Palestinian Islamic Jihad opposes external aggression against Syria

August 29, 2013 by occupiedpalestine 0 Comments

Middle East Monitor – Aug 28, 2013
Follow @MiddleEastMnt

The Palestinian movement, Islamic Jihad, announced its opposition to any foreign aggression against any Arab or Islamic country in a statement released on Thursday.

The statement said that Islamic Jihad condemns any potential American, Western or Israeli aggression against Syria. “As an Islamic resistance movement, we do not accept any external aggression against any Arab or Islamic country,” the statement explained.

“In our belief, seeking the help of a foreign colonialist against the people of our Ummah or lands is prohibited, whatever the circumstances.” Islamic Jihad said that its position on the Syrian issue was clear.

“We support a political solution, which protects blood, achieves the ambitions of the Syrians, maintains the unity of the nation and the land and protects Syria from collapse and chaos,” the statement said.

The second largest Palestinian Islamic movement said, “Syria’s fate has to be decided by Syrians. This is an internal Syrian issue and must be decided away from any external intervention.”

Live Blog | Israel Attacks Syria

Maan News Agency | May 4, 2013
Follow @MaanNewsAgency

Israeli F-16 warplanes take part in a military display marking Israel’s
60th anniversary in 2008. (AFP/Jack Guez, File)

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Israel conducted an airstrike in Syria overnight targeting a weapons shipment headed for Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, US media reported.

CNN said US and Western intelligence agencies were reviewing information suggesting Israel likely conducted a strike in the night from Thursday to Friday, just as Israel was flying many warplanes over Lebanon.

But the United States does not believe Israeli warplanes entered Syrian airspace to conduct the strikes, it added.

A senior US official told NBC News that the airstrikes were likely tied to delivery systems for chemical weapons.

White House and Pentagon officials declined to comment on the reports.

But Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina was quoted as telling an audience that Israel had indeed bombed Syria.

“Israel bombed Syria tonight,” Graham was cited by the Politico news website as saying in passing, without offering any further details.

Graham, who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, was speaking at the South Carolina Republican Party’s annual Silver Elephant fundraising dinner.

If confirmed, this would mark the second time that Israel has conducted airstrikes on Syria this year.

Earlier this month, it implicitly admitted carrying out a January airstrike on a weapons convoy in Syria thought to be en route to Lebanon’s Hezbollah — a long-time Damascus ally.

The reports on the latest strike came shortly after President Barack Obama nearly ruled out deploying US troops to Syria, saying he did not foresee a scenario in which that would be beneficial to the United States or Syria.

Speculation has mounted that the Obama administration could reverse its opposition to arming the rebels after the White House said last week that President Bashar Assad likely used chemical weapons on his people.

Obama has been reluctant to intervene in the war but faces mounting criticism that he has allowed the Assad regime to cross his own declared “red line” on using chemical weapons.