The difficult choice faced by the United States and its allies in Syria is rooted in the strategic errors of the early post-9/11 years.
The coastal city of Lattakia has been largely spared the intense violence and destruction of other Syrian cities. But it has not been immune to the changes that define the new norm of daily life.
The major powers involved in Syria's war are adjusting their positions to prevent an Islamist victory. This will not end but prolong the suffering.
Those who would help from the outside must rely on dialogue, contact and diplomacy, which means Russia, Iran and Assad himself all being involved, like it or not.
Arab Awakening's columnists offer their weekly perspective on what is happening on the ground in the Middle East. Leading the week, Tunisia’s political impasse.
The two Iraqi Kurdish parties’ entanglement in the Syrian Kurdish issues seems to have resulted in anti-Assad rebels and extreme jihadists retaliating against the KRG, in a spillover of the Syrian civil war.
Foreign military intervention would prolong the war and increase the carnage still further. But this does not mean that the US in conjunction with others, including Syrian civil society, cannot do anything to help the situation. Reply to Nader Hashemi.
This is a reply to Stephen Zunes' response to the author. Zunes argues that violent or nonviolent movements alike must be determined by the strategies and tactics that maximize their chances of success. The author counters that Zunes is ignoring what most Syrian citizens want from the internationa
The Assad killing machine, which was overwhelmingly nonchemical to begin with, can continue unfettered on its rampage. The killing fields of Syria – no end in sight.
The turn to diplomacy over Syria and Iran highlights the need for the broader region to find its own way to a cooperative future, says Prince El Hassan bin Talal.
Turkey needs to develop a sustainable Syria strategy if it wants to deter any internal and external threats and be influential in Syria's future.
