Fianna Fáil Dáil motion singles out Syrian Government and Russia for Aleppo carnage

FIANNA FÁIL has singled out the Syrian Government and the Russian military in a Dáil motion about Aleppo despite many casualties also being caused by the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) and anti-government rebel forces supported by the US/British-led coalition – including jihadist opponents of the Assad regime in Damascus.

While Fianna Fáil condemns in general terms “the horrendous violence and destruction which has led to a significant loss of life”, the only parties to the conflict named are “the Syrian Government and the Russian military” – three times.

The West and jihadist or ‘former jihadist’ rebels fighting the Syrian Government escape censure by Fianna Fáil.

The motion came in a week that saw heated exchanges in the Dáil when Fianna Fáil leader Mícheál Martin accused Sinn Féin and other left-wing parties of forming a “pro-Russia alliance” in the parliament.

Martin’s new-found opposition to foreign interference in the Middle East will come as a surprise to many who will remember how previous Fianna Fáil-led governments – in which he served in senior ministerial capacities – facilitated and vigorously defended the illegal US war on Iraq through the use of Shannon Airport. 

The Iraq War led to over 600,000 civilian deaths and the subsequent power vacuum allowed jihadist groups such as ISIS to flourish.

During the current Syrian crisis, Mícheál Martin opposed a European arms embargo placed on Syria, arguing that it should be lifted to help bolster US-backed insurgents intent on toppling the Ba’ath Party Government of President Bashar al-Assad. 

In contrast, Sinn Féin had argued against removing the embargo (which was rescinded in late 2013) with Foreign Affairs spokesperson Seán Crowe TD noting:

“We opposed it because we felt that flooding the country with more weapons of destruction would only cause more violence and bloodshed and not bring peace. Our political analysis has, unfortunately, stood the test of time and was correct.”

In attempting to explain away Fianna Fáil’s selective condemnation of those involved in human rights violations, including ISIS, Darragh O’Brien TD accused other parties of “missing the point”, claiming that the motion “aims to talk to the people who can influence Assad”.

O’Brien also went on to argue that Fianna Fáil sees the Free Syrian Army (FSA) as “moderates and a genuine opposition”. He made these comments despite the FSA disbanding two years ago and its remnants subsumed into larger jihadist forces, including the Al Nusra Front, which was until this year the official Al Qaeda affiliate in Syria.

These groups have repeatedly targeted UN peacekeepers, including in 2013 when Irish peacekeepers serving as part of the UN Observer Force deployed to the Golan Heights came under attack. They also kidnapped a Filipino detachment of UN peacekeepers, stealing their weapons and equipment. The rebels subsequently filmed themselves disguised in UN fatigues attempting to ambush a Syrian Army unit in what was a flagrant violation of the Geneva Convention. 

● Rebel combat footage shows a wounded fighter, disguised as a UN peacekeeper, being dragged to safety after a failed ambush targeting Syrian Army positions in the Golan Heights

Sinn Féin also highlighted Fianna Fáil’s failure to condemn the Turkish invasion of northern Syria which has seen the Turkish armed forces and allied jihadist insurgents targeting Kurdish enclaves despite officially claiming to be fighting ISIS.

In a heated exchange, Sinn Féin’s Seán Crowe TD (pictured) said that the Syrian people are “extremely divided” and that no external forces can speak accurately on their behalf:

“Instead of getting bogged down in pontificating our own world view, attempting to smear other deputies and parties and somehow questioning their humanity, I hope that in this debate we speak as one to condemn the violence and destruction and that, as a group of Irish parliamentarians, we can in some small way help in the humanitarian response and ultimately aid and assist efforts to find a negotiated solution to the conflict.”

In 2014, Seán Crowe travelled to Iran, where he raised the plight of the people caught in the besieged Yarmouk refugee camp near Damascus with Iranian officials. He called on the Iranians to use their influence with the Syrian Government to end the siege:

“Long before Deputy Mícheál Martin began using the suffering and violence in Syria as a political football in an attempt to smear Opposition parties, I was speaking out against Turkey and Saudi Arabia’s funding, arming and support of extremist jihadist groups in Syria.”

He added:

“I was speaking out against Russia’s and Iran’s military support of the Syrian Army and instead called on them to use their influence to broker a ceasefire and initiate a peace process.”