New York Times (May 9, 2013)
Three years of fighting in Syria have cost 70,000 lives. “There are reasons to be skeptical about plans by Russia and the United States to hold an international conference on Syria — diplomats often propose meetings when they don’t have solutions. But, at a time when the civil war is worsening in every way, this initiative counts as a hopeful sign.”
The Economist (January 7)
Hopes that Bashar Assad might step aside, making room for a diplomatic solution to the crisis in Syria, evaporated after a defiant speech on January 6. The war has claimed an estimated 60,000 Syrian lives. With the opposition determined not to “negotiate a political solution to the crisis until Mr Assad is out of the picture, both sides are still trying for a military victory.” Mr Assad’s “speech provided no reason to believe the bloodshed will end soon.”
Tags: Bashar Assad, Crisis, Diplomacy, Military, Opposition, Solution, Syria
Wall Street Journal (August 28)
François Hollande, the Socialist President of France, “deserves credit” for taking a hard stance against Syria and the Bashar Assad regime. Hollande “appreciates the strategic stakes in Syria. So does Iran, which is sending hundreds of soldiers and senior Revolutionary Guards commanders to Syria to shore up the Assad regime…. The mullahs know that Syria is their bridge to Hezbollah in Lebanon and their only significant partner in the Arab world, and that their ambitions in the Middle East would be much harder to fulfill without a Damascene ally.”
Tags: Bashar Assad, France, François Hollande, Hezbollah, Iran, Lebanon, Syria
New York Times (April 10)
International attempts to end Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s reign of terror are failing. “Instead of abiding by a commitment to a cease-fire negotiated with the United Nations, he has kept his killing machine rolling, raising the death toll to an estimated 9,000 Syrians in the year since the start of the uprising.” It is time for the United Nations Security Council “to take tough and unified action.” Russia and China must drop their veto and quit protecting Bashar al-Assad.
International attempts to end Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s reign of terror are failing. “Instead of abiding by a commitment to a cease-fire negotiated with the United Nations, he has kept his killing machine rolling, raising the death toll to an estimated 9,000 Syrians in the year since the start of the uprising.” It is time for the United Nations Security Council “to take tough and unified action.” Russia and China must drop their veto and quit protecting Bashar al-Assad.
New York Times (January 19, 2012)
“The death toll from the brutal 10-month war by President Bashar al-Assad of Syria against his own people is now more than 5,400…. The international community needs to exert whatever diplomatic and economic pressure it can to make clear to Mr. Assad and his cronies that their time has run out.”
Tags: Assad, Diplomacy, Economic pressure, Syria
The Washington Post (September 8)
“The slaughter in Syria goes on.” The Post is convinced it won’t end until Bashar al-Assad’s regime comes to an end. The EU’s boycott of oil from Syria is one promising development. “Syria is vulnerable to an economic squeeze. The more that Western governments can apply it, the greater the chance of saving lives.”
The Economist (July 14)
“The fall of the Arab world’s worst two dictators would give a terrific boost to the region.” Half a year into the Arab spring, results are mixed. Perhaps we expected too much, too soon, but we should not forget the remaining potential. “The immediate fate of the Arab spring turns on Libya and Syria, both in the throes of revolution. If either got rid of its dictator, the overall Arab movement towards democracy would enjoy a huge step up.”
Tags: Arab spring, Democracy, Dictators, Libya, Middle East, Syria
