ISIS

[Morrigu]

^and discover he is not a doctor - presumably a nurse

Wonder why he didn't join an organisation such as M�decins Sans Fronti�res who are ""operating medical facilities inside Syria, as well as supporting directly more than 100 clinics, health posts and field hospitals. M�decins Sans Fronti�res is also working with patients from Syria who have fled to Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq"

[Culprit]

[Jezza]

[David]

^ I could imagine plenty of reasons why a medic might not want to join that or any other registered organisation. Perhaps he didn't agree with the way it was run, or perhaps he wanted to work independent of bureaucracy. I don't see his choice to not work with them as some kind of smoking gun, and it certainly doesn't remove any legitimacy from what he was doing.

FFS, since when does an individual travelling to a war zone off their own bat to help the sick and injured have to justify their actions? How many lives did he help save while he was over there?

Unless there's suspicion that he was actually fighting for ISIS or aiding their cause in some meaningful way, give him a medal and leave him alone.

[Wokko]

Well there's the whole giving aid and comfort to the enemy thing. You know, treason.

Apart from that little chestnut, sure no worries at all.

[pietillidie]

What is Australia's official legislation concerning these things? Presumably these groups fall under some terrorist organisation list which we're officially at "war" with (whatever that means by now). I'd love to see the list given no one knows what the hell is going on and which "side" we're supporting in which particular place.

"Sorry, pal. We're only working with Al Qaeda against ISIS to stop people being killed and raped by them on that side of the river. That makes you a terrorist."

"Yes, but I saved the lives of 23 children and lost right my arm in the process."

"Wrong side of the river, buddy."

"But I don't follow al Qaeda. They just control the village my father grew up in and force the people to give them supplies. Everyone here hates them."

"River. Wrong. Side."

Brandis has been running round like a headless chook trying to keep abreast of these things; it would be interesting to know how he's managed to cover everything given the 789 splinter groups that may or may not be affiliated with some officially evil menace in some particular place the Coalition of Unknown Status we may or may not be a part of is fighting.

I'm sure these things have been discussed in dribs and drabs, but it would be worth looking where things stand overall now.

Imagine the ridiculous farce it would really be if you had the time to dig into their knowledge of these regions

[Jezza]

ISIS captures the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria which is now under threat from seeing ancient artefacts systematically destroyed by the group and in the process it apparently "controls 50% of Syria" according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights which are worrying signs for the nation as a whole.

[Jezza]

[David]

[think positive]

[David]

^ And that was just the ones the Americans ran! (Jokes, I really don't know.)

Seriously, whatever the cruelty inflicted in some of these places, there have obviously been plenty of Prisoner-of-War camps over the last century or so where injured enemy combatants were treated.

I just find it mind-boggling that anyone could consider the provision of medical services�pretty much in any context�to be treasonous, or something that should ever be punishable by law. It's crazy.

[think positive]

[David]

Changi was WW2, not Vietnam, but I get your point. Even in those places, though, I'm not 100% sure that the injured weren't treated. Correct me if I'm wrong.

(And I think you mean Guantanamo, unless there's a major Central American war I'm unfamiliar with!)

[think positive]

[David]

^ Yeah, sorry, I did notice that in hindsight. But I still want to know when and how treating sick or injured people should be considered illegal.