Now They Are Slaughtering Palestinians

[Mosby]

The world has become used to hearing and watching stories about massacres against civilians in Syria. But until recently, almost all the victims were Syrian citizens.

Last week, however, it turned out that in Syria, they are also massacring Palestinians. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians live in a number of refugee camps in and around the Syrian capital of Damascus.

Earlier this week, the bodies of 16 Palestinians whose throats had been slashed were discovered in Syria.

The victims had been kidnapped while on their way by bus to their refugee camp Nairab.

According to Palestinian sources, unidentified militiamen stopped the bus, kidnapped the Palestinian men and took them to an unknown destination. A few days later the Syrian authorities announced that they had discovered the bodies of the victims in a field.

The men had been shot in the legs and chest before they were slaughtered like cattle, the Palestinian sources said.

http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/3172/syria-slaughtering-palestinians

[King_David]

1. Why?

Where do their allegiances lie?

[Mosby]

4. I'm not sure

Syrian Christians and Druze have generally backed the Assad regime because they fear the Sunni majority, same goes for the Alawis. I don't know which side of the conflict the Palestinian Syrian refugees favor.

[PDJane]

2. This isn't a surprise either.

The Palestinians are the 'other'; in camps, not citizens of any country, and that is how the Jewish slaughter began. Make people stateless, house them in camps, and they become fair game.

[aquart]

3. Why?

And why are they in refugee camps over 60 years after partition????

[TheWraith]

6. Short answers...

1. The Israeli government does not recognize the right of Palestinian refugees to return to where they lived before being exiled, even when those places are in the Palestinian territories.

2. The government of Syria has never given enough of a shit about the Palestinian refugees to try and integrate them into anything better than exile communities.

[holdencaufield]

5. Lest we forget...

... the largest wholesale slaughter of Palestinians in History was perpetrated by the Jordanian Army -- 3,500 to 10,000 mostly civilians (depending on who is telling the story) in September of 1970.

[azurnoir]

7. Palestinian camp shelters 2,000 displaced Syrians

Palestinians in a refugee camp near Damascus on Wednesday welcomed more than 2,000 displaced Syrians fleeing fighting that has spread to the Syrian capital.

The Syrians came to al-Yarmouk camp from neighborhoods throughout the area, but many are from Al Tadamon which locals say has been bombed heavily by the Syrian army.

Sources in the camp said Palestinians have organized into civil teams to organize shelter for those displaced, housing people in family homes, mosques and schools.

They also formed medical teams to treat those who are injured.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=505522

[elbloggoZY27]

8. Extreme Ugliness

It has been way to long that the Palestinians have been trashed on and it dates back a whole lot of years. I will not stir the cauldron of ugliness but it's about time that the World stand up to the Middle East Tyrants and the secret glue to all forms of hate is OIL.

[shira]

9. Doesn't matter if Jews can't be blamed....

That said, it's awful and something must be done.

[zellie]

10. Maybe the UN will investigate this.

[shira]

11. The UN isn't interested in Palestinians if Israel isn't to blame. n/t

[zellie]

12. How about the UN Human Rights Council ??

[azurnoir]

13. well UN watch says Syria is (almost) at this moment being voted in as a member

and I am sure they're unbiased and accurate

UN Watch, an NGO that monitors the international body’s activity, says despite Assad's crackdown, Syria likely to get spot on council due to system of fixed slates.

Despite its poor record on human rights, Syria is on course to winning membership on the UN Human Rights Council, UN Watch reported on Thursday.

UN Watch, an NGO that monitors the international body’s activity, cited a draft resolution presented in Geneva in which the US opposed Syria’s candidacy for a Human Rights Council seat in 2014. The resolution, which is also supported by the European Union, said Damascus “fails to meet the standards” for Human Rights Council membership.

President Bashar Assad’s regime is, however, likely to get a spot on the 47-nation council “due to the prevalent system of fixed slates, whereby regional groups orchestrate uncontested elections, naming only as many candidates as allotted seats,” according to UN Watch.

http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=276479

however that has not as of yet seemed to happen and Russia vetoed any sanctions by both the UNHRC and UNSC

The UN Human Rights Council, meeting in a special session, has condemned the Syrian regime over the Houla massacre. Russia, China and Cuba voted against the resolution.

• Syria dismissed the resolution as "full of hate" and said it had been put forward by countries intent on igniting civil war.

• The UN's human rights chief, Navi Pillay has warned of all-out civil war in Syria and repeated her request for the security council to refer the Assad regime to the international criminal court. Meanwhile, Kofi Annan has expressed frustration at the lack of progress in ending the violence.

• President Vladimir Putin said Russia does not support any side in Syria. US secretary of state Hillary Clinton said most of the world thinks Russia wants to see the Assad regime survive.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/middle-east-live/2012/jun/01/syria-unhcr-emergency-meeting-live

it seems Navi Pillay and the ICRC agree on civil war

The Red Cross's declaration Sunday that Syria is engaged in a civil war -- or in the organization's legalistic phrasing, a "non-international armed conflict" -- may have struck some observers as a case of stating the obvious.

But the assessment from the Geneva-based body is significant. It means the violence that has plagued the Middle Eastern nation since early 2011 has crossed a legal threshold whereby combatants throughout the country are subject to the Geneva Conventions -- and as such can be prosecuted for war crimes.

http://articles.cnn.com/2012-07-16/middleeast/world_meast_icrc-geneva-conventions-syria_1_hama-and-idlib-international-humanitarian-law-icrc

so it all depends on who you wish to believe

[shira]

17. Saudi Arabia & Libya are currently on the UNHRC. So what makes you question whether Syria...

...is being seriously considered right now?

Maybe current upstanding members like Russia, China, Cuba, and Congo will vote to keep Syria out and the UNHRC pure?

[azurnoir]

19. oh here we go-again

with whom shira deems not unworthy

now seeing as how we've been this route before I will say this name any country that does not violate Human Rights, you'll be left with mainly Scandinavian countries and those according to 'some' are antisemitic but like it or not Syria is not nor is it likely to be on the UNHRC

[shira]

20. No liberal or progressive would find any of those countries worthy of a seat on the UNHRC....

Rightwingers, sure...

[shira]

16. Especially the UNHRC. n/t

[LeftishBrit]

14. This has been going on for a while

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/17/world/middleeast/17syria.html

[LeftishBrit]

15. Disgusting and tragic...

and Jordan's treatment of the refugees is horrible

http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/07/04/jordan-bias-syrian-border

[shira]

18. Palestinians are detested by their foul supporters on both the left & right...

Imagine feigning very loud support for people you loathe.

They're disgusting anti-Israel bigots, not pro-Palestinians.