Episodes
Thursday Sep 26, 2013
Global Research News Hour - Syria: Why War is Still on the Table - 09/23/12
Thursday Sep 26, 2013
Thursday Sep 26, 2013
When US President Barack Obama addressed the nation on September 10, he emphasized the August 21 gassing of a civilian district in Damascus as a justification for the use of force in Syria. He indicated a military strike was needed “to deter Assad from using chemical weapons, to degrade his regime’s ability to use them, and to make clear to the world that we will not tolerate their use.”
The planned military strike for which President Obama was seeking Congressional approval has been forestalled in the wake of a US-Russia agreement. The deal would see a UN Security Council resolution put forward that would require the Syrian government to give up its chemical weapons arsenal and have them destroyed under international control.
It seems unlikely that the August 21 chemical gas attack is the principal motivator behind the US President’s aggressive military posturing. As Michel Chossudovsky has documented on the Global Research website, five US Naval Destroyers, including one used during the US-NATO war with Libya had been ordered deployed off the Syrian coastline well in advance of the August 21 incident. Each of these vessels have the capacity of carrying up to 90 Tomahawk cruise missiles.
Moreover, the US has been inconsistent in respecting international norms with regard to the use of chemical weapons.
For example, the United States used napalm and Agent Orange quite extensively during the Vietnam War.
Furthermore, the US did not seem to feel obliged to launch strikes against Israel for that country’s reported use of White Phosphorous against Palestinian civilians during the 2008-2009 Operation Cast Lead offensive.
The US itself used the deadly chemical during the siege against Iraqi insurgents in Fallujah nine years ago.
According to foreign policy analyst Yves Engler, even Canada has a long and sordid history in developing and testing chemical weapons agents for use in Vietnam and Korea.
If the chemical weapons attack is not the true motivation for a military confrontation with Syria, then how likely is it that the recent Russia-US agreement will end the threat of a confrontation with Syria?
On this week’s Global Research News Hour, guests Rick Rozoff, Ellen Hodgson Brown, and Yves Engler brilliantly cut through government jargon and examine some of the geo-strategic objectives in play.
Monday Sep 16, 2013
Monday Sep 16, 2013
For much of the population, September 11 marks the anniversary of the infamous terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
But for the people of Chile, much of Latin America, and democratic reformers at large, it marks another significant anniversary.
On the morning of September 11, 1973, all branches of the Chilean Armed Forces had conspired to wrest control of the country from democratically-elected leader Salvador Allende. Allende, having been tipped about the military’s activities, held his ground in his Presidential palace, La Moneda.
After Allende refused to negotiate or surrender, General Augusto Pinochet ordered a siege on the compound accompanied by military helicopter gunships and Air Force bombers. Salvador Allende died during the melee, apparently by his own hand, and a military junta took power headed by General Pinochet.
It is well documented that the US government, through the CIA, played a key role in the overthrow of the Allende government.
The new order in Chile saw massive economic reforms take effect. An alarming number of people were imprisoned and tortured under his rule. Over three thousand people are estimated to have been killed during Pinochet’s 17 year reign.
PInochet himself was eventually arrested in London in 1998, and faced with the unpleasant prospect of having to answer for his crimes.
The 40th anniversary of Chile’s 9/11 is an occasion to ask what have been the impacts of the coup, and the dictatorship that followed?
These questions are explored in depth by two people knowledgeable about the coup.
Michel Chossudovsky was a visiting Professor of Economics in Chile at the time of the coup. In this week’s radio show, Chossudovsky reflects on his memories of the coup, and looks at how it served as a dress-rehearsal for the use of macro-economic reform as a weapon for disarming governments worldwide.
Peter Kornbluh then recounts the US role in the affair. He is the author of The Pinochet File: A Declassified Dossier on Atrocity and Accountability, recently updated to mark the 40th anniversary of the coup. Not only does he elaborate on the proof of the US connection with the coup, he explains his conviction that the arrest of Pinochet marks a major turning point in terms of holding past and present state criminals accountable.
Monday Sep 09, 2013
Monday Sep 09, 2013
More from the Toronto 9/11 Hearings: This week’s installment of the Global Research New Hour marks the fourth of a five part series highlighting research into the World Trade Center attacks and the need for a renewed investigation.