SO..
JUST HOW IMPORTANT IS A DAM???
So,
what does the loss of the Taqba Dam mean to Assad?
To
put it simply, it's huge!
It's
a given that this Dam was probably highly protected and its loss produced a
virtual stockpile of weapons and munitions for the rebels.
Yet,
weapons cache was captured is not even 1/10 of the story at the strategic level.
There's
been a saying in the Middle East for centuries;
"he who controls the water controls the land"!
I can
just imagine the conversation inside Iraq
when word came at the rebels had captured this strategic location on Euphrates River
Although
this Dam is not critical in the production of electricity, it's the simple flow
of water in the psychological damage of its loss that will impact what is left
of the Syrian governments confidence, not to mention leadership of Iraq and Iran .
Some
are already pondering, how hard with the Syrian government try to regain this
facility?
Let
me explain to you just how difficult a task this could prove to be.
Once
the rebels occupied the control room for the locks in the dam itself the Syrian
government was forced to contemplate a virtual man on man conflict in any
attempt to regain the dam.
You
see, you cannot use artillery, you cannot use helicopters, at least not at her
full potential and you cannot use fighter aircraft even with precision
munitions without destroying the physical facility you are trying to retake.
The
psychological damage of losing such a strategic facility is perhaps the largest
prize of all for the rebels.
The
water from Euphrates is every bit as important to the people of Iraq as it is the people of Syria .
Why
the rebels chose this target speaks to their ability to comprehend strategic
value versus tactical value or targets of simple opportunity.
This
was a story that was easily overlooked today!
This
is also a story that I can promise you provides us with one of the best
indicators yet of Assad's future.
The
battle for Damascus continues in the long run that truly is more important than
the capture of the largest dam in Syria on Euphrates River, but this event, in
my opinion, was overlooked to quickly today.
I can
assure you it was not overlooked by Assad or his Bosses in Tehran .
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/02/2013211154422865528.html
