Obama’s New Syrian Allies At Work

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syrian soldiers surrounded an industrial area near Damascus Friday after an al-Qaida linked rebel faction infiltrated the area earlier this week, reportedly killing dozens of civilians, according to the government and activists.

Jabhat al-Nusra, also known as the Nusra Front, entered buildings housing workers and their families, shooting men, women and children in Adra, northeast of the capital, according to the reports. Most residents of the area are from the minority Alawite and Druse sects, which largely support President Bashar Assad in his fight against mainly Sunni rebels.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it has documented the names of 19 civilians killed — most Alawites and Druse — and many more were feared dead after the rampage by the Islamic militants. ……

A Syrian opposition figure who was in touch with people in the area said extremists were looking for people and killing them on a sectarian basis, adding that the number of dead civilians could be in the “dozens.”

“Some people are being shot and others are being beheaded. They include Christians, Alawites, Druse and Shiites,” the opposition figure said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

If you don’t believe they’re our allies, think again.  From Reuters  …..

Syrian Islamist rebels to meet U.S. officials: opposition sources

(Reuters) – Syrian rebel commanders from the Islamic Front which seized control of bases belonging to Western-backed rebels last week are due to hold talks with U.S. officials in Turkey in coming days, rebel and opposition sources said on Saturday.

The expected contacts between Washington and the radical fighters reflect the extent to which the Islamic Front alliance has eclipsed the more moderate Free Syrian Army brigades – which Western and Arab powers tried in vain to build into a force able to topple President Bashar al-Assad.

The talks could also decide the future direction of the Islamic Front, which is engaged in a standoff with yet more radical Sunni Muslim fighters from the al Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

A rebel fighter with the Islamic Front said he expected the talks in Turkey to discuss whether the United States would help arm the front and assign to it responsibility for maintaining order in the rebel-held areas of northern Syria.

Disgusting.