YES! Magazine, Common Dreams & Huffington Post April 7, 2017
The U.S. bombing of Syria’s Al Shayrat air base has brought more death and destruction to that country and is unlikely to deter additional war crimes by the Syrian regime. It will not ease the suffering of the Syrian people. But then it wasn’t actually meant to.
Category: Syria
Syria
Trump Alludes To Force In Responding To Syria Chemical Attack
The problem with leftist support for Syria’s Assad regime & How Syria divides the left
There is currently a tenuous ceasefire in place between Assad and the rebel groups he is fighting. According to Al Jazeera Assad has made an offer to swap prisoners with the rebels as a gesture of goodwill. [This item’s no longer available.]
Truthout July 10, 2017Interviewed Dr. Zunes
SZ: “Most credible academics and journalists on the left, while varying to some degree in their analyses, generally agree that the Syrian regime is horrifically repressive and not particularly progressive by any measure. There is also a consensus that the bulk of the armed opposition is dominated by reactionary Salafist extremists and that the largely nonviolent movement that first emerged in 2011 had strong progressive and democratic elements, but has largely been crushed. Further, the U.S. and other outside powers (Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, Russia, Iran, Hezbollah, Britain, France, etc.) should not be bombing, sending arms, providing troops or contributing to the carnage….”
Anti-war movement must listen to voices within Syria’s civil war
From Gaza to Aleppo: A Handy Guide for Defending War Crimes
In These Times, Huffington Post & ZNetwork.org October 7, 2016
Given the United States’ disastrous record in the Middle East—most critically the invasion and occupation of Iraq—and the manifold lies coming out of Washington to justify its policies, many Americans are understandably skeptical about U.S. interventions and the rationalizations used to defend them. This leads many Americans to oppose both direct intervention in Syria and the arming of rebel factions—and rightly so.
Syria after the Ceasefire
[The source link for this item’s no longer available.]
The partial ceasefire in Syria announced by the United States and Russia on February 23 has been met with less than overwhelming optimism, and, after so much bloodshed and the entrenchment of hardline positions, it is not hard to see why. The accord stipulates that the Syrian government and allied groups, including Russia, end attacks against opposition forces that are party to the agreement and these opposition forces suspend military operations. Both sides must refrain from seizing additional territory and allow “rapid, unhindered and sustained access” to humanitarian agencies. Even incomplete implementation would be good news for the Syrian people… [Full story]
Obama’s Escalation in Syria
The Progressive November 5, 2015 [and the Huffington Post]
Obama’s plan to send up to 50 U.S. Special Forces to “train, advise and assist” armed militia fighting forces of the so-called “Islamic State” in Syria marks an escalation in U.S. military involvement and raises serious legal, political, strategic, ethical, and constitutional questions and may open the way to a far larger and dangerous military entanglements.
The U.S. and ISIS
The Progressive August 26, 2014: Already U.S. planes and missiles have been attacking ISIS forces in northern Iraq. Given the real threat of a heightened genocidal campaign against Yazidis and other minorities and the risks of ISIS control expanding into the Kurdish region, even some of those normally averse to unilateral U.S. military intervention abroad were willing to acknowledge it may have been the least bad option. Within days, however, there were already indications of “mission creep”…
Ruthless regimes not impervious to civil resistance: A reply to Maged Mandour
Open Democracy November 1, 2013
Republished by International Center for Nonviolent Conflict
There is little systematic evidence to suggest that “ruthlessness” is, in and of itself, a critical variable. Maged Mandour’s article on openDemocracy, “Beyond Civil Resistance: The Case of Syria”, argues that civil resistance has been marginalized in the Syrian insurrection because it doesn’t work against “ruthless” regimes. But history doesn’t support that conclusion…
Interview: Chemical Weapons Watchdog Wins Nobel Peace Prize as U.S. Opposes Calls for WMD-Free Middle East (Video)
Democracy Now October 11, 2013; Video & Transcript
As the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons wins the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize, we look at international efforts to rid Syria and other countries — including the United States — of chemical weapons. Transcript
On Syria, most thoughtful people are torn
Open Democracy October 5, 2013
Indeed, with the exception of some neo-conservatives and other hawks who apparently have never seen an opportunity for western intervention they didn’t like and some on the far left who assume that any regime hostile to western imperialism must be progressive, I’ve generally been impressed with the maturity of the debate around Syria. Most thoughtful people are torn on these questions, myself included. Once again, however, Hashemi misrepresents me…
Opposition to intervention in Syria utilitarian, not ideological
Open Democracy September 23, 2013. Republished by
International Center on Nonviolent Conflict & SeenThis.net
In this reply to a critique by Nader Hashemi, Dr. Zunes explains that: “Whether or not a movement is primarily violent or nonviolent, what is important is whether it employs strategies and tactics that can maximize its chances of success.”
Interview: Dr. Stephen Zunes previews Obama’s Speech on Syria (audio)
WTOP Radio (Washington, DC) September 10, 2013
Dr. Stephen Zunes previews the President Obama’s speech on the Syrian dilemma. [The source link for this item is no longer available.
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Interview: Pacifica Radio, Analysis of Obama’s Speech (audio)
Pacifica Radio Network KPFA September 10, 2013
Dr. Stephen Zunes is joins Pacifica Radio Network in analyzing President Obama’s speech over potential strikes in Syria. With Host John Hamilton.
Also On U.S. Involvement In Syria, September 12, 2013 on WORT, Madison, WI
Left Voices Interview: Will Diplomatic Openings Avert a US Military Strike Against Syria? (audio)
Left Voices September 10, 2013
Dr. Stephen Zunes talks about the possible negotiated settlement over Syria’s chemical weapons and efforts to prevent U.S. military intervention [The source link and recording for this item are no longer available. Find best related links.]
The US Has No Credibility Dealing With Chemical Weapons
This is an updated and expanded version of the article “The US and Chemical Weapons: No Leg to Stand On,” originally posted in Foreign Policy in Focus on May 2, 2013.
If, as alleged, the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons, it would indeed be a serious development, constituting a breach of the Geneva Protocol of 1925… which banned the use of chemical weapons… Syria is one of only eight of the world’s 193 countries not party to the convention. However, U.S. policy regarding chemical weapons has been so inconsistent and politicized that the U.S. is in no position to take leadership in response to any use of such weaponry by Syria.
Interview on KQED’s “Forum”: Congress Set to Vote on Syria Strikes (audio)
KQED: September 29, 2013
Dr. Stephen Zunes talks with a panel that includes, David Mark, editor-in-chief of Politix, an online community focusing on national politics, and former senior editor with Politico, Robert Danin, senior fellow for Middle East and Africa studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, Steve Weber, professor of political science at UC Berkeley and author of books including “The End of Arrogance, America and the Global Competition of Ideas”, about the vote to strike Syria.
Eight Arguments Against Going to War With Syria
Truthout September 4, 2013 [Versions were also published by Future of Freedom Foundation, ZNetwork and Santa Cruz Sentinel]
Ten reasons why the U.S. should not attack Syria. The decision by President Barack Obama to first seek congressional approval of any US military action against Syria is good and important, not only on constitutional grounds but because it gives the American people an opportunity to stop it. It is critically important to convince members of Congress not to grant the president that authority.
Interview: On the Possible Intervention in Syria (audio)
Wisconsin Public Radio August 28, 2013
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Interview: What should be the US’s next step in Syria? (89.3 KPCC, National Public Radio Los Angeles audio)
KPCC (NPR) LAist AirTalk August 27, 2013
In a statement yesterday, Secretary of State John Kerry called the use of chemical weapons in Syria “a moral obscenity” that demands action from the U.S. Now the question is what action the U.S. will take against Syria for crossing the “red line” President Obama outlined against the use of chemical weapons?