This is a tale of two cities in ruins: Mosul and Raqqa. A modern-day Dickensian tragedy written with the blood of thousands and forced displacement of millions. To fight one evil, the residents of Mosul and Raqqa have been subjected to a greater one. Victory has been declared against Daesh in Mosul. The “liberators” stand tall over a mountain of human corpses and blocks upon blocks of neighborhoods bombed into oblivion. In Syria, the city of Raqqa may soon fall. Except for the Amnesty International, which has released an incriminating report on massive war crimes, everyone else is cheering up the liberators. So what if a great city was destroyed and another one is going to meet the same fate? That is nothing when compared to exterminating the barbarians.
There is one problem though. The actions taken by the coalition fly in the face of the narrative spun to counter Daesh ideology. Since 2014, when Daesh took hold over large territories of Iraq and Syria, the counter-narrative spun by the West (particularly the United States) was that of spreading peace and tolerance. The decaying propaganda tool of “us” versus “them” was brought out with a new sheen. These high ideals were soon swapped for hardcore militarism when Barack Obama greenlit the deployment of special forces and aerial strikes. The Iraqi government, which has mastered the art of persecuting the minorities over the years, brought in the notorious Shiite militias and their Iranian masters. Thus began the sordid tale of mass killings, horrible war crimes and mass displacements. American military advisers largely ignored these blatant violations of human rights. They apparently took a page from the earlier precedent of turning a blind eye to massive abuses in Fallujah.
As the campaign intensified, more reports emerged of gruesome violence perpetrated by the Iraqi army. The Mosulawis had to endure violence by Daesh and incessant persecution by their so-called liberators. With one persecutor almost finished, they will have to face the bigger devil. One that is supported by the international community and whose infractions are conveniently swept under the rug.
What "victory" really looks like in Mosul....You can smell the dead bodies wherever you go. pic.twitter.com/tlkkkYKB4J — Rula Jebreal (@rulajebreal) July 11, 2017
Speaking of Iraqis, particularly the dominant ethno-sectarian group, there was never any question of observing laws of war. There has been an outpouring of so-called nationalistic sentiment by the same group since the recapturing of Mosul. Ironically enough, the same demographic is responsible for the vicious cycle of violence in Iraq. Enjoying absolute power since 2005, they have carried out a persistent persecution of the Sunnis. A cursory glance at the genesis of Daesh will highlight the criminal role of the Iraqi government. The bloodbath perpetuated by the Iraqi army and its militia allies ensures the cycle will continue for years to come.
Next in line is Raqqa. Airwars has reported extensively on the ambiguous warnings given to civilians by the coalition. At one time, they were asked to flee using whatever means. Simultaneously, airstrikes started targeting boats anchored on the Euphrates, killing dozens and maybe hundreds in the process. Thanks to Airwars, which has tabulated almost every incident of coalition-induced fatalities, one can assume the death toll could rise to thousands in Raqqa and surrounding areas.
The official stance of US — and this was devised by the Obama administration — is to ignore civilian casualties and stonewall reports of war crimes. Thanks to embedded journalism, the strategy has worked and the Trump administration has aced it to perfection. The Obama doctrine did away with remnants of morality in the American foreign policy. It rather favored embracing the perpetrators of the largest pogrom in modern history.
Russia never had any notions of protecting human rights. The czars unleashed terror in the Caucasus, Central Asia and Siberia to expand their imperial footprints. The Socialists killed millions of people through starvation, forced displacement and by dispatching them to the infamous Gulags. Putin’s Russia is carrying forward the legacy. US fared relatively better despite some major blemishes on its legacy. No one can overlook Hiroshima or Nagasaki, or Vietnam. The invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq can’t be justified either. Nevertheless, America’s sins were negligible when compared to Russia, or even the imperial Great Britain, France or Spain. At least the humanitarian rhetoric was a saving grace. US also opened doors for refugees and offered generous aid. The last six years have eliminated this relative privilege.
At the intellectual level, the radical left is spinning lies and fabricating untruths to massage their wayward egos. One can learn superb lessons from them on how to deny chemical attacks despite undeniable evidence; feign ignorance despite knowing fully well of the mounting death toll; and launch attacks on those trying to call their bluff. The Alt-right has become a strange bedfellow in this case. Maybe Islamophobia and undercurrents of White supremacy has helped forge ties between these two warring factions.
Syria could have been a redemption for the Americans. Obama not only missed the train but helped derail it. Trump was never supposed to do any wonders in the first place. Maybe it is about time to pull the plug on the facade of American exceptionalism and hypocrisy surrounding the humanitarianism agenda. There would be very few takers anyway.