LATimes: White House says 'scope and scale' of aid to Syrian rebels may grow

[Poll_Blind]

-->White House says scope and scale of aid to Syrian rebels may grow
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-us-aid-to-syrian-rebels-to-expand-says-white-house-chief-of-staff-20130616,0,5192962.story

WASHINGTON — White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said Sunday that “the scope and scale” of assistance to Syrian rebels will expand, based on evidence that the Assad government is gaining ground in the protracted civil war and that it may have used chemical weapons in the conflict.

Speaking on CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” McDonough did not say whether arms shipments to Syrian rebels would include artillery and other heavy weaponry that could help reduce the military regimes advantage. In the shadow of Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States has to tread carefully, McDonough said.

“We have to be very discerning about what's in our interest and what outcome is best for us, and the prices that we're willing to pay to get to that place,” he said. “We've rushed to war in this region in the past; we're not going to do it here.”

-->From Christian Science Monitor: US promises military aid to Syrian rebels. Now what?
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Military/2013/0615/US-promises-military-aid-to-Syrian-rebels.-Now-what

US military aid to Syrian rebels is expected to begin arriving in a few weeks, delivered by the CIA through secret bases in Turkey and Jordan. Reports say it will include light weaponry, but not shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles. The Pentagon also has proposed a partial no-fly zone.

--snip--

Reports are beginning to outline the weaponry and where it will go. Weapons will likely include automatic rifles, light mortars, and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) – but not the shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles known as MANPADS (man-portable air-defense missiles).

--snip--

Aid to the rebels will most likely go through Turkey, where the United States is involved in a secret base that Turkey set up with Saudi Arabia and Qatar to direct military and communications aid to Syria's armed opposition, Reuters reports.

“US aid could also go through Jordan where several thousand US troops are on a joint exercise,” according to Reuters. “A further 200 soldiers from the US Army's First Division are also there.”

White House officials so far have declined to detail US military aid to the Syrian rebels, other than to clearly indicate that this does not include “boots on the ground.”

PB

[Lugal Zaggesi]

1. "...may have used chemical weapons in the conflict."

The "excuses" they use to justify expensive carnage just gets weaker and weaker, doesn't it.

Not even "we think they are considering starting a program to one day begin to make nuclear weapons" ?
No ?
Too disprovable ?

[Phlem]

2. Meanwhile, White House says 'scope and scale'

of the war at home on the middle class is going along swimmingly!

-p

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. oh for fuck's sake...why all the stringing it out and pretending?

We know, and the White House knows, we are going to take sides and fight another proxy war.
To hell with all the insulting pretenses...just fly over and bomb Assad.
Prolly be a lot less casualties that way.
I cannot believe teh Gov't has any credibility left by playing all these
" we are so reluctant to flatten another country....but they made us us to it just to preserve democracy....etc"

[Catherina]

4. This is the shock of the year! Of the decade lol n/t