I got a laugh out of how the NYTs is reporting it in their article “Turkey Strikes Back After Syrian Shelling Kills 5 Civilians”
nytimes.com/2012/10/04/world/middleeast/syria.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&.
They are reporting that Turkey has shelled targets in Syria after “a” (meaning one, uno) mortar round was lauched into Turkey from Syria killing 5 civilians. Earlier reports said that it was Syrian “artillery” that was responsible but now we are being told that it was “a” mortar round.
In response to this one mortar round, the origin of which in unclear, NATO has called “an emergency meeting on Wednesday evening to discuss the crisis, as Turkey’s civilian and military leaders said Parliament would consider a motion on Thursday to permit further military action within Syria.”
Erdogan said:
“This atrocious attack was immediately responded to adequately by our armed forces in the border region, in accordance with rules of engagement.” “Targets were shelled in locations identified by radar.”
Now last time I checked, mortars don’t require radar especially one indiscriminate mortar round.
The calls for escalation continue:
“The conflict in Syria is spilling well over its borders,” said Andrew Tabler, a Syria analyst at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “I don’t see how the Obama administration continues policy as usual after this.”
And then this gem:
In Washington, George Little, the Pentagon press secretary, called the Syrian attack on Turkish territory “yet another example of the depraved behavior of the Syrian regime, and why it must go.”
And then to top things off there was the predictable response from the Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said she was “outraged” by the mortar attack in Turkey.
So, here are the facts:
Initial reports say Syrian artillery was “shelling” across the border, but that storyline is quickly changed to “a” mortar round.
Syria denies responsibility.
Syria is then demonized by NATO and our State Department who aren’t interested in discovering who actually launched the mortar round, but are interested in escalation at all costs, regardless of the fact that the “rebels” would have the most to gain from such a mortar attack.
