By Fareed Zakaria, CNN
Kofi Annan’s resignation as the U.N. and Arab League joint special envoy is a blow to any hopes that the situation in Syria could go down a stable path. It has also dashed hopes that an early route could be found to an inclusive government that could oversee decreasing levels of violence. Annan represented the possibility of something positive for Syria, and his departure is a sign that things are going to continue to spiral downwards.
There are two basic problems in Syria – an internal and an external political divide. The internal divide is evident every day. We have a brutal regime that is using maximum force, one that is making no concessions and that is simply holding onto power by any means possible. That is the principle problem in Syria, and one that can only be resolved if Bashar al-Assad and the people around him are deposed from power.
But there’s also a sectarian problem in Syria as is evidenced by the fact that minorities, who comprise 40 percent of the population, don’t seem to have joined the opposition. The Alawites, of course, who make up about 12 percent of Syria, are sticking with the Alawite-dominated regime. But the Christians appear to be doing so as well, for fear of what would happen to them in a majoritarian and more Islamist Syria. Other Syrian minorities such as the Kurds also don’t seem part of the Free Syria Army.
Right now, the battle is between an Alawite regime and a Sunni opposition. If this conflict really does become increasingly sectarian in nature, then we really may have even greater problems ahead. Think of the example of Iraq, where a Sunni-dominated regime was toppled, but then unleashed sectarian conflict.
What Syria needs is an end to the Assad regime but then some kind of political deal between the old and new guard. The core elements of the regime would have to step down or be ousted. But the opposition would also need to accept a post-al-Assad scenario in which some elements of the old system are kept in place, if only so that those elements don’t fight until the bitter end.
The second divide is the external divide, between the West on one side and China, Russia and Iran on the other. The Chinese, Russians and most importantly the Iranians are supporting the regime for different reasons. For the Iranians, Syria is their strongest ally and proxy in the region. Tehran is all in – it has bet on this regime, which is a source of regional influence, and so it has tried to prop it up. There’s a sectarian element to this – the Iranians see the Alawites as a quasi-Shiite regime. (Incidentally, this is why the Shiite prime minister of Iraq has also been somewhat supportive of the Syrian regime, an irony for those expecting him to support the American – or the humanitarian – position.)
The Russians and Chinese, meanwhile, support the regime as much as anything because they don’t believe the West should have the authority to topple regimes it doesn’t like. They feel that the West exceeded its mandate in Libya and, most of all, they don’t like the idea of establishing a principle of international law under which if a regime is suppressing its own people, outside forces can come in and topple it. After all, what happens the next time there are protests against the Kremlin in Moscow?
In fact, the Russians don’t really have very deep ties to the Syrians, while the Chinese have almost none. With this in mind, you’d have thought it might be possible to have the Security Council come together and put more pressure on the Syrian regime, something which would then isolate Iran as the lone sponsor of the brutal crackdown. But clearly the Russians and Chinese have dug their heels in.
So, where does that leave us? I’ve always believed that Syria would see a slow, painful burn. The regime will not fall easily and there’s no easy international intervention that that will make it fall. And when it does fall, it is unlikely that we will see a relatively stable transition to a post-al-Assad democratic Syria. Instead, what you’re likely to see is more of the same – a very messy situation that may well resemble the civil war in Lebanon in the 1980s. Then, we had a conflict that went on for years without a clear resolution and left the country to become a staging ground for perpetual violence. I fear the same fate might befall Syria, too.
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I wander if anyone of the super-parties ever look at Syria from the point of view of people who actually live there. Or did they just looked it up on their dusted statistics or previously successful tactics? Everything done externally so far on the States with Islam majority actually lacked an in debt study leave alone an understanding of the Islamic way of doing things nor the Islamic structure.
Is someone trying to rush in a Magna Carta into Islam with the terms of the 13th century? If so, I believe there are a huge amount of amendments to be done both on the structure, specifications and the scope of the agreement. And this should not be done on a gun's point as it was done in the 1200's.
For World Peace please those who have a nostalgia of going back to the middle ages. Concider twice. The world has changed.
Until you me mentioned it I would never of thought of them as human. Good thing you said something.
That’s really hurt. Thanks for your humanity.
I appologize for him, but to be frank, He's frusterated, and so are the rest of us. The barbarics need to stop. Our world is cancered by it. if Moderates in islam are practicing it truly and the extrimists are to blame, then help us out. But if you're not practicing islam the way it should be (which may be the way extremists practice) then help yourself.
Another brilliant redneck American response. Obviously you have done a lot of reading and travelling!
Muslims are human?
Joyce you get on a plane once to go from the crap hole you were born in to america and all of a sudden you are a globe trotter. Muslims are liars.
Muslims are not liars and we do not like violence. Only those who say they represent us are.
It's amazing how hurtful we can be towards one another. I respect everyone's right to there own opinion, whether Ur kkk or black panther, nazi, al queda, or naacp. Your opinions may be archaic and racist, but they are your opinion, I can respect that. But needless hateful comments such as this actually bring us back years. I don't care if you dislike Muslims because you think they are terrorists, or blacks because they are lazy, or rich because they have no souls. I don't care if you think Mexicans are drug dealers stealing legal citizens jobs. You should try to get to know someone before you start spewing hate though. I find Muslims to be some of the most humble and honest human beings. Blacks tend to be the most understanding people I know. Mexicans are the hardest working of all ethnicities. If you got a problem with illegals taking your job then put down that mcdonalds, get off your lazy you know what, and get a job, and work that same you know what off.
This isn't about Islam it's about money. One Islamic sect has control, another is oppressed and everyone else, other Muslims, Christians, WHOEVER, are just caught in the Middle.
EVERYTHING that has happened revolution wise in the Middle East has been about money, even the mini revolution in Iran that died aborning was pushed along by economics.
It's STILL the economy, stupid, wherever you go.
You so realize that everything that happens is always fundamentally about money right?
Here's what ya doo..have 7 games of soccer between Assad's side & the FSA..winnder of best 4 out of 7 wins. Loser gets gift coupons for McDonald's..Wal-Mart..it's dat kind of a world. Lebanon used to have great blonde hashish.
Can you calm down? you are basically accusing people of hate and calling them liars, when you are the one spreading your hate. What does that say about you as a person? huh?
Unfortunately Assad is no longer sane enough to judge the reality on the ground. His days are numbered and we're doing the counting.
Syria's fate has been so intricately intertwined with that of its neighbours. The entire area has been a patchwork of sectarian and ethnic enclaves that has seen bouts of religiously motivated violence many times in history. Syria as a nation state is still a relatively recent invention. Cross-border loyalties to the sect and the tribe trigger fear of the regime. Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey, are unfortunately vivid examples.
Assad's time is over, but what is next.
There is always something wrong with a leader who still clings to his power even after seeing a dead infant with a pacifier still in its mouth.
I believe Assad's time is over, probably around the second lunar eclipse November of 2012. I really believe something bigger than him and Syria is going on out of this chaos. People need to pay more attention what is going on in the middle east these days. This world is a smaller place now, the axis of this earth has changed, the atmosphere has literally changed. Is it for the better? Don't know, have to run forward to see what the end will be and only hope that there will be something to reap from anything sown. People just take too much for granted including me, life is so short no matter how long to us it might seem.
From None Sryian Users to be Saying the following.
(His days are numbered and we're doing the counting.)
And this.
Tom Masri
Assad's time is over, but what is next.
How many times are going you rebel supporters going to keep saying that? you claimed that last three weeks ago and once again your doing it again.
I guess CNN, and you two users support the FSA terrorists who are nothing more then the mujahideen fighters.
our gov't sees things through the eyes of their agendas-we are their puppets,to them,they are the masters
You nailed the moslem world and governing style.
......the western world as well...don't let them fool you
we are from there and dont want assad he has murdered people without a single feeling of guilt. He and his regime is the worst ever you can compare him to mordern age hitler
I have to ask this question to Fareed and all other rebel sympathizers......who started the conflict in Syria? You all know who started? Saudi Arabia. Turkey and Qatar! These countries working on this since 2003-2004. You may heard and known about this but will never admit to it but this a well known fact, my friends. This war was created mainly by these three countries (sunni countries with the backing of USA) for fear of Shia dominance in the region. So this is purely a religious war of atrocities......if any one think that these countries (especially Saudis and Qataries) are trying to bring democracy in Syria is the biggest fool of all or conveniently pretending to be fool because believe me the rulers of these countries are dictator themselves who are oppressors of their own people! So what they are doing in Syria??? The peaceful demonstration that started 17 months ago in Syria was sham......the planning for military intervention in Syria started several years ago. Listen to recent revealations by media......Turkey and USA have been training rebels for a long time in Turkey (funded by Saudis and Qataris) before the so called peaceful demonstration started in Syria!
I am seeing replay of 1980s when USA was arming the Mujahdins fight against Russians in Afghanistan.......and those same Mujahdins later (now known as Taliban) turned against USA and other countries .....and I see this happening again and this time I see countries like Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey targets of Islamists who are currently fighting their war in Syria.....!!!
Obviously you have forgotten the billions killed by .Moslems since the beginning.
The Arab League is actually offering a safe exit for Al-Asad. Again, Muslims didn't kill people, we were led to.
@Ekram This is one reason why the USA response is very muted and in the background, in spite of what the regime sympathisers allege. The USA is not going to provide Stinger missiles again, unlike in Afghanistan. It seems most Syrians would like to see 'regime change.' But to what new regime? I know syrians who really want to become more integrated into the rest of the world. Syrians are very well educated, largely secular-leaning and free of the worst cultural backwardness that afflicts other ME countries, including (especially) Saudia Arabia. But, for decades they have been in the grip of the Assad mafia government. Freedom will come, but Fareed is correct about a difficult future, I fear.
Nadia as your name suggests your not even a Sryian and yet.
'we are from there and dont want assad he has murdered people without a single feeling of guilt. He and his regime is the worst ever you can compare him to mordern age hitler"
Assad is no hitler, hitler killed at least nearly a million people around the world compressions like these really show how weak your education really is.
"What Syria needs is an end to the Assad regime but then some kind of political deal between the old and new guard. The core elements of the regime would have to step down or be ousted. But the opposition would also need to accept a post-al-Assad scenario in which some elements of the old system are kept in place, if only so that those elements don’t fight until the bitter end."
That explains American stance on Syria issue. It is not Chinese or Russians to blaime.
"an irony for those expecting him to support the American – or the humanitarian – position." Zakaria wrote of the above referring to Iraqi Maliki alleged support for Asad. But what has America got to do with Syria? If America is really concerned about humanitarian issues, there are plenty of government, including my own Ethiopia, who rely on US support to rule with Iron fist.
Jon, you claim that you know Syrian people are well educated and secular minded but these same things were said about Iraqi people.........and we all know what these so called educated and secular Iraqis are doing to each other since Saddam Husain been toppled? Killing each other every day.....and for what? Shia-sunni war of dominance! Who is fighting this war? Islamists/al-Queda! And I see same thing happening in Syria after Assad is gone......and we all know he will be gone soon.....but the killings will go on long after his departure!
Zakaria is such a blatant lier. He predicted 12 months ago that Assad would fall in 6 months. And now he is saying "I always believed in a protracted conflict". Shame on you Zakaria. You always try to look smart afetr the fact.
At least, unlike your screed, he has reason on his side. Who can predict just how fast a regime will fall?
wander if anyone of the super-parties ever look at Syria from the point of view of people who actually live there.
-------------------------------------------------–
The answer is no.
People mean nothing to Assad.
People mean nothing to those in control.
People mean nothing, they are just like cattle,
a resource to be used as needed.
Nations/countries are more like farms.
You toe the line and contribute, we leave you alone.
When a country/nation gets out of hand, it has to be put down.
We dont want other cattle to get upset and rise up.
Syria is a farm out of control.
Those who are in charge, dont care how it gets fixed,
as long as it does.
Think of the world as a corporation.
You have one department in trouble.
You send in another department to fix it.
You then have other departments that get upset
about the fix, because it will affect your department.
Welcome to reality.
Some are sheep.
Most are cattle.
Does anyone remember when there were no "Weapons of Mass Destruction" found in Iraq? How about when it was said that they where moved to Damascus? Any bets on what will eventually happen??????
With the tenacity of the free syria army, al assad will crumble in 2 weeks
"The Russians [...] don’t like the idea of establishing a principle of international law under which if a regime is suppressing its own people, outside forces can come in and topple it."
How does this square with Russian intervention in Georgia in 2008? (Granted, the government of Georgia wasn't toppled.)
"In fact, the Russians don’t really have very deep ties to the Syrians..."
Syria was the Soviet Union's closest ally in the Arab World. Russia remains Syria's main arms supplier (to the tune of several billion dollars) and maintains a naval base at Tartus–their only base directly on the Mediterranean. Russia also does billions of dollars of non-military trade with Syria.
I think it is fairly clear that the Russia, along with China, view Syria and Iran as assets for maintaining and extending their influence in the Middle East, particularly in the face of the strong position currently held by the West. This is not to say that I would favor American military involvement in Syria, or that I considered Kofi Annan's efforts a waste of time. But Russia's actions at the UN are about far more than principles of nonintervention and national sovereignty, for which Russia has no real concern.
> How does this square with Russian intervention in Georgia in 2008?
Russia did not say it was an international law, dude... and as you noted – nobody toppled a puppet in Tbilisi. He is still there.
Russians have killed the Georgian Pres and Chezneyan (sp) Pres in the past. You think the guy seen there today was always there? Sap.
american gov'ts have killed their own fair share of world leaders-or imprisoned them-ask Noriega
screw Western influence in the region, who cares, Be our buddy and we can pillage together! and work internationally on projects that better humanity, not east vs. west
Mr. Zakaria,
When you mentioned "principle problem", did you mean "principal?"
I also do agree that the reason Russia and China are not meeting Western demands is because of their own rebellious (separatist) groups in their territories. They are exercising their sovereignty as a way to quell down dissidence. If, for any chance, they vow their support for the opposition, then opposition will rise against their own territories even more.
no he spelled it correctly in the context for which he was using the word "principle"......buy a dictionary
Perhaps *you* should check your dictionary, and while you're at it, look up the meaning of "constructive engagement".
Zakaria should have used the word "principal" which means "major", not the word "principle" which means "idea".
I agree that "principal" was likely the intended word here, but it seems to me both words are quite apt.
"principal" is the best spelling in this context. But really, we are talking about the future and the lives of an important ME nation, one that hosts some of the most important archeological remains of early civilization and culture. So, let's at least focus on the main issues and not the trivia such as CNN editors with poor English (I doubt that Fareed edited this text).
fracture into a million pieces-now with the coming of democracy and republicaism in the mid east a perod of halcyon days. oh wait that is fiction according to the vaunted foreign policy gurus who of course predicted thsi fisasco.
next stop Saudi . and us without the need to kow tow
not looking good for the Royals- see Guns of August Tuchman
Syria is already like Lebanon.
Lebanon's case is different than the current Syrian problem. You have muslim countries involved now like KSA and Qatar financing there sunni parties while the Iranians are helping the Alawite and Chiites.
Syria took advantage of Lebanon and kidnapped/killed/ stole our money and areas and we've always thought "they have their days, the Lord never leaves his people".
Lebanon in the 80s had 70% christians and the muslim, alawite, druz, jews and so one were a minority. Chriatians have immigrated and they wanted to put the palestians in our country. It worked somehow. But what led lebanon to have a civil war is the christian parties, one wants to kick the palestinian and the others no. Our war was not because of oppression, it's because of external influence. Lebanon is diversified with his people and they took advantage of the 17 sects it had and still does.
Our problem has always been with the noisy bad neighbors from syria, to the gul countries to especially Israel and wanting to create a country and kick out the Palestine.
Outsiders.F"""off.
Lyla God bless you along with other free lebanese people....but do you really think average site visitors can really dig what you said?? unfortunately I guess not
Sadly I say that what goes around comes around. But the civil war in Syria would become a lose canon, in time, shooting at Israel. There is no-win situation in the Middle East, unless the Israeli and the Palestinian forge a real peace deal.
Palestinian government doesn't want peace. I've seen it first hand, they want israel, they hate the u.s. Why is it that when we over here see innocent people dying over there, we feel bad for them, then when the trade towers went down, it looked like their entire nation had a party. It's honestly sickening to see such hate towards mankind.
We are fighting a war that is not started by us. And then we ask ourselves if we deserve its consequences. Among the majority, peace-loving american Christians, Arab Muslims and Jews alike, there is always malignant voices fueling hatred.
Hate is the main demeanor of the Palestinian people. It is just because they never had the time and the chance to reflect on their own. The Arab countries championed their fight by using them for greed while making sure the Palestinian people live like rats in their scattered refugee camps around the Arab worlds that invited the Muslims extremist fanataic and the Ayatollahs of Iran to champion their cause. Israel has as much to blame.
Pro Israelis think everybody is fool who can be silenced by few well crafted words. Talking of Arabs and Palestinians, they allege that the Arabs hate American and they do not want peace. Can any one tell why people 5000 miles away hate America for no reason and refuse peace when they are mowed down by a superior force they cannot dare to challenge. War can only benefits those who can destroy and crush their opponents, but for Palestinians it cannot be a weapon of choice. It is rather imposed on them and maintained by the excuses, "they hate American. do not want peace" ......................... and you name it.
Rene of mandeville nailed it. That country will fracture into several pieces. Those pieces will resemble the tribal territories of ages past. Get ready to have new Middle Eastern countries. New non-democratic countries.
Zakaria you are a terrorist!!
When is discussing the lack of peaceful solutions make someone a terrorist?
The "REAL" terror has been the lack of compassion for humanity shown by the powers behind the scene. What you see in Syria is cold strategy being played out at the cost of the lives of the innocent.
Beub! better watching the kardashian and reading entertainment tonight rather than typing stupid sentences.
Another classy individual who thinks all Muslims are terrorists! Brilliant! Very sophisticated and well-read!
If Moslems do not want to be seen as terrorists then Moslems should not act like terrorists.
Stop stereotyping all Muslims. These are brain-washed extremists you are referring to. Most Muslims want to live peacefully and contribute to the well-beings of mankind as a whole and the environment.
you are stupid idiot. Somebody who understands political sysem well gives you the facts about Syria and Lebanon, you consider that person as a terrorist? You need a new brain
Moron.
Thank got we can always count on Zakaria to provide reason and objectivity in an otherwise irrational and partisan atmosphere.
the russians don't have deep ties?....they sell billions in arms to syria.....thats pretty deep.....this fareed zakaria is just as stupid as his towel head buddies across the pond
*** the russians don't have deep ties?....they sell billions in arms to syria.....thats pretty deep.....
No, thats pretty shallow.
The only thing the Russians care about is thier Naval base.
Russia is owed billions of $ by the Syrian goverment and the contracts were signed by Assad. Those contracts will be worth nothing if the Assad goverment is overthrown because a new goverment in Syria will never pay for them. Yes, the Russians care very much about $.
We know the price of Arab pride. Israeli tanks could be in Damascas in 48 hours. Of course the price would probably be a commitment that Golan Heights, and the West Bank are part of Israel proper. So now we have a price on civilians lives. Better for them to die then to ask help from an odious enemy.
If one Israeli soldier set foot in Syria
the world wide Muslim population would be screaming for jihad.
They already are, so what's your point?
Moslems live in constant jihad
Settling differences peacefully is a greater jihad than bearing arms.
and syria will never be like lebanon.....they dont have any oil.....hence the lack of American involvement thus far
Lebanon also has no oil, but US was there to protect other interest, not just oil interest that you can easily think ! too narrow minded.
So true.
are you an idiot? Everthing you say is ignorant. You seem to be a bored child who has nothing better to do than say dumb things.
a full quarter of all the terrorist during the Iraq war were either syrian or came through that country to kill americans. when all thats left is assad, then, maybe the U.S. should get invovled
The Libyan people fought a war against their dictator and have now voted in legislators who are non-Islamist. They are a country divided by tribal factions, but apparently not religious factionalism, which is different from the situation in Syria. Can there be any hope that the Syrian people might free themselves from dictatorship and not dissolve into civil war?
No hope.
"In fact, the Russians don’t really have very deep ties to the Syrians" – The author just lost all credibility by saying that.
Russia has had financial ties with many middle eastern countries. A few billion in arm sales don't amount to much when your economy is a couple of trillion dollars. They wont be upset when Assad is brought down. They are supporting Assad in the UN because it's cheap and they don't like the precedent of the west toppling friendly regimes.
They and China are doing exactly the same thing as in Kosovo. The even sent a heavy armoured brigade to Kosovo. I don't recall any major War involving the west after that.
Point is the Russians will give Assad up when it becomes clear that he's losing. It's getting to that point now he's beginning to look like an embarrassment for the Russians.
The Russians don't have deep ties to Syrians??? Don't they sell millions (or billions??) in arms to Syria. Don't they have a naval base in the country?!?!! That's like saying Americans don't have any ties to Bahrain.
What's with this weird mind control Zakaria has over his followers? I mean, this guy can be wrong 99 out of a hundred times, but somehow he's still regarded as some sort of genius. Just mind boggling.
I ask this with all sincerity, since I only very seldom attend on these pages. Were you serious when you said that some people consider this Zakaria to be of exceptional intelligence?
I agree erich2112x! He says: "We have a problem." I wonder... who is we? Then lower down I discover that "WE" are the "HUMANITARIANS" and they are China, Russia and the rest of the non-humanitarians. Fahrid is always worth listening to but seldom worth agreeing with.
I absolutely love how the Western media demonizes the "Russians and Chinese who are responsible for blocking the security council from getting involved in Syria" LOL...yeah, look how much justice the UN Security council brought to Libya. Illegally killing Ghadaffi, dropping cluster bombs that violated the Geneova Convention and then handing power over the Muslim extremists. CNN has stopped covering it, but Libya has turned into Iraq. All those "rebel freedom fighters" we directly armed (illegally) and then gave air superiority too are out and about killing and avenging as they see fit – just like our thugs did in Iraq and are doing in Afghanistan. Russia and China know for a fact that these "Syrian Freedom Fighters" have been heavily armed by the west and the leaders are CIA trained. The west wants this devastation to the Middle East so they can divide and control the oil. The west has used al-Assad's "torture centers" more than he has with their renditions and their illegal detentions. If it was about human rights than why did we not get this coverage from the Darfur conflict? Why do we not hear about the Tamils and the Indian nationals whose casualties reached over 50,000 last year? Africa: no oil. India: no oil. This is such a joke. Good for China and Russia in supporting another illegal proxy take over by the west. If there was any justice al-Assad would win this civil war and send the body parts of all the civilians and soldiers who paid the price right to Washington and the CIA. They are the monsters. Our government is behind this 100% because they want the oil and they want Iran. I've heard many independent stories who report the exact opposite of CNN. It has been the extremists we have armed who are killing and extorting the civilians, not the Syrian military. If we don't get a hold on our new war government soon America, we the people are going to be sorry. Stop believing their lies, stop believing Hillary Clinton (she is the most hypocritical clown who has ever masqueraded in our government). This is a joke, let Syria do as they wish – its not like our human rights record is better than al-Assad's (in fact, its way worse). Wake up Amerika!
You are just a surrogate for anti-US but that is your right.
How can you post false outcome in Libya when they just have free elections that have established a government that seems to be functioning good so far. How pathetic false posting more you can do !
you must be joking? Libya was such a failure and has spread to Mali and Niger and the region and toppled Mali's growing democracy. When the turag fighters left Libya with new weapons, and the islamist fundamentalist (not normal ones) with al queda ties moved in the power vaccuum and mali's military fell; after they failed in their coup retreating from battle, it got worse. so, you must be joking?
As this was happening a half a year or so ago, I met a guy in maryland at my school in the bar and he was from timbuktu (which is now in the hands of these non governmental forces) and he felt his military would beat them down fast and regain control. I was reading stratfor at the time and making my own analysis and told him 'good luck' but doubted it. LIttle did he know a few months later his home and family is probably in a place he will not be able to visit anytime soon.
you sound silly in your childish statements.. libya has armed groups who refuse to give up their West / US supplied weapons and its a tribal area anyhow without ghadafi to maintain order..
Our country is as stupid as our people: ignorant, prideful, and overly romantically nationalist to the put of outright fanaticism
I don't agree with you but at least you have well-formed opinions.
The UN didnt kill Ghadaffi,
Libyans killed him.
That makes the rest of your rant, garbage.
In a lot of ways the Cold War was good for the world. The Soviets had their sphere of influence and we had ours...every now and again one side or the other would try biting off another chunk and and the side that got bitten would covertly arm domestic opposing factions pretty much just for spite or principle.
Now we discover in the post cold era one nation can be as aggressive as it wants to be, toppling regime after regime, inciting unrest in regime after regime, arming parties that will do business with it as opposed to the status quo that won't...starting rebellions and then crying when the indigenous government goes to put it down its a human rights abuse and then flying or droning in to cause more death and destruction that the indigenous government would.
Claim it's for democracy but all it leaves is a wake of destablized nations where propped up political factions through foreign aide or occupation sign plenty of corporate contracts through a system of cronyism that benefit a few priveleged individuals while the average person of the targeted nation can look forward to an uncertain future of continued unrest, death and destruction and the citiznes of America can look forward to a bankrupt treasury and no attention paid to domestic issues here.
It's time to outlaw the military industrial complex and opinion columnists who do nothing but advocate for war as it's a perfectly reasonable, healthy and productive thing.
Well said, my friend.
Well said Thomas except that we are already well past being able to outlaw anything. Syria may be in a death spiral but the US,NATO, EU, China and Russia are in a debt spiral that politicians have no way to deal with. Any ideas for how to outlaw it?
Russia had similar history and commercial ties with Libya and they felt they were burnt when the western powers jumped in Libya so forcefully. I think china just on principal dose not like outside interference resulting in regime change just because a government is brutal and evil.... They have long been brutal and evil themselves after all.
Blame this mess on the West for constantly nosing around conflicts they shouldn't be involved in, disguised as helping the "protesters" or "democratic activists". Anything to sell "democracy". And Russia, China and Iran are seen as bad guys because they refused to go along with another lie like the ones perpetrated in Iraq and Libya. As the saying goes, "fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice shame on me".
In fact let's not forget that the really dangerous dimension to this conflict may yet happen: if Syria becomes a proxy war between the East and the West. Then we have a serious problem on our collective hands.
I hope someone tells that to the warmongers like McCain, Co.
Democracy is only beneficial to those who are in majority. Wait until the majority of muslims picks pro-muslim government and Sharia law. We've been pushing democracy, like it is the solution to all problems. People are different. Cultures are different. If they have not evolved or are ready for it, we should not force our ideas of right and wrong onto anyone. Can't gain peace at the point of a gun. Otherwise, we'll be fighting for a long time.
George Bush demanded that Gaza be allowed to have fair and free elections.
They did, they elected "Hamas".
Nobody said a word.
When Egyptians overthrew Mubareck and held elections
they voted the Muslim Brotherhood in.
Republicans scream that Obama handed Egypt to the Terrorist.
Nice double standard.
Syria turmoil has nothing to do with its oppressed people or Assad regime. The invented turmoil in Syria is only a strategy to eliminate Syria and to weaken Hezbollah as pretext before Israel and the Western world lunch their war on Iran.
Well stated, Tom. How true that is!
finally, someone who knows all. Masri knows all!! tx for the info, Tom.
The NWO is the ultimate goal of the committee of 300.
Your crystal balls hard at work.
China and Russia with Iran will be biggest loser with Assad's fall. unfortunately theu don't know how to surrender or withdraw and that will be their own downfall. Russia should have learned their lessons in Afghanistan's withdrawal led to the dissolution of the Soviets. I thought Vladimir was a smart KGB, but apparently not !
You'd think U.S leaders would be dealing deficit and serious world affair like Syria but they have to pay attention to things like Chick Fill-A. I don't know what Chick Fill-A CEO gained by unnecessary provocation or what was the point behind Mr. Rahm's overreaction.
Earth to Zakaria: Syria CAUSED Lebanon...
Thank you!!
I wanted to say that : (
Will Syria become the next Lebannon? Somehow I don't think so since it's very likely that the bureaucrats in Washington D.C. are already planning to set up another pseudo-democracy there just like they did in Iraq back in 2003!!
oooooooooo............ the US is going to "set up a pseudo democracy" ....ooooooooooo Marine 5484 is friends with Masri who knows all!! ..........oooooooooooooooo marine and masri: dumb and dumber
Sam! I guess you are the dumbest of all.
You got it Sam. These two are total dorks.
The extremes always got the most attention. No good news unless it’s a bad news. The extreme fanatic Muslims are the products of humiliations. They are 1% of the Muslims population that they feel they are the Islamic soldiers to defend Islam against the Jews and the crusaders. That’s how it is. One Muslim fanatic extremist could take over a small village just by pointing his gun with little of generosity.
All muslims are guilty because they allow crimes against humanity to happen and do nothing to stop it.
What? me? I did not see anything, I did not hear anything, I did not know, I was not there that day...
Excuses ad infinitum!
Actions speak louder than words.
How interesting that Syria, which interfered in and destabilized Lebanon and others for decades, now faces a similar fate. What goes around comes around. It's not a pretty future and has risks for all.
Thank you Roger. As I lebanese, I deeply thank you for having the knowledge.
Yes. You said it all.
and behind the scene the puppet master Iran with their connection to Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Fog of war is thickening, can we get off the steroids yet? climb down off our little pedestal?
no... we can't, there is too much power up for grabs, Our financial and political leaders are just too tempted.
Israel, I love you dearly, but I think we have to humble ourselves here... and syria, you've always been a mess along with the rest of the mideast.... time to cull the population unfortunately...
Let's not forget, how we are to pay for it all. Print, so we can borrow more money? At least now we'll have a reason to bump the debt ceiling. Who will pay the debt back? Where are we going to get the money, when a real disaster strikes?
How many more people need to die and for what? A difference of an opinion? Can people just let it be, without destroing themselves?
exactly! "nevermind the guy behind the curtain" in every decision someone usually benefits, for the rest of us, we see this as blindingly dumb and not worth it, over their, they're dying as well as our soldiers. yet the decision will go through anyways? who is reaping?
Opinions are distortions of the facts in hands.
Tom, that does not make any sense.
so lets sit back and watch, with our pina colodas, and let them have at it.
Aug 3 (Reuters) – Syria is producing about 200,000 barrels per day of crude oil and has agreed to export it to Russia in return for gasoline and diesel in return, Syria's deputy prime minister for economic affairs said on Friday.
In 2008 prior to the Presidential election the Late Gore Vidal on Hardtalk by the BBC said ' you do not remove a dictator because you hate him'. Most political systems in my opinion are products the people. If the people do not want it, they would demand a change without foreign help. A ggod example is Myanmar, were the masses have been able to bring about a change wihtout the accompanying violent actions and reactions as witnessed in other climes.
I live in Lebanon... and I don't see a sectarian outburst anytime soon. If anything, the new government in Damascus is going to do 2 things. 1, settle old scores... this means hunting down the Shabiha. 2, go after Hezbollah. Everyone over here knows that the Hezbollah fighters have been going into Syria. This is common knowledge over here, so why is the western media so aloof to it? We WATCH it from our apartments, everyday. So the new government is going to be merciless with them. That, is the thing that might make some ripples. If I were Nasrallah, I'd be looking to flee to Israel, because if the rebels get ahold of him... he'll wish he'd been captured by the Mossad. The Mossad will deal with him within certain bounds... the rebels will have no such scruples.
*** If I were Nasrallah, I'd be looking to flee to Israel,
That made me laugh.
I am sure Israel would LOVE to get its hands on him.
He would be better off putting a hand grenade up his bottom.
I understand that Hezbollah made a grave mistake by humiliating the majority of the Lebanese people by marrying the policy of the Ayatollahs. Two wrongs don’t make it right. How do you know if the Mossad don’t want the situation on the land to stay at status quo to …..
Stop blaming Israel for everything that goes wrong in the Muslim world.
Take responsibility for your own shyatt.
There are 7 millions jews in Israel and close to a billion muslims.
The bad karma that Syria created with Lebanon's civil war (1975-1990) has returned to haunt itself since Lebanon was the Jewel of the Middle East and the jealousy of the rest of the Islamic nations intruded. When is the ME going to learn that perpetual war does not create perpetual peace.
when they've killed eachother off. it's a disease of thought, and what do we do with disease? isolate,contain, remove.
If the appendix inflames badly, it must be cut out for the sake of the body.
Is Lebanon the next South Korea?
nah, the south koreans dont shoot rockets over the border to the north like the lebanese do too the Israelis.
I think its obvious that armed intervention will be required to prevent this turning into a worse case scenario. The Arab league and NATO must intervene with US logistical support. The Turkish armed forces are already being drawn into this conflict so waiting until an increasingly violent and desperate regime starts lobbing binary nerve gas shells into residential communities is hardly a good strategy.
Let the Arab league take care of and pay for it. hy do more Americans have to die and for what?!
yeaaaa.... we can't afford that. we couldn't afford the last war. I don't want my Canadian Brothers or my American friends dying for that. they made their bed, they can sleep in it. unless it hits our friends and allies then we stay out. Turkey did not invoke the "one for all, all for one" charter of NATO. so were staying caput.
Turkey is a member of NATO.
Something is going to draw Turkey into this militarily
and by treaty, NATO will have to back it up.
China will squalk but do nothing.
The only question is how Russia reacts.
I doubt Russia wants to get into a conflict
with Turkey.
The Cool thing about Nato, is you don't have to back them up. Like how Canada and France told US. of A to take a hike when wanting to illegally invade Iraq after they were hit at manhattan. We however did help them out by going after the ones that "allegedly" attacked them in Afghanistan.
I think one way to stabilize Syria would be for all parties to rally around the original idea of the Ba'ath party before it went off on a tangent - that is a strong belief in secular socialist nationalism but with a real pluralistic democracy with guaranteed rigths and protections for minorities and opposition. The people of syria have to rally around something that holds them together as a distinct people , and religion surely is not going to do it, nor is ethnicity - they need to look at something that all can share in which would likely be pride of being Syrian and Syria's unique and rich history and place in the world. It would be wonderfull if Syria could actually become a leading light of secularist democracy that actually works in the Arab world, where everyone feels that they have a voice and vote and have pride.
Try to convince those who are supporting Assad.
They think if he is gone, they are next.
If you are supporting the side that just murdered my son,
dont expect any sympathy.
im sorry, but obama's do nothing policy on syria has been a total moral failure. He led from behind in libya where it was safe, but now that real leadership is required, he's stayed mostly silent on the sideline. Same thing he did with iran in 2009...
when the tough issues call, obama turtles.
Israel is the ONLY stable positive democracy in the whole region. Other nations would do well to take a lesson from them, especially given how they've managed to be so merciful and still democratic in an otherwise awful region full of islamic terrorism and state sponsored jihadism.
Led from behind in Libya? my friend, do you know what wins a war? do you know why there are no more battleships and Aircraft carriers are superior? because a war is not won by sea, or by land for that matter. It is wont by the air. and your "from behind president" established air superiority over libya. Air superiority does not come cheap, and is not to be taken lightly. now mind you Obama wasn't there guns blazing, my Country Canada had our F-18's there, and France was there helping, because your nation called on the rest of Nato to step up and help becuase you guys cant do it alone (bush bankrupted you in a illegal war) . I hope Romney shows real leadership and gets deployed in Syria... oh yea, he's a draft dodger.
So what is your muslim name?
You see any American boys coming home in coffins ?
No ?
Thank you Obama.
Well said, no US boys in coffins coming home from Syria. I think if the Syrian people truly want democracy they will have it if the US leaves them alone but I am not too sure that all of this Syrian conflict is about wanting democracy, I am not convinced of that. I think there is something else going on that such chaos there is happening.
And you talk about Morals? How about you pay to fund a war, and your sons will go die. and the Democrat citizens of your country will fund healthcare to keep the people healthy and alive in America.
what??????????????????
Zakaria, are you blind? "We have a brutal regime that is using maximum force": where did you get that?!?!?! Man, I grant you the respect of stupidity, YOU ARE THE KING of STUPIDITY. Ok let's say Syria turn into Lebanon, then it will end with Hezbollah No.2. You are losers in all cases.
Can't blame you for being narrow minded, you are paid for that, do you review what you have written? Certainly not otherwise you could sound very fool to yourself of missing the outcomes... You are NOT Nostradamus!
Mr. Zakaria, I have always read you with total respect for your usually unbiased views. However, it is so clear that in this respect of the Syrian conflict, CNN and yourself took sides and stopped reporting the real facts on the ground. We all know the true reason behind the support of the USA and its allies for the terrorists in Syria (blow to Iran and Hizballah) and has nothing to do with democracy. Their allies, Saudi Arabia and Quatar oppress their own people. President Assad has already modernized a lot of the infrastructure of Syria from technical to educational and was continuing to do so until this conflict stopped all that. You of all people should know that in that region of the world there is no mercy on both sides, it is kill or be killed. When the terrorists kill their prisoners, you use words such as retaliation for the massacres. When the legal army does it to the terrorists, it is a massacre. You should be smarter than making an analogy between the Lebanese civil war and Syria. Lebanon went into civil war because the population were killing each other and the army stood on the sides and then was divided. In Syria, it is the army with the total support of the Alawite and Christians and an important part of the sunnies who don't want to see their country go into chaos if the regime collapses. And it will go into chaos if this happens. You seem to miss the obvious, who are the soldiers in the army? They are the sons of the various Syrian families of various religions, they are not mercenaries hired by president Assad. On the other hand, the terrorists that you call rebels are in big part hired mercenaries or foreign volunteer extremists with some Syrian thugs. I agree that the protests started by some Syrian people asking for democracy, but today, part of those people are now with president Assad because they don't want their country to be another Irak or Libia. If the free American Fighters ( which you have them in your country) take their weapons to the streets, be sure that your army will label them as terrorists and wipe them out. Isn't that what Isreal did to the Palestinian resistance.
A new map had already been drawn for the Middle East to divert the world from the misery of the Palestinian people to have their own State the day the U.S. demolished Iraq and sank it to the abyss. Everything bad that goes in the Middle East is connected to the misery of the Palestinian people. The Syrian people are as stupid as the people of Iraq.
and thus the Palestinian mantra: "woe is me, woe is me, everyone but us is responsible for our misery". bemoaning fences and "occupation" while encouraging rocket launchers, kidnappings of soldiers and the teaching of hatred in their schools and mosques. settlements are frozen and rockets are sent, settlements are built and rockets are sent. what's the difference? does the sending of have an expectation of achieving peace, tranquility and financial equality?
Woah Nelly, you are all over the place.
Well, its time to start blaming Obama for this mess. His lack of leadership certainly contributed to the problem. He got a Nobel PeaCE PRIZE FOR SOMETHING. I guess being buddy buddy with the Russian leadership has not paid off.
When the US takes firm leadership as George Bush did in Iraq, its not necessarily beautiful or clean, but it certainly got rid of the tyrant.
There are a range of models to use for dealing with Middle East tyrants. Obama so far has just createed a bloody mess in Syria.
Please with honey on the top; don’t bring Obama leadership to clean the mess of Bush had created. The war against Iraq was a big time mistake.
The Syrian "freedom fighters" are roughly split in radical suni that want Sharia imposed and less radical suni that want something like the Muslim Brotherhood running the country. AlQaeda fighters have been reported, embedded amonmg these rebels.
I cannot see a single reason why the West should help them. They are future enemies which may be much worse than Assad.
So doesnt America want impose democracy everywhere will they want implement there way of democracy somu can't blame them why cuz they not doing what America wants them to do or UK huh? Yah thought so loser
A sure thing I would like to tell that I don’t hide behind a fake name. I’m a patriot American that I would not heel to threats or intimidations. When push comes to shove, I’m all American even when my voice does not count. I wrote the novel ‘Twins in Arms’ out of believing of an imminent terrorist plot that would devastate my U.S in due time.
tell asaad his days are numbered....but watch out for monkey man in IRAN .......I ran ....what a joke of a leadership there is over there with his brain dead fanatical fighters.!!!
I think we are well past the point of any diplomatic solution, and we can expect any military options to be very long, and drawn out. Assad really can't increase his already brutal tactics, at least not if he doesn't want to totally destroy Aleppo, and possibly lose any popular opinion that he might have left. Consider also the fact that a pile of rubble is hardly a fair prize to win in exchange for the money already spent, and even more importantly, the lives lost.I guess we can only wait and see, and hope for the best for everyone.
Fareed Zakaria is ignorant , since he does not belong to the area there he should not post these nonsense speculations. Syria is very different from Lebanon. in Syria, 90 % are muslim sunnies so they should have 90% share in ruling the country , and the rest goes to the rest of other groups. in Lebanon, 40% are christians, 30% sheites,, 25% sunnies and maybe 5% druz, and other groups....those are fighting as there is no real dominant group . in Syria there wont be any fighting as the majority are sunnies.
Bashar is the mr bean of Syria but not so funny the opposite dam murder u will have a place with the devil soon u will die like the dog Lenin and Stalin and mossalini. Hitler I don't know anything about him someone educate me about him cuz what I know of him is that he was furur of Germany that's all
Bashar is the mr bean of Syria but not so funny the opposite dam murder u will have a place with the devil soon u will die like the dog Lenin and Stalin and mossalini. Hitler I don't know anything about him someone educate me about him cuz what I know of him is that he was furur of Germany that's all haha
Rep. Ron Paul was a lonely voice of reason on Wednesday after the US Congress voted 421-6 on a bill that the congressman calls the “Obsession with Iran Act 2012.”
The Iran Sanctions bill, which changes the existing sanctions law by adding penalties for those that aid Iran’s petroleum, petrochemical, insurance, shipping and financial sectors, is what Paul views as an unnecessary step towards war with a country that in his opinion has no intention to produce nuclear weapons.
“A vote for this … will show that it’s just one more step to another war that we don’t need,” the congressman said in an Aug. 1 speech against the bill. “We have not been provoked, [Iran] is not a threat to our national security and we should not be doing this. For the past 10 to 15 years we’ve been obsessed with this idea that we go to war and try to solve all the problems of the world. At the same time, it is bankrupting us.”
At a time when the US has spent billions of dollars on a war with Iraq and Afghanistan, further involvement with Iran would just hurt the country – and especially the economy, he said.
Imposing sanctions and blockading a country are an act of war – and the US fights too many that it can’t afford.
Additionally, there is no evidence that Iran has ever enriched uranium above 20 percent – and the IAEA and CIA have determined that the country is not on the verge of building a nuclear weapon, Paul said. By pressuring Iran to close down its nuclear power plants, to the point where the US repeatedly imposes tough sanctions, Americans are simply preoccupying themselves with a country that has no intention of going to war.
“What we continue to be doing is obsess with Iran and the idea that Iran is a threat to our national security,” the congressman said. “Iran happens to be a Third World nation. They have no significant navy, air force, or intercontinental ballistic missiles.”
And even if Iran did have the resources to go to war with the US, the country has no history of invading its neighbors, aside from its involvement in the Gulf War, he said.
By voting for the Iran Sanctions bill, America is engaging in another costly mistake that mirrors the war against Iraq – a war that was a façade, based on a false idea that the country was hiding weapons of mass destruction, Paul said.
In his speech, the congressman also expressed his opposition to US intentions to fight for civil liberties in Syria. Earlier this year, President Obama signed a secret order authorizing clandestine aid to the rebel forces in the country.
But before concerning itself with civil liberties abroad, Paul thinks the US should reflect on its own actions.
“Do you think we’re protecting civil liberties by arbitrarily dropping drones or threatening to drop drones any place in the world, with innocent people dying?” the congressman said. “If we want to really care about civil liberties in Syria, why don’t we really care about the secret prisons we have and the history of torture we have in this country?”
While the US is making kill lists, it is preaching for civil liberties abroad and “poking our nose in other people’s affairs, just looking for the chance to start another war," this time in Iran, Paul said.
But disregarding the congressman’s speech, the overwhelming majority in the House of Representatives voted to impose further sanctions on Iran on Aug. 1, thereby increasing tensions between the two countries.
Iran is the only country in the world that has a stated political and religious policy to innihilate another country. Ron Paul always mentions that we have lived with the Soviet Union and China having nuclear weapons and they never used them. This is true but they never had a plan to use them. Ron Poul never mentions Hitler that was trying to built a nuclear weapon. Does Ron Paul really think Hitler never would have used it? Just like Iran has done it Hitler told the world what he was going to do 15 years before it started. Ron Paul is as naive as Neville Chamberlain that failed to prepare England for ww2.
Well said. Could not agree more. This guy clearly has posters of Neville Chamberlain up all over his house. Some times evil just smacks you across the face and you just can't put your head in the sand.
Fareed, Fareed, Fareed, Fareed. PrinciPAL problem. Not "principle" problem. When will world-famous journalists learn the difference between these two spellings!
Hostile spellcheck is no advance, even if technically right.
Try elevating the main discussion, talk to the main point.
Those who oppress others can never themselves be truly free. Assad and his family will never be safe because they will be hunted by the survivors of the family members they murdered. That said it's hard to have any sympathy for the Syrians, who specialized in torture, murder and terrorism upon Lebanon, Israel, and the West not to mention anyone else who got in their way. As far as I'm concerned they can shoot it up amongst each other for 500 years. That way they can't continue to shoot anyone else because they'll be tied up among themselves.
The sectarian conflict in Lebanon where fuelled by the Syrian regime and that is a known fact. Syria back in the eighties tried to invade Lebanon during the civil war hoping that the demise of the Lebanese government and the disintegration of its army will allow total control over Lebanon and even the integration under Syrian rule. All ruses and dirty moves where used for this purpose. Syria pushed the Palestinians refugees in Lebanon and armed them to fight the Lebanese; they broadcasted hatful religious propaganda and even massacred people from different religious groups to keep the hate and fear of Muslims and Christians from one another. The same thing applies to Iraq only the players here are different, Iran, Al Qaeda, Syria, Hezbollah they all played a role in fuelling the sectarian conflicts. If it happens that Syria goes down the same road then Syrians should not blame the United Nation or the western countries for delivering them from dictatorship they blame themselves for killing one another instead of making an honor agreement between different sects and religions.
I just can't see how this is going to end well if theres any US involvement. At best it becomes another Vietnam, and a whole lot of civilians and Americans die fighting a civil war in a foreign country. Very likely it escalates into a full scale proxy war and degrades our relationship with China and Russia.
If we are just looking for a humanitarian war to start so we can justify our outrageous military spending, there's a lot of work to be done in Africa, countries with a lot higher civilian death tolls, and where US intervention won't cause a world power crisis.
Finally there is some recognition of a simple and very obvious fact that Russia and China not as much support Syria, but rather oppose US aggressive international standing. It took more than a year for somebody in CNN to stop that rubbish about military base (not seeing a single ship in two decades), weapons sales or whatever! Congrats!
Everybody is just fed up with US policing the world: including Americans themselves! And these ridiculous protest in Moscow payed by American money do not change anything! They only demonstrate the disrespect American politicians have for Democracy – not a surprise to anybody! So spare us the crap!
hopefully Syria and their problems stay out of Lebanon. Lebanon has endured enough from that country and somehow are always dragged into their problems. Leave lebanon alone!
It is frightening to see that the US government is sending in equipment and CIA supposedly to help the dissidents pull down the Assad government when there is no sure information on the number of citizens there who support this civil war against Assad. You broke it, you own it? The aftermath of loss of Assad government might lead to unforeseen negative consequences for both USA and for that region. Another Somalia or like Lebanon's long civil strife? Is USA getting into the long centuries of struggles between the majority Sunni and minority Shia factions of Islam? Remember the 30 years war when Catholics and Protestant factions fought in the 16th century. ... HIstory repeats? Who are these groups in America that push US into these no win situations? Did we learn nothing from the debacle we had in Vietnam?
You broke it you own it concept needs to be reconsidered. It leads to self destruction as anyone can see in Afghanistan, that is anyone outside of our dysfunctional government.
Be carefull what you ask for if you expect the Sunni to represent equally all minoroties.
Syrians have a great history because of the minorities not because of the Sunni
(was Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Kurd or Sunni first?)
the west needs to stay out of this internal power struggle!
Alawites call themselves Muslims. And yet, even as a non-Muslim observer, I think it's a stretch to call Alawites Muslims, when they believe in Ali, not Allah, as well as reincarnation. Of course, outside of Muslim countries. they'd be seen as just another quirky religion, with the usual mystical references and beliefs. In Muslim countries, this kind of heterodox belief system is frequently cause for the persecution and massacre of its followers. That's also probably the reason Alawites are standing behind Assad – Sunni Arab rule may mean the extermination of Syria's several million-strong Alawite community. From the Global Security website:
The Alawi sect, which integrates doctrines from other religions - in
particular from Christianity - arose from a split within the Ismailite
sect. The Alawis appear to be descendants of people who lived in this
region at the time of Alexander the Great. When Christianity flourished
in the Fertile Crescent, the Alawis, isolated in their little
communities, clung to their own preIslamic religion. After hundreds of
years of Ismaili influence, the Alawis moved closer to Islam. However,
contacts with the Byzantines and the Crusaders added Christian elements
to the Alawis' new creeds and practices. For example, Alawis celebrate
Christmas, Easter, and Epiphany.
Alawis claim they are Muslims, but conservative Sunnis do not always
recognize them as such. Like Ismaili Shias, Alawis believe in a system
of divine incarnation. Unlike Ismailis, Alawis regard Ali as the
incarnation of the deity in the divine triad. As such, Ali is the
"Meaning;" Muhammad, whom Ali created of his own light, is the "Name;"
and Salman the Persian is the "Gate." Alawi catechesis is expressed in
the formula: "I turn to the Gate; I bow before the Name; I adore the
Meaning." An Alawi prays in a manner patterned after the shahada: "I
testify that there is no God but Ali."
According to Alawi belief, all persons at first were stars in the
world of light but fell from the firmament through disobedience.
Faithful Alawis believe they must be transformed seven times before
returning to take a place among the stars, where Ali is the prince. If
blameworthy, they are sometimes reborn as Christians, among whom they
remain until atonement is complete. Infidels are reborn as animals.
What syria needs is the end of organized religion.
I wonder if Fareed really believed that there was hope for diplomacy. I don't have 1% of his knowledge or wisdom yet "knew" from the start that Kofi was on a fools errand. Most of you knew it as well. There is a cliche "hope springs eternal".
OK 3 choices: 1. France could restore colonial status ( politically incorrect). 2. Syria could become a Russian protectorate. Russia knows how to deal with terrorists, and Russia would feel more secure with a foothold in the Middle East. It might make them more cooperative. 3. Restoration of the Ottoman Empire. The region was most stable under Turkish domination. None of this will happen. The next ruler? Violence and chaos.
Vast miscalculation on NATO's part when it decided to perverse the UN Mandate of protecting Civilians to that of Regime change. If another Cold wars starts and lead to possible destruction of the entire planet, then NATO overstep in Libya is where it has its genesis.
No, Syria's conflict is different from Lebanon's conflict this time around and I think reporters that went to Syria early on figured that out, they understood it to be different this time around. The world and the region in the present Syrian conflict is different from when the Lebanon conflict broke out, the reasons are different and so is the technology. This world is becoming a much smaller place due to technology, they know what is going on in the rest of the world so the old world despotic tactics aren't going to work like they used to work in the past. But the fact the world and the UN has just stood by and watched this happen to the Syrian people is pathetic.
Zakaria should explain why even when, in his words, "the Russians don’t really have very deep ties to the Syrians, while the Chinese have almost none" they refuse to dump the Syrian regime.
Perhaps there are geopolitical reasons? China must not be happy with the US increased presence in Asia, and Russia must not be willing to accept being kicked out from the Middle East. Besides, Russia probably also resents the increasing attemps by the USA to enter into Russia's "near abroad" which includes Tajikistán, Kazakastan, etc..
¡¡¡Fareed try a little harder and you will get the whole picture!!!!
Go Bashar. Please don't leave one single FSA terrorist alive in all of Syria. Please use chemical weapons against them. Please hunt them down with all that you have from helicopters, tanks, and shells. I want you to decimate them completely. I want you to vaporize them. Please use chemical and biological weapons against these Al Qaeda pests. They have infiltrated Syria and they should pay the price. Please go full steam ahead. Do not let them breathe.
Another typicality brain dead supporter of the Mr Bean of the middle East or are you the stooge of the IRANIAN (Monkey Man ) Regime they are going to be next MORAN ...!!!
Fareed please stop dreaming!!
All though most or all minorities support Assad, farid forgets to mention that most sunnis still supports assad, because they know the rebles are thugs.
ALEPPO (SANA EXCLUSIVE) – Syrian Arab Army Fighters Pledge on 'Their Day' An Unbridled Determination To Defend Each Grain Of The Homeland's Soil
While his forehead trickles with sweat, his body is burdened with military gear, but despite this, a smile shines from the mouth of Syrian Arab Army Corporal Ahmed Ali Jaheed.
Simultaneously a passerby waves her hands in a salute while raising her voice with a prayer for God's protection before offering praise to Ahmad and all of his compatriots.
"I am from Homs, Syria and my sworn duty is to protect the people," Ahmad briefly detailed when a SANA correspondent asked what city he hails from and as the soldier stood alert at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Damascus.
Tending to his daily patrol mission of safeguarding tens of people traveling to and fro in their cars from terrorists by closely monitoring any vehicle that may be potentially booby-trapped, Ahmad maintains his steady grip on the weapon as a representative clone among colleagues, all of whom are seemingly saturated with a steely determination and a readiness to repel any attempt that might suddenly be initiated by armed terrorist groups who have been roaming some areas of the country wreaking havoc by perpetrating heinous acts of killing, abduction and sabotage.
On the occasion of a 67th anniversary of their being founded, members of the courageous Syrian Army are responding by professionally performing their sworn duty by protecting the at large citizenry and restoring their sense of security which has been subjected to attempts at disruption from state sponsors of terrorism whose leaders the Syrian state points out has an emanation point of Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Syria ..... got oil ????? No ........
Sending big bucks and military aid to Iran ???? Have in the past , but we're kinda busy right now ...........
Well then buddy , I think there are a heck of a lot of us regular folks here in the west that could care less if you all just blow each other away ..............
Let em fight it out amongst themselves.
Zakaria is such a blatant lier. He predicted 12 months ago that Assad would fall in 6 months. And now he is saying "I always believed in a protracted conflict". Zakaria – you always try to look smart after the fact. Shame on CNN for hosting you.
Stop the "Nation Building"! Muslims prefer totalitarian theocracies.
Anti-Semitism is the Glue that holds the Arab World together. They are taught it from birth. So blaming Israel (and by extension, America) for all their problems, is a natural reflex.
Bomb the damn place, and leave it. And by bomb it i mean bomb it soo hard that nothing will grow there in the next 500 years.
The great American devils will stay out of this one, thank you. No matter which side we would aid, we would still be the evil western infidels. Soooooo........ we will just sit back and let muslims kill muslims. Let us know which pack of fanatics won when it's over. ALLAH AKBAR!!
I read a book on Bible prophesy a few years ago that said that the Bible prophesies that Damascas, that great city of Syria will be utterly destroyed. I can't remember the name of the book, the author or where in the Bible to find the prophesy, but I remember the author saying it might be a nuclear destruction.
I remember thinking at the time that people might want to visit that ancient city before it's too late, but it looks like it may be too late already. Here's hoping that as many residents as possible escape before then....
Any source for that revelation?
I enjoyed the first part of this interview that featured a discussion on Israel and referenced Friedman's article being critical of Mr. Romney playing up to the American Jewish voters, donors and some evangelical preachers using the Bible to justify Israeli control over the territories. Finally, after too long, are such discussions allowed onto the media. Israel has assumed that no matter whether they follow advice from U.S. presidents or not the U.S. will still be supportive. This encourages radical Israel agenda.
This "fight" has been ongoing since the prophets death . . . sunni vs shia. The fall of the Ottoman Empire and the continued colonialism of mainly Britian (who knew where the oil was) and France only contibuted to the continuous tribal warfare. The petty ancient tribalism is still not resolved and probably will not be for another thousand years, as every tribal muslims life purpose is revenge of past insults , real or imagined. There is no reason for any one of these tribes to look forward until all these past insults and treachery is accounted for. There is simply no "future" for any of them. Their god is from past and their "life after death" is from the past. There is simply no reason to change any of that. Ignorance can last forever if it is religious. Any involvement by the US is folly.
It will be the best gift to Lebanon who suffers from a stable Syria and was a victim of the Syrian interference during its civil war....
"Will Syria be the next Lebanon?" Seriously? That train left the station weeks ago.
Not to worry folks, in a few months Mitts will be sending Americans to Syria, and shortly after it will be a peace loving democracy like Iraq, and Afghanistan.
The US created Bin Ladin, big mistake for them. Now they are supporting the Sunnis which is infiltrated, big times, by Al-Qaeda. What it will take for the Americans to learn about the situation in the Middle East. They will do whatever is necessary to support the Jews/Israelis even to pact with the devil, after all the US is completely controlled by the Jewish Lobby.. The problem is after the Assad what is next? Democracy? I don't think so. My guest is they have created a new devil, a nightmare for the Israelis. You deserve it.
It would be really cool if they captured Bashar al-Assad and broadcast it on TV while they tied him up, poured gasoline on his head, and then lit him on fire! They could Put it on PPV!!! Come on, you know you'd order that instead of the UFC fight!
"Christians appear to be doing so as well, for fear of what would happen to them in a majoritarian and more Islamist Syria". Pope Shenuda, when he was alive, told the Egyptian Copts to stick with Mubarak and he backed the wrong horse. I think Syria is way different than Lebanon. There has been from the beginning of the Syrian conflict something else in the air, something else going on under the surface of sectarian divide.
Christian Arabs/Middle Eastern people should ban together and make a nation-state like the Jews did in Israel. Perhaps Northern Iraq (Assyria), Lebanon, or try to take over Egypt since there are so many Coptics there.
The author mentions the reasons why Iran, Russia and China support Assad but he does not mention the reasons why the west wants him to fall. He implies that this is for humanitarian reasons , I wonder is there something else besides the "humanitarian" reasons?
Not once do you mention that a large group of the free Syria army is comprised of jihadist fighters and al Qaeda fighters from other nations such as Yemen Iraq and afghanistan. You also fail to mention that the new regime would be based upon radical Islamic sharia law. You also failed to mention that the united states has covertly armed supplied and trained the fsa since the beginning of the war – the u.s. Fanned the flames of this conflict and everyone knows it. This isn't surprising to me however seeing as CNN is the biggest supporter for foreign intervention in Syria.
There are only two sects in Syria. Assad, and the people. Christians long opposed Assad, in fact many emigrated out when Hafez Assad became president. Many Syrian American Christians are holding prayers in US Churches and denouncing Assad. Christians and Muslims have been friends in Syria for centuries and for centuries to come.
Muslims donot respect the judeo-christian traditions for centuries they have murdered us and to this day hundreds of Christians are dying. Murdered in the name of Islam.
The simple answer is NO – it will be 100x worse. Its called Karma – they caused half the problems in Lebanon and now will disintegrate into total chaos like Afghanistan as the Muslim tribal and religious factions fight for control.
Muslims donot respect the judeo-christian traditions. For centuries they have murdered Christians,to this day hundreds of Christians are dying in the hands of Muslims. All in the name of Islam.
Syria could still go down a stable path if the US and EU pulled their covert troops out and stopped supplying the rebels. This is a manufactured crisis by the west to try and undermine a regime they don't like. This is also the model for Iran. They'll launch similar efforts in Iran after a couple of years and it will also be passed off as a 'popular uprising'. Stop the war and killing now President Obama. The US god rid of Saddam and look at Iraq now.
If I were Al-Assad I wouldn't buy any green bananas. Syria is going to be more like Lybia than Lebanon. Quiet behind the seen support through Saudi Arabia and Turkey has helped Obama accomplish what he wants without the political risk. The rats are deserting the sinking Al-Assad ship, I give Assad less than six months before he joins Gahdafi in his everlasting reward for his many good deeds on thie earth.
Syria may need a Boris Yeltzin, someone beloved by the military, but willng to risk his life standing on a tank and ordering his men to point their tanks at the Parliament. Russia should be helping Assad to get out safe with his family!
Inept leaders cause a lot of hardship for countries and just like the USA's recovery from the leadership of G W Bush it will take years for Syria to recover from al-Assad.
He too may even describe presiding over the downfall of his country as "awesome".
Mr W Bush has no problem using this word to describe his tenure at the White House even though the $2T tax break (handout) he gifted to the super wealthy – a group that he described as his base – was used to close 50,000 factories and move millions of jobs abroad while the US job loss rate crescendoed to a breath-taking rate of over 4 million per year at the end of his term. He started two wars (creating thousands of dangerous new terrorists) hammering the final nails into the economic coffin – wars that brought massive *taxpayer* cash windfalls to many in this base.
Now his party want to replace W with Romney who not only stashed his tax break in foreign banks along with his fortune to avoid more taxes but also, in his financial transactions, bet against the US economy, accelerating it's demise. He has decided to hide the tax returns that outline his idea of patriotism – an idea borne of loyalty to international corporations rather than to his country. Romney now sees a lot more low hanging fruit to pick for himself and this same base and the White House is the perfect foil for his endeavor.
And like al-Assad, Romney has millions of supporters.
GPS's giving space to all sides of a world issue does not mean he takes a sympaty to any party. My one-sided opinion has been changed several times by many articles and decent discussions here. This is not a forum to steam off but to make a constructive contribution.
What will happen after Assad is gone? I donot personally care for Assad however we have a saying in Turkish "Those who come makes you wish for the ones gone by".
I don't know which propaganda believe, the one that we read in the West or this other one.
http://208.43.232.81/eng/337/2012/08/06/434986.htm
They are so different. It is like is another story. I tend to believe that no one is telling the whole truth.
Here you go Zakaria for your Free Syrian Army, you probably enjoy what they are doing http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9104253045
It does not matter you are Muslim or Christan , god made no difference while creating then why does we look for differences.Killing someone never does any good to someone.The only thing it does is worsening the situation.
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Largely agree and Spot-on Zakaria for mentioning Russians indeed.
Russians, as it has been reported, are sending their naval vessels to their overseas base
at Syrian port of Tartuswhich hints that Russians have sensed something.
Some reports say Tlass will be the next man taking post-Assad transitional government
but given the situation it won't make much difference.
Interesting to note how current Syrian conflict and its aftermath are
all well predicted in the Bible and if it is so,
then we can expect it to be quite intricated of which can be found
here: http://su.pr/86MF11
So will Syria be like 1980's (and till this date) Lebanon? I think it would be worse.
Can you state exactly where this revelation is stated in the bible?
I beg to differ with you Zakaria. The conditions in which the conflict is being played out in Syria are entirely different than those in Lebanon. Lebanon's war was secular and ethnic in nature where multiple ethnic groups were fighting each other Christian against Christian, Muslim against Muslim... However, that is not the case in Syria where all ethnic groups are fighting to oust a dictator!
You got that wrong, you mean the Syrian people are fighting the Arabs from the Gulf to stop them from invading. How do you explain Turkish, Libyan,Tunisian, Lebanese, Jordanian, Iraki, Saoudi, Qatari, Pakistani, American, Israeli and European fighting in Syria??!?!?
Those are good Samaritans who are saving the Syrian people from Bashar's meat grinder...
This is an Arab League problem. Let them deal with it. I just am trying to figure out how Syrians can blame the U.S. or Israel for their problems.
Either way it will end, as it is planned, hindu's criminals of the wast assume,it will work to their advantage, rest assured, fist phase of war is to eliminate hindu's, criminals appointed by hinu's criminals of the west, as leaders of Muslim world after seconf world war , and next will be elimination of hindu Jew's, criminal secular s and their hindu Judaism, filthy self center ism, denial of truth absolute along with their hindu gentiles terrorist slaves of the west, for peace, Islam among humanity.
Assad/Bath party will survive because army is loyal to Assad. KSA and Qatar started on behest of USA to downgrade military capability of Syria( help Israel). One by one all armies of 73 war are decimated( Iraq, Libiya, now Syria). Now Iran plus Basra plus Damascus plus Southern Lebanon is almost Iranian axis. Any fragmentation will lead to break up of Iraq since Kurds will unit to fight against Turkey. Unless there is wholesale invasion by Turks, nothing will happen since part of lebanon and [art of Iraq still supports Syria. If there is regional war, Shia of gulf will rise and KSA will burn also. I can see every one killing each other for 5-10 years and Israel and US will pick up the oil fields, that is why Russia does not want US domination. What out for India in the mix when whole region gets into rat hole, Indians have enough population to control UAE and others.
It makes Pakistan the lynch pin, not so easy to crack this nut, nuclear Pakistan is the balancing force in the region, and an obstacle to implement hindu criminal designs of hindu's, terrorist of the west and the east to spread hindu Judaism, filthy secularism around the globe, working very had to destabilize Pakistan.
Who has contributed to the Libanization of Syria? The West did and this knucklehead Fareed Zakaria along with CNN has its share as well. They've turned prosperous country into a living hell and nightmare. They are supporting Al Qaeda terrorists despite of public and loud reports that they are there, they are supporting explosions, killing of innocent civilians, they are supporting everything that should not be supported. Syrian people will never see the peace again as did Iraqi, Afghani and Libyan people.. Unless Russia makes bold statement NOW. Perpetual turmoil in the region is their ultimate goal so they keep quietly exploiting country's natural resources and the same time prepare ground for invasion in another oil rich stronghold – Iran. Wake up people!
You might like to consider that Syrians and their government is what happened to Syria. Blaming every body else is unreal.
i think this notion of China and Russia being against any real resolution in the UN is clearly being misread here. its important to consider that China has one of the biggest number of Muslims residing in any country in the world. Russia on the other hand has Chechnya right at its boarders, which is predominantly Muslims. After seeing how a youth revolution was overtaken by The Muslim Brotherhoods of countries like Egypt, Libya, Morocco (although not a revolution here) its logical to see how China and Russia would be worried about their own set of revolutions, uprisings, protest, etc... seeing the Muslims gaining ground and becoming stronger it would be in their best interest to try to limit it. That is the major reason for their stand against any action in Syria, not to be just defiant against the West.
Ah another middle-brow editorial by Fareed Zakaria. Can we get someone who actually knows something about International Relations writing these articles CNN?
the big difference between syria and lebanon is that syria has a totalitarin despot as a ruler, and lebanon was a democracy
Very good and thought provoking article.
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