Defections

Western media are so accustomed to unreliable news on Syria that they don't even bother to correct their mistakes.  Two weeks ago, Syrian opposition groups in exile "reported" that a group of "high ranking generals" defected from Syria.  The news led in major Saudi-funded and Qatari-funded media.  Some Western reports even spoke of a major developments.  The story said that the generals would announce themselves in a press conference in Turkey.  Of course, nothing happened and the story died.  This is when the Syrian National Council months ago announced an "open-ended strike" in Syria.  Various Western reporters and experts talked about how the regime will now fall, and that this will really bring an end to the regime.  No one in the press bothered to admit that the "open-ended strike" was a failure.