The Syrian Civil War is one of the most brutal conflicts in the Middle East. The conflict began in 2011 during Arab Spring uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa. Protests against Syria's tyrannical dictator, Bashar al-Assad, whose family has controlled the Syrian Government since 1970, began in March of 2011 after "the Syrian regime [...] launched a violent crackdown on activists demanding more economic prosperity, political freedom and civil liberties." (Almond 1). Violence first occurred during a protest in the southern city of Derra after a group of teenagers were arrested for writing political graffiti and Syrian forces killed dozens of protesters. Protesters also called for President Assad to step down and give up his power. He decided to repeal Syria's authoritarian state of emergency law that had been in effect for 48 years, which gave the government the ability to detain people at will. However, the Assad regime then sent troops to crush the uprisings in Deraa.
The protests have spread all across Syria and so has the regime's crackdown. In May of 2011, Assad sends tanks in to stop the protests in an area around Damascus (Syria's capital), Homs (a northern city), and Deraa. In June of 2011, after members of the Syrian military were killed, President Assad sent troops to take over a town in northern Syria. This caused 10,000 Syrian citizens to flee to Turkey. The next month, Syrians were killed in the province of Hama after President Assad removed the governor of Hama from power due to massive protests that occurred under his watch. The Syrians were killed because Assad sent in troops to "restore order". In November of 2011, a secular opposition group was set up, called the Syrian National Council. In the beginning of 2012, the Syrian military recaptured part of the city of Homs from the rebels and repeatedly bombed Homs. The United Nations (UN) officially condemned Assad's use of heavy weapons. The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and other nations expelled Syrian diplomats from their countries.
In July of 2012, the Western-backed Free Syrian Army achieved a major victory after they killed three of the Syrian military's security chiefs and they also captured Aleppo, Syria’s largest city. The Syrian regime faced harsh criticism from the United Nations General Assembly, who passed a resolution that calls for the resignation of President Assad. After this resolution, many high-profile Syrian officials defected from the government, including Syria's prime minister. The President of the United States, Barack Obama, warned that if the regime used chemical weapons this could result in American intervention in the conflict. In October, the United Nations had arranged a cease fire for an Islamic holiday, but violence erupted bringing an end to the cease fire. Due to the atrocities committed by the Assad regime, the United States, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Qatar, and others recognized the Syrian National Coalition as the legitimate government of Syria.
The Assad regime commited its worst human rights violations in 2013. In April of 2013, multiple US and Israeli intelligence agencies reported that chemical weapons were used in Syria by the Assad regime. A White House representative officially stated that US intelligence has lead the Obama administration to believe that sarin gas, a very deadly man-made chemical agent, was used by the Assad regime on its own people. A NATO leader acknowledged sarin gas usage but did not know who used them. French inspectors also found traces of sarin gas in samples from Syria. However, the worst chemical weapons attack occurred on August 21 when over 1,400 people were killed in a sarin gas attack performed by the Assad regime. This caused the United States to consult other nations and organize to strategically strike Syria's chemical weapons facilities. However, the strike never happened due to a lack of momentum and support from US citizens and other nations.
The almost 3-year long conflict in Syria is a bloodbath, resulting in the deaths of over 125,000 people. Over 1/3 of these casualties were civilians, and over 6,000 of them were children. Many children have also been beaten. World-renowned war crimes prosecutor David Crane and other lawyers and forensics experts found evidence of civilians who were beaten and starved to death. Thousands of refugees have also fled Syria. We choose to study the conflict in Syria because it is a breeding ground for human rights violations. We believe that the United States and the international community need to do their best to stop this debacle of a Civil War, and help remove the oppressive and tyrannical Assad regime from keeping power that they have held for far too long.
The protests have spread all across Syria and so has the regime's crackdown. In May of 2011, Assad sends tanks in to stop the protests in an area around Damascus (Syria's capital), Homs (a northern city), and Deraa. In June of 2011, after members of the Syrian military were killed, President Assad sent troops to take over a town in northern Syria. This caused 10,000 Syrian citizens to flee to Turkey. The next month, Syrians were killed in the province of Hama after President Assad removed the governor of Hama from power due to massive protests that occurred under his watch. The Syrians were killed because Assad sent in troops to "restore order". In November of 2011, a secular opposition group was set up, called the Syrian National Council. In the beginning of 2012, the Syrian military recaptured part of the city of Homs from the rebels and repeatedly bombed Homs. The United Nations (UN) officially condemned Assad's use of heavy weapons. The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and other nations expelled Syrian diplomats from their countries.
In July of 2012, the Western-backed Free Syrian Army achieved a major victory after they killed three of the Syrian military's security chiefs and they also captured Aleppo, Syria’s largest city. The Syrian regime faced harsh criticism from the United Nations General Assembly, who passed a resolution that calls for the resignation of President Assad. After this resolution, many high-profile Syrian officials defected from the government, including Syria's prime minister. The President of the United States, Barack Obama, warned that if the regime used chemical weapons this could result in American intervention in the conflict. In October, the United Nations had arranged a cease fire for an Islamic holiday, but violence erupted bringing an end to the cease fire. Due to the atrocities committed by the Assad regime, the United States, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Qatar, and others recognized the Syrian National Coalition as the legitimate government of Syria.
The Assad regime commited its worst human rights violations in 2013. In April of 2013, multiple US and Israeli intelligence agencies reported that chemical weapons were used in Syria by the Assad regime. A White House representative officially stated that US intelligence has lead the Obama administration to believe that sarin gas, a very deadly man-made chemical agent, was used by the Assad regime on its own people. A NATO leader acknowledged sarin gas usage but did not know who used them. French inspectors also found traces of sarin gas in samples from Syria. However, the worst chemical weapons attack occurred on August 21 when over 1,400 people were killed in a sarin gas attack performed by the Assad regime. This caused the United States to consult other nations and organize to strategically strike Syria's chemical weapons facilities. However, the strike never happened due to a lack of momentum and support from US citizens and other nations.
The almost 3-year long conflict in Syria is a bloodbath, resulting in the deaths of over 125,000 people. Over 1/3 of these casualties were civilians, and over 6,000 of them were children. Many children have also been beaten. World-renowned war crimes prosecutor David Crane and other lawyers and forensics experts found evidence of civilians who were beaten and starved to death. Thousands of refugees have also fled Syria. We choose to study the conflict in Syria because it is a breeding ground for human rights violations. We believe that the United States and the international community need to do their best to stop this debacle of a Civil War, and help remove the oppressive and tyrannical Assad regime from keeping power that they have held for far too long.