1. Background to the Crisis
SYRIA
Background to the Crisis

2. Where is Syria?
Syria is located in the __________________ (also known as South West Asia.)
This means it is at the meeting point of 3 continents: ____________
____________________ &
____________________. As a result, for 1000s of years, many different people have both travelled through and settled in this region to benefit from __________ that always occurs in important geo-political locations.

3. Who are the Syrians? Population: 22,457,336 (July 2013 est.)
Despite the fact that the majority of Syrians are ______________________, power in Syria has been held by the _________________ Alawite Shia Muslims who have had control of the army since Syria was controlled by the French. As a result, this group has not allowed Syria to be a true _____________________ where people vote to elect their leaders and make decisions about their government.
Population: 22,457,336 (July 2013 est.)
Religion/Ethnicity 74% Arab Sunni Muslim, 12% Alawite Shia Muslim (group in power including Assad family) and Druze Muslims, 10% Arab Christian 4% others including a large Kurdish Sunni Muslim population.

4. How well do Syrians communicate?

5. Syria’s history
Until the 20th Century, Syria did not exist as a nation-state. Since the first civilization in the Middle East in _____________________, the land that would become Syria was occupied by countless empires including the Assyrians, the Persians, and the Romans. The closest to modern day Syria was the Roman territory. The Islamic Empire established one of its capital cities there and today it is still Syria’s capital ____________________________. Once the Turks conquered the region, they established the Ottoman Empire and the area that is Syria today was made up of ___ administrative zones – each with a separate relationship with Ottoman Capital __________________________. No one would have thought of themselves as Syrian. It did not exist until 1918.

6. Origins of the Crisis – Syrian History
In 1918, during WW__, Arab nationalist forces overthrew Ottoman rule with British and French support. However, in 1920, breaking their promise to support a free Syrian state, French forces occupied Syria and established it as a French mandate broken into 3 different and separate zones. Aware of the fact that they were governing a hostile population, the French favored the minority Alawites with government jobs and education opportunities while limiting access to the majority.

7. In 1944, following WWII, Syria gained independence from France
In 1944, following WWII, Syria gained independence from France. Since that time, Syria has been ruled by a series of military leaders including Hafez al-Assad, father of the current leader Baashir al-Assad, who took over in a military coup d’etat in Both men represent the Arab Socialist Baath Party which was created to be the political representation of the Syrian military and the Alawite minority.

8. Opposition to the Assad Regime
The Assad family, like many other leaders in the modern middle east, has ruled Syria as secular autocrats. This means that they do NOT support any role for religion (ie. __________ in the Middle East) in government. They have used limits on freedom of speech and protest, secret police, torture and even execution to enforce their secular control over the country and have targeted religious groups as their particular enemies. At the same time, these groups have become the main opposition to the government. However, they are not united as they disagree on how strictly Islamic rule would be applied if they were to take control.

9. February 1982 – Muslim Brotherhood Uprising crushed in city of Hama
In 1982, following an assassination attempt on Assad, the Sunni religious political group, the Muslim Brotherhood was outlawed. Soon after, Brotherhood leaders called for an uprising which began in the city of Hama. Hafez al-Assad ordered his troops to level the city of Hama resulting in the reported massacre of up to 40,000 people.

10. Who is in charge today?
In 2000, Bashar al-Assad succeeded his father as leader of Syria. Bashar was an optician until his brother, the chosen successor, died in a car accident. His take over sparked hope of political change for Syria as he appeared to be more open to change than his father. However, his supporters in the military and the Baath Party did not want to lose their privileges and Syria has remained a secular autocracy.

11. The Current Conflict - beginning
In 2011, inspired by a wave of popular protests against secular autocratic leaders began in the Middle East known as the Arab Spring, anti-government peaceful protests began in Syria. Assad’s government responded with tanks, mass arrests and gunfire. Once similar regimes in Tunisia, Libya and Egypt were overthrown, the Syrian government became even more repressive to their protests.

12. Escalation to Civil War
Since late 2011, Government repression led the peaceful protesters in Syria to form their own militias and 2 sides have emerged in what is now clearly considered a civil war. However, the rebels are made up of a couple of groups that don’t necessarily have the same vision for Syria. The new Syrian National Coalition for Opposition and Revolutionary Forces is intended to bring together members of various religious sects opposed to Assad and includes the Free Syrian Army. It has been officially recognized by the US and many other countries and does not include Jabhat al-Nusra which has a more extreme vision for Syria and may be supported by Al Qaeda.

14. The Costs of the War
100,000+ have been killed (This is a United Nations estimate. The UN believes the actual toll may be much higher as many deaths are not reported.)
2 million have fled Syria (These are the 1.8 million refugees who have registered — and another 173,000 who are waiting to register)
3/4 of refugees are women and children Almost half of the refugees are girls and women, while another quarter are boys under 18.
Another 5 million are displaced inside Syria
Aid agencies continue to increase their estimates of internally displaced people as the fighting rages through the country.

15. What has the international community done so far?
Whenever violent conflict breaks out, the United Nations attempts to help find a peaceful solution. In 2012, the UN and the Arab League sent peace envoys to Syria to broker a peace deal between the 2 sides, but these broke down over the question of Assad’s removal. Hopes for a peaceful settlement are limited by the escalation of the conflict. Neither side wants to talk from a point of weakness. However, in 2013, Saudi Arabia and Qatar did begin to arm the rebels while Russia continues to support the Assad regime both politically and militarily.

16. Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)
In 2013, reports began to appear that the government was possibly using chemical weapons against civilians in rebel held areas. These weapons have been outlawed by international law since WWI showed their horrific consequences. They were banned by the 1925 Geneva protocols (which Syria signed), and the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention (which Syria has not signed.) Their use has been limited since that time – as you can see.

17. The United States and Syria
Since 2011, the US has called for Assad to step down and has not allowed US companies to trade with Syria. President Obama has been reluctant to arm the rebels as long as there may be Islamic extremists involved, but he did say that the US would intervene if chemical weapons were used. He referred to this as his “red line” for intervention. The US supported and participated in intervention in Libya when civilians were threatened in 2011.

18. What has changed now?
In June 2013, U.S. officials said that the red line had been crossed. They reported that Syria has used sarin gas on multiple occasions, killing up to 150 people.
Shortly after, Obama authorized sending weapons to the Syrian rebels for the first time.
A purported chemical attack in August 2013 pushed the U.S. even closer to action.
Obama labeled the alleged attack an "assault on human dignity" and called for direct military action. He said he would ask Congress to authorize a military strike when it returns on Sept. 9.

19. Should the US intervene in Syria?
President Obama has stated that he feels the US must use military strikes to punish Syria for the use of chemical weapons. He has asked Congress to authorize this action. They are currently debating this question and we all need to form our own thesis, but there is no clear right answer – it is all your opinion –.
YES
Too many civilians have already died – we must intervene.
US intervention can tip the balance in favor of the rebels
If we do not respond to the chemical attacks, then the US will appear weak in other negotiations.
Our involvement would be limited to strikes only so it is not like Iraq NO
We intervened in Iraq and it turned into a disaster for the US and the Iraqis
We have not tried enough peaceful solutions
We do not know the outcome and so should not commit our troops
More civilians may die as a result of the strikes
Assad may gain in support.

20. Works Cited (and useful links)