On June 2, 2011, Representative Keith Ellison spoke out against Bashar Assad and the violent repression of the Syrian democracy movement, on the floor of the United States House of Representatives.
Ellison accurately described the Assad regime as "torturing, shelling, and murdering," its own citizens to quash peaceful demonstrations.
Ten weeks later, the torturing, shelling, and murdering continues unabated as the attacks in Hama, Latakia, and Deir el-Zor continue. Sixteen hundred protestors have been killed by Syrian forces.
The wider Arab world has taken notice. King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia called on Assad to stop the "killing machine." The Saudis, Kuwaitis, and Bahrainis have recalled their respective ambassadors. The Turkish foreign minister has now warned Assad: "Stop military operations against civilians immediately and unconditionally."
King Abdullah has further admonished that the hope of the Arab people will not emerge from the "blood of the innocent people."
The Syrians are a threat to the entire region and the millions of people – Christians, Muslims, and Jews – through their partnership with Iran.
The Syrians have long held Lebanon hostage with the more recent motivation of doing Tehran's bidding through the assassination of Rafik Hariri and the shipment of thousands of increasingly powerful missiles to Hezbollah. Syria is Iran's alter ego allowing Tehran to establish its forward position for its genocidal campaign towards Israel.
The arc of Syrian terror extends to the upper midwest of the United States. Terrorists trained and supplied in Syria attack American soldiers with roadside bombs. Those attacked include Minnesota National Guard soldiers now providing convoy escort duty in Iraq.
