The Syrian Civil War: What is Fueling the Violence? There is always that one person that stirs the pot in a situation that could have been solved rather quickly without them interfering. This is exactly what happened in Syria. The Syrian Civil War began when a peaceful protest when a group of teenagers who were writing anti-government graffiti on a wall. Syrian people called on their president who instead of making democratic reforms, acted in extreme violence against unarmed civilians. More than a quarter of a million people in Syria have been killed and over 10 million have been forced out of their homes. The Assad regime continues to suppress their citizens and they have begun using chemical bombs to kill thousands of Syrians and many even …show more content…
Document A has a graph that shows how unarmed and innocent civilians are being killed more than any other group of people. According to the note in the document, “It is extremely difficult to track Syria’s war casualties due to the ongoing violence... As of February 2016, total death estimates ranged from 250,000 to 470,000.” (Doc. A). This means that because the violence that is practically non stop, so many innocent lives are being taken away. Also in Document A, a picture shows how many civilians were forced to flee their homes. Around 4.5 million people were forced to flee their country. In Document B, it tells how two sects, Sunni and Alawites. The Sunnis represent the opposing force while the Alawites represent the Assad regime. Both sides have been continuously holding each other responsible for violations real and perceived. In the document, it states, “This dynamic has given rise to a grim, self-perpetuating cycle of sectarian violence with civilians increasingly suffering on both sides.” (Doc. B). This means that the battle between the two sides is has been continuing indefinitely. This relates to the claim that this is driving the Syrian War into intense brutality because it shows how so many civilians are getting killed because of ongoing violence either by themselves or by the government that is supposed to protect
The war in Syria has been going on for six years now, killing more than a quarter million people and forcing over 10 million people to leave their homes. It has started with a peaceful protest and is now a full on genocide of people dying. The protest was for the arrest and torturing of Syrian teens for the graffiti of their anti government on a wall. When people form other people that were tired of the government saw this, they wanted their president to make major reforms of their democracy. He didn't like that, so he responded with a violent reaction. He killed thousands of Syrians and more from starvation. As the war went on, more people came in to play a role in the war. These people were from many different places. It has gotten so bad that politicians don't know what to do to stop it.
Carpenter, Ted Galen. "Tangled Web: The Syrian Civil War And Its Implications." Mediterranean Quarterly 24.1 (2013): 1-11. Academic Search Premier. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
Turkish-Syrian relations have almost always been soured and hostile in some fashion, dating back as early as the 1500’s. With a perpetual tit-for-tat policy and retaliation method that has been in effect between the two nations, it wasn’t until around 2003 or so in which Turkish relations to Syria had turned mostly friendly in response to the United States’ invasion of Iraq and Assad growing concerned over Syria being invaded as well. To gain more allies and help deter against this, Assad looked to Turkey for support, who was not only happy to better their ties with Syria, but was also in strong disagreement with the United States’ decision to invade Iraq as well. That is until the last five years in which the acting government in Syria has become increasingly more violent and hostile to it’s own people; essentially forcing the Turkish government to reject the growing friendly ties in the name of democracy. The geographic placement of Turkey in relation to the Middle-East and Europe, and particularly Syria, puts the country as a whole in a precarious situation from multiple powerful influences, such as NATO, the EU as well as the UN, and on the inverse, major Islamic figures and traditions held in the region. Because of this, Turkish history has been shaped and formed from the two major influences pulling on the country in very contrasting ways: The west, and the benefits of modernity and non-secularism in the state, and the East, and the fundamental religious beliefs of many who reside there who do not wish to break tradition or stray from their fundamental beliefs. Today is no different, although Turkey is increasingly leaning to the western state of mind and politics as a result of the shaky rela...
The Syrian Crisis began almost three years ago. Since then, the killings, the bombings and the fleeing haven’t stopped. Obama’s administration was blamed for letting the Assad regime, which is an Alawite minority, tyrannize its Sunni people who are a majority, for all this time, and for allowing the radical jihadist power, a part of the opposition, to benefit from the uprising.
The initiation of the Syrian War was heavily influenced by the (what was supposed to be a peaceful) protest. As well as the many deaths of the Syrian citizens. These conflicts helped citizens realize all the issues that were going on at the time. There were many causes for the violence that went on during the Syrian Civil War. It can be inferred that the three main aspects that fueled the violence of the Syrian War were due to foreign influence, sectarian opposition, and conflicts between opposing groups.
"You go to schools where Syrian refugees are and you see that their drawings are mostly of houses being bombed, or people being killed or bodies on ground," "This trauma by violence is the biggest threat for the future of Syria,” says Guterres. "Girls are driven to prostitution by their own families. It’s a tragedy," (Aljazeera). The Syrian civil war was started by the lack of responsibility Assad and the Syrian Government had for their people. Assad wasn’t to be ruler at all though. Assad doesn’t understand the true human emotion that the Syrian people feel. His ruling has only increased the civil war and hatred between the two groups of people, those rebelling and the leaders of Syria, and Enlarged Syria’s crisis. The people of Syria have rights just like every other human on this earth. Therefore the government should take care of his people instead of his position of power.
BACKGROUND: In March of 2011, the unrest in Syria was just beginning, with protests g...
In late 2013 U.S. intelligence Service reporters claimed that chemical weapons have been used in Syria. In addition, during the civil war many innocent people died. Both the rebels and the government caused much destruction in Syria because of their feud. U.S. intelligence services sent reporters to Syria to collect evidence as to whether chemical weapons had been used or not. This issue was addressed by the foreign policy editor Noah Shachtman in his article “Exclusive: Intercepted Calls Prove Syrian Army Used Nerve Gas, U.S. Spies Say” when he explained, “Soil, blood, and other environmental samples were positive for reactions with nerve agent.” This evidence reveals that somehow chemical weapons have been used in Syria but there is still the question who is responsible for the attack. Both sides blame each other and no one knows which side used the chemicals. Despite all the destruction that the civil war caused the war is also affecting civilians who are innocent. In the same article Noah also acknowledges “There are some videos of young victims that show people who can barely breathe and twitching and also some interviews with their doctors” This evidence refers to how people are influenced because of the ...
When this happens the person or group in power my start to believe that what is harming others does not matter because it barely affects their citizens. The issue with this is that after a while what “barely affects their citizens” builds up and starts to cause issues.
Syria is currently all over the news regarding what many have to come to see as a civil war. A term like civil war needs to identify the players and the reasons for the war. In this case the players are being identified as pro government or antigovernment with a Sunni or Shia overtone. Sunni and Shia are the two major sects of Islam and both have a historical based conflict going back to the death of the Prophet Muhammad and how Muslims should be governed. This conflict has caused tensions and violence to flare up throughout Islamic history. This conflict has carried into modern times and has becoming a rallying point for Muslim people calling for change with their government and across the Middle Eastern region. The Sunni Shia conflict is major division within Islam that has and continues to shape Islam and the Middle East.
An attack on the Syrian state would fall within the boundaries of the international concept of the responsibility to protect. The crisis in Syria has escalated by protests in March 2011 calling for the release of all political prisoners. National security forces responded to widespread peaceful demonstrations with the use of brutal violence. The Syrian President Bashar al-Assad refused to stop attacks and allow for implementation of the reforms requested by the demonstrators. By July 2011, firsthand accounts emerged from witnesses, victims, and the media that government forces had subjected innocent civilians to detention, torture, and the use of heavy weaponry. The Syrian people were also subjected to the Shabiha, a largely armed state sponsored militia fighting with security forces. Al-Assad continually denied responsibility to these crimes and placed blame on the armed groups and terrorists for these actions.
The Syrian Civil War is a good example of world leaders playing by the rules of realism. The civil war began in March of 2011 as part of the Arab Spring, and by July of 2012 17,000 have died and another 170,000 fled the country (Almond). The United Nations Security Council in February of 2012 had tried t...
As the Arab Spring enters its second year, major uprisings and revolts have occurred all over the Middle East, pushing for an end to the corrupt autocratic rule and an expansion of civil liberties and political rights. Most recently, images from Syria have emerged, depicting the government’s use of force to suppress the voice of its people. One might ask, “Is this the beginning of a revolution? Is the country on the path to democracy?” To assess this question and examine the future trends in the region, one must look back on the country’s somewhat tumultuous history, the relationship between the citizens and the state, and the political economy.
In March 2011 Syria’s government, led by Pres. Bashar al-Assad, faced an unprecedented challenge to its authority when pro-democracy protests erupted throughout the country. Protesters demanded an end to the authoritarian practices of the Assad regime, in place since Assad’s father, Ḥafiz al-Assad, became president in 1971. The Syrian government used violence to suppress demonstrations, making extensive use of police, military, and paramilitary forces. Opposition militias began to form in 2011, and by 2012 the conflict had expanded into a full-fledged civil war.
Syria, formally known as The Arab Republic of Syria, has been under turmoil for the past four years. This turmoil erupted as a result of the Syrians being dissatisfied with their leader, President Bashar Al Assad, and his failure to bring economic and political reform. Shortly afterwards, people began anti-government protests, and that marked the start of the Syrian Civil War. Soon enough, the war had turned frightening as countless groups with different agendas began joining the war. Not a day went by where the Syrians did not lose one of their own. Innumerable families were forced to flee the country while others, traumatized and holding on to dear life, stayed put considering they could not leave everything they had built behind. Slowly,