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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| MIT expert claims latest chemical weapons attack in Syria was staged |
| 2017-04-18 |
| h/t Jerry Pournelle ...Theodore Postol, a professor emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), issued a series of three reports in response to the White House's finding that Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad perpetrated the attack on 4 April. He concluded that the US government's report does not provide any "concrete" evidence that Assad was responsible, adding it was more likely that the attack was perpetrated by players on the ground. Postol said: "I have reviewed the [White House's] document carefully, and I believe it can be shown, without doubt, that the document does not provide any evidence whatsoever that the US government has concrete knowledge that the government of Syria was the source of the chemical attack in Khan Sheikhoun, Syria at roughly 6am to 7am on 4 April, 2017. "In fact, a main piece of evidence that is cited in the document point to an attack that was executed by individuals on the ground, not from an aircraft, on the morning of 4 April. ...The image Postol refers to is that of a crater containing a shell inside, which is said to have contained the sarin gas. His analysis of the shell suggests that it could not have been dropped from an airplane as the damage of the casing is inconsistent from an aerial explosion. Instead, Postol said it was more likely that an explosive charge was laid upon the shell containing sarin, before being detonated. ...The implication of Postol's analysis is that it was carried out by anti-government insurgents as Khan Sheikhoun is in militant-controlled territory of Syria. Postol, formerly a scientific advisor at the Department of Defense (DoD), has previously outlined similar inconsistencies with US intelligence reports. Following the 2013 chemical weapons attack in eastern Ghouta, Postol again said the evidence did not suggest Assad was responsible ‐ a finding that was later corroborated by the United Nations. ...Postol said: "No competent analyst would miss the fact that the alleged sarin canister was forcefully crushed from above, rather than exploded by a munition within it. "All of these highly amateurish mistakes indicate that this White House report, like the earlier Obama White House Report [from Ghouta in 2013], was not properly vetted by the intelligence community as claimed. "I have worked with the intelligence community in the past, and I have grave concerns about the politicisation of intelligence that seems to be occurring with more frequency in recent times ‐ but I know that the intelligence community has highly capable analysts in it. "And if those analysts were properly consulted about the claims in the White House document they would have not approved the document going forward." |
| Posted by:g(r)omgoru |
| #7 Not after Hilda was SoS and cleaned it all up during the Arab Spring....she was huge success and brought peace to the region. Her Book said so... |
| Posted by: NoMoreBS 2017-04-18 18:44 |
| #6 Kim, there are tons of Sarin & staff around ME. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2017-04-18 16:12 |
| #5 The question then becomes, where did the Sarin come from? It's not something you can brew up in your kitchen. Either the regime, in which case they violate their agreement to get rid of CW, or a third party, and that could only be Turkey. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2017-04-18 15:54 |
| #4 Go back to being a self described expert at MIT. Those who can do, those who cant ..... |
| Posted by: 49 Pan 2017-04-18 10:38 |
| #3 Seems like most of this paper is guessing, wishing, without any real evidence either. More fake news from the demoncrats. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2017-04-18 08:31 |
| #2 Following the 2013 chemical weapons attack in eastern Ghouta, Postol again said the evidence did not suggest Assad was responsible Old fashioned one? |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2017-04-18 07:33 |
| #1 Donor to Jahn Fn Kerry and John Tierney = Democrat |
| Posted by: Frank G 2017-04-18 07:27 |