A neighborhood in Homs, Syria, typifies the destruction wreaked on this country by a bitter civil war
For the past year and a half, the country of Syria has been engaged in a violent civil war. On March 15, 2011, protesters demonstrated against President Bashar al-Assad, demanding his resignation and attempting to end almost five decades of rule by the Ba’ath Party. President al-Assad had succeeded his father, the ruler of Syria for 29 years, and won unopposed elections in 2000 and 2007. While he was initially thought to be a fair and democratic ruler, increasingly, Bashar al-Assad has created a society where its citizens are punished or even imprisoned or tortured for expressing criticism toward the government. Within Syria, al-Assad has been accused of disregarding human rights, corruption, and mismanaging the economy. Internationally, relations between Syria and the U.S are strained, in part due to U.S. support of Israel.
(Syria is one of several Middle Eastern countries that does not recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. To add to strained relations between the two Middle Eastern neighbors, Israel was able to capture the strip of land between the two countries know as the Golan Heights (see map, below) during the infamous Six Day War in 1967. A conspiracy theory also exists that Israel purchased the Golan Heights from Syria for a cool $100 million (click here to read more), and this is why Syria tolerates the Israeli occupation in this land.)
Map of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which provides a vantage point for Israel to look into Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.
In addition to strained relations between the U.S and Syria due to Israel, the U.S classifies Syria as a “state sponsor of terrorism”, which means that the U.S. believes that Syria repeatedly provides support for international terrorism.
President Bashar al-Assad of Syria
When the opposition first began, citizens were hopeful that they could topple their dictator quickly, similar to the overthrow of Mubarak in Egypt the prior month. However, the rebellion has been going on for more than 20 months, and since then, over 40,000 Syrians have been killed. Sniper warfare, where exceedingly accurate sharpshooters target specific people, has been a popular and bloody addition to this conflict.
Click here for a rare video look by CBS news at the forefront of the civil war
While the rebels have gained significant strength as the war has raged on, their biggest disadvantage continues to be their lack of air power. Sadly, the attacks on both sides continue with no end in sight. Just this past Sunday, rebels reported that a cluster bomb dropped from a Syrian warplane onto a playground killed ten children.
Syria is located in the Middle East, between Africa and Asia. (see shaded area indicated by black arrow). It is bordered by Turkey, Iraq, Jordan, Israel and Lebanon.
Some Syrian rebels have criticized the U.S. for not coming to their aid. Because Syria is a country already thought to support terrorism, the U.S is reluctant to provide weapons to the rebels for fear they will fall into the hands of terrorists.
A Syrian rebel mourns the loss of his young son in the conflict
A website has been set up to educate people on the little-reported violence occurring in this country, and particularly how it is affecting the children. Click here to read more or to donate to the cause.
Ready to take a short quiz? Click here to start.
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