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Syrian Rebels May Have Chemical Weapons
Syria's chemical weapons are vast and now scattered. Intelligence does know where they probably still are or were in some quantity, but like in Iraq, when inspectors went to a disclosed site, many times there was nothing there. Cat and mouse.
It is hard to believe that Assad will be willing to give up ALL of his chemical weapons, all 1000 tons of it just to stay in power. The Syrians have been making it and improving it since Israel whipped them in the 1973 war. They did so with Russia's help and to use as a counter force to deter Israel from using its 80 or so nuclear bombs. So, to think Assad is willing to give them up by mid-2014 and to disclose all their locations by November, 2013, is a joke on America.
When the rebel Al-Nusra rebels overran the al Fararich site, Syrian soldiers reported that the group had made off with two containers of sarin gas, which were stored there. If true, why haven't they used it?
They lack the know-how, but it will only be a matter of time until a suicide mission could occur. What would the results be? A total collapse of the pending agreement? Assad probably would use it as an excuse to use more of the sarin gas and then what would Obama now do? He already looks pathetic after the redline debacle, which even Panetta stated Obama should have just attacked without Congress' approval. Obama would now revisit his original decision crisis-attack or seek approval to attack.
Is it time to puke?
Maybe Assad would make a secret deal with a rebel faction and allow them to use gas in order to void the pending agreement because he does not want to lose his deterrence ability and keep Israel in check. Syria's Scub-B missiles have already been smuggled into Lebanon for use by Hezbollah. The Syrians are well entrenched there and could also easily have moved a few containers of gas there and use them on the Scuds. Any chemicals already in Iran or Lebanon will no doubt NOT be disclosed.
The rebels juggernaut force, al-Nusra, affiliated with terrorists, are already very close to chemical weapon sites. One site is the city of Jamraya, which is a bonanza for various chemical weapons, or was. The Nusra group has mostly controlled the area along the Turkish border where there are chemical weapon depots, the question is: have they found them?
Perhaps the good news is that for now, even if they have one container of sarin, they really don't of the skill or know-how in using it unless it is a suicide mission, which is a real possibility.
One can easily see how the rebels getting gas is game changer for Syria.