Sad, but if what this retired Army officer says is true, it appears to be no way out for peace to be achieved with the result of more people suffering.
Getting rid of the worst threats won't mean the war is over. It might be just beginning.
Daniel L. Davis
November 26, 2015
On November 18, The New York Times carried a story on accelerated international efforts, led by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, to reach a ceasefire in the civil war in Syria. The Times reported that Secretary Kerry said the chances of success will depend “on the ability of Syrian opposition groups to organize and negotiate with the government of President Bashar al-Assad.” But Secretary Kerry was buoyant in his optimism: “Now, all we need is the beginning of the political process, and the cease-fire goes in place.” It is difficult to overstate the unlikelihood of that outcome.
For more than four years now the Assad government has been locked in ferocious, brutal combat with opposing forces. Both sides have been accused of committing heinous war crimes against the other. Their two views remain radically different. If a ceasefire were contingent only on getting two such parties together, the task at this point would be monumental. But that might be the easiest of the required tasks.
When thinking of those opposing the Assad regime, many imagine the rebels resemble the U.S.’ rebellion against the British Crown in revolutionary America. Astoundingly, there are over1,000 identified opposition groups operating in the region. Some of these groups fight each other as much as they do the regime, since their goals, ideology and objectives differ significantly. It would be a colossal task just to organize the hundreds of the most influential groups into a single negotiating entity.
Continue reading at:
Is a Syrian Ceasefire an Impossible Dream?
Getting rid of the worst threats won't mean the war is over. It might be just beginning.
Daniel L. Davis
November 26, 2015
On November 18, The New York Times carried a story on accelerated international efforts, led by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, to reach a ceasefire in the civil war in Syria. The Times reported that Secretary Kerry said the chances of success will depend “on the ability of Syrian opposition groups to organize and negotiate with the government of President Bashar al-Assad.” But Secretary Kerry was buoyant in his optimism: “Now, all we need is the beginning of the political process, and the cease-fire goes in place.” It is difficult to overstate the unlikelihood of that outcome.
For more than four years now the Assad government has been locked in ferocious, brutal combat with opposing forces. Both sides have been accused of committing heinous war crimes against the other. Their two views remain radically different. If a ceasefire were contingent only on getting two such parties together, the task at this point would be monumental. But that might be the easiest of the required tasks.
When thinking of those opposing the Assad regime, many imagine the rebels resemble the U.S.’ rebellion against the British Crown in revolutionary America. Astoundingly, there are over1,000 identified opposition groups operating in the region. Some of these groups fight each other as much as they do the regime, since their goals, ideology and objectives differ significantly. It would be a colossal task just to organize the hundreds of the most influential groups into a single negotiating entity.
Continue reading at:
Is a Syrian Ceasefire an Impossible Dream?
