Professional Documents
Culture Documents
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Contents
Introduction
Syria: Key notes
Syria conflicts:
Background & Current situation
10 simple points to understand Syria conflict
Syria chemical weapon attack
Effects on Syrians
Timeline of Situations
International Isolation
Conclusion
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INTRODUCTION
Once the centre of the Islamic Empire, Syria covers an area that has seen
invasions and occupations over the ages, from Romans and Mongols to
Crusaders and Turks. A country of fertile plains, high mountains and deserts, it
is home to diverse ethnic and religious groups, including Kurds, Armenians,
Assyrians, Christians, Druze, Alawite Shia and Arab Sunnis, the last of who
make up a majority of the Muslim population.
Modern Syria gained its independence from France in 1946, but has lived
through periods of political instability driven by the conflicting interests of
these various groups. From 1958-61 it united with Nasser's Egypt, but an army
coup restored independence before the pan-Arab nationalist Baath
(Renaissance) party took control in 1963.
The Baath government has seen authoritarian rule at home and a strong
anti-Western policy abroad, particularly under President Hafez al-Assad from
1970 to 2000. In 1967 Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel after the Arab
defeat in the Six Day War. Civil war in neighbouring Lebanon in the 1970s
allowed it to extend its political and military influence in that country. Syria
pulled its forces out of Lebanon in 2005, having come under intense
international pressure to do so after the assassination of Lebanese former Prime
Minister Rafik Hariri. A UN report implicated Syrian and pro-Syria Lebanese
officials in the killing, although Damascus still denies any involvement.
The government deals harshly with domestic opposition. Tens of
thousands are estimated to have been killed in the suppression of the 1982
uprising of the Muslim Brotherhood in Hama. Following the death of Hafez alAssad in 2000 Syria underwent a brief period of relaxation. Hundreds of
political prisoners were released, but real political freedoms and a shake-up of
the state-dominated economy never materialised.
In 2011-12 security forces used tanks, gunfire and mass arrests to try to
crush anti-government street protests inspired by the Arab Spring in Tunisia,
Egypt and Libya. These protests rapidly took on a more formal nature when the
opposition began to organise political and military wings for a long uprising
against the Baath government. As 2012 wore on, the stand-off escalated into
civil war, with defections from the governing elite signalling the steady collapse
of central authority.
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Religion
Age
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Chemical Weapons
There has been increasing pressure on the international community to act
after it emerged that chemical weapons are being used in the war.
But in August 2013, a chemical attack just outside the Syrian capital,
Damascus, caused a strong reaction from the likes of America, Britain and
France.
Now, those countries are debating how best to react to the deepening crisis.
In September 2013, United Nations inspectors confirmed that chemical
weapons had been used in Syria, but the report did not say who was responsible.
Syria, however, denies using chemical weapons, which are banned under
international law because the effects of their use are so horrific.
The government said: "there is no country in the world that uses a
weapon of ultimate destruction against its own people." It blamed the rebel
forces for the chemical attack.
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5. And pretty soon, bad guys on both sides are killing civilians
There are good and bad people on both sides. (AP Photo/Shaam News Network,
SNN) Source: AP
As Father Dave Smith says, "the way it's been depicted the last couple of
years, you get the impression the rebels are Robin Hood and his band of merry
men, and that all they want is freedom and justice for all. But that couldn't be
further from the truth."
"The situation is very bad now in Latakia province. 7 Alawite villages
were massacred. We know about the killing of 136 villagers all killed on
sectarian bases. A friend of mind lost 21 members of his relatives.
"All of my friends who were documenting the name and the events of
massacres in Latakia against Alawites are now being threatened to be killed by
FSA and Al Nusra terrorists On TV we are shown something different. It is
only propaganda. They're trying to say that Alawites are not being killed or
displaced. The truth is being hidden by mass media. .. This is sick My sister
now is very ill I guess a part of her illness is caused by sadness we are
afraid." Ghinwa, Resident of Syria
A quick recap. Alawites are the ethnicity of the ruling family. The fact
they were allegedly being killed by rebel groups suggests the rebels are not all
angels.
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6. Civilian casualties
Her bedroom was ruined, but this woman was one of the lucky ones. Source:
AP
"There are accusations of atrocities on both sides," Rodger Shanahan
confirms. We should believe some of them, absolutely. There's no accurate
confirmation, but it's a nasty horrible civil war with people on both sides getting
killed.
Dr Shanahan says there is evidence that opposition car bombs have killed
countless civilians in the name of taking out a government target. But there are
equally distressing reports that government soldiers executed civilians. Others,
shockingly, were executed for taking a moral stance and failing to follow orders
to execute civilians.
Like we said, it's a bloody mess. Literally. The death toll in the war is
now said to be well over 100,000.
7. The president's wife
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his wife Asma al-Assad. AFP PHOTO /
Gerard Cerles Source: Supplied
Allow us to break up this tale with a story of the president's wife. Her
name is Asma al-Assad and she was raised in Britain by Syrian parents. She's
smart, glamorous and she worked as an investment banker before meeting her
future husband in Britain in 2000 - just months before he became president.
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8. Refugee hell
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9. Chemical weapons
Just who unleashed the chemical weapons attack which killed hundreds
of children and other civilians last week - and why? UN weapons inspectors
arrived yesterday with a mandate to find that out. And when they do, it will
affect what the world does next.
"They have a mandate to say whether a chemical attack occurred but not
to apportion blame," Dr Shanahan cautions. "First, they have to establish
whether an incident occurred [it is still disputed by some] and at what level the
action was authorised. It is plausible that Assad didn't authorise it but a local
commander did."
10. What happens next?
The world waits. "You would think the way diplomatic manoeuvrings are
going that if there is some kind of military strike it would be quite limited," Dr
Shanahan says. "It would be punitive, not designed to tip the military balance."
In other words, no Iraq-style invasion or prolonged Western intervention.
And Father Dave's opinion of what comes next? He doesn't know. But
he's praying. He speaks of a man he met in Syria who said he's gone "from
unemployment to slavery". That's his way of saying the revolution has so far
achieved a whole bunch of nothing except bloodshed and dislocation.
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Effects on Syrians
Human Toll in conflict
100,000+ have been killed
This is a United Nations estimate. The UN believes the actual toll may be much
higher as many deaths are not reported.
2 million have fled Syria
These are the 1.93 million refugees who have registered and another 174,000
who are waiting to register with the office of the UN High Commissioner on
Refugees. The actual number is feared to be much higher.
3/4 of refugees are women and children
Almost half of the refugees are girls and women, while another quarter are boys
under 18.
Another 4 million+ are displaced inside Syria:
Aid agencies continue to increase their estimates of internally displaced people
as the fighting rages through the country.
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February 4, 2012
International officials condemn the "massacre" in the city of Homs after
an estimated 300 people are killed by a barrage of artillery fire from Syrian
government forces. Shortly thereafter, China and Russia veto a resolution by the
U.N. Security Council backing an Arab League peace plan for Syria.
August 21, 2012
President Barack Obama says Assad using chemical weapons would be a
"red line" that would "change his equation" on Syria. Opposition activists put
the death toll in the conflict at 20,000.
March 19, 2013
Rebels and the Assad regime accuse each other of using chemical
weapons to kill 25 people in the Khan al-Assal region north of Aleppo. The
White House announces there will be "consequences" if the Syrian government
is guilty of the attack. More than 6,000 people are killed in March alone,
activists say, making it the bloodiest month since the conflict began.
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August 5, 2013
Another chemical attack by the Syrian army was reported by the
opposition, who documented the injured with video footage. The activists claim
up to 400 people were affected by the attack in Adra and Houma of the
Damascus suburbs. The content of the chemicals used has not been identified
yet.
On 21 August, Syrian activists reported that Assad regime forces struck
Jobar, Zamalka, 'Ain Tirma, and Hazzah in the Eastern Ghouta region with
chemical weapons. At least 635 people were killed in a nerve gas attack. The
Ghouta chemical attacks were confirmed after a three week investigation
conducted by the UN, who also confirmed the main agent used in the chemical
attacks was sarin gas. The Mission collected clear and convincing evidence
that surface-to-surface rockets containing the nerve agent sarin were used in the
Ein Tarma, Moadamiyah and Zalmalka in the Ghouta area of Damascus. Third
party analysis of the evidence reported by the UN showed that the sarin gas was
military grade, and the rockets that delivered the sarin were likely launched
from Syrian army controlled territory.
August 21, 2013
Opposition forces claim that hundreds of people are killed in a chemical
weapons attack in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta, putting pressure on Obama
to act on his "red line" comment. The Syrian government denies using chemical
weapons.
August 26, 2013
Secretary of State John Kerry says there is enough evidence to "strongly
indicate" that the Syrian government had used chemical weapons in Ghouta,
calling the attack a "moral obscenity."
September 9, 2013
Russia urged Syria to put its' chemical weapons stockpile under
international control. The initiative was expressed in the wake of American
threat of attacking Syria after the chemical attack of August 21. On September
14, U.S. and Russia announced in Geneva that they reached a deal on how
Assad should give up his chemical weapons.
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International Isolation
On the world stage Syria became increasingly isolated in recent years,
coming under fire for its support for insurgents in Iraq and over its role in
Lebanon. That isolation showed brief signs of easing after efforts by France to
bring Syria back into the international fold in 2008, but Syria's violation of a
UN ban on arming the Lebanese Hezbollah militia led to the extension of US
sanctions in May 2010. Further international sanctions were imposed amid the
bloody repression of protests in the descent into civil war. By December 2012
the US, Turkey, Gulf states, France and Britain had recognised the main
opposition National Coalition of the Syrian Revolution as the "sole legitimate
representative of the Syrian people", signalling their belief that the Assad
government is beyond redemption.
The rise of the Al-Nusra front, a radical Islamist militia allied to alQaeda, in rebel ranks led to a marked cooling of international and regional
support for the opposition in mid-2013, and allowed the government and its
Hezbollah allies to launch a counter-offensive. The Assad governments have
been among the most intransigent opponents of peace with Israel, and have
supported several anti-Israel armed groups - most notably Hezbollah and the
Gaza-based Palestinian group Hamas. Hopes for reconciliation have repeatedly
foundered over Syria's support for these groups and the vexed question of the
Golan Heights.
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Conclusion
The Syrian conflict has drop the jaw of the U N & the world citizen is
finding hard to digest the news of a president attacking its own citizens.
Different nations of the world should upfrontly intervene the politics of
Syria & stop the massacre caused by the Syrian army. The prolonged crisis will
have adverse effects on the citizens of Syria & the refugees who fled to other
countries.
The world is experiencing the rage of world war III after such kind of
things hampering the world peace.
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