Sydney University academic claims US is the mastermind of terrorism, denies Syrian gas attack
FEDERAL Education Minister Simon Birmingham has demanded an investigation after Sydney Uni academic Tim Anderson claimed Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has been falsely accused of gassing his own people.
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A SYDNEY University academic has accused Donald Trump and Barack Obama of being the true “masterminds of terrorism in the Middle East” — rather than Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad’s cruel regime.
Former Hindu sectist Tim Anderson, who is paid up to $130,000 annually as a senior lecturer, said in a series of tweets that President Trump was a “vanity” terrorist who used the incident to “prove he was better than Obama”.
Dr Anderson thinks the sarin gas attack that provoked the missile strikes against Syria was a “false flag”. This is despite new information emerging that the gas was dropped by General Mohammed Hasouri, a government squadron commander. The attack on the town of Khan Sheikhoun, which killed 87 people, has been described by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull as a “shocking war crime”.
Yet Sydney University has backed Dr Anderson, and said it was “committed to the expression and protection of free speech”.
“The university does not endorse the statements expressed by Dr Anderson, (however) academic staff are free to contribute to public comment in their area of expertise under terms outlined in the university’s public comment policy,” a spokeswoman said.
A Fidel Castro-loving fan of Venezuelan socialist Hugo Chavez, Anderson was once charged and then fully acquitted of the 1978 Sydney Hilton bombing.
The Sydney Hilton bombing was the first major act of terrorism on Australian soil and the case remains unsolved to this day. On February 13, 1978, a bomb was planted in a rubbish bin outside the Sydney Hilton, which was hosting a Commonwealth meeting of Asia Pacific heads of government. One police officer died and 13 people were injured.
Dr Anderson has also said Mr Obama “covertly financed and armed ALL the terrorist groups in Syria”.
Despite intelligence information implicating the Syrian regime, Dr Anderson tweeted “there is no credible evidence that the Syrian Army has ever used chemical weapons in the last six years”.
“On the other hand, there is independent evidence of multiple (chemical weapons) use by the NATO-Saudi backed al Qaeda groups.”
Education Minister Simon Birmingham demanded the university investigate the comments and any course content.
“Although universities are places where ideas should be contested, that’s no excuse for being an apologist for (the Assad regime),” Senator Birmingham said.
Attorney-General George Brandis told The Daily Telegraph President Trump’s decision to launch missile strikes was, “a swift, just and proportionate response to the horrific chemical-weapon attack by the Assad regime against its own people. It is disappointing that Dr Anderson cannot see the moral clarity of President Trump’s decision,” he said.
Three years ago Dr Anderson, then part of a WikiLeaks Party delegation, alongside Julian Assange’s father John Shipton, met Mr Assad in Damascus. Afterwards Mr Shipton announced plans to open a party office in Syria.
Dr Anderson, who says his research interests are Melanesian land and economic integration in Latin America, has repeatedly supported positions consistent with Russian and Syrian talking points on the conflict.
For example, Mr Assad called the humanitarian group White Helmets a front for Islamic State in an interview with state-run propaganda news outfit Russia Today.
Dr Anderson then said: “They and their sponsors pretend they have humanitarian motives, but they are the same people who murder civilians for their beliefs, or because they support the Syrian government.” He has also repeatedly accused Israel of being “embedded” in a US plan for “a New Middle East”.
Dr Anderson said there was “no conflict of interest in talking to people”.
“Indeed, suggesting Australian citizens should not talk to Syrians and their leaders is simply an attempt at censorship,” he said.
“There is no doubt that a large majority of Syrians support Bashar al-Assad — and frankly, that’s all that matters.”
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