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Child Item

Irish man killed in fighting in Syria

tiger55

A YOUNG Dublin man has become the latest rebel fighter from Ireland to be killed in war-torn Syria.

Jordanian born Alaa Ciymeh, 26, who grew up in Ballinteer in the south of the capital with his three brothers and sister, died during violent clashes on Sunday.

Mourners gathered at the Clonskeagh Mosque in Dublin on Wednesday evening as news of the brave lad’s death filtered through.

Details of how Alaa was killed remain unclear but the Irish Sun understands that his body is unlikely to ever be recovered.

A source close to the family said: “The family is very upset. Of course the tragedy of losing a child is never easy.”

In a tribute posted on Facebook, grieving brother Baraa told of his hope that Alaa would be accepted into Jannat al-Firdous — the highest part of Paradise, reserved for mujahedin martyrs who die fighting in Allah’s name.

Yesterday he added: “Alaa my darling brother I already missed you from now on life will be so difficult.

“I’ll see you in janna I hope that you are in peace... we are proud of you we love you.”

Handsome Alaa was one of up to 26 Irish Muslims who are believed to have joined the fight against Bashar al-Assad’s brutal regime since the bloody Syrian uprising broke out in 2011.

Research by the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation last month ranked Ireland as the biggest contributor per capita of rebel fighters among European countries.

At least two are known to have been killed. Last December, Hudhaifa El Sayed, 22, originally from Egypt, but living in Drogheda, Co Louth, was shot dead in the northern province of Idlib.

And in February, 16-year-old Shamseddin Gaidan — whose family fled violence in Libya in 2001 — was killed after rebuffing their pleas to return home to Co Meath.

The schoolboy, a pupil at St Patrick’s National School in Navan, had been on holiday in Libya last summer when he decided to join up with a cousin who was battling Assad loyalists.

According to United Nations estimates, more than 70,000 people have now been killed in the two-year-old civil war.

http://www.thesun.ie/irishsol/homepage/news/4913526/Irish-lad-martyr-in-Syria.html

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super_furry

Irish people have a long tradition of fighting in wars overseas for idiological reasons. Just look at the numbers of Irish that fought in the Spanish Civil War - on both sides.

[Deleted User]

The Sun describing a young muslim fighting against government forces as "brave", brilliant stuff really.

Kinder Bueno

Ahh yes, the Ciymehs from Ballinteer. Nice people.

gurramok

Only 26. He's in Paradise now :rolleyes:

Foxhound38

Cue the usual smartarsed remarks from people pontificating from the safety of their laptops. The lad was braver than anyone here, of that I'm sure. It's a shame he threw his life away, I hope Syria will see peace soon

Grayson

gurramok wrote: »

Only 26. He's in Paradise now :rolleyes:

Just like all the christians, jews etc...

To be fair to the lad he went off and fought what he considered injustice.

I'm a pacifist, but i don't see how going off and fighting there is any different from heading of to the spanish civil war like so many people including Hemmingway.

gurramok

Grayson wrote: »

Just like all the christians, jews etc...

To be fair to the lad he went off and fought what he considered injustice.

I'm a pacifist, but i don't see how going off and fighting there is any different from heading of to the spanish civil war like so many people including Hemmingway.

I just hope he died for freedom in his eyes rather than religion.

returnNull

young man dies in a war shocker!
where's wayne 'stormfront' molloy when you need him ?:pac:

Madam

super_furry wrote: »

Irish people have a long tradition of fighting in wars overseas for idiological reasons. Just look at the numbers of Irish that fought in the Spanish Civil War - on both sides.

They weren't fighting for a religion though.

Gatling

I bet he wished he'd stayed at home playing COD

CrabRevolution

Foxhound38 wrote: »

Cue the usual smartarsed remarks from people pontificating from the safety of their laptops. The lad was braver than anyone here, of that I'm sure. It's a shame he threw his life away, I hope Syria will see peace soon

He's braver than anyone here because nobody here went to their home country to partake in a non existant 2nd Irish civil war? Bit difficult to show your bravery when the one thing you supposedly need to prove your bravery doesnt exist.

Or do you expect Irish born people to prove their bravery by going to Syria and grabbing an AK47?

Dyr

tiger55 wrote: »

Research by the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation last month ranked Ireland as the biggest contributor per capita of rebel fighters among European countries.

We keep topping all the best charts

Grayson

Madam wrote: »

They weren't fighting for a religion though.

Sure they were. Loads were fighting against communism because it was seen as being anti god.

But even then, the syrian civil war isn't about God. It might be delineated according to religion. But the religion is incidental.

Praetorian Saighdiuir

Bambi wrote: »

We keep topping all the best charts

C'mon Ireland!!!

Madam

Grayson wrote: »

Sure they were. Loads were fighting against communism because it was seen as being anti god.

But even then, the syrian civil war isn't about God. It might be delineated according to religion. But the religion is incidental.

I had thought they were fighting against facism not communisim at that time.

Pinewoo

Hard to have sympathy for someone who consciously makes the effort to travel thousands of miles to essentially kill people and gets killed himself. I (or anyone here) is in no position to assume he was fighting on the "good" side. I'm sure the families of those who get killed fighting for Bashar al-Assad feel the same way as this lads family now.

super_furry

Madam wrote: »

They weren't fighting for a religion though.

In the Spanish civil war? Of course they were, sure the Irish Brigade went over there because Catholic clergy were being executed. You could argue that the war in Syria now has less to do with religion that the Spanish civil war.

thiarfearr

He wasn't Irish? Says he's Jordanian born, and fighting in Syria

Pinewoo

thiarfearr wrote: »

He wasn't Irish? Says he's Jordanian born, and fighting in Syria

Sure he was Irish, I heard he loved mashed potatoes and nothing more than drinking in the Irish bars in Australia wearing his local GAA jersey.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Madam wrote: »

They weren't fighting for a religion though.

They had their own reasons to go off to fight, he had his & fair f*cks to him for having the courage of his convictions.

Pity more people don't care about Syria.

Muslims killing Muslims always reminds me of 'Black on Black' killings in the USA, no one cares.

Or a saying I often repeat (I picked it up in Lebanon)..

'When a Christian kills a Muslim its a crusade.. When a Jew kills a Muslim its a massacre.. But when a Muslim kills a Muslim its like the weather report and no one gives a sh*t'.

Grayson

Madam wrote: »

I had thought they were fighting against facism not communisim at that time.

They did both. Eoin O'Duffy fought with Franco.

EDIT:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Brigade_(Spanish_Civil_War)

Following the well-publicised murders of over 4,000 clerics in the first weeks of the war, the Irish Catholic primate Cardinal MacRory was approached in early August 1936 by the Spanish nationalist Count Ramírez de Arellano, a Carlist from Navarre, for help for the nationalist rebels. MacRory suggested that O'Duffy was the best man to help, as his politics were supportive and he had organised the enormous Dublin Eucharistic Congress in 1932.[1] In 1935 O'Duffy had formed the National Corporate Party, a small fascist group, and hoped that its involvement in Spain would increase its popular vote. He travelled to Spain later in 1936 to meet Franco and Ramírez, promising that 5,000 volunteers would follow him.

Franco's desire for Irish support then changed in an opportunist manner. Early in the war when Franco was one of a group of rebel generals, he felt that encouraging the Irish involvement would cement his support from the equally religious-minded Carlist groups, and so ensure his leadership of the nationalists. By December 1936 he was certain of the Carlists' support, and thereafter played down the need for any Irish volunteers.

Support for Irish involvement was based primarily on the Catholic ethos of most Irish people, as distinct from their opinion on Spanish politics per se. Many Irish Independent newspaper editorials endorsed the idea, and on 10 August 1936 it published a letter from O'Duffy seeking assistance for his "anti-Red Crusade". The Catholic Church was naturally on side. Many local government County Councils passed resolutions in support, starting with Clonmel on 21 August. While the Irish leader de Valera remained strictly neutral, in line with the multi-national Non-Intervention Committee, his publicist Aodh de Blacam wrote "For God and Spain".

This support was mirrored outside the Irish Free State. In the USA the largely Catholic Irish American community was in a minority that supported Franco and the rebels, but a proposal in the US Congress to allow sales of arms to the Spanish Republic was opposed successfully by a campaign led by the Catholic Joseph Kennedy.[2] In Northern Ireland, support was so strong in the Catholic minority that it largely abandoned the Northern Ireland Labour Party, whose leader Harry Midgley supported the Spanish Republic (Midgley was greeted at one party meeting with chants of "we want Franco").[3]

Madam

super_furry wrote: »

In the Spanish civil war? Of course they were, sure the Irish Brigade went over there because Catholic clergy were being executed. You could argue that the war in Syria now has less to do with religion that the Spanish civil war.

You think that was the only reason young Irishmen went to Spain(because priests were being executed)? What about the young British men who left their country to fight!

Oh now I'm interested in finding out more about the Spanish Civil War(I must admit I don't know a lot about it:o)

The things Boards get you into;)

super_furry

There's a load of fascinating stuff about it out there http://irelandscw.com/index.html is good and giving an overview at the two group of Irishmen who went over to fight on opposite sides.

Hownowcow

Irish people went to Spain to fight on both sides during the Spanish civil war.

However the report on Irish people being killed in the current violence in Syria is obviously wrong. While there may be Irish people fighting there, on either side, there has as yet been no reports of any fatalities to my knowledge.

weldoninhio

Grayson wrote: »

Just like all the christians, jews etc...

To be fair to the lad he went off and fought what he considered injustice.

I'm a pacifist, but i don't see how going off and fighting there is any different from heading of to the spanish civil war like so many people including Hemmingway.

Just like the lads that joined the IRA.

Celly Smunt

weldoninhio wrote: »

Just like the lads that joined the IRA.

Is that an input,a de-railing or a proposal of an argument?

weldoninhio

pmcmahon wrote: »

Is that an input,a de-railing or a proposal of an argument?

Its an argument, people are saying fair play to this lad for standing up against the government for what he thinks is right and that he is brave for doing it. But when people on this island did it, they were murderers and cowards.

It seems an absurd change of perspective.

Celly Smunt

weldoninhio wrote: »

Its an argument, people are saying fair play to this lad for standing up against the government for what he thinks is right and that he is brave for doing it. But when people on this island did it, they were murderers and cowards.

It seems an absurd change of perspective.

Nobody mentioned the IRA in this thread,the IRA were a two sided coin they weren't murderers when they targeted military targets however they were when they targeted and killed civilians.

arybvtcw0eolkf

weldoninhio wrote: »

Its an argument, people are saying fair play to this lad for standing up against the government for what he thinks is right and that he is brave for doing it. But when people on this island did it, they were murderers and cowards.

It seems an absurd change of perspective.

There's a difference between a man (or woman) who'll risk standing toe to toe with his enemy and one who will shoot a father waiting to pick the kids up from school or put bombs in bins, shops, pubs, cafes etc and walks safely away.

weldoninhio

Ronnie Tangy Pancake wrote: »

There's a difference between a man (or woman) who'll risk standing toe to toe with his enemy and one who will shoot a father waiting to pick the kids up from school or put bombs in bins, shops, pubs, cafes etc and walks safely away.

I follow quite a few Syrians on twitter. Normal people are dodging snipers from both sides, getting caught in explosions and fire fights, women dragged from their homes and getting their heads shaved by these "brave" rebels.

Quite the difference :rolleyes: