Iraq Escalation Is Open-Ended War: Daily

Tehran, Aug 25, IRNA - Washington has confirmed its intention to escalate the ongoing air war in Iraq into neighboring Syria “as something they were forced into”. They say, “We have to take action against any threats against Americans, no matter what nation it is in.”News ID: 4216Date: 24 August 2014 - 20:31, recalled Mondayˈs edition of ˈKayhan Internationalˈ. On Thursday, the Pentagon began talking up the expansion of the mission creep, saying that the Iraq war was virtually unwinnable without also going into Syria to target the self-styled ISIL. Now official Washington says that’s exactly what they’re going to do, criticized the English-language daily in its Viewpoint column. Despite his message of change in Washington, it is still puzzling that President Barack Obama has adopted most of the previous administrationˈs failed formula (divide and rule policy) in order to keep US troops in the Middle East. Obama contends that the US must also use airstrikes and ˈhumanitarian” bombs in Iraq in order to curb the rise of ISIL. Perhaps, he has forgotten the fact that it is the US military presence in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere in the Middle East that is driving terrorism against the region and the world. Perhaps, he has also forgotten the fact that in war, occupying forces are required to abide by the Geneva Conventions and other international laws to minimize civilian death and injury, and to allow for relief provided by impartial humanitarian actors. Just as importantly, he has forgotten that the occupying power is responsible for the basic security and welfare of the civilian population and must actively prevent large-scale violence against civilians. Under the international law and the Geneva Conventions, President Obama is expected to take full responsibility for the inevitable deaths of innocent Iraqi civilians during his ˈhumanitarian” airstrikes. He should also realize that reinvasion of Iraq will only bring greater terror and destruction – not to mention larger civilian deaths and casualties. The conflicting US policy in Iraq and Syria in dealing with terrorists there means that the US and its allies fostered ISIL as a creed and a movement, and that ˈfightingˈ it will only ensure the ˈmedieval caliphateˈ thrives. Ironically, the West, including Washington, once lauded these beheading dogs as ˈSyrian rebels and freedom fighters”. Now they say they are going after the ISIL goons deep inside Iraq and Syria! They know and we all know that this is indeed an open-ended war. What this means is that Syria is just the next stop in America’s ˈhumanitarian” reinvasion of the region, which will be much longer and much larger than anyone bargained for.