Washington Post: Syrian Terrorists Funded by Persian Gulf Arab States, Assisted by US

The US daily, Washington Post, reported that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups battling the President Bashar al-Assad’s government have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States.

The newspaper, quoting opposition activists and US and foreign officials, reported that Obama administration officials emphasized the administration has expanded contacts with opposition military forces to provide the Persian Gulf nations with assessments of rebel credibility and command-and-control infrastructure.

According to the report, material is being stockpiled in Damascus, in Idlib near the Turkish border and in Zabadani on the Lebanese border.

Opposition activists who two months ago said the rebels were running out of ammunition said this week that the flow of weapons – most bought on the black market in neighboring countries or from elements of the Syrian military in the past – has significantly increased after a decision by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Persian Gulf states to provide millions of dollars in funding each month.

Mulham al-Drobi, a member of the Syrian Brotherhood’s executive committee also said the group has opened its own supply channel to the rebels, using resources from wealthy individuals and money from the Persian Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

The new supplies reversed months of setbacks for the rebels and terrorist groups that forced them to withdraw from their stronghold in the Baba Amr neighborhood of Homs and many other areas in Idlib and elsewhere.

“Large shipments have got through,” another opposition figure said. “Some areas are loaded with weapons.”

Recent reports coming from Syria suggested that various enemy plots are underway to spoil Annan’s peace mission in Syria to bring the Muslim country back into turmoil and pave the way for an overthrow of Bashar al-Assad’s government.

These enemy states lead and back up various terrorist operations, including acts of sabotage and kidnapping, and use soft war tactics, including psychological operations and threats, through the Syrian dissident expatriates and armed groups within the country to deepen turmoil in Syria and bring Annan’s peace plan into failure as they want to see an overthrow of Bashar al-Assad’s government and the rise to power of a pro-western state.

Meantime, the US has spread rumors about impending blitzkriegs on Syria in a bid to affect the government forces and make Damascus consent to a Saudi and Qatari offer for the establishment of a buffer zone.

Despite a ceasefire that took effect in Syria on April 12 and the presence of UN observers, the country has been the scene of terrorist bomb attacks in recent days.

Annan has offered a six-point peace initiative which has been endorsed and implemented by the Damascus government and nation, but armed rebels supported by certain Arab rulers have repeatedly violated the terms of Annan’s plan.

Saudi Arabia and Qatar are blamed for the terrorist blasts in Syria as they have overtly and covertly rendered logistical and financial support for armed rebels and terrorist groups in Syria.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country.

Hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed, when some protest rallies turned into armed clashes.

The government blames outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups for the deaths, stressing that the unrest is being orchestrated from abroad.

In October, calm was eventually restored in the Arab state after President Assad started a reform initiative in the country, but Israel, the US and its Arab allies are seeking hard to bring the country into chaos through any possible means. Tel Aviv, Washington and some Arab capitals have been staging various plots in the hope of stirring unrests in Syria once again.