The Tumultuous Conflict in Syria

Syria and Lebanon are two dramatically different states with a deeply intertwined history. They were both born out of French interventionism following World War 1, and have experienced complex and strained relations ever since. The two nations have both experienced prodigious political turmoil since gaining their independence, with both suffering from civil wars and conflict with their mutual neighbor, Israel. The war and turmoil that has plagued these two countries can be traced back to various competing national interests, as well as a struggle for regional power. The various religious groups in the area have historically formed transnational advocacy networks with the intent of influencing regional politics. These groups have proved to of been a major factor in the history of both nations.

With a death toll in the hundred of thousands, and millions displaced, the Syrian civil war has become a violent mark on the world’s history. What started as a peaceful protest has spread over five years, has evolved into a war with a tyrannical government, a clashing rebellion, and terrorism fighting either side. But what is it that really fuels the immense amount of violence? It can be narrowed down to four groups that are obvious. The government and the rebels are the forerunners in violence in the war, sure, but they aren’t the only ones. There are the terrorist groups, with skewed views to support the destruction of people and things around them, and in itself the stark difference of the religions and ethnicities of Syria. Who causes

The Syrian Civil War has had a profound effect of all Syrians as well as neighbouring countries and the international community. With more than 11 million homeless Syrians comes consequences beyond what most of the world population has ever experienced or anticipated. Of the displaced, almost 5 million are refugees outside Syria and around 6 million have been displaced inside Syria, with half of all displaced Syrians being children. The main causes of displacement amongst the population is the violence committed by all sides of the war, and which often targets civilians or centres of high civilian activity (such as markets, hospitals, schools, workplaces or high density residential areas). One main group heavily affected by the conflict

Since the start of the Syrian civil war, over 250,000 people have been killed in acts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The United Nations has recently declared acts of genocide and crimes against humanity to be occurring in Syria, yet a massive military intervention has yet to occur. The conflict has now begun to effect mainland Europe and western powers, as the rise of ISIS has become a threat to the whole of the international community. With Germany taking in millions of refugees, they have absorbed most of the inherent terror risk, but with the recent airport bombings in Brussels and the attacks in Paris, ISIS has shown that if they are not met in Syria with grand military force now, they can and will carry out these same terror attacks in the United States and other western countries including Canada and the United Kingdom. This paper will give a brief overview of the history of the current Syrian conflict starting in 2011, and will determine whether the United Nations and the international community has jurisdiction to intervene with military force under specific documents like the Rome Statute, the United Nations 2005 Outcome Document, the United Nations Charter, the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and by comparing the current Syrian conflict to the Libyan Security Council resolutions 1970 and 1973. Lastly, this paper will provide options for Prime Minister Trudeau for Canada 's participation under the legal jurisdiction of

When Hafez al-Assad passed away from a heart attack, hope for Syria arose with promises of reform. On June 10th, 2000, Hafez passed away leaving his son Bashar al-Assad with the power over Syria. Bashar attempted to gain support over his people with promises of reform throughout Syria, including a revolutionized economy. People soon began to protest because Bashar had not been following through with his promises. These protests arose and Bashar chose to fight his people rather than meet their demands. Conflict has risen in Syria because of poor political and geographical systems whether this be through the way Assad governs, or through the destruction of Syria.

The Syrian Civil War continues to be a major issue in the world today. Though it began as an issue over the resignation of President Bashar Al Assad against the government and Syrians, the war has greatly escalated. It currently involves over 50 different groups, all supporting either the government or the Syrian people, but possessing a slightly different goal. All of this violence poses a threat to individual nations all through the world, focusing on the immigration of refugees into such nations and the impact of such a movement upon that nation. Furthermore, all of this violence has violated the human rights of millions of people, with rape , torture, and harsh execution style killings occurring on a daily basis. Millions of people caught

Dystopia is swarming throughout the world, with corruption in governments, totalitarian and irresponsible leaders, and political instability throughout almost every single nation in some form. Countries and communities have been dealing with or have dealt with this serious issue for hundreds and hundreds of years, and will for many more. Examples stretch back as far as Ancient Rome, when ruling emperors such as Nero ostracized his opponents, people of certain culture, and others seen as infidels, leading to tension and the eventual death of hundreds of thousands. A dystopian society can be defined as a society consisting of a severe unbalance between the citizens and their government; Bashar al-Assad, President of Syria, made many nefarious

When ISIS commenced operations against Bashar Al Assad and the Syrian government, foreign volunteers rushed to join their ranks, 200 American citizens among them. The presence and national security implications of these fighters is well documented by the media, and their motivations are transparent and easily discernible through propaganda produced by ISIS. But what about the 108 Americans who have fought for the Kurds against ISIS? While their individual motivations are expressed through interviews granted to the media, their motivations as a group and the greater implications of their service have been less scrutinized and deserve greater attention. There is a historical analogue to the present volunteers, however, that has been well documented and provides a basis with which to make an informed evaluation. In the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939, 2800 Americans fought with the International Brigades of the Republicans against the Nationalists. The American volunteers fighting for the Kurds against ISIS exhibit many of the same characteristics and motivations of the Americans who fought for the Republicans in Spain. By showing that the motivations of the two groups—separated by a lifetime—are fundamentally the same, context can be provided. A feeling of responsibility to the broader, global humanity motivated both generations of volunteers. Ideology, though different in these two cases, was a driving factor for both groups: political in the Spanish Civil War and

Comparable to past catastrophic events throughout world history, Syria’s civil war began as a chain of significant circumstances which lead to eventual turmoil. Although the Arab Springs, a series of uprisings against dictators in northern Africa and southwest Asia, was the primary basis for the Syrian civil war, climate change induced drought was undoubtedly the inception that provoked the Arab Spring in Syria. Water is essential to human life aiding in agriculture production and livestock care as well as basic human nourishment. Without this life supporting element, rural people flooded to the cities in droves seeking their basic human needs. Along with millions of rural Syrians, Iraq refugees were also flocking to the Syrian cities for comfort and aid. With overcrowded cities, minimal resources, few jobs, and an oppressive government, Syria was doomed for rebellion and civil war, especially considering rebellions in neighboring countries was so successful. Peaceful protests for basic human needs and equal rights were met with aggressive opposition by government militants, which fueled more protests and more deaths. Ultimately, the record drought of 2006-2011 eventually caused the Arab Spring which lead to the Syrian civil war.

In Syria, the relatively conservative, patriarchal and politically repressive pre-war society posed limitations on women’s rights movements and for advocacy of greater political freedoms, social justice, non-discrimination and gender equality. Although, Syria arguably grants greater rights to women than most other countries in the middle east, discrimination against women is clearly found in its laws relating to women’s personal status and role in the family, including issues related to marriage, inheritance, custody, divorce, and gender-based violence. Conservative interpretations of Sharia law largely influence these laws and has entrenched cultural and religious norms with regards to female behavior and the concept of ‘family honor.’

"You go to schools where Syrian refugees are, and you see that their drawings are mostly of houses being bombed, or people being killed or bodies on ground," "This trauma by violence is the biggest threat for the future of Syria,” says Guterres. "Girls are driven to prostitution by their own families. It’s a tragedy," (Abdo). The Syrian civil war was started by the lack of responsibility Assad and the Syrian Government had for their people. Assad was not supposed to be ruler at all. Assad doesn’t understand the true human emotion that the Syrian people feel. His ruling has only increased the civil war and hatred between the two groups of people, those rebelling and the leaders of Syria, and Enlarged Syria’s crisis. The people of Syria have rights just like every other human on this earth.(Zisser) Therefore, the government should take care of their people, instead of his position of power.

“The people want the fall of the regime, It’s your turn doctor,” read a simple message crudely spray-painted on a school wall in the southern Syrian city of Darra. Little did the teenager perpetrators know that their defiant graffiti would act as a catalyst to one of the greatest humanitarian crisis in modern history. The message was directed towards Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, who was a practicing ophthalmologist prior to his presidency. It was a cry for democracy, a challenge towards al-Assad totalitarian authority in an oppressed and unstable region. Hosni Mubarak and Muammar Gaddafi, dictators of Libya and Egypt, had just watched their regime collapse in a political uprising, leaving the al-Assad administration distressed over a similar revolution. Consequently, the boys were promptly arrested, beaten, and interrogated for their message of rebellion. Relatives, neighbors, and hundreds of other discontented citizens took the streets in protest in which al-Assad’s security forces responded to by opening fire, killing several. Thus marking the beginning of the Syrian civil war. As news spread hundreds of thousands more started taking the street in protest. Al-Assad responded with an iron fist, using force to hinder the protesting. The brutal and uncompromising response was intended to coerce Syrian civilians into submission, instead the opposite occurred, civilian resolve for revolution was strengthened.

The “just cause criterion is central in the “just war” doctrine. When assessing the sufficient “just cause” reasons the principle of self-defence is undoubtedly tolerable. It can be extended to the reason of assisting aid to victims of oppression or external threat (Moseley n.d.). Following this principle, the mass murder of the Syrian civilians by the government forces that reached nearly 40000 (Aloyo 2014) create a justified cause for the USA and the international community in general. However, in the case of Syria using forces against the aggression as a whole will be an impossible task, as both parties

Syria’s civil war. It all started in 2011 in the Syrian city of Deraa. Syrians protested after 15 schoolchildren had been arrested and tortured for writing anti-government graffiti on a wall. The protest was peaceful to begin with calling for the kids' release, but the government responded angrily. On March 18, 2011 the syrian army opened fire on protesters, killing four people. People were shocked and angry at what had happened and soon the unrest spread to other parts of the country.