A bombing in Damascus killed two of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s top security officials, the Post reported, and the opposition Free Syrian Army claimed responsibility for the attack. Dawoud Rajha and Asef Shawkat were reportedly central to the Assad regime.In one of the boldest strikes yet against the Syrian leadership, terrorist bombs killed advisers close to President al-Assad.
Of course, one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. What effect will this development have on the situation inside Syria and/or the global response to it?
It appears that the Free Syrian Army is willing to use violence to get what they want. This is probably going to deter many states considering whether or not to get involved in Syria. Assad's life is clearly in danger. Internally, this may lead to revenge and quite possibly more violence. Externally, I think other countries will be less likely to invade Syria. Instead, states like the U.S. may support the Free Syrian Army in hopes that Assad will be ousted so that democracy can be installed. In summary, more violence may occur and other states may try to avoid conflict or send troops. - Jeremy McMillan
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jeremy in that the fact that they resorted to violence will make other countries look down on them, just like the ethnonationalists who resorted to violence and are now seen as terrorists. However, I think it will, in the end, help the Syrians oust President Assad because the article stated, "The bombing may also lead to an increase in defections among Syrian government troops, which have also been rising as the conflict has progressed." If Syrian government troops are defecting, as the Egyptians did, it will probably cause Assad to lose, just as it did for Mubarak.
ReplyDelete-Feddi Roth
It's important to note that the bombing follows the Red Cross's declaration that the Syrian conflict is a civil war. The Free Syrian Army is one of the two main groups against the Assad regime - and because this is a war, the attack isn't by a "terrorist" organization, but by an opposing group. Although this may lead to more violence within Syria itself (mainly because Assad's forces may retaliate), I think it may actually compel groups outside of the country to support Syria, as opposed to what Jeremy wrote. The fight has been in a stalemate for the past few months, but now that the rebel group has shown that it can exert its power, many states that were unsure about whether to act may consider that the chances of the rebels winning is greater. I still doubt that Russia and China will change their opinions, which is the only force stopping any involvement in the conflict.
ReplyDelete"If you fight fire with fire, you just end up with a bigger fire." What the Free Syrian Army did was fight violence with violence. This is just going to cause more violence. Since the two officials were important, respected, and close to Assad, Assad is going to fight back with extreme force. Governments tend to respond effectively when rebels kill one of their own. The murders put the Free Syrian army in a very bad predicament because Assad is coming for them with guns blazing. This is very bad because the Free Syrian army is weaker than Assad's army. If the Free Syrian Army does not find help, and find it soon, it is in major trouble and thousands more could lose their lives.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Vishal. My impression is that this development will encourage other states to become more involved in the Syrian conflict, because the Free Syrian Army's "progress" in action will make those against the Assad regime (such as the US and UK) optimistic and believe in stepping in to help the cause, now that the Free Syrian Army has "gotten the ball rolling" per se. I also agree with those who say this will result in more violence within Syria as Assad's regime retaliates
ReplyDeleteI don't think Assad is very calmed down right now... There is no such thing as diplomacy now (or for the past months). On one side, the Free Syrian Army proved to be desperate, and are getting more violent each time. On another side, he is indeed in a great danger. This is definitely a direct threat to him, thus he will be cautious but at the same time fight back one way or another. With this, I assume that other states will get involved to support the Free Syrian Army, and that there will be a lot of violence for the next weeks probably. This definitely is an example of a consequence a "poor leader" might have...-Ces Escobedo
ReplyDeleteUpdates (rebels seize Iraq's/Turkey's borders):
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18918473
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/20/world/middleeast/syria-border-with-iraq.html?pagewanted=all
Thanks for the updates, Emily. This might get uglier yet.
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