Over 10,000 people have died in Syria since the start of the uprising last year. Everyone would like to see end to the killing in Syria but in spite of calls on president Bashar al-Assad to stop attacking protesters the violence continues. Is this because Assad is just a madman who enjoys ordering the deaths of his people or is there another reason? I believe he has continued the fighting as a matter of survival.
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This is in part due to a Religious conflict that goes back centuries. President Bashar al-Assad and the ruling Ba’ath party are part of a very liberal sect of Islam called the Alawites. Due do differences in their doctrine there has been contention and fighting between the Alawites and other sects of Islam, primarily the Sunnis, throughout history. The many atrocities were committed by both sides, the most recent of which was the massacre 20,000 Sunnis in the city of Hama in 1982. These atrocities give the Alawite leaders of Syria a reason to fear that the primarily Sunni rebels will seek retribution if they manage to topple the current Government.
Another factor is more purely humanitarian grievances committed by Assad and the Ba’ath party. Syria’s infamous secret police is suspected of being responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Syrians even before the uprising. Since the uprising the deaths of 7,972 civilians at the hands of government troops can be added to that list.
So why don’t Assad and the Ba’ath party end the conflict in Syria? It is because of fears of retaliation. They dare not stop their attacks on the rebels. If they lose this struggle they face being brought to justice for their atrocities either in an international court for crimes against humanity, or at the hands of an angry population.
DC
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