STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Tuesday, 18 June 2013

[xchrom]

24. Over the Red Line: West Considers Entering the Syrian Quagmire

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/the-west-considers-weapons-deliveries-to-a-chaotic-syria-a-906144.html

The border crossing lies in a picturesque plane surrounded by rolling hills, wheat fields and olive groves. This spot between the Turkish city of Kilis and the Syrian town of Azaz is called the "Gate of Peace." But, in reality, it is the gate into the hell of the civil war in Syria.

Seventy-seven trucks and semitrailers are waiting on the Turkish side of the border. Many are crammed full of sacks of grain, while others bear tarp-covered loads. All of this is fresh supplies for the destitute civilians and rebels in the combat zones.

To seal off the insurgents' resupply routes, the military of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad is determined to slam the "Gate of Peace" shut. The task has fallen to Syrian soldiers reinforced by fighters from Hezbollah, the Shiite militia based in Lebanon, as part of a major operation dubbed "North Storm." Assad's generals have become more confident after the army and the Hezbollah Islamists recaptured the town of Qusair, strategically located near the Lebanese border in western Syria, more than two weeks ago.

A rebel fighter dressed in all black is standing at the "Gate of Peace," trying to hitch a ride into the war. Before long, the car reaches the highway that heads south toward Aleppo. Rebels have barricaded the north-heading side of the road with a dirt embankment. An armored personnel carrier menacingly points its cannon northwards. But wouldn't Assad's troops come from the south?