Thursday, March 26, 2015

Harper "whips out" his ISIL lawyer joke



The Con bench seals laugh and clap at Steve's joke blowing off the UN and international law because grade six. 

Harper went on to explain that Canada will be bombing Syria as part of an international coalition, although the US is the only NATO member currently bombing Syria. The other coalition countries bombing Syria are Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco, Qatar, and the UAE. 

This same coalition of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco, and the UAE minus Qatar also began bombing Yemen today. Egypt and Kuwait will be joining the offensive while Pakistan is still considering it. Nobel Peace Prize recipient President Obama has authorized the provision of US logistical and intelligence support to help bomb the Houthi rebels in Yemen who are fighting Al Qaeda and IS.
The Saudi-led air campaign against the Houthis in Yemen is dubbed “Decisive Storm”.

Harper says IS is a threat to Canada and will extend the mission for another year. 
DefMin Jason Kenney says they have no particular exit strategy..

h/t Maclean's for vid.

Update : Kenney whips out his "smart bombs", claiming Canada and the US are the only *coalition* bombing members that have them. David Pugliese shoots it down - both Saudi Arabia and UAE have 'em - in Saudi Arabia's case since 2008.

Harper and Kenney are leaning very heavily on the word 'coalition' in their bomb bomb bomb statements but as to who those coalition members actually are - not so much. 

Update2 : Aaron Wherry weighs in tonight on Harper joking about international law :
 Stephen Harper on the legality of bombing Syria: LOL

Shorter bonus grade six from Wherry : The government's position yesterday was that under UN Article 51, they 1) would be bombing Syria and 2) would not be informing the UN about it because it wasn't required. 
Turns out right in Article 51 it specifies that "Measures taken by Members in the exercise of this right of self-defence shall be immediately reported to the Security Council" so the government has now *clarified* its earlier stance and will be sending notification after all. 
World stage.

Update 3 : David Pugliese : 
Gen. Tom Lawson tries to dig Jason Kenney out of a bomb crater of his own making

Gwynne Dyer : Yemen: Unintended consequences   and 

Gwynne Dyer explains why terrorism is overblown and why Islamists want western countries to attack the Islamic State

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15 comments:

Boris said...

Did anyone else notice that the entire Arab-Persian region is now war with itself along several lines and fronts?

Like few CF-18s and a special forces battalion even matter.

Boris said...

No wonder he stood so pale and erect. Not a member is he to soften at the prospect of cuckolding uniformed folks to do that which he will not.

Boris said...

Note the Speaker's comment about Mulcair "idiocy' causeing disorder in the House. Nevermind the PM just admitted that he doesn't give a flying fuck about law. This is really serious.

Boris said...

Shorter Kenney (MacLean's), our legal case rests on defending the Assad Regime: ...Jason Kenney articulated the government’s legal case, and he used definitive language: “It is a very clear principle, a customary principle in international law that if a sovereign government is unable or unwilling to control part of its territory from which hostile attacks are being launched then there is, therefore, a bona fide grounding in Article 51.” There: Canada’s intentions are legal, full stop.

Anonymous said...

All at the bidding of the house of Saud. We'll be operating in Yemen by Christmas at this pace. Saudi Ambassador to Washington was on BBC saying there was a coalition of 10 countries assisting their air campaign in Yemen to support the "legitimate" president.

So Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi, Oman, US, Kuwait, UAE, and then maybe Iraq, France, UK, Canada...

Anonymous said...

scratch a bit of that, seems its with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) with Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, Kuwait, UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar with the US

Pakistan has also apparently had a request

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2015/03/saudi-ambassador-announces-military-operation-yemen-150325234138956.html

Alison said...

Thanks, Anon, that's the link in the post so I won't link again. ;-)

Boris : The US and Israel have softened up Article 51 as to what constitutes legal self-defence and national sovereignty and Kenney is good with providing some cover for that.

The US is siding with Shiite Iran in bombing extremist Sunni ISIS in Iraq and siding with Sunni Saudi Arabia in bombing Shiite Houthis in Yemen.
Strange bedfellows.

Anonymous said...

re your update, yeah, Kenney keeps going on about the coalition no doubt hoping people will think it refers to UK, France, Germany etc. or something

Boris said...

Alison, yes they have but in the case of Syria, the US has at least, according Mulcair, made an effort however thin at justification. Our lads in Ottawa, no'so'much. Because they haven't I wonder if that actually exposes to a little undo risk re ICC should someone see, especially given the endlessly shifting situation there, to haul either a politician or field commmander before it, etc. It's a really uncomfortable position I think.

Anonymous said...

According to Haaretz, the Houthi seized US intelligence files including U.S.-supported counter terrorism operations and the names of informants after the US evacuated CIA personnel and "about 100 special ops forces" last weekend.

Big fuck up.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/1.648988

Boris said...

Kenney just told a bald-faced lie about the smart bombs.

Alison said...

Boris : The one in the update to my post this morning from Pugliese?

Boris said...

Alison: Sorry, yes that one. It's a simple one but so naked and Canada-aggrandising the particularly repulsive to me for some reason.

Boris said...

Re Wherry: Guess that's what happens when the Cons can only find 25 year old articling shortpantsers for advice because no lawyer with a brain would go anywhere near these guys.

The gods also tend to mess with humans who mock the serious things.

Anonymous said...

And all this from our brave PM who when the shooting started pushed a paraplegic and some terrified woman in front of the door while he hid in a closet.
Geeesus, what a totally addle brained government, all Canada should be totally ashamed.

CGHZD

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