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Regime Change

How USAID Paved The Way For Syria’s Jihadist Takeover

As the designated terrorist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) establishes its proto-government in Idlib, notoriously corrupt NGOs are stepping in to fill the gaps in public services, with some even defecting to work alongside the group. The United States, which spent two decades and $5.4 trillion overthrowing governments hostile to al-Qaeda, now finds itself in a paradoxical position. Modern al-Qaeda has carved out its own quasi-state in Syria, yet remains on the U.S. list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations. To characterize this as a foreign policy misstep would be reductive; the U.S. has actively facilitated HTS’s conquest of parts of Syria while maintaining its official terrorist designation.

Scandal Deepens Around CNN’s Clarissa Ward Staging Syria Prison Scene

“In nearly twenty years as a journalist, this was one of the most extraordinary moments I have witnessed.” That’s how veteran CNN journalist Clarissa Ward described her foray into a Syrian prison on December 12, where she promptly claimed to have rescued a forgotten inmate after three months in jail. But there was just one problem with the “extraordinary moment”: a review of a dramatic story depicted by CNN reveals a number of glaring inconsistencies, the greatest of which is that the man stands accused of being an impostor.

From Damascus To Chaos: Assad’s Fall And Al-Qaeda’s Comeback

There are some weeks when decades happen. In just a few days, the Syrian government has fallen, President Bashar al-Assad has fled to Moscow, and Al-Nusra founder Abu Mohammad al-Julani has taken power. How could all of this have happened so quickly? Only last year, it appeared that Assad was entrenching his position internationally, being invited back into the Arab League. Assad also moved away from Russia and Yemen and towards a closer relationship with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States. Two guests, Kevork Almassian and Mohammad Marandi, will join the MintCast this week to discuss Syria’s collapse and what it means for the regional Axis of Resistance.

Extremist Groups Carry Out Revenge, Sectarian Killings In Syria

Extremist armed factions across Syria are carrying out executions of civilians and soldiers amid the chaos following the fall of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's government. Al Mayadeen reports on 10 December that a video circulating on social media shows armed militants from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Al-Qaeda offshoot that took control of Damascus on Saturday, carrying out field executions of unarmed men in the village of Al-Rabia in the countryside of Latakia. The militants referred to the men as ‘Shabiha’, a derogatory term long used to describe pro-government Syrian soldiers and civilians.

Turkey Takes Aleppo

Before it fell under 20th century Anglo-American colonialism, Syria was the core of the Levant, encompassing (today’s) Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine, the site of multireligious, multicultural cities between which people traveled and traded freely. In the countryside, peasants and herders tended an agricultural and pastoral landscape of olive and orange trees, pasture, forest, and drylands. This region was under the control of the Ottoman Empire for hundreds of years (perhaps Erdogan’s dream is to take some of it back. He’s been accused of “neo-Ottoman” fantasies).

Syria Falls

During and after its fight against takfiri terrorists Syria had come under heavy sanctions. Its main assets in the east were under U.S. control. Israel's airforce was bombing its military infrastructure at will. It was ripe to fall. As soon as the bogus ceasefire in Lebanon was signed Turkey unleashed its takfiri 'Syrian rebels', many of them foreigners, against Syria. These were exceptionally well armed and trained. They have (vid) night vision equipment, drones, artillery, Starlink communication and a capable, professional command. The Syrian Arab army proved to be unreliable. Some units just vanished.

Regime Change Machine In Venezuela Grinds To A Halt

The extremist sector of the Venezuelan opposition, represented by María Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia, suffered a new setback both nationally and internationally on December 1, when a call to protest to demand “justice” before the International Criminal Court resulted in remarkably low participation. “Today, Sunday, December 1, we already have a first task to fulfill: Venezuelans are going to raise our unanimous clamor before the International Criminal Court, where we have already provided sufficient evidence for justice to be done,” Machado said on her social networks.

Anticipating Escalation: Neutralizing Swarming’s Armed Front

In her effort to readjust the agenda of regime change and in the face of a clear mood of demobilization within her ranks, María Corina Machado has decided to publicly incorporate the concept of “swarming“ into her narrative. This decision reflects the consolidation of a path that goes beyond what is attempted to be presented as “peaceful protest” by proposing a more aggressive form of confrontation, embedded in the scope of military operations, while using the discourse on human rights to counteract the possible limitations suffered by the violent actions that the far right hopes to set in motion.

Three New Kinds Of Refugees In A World Of Migrants

One summer evening, the unrelenting sun over Niger refused to dip below the horizon. I sought out some shade with three anxious men in Touba au paradis, a small quiet restaurant in Agadez. These three Nigerians had tried to make the crossing at Assamaka, to our north, into Algeria, but found the border barred. They hoped their final destination would be Europe across the Mediterranean Sea, but first they had to make it into Algeria, and then across the remarkable Sahara Desert. By the time I met them, none of these crossings were possible. Algeria had closed the border, and the town of Assamaka had become overrun by desperate people who did not want to retreat but could not go forward.

The ‘Comanditos,’ The Terrorist Network Of Fascism In Venezuela

The “comanditos” were part of an organizational strategy promoted by the Venezuelan far-right opposition leader, María Corina Machado. The fundamental purpose was to organize society into small groups that would serve as hotbeds of violence in different parts of the country. The organizational strategy revealed different stages. The first was the dissemination of the strategy using hegemonic media. These were in charge of disseminating manipulated information, explaining in detail the masked meaning of the strategy. According to the Diario Nacional, the “comanditos” were defined as a “crucial force for the success of the opposition’s strategy of motivating citizen participation in adverse conditions.”

Will Bangladesh Be Another Egypt?

The day after former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left Dhaka, I was on the phone with a friend who had spent some time on the streets that day. He told me about the atmosphere in Dhaka, how people with little previous political experience had joined in the large protests alongside the students—who seemed to be leading the agitation. I asked him about the political infrastructure of the students and about their political orientation. He said that the protests seemed well-organized and that the students had escalated their demands from an end to certain quotas for government jobs to an end to the government of Sheikh Hasina.

US-Based Activists Mobilize To Say Hands Off Venezuela!

On August 9, as a part of an international call to action issued by ALBA Movimientos, the Simon Bolivar Institute, the Assembly of Caribbean Peoples, and the International Peoples’ Assembly to support Venezuela against US and mainstream media support for the attempted coup against President Nicolas Maduro, dozens of activists gathered in front of the New York Times building in New York City. The newspaper is notorious for backing undemocratic coups in Venezuela. Since the election of Maduro, the New York Times has joined the US government and right-wing governments across Latin America in openly questioning Venezuela’s verifiable election results.

Sheikh Hasina Resigns As Prime Minister And Leaves Bangladesh

Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina resigned and left the country, army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman announced during an address to the nation in the afternoon of Monday, August 5. The Army chief also claimed to have taken full responsibility over the government, promising that an interim government would be formed soon after consulting all the opposition parties. He also appealed to the protesters to end their demonstrations with a hope that the violence would stop. Waker-Uz-Zaman promised that he will make sure that all persons responsible for the killing of protesters are held accountable for their acts.

Don’t Believe The Hype: Venezuela Is A Democracy

What we saw unfold was the playbook that the US has, when it comes to events in this region and really around the world, that when there's an attempt to have internal democratic processes, where the possibility of forces that may not be in alignment with the US come into power, and there is an attempt on the part of the US and the Western European allies to undermine those processes. And that's exactly what has occurred here in this country. I think the world was forewarned that the possibility of violence erupting if the opposition didn't win, was something that had to be dealt with, and acknowledged. But even before we talk about that, I wanted to just briefly share with the people who are reading this interview, that the process will determine how people actually vote here in this country. On the day of the election, we had an opportunity to move around primarily around Caracas and right outside, to view the process of various voting spaces and voting precincts, and what we saw was the process in place.

Organization Of American States Interference Against Venezuela Fails

The Organization of American States (OAS) has failed in an interventionist attempt to try to approve a resolution targeting the sovereign presidential elections in Venezuela. The discredited regional body has been plagued by condemnations of mismanagement and ethical qualms in recent years against its secretary, Luis Almagro, as well as by its loss of credibility among regional countries regarding the body’s belligerence in recent regional crises, always protecting Washington interests or claims over regional sovereignty. By failing to obtain the necessary votes and consensus this Wednesday, July 31, the OAS was unable to pass its resolution against the Venezuelan electoral process.

Urgent End Of Year Fundraising Campaign

Online donations are back! Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

Urgent End Of Year Fundraising Campaign

Online donations are back! 

Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

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