 4 million dead Muslims and Arabs. Repeated military campaigns have destabilized the Middle East, giving rise to terror groups like ISIS, allowing for sectarianism to blossom, and necessitating further bombing, in what Ron Fullwood, writing for MyMPN, called a “perpetual protection racket.” 2015-08-19 Source http://www.mintpressnews.com/barack-obama-the-nobel-peace-prize-winner-whos-bombed-7-countries/208748/ VIA http://www.global-politics.eu/democraticus/2015/08/25/barack-obama-the-nobel-peace-prize-winner-who-bombed-seven-countries/ ---------------------- ꕤ  ---------------------- COMMENT Thought this was a good quickie overview of military action in the Middle East. I've not read the linked articles.  Might have to skim some of the articles, as I'm not at all familiar with what's going on. Sounds like drone strikes kill more civilians than they do terrorist targets. A hundred troops in Somalia doesn't seem like much. Syria's down for a regime change.  The West, Israel, and the US don't like Assad for some reason.  He's probably Iran and Russia friendly. The US and the West have already demolished Libya (in much the same way they're probably planning to demolish Syria), and the result is more extremists - which is supposed to help destabilise and weaken Syria, I think. Pakistan is 'terrorist central' (well, that's my impression).  Pakistan receives an ENORMOUS amount of military and other aid from the US, and the aid must come with US strings attacked - drones is probably part of the package.  There's a massive amount of resistance in Afghanistan - something's getting blown up all the time.  Five thousand airstrikes in Iraq, in a year, is huge.

VIDEO - Noam Chomsky - On Film 'American Sniper'

VIDEO - Noam Chomsky - On Film 'American Sniper' Source - YouTube Drawn to this by the Janet Allon, Greenleft article [HERE]: " ... most extreme terrorist campaign of modern history, if not ever ― Obama’s global assassination campaign, the drone campaign, which officially is aimed at murdering people who are suspected of maybe someday planning to harm us.” Chomsky recommends reading some of the transcripts with drone operators, calling them “harrowing” in their dehumanising treatment of people who are targeted." [Greenleft] At the end of the video, Chomsky says: "Obama may recall, when he won the Nobel Prize, he said "Make no mistake, evil does exist in the world," and he's right; he knows exactly where to find it." [Noam Chomsky] Some strong words from Noam Chomsky. It's mind-blowing that people around the world are being killed by the US government, without trial and merely on suspicion that they may represent a future 'threat'.   Yet the US drone program -- employing unmanned aerial vehicles (drones), which are remotely controlled by the CIA's Special Activities Division -- barely gets mentioned. Human Rights Watch reported: US has carried out at least 400 drone strikes since Obama took office, reportedly killing upwards of 2,600 people, according to independent research groups. Source - HRW - Mar 2014 - here. That's over 2,600 in the space of about 5 years. Seems like 'targeted killings' aren't really precise. But it's a preferred way of conducting war, precisely because of its remote and 'invisible' nature ... the public at home aren't going to complain, as it doesn't affect them in ways that traditional war does (ie burying the war dead).