MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

By Elad Benari – “It was another bloody day in Syria on Friday, as the violence continued and the Assad regime faced the possibility of sweeping economic sanctions from the Arab League.

Local activists told The Associated Press that at least 11 people were killed by security forces on Friday, while the military announced that six elite pilots and four technical officers were killed in an ambush on Thursday in Homs, in an unusually high-level strike.

‘Our armed forces (will) continue to carry out our mission to defend the country’s security, and we will hit back against anything that threatens us,’ read the military’s statement as quoted by AP.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told the news agency that security forces carried out raids Friday in the village of Furoqlos, near where the pilots were ambushed, and detained 37 people.

The latest violence comes after on Thursday, the Arab League gave Syria 24 hours to agree to an observer mission or face sanctions. However, the Friday afternoon deadline passed with no agreement. Instead, Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby received a letter from Syria seeking more details about the proposed observer mission and its legal status.” Read more.

Arab League calls for UN help over Syria – “A meeting of Arab League foreign ministers in Cairo threated economic sanctions and took the unusual step of asking for the backing of Ban Ki-Moon, the United Nations secretary general. These decisions brought more pressure to bear on President Bashar al-Assad after the deaths of at least 3,500 people during a nine-month uprising against his rule. At least 50 people were killed on Thursday, mainly in the flashpoint province of Homs – including 23 members of Syria’s security forces, 15 deserters and 13 civilians, according to activists.” Read more.

Israel elevates state of readiness on northern front for any Syrian repercussions – “Israel is elevating its state of readiness on its northern front in light of reports that events in Syria will have major repercussions on the Jewish State, Thursday’s Al-Hayat reported. ‘The inactivity of Hezbollah at the military level at this time does not mean the situation will remain like this. From our side, we will always be at the utmost state of readiness as if war might break out next week,’ Israel’s Home Front Defense Minister Matan Vilnai was quoted as saying while inspecting the northern Israeli district of Kiryat Shmona for its level of preparedness.” Read more.

Report: Russia Sent Syria Super-Advanced S-300 Missiles – “Russian warships that have reached waters off Syria in recent days were carrying, among other things, Russian technical advisors who will help the Syrians set up an array of S-300 missiles Damascus has received in recent weeks, a report in the London-based Arabic language Al Quds-Al Arabi said Thursday. Citing sources in Syria and Russia, the paper said that Moscow sees a Western attack on Syria as a ‘red line’ that it will not tolerate. Despite the mounting opposition in the West and even in the Arab world against Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad for his assaults on protesters seeking to unseat him as leader of the country, Russia maintains its support for Assad, the report said.” Read more.

Sounds like something’s afoot …

By Will Rahn – “The USS George H.W. Bush, the Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, has reportedly parked off the Syrian coast. The move comes as the U.S. embassy in Damascus urged Americans to ‘immediately’ leave the country.

‘The U.S. embassy continues to urge U.S. citizens in Syria to depart immediately while commercial transportation is available,’ began a statement released Wednesday on the embassy website. ‘The number of airlines serving Syria has decreased significantly since the summer, while many of those airlines remaining have reduced their number of flights.’

In addition to urging citizens to leave the country, CBS News reports that Ambassador Robert Ford, who was recalled from Syria last month due to what the Obama administration called credible threats to his safety, will not return to the country later this month as planned.

Syria’s government has been strongly condemned by the international community following months of state-sponsored violence against political activists protesting the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. The violence is said to have left thousands dead in the country, which is a close ally of Iran and a sponsor of the Islamic terrorist group Hezbollah.

Adding to the sense of danger, Turkey, a NATO member and fierce critic of Assad’s government, recently warned its citizens to avoid traveling through the country after Syrian troops fired on at least two buses carrying Turkish Muslims returning from the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.

Some Arab publications have reported this week that a no-fly zone will soon be put in place over Syria — similar to the one implemented over Libya last spring. And while such reports in the Arab press are often met with skepticism by western observers, the financial news service ZeroHedge flagged down a report from the respected private intelligence company Stratfor stating that CVN 77, better known as the George H.W. Bush, had left the strategically vital Straits of Hormuz for the Syrian coast.

The idea of imposing a no-fly zone over Syria — an increasingly hot topic in Washington, D.C. — was discussed at Tuesday’s CNN Republican debate. Texas Gov. Rick Perry has said he would ‘absolutely’ propose a no-fly zone for the country, but when asked if they would do the same, other Republican presidential candidates remained hesitant.” Source – The Daily Caller.

Canada orders warships to stay in Mediterranean – “Canada will maintain warships in the Mediterranean Sea until the end of 2012, Defense Minister Peter MacKay announced Sunday. The HMCS Vancouver frigate was originally deployed as part of NATO’s mission in Libya. It will remain in the Mediterranean Sea until early 2012, when it will be relieved by the HMCS Charlottetown, MacKay said. Officially, the ships will be tasked with ‘locating, tracking, reporting (and) boarding vessels suspected of international terrorism’ alongside other NATO frigates. But MacKay also said ‘there’s no question having a ship in the region… gives us the capability to respond should certain things transpire’ in Syria or other hotspots.” Read more.

By Anshel Pfeffer – “Israeli security forces officials said Wednesday that they believe Turkey is nearing a military intervention in Syria, in order to create a secure buffer zone for opposition activists.

Thus far, Ankara has given shelter to some 20,000 refugees who escaped the deadly crackdown by Syrian President Bashar Assad’s security forces, and also housed Syrian opposition groups.

In recent days, however, Israeli officials said that according to an updated assessment of the situation, Turkey is expected to set up secure buffer zones on its border with Syria that would allow armed opposition groups to organize against the Syrian regime from bases that would be protected by the Turkish army.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has recently hardened his stance against Assad and suggested for the first time the possibility of foreign intervention in Syria.” Read more.

France calls for humanitarian zone in Syria – “France has called for a ‘secured zone to protect civilians’ in Syria, the first time a major Western power has suggested international intervention on the ground in the eight-month uprising against President Bashar Assad. Foreign Minister Alain Juppe also described Syria’s exiled opposition National Council as ‘the legitimate partner with which we want to work’, the biggest international endorsement yet for the nascent opposition body. A spokesman for European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the EU was ready to engage with the Syrian National Council and other opposition groups, but stressed the need for them to maintain a peaceful, non-sectarian approach. Asked at a news conference on Wednesday after meeting the SNC president if a humanitarian corridor was an option for Syria, Juppe ruled out military intervention to create a ‘buffer zone’ in northern Syria but suggested a ‘secured zone’ may be feasible to protect civilians and ferry in humanitarian aid.” Read more.