Syrian Civil War
By: Ghadeer Lamah
Background Information
Syrias population in 2011 was 74%
Sunni Muslim, 13% Alawite Muslim, 10%
Christian, and 3% Druze. This division of
religion later plays a role in the conflict in
Syria. Syrias Government was led by
Bashar al-Assad, an Alawite Muslim. He
was appointed, not elected, president by the
Baathist party after his fathers death.
Bashar al-Assad is still president of Syria to
this day (Wikipedia).
Another important
Arabia, and Syria (Syrian Civil War).
How Did It Start?
Bashar al-Assads way of governing and
running Syria was not something the citizens
agreed with. His vision to modernize and
advance Syria was a good idea, but his steps
taken to achieve this are what angered
Syrians. He was a ruler favoring Alawites
and Christians over Sunnis. He enforced a
government that was unequal between the
poor and the rich, infuriating
those who were poor; this
piece of background
happened to also be the
information is the Arab
majority of the country
Spring. The Arab
(Rafizadeh). The Arab Spring
Spring refers to the democratic uprisings
inspired Syrian protesters to rise up against
that broke out independently and spread
Bashar al-Assad and his regime in March
across the Arab world in 2011. The
2011 because they demanded the
movement originated in Tunisia in
governmental system to change, they wanted
December 2010, quickly moving into Egypt,
more freedom, and wanted a publicly
Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, Saudi
elected government. Protesters were not
afraid to voice their opinions of the political
over the country. Even though some of the
instability and were advocating for
fighters are for sure deemed terrorists by
democratic changes. As can be predicted,
western countries and the US, like ISIS,
these protests did not resonate well in the
plenty of the other fighters are still to be
minds of the government,
and the government was not
afraid to fight fire with fire
(Wiersema).
Syrian Civil War Today
considered freedom fighters (Rodgers).
Bashar and his family have been
holding power of Syria for over three
decades, and they are not going to
give that up so easy. Jeremy Bowen,
a writer and editor of BBC News
After all these uprisings,
Bashar al-Assad did not
back down. This caused the issue to quickly
transform into a full blown civil war. Bashar
al-Assad and his regime received military
and financial aid from Russia and Iran to
said, I think Bashar knows what he's
doing. Syria is the Assad family business,
and he inherited the chairmanship. But he
rules by consensus as the rest of the family
and its long-standing friends have big stakes
and a big say (Bowen).
help them fight off the rebels in the country,
which were majority of Sunnis. On the other
hand, the rebels were supported by Turkey,
Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. (Rodgers).
Bashar al-Assads Side of the Story
What Do The Rebels Believe?
In November 2012, Syrian opposition
factions met in Doha, Qatar and formed
what is known as the National Coalition for
Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition
Bashar believes that he is fighting
against all terrorists who are trying to take
Forces. The National Coalition claim to
maintain the national sovereignty and
independence of Syria, preserve the unity of
the extreme (Wikipedia). They massacred
its people, and try their hardest to overthrow
anyone who does not comply with their
the Assad regime. The reason for the
extremist way of life.
opposition not being able to succeed, like
their predecessors the Syrian National
Council, is that the leaders were in
disagreement. This leads to the resignation
of leaders shortly after one another (Guide
to the Syrian Opposition).
ISIS Sneak Their Way In
Due to the huge support given to the
Assad regime from Iran and Russia, and the
lack of leadership of the oppositions and
their parties, ISIS found a golden
opportunity to find their way into the minds
of Sunnis while the country was week. This
formed an Islamic State of Iraq and Syria
(ISIS). Their goal is to create an Islamic
state based on radical Islamic views.
However, they do not actually represent the
religions teachings through their actions.
They adopted the Sunni Wahhabi laws that
originated in Saudi Arabia, and took them to
Refugees- The Biggest Victims
Through all the war and fighting, the
innocent bystanders of Syria are the ones
that were affected most. 12 million Syrians
have been forced from their homes; half
were children. 4 million have taken refuge in
Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon. 700 thousand
risked their lives, some traveling by boat, to
take refuge in Europe. 3,200 people lost
their lives just trying to escape by crossing
the ocean. All of these statistics are proof of
the suffering that Syrian citizens have to
endure (World Vision).
Works Cited
"Syrian Civil War | Syrian History." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica,
n.d. Web. 08 Nov. 2015.
"Religion In Syria." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Oct. 2015. Web. 08 Nov. 2015.
"Syrian Civil War | Syrian History." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica,
12 Mar. 2015. Web. 02 Nov. 2015.
Wiersema, Alisa. "Everything You Need to Know About the Syrian Civil War." ABC News.
ABC News Network, 31 Aug. 2013. Web. 04 Nov. 2015.
Rafizadeh, Majid. "How Bashar Al-Assad Became So Hated." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media
Company, 17 Apr. 2013. Web. 08
Rodgers, Lucy. "Syria: The Story of the Conflict - BBC News." <i>BBC News</i>. BBC, 09
Oct. 2015. Web. 04 Nov. 2015.
Jeremy Bowen. "What Does Assad Really Think about Syria's Civil War? - BBC News."
<i>BBC News</i>. N.p., 15 Feb. 2015. Web. 04 Nov. 2015.
"Guide to the Syrian Opposition - BBC News." <i>BBC News</i>. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Nov.
2015.
World Vision, 03 Nov. 2015. Web. 04 Nov. 2015.
