Can the Syrian Army Stop the Killing Machine?

Can the Syrian Army Stop the Killing Machine?

في الأربعاء ٠٥ - أكتوبر - ٢٠١١ ١٢:٠٠ صباحاً

Can the Syrian Army Stop the Killing Machine?

By Radwan Ziadeh

The Syrian regime has learned from the successes of the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions and the failures of the fallen autocracies. Since the Syrian demonstrations began in March, the regime has prohibited all media presence and declared the army's mandatory involvement a reliable help to demonstrators. The chiefs of security directed forces to open fire on the protestors, declaring this the only way to deter more young people from joining them. Indeed, the snipers responsible for shooting unarmed protestors received orders directly from military intelligence and air force leadership.

The Syrian regime's continued violence has two potential outcomes. On one hand, the army may choose to interfere to protect the demonstrators. This act would most likely involve a semi-military coup against the security services, which have continued killing with impunity in cooperation with the Syrian army's fourth division, led by Maher al-Asad, brother of the Syrian President. On the other hand, if the Syrian army fails to intervene, demonstrators might call for international intervention as protection from the regime's aggressive crimes against them. Read More.

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A View from Beirut

By Magnus Norell

When the Secretary General of the Arab League went to Damascus and announced the League's intention to strike a deal with the Assad regime, it was a clear-cut case of 'too little, too late.' The announcement that multi-party elections would be held withinthree years - in spite of one of the most persistent uprisings since the Arab Spring began - can only be seen by the Syrian demonstrators as a slap in the face.

It remains unclear whether Secretary General Al-Araby himself really believed in the deal, but nevertheless, the agreement will hardly make a resolution in Syria any easier. On the contrary, the deal does not even begin to address the very real grievances that have fuelled the six-month uprising. And President Assad himself might not even grab this life-line, as he refused to budge on key demands, such as withdrawing troops and releasing jailed demonstrators. Read More.

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