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HOW to HELP SYRIA RECOVER? Policy Paper 2
HOW TO HELP SYRIA RECOVER? Policy Paper 2 Author: Collective of the “SDGs and Migration“ project This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of Diaconia of the ECCB and can under no cirmustances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union. The document is part of the „SDGs and Migration – Multipliers and Journalists Addressing Decision Makers and Citizens“ project which is realized in the framework of the Development Education and Awareness Raising (DEAR) programme. Graphic design: BOOM s.r.o. Translation: Mánes překlady a tlumočení The following organizations are involved in the “SGDs and Migration” project, managed by Diaconia of ECCB: Global Call to Action Against Poverty (Belgium), Bulgarian Platform for International Development (Bulgaria), Federazione Organismi Cristiani Servizio Internazionale Volontario (Italy), ActionAid Hellas (Greece), Ambrela (Slovakia) and Povod (Slovenia). 1 POLICY PAPER The humanitarian situation in Syria, and its regional and global dimension With the Syrian crisis about to enter its 10th year, the humanitarian situation in Syria and in the neighbouring con- tinues to be critical. Despite the fact that in some areas of Syria the situation has largely stabilized, in Northwest and Northeast Syria there is the potential for a further escalation. There are risks of new displacements and increased humanitarian needs of a population already affected by years of conflict and depletion of resources, as witnessed in recent months as a result of the Operation Peace Spring in the Northeast and the ongoing Gov- ernment of Syria (GoS) and Government of Russia (GoR) offensive in the Northwest. -
Reconstruct- Ing Syria: Risks and Side Effects Strategies, Actors and Interests
ZUSAMMENFASSUNG ADOPT A REVOLUTION RECONSTRUCT- ING SYRIA: RISKS AND SIDE EFFECTS Strategies, actors and interests 1 2 Cover photo: Jan-Niklas Kniewel RECONSTRUCTING SYRIA: RISKS AND SIDE EFFECTS ADOPT A REVOLUTION CONTENT Summary 04 Introduction 06 Dr. Joseph Daher Reconstructing Syria: How the al-Assad regime is 09 capitalizing on destruction Jihad Yazigi Reconstruction or Plunder? How Russia and Iran are 20 dividing Syrian Resources Dr. Salam Said Reconstruction as a foreign policy tool 30 Alhakam Shaar Reconstruction, but for whom? Embracing the role of Aleppo’s 34 displaced Dispossessed and deprived: 39 Three case studies of Syrians affected by the Syrian land and property rights 03 SUMMARY RECONSTRUCTING SYRIA: RISKS AND SIDE EFFECTS SUMMARY 1 The reconstruction plans of the al-Assad regime largely ignore the needs of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees. The regime’s reconstruction strategy does not address the most pressing needs of over 10 million Syrian IDPs and refugees. Instead it caters mostly to the economic interests of the regime itself and its allies. 2 Current Syrian legislation obstructs the return of IDPs and refugees, and legalizes the deprivation of rights of residents of informal settlements. A series of tailor-made laws have made it legal to deprive inhabitants of informal settlements of their rights. This includes the restriction of housing, land and property rights through Decree 66, Law No. 10, the restriction of basic rights under the counterterrorism law, and the legal bases for public-private co-investments. These laws also serve the interests of regime cronies and regime-loyal forces. The process of demographic engineering in former opposition-held territories, which has already begun, driven by campaigns of forced displacement and the evictions of original residents, is being cemented by these laws. -
Losing Their Last Refuge: Inside Idlib's Humanitarian Nightmare
Losing Their Last Refuge INSIDE IDLIB’S HUMANITARIAN NIGHTMARE Sahar Atrache FIELD REPORT | SEPTEMBER 2019 Cover Photo: Displaced Syrians are pictured at a camp in Kafr Lusin near the border with Turkey in Idlib province in northwestern Syria. Photo Credit: AAREF WATAD/AFP/Getty Images. Contents 4 Summary and Recommendations 8 Background 9 THE LAST RESORT “Back to the Stone Age:” Living Conditions for Idlib’s IDPs Heightened Vulnerabilities Communal Tensions 17 THE HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE UNDER DURESS Operational Challenges Idlib’s Complex Context Ankara’s Mixed Role 26 Conclusion SUMMARY As President Bashar al-Assad and his allies retook a large swath of Syrian territory over the last few years, rebel-held Idlib province and its surroundings in northwest Syria became the refuge of last resort for nearly 3 million people. Now the Syrian regime, backed by Russia, has launched a brutal offensive to recapture this last opposition stronghold in what could prove to be one of the bloodiest chapters of the Syrian war. This attack had been forestalled in September 2018 by a deal reached in Sochi, Russia between Russia and Turkey. It stipulated the withdrawal of opposition armed groups, including Hay’at Tahrir as-Sham (HTS)—a former al-Qaeda affiliate—from a 12-mile demilitarized zone along the front lines, and the opening of two major HTS-controlled routes—the M4 and M5 highways that cross Idlib—to traffic and trade. In the event, HTS refused to withdraw and instead reasserted its dominance over much of the northwest. By late April 2019, the Sochi deal had collapsed in the face of the Syrian regime’s military escalation, supported by Russia. -
Assessing the French Perspectve on American
ASSESSING THE FRENCH PERSPECTVE ON AMERICAN INVOLVEMENT IN THE SYRIAN CIVIL WAR THROUGH THE 2016 BOMBINGS IN ALEPPO AND FRENCH NEWS MEDIA by KATHERINE GOLAB A THESIS Presented to the Department of Romance Languages and the Robert D. Clark Honors College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts June 2020 An Abstract of the Thesis of Katherine Golab for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in the Department of Romance Languages to be taken June 2020 Title: Assessing the French Perspective on American Involvement in the Syrian Civil War Through the 2016 Bombings in Aleppo and French News Media Approved: Géraldine Poizat-Newcomb, Ph.D. Primary Thesis Advisor As two members of the United Nations’ “Big Five” countries, it is clear that France and the United States of America are both influential global powers. Since America’s independence, the two countries have shared a long and enduring political relationship, which has greatly shaped how each respective culture has influenced the other. Due to their shared history and interdependent power dynamics, current events play an important role in the maintenance of their relationship, which is also heavily present in their shared interests in the Syrian Civil War. This work includes the translation and analysis of 12 articles from four influential French news media organizations to document and explore the French perception of the United States through their news media outlets, in relation to the 2016 attacks on Aleppo. Since both countries have been actively involved in the conflict since its inception, this compilation and analysis sheds light on French-American cooperation, their political connections, and their social relationships. -
Shifting Gears: Hts’S Evolving Use of Svbieds During the Idlib Offensive of 2019-20
SHIFTING GEARS: HTS’S EVOLVING USE OF SVBIEDS DURING THE IDLIB OFFENSIVE OF 2019-20 HUGO KAAMAN OCTOBER 2020 POLICY PAPER CONTENTS SUMMARY Since May 2019, a series of Syrian loyalist offensives backed by the Russian * 1 BACKGROUND air force has gradually encroached upon the country’s northwestern Idlib Province, home to the last major pocket of opposition-held territory. As the chief rebel group in control of Idlib, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) has * 5 THE 2019 OFFENSIVE employed dozens of suicide car bombs as part of its continued defense of the area. Formally known as suicide vehicle-born improvised explosive devices (SVBIEDs), these weapons have been a cornerstone of the group’s * 13 DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT OF TACTICS, TECHNIQUES, — and by extension, the entire opposition’s — military strategy since early stages of the war, when rebel forces began capturing and holding territory. AND PROCEDURES In an attempt to further understand this strategy and how it has evolved over time, this case study seeks to compare and contrast HTS’s past and current use of SVBIEDs, with a heavy focus on the latter. It will also examine * 19 CONCLUSION HTS’s evolving SVBIED design, paying particular attention to technical innovations such as environment-specific paint schemes, drone support teams, tablets with target coordinates, and live camera feeds, as well as * 20 ENDNOTES upgraded main charges. MAP OF HTS SVBIED ATTACKS, 2019-20 Cover photo: An up-armored SVBIED based on a pick-up truck used by HTS against a Syrian loyalist position near Abu Dali/Mushayrifa in eastern Hama on Oct. -
The Syrian Armed Conflict: Nearing the End ?
THE WAR REPORT 2018 THE SYRIAN ARMED CONFLICT: NEARING THE END ? © ICRC JANUARY 2019 I MARIJA SULCE THE GENEVA ACADEMY A JOINT CENTER OF and interests amid the unrest. The struggle for power in the CONTEXT AND HISTORY OF THE CONFLICT1 region has drawn into the conflict countries such as the US, The Syrian armed conflict began in 2011 as a civil Russia, Turkey, Iran, Israel and many others. To a degree, war, stemming from the Arab Spring protests. The Syrian the conflict has become more international in character, people started protesting in March 2011 in Daara against rather than remaining faithful to its non-international the corruption of President Bashar al-Assad’s government, civil war roots. The conflict is no longer only about Syria’s lack of political freedom and unemployment. The government and Assad’s corruption; in recent years, it has demonstrations took an ugly turn when the regime tried become a pawn in the geopolitical struggles of the Middle to crush the dissent by force.2 After the forceful response East.7 Having said that, the international community has to the demonstrations, protests against the regime erupted played an important role in trying to facilitate peace talks nationwide. The regime’s opponents started taking up between the Assad regime and the opposition groups. One arms and the unrest began its descent into civil war in July example is the Astana talks in 2017, which managed to set 2011, when a group of defectors from the Syrian military up de-escalation zones in Syria, sponsored by Russia, Turkey began forming the Free Syrian Army (FSA) with the aim and Iran,8 as well as the demilitarized zone brokered by of overthrowing President Assad’s regime.3 During the Turkey and Russia in the last remaining rebel stronghold in almost eight years of ensuing civil war, many parties have Idlib in September 2018.9 joined the conflict, including many rebel groups as well Approaching its eighth year, the Syrian war is one of the as other states, highly complicating the war. -
Access Jingzhou Cradlr-Evidence-1
Research The phenomenon of displaced people has existed since the dawn of human According to UNHCR’s report in August 2019, civilizations caused by wars, famines, mass migrations, pandemics, climate of 7.1 million refugee youngsters at school change, political persecutions, natural disasters, and more. In these calamities, age, more than half do not attend lessons. children have been the first victims of conflict and displacement experiences. The barriers that prevent them from accessing They take up roughly 30% to 60% of the refugee population. To create a digital learning become harder to overcome as they platform for this most vulnerable group who don’t have cell phones, it is crucial get older. Only six in 10 refugee children to understand how displaced children are and have been treated in complicated attend primary school—compared to nine in 10 Arrival of Jewish refugee children, port of London, February 1939. social contexts. Higher Ed. UNITED KINGDOM (1938-1945) Secondary Ed. almost entirely by voluntary contributions, with THE PRESENT Primary Ed. Before the outbreak of the Second World more than two-thirds from governments and the War, the United Kingdom started taking in Our world today is still far from peace. The European Union. globally—and only around two in 10 refugees get predominantly Jewish children fleeing the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) a secondary education, compared to the world persecution in Nazi-occupied Europe organized was established in 1946 in the aftermath of According to UNHCR, an unprecedented 79.5 average of more than eight in 10. The trend is by the rescue program Kindertransport World War II to help children. -
De-Escalation Zones in Syria
June 2020 Syria / Iraq Office De-escalation zones in Syria Background and status quo of a paradox Gregor Jaecke, David Labude In May 2017, as part of the Astana peace talks, Russia, Iran and Turkey agreed on the establishment of four so-called de-escalation zones in Syria. These zones were designed to be areas in which all hostilities should cease and in which civilians should be protected from attacks. The deal had been preceded by a massive deployment of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime, followed by increasing international pressure on Syria and its ally Russia. Three of these safe zones no longer exist today. The last one that remains, in Idlib, is under heavy pressure after severe recent fighting. In actual fact, the protection for the Syrian population that had been promised when the zones had been created was not provided by this agreement at any time. The establishment of these zones did not contribute to the peace process in Syria and, therefore, to ending the war. It is worthwhile, however, to take a closer look at how this agreement was reached and how the four zones have developed in order to identify the failures of the various international actors. These failures could defeat hopes for finding a solution for the plight of the Syrian refugees for decades. Resolving this issue will crucially depend on whether Europe and the United States (US) will become more engaged in Syria in the future and whether they will be more successful in exerting political and economic pressure on the regime and its allies – mainly Russia. -
HTS's Offline Propaganda
HTS’s Offline Propaganda: Infrastructure, Engagement and Monopoly Haid Haid ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This research is indebted to the generous support and contribution of all Syrian interviewees who shared their knowledge and experiences, especially Obaida Amer, Orwa Khalifa, Sultan, Muhammed and Mustafa. The author is also grateful to Inna Rudolf, Charlie Winter, Johanna Fürst at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation (ICSR) for their support in bringing this paper to fruition. Grateful acknowledgment also goes to Aymenn Al-Tamimi and Ali El Yassir who have enriched the findings of the research with their input and feedback. CONTACT DETAILS For questions, queries and additional copies of this report, please contact: ICSR King’s College London Strand London WC2R 2LS United Kingdom T. +44 20 7848 2098 E. [email protected] Twitter: @icsr_centre Like all other ICSR publications, this report can be downloaded free of charge from the ICSR website at www.icsr.info. © ICSR 2019 Table of Contents Executive Summary 3 Introduction 5 Semi-formal In-house Outreach Infrastructure 7 Ebaa Newspaper 7 Maktab al-dawa wa al-irshad [Dawa and Guidance Office] 9 Semi-independent Networks and Institutions 11 Affiliate Religious Education and Dawa Centres 11 Sawaed al-khir [Goodwill Corps] 14 The Salvation Government 16 Means of Engagement 19 Restricting the Flow of Information 23 Conclusion 27 1 HTS’s Offline Propaganda: Infrastructure, Engagement and Monopoly 2 HTS’s Offline Propaganda: Infrastructure, Engagement and Monopoly Executive Summary • Propaganda has long been central to violent jihadi groups as a means to disseminate their ideology, terrify their enemies, attract recruits and collect donations. -
CTC Sentinel 6:8 (2013)
AUGUST 2013 . SPECIAL ISSUE . VOL 6 . ISSUE 8 Contents Syria: A Wicked Problem for All By Bryan Price INTRODUCTION 1 Syria: A Wicked Problem for All By Bryan Price SPECIAL REPORTS 4 Turkey’s Tangled Syria Policy By Hugh Pope 9 Israel’s Response to the Crisis in Syria By Arie Perliger 11 Iran’s Unwavering Support to Assad’s Syria By Karim Sadjadpour 14 Hizb Allah’s Gambit in Syria By Matthew Levitt and Aaron Y. Zelin 18 The Battle for Qusayr: How the Syrian Regime and Hizb Allah Tipped the Balance By Nicholas Blanford 23 The Non-State Militant Landscape in Syria By Aron Lund 28 From Karbala to Sayyida Zaynab: Iraqi Fighters in Syria’s Shi`a Militias By Phillip Smyth 32 CTC Sentinel Staff & Contacts Syrian rebels stand guard as protesters wave Islamist flags during an anti-regime demonstration in Aleppo in March 2013. - AFP/Getty n august 26, 2013, Secretary from those that were truly “wicked.”3 In of State John Kerry called their interpretation, wicked problems the recent use of chemical feature innumerable causes, are weapons outside of Damascus tough to adequately describe, and by O“undeniable” and a “moral obscenity.”1 definition have no “right” answers. This is the latest chapter in an already In fact, solutions to wicked problems complex civil war in Syria, a crisis are impossible to objectively evaluate; About the CTC Sentinel that Kerry’s predecessor called a rather, it is better to evaluate solutions The Combating Terrorism Center is an “wicked problem” for the U.S. foreign to these problems as being shades of independent educational and research policy establishment.2 That term good and bad.4 institution based in the Department of Social was introduced 40 years ago by two Sciences at the United States Military Academy, professors of urban planning who were By anyone’s account, the Syrian civil West Point. -
Idlib and Its Environs Narrowing Prospects for a Rebel Holdout REUTERS/KHALIL ASHAWI REUTERS/KHALIL
THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY ■ FEBRUARY 2020 ■ PN75 Idlib and Its Environs Narrowing Prospects for a Rebel Holdout REUTERS/KHALIL ASHAWI REUTERS/KHALIL By Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi Greater Idlib and its immediate surroundings in northwest Syria—consisting of rural northern Latakia, north- western Hama, and western Aleppo—stand out as the last segment of the country held by independent groups. These groups are primarily jihadist, Islamist, and Salafi in orientation. Other areas have returned to Syrian government control, are held by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), or are held by insurgent groups that are entirely constrained by their foreign backers; that is, these backers effectively make decisions for the insurgents. As for insurgents in this third category, the two zones of particular interest are (1) the al-Tanf pocket, held by the U.S.-backed Jaish Maghaweer al-Thawra, and (2) the areas along the northern border with Turkey, from Afrin in the west to Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ain in the east, controlled by “Syrian © 2020 THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. AYMENN JAWAD AL-TAMIMI National Army” (SNA) factions that are backed by in Idlib province that remained outside insurgent control Turkey and cannot act without its approval. were the isolated Shia villages of al-Fua and Kafarya, This paper considers the development of Idlib and whose local fighters were bolstered by a small presence its environs into Syria’s last independent center for insur- of Lebanese Hezbollah personnel serving in a training gents, beginning with the province’s near-full takeover by and advisory capacity.3 the Jaish al-Fatah alliance in spring 2015 and concluding Charles Lister has pointed out that the insurgent suc- at the end of 2019, by which time Jaish al-Fatah had cesses in Idlib involved coordination among the various long ceased to exist and the jihadist group Hayat Tahrir rebel factions in the northwest. -
Der Schmutzige Krieg Gegen Syrien
Tim Anderson Der schmutzige Krieg gegen Syrien Washington, Regime Change und Widerstand Ist die Katastrophe in Syrien das Ergebnis von unglückseligen Zufäl len? Sind Krieg und Chaos im Nahen Osten Folge mißglückter Befrie dungsversuche? Der Politikwissenschaftler Tim Anderson belegt auf der Grundlage akribischer Recherchen: der Krieg in Syrien ist Teil ei nes geostrategischen Plans der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika, um die Region nach ihren Interessen neu zu ordnen. Gesellschaftliche Aus einandersetzungen und Modernisierungsprobleme wurden zum Anlaß genommen, durch Provokateure Nationalstaaten zu destabilisieren. Pseudo-islamische Terrormilizen zerstören gezielt die Infrastruktur Sy riens. Dirigiert und finanziert werden jene Söldnertruppen von rivali sierenden Anrainerstaaten wie Saudi-Arabien oder Katar. Sie begehen kriminelle Terrorakte, um diese sodann der syrischen Regierung zuzu schreiben. Bereitwillig wirken liberale westliche Medien, Nichtregie rungsorganisationen und Politiker mit bei den ›false-flag‹-Manövern, um den syrischen Präsidenten und die syrischen Streitkräfte als Mons ter zu entmenschlichen. Doch Anderson macht Hoffnung: es hat sich eine neue ›Achse des Widerstands‹ in der Region herausgebildet, die eine selbstbestimmte Zukunft der Völker im Mittleren und Nahen Os ten ermöglichen wird. Da Anderson sich vornehmlich auf anerkannte westliche Quellen aus Presse, Denkfabriken und Wissenschaft beruft, und einen üppigen Quellenanhang an jedes Kapitel anfügt, stellt DER SCHMUTZIGE KRIEG GEGEN SYRIEN eine erstklassige