A front-page story in today's New York Times reports, "The United States first confirmed in April that it believed the Syrian government had used chemical weapons, and Obama administration officials responded by signaling that they would supply the rebels with weapons. But to date, none have arrived, opposition officials said....Adding to the opposition's frustration, two of its officials said that none of the weapons American officials said would be provided by the C.I.A. had yet been delivered."
Well, that's confusing. A front-page Times article on June 21, 2012, appeared under the headline, "C.I.A. Said to Aid in Steering Arms to Syrian Opposition." It began, "A small number of C.I.A. officers are operating secretly in southern Turkey, helping allies decide which Syrian opposition fighters across the border will receive arms to fight the Syrian government, according to American officials and Arab intelligence officers.The weapons, including automatic rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, ammunition and some antitank weapons, are being funneled mostly across the Turkish border by way of a shadowy network of intermediaries including Syria's Muslim Brotherhood and paid for by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, the officials said."
Another front-page Times article, published March 25, 2013, was headlined, "Arms Airlift to Syrian Rebels Expands, With Help From C.I.A." It began, "With help from the C.I.A., Arab governments and Turkey have sharply increased their military aid to Syria's opposition fighters in recent months, expanding a secret airlift of arms and equipment for the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, according to air traffic data, interviews with officials in several countries and the accounts of rebel commanders.The airlift, which began on a small scale in early 2012 and continued intermittently through last fall, expanded into a steady and much heavier flow late last year, the data shows. It has grown to include more than 160 military cargo flights by Jordanian, Saudi and Qatari military-style cargo planes landing at Esenboga Airport near Ankara, and, to a lesser degree, at other Turkish and Jordanian airports."
So which is it? Two earlier Times articles reported that the CIA was "steering" and "funneled" arms to the Syrian opposition via a "secret airlift" of "more than 160 military cargo flights. Now today's Times article reports that "none of the weapons American officials said would be provided by the C.I.A. had yet been delivered."
Maybe there's some semantic explanation for this; perhaps the weapons that haven't been delivered are ones paid for by the CIA rather than merely delivered with assistance of the CIA. Or maybe the weapons that haven't been delivered are additional ones promised after the Syrian government's first confirmed use of chemical weapons. But if that is the case, today's story should have been more clear about the distinction. The way it is written, it sounds like the CIA has not gotten the opposition any weapons at all — "none." And if that is true, it contradicts the earlier reports in the Times that were given front-page play and that have not been the subject of substantial corrections by the Times.
I suppose another possibility is that the Syrian opposition has gotten better at keeping secrets. "Have you been getting weapons from the CIA?" asks the Times reporter. "No, nothing at all from the CIA," said the Syrian rebel with a wink and a grin as he opened the FedEx box with the Langley, Va., return address and extracted a box of ammunition. "It's very frustrating."