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fcastro2

Pope Francis uses Easter message to focus on Kenya, Syria and Iraq | World news | The G... - 0 views

www.theguardian.com/...-focus-on-kenya-syria-and-iraq

pope syria ISIS peace

shared by fcastro2 on 08 Apr 15 - No Cached
  • Pope Francis used his Easter message on Sunday to pray for the nearly 150 victims of the Kenya university massacre, and highlight the suffering of people across the Middle East
  • We ask for peace, above all, for Syria and Iraq, that the roar of arms may cease and that peaceful relations be restored among the various groups which make up those beloved countries
  • The Argentinian pontiff called on the international community to “not stand by before the immense humanitarian tragedy unfolding in these countries”, drawing on the plight of refugees who have fled the violence.
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • he prayed for refugees “suffering a brutal persecution” in Iraq and Syria, as Islamic State militants took over swaths of territory in the two countries
  • On Sunday Francis went beyond Syria and Iraq, referring also to the worsening situation in Libya. As rival militias vie for power, the pope spoke of his hopes “that the present absurd bloodshed and all barbarous acts of violence may cease”.
  • The pope’s speech was preceded by a multilingual mass, which included prayers in Arabic and Chinese, attended by thousands of followers.
  • Syria
  • fcastro2 on 08 Apr 15
     
    This message shows how everyone around the world, not just government, is concerned about the Syrian crisis. 
allieggg

Revisiting the Libyan War | The American Conservative - 0 views

www.theamericanconservative.com/...revisiting-the-libyan-war

shared by allieggg on 23 Nov 14 - No Cached
  • I do not in any way regret my support for that intervention, which saved many thousands of lives and helped to bring an end to a brutal regime. Still, it is impossible to look at Libya’s failed state and civil war, its proxy conflict and regional destabilization, and not conclude that the intervention’s negative effects over the long term outweigh the short-term benefits.
  • left Libya without a functioning state and little solid ground upon which to build a new political order. The likelihood of such an outcome should have weighed more heavily in my analysis.
  • My hope had been that the intervention would act to restrain other autocrats from unleashing deadly force against protesters and encourage wavering activists to push forward in their demands for change. Unfortunately, this only partially panned out and had unintended negative effects.
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • No government that bordered on Libya wanted outside intervention, presumably because they feared that they would be adversely affected by it. The Arab governments that most wanted the war were the ones least likely to suffer from its ill effects. The fact that authoritarian GCC governments supported this “humanitarian” intervention should have been a reason to be very wary of military action instead of being an argument in its favor.
  • The worst effects were on Syria. The Libya intervention may have imposed a certain level of caution on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, leading him to search for just the right level of repression to stay beneath the threshold for international action.
  • Libya intervention almost certainly encouraged Syrian activists and rebels – and their backers in the Gulf and Turkey – in their hopes for a similar international campaign on their own behalf. That unintended moral hazard probably contributed to the escalation of Syria’s civil war.
  • Intervention in Libya was always likely to give protesters and rebels in other countries false hope that their plight would trigger outside intervention as well. The moral hazard may not have been intended, but it was there for all to see.
fcastro2

Syria allies: Why Russia, Iran and China are standing by the regime - CNN.com - 1 views

www.cnn.com/...a-iran-china-russia-supporters

syria allies russia iran china middle east politics

shared by fcastro2 on 28 Jan 15 - No Cached
  • One has to do with economics; the other with ideology.
  • Russia is one of Syria's biggest arms suppliers
  • Syrian contracts with the Russian defense industry have likely exceeded $4 billion
  • ...29 more annotations...
  • Russia also leases a naval facility at the Syrian port of Tartu
  • Moscow also signed a $550 million deal with Syria for combat training jets
  • value of Russian arms sales to Syria at $162 million per year in both 2009 and 2010
  • Russia's key policy goal is blocking American efforts to shape the regio
  • Russia doesn't believe revolutions, wars and regime change bring stability and democracy
  • It believes humanitarian concerns are often used an excuse for pursuing America's own political and economic interests.
  • Putin's existential fear for his own survival and the survival of the repressive system that he and al-Assad represent
    • fcastro2
      fcastro2 on 28 Jan 15
       
      Putin is scared that the "west" will defeat Russia if Syria is defeated
  • not only driven by the need to preserve its naval presence in the Mediterranean, secure its energy contracts, or counter the West on 'regime change
  • al-Assad cannot lose because it means that one day he, Putin, might as well
  • The West handles the Islamic world the way a monkey handles a grenade," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin tweeted
  • Russia is a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council. It has the power to veto Security Council resolutions against the Syrian regime and has done so repeatedly over the past two years
  • religion and strategy.
  • Islamic Republic has provided technical help such as intelligence, communications and advice on crowd control and weapons as protests in Syria morphed into resistance
  • The last thing Iran wants now is a Sunni-dominated Syria -- especially as the rebels' main supporters are Iran's Persian Gulf rivals: Qatar and Saudi Arabi
  • proxy through which Iran can threaten Israel with an arsenal of short-range missiles
  • Iran counted on Syria as its only Arab ally during its eight-year war with Iraq. Iraq was Sunni-dominate
  • war between the front of hegemony and the front of resistance
  • Syrian government is a victim of international plots
  • Iran says the main objective of this plot is to make the region safer for Israe
  • Many believe Iran is Washington's greatest threat in the region, especially with its nuclear potential
  • the Americans will sustain damage like when they interfered in Iraq and Afghanistan
  • Syria's third-largest importer in 2010, according to data from the European Commission
  • maintain its financial tie
  • indicates that China sees Syria as an important trading hub
  • China has said foreign countries shouldn't meddle in Syria's internal affairs
  • Rather than siding with either Assad or the opposition and standing aside to 'wait and see,' Beijing is actively betting on both
  • China said it is firmly opposed to the use of chemical weapons and supports the U.N.'s chemical weapons inspectors.
  • It also said it wants a political solution for Syri
  • China is a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council. And like Russia, China has repeatedly blocked sanctions attempts against the Syrian regime
  • fcastro2 on 28 Jan 15
     
    Syria's allies, Russia, Iran, and China, all stand by them despite western powers opposing the Syrian government. There are different reasons to why these powers seem to stay with Syria such as Russia's ideologies, Iran's strategy, or China's trading. Either way, these government will stand by them until there is nothing left to lose. 
fcastro2

Syrian crisis: India, China and Russia call for peace negotiations | Business Standard ... - 0 views

www.business-standard.com/...gotiations-115020201360_1.html

india china russia peace ISIS syria politics war

shared by fcastro2 on 02 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • India, China and Russia on Monday reiterated that there is no military solution to the Syrian crisis and urged all parties to abjure violence and resume peace negotiations
  • The Foreign Ministers of the three sides called on the Syrian Government and opposition factions to resume the Geneva process as soon as possible, stick to the approach of political settlement and draw on the useful experience of others to find a "middle way" that conforms to Syria's national conditions and accommodates the interests of all parties, and start the national reconciliation process at an early date.
  • They highly valued the efforts by Russia to convene the first meeting of inter-Syrian consultations between representatives of the Syrian Government and opposition groups in January 2015
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • "They called on all parties in Syria to implement relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council,
  • The Foreign Ministers expressed deep concern over the ongoing turmoil in Iraq and its spill over effects, and emphasized their respect for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq, and their support for the efforts of the Iraqi government to uphold domestic stability and combat terroris
  • all parties in Iraq enhance unity and reconciliation so as to swiftly restore national stability and social order.
  • They called on all parties to support the Iraqi government and people in their efforts to build a stable, inclusive and united Iraq taking into account the interests of all segments of the Iraqi society
  • The Ministers urged the international community to provide continued assistance and humanitarian support for Iraqi refugees and internally displaced people
  • fcastro2 on 02 Mar 15
     
    India, China and Russia are urging all Syrian parties to stop the war, and resume peace negotiations. While these major powers are urging for peace, it seems to be the last thing on the parties agenda. 
fcastro2

U.N. concerned by Islamic State's ability to unite Afghan insurgents - 0 views

www.reuters.com/...state-un-idUSKBN0MC20920150316

UN ISIS Afghanistan

shared by fcastro2 on 16 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • The United Nations is concerned by the presence of Islamic State in Afghanistan but says the militant group's power to unite insurgents is more significant than its capabilities in the war-torn country
  • forces
  • attempts are under way to broker an end to 13 years of conflict between the Taliban, who were ousted in a U.S.-led war in 2001, and Afghan and foreign
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • Afghan forces killed 10 fighters who claimed to be part of Islamic State on Sunday
  • growing numbers of disgruntled Taliban fighters have joined the militant group that has seized swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq
  • significance is not so much a function of its intrinsic capacities in the area but of its potential to offer an alternative flagpole to which otherwise isolated insurgent splinter groups can rall
  • U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's latest report to the Security Council on Afghanistan said a handful of Taliban commanders had declared allegiance to Islamic State and that an increasing number were seeking funding or cooperation with Islamic State.
  • The radical Islamist group has declared a caliphate in the territory it controls in Syria and Iraq. A U.S.-led alliance has been targeting Islamic State with air strikes in Iraq and Syria for some six month
  • Militants loyal to Islamic State have also been exploiting chaos in Libya, while Boko Haram, which is seeking to carve an Islamist emirate out of northeastern Nigeria, has pledged its allegiance to Islamic State
  • "an alignment of circumstances that could be conducive to fostering peace talks" between the Afghan government and the Taliban. Officials said last month the Afghan Taliban has signaled it is willing to open peace talks.
  • continues a frank dialogue with the Taliban on humanitarian access and on human right
  • fcastro2 on 16 Mar 15
     
    The UN is concerned by the presence of ISIS in Afghanistan but says the militant group's power to "unite insurgents is more significant than its capabilities in the war-torn country."
fcastro2

Syrian Opposition Groups Wary Of Russia's Invitation To Moscow : NPR - 0 views

www.npr.org/...f-russias-invitation-to-moscow

russia opposition groups syria politics peace talks war

shared by fcastro2 on 13 Feb 15 - No Cached
  • U.N. envoy is pressing ahead on that front, while Russia tries to play peacemaker
    • fcastro2
      fcastro2 on 13 Feb 15
       
      U.N. continues to try to collaborate with both groups while Russia wants to be a "peacemaker."
  • Russia is inviting the parties to Moscow this month, but some opposition groups won't go to a country that has been backing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad
    • fcastro2
      fcastro2 on 13 Feb 15
       
      Rebel groups in Syria do not trust the Russian government since they have been supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. 
  • ...14 more annotations...
  • Syrian opposition figures have good reason to be skeptical of Moscow's diplomatic moves
  • they provide weapons and advice to the Assad regime and they have taken an approach of cherry-picking who they talk to and who the regime talks to
  • The U.S. is not pressuring the opposition groups it supports to go to Moscow. Instead it's suggesting they should think about it so that Russia can't blame the opposition for the diplomatic stalemate
    • fcastro2
      fcastro2 on 13 Feb 15
       
      U.S. is not pushing for the opposition groups to go to Moscow to talk peace but they feel they have nothing to lose if they do.
  • "If there are no guarantees as to the end state, that is, a movement towards a transitional government with full executive powers without Assad, then there is really no reason to go
  • meant to revive the peace process that started in Geneva in 2012
  • Russians aren't in a position to decide who will take part in future negotiations. And this has been the whole problem with their approach.
    • fcastro2
      fcastro2 on 13 Feb 15
       
      Russian strategy
  • He says the Russian job has always been to deliver the regime to the negotiating table, but the Syrian government only wants to talk about fighting terrorism, not discuss a political transition.
  • We are hoping, more than expecting, that it will be a success," he says.De Mistura describes Syria as the largest humanitarian crisis since World War II
  • They all agree that we need to do something to avoid that the Syrian conflict goes into a back burner and that movement towards some type of political solution should take place this year,"
  • He says that's because Assad thinks he's winning — and U.S. plans to train and equip 5,000 moderate rebels a year won't help level the playing field.
  • The rise of the self-proclaimed Islamic State and the U.S.-led airstrikes against that group in both Syria and Iraq now top the U.S. agenda.
  • war in Syria has been raging for nearly four years and it's been challenging for diplomats to get warring sides to agree on even temporary truces.
    • fcastro2
      fcastro2 on 13 Feb 15
       
      No guarantees as to what the alleged "peace talks" will provide from the opposition groups. 
  • fcastro2 on 13 Feb 15
     
    Russia is attempting to bring opposition groups and the Syrian government to Moscow in order to "talk peace." In the past, Russia has supported the Syrian President and because of this, opposition groups are wearing of these alleged "peace talks." 
alarsso

Syria after Assad: Heading toward a Hard Fall? - The Washington Institute for Near East... - 0 views

www.washingtoninstitute.org/...sad-heading-toward-a-hard-fall

syria post-assad heading institute outcome

shared by alarsso on 16 Feb 15 - No Cached
  • To a certain extent, the nature of the transition will be i
  • nfluenced by how the Assad regime leaves the scene.
  • forces retain their cohesion
  • ...23 more annotations...
  • control
  • whether the opposition moves to purge regime employees
  • offices are trashed and looted
  • violent power struggle
  • unitary state with a strong central government is unlikely to emerge from the civil war.
  • great challenges exerting control over local leaders who fought the regime
  • ederation of warlords (probably former military and security chiefs) ruling over fiefdoms
  • unitary entity
  • Syrian army
  • opposition will have more time to set up rudimentary institutions
  • provide humanitarian aid for Syrian refugees
  • likely be accompanied by a new round of massacres and ethnic cleansing
  • Sunni extremist groups.
  • new opportunities for external actors, especially Iran and Hizballah, both of which would seek allies among the former regime's Alawite security elite
  • Iran's
  • remain a major player in the Levant
  • hostile to Iran and more closely aligned with Turkey, Egypt, or Saudi Arabia.
  • revolutionary Sunni government in Syria
  • Iran and Hizballah
  • support to former regime
  • Washington should continue with preparations to contain spillover from the conflict
  • enabling it to collect tariffs on imports
  • Washington will need to know as much as it can about the key players,
kdancer

The ISIS Challenge - 0 views

nationalinterest.org/...m-even-tougher-solutions-11081

ISIS Syria Iraq

shared by kdancer on 13 Apr 15 - No Cached
  • kdancer on 13 Apr 15
     
    The use of U.S. military force against ISIS is a significant escalation whose long-term significance is elusive. The announced justification for the military strikes combined a humanitarian rationale (the exigent need of the Yazidis stranded on their bleak mountain) with the threat that ISIS posed to American citizens in the Kurdish capital of Erbil.
fcastro2

Turkey shuts border crossings as fighting worsens around Syria's Aleppo | Reuters - 0 views

www.reuters.com/...ndonesia-idUSKBN0M71VT20150311

turkey border fighting syria ISIS war

shared by fcastro2 on 25 Mar 15 - No Cached
  • Turkey has closed two border crossings with Syria as a security precaution as fighting around the northern Syrian city of Aleppo intensifies
  • crossings at Oncupinar and Cilvegozu in Turkey's southern Hatay province have been shut to vehicles and individuals crossing from Syria since Monday,
  • "Turkey has some security concerns and it is natural for measures to be taken based on the threat assessment conducted
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • Humanitarian aid will not be affected, the government official said. Syrians with passports are still allowed to cross into Syria
  • Turkey has kept its borders open to refugees since the start of Syria's civil war four years ago, but it has come under criticism for doing too little to keep foreign fighters crossing and joining militant groups including Islamic State
  • divided between government forces and insurgent groups fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad in a conflict estimated to have killed 200,000 people
  • The closure of the Turkish border posts also comes after an air strike on Sunday
  • fcastro2 on 25 Mar 15
     
    After fighting increased in Syria, Turkey decided to close dow two border crossings that lead to Syria as a precaution. Until this point, Turkey has kept its borders open to Syrian refugees and even so it still has been criticized for doing too little to stop foreign fighters from entering Syria. 
mcooka

Education caught in the crossfire of conflict | #ChildrenofSyria - 0 views

childrenofsyria.info/...education

education Syria system war crossfire conflict

shared by mcooka on 24 Feb 16 - No Cached
  • he attack on Al Hayat Primary School in Qaboun, eastern Damascus in November 2014 killed 11 children and injured many more.
  • But the Qaboun assault was just one of at least 68 attacks on schools across Syria between January and December 2014 alone
  • round 1 in 5 – have been damaged, destroyed, or are currently sheltering internally displaced people according to data gathered by UNICEF
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • nside Syria, two million children and adolescents are currently out of school.
  • “We simply cannot allow an entire generation of children and adolescents to be lost to ignorance, exploitation, despair and radicalisation.”
  • International humanitarian law, which declares that schools be respected as zones of peace and safe havens for children, has counted for little. The long-term consequences for children – and their place in the Syria of the future – can only be guessed at.
  • utside Syria, more than 50 per cent (600,000) of Syrian refugee children and adolescents are out of school, and this number continues to grow.
  • The campaigns include distribution of teaching and learning materials as well as school bags with stationary. Similar campaigns have been rolled out in countries hosting refugees.
  • When I go to the refugee camps and see the smiling faces of children, then I think we should not give up in the face of difficulties,
  • ublic schools receiving Syrian children are overstretched. Non-formal education spaces cannot absorb large numbers of students.
  • achers are not well equipped to work with stress, overcrowding and difference. Syrian children and adolescents are receiving multiple and dispersed forms of curricula and content that are not adapted to their capacity and needs and that come with enormous challenges in certification and accreditation.
  • mcooka on 24 Feb 16
     
    This article also talks about the problems Syrian children face regarding education. International laws about "schools remain out of conflict" has gone ignored for a long time. Public Schools are overstretched in neighboring countries due to extra children in schools. The most interesting part of this article is the video which goes into more details about the growth of education in the last four years. 
jherna2a

'Humanitarian catastrophe' unfolding in Yemen: UN - 1 views

www.aljazeera.com/...ing-yemen-160217054116797.html

Yemen crisis UN war Saudi Arabia

shared by jherna2a on 17 Feb 16 - No Cached
  • jherna2a on 17 Feb 16
     
    Millions of Yemenis are in need of aid. Civilians are being targeted by both the Houthi rebels and Saudi forces.
joepouttu

Russia dismisses Syria no-fly zone call - 0 views

www.cbsnews.com/...aid-besieged-areas-putin-assad

Russia Syria Refugees Safety

shared by joepouttu on 17 Feb 16 - No Cached
  • joepouttu on 17 Feb 16
     
    A Syrian no-fly zone has been proposed that could potentially bring safety to tens of thousands of Syrian refugees. Russia is the main obstacle in the way of implementing the zone, reluctant to end its airstrikes. 
cthomase

UN Aid Appeal for War-Torn Libya Only 1 Per Cent Funded - 1 views

abcnews.go.com/...orn-libya-cent-funded-36659360

war aid UN Libya

shared by cthomase on 04 Feb 16 - No Cached
  • cthomase on 04 Feb 16
     
    This article is particularly relevant to our discussion in class on Tuesday. A UN plea for aid funding has largely gone unanswered, with only 2 donors giving approximately 1% of what was asked for. The UN representative questioned why no one would give by saying "the U.N. cannot "explain or justify why the international community hesitates to provide humanitarian funding." Perhaps because it's unstable? Perhaps because the world is trying to avoid another corrupt leader such as Gaddafi?
jherna2a

UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia face inquiry and high court legal action - 0 views

www.theguardian.com/...iry-yemen-bombing-human-rights

Yemen UK war international law

shared by jherna2a on 05 Apr 16 - No Cached
  • jherna2a on 05 Apr 16
     
    The UK has been supplying Saudi Arabia with arms to use against Yemen, specifically the Houthi rebels. There have been 119 strikes of violations to international humanitarian law.
jherna2a

UN Panel Alleges Violations of International Law in Yemen - 0 views

www.voanews.com/...3164380.html

Yemen Saudi Arabia war international law

shared by jherna2a on 05 Apr 16 - No Cached
  • jherna2a on 05 Apr 16
     
    Saudi Arabia may be violating international humanitarian laws in their fight against Yemen. More than 82% of the population in Yemen are in need of food and medical care and there have been 5,800 casualties.
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