Blog 10: Western-raised jihadists pouring into Syria could threaten US in future

According to the government, more than 1,000 people have moved to Syria in efforts to fight along side al-Qaeda. What is worrisome is the fact that most of those people are coming from the western hemisphere. In both Europe and North America, and those that are going over there have citizenship in North America and Europe so they can go back and forth as they please. The problem can be that the people that go to Syria are not sure if they want to handle the situation there or go abroad which would cause problems for the United States in the future.

Syria is not backing down, everyday a new story arises from there and its just a matter of staying tuned in. We thought that our troops going over to Syria was a huge mistake but not it can get so much worse if we get attacked in our soil and another September 11th situation arises. We need to just stay on our toes.

Enrique Diaz

Blog 9: Israeli planes strike Syrian military base, U.S. official says

According to an American official, Israeli planes struck a Syrian base in an effort to stops any weapons that may be used to help any terrorists. The Israelis have said before that they would do anything that they had to in an effort to keep their country out of harms way and to stop anyone or anything that could be harmful to them. The Syrian conflict began in 2011 but has now ended up being a full blown civil war. There has been an estimated 100,000 deaths since then and the number is still rising. The upside is that Syria has kept its word for the most part and held up their end of the deal, turning in most of their weapons, and shutting down any factory or plant that they used to manufacture any nuclear weapons.

Its been a long couple of months for the people of Syria, having to live in constant fear and of the unknown coming. The bright upside to the whole situation, for us atleast seems to be that the United States has as of yet stayed out of the situation and has made the attempt to handle this in political strides. Syria met their deadline with the weapons and now its more of a sit and wait kind of deal if your not in the inner circle.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/31/world/meast/syria-civil-war/index.html?hpt=wo_c2

Blog 8: Polio breaks out in Syria - WHO warns it could spread

For the first time in 14 years, There has been a polio outbreak in Syria. Which makes it that much worse, because with the civil war taking place there its even harder to keep the disease in check. In the past year alone thousands of people have died and many have fled the country, either became they have lost their homes or because they want to be able to find refuge somewhere that is safe. It is usually the children that get impacted by this disease and it can be prevented by getting a serious of shots, 4 to be exact. There have been 22 cases reported and WHO is currently in search for more outbreaks. Doctors are hoping to eliminate this disease, making it just the second one to get eliminated, behind small pox.

It sucks that not only do we have to worry about the civil war that gets dragged on in Syria but now we have to worry about a Polio outbreak there too. As time passes the chances for it to spread became greater for the simple fact that it is being spread when people migrate elsewhere, and if military troops were ever to have to go in there then the chances of people getting infected could increase. its as easy as being passed by touching things. Luckily we have a vaccine.

http://www.nbcnews.com/health/polio-outbreak-confirmed-syria-8C11488067

Blog #7: Suicide bombings claim more lives in Iraq

More deaths are happening in Iraq, This time between the Shiite and the Sunni. Things are really heating up as more than 6000 people have died this year alone in Iraq and 350 people in this month alone. We must understand that this a country that is plagued by war and religion is a huge part of their everyday lives. Any way that people see it, there is no way to shape the lives of these people for the better, they are going to do what they want to do regardless. They are fighting for dominance of their own country.

When I did my tour in Iraq I was able to see all these things first hand, I saw the way the Iraqis treated us and even treated themselves, there is more than one religion there and they are all different. People must also understand that the people in Iraq are not all bad, but instead it is those certain few that make up for their whole country and make them look bad. Just because we are no longer holding troops there doesn't mean that war and deaths will suddenly stop. Iraq will always be plagued by war, it is their way of life.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/30/world/meast/iraq-violence/index.html?hpt=wo_c2

Are Syrian peace talks far from reality?

Syria has been a game of up and downs, one day peace talks are for sure and the next they are gone with the wind. Peace talks were scheduled to take place in November but it seems that now there has been a halt to all talks. The regime which really hoped to get support from the United States and our military has really come to an abrupt halt. According to the Unites Nations, talk of peace which had been said to come soon is now in a distant land. Any talk of peace could possibly take place months from now.

The talk of peace in Syria is a broken record, we take one step forward and then two back. As of now nothing is set in stone and it doesn't seem to be any time soon either, like always we need to just keep hopes up and play the waiting game. On the positive side, any signs of a military strike are non-existing and we are still keep in it within the boundaries of our government. A couple of answers would really be helpful right now though.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/10/21/are-syrian-peace-talks-far-from-reality/

Enrique Diaz

Blog 5: Iran nuclear talks start in Geneva amid 'cautious optimism'

The 5 super powers met in Geneva this week to discuss the plans that they have regarding Iran. As before we are still making good progress and it seems that talks are getting that much closer. The Iranian government seem to be more than ready to comply to stop the nuclear weapons plan and move on into a peaceful effort, so that they can get the respect that they feel they deserve as a nation and all around the world. At the same time they have made it clear that they will not be bullied and pushed around by anyone. They want to continue using the resources so that they can enrich their country and make that much better. Its quite clear that the line between making this happen and having it go south is very thin, as the Iranian government has shown times before that they cannot be trusted and are all talk.

We need to tread lightly around this, we have gotten the closest that we have gotten in recent years to having Iran act civilize and turn their weapons and stop using the resources they have to make weapons of destruction. Trust has to be built between Iran and the powerhouse nations of the world, they hold no strings in the matter and can't seem to sum up any trust with anyone. We are ever so close to making this go through and we need to keep pushing on, without taking the usual step forward and two steps back.

Enrique Diaz

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/15/world/meast/iran-nuclear-talks/index.html?hpt=wo_c1

Blog 4: Al Qaeda leader seized in Libya was on FBI's 'most wanted' list

Anas-Al libi was captured by the United States government after a long search and after many years of patiently waiting. Anas-Al Libi was part of the regime that worked with Bin Laden and had a major role in the bombings that occurred in the United States embassy in Tanzania and Kenya. A smart man that was great with computers and smart in the field of nuclear science, Anas- Al libi joined the regime to do something more "meaningful" with his life. In the 1998 bombings of the United States embassies, he managed to kill 10 Americans and more than 200 Kenyans and Tanzanians. We was one of the first names put on the worlds most wanted list and at its peak the United States was willing to give 25 million dollars for him. Lybia's government has started asking questions though because Anas-Al Libi was captured on their soil.

It seems that we can't stay low long enough to stay out of trouble with anybody, now we are being questioned by lybia for capturing a terrorist on their soil. Even though we can because of war crimes that he has commited. On the bright side we have finally captured someone whom has terrorized the world for years.

http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/06/20835669-al-qaeda-leader-seized-in-libya-was-on-fbis-most-wanted-list?lite

Enrique Diaz

Blog 3: Syrian foreign minister at U.N. General Assembly: 'There is no civil war'

Foreign Minister Walid Moallem spoke on regards of Syria, explaining that there was not a civil war in Syria but rather it was a fight to get all the terrorists out of Syria, those that were attacking the Syrian military and those that were attacking the innocent people that resided there. The promise that he made about his stash of nuclear weapons was not brought up but he simply stated that he and Syria as a country were true to their word and would abide by the rules implemented. The U.N is currently still searching for nuclear weapons in hopes that they might find something to be sure that Syria is turning all their weapons in. Investigators are also in search for the people responsible for using the chemical weapons on the innocent people. Walid Moallem is positive that the terrorists are being provided with weapons from countries in the west.

Its simple to see that there is still trust issues out there between Syria and the United States, they have gone back on their word before and the government is doing their best to keep this in the hands of politics and not require any military action to take place. The search for weapons and the terrorists that attacked innocent people in Syria is still going strong and measures are being entrenched to make sure that it does not happen again. We need to come together and make sure it doesn't come do a violent end.

Enrique Diaz

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/30/world/meast/syria-civil-war/index.html?hpt=wo_c1

Blog 2: Iran's president calls for 'constructive' dialogue, end to 'unhealthy' rivalries

Recently elected President Hassan Rouhani has made statements that can finally bring a much needed peace and closure to the United States and Iran. He hopes to meet and speak to President Obama in regards to his nuclear program. Though the program has always been seen as a negative and a possible act for destruction throughout the world, Hassan Rouhani proclaims that the nuclear program was never intended to produce any weapons of mass destruction such as a nuclear bomb but instead they were using it for a means of energy. He wants to speak of peace without letting things get out of hand and stated that unless any threats were made then it should be an easy transition for both parties involved. President Rouhanni wants to clear the air for the Iranians who have been seen as problematic and power hungry. He wants Iran to be respected, have their dignity and be place rightfully in the world. If it works then it could bring a new beginning to the way things are done and could also bring closure in Syria.
This could be great for the United States who have not had this opportunity with Iran since Bill Clinton was president and he clearly did not get it done. Then we lost that opportunity after Clinton left and Bush came into power, he sent the nation into war and we have been in constant fights since. Our national debt is through the roof right now and doing this with President Hassan Rouhani could open many doors. It could focus less on war and putting boots on the ground and lean more towards diplomacy and the government doing what they were elected to do. Getting Iran to do the right thing with their nuclear program could be the focal point of many later on, mainly Syria right now who we are having major problems with.


http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/19/world/meast/iran-president-nuclear/index.html?hpt=wo_c1
Enrique Diaz
9/20/2013
4:49pm

Blog 1: Syria Plan in Limbo, Obama asks Congress to Postpone Strike Vote

It's pretty obvious that the issues that we have encountered with Syria have gone from bad to worse. A couple of days ago President Obama was pushing for the United States to take military action against Syria, and even though he doesn't need any hear say from congress to take military action he decided to ask for their vote in hopes that congress would side with him and welcome the idea of stopping Syria with military force. While it was never ok for people in Syria to kill each other in the ongoing civil war that they are in. President Obama felt it was our job to put an end to it when Assad decided to kill hundreds of people by gassing them to death. Making it obvious that chemical warfare was being used. President Obama since then has opted to wait because of the arrival of a new proposition by Russia to take Syria's weapons in their possession and hopefully dismantle them.

The way the Assad has carried military actions against his own people is inhumane and clearly should be beyond his power. Taking chemical weapons and using them to kill hundreds of your people is simply ridiculous. I don't see taking military action beneficial to anyone right now, specially the United States. We are still getting out of Afghanistan and it was not to long ago that we got out of Iraq. We are in no shape to put boots on the ground in Syria. We are already in debt and this would only push us further down, President Obama did good by postponing any attacks and instead let the government do what its meant to do, take care of problems like this without lives being put on the line.

 Enrique Diaz
9/12/13
9:38PM

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/09/10/president-obama-to-address-nation-on-syria/